Examination of Robert Dall

fol. 141r

1729
<symbol> The examinacion of Robert Dall of Dowcastle in th{e Barony} of killmckrennan & County of donnegall, being taken {by} me, Sir George St George knight at Castle doe, by the direction of the Honorable Collonel Robert venables and Lieutenant Collonell Newb{urgh} vpon the last of Sept: 1652 whoe being duely sworne {by} the holy Evangellist
<A> Who saith he being at Mr Robert Akins house his then Master, at the very begining of these warres, there came to that house in the night so{me} three howres before day some men and knockt very earnestly at the {door} requireing to come in, they within feareing noe greate harme o{pened} the doore to them, where presently entred fowre men vizt Manus {mc} knoher doltagh mc Garvy; Bryan reagh offarrie and donnell mc Gilbreedy, the first man Manus mc Knogher had his sword drawn and to the best of this Examinants remembrance doltagh mcGa{rvy} had his sworde drawne, there was alsoe one Neall o donnell amon{gst} them whoe came into the house with his sworde drawn as soone as ever they were in they called earnestly vppon Mr Rog{er} Akin and his twoe brothers to rise hastily which accordingly the{y} did, then they prest them hard to haue money from them, Mr Akins answered them that he had none and tould them it was ver{y} well knowne to the Contry he liued at the height of his estat{es} he had newley built the house that he liued in, and Marryed { } of his daughters, which would sufficiently excuse him, for hav{ } any money, if they would be reasonable, they replyed they wou{ } haue money: or they would put him to death: he answerein{g} still he had none as before, then they tooke him & his two brot{hers} Marcus Akins and John Akin and led them forth of the doores, & threatening to kill them vnles they might get money, which {the} other still said they had not, then they bad them prepare them to d{ie} offering them to chuse what death they would, either to be kild with a swoard or with a bullet, or to be hanged, they chose all to {be}, hanged, soe they carryed them all into Mr Robert Akins his barne a little remoate from the house, and first they hanged vpp Marcus Akin, then presently came in Collonell Miles mc Swine, <B> who vere much reproued them for that bloddy Act, and presen{tly} <he> drew his sword and cutt downe Marcus Akin againe and charge{d} them with all the earnestnes he could, to dissist from doeing su{ch} outrage, and not onely to forbeare the hanging the other two, b{ut} him alsoe whome he had cut downe, whoe then recovered and walked on his feete, about his house, Manus mcConer replye{d}

fol. 141v

1730
That he would not obey any of his commaunds that night, and presently he and his companyons tooke the said Collonell by the neck and thrust him <C> out of the doores, and lockt the doore and soe they returned to theire bloody buissines, and hanged vp all the three brothers, and one other man called Robertt Bochanan a servant of Mr Robertt Akins after That they had went vnto John Adams house and brought him to the barne where these men laye dead, and bad him prepare him selfe to be hanged as the rest were before him, he tould them he would not and soe strugled the best he could for his life, and then Manus mc Conner drew out a longe skeane he had and thrust it thorow him and soe killed him, this deponent sayeth they forced him to carry a candle and light them while they were doeing all this villinee which is the cause of his certayne knowledge of all that he hath heere deposeth, he alsoe saith that Collonell Miles mc Swine came not to them till seaven a clock the next Morneing after he was thrust out of doores and then he came to the house, and that he could not obserue, that either the night before or the morneing when he came that he had any will or desire that any should be murthered, but very much offended at it and further sayeth not.
Signed George St. George

Copia Vera
A true Coppy Examined
by vs, this 20th ffebruay 1653
R Venables Ra: King John Reeue

fol. 142r

1731

fol. 142v

1732

The examination
of Robert Dall