e good dinners were putting a skin and
roundness on Margret that might give her a new lease of life--perhaps
a not quite desirable result.

The neighbours looked on at Mrs. Jack's 'antics' with something little
short of scandal. They met by twos and threes to talk over it, and
came to the conclusion that Mrs. Jack had no shame at all, at all, in
her pursuit of the old woman's money. Truth to tell, there was
scarcely a woman in the Island but thought she had as good a right to
Margret's money as her newly-attentive kinsfolk. Mrs. Devine and Mrs.
Cahill might agree in the morning, with many shakings of the head,
that 'Liza Laffan's avarice and greed were beyond measure loathsome.
Yet neither seemed pleased to see the other a little later in the day,
when Mrs. Cahill climbing the hill with a full basket met Mrs. Devine
descending with an empty one.

For all of a sudden a pilgrimage to Margret's cottage in the Red Glen
became the recognised thing. It was surprising how old childish
friendships and the most distant ties of kindred were furbished up and
brought into the light of day. The grass in the lane to the glen
became trampled to a regular track. If the women themselves did not
come panting up the hill they sent the little girsha, or wee Tommy or
Larry, with a little fish, or a griddle cake, or a few fresh greens
for Margret. The men of the Island were somewhat scornful of these
proceedings on the part of their dames; but as a rule the Island wives
hold their own and do pretty well as they will. All this friendship
for Margret created curious divisions and many enmities.

Margret, indeed, throve on all the good things, but whether any one
person was in her favour more than another it would be impossible to
say. Margret got up a way of thanking all alike in a honeyed voice
that had a queer sound of mockery in it, and after a time some of the
more independent spirits dropped out of the chase, 'pitching,' as they
expressed it, 'her ould money to the divil.' Mrs. Jack was fairly
confident all the time that if any one on the Island got Margret's
nest-egg it would be herself, but she had a misgiving which she
imparted to her husband that the whole might go to Father Tiernay for
charities. Any attempt at getting inside the shell which hid Margret's
heart from the world her sister-in-law had long given up. She had also
given up trying to interest Margret in 'the childher,' or bidding
young Jack be on his best behaviour befor