IRELAND.

Meagher, O'Donaghne, and Layne, have been captured; under circum- stances inducing the belief that they no longer found refuge among the peasantry, A party of police overtook three men on the road near Thurles dressed in the rough frieze coats of the country. The three pea- sants lightly said, "Good night, lads," and were passed unmolested by the police. A few minutes after, a rearward party of police came up, and, more suspicions than their companions, seized one of the peasants, and demanded his name: the peasant at once said openly, " O'Donaghue"; and immediately after the other two peasants avowed themselves as " Meag- her " and " Leyne." They were taken to Thurles; and were thence remov- ed, under a sufficient but unimposing guard, to Kilmainham Gaol. No excitement or unusual sympathy was manifested by the populace who saw than borne off.

Mr. James Raleigh Baxter, proprietor of the Dundalk Patriot, was ar- rested on Friday, on a charge of high treason. Mr. Richard Franks Ryan, an American, in whose possession were found papers appointing a delegate for England, Ireland, and Scotland, was arrested on Saturday; and some other " sympathisers " have been arrested elsewhere. Mr. O'Gorman has left the neighbourhood of Abbeyfeale, in company with Mr. Doheny; who arrived to assist him in raising the people, but found the game had become desperate. They are supposed to be both somewhere near Kilrush.

The district of Abbeyfeale continues in a state of fevered excitement. Bands of disciplined men traverse the country and levy arms wherever they can be found. On the 12th instant, the village of Castletown, gar- risoned by a large party of police, was attacked; and in the course of an attempt to storm a strong house in which the police were posted, three of the latter were killed by musket-shots fired through the door. A very numerous force of police and some military have been marched into the district., and now hold it in subjection.

I /The large Wizure of gunpowder mentioned in part of our last week's in2- pression turns out to have been hasty: the powder was regularly shipped in the course of trade, by the Balm' collig Powder Company, for mine-blast- lag purposes.

The Cork Constitution reports a treasonable piece of pastry-

" On Thursday, a large meat pie, smoking from the oven, was presented at the gate of the city gaol, by a servant of the Messrs. Varian, of Patrick Street, to be given to Isaac, Stephen and Ralph Varian' prisoners for treasonable practices. Before the pie was forwarded by the outward turnkey, the searcher pierced it with a long needle; and, finding it contained something bard, lifted the crust and dis- covered a bottle. On drawing the cork, it was found to enclose five or six letters and scraps of newspapers. The scraps gave accounts of the arrests of the rebel leaders, and reports of the proceedings in Italy. Amongst the letters was one directed to L S. Varian, purporting to be written by one of his female relatives, which was very lengthy, couched in extraordinary language, and containing the most horrifying sentiments. * * * The bottle and its contents have been re- taieed by the authorities. The pie was given to the prisoners."

The Dublin Evening Post publishes a letter from Mr. T. F. Meagher, written before his capture, to contradict previous statements in the Free- man that he had tried to stipulate for his life with the Government. The charge has "bitterly, most bitterly, out him to the heart's core."

The Tipperary Vindicator publishes a letter from Father Molony, the Parish priest of Kiloommon, near the Keeper Mountains, written on the 15th instant.

"Oa the 2d instant," says the Father," there did appear in this parish persons seemingly connected with the late unfortunate insurrection; but they were per- sons oithe mildest, most gentlemanly, and unobtrusive demeanour, and seemed to take refuge in those mountains to evade the vengeance of the law, and not for any other purpose; and repeatedly and fervently did I pray with many others that .0cd may deliver those martyrs of a designing and despotic Governmeut from the clad* of their enemies and the enemies of their country.

"Separated from these parsons, there appeared in another part of the parish a person, I believe not at all an outlaw, disposed to say and do very foolish things; old the people took my advice, left him immed at-7, though many of them told rce they may as well die in war as die from at irvation in the course of the coming winter. However, with very little difficulty, I prevented those half-starved people from any collision with a pampered military in pursuit of those insurgents, and tines saved my poor people from bloodshed and further notoriety. May God pro- tect them from the spies and detectives with whom this locality is now infected." Statements have appeared in several of the Irish journals that the Ca- %olio hierarchy are about to memorialize ths Queen for "an amnesty," for • persons concerned in the late rising. The Cork Examiner confirms this

circumstantially; and adds something on another topic-

. "Rumour also has it that another subject will come under the discussion of the Y, namely, the probable intention of the Whigs to propose some provision for the Catholic clergy. What may be the decision of their Lordships on this subject, of course it would be presumption to speculate; but while they will un- doubtedly repudiate pensioning and State connexion, it is probable that the attach- ing of a house and glebe land to each parish, as a permanent endowment, may meet with their approvaL" Upwards of 120 of the Roman Catholic priesthood of the diocese of Tunas have signed a memorial to the Queen; of which this is the pith-

