Cromwell Doolan, Or Life in the Army

LIE) RARY OF THE U N I VERSITY or ILLINOIS L.579 V.2- CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, LIFE IN THE ARMY. BY THE AUTHOR OF "ECHOES FROM THE BACKWOODS," &C. &C. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. II. LONDON: HENRY COLBURN, PUBLISHER. .GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET. 1849. : LONDON Printed by Schulze and Co., 13, Poland Street. ; CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, LIFE IN THE ARMY. CHAPTER I. All in a hot and copper sky, The bloody sun at noon. Right up above the mast did stand. No bigger than the moon. ^' About, about, in reel and route The death-fires danced at night The water, like a witch's oils. Burnt green, and blue, and white. COLERIDGE. It is now necessary that we should recur to the Doolan family ; and, for that purpose, must conduct the reader to the neighbourhood of Multifarnham. VOL. II. B 2 CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, Three-and-twenty years -had elapsed since the murder of the O'Neil, and Terence Doolan had remained in quiet but not peaceful possession of the property. His guilty conscience knew no rest ; he could never look forth from the door or window of his house, but his glance lighted upon the Rock of Tyfamham : —there it stood, a grim sentinel, a perpetual torment to his guilty conscience. Cowardly, suspicious, and in perpetual dread, he instituted a kind of inquisi- tion in the county, in order to discover if the remotest evidence against him existed. ^ Having received some intimation which led him to suspect that a family living near the church of Laney were in possession of his secret, he determined on their destruction. The rendezvous agreed upon with the " Rockites," hired to do the deed, was a mountain ash, of a peculiar form, embowered in a wooded recess, directly under " the Green Garden," on the side of Knock-Ion. LIFE IN THE ARMY. 3 Doolan's conscience was unusually troubled that evening ; he was more than usually nervous, and drank deep. During the day there had been repeated heavy thunder-showers. When the sun was about to set, suddenly, one of those extraordinary effects occasionally to be seen before the great luminary sinks below the horizon, manifested itself. A pitchy-dark thunder-cloud brought out in relief the most clearly- defined and brilliant rainbow, reflected in dupli- cate ; the purple waters of Lough Dereverragh contrasted with the golden yeUow of all that should be green, and the mass of purple bog became, as it were, a sea of copper. In a few minutes there was a change ; flashes of forked lightning darted through, and lit up the dense masses of the thunder-clouds, while the lake and adjoining bogs became coal-black. The sun was fast descending, and the Moat of Granard appeared for a moment as if on fire, to be, in the next, extinguished. B 2 — 4 CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, Suddenly, the Rock of Tyfarnham flashed into light, of an unearthly bronze in colour, and, as the sun disappeared and sunk below the horizon, it changed its form, and, to the harrowed soul of the murderer, appeared, in strong relief, a burning profile of the last of the O'Neil. Gradually, as the great luminary descended, the front of the rock seemed to turn directly towards the miscreant, until a full face, with the two eyes like burning balls of fire, stared full upon Doolan ; then all gradually faded into a cold leaden hue, and the likeness disappeared. The murderer stood rooted to the spot. The thunder- clouds which had hastened the night-fall passed directly in rear of the Rock of Tvfarnham, and caused it once more to assume the form of a human being, that of the wild man of Clonave. It was twenty years since Doolan had last seen him, but his likeness was as faithfully represented to his agitated brain as had been that of the O'Neil. LIFE IN THE ARMY. O The black clouds now seemed to gather round the whole mountain, and the very dress of the monster was as faithfully represented as were his features; a rugged coppice wood, extending from the base of the hill up half of its side, took the form of the mass of rags which had covered his person, whilst all above—naked and bare, lit up by flashes of lightning, which now began to dart through the sky, represented the un- shorn and shaggy head of Pierce Flynn. A thunderbolt ploughed up the earth close to Terence Doolan's feet, and all was lost in darkness. Trembling, intoxicated, and feverish, Doolan retired to his bed, but it was not until morning that he fell into a disturbed sleep. He fancied himself in a dark hollow way, overhung on every side by rocks, which, in