he casting vote of Lord O'Hagan, I do not think they
will attach much importance to the decision.'

Judge Christian's allusion to the Land Act is most noteworthy, for he
said:--

'The property of the country is confided to the discretion of certain
roving commissioners without any fixed rules to guide and direct them.
In fact, we have reverted to the primitive state of society, where men
make and administer the laws in the same breath.'

Reverting to the Harenc estate, a rather amusing account was once
perpetrated by a Special Commissioner.

'Never heard tell of Ballybunion?' said his carman to the journalist as
on the road they met the carts laden with sand and seaweed from that
place. 'Why it's a great place intirely in the season, when quality from
all parts come for the sea-bathing.'

As he evidently regarded it as the first watering-place in the world,
the Special Commissioner thought he had better see the place, and here
is his description:--

'A village perched on the summit of a cliff, an ancient castle of the
Fitz-Maurice clan, wonderful caves, and a little hotel are the leading
features of the place.

'The morning after my arrival, I experienced a wish to see the cliffs
and caves, and no sooner were the words spoken than a figure bearing an
unlit torch appeared at the door.

'It was Beal-bo (which may be translated into a somewhat Sioux
cognomen--the Yellow Cow). A figure in rags with an inimitable limp, and
a fashion of closing one eye that reminds one of Victor Hugo's Quasimodo
of Notre Dame. A more intimate acquaintance proved there was much
instruction, and a good deal of amusement, to be derived from this
strange character.

'The grand cave is Beal-bo's special source of revenue. He regards it as
his own property, and takes a pride in it accordingly. This is the
theatre of the many wiles he practises upon unsuspecting strangers. When
he has lured them into the bowels of the cave, he turns down a gallery,
and informs them that they cannot get out unless they cross a pool about
five feet wide. When he has his victim upon his back, he seizes the
opportunity to levy blackmail, for the pool is a quicksand and he
suddenly affects great fear. After he has sunk to the knees in the
yielding sand, the tourist is glad enough to give him a shilling to
hurry across.

'In another gallery it is necessary for the stranger to cross a pool on
a plank which Beal-bo provides for the occasion, and on this he char