The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1915-07-07

friends"
Peg shook her head and said bitter
~: NO. I'm not They may be rela-
tons, but they're not me friends"
He turned to Peg and said:
when they really get to know you.
Miss O'Connell. they will be just as
proud of you as yorr father 1s-as-l
would be-"
Peg looked at him IL whimsical as
tonishment: You'd be? Why should
you be proud Of me?"
I'D be more than proud If you'd look
on me as your friend"
"a friend is it," cried Peg warily.
"Sure | don't know who you are at all"
and she drew away from him. She
was on her guard. Peg made few
friends. Why this man calling him
self by the outlandish name Of Jerry
should walk In out Of nowhere and Of
fer her his friendship and expect her
! to jump at it puzzled her. Who
was be?
"Who are ye at aIlT" she asked.
! mo one in particular" answered
Jerry between gasps.
II can see that" said Peg candidly.
II mean what do ye dor
Everything a little and nothing
really WE'LL" Jerry replied. Il was a
soldier for awhile; then l took q splash
at d~octoring. read law. civil engineered
IN South America for a year; nov I'm
farming"
"Farming?" asked Peg incredulously.
"Yes. I'm a farmer"
Peg laughed as she IOOked at the well
cut clothes, the languid manner and
easy poise.
1T must be mighty hard on the land
and cattle to have you farmin' them."
she said.
1T Is" and he, too. laughed again.
She started up the staircase leading
to the manve room.
Jerry called after her anx1ousiy:
NO. no, Miss O'Conneli! Don't go
like that"
Il must" said Peg from the top OF
the stairs. what will | get here but
to be laughed at an jeered at by a lot
of people that are not dit to even look
at me father? Who are they, I'D like
to know. that | mustn't speak bis name
In their presenter"
Suddenly she raised her hand above
her head. and in the manne and tone
Of a public speaker she astounded Jer-
ry with the following outburst:
AN that's what the Irish are dom
all over the wurrld. They're driven
out Of their own country by the Eng
lish an become wanderers Oh the
face Of the earth, an nothin' they
ever earn II make up to them for the
separation from their homes an their
loved ones" She finished the perUra-
ton on u high note and with a forced
nanner such as she had frequently
heard on the platform.
She smiled at the astonished Jerry
and asked him:
do We know what that ts?"
81 haven't the least ldea," he an
swered tr%uthfully.
That's out Of one or me fathers
speeches. He father makes grand
speeches. He makes them in the cause
Of Ireland"
"Oh, really! In the of Ire
land. EN-" said Jerry.
Yes. Hes been strugglin' all his
life to make Ireland free, to get her
home rule. ye know. But the English
are so ignorant They think they know
more than me father. IL they'd do
what me father tells them sure there'd
be no more throuble in Ireland at all"
Really" said Jerry quite interest,
eddy.
Not q bit Of throuble. / wish me
father was here to explain II to ye.
he could tell ye the whole thing In a
couple of hours. ! Wish ne were here
now just to give you an example Of
what fine speakin' really Is Do you
like speechesT"
Very much - sometimes" replied
Jerry guardedly.
Me father is wonderful on a plat.
form with a lot O people in front Of
him. He's wonderful. I've seen him
take two or three hundred people who
didn't know they had a grievance in
the wurrld-the poor cratures-they
were just contented to 60 OF bein'
ground down an trampled on an they
not KNOWN a thing about five seen
me father take that crowd an in five
minutes afther be had started spekin'
to them ye wouldn't know they were
the same people. They were all shout.
in at once, an they had murther In
their eye. an 1t was blood they were
afther. They wanted to reform some
thin'-they weren't sure what-but they
wanted to do 1t, an at the cost Of life.
Me father could have led them any.
where. It's a wonderful power he was
Do ye like heartn' about me fatherT
she asked Jerry suddenly, in case she
was firing him.
Jerry FASTENED to assure her that he
was really most interested.
--3 vi