The Irish standard., 1897-07-03

1890 w
ground is cold and wet which used to be
his bedding; the air is sharp and bitter
to blow through his naked sides and
ligges; the kline are barren and without
milk, which useth to be his food, besides
being all with calf, they will through
much chasing and driving cast all their
calves and lose their milk which should
relieve him in the next summer" The
time was fast approaching when the
spoilers could look around and exclaim
that there was neither horne or corne
left, or roof tree outstanding"
Suffering privation like the
humblest of his followers, Des-
mond, the proud owner of almost
100000 acres with mansions and
castles almost innumerable upon them,
was hunted like wild beast from one
place to another. Nowhere was he safe,
and he kept continually moving. His
wife, with the devotion characteristic of
Irish womenhood whether in mansion
or in the sheeling shared his misfortune.
Christmas nigth, 1882, found them
housed in wretched hut near Killmal-
lock. Even here they were not secure,
and escaped the human blood
hounds by plunging into a
river, and remaining up to their
necks in water until the search for
them was given up. During the summer
Of 1858 the hunt for Desmond was inces-
SAINT. There were four faithful follow
ers who remained with him out Of the
thousands who followed him at first, and
with them, says Hooker, "he fled from
one cavern of rock or hollow of tree to
another where they did dress their meat,
thence they would remove to eat it in
another place, and from thence go into
another place to lie. In the nigths they
would watch in the forenoon they would
be upon the hills and mountains to des-
cry the country; in the afternoon they
would Sleep" The end of all this agony
for Desmond was quickly approaching.
A few more months of the outlaws life,
and his headless body was hidden away
in lonely glen by the few who re-
manned to the last, while the poor head
was sent to Elizabeth in England, placed
in an iron cage, impaled on spike, and
set up to view on the bridge of London
to be jeered at by the rabble.
Pressed by hunger Desmond and his
followers left their hiding place in the
mountains north of Castleisland, in the
County of Kerry, on the 9th Of Novem-
ber, 1583 These are the Clanruddery
mountains, the chain extending almost
due north and south. If we bear in
mind the geography of the place, and the
course people engaged in driving cattle
would be most likely to follow, We may
not have much difficulty in determining
the locality where the final tragedy oc-
cured. Their course lay toward Tralee,
and thence skirting the northern decline
of the Shive Mish mountains the pushed
on toward Castlegregory, which lies
on the west side Of the Bay of Tralee.
The party comprised Desmond, two
horsemen and eighteen kernes. From
their starting point their course lay al
most due west, and from there to Castle
gregory the distance is certainly not
mond, but like many time server,
some distance, Desmond sent his follow
ers to drive off some cattle belonging to
q man named Maurice McOwen. The
prey consisted of forty cows and nine
ho MT
them; he was under obligations to Des-
mond, but like many another time serv-
er, then as now, he knew Desmonds for
tunes were fast failing, and he, too,
turned from the setting to the rising
sum-"
Owen and Donnell Moriarty, brothers.
in-law of McOwen, took up the pursuit
Of Desmond and his party. McOwen
proceeded to Dingle and found an Eng
lishman named Stanley In command of
troops there, who gave him an order on
the warder of Castlemaine. This place
is situated on the south side of the Sieve
Mish mountains, east from Dingle about
% miles. Here they obtained
five soldiers, and then the pursuing
party proceeded toward Tralee where
they got trace of Desmond and his party.
These preparations certainly occupied
the most of twenty-four hours. The
course followed by Desmond returning
with the cattle is level From Tralee
they were traced toward Sieve I-ogher
the present Clanruddery, distant prob
ably eight miles from the town just men,
| toned. A -Gleann-an-Gh Ghinntigh
runs through a part of the mountain
Here Desmond and his party camped on
the night of Nov. 10 Moriarty and his
gang entered the glen the same night
| This glen, which is singularly wild, with
stream Of water at the bottom, is about
| three miles northeast of the chape; al
Bally McElligott. Observing a light in
a cabin in the glen, Mori.
arty and his party crept
up to it. Within were the people they
sought, but they were afraid to attack
them, and concealed themselves in the
glen until morning. Surrounding the
cabin again they peered in and found
that it contained only an old man, E
women and boy. Then their courage
rose high. Bursting the door they in
Quired what had become of the rest o.