IREL 
and put thirtj'-feven of the fugitives to death, in revenge 
for about fifty of their own party previoufly (lain by the 
yeomen and lupplementaries. After this maflacre, which 
gave to that day the denomination of Bloody Friday, the re¬ 
bels refumed their march to the mountains of Wicklow. 
The main body from Sledagh meanwhile proceeded to 
Scollagh-gap, an opening in the great ridge of Mount 
Leiniler which feparates Wexford from Carlow, with the 
defign of railing an infurreflion in the latter county, and 
in that of Kilkenny. Driving before them the few troops 
who attempted to oppofe their progrefs, and burning the 
little town of Kiledmond by the way, they took poll on 
the ridge of Leinller, live miles from Caftlecomer. To 
this town they defcended early the next morning, and 
forced an entrance with the daughter of about fifty of 
their opponents. While a defence was Hill attempted 
from fome of the houfes, a body of troops under fir 
Charles Afgill arrived to the aid of the townfmen; on 
which the rebels, to avoid the fire of his artillery, retired 
to a finall diftance from the place. This afforded an op¬ 
portunity to the numerous proteflants who had taken 
refuge there, to retreat with the military to Kilkenny, 
leaving, however, all their effects at the mercy of the 
enemy. The infurgents, whofe lofs in this action amount¬ 
ed to about feventy, having plundered the town, returned 
to their ltation on the heights. Difappointed in the 
hope of raiding an infurre&ion, diminilhed by defertion 
to lei's than 5000, and deltitute of ammunition, they re- 
folved to return through Scollagh to their own county. 
On the morning of the 26th of June, they were attacked 
at Kilcomny on three fides at once, by 1700 men, under 
Afgill and major Matthews; but fled with fuch celerity, 
that they regained the gap with little lofs except that of 
their plunder and artillery, compofed of ten light pieces: 
on which they directed their march to the mountains of 
Wicklow, reduced ftill farther by defertion, and deprived 
of their leader, father John, who was taken after the 
battle, and hanged at Tullow. 
On their arrival in thefe mountains, they found that 
their aflociates under Perry and Fitzgerald had been 
foiled on the 25th in an attack on Hacket’s town, with 
the lofs of about two hundred men. The firft attempt 
determined upon by them after their junflion was to 
furprife Carnew, towards which place they were defcried 
on the 30th in full march. To oppofe their defign, ge¬ 
neral Needham difpatched from his poll at Gorey two 
hundred cavalry, iupported by an excellent body of in¬ 
fantry. The rebels, finding efcape impoflible from the 
ardour of the cavalry, left the high road at the moment 
when they were overtaken, at Ballyellis, and fired from 
behind the hedges on their antagonifts. The infantry 
being at this time unaccountably recalled, the horfe were 
unable from the nature of the ground to annoy the in¬ 
furgents, or find other means of efcape than pufhing 
forward to Carnew. In their flight they were fo impeded 
by cars accidentally left in the road, that fifty-five of 
this detachment fell without doing the leall injury to the 
enemy; and the daughter would have been ftill greater, 
had not a body of yeomen-infantry come up to its relief. 
The garrifon of Carnew, alarmed by the fugitives, had 
barely time to take polt in a malt-houfe, whence they re¬ 
pelled the aflailants. 
