was a Roman Catholic, and
therefore an enemy--as a dog may be supposed to declare himself a
dog, and a cat a cat, if called upon to explain the cause for the old
family quarrel.

Now there had come a cloud over his spirit in reference to the state
of his country. He could see that the quarrel was not entirely one
between Protestant and Catholic as it used to be, but still he could
not get it out of his mind, but that the old causes were producing in
a different way their old effects. Whiteboys, Terryalts, Ribbonmen,
Repeaters, Physical-Forcemen, Fenians, Home-Rulers, Professors of
Dynamite, and American-Irish, were, to his thinking, all the same.
He never talked much about it, because he did not like to expose his
ignorance; but his convictions were not the less formed. It was the
business of a Protestant to take rent, and of a Roman Catholic to pay
rent. There were certain deviations in this ordained rule of life,
but they were only exceptions. The Roman Catholics had the worst of
this position, and the Protestants the best. Therefore the Roman
Catholics were of course quarrelling with it, and therefore the Roman
Catholics must be kept down. Such had been Mr. Daly's general outlook
into life. But now the advancing evil of the time was about to fall
even upon himself, and upon his beneficent labours, done for the
world at large. It was whispered in County Galway that the people
were about to rise and interfere with fox-hunting! It may be imagined
that on this special day Mr. Daly's heart was low beneath his
black-striped waistcoat, as he rode on his way to draw the coverts at
Ballytowngal.

At the cross-roads of Monivea he met Peter Bodkin, the eldest son
of Sir Nicholas. Now Peter Bodkin had quarrelled long and very
bitterly with his father. Every acre of the property at Ballytowngal
was entailed upon him, and Peter had thought that under such
circumstances his father was not doing enough for him. The quarrel
had been made up, but still the evil rankled in Peter's bosom, who
was driven to live with his wife and family on L500 a year; and had
found himself hardly driven to keep himself out of the hands of the
Jews. His father had wished him to follow some profession, but this
had been contrary to Peter's idea of what was becoming. But though he
had only L500 a year, and five children, he did manage to keep two
horses, and saw a good deal of hunting.

And among all the hunting men in County Galway he was the one who