The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1919-01-25
A MOUNTAIN POET

lie came down the Bog Road.
Weedy old figure whose general gray
ness seemed the proper. complement
OF the landscape encompassing him.
On the one hand the brown bog land
which gave the road it's name, and on
the other long stretches of pasture
land, starred only by scattered groups
OF grazing cattle. Though it was vet
morning he had already. walked many
miles from his little twosroomed cot
tage in the Singing Glens, and the san
guine smile that always lowered about
his lips was. a little less resolutely
certain than usual. A tired man and
poet, he thought ruefully of the many
miles he must yet negotiate before
reaching the Turing oasis of Ballymanis
Fair. Still, like poet fully wide
awake to the value of the feeting
hours, he carried a dingy old note
book closely pressed against his
breast with one arm, while a stubby
lead-pencil, ready for the welding.
was securely enclosed in the sheltering
bigness of his swinging right fist.
Tired as he was, his Imagination was
yet active, as was evidenced by the
sudden violent blue which flashed in
to his eyes whenever he halted to lot
down an inspiration. To do old Mat
thew Flaherty justice, he would never
have given these divine flashes
| name so pretentious. He would have
! called it an. idea" and let it, 60 at
that.
Suddenly he stood stock.still in the
roadway, his attention focused amaz-
eddy on a small rural grouping in a
closely field. A young girl, evident
| ly just risen from her task of milking
a complaisant-looking redsand- white
helfer, stood in the most listless of
attitudes, her milk-pail on the ground
her glance bent with sorrowful sever
1ity on the big curly Newfoundland
capering about her, as if inviting and
| daring her to a frolic. A very fair
| creature she was. Blue of eye, brown
| of hair, blush-rosy of cheek, with a
nice neatness of simple printed frock
and big shou1ded-bib apron that was
| just the right completion of her charm
ing natural comeliness knowing
Mary Boylan as the most ight-hearted
girl in all that countryside, her pres
ent superior attitude toward the frol-
licking dog astonished the old man inn
measurably. His amazement was still
further intensified when all at once
the girl, letting her face droop be-
tween her two cupped hands, burst
into what was quite evidently Sob
bing-fit. Sobered to proper melan-
choly by the woe of his mistress, the
dog stretched himself at her feet
looking up at her with pathetically
sympathetic eyes.
All this old Matthew observed in
the few minutes which elapsed be-
tween his pause on the roadway and
his sudden intrusion as an unexpected
third party in the group of the sor-
rowing girl and dog. The .Newfound-
land wagged him a. pensive welcome,
but made no other demonstration
while his mistress, evidently vexed
that even in this solitary place she
might not indulge her grief unob-
served, after one petulant glance at
the old man, turned her head swiftly
away. ...,
But Matthew was not to be dis
couraged.,
why, Mary" he said, soothingly,
sure if l had known you'd take, my
coming this way I'd have never left
the highroad. But now that I'm here,
I'm not going away again without
knowing. what's troubling you., Tell
me, now, what is it., my little girleen'' Z,
| Displeased with herself already for
| her petulance, Mary, Boylan tried to
smile and to answer Matthew Flah-
| erty's question all in the same minute;
but was defeated in both intentions
by. the treacherous tears, which again
clouded her eyes and !: choked her
voice. ~ : VS.
With true Irish delicacy, Matthew,
| sparring for time sufficient to allow.
! Mary to recover her possession,
commenced to hum stanza of his
latest song H.. ,.es
'.All up and down the country I'll be
| travelling, 80 3..,. #
Telling unto ali who will listen to
| my tale. - e+, 81
In Leinster or Ulster, in connacht or
| Munster, 49, Il, $500. ....,
OF the wrongs wrought of old unto
fair Granu-ale!"