Part 24 (2/2)

observed Denis.

”Come,” replied Anthony, ”whatever she may say I'll suffer none of your interference. Go an' get us the black bottle from the place; it'll soon be time to move. I hope they won't stay too long.”

Denis obeyed this command with great readiness, for whiskey in some degree blunted the fierce pa.s.sions of his brother, and deadened his cruelty; or rather diverted it from minor objects to those which occurred in the lawless perpetration of his villany.

The bottle was got, and in the meantime the fire blazed up brightly; the storm without, however, did not abate, nor did Meehan and his brother wish that it should. As the elder of them took the gla.s.s from the hands of the other, an air of savage pleasure blazed in his eyes, on reflecting that the tempest of the night was favorable to the execution of the villanous deed on which they were bent.

”More power to you!” said Anthony, impiously personifying the storm; ”sure that's one proof that G.o.d doesn't throuble his head about what we do, or we would not get such a murdherin' fine night as is in it any how. That's it! blow and tundher away, an' keep yourself an' us, as black as h.e.l.l, sooner than we should fail in what we intend! Anne, your health, acushla!--Yours, Dinny! If you keep your tongue off o' me, I'll neither make nor meddle in regard o' the batin' o' you.”

”I hope you'll stick to that, any how,” replied Denis; ”for my part I'm sick and sore o' you every day in the year. Many another man would put salt wather between himself and yourself, sooner nor become a battin'-stone for you, as I have been. Few would bear it, when they could mend themselves.”

”What's that you say?” replied Anthony, suddenly laying down his gla.s.s, catching his brother by the collar, and looking him with a murderous scowl in the face. ”Is it thrachery you hint at?--eh? Sarpent, is it thrachery you mane?” and as he spoke, he compressed Denis's neck between his powerful hands, until the other was black in the face.

Anne flew to her uncle's a.s.sistance, and with much difficulty succeeded in rescuing him from the deadly gripe of her father, who exclaimed, as he loosed his hold, ”You may thank the girl, or you'd not spake, nor dare to spake, about crossin' the salt wather, or lavin' me in a desateful way agin. If I ever suspect that a thought of thrachery comes into your heart, I'll do for you; and you may carry your story to the world I'll send you to.”

”Father, dear, why are you so suspicious of my uncle?” said Anne; ”sure he's a long time livin' with you, an' goin' step for step in all the danger you meet with. If he had a mind to turn out a Judas agin you, he might a done it long agone; not to mintion the throuble it would bring on his own head seein' he's as deep in everything as you are.”

”If that's all that's throubling you,” replied Denis, trembling, ”you may make yourself asy on the head of it; but well I know 'tisn't that that's on your mind; 'tis your own conscience; but sure it's not fair nor rasonable for you to vent your evil thoughts on me!”

”Well, he won't,” said Anne, ”he'll quit it; his mind's throubled; an', dear knows, it's no wondher it should. Och, I'd give the world wide that his conscience was lightened of the load that's upon it! My mother's lameness is nothin'; but the child, poor thing! An' it was only widin three days of her lyin'-in. Och, it was a cruel sthroke, father! An'

when I seen its little innocent face, dead an' me widout a brother, I thought my heart would break, thinkin' upon who did it!” The tears fell in showers from her eyes, as she added, ”Father, I don't want to vex you; but I wish you to feel sorrow for that at laste. Oh, if you'd bring the priest, an' give up sich coorses, father dear, how happy we'd be, an' how happy yourself 'ud be!”

Conscience for a moment started from her sleep, and uttered a cry of guilt in his spirit; his face became ghastly, and his eyes full of horror: his lips quivered, and he' was about to upbraid his daughter with more harshness than usual, when a low whistle, resembling that of a curlew, was heard at a c.h.i.n.k of the door. In a moment he gulped down another gla.s.s of spirits, and was on his feet: ”Go, Denis, an' get the arms,” said he to his brother, ”while I let them in.”

On opening the door, three men entered, having their great coats m.u.f.fled about them, and their hats slouched. One of them, named Kenny, was a short villain, but of a thick-set, hairy frame. The other was known as ”the Big Mower,” in consequence of his following that employment every season, and of his great skill in performing it. He had a deep-rooted objection against permitting the palm of his hand to be seen; a reluctance which common fame attributed to the fact of his having received on that part the impress of a hot iron, in the shape of the letter T, not forgetting to add, that T was the hieroglyphic for Thief.

