ble to pay. He then asked me, was
that the answer I had for him, and not his money, and he does no more
but ups wid his whip and laves me as you see me."

"Why, now, you d--d scoundrel!" exclaimed John, "how can you--"

"Pardon me, Mr. Purcel," said the magistrate, interrupting him with what
he intended to be dignity, "you forget what is due to the court, sir.
There must be no swearing nor abuse here. The court must be respected,
Mr. Purcel."

These words brought a sneer of secret triumph upon Hourigan's features,
that was unquestionably very provoking.

"I beg to apologize to the court," replied Purcel, "if for a moment I
have forgotten what is due to it; but, in fact, your worship, there is
not one word of truth in what he says. His language was insolent and
provoking beyond the limits of human patience. He told me that both my
father and myself were dishonest--that we were oppressors of the poor,
and blood-suckers; called us hardhearted and beggarly upstarts, and that
we would sell our Church and our country for filthy lucre and upstart
pride. Instead, your worship, of promising to pay his tithes, he said we
might go to hell for them, and make the devil our paymaster, what he'll
be yet. And further, he said he'd never pay a farthing of them, and set
law, lawyers, police, military, and magistrates all at open defiance.
Now I beg to know, your worship, what loyal and peaceably-disposed
man, that wishes to see the laws of his country, and those respectable
magistrates that administer them, respected--what man, I say, fond of
peace and quietness, could bear such language as that? It is not what he
said of either myself or my family that I contain of, but of the abuse
he heaped upon the law at large, and the independent magistrates of the
country. I certainly, in the heat of the moment, so far resented the
affront offered to the most respectable magistracy of this fine country
as to give him a few slight touches of the whip, more like one in jest,
I assure your worship, than like an angry man."

"Hourigan," said O'Driscol, swelling up to a state of the most pompous
indignation, "this is infamous conduct which he relates of you, sir. How
dare you, sir, or any impudent fellow like you, take the undaicent and
unjustifiable liberty of abusing the independent and loyal magistracy of
Ireland? It is by fellows like you, sir, that traison and sedition are
hatched. Your conduct was gross and monstrous, and if Mr. Purcel had
c