What came next was that the house vacated by the Levys was soon occupied by a couple of young Irishmen - brothers William and Ian Johnston. The first time William knocked on the O’Donnells’ door, Maeve was astonished by the height and obvious weight of the fellow. He was at least six feet tall with a rosy complexion, something not often seen in the slums around them, and he had a mop of red hair. This was no refugee from the famine, and she was surprised that they needed to share the O’Donnells’ poor conditions in the backlands.
William wanted to know where they could buy some essentials for the house, and when she had told him, he leaned against the door jamb with his arms folded - the typical stance of an Irishman settling in for a good craic. Within fifteen minutes he had most of the O
