Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Anacortes, Wash. Ter.) 1882-1887, 1883-11-24
A ROMANTIC BETROTHAL.

Luke Whelan was what is known In
the Green Isle as a "sthrong' farmer
He farmed about two hundred acres o.
good land, paid his rent pretty regularly
and scraped, and saved, and pinched
in order to give his only daughter
Brigid, boarding-school education, and
to place his elder son, Philip, in the
ecclesiastical college at Maynooth.
Luke had one other son James, who
was eventually to succeed his father in
the management of the farm. James
troubled himself little with domestic
affairs, and was indeed possessed ol
rather morose temperament. His
parents never thought Of consulting him
on any subjects except the weather, the
crops, or the live stock; and it some
times required good deal of tact to
elicit from the young man his opinion as
to the relative prospects of rain ol
weather.
At eighteen Bripid Whelan was re-
leased from the bondage of the board
ing-school, and being sensible young
girl and extremely unromantic, she
settled down without murmur under
the paternal roof, and endsavored to in
itiate herself into the mysteries of milk
ing, churning, poultry and pig feeding.
Her brother Philip came home from
Maynooth three times every year,
namely, at Easter, Midsummer, and
Christmas. He was a quiet, easy
going, well-built young man, whose fist
closed more naturally and lovingly
round the handle of plough than round
his well-thumbed prayer-book.
During one of Philips midsummer va
cations, Papa Whelan said one morning,
as the family, not including James, sat
down to their frugal breakfast:
"Brigid, me darlin', Pm goin' to
make match for you wud young Tom
Morrisey-wan of blind Jack Morrisey's
sons. You'd better be talkin' to your
mother about your clothes and wan
think or another, in case meself and
ould Morrisey can come to terms"
Brigid's heart INDUCED in merely an
apology for futter at her fathers
speech. She knew the Morriseys
slightly, but she could not call to mind
which of the family it was to whom the
name was Thomas.
Her elder brother simply observed:
cay, 'twouldn't be bad match at all
for you, Brigid, for ould Morrisey is as
rich as Cresus, by all accounts. I'll be
getting orders next Easter, and" with
a feeble smile, "I'd like TO make my
maiden effort at matrimony on one OF
my own family"
After breakfast Luke Whelan put on
his Sunday best, took stout black
thorn from the chimney corner, and
disappeared down the Whelan boreen,
accompanied by the future soggarth.
Mrs. Whelan then confided in
Brigid that blind Morrisey-not blind
Morrisey's son, mind you-had been
greatly struck with Brigid's ''nate figure
and generally illigant appearance" and
had determined that his eldest hope
should, with Mr.. and Mrs. Whelan's
consent, OF course, claim her for his
brilo.
Luke Whelal md Philip returned in
the afternoon, .o,king not altogether
happy, and af, some hours silence
hours occupied by the elder Whelan in
interviewing his pigs, COWS, and stacks,
and by the younger Whelan in reading
The NatsOn-Luke entered the kitchen
and said to his helpmate;
"Ould Morrisey and meself can't hit
il off somehow. He wants seven hun
hundred pound down on the nail wud
our girl, an can't make up my mind
to go beyond six-ffty." =.
"An' is it broke off then, Luke p
asked Mrs. Whelan, dolefully,
"No, not quite, we're to meet and
thry to settle the matther at Mr..
next Saturday. You're to
come wud us and bring Brigid, for It's