Willy Reilly / The Works of William Carleton, Volume One

'clock the next day, as he was walking in his garden, Tom Steeple made hi

said he, "wha

said, "Come wid Tom; Tom has news for you. Here it is, in de paper;" a

ly in order to gain my affections. Alas! if you have resorted to such a plan, you have but too well succeeded. Do not, however, for one moment imagine that I yield any credit to this atrocious falsehood. It has been concocted by your base and unmanly rival, Whitecraft, by whom all the proceedings against you are to be conducted. Some violation of the penal laws, in connection with carrying or keeping arms, is to be brought against you, and unless you are on your guard you will be arrested and thrown into prison, and if not convicted of a capital offence and executed like a felon, you will at least be sent forever out of the country. What is to be done? If you have arms in or about your house let them be forthwith removed to some place of concealment. The Rapparee is to get a pardon from government, at least he is promised it by Sir Robert, if he turns against you. In one word, dearest Reilly, you cannot, with safety to your life, remain in this country. Y

illy, yours, and you

n Fol

tions of love and indignation produced by

mark me, Tom, don't breathe to a human being that you have brought me a letter from the Cooleen

lost. Yes, my life, my love, my more than life-I feel as you do, that our fates, whet

Reiliy, disguised in such a way as prevented him from being recog

, "what do you want? Go up to t

e with God Almighty, for if you are found here by to-morrow night you sleep in Sligo jail. Throw me a few halfpence, making as it were charity. Whitecraft has spies among your own laborers, and you know the danger I run in comin'

that,

an; did you n

r sake; spare your feelings, my poor fellow; I know

d eyes and limbs and hearts and courage to stand nobly upon the gallows-tree for striking down the villain who does

ses with the government. Against such a man I have no chance; this, taken in connection with my education abroad, is quite sufficient to make me a marked and suspected man. I will therefore leave the country, and ere to-morrow nig

vertheless, to have vengeance upon the baronet

spies among his own laborers, he kept moving about and. making such observations as he could for the remainder of the day. When the night came he prepared himself for his appointment, and at, or rather before, the hour of half-past ten, he had reached the back gate, or rather door of the garden attached to Corbo Castle. Having ascertained that it was unlocked, he entered with no difficulty, and traversed the garden without being a

Bawn, "I have dreadfu

e; "I am to be arres

this evening, in one of his moods of anger, that b

n so, I am prepared this moment to escape. I have settled my affairs, left the manageme

elancholy words the t

t. You shall not go alone, dearest William. My mind is mad

replied, "think o

at danger, vengeance, and death, are hovering about you, I shall and must partake of them with you. And listen, Reilly; after all it is the best plan. Papa, if I accompany you-supposing that we are taken-will relent for my sake. I know his love

reflect, however, my beloved girl, upon the state of the country, and of the law, as it operates against the liberty and property of Catholics, we must both admit the present impossibility of an elopement without involving you in disgrace. You know that until some relaxation of the laws affecting marriage between Catholics and P

m willing to endure

e misinterpretation,

imputed guilt, so long as I

nothing short of positive invisibility capable of protecting us from our enemies. Then your father!-such a step

for you, what can be done to save you from the

upon our reputation. You will return to your father's house, and I shall seek some secure place of concealment until I can safely reach the continent, from whence I shall contrive to let you hear from me, and in due time may possibly be able to pro

ns which his Cooleen Bawn had expressed for him. He consequently looked upon himself as perfectly safe in his own house. The state of society in Ireland, however, was at that melancholy period so uncertain that no Roman Catholic, however popular, or however innocent, could for one week calculate upon safety either to his property or person, if he happened to have an enemy who possessed any influence in the opposing Church. Religion thus was made the stalking-horse, not only of power, but of persecution,

nd for, Mr. Reilly

r to secure my money and the papers

other, "if you go home

hat?" ask

her that you might escape them, but I was too late; the villains were there before me. I took heart o' grace, however, and went up to beg a little charity for the love and honor of God. Seem' the kind of creature I was, they took no notice of me; for to tell you the truth, they w

ecraft, I

villain, the Red Rapparee, and bad luck to him. You see, then, that i

you aware that they committed any acts of violence? Are you

was afraid to trust myself inside, in regard of that scoundrel the Rapparee, who

craft's jealousy, and knowing, as I did before, his vindictive spirit and power in the country, I lost no time in putting them in a safe place. Unless they burn the house they could never co

u have to deal wid, but ould Folliard himself, who now swears that if

resentment; but then he is an open foe, and the man whom he looks upon as his enemy always knows what he has to expect from him. Not so the other; he is secret, cautious, cowardly, and consequently doub

heir steps towards one of those antiquated and obsolete roads w

do you intend to go, or what do

not for the present leave Ireland. This resolution I have come to since I saw her to-night. I am her only friend, and, so help me God, I shall not suffer her to be sacrificed-murdered. In the course of the night we shall return to my house and look about us. If the coast be clear I will secure my cash and papers as I said. It is pos

y knew the country well, and soon found the

ome. She has a free cottage and garden from me, and has besides been a pensioner of mine for some time back, and I know I can depe

it where there was an abrupt angle, when, to their utter alarm and consternation

them-if you don't it's all up with you. They won't k

e you in dange

eggar man they'd meddle with? Off with you, unles

right-hand side, and which, by the way, was a tolerably high one, but fortunately without bushes. In the meant

mselves approached him at a rapid pace, until

leader, "who and what are you? Q

t's lookin' for my b

s your

nnan, sir, ple

h), and-and-one Paddy Brennan,

a'; whenever I stop of a Saturday nigh

are you a

ay I am, your honor-or

are, a

of one

n' you, sergeant," said one of th

eral of the others-"doesn

ubor-or-ordination, or I'll know what for. Leave him to me, then, and I'll work him up, never fear. George Johnston isn't the blessed babe to be imposed upon-that's wh

ith loyalty and poteen at

. Where is-is-this rascal? Oh, yes, he

ere, c

fellow; if I'm not a captain, worse men h

of him at once, and bring him to

rse me if I'll suffer any man to in-inthe

I he's a Rapparee in disguise?-for th

lin' to go anywhere you like; and, above all things, I'd like to go to Sir Robe

know whether you can tell truth or not. Answer me this.

