The Irish standard., 1900-01-13

all along the Niagara river and the bor-
ders detachments were ready to resist
the invaders. On May 81, however,
when Colonel O'Neil, the officer select
cd by General" Sweeney OF the Bro
therhood to carry out this enterprise,
crossed the river at Buffalo, he found
Fort Erie, on the British side, unoccu-
pied. The numbers OF the force which
actually landed on Canadian soil have
been variously estimated They proba-
bly, did not exceed nine hundred. For
more than day and night O'Neirs lit
tie army ranged about the ncighbor-
| hood { Fort Erie, and it is said to the
credit OF their leader that while they
ioraged upon the inhabitants after the
manner OF regular invaders. their con-
duct was generally free from excesses
The actual collision did not take place
until June, when the Queens Own
Volunteers from Toronto and the Ham
lton militia met the invaders near the
village OF Ridgeway. Details of the
battle are not plentiful in history. The
losses on the British side were put down
at nine killed and thirty wounded and
they retired upon Ridgeway and Port
Colborne. A Canadian tradition says
that volunteer bugler sounded the ere
treat" by mistake. At the same time
it is certain that large number OF Fe-
mans were aiken prisoners by the Cana
dian troops. If the defenders of the
| Dominion retreated, so did the invad-
ers. Falling back on Fort Erie, O'Neil
found that General Grant, having ar
rived at Buffalo that day. had promptly
stopped the forwarding OF supplies to
the Fcnian army across the river. Moth
ing was left for them but to get out OF
Canadian territory as quickly as posi-
bic, which they attempted to do, though
seven hundred OF the entire forge were
cut off by the United States gunboat
Michigan.
General Barry, to whom had been as
signed by Grant the guarding OF the
frontier on this side, exacted from a
large number of the Fcnian prisoners
their parole ito q ldon our expedition
against Canad, ~sist from any viola
ton of the neutrality laws OF the United
States, and return Immediately to our
respective homes" The number Of
,wl,or,, this parole was taken 'nust have
included hundreds who had not suc-
ceeded in crt ing the Niagara river.
Two weeks later proclamation was
issued in Buffalo signed IN. w. Burns,
Brigader General commanding Irish
army at Buffalo, requesting the
! ''brothers" to return to their homes.
This proclamation bears witness that
"the extreme vigilance OF the govern
ment Of the United States frustrated
our plans. 1t was the United States and
not England that iimpeded Our onward
march to freedom
But in the meantime other alarms OF
Fenian invasion had disturbed the Can
adan frontier. These were mostly eX-
aggeratcd, if not altogether groundlcss.
On June 7 the Fcnian General Sweeney
was arrested at ST, Albans, VT, from
which place, already memorable for a
raid made upon It from Canada by
Confederatcs during the Civil War, it
had been intended TO make descent i'll
some force. The Fcnian army, it seems
had actually crossed the frontir, but
upon the arrest OF their general and the
approach OF considerable body OF
Canadian volunteers they retired
After this Fcnan raiding OF Canada
languished. O'Ncil himself made two
more abortive attempts, one in 1870
on lower Canada, the other the follow
ing year, on Mani oba. In the latter
case the vigilance oil the United States
government manifested itself in the
prompt action OF the troops a For
prompt action OF the troops at Fort
Pembina, MINI.
Colonel O'Ncil never suffered any
very long or severe Imprisonment fol
these violations OF The neutrality laws
He spent the last six or seven years o.
his life in Nebraska, lccturing and pro,
noting schemes OF his Irish colonial
ton. The after effects OF the "raids'
changes ofrcqucsi vbgkqj i'll ~; S..
have appeared CHI fly in the inter
changes OF request between the gov,
crnments OF Washington and London
Ior c1emency toward captured invaders
in the growth among the British OF q
more perfect faith in the honesty OF this
country's intentions. and in the moro
thorough organization and equipment
OF that Canadian volunteer and militia
army which is now able to spare several
thousand men for service in South
Africa without fear of denuding the
Canadian frontier oi its defenders.
Referring to the proclamation ISSUED
to the Beers by Col. Baden-P Powell
the British commander OF MafcEing, il
which he told them that "the American
government has warned the others o
its intention to side with England
should any OF them interfere" Fr
Lambert says, in the New York Free
mans Journal: None OF us ever OK
Dccted TO live to sec the dav when Emo