e, sir!" said the voice in the crowd.

"Whisky!" cried one.

"Porther!" cried another.

"Tabakky!" roared a third.

"I must insist on silence!" cried the sheriff, in a very husky voice.
"Silence!--or I'll have the court-house cleared."

"'Faith, if you cleared your own throat it would be better," said the
wag in the crowd.

A laugh followed. The sheriff felt the hit, and was silent.

The Major all this time had been adjusting his spectacles on his nose,
unconscious, poor old gentleman, that Dick, according to promise, had
abstracted the glasses from them that morning. He took up his documents
to read, made sundry wry faces, turned the papers up to the light,--now
on this side, and now on that,--but could make out nothing; while Dick
gave a knowing wink at Murphy. The old gentleman took off his spectacles
to wipe the glasses.

The voice in the crowd cried, "Thank you, Major."

The Major pulled out his handkerchief, and his fingers met where he
expected to find a lens:--he looked very angry, cast a suspicious glance
at Dick, who met it with the composure of an anchorite, and quietly
asked what was the matter.

"I shall not trouble you, gentlemen, with the extracts," said the
Major.

"Hear, hear," responded the genteel part of the auditory.

"I tould you we'd take your word, Major," cried the voice in the crowd.

Egan's seconder followed the Major, and the crowd shouted again. O'Grady
now came forward to propose the Honourable Sackville Scatterbrain, as a
fit and proper person to represent the county in parliament. He was
received by his own set of vagabonds with uproarious cheers, and
"O'Grady for ever!" made the walls ring. "Egan for ever!" and hurras,
were returned from the Merryvalians. O'Grady thus commenced his
address:--

"In coming forward to support my honourable friend, the Honourable
Sackville Scatterbrain, it is from the conviction--the conviction----"

"Who got the conviction agen the potteen last sishin?" said the voice
in the crowd.

Loud groans followed this allusion to the prosecution of a few little
private stills, in which O'Grady had shown some unnecessary severity
that made him unpopular. Cries of "Order!" and "Silence!" ensued.

"I say the conviction," repeated O'Grady fiercely, looking towards the
quarter whence the interruption took place,--"and if there is any
blackguard here who dares to interrupt me, I'll order him to be taken
out by the ears. I say, I propose my honourable