The Knight Of Gwynne, Vol. 2 (of 2)

by Charles James Lever

  CHAPTER XV. A DINNER AT COM HEFFERNAN'S

  When the Union was carried, and the new order of affairs in Irelandassumed an appearance of permanence, a general feeling of discontentbegan to exhibit itself in every class in the capital. The patriotssaw themselves neglected by the Government, without having reaped inpopularity a recompense for their independence. The mercantile interestperceived, even already, the falling off in trade from the removal of awealthy aristocracy; and the supporters of the Minister, or such few asstill lingered in Dublin, began to suspect how much higher terms theymight have exacted for their adhesion, had they only anticipated theimmensity of the sacrifice to which they contributed.

  Save that comparatively small number who had bargained for Englishpeerages and English rank, and had thereby bartered their nationality,none were satisfied.

  Even the moderate men--that intelligent fraction who believe that nochanges are fraught with one half the good or evil their advocatesor opponents imagine--even they were disappointed on finding that theincorporation of the Irish Parliament with that of England was thechief element of the new measure, and no more intimate or solid Unioncontemplated. The shrewd men of every party saw not only how difficultwould be the future government of the country, but that the criticalmoment was come which should decide into whose hands the chief influencewould fall. Among these speculators on the future, Mr. Heffernan held aprominent place. No man knew better the secret machinery of office,none had seen more of that game, half fair, half foul, by which anadministration is sustained. He knew, moreover, the character andcapability of every public man in Ireland, had been privy to theirwaverings and hesitations, and even their bargains with the Crown; heknew where gratified ambition had rendered a new peer indifferent to afuture temptation, and also where abortive negotiations had sowed theseeds of a lingering disaffection.

  To construct a new party from these scattered elements--a party which,possessing wealth and station, had not yet tasted any of the sweets ofpatronage--was the task he now proposed to himself. By this party, ofwhom he himself was to be the organ, he hoped to control the Minister,and support him by turns. Of those already purchased by the Government,few would care to involve themselves once more in the fatigues of apublic life. Many would gladly repose on the rewards of their victory;many would shrink from the obloquy their reappearance would inevitablyexcite. Mr. Heffernan had then to choose his friends either fromthat moderate section of politicians whom scruples of conscienceor inferiority of ability had left un-bought, or the more energeticfaction, suddenly called into existence by the success of the FrenchRevolution, and of which O'Halloran was the leader. For many reasons hischoice fell on the former. Not only because they possessed that standingand influence which, derived from property, would be most regarded inEngland, but that their direction and guidance would be an easiertask; whereas the others, more numerous and more needy, could only bepurchased by actual place or pension, while in O'Halloran Heffernanwould always have a dangerous rival, who, if he played subordinate for awhile, it would only be at the price of absolute rule hereafter.

  From the moment Lord Castlereagh withdrew from Ireland, Mr. Heffernancommenced his intrigue,--at first by a tour of visits through thecountry, in which he contrived to sound the opinions of a great numberof persons, and subsequently by correspondence, so artfully sustainedas to induce many to commit themselves to a direct line of action which,when discussing, they had never speculated on seeing realized.

  With a subtlety of no common kind, and an indefatigable industry,Heffernan labored in the cause during the summer and autumn, and withsuch success that there was scarcely a county in Ireland where he hadnot secured some leading adherent, while for many of the boroughs he hadalready entered into plans for the support of new candidates of his ownopinions.

  The views he put forward were simply these: Ireland can no longer begoverned by an oligarchy, however powerful. It must be ruled either bythe weight and influence of the country gentlemen, or left to the mercyof the demagogue. The gentry must be rewarded for their adhesion, andenabled to maintain their pre-eminence, by handing over to them thepatronage, not in part or in fractions, but wholly and solely. Everycivil appointment must be filled up by them,--the Church, the law, therevenue, the police, must all be theirs. "The great aristocracy,"said he, "have obtained the marquisates and earldoms; bishoprics andgovernments have rewarded their services. It is now _our_ turn; andif our prizes be less splendid and showy, they are not devoid of somesterling qualities.

  "To make Ireland ungovernable without us must be our aim and object,--toembarrass and confound every administration, to oppose the ministers,pervert their good objects, and exaggerate their bad. Pledged to nodistinct line of acting, we can be patriotic when it suits us, anddeclaim on popular rights when nothing better offers. Acting in concert,and diffusing an influence in every county and town and corporation,what ministry can long resist us, or what government anxious for officewould refuse to make terms with us? With station to influence society,wealth to buy the press, activity to watch and counteract our enemies, Isee nothing which can arrest our progress. We must and will succeed."

  Such was the conclusion of a letter he wrote to one of his most trustedallies,--a letter written to invite his presence in Dublin, where ameeting of the leading men of the new party was to be held, and theirengagements for the future determined upon.

  For this meeting Heffernan made the greatest exertions, not only that itmight include a great portion of the wealth and influence of the land,but that a degree of _eclat_ and splendor should attend it, the morelikely to attract notice from the secrecy maintained as to its objectand intention. Many were invited on the consideration of the displaytheir presence would make in the capital; and not a few were tempted bythe opportunity for exhibiting their equipages and their liveries at aseason when the recognized leaders of fashion were absent.

  It is no part of our object to dwell on this well-known intrigue, onewhich at the time occupied no small share of public attention, and evenexcited the curiosity and the fears of the Government. Enough whenwe say that Mr. Heffernan's disappointments were numerous and severe.Letters of apology, some couched in terms of ambiguous cordiality,others less equivocally cold, came pouring in for the last fortnight.The noble lord destined to fill the chair regretted deeply that domesticaffairs of a most pressing nature would not permit of his presence. Thebaronet who should move the first resolution would be compelled to beabsent from Ireland; the seconder was laid up with the gout. Scarcelya single person of influence had promised his attendance: the greaternumber had given vague and conditional replies, evidently to gain timeand consult the feeling of their country neighbors.

  These refusals and subterfuges were a sad damper to Mr. Heffernan'shopes. To any one less sanguine, they would have led to a totalabandonment of the enterprise. He, however, was made of sterner stuff,and resolved, if the demonstration could effect no more, it could atleast be used as a threat to the Government,--a threat of not lesspower because its terrors were involved in mystery. With all thesedisappointments time sped on, the important day arrived, and the greatroom of the Rotunda, hired specially for the occasion, was crowded by anumerous assemblage, to whose proceedings no member of the public presswas admitted. Notice was given that in due time a declaration, drawnup by a committee, would be published; but until then the most profoundsecrecy wrapped their objects and intentions.

  The meeting, convened for one o'clock, separated at five; and, save theunusual concourse of carriages, and the spectacle of some liveries newto the capital, there seemed nothing to excite the public attention. Noloud-tongued orator was heard from without, nor did a single cheer markthe reception of any welcome sentiment; and as the members withdrew, thesarcastic allusions of the mob intimated that they were supposed to bea new sect of "Quakers." Heffernan's carriage was the last to leave thedoor; and it was remarked, as he entered it, that he looked agitated andill,--signs which few had ever remarked in him before. He drove rapidlyhome, where a sm
all and select party of friends had been invited by himto dinner.

  He made a hasty toilet, and entered the drawing-room a few moments afterthe first knock at the street-door announced the earliest guest. Itwas an old and intimate friend, Sir Giles St. George, a south-countrybaronet of old family, but small fortune, who for many years hadspeculated on Heffernan's interest in his behalf. He was a shrewd,coarse man, who from eccentricity and age had obtained a species ofmoral "writ of ease," absolving him from all observance of the usagesin common among all well-bred people,--a privilege he certainly did notseem disposed to let rust from disuse.

  "Well, Con," said he, as he stood with his back to the fire, andhis hands deeply thrust into his breeches-pockets,--"well, Con, yourConvention has been a damnable failure. Where the devil did you get upsuch a rabble of briefless barristers, ungowned attorneys, dissentingministers, and illegitimate sons? I'd swear, out of your seven hundred,there were not five-and-twenty possessed of a fifty-pound freehold,--notfive who could defy the sheriff in their own county."

  Heffernan made no reply, but with arms crossed, and his head leanedforward, walked slowly up and down the room, while the other resumed,--

  "As for old Killowen, who filled the chair, that was enough to damnthe whole thing. One of King James's lords, forsooth!--why, man, whatcountry gentleman of any pretension could give precedence to a fellowlike that, who neither reads, writes, nor speaks the King's English--andyour great gun, Mr. Hickman O'Reilly--"

  "False-hearted scoundrel!" muttered Heffernan, half aloud.

  "Faith he may be, but he's the cleverest of the pack. I liked his speechwell. There was good common sense in his asking for some explicit planof proceeding,--what you meant to do, and how to do it. Eh, Con, thatwas to the point."

  "To the point!" repeated Heffernan, scornfully; "yes, as the declarationof an informer, that he will betray his colleagues, is to the point."

  "And then his motion to admit the reporters," said St. George, as with amalignant pleasure he continued to suggest matter of annoyance.

  "He 's mistaken, however," said Heffernan, with a sarcastic bitternessthat came from his heart. "The day for rewards is gone by. He 'll neverget the baronetcy by supporting the Government in this way. It is theprecarious, uncertain ally they look more after. There is consummatewisdom, Giles, in not saying one's last word. O'Reilly does not seemaware of that. Here come Godfrey and Hume," said he, as he looked out ofthe window. "Burton has sent an apology."

  "And who is our sixth?"

  "O'Reilly--and here's his carriage. See how the people stare admiringlyat his green liveries; they scarcely guess that the owner is meditatinga change of color. Well, Godfrey, in time for once. Why, Robert, youseem quite fagged with your day's exertion. Ah! Mr. O'Reilly, delightedto find you punctual. Let me present you to my old friend Sir Giles St.George. I believe, gentlemen, you need no introduction to each other.Burton has disappointed us; so we may order dinner at once."

  As Mr. Heffernan took the head of the table, not a sign of his formerchagrin remained to be seen. An air of easy conviviality had entirelyreplaced his previous look of irritation, and in his laughing eye andmellow voice there seemed the clearest evidence of a mind perfectly atease, and a spirit well disposed to enjoy the pleasures of the board. Ofhis guests, Godfrey was a leading member of the Irish bar, a man of goodprivate fortune and a large practice, who, out of whim rather than fromany great principle, had placed himself in contiuual opposition to theGovernment, and felt grievously injured and affronted when the minister,affecting to overlook his enmity, offered him a silk gown. Hume was aCommissioner of Customs, and had been so for some thirty years; his onlyambition in life being to retire on his full salary, having previouslyfilled his department with his sons and grandsons. The gentleremonstrances of the Secretary against his plan had made him one ofthe disaffected, but without courage to avow or influence to direct hisanimosity. Of Mr. O'Reilly the reader needs no further mention. Such wasthe party who now sat at a table most luxuriously supplied; for althoughHeffeman was very far from a frequent inviter, yet his dinners wereadmirably arranged, and the excellence of his wine was actually amystery among the _bons vivants_ of the capital. The conversation turnedof course upon the great event of the day; but so artfully was thesubject managed by Heffeman that the discussion took rather the shape ofcriticism on the several speakers, and their styles of delivery, than onthe matter of the meeting itself.

  "How eager the Castle folks will be to know all about it!" saidGodfrey. "Cooke is, I hear, in a sad taking to learn the meaning of thegathering."

  "I fancy, sir," said St. George, "they are more indifferent than yousuppose. A meeting held by individuals of a certain rank and property,and convened with a certain degree of ostentation, can scarcely ever beformidable to a government."

  "You forget the Volunteers," said Heffernan.

  "No, I remember their assembling well enough, and a very absurd businessthey made of it. The Bishop of Downe was the only man of nerve amongstthem; and as for Lord Charlemont, the thought of an attainder was neverout of his head till the whole association was disbanded."

  "They were very formidable, indeed," said Heffernan, gravely. "I canassure you that the Government were far more afraid of their defendersthan of the French."

  "A government that is ungrateful enough to neglect its supporters,"chimed in Hume, "men that have spent their best years in _its_ service,can scarcely esteem itself very secure. In the department I belong tomyself, for instance--"

  "Yours is a very gross case," interrupted Heffernan, who from oldexperience knew what was coming, and wished to arrest it.

  "Thirty-four years, come November next, have I toiled as acommissioner."

  "Unpaid!" exclaimed St. George, with a well-simulated horror,--"unpaid!"

  "No, sir; not without my salary, of course. I never heard of any manholding an office in the Revenue for the amusement it might afford him.Did you, Godfrey?"

  "As for me," said the lawyer, "I spurn their patronage. I well know theprice men pay for such favors."

  "What object could it be to _you_," said Heffernan, "to be madeAttorney-General or placed on the bench, a man independent in everyseuse? So I said to Castlereagh, when he spoke on the subject: 'Nevermind Godfrey,' said I, 'he'll refuse your offers; you'll only offend himby solicitation;' and when he mentioned the 'Rolls'--"

  Here Heffernan paused, and filled his glass leisurely. An interruptioncontrived to stimulate Godfrey's curiosity, and which perfectlysucceeded, as he asked in a voice of tremulous eagerness,--

  "Well, what did you say?"

  "Just as I replied before,--'he 'll refuse you.'"

  "Quite right, perfectly right; you have my unbounded gratitude for theanswer," said Godfrey, swallowing two bumpers as rapidly as he couldfill them.

  "Very different treatment from what I met,--an old and tried supporterof the party," said Hume, turning to O'Reilly and opening upon him thewhole narrative of his long-suffering neglect.

  "It's quite clear, then," said St. George, "that we are agreed,--thebest thing for us would be a change of Ministry."

  "I don't think so at all," interposed Heffernan.

  "Why, Con," interrupted the baronet, "they should have _you_ at anyprice,--however these fellows have learned the trick,--the others knownothing about it You 'd be in office before twenty-four hours."

  "So I might to-morrow," said Heffernan. "There's scarcely a single postof high emolument and trust that I have not been offered and refused.The only things I ever stipulated for in all my connection with theGovernment were certain favors for my personal friends." Here he lookedsignificantly towards O'Reilly; but the glance was intercepted by thecommissioner, who cried out,--"Well, could they say I had no claim?Could they deny thirty-four years of toil and slavery?"

  "And in the case for which I was most interested," resumed Heffernan,not heeding the interruption, "the favor I sought would have beenmore justly bestowed from the rank and merits of the party than as arecompense for any
sen-ices of mine."

  "I won't say that, Heffernan," said Hume, with a look of modesty, whowith the most implicit good faith supposed he was the party alludedto; "I won't go that far; but I will and must say, that afterfour-and-thirty years as a commissioner--"

  "A man must have laid by a devilish pretty thing for the rest of hislife," said St. George, who felt all the bitterness of a narrow incomeaugmented by the croaking complaints of the well-salaried official.

  "Well, I hope better days are coming for all of us," said Heffernan,desirous of concluding the subject ere it should take an untoward turn.

  "You have got a very magnificent seat in the west, sir," said St.George, addressing O'Reilly, who during the whole evening had donelittle more than assent or smile concurrence with the several speakers.

  "The finest thing in Ireland," interrupted Heffernan.

  "Nay, that is saying too much," said O'Reilly, with a look of half-real,half-affected bashfulness. "The abbey certainly stands well, and thetimber is well grown."

  "Are you able to see Clew Bay from the small drawing-room still?--forI remember remarking that the larches on the side of the glen wouldeventually intercept the prospect."

  "You know the Abbey, then?" asked O'Reilly, forgetting to answer thequestion addressed to him.

  "Oh, I knew it well. My family is connected-distantly, I believe--withthe Darcys, and in former days we were intimate. A very sweet placeit was; I am speaking of thirty years ago, and of course it must haveimproved since that."

  "My friend here has given it every possible opportunity," saidHeffernan, with a courteous inclination of the head.

  "I've no doubt of it," said St. George; "but neither money nor banksecurities will make trees grow sixty feet in a twelvemonth. Theimprovements I allude to were made by Maurice Darcy's father; he sunkforty thousand pounds in draining, planting, subsoiling, and what not.He left a rent-charge in his will to continue his plans; and Maurice andhis son--what's the young fellow called?--Lionel, isn't it?--well, theyare, or rather they were, bound to expend a very heavy sum annually onthe property."

  A theme less agreeable to O'Reilly's feelings could scarcely have beenstarted; and though Heffernan saw as much, he did not dare to interruptit suddenly, for fear of any unpalatable remark from St. George. Whetherfrom feeling that the subject was a painful one, or that he liked toindulge his loquacity in detailing various particulars of the Darcys andtheir family circumstances, the old man went on without ceasing,--nownarrating some strange caprice of an ancestor in one century, nowsome piece of good fortune that occurred to another. "You know the oldprophecy in the family, I suppose, Mr. O'Reilly?" said he, "though, tobe sure, you are not very likely to give it credence."

  "I scarcely can say I remember what you allude to."

  "By Jove, I thought every old woman in the west would have told it toyou. How is this the doggerel runs--ay, here it is,--

  'A new name in this house shall never begin Till twenty-one Darcys have died in Gwynne.'

  Now, they say that, taking into account all of the family who havefallen in battle, been lost at sea, and so on, only eleven of the stockdied at the Abbey."

  Although O'Reilly affected to smile at the old rhyme, his cheek becamedeadly pale, and his hand shook as he lifted the glass to his lips. Itwas no vulgar sense of fear, no superstitious dread that moved his coldand calculating spirit, but an emotion of suppressed anger that theancient splendor of the Darcys should be thus placed side by side withhis own unhonored and unknown family.

  "I don't think I ever knew one of these good legends have even so muchof truth,--though the credit is now at an end," said Heffernau, gayly.

  "I'll engage old Darcy's butler wouldn't agree with you," repliedSt. George. "Ay, and Maurice himself had a great dash of old Irishsuperstition in him, for a clever, sensible fellow as he was."

  "It only remains for my friend here, then, to fit up a room for theDarcys and invite them to die there at their several conveniences," saidCon, laughing. "I see no other mode of fulfilling the destiny."

  "There never was a man played his game worse," resumed St. George, whowith a pertinacious persistence continued the topic. "He came of agewith a large unencumbered estate, great family influence, and a veryfair share of abilities. It was the fashion to say he had more, but Inever thought so; and now, look at him!"

  "He had very heavy losses at play," said Heffernan, "certainly."

  "What if he had? They never could have materially affected a fortunelike his. No, no. I believe 'Honest Tom' finished him,--raising money topay off old debts, and then never clearing away the liabilities. What astale trick, and how invariably it succeeds!"

  "You do not seem, sir, to take into account an habitually expensive modeof living," insinuated O'Reilly, quietly.

  "An item, of course, but only an item in the sum total," replied St.George. "No man can eat and drink above ten thousand a year, and Darcyhad considerably more. No; he might have lived as he pleased, had heescaped the acquaintance of honest Tom Gleeson. By the by, Con, is thereany truth in the story they tell about this fellow, and that he reallywas more actuated by a feeling of revenge towards Darcy than a desirefor money?"

  "I never heard the story. Did you, Mr. O'Reilly?" asked Heffernan.

  "Never," said O'Reilly, affecting an air of unconcern, very illconsorting with his pale cheek and anxious eye.

  "The tale is simply this: that, as Gleeson waxed wealthy, and began toassume a position in life, he one day called on the Knight to requesthim to put his name up for ballot at 'Daly's.' Darcy was thunderstruck,for it was in those days when the Club was respectable; but stillthe Knight had tact enough to dissemble his astonishment, and woulddoubtless have got through the difficulty had it not been for BagenalDaly, who was present, and called out, 'Wait till Tuesday, Maurice, forI mean to propose M'Cleery, the breeches-maker, and then the thing won'tseem so remarkable!' Gleeson smiled and slipped away, with an oath tohis own heart, to be revenged on both of them. If there be any truth inthe story, he did ruin Daly, by advising some money-lender to buy up allhis liabilities."

  "I must take the liberty to correct you, sir," said O'Reilly, actuallytrembling with anger. "If your agreeable anecdote has no betterfoundation than the concluding hypothesis, its veracity is inferior toits ingenuity. The gentleman you are pleased to call a money-lender ismy father; the conduct you allude to was simply the advance of a largesum on mortgage."

  "Foreclosed, like Darcy's, perhaps," said St. George, his irascible facebecoming blood-red with passion.

  "Come, come, Giles, you really can know nothing of the subject you aretalking of; besides, to Mr. O'Reilly the matter is a personal one."

  "So it is," muttered St. George; "and if report speaks truly, asunpleasant as personal."

  This insulting remark was not heard by O'Reilly, who was deeply engagedin explaining to the lawyer beside him the minute legal details of thecircumstance.

  "Shrewd a fellow as Gleeson was," said St. George, interruptingO'Reilly, by addressing the lawyer, "they say he has left some flaw openin the matter, and that Darcy may recover a very large portion of thelost estate."

  "Yes; if for instance this bond should be destroyed. He might move inEquity--"

  "He 'd move heaven and earth, sir, if it's Bagenal Daly you mean," saidSt. George, who had stimulated his excitement by drinking freely. "Somewill tell you that he is a steadfast, firm friend; but I 'll vouch forit, a more determined enemy never drew breath."

  "Very happily for the world we live in, sir," said O'Reilly, "there areagencies more powerful than the revengeful and violent natures of suchmen as Mr. Daly."

  "He's every jot as quick-sighted as he's determined; and when he wagereda hogshead of claret that Darcy would one day sit again at the head ofhis table in Gwynne Abbey--"

  "Did he make such a bet?" asked O'Reilly, with a faint laugh.

  "Yes; he walked down the club-room, and offered it to any one present,and none seemed to fancy it; but young Kelly, of Kildare, who
, being anew member just come in, perhaps thought there might be some _eclat_ inbooking a bet with Bagenal Daly."

