The Placer herald., 1860-11-17
NUMBER II.
Irish Heroism.

quarrel in Italy, one cannot but read with
admiration the following account Of the
gallantry Of the Irish brigade in the service
of the Pope. The following is correspon-
dence addressed to the Dublin Ne,os:
There cannot have been much more than
700 or 500 men, if 50 many, in Spoeto,
while the attacking force was at leaet 15,-
600 to 10000 men. A council was held,
and, Of course, instantaneous surrender was
proposed BY some as the most military
course in the face of such odds. O'Reily,
at least, for the Irish in the garrison, two
companies 26O men, utterly declined to be
a party to any such proceeding, and declar-
ed that the man who would take upon him
self to announce such step to his men
would run the peril of his life The council,
| can gather, was violently distracted on the
point of capiulation or no capitulation,
but ultimately an express was sent off to
Rome, to the Minister Of War, announcing
that it was resolved to defend the town as
best they could, and that come what might,
the Irish companies were resolved TO hold
the citadel till the courier returned, or blow
it into fragments
In the morning the Irish, at dawn, went
to mass, and believe every individual man
among them approached Holy Communion.
In an hour or two afterwards they were
called upon to meet the foe. The Sardini-
ans poured in through two of the chief streets,
attempting at first nothing of cannonade,
and evidently confident of carrying the
place against such mere handful of men
at the bayonet's point. They reckoncd rash.
|y. For hours they were held at bay. Lit
tie, Of course, could be done in the streets
by such small body against 10000 or l2,-
600 men; and, at last, pressed Oh every
point, O'Reilly threw himself into the citadel
to make the last stand for life or death-for
death alone, might say-for when the out.
er gate crashed to, as the last wounded but
undaunted defender passed into the quadran-
gle, there was not a man in all the little
band who did not feel that he had taken his
stand there to die.
They threw themselves upon the walls,
and from the tattereA loopholes rained "the
leaden hail" with deadly effect upon the be.
siegers. But those old walls proved misers-
BILE defenses, and the enemy, after brief
but deadly struggle of the kind, soon, with
cries that rent the air, dashed at the old
gate crash, roar-a petard blows it
into fragments. Then the struggle com.
menced indeed. In poured the beseigers
into the outer yard, which | should men
ton does not appear to belong to the cita-
del proper However, bloody reception
met them there The Irish had two guns
loaded with grape, planted inside in a posi-
tion commanding the entrance, and no soon
er was the Piedmontese column seen through
the smoke of the gateway than murderous
fire was opened, moving them down liter
ally like corn before the sickle. Again,
again and again The beseigers dashed through
the gate; again, again and again perfect
hail of grape shot from the two pieces in
the yard, and muskery from the citadel
walls behind, met them from the Irish in.
side; while shouts that would stir many
home in Ireland, plainly told that the brave
fellows felt but too well the honor of Ireland
was on the awful stake of the day. 1t was
mid day, and the outer yard was still nncar-
red, and the citadel itself behind untouched;
but all this was not fated to last much lon.
ger. The Piedmon;ese brought up piece
or two themselves, and after the first dis.
charge poured en- masse through the gate
OF the heroic Irishmen who fought those
guns inside the quadrangle, not one man es.
capped.
Subsequently O'Reilly and his men, who
were in the citadel, after further desderate
resistance, surrendered themselves as pris.
oners of war;