Stephen De Vere to T. F. Elliot, 30 November, 1847, Minutes of Evidence Before Select Committee on Colonisation from Ireland, British Parliamentary Papers, Emigration, V 5, PP. 45–48

In April 1847, Stephen De Vere (1812-1904) risked his life travelling steerage and accompanying former tenants from his estate Curragh Chase, County Limerick, to provide an eyewitness account of the hardships of the trans-Atlantic voyage. 'Prior to his departure he told an audience in Pallaskenry, Co. Limerick, that his aim was to see a movement on an extensive scale that would benefit both countries.' ¹ Unlike other proponents of assisted emigration, De Vere personally escorted former tenants to British North America in order to put his ideas into practice.