On the 2d of July thefe infurgents, purfued by a body 
of yeomen, took polt on Ballyrabeen-hill, between Tinne- 
hely and Carnew, where, being unadvifedly attacked, 
they repulfed their opponents, fixty of whom, taking re¬ 
fuge in a houfe at the foot of the hill, fuitained during 
fourteen hours the aflaults of the rebels, who loll in the 
vain attempt near a hundred of their number. On this 
they divided into two bodies, one of which took its 
courfe to the county of Kildare, while the other, appa¬ 
rently without plan, advanced to the borders of the 
county of Wexford. The latter, on the morning of the 
5th, were lurrounded by three detachments at once; and, 
coming to an action with the troops under fir James 
AND. So 1 
Duffe, they fled with their ufual celerity, and re-aflembled 
with little lofs on the hill of Corrigrua.' Annoyed in 
their retreat by a fourth body of the royal army, and 
finding it impoflible to maintain themfelves in any poll, 
the infurgents agreed to difperfe; and thus terminated 
the rebellion in the county of Wexford, though fome 
oppofition was yet made by that part of its forces which 
had marched into Kildare. Uniting in that county with 
another body of infurgents, they attempted to pals the 
river Boyne at Clonard, to penetrate into the wellern 
parts; but their defign was fruftrated by the arrival of 
troops from Killegad and Mullingar. Separating from 
their new and lefs-enterpriling aflociates, the men of 
Wexford, reduced in number to 1500, made a flying 
march into the county of Meath ; but, difappointed of 
the reinforcements they there expefted, they rapidly 
palTed into Louth. Being attacked on the 14th, they 
were broken after a defperate refinance. Part of them 
difperfed; but the main body, repafling the Boyne, were 
proceeding with their ufual fwiftnefs direCtly towards 
Dublin, when they were overtaken within feven miles of 
the capital by a party of the Dumfries light dragoons; 
and, as they were fure to be foon lurrounded by detach¬ 
ments from different quarters, they finally difperfed, and 
repaired to their refpective homes. 
The continuance of thefe men fo long in arms, obferves 
an intelligent and impartial Irilh hiltorian, (Gordon,) 
was caufed only by defpair; for, after the rejection of 
the capitulation at Wexford, death was confidered 2s the 
confequence of furrender. It was after that impolitic 
meafure, that the principal devaftations were committed, 
and to that alone they mud be attributed. Revenge on 
the one fide produced retaliation on the other. The 
want of cannon and ammunition was one great caufe of 
the failure of moll of the enterprifes of the infurgents of 
Wexford. This deficiency they had in vain attempted 
to remedy: fmall round fto.nes and hardened balls of clay 
were fometimes ufed as fubllitutes for bullets; and, by 
mixing and pounding the materials in mortars, they fa¬ 
bricated a fpecies of gunpowder which did not explode 
except when frelh made, and even then with little force. 
In battle they mollly availed themfelves of hedges, and 
other fuch kind of Ihelter, and fo arranged their lines as 
to fulfer very little from artillery. They never fought 
but in day-light; and, conformably to their plan of open 
warfare, hills of a commanding profpett were always 
chofen for their llations, which they llyled camps, though 
deltitute of tents, except for a few of their chiefs. The 
multitude remained in the open air, both fexes promif- 
cuoufly, fome covered at night with blankets, others only 
with their ordinary clothes. The irregularity of thefe 
encampments, where, among a licentious rabble, all com¬ 
manded, and none obeyed, is not to be defcribed. That 
infurreflion, when it once took place, Ihould be attended 
with devallation and maflacre, might naturally be expell¬ 
ed in an ungoverned and exalperated peafantry; but 
thefe excefles are equally chargeable to the account of 
the royal troops, by whom great numbers were put to 
death without any apparent aft of rebellion. Men im- 
prifoned from private information, fufpicion, malice, af¬ 
fectation of loyalty, or caprice, were fometimes indii- 
criminately flaughtered, without any form of trial or en¬ 
quiry, by licentious daftards of the military denomina¬ 
tion, who never dared to face the rebels in battle. Of 
fuperftitious-credulity, the latter afforded in this infur- 
rection a Itriking inltance. They believed father John, 
and Michael Murphy, another priell, to be invulnerable, 
when thofe leaders (flowed them leaden bullets which 
they aflerted to have been fired at them by the enemy, 
and to have ftruck them without injury. 
To form a probable eftimate of the detriment fuffained 
by the country in confequence of this rebellion, the fuin 
total of the claims made by fullering loyalifts amounted 
to 1,023,000k and thefe eftimates were, in Mr. Gordon’s 
opinion, fo moderate, as, upon the whole, not to exceed 
two. 
