Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1873-06-26
THE CHAINED HOST.

The potato famine in Ireland was no
where felt more severely than in that
part of the country where the following
story is told as true tale.
In small village in one of the most
barren districts in the west of Ireland,
there lived very poor widow, whose
sole inheritance from her husband were
two healthy children, girls, of the re-
spective ages of three and FIVE Pain
fully and by the utmost effort she had
contrived to pass two years of her sor-
rowful widowhood. Bad and scanty
food, obtained only by labor too great
for her delicate frame, had at last thrown
her upon sick bed, and death, in pity,
removed her In few days and without
great sufferingfrom her earthly troubles.
The poverty of the whole parish was so
great that nothing could be done for the
poor orphans. All the neighbors, with
the utmost desire to help, were too fam
ine-stricken, and heard their own chill
dren too often cry In vain for bread, to
assist others.
IF the children could only be got to
Kilburn "a village some miles south
said one of the neighbors, after the poor
mother had been buried, "a brother of
their father lives there, and could
not possibly refuse to take care of
them"
"But matters are as bad there as
here" replied another, and ST fear they
will be no better off there"
cit cannot possibly be worse than
here, for nothing but starvation stares
them in the face. If we send them to
their relations we have done our duty.
We cannot possibly keep them here.
80 carrier, who was going near to
Kilburn, as an act of charity, took the
two girls-Lizzie was seven now, and
Mary was fve-in his cart with him.
The timid children kept very quiet and
close together, and the carrier hardly
looked at them. Toward noon they
reached the spot where the cart would
turn off. The man lifted them out,
showed them the road to the left.
and babe them go straight forward, and
If they did not turn from the higb-road
they would In about two hours come to
the place. He then drove off. The
children sobbed out ,'good-by," and
looked after him as long as they could
see the least speck of the cart, and then
they both began to cry.
Lizzie ceased her crying first; she
took hold of her little sisters hand, who
had seated herself on the grass, and
said 'tGet up, Mary, we must not
stay here If VIC wish to get to Kilburn.
We cannot stop here on the road. %
Pm so hungry, sobbed Mary eve
have had nothing to eat all day" And
again they both began to cry for Lizzie
was equally hungry. -
The children were very weak, and
could only drag themselves slowly along.
= Hand in hand they tottered ON. At last
Lizzie fancied she saw house, and
pointed toward the spot. But it took
them more than quarter of an hour be-
fore they reached the farmhouse, for
such it proved to be-. With hesitating
steps they entered the yard, for they
had never begged. before, in spite Of
J their former misery. But at this mo-
ment they could think of nothing else
than their terrible hunger. Whena few
steps from the house they heard the
farmer violently scolding one of his
men. Then be went into the house,
fercely closed the door after him, so as
to make the windows rattle, continuing
his abuse all the time. The children,