he lawsuit. You must determine _now_,
each man for himself, or the lawsuit must go on."

'"Will you state the amount of money you will give to each of us?"
asked one of the party.

'"Certainly," replied I, "if you will _each come separately with me
into another room_."

'They did so. I named to each an amount something less than the sum
set down by the notary, partly as a reserve, lest any tenants holding
under these leaseholders should afterwards require to be paid, and
partly lest it might be supposed we were yielding to a legal claim
already granted. After a little consideration, they all severally
signed the consent for judgment.'

The other leaseholders followed. The leases were all surrendered, and
the holders became tenants-at-will. I had the pleasure of meeting one
of the most influential of them a short time ago at Geashill--a fine
tall, patriarchal-looking gentleman, the representative of one of the
English settlers. He was waiting about humbly and patiently for an
opportunity of speaking to the young agent, who is as courteous and
kind as he is efficient. But I could not help reflecting how different
would be the bearing of the tenant if he had been still in possession
of his lease! His dwelling-house was not as grand as the stylish villa
which the landlord has erected beside it. But every stick and stone
about the place were his own property. So also were the old timber
trees, which his ancestors planted. But now every stick and stone
and tree belong to Lord Digby, and as such the agent exhibits them to
visitors--the buildings, the gardens, the trees, the hedges, the rich
pasture fields, all having such a look of comfort and independence. I
asked, 'Did you ever know a place like this old home of yours to have
been made by a tenant-at-will?' He answered in the negative.

The tenant on an 'improved estate' must be very careful about his
speech. An agent has a hundred eyes and a hundred ears. People who
seek 'favours' at the office, find it useful to be spies upon their
neighbours, to detect violations of the 'rules of the estate.' It is
mainly through the spy-system that Mr. Steuart Trench, according to
his own avowal, won most of his victories over refractory tenants. For
example, on this estate he had a woman acting as a spy at the meetings
of the Ribbonmen; and he boasted that a dog could not bark at Farney
without his knowledge. I refer to this matter here again for the
purpose of saying that I canno