he; 'for, though I 'm a
poor man, I have strong friends that won't see me wronged.' And then he
said something about one 'Father Matthew;' but whether it was you, or
that other clergyman there, I don't know."

"They took him to Thomastown?"

"No, your Reverence,--to Kilkenny."

"That will do, my good man," said D'Esmonde, with a nod of his head;
and then, as the door closed behind him, added, "You see, Michel, I was
right in my fears of this doctor. The evasive terms of his note, too,
confirmed my suspicions,--that 'desire for further time in a matter of
such great difficulty.' We have thrown him on the scent, and he is now
in full cry after the game. Shame upon us!--shame! that such as he can
foil us at our own weapons. I see his plan clearly enough. He is either
in possession of some secret fact of this man's early life, which can be
employed as a menace to extort a confession from him, or he is about to
work on him by bribery. Now, as to the former, I am perfectly at ease.
What I, with every agency of the Church, have failed to elicit, I can
safely defy the layman's craft to detect. As to the effect of a bribe, I
am far from being so certain."

"And in either case the result concerns you but little," said Cahill.
"The fellow has nothing in his power against _you_."

"Nothing," said D'Esmonde. "I never left myself in the hands of such
as he! It will, of course, be disagreeable to me that our intercourse
should be made public. The Orange press will know how to connect our
intimacy with a thousand schemes and subtleties that I never dreamed of;
and, more offensive still, the assumed relationship to Mr. Godfrey will
afford a fruitful theme for sneer and sarcasm. I foresee it all, my good
Michel; and, worst of all, I perceive how this publicity will mar higher
and nobler objects. The Sacred College will never make a prince of the
Church of one whose name has been sullied by the slang of journalism.
These are the dangers to be averted here. You must contrive to see this
man at once,--to assure him of our interest and protection, if he be
but discreet and careful. He may safely deny all knowledge of the
circumstances to which we alluded. We are the only persons to whom
he made these revelations. He has only to assume an ignorance of
everything. Impress this upon him, Michel; for if they can involve him
in a narrative, be it ever so slight or vague, these lawyers exercise a
kind of magic power in what is called cross-ex