t the dog on the sheep. Then, that if the dog
hunted her it was no more than she deserved for constant trespass. Then
he said that the sheep was so old and blind that she committed suicide
in his end of the lake in order to please herself and to spite him; and,
last of all, he tells us that he offered to compensate Darcy for her
before he came into court at all!"

"And on top of that," Mr. Heraty actually rose in his seat in his
exquisite appreciation of the position, "on top of that, mind you, after
he has the whole machinery of the law and the entire population of
Letterbeg attending on him for a matter o' two hours, he informs us that
we're wasting his valuable time!"

Mr. Heraty fixed his eyes in admirable passion--whether genuine or not
we are quite incapable of pronouncing--upon Sweeny, who returned the
gaze with all the gloom of an unfortunate but invincibly respectable
man.

Dr. Lyden once more pulled out his watch.

"It might be as well for us," he said languidly, "to enter upon the
inquiry as to the value of the sheep. That should take about another
three-quarters of an hour. William, ask Darcy the price he puts on the
sheep."

Every emotion has its limits. We received with scarce a stirring of
surprise the variations of sworn testimony as to the value of the sheep.
Her price ranged from one pound, claimed by Darcy and his adherents, to
sixpence, at which sum her skin was unhesitatingly valued by Sweeny. Her
age swung like a pendulum between two years and fourteen, and, finally,
in crowning proof of her worth and general attractiveness, it was stated
that her own twin had been sold for fifteen shillings to the police at
Dhulish, "ere last week". At this re-entrance into the case of the
personal element Mr. Heraty's spirits obviously rose.

"I think we ought to have evidence about this," he said, fixing the
police officer with a dangerous eye. "Mr. Cox, have ye anny of the
Dhulish police here?"

Mr. Cox, whose only official act up to the present had been the highly
beneficial one of opening the window, admitted with a grin that two of
the Dhulish men were in the court.

"Well, then!" continued the Chairman, "Mr. Cox, maybe ye'd kindly desire
them to step forward in order that the court may be able to estimate
from their appearance the nutritive qualities of the twin sisther of
Darcy's sheep."

At this juncture we perceived, down near the crowded doorway, two tall
and deeply embarrassed members of th