horrid. Of the hapless prisoners, who had fallen into the hands of the rebels, some were put to death when taken, but most were dragged to Vinegar Hill, where, after a sham trial, often without any form of trial, many of them were shot, or transfixed with pikes; some lashed, or otherwise barbarously treated before their final* execution. Reports have carried the numbers of men thus butchered on this fatal spot to about four hundred in all. The Rev. Mr. Gordon gives a singular instance of his own parish of Killegny, five miles to the south-west of Enniscorthy, from the general slaughter; not one Protestant of that parish having been killed in the rebellion, nor a house burned. These people surrounded on all sides before they were aware, found flight impracticable. Their preservation he ascribes to their temporizing conformity with the Roman Catholic worship. The army employed to surround the rebel post of Vinegar Hill, constituted a force of about thirteen thousand effective men, with a formidable train of artillery. With this force the whole insurgent army at this post, in which lay the great strength of the rebellion, might have been completely surrounded. The attack began at seven o'clock on the morning of the 21st, with a firing of cannon and mortars. All the divisions were at their respective posts, except that of General Needham, who either from neglect or accident arrived not at his appointed position till nine, when the business was over. The rebels, after sustaining the fire of the artillery and small arms for an hour and an half, abandoned their station and fled where the passage lay open for them, which was the avenue intended to have been occupied by General Needham, most of them directing their course towards Wexford. Some hundreds were killed, who were found straggling from the main body after the battle; but most of all the real rebels escaped, and those who fell under the swords of the pursuers, were persons who had been forced away contrary to their inclinations, or who took that opportunity of escaping from the rebel army, or loyal prisoners. As the flight of the rebels was precipitate, they left behind them a great quantity of rich plunder, together with all their cannon, amounting to thirteen in number, of which three were six-pounders. The loss on the side of the king's forces was very inconsiderable, though one officer, Lieutenant Sandys, of the Longford Militia, was killed, and four others slightly wounded, Colonel King of the Sligo regiment, Colonel Vesey of the county of Dublin regiment, Lord Blaney, and Lieutenant, Colonel Cole.*

Enniscorthy being thus recovered after having been above three weeks in the hands of the rebels, many loyalists in it were relieved from a dreadful state of terror. Excesses, as must be expected in such a state of affairs, were committed by the soldiery, particularly by the Hessian troops, who made no distinction between loyalists and rebels. The most remarkable act of this kind was the firing of a house, which had been used as an hospital by the rebels, in which numbers of sick and wounded who were unable to escape from the flames, were burned to ashes.t

The town of Wexford was relieved on the same day with Enniscorthy, Brigadier General Moore, according to the plan formed by General Lake, having made a movement towards that quarter from the side of Ross on the 19th, with a body of twelve hundred troops, furnished with artillery; and having directed his march to Tagmon, in his intended way to Enniscorthy, on the 20th, was, on his way thither, between one and two o'clock in the afternoon, attacked by a large force of the enemy from Wexford, perhaps five or six thousand, near a place called Goff's Bridge, not far from Hore Town. After an action, which continued till near eight, the rebels were repulsed

* Great discontents prevailed in the army upon General Needham's conduct on this as on a former occasion. Non nostrum est, to institute a court of enquiry upon those, whose conduct has been commended by the commanding officer. It has raised a personal contest between Sir Richard Musgrave and Mr. Gordon. The general has not a very powerful or persuasive advocate. The sarcastical appellations which became general after the action of the late General Needham and General Needham's gap, shew on which side the mass of inculpation lay. The following, however, is the official account given by General Lake, and published by government, of as much of that transaction as General Needham was or ought to have been engaged in. "General Dundas commanded the centre column, supported by a column upon "the right under Major Generals Sir James Duff and Loftus; a fourth column

"

"

"Lieutenant

upon the left, was commanded by the Honourable Major General Needham. "To the determined spirit, with which these columns were conducted, and the great gallantry of the troops, we are indebted for the short resistance of the "rebels, who maintained their ground obstinately for the time above men" tioned, but on perceiving the danger of being surrounded, they fled with great

with considerable slaughter, and not without some loss on the other side. By the evolutions of the soldiery, and the rebels' want of subordination to their chiefs, their pikemen were prevented from coming into action; so that no more than five hundred and sixty of their gun-men were really engaged. Yet the combat was long doubtful.

Joined by two regiments under Lord Dalhousie, the army took post on the field of battle; and on the morning of the 21st was proceeding to Taghmon, when Captain M'Manus, of the Antrim, and Lieutenant Hay, of the North Cork militia, who had been prisoners with the rebels, arrived with proposals from the inhabitants of Wexford to surrender the town, and to return to their allegiance, provided their lives and properties should be guaranteed by the commanding officer. To these proposals, which were forwarded to his superior commander, no answer was returned, by General Moore; but, instead of proceeding to Taghmon, he immediately directed his march to Wexford, and stationed his army within a mile of that town.

