tAlexanderNewall. Samuel Wilson.
*Samuel Floyd. Robert Wilson.
*William Houston. *Robefl Newall.
*James Baillic. tWilliam McCulloch. William McComb. William Annet.
*sergeant James Sheals. *Thomas McKee.
Note:- Those marked thus (*) were convicted. McComb, R. Wilson and Annet were acquitted. These are all yeomen, Newall excepted; he was formerly one.
Pt April:- Sergeant Adam Boyd and John Boyd, yeomen, and William Beck, sub-constable and yeoman, were tried for suffering Alexander Newall, prisoner, to escape. Beck was convicted; the other two acquitted. William Cowan was charged with rioting, but did not appear at trial; he is a yeoman also.
2nd April:- Robert Wilson, Alexander Wilson, Thomas Cummin, John Cummin, William Sloan, Thomas Morrison, William McCully, James Gordon, tried for firing shots Feb. 10, at seven o’clock, at certain persons on the high road: all acquitted, but ordered to give security for seven years. These men are or were yeomen lately.
I was not at Down assizes, not being summoned; and was besides confined to my room for a week from a hurt I got from my horse at that period.
I propose to inspect at Kilkeel on 24tb inst. and should be anxious to receive his Excellency’s pleasure before I leave Belfast on the 23”’.
(signed) B. Wallace, M.B.
from Sir E .B. Littlehales to Brigade Major Wallace.
Sir, Dublin Castle, April 1814.
In consideration of the several authenticated reports which have reached Government, and of the precise information which transpired upon the recent trial of the rioters at Kilkeel, whereby it appears that Captain Matthews, of the Mourne yeomanry infantry, was present on the town of Kilkeel, at the commencement of the riot there, in which many members of the Mourne corps were actively engaged; but that Captain Matthews notwithstanding did not interfere, nor take any steps to preserve the public peace, by exerting his authority either in his capacity of a magistrate or as captain of the said company ofMourne infantry; the Lord Lieutenant deems it proper to mark his displeasure at Captain Matthews neglect of the exercise of his functions for the public tranquility, by dismissing him from the yeomanry service.
I am accordingly commanded by his Excellency to desire that you will forthwith notify to Captain Matthews this is his Excellency’s decision
I am, &c.
E. B. Littlehales.
Memorial of Lieutenant Colonel Gustavus Matthews for a court of enquiry into his Conduct at Kilkeel.
To his Excellency Charles Viscount Lord Whitworth, Lord Lieutenant General Governer of Ireland.
Humbly Sheweth,
That your memorialist was extremely agitated and mortified upon receiving from Brigade- Major Wallace a copy of a letter of Sir Edward Littlehales, dated Dublin Castle, 12 inst. stating that it was your Exellency’s desire your memorialist should be dismissed from the yeomanry service, in consequence of your Exellency’s disapprobation of his conduct upon the riots in Kilkeel, 9th February last: your memorialist humbly requests that your Excellency will be pleased to order him a court of inquiry, before which tribunal your memorialist trusts that, upon a further investigation of all the particulars and facts connected with, and respecting his conduct in those transactions, he will be able to remove those unfavourable impressions which your Excellency at present entertains against him.
All which is humbly submitted,
Gustavus Matthews, Lieut.-Col. Army.
50 Summer-hill, Dublin, 2l April 1814.
Solicitor General’s Report of transactions at Kilkeel as they appeared on the Trial of the Rioters.
Dear Sir, 5 Ely Place, April 22, 1814.
My absence from Dublin has prevented my sooner replying to your letter of the inst. in which you have communicated his Excellecy’s desire “that I should convey to you, for his Excellency’s consideration, a summary of the information which I obtained in my judicial capacity on the trial of offenders charged with offences connected with disturbances which occurred in Kilkeel, in the month of February last;”I have the honour of informing you, in pursuance of his Excellency’s order, that at the last
assizes of Downpatrick, it appeared upon a trial before me, that on the 91h of February last, at the fair of Kilkeel, two persons, one a Protestant and one a Catholic, fought in the street, upon what appeared to be a sudden quarrel; that they were joined immediately by several others, and the battle became general; that the Catholic party, which was most numerous, drove the others out of the fair, who took refuge in the house of one McKibbin, permanent sergeant of the Moume infantry yeomanry corps, of which all these persons except one, were members; that the Catholic party then attacked the house, broke the windows of it, and proceeded to unroof it by taking the slates off, when the Protestants within armed themselves, fired from the house, and sallied out upon those who were outside; that being armed and reinforced they beat the Catholics out of the fair, and after having done so attacked between 40 and 50 houses belonging to Roman Catholic inhabitants of Kilkeel, who did not appear to have been on the battle, fired into some, threw stones at others, threw the furniture and property in several into the street and destroyed them, and did considerable damage to all. It appeared that both parties manifested much wanton cruelty, and several were wounded, though no one was killed. Eighteen persons, 10 Catholic and 8 Protestants, have been found guilty of riots and assaults upon that occasion, and are now in prison under their sentences. It further appeared, that at the beginning of the riot Colonel Matthews, a magistrate of the county, who commands the yeomanry corps already mentioned, was in the house on private business as he swore, and near McKibbins house, and that seeing the tumultuous state of the fair, he wished and offered, as he swore, to go into the town and exert his influence to put down the riot, but that he was dissuaded by McKibbin and one Shields, a sergeant in his corps (and one of those who was convicted), and by one Walmesley,
