BY JOHN FITZGERALD
PART TWO
Continuing the story of events surrounding the murder of Callan man, Patrick Devereux, in 1828, and the hanging of two men convicted of the crime, a tragedy that stills cast a shadow over the town. You can read part one on the Kilkenny Observer website)
The local magistrate was Francis Despard of Killaghy Castle, Mullinahone. On September 27th, he informed his superiors in Dublin that he had a “slight clue” as to the killer’s identity, but no real evidence as yet. It looked as if the crime might go unsolved.
In the end, it was local gossip that betrayed the avengers. One of the eyewitnesses, Judith Armstrong, bragged to a female friend about having seen Devereux “getting hammered”. Her friend happened to be married to a man who worked for the magistrate at Killaghy Castle.
Despard heard the story and had Armstrong arrested. Under interrogation, she broke down and described what she had witnessed in the field at Clonygarra. The Russells and Codys were picked up and taken to Kilkenny jail, and charged with the murder of Patrick Devereux.
Death Sentence…
In August 1829, the five men went on trial at Kilkenny Court. After listening to Armstrong’s evidence, the jury returned guilty verdicts in respect of all the defendants. James Russell and Tom Cody were sentenced to death by hanging.
Cody was deemed to have “restrained” the victim while Russell beat him. Pat Cody, Mark Russell and Edmund Russell were convicted of complicity in the murder. Their punishment was to be transported for life to a penal colony in Australia.
On August 5th, 1829, a large crowd gathered in front of Kilkenny jail to observe the executions. At about 2 p.m., James Russell was led to the scaffold. The people were shocked at his appearance.
The 70-year old looked frail and his face was covered in bruises from beatings he had received while in custody.
He was prodded with batons and ridiculed by the prison staff on his way to the gallows. But he remained dignified to the end. There were gasps of horror among the crowd as the hangman placed the black cap over his head and tightened the noose.
His neighbours from Clonygarra went down on their knees to pray. Women sobbed and some men clenched their fists in the anger as the grim drama unfolded. There was stunned silence when the trap door opened and Russell’s neck snapped.
A fierce thunderstorm was raging, but the onlookers were undeterred as 57-year old Tom Cody was brought from his cell to the place of execution. His demeanour was different from that of his deceased colleague. As the scaffold came into view, he protested his innocence of the crime he was about to die for.
He pleaded that he was merely present at the murder scene and that Judith Armstrong had lied about his alleged role in the killing of Devereux. “I neither gave him a blow nor held him”, he shouted desperately.
“Pray for my soul. I forgive Judith Armstrong” were Cody’s last words before the noose was tightened around his neck. A lever cranked and he dropped to his death. He left behind a widow and five children.
His brother, Patrick, together with Mark and Edmond Russell, arrived in Australia in 1830 to serve their sentences. They were freed in 1838.
Historian Joe Kennedy has researched the case of the “Clonygarra Five” and tried to establish what became of Patrick Cody and the Russell brothers. He drew a blank in his search for the Codys.
But Joe discovered that Edmond Russell settled in New South Wales and never married. Mark Russell persuaded his wife, Julia, to leave Clonygarra and join him in Australia. He died in 1849 at the age of 50.
One of his children, William, married Elizabeth Hickey from County Clare. She bore him seven sons and two daughters. “That could be why there are so many Russells in Australia today”, Joe Kennedy surmised.
In the summer of 1994, Joe had a very special visitor. Thelma Russell arrived from New South Wales. She wanted to see Clonygarra, home of her ancestors. Thelma removed a few stones from a field once farmed by James Russell and his sons.
She intended to keep them as a reminder of “times past and dark deeds”. She marvelled at the suffering endured by tenants at the hands of the greedy landlords.
Without a trace of bitterness, she put a question to Joe: “What happened to Patrick Devereux’s family?” The historian couldn’t help her there, but he informed Thelma that nobody had lived in Clonygarra since his uncle Mike Kennedy, left the area thirty years before.
