The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-05 00:00:00

PHYSICAL PERSUS MORAL FORCE,

This morning the board-room of CollegeLstreet Police-
office was crammed to excess by the friends and admirers of
Old and Young Irelmnd, who were anxious to hear a
charge of assault, preferred by Captain Broderick against
Mr. Meagher.
Mr. Tyndall presided: Mr. Curran appeared as counsel
for Mr. Meagher ; and Mr. Cantwell, solicitor, for Captain

• Broderick. -
Captain Broderick sworn—On Saturday last Major Talbot
called upon him. He said he called about a report of some-
thing he (witness) had said at Conciliation Hall, on Tues-
day, and which appeared in Saunders' News-Letter. He at
once acknowledged the substance of the words were correct.
Upon the 13th July lie said he would not take notice of any-
thing Mr. Meagher would say to him. When Major Talbot
called upon him on Saturday last, he referred him to his ob-
servations of the 13th July, with a view to show the course
he should take. The witness then alluded to the uproarious
scene in the Repeal Association on the 13th, when Mr.
Meagher cast a gross aspersion upon Mr. Clements. On that
occasion he did say the conduct of Mr. Meagher was " infa-
mous." Some one else did speak harshly to Mr. Meagher,
but he (witness) declared that he claimed the honour of first
insulting Mr. Meagher. According to the laws of honour, he
(witness) considered himself released from any liability to
Mr. Meagher; that, in short, he would give him no expla.
nation or satisfaction. He had come to this conclusion

after consulting with his friend. On Saturday evening last
he (witness) was walking down Westmoreland•street, in
company with a friend, and as he turned the corner of Lundy
Foot's he saw Mr. Meagher and Mr. Smith. Suddenly Mr.
Meagher rushed towards him, and raised a stick, threatening
to strike him, when he seized it, and friends closing on

them no blow was struck. He then gave him in charge of
the police.
Cross-examined—l swore an information against Mr.
Meagher lately. The first dispute -between Mr. Meagher
and me occurred on the 13th of July. On that day he fully
retracted his charge against Mr. Clements. It was a suffi-
cient retractation. I was very much excited at the time I ap-
plied the term "infamous" to him.
You think gentlemen should be bound by the code of
honour?—Certainly.

On the following morning did Mr. Meagher address him-
self to you when he said he did not mean anything personal?
—I-thought so. Mr. Meagher praised Mr. Holmes. Some-
body exclaimed, he voted against Mr. O'Connell, and I said,
" Oh," and further added, "I would not take notice of any-
...

thing that fell from Mr. Meagher."
Cress-examined by Mr. CURRAN—He admitted that on
the 13th of July, he designated the conduct of Mr. Meagher
as " infamous,' but that as he did not take notice of that, as

he (Captain Broderick) intended he should, and in a fort-
night after he stated that " he would not mind anything that
fell from Mr. Meagher," the meaning of which was that he
had passed over the first offence.
Mr. TYNDALL suggested that the parties should amicably
arrange their differences elsewhere.
Mr. CURaAN mentioned that Mr. Meagher was bound over
yesterday in the sum of 5001. to keep the peace to Captain
Broderick and all her. Majesty's subjects.
Mr. TYNDALL said there was a summons issued against
Captain Broderick, on a charge of intending a breach of the
peace, and that all the objects of the parties might be at-
tained by also calling upon him to give bail in an equal
amount.

This suggestion was adopted, and the parties left the office.
THUNDER-STORM.

Between one and two o'clock this morning we were visited
by one of the most violent storms of thunder and lightning
that has taken place for many years in this country. It lasted,
at intervals, for nearly two hours, and was followed' by a
perfect deluge of rain. At one period the whole atmosphere
was illuminated by a vivid flash of lightning, which was
rapidly succeeded by several others of less brilliancy. The
storm, which came from the east, subsided about half-past
three o'clock. The preceding day and evening had been ex-
cessively sultry.
REPEAL ASSOCIATION.

