find her, living or dead"--every man then crossed himself and kissed his
skean--"and, what is more," they added, "we will take vengeance upon the
villain that ruined her."

"Hould," said Shawn; "do you know who he is?"

"By all accounts," they replied, "the man that you struck."

"No!" exclaimed Shawn, "I struck the wrong man; and poor Granua was
right when she screamed out that I had murdered the innocent. But now,"
he added, "why am I here among you? I will tell you, although I suppose
the most of you know it already: it was good and generous Mr. Lindsay's
she-devil of a wife that did it; and it was her he-devil of a son, Harry
Woodward, that ruined Granua Davoren. My mother happened to say that
she was a heartless and tyrannical woman, that she had the Evil Eye,
and that a devil, under the name of Shan-dhinne-dhuv, belonged to her
family, and put her up to every kind of wickedness. This, which was
only the common report, reached her ears, and the consequence was that
because we were-behind in the rent only a single gale, she sent in her
bailiffs without the knowledge of her husband, who was from home at the
time, and left neither a bed under us nor a roof over us. At all events,
it is well for her that she was a woman; but she has a son born in her
own image, so far, at least, as a bad heart is concerned; that son is
the destroyer of Granua Davoren; but not a man of you must raise his
hand to him: he must be left to my vengeance. Caterine Collins has told
me much more about him, but it is useless to mention it. The Evil Spirit
I spoke of, the Shan-dhinne-dhuv, and he have been often seen together;
but no matter for that; he'll find the same spirit badly able to protect
him; so, as I said before, he must be left to my vengeance."

"You mentioned Caterine Collins?" said one of them. "Caterine has
friends here, Shawn. What is your opinion of her?"

"Yes," observed another, "she has friends here; but, then, she has
enemies too, men who have a good right to hate the ground she walks on."

"Whatever my opinion of Caterine Collins may be," said Shawn, "I will
keep it to myself; I only say, that the man who injures her is no friend
of mine. Isn't she a woman? And, surely, we are not to quarrel with, or
injure a defenceless woman."

By this piece of policy Shawn gained considerable advantage. His purpose
was to preserve such an ascendency over that cunning and treacherous
woman as might enable him to make her useful in