The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1899-10-21


citizen mobs, pray let them remember
that we were still i'll the days OF muzzle
leaders, before the battle o! Sandowa
had brought the needle guns in fashion,
and that the $4,000 constabularymen,
with whom the insurgents would have
their first brush, had only one day IN
the year in which to practice shooting.
But far grmmcr danger threatened
than the Fcrianism which did not so
much conspire as all but openly Haunt
itself in every barrack room and on
every parade ground in the island
Probably we shall never know the full
extent to which disaffection seized upon
the army, the militia, and even the con-
stabulary. Nobody who holds the key
OF the archives OF the war office is every
likely to let the secret out. Assurcdy,
since the mutiny OF the More, England
passed through no such nightmare Wis
ion OF a forest OF her own bayoncts
pointcd at her breast The courts-lnar-
tial made some signal examples. One
OF the lIussars they sentenced to death
lived to be the greatest Irish poet and
one OF the three greatest Irishmcn Of
his gcncraton-Joln Boyle O'Rcilly.
1t was only one OF the l1ideous COM
monplaces OF the Anglo-lrisll connec-
ton that the man for whom England
could find no better business than to
tear of his Uniform in the square OF the
ROYAL barracks in Dublin, and ship him
off in a convict hulk, had only to be
known in Boston to rival the COM
mander OF the Mayhowcr in the love OF
the Puritans OF New England. But the
epidemic was not an affair OF individ-
uals, but OF companies, and OF whole
regiments. To attempt to impcach all
the military Fcnians before courts-n1ar-
tial would have been to throw England
into panic, If not to precipitatc an ap-
vasion. 1t was deemed wiser TO trans
port them to India by regiments and to
replace them by unseduced English reg
imcnts, all temptations having been re-
moved out OF their way by the SEN
fences passed on organizers like Mr.
John Dewey, who Ct have heard it
statcd) at one time was obcyed by more
OF the soldiers OF the Dublin garrison
than the conlmandcr-in- was. All
| can attest on the subject from my own
knowledge is that heard bands OF car
zbiniers marching through the streets
OF Mallow singing the Fenian charter
song,
"Hark, the time is coming
When our darling flag OF green
without the smallest regard for officers
or picket; and that for us children NOV
ing about the hotel yards where dctacl,-
ments passing through our town stabbed
their horses, it excited as little surprise
to hear the soldiers talking OF the forth
coming rising" and mentioning that
the barracks at Cork, Fcrmoy and
Clonmel would iall without a blow any
night the Fenians chose to knock at the
gates, or to see the young civilians cast
ing bullets or slouching off by the
mountain road on a moonlight night
AS for the militia regiments. it is not
too much to say that. with the cxccp-
ton OF the officers and staff-scrgcants.
they were SO many Fcnian circles, with
the very thinncst sprinSling OF "old re-
tables or spies. | have heard the
North Cork regiment again and again
shouting Fenian songs while actually
marching to or from the parade ground
under the eye OF their officers; so COM
petcly was it regarded as a matter Of
course that their next appearance in the
field would be under different officers
and under different flag. Many years
afterwards, when Fenianism seemed all
but completely cxtinguishcd, score OF
raiders from Cork, with the knowledge
OF hundreds OF men in the regiment.
were able to punch great hole in the
wall OF the arnory by night, and had
the greater portion of the rcgimental
rifles extracted before some light sleep
ing staff oOccr gave the alarm 1t will
surprise most people to hear that, even
among the Royal Irish constabulary,
who were regarded as the very Abdicls
of unshakcablc fidelity, the Fcnian con-
tagion had its victims, or its catccl1u-
mems, as you may please to describe
them. There was among the police
nothing like the wholesale stampede
that carried off the soldicry; but two
circumstances that came within my own
experience are sufficiently significant
When the first swoop was made by tn,
government in the autumn OF 1865 my
father and myself while passing til,
house OF the local centre (who wa:
the principal baker in the town., saw
policeman big enough TO be the gian
in the fairy tale and soithcartcd enough
to be its fairy godmother, planted omi
nously against the shutters. You SC,
I am on guard, sir he said, with
portcntols wink. They're comm:
down alter dark to arrest the boss
Don't they wisl, they may catch him
He is nearly two hours on the Cor
road already" My other and still NOR
remarkable piece OF testimony is tia