ng; they were up and in
consultation at an early hour, for the purpose of carrying on
prosperously the mystification so well begun on the Castle-agent.

"Now, first of all, Dick," said the Squire, "is it fair, do you think?"

"Fair!" said Dick, opening his eyes in astonishment. "Why who ever
heard of any one questioning anything being fair in love, or war, or
electioneering? To be sure, it's fair--and more particularly when the
conceited coxcomb has been telling us how he'll astonish with his plans
the poor ignorant Irish, whom he holds in such contempt. Now, let me
alone, and I'll get all his plans out of him, turn him inside out like
a glove, pump him as dry as a pond in the summer, squeeze him like a
lemon--and let him see whether the poor ignorant _Iwish_, as he softly
calls us, are not an overmatch for him at the finesse upon which he
seems so much to pride himself."

"Egad! I believe you're right, Dick," said the Squire, whose qualms
were quite overcome by the argument last advanced; for if one thing
more than another provoked him, it was the impertinent self-conceit of
presuming and shallow strangers, who fancied their hackneyed and
cut-and-dry knowledge of the common-places of the world gave them a
mental elevation above an intelligent people of primitive habits, whose
simplicity of life is so often set down to stupidity, whose contentment
under privation is frequently attributed to laziness, and whose poverty
is constantly coupled with the epithet "ignorant." "A poor ignorant
creature," indeed, is a common term of reproach, as if poverty and
ignorance must be inseparable. If a list could be obtained of the
_rich_ ignorant people, it would be no flattering document to stick on
the door of the temple of Mammon.

"Well, Ned," said Dick, "as you agree to _do_ the Englishman, Murphy
will be a grand help to us; it is the very thing he will have his heart
in. Murtough will be worth his weight in gold to us; I will ride over
to him and bring him back with me to spend the day here; and you, in
the mean time, can put every one about the house on their guard not to
spoil the fun by letting the cat out of the bag too soon; we'll _shake
her_ ourselves in good time, and maybe we won't have fun in the hunt!"

"You're right, Dick. Murphy is the very man for our money. Do you be
off for him, and I will take care that all shall be right at home
here."

In ten minutes more Dick was in his saddle, and riding hard for
Murtou