standing, on a rumor that the insurgents were approaching, it was determined to abandon the town, and proceed to Arklow; but, previous to its evacuation, eleven men, taken out of their beds, within a mile's distance, were brought in and shot in the streets, where they were left for dead; but six of them recovered. By order of Mr. White, however, upwards of one hundred prisoners were released from the jail and market-house, and many of them received protections, which they placed in their hats, in order to exhibit as conspicuously as possible; but this precaution did not prevent some being shot by other yeomen, whom they fell in with on their way home! The order for evacuation being announced at five o'clock on the morning of the 28th, a distressing scene of trepidation and confusion ensued. Affrighted crowds of people might be seen running in all directions, preparing for flight; while such as could were harnessing their horses, and placing their families on cars, with the utmost precipitation, all endeavoring to escape from the town as speedily as possible. The road was soon thronged, to a great extent, with a train of cars, which were loaded with women and children, accompanied by a vast multitude on foot, among whom were many women with their children on their back, and from the continued heat and drought of the weather, the dust excited by this crowded procession distressfully obstructed respiration. By this abandonment of Gorey, the whole of the surrounding country was left entirely exposed, and yet the insurgents did not at all, at this time, approach the town, but remained in their encampment on the hill of Carrigrew; nor did the inhabitants of this quarter then rise or join in the insurrection; but strictly observed, on their part, the promises they had made to the magistrates on surrendering their arms; and yet it is a notorious fact, that there were more United Irishmen in this than in any other part of the county of Wexford, and that it even comprehended the district of sixteen parishes already stated to have been proclaimed in November, 1797. While Gorey was thus abandoned by the military, and by such as were allowed, or for whom it would be safe to accompany them, it was filled with the property and effects of the fugitives, yet no plunder was committed, and no disturbance took place, so that on their return they found all belonging to them in perfect security, having been protected by those that remained in the town. The only instance of spoliation supposed to have taken place on this occasion is, that a yeoman got some money belonging to Mr. William Sparrow, by whose desire he came for it on the 30th, and which the owner never received. A party of yeomen returned on the 29th, and brought away provisions; but as these were galloping into the town, one of the shoes of a yeoman's horse struck fire against the pavement, haply on the very spot where a quantity of gunpowder had remained, after a small cask of that dangerous combustible which, previous to the flight, had fallen from a car into the street, and was burst. An explosion instantly ensued, by which the horse and horseman were blown up, and narrowly escaped with life the horse's hair was desperately singed, and the yeoman himself was terribly scorched. On the 31st, the military returned to Gorey; on which, although left utterly defenceless since the morning of the 28th, not the smallest attempt was made by the insurgents to take possession; and on the disposition to peace and order manifested by the inhabitants who remained in the town after the abandon ment, their laudable conduct is the best comment. Different parties of yeomen went out from the town, ransacked the houses through the country, brought away as much as they could carry, driving off numbers of cattle, some belonging to Lord Mountnorris, and put them into Mr. Ram's demesne. Indeed, they were not very exact nor scrupulous as to individual property, for they brought off all the cattle they could collect in the country, and took up bacon, cheese, butter, and provisions of all kinds, wherever they found them; and to crown all, they took a great number of men prisoners, to supply the place of those that were liberated in the commencement of the flight; so that this must be acknowledged, if not valorous, at least very active service. On the morning of the first of June, an independent, or self-constituted body of insurgents, unknown to any of the three general encampments of Vinegar Hill, Taghmon, and Carrigrew, proceeded on a secret expedition to Newtownbarry, (anciently called Bunclody,) garrisoned by the King's county militia, commanded by Colonel Lestrange, and the corps of yeomen cavalry and infantry belonging to the place. These insurgents having divided into two parties, made their attack on both sides of the Slaney, on the western bank whereof lies the town, and of this they were soon left in possession by the retreat of the military; but they instantly proceeded to plunder, particularly whiskey, of which they drank very freely, and being thus regardless of the advantage they obtained, they afforded the military, whom they did not attempt to pursue, time to rally and return upon them while in this disorderly state, so as to oblige them to fly with some loss and precipitation. On this day also, a party of insurgents from Vine gar Hill proceeded to join those encamped at Carrigrew, whose numbers were greatly lessened by desertions for home. They were now, however, mustering pretty strongly all over the country, intending to assemble their collective force on the hill of Ballymenane; but, while moving forward in a detached and disorderly manner, they were met by a force from Gorey, under the command of Lieutenant Elliot, consisting of parties of the Antrim and North Cork militia, above fifty yeomen infantry, and three troops of yeomen cavalry. These, by preserving their order, had great advantage in this unexpected rencounter over the insurgents, who retreated with some loss and in disorder; leaving behind a great number of horses which were brought into Gorey, together with the plunder of many houses, which were burnt after despoiling; among the rest that of Mr. Kenney, a tanner and shopkeeper, confidently asserted to be a loyal man: his character, however, did not protect him, for he was shot in his own garden, and so fell a victim to the angry indiscriminating spirit of the times, like many other innocent persons. This is very strongly exemplified by a transaction mentioned by the Rev. Mr. Gordon as follows:-"A small occurrence after the battle, of which a son of mine was a witness, may help to illustrate the state of the country at that time :-Two yeomen coming to a brake or clump of bushes, and observing a small motion as if some persons were hiding there, one of them fired into it, and the shot was answered by a most piteous and loud screech of a child. The other yeoman was then urged by his companion to fire; but he being a gentleman, and less ferocious, instead of firing, commanded the concealed persons to appear, when a poor woman and eight children almost naked, one of whom was se verely wounded, came trembling from the brake, where they had secreted themselves for safety."* Indeed the settled practice was, to shoot all men that were met; and by this desperate system, the most innocent and peaceable were generally the most likely to suffer; for being unwilling to join the insurgents, the ungenerous suspicions generally thrown out, however unjustly, against the Catholics, which constituted a vast majority of the people at large, precluded the possibility of their joining the army or yeomen, who professed the rankest and most inveterate distrust of the people, for any of whom it was extremely unsafe to venture into their presence on any occasion whatsoever, as numbers had fallen a sacrifice to a confidence in their own peaceable intentions and innocent demeanor; and this kind of conduct had finally the effect of determining multitudes to join the insurgents, considering it, at length, the only means of self-preservation. The mind of the impartial reader must be strongly impressed with the barbarous impolicy of thus cherishing these odious and unnatural prejudices, as well as with the desperate situation in which the country was placed through these means; and what a dreadful misfortune it must prove to be an inhabitant where not only such sentiments were very strenuously inculcated, but where even the most shocking scenes of foulest outrage were permitted, and perpetrated with the basest and most criminal connivance. From the inactivity of the insurgents encamped at Carrickbyrne, occasioned in a great degree from their want of an ostensible commander, constant sallies were made out of Ross, and great havoc and devastation committed throughout the country. These * See Gordon's History, page 113. |