uncorking bottles, and opening a pill-box.

O'Grady made a face at the pill-box, and repeated the word
"pills" several times, with an expression of extreme disgust.
"Pills--pills--kills--wills--ay--make your wills--make them--take
them--shake them. When taken--to be well shaken--shew me that bottle."

The nurse-tender handed a phial, which O'Grady shook violently.

"Curse them all!" said the squire. "A pretty thing to have a gentleman's
body made a perfect sink, for these blackguard doctors and apothecaries
to pour their dirty drugs into--faugh! drugs--mugs--jugs!" he shook the
phial again, and looked through it.

"Isn't it nice and pink, darlin'?" said the nurse-tender.

"Pink!" said O'Grady eying her askance, as if he could have eaten her.
"Pink, you old besom, pink"--he uncorked the phial, and put it to his
nose. "Pink--phew--!" and he repeated a rhyme to pink which would not
look well in print.

"Now, sir, dear, there's a little blisther just to go on your chest--if
you plaze."

"A _what_?"

"A warm plasther, dear."

"A _blister_ you said, you old _divil_!"

"Well, sure its something to relieve you."

The squire gave a deep growl, and his wife put in the usual appeal of
"Gusty, dear!"

"Hold you tongue, will you? How would _you_ like it? I wish you had it
on your----"

"Deed-an-deed, dear," said the nurse-tender.

"By the 'ternal war! if you say another word, I'll throw the jug at
you!"

"And there's a nice dhrop o' gruel I have on the fire for you," said
the nurse, pretending not to mind the rising anger of the squire, as
she stirred the gruel with one hand, while with the other she marked
herself with the sign of the cross, and said in a mumbling manner, "God
presarve us! he's the most cantankerous Christian I ever kem across!"

"Shew me that infernal thing!" said the squire.

"What thing, dear?"

"You know well enough, you old hag!--that blackguard blister!"

"Here it is, dear. Now just open the _burst_ o' your shirt, and let me
put it an you."

"Give it into my hand here, and let me see it."

"Sartinly, sir;--but I think, if you'd let me just----"

"Give it to me, I tell you!" said the squire, in a tone so fierce that
the nurse paused in her unfolding of the packet, and handed it with
fear and trembling to the already indignant O'Grady. But it is only
imagination can figure the outrageous fury of the squire when, on
opening the envelope with his own hand, he beheld the law process
b