The villain himself affirmed it was simply the mark of a cross, burned into it by a blessed friar, as a charm against St. Vitus's dance, to which he had once been subject. The people, however, were rather sceptical, not of the friar's power to cure that malady, but of the fact of his ever having moved a limb under it; and they concluded with telling him, good-humoredly enough, that notwithstanding the charm, he was destined to die ”wid the threble of it in his toe.” The third was a noted pedlar called Martin, who, under pretence of selling tape, pins, scissors, etc., was very useful in setting such premises as this virtuous fraternity might, without much risk, make a descent upon.

”I thought yez would out-stay your time,” said the elder Meehan, relapsing into his determined hardihood of character; ”we're ready, hours agone. d.i.c.k Rice gave me two curlew an' two patrich calls to-day.

Now pa.s.s the gla.s.s among yez, while Denny brings the arms. I know there's danger in this business, in regard of the Ca.s.sidys livin' so near us. If I see anybody afut, I'll use the curlew call: an' if not, I'll whistle twice on the patrich (* partridge) one, an' ye may come an.

The horse is worth eighty guineas, if he's worth a s.h.i.+llin'; an' we'll make sixty off him ourselves.”

For some time they chatted about the plan in contemplation, and drank freely of the spirits, until at length the impatience of the elder Meehan at the delay of his brother became ungovernable. His voice deepened into tones of savage pa.s.sion, as he uttered a series of blasphemous curses against this unfortunate b.u.t.t of his indignation and malignity. At length he rushed out furiously to know why he did not return; but, on reaching a secret excavation in the mound against which the house was built, he found, to his utter dismay, that Denis had made his escape by an artificial pa.s.sage, scooped out of it to secure themselves a retreat in case of surprise or detection. It opened behind the house among a clump of black-thorn and brushwood, and wis covered ”with green turf in such a manner as to escape the notice of all who were not acquainted with the secret. Meehan's face on his return was worked up into an expression truly awful.

”We're sould!” said he; ”but stop, I'll tache the thraithur what revenge is!”

In a moment he awoke his brother's two sons, and dragged them by the neck, one in each hand, to the hearth.

”Your villain of a father's off,” said he, ”to betray us; go, an' folly him; bring him back, an' he'll be safe from me: but let him become a slag agin us, and if I should hunt you both into bowels of the airth, I'll send yez to a short account. I don't care that,” and he snapped his fingers--”ha, ha--no, I don't care that for the law; I know how to dale with it, when it comes! An' what's the stuff about the other world, but priestcraft and lies!”

”Maybe,” said the Big Mower, ”Denis is gone to get the foreway of us, an' to take the horse himself. Our best plan is to lose no time, at all events; so let us hurry, for fraid the night might happen to clear up.”

”He!” said Meehan, ”he go alone! No; the miserable wretch is afeard of his own shadow. I only wondher he stuck to me so long: but sure he wouldn't, only I bate the courage in, and the fear out of him. You're right, Brian,” said he upon reflection, ”let us lose no time, but be off. Do ye mind?” he added to his nephews; ”Did ye hear me? If you see him, let him come back, an' all will be berrid; but, if he doesn't, you know your fate!” Saying which, he and his accomplices departed amid the howling of the storm.

The next morning, Carnmore, and indeed the whole parish, was in an uproar; a horse, worth eighty guineas, had been stolen in the most daring manner from the Ca.s.sidys, and the hue-and-cry was up after the thief or thieves who took him. For several days the search was closely maintained, but without success; not the slightest trace could be found of him or them. The Ca.s.sidys could very well bear to lose him; but there were many struggling farmers, on whose property serious depredations had been committed, who could not sustain their loss so easily. It was natural under these circ.u.mstances that suspicion should attach to many persons, some of whom had but indifferent characters before as well as to several who certainly had never deserved suspicion. When a fortnight or so had elapsed, and no circ.u.mstances transpired that might lead to discovery, the neighbors, including those who had princ.i.p.ally suffered by the robberies, determined to a.s.semble upon a certain day at Ca.s.sidy's house, for the purpose of clearing themselves, on oath, of the imputation thrown out against some of them, as accomplices in the thefts. In order, however, that the ceremony should be performed as solemnly as possible, they determined to send for Father Farrell, and Mr. Nicholson, a magistrate, both of whom they requested to undertake the task of jointly presiding upon this occasion; and, that the circ.u.mstance should have every publicity, it was announced from the altar by the priest, on the preceding Sabbath, and published on the church-gate in large legible characters ingeniously printed with a pen by the village schoolmaster.

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