Narrative of a Private Soldier in His Majesty's 92d Regiment of Foot

by George Billany

[1]. I have learned since the publication of the first edition, that these Books were the gift of Mr. Auchincloss, a gentleman who took a very lively interest in the Sabbath schools. He was constantly employed in visiting them, and in giving rewards of various kinds to those who behaved well, and repeated, from memory, psalms or chapters.

[2]. The number of the regiment was afterwards changed to the 92d, which is the number of it at present.

CHAPTER II.

We embarked in the beginning of June for Ireland, on board of the Europa of 60, and the Van Tromp of 54 guns. We had a narrow escape from running ashore amongst the rocks, in a fog, upon the Irish coast: the fog, however, cleared away just in time for us to see our danger. A new scene began to open to us: Ireland was in a state of insurrection; and we were but ill informed of the nature and extent of it. We were told by a pilot, that we got upon the coast to conduct us into Dublin, that the insurgents had taken Wexford. The prospect of being engaged in a civil war, made me thoughtful, and agitated me not a little. On the 18th June we anchored in Dublin bay, and landed at the Pigeon-house in the evening. We were here met by Lord Huntly, our Colonel, who had been made a Brigadier General on the Irish staff. We remained on the mole near the Pigeon-house, which is about three miles from Dublin, until day-break next morning, and then marched into the city with drums beating and colours flying, announcing to the sleeping inhabitants, at the early hour of three o'clock, the arrival of fresh troops for the support of the government.

As we now entered into a scene of civil war, I will take the liberty of stating a few of the particulars of the Irish insurrection.

The city of Dublin was under strict police: patrols of cavalry paraded the streets during the day to prevent crowds from assembling. Numerous and strong guards were posted through the city and suburbs, and upon all the roads leading to the country. These guards were reinforced at night with additional garrison troops, and large parties of volunteer yeomanry, both horse and foot. Many citizens of the first respectability, and not a few of the nobility, were in the ranks of the yeomanry; and it was not an uncommon thing for a poor Highlander to have a wealthy citizen, or noble lord, posted along with him on sentry. All the inhabitants were ordered to be in their own houses by a set time at night. Strong patrols then scoured the streets and made prisoners of all they found upon them, and entered every house where they heard any disturbance. Every house had a written list of the inmates upon the door, and was liable to be visited during the night; and if any one was amissing, the owner might be taken up; or if any were in the house whose names were not on the door, or if any one was found in his neighbour's house, he was taken up and fined before being set at liberty. Every precaution was used, to prevent plots from being formed, and all means was used to find them out. In such a state of society, opportunity is afforded to private malice and ill-will, to injure the objects of their enmity. When I was upon the Grand Barrack guard, two respectable old citizens were brought in prisoners. They were men who were unfit, and very unlikely to have any active hand in conspiracy against the state. They were confined in the guard-room all that day and night; whether they were liberated next day after I was relieved, or removed to some other place, I know not. While they were in the guard-room, they were exposed to the interrogatories of the ignorant and unthinking, who took every such prisoner to be an insurgent. They were protected, however, by the interposition of the more intelligent and humane. I had a little conversation with them, and they told me it was their belief, that it was an apprentice of theirs with whom they had a difference on account of bad behaviour, who had, out of revenge, given false accusation against them; such as, that they were holding correspondence with the insurgents in the country, &c. They told me that such cases were frequent. Every person accused was taken up, and kept until the case should be examined: and as this, from the great number daily apprehended, could not be instantly done, individuals often suffered seriously, before they obtained their release.

The conduct of persons, whose political sentiments or behaviour, were in any measure suspicious, was closely watched. And when they were found transgressing any of the police rules, their cases were strictly examined. I saw an instance of this, in the case of a respectable gentleman, who was confined in the same guard-room upon another day. He had been found out of his own house after the appointed time at night. He pled that he was only a short time in a neighbour's house: and that the person in whose house he was, was himself a very loyal man, and a yeoman. He said he had always been a very loyal man himself. He acknowledged, that at a certain public meeting, (which had taken place some time previous to this) where a certain political question had been discussed, he had spoken warmly, too warmly; but that that was the only thing in the course of his life, that could have any tendency to create any suspicion of his loyalty. He remained in the common guard-room during the day, and was removed to another place at night. He was liberated next morning when I saw him, and he told me, that nothing farther than his being out of his own house at night was brought against him; and that he had gotten his liberty on condition of paying ten pounds to the fund for the relief of the widows and children of soldiers who had fallen in the insurrection. He said that he happened to have as much money upon him, and that he paid it cheerfully; for those that were to get it well deserved it. I mention these cases as certain evils arising out of a state of civil war.

