himself to me, "Vesey Vengeance
was--."

"Lachlin," said my brother, "he knows all about Vesey; just give an
account of the attack."

"The attack, sir! no, but the chivey we got over the mountains. Why,
sir, we met in, an ould empty house, you see, that belonged to the
Farrells of Ballyboulteen, that went over to America that spring. There
war none wid us, you may be sure, but them that war up;* and in all we
might be about sixty or seventy. The Grogans, one way or another, got
it up first among them, bekase they expected Mr. Simmons would take them
back when he'd find that no one else dare venther upon their land. There
war at that time two fellows down from the county Longford, in their
neighborhood, of the name of Collier--although that wasn't their right
name--they were here upon their keeping, for the murder of a proctor in
their own part of the country. One of them was a tall, powerful fellow,
with sandy hair, and red brows; the other was a slender chap, that
must have been drawn into it by his brother--for he was very mild
and innocent, and always persuaded us agin evil. The Grogans brought
lashings of whiskey, and made them that war to go foremost amost
drunk--these war the two Colliers, some of the strangers from behind the
mountains, and a son of Widdy Doran's, that knew every inch about the
place, for he was bred and born jist below the house a bit. He wasn't
wid us, however, in regard of his brother being under board that night;
but, instid of him, Tim Grogan went to show the way up the little glin
to the house, though, for that matther, the most of us knew it as well
as he did; but we didn't like to be the first to put a hand to it, if we
could help it.

* That is, had been made members of a secret society.

"At any rate, we sot in Farrell's empty house, drinking whiskey, till
they war all gathered, when about two dozen of them got the damp soot
from the chimley, and rubbed it over their faces, making them so black,
that their own relations couldn't know them. We then went across the
country in little lots, of about six or ten, or a score, and we war glad
that the wake was in Widdy Koran's, seeing that if any one would meet we
war going to it you know, and the blackening of the faces would pass for
a frolic; but there was no great danger of being met for it was now long
beyant midnight.

"Well, gintlemen, it puts me into a tremble, even at this time, to think
of how little we cared about doing w