Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1898-07-30


Redeemed the streets of Antrim with
their blood, and, above all, Lord
O'Neill-the recreant heir to noble
name, who had led the cowardly yeo-
man on many a bloody raid-now lay
with pike driven right through his
body. McCracken or Hope did not
yet despair. Though a British force
under Col. Clavering, four hundred
strong, lay a short distance from Dune
gore Hill, the insurgent leaders deter
mined to keep their little band to-
gether as the nucleus of the insur-
gent army in hopes that an opportunity
for striking another blow would
quickly come.
Col. Clavering, being afraid to at
tack the gallant little band, endeav-
ored to effect their dispersal by subter-
fuge. He rendered complete amnesty
to all Of them except four of their
leaders, including Hope and Nc
Cracker, for whose capture he offered
reward of 81, 900 a head. The in
surgents, who would rather die than
betray their leaders, Indignantly re-
torted by offering similar reward for
his own head. Thereupon the noble
Britisher threatened that if they did
not disperse he would burn and raze
to the ground every cottage in the
surrounding country. Fear for his
personal safety did not weigh with the
intrepid McCracken, but pity for his
helpless and inoffensive friends shook
his resolution. With tears in his eyes
he babe his followers disperse; and
then, accompanied by seven faithful
friends, he took refuge in cave in
the neighboring mountains.
For long time he eluded the
bloodhounds who were day and night
upon his track. Nothing but his
own skill and courage and the abso-
lutte incorruptibility of the peasantry
saved him from capture. AT last he
assumed the disguise of a carpenter
and made his way toward the sea
coast with the intention of sailing to
France. After many adventures he
reached little village in the neighbor-
hood of Carrickfergus. He was in
hopes that now at any rate his
troubles were over and that he would
soon tread the free soil of La Belle
France. But it was not to be. One
day while passing through the village
he was recognized by one of a squad
of yeomen, and, after a desperate
resistance, was captured and lodged
in Carrickfergus jail. Thence he
was sent in chains to Belfast, where
the usual mockery of a trial took
place.
McCracken was offered his life on
condition that he would divulge the
secrets of the organization and in par
ticular declare who the leader of the
Ulster insurgents was originally to
have been. His indignant reply was:
GLOW can you expect me to be such
villain?"
His aged father was asked to use
his influence with him in this regard,
but he proved incorruptible, for he
said: 81 would rather my son should
die than act dishonorably."
The end of the tragic drama came
soon. On July II, 1898, Henry Joy
McCracken emerged from Belfast Jail.
His sister was in waiting, and after
embracing the two walked to the scat.
fold lovingly hand in hand. Indeed,
it was only by the imperative orders
of Gen. Nugent that she was pre-
vented from mounting the scaffold
with him. The CHASTITY procession
stopped opposite the market place
which is situated in High street, Bel
fast. With cruel irony the gallows
had been erected on site which was
free gift of his grandfather's to the
inhabitants of Belfast. He was not
suffered to address the weeping multi
tude who surrounded him. He had
scarcely given farewell wave of his
hand when the executioner seized
him, and in the course of quarter of
an hour, after barbarously hacking
and mutilating his helpless remains,
England's minions had taken their I