the Emerald Isle, with a short, black pipe in his wide mouth, and in his
shirt and trousers, came to the door and seated himself on the sill.

"Is it Misther Kidd's money ye's is afther?" he enquired, querulously,
putting his elbows on his knees and resting his head in his hands. "Much
luck may ye's have finding it. Divel a cint meself iver saw uv Misther
Kidd's money, an' we've liv'd here this two years an' more. It's mighty
little uv any other man's money--not enough, troth, to get bread for the
childher--have we seen."

The boatmen enquired of Mr. Brophy if he could tell them where the
devil's sounding-stone was. There was indeed a superstition amongst
these poor people that Kidd had buried his money under a rock he gave
that name to; and that there was an agreement with his satanic majesty,
who was to stand guard over it, and allow only those who had the
talisman to lay hands on it. This talisman, it was also believed, would
open the devil's conscience, and cause him to lift the stone and unlock
the great iron chest containing the gold and silver. Loud noises, it was
said, were heard under the stone, which was the voice of the devil
rebuking the follies of the men who came in search of this treasure.
These poor people also believed that Kidd had murdered a woman in cold
blood, and buried her under the same stone; that she would come to life
when it was lifted; and that her ghost haunted the spot every night, and
not less than a score of Dutchmen had seen it. The more religious of
them declared that the ghost would hold communion only with a certain
priest, who came once a year, at midnight, to invoke in an unknown
tongue a blessing on her troubled spirit.

"The divel's soundin'-stone is it ye's wants?" ejaculated Mr. Brophy.
"Shure, it's beyant--a mile, about--perhaps two--perhaps not so