diluted) to sit at table with him. This method introduces the last
element of confusion into the household arrangements, and on two
occasions we have had our custard pudding or stewed fruit served in
our bedrooms a full hour after we had finished dinner. We have
reasons for wishing to be first to enter the dining-room, and we
walk in with eyes fixed on the ceiling, by far the cleanest part of
the place. Having wended our way through an underbrush of corks
with an empty bottle here and there, and stumbled over the holes in
the carpet, we arrive at our table in the window. It is as
beautiful as heaven outside, and the table-cloth is at least cleaner
than it will be later, for Mrs. Waterford of Mullinavat has an
unsteady hand.

When Oonah brings in the toast rack now she balances it carefully,
remembering the morning when she dropped it on the floor, but picked
up the slices and offered them to Salemina. Never shall I forget
that dear martyr's expression, which was as if she had made up her
mind to renounce Ireland and leave her to her fate. I know she
often must wonder if Dr. La Touche's servants, like Mrs.
Mullarkey's, feel of the potatoes to see whether they are warm or
cold!

At ten thirty there is great confusion and laughter and excitement,
for the sportsmen are setting out for the day and the car has been
waiting at the door for an hour. Oonah is carolling up and down the
long passage, laden with dishes, her cheerfulness not in the least
impaired by having served seven or eight separate breakfasts. Molly
has spilled a jug of milk, and is wiping it up with a child's
undershirt. The Glasgy man is telling them that yesterday they
forgot the corkscrew, the salt, the cup, and the jam from the