e hooker. On board the ship, the
hooker, in such a sea, caused surprise as before, and in about an hour
she was so close as to hail, and order the hooker to run under her lee.

"The devil a taste," said Barny. "I'll not quit my _nor-aist coorse_ for
the king of Ingland, nor Bonyparty into the bargain. Bad cess to you, do
you think I've nothin' to do but plaze you?"

Again he was hailed.

"Oh! bad luck to the toe I'll go to you."

Another hail.

"Spake loudher you'd betther," said Barny, jeeringly, still holding on
his course.

A gun was fired ahead of him.

"By my sowl you spoke loudher that time, sure enough," said Barny.

"Take care, Barny," cried Jemmy and Peter together. "Blur-an-agers, man,
we'll be kilt if you don't go to them."

"Well, and we'll be lost if we turn out iv our _nor-aist coorse_, and
that's as broad as it's long. Let them hit iz if they like; sure it ud
be a pleasanter death nor starvin' at say. I tell you agin I'll turn out
o' my _nor-aist coorse_ for no man."

A shotted gun was fired. The shot hopped on the water as it passed
before the hooker.

"Phew! you missed it, like your mammy's blessin'," said Barny.

"O murther!" said Jemmy, "didn't you see the ball hop aff the wather
forninst you. O murther, what 'ud we ha' done if we wor there at all at
all?"

"Why, we'd have taken the ball at the hop," said Barny, laughing,
"accordin' to the ould sayin'."

Another shot was ineffectually fired.

"I'm thinking that's a Connaughtman that's shootin'," said Barny, with a
sneer.[A] The allusion was so relished by Jemmy and Peter, that it
excited a smile in the midst of their fears from the cannonade.

[A] This is an allusion of Barny's to a prevalent saying in Ireland,
addressed to a sportsman who returns home unsuccessful, "So you've
killed what the Connaughtman shot at."

Again the report of the gun was followed by no damage.

"Augh! never heed them!" said Barny, contemptuously. "'It's a barkin'
dog that never bites,' as the owld sayin' says." And the hooker was soon
out of reach of further annoyance.

"Now, what a pity it was, to be sure," said Barny, "that I wouldn't go
aboord to plaze them. Now who's right? Ah, lave me alone always, Jimmy;
did you iver know me wrong yet?"

"O, you may hillow now that you are out o' the wood," said Jemmy, "but,
accordin' to my idays, it was runnin' a grate risk to be conthrary wid
them at all, and they shootin' balls afther us."

"Well, what ma