A Little Irish Girl by J. M. Callwell — Read

The row home proved to be a long and toilsome one. The dead seal in the bottom of the coracle added no little to its weight, and the wind, which had freshened considerably whilst they were in the cave, was full in their teeth. Added to this, both Lanty and Manus were tired after their exertions, and Norah, who tried taking an oar once or twice to relieve her brother, did not prove a very efficient aid, as indeed could hardly be expected of her, seeing that it was the first time that she had handled that implement of navigation. Their progress accordingly was but slow, and the sun had sunk into the sea, leaving a wondrous rose-red glow behind it, before they rounded Drinane Head, the great black promontory which forms one of the extremities of the bay within which both Moyross and Kilshane lay. Norah was beginning to speculate rather uncomfortably as to whether Roderick and Anstace were likely to have got back from Ballyfin yet, and what they would think of Manus's and her own prolonged absence, when a sudden hail came across the water from the shadows that were beginning to gather under the cliffs, and the next moment a large boat, pulled by four rowers, shot out of the gloom and lay-to beside them.

A most animated and voluble colloquy took place between Lanty and its crew, but as it was carried on wholly in Irish it was, of course, quite unintelligible to the children. However, it was plain from the manner in which Lanty pointed to the dead seal and gesticulated, that he was giving them a graphic account of the slaughter in the cave, and the men, catching hold of the gunwale of the coracle, peered over at the slain sea-monster and evinced their astonishment and admiration by uncouth and guttural exclamations. The steersman, a wild-looking, red-bearded man, doffed his battered head-gear to Norah and Manus, saying in English: