The House by the Church-Yard

ry band, rousing all the echoes round with harmonious and exhilarating thunder, within — an occasional crack of a ‘Brown Bess,’ with a puff of white smoke over the hedge, being heard, and the cheers o

ourted, turned to his right, and so found himse

ome armed with muskets and some with fowling pieces — for they were not particular — and with bunches of ribbons fluttering in their three-cornered hats, and sprigs of gay flowers in their breasts, stood in the foreground, in an i

pink silk linings — and flashing buckles — and courtly wigs — or becoming powder — went pleasantly with the brilliant costume of the stately dames and smiling lasses. The

— sometimes five — sometimes as many as seven — and his hearty voice was heard bawling at them by name, as he sauntered through the town of a morning, and theirs occasionally in short screec

he’ll oust Nutter at last, and get the agency; that’s what he’s driving at — always undermining somebody.’ Doctor Sturk and Lord Castlemallard were talking apart on

ion it — had an instinctive notion that Sturk had an eye upon the civil practice of the neigh

ot to blame; and Sturk called him ‘that drunken little apothecary’— for Toole had a boy who compounded, under the rose, his draughts, pills, and powders in the back parlour — and sometimes, ‘that smutty little ballad singer,’ or ‘that wh

tiffly from his hips upward — his great cue playing all the time up and down his back, and sometimes so near the ground when he stood erect and thr

es had quite a pretty little pink colour — perfectly genuine — in her cheeks; command sat in her eye and energy on her lip — but though it was imperious and restless, there

little stupid, did not remember that such a remark was not likely to pleasure the charming Magnoli

that think so,’ said Mag, with

a pipe of claret she’s something to the bac

, who might more truly have told that tale of herself. ‘Who’s that pretty young man my Lord Castlem

ed. ‘Why that’s Mr. Mervyn, that’s stopping at the Phoenix. A

a firmity kettle,’ s

two livery footmen behind them,’ threw in O’Flaherty,

sequence,’ Toole rattled on; ‘M

n her mouth, but I warrant cheese won’t chok

ing, good-natured, cunning, foolish Mrs. Macnamara, t

er — though Magnolia’s stature and activity did not always render that easy. To-day, for instance, when the firing was brisk, and some of the ladies uttered pretty little timid squalls, Miss Magnolia not only stood fire like brick, but with her own fair hands cracked off a firelock, and was more complimented and applauded than all the marksmen beside, although she shot most dangerously wide, and was much nearer hitting old Arthur Slowe than that respectable gentlema

tupidity. Over the fire-place in large black letters, was the legend, ‘BETTER LATE THAN NEVER!’ and out came the horn-books and spectacles, and to it they went with their A-B ab, etc., and plenty of wheezing and coughing. Aunt Becky kept good fires, and served out a mess of bread and broth, along with some pungent ethics, to each of her hopeful old girls. In winter she further encouraged them with a flannel petticoat apiece, and there was besides a monthly dole. So that although after a year there was, perhaps, on the whole, no progress in learning, the affair wore a tolerably encouraging aspect; for the academy had increased in numbers, and two old fellows, liking the notion of the broth and the 6d. a month — one a ba

s sister or niece — and so he made up to Mrs. Macnamara, who arrested a narrative in which she was demonstrating to O’Flaherty the general’s lineal descent from old Chattesworth — an army tailor in Queen Anne’s time — and his cousinship to a live butter dealer in Co

ed, and glanced uneasily out of the corner of his shrewd little eye at the unsuspicious general and on to Aunt Rebecca; for it was very important to Dr. Toole to stand well at Belmont. So, seeing that Miss M

r this sort of offence, like Chinese treason, is not visited on the arch offender only, but according to a scale of consanguinity, upon his kith and kin. The criminal is minced — his sons lashed — his nephews reduced to cutlets — his cousins to joints — and so on — none of the family quite escapes;

interest, stepped into the fair-green, the dark blue glance of poor Nan Glynn, of Palmerstown, from under her red Sunday riding-hood, followed the tall, dashing, graceful appariti

h, true lady — I never saw the pleasant crayon sketch that my mother used to speak of, but the tradition of thee has come to me — so bright and tender, with its rose and

etter, but I’m such a weak coxcomb — a father-confessor might keep me nearer to my duty — some one to scold

dy; for she had never heard anything worse of him — very young ladies sel

tend her school in Martin’s Row, with “better late than never” over her chimneypiece: there are two

just the least bit in the world piqued; ‘I know she would do it zealously; but ne

rily,’ five years ago, when I was a little girl, you once calle

poor little joke, and how much the handsome lieutenant would have given, at

w; won’t you forget my old impertinences, and allow me to m

t — but you know I can’t he

reproof. Yes, you shall lecture me — I’ll bear it from none but you,

sant to you, ’tis a certain

, with an honest and very peculiar light in his dark, strange eyes; and after a little pause, ‘I’ll tell

y business to ma

rhaps happy, that is to say, better. I thi

gh a little unconscious sigh. The old man did not hear her — he was too absorbed in his talk — he only felt the pressure of his darling’s little hand, and returned it, after his wont, with a gentle squeeze of his cassocked arm, while he continued the learned essay he was addressing to

y should I? How is it that she interests me, and yet repels me so easily? And — and when I came here first,’ he continued aloud, ‘you were, oh dear! how mere a child, hardly eleven years old. How long I’ve known you, Miss Lilias, and yet how formal you are with me.’ There was reproach almost fie

nds with him, and only bowed the lower, and answered her grave smile, which seemed to say

that I can’t be happy away from her. I’ll let her see I can

ed, walked with them to the gate of the fair-green. As he passed he bowed low to good Parson Walsingham, who returned his salute, n

ow and a blight follow him not into this place.’ The rector murm

, what could have darkened it with a look so sad and anxious; and then her eyes also followed the r