The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-13

and sorry the poor man was, an how
Bridget, his wife, an the childher car
ried on. The rent was due, an all left
was to sell his cow Rosie to pay it.
Rosie was the apple of his eye; he
admired and respected the pigs, but
he loved Rosie.
Worst luck of all was yet to come.
On the morning when Darby went for
the cow to bring her into market, bad
scrans to the hoof was there; but in
her place only a Wisp of dirty straw
to mock him. Millie murther! What
a howlin' and creechin' and cursin'
did Darby bring back to the house!
Fairy or no fairy, ghost or goblin,
livin' or dead, who took Rosiell rue the
day." he says.
With those wild words he bolted in
the direction of Sleive-na mon.
All day long he climbed like an ant
over the hill, looking for hole or cave
through which he could get at the
prison of Rosie. AT times he struck
the rocks with his blackthorn, cryin'
out challenge.
No one made answer-at least, not
just then. But at night, as ne turned,
hungry and footsore, toward home, who
should he meet up with on the cross
roads but the ould fairy doctor, Sheelah
Mcguire; we'll known was she as a
spy for the Good People. She spoke
up:
"Oh, then, you're the foolish, blund-
erin'headed man to be saying what
you've said and doing what you've done
this day, Darby O'Gin," says she.
What do 1 care!" says he, fiercely.
I'D fight the devil for my beautiful
cow"
'Then go into Mrs. Hagans meadow
beyant," says Sheelah, land wait till
the moon is up. By an by yell see a
herd of cows come down from the
mountain and yer own'll be among
them"
"What, FL do them" asked Darby,
his voice trembling with excitement.
"Sorra a hair 1 care what We do!
But there'll be lads there; and hundreds
you won't see, thatll stand no i'll
words, Darby OGill."
zone question more MAN, says
Darby, as Sheelah was moving away.
''How late in the night will they stay
Without"
Sheelah caught him by the collar
and, pulling his head close, whispered:
when the cock crows the Good
People must be safe at home. After
cock -crow they have no power to help
or to hurt and every mortal eye can
see them plain"
1t was dark night when Darby
stretched himself on the ground in
Hagan's meadow: the yellow rim of
the moon just tipped the edge Of the
hills.
To creep quiet as a cat through the
hedge and raich the first cow was only
minutes work. Then his plan to
wait to cock-crow, with all other
sober, sensible thoughts went elane out
of the lads head before his rage; for
cropping eagerly the long, sweet grass
the first basic he met was Rosie.
With a leap Darby was behind her
his stick falling sharply on her tanks
The ingratichude of that cow almost
broke Darby's heart. Rosie turned
fiercely on him with a vicious lungt
her two horns aimed at his breast
There was no suppler boy in the parish
than Darby, and well for him it was
so, for the mad rush the COW gave
would have caught any man the Taste
trifie heavy on his legs and ended his
days right there.
AS it was our hayro sprang to one
side. AS Rosie passed his left hand
gripped her tail. When one of th5
O'Gill's takes llouid of a thing he hangs
on like bull-terrior.
Now began race, the like of which
was never heard of before O. since
Ten jumps to the second and a hundred
feet to the jump. Rosie's tail standing
straight UP in the air, firm as an iron
bar, and Darby floating straight out
flying short distance after, filling the
air with wild commands and threaten
ings.
Suddenly the sky opened for a crash
of lightning that shivered the hills
and a roar of thunder that turned out
of their beds every man, woman an6
child in four Counties Flash after
flash came the lightning, hitting or
every side of our hayro. If it wasn'i
for fear of hurting Rosie the fairies
would certainly have killed Darby.
AS the COW turned into the long
narrow valley which cuts into the east
side of the mountain the Good People
caught up with the pair, and what they
didn't do to Darby in the line Of stick
ing pins. pulling whiskers and pinch
ing wouldn't take long to tell. n
troth, he was just about to let go his
hould and take the chances of a fai
when the hillside opened and-whisk!
the COW turned into the mountain