LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 848, 13 March 1877, Page 3

LITERATURE.

BRIAN TAAFE. In a certain part of Ireland, a long time ago, lived a wealthy old farmer; whose name was Brian Taafe. His three sons, Guillaum, Shamus, and Garret, worked on the farm. The old man had a great affection tor them all; and, finding himself grow unfit for work, he resolved to hand his farm over to them and sit quiet by the fireside. But as that was not a thing to be done lightly, he thought he would just put them on their trial. He would first take the measure of their intelligence, and then of their affection.

Proceeding in this order he gave them each a hundred pounds, and quietly watched to see what they did with it. Well, Guillaum and Shamus put their hundred pounds out to interest, every penny ; but, when the old man questioned Garret where his hundred pounds was, the young man said, ‘ I spent it, father.’ ‘ Spent it ?’ said the old man, aghast. *ls it the whole hundred pounds ?’ * Sure I thought you told us we might lay it out as we plaised.’ ‘ls that a raison ye’d waste the whole of it in a year, ye prodigal ?’ cried the old man, and he trembled at the idea of his substance falling into such hands.

Some months after this he applied the second test.

He convened his sons, and addressed them solemnly : * I’m an ould man, my children ; my hair is white on my head, and it’s time I was giving over trade and making my sowl,’ The two elder overflowed with sympathy, He then gave the dairy farm and the Hill to Shamus, and the meadows to Guillaum. Thereupon these two vied with each other in expressions of love and gratitude. But Garret said never a word, and this, coupled with his behaviour about the hundred pounds so maddened the old man, that he gave Garret’s portion, namely, the home and the home farm, to his elder brothers to hold in common. Garret he disinherited on the spot, and in due form. That is to say, he did not overlook him nor pass him by, but, even as spiteful testators used to leave the disinherited one a shilling, that he might not be able to say he had been inadvertently omitted, and that it was all a mistake, old Brian Taafe solemnly presented young Garret Taafe with a hazel staff and a small bag. Poor Garret knew very well what that meant. Ho shouldered the bag, and went forth into the wide world with a sad heart, but a silent tongue. His dog, Lurcher, was for following him, but he drove him back with a stone.

On the strength of this new arrangement, Guillaum and Shamus married directly, and brought their wives home, for it was a large house, and there was room for all. But the old farmer was not contented to be quite a cipher, and he kept finding fault with this and that. The young men became more and more impatient of his interference, and their wives fanned the flame with female pertinacity. So that the house was divided, and a very home of discord. This went on getting worse and worse, till at last, one winter afternoon, Shamus defied his father openly before all the rest; and said, ‘l’d like to know what would plaise ye. May be ye’d like to turn us all out as you did Garret.’ The old farmer replied with sudden dignity, ‘lf I did, I’d take no more than I gave.’ ‘What good was your giving it?’ said Guillaum ; ‘ we get no comfort of it while you are in the house.’ ‘Do you talk that way to me, too ?’ said the father, deeply grieved. ‘lf it was poor Garret I had, he wouldn’t use me so.’ ‘ Much thanks the poor boy ever got from you, ’ said one of the women, with venomous tongue ; then the other woman, finding she could count on male support, suggested to her father-in-law to take his stick and pack and follow his beloved Garret. Sure he’d find him begging about the counthry. At the women’s tongues the wounded parent turned to bay. ‘ I don’t wonder at anything I hear ye say. Ye never yet heard of anything good that a woman would have a hand in—only mischief always. If ye ask who made such a road, or built a bridge, or wrote a great histhory, or did a great action, you’ll never hear it’s a woman done it; but if there is a jewel with swords and guns, or two boys cracking each other’s crowns with shillelahs, or a didly secret let out, or a character ruined, or a man brought to the gallows, or mischief made between a father and his own flesh and blood, then I’ll engage you’ll hear a woman had some call to it. We needn’t have recourse to history to know your doins, ’tis nndher our eyes ; for ’twas the likes o’ ye two burned Throy, and made the King o’ Leinsther rebel against Brian Born.’ These shafts of eloquence struck homo; the women set up a screaming, and pulled their caps off their heads, which in that part was equivalent to gentlefolks drawing thenswords. ‘ Oh murther ! murther 1 was it for this I married you, Guillaum Taafe ? ’ ‘ Och, Shamus, will ye sit an’ hear me compared to the like ? Would I rebel against Brian Born, Shamus, a’ra gal ? ’ ‘ Don’t heed him, avourneen.’ said Shamus; ‘heis an ould man. ’ But she would not be pacified. ‘Ohvo ! vo ! if ever I thought the likes ’ud be said of me, that I’d rebel against Brian Born,.’ As for the other, she prepared to leave the house. ‘Guillaum,’ said she, ‘l’ll never stay a day undher your roof with them as would say I’d burn Throy. Does he forget he ever had a mother himself ? Ah t ‘ tis a bad apple, that is what it is, that despises the tree it sprung from.’ All this heated Shamus, so that he told the women sternly to sit down; for the offender should go, and upon that, to show they were of one mind, Guillaum deliberately opened the door. Lurcher ran out, and the wind and rain rushed in. It was a stormy night. Then the old man took fright, and humbled himself:

‘Ah ! Shamus, Guillaum, achree, let ye have it as ye will; I’m sorry for what I said, a’ra gal. Don’t turn me out on the high road in my ould days Guillaum ; and [’ll engage I’ll niver open my mouth against one o’ ye the longest day I live. Ah I Shamus, it isn’t long 1 have to stay wid ye, any way. Ycr own hair will be as white as mine yet, plaise God 1 and ye’ll be thanking Him ye showed respect to mine this night.’ But they were all young and of one mind, and they turned him out and barred the door.

He crept away, shivering in the wind and rain, till hs got on the lee side of a stone wall, and there he stopped and asked him>

self whether he could live through the night. Presently something cold and smooth poked against his hand ; it was»a large dog that had followed him unobserved till he stopped. By a white mark on his breast he saw it was Lurcher, Garret’s dog. * Ah!’ said the poor old wanderer, ‘you are not so wise a dog as I thought, to follow me.’ When he spoke to the dog, the dog fondled him. Then he burst out sobbing and crying, ‘ Ah, Lurcher ! Garret was not wise, either; but he would niver have turned me to the door this bitter night, nor even thee.’ And so he moaned and lamented. But Lurcher pulled his coat, and by his movements conveyed to him that he should not stay there all night; so then he crept on and knocked at more than one door, but did not obtain admittance, it was so tempestuous. At last he lay down exhausted on some straw in the corner of an outhouse; but Lurcher lay close to him, and it is probable the warmth of the dog saved his life that night.

(To be continued.)