As soon as we had anchored, my lord went forthwith on shore, and presently after brought off fresh provisions and water; such as sheep, pigs, fowls, &c. to refresh his ships company, though he had lately been very weak himself, and had suffered the same extremity with the rest:  For, in the time of our former want, having only a little water remaining by him in a pot, it was broken in the night and all the water lost.  The sick and wounded were soon afterwards landed and carried to the principal town, called Dingenacush[368], about three miles distant from the haven, and at which place our surgeons attended them daily.  Here we well refreshed ourselves, while the Irish harp sounded sweetly in our ears, and here we, who in our former extremity were in a manner half dead, had our lives as it were restored.

[Footnote 368:  Called otherwise Dingle Icouch by the editor of Astleys collection.—­E.]

This Dingenacush is the chief town in all that part of Ireland, consisting but of one street, whence some smaller ones proceed on either side.  It had gates, as it seemed, in former times at either end, to shut and open as a town of war, and a castle also.  The houses are very strongly built, having thick stone walls and narrow windows, being used, as they told us, as so many castles in time of troubles, among the wild Irish or otherwise.  The castle and all the houses in the town, except four, were taken and destroyed by the Earl of Desmond; these four being held out against him and all his power, so that he could not win them.  There still remains a thick stone wall, across the middle of the street, which was part of their fortification.  Some of the older inhabitants informed us, that they were driven to great extremities during their defence, like the Jews of old when besieged by the Roman emperor Titus, insomuch that they were constrained by hunger to feed on the carcasses of the dead.  Though somewhat repaired, it still remains only the ruins of their former town.  Except in the houses of the better sort, they have no chimnies, so that we were very much incommoded by the smoke during our stay at that place.  Their fuel is turf, which they have very good, together with whins or furze.  As there grows little wood hereabout, building is very expensive; as also they are in want of lime, which they have to bring from a far distance.  But they have abundance of stone, the whole country appearing entirely composed of rocks and stones, so that they commonly make their hedges of stone, by which each mans ground is parted from his neighbour.  Yet their country is very fruitful, and abounds in grass and grain, as appears by the abundance of cattle and sheep; insomuch that we had very good sheep, though smaller than those of England, for two shillings, or five groats a-piece, and good pigs and hens for threepence each.