THE BALLYHILLY STEEPLECHASE 



T was a disastrous day 

 to the fair fame of 

 the 0' Grady genealo- 

 gical plant — root, stem 

 and branch — when that 

 worthy scion of it, yclept 

 Denis, lamented the de- 

 cay of sport and sports- 

 men in Ballyhilly, as one 

 evening he sat over his 

 pipe and " poteen " 

 in the village inn. 

 Arrah ! " said he, " what can ye expect of a lot iv 

 tay-dhrinkin' gossoons iv fellows that spends their 

 evenin's shootin' ' marvels ' ? An' as for throwin' their 

 leg over a horse an' takin' a fence, sure I've seen 

 monkeys in the circus that knows more about it ; an' 

 begorra, if ye talked about a steeplechase, they'd stare 

 at ye like a dead hake, and think ye're spakin' iv climbin' 

 the church spire. Sure, ould an' all as I am, be my 

 sowl, it's meself'd give the best man iv them, for ten 

 miles round, a couple iv stone and a batin' over the 

 Punchestown coorse, or three mile an' a half across any 

 counthry he'd like to name." 



" Niver yet did I know boastin' man as good as his 



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