Chapter IV

Joseph quarrels with Sean over the labor union issue and with Mary over her desire to leave and enter a nunnery. He rages about their lack of gratitude for all the sacrifices he has made in his life to provide for them. He says that Sean can go to Hell and Mary can go to Jesus and severs all ties with both of them. Alone in his big house, he now wants a family of his own and proposes marriage to Bernadette Hennessey. She understands that he does not love her, but hopes that will change once they have children. Sean organizes a strike against Joseph's company and when the militia are called in to intervene, violence erupts and many of the strikers are killed. Years pass and Joseph and Bernadette now have 4 children, Rory, Kevin, Anne-Marie, and Brian. Elizabeth Healey has married Tom Hennessey and Joseph vows to destroy him. Joseph uses his money and influence to expose Tom's involvement in a corruption scandal and he is politically ruined. Sean is falsely accused of an attack on the railroad and is sentenced to hang when he is wrongly convicted. Behind the scenes, Joseph intervenes to prove Sean's innocence - to protect the family name. He begins telling others of his plan to make his son Rory the first Irish Catholic President.