d respectable family," responded the
pedlar.

"The curse o' God knows where to fall best," replied Jemmy, "or it's not
in the county jail ould Condy Dalton 'ud be for murdher this day."

"But," returned the other, "isn't it a disgraceful thing to be, as they
say he and yourself is, a pair o' scourges in the hands o' God for your
fellow-creatures; an' in troth you're both fit for it by all accounts."

"Troth," replied Jemmy, whose gall was fast rising, "it's a scourge wid
nine tails to it ought to go to your back. The Daltons desarved all
they got at his hands; an' the same pack was never anything else than a
hot-brained crew, that 'ud knock you on the head to-day, and groan over
you to-morrow. He sarved them right, an' he's a liar that says to the
contrary; so if you have a pocket for that put it in it."

Jemmy, in fact, was now getting rapidly into a towering passion, for it
mattered little how high in violence his own pitched battles with Dick
ran, he never suffered, nor could suffer a human being to abuse his
master behind his back, but himself. So confirmed, however, by habit,
was his spirit of contradiction, that had the pedlar begun to praise
Dick, Jemmy would immediately have attacked him without remorse, and
scarcely have left a rag of his character together.

"It's a shame for you," proceeded the pedlar, "to defend an' ould sinner
like him; but then as there's a pair of you, that's not unnatural; every
rogue will back his brother. I could name the place, any way, that'll
hould you both yet."

"An' I could," replied Jemmy, "name the piece of machinery that'll be
apt to hould you, if you give the masther any more abuse. Whether you'll
grow in it or not, is more than I know, but be me sowl, we'll plant you
there any how. Do you know what the stocks manes? Faith, many a spare
hour you've sarved there, I go bail, that is, when, you had nothing else
to do--an' by the way of raycreation jist."

"Ay," said the pedlar, "listen how he sticks to the ould villain--but
sure, if you put any other two blisthers together, they'll do the same."

"My own opinion is," observed Hanlon's aunt, "that it's a pity of the
Daltons, at any raite. Every one feels for them--but still the hand o'
God an' his curse, I'm afeard, is upon them."

"An' that's more, maybe, than you know," replied Jemmy. "Maybe God's
only punishing them, bekaise he loves them. It's good to have our
suffering in this world."

"Afther all," said the pedla