Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1921-04-22
irish GIVE
VERSION OF
. AMBUSCADE
Sim Feiners Relate How
They Surprise and Slay
Crown Policemen
fRy The Associated Pressl


iRy The Associated Pressl
LONDON April %. inside
stories Of the ambushes laid by the
Irish Republican army to trap and
kill squads of British constables in
Ireland are disclosed in the reports
from Irish brigade commanders.
which have just been given out at
the headquarters of the volunteers
in Dublin. Most of these attacks
have been reported by the British.
but the Irish accounts are now given
for the first time.
They give the details of desperate
fights in which. sometimes, the little
British commands have been eecimat-
ei and at other times the Irish have
been driven off with severe losses.
for the irish volunteers occasionally
run into counter trap and iinl
themselves exposed TO the withering
blast of a machine gun.
These reports show the methods
employed 10 carry on the guerrilla
fighting, the hurried calls to assem-
bic the Irish attackers, efforts 70
surprise the British constables in
some isolated spot and tell of the use
of mines TO block the passage of
motor cars so that the attack can
be delivered with greater execution.
A typical ambush i described in
q report of the commander of the
East County Clair brigade. Thirty
five men, five acting as scouts. at
tackled police lorry containing a
district inspector and nine coh-
stables at Glenwood Belyoir, killing
all but four who escaped. Twenty Of
the attackers, ii is stated. were arm
ed with rifles and ten with double
barreled shoteuns. They were con
cealed on cne side Of a road near a
stream.
''As in a previous ambush, the
commander reports, ''the main body
was divided into three parties. The
position which was occupied at a. ~
was not very favorable. but we count
ed on the element of surprise and the
concentrated fire of Is Of the rifles
and the ten shotguns in the first
volley to make up for shortcomings
and in this we were successful"
They waited, it appears, until
four o'clock in the afternoon before
the lorry. came in sight. when the
car came into the center of the po-
sition," the report continues, ''it was
raked with the fire of the "a guns,
most of the police were shot off and
the car came to dead stop. Some Of
the police when they got on the road
made an attempt to put up fight
but the second volley, which includ-
ed all he rifles wiped them out"
What Is termed "an exceedingly
risky operation as we were half the
enemy strength" was the attack in
County donegal on a military train
from Derry. According to the bri-
gade commanders report the attack
ing party numbered 26. Information
was received at 9:3O at night, the
report says, that the special train
was to leave Derry at a. m. the
next morning.
Little time was left TO choose a
position and get settled, but the train
was late, giving Us three quarters Of
On hour to get ready. We chose a
cutting, one side of which was on 2
seveI with the carriage windows. At
the ends OF each side we placed
l,ombers and rifle men and between
were placed the remaining riflemen
and the others differently armed.
Two large boulders were placed on
the rails and the wire fences on each
side wcr pulled up to afford safe
exit. The station building short
distance away was taken possession
of and a green light displayed.
.There were seven carriages on
the train and it was travelling ut a
great speed when II struck the stones
Fire was opened from both SIDES
and bombs were hurled through the
windows. The fire was returned from
the cab Of the engine, where a Lewis
gun was in position. Our rifiemcn
at the rear end of the train got down
on the line for enfilading fire. but
after about ten minutes. ! was forced
TO order retreat to effect the safe
escape of our men. Eight bombs were
thrown. two Of which we are Ger
tain landed in carriages.
In the retreat one Of our two
parties was surrounded twice. but
fought its way through on each oe-
casion. One of our men is missing
and we believe he has fallen into the
hands Of the enemy. No other cas-
ualties were suffered on our side.
and. despite their denial, we have
every reason TO believe that at least
ten men were killed or wounded on
the enemy side"
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