Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1885-03-01
@beeIas Resister
JOHN BOYLE O,REIlLY,
How the Poet Escaped from West
Australia.
BY the Aid Of a Catholic Prisst--.gxsr,c,,
from VReily's Narrative Of His Ad-
Sentu si---FrOm the Australian
Penal Colony to America.

ly enlisted In the Prince of Wsles's -ag;
ment, the Tenth HusSarS he Vas than II
years old. A velleducated bow Of Ardsnt
temperament, and sincerely devoted N ths
Irish cause, he did what he could in the
regiment to promote the Revolutionary
movement that began in 1863, Hi1 con.
neehon with the Fenian insurrectionists
was discovered, he was arrested. tried and
convicted OF high treason, and he WAS sen,
fenced IN July, 1866, to imprisonment for
lite. This sentence was atterward rom.
muted to penal seryitude for twenty wears,
Ohelliy spent about q year in the English
prisons, working in the chain gangs In
November, 1851, he was transported to West
Australia IN the convict ship Hougoumont
crowded With telonS. For about thirteen
months ne worked at road making near
Bunbury in the penal colony associating
with cOnuets and hcket-otleaye men. Yari-
Gus accounts OF the manner of his escape in
February, 1869, have been printed. The
true story was not known until Mr.. O'Rsilly
bad been in sdis country for ten years or
more, when time had removed all danger of
ineulPs6ng certain friends who had risked
much IN assisting him 10 freedom.
In he list OF aosconders printed early in
1869 in the official Police Gazette of West
Australia there appeared this paragraph:
John b OReilly. Registered num-
Der, S,S4S. Imperial convict; arrived in
Colony per convict ship Hougoumont in
1865 sentenced 70 twenty years 9th July,
1850. DesCripuon-Healthy appearance;
present age, p years; ) feet Z! inches high,
black hair, brown eyes, oval yisage, dark
complexion; an Irishman. Ahsconded from
Convict Road party, Bunbury, on the 18th
Of February, 1869.
The man to whoa Boyle O'Reilly owed
his liberty was q good Catholic priest. the
Rev. Patrick Nc abe, whose parish extend
ed over hundreds of miles of bush, and
whose only psrishioners were ~conyicts and
ticket oEleaye men" Hewss q scholar and
gentleman OF rare accomplishments. al
most always in the saddle, riding alone
from camp to camp, and sleeping in his
blanket under the trees at night He
was an ideal disciple of Christ" SAYS Mr..
. Reilly, who ls6Ored only for his Master.
lie was the best influence, indeed, in my
time he was The only good influence on the
conSicts in the whole district OF Banbury."
We continue the quotation from Mr.. 0Reil
D. own narrative:
'One day this remarkable man rode to ny
hut, and we walked together into the bush.
L had then made all my plans for escape,
and | freely told him my intention. ats
an excellent way to commit suicide" he
said; and he would not speak of it any
more. As he was leaving me, however, be
leaned from the saddle and said: Don't
think OF that again. Let me think ont a
plan for you. You'll hear from me before
long
He went away and l waited weeks and
months and never heard q word. / was
not compelled to work with the criminal
rang on the roads, but had charge of their
stores, and carried the warder's weekly re-
port to the Bunbury depot. Finally one
day on my way with this report, | came to 8
plain known as the Race Course. As |
crossed 1t | heard a cOo-ee, or bush cry and
saw q man coming toward me. He was a
big, handsome fellow, with an X on his
shoulder. He came to me with q friendly
smile. MY name is Mcguire, he said; II
am a friend Of Father Macs, and he's been
speaking about you" Seeing my hesitation,
he drew u card from his wallet, on which
Father McCabe had written q few words to
me Then l trusted him.
This was in December, 1868. Some
American whalers were expected to touch
at Bunbury in February for water. After
two months Of suspense, news came to
O'Reillv of the arrival of the barks. Ma
guiIe announced that he had arranged
with the Captain Of one of the whalerS, the
Eigilant OF New Bedford, to cruise for two
or three DAYS Just outside of Australian
waters. and take the fugitive on board from
3 small boat. On the night OF February Is
O'Reilly waited until the warder had visited
his hut, put on a pair Of freeman's shoes, as
the crackers could easily discern the mark
of a regulation cOnvicts boot and struck
into the bush:
About IL o'clock | came to the old con-
vict station, and lay down behind an old
gum tree at the roadside. In halt an hour
or so two men rode up, but they passed on;
ttey were farmers, probably or maybe q
patrol of mounted police. Shortly after, l
heard horses coming at q sharp trot, Iney
halted near me and heard "Pstricks Day
Whis,led clear and low. In an instant |
wss Eiththem-Maguire and another friend,
N They led a spare horse. L mount
ed at once, and without a word we struck
into The bush at a gallOp. Fol- hours we
rode on in silence. ,
They reached the shore, found a small
boat ready for them, and pulled about forty
miles along the coast to the point where
thew expected to meet the New Bedford
whaler. No one had thought to bring
food or water, and for twenty-tour hours or
more the sufferings of the party were IN
tense. AT l o'clock on the third day they
made out the Vigilant, under full sail, steer
ing north. They pulled toward her with
light hearts:
'"She was steering straight toward US, so
We stopped pulling and waited Tor her'
But we were bound to be wotully dlsap'
pointed. When she was within two miles
of our boat she fell of several points, as II
to avoid US. Every one stared IN amaze
ment Mcguire kept saying that Captain
Baker had given his word as q man, and
he could not believe that be would break
il. One of the men stood up IN the ooat
and gave q loud hail that must have been
heard on board. No answer. Again ne
hailed, and we all Joined in the shout. Nc
answer. 1t only seemed that the NigiianI
turned a point further from us. At las'
she came abreast Of our boat. She was
then about three miles distant. Mcguire
y hoisted a white shirt on the end OF an oar,
, aud we shouted again. But the Nigllsni
passed on, and left our boat to its tate: =
They landed on the beach, and OS5hiy I
friends wen. back to Bunbury, promising
to return in a week, and leaving HIM hid
ing in a secluded sand valley close to the
shoIe. He climbed a tree and caught an
opOssum, and also captured q few kangS
roo rats. These animals supplied him WITT
food. After three days O'Reilly, still be
Eeving that Captain Baker must be cruis
ing for him somewhere of the coast, resolved
20 make another attempt to board the
Whaler. The rowboat was too heavy tor nin
b pull alone. Six or seven miles turfhel