ncidences, form a basis for the
superstition; just as the fact of three men during one
severe winter having been found drowned, each with two
shirts on, generated an opinion which has now become
fixed and general in that parish, that it is unlucky to
wear two shirts at once. We are not certain whether the
caul is in general the perquisite of the midwife--
sometimes we believe it is; at all events, her
integrity occasionally yields to the desire of
possessing it. In many cases she conceals its
existence, in order that she may secretly dispose of it
to good advantage, which she frequently does; for it is
considered to be the herald of good fortune to those
who can get it into their possession. Now, let not our
English neighbors smile at us for those things until
they wash their own hands clear of such practices. At
this day a caul will bring a good price in the most
civilized city in the world--to wit, the good city of
London--the British metropolis. Nay to such lengths has
the mania for cauls been carried there, that they have
been actually advertised for in the Times newspaper.

* This doctrine of fatalism is very prevalent among the
lower orders in Ireland.

Such are many of the senseless theories that militate against exertion
and industry in Ireland, and occasion many to shrink back from the
laudible race of honest enterprise, into filth, penury, and crime. It
is this idle and envious crew, who, with a natural aversion to domestic
industry, become adepts in politics, and active in those illegal
combinations and outrages which retard the prosperity of the country,
and bring disgrace upon the great body of its peaceable inhabitants.

In the meantime Ellish was rapidly advancing in life, while such persons
were absurdly speculating upon the cause of her success. Her business
was not only increased, but extended. From crockery, herrings, and salt,
she advanced gradually to deal in other branches adapted to her station,
and the wants of the people. She bought stockings, and retailed them
every market-day. By and by a few pieces of soap might be seen in her
windows; starch, blue, potash, and candles, were equally profitable.
Pipes were seen stuck across each other, flanked by tape, cakes,
children's books, thimbles, and bread. In fact, she was equally clever
and expert in whatever she undertook. The consciousn