" We have witnessed with pain the proceeding's of a few inexperienced_yonng men for some months past. We disagreed with them on principle. We de- nounced them as the enemies of order, religion, and country. Yet we now feel commiseration for their folly, as intensely as we felt indignant when we beheld them carried away by the impetuosity of their ardent but erroneous aspirations for liberty. We trust it is unnecessary for us to assure your Majesty, that, in the trying period of the last few years of unexampled distress and destitution when death stared at us in every shape—starvation, hunger, and its concomitant, ty- phus fever—yet we braved all, and never ceased to exhort our flocks to resigna- tion to the Divine will and to obedience to the laws of the land. We, then, confi- dently hope that your Most Gracious Majesty will be pleased to take into your merciful consideration the unfortunate situation of Mr. Smith O'Brien and the other unreflecting persons who have so foolishly embarked in the late lamentable outbreak, thereby proving to the world their utter insanity. "The prerogative of mercy is the brightest diadem in your Majesty's glorious crown. We, the loyal and faithful Roman Catholic clergy of Tuam, appeal to that noble attribute on behalf of the deluded William Smith O'Brien and his de- luded misguided associates; and beg to assure your Majesty, that the exercise of mercy on this occasion towards these unfortunate culprits will secure to your Majesty and throne more of pure and true loyalty than the shedding of the blood of thousands."

The proceedings in the trial of O'Doherty were resumed on Friday, with Mr. Butt's speech for the defence. Mr. Butt admitted that the articles charged were undoubtedly seditious; but he contended that they were not, as placed before the Jury, of the felonious cha- racter contemplated by the Crown and Government Security Act. Under that- act, two things must be proved—the fact of publishing the words, and the fact of felonious intention in the prisoner. Now it was only proved here that the pri- soner was the proprietor of the journal; and it was left to be implied that he wrote the articles, or at least that he knew of their contents and participated in their intentions. Mr. Butt stated that notice had been given to produce the ma- nuscripts of the articles: if they had been produced, it would have been seen they were in different writings, and could not have been written by the prisoner. The Solicitor-General replied y maintaining that the felonious intention of the articles was too obvious to be doubted.

Chief Justice Pennefather summed up. In allusion to Mr. Butt's statement that notice to produce the manuscript had been served on the Crown, he observed that no proof of that notice was tendered; nor had any call been made in court for the manuscripts. He agreed with Mr. Butt that there could be no conviction without proof of the prisoner's intention, as well as his act of publication: publication itself was prima facie evidence against him; but prima facie evidence might be rebutted. There was prinid facie evi- dence of the knowledge, if not rebutted. The Jury retired soon after three, and returned at four, stating some difficulties: would publishing the articles, they asked, render the prisoner guilty, as much as if he also had written them? Baron Pennefather said that the fact of the prisoner's being the registered proprietor of the journal was prima facie evidence of his adopting its intentions.

The Jury retired, and after a time again returned. The Foreman said, "Some jurors have doubts about prima facie, and don't seem to understand what was said about it."

Chief Justice Pennefather again explained— The evidence of proprietorship—i.e. the Stamp-office declaration of that fact, un- der the prisoner's own hand—was conclusive of that fact of proprietorship, and of publication. But the indictment was not one for simply publishing; it charged publiahing with specific intentions: now, to believe in those intentions, you must believe that the prisoner knew the contents of his paper.. The Chief Justice could not in law direct the Jury that publication was conclusive evidence of that know- ledge and intention: the question was wholly one for the Jury to determine.

The Jury retired once more. At ten o'clock they were still discor- dant, and were locked up for the night. On Saturday morning they were not yet agreed, bat some of them pleaded illness: so they were discharged; and the prisoner was remitted to Newgate.

On Monday, the regular business of the Commission Court was inter- rupted by a special application. An attachment was moved for, against Mr. Frederick William Conway, proprietor and editor of the Dublin Evening Post, on the ground of an article in his paper libelling the dis- sentient jurymen in the case of O'Doherty, and in some sense threatening the public with " the duty of the Government to arrest every one supposed by it to be sympathizers with the insurrectionists." The Chief Baron thought the article most reprehensible— It was calculated to excite feelings of hostility towards an individual who was charged with a crime, and pending proceedings which were instituted against him. Such a publication might amount to a very serious offence; it might amount to a libel upon the administration of justice, and might be calculated to interrupt and taint the coarse of justice at the very fountain-head ; and if such publications had the effect of intiinidating jurors or exciting in their minds preju- dices, they being, under the constitution, the proper tribunal to try the guilt or innocence of accused parties in such cases, they amounted to a contempt of court. However, he thought the Court should perhaps have warned the publics as Lord Tenterclen had done in a case quoted: if it had done so' he would now have proceeded summarily against Mr. Conway. As it was, the Court contented itself with directing that no comments should be made on any of the proceedings of the Commission during their pendency. The case of Mr. John Martin, of the Irish Felon, was then commenced; but much time was consumed in preliminary technical contest on various points. The Crown refused copies of the indictment, though advised by the Chief Baron to grant them. The aspect of the contest was ludicrously humilia' ting to the law; the adverse counsel sometimes watching each other, and holding the Court in suspense, while each aimed at divining the drift of the other. Once a step was taken which had to be retraced: each counsel sea intently " waited" for the other to betray a feeling against a juror, that the swearing of the juror began before either would speak—each rather ob- jected to the man, but neither meant to challenge if the other betrayed a desire to do so. At last the trial commenced, and the Attorney-General stated the ease. He explained that it differed from Mr. O'Doherty's case only in wanting the features of possible doubt that existed there. There the prisoner was only the registered joint proprietor; here he was sole pro- prietor, in addition to being himself the printer and publisher of his journal. Evidence was given, that on the arrest of Mr. Martin, and on his being charged before the Magistrate with the seditious publication, he dispetned

with the reading aloud of all the articles in his paper, on the ground that he knew already their contents, and admitted himself to be morally re- sponsible for the doctrines of the whole. Mr. Butt spoke in reply for four hours. He relied on the same legal point raised in O'Doherty's case—the went of conclusive evidence that the intentions of the articles, published by the prisoner but ivritten by his contributors, were necessarily the prisoner's intentions. The Chief Baron, in summing up, explained that the evidence of publication was not conclusive of the intentions of the publisher. The Jury retired at three o'clock; and at six it was found that, under a conscientious misunderstanding of the Judge's direction, they were reading the enormous indictment through. In the three hours they Just completed one quarter of its length. They several times came back to the Judge, and showed much patience and painstaking by their conduct. At last they returned a verdict of " Guilty "; but recommended the prisoner to mercy, on the ground that the particular article on which they founded their verdict (a letter signed by Martin himself) was written in prison.

After the Jury had retired in Martin's case, the Attorney-General rose and applied to have the trial of Duffy postponed, on the ground that a letter of his to Mr. Smith O'Brien, of a "highly treasonable character," had been found that day in Mr. O'Brien's portmanteau. He desired to consider whether the trial for sedition should not be abandoned altogether, and one for high treason instituted. The application was granted.

A private meeting was held at Dublin, on Monday, by the advocates of the measure lately mooted by the Grand Jury of Westmeath, namely, the holding of a portion of each session of Parliament in Dublin. Lord Wil- liam Fitzgerald was in the chair; and the meeting was attended by Lord Cloncurry, Mr. Naper of Loughcrew, the Earl of Miltown Sir Rowland Eustace, Sir Montague Chapman, and several gentlemen of Conservative politics. Resolutions were adopted for forming a society to promote the object in view.

The deplorable weather of the past week has thrown a deep gloom over the prospects of the crops. Undoubted evidences of the most extensive failure of the potato appear from all parts of the country. "Since the first appearance of the potato disease, the Poor-law Commissioners have obtained regular weekly reports from their Inspectors throughout the country on the state of the crops. I understand that the reports received today [14th] are most disheartening. They describe the crop as extensively affected in the Western districts, and the blight as rapid and most destructive in its progress. It is understood that those reports will lie laid before Parliament without delay." .--Correspondent of the Morning Chronicle.