s in such circumstances will
sometimes be very treacherous to their friends. I feel sure, however,
that Mary herself was quite innocent of any guile in the matter.
"Mary," Phineas said to her suddenly, "it seems to me that you have
avoided me purposely ever since I have been at home." She smiled and
blushed, and stammered and said nothing. "Has there been any reason
for it, Mary?"

"No reason at all that I know of," she said.

"We used to be such great friends."

"That was before you were a great man, Phineas. It must necessarily
be different now. You know so many people now, and people of such a
different sort, that of course I fall a little into the background."

"When you talk in that way, Mary, I know that you are laughing at
me."

"Indeed, indeed I am not."

"I believe there is no one in the whole world," he said, after a
pause, "whose friendship is more to me than yours is. I think of it
so often, Mary. Say that when we come back it shall be between us as
it used to be." Then he put out his hand for hers, and she could not
help giving it to him. "Of course there will be people," he said,
"who talk nonsense, and one cannot help it; but I will not put up
with it from you."

"I did not mean to talk nonsense, Phineas!" Then there came some one
across them, and the conversation was ended; but the sound of his
voice remained on her ears, and she could not help but remember
that he had declared that her friendship was dearer to him than the
friendship of any one else.

Phineas went with Mr. Monk first to Limerick and then to Dublin, and
found himself at both places to be regarded as a hero only second
to the great hero. At both places the one subject of debate was
tenant-right;--could anything be done to make it profitable for men
with capital to put their capital into Irish land? The fertility of
the soil was questioned by no one,--nor the sufficiency of external
circumstances, such as railroads and the like;--nor the abundance of
labour;--nor even security for the wealth to be produced. The only
difficulty was in this, that the men who were to produce the wealth
had no guarantee that it would be theirs when it was created. In
England and elsewhere such guarantees were in existence. Might it not
be possible to introduce them into Ireland? That was the question
which Mr. Monk had in hand; and in various speeches which he made
both before and after the dinners given to him, he pledged himself to
keep it well i