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Michael Davitt and the ‘ Pen ’ Letter

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 July 2016

Extract

In the rugged career of Michael Davitt, the document known as the ' pen ' letter is of far-reaching significance, both because of the malignant influence which it exerted and because of the revelation of his personality which its history affords.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Irish Historical Studies Publications Ltd 1945

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References

page 224 note 1 Manchester.

page 224 note 2 This, the full and authenticated text of the letter, is printed in Special com mission act, 1888; reprint of the shorthand notes of the speeches, proceedings, and evidence taken before the commissioners appointed under the above-named act (12 vols, 1890; hereafter cited as Special comm. proc), ix. 406. A contracted version is given in The Times report of the trial (19 July 1870, p. n).

page 224 note 3 Davitt to Forrester, 3 Aug. 1894 ; Davitt's diary, 28 Jan. 1895 (Davitt MSS, the property of Miss Eileen Davitt).

page 224 note 4 Irishman, 1 Jan. 1870, p. 435, quoting the Liverpool Mercury ; The Times, 19 July 1870, p. 11

page 225 note 1 McDonagh, M., Irish graves in England (’ Evening Telegraph ‘ reprints, vi, Dublin, 1888), pp. 141–4.Google Scholar O'Donoghue, , Poets Ire., p. 151.Google Scholar

page 225 note 2 Freeman's Journal, 28 Jan. 1895.

page 225 note 3 E.g., over the pseudonym ‘Angus’ in Irish People, 19 Aug. 1865, p. 616; 26 Aug., p. 637 ; 2 Sept., p. 652 ; 9 Sept., p. 668 ; 16 Sept., p. 683

page 226 note 1 Irishman, 16 Mar. 1867, p. 595, 1 Jan. 1870, p. 435 ; The Times, 19 July 1870, p. n : Freeman's Journal, 28 Jan. 1895 : Special comm. proc, ix. 399-400, 403 ; return of all prisoners committed to Kilmainham for fenianism, 6 Mar.- 30 June 1867 (State Paper Office, Dublin Castle, Room VII, registered papers 1867, carton 1742, no. 13521); report on Forrester by Supt. Ryan, 22 Mar. 1867 (ibid., Store Room, Irish crimes records 1866, vol. i : extracts of cases under habeas corpus suspension act, p. 416b). I am much indebted to Mr Thomas P O'Neill for his kindness in searching, at my request, for references to Forrester among the records in the State Paper Office and supplying me with information thus obtained.

page 226 note 2 Special comm. proc, ix. 410 ; Davitt's diary, 20 Jan. 1895 (Davitt MSS).

page 226 note 3 The book also contains a section by Arthur Forrester entitled ‘ Temperance lays', doubtless the outcome of his childish experiences of a drunken father ; and a section by Fanny Forrester, who is described as ‘ a very young girl'

page 226 note 4 Irishman, 13 Mar. 1869, p. 580 ; The Times, 19 July 1870, p. 11

page 227 note 1 Irishman, 1 Jan. 1870, p. 435, quoting the Liverpool Mercury ; Special comm. proc, x. 442, quoting the Liverpool Courier, 7 Jan. 1870.

page 227 note 2 The Times, 19 July 1870, p. 11 ; Irishman, 30 July 1870, p. 57.

page 228 note 1 When two constables were shot in Dublin on 31 Oct. 1867, the Dublin police suspected Forrester of being the assassin and telegraphed the Manchester police for information of his whereabouts—he had been released from Kilmainham on October 8. The Manchester police seem to have accounted for him satisfactorily (State Paper Office, Dublin Castle, Room VII, registered papers 1867, carton 1750, no. 1927).

page 229 note 1 The Times, 19 July 1870, p. 11 ; Irishman, 30 July 1870, p. 57

page 229 note 2 Davitt's diary, 28 Jan. 1895 (Davitt MSS).

page 229 note 3 Irishman, 30 July 1870, p. 57

page 229 note 4 Davitt to [Sabina Davitt], 15 April 1877 (smuggled from Dartmoor—Davitt MSS).

page 229 note 5 Davitt to his father and mother, 31 May 1871 (Davitt MSS).

page 229 note 6 For a detailed account of Davitt's life in penal servitude, see my article ‘Michael Davitt in penal servitude, 1870–1877 ’, in Studies, xxx, no. 120 (Dec. 1941), pp. 517–30; xxxi, no. 121 (Mar. 1942), pp. 16–30.

page 230 note 1 Hansard, ‘ 3rd series ’, ccxxix. 1039–52.

page 230 note 2 Ibid., ccxxxi. 285–318.

page 230 note 3 Davitt to his mother, 28 Feb. 1877 (Davitt MSS).

page 230 note 4 Davitt to his mother, ir Mar., 29 May, 22 Aug. 1877 (Davitt MSS).

page 231 note 1 Published for the Property Defence Association, Dublin, by the National Press Agency, London. The first edition was published, apparently in 1881, under the pseudonym ‘ One who knows ‘; Arnold-Forster's authorship is stated in the second edition, issued in 1882, probably in May ; a third edition appeared in 1883. For the circumstances in which Arnold-Forster took up the subject see Mary Arnold-Forster, The Right Honourable Hugh Oakeiey Arnold-Forster: a memoir (1910).

page 232 note 1 Freeman's Journal, 5 June 1882, p. 6.

page 232 note 2 During Davitt's second term of imprisonment* Forrester wrote a letter, dated at Dublin, to the Freeman's Journal, claiming that Davitt's original trial had been unfairly conducted and calling on the government to ‘ produce the full minutes of the evidence’ (Freeman's Journal, 23 Aug. 1881). Several of the statements in this letter are untrue ; there is no mention of the ‘ pen ‘ letter, and the impression is conveyed that Davitt's conviction was due wholly to the evidence of Corydon.

