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Show A FAMINE INCIDENT. A touching incident of the Irish famine is told by the Dublin Mail as follows. As the Executive Committee of the Relief Fund were about to hold their meeting last Thursday, two little boys, half-naked, travel-stained and barefooted, sought admission to the castle, stating that they had walked all the way from Skibbereen, county of Cork, to plead for help to pay their father's rent. Not in the least abashed, they told their story. They were the sons of Pat McCarty, near Skibbereen. The times were so bad he could not pay the "rint." and he owed eight pounds. He could only scrape together six pounds." The two children, who had seen respectively twelve and fourteen summers, thought they would ask the good Duchess of Marlborough to give "daddy" the two pounds. Away they started for Dublin. The journey, upwards of two hundred miles, occupied three weeks. Her Grace gratified them by promising to send their father the two pounds. The poor little fellows seemed dumb-founded. At last, innate reverence came to the rescue, and the elder of the two gave their native benediction, "God bless your ladyship." They were then taken to the clothesroom, and their tattered garments changed fro new suits. Having been regaled with a substantial dinner, they were brought before the ladies of the committee, who rewarded the brave adventurers with a pocketful of silver. On the same day, adds the paper, Mr. Fitzgerald, Assistant Secretary to Her Grace's Relief Fund, wrote to the Rev. J. Wall, parish priest, enclosing a post office order for two pounds, payable to McCarthy, the father of the boys. |