shall be as you like; only I trow I disagree with you
about old Kennyfeck: he 's a fine straight-hearted fellow--he's--"

"He 's an attorney, Cashel. These fellows can no more comprehend a
transfer of property without a trial at bar, or a suit in Equity, than
an Irish second can understand a falling out without one of the parties
being brought home on a door. Besides, he has rather a grudge against
me. I never told you,--indeed, I never meant to tell you,--but I can
have no secrets from you. You know the youngest girl, Olivia?"

"Yes, go on," said Cashel, red and pale by turns.

"Well, I flirted a good deal last winter with her. Upon my life, I did
not intend it to have gone so far; I suppose it must have gone far,
though, because she became desperately in love. She is very pretty,
certainly, and a really good little girl,--_mais, que voulez-vous?_ If
I tie a fly on my hook I can't afford to see a flounder or a perch walk
off with it; it's the speckled monster of the stream I fish for. They
ought to have known that themselves,--I 've no doubt they did, too; but
they were determined, as they say here, to die 'innocent,' and so one
fine morning I was just going to join the hounds at Finglas, when old
Kennyfeck, very trimly dressed, and looking unutterable importance,
entered my lodgings. There's a formula for these kind of explanations--I
've gone through seven of these myself, and I 'll swear that every papa
has opened the conference with a solemn appeal to Heaven 'that he never
was aware of the attentions shown his daughter, nor the state of his
dear child's affections, till last evening.' They always assure you,
besides, that if they could give a million and a half as dowry, you are
the very man--the actual one individual--they would have selected; so
that on an average most young ladies have met with at least half-a-dozen
parties whom the fathers have pronounced to be, separately, the one most
valued. Kennyfeck behaved, I must say, admirably. His wife would have a
Galway cousin sent for, and a duel; some other kind friend suggested to
have me waylaid and thrashed. He calmly heard me for about ten minutes,
and then taking up his hat and gloves, said, 'Take your rule,' and so it
ended. I dined there the next Sunday,--yes, that's part of my system: I
never permit people to nourish small grudges, and go about abusing me
to my acquaintances. If they _will_ do that, I overwhelm them by their
duplicity, as I am seen consta