The Sun.
London, England, 1859-12-09 00:00:00

IRELAND.

DUBLIN, THURSDAY.
THE TRAGEDY AT DUNGANNON:

The Northern Whig, which reached town this
forenoon, contains the following ample details of
the fearful tragedy enacted at Dungannon on Mon-
day last :
" DUNGANNON, Tuesday Night. —One of the most
shocking murders, accompanied by a fearful attempt
to murder, that it has ever been my duty as a re-
porter to record, took place yesterday in this town,
which has been, in consequence of the foul and des-
perate deeds I am about to record, thrown into a
state of the most extraordinary excitement, which
has spread with unparalleled rapidity to the sur-
rounding rural districts. The victims are Sergeant
.Robert M'Clelland, of the county constabulary,
whose corpse now lies in the police-station of this
town, and Mr. Wm. Mathews, sub-inspector, who
has been dangerously wounded—mortally wounded,
as I have been informed—and who is at the present
moment under treatment in his own house, his me-
dical attendants despairing of his recovery. The
alleged murderer is a member of the constabulary
force of Dungannon, named John Holden. I have
been enabled, after a good deal of inquiry, to
ascertain the following particulars of this most
tragic and painful affair, which has filled the minds
of the people of this town and of the surrounding
localities with horror and consternation :—Sergeant
Robert M'Clelland was a married man. He had a
wife and two children, and was a native of Bally-
mena. He had been in charge of Dungannon police
station for nearly four years. He was 12 years in
the service, and sergeant for the last four years. He
had received a chevron of merit. The man who
stands accused with the horrible murder of Sergeant
M'Clelland, and with the diabolical attempt to kill
Mr. Mathews, the sub-inspector, is Mounted Con-
stable John Holden, a native of the county of Kil-
kenny. He is about 35 years of age. He has been
15 years in the service. About a week ago he was
reported by his superior officer, Mr. Mathews, on
suspicion of having married without leave. He
denied being married, but stated that the young
woman with whom he had formed an attachment
had had a child by him. I have, however, been
positively informed that Holden had been married
for some time. Holden states, as I learn, that he
had requested the Inspector-General of Constabulary
to allow him liberty to marry the young woman
alluded to. In consequence of Holden's conduct
towards this young woman, whatever may have
been its character, the Inspector-General thought
proper to reduce him to the rank of sub constable
for six months. An order to this effect was, I have
heard, read to Holden by Mr. Mathews on parade
on Monday morning, and there were directions
given that Holden should be sent on the following
day to the Newtownstewart district. Holden, see-
ing that he was about to be sent off to another part
of the country, asked Sergeant M'Clelland on
Monday to go with him to the house of the Rev.
Dr. Slane. Roman Catholic pastor of Dungan-
non, for the purpose of procuring from the
rev. gentleman a certificate to the effect that
he (Holden) was not married. M'Clelland being
ill, two of his ribs having been broken, at first de-
clined to accede to this request. Holden then said
to You do not like to serve me, or you would
come." There is no man in the force I woild
serve sooner,' replied M'Clelland. Mrs. M'Clelland
desired her husband not to go. The sergeant said,
As he is going to Newtownstewart, where I have
acquaintances, he may give me a bad character, and
I will go.' Fhis conversation took place, I am as-
sured, in M'Clelland's room, in the police barrack.
Holden had on a frieze top-coat, which he had bor-
rowed from M'Clelland to go to Omagh, and he
promised to return the coat by the public car on
Monday night. M'Clelland told Holden to come
along with him to the house of the parish priest for
the purpose already mentioned, and, on setting out,
Holden, as I have ascertained, took with him two
rounds of ball cartridge, which he had obtained out
of his pouch. This was about 7 o'clock on Monday
morning, and at that hour Holden and M'Clelland
set out for the parish priest's house. The rev. gen-
tleman was not at home at the time, being engaged
in prayer in tho chapel. It is believed that, not
finding the rev. gentleman in the house, Holden
induced M•Clelland to accompany him to the resi-
dence of the Rev. Mr. Quain, the Protestant rector,
for the purpose of making some representation to
that rev. gentleman with respect to the certificate
which I have already referred to. When they had,
as is supposed, gone up about 20 yards on Mr.
Quain's avenue, and while they were almost in sight
of the entrance gate, a shot was heard, and imme-
diately after anoter, following the first in rapid suc-
cession. Holden, as I have been told, had in his pos-
session a large horse-pistol and a smaller weapon of
the same kind. At this point of my narrative my in-
formation is to the effect that Holden discharged two
shots at M'Clelland—aball from one of the pistols en-
tering the back of the deceased at the right side, and
