From persons who were in possession of some land, the first twenty per cent., as we have seen, were to be selected for dismissal, but in Kilnaleck, in the County of Cavan, all those employed on the public works were about equally destitute, so that the twenty per cent. with land could not be furnished:  lots had to be cast, and those on whom the lot for dismissal fell received it like a sentence of death.  Of course the Board of Works felt they were best carrying out the intentions of Government by dismissing the full twenty per cent. at Kilnaleck.

The state of things in Cashel was this:  the twenty per cent. were dismissed before the committee had any preparation made, or was, in fact, appointed.  The old committee had emphatically protested against the dismissal, and published a resolution condemnatory of it, as an inexcusable cruelty.  Although twenty per cent. of the labouring population were turned adrift in that locality, not one supernumerary was disemployed.  No pay-clerk lost his salary, though his labour was diminished by one-fifth; no check-clerk was dismissed, though there were twenty per cent. fewer to check; no steward or under-steward was displaced.  Such are specimens of the accounts from nearly every part of the country.

Threatening meetings of the disemployed began to be held.  Towards the end of April we read of vast crowds assembling in the neighbourhood of Drone, county Tipperary, crying aloud for food and employment.  They consisted chiefly of the dismissed labourers.  Their wretched emaciated children were clinging to them for sustenance, but they had not wherewith to satisfy their hunger.  Large numbers also assembled near Thurles, crying out for bread and employment; they proceeded to that town, and had an interview with the head officer under the Board of Works.[263]

The news from Galway was, that the funds of the old relief committee were completely exhausted, and although it was the 5th of May, the new one had not completed the lists, so as to procure food for distribution to the unemployed destitute.  Some of the public works were stopped for want of money; the labourers on the others were dismissed, with a very few exceptions.  The labourers paraded the streets with a white flag bearing the inscription, “We are starving;” “Bread or employment.”  They conducted themselves with the utmost order.

About four hundred men who had been employed on the public works near Ballygarvan assembled and marched in procession into Cork.  Having drawn up before the door of the Board of Works’ office, they sent a deputation to confer with Captain Broughton, to state the distress they were suffering, in consequence of being suddenly dismissed off the works.  He assured them he could do nothing for them.