School: Knocktemple (B.)
- Location:
- Knockatemple, Co. Cavan
- Teacher: W. Tuite
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0998, Page 203
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- XML “The Famine Period”
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- (continued from previous page)From the same old man, who died many years ago, I heard that McEnroes of Carrick "Macs" as they were known, would not allow the starving peasantry to take a turnip off their land while Old Sergeant - who was the landlord's agent, and by all accounts, a great scoundrel had humanity enough to allow them to take one or two turnips from his fields and had a notice put up beside his armed watchman which as far as I recollect, from the old man's story, read something like the following:-
"If you're dry, take one
If you're hungry, take two
But if you take three
I'll take you".
The worst of The Famine was over before Relief Works were started, these took the form of new roads and improvements to existing ones. The new road made in this parish was from the Lurganboy Road to the Munterconnaught Road. It is about a mile long and a good part of it was made through bogs - Crohan and Beherna. A large number of people were employed at it, the wages were low but a boiler was erected at the Munterconnaught end of the road, at which people received gruel made from Indian meal. I am unable to state was this part of the wages.
Two hills, one on Munterconnaught Road and the other on Lurganboy Road were removed. These three were called Public Works but Sergeant had control of operations and his decisions were not questioned; all the works tended to improve the Estate(continues on next page)
