The Land League
in Carbally
Plain Text Version
Glimpses Of Waterford,
Sketches Of Local History.
by Matthew Butler
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Scholars of local history are in for a treat with Matthew Butler's remarkable series of articles, first published in the Waterford News between September 1934 and February 1935. These articles offer a captivating and comprehensive account of the Barony of Gaultier, shedding light on its rich history. Butler's meticulous research provides insights into the intricate web of relationships between landlords and tenants, unearthing the stories of those who shaped the landscape and communities of the area. Moreover, the articles delve into the remarkable and often overlooked contributions of the Ladies' Land League in Carbally, highlighting the struggles and triumphs of this pioneering organization. With meticulous attention to detail and a flair for storytelling, Butler's work presents a unique opportunity to explore the past and gain a deeper understanding of the Barony of Gaultier's heritage. A fascinating read that continues to captivate and enlighten, these articles are a valuable resource for anyone interested in local history.
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Gaultier's National Record:
I suppose it will look like heresy on my part to write it, but historical accuracy compels me to record that, generally speaking, the Barony of Gaultier has not, inside the past two hundred years, been actively Nationalist. The same accuracy, however, compels me to state that in every parish, or rather in every chapel area in the barony, there have always been found men and women prepared to work, and if necessary suffer, in order to attend and keep glowing the lamp of Irish nationality. They may have been only a few, but they were a gallant few; some may have been in comfortable circumstances, but the majority were poor; they were not, however, the people to say:- "Wisha, what would I get out of it? What good would it be to me?"
The Faithful and the Few:
Rich and poor, they did their work, and they handed down from generation to generation whatever of nationality is to be found in the barony at present. Their successors are to be found there today, and I propose to give a short sketch of the operations of the Land League in Carbally; that is, the work of a generation now past did in their day to carry on the good work in one corner of the barony.
Home Rule:
We need not waste any time in going over the work of Butt and Shaw; suffice it to say that the Home Rule movement founded by the former and carried on by the latter was of a mild and courteous variety; they sincerely believed that by courtesy and good manners they could win self-government from England. They never learned the one lesson that our history teaches us---that such methods never yet obtained even a grain of sand from England.
Parnell's Mentality:
But with the coming of Parnell a new epoch arose. Here was a man who knew that the only method of obtaining anything from England was by hitting and hitting hard. He was the first parliamentary leader in modern Irish history who appreciated to the full:
The pathos of a pikehead
And the logic of a blow.
Although he was a parliamentary leader, he was never a parliamentarian; the moment a man becomes addicted to parliamentarianism in dealing with England, that moment he ceases to be an Irish Nationalist. Parnell knew that, and hence his whole political life was spent in breaking and shattering all the accepted laws, regulations and customs of parliamentarianism; that is, that parliamentarianism which England would like Ireland to follow so that Ireland could be out-generalled, out-manoeuvred, and so kept in subjection.
The Land League:
There are many today who think and believe that the Land League was a movement to ameliorate the condition of the farmers of Ireland; to get them lower rents, better conditions, and more equitable methods of acquiring and disposing of their farms or holdings of land. This is wrong; this is to misrepresent the main objective of the Land League. That organisation was the first national attempt since 1641 to put into practice the teaching of James Fintan Lalor---that the soil of Ireland belongs to the people of Ireland. Not, be it noted, to the farmers, or to the labourers, or to the landlords, but to the people of Ireland. We find this definitely announced in an official statement issued in 1882 by Patrick Egan, in reply to a letter by Most Rev. Dr. Croke. The soil of Ireland was then mainly owned by English landlords, or Irish landlords mainly English in mind, outlook and ambitions. The tyranny, injustice, inequity and positive cruelty with which they treated their tenants had to be met and overcome; the fight to do that was the phase of the work with which the tenant farmers were mostly concerned; they did not visualise the wider phase of the movement; they cannot be very much blamed, for there is an Irish proverb which tells us that “the person first cuts the gad nearest the throat.”
Carbally Lacking:
I have written that the people of Gaultier were not actively, eruptively Nationalist; I will deal with some aspects of this as I go on, but we find it in the working of the Land League. Although it impinged on the life of every tenant in Carbally, yet Carbally would not of itself support or organise a branch of the Land League. Carbally joined with Tramore in a branch, but very few Carbally names can be found in the published lists of those attending the meetings. For instance, a meeting was held in Tramore on April 4th, 1881, but no Carbally name appears in the published list of those present. Another meeting was held on May 15th of that year, and the only possible Carbally name in the list is Edmund Maher. His address is not given, but very probably he was the late Edmund Maher, then of Monamintra and later of Ballycordrea. At that meeting he proposed a very important resolution---that any member refusing to join his fellow-members in making a just demand on the landlord be expelled from the Land League. This means that there were some who were prepared to let others do all the fighting while they played for safety. We shall see some examples of that as we proceed.
Brighid Mhaire Chuirrin:
Another meeting was held on June 6th, 1881, and the only likely Carbally name among the published list of those present was M. Corcoran. This was probably the late Michael Corcoran of Kilmacleague, a name we will hear of as we go on. He was not a native of Carbally; he married a lady who was never called by her married name, but always Brighid Mhaire Chuirrin (“Bree-ad Vau-ira Chureen”). She was one of the last native Irish speakers of Carbally, and two of her daughters still live in the old homestead.
Trotting After Tramore:
And so on. Seldom one finds a Carbally name among the published lists of members. Now it is quite obvious that the parish of Carbally (or half-parish or chapel area) could easily have maintained a branch of the Land League, but nobody had the necessary energy and moral courage to start out and organise a branch. They were apparently quite satisfied to be trotting after Tramore; letting the Tramore people take all the risks and responsibility; willing, of course, to take any benefits that might accrue; but the whole area doing very little to deserve any benefit. The people were not anti-National, but they were not, as I have written, positively, actively, eruptively National; they were not prepared to stand out and take the risks and benefits if they would come. Benefits might never come, for ’Tis not in mortals to command success But they can do more---they can deserve it.
Father Roger Power, P.P.:
The President of the Tramore and Carbally branch of the Land League was Rev. Roger Power, P.P., Tramore and Carbally. He was a priest and a man who deserves more than a few words in a sketch of the national history of the parish.
The Four Brothers:
It will be found repeatedly stated that there were four brothers, of whom Father Roger was one, in the priesthood, but the difficulty is to identify the four. One was the then Bishop of the diocese, another was the Rev. Patrick Power, P.P., Cappoquin, and a third was Father Roger. The fourth eluded me for a long time. Finally I read a report, reproduced in the “Waterford News” of January 6th, 1888, from an American newspaper; that report gives an account of a High Mass celebrated for the repose of the soul of the then lately deceased Most Rev. Dr. Power, Bishop of Waterford and Lismore; and a Father Cuddihy, a lifelong friend of the deceased bishop, preached a sermon. In the course of that sermon he stated that there were four brothers in the priesthood, but that one had died in America thirty-six years earlier, that is, in 1852. This accounted for the difficulty experienced in trying to identify the fourth brother among the priests of the diocese of Waterford and Lismore.
Natives of Affane:
In an obituary notice of the bishop in the “Waterford News” of December 9th, 1887, it was stated that he was born in Affane on May 1st, 1809, and baptised in Cappoquin; this would indicate that the four brother priests were born in Affane. The whole family had a thoroughly national outlook. We know from Michael Cavanagh’s “Meagher” that Rev. Patrick Power, one of the brothers, was an uncompromising advocate of Ireland’s absolute independence; when a curate in Ballyneale in the ’48 period, he established a ’48 club in that parish, and his belief in, and devotion to, the cause of Irish independence were highly appreciated by John O’Mahony, the Fenian Chief---no mean judge of an Irishman’s devotion to his native land. He died at the residence of his brother in Tramore in June, 1881, and is buried in Cappoquin.
The National Outlook:
Father Roger was ordained in 1838, when the repeal question was at its height, and he showed his undoubted national outlook at an early age. During his student days the Bishop of the diocese was Most Rev. Dr. Abraham, who was such a firm friend of the Beresfords that his health was repeatedly toasted at Beresford dinners. Naturally, that Bishop was no advocate of repeal, a measure calculated to reduce England’s grip on Ireland and seriously diminish, if not destroy, the Beresford aristocracy. He was succeeded as Bishop by Most Rev. Dr. Foran, whose name is enshrined in one of our County Waterford Irish ballads as a supporter of England’s dominance in Ireland.
Notwithstanding these views of his bishop, he boldly took his stand under the banner of Repeal as a young curate. He took an equally sincere part in the Temperance movement, initiated by Father Matthew, and he presided at a great Temperance meeting in Waterford very early in his career as a Catholic priest. Time went on. Isaac Butt raised the Home Rule issue, and Father Roger stood by his side; Parnell came along, with his more virile, more extreme, and hence more national outlook, and he had no more devoted follower from the beginning than Father Roger Power, P.P, Tramore and Carbally. It was no wonder then, that he should become President of the Land League in Tramore and Carbally; in fact it was the natural position for him to occupy. Though his health at this time was far from robust, he was one of the most constant attendants at the meetings. No matter where his duties called him during his long priestly life, he never spared himself in the national cause; he gave whatever help he could, and that help was neither petty nor half-hearted.
His Work in Kill and Newtown:
He succeeded his maternal uncle, Father Veale, as P.P. of Kill and Newtown, and there his work as an Irish Nationalist was long remembered. In the year 1887 there was considerable agitation in Ballylaneen, Stradbally, Kill and Newtown over the eviction of a Mrs. Kate Walsh from her holding at Carrigcastle by James Anthony of Seafield House. In connection with that eviction a meeting of the Ballylaneen branch of the National League was held on January 30th, 1887. Father Roger was dead by this time, but the President of that branch (Mr. R.A. Power) referred to the action of the men of Kill and Newtown over the Carrigcastle eviction thus: “The men of Newtown were ever to the front when Father Roger led the van; Father Roger’s will be a name that will be cherished in the surrounding parishes beyond the portals of death. It is still green to your memory how he pulverised the cock-robin faction who stood up to assist the Beresfords to make their last stand in the County Waterford.” References such as this enable us to test the value and sincerity of the work of Father Roger as an Irish Nationalist, and to see the type of man who was at the head of the Land League in Tramore and Carbally. From Kill and Newtown he went as P.P. to Clonmel, and finally succeeded Father Nicholas Cantwell as P.P., Tramore and Carbally, in 1876. He died at Tramore on May 11th, 1884, aged 70 years, leaving behind him a name as the ideal Irish priest---faithful to God and true to his native land.
