ighbor, and from him, if he will oblige
us, relief will come soonest. Charles, go, my child, and ask Con M'Mahon
if he will be good enough to send me a stone or two of potatoes for a
few days; and I will feel obliged--your brother, poor child, is fatigued
by his journey to the post-office, and from other causes--or being the
elder I would make him go--if M'Mahon obliges me, tell him that I will
thank him to send them, as I have no messenger to fetch them. I have
always found poor M'Mahon respectful and neighborly, and I am certain he
will not refuse us."

We shall not detail the distressing and melancholy conversation, in
which they were engaged until the child's return. It is enough to say
that, although he met with no refusal, the expected relief was not sent.
"Well, my child," inquired his anxious father, "what reply did he give?"

"He said, papa," returned the child, "that he would give you a whole
sack of potatoes with pleasure, but that, to send them in the open day,
would be more than his life is worth--he dare not do it."

The old man looked up, then clasping his hands together, and glancing at
his unhappy family, a few bitter tears rolled down his cheeks.

"But," added the boy, "he said he would bring over as many as he could
carry, about twelve o'clock to-night."

"Well," continued his father, "that is civil; and I believe, as to the
danger, he is right. But, in the meantime, what is to be done? I fear
all the available sources of relief have been already exhausted, with
the exception of heaven alone--in which, my children, we must not permit
anything to shake our trust. I am feeble, but yet I must go forth and
try to secure some food for you, my poor famishing family: hold up,
then, my dear children, even for a little, for certain I am that God
will provide for us still."

He was, accordingly, upon the point of going out, when John Purcel
entered; and as the object of his visit is already known to the reader,
we shall leave to his imagination the sense of the relief which it
afforded.

This now is not an overdrawn picture of particular cases--and they were
numerous--which occurred during the period of what was termed the Tithe
rebellion.

The circumstance of the message to M'Mahon's, however, was the cause
of a scene which we could not possiby omit, in a work treating of this
peculiar and most distressing crisis. As the boy Charles was on his way
to M'Mahon's--and this he mentioned to the family afte