uple of horns, and a tail?"

"Don't be laughing at it, Mr Terence. I'm thinking you don't know
where we are, or you wouldn't be after doing that," he whispered.

"We are fishing in the stream of Corregan," I said.

"But does your honour know what happened here?" he asked, in a low
voice. "It's his ghost I've seen, as sure as I'm a living man, just
behind yon clump of trees there hanging over the water; and I'm thinking
he'll be showing himself again if we stop here longer."

"I shall be very happy to make his acquaintance, whoever he is," I said.
"Does Mr Denis know anything about him?"

"Master Denis would be only laughing at me if I were to speak to him
about it," said Larry.

I called to Denis, and said that I was ready to put up my rod, as I
wished to make the acquaintance of a suspicious individual who was said
to be lurking about the stream. He replied that he would be ready to
come as soon as he had landed a salmon he had lately hooked.

"Come, Larry, tell me all about this ghost, or spirit, or whatever it
was, you fancy you saw just now," I said, while engaged in winding up my
line.

"Hish! your honour; we mustn't speak loud about him, if you plaise, and
I'll tell you," he answered. "It's just this, your honour: while we
were away in foreign parts, there was a broth of a boy,--I knew him
well,--Dominic Brian. Well, Nick was one evening going home from
reaping, along this very part of the stream, when what did he do but cut
his own head off. Why he did it no one to this day can tell; but
certain sure his body was found on the bank, with his bloody scythe
beside him, but his head was gone. They say he comes every evening at
the same hour to look out for his head, since he doesn't rest quiet in
his grave without it. When they told me about it I laughed, thinking it
couldn't be true; but seeing's believing, and as sure as I'm a living
man, I saw Dominic Brian this very evening with his head under his arm."

"I thought you said that he always came to look for his head?" I
observed.

"Shure so I did, Mr Terence; but the ghost I saw had his head tucked
under his arm, just as if it had been a keg of potheen."

"Whether he has his head under his arm or has got it on at all, I'll
rout him out," I exclaimed.

"Oh, don't, Mr Terence, don't!" cried Larry. "No one can tell what
he'll be after doing to you. Shure it will be safer for us to be away
from this as fast as our legs can carry us. Just shout