on or upon the convoy in motion. I had no opportunity of
getting round behind the village to review the supposed thousands who
were to make the ugly rush and overwhelm the redcoats, but I have a
strong impression that the Palladian army might have been dubbed the
"Mrs. Harris" brigade. With the respected Mrs. Prigg, I disbelieve in
its existence absolutely. Two arguments will destroy it. On the one
hand, it is incredible that thousands of persons were out of their
beds at ten minutes to nine A.M.; on the other, if they had sat up all
night in the hope of a fight with the police they would most certainly
have anticipated that diversion by a preliminary "shindy" among
themselves, and have broken up in disorder.

But when horse, foot, artillery, and police converge on a disaffected
spot, it is hardly the province of their commander to disbelieve in
the existence of an enemy. Colonel Humphreys accordingly made the
wisest use of his forces. He had at his disposal 200 infantry, a
squadron of cavalry, a demi-battery of artillery, and 70 armed
constables--in all about 350 men. His first care was to secure his
base, the railway station, and this _point d'appui_ was strongly
garrisoned by the 48th Regiment. Then the road between the station and
Burke's farm was strongly patrolled--so strongly as to keep up an
unbroken line of communication between the farm and the railroad. When
this was established, the procession, bearing the materials of the
hut, set forth. First went the armed police, then an escort of
Hussars, and then the Artillery waggons, carrying the pieces of the
hut, guarded by the soldiers of the 9th Regiment. It is hardly
necessary to add that no attempt at rushing or crowding the station
was made by the populace. Father Ryan, the parish priest, behaved in
the most praiseworthy manner, and exhorted the people to be quiet; but
my own impression is that they were already completely cowed by the
sudden appearance of the military from two quarters at once. By no
means wanting in keenness of perception, they knew that, if ordered to
do so, the soldiers will fire "at" them, and not vaguely, after the
manner of the police. So the whole affair passed off quietly, and
after trebling the ordinary police garrison of Pallas, the military
returned to their respective quarters. A beginning has been made of
building the hut, and at the moment of writing (9 P.M.) all is quiet
at Old and New Pallas, as well as at Pallas Green. Whethe