VILLAGE INDUSTRIES 293 



Once more Mrs. Partington got out her broom. The gombeeners 

 would kill their foe by outbidding him. That would be at a loss — 

 but, they thought, only a temporary one, to give them afterwards 

 all the freer play. So they formed a common fund to bear the loss 

 while it lasted. Once more, Mr. Gallagher was not to be done. 

 " They want eggs," he thought, " well, bygorra, they shall have 

 them." There were plenty to be had at the new price. They got 

 them, and they did not like the loss. It became too heavy to 

 please them, and so they gave up the game. 



That, however, was not all Mr. Gallagher's plan by a long way. 

 The Dungloe people were to stay at home and earn good wages there. 

 He decided upon starting a hosiery business. Hosiery goods are in 

 large request, and the making of them is fairly easy to learn. 

 He set up his plant and was fortunate — I think that is how it came 

 about — in obtaining a contract for gloves from the War Office. 

 It was his tact that secured that. The hosiery business soon became 

 a flourishing thing, and now there are about 100 girls employed in it 

 regularly, earning from £1 to £1 10s. a week — besides about 300 

 outsiders working in their homes on and off, as their work may be 

 required. There is no longer any need to go to Scotland for work. 

 And gombeen tyranny is overpast. 



Now if this could be done in Dungloe, among perfectly untrained 

 peasantry, it ought to be possible also elsewhere. The work itself 

 presents no serious difficulty. The point is to train Gallaghers. 

 That can be done, but it is not likely that learned " silks " and 

 gallant majors and captains will do it. " County agents " or 

 " county representatives " might. 



However, our interest in the present connection lies specifically 

 with the by-industries likely to serve as financial props to the 

 agricultural small holding and labour, securing to the small agricul- 

 tural worker occupation in off-time, as shorteners of weary hours 

 and additional fillers of his pocket. Now among such, in what is 

 practically a tabula rasa, selection is not altogether easy. We 6iiall 

 have to bear the limitation just indicated to our purpose in mind. 

 For instance, such industries as the making of apply jelly, which 

 Sir John Green very seasonably recommends in his book on " Rural 

 Industries " as a new and useful discovery, is under our present 

 aspect a little off the point. Clearly, apple jelly making and such 

 like industries will have to rank as agricultural industries by the 

 side of beetroot sugar making or the distilling of alcohol from 

 potatoes. Useful as the suggestion is, it is just a little astonishing 

 that the discovery on which it is based was not made earlier. For 



