Examination of Peirce Lynagh

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The examinacion of Peirce Lynagh taken by of Castle Jordan Gent taken before vs the 14o of February 1653
The said Peirce Lynagh beeing duly sworne & examined by vertu <C> of his oath sayth deposeth, that about some seaven yeares agoe there was a woeman sirnamed ni gilwey, who lived two or three yeares an Adulterous life with one Tirlogh o Doran, & by whome she had two children by report of the Country & none Could give an account what became of them, but beeing Delivered of the third, she murderd the same & hid him in a Dunghill, the very night she was delivered, which child was digged vp by a mastive dogg belonging to one Rochford a Tanner in Castle Jordan & carryed In his mouth to the dooer of the howse where nigilwey the mother then lived, & as it was observed by Certaine souilders of Capt Barnaby Dempsy who tould it vnto this examinat that the said Mastife would not permitt

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permitt any swine or any other dogges to medle with the chyld although it was generally observed & known in those partes that that Mastife did vse comonly to digg dead Corpes out of thier graves, & feed vpon them, but it was noted by all the neighboures theraboutes that the said dogge, had had carried the child with that tenderness, that not as much as the Impression of his teeth was left in his body & he further deposeth that the day before when the said Nigilwey was questioned about the murdering of the said child, she denyed that she had any, whervpon, some of the neighbouring woemen, tould hir that the night before she was with child, & if she had had a child she would have milke in hir brests & thervppon they found it to be soe and then she the said Nigilwey confessed that the <D> child soe murdered was hers & that she had done it; he likewise deposeth that this buisness beeing bruted abroad in the country, Captayne George Cusacke beeing then Governor of Techroghan came vnto Castle Jordan to Informe himselfe of the truth of this murder & finding it to be true by the examinacion of the souilders aforesaid & the people of the towne he gave order to one Bryen Colgan now in prison, to apprehend the said Nigilwey & to bring her vnto him the next morning to a place called Knockanagoole which was done accordingly but whether by the said Brien Colgan or others, this examinate knoweth not but he deposeth that the said Capteaine came to the place of Execution on horseback & with one Newgent comeing in his Company, who was Marshall of those partes by orders of Kilkenny, & he further deposeth that the said woeman was burnt (as he is very Confident & doth beleeve)
that by

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by the directions of the said Capt George Cusacke vnto the <E> said Newgent the marshall: for that severall of the people that were spectators, did tell this examinat, that the said Capt Cusacke did force them with Blowes to fetch faggotts for the execution & this Examinat deposeth that he neither knew or heard any thing acted by the said Bryen Colgan then what he hath deposed as aforesaid, & further sayth not.
Pierce Leynagh
Taken by vs
William Cadogan
Jocelin Vssher

The examjnacions of Walter Ashpoole Peirse Leynagh against Brian Collgan
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