The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1909-06-12
(Continued.)
The Roadmaker

escaped beyond the reach of Pete
Fahy's tongue in the short space o
two hours. 1t was a study to watci
Peter Fahy, the roadmaker, in CONVEX
sation. Standing right before his list
ener he held forth on all subjects undel
the sun, and at the end of his every
sentence, the first finger of the righ
hand was placed on the palm of the lef
by way Of emphasis, and the head as
sumed a slanting position. Every item
of news or any remark of his Peter
usually prefaced in this way:
1 knew yere in a hurry, bud l won
keep yeh long" and then, if the list
ener grew uneasy at the length of his
remarks Peter caught the top button OF
the listeners waistcoat with:
Just minute, for I'm near the END
now, an yen live to see that what
say is true Now, don't yeh think I'm
right (when Peter had stated his case)
know I am, for Peter Fahy wasn't
born Yesterday an Peter Fahy hasn't
lived fifty years for nothin'."
Yes, Peter, you are night"
Il know / am. an yen see time will
varify me predictions, bud there's just
wee point l forgot to tell yeh, an its
important"
You can tell me tomorrow, Peter,
] must be off now, and
1T will only take me second" and
Peter takes three steps after the de
parting listener and seizes him by the
arm with:
Me point is this, an whin you hear
il vel say there's a CRATE dale in it,
Il know there is Peter Cbefore the
listener had heard what Peters point
was), but I must be going now"
Me point is this" resumes Peter, not
needing the interruption. bud, first
I fay1
things to lade yeh up to it. for they
have a BARN Cbearins) on me point
yeh know Cuddy from the Black Bush?"
Yes, Peter but you will excuse me.
] must be in the town at o'clock, and
it's that time now
Well. this Cuddy was married to me
first cousin last October was a twelve
month. l met him at the market yis-
terday. an wan word borrowed an
other until
THE next time, Peter. I won't be in
such haste, but now" and Peters
listener breaks loose from Peters grasp,
much to the latter's Indignation, if we
may judge from his words:
'Musha, bud we're in the divil's own
hurry, troth the world will be after
yeh.'
have known men to go a good two
miles out of their way in order to shun
Peter, for they we'll knew there was no
getting out of him once they came
within speaking distance of him. Father
Tom had a special dread of Peter, and
all the formers coughs and colds Mrs.
Daily, the priests housekeeper, laid at
the door of Peter Fahy. "Yeh have
cowld agin, yis, nothin' will do yeh only
standin confabbin (talking) wud that
omadhaun Fahy.' Yer dinner is wait
in for yeh for the last hour. an I want
to know the use ov me cookin' a dinner
for yeh whin yeh think more ov Fahy's
bolderdash foolish TALK than me an
yer dinner"
Father Tom on the road for two hours.
and if you were within hearing dis
tance the subject of conversation would
be invariably the Fenians. Peter, in
his young days. was a Fenian. and old
age did not dim in any way his love for
the principles of that society.
There is no use in agitashun." he
would tell Father Tom, hitting the back
of the latters gig with his hand, yer
politicians may tell us to agitate bud
there's more vartue in wan Faynin risin'
than in million agitashuns Ye1l
have to strike terror into the heart ov
the British government afore yeh get
wan happorth out ov thin. | know yer |
riverince doesn't agree wud me. an the |
bishop condimned US an was than Amin |
ov suspendin' yer predecessor, Father |
Kit fur havin' lanin to us. bud be- |
CORA, to raison wud a tyrant there's |
nothin' like the cowid steel, an yer
riverince wudn't be where yeh are now |
talkin' to Peter Fahy only for the |
Faynins."
To calm these outbursts of Peters. |
Father Tom would raise his hand, but |
instead of shilling them, that act only !
made Peter still more wrath and elo-
quent, and the usual consequence of |
Peters TRADES would be a cold or two
hours late for dinner on the part of |
Father Tom and a feeling of liveliest
satisfaction on the part of Peter that
he had made an impression on his rev.
erence and that some day soon he would
be converted from his peaceful ways
and be an out and out Fenian. The only
person that escaped Peters lengthy
was the curate, Father
Denis. When the latter esoied Peter
on the road he would urge his horse
into gallop, and when he came into
striking distance of Peter he would cry
out:
Half the road, Peter, half the road:
I'm on an urgent sick call" and this
remedy or plea always was a success.
III AAAOu OlllGl lCLlGuitSr SuCll do pre-
tending to be very busy reading his
breviary and such like, but they failed
and he had on such occasions to listen
to Peters long TRADES upon the Fenians
and hear in the end the assurance that
he would be the greatest priest ever
wore the collar if he would only be a
Fenian.
As long as I knew Peter he was
road maker. Winter and summer you
found him on the main road between {
The village and the nearest railway sta I
ion. ;
Il have a lease ov this road Peter {
would say. tbs forty years next May :
since ] first got the maxim ov it, an it !
las been in me hands since, an signs
N it, there is not a better made road ,
n the country, an the grand jury pass ]
L afore they see il at all. Road maxim -
ike everything else, is a trade, an to r
make a road right yeh must have an
we in yer head for the hills an hollows, )
IN yer patches must have a shape on Y
him, a triangle in wan place. a circle g
u another, an an odd square to set the
whole thing off an make it look grand"
Il never knew a man that cud make
load ov gravel go farther than Peter
'ahy," remarked Jim Scully, AN, be- .
Job. boys. / wudn't like to have him =
utterin' me bread, he'd take off more /
han he'd put on !
Dafor ,8-as onnroo cbed ~, ,,,oro +l,,- u