THE LATE CANON McFADDEN, OF GLENTIES, IRELAND.

New Zealand Tablet, 9 August 1917, Page 37

THE LATE CANON McFADDEN, OF GLENTIES, IRELAND.

To the Editor. Sir, read with special interest the notice in your issue of the 19th inst. of the death of the abovenamed gentleman, more particularly the reference to the tragedy which occurred in Derrybegnot Dunlewey—church. As I was that day at Bunbeg, three miles off, and walked to Derrybeg in the afternoon, I

thought a statement of what I saw and heard would interest some of your readers, although it differs slightly from your account. I well remember the hot morning, and the thunderstorm which came on at about 11 o'clock. Owing to the storm the congregation was very small, otherwise the death roll would have been awful. The church is built over a creek in a rocky defile with precipitous sides, leaving only a few feet at either side. Presumably there came a cloud burst similar to that which occurred in the North-east Valley, Dunedin, some years ago, for the water came with such a rush that the doors at the back were driven open, pinning a man behind against the wall and filling up the church to a height of 10 or 12 feet. This was very apparent by the muddy mark on the walls. Trunks of trees resting on the tops of the seats and the stones over the floor bore witness to the force of the water. It was a terrible sight. Canon McFadden told me that as the water could not escape through the front doors nearly as fast as it came in he had to climb up behind the altar, and he showed me his hands, which were cut by the broken glass when hanging on to the window. I may be wrong, but I think there were seven drowned that day. I know that at 4 o'clock in the afternoon the creek between the church and the sea, which had swollen to a river, was still being dragged for bodies of those missing.—l am, etc., Dunedin, July 30. R.N.Gordon.