The Sun.
London, England, 1823-02-22 00:00:00

FOR THE SUN.

LETTER Iv.
Mn. EDlTOn—Circumstances, in themselves
apparently the most trivial, have often led to the
detection of crimes, thus shewing the hand of an
over-ruling Providence in bringing the perpetra-
tors to justice. The assassins of Mr. Brierton
too long, through the aid of their ghostly father,
eluded the most unremitting researches of the
most active Magistrates, and even baffled the
skill of the Learned Attorney-General ; but a
conversation, accidentally overheard by a youth

of seventeen or eighteen years of age, .at length
developed the whole iniquitous transaction. On
the circumstances being revealed to an indefa-
tigable Magistrate, he set off for the neighbour-
hood of Father Sylvester O'Sullivan, Parish

Priest of Knockacoppal, accompanied by a strong

military force, both cavalry and infantry; with
the former'he nearly surrounded the entire Parish,
placing sentinels of the latter at the houses

of perions most suspected. Ile then, about three
o'clock in the mor►►ing, went to that of the Priest,
accompanied by the Officer commanding the
Dragoons ; and, on their being admitted, his
Reverence joined them, evidently much alarmed.

The Magistrate explained to him the nature of
his visit, and the precautions he had used to pre-
vent escape; therefore he called upon him, as an
act of justice and humanity to the innocent, to re-
veal to him the names of those persons who had
embrued their hands ire the blood of Brierton ; but
the Priest replied, that he could not, without im-
plicating his whole Parish. Some escaped, a
number were apprehended, of whom five were
tried at Tralee on the 7th of August, convicted
on the clearest evidence, and executed.
Bryan Maguire, the bearer of the Mail, a part
of whose depositions I gave in my Third Letter,
was examined on the trial, and confirmed what
he had before sworn. One of the other wit-
nesses, an approver. named, Patrick Shea, swore
that Wm. Healy, one of the prisoners, knocked
Brierton ofF his horse by the blow of a pike on
his bead, and that in the presence of the priest.
Daniel Sullivan, a youth of 18 years of age, who
had been rather a spectator of than an actor in
the dreadful scene, corroborated the testimony
of Shea in many points, and gave very clear evi-
dence on others. This last named witness has
since declared, that having been placed on a
wall, he saw the' priests (Father S. O'Sullivan
and his coadjutor) near to the unfortunate vic-

tint not more than five minutes before he was
shot; but that, when the gun was levelled at
him, there was a rush of the crowd to get out
oT °danger, and he then lost sight of the priesti.
It was also proved on the trial, that Brierton
had been ordered to say his prayers (Maguire
had before gone through this ceremony to the
satisfaction of. the crowd) ; and, after repeating
the Lord's Prayer, he declared that he could say

