irds and fish. There is a holy island in a
lake in Ireland, to which the people resort at a particular season of the
year. Here Murtagh frequently attended, and it was here that he
performed a cure which will cause his name long to be remembered in
Ireland, delivering a possessed woman of two demons, which he brandished
aloft in his hands, in the shape of two large eels, and subsequently
hurled into the lake, amidst the shouts of an enthusiastic multitude.
Besides playing the part of an exorcist, he acted that of a politician
with considerable success; he attached himself to the party of the sire
of agitation--'the man of paunch,' and preached and halloed for repeal
with the loudest and best, as long as repeal was the cry; as soon,
however, as the Whigs attained the helm of Government, and the greater
part of the loaves and fishes--more politely termed the patronage of
Ireland--was placed in the disposition of the priesthood, the tone of
Murtagh, like that of the rest of his brother saggarts, was considerably
softened; he even went so far as to declare that politics were not
altogether consistent with sacerdotal duty; and resuming his exorcisms,
which he had for some time abandoned, he went to the Isle of Holiness,
and delivered a possessed woman of six demons in the shape of white mice.
He, however, again resumed the political mantle in the year 1848, during
the short period of the rebellion of the so-called Young Irelanders. The
priests, though they apparently sided with this party, did not approve of
it, as it was chiefly formed of ardent young men, fond of what they
termed liberty, and by no means admirers of priestly domination, being
mostly Protestants. Just before the outbreak of this rebellion, it was
determined between the priests and the ---, that this party should be
rendered comparatively innocuous by being deprived of the sinews of
war--in other words, certain sums of money which they had raised for
their enterprise. Murtagh was deemed the best qualified person in
Ireland to be entrusted with the delicate office of getting their money
from them. Having received his instructions, he invited the leaders to
his parsonage amongst the mountains, under pretence of deliberating with
them about what was to be done. They arrived there just before
nightfall, dressed in red, yellow, and green, the colours so dear to
enthusiastic Irishmen; Murtagh received them with great apparent
cordiality, and entered into a lo