See the song “Sile Ni Ghadhra” in “Sidhe-Cheol, by Father Walsh, C.M. Michael Cavanagh has left us a wonderful translation of that last verse. Later on in these glimpses of our local history I will be dealing with the episode which led to Dr. Foran’s name being remembered in such an anti-national manner.---M.N.
Geoffrey Power of Quillia:
Next to the patriotic president, the most important official of the Land League in Tramore and Carbally was the secretary, Geoffrey Power of Quillia, but before dealing with him a few words about Quillia itself will not be out of place.
Quillia:
In 1641 Quillia was associated with Drumcannon under the name of “Quilly”, and as the name was apparently well established by then it is extremely probable that no change had taken place in the name for at least a hundred years earlier; thus we can be reasonably certain that the name, Quillia, is in existence from at latest the year 1550. Rev. Professor Canon Power tells us that the name is derived from the Irish word “Collach”, meaning full of hazel trees.
In 1641 the owner of Quillia was Jasper Woodlock, a name which has long since lost all association with that townland. Today, and for at least one hundred years, Quillia occupies rather a unique position among the surrounding townlands. It is probably the only townland in the district in which only one family lives. I am not in a position to say if that one family occupies all the townland of Quillia, but it would be interesting to know; it would be necessary to have some local enquiries made to discover if any of the people living in the surrounding townlands occupy a field or two inside the boundaries of the townland of Quillia.
The Two Families:
But Quillia does not appear to have always been what one may describe as a one-family townland; the tradition is that there were at least two families named Power living in the townland, and that these two families were closely related. Finally, one of the families died out, and the holding of land occupied by that extinct family passed into the position of the extant family. In Tramore graveyard can be found two distinct tombstones marking two distinct graves, and these are reputed to be the final resting places of the two Power families of Quillia. As far as menory serves, the date on the oldest of these tombstones is 1817, and this would probably coincide with the elimination of one of the Power families.
Geoffrey Power:
At the period with which we are here dealing, that is the Land League period, there was only one family named Power residing in Quillia. The father and mother were dead, and the household consisted of several brothers and sisters. One of these brothers was Geoffrey Power, and he became secretary of the Land League in Tramore and Carbally. The whole power family had a very pronounced national outlook; the brothers were regular attendants at the meetings of the League in Tramore, and Geoffrey made a very active, fearless, energetic and efficient secretary.
The Power Farm:
At that time the Power farm at Quillia consisted of 127 Irish acres, equivalent to approximately 200 statute acres. The landlord was John McSweeney of Cork, the rent was £220 per annum, and Griffith’s valuation was £142. The landlord’s view was that the farm was let too cheaply at £220 per annum; the tenants could not agree with that point of view, and so the landlord proceeded to impose his viewpoint on the tenants.
The Landlord’s Power:
At that time the Land Act of 1881 had not been passed, and so the power of the landlord was supreme. He immediately proceeded to take the necessary legal steps to compel the Powers of Quillia to agree with his point of view. To prevent their cattle being seized by the landlord, they instructed John Pender, an auctioneer of Waterford, to sell all their stock by auction. The proposed sale came to the ears of Mr. Dobbyn, the landlord’s agent, and he promptly issued peremptory orders to stop the sale of the cattle. The auctioneer announced the auction in the usual manner in the Waterford newspapers, and in that notice he stated that the auction would be held on the farm of Michael, William and Geoffrey Power of Quillia. It would therefore appear that the three brothers were looked on, or were acting, as joint tenants of the farm.
The Four Degrees:
At that period a topical verse was current in Co. Waterford, and recorded the various degree of turpitude popularly assigned to the landlord and his associates in the carrying on of the offensive against the tenantry. Considered as poetry, it does not reach a very high standard on the literary side; considered as an expression of the popular viewpoint it is too interesting to be allowed to pass into oblivion without any effort being made to recall it. These sketches, being concerned with the period, the people, and the events which originated it, form a suitable opportunity for resurrecting that old verse, which stated that:
The landlord’s a tyrant
The agent a curse
The bailiff a nuisance
The grabber much worse.
It will be generally admitted that these four lines sum up tersely and pointedly the characters of the different individuals engaged against the people in that agitation which has taken its place in Irish history as the land war.
Arrested!:
The character and national outlook of Father Roger Power were well known to the English Government of Ireland long before he became President of the Land League of Tramore and Carbally; the energy and efficiency of Geoffrey Power as secretary were bringing him under similar observation; it was very probably considered that he would be likely to get bad advice and a bad training (from the English viewpoint) from such a man as Father Roger; the action of himself and his brothers in not obeying the orders of the landlord’s agent in the matter of the auction did not raise him very high in the opinion of the Government of the day; it was considered essential to the existence of the English Government in Ireland that his further activities should be curtailed, and so, for his work in connection with the Land League in Tramore and Carbally, he was arrested in Tramore on Sunday evening, April 2nd, 1882. At first he was brought to Waterford prison, and later transferred to Naas prison where he remained for approximately three months. About the beginning of July he was allowed home on parole for a week; he honoured his parole, returned to prison, but was released shortly afterwards.
The Suspect:
It deserves to be recorded that the charge on which Geoffrey Power was arrested was that he was “suspected” of being implicated in treasonable activities; that was the usual charge preferred against all those arrested in connection with the working of the Land League, and for this reason all those so arrested were known as “suspects.” If we turn up a newspaper of the period and look at the report of a meeting we see recorded, among the lists of those present, named thus, “John Power (suspect),” indicating that such a man had spent a period in prison for his work in connection with the Land League.
Those Just Laws:
Needless to say, nobody was ever brought to trial on such a charge, it was merely a legal fiction, a legal excuse for arresting and locking up all those whose activities in the Land League brought them prominently under the notice of the authorities. They all knew they would never be tried; they knew they could not be tried under such a charge; they knew the whole matter was, as we would say today, a “put-up job” or “frame-up” to get the chief antagonists of the English Government under lock and key. We can therefore rather readily understand the reverence, the respect, the honour and the esteem in which English laws were and are held in Ireland, and why it is that men have gone out “in bloody protest” against such laws and the government responsible for them. The wonder is that we have endured such things so long; truly, we are a quiet, peace-loving people. And the pity of it is that, in the limited degree of freedom we have achieved so far, we adapt, copy, imitate, or carry on the traditions and methods of that unjust, immoral and inequitable method of administration. It can only produce a similar result; that is inevitable unless we change.
Emigration:
Finally, Geoffrey Power and his brothers emigrated. Geoffrey’s health, as will be seen later on, was never robust, and he considered it desirable to go to California. A short experience convinced him that the climate of that State was not as suitable as he had anticipated; he left there and went to Melbourne, in Australia, where he spent a considerable portion of his exiled life.
The Exiled Patriot:
For many years Geoffrey Power lived in Melbourne. During that period the Home Rule movement was looked on as the national movement of the day; to the overwhelming majority of the people of Ireland it meant, not Home Rule in the limited sense, but absolute independence. We have only to go through a file of newspapers of the period and we find with wonderful regularity the constant repetition of the idea that the final objective of the Home Rule movement was---Independence. The use of the word freedom to connote an emasculated or lowered form on Independence had not then become as general as it is today. Geoffrey Power and his brothers left Ireland, victims of landlord tyranny; behind that tyranny, supporting it to the fullest extent, even to the issue of an order, “Don’t hesitate to shoot!”, stood the English domination in Ireland; the support of the Home Rule movement meant to Geoffrey Power and men like him the abolition of landlordism and the smashing and shattering of English dominance in Ireland, in which landlordism had its foundations and to which it looked for support and continuance. He never forgot the cause of his exile, and hence he supported to the best of his ability the Home Rule movement. While he lived in Melbourne, many delegations from the Home Rule executive in Ireland visited Australia, and no one was more active or tireless in organising receptions and welcomes for those delegates than the former Secretary of the Land League in Tramore and Carbally. On one occasion the name of Geoffrey Power appeared as the chairman of a magnificent Irish demonstration in Melbourne; no further details were given, but there is every reason to suppose that Quillia was the birthplace of the chairman of that mighty meeting.
The End:
While it is true to state that Geoffrey Power lived for a number of years in Melbourne, he did not end his life there. In that principal city of Autralia he found many whom his boyhood and youth had known in Ireland; he met, for instance, Edmond Morrissey, another victim of landlord tyranny, from Ballygarron; he probably met Maggie Corcoran of Kilmacleague, whose name will be met with later on in these sketches of Carbally history; these were neighbours of his during the happiest period of his life, and in all probability they met and chatted in that distant land, where fortune, misfortune or fate had decided they should dwell for a period. But a time came when Melbourne knew Geoffrey Power no more. It is supposed that he moved to Western Australia, and, as far as can be ascertained, he takes his last long rest in that distant land, far from his native Quillia. May his soul enjoy that calm and rest reserved for all true and faithful children of Ireland.
His Brothers:
As has been already recorded, his brothers also emigrated; with the full weight of the landlord’s mailed fist descending on them, there was no living to be obtained in Quillia; they had to turn their backs on that ancestral spot and face the world in the endeavour to obtain that livelihood denied them by alien laws and foreign dominance in their native parish. It is generally understood that they have all passed to the Great Beyond.
His Sisters:
He had several sisters. One of them married the late Thomas Cheasty, of Monamintra, and one of her sons is now in occupation of her old farm and homestead at Quillia; another sister was mother of Dr. Purcell, of Waterford, and Dr. Purcell, of Tramore; a third was the late Mrs. Kate power, of Ballydrislane; while a fourth became a nun and died, I believe, in Cashel. They have all joined their brothers “where landlords cease from troubling and even agents are at rest.”
A Typical Case:
This sketch of the Powers of Quillia is just typical of the fate of thousands of others all over Ireland. The rents they were compelled to pay were out of all proportion to the intrinsic value of the land; from 1700 to about 1880 the rent of land in Ireland shows a progressive periodic increase; whenever land changed hands the new landlord automatically raised the rents on his newly acquired tenants; this went on without any moral or equitable justification; those in authority paid not the slightest heed to the complaints or protests of the peasantry; the matter finally became so unjust, so tyrannical, that it was a question of the extinction of either the landlords or the tenants, and when such forces are engaged in deadly combat which must mean the extinction of one or the other, there can be no doubt of the result. But on the tenants’ side casualties were inevitable; the Powers of Quillia were one of the casualties in the fight in Tramore and Carbally; the Quillia farm is there; the original homestead is there, but there is no longer a power in Quillia.
