The Beaufort tribune and Port Royal commercial. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1877-1879, 1877-03-15
FENIAN HISTORY RECITED.
Plans for the Liberation of Irelaud.--Eng-
lands Discovery, and How She Destroyed
kenianism...JOhnO O'AIahOney's Death.

lands Discovery, and How She Destroyed
<enianism---John O'AIahOney's Death.
John O'Mahoney, who died lately in
New York, was strange being. He was
tall and well formed, and had shaggy,
dark brown hair and handsomely CHS
elled features, but haggard and care
worn expression. The property in Ire
land that he made over to his sister was
considerable, OF at least sufficient to sur
round large family with every COM
fort, but O 'Mahoney never received any
benefit from it in this country or in
Paris, where, after the attempted Irish
insurrection Of '4S, he eked out miser-
able existence as a tutor. He taught
Latin, Greek, and English, and occa-
sionally contributed to some of the
French newspapers. He was all his life
a bookworm, and was master of the He
brew Sanscrit and ancient Celtic Ian
guages. DR.. Todd, of Trinity College,
Dublin, in his translation of the "Wars
of the Gael and Stranger" published
under the supervision of the master of
the rolls, pays brilliant compliment to
O'Mahoney for his contributions to Gel
tic literature and his wonderful philo-
logical research and accuracy. Some Of
the German Celtic scholars also speak OF
him in the highest terms.
John O'Mahoney's private life, at least
in this country and III France, says the
New York San, was one of seclusion
and poverty. Few of his most intimate
friends knew where he lived. There was
always q romantic mystery about the
man; and yet since the days of OCon-
nell there never was an Iishman more
popular with his countrymen than John
O'Mahoney, or one more highly esteem
ed by the republicans of other nationall-
ties who were acquainted with him. He
had friends who were willing to sacrifice
anything for him; yet he was often sadly
in need of dollar, and when his pow
erty was discovered he declined to re-
ceive assistance in any shape or form.
One way or another he always managed
to earn his own living. He seemed,
however, to care nothing for success in
life, his whole mind being absorbed with
one idea-rebellion in ireland. A ten
dollar greenback over and above his i'm
mediate wants was fortune to him, but
one that he held loose hold of for any
loafer who approached him with Woe
full story was sure to get it out of him.
"When a man tells you" he would say,
"that he is in want, and you suspect
that he is liar, but doubt it, give him
the benefit of the doubt, and help him if
you can." 1t is said that at one time he
was insane, and here is the foundation
for the story:
One cold winters evening, many years
ago, John Mitchell was trudging through
Broadway on his way to his home In
Brooklyn. He was overtaken and pass
ed by tall and somewhat poorly clad
man whose face he did not see; but the
broad, square shoulders, the swinging.
devil-may-care gait, the slouched hat and
the long curling hair, even without that
additional crushing evidence, the black
thorn stick, satisfied Mitchell that it was
O'Mahoney who had just passed him.
He quickened his pace, caught up with
his friend, and looked him in the face
1t was ghastly in its pallor, and there
was peculiarly wild expression in the
eyes. Mitchell called him by name, but
received no reply. O'Mahoney kept on
like a somnambuGst. At length Mitchell
seized him by the arm and almost shout
ed: care you asleep. Don't you
know me?" O'Mahoney started, and
with sad smile gave his old companion
his hand, which was cold as death. He
had not tasted food for nearly three
days. The friends went together to
Mitchel's house in Brooklyn. Dinner
was served, and O'Mahoney, conscious
of the danger of over eating in the con-
dition in which he was, resolved to re-
strain his appetite. But he was unable,
and instead he ate voraciously and drank
plenty of claret. Soon afterward he was
taken, a raving maniac, to the Flatbush
asylum for the insane. There he fell
into sound sleep, from which he awoke
the next morning perfectly RATIONAL
himself again. He was a little over
twenty-four hours in that asylum, but
some of his kind Fenian brothers, J."
who knew all the facts and circumstances,
afterward denounced him as lunatic
who had been for years in mad house.
The evident alarm of the British gov
ernment during the Fenian fever gave
rise to the belief that there was really
more in the movement than ever ap-
peared on the surface. Perhaps there
was, although Fenianism for time
seemed to be all open book for every
body. It's collapse is generally attributed
to its quarrels and divisions; but this is
q mistake, for the sting was completely
taken out of it by the British govern
ment before it divided. Nor was it al
ways thing to be laughed at, for it cer-
tainly came very near starting serious
rebellion in Ireland. The plan was
simply to spread sedition among the
troops-in other words, to Fenianize the
Irish militia and as many regiments OF
the line as possible, to bring over the
constabulary, and to send to Ireland
from this country, not an armed expedl-
ton or Fenian fleet, but plenty of in
nocent steerage passengers who had
served in either the Union. or the Con-
federate army, and whose duty it was to
officer and lead the peasantry. Except
the effort with the constabulary, all this
was actually accomplished. The mill
tia and regiments of the line were re-
cruited almost entirely from the disaf-
fected classes, and the Fenian fever
spread among them with extraordinary
rapidly. The constabulary were also
recruited from pretty nearly the same
class, but they were police officers, and
consequently rather dangerous fellows to
tamper with.
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