"That is a case I must take in hand," returned the son. "I shall go
to Ballyspellan and put an end to her. After that we can meet old
Cockletown with courage. I feel that I am a favorite with his niece, and
she, you must have perceived, is a favorite with him, and can manage
him as she wishes, and that is one great point gained--indeed, the
greatest."

"No," replied his mother, "the greatest is the death of Alice Goodwin."

"Be quiet," said her worthy son; "that shall be accomplished."

CHAPTER XVII. Description of the Original Tory

--Their Manner of Swearing

We have introduced an Irish outlaw, or tory, in the person of
Shawn-na-Middoque, and, as it may be necessary to afford the reader a
clearer insight into this subject, we shall give a short sketch of the
character and habits of the wild and lawless class to which he belonged.
The first description of those savage banditti that has come down to us
with a distinct and characteristic designation, is known as that of
the wild band of tories who overran the South and West of Ireland both
before the Revolution and after it. The actual signification of the word
_tory_, though now, and for a long time, the appellative of a political
party, is scarcely known except to the Irish scholar and historian. The
term proceeds from the Irish noun _toir_, a pursuit, a chase; and from
that comes its cognate, _toiree_, a person chased, or pursued--thereby
meaning an outlaw, from the fact that the individuals to whom it
was first applied were such as had, by their murders and robberies,
occasioned themselves to be put beyond the protection of all laws, and,
consequently, were considered outlaws, or tories, and liable to be shot
down without the intervention of judge or jury, as they often were,
wherever they could be seen or apprehended. We believe the word first
assumed its distinct character in the wars of Cromwell, as applied to
the wild freebooters of Ireland.

Tory-hunting was at one time absolutely a pastime in Ireland, in
consequence of this desperate body of people having proved the common
enemy of every class, without reference to either religious or political
distinction. We all remember the old nursery song, which, however
simple, is very significant, and affords us an excellent illustration of
their unfortunate condition, and the places of their usual retreat.

"I'll tell you a story about Johnny Magrory,
Who went to the wood and shot a tory;