The Irish standard., 1902-12-13

morning meal; while he partook of the
food, which his toilsome journey ren,
dered so necessary, he listened with
close attention to the statement of the
principal crown prosecutor. On hear
ing legal proposition incorrectly stat.
ed by the solicitor general, O'Connell
instantly exclaimed (his mouth half
full Of bread and milk) "That's not
law The solicitor general insisted it
was, and the court was appealed to.
The decision was in O'Connells favor
Somewhat crest-fallen, the solicitor
general resumed, to be again pulled up;
for, referring to an Act Of Parliament
which O'Connell knew was passed for
only a limited time, he exclaimed,
'"That act has expired" This was blow
the second, and then the solicitor-gen-
eral adverted to the evidence of Mr.
Harold Barry on the former trial, as
serting that he had taken the white
boy" oath, and was made aware of
the intended attack on Mr.. George
Bond Low. His repeated allusions to
Mr.. Barry, a well-known country gen
tleman, residing in the neighborhood
of Doneraile, brought up O'Connell
again, who remarked upon the hard
ship imposed upon him by the then
state of law, prohibiting him from a
speech to the jury, and requesting that
the solicitor-gel would not travel
into the evidence on other trials, but
contine his observations to the partic-
ular case before the court" This
caused the solicitor-general to be more
guarded in his remarks, and the re-
mainder of his address was uninter-
rupted. Nearly the same witnesses
produced OH the former trial gave evil
dence in this case. But they We're now
cross-examined by their master. OCon-
nell, always excellent, now threw all
the resources of his acute and vigorous
mind into his task, and unmasked,
with unsparing questions, the crown
witnesses. 1t was suggested that
Sheehan and Nowlan, repenting of
their crime, sought to make atonement
by bringing their comrades to justice.
O'Connell gave the character of what
he scornfully called "the repentant sin
ners," from their own lips, and honest
men shrank from them as though their
touch was pollution. The solicitor gem
eral negatived the notion that any con-
cert existed between the witnesses for
the prosecution. O'Connell elected the
fact that Sheehan and Patrick DAILY
were constantly found together in Dub
lin, and, more important, O'Connell's
acuteness detected many contradic-
tions and discrepancies in the evidence.
Patrick DAILY was rigidly sifted, and
one Of his exclamations showed how
valuable O'Connell's aid was: "Its lit
tie 1 thought, Mr.. O'Connell, I'd be an
swering you this day." Owen Daily,
who was represented by the solicitor
general as "a boy Of seventeen-an in
nocent youth, who would hardly have
come forward had he been aware of
the Importance Of his testimony" turn
ed out to be n boy of twenty-four
years Of age and employed as an in
former under the game laws. While
under cross-eXamination, O'Connell de-
clared, with reference to this Owen
Daily, he "never saw such drilling of
witnesses in all his life" The jury
retired and were not out forty minutes,
when they were dismissed as unable
to agree, and the prisoners were dis
charged. A few days afterwards four
more were put upon their trial-two of
them. farmers. The crown lawyer
challenged every Catholic juryman
called and succeeded i'm obtaining
thoroughly Protestant jury. The So
licitor-general again stated the case for
the prosecution. He alluded to the ex-
tent and nature of this formidable con-
spiracy and the danger Of landlords
from the guilt of these men. The evil
dence to support the prosecution was
the same as in former cases. Patrick
DAILY very glibly (for as practice makes
perfect, he was now well up in his
tale) narrated the scene in the tent at
the fair of Rathclare; chow the assas-
sinatiOn paper was produced for sigma
ture; how Burke, the prisoner, was
there as committeeman; how he, ID.
ly, told it all to Colonel Hill, and swore
to it Immediately after the fair
While Daily was thus recounting his
now thrice-told tale, Baron Pennefath-
or, the judge, beckoned to O'Connell,
who at once went towards the bench
to speak with the judge. Could it be
the fearful assassination paper? Hav-
ing attentively perused the paper.
O'Connell rose to cross-examine Patrick
Daily. Having ascertained Cousin
Owen was not in the hut at Rathclare
while the writing was going on, he
asked ''If the witness had described
the tent scene to the magistrates the
day after the fair, if he had mentioned
the assassination order, if he had NAM
ed the committeeman" 10 these sew
eral queries the witness replied Yes"
O'Connell then handed him the paper