With a British passport, he left for Bordeaux in 1833 and arrived in Valparaíso as part of the first group of Catholic missionaries sent to convert the Pacific Islands in 1834.
It was during these visits that he came to determine that the time was right for the priests to return and establish their presence in the mission, which had been maintained by the lay brothers who had been allowed to remain.
[citation needed] Under the leadership of his compatriot, Arsenius Walsh, SS.CC., the Irish members of the missions, through their position as British subjects, ultimately became instrumental in the securing of religious freedom for Roman Catholics in Hawaii.
This was later reinforced through the military threats of a French frigate engaged in exploration, under the command of Cyrille Pierre Théodore Laplace, which resulted in the Edict of Toleration forced upon the king.
Large and portly, he was also hale and fifty; with a complexion like an autumnal leaf, handsome blue eyes, fine teeth, and a racy Milesian brogue.