Early Policing & Cloughaneely
Na Péas i gCloich Cheann Fhaola
The Location of the Police Stations and the Pounds
By the 1830’s two permanent police stations had been established in Cloughaneely. In Falcarragh, the station was located on the old Letterkenny road. Another in Gortahork was located in the Falcarragh side of the Loch Altan Hotel. Initially, they were manned by the County Constabulary but in 1836 they were replaced by the Irish Constabulary.In close proximity to the stations were Pounds (Pane). These pounds were a means of charging that animals would be seized to make good any unpaid rent or debt or where animals had trespassed. The local police were duty bound to accompany the sheriff who had been ordered by the law to seize an animal. Once the animal was lodged in the pound the owner could redeem it when the debt was cleared. In most cases people were unable to do so. Thus the animal was sold at the following fair day. Locals would not buy a seized animal. Often the animal was maimed or marked to indicate that it was seized. The Malicious Damage Act of 1861 was an attempt to make the wilful maiming of animals a serious offence.
The Revenue Police and An Phóitín
- The Revenue Police was commissioned to suppress illicit distillation. There were two stations in Cloughaneely, one in Keadue, the other near “Siopa an Bhúistera” and Puntwise are located today.
- Poitín was considered a sufficiently serious problem in Cloughaneely so much so that landlords posted notices warning tenants that if any of them were convicted of its distillation they would be removed from their lands. Jack McGee was one such tenant. Indeed, the church had made the distillation of Poitín a reserved sin, which only the bishop could absolve, and a penance of a three day stay in Lough Derg was meted out to the penitent.
- A temperance society “The Cloughaneely Total Abstinence Society” was founded in 1859. Rev. John Broughan was elected president with Rev. Alexander Stewart as vice president and Daniel Sweeny of Carrowcannon was secretary. In 1861 a Temperance Hall funded by Wybrant Olphert was opened. Members escalated to five hundred. One prominent visitor to this hall was the Duke of Abercorn, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1868.
The Coastguards
Another important force in Cloughaneely was the coastguards. Locally, there were two coastguard stations - Ballyconnell and Magheraroarty. Since the Spanish Armada of 1588, the English feared the arrival of a foreign army to assist in an Irish rebellion. This fear was not unfounded. In 1798, Wolfe Tone in returning to Ireland with a French army, was captured off Tory Island. Aside from patrolling the coastline, the coastguards assisted the Revenue Police and Constabulary in search of poitín particularly by raiding the islands. They were responsible for the prevention of smuggling and for ensuring that any washed up materials along the shore from the wrecked ship were seized.Suíomhanna na Stáisiún agus na bPancanna
I dtráth na bliana 1830, bhí dhá stáisiún péas buanaithe i gCloich Cheann Fhaola. Ar an Fhál Carrach, bhí an stáisiún suite ar an tseanbhealach go Leitir Ceanainn. Bhí an dara ceann i nGort an Choirce, suite ar thaobh an Fhál Charraigh d’Óstán Loch Altan. I dtús báire, ba iad Constáblacht na Contae a bhí á reáchtáil ach cuireadh Constáblacht na hÉireann ina n-áit sa bhliain 1836.Bhí na pancanna iontach cóngarach do stáisiúin na bpéas. Bhí na pancanna ansin le déanamh cinnte go bhféadfaí ainmhithe, ar beireadh orthu, a choinneáil iontu go dtí go n-iocfadh an té ar leis iad an cíos nó na fiacha a bhí dlite air. Bhí sé de dhualgas ar na péas áitiúla dhul in éineacht leis an sirriam nuair a ghabhadh sé ainmhithe ar ardú an dlí. Nuair amháin a bhi an t-ainmhí istigh sa phanc, thiocfadh leis an úinéir é a fháil ar ais chomh luath géar is a bheadh na fiacha glanta aige. Ar an droch uair, is beag duine a raibh ar a chumas é seo a dhéanamh. Ar an tséala sin, dhíolfaí an t-ainmhí ag an chead aonach eile. Ní cheannódh daoine bhunadh na háite ainmhí ar bith as an phanc. Go minic, dhéantaí an t-animhí a bhascadh nó chuirtí marc do shórt éigin air sa dóigh go mbeadh a fhios ag lucht an aonaigh gur ainmhí gafa a bhí ann. Reachtaíodh an Malicious Damages Act, 1861, sa dóigh go mbeadh ballbhascadh ainmhí d’aon ghnó ina choir tromchúiseach.
