A reprint of the original book By W. G. LYTTLE
with Other Stories and Pictures of '98
as collected by and published in The "Mourne Observer"
MOURNE OBSERVER LTD., Printers and Publishers, Newcastle, Co. Down, Northern Ireland.
The reprinting of "Betsy Gray or Hearts of Down" will be welcomed by those who have been seeking this thrilling story of events in Counties Antrim and Down in the troublous days of the 1798 Rebellion.
The central figure is a beautiful Co. Down lass
who inspired the Insurgents and fought side by side with her
brother and lover at the Battle of Ballynahinch.
This historical novel captures the tenseness
which gripped the North East in the struggle against oppression
and the stirring events which led to the famous Rising.
The original story is supplemented with 40
pages of research into local history and folklore of the
Rebellion, and of its aftermath in Co. Down. There are more than
thirty illustrations and photographs, many of them unique.
In reprinting, in full, the original story as written and published by W. G. Lyttle, the publishers thought it opportune to include addi tional historical data and folklore concerning the '98 Rebellion as it affected Co. Down, with photographs and other illustrations. They acknowledge with gratitude their indebtedness to all who assisted them in their research, especially Mr. Aiken McClelland, of Belfast, who not only wrote the Preface, but also gave valuable advice and placed much material at their disposal; the late Mr. Colin Johnston Robb, of Spa, Ballynahinch, for access to his manuscripts; the late Miss E. McNeilly Ballynahinch, for loan of old photographs; Mr. A. McNeilly, secretary of the Ards Historical Society; and the Northern Ireland Public Records Office.
The Appendix is reprinted as it first appeared in 1968, although some of the people then interviewed have since passed on.
PREFACE
WESLEY GUARD LYTTLE, the author of this book, was born near Bangor on the 15th April, 1844. He began work as a clerk in a solicitor's office in Downpatrick, and in the course of a varied career became a junior reporter, a school-teacher, a lecturer on Dr. Corry's `Irish Diorama', a teacher of shorthand the first in Belfast) and an accountant. Finally, in 1880 he became the proprietor, editor and printer of the North Down Herald, a strong Liberal paper which he published in Newtownards. Shortly afterwards he transferred his paper to Bangor, where it appeared under the title, North Down Herald and Bangor Gazette.
Lyttle was in demand all over Ulster as an entertainer. His humorous monologues, given in the dialect of an Ards farmer, were published In his newspaper and later reprinted in eight pamphlets under the title, Robin's Readings. He also published in his newspaper, and later issued as books, two novels, Sons of the Sod and The Smugglers of Strangford Lough.
None of these writings, however, gripped the imagination of his readers like his third and last novel, Betsy Gray, or Hearts of Down, which appeared a few years before his death, on 1st November, 1896. The reason is not hard to find. Despite its faults in construction (perhaps due to the fact that it originally appeared in serial form in his newspaper), and lack of style, Lyttle gives his readers a vivid account of the Rebellion in Co. Down, and the events immediately leading up to the insurrection.
Fact and fiction are intertwined in Betsy Gray. Did Betsy really live at the Six Road Ends, or did Lyttle simply alter the story of a Dromara girl who was murdered after the Battle of Ballynahinch to provide a convenient peg for his fictionalized history? The fact that such a controversy exists is proof that Betsy is firmly enshrined in local folklore.
Lyttle was writing for the children and grandchildren of former rebels - readers who, although loyal to the Crown, admired the struggle of their relatives against wrongs that were subsequently righted. This fact unconsciously coloured his writing - he saw everything in black and white. To him, the insurgents were dedicated men attempting to redress undefined wrongs, while the military and supporters of the Crown were cruel and selfish men.
For many years after its first publication, this was a standard book in almost every County Down home, and although a vast number of books has been written about the Rebellion of 1798, many have gleaned their knowledge of the insurrection solely from Betsy Gray. This may be regrettable from a purely historical viewpoint, but the average reader cares little about the complex political and economic factors which underlay the insurrection. He is content to read with pride how his poorlyarmed ancestors defeated the English troops at Saintfield, and to thrill with horror at the murder of poor, defenceless Betsy Gray. And to such a reader this edition, with photographs and additional information, will be welcome.
AIKEN McCLELLAND.
Ulster Folk Museum, Cultra Manor.
