n days did I see such
a night--the darkest night that ever came out of the heavens. I did
not know where I was for the life of me. So when one of the men came
after me and touched me on the shoulder with a 'Michael Hart, can you
tell a story now?'--'I can,' says I. In he brought me, and, putting me
by the fire, says 'Begin.' 'I have no story but the one,' says I,
'that I was sitting here, and that you two men brought in a corpse
and put it on the spit and set me turning it.' 'That will do,' says
he; 'you may go in there and lie down on the bed.' And in I went,
nothing loath, and in the morning where was I but in the middle of a
green field.

TEIGUE OF THE LEE

BY CROFTON CROKER

I can't stop in the house--I won't stop in it for all the money that
is buried in the old castle of Carrigrohan. If ever there was such a
thing in the world!--to be abused to my face night and day, and nobody
to the fore doing it! and then, if I'm angry, to be laughed at with a
great roaring ho, ho, ho! I won't stay in the house after to-night, if
there was not another place in the country to put my head under.' This
angry soliloquy was pronounced in the hall of the old manor-house of
Carrigrohan by John Sheehan. John was a new servant; he had been only
three days in the house, which had the character of being haunted, and
in that short space of time he had been abused and laughed at by a
voice which sounded as if a man spoke with his head in a cask; nor
could he discover who was the speaker, or from whence the voice came.
'I'll not stop here,' said John; 'and that ends the matter.'

'Ho, ho, ho! be quiet, John Sheehan, or else worse will happen to
you.'

John instantly ran to the hall window, as the words were evidently
spoken by a person immediately outside, but no one was visible. He had
scarcely placed his face at the pane of glass when he heard another
loud 'Ho, ho, ho!' as if behind him in the hall; as quick as lightning
he turned his head, but no living thing was to be seen.

'Ho, ho, ho, John!' shouted a voice that appeared to come from the
lawn before the house: 'do you think you'll see Teigue?--oh, never! as
long as you live! so leave alone looking after him, and mind your
business; there's plenty of company to dinner from Cork to be here
to-day, and 'tis time you had the cloth laid.'

'Lord bless us! there's more of it!--I'll never stay another day
here,' repeated John.

'Hold your tongue, and stay where you are qui