period is one very remarkable
and, doubtless, pregnant circumstance--the species of lull or calm
in the movements of the United Irish party, which was conspicuous
throughout the entire of the summer and autumn of 1796. The spring
opened on them with hopes high, and expectations confident. Tone's
letters from Paris breathed encouragement; the embarrassments of England
promised favourably for their cause; and many who wavered before, were
found now willing to embrace the enterprize. To this state of ardent
feeling succeeded an interval of doubt and uneasiness; conflicting
statements were circulated, and mens' minds were shaken, without any
apparent cause. A vague fear of betrayal and treachery gained ground;
yet no one was able to trace this dread to any definite source. The
result, however, was evident in the greater caution of all concerned in
the scheme--a reserve, which seemed to threaten a total abandonment of
the undertaking; such, at least, it appeared to those who, like Mark
O'Donoghue, having few or no opportunities of intercourse with the
leaders, were disposed to take their impressions from the surface
of events. As for him, his correspondence had ceased with Lanty's
treachery. He neither knew the real names nor addresses of those to whom
he had formerly written, and had not a single acquaintance to whom he
could look for advice and assistance.

All Sir Archy's endeavours to win his confidence had failed, not from
any distrust either in his judgment or his good faith, but because
Mark regarded his secret as a sacred depository, in which the honour of
others was concerned; and however disposed to seek advice for himself,
he would not compromise their safety for the sake of his own advantage.
Unable to extort a confidence by entreaty, and well aware how little
efficiency there lay in menace, Sir Archy abandoned the attempt,
and satisfied himself by placing in Mark's hands Hemsworth's letter,
significantly hinting his own doubts of the writer's integrity.

Mark sat himself down in the garden, to study the epistle; and however
artfully conceived, the experience his own career opened, displayed the
dishonesty of the writer at every line.

"I am the obstacle to his plans--my presence here is somehow a thwarting
influence against him," said he, as he folded up the paper. "I must
remain at every hazard; nor is there much, so long as I bound my
wanderings by these great mountains--he will be a bolder than Hemsworth