A piece of Traveller folklore
Jim Carroll

Master McGrath origins.        (Tape 24).
'Twas this working man and he was working for this big farmer, so the farmer always kept thoroughbred dogs.
So this rough pup anyway, came like; oh, this is really the truth like; and he told him to take away the pup and drown him because he'd spoil the sale of his valuable pups. So bejay, your man never drownded him, the fellow working there; and he took him to his cottage and he kept him abide there.   
So he used always to be selling turf of a week-end with his donkey and car and he used to go into the town anyway, into Dungarvan, he used to go in there every Saturday with a bale of turf, and the pup used be following him.    He used have the pup tied on to the shaft of the car sometimes.    So he was inside every day.    It went on so the pup kept growing and growing away.   
And weren't they coming home this day anyway, and they were all bragging about a hare that couldn't be caught, he was down in the bog in the back of his house.    So away with your man anyway, the man that owned him, off down the bog someday, one day anyway.
'Jay, he turned the hare and killed him in the first round.
So he brought him the hare with him then, into town, be said, "that's the hare you've all the talk about now", he said. So bejay, they though he was trying to give his dog a name, anyway, and they spoke about another hare, and your man was trying to buy the bale of turf off him anyway,    so he was giving him a pound and he wanted twenty-five bob for it.
He said, "I'll bet you the pound against the bale of turf", he said, "that your dog don't kill the hare", he said, "that's out in this Red Bog", they used to call it.   
He said, "you're on, if we can see him", he said, "he'll kill him".   
So off they go, the two of them anyway, and out to the Red Bog, and the first round again he got his hare brought him down so he'd two pound for his bale of turf.   
So that was all right, he started growing and growing anyway, and he started running then in trials and all that was going on.    So that's how he got famous, that's how Master McGrath got famous; he made a millionaire out of him.   
Did you ever see the monument to him back there now?    He built a monument back there, behind Dungarvin, even now, back on the side of the road. Master McGrath.    'twas in Waterloo here and, you know.

Rose took the first round, according to law,
But the second was taken by Master McGrath.

He was poisoned then, that time, like.    But he made a millionaire out of him, an awful wealthy man.
Mikeen McCarthy,
Kerry Traveller