Landlord Prerogatives:
It is an inherent attribute of the selfish side of human nature that the members of any section of the community or State will fight hard to preserve whatever of power, authority or privilege is vested in their hands; they will fight equally sternly to preserve the system under which they became possessed of that power, authority or consequence. At that period (1880) all administrative and executive authority in Ireland was mainly in the hands of the landlords or their nominees; they saw clearly that Parnell and Davitt aimed at transferring that authority from the hands of the landlords to the hands of the Irish people; the former naturally objected to lose any of their privileges or prerogatives; they objected equally strongly to any change in the system under which it was possible for them to acquire, to have and enjoy these privileges and prerogatives.
Attacked Above and Below:
Some forty years earlier the “landlord interest”, or more plainly the landlords, occupied a commanding, nay, a controlling, position in the social, economic and administrative life of England, Ireland and Scotland. With the advent of Free Trade that dominating position had been challenged by the great commercial magnates, by the increasing number of industrial barons; since Ireland was not such an industrial or commercial country as England, that attack on the supremacy of the landlords was not so pronounced in Ireland as in England. But all the Irish landlords were aware of that attack on their hereditary, dominating privileges in England, and they considered it intolerable that, in addition to being attacked at the top by the industrial magnates, they should be attacked from beneath by their tenants, their vassals, those whom they looked on as their private property, and with whom they could do as they pleased. The landlords determined to offer unrelenting opposition to this effort of their tenants to establish for themselves a powerful position in the social, economic, administrative and executive phases of the life of the Irish nation.
Landlord Combination:
No sooner was the movement for the amelioration of the intolerable conditions, in which the tenants existed, launched than the landlords decided to form an association for the protection of their interests, including their unjust rents and the unjustifiable conditions regarding tenure, etc., of which the tenants as loudly complained. That association was called “The Irish Land Committee”, and among the local landlords whose names can be found in the list of those who gave it their support were Lord Waterford, Sir Robert Paul, F.G. Bloomfield of Newpark, Lord Carew, Hon. D.F. Fortescue, Earl of Huntingdon, Dawson A. Milward, Nicholas Power O’Shee of Gardenmorris, P.M. Power of Faithlegge, Henry Villiers Stewart of Dromana.
Orange Support:
The “Irish Land Committee” had been in operation for a short period; the fight between landlords and tenants was becoming more intense; both sides were calling up all the friends on whom they could rely, and eventually the Orange Order of Ireland decided to throw in its weight on the side of the Irish landlords. The Orangemen appointed a special committee to aid the landlords, and among local names associated with the operation of that committee were Hon. D.F. Fortescue, F.G. Bloomfield, Strangman D. Goff, and, strange though it seems, Count de la Poer. In some cases these men merely subscribed to the funds of that “Orange Emergency Committee”, as it was called, but undoubtedly, as landlords, they accepted the aid and assistance of the Orange Order in Ireland in their attempt to preserve their feudal privileges and rights over their tenantry.
An Orangeman Defined:
The publication in the press of this Orange support for the landlords had the effect of hardening the opposition of the tenants to the claims of the landlords; the support of Orangemen seems to have had a peculiarly irritating effect on the people of Waterford even as long ago as the year 1830. In that year a certain candidate in an election was populatly supposed to enjoy the support of the Orangemen; the “Waterford Chronicle” was then under the control of Philip Barron, the most redoubtable lay Catholic champion Waterford has known in two hundred years; that paper was naturally opposed to anyone enjoying Orange support, and in its issue of September 14th, 1830, it announced that Protestant support for any man it would not condemn very severely, but Orange support it could not brook at any price. The reason assigned in that issue of the paper was that---
“A Protestant is a Christian, but an Orangeman is a bloody Mameluke.”
It is difficult for those who know nothing of the history of the Mamelukes to understand the reputation for ferocity which hung around that name one hundred years ago; knowing that, the definition of an Orangeman associated with such a name is fully appreciated.
Further Landlord Combination:
When the “Irish Land Committee” and the “Orange Emergency Committee” had been functioning for some months a further association on behalf of the landlords was announced. This was a limited liability company under the title of the “Land Corporation of Ireland, Limited”, and all landlords were to take shares in this company. Its primary object was to take over all boycotted farms from its members and let them on easy terms and cheap rents to loyal tenants. It was undoubtedly pointed out that if all the tenants of Ireland had their holdings on easy terms and at cheap rents there would have been no land trouble, and that those landlords who made such an announcement stultified themselves thereby. Among local landlords associated with this venture we find the names of Lord Waterford, 2000 shares; Sir Robert Paul, 100 shares; John Palliser, 100 shares; Lord Fortescue, 400 shares; and Nicholas Power O’Shee, 100 shares. Thus on one side were those three landlord combinations, and on the other the ordinary people of Ireland under the banner of the Land League.
First Blow in Carbally:
The first major event in connection with the Land League in Carbally was the eviction of Thomas Morrissey of Ballygarron by his landlord, Mr. R.T. Carew of Ballinamona Park. Morrissey sold off his stock, furniture, and farming implements by auction on Tuesday, May 31st, 1881, and a week later, that is on June 8th,1881, he was evicted.
The Eviction:
On that morning of June 8th, a large force of Royal Irish Constabulary, fully armed with rifles, spiked helmets, etc., and accompanied by the sub-sheriff, Mr. J.T. Hudson, marched from Waterford to Ballygarron, and the eviction was carried out under the superintendence of the landlord, who was present and personally directed every detail of the mean, petty, sordid operations. Mrs. Morrissey was then an old woman; she saw her house, home, and all that it meant to her tumbling to the ground around her; she had not the age, energy, or vitality to begin life all over again; she had been unwell for some time before the eviction---and who can blame her? On that day she was carried out from her home, screaming, by the bailiffs, and left stretched on the ground in the yard attached to the house. Her nearest neighbour was Mrs. Phelan (whose name has already been mentioned in these sketches), and she took Mr. and Mrs. Morrissey into her house and cared for them until other arrangements had been made for their welfare.
Remembrance:
When Mr. Rockett of Garrarus (whose name appears in another column in these sketches of local history) was returning finally from Australia some months ago he naturally bade farewell to his friend, Edmond Morrissey; the latter commissioned him to call personally on Mrs. Mullins, the daughter of Mrs. Phelan, and bear her the expression of his remembrance and his regard. Deep in his heart is etched the memory of the kindness of Mrs. Phelan to his father and mother in their day of tribulation over half a century ago.
The Morrissey Farm:
At that period the rent of Tom Morrissey’s farm in Ballygarron was £104 per annum, the valuation was £72, and either one year’s or one and a half year’s rent was due. By carrying out the eviction in June the landlord confiscated the tenant’s growing crops; in Morrissey’s case these had been valued at £140, and it was publicly pointed out that his crops alone would have cleared his liabilities. From a statement made subsequently by Mr. Joseph Fisher, T.C., the then President of the Land League in Waterford City, we learn that the Morrissey family had been in occupation of the Ballygarron farm since, approximately, 1750. The wrench on Tom Morrissey on leaving that home in his old age must have been all the greater. In accordance with his usual practice, Mr. Carew had raised the rents of all the tenants in Ballygarron when he bought that estate, and Morrissey’s rent had been raised £9 per annum.
The Land League in Action:
Although the people of Carbally did not themselves organise a branch of the Land League, yet they had all, or nearly all, paid their subscriptions, handed in their names as members, and were thus bound by the laws and rules governing such membership. The landlord attempted to sell Morrissey’s crops, but not one of the people of Carbally or Gaultier would offer as much as a penny for the whole of them. Some would gladly have done so, but they were deterred by the force of public opinion, for it must be remembered that all the farmers were not followers of Parnell, Davitt, or the Land League. Failing to sell the crops, the landlord was compelled to install an “emergencyman” as caretaker of the farm, and part of his duties was to cut and save the crops. He will be heard of immediately.
The Expulsion:
A meeting of Tramore and Carbally Branch of the Land League was held on July 10th, 1881; the respected Parish Priest occupied the chair, and a grant of £10 was received from the Ladies’ Land League head office for Thomas Morrissey of Ballygarron. Another meeting was held at Tramore on September 18th in the same year; the Parish Priest again presided, and among the list of names published as being present we find that of Tom Morrissey. Certain evidence was put before that meeting, and from that evidence it was unanimously agreed that John Kennedy, a publican of Kilmacleague, be expelled from the Land League for “truckling with the emergencyman employed in saving the corn on the lands from which Thomas Morrissey was unjustly evicted.” Now, these emergencymen were rigorously boycotted everywhere, and it is evident from the wording of the resolution expelling Kennedy that the latter had not openly supplied the emergencyman, but had used underhand methods of letting him have whatever he needed. It is equally clear that the evidence must have been conclusive to procure unanimity of agreement regarding the expulsion, more especially to induce the Parish Priest to agree to such a drastic course of action.
That report of the Carbally and Tramore Branch of the Land League expelling Kennedy was published by the Secretary, Geoffrey Power of Quillia, in all the Waterford newspapers holding Nationalist views, so that it was well known all over the district at that time.
“Property Defence Association”:
In the beginning those “emergencymen” were recruited anywhere and everywhere. Ultimately another landlord organisation, called “The Property Defence Association”, was formed, and the special purpose of that Association was to supply landlords with all the bailiffs, emergencymen, etc., which their necessities demanded. A formal report of that Association bringing its operations down to November 30th, 1882, was duly published, and from that document we learn the names of those who subscribed to the funds to supply the bailiffs and emergencymen to the landlords, as well as a considerable amount of other information bearing on the operations of the landlords in that period. We learn, for instance, that to November 30th, 1882, that Association had served 257 writs on behalf of its members; had attended 222 Sheriff’s sales; had supplied 660 caretakers for evicted farms (these were the emergencymen); had supplied 226 bailiffs to assist in seizing tenants’ cattle, and had supplied 324 labourers to work boycotted farms.
