Martin Gleeson explains how Padraic Ó Conaire’s M’Asal Beag Dubh inspired a Hollywood star to tour the Connemara countryside

 

From our schooldays we will remember the story of M’Asal Beag Dubh written by the Irish language writer Pádraic Ó’Conaire.

One fair day, that is a market day, Pádraic was in Kinvarra, Co. Galway, when he first saw the little black donkey. The donkey was standing tón le gaoithe, i.e. with his backside to the wind.
The animal belonged to a Traveller who wanted to sell it.

Pádraic offered him one pound for the donkey. The Traveller, however, heaped lavish praise on the animal and demanded two pounds.

After much haggling, the Traveller accepted one pound on condition that Pádraic gave sixpence to each of his children. Pádraic foolishly agree to this. At this point the Traveller’s wife began to call out the names of her children, Seáinín, Micilín, Nóirín and Tomáisín.

Other traveller women, too, began to beckon their children. Pádraic was soon surrounded by noisy kids with outstretched hands, all demanding sixpences. By the time Pádraic had paid the one pound to the Traveller and given sixpence to each of the crowd of travelling children, he was sorry he had not paid him the two pounds as initially requested.

Pádraic bought a little bright green cart for the donkey and for a while enjoyed this lovely mode of travel around the roads of County Galway.
He used his country trips to gather ideas and material for his stories.

Orson Welles is remembered as a great American director, actor, screenwriter and producer in the world of theatre, radio and film. His 1938 radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds was so realistic that it caused widespread panic among the listeners who thought that martians had invaded Earth.

His film Citizen Kane (1941) is ranked as one of the world’s greatest movies, and Orson is considered by many to be the most influential film-makers of all time.

Continue reading in this week’s Ireland’s Own