Year: 1876




- HE potato famine in Ireland was nowhere
felt more severely than in that part of
the country where the following story is told
true tale.


In small village in one of the mos, bar
rem districts of the west of Ireland lived
very poor widow whose sole inheritance from
her husband were Two healthy children, girls,
OF the respective ages of three and five -
Painfully and by the utmost effort she con-
| trived to pass two years of her surrowful wild
owhood. Bad and scauty Good. obtained only
by labor too great for her delicate frame, had
at last thrown her upon her sick bed and
death in pity removed her from her earthly
troubles. The poverty Of the whole parish
was So great thGt nothing could be done for
| the poor orphans. a II the ueighhors. with
! the utmost desire to help were too famine
stricken, and heard their own children too
often cry in vain for bread to assist others
elf the children could only be got to Kill
burn, village some miles distant said one
Of the neighbors, after the poor mother had
been buried, "a brother Of their father lives
there. and he could not possibly refuse to take
care of them"


But matters are as bad there as they are
here" replied another. land | fear thew will
be no better of there"


sit cannot be possibly worse than here for
nothing hut starv alton stares them in the face
If we send them to their relations VIC have
done our duty. We cannot possibly keep
them here"


$50 carrier who was going near to Kill
burn, as an act Of charity, took the two girls
-Lizzy was seven now, and Mary was five
in his cart with him. The timid children
kept very quiet and close together, and the
Ill


they reached the spot where the cart would
turn off. The man lifted them out, showed
them the road to the lett, and bade them 70
straigh. forward, and if they did not turn
from tho high road they would almost in two
hours come to the place. He then drove off
The chidred sobbed out good bye, and looked
after him as long as they could see the least
speek Of the cart, and then they both began
to cry.


LizEis ceased her crying first, she took hold
of her little sisters hand, who had seated
herself the grass, and said Get up,
Mary, We must not stay here, if we wish to
get to Kilburn. We cannot stop on the road"


81 lam so hungry" added May. I'VE have
had nothing to eataIl day" And again they
both began to cry for Lizzie was equally
hungry.


The children were very weak. and could
only drag themselves along. Hand in hand
they tottered on. At las. Lizzio fancied she
saw house, and pointed towards the spot
But 1t took them more than quarter of an
hour before they re-chcd tie farmhouse for
such it proved to be. With hcsitating steps
they entered the yard, for they never begged
before in spite of their former misery But
at this moment they could think OF nothing
else but their terrible hunger When a few
steps from the house they heard the farmer
violently scolding one of his men Then he
went into the house, fereeIy closed the door
after him. so as to make the windows rattle,
continuing his abuse all the time. The chill
dreu, terrified, stood still at the door until the
voice ceased. Then Lizzie opened the door
and both children entered The farmer sat
in an arm chair by the FIRE.


"Weil, what do you want p he hsrshly
asked the children, who were too heightened
to utter word and to tell their story.


Cant you speak," he asked more roughly


Lizzie Et last took courage and said
gently: "Oh. if you would be so good as to
give Us the least little bit to eat-a small
piece of bread or few potatoes"


81 thought So" shouted the farmer; vas
sure you were nothing but beggars, although
you do not seem to belong to this ueighborhood





want them to come from other parts We
have not bread for ourselves in these hard
times. You will get nothing here. Be of,
this moment ="


The children. both terribly frightened, be-
gan to cry bitterly.


That will not do you any good" con-
tinued the mau ''thst kind of whining is
nothing new to me, and won't move me-
Let your parents feed you but they no
doubt prefer idliDg rather than getting their
living by honest labor"


"Our parents are both dead" said Lizzie.


Il thought So" replied the farmer. w hen
ever children are sent out to beg, their father
and mother are always dead, or at least their
father. This is mere excuse for begging
BE of this minute"


We have not eaten a morsel the whole
dsy," pleaded Lizzie. I'VE are SO tired that