st sympathy with the
unfortunate Irish aristocracy, who, having like the Bourbons failed
either to learn or to forget, still repeat the watch-words of
long-past centuries and are greatly surprised that no one can be
found to listen to them. Gideon McNeice's Unionism was of a much more
vigorous and militant kind. He respected England and had no objection
to singing "God save the King" very much out of tune, so long as
England and her King were obviously and blatantly on the side of
Protestantism. He was quite prepared to substitute some other form of
government for our present Imperial system if either the King, his
representative the Lord Lieutenant, or the Parliament of Westminster,
showed the smallest inclination to consider the feelings of the Roman
Catholic hierarchy.

It was thus that Bob Power, who was by no means a fool, described
McNeice's character. Conroy was interested.

"I should like," he said, "to see that man and talk to him. Suppose
you go over to Dublin to-morrow and bring him here."

"You won't like him," said Bob. "He's--well, domineering is the only
word I can think of."

"For that matter," said Conroy, "I am domineering too."

This was true. Conroy had good manners, unusually good manners for a
millionaire, but underneath the manners lay a determination to get his
own way in small matters as well as great. Bob, who knew both men,
expected that they would become deadly enemies in the course of
twenty-four hours. He was mistaken. To say that they became friends
would be misleading. They probably disliked each other. But they
certainly became allies, planned together and worked together the
amazing scheme which ended in the last--we are justified in assuming
that it really was the last--rebellion of Irishmen against the power
of England.

Conroy supplied the money and a great deal of the brains which went to
the carrying through of the plan. He had, as a financier with
world-wide interests, a knowledge of European markets and manufactures
which was very useful if not absolutely necessary. He had, as his
inspiration, an extraordinarily vivid hatred of England. This was
partly an inheritance from his Irish ancestors, men who had been
bullied for centuries and laid the blame of their sufferings on
England. Partly it was the result of the contempt he learned to feel
for Englishmen while he held his leading position in London society.
With McNeice's violent Protestantism he never can have had the
s