he got from your friend. But the wonder to me is that you did
not speak more plainly when there was a former fatal assault in the same
place."

"Now, I put it to ye, sorr, what was a poor woman like me to know about
the affairs of the great, my lord?" said Bridget. "Now, in my country,
two gentlemen sit late at the wine, and maybe there's a little
difference of opinion, the cartes, or politics, or a lady--or maybe just
a differ for the sake of a differ. And wan gives t'other a skelp on the
side of the head, and if the man's skull's sound, where's the harm? 'Tis
done every day in Donegal and nobody a bit the worse! For it's O'Neil's
country, my lord, and the skulls there are made thicker on purpose--such
being the intintion of a merciful providence that created nothing in
vain."

"And can you give us no light on why Mr. Lalor Maitland wished harm to
Mr. Richard Poole?"

Bridget shook her head slowly.

"Doubtless," she said, "'twas something about property and a lass. For
if money's the root of all evil, as the Book says, sure and
t'other--(that's the woman) is the trunk and branches, the flowers, and
the fruit!"

The mystery of the death of Mr. Richard Poole was never wholly cleared
up. If anything was found among the private correspondence of the late
member of the firm of Smart, Poole and Smart, certainly the firm did not
allow it to transpire. It is practically certain that Bridget told all
she knew. But, poring over the mystery afterwards, and putting all
things carefully together, I became convinced that, under the name of
Wringham Pollixfen Poole, Mr. Richard had mixed himself up in some
highly treasonable business, which put his life within the power of the
informer and traitor Lalor.

Consequently when the latter, an expert in disguises, found it necessary
to take refuge with Bridget Connoway after the failure of the attack on
Marnhoul, he could not have chosen a safer name or disguise.

Mr. Richard, he knew, could not betray him. If any trouble befell he
would come at once and see him. So, in fact, when Richard Poole arrived,
he demanded that, by the influence of his firm, the children should be
at once returned to his tutelage. That Lalor dreamed of marrying Irma is
evident, and what he meant to do with little Louis is equally clear--for
his death would leave him heir to the properties.

But Richard proved unexpectedly stubborn. He refused flatly to have
anything to do with Lalor's schemes--whereupon