Local Subscribers:
Among local subscribers to the funds of that Association we find the names of Lord Waterford, Sir Robert Paul, Sir Henry Page Barron, William Newell Barron, R.T. Carew, Lord Carew, Lord Doneraile, Earl Fortescue, Strangman D. Goff, J.T. Medlycott, John Lymberry, and John McSweeney. The latter, although a Corkman, was the landlord of the Quillia farm in which the local Secretary of the Land League lived.
Fire:
The emergencyman for Tom Morrissey's farm was installed before the formation of the "Property Defence Association", so that in all probability he was not supplied by that organisation. Where he came from, or what was his name, I know not. The day of his arrival was, however, known to the members of the Land League in Carbally; he was to reside in Morrissey's old homestead, but the night before he arrived that dwelling was burned. As it was a thatched house, it probably was standing there for well over one hundred years; a thick inflammable layer of thatch had accumulated on the roof, and it was not difficult to set it on fire.
The Landlord's Claim:
The landlord claimed £125 for the burning of the house; the claim came before the Presentments Session in Callaghane Courthouse; all the landlords present voted for it, and all the "associated ratepayers" against it. It was then appealed to the Assizes, where the County Grand Jury would deal with it. But as that Grand Jury was composed exclusively of landlords or their agents, they had not the second word about passing the landlord's claim. It was to be levied off the parishes of Kilmacleague and Drumcannon, but the lands in these parishes owned by Mr. Carew, the landlord, were to be excluded from any levy. Sir Robert Paul was foreman of the Grand Jury that passed the landlord's claim, and associated with him as members were Hon. D.F. Fortescue, R.T. Carew (the landlord), Joseph O'Neill Power, Wray B. Palliser (Annestown), F.G. Bloomfield, etc., etc.
Associated Ratepayers:
The method illustrated in the case of Tom Morrissey was one of the slickest (to use an Americanism) devised by England to appear to give power to ordinary people, but really to keep the power in the hands of the landlords. A number of farmers under the name of "Associated Ratepayers" was allowed to vote in cases of such claims at Presentment Sessions; everything they did was open to appeal at the Assizes, where it would be dealt with by the Grand Jury alone; as this Grand Jury was exclusively composed of landlords and their agents, all power finally rested in the hands of the Grand Jury, that is, in the hands of the landlords. These claimed, and the claim is even yet periodically asserted, that they had a natural aptitude for government and administration; that Providence had bestowed on them something which set them apart from the ordinary people, and that their natural function was the ruling and guidance of these ordinary, everyday people.
Disappearing Landmarks:
That house of Morrissey's which was burned down was situated on the left-hand side of the yard as one enters from the public road; it had a large kitchen with a fire-blowing machine, while two bedrooms were situated at the end of the kitchen, opposite the fireplace, that is, to the right-hand side as one entered from the yard. The parlour was situated on the left as one entered from the yard, and above this again were two more bedrooms. The story, or rather tradition, was current in my boyhood that this parlour was on the site of one of those circular grass rings called "fairy-rings" --- and if one went to pass through that parlour after midnight and got inside the original ambit of the ring, he or she would have to spend the night walking inside the ring --- they could not get outside it until the cock crew in the morning. Hence the necessity of going to bed in those rooms above the parlour before midnight, or, having got in before midnight, staying there till morning.
Callaghane Courthouse:
The Callaghane Courthouse is no more. The ruin is there still; it was situated on the left hand about a quarter of a mile on the Waterford city side from Callaghane crossroads, and in the same building was a R.I.C. barracks. During the fight for independence they met the usual fate of such places; their presence symbolised British authority or dominance, and so they had to go. In a few more years the ruin will have disappeared, and this note is just to record its site and fate. That Courthouse was the scene of many meetings concerning the administration of English law in the barony of Gaultier for nearly one hundred years before its destruction; the period of one hundred years may seem excessive, but the original date of the building of that Courthouse was not far short of that period.
The Ladies' Land League:
Early in 1881 it was quite obvious that the English Government had decided to suppress the Land League by imprisoning all the leaders, both local and national. To counter that move, and in the circumstances created thereby, a circular was issued early in February of that year, signed by Anna Parnell, Claire Stritch, Hannie Lynch, and Harriet Byrne, calling on the women of Ireland to step into the places left vacant by the imprisoned men; to provide funds for the support of those dependent on the imprisoned and evicted tenants; and to do this a Ladies' Land League was founded. Those four names deserve to be remembered in any account of the Land War; they and the women of Ireland contributed enormously to the final success of the movement initiated by Michael Davitt.
In Tramore:
A meeting of the Tramore and Carbally branch of the Land League was held in Tramore on February 20th, 1881, with the Parish Priest, as usual, in the chair, but among the published list of names of those present there is no name which could be associated with Carbally. Immediately the meeting had terminated a number of Tramore ladies met in the town and discussed the question of forming a branch of the Ladies' Land League, but nothing definite was done.
In Kilrossanty:
In the middle and west of the county the national spirit was stronger, and hence we find a branch of the Ladies' Land League established in Kilrossanty as early as February 26th, 1881. Shortly after this it was reported in the local press that a bailiff was found somewhere between Kilrossanty and Carrick-on-Suir; he was caught and compelled to eat the remainder of his processes. He complained of the difficulty of swallowing dry paper; his captors immediately went into a house close by where a woman was washing clothes; they commandeered half a gallon or so of warm soap-suds to wash down the processes. He definitely refused to go there again.
Lord Waterford Condemned:
By this time the landlord pressure was becoming very intense, even in Gaultier. Lord Waterford had incurred considerable odium because of the tyranny he was exercising towards his tenantry. So glaring had this become that at a meeting of the Waterford Board of Guardians a resolution was passed condemning him because of the gross injustice with which he was treating his tenants. The passing of such a resolution incensed the landlord members of that Board, and they decided to have that condemnatory resolution expunged from the minute-book, if possible. With that object a notice of motion was duly handed in to the Clerk of the Union.
``Hoity Toity'':
At the meeting of the Board on November 11th, 1881, Hon. D.F. Fortescue moved his motion to rescind the resolution condemning Lord Waterford. He was seconded by Mr. J.C. Elliott, who stated that, "Parnell and the Land League were driving the country into communism".
At that time it was looked on as something little short of blasphemy for tenants to condemn Lord Waterford; it was almost as bad as the act of those who voted against his ancestor in 1826. Mr. Joseph Fisher, T.C., was then the Vice-Chairman of the Board; he likened Lord Waterford to ``Hoity Toity'' because of his objection to criticism, and made a verse:
Hoity Toity got on a wall;
Hoity Toity got a great fall;
Not all the King's horses,
Nor all the King's men,
(Sir Robert Paul, Mr.Fortescue
Mr. Bloomfield and others)
Can set Hoity Toity up again.
P.F. Wall of Creadan:
While Mr. Fortescue was thus attempting to whitewash Lord Waterford, he was in reality attempting to whitewash himself. At that time he was engaged in a life-and-death struggle with one of his own tenants---the late Mr. P.F. Wall of Creadan. All the intricate devices which the law allowed had been exhausted by Mr. Fortescue to bend Mr. Wall to his will; the latter's cattle had been seized, but the Land League stepped in and the sale proved abortive.
The Stageens:
While this fight with Mr. Wall was going on a number of Mr. Fortescue's tenantry in the Killea district would have liked to get reductions, etc., without becoming members of the Land League; they wanted to get all the benefits which the Land League was securing without joining the League, so they held a meeting at Killea Chapel in October, 1881, and decided to go hat-in-hand to the agent. They would not help their fellow-tenant, Mr. Wall, in his fight by joining the League; they would not even give him the benefit of their moral support by keeping away from the landlord; by approaching the landlord at that time they were really aiding the landlord against Mr. Wall, and it need only be stated that they got all they deserved.
Continued:
This indifference to national affairs continued to exist in Killea long after 1881. In 1884 the National League was the recognised national movement of the day; a meeting of the Organising Committee was held in Waterford about August 9th, 1884; at that meeting a report was read from W.G. Fisher, Philip Power of Ballyduff, and James Maddock of Gracedieu, that they had waited on Father Crotty, the P.P. of Crooke and Killea. He informed them that he would not touch the National League, but that his curates could do as they pleased. Father Phelan, C.C., Crooke, was then the president of the Crooke Branch, but Father Burke, C.C., Killea, said that no branch existed in Killea, where the people were very apathetic and indifferent regarding national affairs.
P.F. Wall's Difficulty:
A meeting of the Crooke branch of the National League was held on Sunday, September 28th, 1884, Father Phelan, C.C., presiding. Mr. P.F. Wall attended and asked to be allowed to join the branch, as there was no branch in his parish and he wished to be associated in some way with the national movement. Father Phelan assured Mr. Wall that a branch was being established shortly in Killea, and if that failed they would be glad to welcome him as a member in the Crooke branch.
The Killea Meeting:
On Sunday, October 5th, 1884, a public meeting was held in the churchyard at Killea to establish a branch of the National League; P.F. Wall proposed and John Walsh seconded that Father Burke, C.C., take the chair; and L.C. Strange, Waterford, David Gleeson, Ballyshonock, Newtown, Kilmacthomas, Philip Power, Ballyduff, and W.M. Veale, of Fenor, attended and spoke. At the conclusion of the meeting 68 or 70 names were handed in as members, and it was arranged that a meeting of the branch would be held on the following Sunday, 12th October.
The Result:
In the issue of the ``Waterford Mail'' for October 17th, 1884, this notice, or rather comment, appeared:- ``We are sorry to hear that the meeting of the National League which should have taken place at Killea proved abortive. We are not at all surprised at this, as the same parish has always shown that the inhabitants are political renegades and quite unworthy of the fight that has been fought for them. With the exception of Mr. Wall and one or two others, the parish is utterly devoid of national feeling.'' This incident is recorded to show the difficulties which confronted the national leaders, when whole parishes (or chapel areas) like Killea took no interest in such matters and were indifferent to the fight which others were putting up on their behalf. At that time hunting by harsh, unjust or evicting landlords was forbidden by the tenants; hunting by landlords who associated with the unjust or tyrannical landlords was also forbidden, and at the meeting in Killea on October 5th David Gleeson said that he was sorry to hear that the Killea district was the only place in East Co. Waterford where an evicting or tyrannical landlord was allowed to hunt.
