On Monday, 11 January 1904, Creagh, already a priest and Spiritual Director of the (lay) Arch Confraternity of the Sacred Heart, gave a speech at the Confraternity's weekly meeting at the Redemptorist Church at Mount Saint Alphonsus, attacking Jews in general.Keogh (1998), pps. 26–30 He repeated many historical myths about Jews, including that of ritual murder, and said that the Jews had come to Limerick "to fasten themselves on us like leeches and to draw our blood".Paul Bew, Ireland: The Politics of enmity 1789–2006, Oxford University Press, 2007, p. 364 Immediately after Creagh made his call for a boycott, according to historian Dermot Keogh, people left the church, passing “Colooney Street where most ... Jews lived... many [members of the crowd] were fired up by Creagh's [speech]... The Jewish community ... [who may have] sensed the menacing mood of the crowd ... remained ... in their homes as [the crowd] ... passed... Jewish shops, however, remained open and their owners felt menaced. One old Fenian ... single-handedly defended a shop ... until ... police arrived to mount a guard.”Keogh (1998), pp. 39 While 300 people reportedly attacked "Jewish" businesses, few arrests were made. A 15-year-old youth was arrested and later imprisoned for a month, for throwing a stone at the local rebbe that hit him on the ankle. Once released, Raleigh was welcomed by a demonstration protesting that he was innocent and that his sentence had been too harsh.Keogh (1998), pps. 113
