tions,
Government offices, having been seized was persistent, and was not
denied by any voice.

I met some few people I knew. P.H., T.M., who said: "Well!" and thrust
their eyes into me as though they were rummaging me for information.

But there were not very many people in the streets. The greater part of
the population were away on Bank Holiday, and did not know anything of
this business. Many of them would not know anything until they found
they had to walk home from Kingstown, Dalkey, Howth, or wherever they
were.

I returned to my office, decided that I would close it for the day. The
men were very relieved when I came in, and were more relieved when I
ordered the gong to be sounded. There were some few people in the place,
and they were soon put out. The outer gates were locked, and the great
door, but I kept the men on duty until the evening. We were the last
public institution open; all the others had been closed for hours.

I went upstairs and sat down, but had barely reached the chair before I
stood up again, and began to pace my room, to and fro, to and fro;
amazed, expectant, inquiet; turning my ear to the shots, and my mind to
speculations that began in the middle, and were chased from there by
others before they had taken one thought forward. But then I took myself
resolutely and sat me down, and I pencilled out exercises above the
stave, and under the stave; and discovered suddenly that I was again
marching the floor, to and fro, to and fro, with thoughts bursting about
my head as though they were fired on me from concealed batteries.

At five o'clock I left. I met Miss P., all of whose rumours coincided
with those I had gathered. She was in exceeding good humour and
interested. Leaving her I met Cy----, and we turned together up to the
Green. As we proceeded, the sound of firing grew more distinct, but when
we reached the Green it died away again. We stood a little below the
Shelbourne Hotel, looking at the barricade and into the Park. We could
see nothing. Not a Volunteer was in sight. The Green seemed a desert.
There were only the trees to be seen, and through them small green
vistas of sward.

Just then a man stepped on the footpath and walked directly to the
barricade. He stopped and gripped the shafts of a lorry lodged near the
centre. At that instant the Park exploded into life and sound; from
nowhere armed men appeared at the railings, and they all shouted at the
man.

"Put down that lor