The Irish standard., 1915-10-23

coming our 18lrleS. Anu, 1OVlu6
friends to our country. and kindest
friends to our people, in Ireland they
live on, cheered with hope of final re.
demption. And we, who dearly love
the Gentle People, ever hope and pray
that on the last day Gods heart may
melt toward these exiles, and He'll
recall them again to their mansion Of
bliss.
Outside Fairyland it was the land
of America that doomed largest in
Maggie's imagination in those days. OF
America, the land whose wonders
would exceed those of her own tales,
she used to talk for hours together;
and through her young years for
America she longed and prayed. Mag
gie's eldest sister, returned from that
wonderland, and, sitting one day in
my mothers kitchen, and talking with
a fascinating new accent, which l
learned was the Yankee accent, and
fascinating new words and phrases,
which l learned were Yankee words
and phrases, was the first Yankee l
ever saw. Even I, child, longed then
to experience a land where every one
talked SO beautifully and dressed so
beautifully and looked so beautiful.
No wonder that all our boys and girls
broke their hearts with pining for this
land. Though, when at last their own
came to go, they broke their hearts
out and out, sobbing and crying with
woe for leaving Ireland.
And when, at length, good fairy
(from America) sent Maggie her pas
sage, and it came her time to go to
the Land Of Hearts Desire, more
grief-stricken girl never left Ireland.
She left my mother Borrowing, too, for
the most faithful helper she ever had,
a girl, moreover, of most rare inno-
cence and simplicity of heart. Maggie
Burns, too, like every member of her
family, was singularly honest, upright
and conscientious, even among a sin
gularly honest and upright people.
The whole Burns family had char
acter that would enrich and ennoble
those born to mere moneyed wealth
and manufactured nobility.
That the Undertaking. influence of
the American world had not feazed
Maggie's rare simplicity of character
will be realized when l mention that
she has most strenuously objected to
my writing this article about her;
vowed that il l wrote it she would
never speak to me again; and in
genuously protested that she had
never done anything to be ashamed
of!
Maggie entered the service of Mrs.
Van Bell shortly after her arrival in
America, and from that long-ago day
to the day of Mrs. Van Bells death
never changed nor dreamed of chang
ing her mistress. Her rare loyalty to
duty and devotion to her mistress, and
her mistress consequent devotion to
her was pleasure but not surprise,
for me to discover, when / came to
America.
1t was long after Maggie went that
I, having served as country school
master, for the folklore term of seven
years, turned my feet to the path of
the folklore hero, and to seek>my for.
tune, travelled away and away over
high hills and low hills, sheep walks
and bullock tracks, broad green lands
and wide blue waters, following the
trackless path to the tempting, fa1
unknown, where l might find fortune
or from which no rumor of me might
ever return. The good fairy seed that
Maggie had helped to SOW in my i'm
agination had flourished and fructi
fed; and bore samples of the fruit
with me-and very little else-to the
far, strange land. Many there affect
ed to like the flavor of the new i'm
portation; and soon came requests
from many cities for the wanderer tt
tell about the lore of the fairy land
from which he came.
Philadelphia wanted to hear what
had to say upon the subject. I spoke
to a crowded house in horticulture
Hall; and, among the many who
came to talk to me after my lecture
l was delighted to meet my earliest
mentor, Maggie Burns-who had beer
for long years enveloped in the un
known! 1t was keen delight to meet
her and to look again into the earn
est, sincere eyes of her who had been
lost to me since childhood. With
eager egotism asked her, How did
you like my lecturer" and she an
swered, "Och, sure it's grand it must
have been: but my heart was in my
mouth every minute for fear you'd tell
something about meself."
visited her in her kitchen next day
and on after occasions, when Phila
delphia called for me-and found hel
marvelously unchanged, despite the
total change of latitude-the same sin
cere, and beautiful and believing soul
that my childhood knew.
No. 1873.
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