OCR Text |
Show Tha ltoantt Towers uf Ireland. Hundreds ot years ago, as far back as tho sixth and not later than the twelfth century, It was the custom In Ireland and other Christian countries to build tall narrow towers close to many ot the churches. It Is not known for certain why they were erected.but It Is supposed thnt, besides being used for religious purposes, they afforded sheltor for priests and people In times of danger. After bells had been Introduced Intro-duced they wcro sometimes hung In theso towers. Tho round towers were mostly from eighty to a hundred feet high, and usually crowned with a peaked roof. Th y wore lighted by small windows, nnd the ascent from story to story was made by means ot ladders. As n matter ot safety, the door was placed nt n considerable distance dis-tance from the ground. Above a hundred hun-dred of thef e towers, more or less perfect, per-fect, are still to bo found In various parts of Ireland |