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1196 ' IRELAND.
grand sea lady at Trafraska), was the gratest piper in these parts, and taught Mr.
Gandsey a power of fine music; and the both of them, as well as Maurice, were
stone blind. VVell, 'l'hady’s pipes war ould and cracked, and had a squeak in
‘em that bate the Millinavat pig hollow; and the gentry war mighty fond of
him, and many a time said something about the new pipes they intinded for
him; but, somehow, they ever and always remimbered to forget, and the
dickons a dacent pair Thady would ever have had, but for the grate
O’Donaghue, that gave ’em to him in the ind. And the way of it was this:
,Thady,,like his brother, loved a drop-and a big one-and two drops better nor
one. And one night he spint at a wake, and wint off airly, on account of a
weddin’ he had to be at, the morrow morning, a long way off, among the Reeks.
So, to be sure, he was overtaken wid a wakeness, and an imprission about his
heart. ‘Arrah, what’s this?’ says he; ‘sure it can’t be the liquor, and I after
dhrinking no more than sixteen tumblers, to keep myself sober!’ “lid that
he sits down by the- road side, and begins to play to himself to keep himself
from sleeping; . and then, all of a suddent, he hears a troop of horsemen ridin’
past him. ‘A pretty set of boys ye must he,’ says Thady, ‘to be out at this
time 0’ night,’ says he; ‘fitter for ye to be in your dacent beds,’ says he,
‘than gambo-ling about the country; I’ll go bail ye’re all drunk,’ says he.
Well, wid that, up comes one of ’em, and says, ‘here’s a piper, let’s have him
wid us.’ Couldn’t ye say-by yer lave?’ says Thady. ‘W’ell, then, by yer
lave,’ says the horseman; ‘And that ye won’t have, seeing I must be at Tim
Mahony’s weddin’ by daybrake,’ says Thady, ‘or I’ll lose my good seven
thirteens.’ So, widout a word, they claps him upon’ a horse’s back, and one
of ‘ ’em lays, hould of himiby the scruff of his neck, and away they rode like
the March wind-ay, or faster. After a while they stopped: ‘And where am I
at all, at all?’ says Thady. ‘Open yer eyes, and see,’ says a voice. And 50
he did-the darkrman that never saw the sun till that blessed night; and
millia murther! it there wasn’t troops of fine gintlcmen and ladies, Wid
swoords, and feathers, and spurs of goold, and lashins of mate and drink upon
tables of solid diamonds, and everything grand that the world con-tained, Since
the world was a world. ‘Ye’re welcim,’ says the voice, ‘to the castle of the
grate O’Donaghue.’ ‘I often heerd talk of it,’ says Thady, nothing danted--
and is the Prence to the fore?’ ‘I’m here,’ says the Prence, ‘coming for’ards;
and a fine, portly man he was, surenenough, wid a. cooked hat and a coat of
mail. ‘And here’s yer health, Mr. Connor, and the health of all my
dcscindantsy grate and Small,’ says he-‘ and when they’re tired of the S03:
they’ll know where to get the-best entertainment for man and haste,’ says her
‘every one that ever owned the name.’ If.Thady passedgthe bottle, yer honours;
VI: