And at that, Moll did turn about and waddle off. And she never let on but it was a real fact about Peetcheen being in America. Sure, maybe she believed it herself! A body that does as much talking as Moll might get confused betimes. But a few evenings after that, she ventured over to Caffreys’ again. She was most anxious to get back to that house; so she wanted to find out how it was going on with Julia and her American plan. She found her, fighting rings round her with the old woman, and abusing Peetcheen into the dirt.
“Sure, what at all! wasn’t it only sthrivin’ to better himself he was?” said Moll; “a good steady poor boy he was, always and ever!”
It was like oil on lit turf to Julia, to hear her put in a good word for Peetcheen. When you want the woman to come round, in the case of any little difference between her and the husband, you should find all the fault you can with him. Then you’ll find the wife will wear horns, and stand up for her husband, and turn on you. And Moll knew that as well as any one. She could see how mad Julia would get, when she and old Mrs. Caffrey would be all for compassionating Peetcheen, and saying how good he was, and all to that. In fact, no one could say anything bad that ever he did. To be sure, he never did anything, one way or the other.
And now, here was Moll, very full of a letter she was after hearing read out by one of the neighbours.
“It was wrote,” she said, “by one of the Caffreys, cousins of the family here, that are out there so long, and doing well, too, they appear to be, by what I hear....”
“So they are,” said old Mrs. Caffrey, perking up at this account of her son’s people being set out to Julia; “and why wouldn’t they? and it’s likely to them me poor child wint! God sind him safe!”
“And Amen to that, I pray!” said Moll; the same as if she herself thought it was there he was.
Julia was listening to all this. It made her more set than ever about going after Peetcheen. She was like the rest of us; only too ready to believe what she wanted to believe. She took all this, about the letter from the cousins, for proof that Peetcheen was really gone to America.
“And to think he should be out there, with full and plenty, I’ll be bound; and me slavin’ here! I’ll not do it nor it’s not to be expected that I would, either!”
She was just mad to be off. And there were few would miss her in Ardenoo. Even Peetcheen’s baby would be far more contented, lying on the granny’s knee, or with Dark Moll, than he ever was with his mother. An infant is very easy put about; and Julia was very odd and jerky in her ways. But, sure she could have had no nature in her, or she never would have left the child.