MoNDAy, AuG. 3.—The. usual weekly meeting of the

Repeal Association was held to-day at one o'clock,—and was
crowded to suffocation for some hours previously, it having
been known that Mr. O'Connell had arrived on the previous
evening from London, and would be present. At the ap-
pointed time, the Hon. Gentleman, accompanied by Mr.
John O'Connell, M.P. ; Mr. Daniel O'Connell, jun., M.P.;
Mr. N. Maher, M.P. ; Mr. Smethwicke, M.P. ; te Lord
Mayor, Mr. T. Steele, Captain Broderick, and several others
of the Old Ireland, or moral force party, entered the hall,
and were loudly cheered. The members of the Young Ireland
party did not attend.
Upon the motion of Mr. O'CONNELL, seconded by the
LORD MAYOR, the chair was filled by Mr. Daniel O'Connell,
jun., M.P. - _ -

The CHAIRMAN, upon taking his seat, said it was always
most gratifying to him to be called on to preside over a
meeting like the one he was then about presiding over;
but on no former occasion had he felt so highly honoured,
for it was not merely a compliment to him, but a com-
pliment to the honest electors of Dundalk.—(Cheers.)
They deserved any compliment which could be paid
them ; in fact, no praise could exceed their merits, for
they had by their admirable organisation scared away even
the shadow of opposition to his or any Repealers' election.—
(Hear, hear.) No doubt they might have made a better se-
lection.—(Cries of "No, no.") They had, however, made a
selection of him because he was a Repealer and the son of
O'Connell.—(Great applause.) They were to a man almost
Repealers, and understood the great basis upon which the
association was founded—the principle of moral force alone.
—( Hear, hear.) Nothing could be more peaceable or orderly
than the manner in which the men of the north conducted
themselves at the election; so peaceable were they, that he
saw but three policemen amongst several thousand people;
that, however, was not at all extraordinary ; for they had
the men of God—the Roman Catholic clergy to rule and pre-
side over them, and teach them to work out repeal upon
moral and peaceable principles.—(li ear, hear.) The feeling
in favour of moral force was not, he was happy to be enabled
to say, confined to Dundalk alone; but exhibited itself all
along his route to Drogheda, where he was loudly cheered
with the cry of "Old Ireland and Repeal."—(Cheers.) The
Learned Gentleman concluded by handing in some money
from both Drogheda and Dundalk.
Mr. RAY then read the minutes of the last meeting; after
which,
Mr. O'CONNELL rose to hand in 741., with the following
letter, from the Roman Catholic Bishop of Ardagh :
" Bally mahon, July 31.
" Dear Liberator,—l have been requested by the priests
whose names are annexed to forward to the Loyal Repeal
Association, as their subscription for 1846, the inclosed sum
of 74/., including 21. from myself. Others of our clergy had
already sent up their subscriptions, in conjunction with those
of their flocks, making a total of about 90/. for the present
year from the bishop and priests of Ardagh.
" I need not, I trust, assure you, that the reverend gentle-
men who have contributed this sum are more than ever de-
termined to stand by you through every vicissitude, in your
moral and peaceable endeavours for the regeneration of our
beloved but ill-governed country; and I am happy to add,
that in this determination they are most cordially Joined by
the liberal and good men in their respective parishes. We
have no physical force men in this diocese. Neither have
we, thank God, any schoolboy philosophers, false and san-
guinary Repealers, or Voltairmn nevispapers. All our exer-
tions for the restoration of Ireland's independence are based
on the sacred and immutable principles of true Christian
morality, and we pity the folly and abhor the wickedness
of any man who would rest his patriotism upon other grounds.
" Excessive vanity and quixotic conceit may blind some
men so far as to make them believe that they are almost your
equals in the service of your country, and urge them perhaps,
under this pitiable delusion, to set themselves up as your
rivals in leading the Irish to nationality; but they ought to
know that the clergy and faithful people of Irelard will have
no other leader than their revered Liberator, and I feel
thoroughly convinced, if it were the will of Providence to
warp you to-morrow of your near dissolution, the Irish nation
would unanimously adopt, as their political guide, that man
alone whom you would bequeath to them as worthy of their
confidence.