nown throughout the whole barony that if he had replied in the affirmative every man of them would have

be plaisin' to you, as Sir Robert's friends, I must come out wid it; devil resave the color of his money ever I see

ave been lyin' all your life, you've spoke

of age, and of Dutch descent; "as Bamet said, 'we don't know what he is,' and I ag

ne, gintlemen, wid sub

er with his drunken stutterings.) "It has been sworn that he's training the Papishes every night

l yez the truth, he doesn't st

my good

half a Prodestan himself, and that it's only the shame that prevents him from goi

s! you o

' throth, I don't think the Papishes

hat brings you out at an illegal ho

near him, poor Paddy Brennan never wants for the good bit and sup, and t

armer, was uncle to the sergeant; a fact which Fergus well knew, in con

r may be easily settled. Let two of the men go back to your

o back with him-I have no objection. If my uncle's people

a man of my age," replied Steen, "when

shirk your duty. But stop-I'll settle it in a word's speaking: here you-you old Papish, where are you?-oh, I see-you're there, are you? Co

kaise, if he is, I know that I'm i

nside of that barn?-Gentlemen, are you ready to

ady, se

blasted Papis

lf. Very well, sir, don't you know that there's a prop on one side to keep up one of the cupples that gave way one stormy

do, my Papish old cock. Come, I say, as every man must have a religion, and since

t smells of treason, I tell you; and if you had spoken these words in the da

at has enough to do to make out his bit and sup. Go on about your business, poor devil; you shan't be molested. Go to my uncle's, where you'll get a bellyfull, and a co

ove a drop of the native, and whose heart besides it expands into a sort of surly kindness that has something comical and not disagreeable in it. In addition to this, he never felt a confidence in his own authority with half the swagger which he did when three quarters gone. Steen and he were never friends, nor indeed was Steen ever a popular man among his acquaintan

Reilly, who had no thoughts of abandoning him to the mercy of the military, without at least knowing his fate, nor, we may add, without a fi

ard everything, and I can tell you that every ner

heir voices, and only that I changed my own a

ghtful; I thought you were go

rgus, "where are we to go? Do you

at woman may b

jog on in that direction, an

scribe the barn-or rather, w

however, the whole thing would not have signified much; but he's a black and deep villain that. Nobody likes him but his brother scoundrel, Whitecraft, and he's a favorite with him, bekaise he's an active and unscrupulous tool in his hands. Many a time, when these men-military-militia-yeomen, or whatever

, but there was a bright turf fire "blinkin' bonnilie" in the fireplace, from which a mellow light emanated that danced upon the few plain plates that were neatly ranged upon her humble dresser, but which fell still

ected you, any way; but come when you will, you're welcome. And

you, Mr. Reilly, take my chair; it's the one you sent me yourself, and if

avy for your frail chair. I will take one of th

ong, which stood upon a bottom that resembled the head of a churn-staff. Such are the lights, and such the candlesticks, that are

you'd be welcome, as I said-and this poor man is welcome too-sit over to the fire, poor

I'm not a taste hungry, and could ait nothing

serve him from evil that gave me the same goats, and that's your four quarthers, Mr. Reilly. But sure every thing I

th my poor mother, and your affection for her in all her trials an

gus, "this is a quiet-lookin

n here is the Almighty-praise and glory be to his name!"-and here she devoutly crossed herself-"bar-rin', indeed, when the light-hearted girshas (youn

a portion of the da

ghbor's house, in a

ersa

rved Reilly, who, however, could with diffi

earts do come at the dusk to help them to carry home their spinning-wheels,

er to find a ball of woollen thread, her principal occupation being the knitting

bachelors, rather than any particular love fo

y, "you know it's the

Fergus, "did the soger

replied, "about six

ndher," he repeated, "c

," she replied, "that had done

. Buckley, and how did

o, but to the revarse. They then searched the cabin, tossed the two beds about-poor Jemmy's-God rest my boy's sowl!-an'-afterwards my own. There was one that seemed to hould authority over the rest, and he axed w

ey say when you

e wasn't sich another among them. They then lighted their pipes, had a smoke,

ous to exterminate the Catholic Church by the rigor of bigoted and inhuman laws, looked upon the fact of a tolerated Papist daring to love a Protestant heiress, and the daughter of a man who was considered such a stout prop of the Establishment, as an act that deserved death itself. Reilly's affection for the Cooleen Bawn was considered, therefore, not only daring but treasonable. Those men, then, he reflected, who had called upon her while in pursuit of the unfortunate priest,

t sit with you for a couple of hours, aft

you are here now, instead of bein' in your own comfortable house. You have bitther enemies; but God-blessed be

pped, became red hot; she then placed the lard in the grisset between them, and squeezed it until nothing remained but pure oil; through this she slowly drew the peeled rushes, which were instantly saturated with the grease, after which she left them on a little table to cool. Among the poorer classes-small farmers and others-this pro