‘The Men are Sleeping’ Important 1916 Documents. A very int...

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€6,000 - €9,000

‘The Men are Sleeping’

Important 1916 Documents. A very interesting and important file of documents with provenance to G.A. Newsom, manager of the Jacob’s Factory in Dublin, occupied by insurgents commanded by Thomas MacDonagh during Easter Week 1916, as follows:

*        A printed document headed ‘NOTICE  / [three fleurons] / Please make no noise / as the men are sleeping’, on plain white poster-type paper circa 10 ½ ins x 10 ins, inscribed rear in a contemporary hand, ‘Printed by the I.R.A. / in Jacob’s Factory; & hung up there / during the Rebellion 1916.  When / they took the Factory.’  Fold marks, frayed at one edge, no loss, a little print offsetting.  To our knowledge unrecorded, probably A UNIQUE SURVIVAL from those dramatic days in April 1916.

*      Surrender Order.  A contemporary manuscript copy of Pearse’s Surrender Order headed ‘H.Q. Moore St’ and subscribed ‘P.H. Pearse / Commandant General / Commanding in Chief / the Army of the Irish Republic’, dated 29 April 1916, in an unknown hand, not Pearse’s.  The text, beginning ‘Believing that the glorious stand ..’, matches copies signed by Pearse for distribution to outlying units (one of at least three different versions of the surrender order).  Written on the rear of a blank W.& R. Jacob memo form, evidently broadly contemporary.

*       Typescript (carbon copy) account by P. Barry, a Jacob’s employee, dated 14th May 1916, headed ‘COPY / To Mr G.A. Newsom, Director’, 1 pp, with ms. annotations adding names, on rear of a Jacob’s continuation sheet, describing how he went to the factory about 3.30 on Sunday April 30th,  having heard of the surrender, ‘surprised and amazed to find Bishop Street full of Looters .. with armfuls of tins of biscuits .. others carrying away ten stone bags of flour .. It was disgraceful .. we entered and found the Volunteers ready to leave, I addressed the Commander and told him we were employees of the firm and wished to stop the looting. He readily agreed and told us to pass along and take two rifles with us. We found about 50 looters coming from the lofts, we made them drop their loot .. (They asked for mercy and not to shoot them)  .. hearing the clergy were in the house I invoked their aid.  I found Father Aloyious [sic] .. and Father Monaghan  .. They got out on the window sill and addressed the crowd with determination and said they should be flogged bringing ruin and disgrace on this country.’

A fascinating account, evidently authentic.  Part (only) is quoted in W&R Jacob: Celebrating 150 Years of Irish Biscuit Making, by Séamas Ó Maitiú (Woodfield Press, 2001). 

*      Typescript (carbon copy), 2pp, on rear of Jacob’s continuation sheets, ‘Account given by Mr P. Cushen of his experience at the Biscuit Factory at the time of the surrender of the Rebels on April 30th 1916’. Again a fascinating contemporary account, ‘ran down about 3 p.m. and saw about 90 of them getting out of the windows and a lot of the rabble getting in up the rope that was hanging from the office window, and tumbling the sacks of flour out .. got in to the Bakehouse and was surprised to see between 90 and 100 of the rebels standing and sitting around  .. One of the officers of the rebels came in .. said there was a lot of bombs stored away that would blow up the whole place .. showed me where there were some hand grenades stored .. left me on guard of them and told me on peril of my life not to let anyone lay a hand on them until the Military came in that knew what they were. He then went away after making himself known to me, I found myself introduced to Major McBride, for the first and last time ..  Just then the [British] soldiers came in, ordered me at the point of the bayonet to take down ‘that d— rebel flag’, which he did, etc., with more detail about the looting, Frs. Aloysius and Monaghan etc.,  saw Major McBride marshalling the rebels in the Bakehouse and forming them into ranks.  McBride was called ‘General’ by the rebels and was the only Commander P. Cushen was aware of. 
Again an important, detailed and patently authentic contemporary account.  Part (only) is quoted by Séamas Ó Maitiú (see above). 

