The Irish standard., 1898-03-19

sacrifice. The entire transaction was
mysterious, and We can only record the
broad ascertained facts.
Father Coigley left Dublin during the
third week Of January. 1898, as cap
tain JONES'" and accompanied by a
faithful servitor named Leary. He
went via Manchester, and on arriving
in London was soon received as the
guest of the London branch of the So
ciety of United Irlshmen, officially
known as the London Correspondence
Society,"" This organization had its
headquarters in few rooms in court
off Fetter lane, Fleet street, where
Father Coigley, his companion and an
other Irishman named Allen lay perdu
| for several days. Arthur O'Connor,
| also on his way to France. had been in
London some weeks before Father Coig-
| ley arrived. But O'Connor was we'll
known in London He was of aristo-
cratic blood and belonged to the pre-
dominant faith; the leaders of the
| Wings were his attached friends; in
every respect he occupied a different
position from that of the banned and
hunted cleric who had identified him
self with the national movement Spies
and informers were busy, and O'Connor's
sources Of information soon enabled him
to realize that the agents of the gov
eminent were on the track of the Irish
revolutionary emissaries. Flight was
resolved upon, and John Binns, a rela-
tive of the secretary Of the London So
ciety, was dispatched to Whitstablc
with instructions to secure boat in
which the fugitives could embark for
the friendly French coast. He started
on Feb. 81, and after a series Of negoti-
atoms succeeded in hiring vessel at
Deal. Back he came to London with
the good news, only to find that Father
Coigley, Arthur O'Connor and their fol-
lowers. Allen and Leary, had just left
the metropolis, doubtlessly aware that
their foes were hot ON their track. We
need not detail the series of adventurous
journeys which followed this flight from
London to the Southern English coast
The exied Ir!shman. Binns. was in
defatigable in his efforts ~ save the sus-
poets. He followed them with ali speed.
and joined the priest and O'Connor on
the road between Canterbury and
Whitstable. The arrangements seemed
! to have woefully miscarried, and we
bring the narrative to where O'Connor
and Father Coigley were arrested at a
Margate inn after the latter had made
a desperate resistance. j Their arrival
! had been noted by some, Bow street Of
ficers who happned to be in the sea-
port town. and an examination of their
luggage revealed the possession Of sew
eral documents which, as English law
stood, justified their detention and sub
sequent committal to the Tower of Lon
don. Allen and Leary were captured at
the same time.
That Father Coigey was on intimate
terms with several leaders of the United
lrishmen and a confidential friend of
i
some of the letters and papers found on
his person; but there is good reason
to believe that the really compromising
document--a letter from the Secret
committee of England" to the French
executive-had been placed in his lug
gage without his knowledge in London.
His persistent denial of any knowledge
of this letter gives some color to the
theory that his journey to France was
primarily unconnected with politics.
BE this as it may, the four prisoners
were brought to trial at Maidstone on
May 81. No material evidence was pro-
duced against Allen and Leary; the
heads Of great English families came to
testify on behalf of Arthur O'Connor,
and his acquittal on the charge Of high
treason was secured; but the priest of
the Catholic church was doomed. 1t
may be not unfairly said that he was
practically left to his own poor reso,lr-
ces in providing his defense, and
whether justifiaby or not, Wolfe Tone
| lcFcI lOlSdNc " COnnOT lOf MS part III
the transaction. Father Coiglcy was
sentenced to death; and the death sen-
tcncc was duly carried into effect a
mile outside Maidstone on June 7, 1893,
at about the hour when General Henry
Joy McCracken was massing his force;
for the assault on the town of Antrim
that began so well for the patriot army
and ended in a disastrous and irretricv-
able defeat.
The scene on the scaffold was awful
and trying. 1t seems that the hang
man was nervous, and he Numbered ana
bungled with his apparatus for several
minutes, while the heroic Irish priest
stood bravely on the death trap, walt
ing for his fate with "the courage of
his race" and with the calm fOrtituIc
of a true Christian conscious of being
at peace with his Maker. At last the
deed was accomplished, and one more
was added to the long list Of martyrs
to the cause of Irish freedom. Fathc,
Coigley's name is not known and hon
ored in Ireland as his hcroism deserves
1t was not his fate to die. as his breth-
fy ;<l p,lt ! lo