’It appears that, owing to the disturbed state of the locality, he intended to leave it for the winter; and this probably being known to his enemies, they made an effort to destroy him before he got beyond their reach.  He, at all events, seems to have been under the spell of no pleasing illusion as to the supposed tranquillity and the reign of order.  On the contrary, he is alleged to have stated that more outrages than ever are committed, and that but for the deterrent force employed by the Government, there would be no living in the country, ...  This is the opinion of the majority of Englishmen.  They are not all satisfied that the spirit of lawlessness and disorder is rooted out; and they will find only too strong confirmation of their doubts in the reckless violence of the National Press, and in the attempt—­marked by novel features of atrocity—­to destroy Mr. Hussey’s household.’

As for the National Press, it indulged in an ecstasy of enthusiasm over the perpetration, combined with intense disgust “at the miscarriage of justice” of my having escaped without hurt or more than very temporary inconvenience.  On my departure, one eloquent writer compared me to ‘Macduff taking his babes and bandboxes to England,’ a choice simile I have always appreciated.

The United Ireland of December 6, 1884, in a characteristic leaderette, headed ‘A very suspicious affair,’ observes:—­

’We should like to know by what right the newspapers speak of the affair as “a dynamite outrage”?  A very curious surmise has been put forward locally, namely, that the house had been stricken by lightning.  The shattering of a building by lightning is by no means phenomenal, and the absence of all trace of any terrestrial explosive agency, gives colour to the hypothesis that the destruction was due to meteorological causes.’

With one last quotation I cease to draw upon what may be termed outside contributions, and it is one which gratified me at the time.

It is taken from the Cork Examiner of December 12, 1884:—­

’Dear Sir,—­Authoritative statements having been made in the Press and elsewhere, that some persons living in Mr. Hussey’s immediate neighbourhood must have been the perpetrators of the horrible outrage, or, at least, must have given active and guilty assistance to the principal parties concerned in it; now we, the undersigned, tenants on the property, and living in the closest proximity to Edenburn House and demesne, take this opportunity of declaring in the most public and solemn manner that neither directly nor indirectly, by word or deed, by counsel or approval, had we any participation in the tragic disaster of November 28.  The relations hitherto existing between Mr. Hussey and us have ever been of the most friendly character.  As a landlord, his dealings with us were such as gave unqualified satisfaction and were marked by justice, impartiality, and very great indulgence.