on. As for lunch, they would get a biscuit and glass of
cherry-brandy at Wat M'Carthy's, of Drumban; and as for his mother
having anything to say, that of course went for nothing.

Owen would have been glad to have gone up to the house, but in that
he was frustrated by the earl's sharpness in catching him. His next
hope was to get through the promised lesson in horse-leaping as
quickly as possible, so that he might return to Desmond Court, and
take his chance of meeting Clara. But in this he found the earl very
difficult to manage.

"Oh, Owen, we won't go there," he said, when Fitzgerald proposed a
canter through some meadows down by the river-side. "There are only
a few gripes"--Irish for small ditches--"and I have ridden Fireball
over them a score of times. I want you to come away towards Drumban."

"Drumban! why Drumban's seven miles from here."

"What matter? Besides, it's not six the way I'll take you. I want to
see Wat M'Carthy especially. He has a litter of puppies there, out of
that black bitch of his, and I mean to make him give me one of them."

But on that morning, Owen Fitzgerald would not allow himself to be
taken so far a-field as Drumban, even on a mission so important as
this. The young lord fought the matter stoutly; but it ended by
his being forced to content himself with picking out all the most
dangerous parts of the fences in the river meadows.

"Why, you've hardly tried your own mare at all," said the lad,
reproachfully.

"I'm going to hunt her on Saturday," said Owen; "and she'll have
quite enough to do then."

"Well, you're very slow to-day. You're done up with the dancing, I
think. And what do you mean to do now?"

"I'll go home with you, I think, and pay my respects to the
countess."

"By-the-by, I was to bring you in to lunch. She said she wanted to
see you. By jingo, I forgot all about it! But you've all become very
stupid among you, I know that." And so they rode back to Desmond
Court, entering the demesne by one of the straight, dull, level roads
which led up to the house.

But it did not suit the earl to ride on the road while the grass was
so near him; so they turned off with a curve across what was called
the park, thus prolonging their return by about double the necessary
distance.

As they were cantering on, Owen saw her of whom he was in quest
walking in the road which they had left. His best chance of seeing
her alone had been that of finding her outside the house. He