Galway In Days Gone By

1915

Asleep in charge

At the monthly meeting of the Committee of Management of the Ballinasloe District Asylum, Galway Dr. Kirwan said he regretted to have to bring to their attention the case of two attendants on a night when it was reported a patient was missing.

“I went over to the new hospital to look for him, and when I tried to get in I found there was something wrong with the lock. I shouted up, but got no reply. I then went in through the front of the window, and when I came to the suicide ward, I found the two men in charge dead asleep in two arm-chairs before a big fire. Their names are Campbell and Dolan.

“I remained looking at them for some time, and then went towards them. Campbell woke up and pretended to be reading a newspaper. I had to shake the other man before I could wake him. It is disgraceful that such a thing should occur.

“In this ward, there is a patient who attempted to commit suicide on six different occasions. Campbell has an excellent record for 18 years, but the other man was brought up on a very grave charge before, and has not a good record.”

Campbell said he was not asleep on the occasion and felt the doctor at the door. He didn’t hear a knock at the door. A patient was supposed to have escaped, and he could recognise his voice from the doctor’s. That was the reason the doctor was not answered. He certainly was not asleep.

Dolan said he was dozing for about five minutes, but was not dead asleep. Campbell was about five minutes back after doing the rounds.

It was ordered that Campbell be fined 10s, and that Dolan be changed from night duty to day duty, which means a reduction of £5 a year in his salary.

1940

Hunger striker dies

News reached Headford on Tuesday morning that Tony D’Arcy, of that town, had died at St Bricin’s military hospital, Dublin, at 5am, after fifty-one days’ hunger strike.

He was arrested in Dublin in a raid on a house on February 17 and was sentenced by the Special Criminal Court on March 17 to three months’ imprisonment for refusing to give his name and address and also for refusing to account for his movements.

Large crowds followed the body of the dead hunger-striker as it was borne in his own hearse from St Bricin’s Hospital, Dublin, to the Carmelite Church, Whitefriar-st. The coffin, draped in the tricolour, was taken from the mortuary chapel and placed in the hearse in the presence of a small group of relatives and friends.

Thence it passed through the grounds, while military police, soldiers and gardai, at intervals, stood at the salute.

Poor collection rates

Mr. C.I. O Floinn, County Secretary, told the Galway County Council’s finance committee at a meeting in the County Buildings, Galway, that the Council’s credit bank balance was now £40,355, as compared with a credit balance of £31,137 on the corresponding date of last year.

The rate collection of £7,296 last week had brought the collection to date to 83.6 per cent of the warrants, while the collection on the corresponding date of last year was 84.2 per cent.

Mr. Michael Quinn remarked that an 83.6 per cent collection was bad, and Mr. Nestor held that there was no excuse now for poor collections considering that the fairs were good.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.