ht, and the three men hurried across the country with all the
haste they could make. Little was said between them as they went,
excepting observations made between Joe and his comrade, as to the
characters and occupations of the residents in the various cabins
by which they passed. After going for some considerable way across
fields and bogs and bottom lands, they came out on a lane, running
close round a small lake lying in the bed of the low hills which rose
on the other side of it. The water was beautifully calm, and the moon
shining immediately down upon it, gave it the appearance of a large
surface of polished silver. At this spot the fields came close down
to the road, and also to the water, and in the corner thus formed
stood a very small poor cabin.

This lake was Loch Sheen, and it was in that cabin that Ussher had
apprehended Tim Reynolds and the two other men, little more than a
fortnight ago.

Joe stopped a moment when he reached the spot, till Thady, who was
following the other man, had come up, and then, pointing to the low
door, close to which he stood, said,

"The last deed as that ruffian did as now lies so low was in that
cabin. It war there he sazed Tim, an' dragged him off with ropes
round his arms, an' sent him to Ballinamore Bridewell, an' all for
'spaking a few words of comfort to an owld woman he'd known since he
war a little child. I swore, Mr. Thady, that that man should be put
beneath the sod before the time came round that Tim should be out
agin; an' this very night I war a grieving in my heart to think that
he war out of the country safe an' merry--ready agin to play the same
bloody game with them among he war going; an' that I should let him
go without so much as making one effort to keep my word with him!
By G----d, Mr. Thady, quare as you may think it, who are now so low
within yerself with what you've done, that thought was heavy on my
heart this night. Had I known what way he war to travel, I'd followed
him, had it been for days an' nights, till I had got one fair blow.
By dad, he would niver have wanted a second. Corney what's the owld
hag doing since her two sons is in gaol along with Tim?"

"Ah! thin, she's doing badly enough; she war niver from her bed
since. Faix, Joe, they'll niver be out in time to bury her."

"Is it starving she is?"

"Well thin, I b'lieve that's the worst of it; that an' the agny, an'
no one to mind her at all, is enough to kill an owld woman like her."