As the door opened, Garraghty started back, so that half the contents of his bag rolled upon the floor.

‘Stop, my dear father, I conjure you,’ cried Lord Colambre, springing forward, and kneeling to his father; at the same moment snatching the pen from his hand.

Colambre!  God bless you, my dear boy! at all events.  But how came you here?—­And what do you mean?’ said his father.

‘Burn it!’ cried Sir Terence, pinching the sealing-wax; ’for I burnt myself with the pleasure of the surprise.’

Garraghty, without saying a word, was picking up the guineas that were scattered upon the floor.

‘How fortunate I am,’ cried Lord Colambre, ’to have arrived just in time to tell you, my dear father, before you put your signature to these papers, before you conclude this bargain, all I know, all I have seen, of that man!’

‘Nick Garraghty, honest old Nick; do you know him, my lord?’ said Sir Terence.

‘Too well, sir.’

’Mr. Garraghty, what have you done to offend my son?  I did not expect this,’ said Lord Clonbrony.

‘Upon my conscience, my lord, nothing to my knowledge,’ said Mr. Garraghty, picking up the guineas; ’but showed him every civility, even so far as offering to accommodate him with cash without security; and where will you find the other agent, in Ireland or anywhere else, will do that?  To my knowledge, I never did anything, by word or deed, to offend my Lord Colambre; nor could not, for I never saw him, but for ten minutes, in my days; and then he was in such a foaming passion—­begging his lordship’s pardon—­owing to the misrepresentations he met with of me, I presume, from a parcel of blackguards that he went amongst, incognito, he would not let me or my brother Dennis say a word to set him right; but exposed me before all the tenantry, and then threw himself into a hack, and drove off here, to stop the signing of these leases, I perceive.  But I trust,’ concluded he, putting the replenished money-bag down with a heavy sound on the table, opposite to Lord Clonbrony,—­’I trust, my Lord Clonbrony will do me justice; that’s all I have to say.’

‘I comprehend the force of your last argument fully, sir,’ said Lord Colambre.  ’May I ask how many guineas there are in the bag?  I don’t ask whether they are my father’s or not.’

‘They are to be your lordship’s father’s, sir, if he thinks proper,’ replied Garraghty.  ’How many, I don’t know that I can justly, positively say—­five hundred, suppose.’

’And they would be my father’s if he signed those leases—­I understand that perfectly, and understand that my father would lose three times that sum by the bargain.—­My dear father, you start—­but it is true.  Is not this the rent, sir, at which you were going to let Mr. Garraghty have the land?’ placing a paper before Lord Clonbrony.

‘It is—­the very thing.’

’And here, sir, written with my own hand, are copies of the proposals I saw, from responsible, respectable tenants, offered and refused.—­Is it so, or is it not, Mr. Garraghty?—­deny it, if you can.’