i was out thracking hares meeself, and i seen a fine puss of a thing hopping, hopping in the moonlight, and whacking her ears about, now up, now down, and winking her great eyes, and—"here goes," says i, and the thing was so close to me that she turned round and looked at me, and then [pg 155] bounced back, as well as to say, do your worst! so i had the least grain in life of blessed powder left, and i put it in the gun—and bang at her! my jewel, the scritch she gave would frighten a rigment, and a mist, like, came betwixt me and her, and i seen her no more; but when the mist wint off i saw blood on the spot where she had been, and i followed its track, and at last it led me—whist, whisper—right up to katey macshane's door; and when i was at the thrashold, i heerd a murnin' within, a great murnin', and a groanin', and i opened the door, and there she was herself, sittin' quite content in the shape of a woman, and the black cat that was sittin' by her rose up its back and spit at me; but i went on never heedin', and asked the ould —— how she was and what ailed her.

"nothing," sis she.

"what's that on the floor?" sis i.

"oh," she says, "i was cuttin' a billet of wood," she says, "wid the reaping hook," she says, "an' i've wounded meself in the leg," she says, "and that's drops of my precious blood," she says.