REBELS SHOT NEAR DUBLIN CASTLE.

BOMBS THROWN AT GUARD

THREE NOTORIOUS LEADERS.

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT DUBLIN, Tuesday. Dublin Castle to-day issued an official report which gives particulars of a daring effort of three prisoners to escape from custody in Dublin, and resulted in their death after an exciting struggle, in which bombs were thrown and rifle and revolver shots exchanged. The official report runs: “At about eleven o’clock yesterday (Monday) morning Richard Mckee, T. C. Clune, and Peter Clancy were killed in an attempt to escape from the old Detective Office, Exchange-court, Dublin, where they were in police custody. These men were arrested on Saturday night, but owing to lack of prison accommodation were detained in a guard-room adjoining the entrance, which they shared with a guard of four men. The room contains a large quantity of army material and equipment, mattresses in piles, beds, a table and bench, rifles, ammunition, &c. The prisoners were allowed considerable freedom of movement, and were seated round the fire at the moment of their attempted escape.

“The guard on duty had his back to them, while the two men who were off duty were sitting reading. The commander of the guard was in the doorway of the passage. Most of the garrison at the building were out on duty, and this must have been evident to the prisoners, as the only exit from the building is through this room. The three prisoners suddenly rose to their feet, and the sentry turned round on hearing the noise. One of the prisoners had a Mills bomb in his hand, which he had abstracted from a box of bombs under a bed. This he threw at the sentry. The bomb did not explode, because (unknown to the prisoner) none of the bombs had been detonated. The sentry jumped to one side, and the prisoner, throwing a second bomb, dashed behind a pile of mattresses when the sentry fired.

“Another of the prisoners meanwhile had seized a rifle and fired at the other members of the guard. Both ducked behind the table, which was upset, and the shot lodged in the wall. The third prisoner lifted a shovel lying near the fire, and aimed a blow at the men who were crouching behind the overturned table. The shovel crashed into the wood, but missed the men. The commander of the guard, hearing the firing, at this moment rushed into the room and fired. This sudden diversion enabled both his companions to rise from behind the table, and firing together the second and third prisoners fell simultaneously. The whole affair lasted only a few seconds

“It is presumed that the prisoners, who had seen all the movements of the garrison since Saturday night, had observed that at eleven o’clock most of the men were out on duty, and that they were practically alone in the building with the guard of four men. “Mckee and Clancy were arrested about 10.30 on Saturday night in a house in Lower Gloucester-street. In their room were found documents, a box of cartridges, two complete suits of the uniform of a British colonel, an automatic bell target, and a curious device which might be used for exploding gun-cotton, consisting of an arrangement of copper wire attached to about 30ft of stout white cord. When arrested Clancy and Mckee gave incorrect statements. Clancy asserted that he was a draper’s assistant and out of work, while Mckee said he was a compositor.

“Peter Clancy had been released on hunger strike from Mountjoy on Feb. 12 this year. He held up a military car in Berkley-road, and was also associated with those concerned in the robbery of gelignite at Arklow. He is known to have been one of the conspirators in the attempted murder of Lord French. All three men when arrested displayed considerable truculence, but this attitude was somewhat changed in custody, where they found a larger freedom than they had expected. They seemed to be on good terms with their guards, who did much for their comfort. They had exactly similar beds and food, and spent a good part of their day sitting near the fire, talking and reading the newspapers.”