no more; npen which the multitude" cried out, as
with one voice, " lie is a rrotestaot, murder him !"
and he was murdered in a manner unekampled
even among savagvs—one arm severed from his
body by a scythe, his skull fractured by pikes,
and his bead merely banging by a piece of shin,
and several pike and gun-shot tvounds in his
body ; so that so shocking an object was
scarcely ever before exhibited before a Coroner
anti Jury. It is worthy of notice, that Arthur
O'Lpary, one of Father flock, the
leader of the party, and one of those convicted
of the murder, first proposed to cut off Brier-
ton's ears, and let him go ; and for this purpose
he produced a pen-knife, but this was objected
to by a man not yet tried, on the, ground,
,4,‘ that
if allowed to escape, he would bang the whole
parish ;" upon which O'Leary ordered another
man to shoot hint.
I shall now, in coolie-unity with the promise in
ray last Letter, chew that Father. O'Sullivan had
not fallen in accidentally with the Insurgents, as
he wislres the world to believe, but went on pur-
pose to meet them, mut that by appointment.—
One of his flock, lately apprehended, has con-
fessed to a Magistrate, that he went to the Priests'
house, at seven o'clock in the morning of the
fatal 25th of January, with a message from his
parishioners and other insurgents, requesting he
would attend kmeoting' to be holden at
o'clock on that day at Shannagh Cross. What
was the result ? Instead of giving information to
the Magistrates in his neighbourhood—instead
of sending notice to ilillarney, to Milistreet, or
rocitabeg, all military stations, though be .had
been apprized of it five hours before it was
to take place--he sent his vestments to the
house of Mr. O'Sullivan, near to the place of ren-
dezvous, and he himself,
" Punctual as Lovers to the moment sworn,"
attended the Meeting, accompanied by his coad-
jutor—not it is evident for the purpose of admonish-
:ing those rebels, but to' sanction, by his presence
'and thatof his colleague, their illegal and tumultu-
ous proceedings, which terminated in a most bar-
barous and foul murder, though poor Brierton's
rencounter with them was entirely accidental.
The sante man, on being asked by the Magistrate
if lie thought the priest could have saved the life
of Brierton, said he was convinced that he
.might ;
for, that, had he threatened the multitude with
excommunication and withholding the rites of,
the Church, scarcely arty would have ,had Abe
courage to have resisted his authority; but, in that
case, had he appeared among them ;II his'vest-
meats, then in a house near to the place, it. would
have insured instant obedience. But- I would
ask, for what purpose did this priest send his
vestments to the place of meeting, if not,' by
mockery and profanation of religion, to sanction
the unhallowed proceedings of the insurgents ?
Their aid was not called in to save the life of a
heretic, or his own flock from the perpetration of
murder. After all this, what opinion can we
tfoormpoobflish thebuisnpeaxraolollepleaAtory letter in the Cork
of this priest,
•
quick discernment;
. Mercantile Chronicle of tlatert2Jitdheocfeilvi'ieolgtrtatairoyji or
f
Mr.wha tPlfutinksect°t'ns'istitinrontli:temiaid,
and profound legal knowledge.
I have shewti, I doubt not, to the sitisfactiou of
every impartial reader, from the confession 'of
Priest' O'Sullivan to ;he 'Magistrate anti the
Officer of .Dragoons—from the declaration of one
of the -assassins, " that, if aliOwed to escape,
Brierten would hang the whole- Parish"--and

from the confession of the bearer of the mes-

sage to the Priest on, the mort)ing, of the 25th
of January,--7th.sat, to a man, his flock wad
plicatM flie-d`roadful transactions of that day.
1. have also sheivn, in the'same clear manner, the
part he acted on the fatal lay ; and let the world
judge how far his own statement, published in
the Letter alluded to, is entitled to credit ; or
how far he merited the apology made for him in
the HoUse of Commons by the Attorney-Gene.
ral,, And now having stripped the portrait of
the'Parish Priest of Knockacoppel of its advan-
titious ornaments, and Mr. Plunkett having, in

the last month, spoken in the highest terms of the
conduct of the whole Romish Priesthood, I shall
exhibit a few more of those holy men in their
proper colours, for the information and admira-
tion of your English Protestant Readers.

A man who had been sworn into the White-
boy Association, having incurred the suspicion or
displeasure of his party, they broke into his
house, beat him in an unmerciful manner, and
destroyed' much of his property. He was on his
way to the house of Mr. Leslie, a Magistrate, to
lodge informations against them, when he was met
by the Priest of the Parish, who ordered him not
to go.; adding, that if they did not behave them-
selves better, he would himself go to Mr. Leslie.
Another Priest, who suspected a prisoner of the
intention of giving information to a Magistrate
against his party, questioned him upon the sub-
ject, telling him that if he should inform, he, the
Parish Priest, would not give him the rites of
the Church;, and that he would allow him one
week for consideration, at the end of which, if
he found him •TRUE, he would administer the
Sacrament to him.

