The City of Horror

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XLIX, Issue 20, 18 May 1922, Page 13

The City of Horror

Savagery, organised and unchecked, has surely reached its limit, in Belfast by the cold-blooded butchery of the ; Catholic McMahon family (says the Irish Catholic for April 1). By this time, the civilised world is aware of the latest infamy of this bigoted city, and is aghast at its brutality. For no other reason than that they were Catholics was this prosperous family of boys and their father mortally assaulted, and their mother and sister plunged in anguished unavailing sorrow'. The dastardly crime spread a gloom over the entire district, and St. Patrick’s Church, where the mortal remains of the murdered Catholics lay awaiting interment, was visited by thousands of their sorrowing co-religionists, who came to pray for the eternal repose of the latest martyrs for the Faith. The funerals on Sunday were the largest ever seen in the city. Forty thousand persecuted Catholics, headed by Most Rev. Dr. Macßory, marched to Miltown Cemetery, and the roadways along the route were packed with sympathisers. When the Last Blessing was given a striking incident took place. With one accord the great mass of mourners sang triumphantly the touching hymn, "Faith of Our Fathers,” and never in the hearts of all who had the privilege of taking part will the stirring memory of the noble lines be forgotten.

"Faith of Our Fathers, living still In spite of dungeon, fire, and sword.”

Here wore the Catholics of Belfast, subjected to the horrors of the wicked Penal Code! No prospect of relief was ahead. Instead, an addition to their previous disabilities was promised them by the sectarian authorities in the penalty of the "cat” for wrongdoers, who would certainly not be the bigots of Belfast. Yet, withal, the Spirit of the downtrodden minority is firm and unbroken. Their trust in God and His Blessed Mother is unshaken! To cover up the infamy of the foul deed great protestations of disavowal are being made by the Belfast majority, but it is only right to say that these are treated with suspicion by the Catholics, who hear of another raid being made on Saturday night last in the Antrim Bead area in the home of a highly respectable Catholic family, who had the happiness, or, perhaps, one might say just now, the unhappiness, of*possessing seven fine sons. The “murder gang,” masked and armed, made a descent in the midnight hours on the house, but were disappointed of their prey by the fact that the youths, like all Belfast Catholic young men, had left their homes till the murder wave passes. Belfast non-Catholics are also finding it very difficult to answer the query: "Who are the people who are abroad during Curfew hours murdering the Catholics?” It is not the military, as they leave the streets about 11.30 p.m. •