"Hal has killed a beef for our poor and we make daily a large pot of good soup which is served gratis to twenty two people at present. So far so well; but beyond our small circle what a waste of misery; how are we to relive it?" So wrote Elizabeth Smith of Baltiboys, Co Wicklow, in her journal The Wicklow World of Elizabeth Smith, 1840-1850 edited by Dermot James and Seamus O Maitiu (Woodfield Press £9.99) during January 1847. Her observations of her tenants and neighbours during the tragic decade are unique, and her keen eye and sharp tongue were directed at the neglectful landlords, the priest and the parson; but her charitable acts more than compensated for her critical comments.