A prisoner, who bad been one of Walter Fitz-
maurice's party, the celebrated Capt. Rock, con-
fessed to a Magistrate that having been invited to
a wedding near to Abbeyfayle, be there met his
said captain, and a company ;of from 40 to 50 per-
sons, consisting of opulent farmers and their fa-
milies. The officiating Priest entered into con-
versation with Fitzmaurice, and said, " This is
the time to put down the tyrants that. oppressed
them, and hoped he,. Fitzmaurice, would exert
himself fo do so." Fitzmaurice replied, that
there shouldbe nothing left undone on his part,
and things would go on better, but that they were
short of powder. The Priest told him that there
were a numberof farmers, then in the room, who
had influence in Cork, and he, the Priest, was
sure they svould procure him any quantity of
aoifiteitd,,aantdtlnieotsatmo ebetifimreindgeastirrainngdloimim,
to bv ed -"cc ra
rheef
ul
as he beard they did in the night time;" when Fitz-
maurice desired him " not to speak so free in so
large a company, as perhaps many of them were
not up."----The same prisoner also declared to the
Magistrate that he was present at a meeting of
Whiteboys at the house of L. Hartnet, at
Abbeyfayle, where Walter Fitzmaurice, and Ed-
ward Roche, an opulent farmer, and also a Cap-
tain ltoc::, were present, when they said they
would defeat the Government by keeping up a
committee in every parish, who would be ready
to act at all times, whenever opportunity
offered.--I cannot avoid here remarking that
this was the very system adopted by the
Ribbonmen, of establishing rommittees through.
out the country, as stated •by the Attorney.
General on the late trials at Dublin : yet the
Learned Gentleman declared, that there was no
understanding or co-operation between them and
the Insurgents in Minister, though each society
had the same objects in view—subverting the
Government, and extirpating the Protestants of
the Country.
Having stated the conduct of five Priests—the
two O'Sullivans, the Priest in the neighbourhood
of Abbeyfayle, and two others, in opposition
to Mr. Plunkett's sweeping eulogium on the entire
nomish Priesthood, lately pronounced in the
Sessions House, in the City of Dublin, I think it
but justice,to state, that one individual of the
order had acted a conscientious part. A man,
named Michael Nolan, who had been present at
the assassination of a witness in the County of
Limerick, went to confession, when the Priest in-
formed him that he would neither hold commu-
nication with him, nor give him the rites of the
Church, unless he should' go to the Magistrates,
and disclose'all about the murder. The result
was, Nolan gave information, and the murderers
were brought to justice, he appearing as a witness
on the trial when, on being asked, 44 would he
have given the inforination, if that advice had
not been given to him," he said—" on his oath,
he would not." Baron Pennefather, in alluding
to this part of Nolan's'testirnony, 44 where this
meritorious Olergyman most properly fulfilled his
sacred functions, in refusing to give the rites of
the Church until he should reveal the names of
the murderers," added, " he felt surprised that,
where many others must have had similar occa-
sion to call upon their Clergyman, it should have
been so long kept secret ; one would think there
must have been a spell over this most atrocious
deed ; ?or it must be presumed that no clergy-
man would communicate with persons under an
acknowledgment of soch a crime."
Were ,I to enter upon remarks on, and to draw
conclusions from, this most important incident, it
would lead me into too great length, having al-
ready trespassed upon your valuable Paper ;
therefore I shall postpone both to another op-
portunity. I shall only 4t present make one
brief observation on the &tat at Tralee of the
assassins of Brierton. It was attempted to prove
an alibi on the part of William Healy, but fail.
ed. Now, Sir, as it had been positively sworn,
that he had knocked Brierton oft his horse with
his pike, In the presence of* Sylvester` O'Sullivan,
as that Rev. Person was in Court iduring the
whole trial, and as Healy had been one of his
flock, why was not. the Priest brought forward
on the part of the prisoners, if it had not been
apprehended that Oinething might have been
elicited in his crotii.examination -not, very fa-
vourable to the priestly character? Justice
'and humanity called for his testimony, which
could not have been considered as " a breach of
confidence" between the Priest and his dock ;
and, bad ho invalidated the evidence in Ilealy's
case, he would have done so as to the other four.
Bandon, Feb. Al, 1623. JUNIUS TERTIL'S.

•

FOR THE SUN.

dlesex SMALL, DEBTS.
MR. EDITOR—I think, considering that Mid-
debts, and that the itch for litigation in that fa-
voured county is still increasing, the Magistrates
for Yorkshire.(atnong others) are highly
obliged to
Lord ALTHORPE for proposing, by his new 13iII;
to give them, what will produce (in addition to
their laborious duties) 50,000 summonses yearly,
very many of which they are incompetent to try.
Feb. 20, 1823. A FRIEND TO.JUSTICE.