dy
exchanged, and some have given bail for their appearance to answer any
future charges against them.'

'I am quite ready, sir, to accept my freedom on parole,' said I; 'of
course, in a country where I am an utter stranger, bail is out of the
question.'

'I'm willing to bail him, your worship; I'll take it on me to be surety
for him,' cried a coarse, husky voice from the body of the court; and
at the same time a man dressed in a greatcoat of dark frieze pressed
through the crowd and approached the table.

'And who are you, my good fellow, so ready to impose yourself on the
Court?' asked Peters.

'I'm a farmer of eighty acres of land, from the Black Pits, near
Baldoyle, and the adjutant there, Mr. Moore, knows me well.'

'Yes,' said the adjutant, 'I have known you some years, as supplying
forage to the cavalry, and always heard you spoken of as honest and
trustworthy.'

'Thank you, Mr. Moore; that's as much as I want.'

'Yes; but it's not as much as we want, my worthy man,' said Peters; 'we
require to know that you are a solvent and respectable person.'

'Come out and see my place, then; ride over the land and look at my
stock; ask my neighbours my character; find out if there's anything
against me.'

'We prefer to leave all that trouble on your shoulders,' said Peters;
'show us that we may accept your surety, and we 'll entertain the
question at once.'

'How much is it?' asked he eagerly.

'We demanded five hundred pounds for a major on the staff; suppose we
say two, colonel, is that sufficient?' asked Peters of the President.

'I should say quite enough,' was the reply.

'There's eighty of it, anyway,' said the farmer, producing a dirty roll
of bank-notes, and throwing them on the table; 'I got them from Mr.
Murphy in Smithfield this morning, and I'll get twice as much more from
him for asking; so if your honours will wait till I come back, I'll not
be twenty minutes away.'

'But we can't take your money, my man; we have no right to touch it.'

'Then what are ye talking about two hundred pounds for?' asked he
sternly.

'We want your promise to pay in the event of this bail being broken.'

'Oh, I see, it's all the same thing in the end; I'll do it either way.'

'We'll accept Mr. Murphy's guarantee for your solvency,' said Peters;
'obtain that, and you can sign the bond at once.'

''Faith, I'll get it, sure enough, and be here before you've the writing
drawn out,' said he, buttoning up his coat.