A high constable, who all represented to him that his life would be in danger if he should interfere, in consequence of which he left the town without taking any step to quell the riot. It further appeared, that on the following day the country people flocked into Kilkeel in numbers to see what was called the wreck of Kilkeel; but no riot took place; and that as some of those persons were returning home in the evening, they were met by a party of 14 persons, armed with firelocks and bayonets, but not in regimentals, who without provocation fired on them, and wounded two men; eight persons were tried upon this charge, and were all acquitted. It further appeared that a warrant was issued against Alexander Newall, not a yeoman, the leader of the Protestant party in the riot of the 9th February, shortly after the riots, and that he was apprehended by Walmesley the high constable, who gave him the care of one Bush and a petty constable, and three yeomen of Colonel Matthews’ corps, of which Bush also was a member; that they brought him and one Hughes (a Catholic, who was apprehended for refusing to give evidence of the transaction) to Col. Matthews house; that while Colonel Matthews was writing out a mittimus for the prisoners, who were then locked up in his kitchen, Newell made his escape, and on Colonel Matthews remonstrating with the constable and yeomen, they laughed at him. That Newell was never afterward apprehended, though public in the country, for which Walmesley, the high constable, assigned as a reason that he was constantly armed; and that on the night before the assizes he gave himself up to abide his trial. Bush the constable, and the three yeomen, were indicted for permitting his escape, and the three yeomen were acquitted, but Bush was found guilty and is now in prison under his sentence. This is a summary of the only facts relating to the transaction at Kilkeel, which came to my knowledge in my judicial capacity at the late assizes for Downpatrick; and I have the honour to submit them to his Excellency’s consideration.
I have, &c.
(signed) Charles Bushe.
From Brigade Major Wallace to Sir E. B. Littlehales, Baronet.
Sir, Belfast 28th April 1814.
I had the honour of your letter of 26th by yesterdays post, in reply I have to inform you that I only returned home from Mourne on the night 0f26th instant, and had not leisure to make the required report for the information of his Excellency the Lord Lieutenant until the present date. The l Mourne infantry had only four men implicated in the riot at Kilkeel on 9th February; two of them have left the country, and did not appear at trial; the other two appeared, but as the grand jury did not find bills against them there was of course, no prosecution; they are, however, dismissed. No man of this corps was charged with the assaults committed on the 10th February. There were eight men of the 2 Mourne charged with the riot of the 9th; three of these are confined in Down gaol. Two fled from justice, one was acquitted, one was confined to his house by a fever, and against the other there was no prosecution. Two of the 2nd Mourne were also tried for firing on the 10th February, and were acquitted; those ten have been all dismissed. Three men of the 3 corps were tried for the offence on the 101h February; they were acquitted. Five yeomen only have been charged with this offence, but some others were concerned in it, some of whom had formerly been yeomen. There were none of the 3”’ Mourne charged with the riot of the 9th Three of this company are dismissed. I have not been able to learn as yet that any more yeomen were implicated; but if more should be discovered, I will enforce the Lord Lieutenant’s commands. With regard to the discipline and constitution and efficiency of the respective corps and attention of their officers, I have to remark, that the l Mourne has always been well conducted. Captain Chesney is diligent and attentive; he is acquainted with military affairs, having served under the late Lord Cornwallis and Lord Moira, as an American loyalist. Two of his sons have been promoted by those noblemen, one in the Royal Artillery, the other in the East India service. His officers are as attentive as the subaltern officers of the yeomanry are in general, and have some little property. The 2’” corps would derive advantage from having a genleman of some consideration and influence in the country at their head.
I would recommend Mr. Needham Thompson; his father is agent to Lord Kilmoray, and is actually first captain of the 3”’ corps, but he is an old man; his son acts at times as agent, and probably will become so; both corps are tenants of Lord Kilmoray.
Cagtain Warner of the 2Od corps, resides in Dublin, and I had never seen him but once, until the 24 inst. when he came from Dublin at the desire of Lieut.-Col. Matthews who was then there. At present there is only one lieutenant, a young man, well disposed and loyal. The second captain of the 3rd Mourne is a well disposed man, not healthy, and has no military turn. The two lieutenants are respectable; and were young Mr. Thompson first captain in lieu of his father, the corps would be more effective. The three permanent sergeants are men of fair character, two of them old soldiers; in fact the men of the three corps are all Protestant and loyal. Unfortunately their conduct was too much influenced by misguided zeal and loyalty. But I am of opinion they have now got a very salutary lesson; and will in future manifest more moderation.
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