coming out t through the region of the heart. The ball
from the other shot entered the head at the left side
of the nose, near the eye, and taking a downward
direction carried away some of M'Clelland's teeth.
My information is further to the effect that Holden
had a clasp knife or dagger, with which he stabbed
deceased in the centre of the forehead. There are ee-
veral small cuts on the face and head of M'Clelland's
corpse, which I saw to-day lying on a bed in the
police barrack. The body of the poor fellow has, in
fact, been riddled and mangled. The whole of the
forehead has been smashed in and fractured. Of
course death must have been instantaneous. It is
believed that, after holden perpetrated this awful
deed, he dragged the body of his unfortunate victim
into a drain taut runs through the Rev. Mr. Quain's
lawn, where it was found between half-past 10 and
11 o'clock on Monday night, but not until after he
had made the attack on Mr. Mathews, which I shall
presently describe, and which first gave rise to the
suspicion that Holden had murderously dealt with
M'Clelland. I should add that the dead, mangled,
and bleeding body of M'Clelland was found, at the
hour and place I have mentioned, by Town Sergeant
Scully and sub constable Fitzsimons. After the per-
petration of the tragic scene in the avenue Holden
returned into town. He was observed standing in
the Market-square for a few minutes and, in some
tinne after, he proceeded down to the gate-house of
• Mr. It. Evans, J.P., where he inquired of the gate-
keeper whether Mr. Mathews, the sub-inspector,
was dining with Mr. Evans or not. He was informed
that Mr. Mathews was not there, and, having been
put in possession of this in formation, he made his
way to the house of Mr. Mathews, and asked his
maidservant whether he (Mr. Mathews) was dining
with Mr. Evans or not. She said he was not, but
that he was dining at the house of a lady in North-
land-row, and he was to take tea with Mr. Evans.
Accordingly, Heiden went to the house of the lady
in question, and leaving there a message for Mr.
Mathews, to _the effect that Mr. Evans wanted to
see him immediately, he made, his way to the
avenue leading to Mr. Evans's house end hid him-
self among some bushes. Mr. Mathews, believir,
he had been sent for by Mr. Evans, came out of the
house where he had been dining,;, and walked up the
avenue, when he was attacked v Holden, who was
•termecl with a horse-pistol and a dagger or knife.
This attack was made at a point about half-way
between the gate-lodge and Mr. Evans' house with
ilaggee and horse-pistol. Holden knocked Mr.
Mathews down with a blow of the pistol on the
head, fracturing his skull. The gentleman, thus
wounded, and, to a great degree, rendered insen-
sible, was of course incapable of rendering any
resistance to his assailant, who followed up the
attack by giving Mr. Mathews several stabs with
some sharp pointed instrument on the head and
face. While Holden was thus attacking hi-
superior officer he gave a shout. This attracted
the attention of two men who were passing the
gate-house. They opened the entrance gate, and
went in the direction of whence the noise had pro-
teeded, for the purpose of ascertaining the cause of
it. Holden, it is conjectured, seeing these men so
near him, desisted from his murderous assault on
Mr. Mathews, ran across an adjoining field, got
into some gardens and, betook himself to a part of
the town called Short Highway. By this time an
alarm of the attack upon Mr. Mathews had begun
to spread through the town, and all the police in
the station, with the exception of the barrack
orderly, were summoned to go in search of him.
While they were actually turnine.. out from the
barrack on the pursuit indicated, Holden, as
I have been enabled to gather from the in-
quiries I have instituted into this most hor-
rible and most revolting case, deliberately walked
up Church-street, and entered the stables adja-
cent to the police-station. Here he saddled 'Air.
Ma.thewa's horse, andno particular notice of this act
was taken at the time, as suspicion did not at the
moment • lay the horrid crime of murder to his
charge. The stables are some distance at the rear of
the barrack, and this fact, coupled with the cir-
cumstance that Holden, as I have said, was not sus-
pected at the moment ofthe alarm, served to screen
him for a while from ohs'rvation, and enabled him
the more easily to effect his escape. He took out
Mr. Mathews's hor;;;e, mounted, and dashed off at
full speed down Feeney's-lane, which leads out
feom the rear of the barrack. Severn. persons resid-
ng tl,e in • lane in question .saw Holden galloping
off; and their belief was that lie Was going out on
duty.. The impression prevailing /a the town is
that he took the road leading to Monaghan, an. d
that, on arriving in Monaghan, he /eft by train for
Dundalk, where he was arrested this day at half-
past one o'clock, as announced by a telegraphic
message which reached the authorities of Dungan-
non about half -past two o'clock. It was further
stated in the telegram that Holden would be brought
in as a prisoner by the half-past six train, and the