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This Declaration, as appears here, does not date or even expressly sign itself: but by search, chiefly in a certain Manuscript Fragment, which will by and by concern us farther,1 we find that it was drawn up at Youghal, after the 15th, and came forth printed at Cork before the 29th of January; on which latter day the Army took the field again. And so we leave his Declaration;—probably the remarkablest State-Paper ever published in Ireland since Strongbow, or even since St. Patrick, first appeared there.

Contemporary Narrative, which will by and by be more specially referred to), are some two pages of this Declaration, transcribed from the Cork Edition: the concluding words are not, 'exercise utmost severity against them,' but 'act severity against them,' which probably is the true reading.

1 Ayscough Mss. no. 4769 (Fragment of a Narrative, referred to in the previous Note), pp. 100 et seqq.

LETTERS CXIII.-CXIX.

THE Speaker's Letter of Recall has never yet reached Ireland; and the rumour of it already has; which, as we intimated, sets the Enemy on fresh schemes, whereof advantage might be taken. The unwearied Lord Lieutenant, besides his labours known to us, has been rehabilitating Courts of Justice in Dublin, settling contributions, and doing much other work; and now, the February or even January weather being unusually good, he takes the field again, in hopes of perhaps soon finishing. The unhappy Irish are again about excommunicating one another; the Supreme Council of Kilkenny is again one wide howl; and Ormond is writing to the King to recall him. Now is the Lieutenant's time; the February weather being good!

LETTER CXIII.

HERE is another small excerpt from Bulstrode, which we may take along with us; a small speck of dark Ireland and its affairs rendered luminous for an instant. To which there is reference in this Letter. We saw Enniscorthy taken on the last day of September, the Castle and Village of Enniscorthy,' 'which belongs to Mr. Robert Wallop;' a Garrison was settled there; and this in some three months time is what becomes of it.

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January 9th, 1649, Letters reach Bulstrode, perhaps a fortnight after date, That the Enemy surprised Enniscorthy Castle ́in this manner: Some Irish Gentlemen feasted the Garrison 'Soldiers; and sent-in women to sell them strong-water, of 'which they drank too much; and then the Irish fell upon 'them, took the Garrison, and put all the Officers and Soldiers 'to the sword.' Sharp practice on the part of the Irish Gentlemen; and not well advised! Which constrained the Lord Lieu

tenant, when he heard of it, to order 'that the Irish,' Papist suspected Irish, 'should be put out of such Garrisons as were in the power of Parliament,❞—ordered to seek quarters elsewhere.

For the Honourable William Lenthall, Esquire, Speaker of the Parliament of England: These.

MR. SPEAKER,

Castletown, 15th February, 1649. Having refreshed our men for some short time in our Winter-quarters,2 and health being pretty well recovered, we thought fit to take the field; and to attempt such things as God by His providence should lead us to upon the Enemy.

Our resolution was to fall into the Enemy's quarters two ways. The one party, being about fifteen or sixteen troops of horse and dragoons and about two-thousand foot, were ordered to go up by the way of Carrick into the County of Kilkenny under the command of Colonel Reynolds; whom Major-General Ireton was to follow with a reserve. I myself was to go by the way of Mallow,3 over the Blackwater, towards the County of Limerick and the County of Tipperary, with about twelve troops of horse, and three troops of dragoons, and between two and three hundred foot.

I began my march upon Tuesday the Nine-and-twentieth of January, from Youghal: and upon Thursday the One-and-thirtieth, I possessed a Castle called Kilkenny, upon the edge of the County of Limerick; where I left thirty foot. From thence I marched to a Strong-house belonging to Sir Richard Everard (called Clogheen), who is one of the Supreme Council; where I left a troop of 1 Whitlocke, p. 421. 2 Youghal had been the head-quarter.

3 Muyallo' he writes, and Mayallo.'

4' Cloghern' in the old Newspaper; but it seems to be misprinted, as almost all these names are. 'Roghill' I find nowhere now extant.

horse and some dragoons. From thence I marched to Roghill Castle, which was possessed by some Ulster foot, and a party of the Enemy's horse; which upon summons (I having taken the Captain of horse prisoner before) was rendered to me. These places being thus possessed give us much command (together with some other holds we have) of the White-Knights' and Roche's Country; and of all the land from Mallow to the Suir-side;-especially by 'help of" another Castle called Old Castletown, which,' since my march, 'was' taken by my Lord of Broghil. Which I had sent to his Lordship to endeavour; as also a Castle of Sir Edward Fitzharris, over the Mountains in the County of Limerick ;-I having left his Lordship at Mallow, with about six or seven hundred horse, and four or five hundred foot, to protect those parts, and your interest in Munster; lest while we were abroad, Inchiquin, whose forces lay about Limerick and the County of Kerry, should fall in behind us. His Lordship drew two cannon to the foresaid Castle; which having summoned, they refused. His Lordship, having bestowed about ten shot upon it, which made their stomachs come down,-he gave all the soldiers quarter for life; and shot all the Officers, being six in number, to death. Since the taking of these Garrisons, the Irish have sent their commissioners to compound for their contribution as far as the walls of Limerick.

I marched from Roghill Castle over the Suir, with very much difficulty; and from thence to Fethard, almost in the heart of the County of Tipperary; where was a Garrison of the Enemy. The Town is most pleasantly seated; having a very good Wall with round and square bulwarks, after the old manner of fortifications. We came thither in the night, and indeed were very much distressed by sore and tempestuous wind and rain. After a long march, we

knew not well how to dispose of ourselves; but finding an old Abbey in the suburbs, and some cabins and poor houses, we got into them, and had opportunity to send 'the Garrison' a summons. They shot at my trumpet; and would not listen to him, for an hour's space: but having some Officers in our party whom they knew, I sent them, To let them know I was there with a good part of the Army. We shot not a shot at them; but they were very angry, and fired very earnestly upon us; telling us, It was not a time of night to send a summons. But yet in the end, the Governor was willing to send out two commissioners, -I think rather to see whether there was a force sufficient to force him, than to any other end. After almost a whole night spent in treaty, the Town was delivered to me the next morning, upon terms which we usually call honourable; which I was the willinger to give, because I had little above Two-hundred foot, and neither ladders nor guns, nor any thing else to force them. That night, there being about Seventeen companies of the Ulster foot in Cashel, above five miles from thence, they quit it in some disorder; and the Sovereign and the Aldermen sent to me a petition, desiring that I would protect them. Which I have also made a quarter.

From thence I marched towards Callan; hearing that Colonel Reynolds was there, with the Party before mentioned. When I came thither, I found he had fallen upon the Enemy's horse, and routed them (being about a hundred), with his forlorn; 'he' took my Lord of Ossory's Captain-Lieutenant, and another Lieutenant of horse, prisoners; and one of those who betrayed our Garrison of Enniscorthy; whom we hanged. The Enemy had possessed three Castles in the Town; one of them belonging to one Butler, very considerable; the other two had about a hundred or hundred-and-twenty men in them,—which

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