STONING THE LAND 185 



* Get hold of a good English workman and you 

 can't beat him the world through ' ? Well, when 

 we got outside, Pats says, ' So it's an Englishman 

 will be the first workman, in her way of thinking. 

 Well, there may be room here for a Canadian 

 Roddy,' he says, ' but after that an Irishman will be 

 after taking the trail.' " 



• • • • 



I had mastered milking and become quite in- 

 dependent about wood and water, but I had found 

 out in some indefinable sort of way that Roddy 

 McMahon hated working alone. It was true that 

 every evening after work was over he went off to 

 his uncle or his cousin, whose farms were within 

 easy reach ; but all the men who came along voted 

 him good company, and men who are good com- 

 pany seldom care about being much alone. I 

 remembered the Creegans' visitor, and went down 

 the next day to offer him the job of second man, as 

 I was particularly anxious not to risk any hindrance 

 to the work on the land. I could see the work was 

 going ahead, and I didn't want to part with the man, 

 who seemed always a bit of the land. 



" I was recommended a man who has just come 

 out, the other day," I told him at dinner-time. 

 " I'll go down this afternoon and see if he is still 

 disengaged. Next year's seed-bed, I see, is the 

 first consideration, and you shan't have the smallest 

 interruption if I can avoid it." 



" Breaking land and leaving the stones ain't 

 right," he agreed. " I tried getting off the plough 

 and turning up the biggest fellows myself. But it 

 ain't any sort of job, an' makes a man mad. Pat 

 he ought to have stopped on. Hardwick got out a 



