ake up his mind what
other steps he would take. He had closed and bolted the door, and was
just in the act of asking the old woman whether Joe Reynolds was at
present living on his bit of land, or if not, where he was, when he
heard footsteps coming up to the little path to the door, and the
woman, sitting up in bed, said,

"There's both on 'em thin; get up, Terry, and open the door."

One of the men outside rattled the latch quietly, to let the inmates
know who it was that desired admittance; and the naked boy again
jumped out of bed, and opening the door, ran back and jumped in
again.

Two men now entered, whom Thady, as they appeared in the moonlight
through the open door, at once recognised as Joe Reynolds and Corney
Dolan. He was seated close to the fire, and in the darkness and
obscurity of the cabin, they did not at first perceive him.

A few moments since he had been longing for these two men who now
stood before him, as the only persons on whom he could depend for
security and concealment, and now that they were there he almost
wished them back again, so difficult did he find it to tell them what
he had to say, and to beg of them the assistance he required.

"Who the divil are you?" said Corney; "who's this you've got here,
mother?--and what made you let him in here this time of night?"

"Shure it's the young masther, Corney, and he axing afther you; you
wouldn't have me keeping him out in the cowld, and he waiting there
to see you that ought to have been at home and asleep two hours
since."

"Faix, Mr. Thady, and is that yerself?" said Corney; "well, anyway
you're welcome here."

"I'm glad to see you here, Mr. Thady," said Joe; "didn't I tell you
you'd be coming? though it's a quare time you've chosen. Didn't I
tell you you'd be changing your mind?"

"But was yer honer wanting me, Mr. Thady," said Corney; "'deed but
this is a bad place for you to come to; sorrow a light for ye or the
laste thing in life; what for did you not get a light, you ould hag,
when the masther came in?"

"A light is it, Corney; and how was I to be getting a light, when
there's not been a sighth of a bit of candle in the place since last
winter, nor likely to be the way you're going on now."

"Whisht there now," said Joe; "we'll be doing very well without a
light; but why wasn't you down here earlier, Mr. Thady?--We two have
just come from mother Mulready's, an' by rights, as you've come round
agin, you should have been t