Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-11
IRISH PEASANT.
Irish Rural Maidens Who Have
Figured as HeroineS.
Six Days Slavery Only to Wear Shoes
on Sunday to Go to Aass-Lit-
tie Diversions in Church.
How Sunday is spent-A woman's Life from
Babyhood to Motherhood : From One
Bond of Slavery to Another.

the laboring class-is as a rule an almost
fixed one, distinctly respectable, both in
mind and conduct. While still little
slip of girl, say thirteen or fourteen,
she begins life-that is, work. She is
then drafted from her mothers CABIN
into the house of the nearest farmer,
there to learn how to milk COWS, clean
pans for the dairy, feed pigs, see to the
poultry and the eggs, boil potatoes, cab
bage and bacon, and learn besides to
wash and dress the "gossoons Qittle
boys and the "colleens'' Qittle girls)
of the family; and, IN fact, do all
that has to be done in the house, helped
of-course, by the mistress, the farmer s
wife, who works as hard as her maid.
For this our little enterer into life receives
but poor wages, or, perhaps, no wages
at all for the first year, her keep and
houeeroom and permission to learn being
accounted equivalent to salary. OF
late years, however, the latter arrange
ment has, fallen through, the salary
however small, being always demanded,
and with justice, too.
Barefooted and with the short blue
flannel skirt Chat they weave themselves
with small han6loom) and that reaches
barely up to the knee at first, and be-
comes considerably above it as youth as
serts itself and the inches grow, our little
heroine scrambles through long days
work-in slipshod fashion at first, no
doubt, and with many an angry word
from the mistress and often an indignant
push.
DrrN III -,
hardest pebble, and after while the
small, Insignificant creature becomes
somebody Gill; at first she
was only Biddy, or Kitty, or Maggie;
now she is 'sThe Girl''-a great distinc-
ton. All through the week she labors
cheerfully, merrily, with a Jest for
everyone and a sweet word always for
the babies.
And now comes Sunday, that blessed
day of rest, without which surely the
world of toll could not have lasted. In
its institution lies an infallible proof to
my mind of the divinity that shapes all
our ends, that rules the earth, and re-
duces the sea to its limits, and guards
and regulates each movement of each
pigmy who struts his little hour upon our
human stage. Well, this Sunday is the
one recreation of the poor, both in town
and country. But with the country only
I am dealing now.
Our little heroine with the first streak
of dawn rises, filings aside the toil-worn
garments she has worn during the past
week and will wear for so many weeks
again, and dons q new skirt, of the same
texture and hue, however, aud (this is
the GROWING glory of the toilet encases
her feet that for six long days have run
uncovered in stockings and laced shoes
To appear in chapel without shoes or
stockings would be indeed a disgrace.
One must save, stsrve, sorimp to go de-
cent to mass on Sundsyi And surely
there is much to be admired in this re-
gard for decency, this determination to
appear in one Is best bib and tucker on
the Lord IS day; to do honor to him.
And DOW arrayed in Sabbath clothes,
away to the parish chapel, bare, bald
edifce about three miles from every
farmstead, being situated close to the
little village that hangs over the sea. A
picturesque spot, dear to me for thou
sand reasons, that 1 was born there
among others. Up over the, trees of the
school house rises the spire of the church,
an ancient cathedral dedicated to some
old Irish saint whose name was st. Faugh-
nan, and whose image carved in stone is
sunk in the wall beneath the belfry. The
crows cav all day long in the school house
trees, and the two bells, chapel and
church, commingle as the Protestant and
the Roman Catholics all stream down
from the hills that adorn the little sea-
side town on all sides to their several
places et-worship.
Our little heroine, now pretty ''col-
leen bawn" of sixteen, makes her way,
accompanied by throngs Of friends, all
Roman Catholics, to the chapel, there to
hear Father Jerry, or Father Michael,
or Father John, as the case may be,
humble through the Latin prayers that
no one member among his congregation
can understand. She kneels, she sits,
she glanoes round her, she works through
her "beadso most systematically and
earnestly, and having done her duty
rises to go out into the churchyard,
where, having before service sprinkled
herself with the holy water in the stone
she now feels herself free to re-
ceive the attentions of the ''boys, -
who, if she is pretty, as many of the
will surround her aud pay |
her eztrayagant compliments.
AT times, however, the service within |
does not end thus tamely. A "great
occurs that fills all hearts |
with delightful expectation. As, for |
example, when the priest is known to |
be about to denounce from the high altar |
some culprit among his flock. The I'M
lucky or guilty one has during the week |
forgotten to pay his "dues" (money |
from the psrishioners accord
ing to the amounts of their several in
comes, which with fees IN weddings and |
funerals tnaks up the priests stipeud), |
IN slses has defrauded his neigh Dor, or
stolen something he il determined not /
TO return, or otherwise broken the law.
Breathless is ths excitement as the
priest arrives at that point when his
1enunoiation may be expected and cold
grow the hearts OF the culprit's friends
and relatives. The culprit himself has
generally a bad cold or a headache on |
these occasions and is confined to his
own house or cabin. This fact however,
ioes not stay the priests wrath. He
we'll knows that every word he utters
will be carried home to the criminal BY /
his neighbors and will rankle there until
-emorse and the rear that his .sbiritual
pastor and master will refuse 10 attend
his death-bed when the last hoir arrives
irfves him to make confession and pay
What Is stolen or owing.
After this delightful excitement our
colleen will probably wend her way to
! Il