killed the most of the ladies and a million of the people of London with
the plague. Queen Victoria was more honourable than that. It would be
hard to beat Queen Elizabeth."


THE TRACE OF CROMWELL

"I'll tell you now about the trace of Cromwell. There was a young lady
was married to a gentleman, and she died with her first baby, and she
was brought away into a forth by the fairies, the good people, as I
suppose. She used to be sitting on the side of it combing her hair, and
three times her husband saw her there, but he had not the courage to go
and to bring her away. But there was a man of the name of Howley living
near the forth, and he went out with his gun one day and he saw her
beside the forth, and he brought her away to his house, and a young baby
sprang between them at the end of a year. One day the husband was out
shooting and he came in upon Howley's land, and when young Howley heard
the shooting he rose up and went out and he bade the gentleman to stop,
for this was his land. So he stopped, and he said he was weary and
thirsty, and he asked could he rest in the house. So young Howley said
as long as he asked pardon he had leave to use what he liked. So he came
in the house and he sat at the table, and he put his two eyes through
the young lady. 'If I didn't see her dead and buried,' he said, 'I'd say
that to be my own wife.' 'Oh!' said she, 'so I am your wife, and you are
badly worthy of me, and you have the worst courage ever I knew, that you
would not come and bring me away out of the forth as young Howley had
the courage to bring me,' she said. So then he asked young Howley would
he give him back his wife. 'I will give her,' he said, 'but you never
will get the child.' So the child was reared, and when he was grown he
went travelling up to Dublin. And he was at a hunt, and he lost the top