These fierce encounters, however, never occurred in Felix's presence;
for she thought that to take his part then, would remove, in a great
degree, the 'vantage ground on which she stood with reference to
himself. Difficult, indeed, was the part she found herself compelled
to play on those delicate occasions. She could not, as a moralist and
disciplinarian, proverbially strict, seem in any degree to countenance
the charges brought by Hugh against Felix; nor, on the other hand, was
it without a command of temper and heroic self-denial, rarely attained,
that she was able to keep, her indignation against Hugh pent up within
decorous and plausible limits. During the remonstrance of the latter,
she usually pushed the charges against Felix into the notorious failings
of Hugh himself, and this she did in a tone of irony so dry and cutting,
that Hugh was almost in every case, as willing to abandon the attack as
he had been to begin it.

"Ay, indeed," she would proceed--"troth an' conscience, Hugh,
avourneen"--avourneen being pronounced with a civil bitterness that was
perfectly withering--"troth an' conscience, Hugh, avourneen, it's truth
you're speaking, and not only that, Hugh darling, but he's as dark as
the old _dioul_ betimes, so he is, and runs into such fits of blackness
and anger, for no reason--Hugh, _dheelish_, for no reason in life, man
alive. Are, you listening, Hugh? for it's to you I'm speaking, dear--for
no reason in life, acushla, only because he's a dirty, black bodagh,
that his whole soul and body's not worth the scrapings of a pot in a
hard summer. Did you hear me, Hugh jewel? Felix, go out, avourneen, ye
onbiddable creature, and look after them ditchers, and see that they
don't play upon us to-day, as they did on Saturday."

Felix, who understood the sister's irony, went out on every such,
occasion with perfect good will, and indulged in an uncontrollable fit