page 232 note 3 First catholic fellow of Trinity College, Dublin, 1880 ; professor of moral philosophy, 1882–9; a lading member of the Irish Loyal and Patriotic Union, and associated with E. C. Houston in the purchase of forged letters from Pigott in July 1886.

page 232 note 4 Davitt's evidence, 2 July 1889, in Special comm.proc, ix. 408–9.

page 232 note 3 Davitt, Fall of feudalism in Ireland, pp. 564–70.

page 232 note 6 Dublin, 1882 ; 2nd ed., 1883.

page 233 note 1 Personal recollections, pp. 419–20.

page 233 note 2 Sullivan, T D., Recollections of troubled times in Irish politics (1905), pp. 76–81, 256–63.Google Scholar

page 234 note 1 Morley, J., Life of Gladstone (1906 ed.), ii. 638.Google Scholar

page 234 note 2 Cf. Lord Randolph Churchill's memorandum of 17 July 1888, quoted in O'Connor, T P, Memoirs of an old parliamentarian (1929), ii. 175–8.Google Scholar

page 234 note 3 Morley, , Gladstone, ii. 641 Google Scholar

page 234 note 4 See his Fall of feudalism in Ireland (1904), p. 544.

page 235 note 1 Special comm. proc, ix. 353–4.

page 235 note 2 Ibid., ix. 405.

page 236 note 1 Special comrn. proc, ix. 406–7.

page 236 note 2 Ibid., ix. 407–8.

page 237 note 1 Ibid., ix. 404.

page 237 note 2 Ibid., ix. 410.

page 237 note 3 Recte ‘ nineteen ‘

page 237 note 4 Ibid., ix. 411

page 237 note 5 Ibid., ix. 410, 411

page 237 note 6 Ibid., ix. 407–8.

page 237 note 7 Ibid., ix. 528–9.

page 238 note 1 Ibid., ix. 408–10.

page 238 note 2 Ibid., ix. 410.

page 238 note 3 Ibid., x. 418.

page 238 note 4 The speech was spread over the five days, Oct. 24, 25, 29, 30, 31, and is reported in Special comm. proc, x. 422–636, xi. 1-26. A reprint, revised, with chapter-divisions and appendices, was published by Davitt under the title The ‘Times ‘ - Parnell commission : speech delivered by Michael Davitt in defence of the Land League (1890).

page 238 note 5 Davitt was rather vague about his birth-year. At the trial in July 1870, he is described as 25 years of age, which gives 1845 as his year of birth. Entries in his diaries for 25 Mar. 1880 and 25 Mar. 1888 show a variation between 1846 and 1848. The statement quoted above implies 1848.

page 239 note 1 Special comm. proc, x. 442 ; Davitt, , Speech in defence of the Land League, p. 38.Google Scholar

page 239 note 2 F Sheehy-Skeffington, discussing the subject in his Michael Davitt (1908), does not identify Forrester as the addressee of the letter (pp. 23–34, 167–8).

page 239 note 3 Copy in Davitt's hand among the Davitt MSS.

page 241 note 1 Special comm. proc, x. 171–7 On Harris see O'Connor, Memoirs of an old parliamentarian, ii. 157–8.

page 241 note 2 Special comm. proc, ix. 402. Cf. O'Leary, John, Recollections of fenians and fenianism (1896), i. 94–5Google Scholar ; Sullivan, T D., Recollections of troubled times in Irish politics, pp. 108–13.Google Scholar

page 241 note 3 Special comm. proc, xi. 42.

page 241 note 4 Ibid., xi.

page 242 note 1 Mr P S. O'Hegarty, who has unrivalled knowledge of the fenian movement, and with whom I have discussed the point, supports the view here expressed.

page 242 note 2 Specialcomm. proc, ix. 353.

page 242 note 3 Ibid., ix. 354, 417.

page 242 note 4 Ibid., ix. 416.

page 242 note 5 Ibid., ix. 354.

page 243 note 1 Ibid., ix. 528.

page 243 note 2 15 Apr. 1893.

page 244 note 1 11 Apr. 1893.

page 244 note 2 Eldest son of the marquess of Salisbury. Born 1861 M.P for Darwen division of N.E. Lanes, 1885–92; for Rochester, Feb. 1893-Aug.1903. Succeeded as marquess of Salisbury, 1903.

page 244 note 3 Irish News, 15 Apr. 1893.

page 245 note 1 Hansard, 4th series, xi. 353–4 (14 Apr. 1893).

page 245 note 2 Pencilled in Davitt's hand on house of commons notepaper (Davitt MSS).

page 246 note 1 Davitt's diary, 17 Apr. 1893.

page 246 note 2 Irish News, 15 Apr. 1893; Dublin Evening Telegraph, 18 Apr. 1893; Bradford Observer, 19 Apr. 1893 ; Manchester Clarion, 22 Apr. 1893.

page 249 note 1 Copy in Davitt's hand among the Davitt MSS.

page 250 note 1 On Forrester's discharge from Kilmainham in Oct. 1867, he was officially described as 5 feet 1¼ inches in height and of slight build (State Paper Office, Dublin Castle, Store Room, Ireland-particulars and photographs of fenians, A-L).

page 250 note 2 Minningham and Wilson.

page 252 note 1 James Rourke, who died in 1921, was proprietor of the City Bakery, Dublin. A copy of the original note of Davitt's dying requests to him has been kindly supplied to me by his nephew, Mr Denis Rourke.