't go for any message, no
matther what it is--hem--ahem--oh! here I have it at last miss," he
exclaimed in his natural voice, "isn't that a beauty?"

Julia got as pale as death for a moment, and then her brow became
crimson with indignation. In fact, she saw not his bracelet--nor heard
what he said in praise of it; but after a little time she said, "Thank
you, Cannie, most seriously do I thank you--and you may rest assured I
shall faithfully follow your advice."

"Do so, miss," he replied, "so God bless you and take care of you! and
that's the worst the rantin Cannie Soogah wishes you."

Alick Purcel almost immediately joined the family in the parlor, to
whom he related a full and somewhat ludicrous account of the seige of
O'Driscol Castle, as he called it--or Nassau Lodge. As our readers,
however, are already aware of the principal particulars of that attack,
we shall only briefly recapitulate what they already know, and confine
ourselves to merely one portion of it, in which portion our doughty and
heroic friend, the magistrate, was most peculiarly concerned.

"Having tested the martial magistrate's courage," he proceeded, "by a
hint from Fergus, who was as much amused by it as I was, and finding
that it was of the oozing or Bob Acres quality, we resolved, on hearing
that the house was surrounded, to examine, and prime and load all the
fire-arms in the house, as the case demanded. Some had been already
loaded, but at all events we looked to them, and such as were uncharged
we loaded on the spot, and then threw ourselves on the bed without
undressing, in order that we might be ready for a surprise. Fergus
and I, after having lain awake for a considerable time, taking it for
granted that they had given up all intention of attacking the house,
at length fell into a kind of wakeful doze from which we were at once
aroused by a loud knocking at the hall-door. We quietly opened the
drawing-room windows, and in a firm tone demanded what they wanted, and
the answer was, that a friend of M'Carthy's wished very much to settle
an account with him. We replied he was not in the house, and that even
if he were, they should fight for him before they got him. We also told
them our opinion of their conduct, and said, that if they did not leave
the place, we would scatter the contents of a blunderbuss among them. I
should state that they knew my voice, and said that they didn't want
me then, but that my turn would come soon. When we