The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1895-10-24
CARRIGEEN MOSS.

The sea came leaping and plunging
in great white spume flakes along the
cliffs of Carrigeen, for it was spring
time and the season of high tides Far
away, beyond the angry breakers and
beyond the wayering, shifting bands of
gray foam which took their place, one
could see naught but vast plateau of
green ocean, dappled by an occasional
sail or darkening over the sunken lodges
into patches of leaden hue.
High upon the cliffside. where sea
thistle and sand grass rustled in the
Atlantic breezes, two persons-an aged
man and tiny girl-sat hand in hand
gazing steadfastly across the waters.
Tied up in red handkerchief at their
side lay frugal lunch of bread and
buttermilk, from which fact it was easy
to tell that they We're either tourists or
Migrants. A matter of fact they be-
longed to the former class, although
your fashionable sightseer might be in
clned to class them scornfully with the
latter.
Old Meehaul Finnerty, the shean-
naehie, or wise man, of the inland
parish of Ballycarney, had taken his
grandchild Noreen for long promised
trip to the seashore. They had come by
the mail cart from Ballycarney cross
roads to the county town of Fillmore.
whence the train, marvellous and Who'll
ly novel i'll Noreen's eyes, carried them
with puff and rumble to the very bor-
ders of the ocean. And now here they
We're, sitting on Carrigeen cliffs above
the mighty waste, peacefully chattering
the one to the other, symbolical of care
less age and thoughtless youth beside
the waves of eternity.
Old Meehaul told his small charge
score of curious stories that afternoon
mostly stories of the coast they We're, for
Meehaul had lived during many of his
earlier years away from Ballycarney in
the Carrigeen district Moreover, he
was, i'll his capacity of sheannachie, the
possessor of legends galore, together
with the power of relating them. Pres
emily he leaned over the sides of the
beetling cliff, and plucking bunch of
dull green moss from one of the crevices
held it toward the child
do ye know what that is, alannah? ?"
he asked.
Noeen shook her neatly brushed
ringlets to imply the negative.
''Sure tits misS-Carri9een moss
an human food at that Did ye never
hear tell of Carrigeen moss"
Again the ringlets We're shaken.
well It's what the poor tisherfolk
ate when there famine. When the
'praties give out an there's nanght to
buy bread with they climb up the rocks
an gather Carrigeen moss. Then they
boil it i'll Il big pot, an it's not SO bad to
ate-when ye can't get anything else. "
Nureen looked at the Shiny herb and
wondered how it could possibly taste
wei! undet any circumstances. Others
haze felt similarly. Yet the poor coast
people are driven in times of distress
to support life on Carrigeen moss alone
Old Meehaul settled himself comfort
ably once more, filled and lit his dhu-
deem, on short black pipe, and reflective
ly said, Maybe ye never was tould the
story of how Garrigeen moss was sent as
food to the poor:''
The sheannachie, like some other no
table poets, invariably began a nara
tive, by asking question. Finding that
Noreen was ignorant of the legend men
toned, he placed the tin cap of his
dhudeen, took IA long puff at the reeking
tobacco and began:
cit WAS III the ould, ancient DAYS, be
fore any marauders at all-let alone any
Eng lishmen--set eyes or foot on Irish
soil Feargus the Swarthy COR Feargus
Dhu in Gaelic was king of all this
coast from the mouth of Feor river TO
the bay OF Banshagh. He was a fine
young king, but his nature was sad, an
instead of flghtin his neighbors like
king ought, he liked better to stroll
along these rocks of a moonlight night
an play tunes on his golden harp.
"Well, one night he was singin to
the harp down on the strand below
when the finest lady he ever saw came
up out O. the water an smiled at him.
Her face was beautiful an white, jools
glittered all over her, an she walked
like IA queen. But Feargus took particu-
lar notice of her hair. 1t was long AN
soft an wavy, but the color of it was
queer entirely, for it was green-green
as the sea out beyond or the moss | have
i'll my fist. But, sure, King Feargns
liked her all the better for the queer
color Of her hair, bein himself queer
young man. He played sweet music to
her, an she tould him how she WAS
sea kings daughter strayed up from the
palaces under the water. To make a
long story short, King Feargus an the
mermaid were married, an the fine
ould family of Mcnamara, which means
children of the mermaid, descended from
them. Very happily they lived too the
only trouble bein that while Feargus
grew ould All gray haired the se4
princess, bein "a fairy, staid young for
ever. At last poor King Feargus died
an left his beautiful queen widow.
When she saw one of her strappin bug
sons safely On the throne, she called all
the people together an tOuld them that
she must return to her father III the
palaces under the sea Then there rose
such a wailin an lamentin among the
people as would melt the heart of
stone.
Every man, woman an child along
the coast loved their sea princess, an il
was bitter news to them when she said
that she must go back 10 Ter own coun.
try. All the ould people knelt before her
with tears i'll their eyes, an the priests
offered up prayers that she might not be