Liam O'Flaherty - Land

“Oh! The outrageous creatures!” cried Elizabeth.

“That last cast was more than I could stand,” cried Ahearn, turning back towards Raoul. “I let fly at a young fellow that stood near me. He’s a scrawny gaum of a lad named Tony Regan, the tailor’s eldest son. He went head over heels into the drain beside the cooper’s house. Then skin and hair began to fly. They pelted me with everything they could throw. Soon they got me down and began to kick me. Only for the police came, there wouldn’t be enough left on my bones to feed a wren. Dr. McCarthy tidied up the cuts at the dispensary. The police wanted me to prefer charges, but I refused, knowing you wouldn’t want me to have anything to do with the law.”

“Poor Tim!” Elizabeth said. “It’s horrible to think there are such miscreants in the village.”

“This is bad news,” Raoul said dejectedly. “Very bad news, indeed.”

Ahearn took a pace forward and cried arrogantly:

“The people are turning against your honour, just as I said they would.”

“Don’t listen to that fool,” Annie Fitzpatrick cried angrily. “Your honour, he doesn’t know what he is saying.”

“I know well what I’m saying,” Ahearn said. “There are rumours that martial law is going to be declared. So the people are turning tail at the first sign of trouble.”

“You’re a liar,” Annie Fitzpatrick said.

“I’m not, then,” cried Ahearn. “I tell you there was a big crowd there to-day and they were all hostile. The people are fair-weather friends, Mr. Raoul. I knew they would turn against you.”

“Stop casting on the people, you drunken liar,” Annie Fitzpatrick said as she began to thump Ahearn on the chest. “The people are loyal, I say.”

“I tell you they are cowards,” Ahearn shouted. “There was a big crowd there attacking me.”

“Silence, both of you,” Raoul said. “God’s belly! Am I never going to succeed in teaching you two the meaning of the word ‘dignity’?”

The two servants made a respectful bow to their master. Yet they continued to argue in restrained tones.

“I couldn’t let him accuse the people of being disloyal,” Annie said.

“You know me, sir,” Ahearn insisted. “I wouldn’t say there was a big crowd, unless there was a big crowd.”

“There was no crowd there,” Annie said; “only a handful of fools.”

“That’s enough now,” Elizabeth said. “You’ll annoy your master. Take Tim to the dining-room, Annie, and give him some brandy.”

“God spare your health, Miss Elizabeth,” Ahearn said with enthusiasm.

“Not too much brandy, Annie,” Raoul said. “I’m anything but pleased with his conduct.”

Ahearn was halfway to the door when he heard this last remark. He rushed back towards Raoul with outstretched hands.

“Wasn’t I ready to offer up the last drop of my blood for your honour?” he cried in an outraged tone.

“I don’t require your blood,” Raoul said. “You shouldn’t have provoked these stupid people. You have probably started something that might very well prove disastrous for my plans.”

“Raoul, how can you abuse a servant that has shown his loyalty in such a remarkable way?” said Elizabeth indignantly.

“Be off,” Raoul said to Ahearn. “Drink your brandy before I get really annoyed with you. Drink all you please. You are an incorrigible idiot. I don’t see any further use in trying to improve you.”

Annie Fitzpatrick seized Ahearn and pushed him towards the door in triumph.

“That’ll teach you,” she cried vindictively, “never again to say there was a crowd when there was no crowd.”

She opened the door and then drew back with a cry of surprise.

“Glory be to God!” she said. “It’s Miss Lettice herself.”

Lettice rushed into the room and cried out in triumph:

“We won.”

She halted a little way from the door and seemed undecided whether to go towards her father or her aunt. She looked quite as slender as a child in her grey riding habit. She was carrying her little hat in her hand. Her red hair was shining, as if the dew of the mountains still clung to it. She finally decided on going to her father first. She kissed him hurriedly and then rushed to Elizabeth.

“Dearest aunt,” she whispered, as she threw herself into Elizabeth’s outstretched arms.

They began to sob as they embraced. Then they went towards the terrace, each with an arm around the other’s waist.

“Upon my word!” Raoul muttered. “I am surrounded by hysteria of all sorts.”

Michael came into the room as the two servants were again making their way out into the hall. He looked distraught and ill at ease.

“More power to you!” Annie Fitzpatrick said to him reverently, as she went out.

“Lord have mercy on the dead!” Tim Ahearn said, making a little curtsy.

“Well?” Raoul said as Michael crossed the floor. “How did things turn out?”

“Everything went exactly as you planned,” Michael said.

“Sit down and tell me about it,” Raoul said as he began to pace the floor.

Michael sat on the sofa and said:

“We held them along the southern approach to the valley until sunset of the day before yesterday. When they reached the bridge, we blew it up in their faces. They turned back, circled the valley and halted at Carragh for the night. The auxiliaries fled from that village, when we began sniping after midnight. We learned also that a fight broke out at the hotel between Butcher and Head Constable Reilly. They fell downstairs from the second floor; locked in one another’s arms. Reilly broke his leg and Butcher got badly cut about the face. They were taken to the hospital at Clash. In the morning, the remainder of the column came up the pass. There again we managed to delay them until three o’clock in the afternoon. Most of them were exhausted by the time they reached the summit. I drew off my men at that point, according to your plan, giving Lettice charge of the defence. The police charged the barricades with fixed bayonets. The women met them with volleys of stones, breaking up the first charge before it could come to close quarters. District Inspector Fenton got thrown from his horse. One of the deputy inspectors took command and rallied the police. They came again with their bayonets levelled. Their blood was up, so the volleys of stones did not stop them. Neither did the women flinch. Some gripped the bayonets with their naked hands. Others poured boiling water from buckets on to the heads of the police. The line was pierced at one point and a party of police broke into the rear. A reserve group of big women immediately went into action with cudgels. They were as big and strong as men, barefooted, with their red skirts tied up about their waists and heavy shawls wrapped round their skulls for protection against the carbine butts. They yelled as they charged and used their blackthorn cudgels with great skill. The fight lasted for about ten minutes. Then the police broke. The whole line followed suit. They all ran for their lives down the mountain.”

“Anybody seriously hurt?” Raoul said.

“One woman got a deep bayonet wound in her thigh,” Michael said, “but the doctor said it’s not really serious. Apart from that, there were only torn palms, bruises and a few bones broken. A number of the police were burned and a large number of them got their skulls cracked, but nobody was fatally injured. Fenton was only stunned. He was able to ride back to Clash.”

“Good,” said Raoul. “By killing one of them, we would merely give the Government an excuse for taking strong measures. Our object is to teach our people how to fight. We must do nothing that would endanger the first feeble stirring of that fighting spirit. We can’t expose it to the stern test of real battle at birth. You did well.”