I

ADVENTURES OF A SCHO

LAR.

those who have been as intimate as I with the lower ranks of the Irish, can ever estimate rightly the qualities

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HAVING arrived at the place of my destination, I produced my good spiritual father's credentials and was accordingly hospitably and cordially received by the honest farmers in the neighbourhood. Every door was thrown open at my approach, and every countenance expressed the warm candid welcome of the heart. Hospitality is the distinguishing mark which is stampt peculiarly on the Irish soul, and at this early period of my life I rejoiced to behold it manifested to myself. Such was the natural politeness of those people who were stigmatized with the gentle epithet of barbarous, such the unceremonious sympathy with which I was received, that by a kind of impulse which perhaps no one butan Irishman can feel, I instantly conceived myself at home; was as much at my ease as in the parlour of my patrons whom I had left-no obtrusive compliment-no studied or affected attention put me in mind that I was to be a dependant or stung my delicacy, they knew not the polish of corrupted society, but they knew and spoke the pure and genuine glow of feeling which springs from the heart. Amongst the farmers about the washbin. Denis O'Flanagan was richer than the rest, and he intended also to make his eldest son a priest-one of father O'Mealy's letters was directed to him and he insisted that I should become an inmate in his family There were already with him five poor scholars from Connaught, who like me destined themselves for the catholic ministry. It was here that I first began to form my opinion of the character of my countrymen, and even now I aver that no one but

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gan's family consisted of himself, his wife and eleven children, six sons and five daughters, his father and grandfather, two venerable old men who lived with him. He had also a grand uncle a superannuated clergyman whom age forced from the duties of his profession into retire. ment, and who was just hanging over the grave. The whole family spoke Irish almost with classical purity, the language being taught by the master at the washbin.-Amongst our occasional visitors were the parish priest and his curate who dined with us every sunday. In this family, and in this delightful country I began my classic studies. Here was I wont wander, comparing the sublimity of Homer's and Virgil's descriptions with the grandeur of nature or declaiming the eloquence of Cicero to the echo of the surrounding moun tains. How often have I in the ardour of imagination metamorphosed a blasted oaken trunk into a Cataline and poured out against it all the animated and envenomed oratory of that celebrated master- and when the studious toil of the day was over, what a luxurious banquet of the soul did I not enjoy in the bosom of our family. We might be seen sitting all together round a blazing fire of turves with mute attention devouring the stories of other times told by the old clergyman and the old O'Flanagan's. To hear the tales of those virtuous men whose youths were spent in turbulence and adversity in all the various energy and pathos of their native tongue, fired our souls with the noblest enthusiasm, and sowed in us those prejudices of country which are the ground work of real patriotism. Our blood ran cool with horror as the

martyr's blood ran afresh in the histories of the clergyman-and a throb and a sigh for virtuous vengeance convulsed every bosom. He possessed all the faculties of his mind unimpaired ad calling up all his powers, he displayed the force of genius and truth in the effect which his descriptions produced. Almost all his tales are DOW worn off my memory by time. except the relation of one atorcious legal murder and its attendont consequences, which made at the time so strong an impression on my mind that it will only die with the power of recollection itself. "Father Sullivan," said he "was the friend of my heart-we were born in the same village, we were reared together -we made our studies in the same college and returned to the mission of our poor country with strong forebodings of future misfortune. He was sent to a parish near Clonmell, and I resided about twenty miles distant from him. The persecution against the clergy then raged with its greatest fury, and every day saw a new victim to intolerance perish on the scaffold. My dear Sullivan was a man of genius and of intrepid courage, and as he braved by his r solution the menaces of brutal power, so by his vigilance he counteracted the treachery of the informer. Ever prudent he spent his nights in the cabins amongst the mountains and on the sabbath, he celebrated the mass for his parishioners in the open fields, under the shade of a tree, or the covering of a ditch. This circumspection only served to irritate his persecutors-they thirsted for his blood and were determined to gain possession of his person by any means however dishonourable or foul-Accordingly a J--e of peace in the neighbourhood a wretch whose baseness fitted him for the dirtiest work of infamy, conceived the most diabolical plan for apprehending his

person and taking away his life.This ruffian was an apostate Roman Catholic, who read his recantation and deserted the religion of his fathers to get possession of the property which his parent possessed.--As it might be expected, that before his death he would perhaps repent and embrace his early faith, he thought it not improbable that father Sullivan would attend hir, if he pretended illness and sent for the clergyman in his last moments. He accordingly feigned himself sick and sent one of his infamous accomplices, for the priest. The dear man obeying the dictate of his duty immediately ran with joy to receive into the bosom of his church the supposed dying man. As the very fact of his being a popish priest was sufficient to hang him the plot of this miscreant was of a more deadly and infernal natur It was his intention to receive the sacrament from the hands of the priest, that the witnesses might serve the double purpose of seizing his person and proving his criminality. But mark the wonderful justice of God, who. though in general slow to punish the wicked, yet at times makes a dreadful offering at its injured shrine. No sooner was the host reached to the lips of the pretended penitent than his guilty spirit fled him and he appeared a hideous corpse. But this miracle of Almighty power worked no change on the accomplices of the departed wretch."

"They were the more incensed and accused him of being assisted by the devil. Having him now in their hands, they were determined to shed his blood and accordingly charged him with the murder of the man to whom he was about to administer the last consolation of his church. The body of the deceased became so black and foetid that it suggested the idea of poison and my

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humane and pious brother was in consequence arraigned of the foulest deed which the most depraved or most savage could perpetrate. But to what length will not human malice go aided in its machinations by the very machinery of hell-Monsters in human shape were found so abandoned as to become perjured witnesses against the man of God and a jury was found wicked enough to receive the deposition of their bare faced, unblushing perjury. Oh how my heart was torn when I saw the mild and innocent partner of my affection (for I was in disguise at the trial) with his hand raised at the bar of a wicked tribunal and branded as a murderer. But my sorrow was unavailing, these old cheeks were furrowed with tears but they flowed in vain. A verdict of guilty was de. livered by the jury and away was he dragged by merciless unfeeling men amidst their rude and barbarous scoffings which the sacredness of his character only served to encrease. Holy spirit! I saw thee give up thy pious soul to thy Maker thy wounded mind in him alone found consolation; this nether world was too gross and too corrupt for thee to dwell in. Thou art with him whose providence. has I hope, still some happiness unshewn, for that poor country which thou hast left behind and in which

we yet remain the scoff of nations and the contempt of men (here the old man's utterance failed him his feelings appeared too powerful for expression but after a pause and fetch. ing a few deep sighs he continued.)

Indeed my dear people I beg pardon for my weakness, but it is the weak. ness of an old man who loved his friend and who loves his country. My dearest friend bled igno.mimously like his first master on the scaffold but the omnipotence of God has blasted the immediate authors of the nefarious catastrophe from amongst the living. 'Tis a solace to me that my years are prolonged so far as to have seen every man who acted a part in his murder, taken away by some signal vengeance and made examples to future times of the detestation of heaven. Not one of the twelve who were on his jury but has rushed out of existence in an instant without even a warning sign from providence to expiate their crimes or to depecrate his wrath. So did poor father Sullivan suffer and so have suffered thousands like him whose sole crime in those terrible days of blood was nothing but their priesthood."*

With such tales as these did the old clergyman consume our nights at the sarue time instructing us in the history of our country and forming our younger minds to patriotism and to virtue.