Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1874-08-06
SELECT STORY.
THE CHAINED HOST.

The potato famine in Ireland was nc
where felt more severely than part OF
the country where the following story
is told us a true tale.
In small village in one of the mos,
barren districts of the west of ireland
lived a very poor widow, whose sole
inheritance from her husband were two
healthy children, girls. of the respective
ages Of three and five. Painfully and
by the utmost effort she had contrived
to pass two years of her sorrowful
widowAood. Bad and scanty food,
obtained only by labor too great for her
delicate frame, had at last thrown he,
upon her bed, and death, in pity, re-
moved her from 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 famine stricken and heard their
own children too often cry in vain for
bread to assist others.
eff the children could only be got to
Kilburn, a village some miles distant,
said one of the neighbors, after the
poor mother had been buried, ga
brother of their father lives there, and
he could not possibly refuse to take
care of them"
SBut matters are as bad there as thev
are here" replied another, ''and I fear
they will be no better off there"
sit cannot be possibly worse than
here, for nothing but starvation stares
them in the face. If we send them to
their relation we have done our duty.
We cannot possibly keep them here. -
So carrier, who was going near to
kilburn, as an act of charity, took the
two girls-Lizzie was seven now, and
Mary was five-in his cart with him
The timid children kept very quiet and
close together, and the carrier hardly
looked at them. Towards 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 60 straight toward, and il
they did not turn from the high road
they would almost in two hours come
to the place. He theu drove off. The
children sobbed out good by, and look
ed after him as long as they could sec
the least speck of the cart and then
they both began to cry.
Lizzie ceased her crying first; she
took hold Of her little sisi er's hand,
had seated herself on the grass, and
said:
"Get up, Mary, we must not stay
here, if we wish to get to Kilburn. We
cannot stop here on the road"
Il am so hungry" sobbed Mary
awe have had nothing to eat all day.
And then 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 tancied she saw house,
and pointed towards the spot. But it
took them more than quarter of an
hour before they reached the farmhouse
for such it proved to be. With hest
tating steps they entered the yard, for
they had never begged before in spite
Of their former misery. But at this
moment they could think of nothing
| else but their terrible hunger. When
| a few steps from the house they heard
] the farmer violently scolding one of his
men. Then he went into the house,
fiercely closed the door after him. so as
to make the windows rattle, continuing
! his abuse all the time. The children,
/ terrified, stood still at the door until the
voice hal ceased. Then Lizzie opened
the door and both children entered
The farmer sat in an arm chair by the
fire.
|
dwell, what do you want" he
hardly asked the children, who were
too frightened to uttera word and te
tell their story.