During the time we lay in Dublin, the insurrection was raging in various parts of the country, and much blood was shedding. Dublin itself was kept in a state of tranquillity, by the vigilance of the police, and the power of the military. Our stay in it was short. On the 1st of July, the volunteer cavalry were employed in going through the city, pressing all the coaches, gigs, and other vehicles, and collecting them in one of the squares. At six o'clock at night we paraded, and went into them, and set off for Arklow. We travelled all night. We were all accommodated at the outset, but fell into considerable confusion on the way, by some of the coachmen getting drunk, and striving to get past one another; which caused several of the carriages to break down, and others, by running into ditches, to upset. It was conjectured that some of the coachmen did this wilfully, from aversion to the service they were upon. Numbers had thus to walk in the rain, which was heavy; and several had their muskets damaged, by the breaking down or upsetting of the carriages. One man had his firelock completely bent; and when he was asked by the people of the villages through which we passed, what kind of a gun that was, he told them it was one of a new construction, for the purpose of shooting round corners.

As we advanced into the country, we began to see the effects of the insurrection. Burnt houses began to make their appearance in the villages, and their number increased as we proceeded. The coaches carried us to about three miles from Arklow, and then returned to Dublin. We entered Arklow in the evening. The place had been attacked by a large body of insurgents a few days before, who had been repulsed with great slaughter. They had some pieces of artillery, with which they had dismounted one of the guns of the military, and damaged some of the houses. They had also burnt that part of the town that lay next the sea-side, which was composed of low thatched houses, and was inhabited by fishermen. It was a very pitiable sight to see this scene of destruction; and those of my comrades who went to the ground where the insurgents had stood during the action, said it was disgusting. Numbers of dead bodies were still unburied; some of them lying in ditches, and the swine feeding on them. There was a number of prisoners in the place, who had been taken, whom they were trying by court-martial, and hanging; but I was not an eye-witness to any executions in this place. A part of the regiment was stationed in the church, which was not a large one. This was a new kind of quarters, but every part was occupied, pulpit and all; and the grave stones were the place where we cleaned our arms.

The insurgents were still in a body upon one of the hills in the vicinity, and kept the place in alarm; and we had frequently to stand to our arms during the night. On the fourth of July, we paraded in the street at 12 o'clock at night, in great haste. The right wing of the regiment got three days bread served out, when we marched away in a great hurry, without giving the left wing any. I was in the left wing, and had only a few crumbs left of that day's rations. We marched very quickly through by-roads; and when day began to break, we made a short pause, and loaded our muskets,—the first time I had done so in the expectation of fighting. There was a high hill before us, (called White Heaps) whose top was covered with mist, and that side which was next to us was very steep. The insurgents were said to be on the top of it. Their number, we afterwards learned, was 5000; of whom 1500 had firelocks, the rest pikes. There were about six troops of cavalry along with us: but our whole number did not amount to 1200, without artillery. We ascended the hill with difficulty, without being perceived by those on the top, the mist concealing us from each other. When we had nearly reached the summit, and had entered into the mist that covered it, our front was challenged by the insurgent sentinels, who demanded the countersign, to which the Lieutenant Colonel replied, "You shall have it in a minute." We moved a little further and formed our line. The fog cleared up a little for a minute, when we found that our left was near the enemy, who were collecting themselves into three bodies. The ground betwixt us and them was a wet bog; and the commander of the cavalry told our commanding officer, that if he advanced, the cavalry would not be able to act in such marshy ground as that before us. The fog again covered us, so that we could not see them, and a gust of wind, with a shower of rain, induced us to stand still. The insurgents then gave a loud cheer, and then a second, and they began a third; but it died away, and was not so full or loud as the others. We expected to be instantly attacked, as this was their signal of attack. They, however, had imagined that we were much stronger than what we were; and being terrified by the suddenness of our appearance, in place of coming forward to attack, they fled in great haste down the opposite side of the hill. We stood in uncertainty for some time, as we could see nothing; then hearing the fire of two guns, we moved in that direction, and got out of the fog, and descended the hill on the side opposite to that which we had ascended. We then learned that the insurgents had gone down the hill; and, having fallen in with another division of the army, had come upon them before they could get fully formed, and had come close to the guns, when they were fired upon and repulsed. It had been arranged, that different bodies of troops should have mounted the hill on opposite sides at the same time; but we had been sooner than the others, which disarranged the plan. The insurgents continued to fly, the cavalry went forward in pursuit, and we followed with all possible haste. When we reached the foot of the hill, I saw four of the insurgents lying dead. We continued to march with great haste, and frequently changed our route. We heard firing at no great distance; but the parties were always gone before we came up. The road was strewed with old clothes, oatmeal, oat bread, and dough, thrown away by the insurgents in their flight. The dragoons killed a great number of them in the fields. The insurgents, in their flight, fell in with some baggage belonging to some of the other divisions; attacked the guard, and killed and wounded several, before the rest of the army could come to their assistance; the insurgents were then totally dispersed, and a great many killed and wounded; but our regiment never could arrive in time to take share in any of the actions. Several women were among the dead, who were shot in the ranks of the insurgents. We had a most fatiguing march, of upwards of thirty Irish miles. In the evening we arrived at the town of Gorey, as did also two other divisions of the army.