The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1874-06-07
TFrom Our Own Correspondence
OUR IRISH LETTER.
DUBLIN, Nav 21st, 1874.

|
SON, and already it promises TO be aremarkable
and rather exciting business. At every stage
of it one is reminded Of the Galway Election
Petition trial Of 1872, in which Judge Keogh
figured SO prominently. The parties to both
trials ars substantially, though, of course, not
nominally the samoa knot of Protestant and
Liberal Catholic landlords being on the one
side, the Bishop, priests, and people on the
other. The leading counsel for the present
petition is the same NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Arm
strong, to wit-who acted in that capacity for
| Captain Trench-Judge Keoghs favorite-in
1872. The Judge-Judge La wson-is the same
| who judicially endorsed Keogh's Judgment in
1872, unseating the peoples and priests can
didate, Captain Nolan. Seating Captain Trench,
and reporting the Bishop and priests of Gal
way guilty of corrupt practices. Finally, the
charges of the landlord party at present are
substantially the same as those they preferred
| two years ago, and even some of the witnesses
they then produced have been produced again
this week to sustain their accusations. It is
almost certain that this party will be success
full as they were before. The usual course now
is that at the elections the people and the
priests always triumph, but the result of the
election is untitled, if not exactly reversed, on
terday the evidence as to the effect that the
mob, on the day of polling in Galway, exer-
cised the greatest Violence in favor of Mr..
oDonnell, the sitting member; that the
priests and Mr.. ODonuell himself encouraged
and stimulated their violence that the clergy,
through spite, pursued the family of the petit
tioner-the Joyce's-with unusual hostility;
and that they exercised clerical intimidation
and to-day, learn by telegraph, evidence of
treating friends of the respondent was ten
dered and received. The point about the
hostility of the clergy to the Joyces is the
central one, basis, and cause of the whole pro-
ceeding. The facts shortly stated are these:
The Joyces are IN arstooratic Catholic
family in the neighberhood of Galway. They
were always made much of by the Bishop and
priests, and had privileges accorded them
which were net extended to other Catholics in
the neighborhood. Notwithstanding this, at
the election in 1872, the Joyces joined the
| landlord and anti-Catholc party and became
one of the most inveterate and bitter enemies
of the Catholic and popular cause and of the
| Bishop and priests of Galway. Several of
them gave evidence at the petition trial in
1872 against the Bishop and his priests and
during that trial the wife of Joyce (senior)
sat, from day to day, in the gallery of the
Courthouse, with other women of her class,
knitting stockings Cor rather playing at iD,
smiling at Judge Keogh, and presenting that
functionary with bouquets after every fresh
assault OF his on the clergy of that church to
which she protested to belong. From this che
and all her relatives got the nickname of
stocking knitters," and were everywhere re-
ceved by the people with marks of ridicule
| and hostility. few months afterwards she
died, and some, at least of the Galway people,
set her death down as visitation from God,
and it is certain that she was buried like q
dog, without any religious ceremonies, al
though she had been previously an apparently
devout Catholic. Thenceforth the Joyces
seem to have determined to carry on the war
| with the Bishop and clergy to the bitter end.
When they had selected Mr.. ODonnell as their
candidate, young Joyce took the field, in OPP
position, with redonbled energy. Then Father
Dooley, the Vicar Gen eral, in q public speech,
denounced the stocking knitters" and re-
called the pagan burial OF Mrs. Joyce. To this
Joyce replied by stigmatising Father Dooley's
language as abominable, and the Father an
swered back in cutting letter. For the rest,
Joyce was ignomiously beaten at the election,
but now he has presented a petition against
the result, and with the aid of the Orange
Judge Lawson he expects, and he is pretty
sure, not only to get Mr.. ODonneIl unseated,
but to get himself returned to the House of
Commons in his stead.
The Senate of the University of Dublin ia
this week engaged in mending and reforming
the constitution of the governing body, SO as to
bring it into harmony with recent legislation
in other words, SO as to secularize it and
thus to keep Catholics out of the place in the
future as effectually they have been kept
out of it in the past. Mr.. Butt, who is a
member of the Senate, attempted to bring that
body to generously recognize the claims of the
Catholics of Ireland. He gave notice of a
motion for incorporating the Catholic Uni
versity in the University of Du bin and placing
it on an equal footing in all respects with the
Protestant institution of Trinity College. Yes
terday, when the motion was to be meved,
Mr.. Butt was in London, having been detained