looking hard at me, 'Here's a furriner,'
he says. 'Furriner yourself, you fish-faced ditch-lurker,' says I, and
with that he takes up his fists and hits me a knock. There was a
little shindy, and afterward they ran away bawling, and I was pursuing
them, only I feared to lose my way in these strange parts."

The walk to Lord Westport's house was a long one. It seemed that he
had built a great new mansion at a place outside of the old city
gates, where other nobles and great brewers had built fine houses,
surrounding them all with splendid gardens.

One must not suppose that I had any idea of taking the mansion by
storm. My first idea was to dream a lover's dream as I gazed upon the
abode of my treasure. This, I believe, is a legitimate proceeding in
all careers. Every lover worthy of the name is certain to pilgrimage,
muffled in his cloak, to moon over the home of his adored one.
Otherwise there can be no real attachment.

In the second place I wished to develop certain plans for gaining
speech of Lady Mary. I will not deny that I purposed on a near day to
scale the garden wall and hold speech of my sweetheart as she walked
alone among the flowers. For my success I depended upon the absolute
conventionality of the idea. In all history no lover has even been
chased out of a garden by an under-gardener with a hoe.

When we arrived at the house I found that it was indeed a gorgeous
mansion. It was surrounded on all sides by high brick walls, but
through the elaborate tracery of one of the iron-work gates I saw Lady
Mary's home standing among sweeping green lawns.

We reconnoitred all sides, and at the back I found a lonely avenue
lined with oaks. Here a small door pierced the wall for the use
apparently of the gardeners or grooms. I resolved that here I would
make my attack.

As we passed the iron gates on our way back to town, we saw window
after window light up with a golden radiance. I wondered which part of
that vast edifice hid the form of my Mary.

I had asked Doctor Chord to sup with me at the inn, and on the way
thither he proved somewhat loquacious.

"I see in you, sir," said he, "a certain instinct of true romance
which is infrequently encountered in this humdrum commercial age.
Allow me to express to you, sir, my warm admiration. I did not think
that a gallant of this humdrum commercial age could prove such a free
spirit. In this humdrum commercial age--"

"I am an Irishman," said I, "and in Ireland we