Na Ribínigh agus An Poitín
- Cuireadh na Ribhíní ar bun le cosc a chur le déanamh poitín. Bhí dhá stáisiún acu i gCloich Cheann Fhaola, ceann amháin ar an Chaoldroim agus ceann eile san áit a bhfuil Síopa an Bhúistéara agus ‘Puntwise’ inniu.
- Is cosúil go raibh déanamh poitín chomh leitheadach sin i gCloich Cheann Fhaola gur chuir na tiarnaí talaimh suas fógraí ag tabhairt rabhaidh do na tionóntaí go gcuirfí duine ar bith a bhfaighfí ciontach é as dhéanamh poitín, amach as teach agus talamh. Tharla seo de thionónta amháin ar a laghad, Jeaic Mac Aoidh. Leis an fhírinne a dhéanamh, bhi déanamh poitín ainmnithe ag an eaglais mar pheaca nach bhféadfai absalóid a fháil ar a shon ach amháin ón easpag agus chuirtí breithiúnas aithrí de thrí lá i Loch Dearg an pheacach bocht.
- Cuireadh tús leis an Cloughaneely Total Abstinence Society sa bhliain 1859. Ba é an tOirmhinneach John Brougham a toghadh mar uachtarán, an tOirmhinneach Alexander Steward mar leas-uachtarán agus Dónall Mac Suibhne as An Cheathrú Cheanainn mar rúnaí. Sa bhliain 1861 chuir Wybrants Olphert airgead ar fáil ar mhaithe le Temperance Hall a oscailt. Ní raibh i bhfad go raibh ballraíocht de chúig chéad ag an Halla Measarthachta seo. I measc na gcuairteoirí a tháinig chuig an Halla seo, bhi fear iomráiteach amháin ar a laghad, sé sin an Diúc Abercorn a bhi ina Fhear Ionaid in Éirinn sa bhliain 1868.
Gardaí an Chósta
Bhí tábhacht ar leith ag baint le gardaí an chósta i gCloich Cheann Fhaola. Bhí dhá stáisiún acu áitiúla ann, ceann amháin i mBaile Chonaill agus an cheann eile i Machaire Uí Rabhartaigh. Ariamh anall ó am Armada na Spáinne bhí eagla an domhain ar Shasain go dtiocfadh arm choimhthíoch éigin le tacaíocht a tabhairt do na hÉireannaigh ina gcoinne. Ni raibh siad i bhfad contráilte na sa bhliain 1798 beireadh ar Wolfe Tone ar an chosta seo le linn do a bheith tionlacan forsarmtha de chuid na Fraince a bhi ar ti cuidiú linn in Éireanach na bliana sin. Ni amháin gur choinnigh gantai an chosta sud ghéar ... chuidigh siad leis na Ribínigh agus leis na peas nuair a bhiodh ... ar lorg lucht déanta poitín go speisialta ar na hoileán. Chomh maith leis sin bhí sé de dhualgas orthu cosc chuir le smuglíul agus deanamh cinnte nach bhfaigheadh duine ar bith den phobal éadáil cladaigh ar bith a thiocfadh i dtír ó bhád Toraigh go tóin poill.
Location
An tSean Bheairic
An tSráid Mhór
An Fál Carrach
Co. Dhún na nGall
F92 YE2C