The Cause:
What was the cause or the reason why a whole countryside like Killea cut itself off from all national affiliations? Why did not the people of Killea throw in their lot and stand shoulder to shoulder with the rest of nationalist Ireland? They had before them the fight put up by Mr. Wall against his landlord, so that they could not plead ignorance of what was going on. Was it an anti-nationalist outlook; complete indifference to such matters, or the purely selfish view that it would probably put more money in their pockets to keep friendly with the landlord? At that time the landlord, Mr. Fortescue, was accompanied by two armed policemen wherever he went, and it was reported in the press that they remained in his house at Summerville all night during that period. He was not afraid of his Killea tenantry, so there must have been sterner stuff somewhere else to account for the two armed R.I.C. men.
Carbally Ladies Abu:
The Land League was suppressed by Dublin Castle on October 20th, 1881, and on November 19th in that year a meeting of the ladies of Tramore was held to establish a branch of the Ladies' Land League in that town. What the men of Carbally would not do, what they had not the energy, initiative or responsibility to undertake, the women of Carbally did; the men were satisfied to be hanging on to Tramore in the matter of the Land League, but the women of Carbally were not satisfied to be sheltering under the shadow of Tramore---they determined to have a branch of their own in Carbally. They were determined to take the risks and responsibility, to come out as fully grown people and take their full share of the nation's struggle. This action of theirs may be said to have influenced the public and national life of Carbally from that day to this.
The Branch Established:
Naturally there had been some preliminary talk and discussion; some, no doubt, would have advised to move cautiously, to play for safety, not to go too deep into these things, and, after all perhaps it would be well to leave the work to the ladies of Tramore, as in the case of the Land League. Fortunately for the honour of Carbally and the good name of Gaultier there were some girls in Carbally whose minds were not yet debased by purely selfish and worldly considerations, who would look at things from a higher and nobler angle than their own personal safety; who felt that Carbally had been long enough in leading strings and that it was time that the parish (or chapel area) went out on its own. They refused to listen to the venal voices, to the preaching of the craven, and, relying on the inherent, if dormant, national pulse of the people of Carbally, they determined to give the parish a branch of the Ladies' Land League.
Their Names:
On Sunday, December 11th, 1881, that is fifty three years ago, these few girls held a meeting after Mass at Carbally chapel and established a branch of the Ladies' Land League. It was proposed by Miss Alice Butler and seconded by Miss Mary Power that they formally establish the branch, and the first president was Miss Maggie Taylor. The others present at that meeting were Miss Alice Flynn of Carbally, who acted as secretary to the meeting; Miss Johanna Foley, Miss Bridget Foley, Miss Mary Phelan, Miss Catherine Power, Miss Mary Anne Power, and Miss Margaret Corcoran. In a month or so they made a slight change in the officials; Miss Mary Power became president, and Miss Margaret Corcoran became secretary, and they remained president and secretary, respectively, while a branch of the Ladies' Land League existed in Carbally; that is, as long as the need for it existed in Ireland. Two other names were added to that Committee, namely, Miss Ellen Cotter and Miss Anne Murphy, and all the names here given deserve a special word of praise and remembrance for standing out at a period when their organisation was suppressed and banned.
Their Fidelity:
These girls were then too young to be swayed by personal or selfish motives; the great dominant idea in the Land League and the Ladies' Land League was the inherent national outlook of both; to these girls it was the call of their country in a time of trial and danger, and they gladly answered that call. They were all young girls at that time, and this Carbally branch was remarkable in that it was officered and administered entirely by youth. In other districts married women took a considerable share in the work. Again, not one of those girls flinched, no matter from what quarter danger threatened; the English Government was constantly threatening various pains and penalties, but those Carbally girls remained true to their trust, faithful to their founder, constant in their fidelity to Ireland.
Defection in Tramore:
The same constancy was not experienced in Tramore. At their meeting in February, 1882, the ladies of that branch expelled their first president, ``who so cowardly fled and left us in the time of trial''; they also expelled her niece, and they stated ``the ladies of Tramore would consider themselves traitors to Ireland if they had acted otherwise.'' Mrs. Cody, who had been a staunch member since the beginning, was elected the new president of the Tramore branch. To obviate any doubt or ambiguity, it should be stated that the names of the expelled Tramore president and her niece were published in the Waterford papers at the time.
Organising Ability:
No sooner was the Ladies' Land League established in Carbally than those young girls set about organising with an energy and thoroughness remarkable in ladies who had no previous training in such work. Had there been a branch of the Land League in the district they would have seen something of the methods of organising; of how to do things; of how to conduct meetings and organise collections; they could have gone to their fathers or brothers for instructions in difficulties, and they would have had reliable and experienced guides to advise them. But, as has been seen, there was no branch in Carbally and seldom any of the men attended the monthly meetings in Tramore. There were no bicycles in those days---there were bicycles, but they were not in general use---and the only means of getting to Tramore from Carbally was with a horse and trap, or else walk across the bank from Strangman's house in Lissellan. The tide has now broken down that bank, and so one of the traditional footpaths to Tramore has gone.
Their First Collection:
They immediately started a collection, and in a week they had collected £17 in the chapel area; they sent £10 of this to the Political Prisoners' Fund and £7 to the head office of the Ladies' Land League. A separate collection was made for each of these two objects. By the end of December they had made out and published a complete list of all subscribers, and that list is before me as I write. It is a revelation to go through that list, see the names of those who subscribed to those collections, and note how few are left in Carbally today. The descendants of some are still there, but in many cases whole families have completely vanished.
The Patriotism of the Poor:
After his escape from his English jailers, Thomas Francis Meagher was engaged in journalism for a period in America. One of his articles having a reference to the County Waterford has this heading, and I am reminded of it as I look down that list of subscribers to that £17 collection which was made in Carbally in December, 1881, for the Ladies' Land League. The list was headed by the patriotic Father Quinn, C.C., who then lived in Ballinvella, and whose name is still remembered by the older generation in Carbally for his sincerity and love of country. He contributed ten shillings, as did the late Martin O'Brien, of Brownstown, and ``A Friend from Ballymacaw''. I will endeavour to discover the identity of this unknown ``Friend from Ballymacaw'' as I proceed. To this collection the evicted tenant, Thomas Morrisey of Ballygarron, contributed two shillings, and one of the peculiarities of the collection is that poor people like David Hardy and John Guiry gave one shilling each, while farmers with from 25 to 40 acres of land contributed only a similar amount, and some farmers gave nothing.
The Political Prisoners' Collection:
This collection realised £10, and the list was headed by two ladies---the late Mrs. Johanna Phelan, of Ballygarron, and Mrs. Kirwan, of Carbally---who each contributed five shillings, and these were the two highest contributors. In many cases two members of a family subscribed. Thus, David Phelan, of Keylogue, contributed three shillings, and his wife an equal amount; Thomas Cheasty, of Monamintra, and his wife contributed three shillings each; William Butler, of Ballyshoneen, gave two shillings and six pence, while his sister, Alice Butler, contributed two shillings, and Mrs. Morrissey, wife of the evicted tenant, gave two shillings. On the whole, the women of Carbally contributed splendidly to these collections for a purpose which had been proclaimed, suppressed and banned by the English Government. When we realise that the Ladies' Land League was founded, the collection organised and collected, and all the necessary arrangements made in a week by young girls with no previous experience of such work, the greatness of their achievement and enthusiasm dawns upon us.
Women's Work for Ireland:
All this reminds us that we have no complete record of all that women have done to aid the achievement of Ireland's independence. We find reference to the work of the women of Limerick in the 1691 period; we know that they acted a big part in '98---the name of Mary Doyle at New Ross is immortal; we know that they carried arms and ammunition in '48 and '67, while in our own day the name of Cumann na mBan has shown that the patriotism of the women of Ireland has intensified rather than receded. When the day comes to make that record of women's work for Ireland, the names of those Carbally girls will be found therein---they made that certain, but what of their successors today?
The Hut Difficulty:
These young ladies next applied to the head office of the Ladies' Land League for material to build a house for Tom Morrissey, the Ballygarron evicted tenant. His only son had by this time gone off to Australia; he saw nothing for him in his own country; Mrs. Phelan of Ballygarron had acted the part of the Good Samaritan in taking in and caring for his parents, and naturally he did not want to be living on the kindness of a neighbour, otherwise he had nowhere to lay his head. He therefore set his face for Australia, and, as already pointed out in these notes, he there achieved what was impossible for him at home.
But considerable difficulty arose as to where the house would be built should the materials arrive. They dared not build it on any property or land owned by Mr. Carew of Ballinamona Park; should a tenant of another landlord allow the house to be erected on his farm, then he would invite the unwelcome attention of his own landlord. It required a great deal of moral and even physical courage for any tenant to allow a Land League Hut (as those dwellings were called) to be erected on his farm.
Corcoran's Courage:
Finally, Michael Corcoran of Kilmacleague, the father of Miss Margaret Corcoran who was secretary to the Ladies' Land League in Carbally, determined that he would act the part of a man; that he would take all the risk and responsibility; that he would fling the gage in the face of the associated landlords, and allow the Land League Hut to be erected on his farm.
His wife was equally national, and therefore as fearless as he was; probably far more so, and no doubt gladly acquiesced in what was really an act of open, clear, unmistakeable defiance to the landlord combination. Reader! honour the memory of a gallant family in days of trial and danger. It is men and women such as Michael Corcoran and his family who have kept alive the Irish nation to today; fifty years ago they were the most national family in Carbally, and have left the whole district a memory of which to be proud.
No doubt some of his friends told Michael Corcoran that he was fifteen different sorts of a fool to do as he did and bring himself so prominently under the notice of the landlord, but the names of such people will never be preserved in the story of Carbally. Such of them as have passed away are forgotten already, but that of Michael Corcoran's will stand out as a glorious episode in the records of that out-of-the-way parish which forms the eastern shore of Tramore Bay. The story of the Land War will live in Irish history while the names of Parnell and Davitt are remembered, and the names of Michael Corcoran and his daughter, Maggie, will live in the chronicles of Carbally while a Carbally man or woman honours a brave and unselfish act.
The Arrival:
The application of the Carbally branch of the Ladies' Land League for timber to build a hut for Tom Morrissey was favourably entertained at the head office; in due course the timber to erect the hut arrived by train at the Waterford railway station, and arrangements had already been made to convey the timber to the site of the house on Michael Corcoran's farm.