| CHAPTER 1. | The Six-Road-Ends - Mat McClenaghan's smiddy - Forging the pikes - George Gray of Granshaw |
| CHAPTER 2 | An unwelcome visitor - James Dillon of Drumawhey - The "rising" discussed -The trail of the serpent |
| CHAPTER 3 | Bel McClenaghan - Preparations for the christening - Cruiskeen Lawn Whiskey - Biddy, the midwife - The Rev. William Steele Dickson - The christening ceremony |
| CHAPTER 4 | Betsy Gray - The Song of the Blackbird -An impromptu ball |
| CHAPTER 5 | A rude interruption - The King's bloodhounds- Searching for pikes - Almost a butchery |
| CHAPTER 6 | A cruel deed - The lash and the steel - Tommy Burns |
| CHAPTER 7 | Orr of Antrim - His manly speech - A noble martyr |
| CHAPTER 8 | Sentence of death - On the scaffold - First blood |
| CHAPTER 9 | A troubled conscience - The old teapot at the Six-Road-Ends - Mat at his anvil - Mat's philosophy |
| CHAPTER 10 | The United Irishmen - How the society was formed - Nick Maginn the Saintfield informer |
| CHAPTER 11 | The Lodge meeting at Granshaw - Taking the oath - The Shall Van Vacht - Willie Boal of the Cottown |
| CHAPTER 12 | The Drumawhey informer - Dillon's public-house - A carousel - The secret document - Sam Donaldson - The Female spy - A treacherous deed |
| CHAPTER 13 | William Warwick - The widow and her son - A dark foreboding - Mary Stewart - Betsy Gray's party - The Alarm |
| CHAPTER 14 | The York Fencibles - Colonel Stapleton and the informer - The Bloodhounds on the trail |
| CHAPTER 15 | Widow Warwick's lonely vigil - A rude awakening - A mother's strategy - Off the trail - A curious hiding-place |
| CHAPTER 16 | A conflagration - A trying moment - The consultation |
| CHAPTER 17 | A rat in the trap - Dillon's wife makes a discovery - Widow Warwick's bribe - The spy at bay - The blackbird captured - The widow's curse |
| CHAPTER 18 | Lord Castlereagh's court-martial - The death sentence - A friendly soldier |
| CHAPTER 19 | Nick Maginn - Rev. James Cleland - A pair of scoundrels - Startling information |
| CHAPTER 20 | The Rev. William Steele Dickson of Ballyhalbert - An infamous plot - Kilmainham Jail - Castlereagh's footman |
| CHAPTER 21 | A mare's nest - The story of the tobacco box - Foiled! |
| CHAPTER 22 | A pugilistic encounter - Mat McClenaghan uses his fists effectively |
| CHAPTER 23 | Words of comfort - An agreeable surprise - Warwick's military guard |
| CHAPTER 24 | Ninety-eight! - The Green fields of County Down - Suspense - Fire and Sword - Dunn the hangman - Horrible executions - spiking human heads - Bloody trophies - The Walking gallows - Rivers of blood |
| CHAPTER 25 | The pitch-cap - Jack Sloan, the Newtownards blacksmith - The Gallows Hill smiddy - A true hero - The torture - A deed of horror |
| CHAPTER 26 | Arrest of Dickson - Maginn at work - A brutal officer |
| CHAPTER 27 | The Battle of Antrim - Henry Joy McCracken - Insurgent victory - The Spartan Band - Execution of Henry Joy McCracken |
| CHAPTER 28 | Harry Monro of Lisburn chosen as general of the County Down Insurgents - Betsy Gray causes a surprise - Her resolve - Her patriotic speech |
| CHAPTER 29 | Grove Cottage, Ballyboley - William and Alexander Byers cast lots - A clever ruse - The soldiers outwitted - A plucky rescue |
| CHAPTER 30 | The march to Saintfield - The burning of the McKee family - A horrible fate - The murder of John Boles |
| CHAPTER 31 | The battle of Saintfield - First brush with the military - Victory of the Insurgents - Revolting scenes |
| CHAPTER 32 | Ballynahinch - Ednavady - Montalto - Preparing for battle |
| CHAPTER 33 | The attack upon Portaferry - Defeat of the Insurgents |
| CHAPTER 34 | Nugent's proclamation - Fire and Sword - On the eve of battle |
| CHAPTER 35 | The Windmill Hill - Advance of the King's Army - Betsy Gray's arrival - The Battle of Ballynahinch - The bloody brae - Fearful slaughter - A fatal fistake - Rout and slaughter |
| CHAPTER 36 | Atrocities by the military - No quarter given - A boy's revenge |
| CHAPTER 37 | The search for Monro - Priest Magee and the Orangemen - The prison cells - Waiting for death - Revolting butcheries - A murderous dragoon - First execution in Lisburn - The fatal token |
| CHAPTER 38 | A heartless traitor - Monro's betrayer - Hidden in a pig-sty - The informer's dying hour - Billy Holmes |
| CHAPTER 39 | Execution of Monro - A hero's death - The story of the axe with which Monro's head was chopped off |
| CHAPTER 40 | The murder of Betsy Gray, with her brother and lover - The dastardly Yeomen - The ballad |
| CHAPTER 41 | The vale of Ballycreen - A sad burial Betsy's grave - The story of Betsy's sword |
| CHAPTER 42 | A heartless deed - Warwick's martyrdom - The cruel Castlereagh - A startling execution - A broken heart |
| CHAPTER 43 | What befell certain informers and traitors - Conclusion |
| The Battle of Ballynahinch | |
'We men of the North had a word to say,
An' we said it then, in our own dour way,
An' we spoke as we thought was best!'Betsy Gray or Hearts of Down A Tale of Ninety-Eight By W. G. LYTTLE 1896
or HeaBetsy Gray or HBetsy Gray or Hearts of Down A Tale of Ninety-Eight By W. G. LYTTLE 1896earts of Down A Tale of Ninety-Eight By W. G. LYTTLE 1896rts of Down or Hearts of Down
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