his mind to the line of
conduct he meant to pursue, "what shall we do with the man's body? We
can't let it lie here. As I trust in God, I had no thoughts to kill
him! and I would not run away, and lave the body here, as though I'd
murdhered him."

"Jist lay him asy among the trees, Mr. Thady, till you're out of the
counthry; and then I'll find it,--by accident in course, and get the
police to carry it off. Thim fellows is paid for sich work."

"No, Pat; that wouldn't do at all. I won't have them say I hid the
body; every one 'll know 'twas I did it; mind, I don't ask you to
tell a lie about it; and I'll not have it left here, as though I'd
run away the moment afther I struck him. We must take him into the
house, Brady."

"Into the house, yer honer! not a foot of it! why, you'd have Miss
Feemy in fits; and the owld man'd be worse still, wid all thim
fellows coming from Carrick and sitting on the body, discoursing
whether it wor to be murdher or not."

"Well, then; we'll take it to Mrs. Mehan's."

"Av you do, Mr. Thady, the country 'll have it all in no time.
Howsomever, they must take it there if you choose, as it's a public;
but you'd better lave it where it is, and let me send it down by and
by--jist to give you an hour's start or so."

This Thady absolutely refused, stating that he would not leave the
body till he had seen it deposited in some decent and proper place;
and the two men took it up between them and carried it away, meaning
to take it to Mrs. Mehan's. But at the avenue gate they found Fred
Brown's horse and gig, exactly where Ussher had left it, excepting
that the horse was leisurely employed in browsing the grass from the
ditch side.

Brady soon recognised both the horse and gig as belonging to
Brown Hall; and he then proposed putting the body of its former
occupant in it, and driving it to the station of the police at
Carrick-on-Shannon, and restoring at the same time the horse and
gig to its proper owner at Brown Hall. To this scheme Thady at last
agreed; but he made the man promise him, that when he got to the
police at Carrick he would tell them that he, Thady, had desired him
to do so; and that, instead of running away, he had not left the
body till he had seen it put into the vehicle, to be carried into
Carrick-on-Shannon. And with these injunctions Brady departed with
his charge.

CHAPTER XXI.

THE CORONER'S INQUEST.

During the short time that elapsed between the heavy blow