The members of the Carbally branch of the Ladies' Land League had a couple of waggonettes with horses decked in ribbons and flags flying from standards fixed at the front of the vehicles; a concourse, variously estimated at from 100 to 300 farmers' carts, arrived at the railway station, and among them was Mr. John Corcoran (he was usually called Jack Corcoran), the son of the man who had given the plot on which to build the hut. Some three or four years ago he passed on to join the majority of those who were present on that occasion. Two Waterford city bands turned out unsolicited and played the enormous procession through the town. Finally the procession of waggonettes, farm carts, and people marched through Ballytruckle, on to Ballygarron, passed Morrissey's old homestead, and so to Kilmacleague, where they deposited their precious loads of timber at the appointed place on the lands of Michael Corcoran. This occurred on or about February 15th, 1882, and on that night the cow-houses, stables, out-offices, etc., at Morrissey's old homestead were burned to the ground. Thus, within nine months of Morrissey's eviction not a house or out-office that he knew was left standing intact at his old dwelling-place---they had all been given to the flames, a fitting end, some will say, to houses that had sheltered for so long a generous Irish family whose race was now run.
More Stageens:
Because of the large assemblage of farmers' carts in Waterford to carry home the timber for Morrissey's hut it must not be assumed that all the farmers in Carbally, or Gaultier, or around Waterford were against the landlords or in favour of the Land League. Far from it. That huge concourse at Waterford Railway Station and which marched to Kilmacleague was not all composed of farmers; it included a big muster of labourers from Carbally and Gaultier generally. Some of the farmers to whom reference has just been made dismissed their workers because they went to Waterford on that day to show their active sympathy with Tom Morrissey, or their antagonism to, or detestation of the methods of the landlords. There were not very many guilty of such anti-national acts but there were a few and their descendants are well known today among those who take the slightest interest in local history.
The Keily Touch:
At that period there was (and there still is) a well-known brewery in Waterford. In the Land League days the proprietor of this brewery was Alderman W.E. Keily and he sent, at his own expense, two men to erect the Land League Hut for Tom Morrissey. Not satisfied with sending the two men he also supplied, free, all necessary nails, roofing, felt, etc., in fact all that was needed to erect and make the hut habitable. Alderman Keily was actively in sympathy with the people of Ireland in the fight against their feudal landlord oppressors and he showed his sympathy in a very practical manner on this occasion of the erection of a hut for an evicted tenant.
The Friend from Ballymacaw:
At that period he lived during the summer and for the greater part of the rest of the year in a thatched house called Cliff Lodge, situated on the coast at Ballymacaw to the east of Ballymacaw Cove. In all human probability he was that ``friend from Ballymacaw'' who subscribed ten shillings to that first collection made in Carbally by the Ladies' Land League. He liked Ballymacaw, with its glorious coast scenery; he liked Carbally; he liked the people of Carbally, and so when he was called to his last long sleep he decided to rest among the people he loved so well. He is buried in that quiet, restful, picturesque graveyard of Carbally that would have delighted the heart of Thomas Davis, could he have seen it, for it approximates very closely to that ideal resting place he has so vividly portrayed for us.
His Resting Place:
There is a fine monument in Carbally graveyard to his memory: that monument tells us that he was born on December 8th, 1939, and he died on November 3rd, 1894, when he was fifty five years of age. There also is buried his wife, Annie, who died at Ballymacaw, on August 4th, 1896, at the age of 59. On the left hand side of that monument there is a further inscription which tells us that his son, Patrick W. Keily, of Melrose, Tramore, was born on March 6th, 1872, died on September 6th, 1921, and is also buried in Carbally. That monument further tells us that William Keily, son of Patrick W. Keily, was born on August 25th, 1897, and died on July 21st, 1905, at the age of practically eight years; he, too, sleeps with his father and grandfather in Carbally graveyard.
Some Keily Memories:
Alderman W.E. Keily had, to the best of my knowledge, two sons and three daughters. One of his sons emigrated and, as already indicated, the other rests with him in Carbally graveyard. In the early nineties of last century the three daughters kept a lending library at Cliff Lodge, the idea being to inculcate a taste for good reading among the boys and girls of Carbally. For the boys the adventure tales of Jules Verne, Fenimore Cooper, etc., were available while the works of Miss Alcott, Jane Austen, etc., were supposed to be specially for the girls. In addition Scott, Dickens, Thackeray, etc., were in force in that library. The books were given out on a Sunday afternoon and to go for a book formed a pleasant excursion on that day. With the death of their father that home was broken up; the youngest of the sisters---Miss Barbara Keily---emigrated to New York, I believe, while the other two left Waterford. Some sixteen or eighteen years ago they were living together near Milltown, County Dublin, and my impression is that they never married. Today their early and old home at Ballymacaw---Cliff Lodge---is in a sad state of disrepair.
The Keily Tradition:
Whatever is truly national in Carbally, Gaultier, or indeed in Waterford city and county, should never allow the conduct of the late Alderman W.E. Keily on that occasion of the erection of the Land League hut fall into oblivion. He might have taken the side of the great and wealthy; he might have been an honoured guest in the proud homes of the mighty, but he preferred the side of the people of Ireland, and among these people he rests. But, as these same people would say, ``Kind Daddy for him''; forty years earlier his father was an earnest worker in the ranks of those who strove to weaken England's grip on Ireland by repealing the Act of Union. The father tried to break England's legal grip, obtained on Ireland by perjury and fraud; the son aided those who strove to break the feudal system by which England held the land of Ireland. Truly, those two generations of Keilys hold an honoured place in Ireland's history and in the story of Waterford.
His Work Continues:
Lest it may be imagined that with the erection of the Land League hut for Tom Morrissey the interest of Alderman W.E. Keily in national matters evaporated, it is only proper to record that a great National League demonstration was held at Knockboy about the middle of January, 1887; that meeting embraced the whole of Gaultier as well as a considerable quota from Waterford city. On the motion of Mr. P.F. Wall of Creadan, seconded by John Delahunty, a special vote of thanks was passed to Alderman Keily at that meeting for his sincere and earnest work in aid of the national cause.
The Landlord's View:
It will be remembered that the out-offices at Morrissey's old homestead were burned on the night of the day on which the timber to build his new residence arrived. The landlord made a claim for those old thatch houses with mud walls. When the claim came before the Grand Jury (who were all landlords) a member of that body stated that the great majority of those who conveyed the timber from the Waterford railway station to Kilmacleague were not from Carbally, but were all strangers to the locality. No doubt some came from Crooke, Ballygunner, Callaghane, Tramore and Waterford, but the largest share came from Carbally itself.
The landlord implication was that those who brought home the timber came from twenty miles away or so; that, of course, was absurd. At that same meeting of the Grand Jury another of them stated that none of the tenants at Kilmacleague would give permission for the Land League hut to be erected on their farms, and that they deserved the greatest credit for it.
The Hut Field:
This clearly indicates that someone acting in the interests of the landlords had made an effort to induce the tenants to refuse permission to erect the hut on their farms, and it proves beyond any possibility of doubt the risk taken and the courage shown by Michael Corcoran. Some, perhaps, may have refused, but there was at least one tenant equal to the occasion, and so the hut was erected in a field belonging to Michael Corcoran. That field was situated a short distance---a couple of hundred yards or so---from Corcoran's Cross, on the left hand side on the Tramore road. Tom Morrissey is dead and gone; Michael Corcoran and his wife have gone to their eternal reward; the Land League hut has disappeared, but that field today is called ``The Hut Field'', and the hill on the road by the side of that field is yet known as ``Land League Hill''. Long may these names remain! They preserve for us and for those who one day will take our places the history of that locality and the memory of how that Corcoran family faced a landlord combination during the Land War.
Police Attention:
The action of those ladies in providing a habitable dwelling for the evicted tenant and finding a site for its erection, despite landlord intimidation, had raised Carbally to the front rank in the fight against landlord oppression. The result was that the Royal Irish Constabulary at Dunmore East and Callaghane became very interested in the movements of those girls who had already achieved so much. About ten days after the arrival of the timber for the hut a meeting of the girls was held at Carbally; the exact date of the meeting was February 26th, 1882, Mary Power presided, and there were also present Mary Phelan, Maggie Taylor, Catherine Power, Anne Murphy, Ellen Cotter, Alice Flynn, Mary Anne Power, and Maggie Corcoran, Secretary.
As soon as that meeting started two R.I.C. men, Constable Taylor and Constable Grogan, were seen approaching the house in which the meeting was being held. Those girls could have gone out of the house; dispersed quietly; gone home and arranged a meeting at another venue and on another date. Instead they locked and fastened the door, stood their round inside the house, went on with their meeting, and, when it was concluded, they opened the door, walked out, went home, and left the two policemen standing, ``alone in all their glory''.
Further Meetings:
Another meeting was held on Sunday, April 9th, 1882, with Mary Power in the chair. Also present Mary Phelan, Ellen Cotter, Catherine Power, Maggie Taylor, Alice Flynn, Alice Butler, Mary Anne Power, Anne Murphy and Maggie Corcoran, secretary. They passed a resolution condemning the arrest of Geoffrey Power of Quillia, and sent £4, which they had collected, to the head office for Tom Morrissey; at that meeting they made final arrangements to have a special collection taken up at the chapel gate on May 15th. They held their collection; they had a special meeting on that day, with the usual girls present, and they continued in that manner for the greater part of the year 1882.
Changed Conditions:
A rather peculiar position arose in Ireland in 1882. The Land League was suppressed in October, 1881; the Land Act of 1881 had been passed; most of the national leaders were imprisoned and had not an opportunity of determining the future course of the national movement. Many farmers, having got reductions in their rents, and having got the Land Act of 1881 passed, considered there was nothing else for them to do, and began drawing away from the national struggle.
The Labourers:
Those farmers, in their selfishness, considered that the agitation of 1880 and 1881 was exclusively for their benefit, and having now got all that they thought they needed, there was, apparently, no need for them to take any further interest in the national affairs of their country.
