Читать книгу The Fortunes of Hector O'Halloran, and His Man, Mark Antony O'Toole - W. H. Maxwell - Страница 16

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Mirandi.—“Be of comfort;

My fathers of a better nature, sir,

Than he appears by speech.”—The Tempest.

As we proceeded, I endeavoured to lead my companion into conversation, and glean from him some information touching the place and the personage we were about to honour with a midnight visit. At first, Andy Beg *—for so the other boatmen named him—affected ignorance of Mr. Hartley’s general history; and said that all he knew “for certain” was, that he had been a great traveller, and bought, a few years ago, a large mountain property, whose extent and revenues bore most ridiculous proportions;—the one exceeding some square miles, the other not amounting in value to the rental of an English farm. He added, that “he had plenty of money, few acquaintances, lived entirely to himself, kept a very good house, and kept every body out of it.” In short, the total of my intelligence was small and not encouraging. Mr. Hartley being wealthy and inhospitable, having

“One fair daughter, and no more,

The which he loved passing weir’

the reception of a stranger like myself, making an unceremonious call after sunset, seemed indeed rather a questionable matter. But it was necessary to make an attempt to gain admission; for, assuredly, any thing was better than to be cooped up on that infernal island.