Tag: Custom
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Nettles -New Book 5
Seán Óg McVeigh was a tall man whose body was thin as that of a skeleton, and he would walk around the town in a long, heavy black coat, the hems of which trailed the ground. On his head he would wear a wide-brimmed hat that cast a shadow to hide his bright blue eyes.…
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Tales of a Wake – New Book 3
Seamus Curran was a popular businessman in the town and the news of his sudden death came as a terrible shock to everyone who knew him. From every corner of the town and outlying district people came to the house where his body was being waked to pay their respects to their friend and the…
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Paul’s Story – New Book 2
It was at Mick Harte’s funeral that I first met Paul Quinn, a popular and friendly man who was, before this occasion, a stranger to me. Paul, however, had been a very good friend to my Uncle Mick and he had, I was to discover, helped my father’s brother to avoid the full penalty of…
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Tony Cullen and the Gauger – New Book 1
Young Tony Cullen, if you have never heard of him, was descended from a long line of ‘Poteen-Makers’. It is not surprising then to learn that he was a young man who was filled with a practical wit, wisdom, cunning, and a fertile mind that would help him get out of many dangerous situations. His…
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The Bride
An Irish Poem The bridal veil hangs o’er her brow; The ring of gold is on her finger; Her lips have breathed the marriage vow. Why should she at the altar linger? Why wears her gentle brow a shade? Why dim her eye, when doubt is over? Why does her slender form for aid Lean…
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Poteen Making – Chronicles 6
An Old Established Industry Vulgar legend has it that it was St. Patrick himself who first gave the Irish the wrinkle how to make poteen. A ribald rhymester of the last century hoped to perpetuate this foolish notion when be introduced it into a song which bad a pasting popularity and then followed its author…
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The Chronicles
These are new stories brought to you by the team at ‘Ireland’s Lore and Tales’ My sabbatical is over and it’s time to get writing once again. The difference in these stories and recollections are that they are for the most part factual, taken from records with only names changed to protect the innocent. We…
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Biddy’s – Neil Kelly’s Fortune
An Old Tale of Ireland There was nothing nice or polite about Neil Kelly. He simply told his wife that he was going to the forge to get a ‘doctoring instrument’ and off he went without another word being said. When he arrived at the forge he mumbled a greeting to the blacksmith, who asked…
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Biddy’s – Our Dead Friends
“Our dead Friends are right,” an old man told me after hearing that it was my custom to sit up late at night to read. “No, sir, that isn’t right at all,” he sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. I was curious as to his reasoning and I asked him, “Why is that? “ “Well,”…
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Biddy’s – Good for the Cow
St. John’s Eve Lore At sunset on June 23rd, another of the ancient fire festivals begins and is known as St. John’s Eve. Not that long ago, it was a wide-spread tradition throughout Ireland that on St. John’s Eve a curious practice prevailed, in some districts, which related to the time-honoured tradition of lighting a…
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