They overlooked or ignored the fact that they had no stauncher friends than the labourers of Ireland, and that the labourers had got nothing out of the struggle so far---nothing but the losses, discomfort, imprisonment and suffering they had endured in helping the farmers to achieve their immediate objects. This became so obvious that such of the leaders as were at liberty openly commented on it in their public statements. The late T.M. Healy, for instance, stated that if the farmers thought they could now sit down at their ease, the question of the labourers was like a sharp nail up through the bottom of the chair to make them sit up again in a hurry.
A Labour League:
The result of this was the establishment of a Labour League---or, as it was sometimes called, a Land and Labour League---in which the interests of the agricultural or rural labourers would get more prominence than they had obtained for the previous three or four years. This new League gradually absorbed all the active workers of the Land League and the Ladies' Land League. The Tramore and Carbally branch of this Labour League was formally established on October 1st, 1882, but a branch had been in existence in Carbally since the previous May or June. Carbally was represented at that meeting in Tramore on October 1st by Thomas Burke and Nicholas Flynn. Arrangements were made to hold a big demonstration in Tramore on October 10th; this was duly held; and Carbally was represented by Maurice Flynn, Nicholas Flynn, and Thomas Burke; the latter was the secretary of the Carbally branch. Geoffrey Power of Quillia was secretary to the Tramore branch, and he also acted as secretary to that demonstration which was held on October 10th in that town.
Here it is necessary to draw special attention to the influence of those girls who established the Ladies' Land League in Carbally. Before they came out there was no branch of any League in Carbally, but as soon as they set the example the opposite was the case; no sooner was a special organisation in existence than a branch was founded in Carbally.
The Demands of Labour:
The labourers of Ireland had been pressing certain demands on the farmers since the passing of the Land Act of 1881. Many farmers were quite willing to comply with those demands, but others were not so generous or so just. This is clearly indicated in a report of a meeting of the Butlerstown branch of the National League held early in January, 1883, at which Father Flynn presided. At that meeting it was proposed by Mr. James Maddock, seconded by Mr. T. Hartery, and passed unanimously: ``That any farmer holding 25 acres of land and upwards will not be admitted a member of this Branch until he has complied with the moderate demands of his labourers''.
Trouble in Kilmacquague:
Following the example set by the ladies of the Land League, the labourers of Carbally were not slow in looking after their own interests. They had an organisation there early in 1882, and practically all the farmers acceded to their demands. William Cullinane, of Kilmacquague, did not, however, follow the usual course; he professed himself willing to concede the demands of the labourers in a general way, but he retained for himself the role of interpreting the application of those demands as far as he was personally concerned. This did not satisfy the labourers, and in March or April, 1882, his farm was declared a ``boycotted farm'' by the labourers of the parish of Carbally. He could not get a man or boy in the whole of Gaultier to work for him; he was compelled to seek workers in County Kilkenny or Co. Wexford, and when they discovered the condition of affairs at Kilmacquague they usually returned home again. Matters continued thus throughout the summer, and finally a case arising out of these events came before the Petty Sessions at Callaghane Courthouse. From the evidence given there we can carry the story somewhat further, but unfortunately cannot complete it.
Cullinane Versus McNamara:
The case was heard about October, 1882, and in the course of his evidence William Cullinane stated that on a Sunday in the autumn of that year he visited Mr. Perry of Carricklong to hire a threshing set. Mr. Perry told him that as he was a boycotted man he would not work for him, and that apparently ended the matter as far as Perry was concerned. Mr. Cullinane returned home by way of Ballymacaw, and all went well until he came to Dower's public house in that village, where he stopped and entered. As it was a Sunday afternoon there was a good gathering of local people near Dower's, and similar gatherings in Ballymacaw are not unknown even today. Many of that crowd were local labourers and their friends, and they told Cullinane what they thought of him in language which, as Bret Harte would say, was frequent and painful and free. The result was that Cullinane prosecuted Robert McNamara, of Ballymacaw, under the Crimes Act; that was a special Act mainly intended for dealing with people who were themselves obnoxious to landgrabbers, emergencymen, bailiffs, cess-servers and people of that sort. When Cullinane had given his evidence the court adjourned, and I have never seen the result of the case.
The National League:
By this time ``Buckshot'' Forster had resigned; his terrorist system had failed to subdue the national spirit of Ireland; the national leaders were at liberty; all the prisoner suspects had been released, and it was decided to continue the national struggle under the name of the Irish National League. This League was to amalgamate and continue the work which had been begun and carried on by the Land League, the Ladies' Land League and the Labour League. It was felt that the conditions then obtaining necessitated a new outlook, a new orientation, a wider base for the national movement than those hitherto prevailing. A meeting to establish a branch of the National League was held in Tramore on Friday, November 19th, 1882.
That Meeting in Tramore:
When that meeting assembled on November 19th, 1882, to establish the National League in Tramore, it was found that only about a dozen farmers were present in the Assembly Rooms, but the building was thronged with labourers. Among those present were Geoffrey Power, Quillia, and the patriotic Father Quinn, C.C., Tramore. The latter made a bitter attack on the selfishness of those farmers who were not prepared to take their place in the national struggle to achieve the independence of the country; he pointed out that such farmers were always present at meetings which they thought would put something in their pockets; above that apparently their heads never rose, and when they were asked to stand by the Irish nation and its accredited leaders they preferred sitting at home. This gives us an idea of the criticisms which Father Quinn levelled against those who did not attend that meeting.
Further Meetings:
Another meeting of the Tramore branch of the National League was held on January 21st, 1883, and on the roll being called eighty two labourers answered and paid their monthly subscriptions. The next meeting was held early in March, 1883, and a resolution was unanimously passed expressing regret at the protracted illness of their secretary, Geoffrey Power of Quillia. He was never a robust man, and his imprisonment did nothing to aid in improving his health. It was this illness which eventually decided him in seeking the drier, warmer climate of California, but as his life story has been dealt with already we need not pursue it any further here.
Winding Up in Carbally:
The Land and Labour League of Carbally was finally wound up at a meeting held there on March 4th, 1883, having then nearly twelve months in existence. At that meeting seventy five labourers were present and paid in their monthly subscriptions. The treasurer reported that for the previous year the labourers of Carbally contributed £5 4s. 6d. to the funds of the branch, while the farmers contributed £4 19s. 6d.; it should, however, be borne in mind that farmers and labourers had different rates of subscription---the farmer being much greater than the labourer.
The National League in Carbally:
The National League had been established in Carbally before the Land and Labour League was wound up; the meeting to establish the National League was held in Carbally on January 7th, 1883, and Nicholas Flynn, of Carbally, presided. The election of officers resulted in Pat Corcoran, of Kilmacleague, being elected president, while Thomas Burke, of Carbally, was appointed secretary, and Nicholas Flynn became treasurer. It was decided that the committee should consist of three farmers and three labourers in addition to the three officers already mentioned. The farmers elected on the committe of that first branch of the National League in Carbally were Maurice Power, Monamintra; Michael Corcoran, Kilmacleague;, and John Power, Coolum. The labourers elected were Richard Power, Carbally; John Ryan, Rathmoylan, and James Caulfield, of Ballymacaw. This National League combined farmers and labourers equally into the organisation, and hence the equality of both on the committee.
Amalgamation:
In these sketches of the local history of Carbally over fifty years ago we have seen how indifferent that parish was in the days of the Land League; occasionally a man from Carbally attended the meetings in Tramore, but no one had the necessary initiative and driving force to set out to establish a branch in Carbally. When the Land League was suppressed a dozen girls or so in Carbally did what the men would not do; their example and courage fired the parish, and immediately the necessity arose a branch of whatever organisation was essential was formed in the parish. With the leaders free and all prisoners released, the necessity for the Ladies' Land League vanished; with the forming of the National League all the work of the Land League, Ladies' Land League, and Labour League were amalgamated into one organisation, and, having seen that organisation established in Carbally, we can leave it to pursue its course as the local committee determined.
The Final Chapter:
In these sketches of local history I have shown how the Land League, Ladies' Land League, and the Labour Union arose and ended in Carbally; the most important of those was the Ladies' Land League; in bringing its operations to a close one or two loose threads will be apparent to the critical reader, and to finish the story properly it will be necessary that these should be taken up and woven into the picture. The two matters referred to are the end of that Land League Hut and the identity of those girls associated with the Land League. There is however a third point which some of the younger Carbally readers may desire to see cleared up, and that is the meeting place of the Ladies' Land League. In many towns in Ireland notices are put up on houses indicating that an important or famous personage lived there, or that the house had been used for some notable or historic purpose. Perhaps one day the people of Carbally may decide to so mark the spot where these twelve girls met in their effort to continue and carry on the national struggle over fifty years ago; should they decide to do so, it would be a pity if any doubt as to the identity of that meeting place should arise, and hence this effort to identify it exactly.
The End of the Hut:
Tom Morrissey had been living for some time in that hut when he died rather suddenly. After his burial his wife returned to her own people in the barony of Middlethird, and she left the hut in possession of a relative (a nephew, I understand) named Maurice Flavin. The hut was fairly substantial, consisting of two rooms, a kitchen, and a store for food. Obviously the hut was the property of the Land League or its successor---the National League; the land on which it was built was in possession of Michael Corcoran, and he could not allow anyone to acquire a squatter's title on his land. Flavin insisted that he had a legal title to that hut, with all that such a contention implied, and the result was that legal action had to be instituted to determine the ownership of the hut. In some way not now quite clear the people of Tramore were associated with those legal proceedings (possibly they paid all or portion of the law costs), and eventually the hut left the ``Hut Field'' and went to Tramore. The last definite information I had of it was that years ago it was used as a tool shed by a Mr. John Halley; he lived in or near Tramore, and perhaps some Tramore reader interested in these relics of stormy days in Ireland would endeavour to discover if that old historic hut is yet in existence and, if so, its present site and use? Having discovered as much as possible, I would be glad if he (or she) would communicate with me so that the exact end of that hut can be recorded.
The Meeting Place:
It will be quite obvious to anyone who recognises the dwelling places of those girls associated with the Land League in Carbally that the only day of the week on which they could meet was Sunday, and that Carbally Chapel or its neighbourhood was the most likely place for their meetings. Those few who visit Carbally Chapel every Sunday at present, and whose memories carry them back fifty years, will be conscious of a great difference between the neighbourhood of that chapel today and in the days of the Land League. In those far-off days a number of houses, or cottages, stood in the immediate neighbourhood of that chapel; today practically all those houses have disappeared; gone, too, are those who dwelt in them; grass, briars and skeachs cover the places where people lived, thought, planned and dared fifty years ago; at that time fifty or sixty women, all wearing the Irish hooded cloak, could be seen every Sunday at mass in Carbally; today but one is left---Mrs. Crotty of Kilmacleague; when she is called to her eternal reward the Irish hooded cloak can be numbered with the relics of the past.
