Julia made no immediate reply, but, after wiping away some bitter tears, she at length said, “I will not believe it—­it cannot be possible:  I know it is very strange and unaccountable, and I certainly cannot understand it.”

“Do you imagine it possible that M’Carthy could belong to this confederation of blood?” asked Alick; “I at least have been told so much:  however, perhaps time will tell us more about it.  For my part—­”

He had nearly pronounced the words, when a heavy trampling of feet, joined to a deep murmur of suppressed voices, was heard; a horn was then sounded, and, in about half a minute afterwards, Purcel and his sons were called upon to surrender and admit the assailants.  From the moment the first shots were heard, on the part of the approaching enemy, the Purcels concealed all their lights, so that, when the former reached the outer wall, the house seemed wrapped in obscurity—­as if the family were buried in sleep.

They now assailed the gate, but soon found that there was little likelihood of forcing an entrance without heavier implements than those they had in their possession.  On ascertaining that this was not practicable, they began to fire at the roof of the dwelling-house, and at those of the out-offices, with the hope that some portion of the wadding, when lighted, might ignite them.  In this, after repeated attempts and failures, they were ultimately successful.  A cow-house that stood detached from the other buildings, and, in point of proximity, nearest the gate, at length caught the flame, and in a few minutes began to burn.  This, to be sure, might have been of little consequence to the insurgents, Were it not that the wind, which was gusty and blew sometimes with a good deal of strength, now and then swept the blaze over to the other offices, which were, consequently, soon in flames; and it was now obvious that the dwelling-house, from its position and the direction of the blast, could not possibly escape.

Hitherto, there was no appearance of either light or life in the proctor’s dwelling, and the insurgents were by no means satisfied with the progress they had made.  It is true, they felt confident that none of the Purcels had escaped since they approached the house—­a circumstance which was impossible, in consequence of the cordon of the enemy that had been drawn around the outer wall.  Another surmise, however, maddened them almost to fury.  Could it be possible that the objects of their hatred had abandoned the house in the earlier part of the night, and thus defrauded them of their vengeance?  The thought was intolerable; but that was a point which they would now be in a capacity soon to ascertain.

Finding that the gate, as we said, was impregnable, unless with stronger implements, they had sent to a smith’s forge in the neighborhood, from whence they obtained two or three sledge-hammers.  By the aid of these they soon shivered the gate to pieces, and, having accomplished this, they—­