e the Sunday guest. The young
folk didn't like the derision in Margret's pale eyes, and kept out of
her way as much as possible, since they feared their mother too much
to flout her openly, as they were often tempted to do.

Two or three years had passed before Margret showed signs of failing.
Then at the end of one very cold winter people noticed that she grew
feebler. She was away from mass one or two Sundays, and then one
Sunday she reappeared walking with the aid of a stick and looking
plainly ill and weak. After mass she had a private talk with Father
Tiernay at the presbytery; and then went slowly down to Jack's house
for the usual dinner. Both Jack and Mrs. Jack saw her home in the
afternoon, and a hard task the plucky old woman found it, for all
their assistance, to get back to her cottage up the steep hill. When
they had reached the top she paused for a rest. Then she said quietly,
'I'm thinkin' I'll make no more journeys to the Chapel. Father
Tiernay'll have to be coming to me instead.'

'Tut, tut, woman dear,' said Mrs. Jack, with two hard red spots coming
into her cheeks, 'we'll be seein' you about finely when the weather
gets milder.' And then she insinuated in a wheedling voice something
about Margret's affairs being settled.

Margret looked up at her with a queer mirthfulness in her glance.
'Sure what wud a poor ould woman like me have to settle? Sure that's
what they say when a sthrong-farmer takes to dyin'.'

Mrs. Jack was too fearful of possible consequences to press the
matter. She was anxious that Margret should have Fanny to look after
the house and the fowl for her, but this Margret refused. 'I'll be
able to do for myself a little longer,' she said, 'an' thank you
kindly all the same.'

When it was known that Margret was failing, the attentions to her
became more urgent. Neighbours passed each other now in the lane with
a toss of the head and 'a wag of the tail.' As for Mrs. Jack, who
would fain have installed herself altogether in the henwife's cottage,
she spent her days quivering with indignation at the meddlesomeness of
the other women. She woke Jack up once in the night with a fiery
declaration that she'd speak to Father Tiernay about the pursuit of
her moneyed relative, but Jack threw cold water on that scheme. 'Sure
his Riverince himself, small blame to him, 'ud be as glad as another
to have the bit. 'Twould be buildin' him the new schoolhouse he's
wantin' this many a day, so it would.