Page:Darby O'Gill and the Good People by Herminie Templeton Kavanagh (1903).djvu/111

Rh “While I think of it,” says the fairy-man, a vexed frown wrinkling over his forehead, “there’s three young bachelors in your own parish that have a foolish habit of callin’ their colleens angels whin they’s not the laste likeness—not the laste. If I were you, I’d preach agin it,” says he.

“Oh, I dunno about that!” says Father Cassidy, fitting a live coal on his pipe. " The crachures say thim things. If a young bachelor only talks sensible to a sensible colleen he has a good chanst to stay a bachelor. An thin agin, a gossoon who’ll talk to his sweetheart about the size of the petatie crop’ll maybe bate her whin they’re both married. But this has nothing to do with your historical obserwaytions. Go on, King,” he says.

“Well, I hate foolishness, wherever it is,” says the fairy. “Howsumever, as I was saying, up there in heaven they called us the Little People,” he says; “millions of us flocked together, and I was the King of them all. We were happy with one another as birds of the same nest, till the ruction came on betwixt the black and the white angels.

“How it all started I never rightly knew, nor wouldn’t ask for fear of getting implicayted. I bade Rh