" We have witnessed with sorrow the disgraceful scenes
that have lately taken place in Conciliation Hall, and have
felt the deepest indignation and disgust at the shallow so-
phistry and flippant impertinence exhibited by the few
young men who so childishly style themselves Young
Ireland. Do these persons already forget that all their im-
portance, if any they possess, is owing to your superhuman
and unbounded influence? Or do they imagine the whole
country will ever start up at their wild bidding; throw
moral force and O'Connell to the winds; trample upon God's
holy commandments; violate their sworn allegiance to their
Gracious Sovereign ; and, under the magic spell of puritanical
rank and Jacobin impiety, sally forth from their peaceable
firesides to be butchered in an unequal and fruitless contest?
Assuredly, if such be the expectations of the Young Ireland
party, they must look on their fellow-countrymen as the ve-
riest idiots upon the face of the earth, whilst, at the same
time, they draw down upon themselves the scorn and laughter
of every true Repealer in Ireland.
I cannot close thiahasty letter without saying a word or
two about the Nation newspaper. It is in my mind the most
dangerous publication that ever appeared in Ireland. I will
say nothing of its ungrateful and mean endeavours to ma-
lign yoa by unfounded insinuations, distorted inferences from
your speeches, &c., and thus lessen your well-earned sway
over your countrymen. Nor shall I notice its mad harangues
on the subject of revolution. All these topics I leave to be
dealt with by your own master mind, but on the score of re-
ligion I must say that the Nation appears to me, to my
clergy, and to our flocks, to tend directly to the overthrow of
Catholic faith and morals. Every one must admit that it is
edited with a considerable portion of talent—that its rounded
sentences and energetic style are well calculated to make
fatal impressions on youthful and unreasoning minds; but it
feels the embarrassment that was felt by Voltaire, Diderot,
D'Alembert, &c.—namely, it can advance no argument
against our holy religion. Hence, like Voltaire also, it deals
in ridicule, inuendoes, and fashionable sneers. It is true it
has the bad manliness to give its feeble support to the In-
fidel Colleges,' in direct opposition to the decision of the
overwhelming majority of the Irish bishops and universal
priesthood. It also speaks out when it blames you for
lugging in religion' into Irish politics; still its danger does
not consist in openly dogmatising against the truth, but in
disseminating its latitudinarianism by ridicule and inuendoes
among the unwary Catholic youths of Ireland. We have
ignominiously expelled it from almost all our literary institu-
tions in Ardagh; and it is to be hoped that whatever unsus-
pecting Catholics who still receive it will soon sever the bad
connexion. It was time that some one should have brought
this subject before the religious consideration of the pubtic,
and humble as I rank in the Irish hierarchy, Iventure to im-
plore the Catholic priests and the Catholic laity of Ireland, to
turn their serious and vigilant attention to the doctrines and
tendencies of the Nation newspaper.
"Wishing you every sort of success in your moral and noble
career, and perpetual disappointment to your avowed or hid-
den enemies,

"I remain, dear Liberator,
" With unalterable and affectionate attachment, yours,

"D. O'Connell, Esq., M.P. t W. O'HIdGIN."
Mr. O'CONNELL moved, and Mr. MAIIER, M.P., seconded
a motion, " That the above letter be inserted on the minutes."
• Carried unanimously.
Mr. O'Connell next handed in 901., the subscription of 90
Roman Catholic clergymen, with a letter from the Roman
Catholic Bishop of Meath.
This letter was also inserted on the minutes.

Mr. 141AttEit, 11i.1".,reacl a letter from the Dean of Killaloe,
inclosing his subscription to the repeal fund, which also was
inserted in the minutes of the association. _ _

Mr. O'CoNNamitWenroSetoaddress the association amid
loud cheers. He -aid he deemed it his duty to address the
association at the earliest possible moment. His mind was
indeed so pressed by the magnitude of the crisis to which
they had arrived, and the vital importance of the rights and
liberties of Ireland which were involved in the discussion,
that he could no longer remain silent.—(Cheers.) It was