We left Wexford contaminated with the butchery of some unfortunate prisoners, to which Father Corrin had, by his exertions, put a stop for that day. It has been the constant assertion or assumption of most writers upon these scenes, that on the next day every drop of Protestant blood in Wexford was to have been spilled. True it may be, that the ferocious Dixon, who, with his assassins intoxicated with revenge, fury and whiskey, had let out so much innocent blood on that day, had not been satiated, and that they vociferated their infernal project of continuing the immolations on the next day. But suffice it for the historian faithfully to narrate the facts that have existed. Although it be allowed on all hands that Father Corrin put a stop to these inhuman butcheries, about seven o'clock in the evening, it has appeared to many persons, that the *Roman Catholic clergy cannot be exculpated from the imputation at least of not preventing these massacres, as it is natural to conclude, that their influence upon the rebels must have been as great at two as it was at seven of the clock of the same day. The reply of Dr. Caulfield to the misrepresentations of Sir Richard Musgrave, not only contains much historical information, but furnishes the only species of refutation, which the strictest historical justice can require. The evidence of the party will have its weight with the candid public, according to the credit it deserves. This writer (Sir Richard Musgrave) proceeds, and quotes from Mr. George Taylor's History of the Rebellion, in the county of Wexford: "That while this work was going on,

a rebel captain, being shocked at the cries of the victims, ran " to the Popish bishop, who was then drinking wine, with the " utmost composure, after dinner: and knowing that he could "stop the massacre sooner than any other person, entreated " him, for the mercy of God, to come and save the prisoners. " He in a very unconcerned manner replied, it was no affair " of his; and requested the captain would sit down and take a "glass of wine with him,' adding, 'that the people must be "gratified: the captain refused," &c. &c.

To this public, solemn, and hateful charge, Dr. Caulfield thus publicly, solemnly, and pointedly replies :

"Now I solemnly declare to God and man, that no such " captain or man came or applied to me; and that any captain

or man (or even Mr. Taylor himself) who gave such infor

"mation, gave a false and unfounded one.

• More faith may perhaps be given to what Charles Jackson relates of others than of himself, particularly as to the means of saving his own life: his testimony of the conduct of the Roman Catholic clergy is very explicit. "The conduct of the Roman Catholic clergy of Wexford cannot be too much commended. The titular Bishop Caulfield, Father Corrin, Father Broe, and indeed the whole of the priests and friars of that town, on all occasions, used their interest and exerted their abilities in the cause of humanity. Every Sunday, after mass, they addressed their audiences, and implored them in the most earnest manner not to ill treat their prisoners, and not to have upon their consciences the reflection of having shed innocent blood. When they heard of executions going forward, they flew to the spot, and by every entreaty endeavoured to rescue the victims from destruction. Sometimes they succeed. ed; and, when they failed, they shewed sufficiently how sensibly they felt for the unhappy persons they could not save. The gallant Lord Kingsborough owed his life to the resolute interposition of the Catholic bishop."

" Then comes on: 'Mrs. O'Neil, went to the doctor to " complain of the murder of her nephew, Mr. Turner, on the " bridge; he was one of the first persons taken out of the prison"ship; yet Dr. Caulfield did not interfere, nor did Mr. Corrin, " though he was present, until Mr. Kellet sent a messenger " for him; and there were many persons massacred in the in" terval between Mrs. O'Neil's complaint, and the deliverance " of Mr. Kellet.' The real fact is, that Mrs. O'Neil only la"mented the actual previous murder of her nephew, Edward " Turner, but did not mention the death, the murder, or mas" sacre of any other individual, much less a general massacre. "She was not many minutes gone, when a messenger came to " Mr. Corrin from Mr. Kellet, who, he said, was then on the "bridge: Mr. Corrin went out to speak to the messenger, and " returned in great fright and horror to tell me the message, " and ran off speedily: nor did this messenger, in his hurry, " mention any other to be killed, or in danger, but Mr. Kellet "alone. So that I can with a clear conscience repeat what I " said before; and now solemnly protest and declare in the pre"sence of Almighty God, my awful judge, and of the court of "heaven, that I was absolutely ignorant of that massacre being " intended, or perpetrated, until some hours after it had ceased. " Nor did I see or hear of a * black flag that day, however in" credible it may appear to Sir Richard, for I kept mostly in

my own house (and particularly that day), except when I was " sent for by some Protestant neighbour; and my residence is " adjoining the town wall, and shut in from the street, of which " I have no view, nor of the town, except of the tops of a few "houses, and even them, for the most part, outside the town:

so that as I am seldom out, I seldom know what passes in the " street or town, until I am informed by others."†