[3] The school was successful, being advertised The Nation, and Callan espoused nationalist views, like that of the Young Irelanders, in her students.
[1] She edited The casket of Irish pearls (1846) under the pseudonym Thornton MacMahon, the name being a dedication to her brother, Terence.
In her introduction to the anthology, she dedicated it to "the young men of Ireland", calling on them to organise and educate themselves to show their support and readiness for self-government.
[1] In July 1848 along with Jane Wilde, Callan assumed editorial control of The Nation during Gavan Duffy's imprisonment in Newgate.
In correspondence with William Carleton she wrote "‘I would not go back if I could, and daily thank God, especially when I happen to read a Nation (or, indeed, any Irish journal), that my children are safe beyond the dangers of starvation or flunkeyism."