CHAPTER XIV.
I had not proceeded far on my journey, when I was overtaken by Eugene—‘I have some little business in town,’ said he, ‘and I may as well accompany you.’ In the course of our conversation, I took occasion to revert to his sister Mary, whose character had made a strong impression on my mind,—‘She has too much feeling,’ said he, ‘for her own happiness; she lives in a constant state of excitement of one kind or another, which her scanty knowledge of the world has not been sufficient to subdue. Time and experience, however, may rectify that fault.’
‘Good-morrow to you, Master Eugene,’ said a countryman who was working in a field by the road side.
‘Good-morrow, Rooney,’ said Eugene. ‘Have you got every thing put to rights again?’
‘Indeed I have, sir; but it’s yourself I have to thank for it. May my blessing and the blessing of God attend you and yours wherever you go.’
‘I will call in and see you as I come back.’
‘Arrah do, master—don’t forget.’
‘That poor fellow,’ said Eugene, as we passed on, ‘had his house burned some time since, by a band of those deluded wretches who infest the country. I have several times introduced myself at their meetings, for the purpose of reasoning with them on the wickedness and folly of their proceedings; and some of the most rational of them have been induced, through my persuasion, to live peaceably; but others have threatened to attack my own house, for daring to interferewith them. I might, by giving information to the magistrate, have had the ringleaders apprehended; but besides having the national horror of an informer, I am well aware that it would be productive of no good in the country.
‘On several occasions, by receiving timely information, I have been able to prevent the execution of their revenge; but in poor Rooney’s case I was too late.
‘Some time ago, a number of people in the neighbourhood lost possession of their small farms, through means of a pettifogging scoundrel of an attorney, who, by paying a large fine to the agent, took the land on lease, over their heads; the consequence was, that their little farms (previously too high) were raised in rent to double the sum. In this extremity they came to the resolution of resisting the advance of rent; the consequence was that they were forcibly ejected, and tenants brought from a distance to replace them, many of whom being intimidated by anonymous threatenings posted on their doors, or conveyed by letters, abandoned the houses; but others, and among the rest Rooney, the individual whom we have just now passed, determined to keep possession and defend themselves against all who might dare to molest them. Rooney’s obstinacy induced the Shanavests to resolve on forcing him out, and with that purpose they paid him a midnight visit; but he and his son were ready for them, and in answer to their summons to open the door, he gave them the contents of a blunderbuss. This exasperated them to the highest pitch, and they used their utmost efforts to burst the door open; but here he was also prepared, having barricaded the passage with the heavy parts of his furniture. I was informed of the intended attack by Billy M’Daniel, who had heard some hints of it from those concerned, and I hastened to the house to endeavour to save the poor people from their fury. When I arrived, they had succeeded in forcing the door, but were still impededin their entrance by the things which Rooney had piled in the passage. I beseeched, I entreated them to desist; but my voice was drowned in the vociferations and noise of the wretches, whose evil passions were now roused to extremity. One rascal (I know him well) had ran to a neighbouring cottage for a light, and now attempted to hold a bundle of flaming straw to the inside of the roof, for the purpose of setting it on fire; regardless of the danger to which I was exposing myself, I knocked him down with my stick, but a blow on my head from some one behind laid me senseless on the spot. When I recovered, the burning roof of the cottage was falling about me; fear lent me strength, and I sprung to my feet, when my ear was struck with the cries of a child. I plunged forward through the smoke to the place from whence the sound proceeded, and in a settle bed, surrounded by burning thatch and rafters, I found the poor innocent nearly suffocated. It was the work of a moment to snatch it up and bear it to the door, where I met the despairing mother, and threw it into her arms.
“God bless you and save you,” said she, “whoever you are.”
‘Feeling the hazardous situation I was in, and knowing that my motives might be misconstrued, and my actions represented in the worst light, I hurried homewards without speaking a word.
