r the fable of the cat that had
been transformed into a lady, and the unfortunate mouse. The Rapparee,
whose original propensities were strong as ever, could not, for the soul
of him, resist the temptation of selling the horse and pocketing the
amount. He did so, and very deliberately proceeded home to his barracks,
but took care to avoid any private communication with his patron for
some days, lest he might question him as to what he had done with the
animal.

In the meantime, this monstrous outrage upon an unoffending priest, who
was a natural subject of France, perpetrated, as it was, in the open
face of day, and witnessed by so many, could not, as the reader may
expect, be long concealed. It soon reached the ears of the Marquis of
------and his lady, who were deeply distressed at the disappearance of
their aged and revered friend. The Marquis, on satisfying himself of the
truth of the report, did not, as might have been expected, wait upon Sir
Robert Whitecraft; but without loss of time set sail for London, to wait
upon the French Ambassador, to whom he detailed the whole circumstances
of the outrage. And here we shall not further proceed with an account
of those circumstances, as they will necessarily intermingle with that
portion of the narrative which is to follow.

CHAPTER XVI.--Sir Robert ingeniously extricates Himself out of a great
Difficulty.

On the day after the outrage we have described, the indignant old
squire's carriage stopped at the hall-door of Sir Robert Whitecraft,
whom he found at home. As yet, the latter gentleman had heard nothing of
the contumelious dismissal of Miss Herbert; but the old squire was not
ignorant of the felonious abduction of the priest. At any other time,
that is to say, in some of his peculiar stretches of loyalty, the act
might, have been a feather in the cap of the loyal baronet; but, at
present, he looked both at him and his exploits through the medium of
the insult he had offered to his daughter. Accordingly, when he entered
the baronet's library, where he found him literally sunk in papers,
anonymous letters, warrants, reports to Government, and a vast variety
of other documents, the worthy Sir Robert rose, and in the most cordial
manner, and with the most extraordinary suavity of aspect, held out his
hand, saying:

"How much obliged am I, Mr. Folliard, at the kindness of this visit,
especially from one who keeps at home so much as you do."

The squire insta