The Sun.
London, England, 1867-09-19 00:00:00

Rescue of Two Fenian Head Centres.

THREE PERSONS SHOT.
The Fenians in Manchester yesterday made a
desperate attack on a body of the city police, and
succeeded in rescuing the notorious Colonel Kelly
and Captain Deasey, the two head centres of the
movement, who were recently apprehended here.
Kelly and Deasey were yesterday remanded by
the magistrates to the City gaol, and during
the afternoon they were placed in the prison
van along with about thirty-seven other persons
for conveyance thither. They were handcuffed,
and placed in separate compartments at the end of the
van near the driver. Six policemen and the driver sat
outside, and aseventh officer, Sergeant Chas. Brett, a
man highly respected in the police force, took his
position inside the vehicle. Behind was a cab con-
taining four other constables, all, like the officers
just mentioned, unarmed. Nothing to create sus-
picion was observed as the van proceeded through
the city, but as soon as it had passed through the
railway arch on the Hyde-road a man ran into the
middle of the carriage way and discharged a revolver
at the horses. Another fellow threw a brick at the
driver, but missed him. The shots, however, took
effect on the horses; one was very seriously injured,
and the other wounded in the neck. One of the
animals reared and plunged, and the van
was brought to a stand. Several shots were
then fired from a mob which the abutments
of the railway arch on the left side of the road hai
concealed on the approach of the van ; it consisted
of about 40 persons, most of them dressed as labour-
ing men, and one or two respectably attired. There
seemed to be about 15 revolvers in the company ;
one man, too, had a gun, and several were armed
with single-barrelled pistols. Shot followed upou
shot in quick succession, and bricks and other
missiles were freely hurled at the police. The
ruffians fired at the officers on the roof of the van,
who, together with thos3 in the cab, found it
necessary to retire some distance down the road.
The mob then tried, with the aid of large stones,
to break in the roof and door of the vehicle, and
also endeavoured to force open the latter by shoot-
ing into the keyhole of the lock. At length they
effected an entrance, and one of them demanded the
keys from Brett. He refused to deliver them, and
Was immediately shot in the head, a ball entering his
forehead on the right side and passing out at the
back of his head. The assailants then freed Kelly
and Deasey, and four female prisoners also escaped.
While this outrage was in perpetration the police
officers several times attempted to charge upon the
mob, but as they were unarmed, save with a few
sticks and a truncheon or two, and as their assailants
met every approach with a discharge of revolvers,
their attempts were fruitless. Many civilians took
part with the police, but without arms resistance was
useless. Some idea may be formed of the fray from
the fact that in all upwards of one hundred shots
wore fired. Information of the attack having
been conveyed to Fairfield-street Station, a body
of constables, armed with cutlasses, was thence
despatched, and they reached the scene of the out-
rage as soon as they could. Meanwhile the Fenians
had withdrawn. They ran in a body over the fields
to the north of llyde Road, and crossed the railway
embankment. A pursuit was at once started, and a
man, named Michael Larkin, of Eliza-street, City-
road, having met with an obstruction on the railway
was soon captured, and was found to have a revolver
in his possession. He will be spoken to as one of
the men who fired in front of the horses. Another,
a young man, named William O'Mora, alias
Allen, of Sudell-street, Oldham-road, who, it is
stated, shot Brett, was keenly pursued. He
cleared the railway yard, near Hyde Road,
crossed the Ashton Old Road, and took
to the fields, near Bradford, and whenever
an attempt was made to seize him he pointed a pistol
at his pursuer, and so for a while maintained the
flight. At length he was overpowered by some
civilians in a brickcroft near the Ashton New Road,
was knocked down and treated with considerable
violence, and was only given up alive at the inter-
cession of the police. He was after wards found to
have sustained several scalp wounds. A third man,
of whose complicity in the attack there is no doubt,
was soon afterwards caught, and was taken by
Chief Warder Sykes to the City Gaol. He is a
man of respectable appearance, but refuses to
give his name and address. He, too, was armed,
and threatened to fire upon the officer
who pursued him. Two young men who were
supposed to have been concerned it the affair were,
about half-past five o'clock, taken by four of
the county constabulary among a clump of trees
between Newton Heath and Philips Parks. These
officers report several cases of threats to shoot on
the part of the fugitives, several of whom they had
seen on the road to Ashton. As the evening ad-
vanced the police scoured the quarters of the town
most frequented by the supporters of the Fenian
movement, and before midnight nearly 20 persons
were in custody. Sergeant Brett was removed to the
Royal Infirmary, where, at half-past 5 o'clock, his
in jury terminated fatally. An officer, named Seth
Bromley, was shot through the left thigh, and
somewhat seriously hurt. Another man, named
Henry Sproon, of Garden Walks, Ardwick, also
received a shot in the right foot. Many of the police
officers had narrow escapes,
some of which were
rather singular. One, named William Trueman, re-
ceived a shot in his coat, without sustaining any
personal injury. Another officer, named Knox,
was standing on the step behind the van when the
affray began, and a volley was fired at him and a
fellow-constable, named Connell. Some of the
bullets whistled past between the officers and the
van door. An officer, named Yarwood, was delibe-
rately shot at as he sat in front of the vehicle, but
bending his head he escaped the fire, and the
man whose aim had failed then lodged a bullet
in the head of one of the horses as before men-
tioned. During the afternoon a revolver, five cham-
bers of which were loaded with ball, was found in a
brook near the Ardwick Station ; it corresponds
exactly in make with those found on Kelly and
Deasey when they were apprehended on the morn-
ing of the 11th iust. Some of the routed mob were,
in course of the evening, seen in Droylsden, and
four of them were ascertained to have there changed
their clothes. As soon as possible the state of
things was communicated to the Mayor (R. Neill,
Esq.), the assistant town clerk (Mr. Talbot) several
members of the Watch Committee, and the superin-
tendents of the several divisions of police, together
with a number of the city magistrates ; and pre-
cautions were taken to secure the arrest of as
many of the Fenian party as possible. Tele-
grams were despatched to the authorities at White-
hall and Dublin Castle, and Government offer a
reward for the apprehension of the men who have
escaped. The military authorities in the city were
also communicated with, and assistance was assured
in case it might be required. The greater part of
the men apprehended were lodged throughout last
night at the chief police-station, Albert-street, and
there being a fear that the place might be attacked
a number of the troops were stationed within the
police barracks. Up to the time of writing six of
those in custody have been identified as having
taken part in the affray.