es, Mickie?" came a voice from the audience.

"Sure, you're right there. I don't intind to leave the snakes out.
And say, Dave Groggan, did yer grandfather ever tell ye where the
sarpents wint to whin Saint Patrick drove thim out of ould Ireland?"

"Into the sea, of course."

"Ay, ay; into the sea, sure enough, the sea of Irish and all ither
kinds of whiskey."

"Did ye ever see them, Mickey?"

"See thim? Haven't I seen thim, and if you drink enough of the stuff
ye'll see thim too."

The laugh which followed this remark was silenced by the chairman
rising to his feet. He rose slowly, and stood for a time with his
hands upon the table. He was a man to be noticed in any company, with
his tall, gigantic figure, thin gray hair, and long white beard. His
faded eyes looked calmly over the heads of the men before him while
waiting for the noise to subside.

"B'ys," he began, "I ain't used to makin' speeches, but I must say a
few words to-night. Ye've talked about the miseries of war an'
whiskey. Ye've brought forth facts an' figures a-plenty, but ye don't
seem to be in earnest."

"What are ye giving us, Sol?" spoke up one.

"Ye may think what ye like, but if you'd been through the furnace as I
have ye'd not make so many jokes about whiskey. Ye'd speak from yer
hearts, an' then ye'd be in earnest, never fear. Look at me, b'ys, the
oldest man here, an' when I heered one young chap boast that to drink
moderately was no harm, I trembled fer 'im. I thought so too once, an'
I said so to Annie, my wife, God bless her. I can't make a long speech
in eloquent words, but I jist want to show yez a page from an old man's
life."

"What, a sermon?" asked one of Pritchen's gang, who was getting
restless and anxious for something exciting to happen.

"Mebbe a few sarmons wouldn't hurt ye," and Sol fixed his eye sternly
upon the young man.

"As I was a-sayin'," he continued, "I want to tell yez somethin'. When
I was fust married me an' Annie were as happy as any couple in--oh,
well, ye'd better not know whar. We had a fine farm, snug house, and
good-sized barns, with kind neighbours a-plenty. By the time our two
little uns were born we had laid by a neat sum of money.

"'It's fer Danny an' Chrissie, to eddicate 'em,' says Annie. An' oh,
b'ys, I remember the last time she laid any away. I had come back from
town, whar I had sold my load of produce, an' I handed her what money I
had. She looked at it an' then at m