The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-11-01


 dry ditch. As Bill went galloping past with head thrown back, and eyes bulging in terror, malicious root reached up and caught the tnkers needless feet and thump! he was rolling head over heels to the bottom of the ditch.
 For second he lay where he had tumbled but only second, for in mind and body the tinker was as quick cat. Indeed, he already scrambling to Darby OGill charging along like mad bull aud plunged into him headfrst Saints above, but that the thump!
 Freeing himself, Darby feeby to his knees and began climbing out of the ditch The bank was steep and slippery with the dew, that at first the lad hard set to get foothold. He reached the top however, and was clutching at bit of twisted root when to his unspeakab surprise the root began to twist, and to squirm, and wrigge in his hand. Darby raised the thing for closer look when sud denly little foot flew out like lightning. and kicked him squarely on the nose and wee, spiteful voice piped up:
 aPut me down, ye thundern' bIiggard! Ye've broke the ribs of side! Pick up cap ye nun fernal schoundrel an put it on me head I'll have the power to turn an that schreelin villain be- hind ye into two yellow tomcas." And there strug- green velvet jacket and brown kneebreeches. His snapping black eyes and weazened face the "Begarries, Bill here. think I've got the 1eprechaunw w spluttered Darby.
 "Ye fie ye daytractn mullet-headed dayrogotory ytuperatOrp ragged the little "Im the lepre- chaun! I'm Nial the fiddler. from Slieve ena-mon; sometimes they call Nial the scold an I've been waitin here these three nights to help ye whin ye wint diggin' for the crooks O good. This is the thanks get. Where have ye been? What kep ye ye... lazy. fddle-faddling, pottherin'. dawdlin' "Aisy, aisy there" warned Darby "Aist or West, since e,d the day was n yer m yer aa more of thm bluggard wurruds I'll rap the little head of ye agin this stone Tell me, what dye about waftin for us to go dggin for the crooks O goold He gave the fairy rattling shake
 "Sthop that" roared the captive "Do that agin me spells! rll-rll susstate the both of yez, so will. Bah, ye unclassical, undaycorous, umphbious examples, ye!"
 Bill was the first to recover from this deluge of hard names, and, drawing long breath, he blurted
 "Be this an that Darby, I'll stan no more. Hand the Nillyputian here till him' -ss 'Oho,s is that you Bill Donohue? I thought it was Dominic oHara that was in it. Man alive, Darby O'Gill, what ye doin' here with that raycreant malyfacthor of cockathrice of tinkerT'
 "Be aisy now," warned Darby pushing Bill aside, he made a thrust at the fairy with his stick "Tm thinkin' he's here as friend. What wor ye sayin', little hayro, about the crooks O goold ?p And Darby loosened his fingers that the fairy stood upright in his hand. The little fiddler shook himself and adjusted his cloak.
 sWell, as was sayin', we got the wurrud that you an Dominic OHara were gon' to dig for the crooks O goold, an it's little likin Good People have for the unconjaynal moothern spurrits that's guard in the crooks these fourteen hundred years-"
 Look at that now :" exulted Darby. "Shure we thought ye wor an innimy. To tell the truth yer honor Msther Donohue here is just thrife afeared of meetin' up wid thim diseased ghosts"
 The little fairy flung glance of whitening disdain at the tinker What yez all afeared Of? Don't ye know that one of these days yezH all be ghostsw "Tm not afeared of thm." bragged Darby, but I don't loke sociating wd the lokes of thm oness it's necessary. Ould Mrs. Callaghan had foine charrum that ud kape yer heart lifted the loneest the darkest nght she wasn't afeared of ghost livn or dead and she promised to whusper it to me before she died; but the poor crachure forgot the wurruds
 "Fafx, I've heard that charrum this hundherds of years" said the fairy but I'll give betther any kind of fear trouble just trow back yer head an sing it this away:
 oh Phadrig and PheIim and Red Conan More
 The Lehras and Lahras are gatherin',
 Come out of the mountain they're weltin sore,
 Bring yer sojers and champeens to father 'em'
 sNow all together" urged the little fellow The three took up the tune and roared it Justify that Firing yer sojers and champeens to father 'em" was heard good mile away in her own house by big Mrs. Flaherty, truthful a woman lives in the village of Ballinderg.
 When they had sung the powerful charm many times the little fiddler said "Well. first and foremost it's not in the abbey at all that the crooks O goold are buried but undher the yew three in the great court where the monks do be lyin'."
 Come on, Darby. an bring the wee wid ye," cried Bill starting up
 "Botheration ye for tinker" snapped the fairy twill ye have patience. Ye begin afther midnight and ind before cockcrow, an this is the way yell snug be the abbots grave; an yell measure foive lengths of the pick handle toward the broken gateway and there's the identical spot where must dig Yell find goold nough there to make you and yer ginera- tions rich forever"
 Darby gave great cough into his hand and Bill Donohue swallowed hard at big lump that popped into his throat.
 warned the fairy, flor there be thim watchin the while that would shrke the sight from yer eyes and W1ther the tongue in yer head"
 An what's to purwint thm?" asked Darby.
 "Ah ha! that's what I'm here to tell ye Until the sthroke of midnight the ghosts beyant helpless field full of unfant childher and afther cockcrow they're nayther less than flock of jackdaws rOOsthin in the ould Let yeZ hurry before midnight and make ring of holly tunty feet wide around the spot where we're to dig, the way the mootherin rapscaians can't come within hands rache of ye. The ghost of no diseased person can cross twig of holly'
 "Shure the whole worruld knows that" said Bill If anyone has ring of holly around him no shu- pernatura ghost bother him.
 "Hagh! Is that so' sneered the Well maybe ye know this too, Mir: Di-og-gan-ees the pill losopher, that if ayther of the two of ye spake pous a raygious worrud while ye're diggn' in that place, yell niver raygret it but vance, an that be all the days of yer life.'
 "Raymmber that Bill Donohue,' warned Darby "an' grip yer tongue between yer teeth or I'll make surgents wurruk of ye'