ist, I hope
so."

"She doesn't mean to make any will, then?"

"Why, she wishes to make one, but I doubt whether she'll ever be able;"
and then Martin gave his landlord an account of all that Anty had said
about her will, her wishes as to the property, her desire to leave
something to him (Martin) and his sisters: and last he repeated the
strong injunctions which Anty had given him respecting her poor
brother, and her assurance, so full of affection, that had she lived
she would have done her best to make him happy as her husband.

Lord Ballindine was greatly affected; he warmly shook hands with
Martin, told him how highly he thought of his conduct, and begged him
to take care that Anty had the gratification of making her will as she
had desired to do. "The fact," Lord Ballindine said, "of your being
named in the will as her executor will give you more control over Barry
than anything else could do." He then proposed at once to go, himself,
to Tuam, and explain to Daly what it was Miss Lynch wished him to do.
This Lord Ballindine did, and the next day the will was completed.

For a week or ten days Anty remained in much the same condition.
After each attack of fever it was expected that she would perish from
weakness and exhaustion; but she still held on, and then the fever
abated, and Doctor Colligan thought that it was possible she might
recover: she was, however, so dreadfully emaciated and worn out, there
was so little vitality left in her, that he would not encourage more
than the faintest hope. Anty herself was too weak either to hope or
fear;--and the women of the family, who from continual attendance knew
how very near to death she was, would hardly allow themselves to think
that she could recover.

There were two persons, however, who from the moment of her amendment
felt an inward sure conviction of her convalescence. They were Martin
and Barry. To the former this feeling was of course one of unalloyed
delight. He went over to Kelly's Court, and spoke there of his
betrothed as though she were already sitting up and eating mutton
chops; was congratulated by the young ladies on his approaching
nuptials, and sauntered round the Kelly's Court shrubberies with Frank,
talking over his future prospects; asking advice about this and that,
and propounding the pros and cons on that difficult question, whether
he would live at Dunmore, or build a house at Toneroe for himself and
Anty. With Barry, however, the feelin