gomel [a fool] like me, such a journey this blessed night." "You thief, you," says he, "dont you know I'm O'Donoughue? I'll tache you better manners than to be mistering me; so, for that very word, you must be off in a minute, or may be it would be worse with you. Won't I mind the cattle till you come back? and won't I lend you my own horse? so that you'll be better mounted than e'er a gentleman in the kingdom." And that was true enough for him; for he was a beautiful horse as you'd meet in a month of Sundays, and had silver shoes upon him, and gold stirrups, and little gold and silver bells upon his bridle, that jingled with every stir of him. So with that, down he jumps off his horse, and makes no more to do, but heaves me up on his back. "Tim Shea, put this letter in your spraun [purse or pouch] and when the horse stops in front of a big castle, give it to the first that'll open the door, and bring me back an answer,' "said he. your honor," says I. "Hauld tight and be off; hurroo, coppul bawn," [white horse,] says he; and away we flew like the wind. Indeed, then, it gave me enough to do to stick on his back, though I held tight by the neck; for my head was bothered by the jingling of the bells, and he went so fast that he almost knocked the breath out of me. Well, sir, away we went, and we went, till we came to the county of Waterford; when, what should my thief of a horse do, but make for a big

"I will

cliff that hanged over the sea; so, when I see where he was going, I thought it was all over with me. "Ah, then, my beautiful baste," says I, "wouldn't you be after turning some other way?" But the unnatural

creature took no more notice of me than if I was a Jew or a heathen just; but when he comes to the edge of the cliff, he turns up his snout and gave a great snort; down he leapt with me all at once, clean into the middle of the wide ocean. Splash-splash,

went the water, and down we went to the bottom; when, where would I find myself, but in the middle of a fine city. So up we went through the street, and all the people staring, until we came in front of a big castle, and there we stopt at last, and my coppul bawn began to jingle his bells, like a May boy, till the door was opened, and out walked an elegant lady. "What's your business, Tim Shea?" says she, for they all seemed to know me as well as if I was bred and born among them. Wisha, then, nothing at all, my lady," says I, only a bit of a note from O'Donoughue." "Give it here," says she, “and I'll bring you an answer in a minute." So with that, in she went, and it wasn't long till she came out again with the answer; and as soon as I had it safe, away went my coppul bawn as fast as ever. Well, sir, it wasn't long till he brought me back again to the big rock by the lake-side, and sure it was I that was glad to see it; and as soon as he

66

came up to O'Donoughue, he gives himself a shake, and makes no more of tossing me off than if I was a straw. "Where's the answer, Tim ?" says O'Donoughue. "Here, your honor," says I, as soon as I could get breath to spake. "Well Tim," says he when he read it, "you'll see some fun soon, for the boys from Waterford are coming, and and there'll be as fine a hurling match as ever you see; but which ever way it goes, don't let a word out of your two lips, if you have not a mind to sup sorrow."

of

"So with that, up he gets on his white horse, and away he gallops into the lake."Joy be with you," says 1, "I'm fairly rid I, you at last." But the words were hardly out of my mouth, when the lake was covered over with O'Donoughue's people; and it was not long till the boys from Waterford rushed by in a whirlwind, and so to it they

went.

66

"It would do your heart good to see the beautiful balls and hurlies they had, and to hear the shouts of them, as they pucked it about from one end of the lake to the other, till at last the Waterford boys began to get the better of the Kerry men. Blug-abairns! what are you about, O'Donoughue?" says I, quite forgetting that I wasn't to spake, but if I did, so well I paid for it, for up jumped a big ugly looking fellow, and hits me a rap over the head with his hurley. Down I dropt as dead as a herring, and when I came

to myself, there was nothing to be seen but the grey mist of the morning, creeping calmly along the lake, and the cattle, that were quietly grazing around me. But you see, sir, I keep a civil distance from the lake after nightfall any how, for sure it was, I was bothered the whole night with O'Donoughue, and his hurlers, and his white horse, and messages, and cities in the sea; but it will be many a long day till they catch me agen.That's Tim Shea's story, sir."

ALLEEN ATORE'S EPITAPH.

WRITTEN BY HERSELF.

Here in a little cave,

The prettiest nook of this most grassy vale,
All amid lillies pale,
That turn

Their heads into my little vault, and mourn,—
Stranger, I have made my grave.

I am not all forgot:

A small hoarse stream murmurs close by my pillow,
And o'er me a green willow
Doth weep,.

Still questioning the air, " Why doth she sleep'
The girl, in this cold spot ?"

Even the very winds

Come to my cave and sigh; they often bring
Rose leaves upon their wing
To strew

O'er my earth, and leaves of violet blue;
In sooth, leaves of all kinds.

Fresh in my mossy bed;

The frequent pity of the rock falls here,
A sweet, cold, silent tear;"
I've heard,

Sometime, a wild and melancholy bird
Warble at my grave head.

Read this small tablet o'er

That holds mine epitaph upon its cheek of pearl ;
"Here lies a simple girl,
Who died

Like a pale flower, nipt in its sweet spring-tide,
E'er it had bloomed :"-no more.

THE VISIONARY SEAMAN.

Standing in the counting-room of our of fice, a few days since, we saw eater two young men in sailor's habits; one of them inquired for the editor-whom he must see and converse with alone. Taking him into our room, we prepared for the recital of shipwreck, or the discovery of some new volcanic island. The young man was about twenty-five years of age; he was dressed in canvass trowsers, a blue jacket and vest over a red flannel shirt, and a tarpaulin hat. Notwithstanding his sun-burnt visage he was rather good looking, his dark eye was restless and inflamed, and his frequent changes of position showed his mind ill at ease. He had, he said, a revelation to make which he thought worthy of being known. We requested him to give us some notes from which we could make out a statement; but he said he could neither read nor write, and must therefore deal with us viva voce.

Having satisfied himself that there was none but ourselves and a small boy within hearing, he prepared for his recital.

'I was on the passage,' said he, from Cape Francois to Boston in the ship a few