the sum appear so tremendous, sir?"

"Five thousand! Where would I get it? Five thousand pounds? By the
mortial man! your Lordship might as well ax me for five millions. I
thought it was a hundred; or, maybe, a hundred and fifty; or, at the
outside, two hundred pounds, just to take you over to London for what
they call the sayson, or to cut a figure at Paris; but, five thousand!
By my conscience, that's the price of an estate nowadays!"

"It is upon estated property I intend to raise this loan, sir," said his
Lordship, angrily.

"Not Cushnacreena, my Lord?" asked Terry, eagerly.

"No, sir; that is secured by settlement."

"Nor Ballyrennin?"

"No; the townland of Ballyrennin is, in a manner, tied up."

"Tory's Mill, maybe?" inquired Terry, with more eagerness.

"Well, sir," said his Lordship, drawing himself up, "I must really
make you my compliments upon the very accurate knowledge you appear to
possess about my estate. Since what period, may I venture to ask, have
you conceived this warm interest in my behalf?"

"The way of it was this, my Lord," said Driscoll, drawing his chair
closer, and dropping his voice to a low, confidential tone. "After I had
the fever,--the fever and ague I told you about,--I got up out of bed
the poor crayture you see me, not able to think of anything, or do a
hand's turn for myself, but just a burden on my friends or anybody that
would keep me. Well, I tried all manner of ways to make myself useful,
and I used to go errands here and there over the country for any one
that wanted to know what land was to be sold, where there was a lot
of good sheep, who had a drove of bullocks or a fancy bull; and, just
getting into the habit of it, I larned a trifle of what was doing in the
three counties, so that the people call me 'Terry's Almanack,'--that's
the name they gave me, better than Tearin' Terry, anyhow! At all events,
I got a taste for finding out the secrets of all the great families;
and, to be sure, if I only had the memory, I'd know a great deal, but my
head is like a cullender, and everything runs out as fast as you put it
in. That's how it is, my Lord, and no lie in it." And Terry wiped his
forehead and heaved a heavy sigh, like a man who had just accomplished a
very arduous task.

"So, then, I begin to understand how Hankes sent you over here to me,"
said his Lordship.

"Yes, my Lord," muttered Terry, with a bow.

"I had been under the impression--the erroneous impression--