time, began gradually to close upon him from all sides ; he writhed in bed, as the fancied rocks encircled him : in a moment they would reach him. He awoke. A bright moon-beam streamed through the — 6 CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, room; he thought he heard voices under his window, and stole towards it. It was impossible to be mistaken. There stood Pierce Flynn, the wild man of Clonave, in conversation with Roddy, the man whom Terence Doolan had con- trived to get transported. So little altered were they, that a momentary glance was sufficient to convince Doolan of their presence ; nor did he doubt that he was the subject of their conversation : Pierce Flynn was pointing to his window. They disappeared amongst the laurels and shrubs which fringed the terrace. In the morning, the sun rose as it had set a coppery hue first tinged the Rock ofTyfarn- ham, and gradually diffused its light through the hazy mists which hung over the waters of Dereverragh, and enveloped the whole land- scape in a mass of fog, from which the rock alone stood forth. Early that morning, Doolan was informed that his boat was ready, and he embarked to keep his appointment under the " Green Garden." LIFE IN THE ARMY. 7 By the time appointed, Doolan had gained the place of rendezvous, and, true to their words, some eight or ten were there to meet him. The plot against the unfortunate family at Laney was arranged ; the whole party commenced an attack upon a cask of potheen whisky, which Doolan had brought with him, and, in a very short time, became exceedingly intoxicated, one man alone excepted ; he maintained a sullen " silence ; declared that he had taken an oath," and would not touch it. Under the influence of the potheen, Terence Doolan revealed to the assembled party a portion of his awftil dream of the night before, and mentioned the circumstance of his having seen Pierce Flynn and Roddy. This was laughed at by all, with the exception of the man who had declined to drink. They declared that it was well known in the country that Pierce had been lost on Lough Sheelan many years pre- viously. ; 8 CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, The man who had not indulged in the whisky, shook his head, in disbelief. This was not lost upon Terence Doolan, it sobered him in an instant. Scarcely had the destruction of the wild man of Clonave in the ice of Lough Sheelan been asserted by the men, when the leaves of the mountain ash began to be gently agitated ; slight cat's-paws partially ruffled the hitherto glassy surface of the calm water dense clouds began to collect, and to close round the horizon on all sides. A clap of thunder, preceded by a vivid flash of lightning, was a signal for one of the most awful storms which had ever broke over those hills ; the rain descended in torrents, but had not sufficient power to beat down the fearful sea which arose on the lake. For some time the party paid little attention to the raging of the elements, and had w^ell nigh finished the whisky, when a tremendous crash was heard overhead, and an enormous ; LIFE IN THE ARMY. 9 fragment of rock was precipitated amongst them. All was consternation ; they fled in every direction. Terence Doolan made his way to the water's edge. The lake was one mass of white foam ; a huge water-spout appeared to connect the angry waves with the inky-black heavens ; it would be impossible to return that night to his home by water, so, taking advantage of a slant of wind, he reached the opposite shore, near the base of Knock-Body ; there left his boat, and sought his home on foot. The only road which, at that time, led to Multifarnham, passed through the Glen of the Dark Mile : the place already described as that in which, three-and-twenty years before, Doolan had planned the murder of the O'Neil. He had never been in the Glan Mille Dhu since indeed, he had always carefully avoided the spot. By the time that he had reached the Glen, night had completely superseded the imperfect twilight, B 3 10 CROMWELL DOOLAN; OR, and rendered this hollow and dreaded pass pitchy dark. Terence found himself suddenly stopped by high rocks, which encompassed him on every side ; the awful dream of the previous night took possession of his senses. Suddenly, he was seized from behind ; his mouth was forced open, and a huge stone thrust in ; his hands were tied behind his back, and he was driven forward until he came into a lighter atmosphere. His dream was realized ; he, at a glance, became aw^are of Roddy's presence, while, in solemn silence, the wild man of Clonave continued to urge him forward.

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