Mr. O'Ruddy," she said, throwing back her head, haughty-like,
"Why do you stand dallying in a lady's bower when your followers are
being beaten on the lawn outside?"

I cannot give you Lady Mary's exact words, for I was so astonished at
their utterance; but I give you a very good purport of them.

"Is it the beating of my men?" I said. "Troth, that's what I pay them
for. And whoever gives them a good drubbing saves me the trouble. I
saw they had Paddy down on the turf, but he's a son of the ould sod,
and little he'll mind being thrown on his mother. But if it's Jem
Bottles you're anxious about, truth to tell I'm more sorry for those
that come within range of his stick than for Jem with his back to the
wall. Bottles can take care of himself in any company, for he's a
highwayman in an excellent way of business."

I always like to mention anything that's in favour of a man, and so I
told her what profession Bottles followed. She gave a toss of her
head, and gave me a look that had something like contempt in it, which
was far from being pleasant to endure. Then she began walking up and
down the room, and it was plain to see that my Lady was far from being
pleased with me.

"Poor fellows! Poor faithful fellows! That's what comes of having a
fool for a master."

"Indeed, your ladyship," said I, drawing myself up to my full height,
which wasn't so very much short of the door itself, "there are worse
things than blows from a good honest cudgel. You might better say,
'This is what comes to a master with two fools for servants.'"

"And what comes to a master?" she demanded. "Sure no one asks you to
be here."

"That shows how short your ladyship's memory is," said I with some
irritation. "Father Donovan used to tell me that the shortest thing in
the world was the interval between an insult and a blow in Ireland,
but I think a lady's memory is shorter still. 'Turn the key and come
in,' says you. What is that, I would like to know, but an invitation."

It appeared to me that she softened a bit, but she continued her walk
up and down the room and was seemingly in great agitation. The cries
outside had stopped, but whether they had murdered both Jem Bottles
and Paddy I had no means at that moment of knowing, and I hope the two
will forgive me when I say that my thoughts were far from them.

"You will understand," said Lady Mary, speaking still with resentment
in her voice, "that the papers you held are the key to the situat