of seating himself in his vehicle which he had promised to
himself. He was still glum and gloomy enough when the coach stopped,
for he had been all alone, thinking over many things--thinking of
his father's death and his mother's early life--of all that he had
suffered and might yet have to suffer, and above all things dreading
the consciousness that men were talking of him and staring at him. In
this mood he was preparing to leave the coach when he found himself
approaching near to that Buttevant stage; but he had more to go
through at present than he expected.

"There's his honour--Hurrah! God bless his sweet face that's come
among us agin this day! Hurrah for Sir Herbert, boys! hurrah! The
rail ould Fitzgerald 'll be back agin among us, glory be to God and
the Blessed Virgin! Hurrah for Sir Herbert!" and then there was a
shout that seemed to be repeated all down the street of Buttevant.

But that was nothing to what was coming. Herbert, when he first heard
this, retreated for a moment back into the coach. But there was
little use in that. It was necessary that he should descend, and had
he not done so he would have been dragged out. He put his foot on the
steps, and then found himself seized in the arms of a man outside,
and pressed and embraced as though he had been a baby.

"Ugh, ugh, ugh!" exclaimed a voice, the owner of which intended to
send forth notes of joy; but so overcome was he by the intensity of
his own feelings that he was in nowise able to moderate his voice
either for joy or sorrow. "Ugh, ugh, ugh! Eh! Sir Herbert! but it's I
that am proud to see yer honour this day,--wid yer ouwn name, wid yer
ouwn name. Glory be to God; oh dear! oh dear! And I knew the Lord'd
niver forgit us that way, and let the warld go intirely wrong like
that. For av you weren't the masther, Sir Herbert, as you are, the
Lord presarve you to us, divil a masther'd iver be able to hould a
foot in Castle Richmond, and that's God's ouwn thruth."

"And that's thrue for you, Richard," said another, whom Herbert in
the confusion could not recognize, though his voice was familiar to
him. "'Deed and the boys had it all made out. But what matthers now
Sir Herbert's back?"

"And God bless the day and the hour that he came to us!" And then
leaving his master's arm and coat to which he had still stuck, he
began to busy himself loudly about the travelling gear. "Coachman,
where's Sir Herbert's portmantel? Yes; that's Sir Herbert's hat-bo