is oats in
liquidation of the small bill then due to her from Ballycloran,
and Feemy's credit at the shop was good again about to the amount
of another pig. It was very rarely ready money found its way to
Ballycloran.

On the whole, therefore, she paid little or no attention to the
family misfortunes. She had used to confine her desires to occasional
visits to Carrick or Mohill; for they still possessed an old car, and
sometimes she could take the old mare destined to perform the whole
farming work of Ballycloran; and sometimes she coaxed the loan of
Paul for a day from Father John; and if she could do that, could
always have a novel from Mohill, and see her friends the Miss McKeons
at Drumsna two or three times a week, she was tolerably contented
and good-humoured. But of late things were altered. Feemy had got
a lover. Her novels ceased to interest her; she did not care about
going to Carrick, and the Miss McKeons were neglected. It was
only quite lately, however, that Feemy had begun to show signs of
petulance and ill temper. When her father grumbled she left him to
grumble alone, and if her brother asked her to do any ordinary little
thing about the house, she would show her displeasure. She did not
attend either so closely as she used to do to Biddy and Katty, the
two kitchen girls, and consequently the fare at Ballycloran grew
worse than ever.

Larry always grumbled, but no one marked his grumbling more than
heretofore. Thady had too many causes of real suffering to grumble
much at trifles, and usually passed over his sister's petulance in
silence: but the truth was, her lover was sometimes cross to her.

Soon after Father John and young Macdermot had turned their backs on
Ballycloran, Pat Brady, who, stood smoking his pipe, and idly leaning
against the gate-post from which, even then, the gate was half
wrenched, heard the sounds of Captain Ussher's horse on the road from
Mohill. As soon as he came up, Brady very civilly touched his hat:
"Well then long life to you, Captain Ussher, and it's you enjoys a
fine horse, and it'd be a pity you shouldn't have one. You war with
the Carrick harriers last Monday, I'll go bail."

"No doubt, Mr. Brady, you would go bail for that or anything else;
but I was not there."

"You war not! faix but you war in the wrong then, Captain, for they
had fine sport, right away behind Lord Lorton's new farms--right to
Boyle. I wonder yer honer warn't in it."

"Seeing you know very w