Robert Goodbody Journal

but a sister in law of his continued to reside with him He afterwards, in the year 1800, married my Aunt Alice Pim.

The rebellion of 1798 was a memorable time. There was a very disturbed winter before, taking up arms and robbing houses of the Protestants. In the spring a proclamation by government was put out, that the country people that had arms, if they could deliver them up, and take the allegiance, they would be protected. Perhaps the lower orders about Mountmellick pretended that they were innocent. I don't recollect that they gave up any arms, but I was on a visit at Uncle Pim's in Rathangan (as that family had moved in from Tullylost for safety a short time before) and perhaps Co. Kildare was under Martial law, but I there saw in the 4th mo. Numbers of men perhaps hundreds, giving up their arms and taking the oath of allegiance, and getting out their protection. But in 6 weeks after, when the rebellion broke out, the same people in fact the country with few exception, all R. Catholics came in as rebels, and murdered every protestant man they could lay their hands upon, perhaps upwards of twenty. The protestants got into a house next William Pim's who was then ill in bed, and thought to defend themselves there but before the rebels had murdered several of the protestants. They also murdered James Spencer, the landlord of the town, in a barbarous manner in his own house, and cut his head off. They afterwards brought up his affected widow at their head, getting her to speak to the protestants in their garrison, and to request that they capitulate ad that their lives would be spared; which she did, but almost immediately after they were all murdered. My cousin Joshua Pim knowing that he was obnoxious to the rebels, brought his man with him over to Mountmellick on 5th day to my father's and sent back his

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