’In the evening I was conveyed in a covered carriage to Carrickmacross, blackened with bruises, stiff and sore, and scarcely able to stand—­musing over the strange transactions which had happened that day—­and wrapped in a countryman’s frieze coat which had been borrowed to cover my nakedness.’[1]

[Footnote 1:  Realities of Irish Life, chap. v.]

When the reader recovers his breath after this.  I will ask him to turn to the history of this transaction—­bad enough in itself—­and see what fancy and art can do in dressing up a skeleton so that it becomes ‘beautiful for ever.’  Mr. Trench himself shall be the historian, writing to the authorities when the occurrences were all fresh in his mind.  The narrative was handed in to the Devon commissioners as his sworn evidence: 

’William Steuart Trench, esq., agent.

’Have there been any agrarian outrages, and in what have they originated?—­There have been none, except during a late short period of peculiar local excitement.

’Will you state the particulars of that excitement, and what then occurred?—­I think my best mode of doing so will be by handing in the copy of a letter which I addressed to a local magistrate for the information of government.—­[The witness read the following letter:—­]

’Dear Sir—­In reply to your communication, enclosing a letter from Mr. Lucas, requesting that I should give a statement of the particulars which occurred to me in Carrickmacross, on Monday last, I beg leave to lay before you the facts, as follows:—­

’Mr. Shirley has recently appointed me to the agency over his Monaghan estate.  We both arrived here on Thursday, the 30th of March, and on the following morning we went together into the office; and having remained there about an hour, we were much surprised, on our return, to find an immense mass of people outside the door, who immediately presented a petition to Mr. Shirley, requesting a reduction of rent.

’Mr. Shirley declined giving an immediate answer to such an unexpected request; but having read the petition, he told them he would give an answer to it on the Monday following.  By Saturday, however, he had arrived at a full conclusion upon the point, and, anxious to avoid any unpleasant altercation with his tenants, he thought it advisable to let his determination be known as soon as possible; and accordingly, on Saturday, he issued and circulated a printed notice, stating the determination at which he had arrived, and declining any further communications upon the subject.  I enclose a copy of the notice.