‘I had not been many minutes at home, when I was startled by some one knocking at the door. Although I was conscious of having committed no fault, I felt alarmed, and my heart beat violently. On opening the window and looking out, I found it was Mr ——, the magistrate, with a party of soldiers. This at first confirmed my fears, but they were soon dispelled, for in answer to my inquiry, “what he wanted?”
‘“I would be obliged to you,” said he, “if you would get up and come along with me, for some rascals have set Rooney’s house on fire, and I am afraid have murdered some of its inmates.”
‘Having muffled myself in a cloak, I came downand accompanied him to the house, which I had left half an hour before. It was now one burning mass, shooting up showers of sparks into the air. Rooney’s son was with us, and in giving his relation to the magistrate, told what I have already related.
‘“They couldn’t get in upon us,” said he, “for we had thrown all the furniture into the passage, and had given them two or three shots, when one fellow pushed in with a lighted wisp in his hand, to set fire to the house; some of his own party knocked him down; but that did not save us, for they lighted the thatch of the house before they left the door. We then became desperate, and removing the things from the entry, pushed out, determined to live or die. The villains had escaped, but the whole roof was now in a blaze. There was no time to lose, and gathering our trembling, half-naked family together, we rushed into the field before the house. On looking round the children, my mother gave a scream ‘Oh, my little Jane!’ she cried, and sprang forward to the burning cabin. A little girl of four years of age had in the confusion been left in bed, where she was lying asleep, unconscious of the work of destruction going on. I instinctively followed my mother, and as she approached the door, I perceived a man burst from the burning house with the child—throw it into my mother’s arms, and immediately disappear. I was so struck with surprise, that I could not follow him, it seemed like the work of some supernatural being.”
‘We had now reached the house, where we found many of the neighbours assembled, and among them some, like myself, who had been there before. I was horror-struck at the dismal scene, and had there been any prospect of the least good being done by it, I would have had them all apprehended.
‘In going round the premises with the magistrate, we met the poor woman, who was strolling about, mourning the desolation of her dwelling. The light of the burning house fell full upon my face as we met—she started at me for a moment, and exclaimed, “Aren’t youthe good gentleman who saved my child? O! God Almighty bless you, for it is yourself—I know you by the blood on your face.”—I was confounded,—the magistrate looked doubtfully at me.
‘“There is really blood on your face, Mr M’Carthy.”
‘“There may be,” said I, endeavouring to recover my self-possession, “for I feel my nose bleeding, but you surely know me better than to suspect that I had any hand in this business.”
‘“Oh! not at all,” said he. But I could see that suspicion was raised in his mind. Had he been a man whom I could have trusted, I would have told him the whole story; but I was too well aware of his disposition to say anything about it; and as I knew he would be questioning the woman concerning the circumstance when my back was turned, I sought out Rooney and told him every particular of the affair, and charged him to say nothing about it. It was lucky I did, for Mr —— had them examined very minutely on the subject next day, and endeavoured to draw something from them in confirmation of my being implicated in the affair: but Rooney kept his promise faithfully, and the woman told him that she was sure now I was not the person she had seen. What she said about the blood on my face was perfectly correct, for my nose must have bled profusely when I was knocked down, as I found it crusted on my clothes next morning.
‘I have since assisted Rooney, and you see how grateful the poor fellow is.
‘This affair has induced me to be more cautious, for the magistracy are so perfectly absolute, that I might have been sent off to New South Wales (if I got off with that) for my exertions on that night. Law is so summary here, and so little evidence required against a man whom they wish to ruin, that it reminds me of some place in your country, where it is said they were in the habit of hanging people first and then trying them.’
When we parted, Eugene made me promise to pay them an early visit; but being unexpectedly relieved from theduty on that station, I never had the pleasure of seeing them again. Shortly after, I received several letters from him, wherein he detailed his sister’s marriage and happiness with her husband, and when I last heard from him she was the happy mother of three children.