Dr. Daniel William Cahill D.d.
Dr. Daniel William Cahill was born at
Ashfield near Arles in the Parish of Killabban, Queens County, on the 28th
November. 1796. His family home was across from the
Monument Road at the bottom of Arles; the ruins can still
be seen in the field, which is owned by John McDonald of
Ashfield. His father - Daniel Cahill - moved him from
here to Slocock's House in Castletown now owned by John
Williams. Daniel Cahill was a Civil Engineer and his
mother was Catherine Brett, youngest daughter of Oliver
Brett of Seville. Spain. He was the youngest of three
sons. His father intended his son to follow his own
profession or that of the Army. But young Master Cahill
felt a strong calling to the priesthood.
In 1816, at
the age of 20, young Master Daniel was sent to be educated at Maynooth
College by Bishop Corcoran, to whom he was related.
According to a tradition preserved at Ballinagall (Ballynagall),
Dr. Doyle, who lived at the College till 1822, called at
the room of a student named Cahill, who was preparing for
ordination, and found him playing the violin at an
unreasonable hour, and threatened he would not ordain him
on the appointed day. "Welcome
be your will, my Lord", said
the student. Dr. Doyle turned back and said lie would
ordain him. Fr. Daniel Cahill was ordained by Dr. Doyle
and was always held by him in the greatest esteem.
His
first and only mission was at Leighlinbridge - the parish
where his mother’s family lived for 600 years, ever
since his ancestor, Sir Philip LeBrett, was Governor of
Leighlin.
Soon
after his ordination, he was appointed Professor of
Natural Philosophy in Carlow College in 1825, which he
held until 1834. In 1835 he opened a school at Seafort
House. Williamstown, which he conducted from 1835 to 1841.
Meanwhile he wrote largely for the press, and for a time edited the
Dublin "Telegraph". He also opened a lay academy
on a much larger scale at Prospect House. Blackrock, Co. Dublin.
Dr.
Cahill rose to a new sphere as a public Preacher and
Lecturer, giving lectures all over Ireland and abroad.
Some of Dr. Cahill's pupils in Carlow
were the Laois brothers of Tinakill, James Fintan, Richard
(later M.P. for Leix division of Queen's County) and Sir Peter
Lalor, M.P. Speaker of the Victoria Parliament, Australia.
Standing
six feet five inches in stature, a favourite and humorous
expression of his at the opening of his lectures outside
Ireland was, "I here show you a
specimen of Irish growth". Dr.
Cahill gave some outstanding lectures on the plight of
the Irish people and his love for Ireland.
In
1859, Dr. Cahill crossed the Atlantic to Boston, where he became one of the most sought after
preachers of his
time. In a
Letter to a friend, he said that he had received forty-eight
invitations from as many cities and towns in the States
to go there and lecture.
On
landing in America, he was received with universal
acclamation, and soon tens of thousands were found
flocking around him to hear his wondrous disclosures of
Ireland, to laugh with him as he ridiculed some political
or religious fanatic he had left behind. He felt "free"
in America. He made his first public appearance in The
New York Academy of Music, early 1860, with a turn out of
8.000 citizens, among which were the most Rev. Archbishop
Hughes, Bishops Loughman, Baley and Timon. The Rev. Dr.
Starrs. Vicar General, Archdeacon McCarson.
His
journey through the states was one grand ovation,
honour's, praises and blessings were showered upon him
from every side. He continued his lectures and sermons
with scarcely a day’s intermission, until the break
out of the American Civil War in 1861. His lectures
interrupted, he wrote a lot of letters back to Ireland.
From the lectures of Dr. Cahill in America, he showed the
Irish people as they were, not as they had been
represented.
His writings consist chiefly of lectures and
addresses, with some letters to prominent Protestants. The most
important of them were collected and published in Dublin in 1886 under
the title "Life, Letters, and Lectures of Rev. Dr. Cahill".
Quoted
in the Origins of the name "CAHILL" is the
following:
"The
most notable man of the name was that versatile priest
Father Daniel William Cahill (1796-1864), schoolmaster,
newspaper editor and prolific lecturer in the U.S.A. and
elsewhere on behalf of the Catholic institutions."
He died on October 27th, 1864. while lecturing in New York. His last wish
was to be buried back in Ireland, but because of civil war the church
was unable to do so. His body was placed in the vaults of St. Marys
Church, New York.
Some 20 years later committees were
formed in every county throughout Ireland to raise money to
carry out Dr. Cahills last wish. In 1884 three members went to
New York to accompany the body of Dr. Cahill back to Ireland.
A mass was said in St. Mary’s where admission was by ticket
only. Fifth Avenue was impassable.
On arrival back in Ireland, the
streets of Cork were full of people who wished to pay tribute
to this great man. His body was to be brought to Dublin by
rail. Every station from Cork to Dublin was full of people who
lined the tracks and knelt in silent prayer. On arrival in
Dublin a mass was offered in St Mary’s Church. The next day
his remains were brought to Glasnevin were Dr. Cahill was
buried in the O’Connell Circle, the final resting place of
this great preacher.
A
fuller and more complete story of Dr. Cahill by Peter
Smith can be found in the Millennium edition of the
Carloviana 1999.
Mr.
Patrick Cahill
Patrick Cahill was born in
Arles and was a nephew of Dr. Daniel Cahill. Educated at
Carlow college. He had intended to study for the Bar.
When he was only fourteen years of age he carried off
with the honours of the University of London but was
disqualified because he was under age. He later qualified
as an L.L.B. (Bachelor of Law) from the same university.
Mr. Cahill entered Irish politics at an early age and
became one of the leading lights in the Nationalist
movements.
He was one of the founders of
the Queen's Independent club, an organisation founded to
promote Home Rule, and became its secretary. The club
exercised a potent sway in the affairs of the county and
of Ireland, and it's voice on the leading questions of
the day always commanded respect, and many of the
principles of his constitutional movement passed into law
before the turn of the century. All over the then Queen's
County Mr. Cahill helped to establish branches of the
Land League and later National League. For these
activities he was imprisoned in Kilkenny jail.
Later he founded The Leinster
Leader newspaper which is still published in Naas, County
Kildare. His brother, the Very Rev. Thomas Cahill, S.J.,
became president of the Jesuit College in Melbourne,
Australia.
Mr. Cahill on a number of
occasions refused to contest the elections to parliament
as a candidate for his native county in the Home Rule
interest. Mr. Cahill died in May,1883 and a magnificent
monument was raised to his memory by the people of his
native county Kildare.
By Patrick F. Meehan
Extracted from: Laois Yearbook 1983
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