San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1893-01-19
NOT FORGOTTEN.
HE HAD BEEN AWAY FOR OVER
HALF A CENTURY.
An Old Resident Revisits Hts Ma
tive Land But Has a Very
Lonely Time While He
Was There.

Two gentlemen, both over eighty year
old and each of whom, although from the
"ould Sod'', had not seen Erin's soil for
over fifty years, sat converSing around
the fireside this morning. One of them,
Mr.. lyman, had been quoting from Moore
and Goldsmith and spoke of his old home
of boyhood's days on the banks OF the
Shannon, when the other Mr.. E. j. Quirk
remarked: lyman, l have had an ex.
perience that none but an Irishman could
feel and have. left the old country over
tifty-seven years ago and had not been
back since until within the past two
months L had opportunity to pay
visit to my natal place. So
l went but / did not stay long. When l
got there / learned that all of my rela-
tiveS were dead. l went to the church
| reverently took some of the sod above
their graves while | scraped some of the
moss from the walls of the old church
itself and in which / had been baptized.
l got the kind priest in charge of it and
the parish to give me duly authenticated
copy of the record of my baptism, which
by the by, | have had framed and
L CHtIlSH lOHull DuU l. uGNtT NdS dS
lonely in all of my life as when l had
spent the whole day looking for some one
who might be left alive who would re-
member me. There was the old church,
the old school house, the old house where
my mother gave me birth and the stream
where | had spent many hourS,in various
pastimes, all of them as natural as the
day when bade them good by" Here
Qufrk's voice grew husky and lyman
tried to wipe away away tear without
being detected, and failed as ignominious-
~ as Quirk did in suppressing a sob.
The latter continued: "A kind, middle
aged matron met me with a very kind
look and her welcome was as warm as her
brogue was rich when | told her who l
was, and she seemed almost sorry as |
was when she said she was
Bourke instead of Quirk. The priest
who showed me over the cemetery and
the church as well as the school, was also
mild and considerable, but his kindness
at being perfect stranger in my native
land. and in my old home. and when he
saw tears gather in my eyes and said:
cheer up my son. with a genuine sympa-
thy truly Irish. although he was at least
two score my junior, though the pathetic
humor Of the situation touched me, 1t but
intensified the gloom Of my own situation.
Il refused the kind priests invitation
to dine with him and went to the old inn,
the same one on whose land lord | used
to play many pranks when a boy and
and whose place had been taken by a
man who seemed in great awe of me be-
cause, as he said: 'yume onner Is from
America fwere do be tould that a man
can rule the goOvermint as soon as he's
landed sat by the fire and was dream
ing how my old school master was ad-
dressing me as, Mr.. President and fog
ging me at the same time, when / was
awakened by conversation between the
landlord and gentleman who was regis
tering prior to taking his dinner at the
inn. After exchanging the usual Ques-
tions and answers about the fare | heard
the new arrival say: who is this Mr.. E.
j. Quirk / see registered herer The land
lords reply was; he's an iligant gintle-
man from America whos's jusht come
back to ould Oreland where he was born
but doesn't know sowl but thin that's
dead.
Il thought there was something ia
milar IN his features, and as | looked
closely at them he walked over to me and
said, Please excuse me, sir, but | believe
that there is bond of sympathy between
us, even if we prove to be perfect stran
gers. / am perfect stranger In my own
home. / was born here on the Shannon.
! have, just COME from the church where
! was baptized, and in whose yard all my
people are buried. / felt too lonely TO
even accept the invitation Of the kind
priest to dine with him, although am
member of the priesthood myself. | am
missionary and have for years been wan
dering all over the globe
| then asked him his name when he re-
piled In religion | am known as father
Michael but my worldly name is Michael
I ha anlt ind hNy IF
nv school mates Mickey, the terror, and
lyman, would you believe it, then and
there found myself crying on the bosom
of chap that had given me the worst
licking ever had in all my life, and when
| was boy got many OF them. And he
was priest and l proSy old builder and
neither of us many miles this side OF the
ninety post. We dined together and In
our converse brought back all of the
face of the earth. We two were the only
ones left of all those who fifty years
ago had been in that village and we both
left it as soon as we could get away. His
religious duties called him away at once
and | left as soon as / could pay my bill
TO the man who had been paying me
reverence as foreign potentate and then
had caught me crying like child.
don't believe that any one but an Irish
man could ever nave hau such an eN-
Derience."
lyman and Quirk then rose and shook
hands and Just as they were parting
lyman said "Quirk, ! have been think !
ng lately of taking a trip back to Ireland |
myself. | have wanted to see my old |
nome again myself before l die, but |
after your experience ! don't know
whether to do so or not" And each |
went his way sadly.
AN INVALUABLE REMEDY FOR
COLDS.