ays she.

"I don't believe I ever wanted to make a feller's acquaintance more than
I done that O'Shaughnessy man's. The mean blackguard, to leave his girl
that way. And 'twas easy to see what she'd been through with Cousin
Harriet and that brat. We tried to comfort her all we could; promised to
have a hunt through Long Island and the directory, and to help get her
another place when she got back from the South, and so on. But 'twas
kind of unsatisfactory. 'Twas her Mike she wanted.

"'I told the Father about it at the church up there,' she says, 'and he
wrote, but the letters was lost, I guess. And I thought if I might see
a priest here in New York he might help me. But the mistress is to go at
noon to-morrer, and I'll have no time. What SHALL I do?' says she, and
commenced to cry again.

"Then I had an idea. 'Priest?' says I. 'There's a fine big church, with
a cross on the ridgepole of it, not five minutes' walk from this house.
I see it as we was comin' up. Why don't you run down there this minute?'
I says.

"No, she didn't want to leave Archibald. Suppose he should wake up.

"'All right,' says I. 'Then I'll go myself. And I'll fetch a priest up
here if I have to tote him on my back, like the feller does the codfish
in the advertisin' picture.'

"I didn't have to tote him. He lived in a mighty fine house, hitched
onto the church, and there was half a dozen assistant parsons to help
him do his preachin'. But he was big and fat and gray-haired and as
jolly and as kind-hearted a feller as you'd want to meet. He said he'd
come right along; and he done it.

"Phinney opened the door for us. 'What's the row?' says I, lookin' at
his face.

"'Row?' he snorts; 'there's row enough for six. That da--excuse me,
mister--that cussed Archibald has woke up.'

"He had; there wa'n't no doubt about it. And he was raisin' hob, too.
The candy, mixed up with the dinner, had put his works in line with his
disposition, and he was poundin' and yellin' upstairs enough to wake the
dead. Margaret leaned over the balusters.

"'Is it the Father?' she says. 'Oh, dear! what'll I do?'

"'Send some of the other servants to the boy,' says the priest, 'and
come down yourself.'

"Simeon, lookin' kind of foolish, explained what had become of the other
servants. Father McGrath--that was his name--laughed and shook all over.

"'Very well,' says he. 'Then bring the young man down. Perhaps he'll be
quiet here.'

"So pretty soon down come Marg