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School: Drumacoon (roll number 351)

Location:
Drumacoon, Co. Monaghan
Teacher:
P. Ó Grianáin
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The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0950, Page 364

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The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0950, Page 364

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  3. XML “Premature Burial”

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  1. Premature Burial

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    This is a very wonderful story. I don't know whether it is true or not but all the middle aged people about will tell you about it. My grandfather told it to me that is how I know it. It is about a very high up lady named Miss Murray-Kerr who lived in the castle at Newbliss. Here is the story for you.
    One day about seventy or eighty years ago this lady took sick. In about two or three days she colapsed and they thought she was dead and they buried her. In this time the people buried the dead in their best clothes so they put her best clothes on, put ear rings on her ears and a lovely gold ring on her finger.
    At this house they had a butler. The butler knew she had the gold ring on her finger. That night after the funeral they boy stole nice and quietly to the graveyard. He found the key and opened the vault. Then he opened the coffin and tried to take the ring off her finger but he did not succeed so he took his knife and cut the finger off and to his great surprise the lady gave one big sigh and sat up. The butler nearly dropped with fear and he ran for his life. Then she lady got up, walked up to the house and knocked the door. The servant girl came to the door and let her in. They all wondered what was wrong. First they thought it was her ghost but she said herself that she was alive when they buried her and only for the butler she would have been smothered. They looked for the butler to reward him for having saved the lady from premature burial. He thought they were going to punish him and he never came back. The lady lived for a long time and they made sure she was dead the next time they
    (continues on next page)
    Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.
    History Edit
    Folktales index
    AT0990: The Seemingly Dead Revives
    Language
    English
    Informant
    Patrick Martin
    Relation
    Grandparent
    Gender
    Male
    Address
    Newbliss, Co. Monaghan