THE CONNAUGHT JOURNAL Galway, Monday, January 31, 1825 ENNISKILLEN QUARTER SESSIONS The King, at the prosecution of the Rev. James Kelly, against William Reynolds and William Moffit. The Rev. James Kelly examined by Mr. Kernan Witness said he was a Catholic Clergyman; he recollected the night of the 20th November last; he then resided as a lodger in the house of Mr. J. Gibbon, of Tempo; witness paid a visit to the Dispensary of that town, on that night, upon his going in, the met the Surgeon, Dr. Breadon, and Mr. John Gibson, and a young boy of the name of Owens; these were the only persons then in the Dispensary; in a few minutes afterwards, William Reynolds, the traverser, came in, and got some bottles of medicine for his master, and went away. [Here prosecutor identified the prisoner.] Witness soon after left the Dispensary; on his going out Mr. Gibson took the candle, and showed him out of the door; when he was proceeding on his way home, within three or four steps of the Dispensary, he heard the noise of persons running towards him down the street; among the party he, on looking round, perceived the two traversers, Reynolds and Moffit; they were armed with stones, and without any notice of their intention, commenced their attack, and struck him as fast as they could; there were three other persons of this party, whom witness did not know; the traverser, Reynolds, whom he had met a few minutes before in the Dispensary, was the first person who struck him; they made use of no expressions or observations before they struck him; his arms have been blackened by the blows he received on them; witness happened to have had a small stick in his hand, with which he decided to defend himself; produced the stick; his hat was knocked off; they then hit him on the head; he then said, you have cut my head; then called on the Protestant and Catholic inhabitants to come to his assistance; that the Priest was abeating; the party then retreated to the house of one Busby; about this time one of the Police Constables came up to witness; he told him how he had been treated, and requested him to accompany him in the pursuit of them;- this was immediately after the attack, and during the time the party were retreating; he had known the two traversers perfectly well before that evening, and swears positively he did not give them any, the slightest provocation for the attack they made on him. Cross-examined by Mr. Aughenleck The first part of the cross-examination was so irrelevant to the Traverser's defence, that Mr. Kernan several times objected to it. The Assistant Barrister told the Gentlemen cross-examining the prosecutor, that it was great waste of time, and unless he could show some act of violence, used by the prosecutor, to warrant the outrage, it was quite irrelevant to the issue. - The fact where the Reverend Gentleman dined on Shrove Tuesday, 1823, or what ladies drank tea with him on that evening, had no application to this trial. Mr. Aughenleck then proceeded. - The prosecutor said, he was quite certain that he had seen Reynolds in the Dispensary, and shortly after in the street, and equally certain as to Moffit; he never had a dispute with either Moffit or Reynolds; they both struck him and he believed that J. Wherry had also struck him; but could not swear positively to him; he never said after he was assaulted that he did not know the person that struck him; he thought it was very extraordinary that Reynolds beat him; could not account for his motive as he was always very kind to him; when beating, he called upon the Protestant and Catholic inhabitants of Tempo to come to his assistance; he never said he was glad to buy off the Rev. H. Land's man (Reynolds); on the contrary, the Rev. H. Land and prosecutor were at all times on good terms; by virtue of his oath, he never made use of the expression, "that ten Protestant rascals would not be able to knock him down;" his hat was knocked off, and he saved his head with the stick in his hand; he considered an oath a most solemn obligation. - Q. Did you ever make use of the expression, "that an oath was a mere matter of form?" - [At this question, the prosecutor smiled, and seemed to feel very indignant.]- A. By virtue of my oath, Mr. Aughenleck, I never did; he had too often explained the sanctity of an oath to be guilty of such an expression. John Gibson examined by Mr. Kernan - Witness said, he knew, the Rev. James Kelly; he was a lodger in witness' house; witness is a Protestant; knew the traversers; identified them; he recollected the night of the 20th November last; he was in the Dispensary of Tempo on that night; he got some bottles of medicine for his master there; Reynolds left the Dispensary a short time before Mr. Kelly; at the time Mr. Kelly was going out of the door, the night appeared very dark, and witness showed him with a candle the way out, as there was a step down from the door; about ten minutes after Kelly left the Dispensary, witness went to the House of one Busby; he saw Mr. Kelly there and also the traverser, William Moffit. [This witness did not state what occurred there, as John Wharry, Edward Wharry and Alexander Wharry, were indicted for the riot which took place there.] Cross-examined - Witness said, there was great throng then at Busby's house; he did not then hear any charge made against William Moffit; he thinks Mr. Kelly's object in going to Busby's was to find out the persons that beat him; he did not hear Mr. Kelly mention the name of Reynolds or Moffit; he thinks he charged John Wharry at that time as being one of the persons that assaulted him; is so far certain that when Mr. Kelly first saw John Wharry, Mr. Kelly asked him, where was the rest of his (W.'s) party; two of the Wharrys were sent in custody of the Police Constable to the barracks; witness held the candle outside of the upper leaf of the door; he heard the noise of the beating and had no doubt that the Priest was assaulted; the place where the attack was made on the Priest might be about three or four yards from the Dispensary door; Mr. Kelly told witness the traversers were the persons that struck him on his going that night to his own house; he had always seen Mr. Kelly conduct himself in a peaceable manner. Witness examined by Mr. Kernan. - Saw William Moffit, the traverser, on that night, in Busby's; the traversers might have been there without the Priest seeing them; when Mr. Kelly was beating, he heard him cry out for Protestants and Catholics to come to his assistance; the two Wharrys, Edward and Alexander, were taken into custody, by the Police, for what happened at Busby's; witness accompanied the prosecutor from Busby's to his own house, and when they got home, Mr. Kelly told him that he was beaten by Reynolds, Moffit and John Wharry; when witness went into Busby's, John Wharry was sitting at the fire, and William Moffit was standing back at a window; Mr. Kelly then charged John Wharry, as being one of the party that beat him, and a conflict ensued. Witnesses examined on the part of the traversers - James Wiley, examined - Witness recollected the night the Priest was beaten; witness had been some time before in the house of one Frazer; he heard the noise, and went out and stood at the door; he saw the persons beating the Priest, and there were only two persons that attacked him; witness knows the traversers, Reynolds and Moffit; knows his sight, he can't say who the persons were that beat the Priest; if he had known the persons who beat the Priest, he would, from where he was standing, know them; he was positively certain there were only two persons at the beating. Cross-examined by Mr. Kernan - Witness had no doubt that the prosecutor had a better opportunity of identifying the persons that beat him that he (witness) had; he did not live in Tempo; he lives in Selen-Mue; his business that night in Tempo was to get flax huckled; he belonged to the Orange Lodge, No. 320; the traversers were members of the same Lodge; he had some conversation with the traversers on this business before the trial. John Frazer, examined - Witness recollected the night of the assault on the Priest; the last witness, Wiley, was in his house on that night; he saw the Priest on that night, with his head bare; witness heard some person ask the Priest, who struck him; the Priest said "he did not know them at all;", the Priest then ordered more of the blackguards to come out, for ten of them were not fit to knock him down. Case closed on both sides. The Jury retired to consider their verdict on Monday evening and were discharged on Wednesday night, without finding a verdict; the parties agreeing, on each side, to withdraw a Juror. Cathy Joynt Labath Ireland Old News http://www.IrelandOldNews.com/