The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1897-08-21
INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE
WEXFORD REBELLION.
WHERE The FIRST SHOT WAS FIRED
FR.MURPHY's SIGNAL. FIRE KlNDLED
ON CARRIGREW HILL.
THE IMMEDIATE CAUSE OF The war
FERNS IS A VERITABLE MECCA TO
AMERICAN PILGRIMS.

When, during the forthcoming cele-
bration of the '9S Centenary, the Irish
exiles are paying pilgrimage to the
sites Of the battlefield of hundred
years ago, Ferns will naturally-indeed
influex of visitors.
After Enniscorthy, which is practi-
cally the center of County Wexford,
Ferns is the next central town, in point
of position, of any considerable impor-
tance. 1t affords the nearest railway
station, and, in other respects, provides
the most complete travelling arrange
ments and accommodations as a center
from which to reach many places made
memorable in historical Ninety-Eight
Within the parish of Ferns, in the
townland of Tincurry, Father John
Murphy, the insurgent leader, was born
about the year 1853. Here Father Mur-
phys father farmed about 70 acres Of
land, and from here young John Mur-
ply went to Seville, in Spain, where,
after completing his studies, he was
ordained priest.
Some three miles distant from Ferns
in the Catholic parish of Monageen and
subparish of Boolavogue-of which FIR.
John was curate-is the village of Har-
row, where the first shot of the insur-
rection was fired; and about a mile fur
ther on is Boolavogue Chapel, on the
site of Father Murphy's old thatched
Mass House," burned down by The
Yeomen on Whit Sunday morning, 1893.
About two miles distant from Boola-
vogue, but no further away from Ferns
as center, is Carrigrew Hill affordii4e
a very pleasing, extensive, and varied
panoramic view, taking in the entire
breadth of the county Wexford from
the seashore to the Wicklow mountains.
Amongst host of '9S subjects COM
prised within the field of view are the
sites of four attlefields-Gorey, Tub
berneering, Enniscorthy and Oulart Hill.
On Carrigrew (Carrick-rua) Hill Faith
er Murphy's signal f1re-the first tongue
of the beacon Of liberty-was kindled
Here the insurgents bivouacked for the
night after their victory at Oulart Hill,
from here they proceeded early the fol-
lowing morning and captured Lord
Mountmorris's arsenal of government
arms at Camolin Park previous to pro-
ceeding through Ferns to Enniscorthy;
and ON this hill they were subsequently
encamped before the defeat of the
kings army at Tubberneering.
Some miles in another direction COM
municating with Ferns by mail car, is:''
the important town of Newtownbarry.
Battle won list June, and lost through
lack of precaution within the hour.
Ferns also contributes it's own men,
ories of '98. 1t was the headquarters
of that ruffianly corps Of yeomanry cav
airy, THE Ferns Buffs," who, in con-
junction with the "Camolin Greys,"
made the country for miles around a
veritable hell to the unfortunate peas
antry. In point of fact it was the
atrocities perpetrated in the streets Of
Ferns in sheer wanton deviltry that
constituted the immediate cause of the
rising" in Wexford "" -'"~ .,'e
Martial law had been proclaimed
about November, 81, giving full license
to the Orange magistracy, the most
atrocious of whom were the principal
officials in the yeomanry corps. 1t was
when going home, fully charged with
whisky, from their drill meetings, just
for the fun of the thing, to shoot any
Catholic who was so unfortunate as to
meet them on the road, or to call people
to the door when passing houses and
shoot them down without more ado and
pass on.
Any persn found out of his house
after sunset was subjected to torture,
while to remain indoors meant running
the chance of having the roof fired over
his head.
Then came the proclamation of the
sheriffs and magistrates of County Wex-
ford, commanding that; whereas, they
had received information of the inhabi-
tants being provided with arms, sucE
arms, "or other offensive weapons
must be surrendered within fourteen
days from the 23d day of May, or the
army would be turned loose on The
people to enforce the proclamation.
Terror-stricken by the treatment in
flicted on those with whom arms had
been found, Many" says Mr.. Hay,
who had not pixies procured them now
in order to obtain on delivering them
up a written protection from the magiG-
trate." This protection" howevc-.
was not worth the paper it was written
on. The scourge and pitch cap were
piled and the firing of houses was in
dulged in to even greater excess under
the eyes and by the very orders of those