About fifty yards to the north of the gate going into Carbally graveyard, and on the right hand side of the road, can be found today the briar-covered ruins of a cottage; in that cottage lived Ellen Cotter, whose name has been mentioned in these sketches of Carbally history, and in that cottage the meetings of the Ladies' Land League were held.
Some Personal Histories:
More than half a century has passed away since those young girls of Carbally conceived the idea of establishing a branch of the Ladies' Land League in Carbally. At this distance of time it is worth identifying them and placing on record what life held for them when they stepped down from the breach they held so well. Many, even in Carbally, are not aware of their identity today, and, that being so, we can readily visualise the difficulty the future historian, or historical enquirer would have in identifying them.
The Men:
Somewhat different from the usual course, we will deal with the men before the ladies; they are the smaller crowd and can be more easily handled. Everyone in Carbally knows the location of Corcoran's Cross, one hundred yards on the Waterford side of that Cross is the entrance to a farmhouse where dwelt Patrick Corcoran, the first president of the Land League in Carbally. He was a brother of the late Mrs. Wyley, of Waterford, and for a number of years represented that district on the old Waterford Board of Guardians. Another brother lived in Bellelake, and a son of the latter now lives in Pat Corcoran's old home.
Maurice Power, of Monamintra, also sat for a number of years as a member of the Waterford Board of Guardians and Rural District Council. His son, Philip Power, now occupies the ancestral homestead in Monamintra; his name will appear once again in these sketches. In his day John Power of Coolum was one of the most important farmers in the southern side of the parish of Carbally. He was succeeded in Coolum by his son, the late Peter Power, who married a daughter of Martin O'Brien of Brownstown, who was one of the largest subscribers to that first collection made by the Ladies' Land League in Carbally. With deep regret I read in the ``Waterford News'' a couple of months ago of the death of Peter Power of Coolum; his passing called up memories of pleasant days spent together as school-mates in Carbally National School. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam. Michael Corcoran of Kilmacleague we have already met, and the location of his house will be dealt with later on.
Thomas Burke lived in the house immediately south of Carbally Boys' School; he was employed by Hon. D.F. Fortescue, but I am not aware that any of his descendants now live in Carbally. Michael Flynn was also employed by Hon. D.F. Fortescue, and he lived in, I think, the second house north of Carbally Girls' School; his descendants still live there and will be referred to again in this sketch of Carbally history.
Richard Power of Carbally was another employee of Mr. Fortescue's and lived in the first house north of Carbally Boys' School; his descendants, I believe, have all left the locality. The Caulfields are still in Ballymacaw, and a member of that family looks after the necessary arrangements in Carbally graveyard. It is so long since I left the district that I have no remembrance of the fate of John Ryan of Rathmoylan; perhaps someone familiar with the area would let me know, so that some record could be made of all those associated with the national movement in Carbally over fifty years ago.
The Ladies---Margaret Corcoran:
Among the ladies associated with the Land League, first place should go to Margaret Corcoran. She was a daughter of that Michael Corcoran on whose land the Land League Hut was erected, and who was elected on the first committee of the National League when that organisation was established in Carbally. The Corcoran homestead is situated at the bottom of a hill situated about four hundred yards from Corcoran's Cross on the Tramore road. The house is on the left hand side of the road as one goes to Tramore, and on the opposite side is the Dunphy homestead, the most noted member of which family was the late Father Phil Dunphy who has been secretary to the Bishop of Waterford for such a long period that he was looked on as a permanent institution in the Diocese. He was appointed a Canon of the diocese, became Parish Priest of Cappoquin and died in that picturesque town so beloved of Edward Walsh. He had three other brothers, one of whom inherited the ancestral farm and has gone to his eternal reward; the remaining two are still with us. In dealing with Ballyshoneen it was mentioned that one of Father Phyil's sisters was married to Nicholas White of Vaillinveila.
Margaret Corcoran:
Before the bank which cuts off that portion of the back strand now called ``The Marsh'' by everyone around Cloughernagh was built, the sea came up behind Corcoran's house almost as far as the present road. This spot by Corcoran's homestead was usually called some fifty years ago Bealach a' Shlaitín, and on the Ordnance Survey Map of 1843 the spot is marked Bealanaslateen Bridge, which is not a bad attempt on the part of the English engineers to set down the correct name of that spot. Margaret Corcoran supplied a good deal of the driving force behind the Ladies' Land League in Carbally, and was of a fierce and undaunted character. She emigrated to Australia, became Mrs. McGrath, died there, and is buried in far-off Melbourne. She left two daughters, who returned to the native land of their father and mother; one of them is married to Philip Power of Monamintra, a son of that Maurice Power who was elected on the first Committee of the National League in Carbally; the other is married to Sean Matthews of Waterford.
Miss Margaret Taylor presided at the first meeting of the Ladies' Land League in Carbally; she is today Mrs. White of Ballymacaw.
Miss Mary Power became President of the Ladies' Land League in Carbally about a month after its foundation. She continued President as long as the necessity for the League existed, and was born in the townland of Liscelty. As there were (and are) a number of families called Power in that area, she was usually called Mary Liscelty to distinguish her family from the other Power families in the district. On February 7th, 1883, she was married at Carbally Chapel to Mr. James Cullinane of Ballylegat, and to the best of my knowledge she is still with us.
Miss Alice Butler was a native of Ballyshoneen, and in dealing with that townland in these ``Glimpses of Waterford'' I have already referred to her family. She married the late Matthew Phelan of Orchardstown, and herself and her husband died a couple of years ago within a comparatively short period of each other, but three of their children still live in Orchardstown. Another is married to John Phelan of Keylogue, to whom reference has already been made in dealing with that townland.
Miss Mary Phelan was sister of that Matthew Phelan referred to in the preceding paragraph. She married the late Michael Maher of Monamintra, and their marriage festival was the first that I have a clear recollection of attending. Both have now gone to their eternal reward. They had two children, who predeceased their parents, so that the death of Michael Maher ended, in the male line, a family that had existed for close on, if not over, one hundred and fifty years in Monamintra.
Miss Catherine Power was from Brownstown. This Power family had an ancestor named Robin, or Robert, Power, and to distinguish them from the other Power families in that district the family is usually called ``Robin''; thus she was called Catherine Robin. She emigrated to Australia, married there, and is, I believe, still alive in Melbourne. Her brother occupies the ancestral homestead, while her younger brother lives in Ballyglan.
Miss Alice Flynn lived in the house still standing at the cross roads immediately south of Carbally Chapel. She became Mrs. Lodge of Ballymacaw, and has now passed on to her eternal rest.
Miss Mary Anne Power lived in Ballinamintra, where the family still exists. She married Edmond Power of Killea, and has joined the great majority. As a distinguishing name this Power family was usually called locally ``the Yankees'', and she was usually called ``Mary Anne the Yankee''.
Miss Ellen Cotter lived in a little cottage about fifty yards north of the entrance gate to Carbally Chapel, and on the same side of the road. Only the ruined walls of the cottage are now standing, but that spot should be honoured ground in the history of Carbally, for it is there that all the meetings of the Ladies' Land League were held. For a long period---possibly forty years---Ellen Cotter looked after Carbally Chapel; she has long passed to her reward, and her duties are now entrusted to Miss Flynn, a daughter of that Nicholas Flynn who was associated with the Labour League and the founding of the Irish National League in Carbally.
Miss Annie Murphy was from Coolum, and her brother is Mr. Pierce Murphy of Coolum. She became Mrs. Finucane and went to reside somewhere in the barony of Middlethird, but of the exact location I am not aware.
Miss Johanna and Miss Bridget Foley were two sisters and were from Ballinamintra, where the Foley family still exists. Bridget Foley became Mrs. Maher of Gracedieu (or Knockhouse) and is still in the land of the living. Johanna Foley became Mrs. Crehan, and it was with a sense of personal loss that I read in the ``Waterford News'' of September 15th, 1934, of her death in a Cork hospital on the 11th on that month. She was buried in Rathdowney Cemetery, far from that quiet, retired, sheltered graveyard she knew so well in her native Carbally. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h-anam. Thus, one by one, all those who made history in their day in Carbally are slowly passing away; soon all will have gone, and only a glorious memory will remain.
I have now completed this sketch of the Land League in Carbally; in a short period---next week or the week after---I will deal in these notes with phases of local history elsewhere. I will not, however, forget either Carbally or Gaultier; periodically I will make further excursions into their local history, and I trust that these excursions will be less fleeting and more frequent than my own personal excursions to that well-remembered territory. Readers should keep their eyes on these notes weekly; they never can tell when a searchlight will be thrown on some aspect of their local history; on the doings of those who lived there before them; on the past of that land of which too many know only the present.
Whatever of joy or gladness life afterwards held for those girls who organised and carried on the Ladies' Land League in Carbally, it is certain that the pleasure they enjoyed in their Land League work, in organising and carrying on an association condemned by the English Government in Ireland and by all friends of that Government inside and outside Ireland---it is certain that that pleasure far exceeded all else. Entusiasm might wane, emotions become dulled, life itself look dreary and cheerless, but the memory of those daring and fearless years would always remain a happy retreat from the greyness, dullness or sordidness they might encounter throughout life.
And when they started out to organise a branch of their own in Carbally they set an example which has been followed since their day; ever since Carbally has not been satisfied to be merely the tail of somewhere else; it is a distinctive area having its own distinctive peculiarities; more than fifty years ago those girls acted on the principle that Carbally is big enough and brave enough to bear its own share of the national struggle---that is while ten or twelve good and true people can be found there. Those girls were bigger and more far-seeing than they knew; they did not recognise in those far-off days that they were influencing the public life of Carbally for the next fifty years, and perhaps for all time.
To those of them who are still with us; to the children and/or relatives of those who have gone to their reward, I dedicate this sketch of their work more than fifty years ago in their native Carbally as a slight testimony of my appreciation of all they did in their day to keep alive the national spirit. May Carbally never lack men and women as brave, as true, and as unselfish as they were.
(Críoch.)