  "Would you like to back his opinion, sir?" said O'Reilly, with asimulated softness of voice; "or although I rarely wager, I should haveno objection to convenience you here, leaving the amount entirely atyour option."

  "Which means," said St. George, as his eyes sparkled with wine andpassion, "that the weight of _your_ purse is to tilt the beam againstthat of _my_ opinion. Now, I beg leave to tell you--"

  "Let me interrupt you, Giles; I never knew my Burgundy disagree with anyman before, but I d smash every bottle of it to-morrow if I thought itcould make so pleasant a fellow so wrong-headed and unreasonable. Whatsay you if we qualify it with some cognac and water?"

  "Maurice Darcy is my relative," said St. George, pushing his glassrudely from him, "and I have yet to learn the unreasonableness ofwishing well to a member of one's own family. His father and mine werelike brothers! Ay, by Jove! I wonder what either of them would think ofthe changes time has wrought in their sons' fortunes." His voice droppedinto a low, muttering sound, while he mumbled on, "One a beggar and anexile, the other"--here his eye twinkled with a malicious intelligenceas he glanced around the board--"the other the guest of Con Heffernan."He arose as he spoke, and fortunately the noise thus created preventedhis words being overheard. "You 're right, Con," said he, "that Burgundyhas been too much for me. The wine is unimpeachable, notwithstanding."

  The others rose also; although pressed in all the customary hospitalityof the period to have "one bottle more," they were resolute in takingleave, doubtless not sorry to escape the risk of any unpleasanttermination to the evening's entertainment.

  The lawyer and the commissioner agreed to see St. George home; foralthough long seasoned to excesses, age had begun to tell upon him, andhis limbs were scarcely more under control than his tongue. O'Reilly haddropped his handkerchief, he was not sure whether in the drawing or thedinner room, and this delayed him a few moments behind the rest; andalthough he declared, at each moment, the loss of no consequence, andrepeated his "good-night," Heffernan held his hand and would not sufferhim to leave.

  "Try under Mr. O'Reilly's chair, Thomas.--Singular specimen of a by-goneday, the worthy baronet!" said he, with a shrug of his shoulders. "Wouldyou believe it, he and Darcy have not been on speaking terms for thirtyyears, and yet how irritable be showed himself in his behalf!"

  "He seems to know something of the family affairs, however," saidO'Reilly, cautiously.

  "Not more than club gossip; all that about Daly and his wager is a weekold."

  "I hope my father may never hear it," said O'Reilly, compassionately;"he has all the irritability of age, and these reports invariably urgehim on to harsh measures, which, by the least concession, he wouldnever have pursued. The Darcys, indeed, have to thank themselves forany severity they have experienced at our hands. Teasing litigation andinjurious reports of us have met all our efforts at conciliation."

  "A compromise would have been much better, and more reputable forall parties," said Heffernan, as he turned to stir the fire, and thuspurposely averted his face while making the remark.

  "So it would," said O'Reilly, hurriedly; then stopping abruptly short,he stammered out, "I don't exactly know what you mean by the word, butif it implies a more amicable settlement of all disputed points betweenus, I perfectly agree with you."

  Heffernan never spoke: a look of cool self-possession and significancewas all his reply. It seemed to say, "Don't hope to cheat _me_; however,you may rely on my discretion."

  "I declare my handkerchief is in my pocket all this while," saidO'Reilly, trying to conceal his rising confusion with a laugh."Good-night, once more--you 're thinking of going over to Englandto-morrow evening?"

  "Yes, if the weather permits, I 'll sail at seven. Can I be of anyservice to you?"

  "Perhaps so: I may trouble you with a commission. Good-night."

  "So, Mr. Hickman, you begin to feel the hook! Now let us see if wecannot play the fish without letting him know the weakness of thetackle!" said Heffernan, as he looked after him, and then slowlyretraced his steps to the now deserted drawing-room.

  "How frequently will chance play the game more skilfully for us than allour cleverness!" said he, while he paced the room alone. "That old bear,St. George, who might have ruined everything, has done me good service.O'Reilly's suspicions are awakened, his fears are aroused; could I onlyfind a clew to his terror, I could hold him as fast by his fears as bythis same baronetcy. This baronetcy," added he, with a sneering laugh,"that I am to negotiate for, and--be refused!"

  With this sentiment of honest intentions on his lips, Mr. Heffernanretired to rest, and, if this true history is to be credited, to sleepsoundly till morning.