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Journal of the Irish Folk Song Society, Volume 6, Issue 26, Page 60

Journal of the Irish Folk Song Society, Volume 6, Issue 26, Page 60
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periodical Publisher
Irish Folk Song Society
periodical Editor
[Periodical]
periodical Title
Journal of the Irish Folk Song Society
volume Number
6
issue Content
104105was the fair sister of Mrs. Coiethan, the celebrated Bose ODornin, afterwards well-known by the appellation of Rots bheag dhubh, i.e. Sweet little Bose of the coal-black hair, with whom he was passionately in love an4 who, perhaps, is the heroine ofmany of his anonymous compositions. He was afterwards married to Miss ODornio andduring her lifetime, which was but short, he lived comfortably at Meeog, on part of hisbrother-in-law Colemans lands. His compositions during the time he lived at Meeog werenot many. It is well-known, however,, that it was there he composed his Eachtra anGheerdin Bhdin,l for an old horse of Colemans which he was obliged to ride on a journey,and his satire on the strolling poet whom he put to flight..Ei bheag dhubh did not live long after her marriage with our bard, and we hearof no children left by her. After her death, Mr. and Mrs. Coleman became less solicitousfor the welfare of the bard and he being a man of a proud inclination scorned to bearthe least umbrage ftom anybody, and consequently left Meeog and that part of the counti yentirely. From this place he steered for Drogheda, where he remained a considerable time. At his return to Kilcurry, he was in company one evening in Dundalk where MarcellaThompson was one of the company, and she, fearing to be deprived at an earlier hour thanshe and all the company wished of the bards presence, slipped unknown to all to the barda bonn ocht greta, a piece of 2/8j, in order to call for more drink, It was there he oom-.posed his Madge Thompson. At a visit he paid his friends at Kilcurry he composedabout the same time his Sheamu8 Mhac Moineanta, on the Li. ,liath near BaJ.robin, mid-summer day.Johnston of the Pews, being unwilling to be at enmity with the bard, sent him wordthat he might keep a school unmolested any place he chose. This was a favourable in-vitation to him, because be preferred to live in the lower part of the County of Louth. Heaccordingly began to teach in the neighbourhood of Lo hross, in the County of Armagh;but took good care to conceal himself every night lest Cormac na gCeann , Shane Parrabacaci, or some of Johnstons murderers might seize on him and cut off his head. Johnston,who was well aware of the distrust which our bard had in him, and always dreading thesatiric lash of him, especially as he was now, from the accursed price of blood, and thatfor the most part innocent blood become rich, and intended to claim some respect amonghis countrymen, and provide for family and friends far beyond their grade in life, could hekeep the tongue of ODornin silent; he, therefore, as the last shift he could have recourseto, invited the Catholic clergy, all his neighbours and especially our bard to a feast on thetop of Slieve Gullen. ODornin did not decline to accept his invitation, because he wellknew that Johnston could not hurt him among his neighbours and friends. After the feastthe bards were called to shew their skill, and it was here that he was unanimously calledupon and forced by his friends, neighbours and by the whole assembly to compose his songto Sheon Johnston. After this, our bard and Johnston were perfectly reconciled, butthe reconciliation was short; for our bard always hated Johnston for his cruelty and for1 Printed in the County Louth Arclasoiogioa2 Journal, III, p. 377.Apparently not extant.* Ditto.Printed ibid., p. 381. References to this fairy king are numerous; see 4n tllltach,V, 2, p. 2 and 860 also Joyce (1873), p. 2 and Joyce (1909), p. 199 for a poem inEnglish of which he is the hero, with the appropriate tune. Probably Loch Ross, east of Crossmaglen. Apparently not extant.his desire to extirpate the name of an Irishman wherever he could, and did not court hiefamiliarity or friendship much.The unfortunate and ill-fated, though innocent, bard James Murphy, who was one ofthe persons at Slieve Gullen feast and a favourite of Johnstons, was wrongfully sent tojail on suspicion of being privy to the stealing of a hor8e from a man named Body nearOaatletown. This Murphy deluded a young woman, whom he afterwards abandoned, and she,in revenge, to cause a rupture between Murphy and Johnston, applied to our bard to com-pose a song for her.against Johnston. Our bard, not foreseeing the evil consequences aboutto follow, easily complied to her wishes and composed Eiriceach na gCeann, i.e., TheHeretic Head-Cutter. This evil-minded woman gave out that Murphy was the composer.The story reached the ears of Johnston, who vowed to be revenged of Murphy for hisungratefulness. Accordingly, on the day of his trial Johnston interfered and caused the juryto find the innocent man guilty. Poor Murphy was hanged. In vain did our bard protestthat he was the composer; in vain did the innocent man declare that he was not the com-poser. Johnston, enraged because he was exposed for his crimes and pointed at by thefinger of scorn, resolved at any rate to have one person sacrificed to his rage, especiallybecause he could do it under sanction of the laws of the land, withcut incurring the blamealtogether, and to shew his power and teach the surviving bards a lesson not to provokehis resentment suffered the poor innocent victim to die.The spleen of Johnston was daily increased against our bard and vowed to be revengedon him for his bitter invectiv s, which our bard hearing was forced to fly the countryagain. Some think that it was to Leitrim and others to Cavan he fled. But it is said thatJohnston got a reward set out for his apprehension, as being a person ill-disposed towardsthe King and a favourite of the Pretender, and for stirring the people up to rebel by histreasonable compositions. He remained a long time away and very little is known about hishistory during that period, or about his compositions; and it is said that Johnston and hisbloodhounds were scouring the neighbourhood in which our bard then livedsome say insearch of himand that he was taken prisoner by a party of White Boys or Hearts of Oak,who, discovering who he was, immediately prepared to hang him on the next tree. Fortu-nately for Johnston, it is [ to] our bard he was brought in order to sentence him. Our bardhaving now his mortal enemy in his power, it would be natural to man to not hesitate p.moment in pronouncing that sentence which he deserved of him to be put in execution,and which his cruelties, murders, etc. long since deserved. But by the sequel we can seehow clement and how mild was the polished genius and Christian. ODornin, instead ofrejoicing to find this avowed persecutor in his power, was rather grieved: he was unwillingto wreak that vengeance upon him which the ordinary course of human nature demanded.Johnston, seeing ODornin hi judge, expected nothing but immediate death. ODorninsaluted Johnston in a friendly manner and asked him what news from home, or was thePenal Code enforced still with severity; to which Johnston did not answer a syllable.ODornin asked him then, was a reward set by the Government upon his heed; to which theguilty Johnston answered in the negative. Well then, Johnston, said ODornin, Iknow there is, though I did not deserve to be thus treated; but ill-fated Ireland is madethe object, and her children the victims of your diabolical persecution. But Johnston,1 Apparently not extant. The story of James Murphy is finely told in Irish by the Rev. L. P. Murrayin An tUitach, IV, 1, pp. 14 and 8 (February, 1927), with a lamentation for him andappropriate air. Another air for the same lamentation is in Joyce (1909), p. 257,The Lamentation of James Murphy (Seumas Us, Morochoe).I
issue Number
26
page Number
60
periodical Author
[Periodical]
issue Publication Date
1967-01-01T00:00:00
allowedRoles
anonymous,guest,friend,member

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