*      Sinn Fein Rebellion.  Experiences of a prisoner [Thomas Orr] in Messrs. W. & R. Jacob & Co.’s Biscuit Factory, from Easter Monday April 24th to Sunday 30th ’16. 3pp typescript, carbon copy, on  rear of Jacobs’ continuation sheets. Part of 3 lines indelibly obscured. Describes how the rebels told him to leave with the other workers, but he refused to do so as he was acting as Caretaker, ‘& no matter what was to be the result, I would not leave (which they afterwards admired me for’)  He was detained with four other prisoners,  and describes how he asked the rebel commander to prevent all smoking in  the factory, which he agreed,  and to allow them to attend to the company’s horses, which caused problems as the rebels did not wish to have their barricades pulled down to give them access.  ‘Everything seemed to be victory up to Wednesday evening’, but on Thursday their demeanour seemed to change, ‘for you could see by the officers that all things were not going on  satisfactorily outside’ .. on Friday, ‘the man in command of the Volunteers – McDonagh – went out and held consultations .. with the result that an unconditional surrender .. read aloud to the men on Sunday at 2.30 which came as a great surprise to many: some burst into tears .. During the whole time of occupation I never saw any of them under the influence of drink or using language not suitable ..  but for the sudden collapse & the influence brought to bear on them by the clergy, it would have been a difficult matter to remove them from the factory.’  Part (only) is quoted by Séamas Ó Maitiú (see above). 

*      The Irish Volunteer Rising, Easter Monday, April 24th 1916.  Record of events as known to Henry Fitzgerald, Watchman.  Typescript, top copy, 4 pp, on rear of Jacob’s continuation sheets, with a second copy of same (different typing, carbon copy), apparently identical. ‘I was marched under escort to Lieut. Colbert. There were also present Commandant McDonagh, Major McBride, & Captain Hunter.  I was commanded under threat to show where foodstuffs & any other necessities in that line were stored.  Needless to state, I did not show everything, being anxious to save as much of the Firm’s property as I possibly could .. At 3 o’clock P.M. I was escorted to the Commandant, and questioned as to my name, religion & also address. Having answered these questions,  I was asked  to allow myself to be sworn in  as a member of the Sinn Fein  Volunteers.  I stated that I was never a member of any organisation, political or otherwise, & that all I wanted was to be released & allowed to go home to my wife & children.  This answer seemed to cause disappointment & I was then told to consider myself still a prisoner & to be kept under close arrest  .. Wednesday, April 26th .. At 11 o’clock p.m. the Fire Alarm bell started ringing .. when it came to four minutes,  I suggested to Mr. Orr that something was wrong  .. Taking into consideration the immense quantity of flour which would be destroyed [by the sprinkler system], I decided to offer my services to cut the water off & effect repairs.  Commandant McDonagh, Major McBride, Captain Hunter & Lieut. Colbert escorted me to No. 5 Sprinkler installation, where I turned the water off.  They then requested me to explain the working of the Sprinkler system.  I demurred .. asked a second time, I gave a partial idea of the working of the system,. I may here state that they had a plumber to make any repairs that might be required.’  -- and so on, with more about the care of the Company’s horses, continuing in detail to the surrender and withdrawal.  Part (only) is quoted by Séamas Ó Maitiú (see above). 

*      Special Supplement to the ‘East Galway Democrat’.  The Sinn Fein Rising.  Awful Carnage in Dublin, etc. Single sheet newsprint, c. 16 ins x 10 ½ ins, blank verso with various ms. scribbled notes later scratched out.  Fold marks, a little tearing, no loss.  Very scarce.

*      O’Connell, Sir John R., Ll.D.  An Irish Nationalist’s Plea for Dominion Self-Government for Ireland.  June 1917, reprinted for the author, pamphlet, 8 pp. stapled.

Taken together, the four eyewitness statements above, consistent and evidently authoritative, enable a much fuller account of events at Jacobs than is given in the standard authorities. A collection of real importance in our view.
As a collection, w.a.f.  (1)
Cian O'Heigeartaigh, 2023