The Ned M'Keown Stories: Traits And Stories Of The Irish Peasantry, The Works of; William Carleton, Volume ThreeCarleton, William
General
The Ned M'Keown Stories: Traits And Stories Of The Irish Peasantry, The Works of; William Carleton, Volume Three
Carleton, William
Ireland -- Social life and customs -- Fiction
“When we had danced an hour or so, them that the family had the
greatest regard for were brought in unknown to the rest, to drink tay.
Mary planted herself beside me, and would sit nowhere else; but the
friar got beside the bridesmaid, and I surely observed that many a time
she'd look over, likely to split, at Mary, and it's Mary herself that
gave her many's a wink, to come to the other side; but, you know, out of
manners, she was obliged to sit quietly, though among ourselves it's she
that was like a hen on a hot griddle, beside the ould chap. It was now
that the bride-cake was got. Ould Sonsy Mary marched over, and putting
the bride on her feet, got up on a chair and broke it over her head,
giving round a _fadge_* of it to every young person in the house, and
they again to their acquaintances: but, lo and behold you, who should
insist on getting a whang of it but the friar, which he rolled up in a
piece of paper, and put it in his pocket. 'I'll have good fun,' says
he, 'dividing this to-morrow among the colleens when I'm collecting my
oats--the sorra one of me but I'll make them give me the worth of it of
something, if it was only a fat hen or a square of bacon.'
* A liberal portion torn off a thick cake.
“After tay the ould folk got full of talk; the youngsters danced round
them; the friar sung like a thrush, and told many a droll story. The
tailor had got drunk a little too early, and had to be put to bed, but
he was now as fresh as ever, and able to dance a hornpipe, which he
did on a door. The Dorans and the Flanagans had got quite thick after
drubbing one another--Ned Doran began his courtship with Alley Flanagan
on that day, and they were married soon after, so that the two factions
joined, and never had another battle until the day of her berrial, when
they were at it as fresh as ever. Several of those that were at the
wedding were lying drunk about the ditches, or roaring, and swaggering,
and singing about the place. The night falling, those that were dancing
on the green removed to the barn. Father Corrigan and Father James
weren't ill off; but as for the friar, although he was as pleasant as
a lark, there was hardly any such thing as making him tipsy. Father
Corrigan wanted him to dance--'What!' says he, 'would you have me to
bring on an earthquake, Michael?--but who ever heard of a follower
of St. Domnick, bound by his vow to voluntary poverty and
mortification----young couple, your health--will anybody tell mo
who mixed this, for they've knowledge worth a folio of the
fathers----poverty and mortification, going to shake his heel? By the
bones of St. Domnick, I'd desarve to be suspinded if I did. Will no
one tell me who mixed this, I say, for they had a jewel of a hand at
it?--Och--
'Let parsons prache and pray--
Let priests to pray and prache, sir;
What's the rason they
Don't practise what they tache, sir?
Forral, orral, loll,
Forral, orral, laddy--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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