Handy Andy, Volume 2 — a Tale of Irish Life by Samuel Lover
page 26 of 344 (07%)
page 26 of 344 (07%)
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"Well, you're welcome to it, sir," said Murphy, "and if I had greater nonsense you should have it; but seriously, sir, I again must beg you to remember that the country all around here abounds in enchantment; scarcely a night passes without some fairy frolic; but, however you may doubt the wonderful fact of the cat speaking, I wonder you are not impressed with the points of moral in which the story abounds--" "Fiddlestick!" said the miniature snarler. "First, the little touch about the corn monopoly [1]--then maternal vanity chastised by the loss of the child's toe--then Tom's familiarity with his cat, showing the danger arising from a man making too free with his female domestics--the historical point about the penal laws--the fatal results of letting the cat out o' the bag, with the curious final fact in natural history." [1][Footnote: Handy Andy was written when the "vexed question" of the "Corn Laws" was the all-absorbing subject of discussion.] "It's all nonsense," said the little man, "and I am ashamed of myself for being such a fool as to sit--alistening to such stuff instead of going to bed, after the fatigue of my journey and the necessity of rising early to-morrow, to be in good time at the polling." "Oh! then you're going to the election, sir?" said Murphy. "Yes, sir--there's some sense in _that_--and _you_, gentlemen, remember we must be _all_ up early--and I recommend you to follow my example." |
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