The prisoner pleaded "not guilty." Capt. Whelan, the prosecutor, opened the case against Private O'Reilly, as follows:
"The enormity of the offense with which the prisoner is charged is such that it is difficult to find language by which, to describe it. It strikes at the root of all military discipline, and, if allowed to escape punishment which it entails, would render her Majesty's forces, who ought to be the guardians of our lives and liberty, and the bulwark and protection of the constitution under which we live, a source of danger to the state and all its loyal citizens and subjects, and her Majesty's faithful subjects would become the prey and victims of military despotism, licentiousness, and violence. Our standing army would then be a terror to the throne, and a curse, not a blessing, to the community; but at the same time, as is the gravity of the offense, so in proportion should the evidence by which such a charge is to be sustained, be carefully and sedulously weighed. It will be for you, gentlemen, to say whether the evidence which will be adduced before you, leaves upon your mind any reasonable doubt of the prisoner's guilt."
The prosecutor, in continuation, said that evidence would be laid before them to show that the prisoner was an active member of the Fenian conspiracy, and that he had endeavored to induce other soldiers to join it.
The first witness called was Lance-Corporal Fitzgerald, Tenth Hussars. He said:
He brought me there. I was introduced by the prisoner to a man named Devoy. There were then present, Tierney, Rorreson, Bergin, and Sinclair of the Tenth Hussars.
Prosecutor. Was there any conversation in presence of the prisoner? If so, state what it was.
Prisoner. I object, sir, to that question. It relates to a conversation previous to the date of the charge, and can have no reference to it.
The court ruled that the evidence was admissible, and the question was put.
