The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1913-03-14
ST. PATRlCk'S
NAMESAkE
By ARTHUR W. BREWSTER

It was st. Patrick's day in the morn
ing. Mrs. Mulcahey dressed her son
Pat, eleven years old, In his best suit
and put a bit of green ribbon in the
buttonhole Of his jacket. After mass
the O'Rourke children came over to
the Mulcaheys to play with little Pat.
There were Tommy O'Rourke, sever
years old, and Nora, who was nine.
They, too, had green ribbons on their
breasts, and Mrs. Mulcahey, setting
them all down in a row, told them sto-
ries of the patron saint Of Ireland-how
he did away with the slavery of the
lower people and how he rescued the
country from a false religion and es-
tablished the true church. She also
told them of the wonderful miracles
done by st. Patrick and the many peo-
pie he saved from some impending
danger.
Everybody knows that st. Patrick's
day falls on the 18th of March and that
the 18th Of March is near the begin
ming of spring. In the southern states
sometimes it is pretty warm at that
time, and the snow, melting farther
north, swells the creeks, and the creeks
swell the rivers. and occasionally they
have what is called an inundation.
1t happened that on this st. Patrick's
day where these children lived they
had an inundation. The O'Rourke chill.
dren went home from the Mulcaheys
about 3 o'clock in the afternoon and
found the water, which had not been
within half a mile of them in the morn.
ing, was now a foot deep all around
the house. They thought 1t lots of fun to
hold up their clothes and walk in the
water to their front door. Their mother
being out at work. Tommy made a raft
of some old boards he found floating in
the cellar, and then they had a fine
TING pushing themselves around with
a clothes pole.
But the water kept getting deeper
and deeper, so that before dark the
lower floor Of the house was covered
with water.
The food began to look serious to the
children, and they wished their mother
would come home. But she had been
at work during the day at a house
built on lower ground than her home,
and when the waters came up she was
living there to move out their effects.
So when night came on she had not
come home. and by this time a bridge
over which she must pass had been
washed away. and she was prevented
from going farther.
So Nora lighted a lamp, and she and
Tommy climbed the stairs to the sec
ond story to get away from the water.
Tommy began to be frightened, but
Nora told him that there was no rea-
son to be scared. At any rate, if they
were in danger the good saint that
Mrs. Mulcahey had been telling them
about in the morning would take care
of them. But the water kept coming
higher and higher, and after awhile
they heard something crack below. and
the house began to rock. Being of
wood. it had been lifted off its founda-
ton and was afoat.
Mother" said little Pat Mulcahey
high ground"
Eyes, we are. It's dreadful to think
of people in the valley"
II wonder how it is at the O'Rourkes."
81 don't know"
"I'm going out to have a look"
sSTNpn't pu un fap > coil Tho nathan
%anXiously.
Pat went down toward the O'Rourkes,
but when still some distance from there
he was stopped by the flood. In the
direction of their house he saw a light
slightly rocking, as though it were in a
boat. All sorts of articles-boards. fur
niture and other things that would
~1oat-were slowly drifting about. Pat
was worried about his two little friends
and wished for a boat in which to go
and see how they were getting on.
But there was no boat at hand.
Presently the light he had seen ap-
peared to be drawing nearer Pat
watched it as it came on. and after
awhile he could look into a window.
Some person or persons were inside,
but the boy could not distinguish who
they were. The house drifted to with
in a hundred feet of him. when it evil
IDENTIFY grounded, for it didn't come any
nearer. Then Pat heard a child crying.
A large board had fioated near Pat.
and he resolved to go out to the house.
So he got some small pieces of wood
for paddles and pulled out. Coming to
a second story window. he put in his
head.
Tommy" cried a girls voice, we're
saved. Here's st. Patrick come to
take us to land"
I'm Pat" said the little rescuer.
"but Fin q the saint"
"Oh. Pat. il 1t you." cried Nora, re-
lievtd. "aftl have you come in a boat?"
mo, I've come on n board"
"asr g~-sfious goodness! We can't
go away On a board"
.It's i big II Come, Tom. I'll take
you first: then I'll come back for Nora"
1 Tommy lool.n1 orr Of fhn uindnw