D'Esterre called forth-first, the greatest anxiety, and next the wildest enthusiasm of the people. This sad and fatal encounter took place on the 1st of February, 1815, about twelve or thirteen miles from Dublin, in Bishop's Court demesne, situate in the county Kildare, on the south-west boundary of the county Dublin. It was then the seat of Lord Ponsonby; it is now the residence of the Earl of Clonmel.

On the 22nd of January, at a Catholic meeting which was held in Capel-street, O'Connell said :"I am convinced that the Catholic cause has suffered by neglect of discussion. Had the petition been, last year, the subject of debate, we should not now see the beggarly Corporation of Dublin anticipating our efforts, by a petition of an opposite tendency." His speech was reported in the newspapers next day, but no notice was taken of it by any member of the Corporation, until the twentysixth; so that that body would seem to have occupied several days in discussing the offensive expression, or rather, perhaps, in endeavouring to find a corporator plucky enough to call O'Connell to account for it. Unfortunately for poor Mr. D'Esterre, he became their champion, and on the 26th, wrote a letter to O'Connell asking him. if he had used the words "beggarly Corporation;" at the same time expressing his hope that the editor, not O'Connell, was in error; he ended by requesting a reply in the course of the evening. O'Connell penned an answer next day, neither "admitting or disclaiming the expression." He further said:-"I deem it right to inform you, that from the calumnious manner in which the religion and character of the Catholics of Ireland are

treated in that body, no terms attributed to me, however reproachful, can exceed the contemptuous feelings I entertain for that body, in its corporate capacity, although, doubtless, it contains many valuable persons, whose conduct as individuals (I lament) must necessarily be confounded in the acts of the general body." He added, "this letter must close our correspondence on this subject."

In spite of this broad, unmistakeable hint, Mr. D'Esterre wrote a second letter, which Mr. James O'Connell opened in his brother's absence, but which, having examined the signature, he returned unread. This was on Friday. Nothing more occurred with regard to the affair until Sunday. On that day Mr. James O'Connell received a letter from Mr. D'Esterre, containing disrespectful observations on himself and his brother. On receipt of it, he immediately sent his friend, Captain O'Mullane, to Mr. D'Esterre, to say, that after adjusting his affair with his brother, he would bring him to account for his conduct to himself; adding, that Counsellor O'Connell was astonished at his not hearing, in what he conceived the proper way, from Mr. D'Esterre. On Monday morning, Mr. Lidwell, who was to be O'Connell's friend in the business, was obliged to leave Dublin on account of the serious illness of some members of his family. On Tuesday, there was a widely-spread rumour that Mr. D'Esterre had gone to the Four Courts to inflict personal chastisement on O'Connell, for the insult he supposed himself to have received. Mr. D'Esterre did not meet the object of his indignation, but he did meet my esteemed friend, the late Mr. Richard O'Gorman, the brother of Purcell O'Gorman, and father of our eloquent and distin<

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guished countryman, Mr. Richard O'Gorman, o New York, who told him he was pursuing a very unusual course of conduct. "You conceive," said Mr. O'Gorman, "that you received an offence from O'Connell-if so, your course is, to demand satisfaction. This, I understand, you have not yet done; but if you are now resolved to do so, I undertake, on forfeiture of having a riddle made of my body, to have O'Connell on his ground in half an hour." This occurred about three o'clock, but no challenge followed. Later in the day, O'Connell walked about the streets in company with some friends, but the crowd of sympathisers that soon surrounded him became so large, that he was obliged to take refuge in a house in Exchequerstreet (now Wicklow-street), in order to avoid their enthusiastic demonstrations.

He was not long in this retreat, when Judge Day entered, in his magisterial capacity, to put him under arrest. He said, however, that he would be satisfied if he had the guarantee of Mr. O'Connell's honor, that he would proceed no further in the business. "It is not my duty Mr. Justice," said O'Connell, "to be the aggressor-I will, therefore, pledge my honor that I will not be the aggressor -further, however, I must tell you, that human consideration will not induce me to go. Judge Day then retired, and shortly afterwards O'Connell returned to Merrion Square. Meantime, it was observed that Mr. D'Esterre was in a shop in Grafton street, surrounded by a number of friends. This day, Tuesday, came to a close, and there was yet no challenge.

At last, on Wednesday morning, Sir Edward Stanley, as the friend of Mr. D'Esterre, waited upon

O'Connell with a hostile message. Sir Edward was one of the Duke of Richmond's city knights, wine merchant to the Castle, and barrack-master to the city of Dublin, at a salary of £800 a year. Sir Edward opened his mission by saying he wished to get an explanation- but O'Connell at once refused to have any conversation with him relative to Mr. D'Esterre,-"my friend," he said, "is Major McNamara, here is his address:" and he handed it to Sir Edward. The seconds met at 12 o'clock, at Major McNamara's lodgings, to arrange time and place. O'Connell's second had a right to regulate both, and he did so, by naming Bishop's Court demense at 3 o'clock the same day. Sir Edward Stanley endeavoured to prolong the time, but Major McNamara refused to entertain the proposal.

And so at three o'clock precisely, O'Connell, attended by his second, Surgeon Macklin, and a number of friends was on the ground. About four, Mr. D'Esterre, attended only by Surgeon Peele, Sir Edward Stanley (his second), Mr. Piers, and Mr. D'Esterre, of Limerick, appeared.

Forty minutes were spent in preliminary arrangements. During this interval, Mr. D'Esterre took occassion, to say that his quarrel with Mr. O'Connell was not of a religious nature;-to the Catholics or their leaders, he said he had no animosity whatever.

*

Major McNamara of Doolen, in the county Clare, who was regarded as one of the noblest specimens of manly beauty and princely dignity to be met with. He was thoroughly conversant with everything pertaining to the laws of honor, as they were called; a fire eater and a dead shot. A Protestant himself, he was by far the most popular man in Clare-the most Catholic county in Ireland, which he represented for many years in parliament.

O'Connell's second won the choice of ground, which was always considered important on such occassions. At forty minutes past four o'clock the combatants were placed. They both displayed the greatest coolness and courage. As to Mr. O'Connell we never saw him in better spirits, or more composed; indeed his cheerfulness was the astonishment of every spectator. It would be injustice to Mr. D'Esterre, whatever opinion we may have of the part he espoused, (or rather of the party who stimulated him to this act,) to deny that he appeared perfectly selfpossesed.* Before the principals had finally taken their ground, Sir Edward Stanley thus addressed Major McNamara :-Well, sir. when each has discharged his case of pistols, I hope the affair will be considered as terminated, and that we leave the ground." Major McNamara replied:"Sir, you may, of course, take your friend from the ground when you please. You, sir are the challenger, and you may retire from the ground whenever you think proper; but I shall not enter into any such condition as you propose. However,

*This is the account of the Evening Post, but, in my early days there was a tradition which differed from it, as far as Mr. D'Esterre was concerned. It was this: when the word was given to measure the ground, both Mr. D'Esterre's arms were observed to sink suddenly at his sides, as if they had become powerless, noticing which, O'Connell's second said to those near him,-"That's a dead man."

Of O'Connell's demeanour on the ground, the late Jeremiah McCarthy of Dawson street used to relate the following anecdote:-O'Connell recognizing him during the time that elapsed, whilst preliminaries were being arranged, said to him, with his usual cheerful buoyancy of manner : "Well, Jerry, I never missed you at an aggregate meeting yet!"