Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-07-01
One of the most remarkable daels

! One of the most remarkable duels
of the dueling age in Ireland
was one that was not fought
| in County Cork toward tne
Franco-Irish chevalier named De Lacy
arrived in Cork from the gay capital,
where he had been bred and where he
had, or had not, won fame (Which
preceded him to Corll) for dexterity
with both pistol and sword, for readi-
ness to fight, and for the hosts of enc.
mics that he had put hors de combat
Chevalier De Lacy was fondled by
Cork society-he was the pet of the
women and the envied of all men He
bore himself haughtily, superciliously
almost arrogantly, SO many wished but
feared to fight him. There was Ger.
tain harum-scarum fellow who had
been christened Seaton Fitzgerald, but
whom the south of Ireland with much
/ justification had come to call Satan
Fitzgerald who feared neither man
nor the devil, to whom life was one
/ great joke, and who came into Cork
when the name and the fame of the
chevalier were on everyone's lips.
"Who the deuce is the scamp" he
queried.
You'd better put that question to
the scamp himself" was the reply.
Faith, and I'll do that" said Fitz.
gerald, chuckling.
He got his opportunity a few nights
later, when at a great ball given by the
mayor of Cork Fitzgerald found De
| Lacy present, and as usual the cyno
sure. At favorable opportunity he
walked up to De Lacy, slapped him
Familiarity on the back, and said:
Hello, De Lacy, you are welcome
to Cork! But I'd be obliged to you if
you would tell me who the deuce you
are, where the deuce you come from
how the deuce you are here, and what
the deuce you want anyway"
| De Lacy at first was fairly fabber.
gasted at the fellows impudence, then
he changed colors in wrath, and put
!! his hand upon his sword; but remem.
bering where he was, turned upon his
heel and walked away Having made
was of gentle blood he sent him a
challenge. Fitzgerald consented to
fight him in certain field on the out
! skirts of the city on the following Mon
| day morning, on condition that they
both fought with swords upon horse
back and that they rode into the field
\ from opposite ends as the nearby
/ church clock struck six, and that they
charged one another instantly, dis
pensing with seconds and other for
malities.
De Lacy consented.
The news of the coming fight Of
course ran around the country like
wild fire, and such a sensation was il
that hundreds arrived upon the ground
the night before in order to get a good
position. The country people were
trooping in throughout the night, and
when De Lacy rode into the field or
the stroke of six in the morning he
found that there were many thousands
in attendance. AS Fitzgerald did not
ride in at the same moment, De Lacy
at first imagined that he had been
fooled. But he was not long left tt
his fancy, for the next instant he OBJ
! served tremendous commotion at the
opposite end of the field, where a lane
way led into it. and almost immedi
ately with Gathering, clashing, clang
!, ing, banging, enough to waken the
1 dead Fitzgerald, waving sword above
his head, dashed into the field
4 mounted upon a bony, starved, bu
still spirited old race horse, which was
hung and strung all over with tin cans
tin pans and tin kettles and every
household utensil that ever left tinll
er's hands.
De Lacy for a moment was para
1U1nd Fif1onro11 10 I, ;e
sorry old stead, made dash at him
AS with a gathering he came on, the
animal which De Lacy rode, getting
frightened turned his head and at
tempted to dash wildly away. A grea
roar went uD from the thousands
around the field. Fitzgerald chased DE-
Lacy, who could neither steady no.
quiet his horse, round and round the
field, and when he took a short GU
to get In front of Lacy's animal, the lat
ter turned his head and tore off in the
opposite direction won't you stop
you coward you and show me some
fight?" Fitzgerald would roar after D,
Lacy to the ferocious delight of thu
multitude.
. At length De Lacy acquired enough
control over his maddened animal tt
induce it in it's wild career to bount
out of the field by the lane by which
Fitzgerald had entered. Fitzgeral,
pursued him out, but was soon far out
distanced. The roaring crowd, how
ever, got up with Fitzgerald, took hin
off the horse, and carried him into ant
through Cork or their shoulders, hi
stead with all its changing decorations
, and On it's head laurel crown, place.
there by some wag, being led in from
, of the procession.
The gay chevalier left Cork withou
saying farewell to his friends, ant
Satan" Fitzgerald, without intending
it, did more to discredit dueling thai
; if sermons against the practice ha
,, been showering from heaven for
year and day. Thousands of duel
had occurred in Ireland before tina
event, and many, of course, occurre
in it after, but the duel which Cheva
lier De Lacy did not fight with Seatol
Fitzgerald was an Irish duel par ez
cellence.