[Illustration:  It took ten million feet of glass thread, and Eulaly will look real sweet in it.]

And oh, how I did wish, as I looked at it, that her ancestor could have seen it, and meditated how pert and forwards the land wuz that he’d discovered!

Glass dresses—­the idee!

But Josiah looked kinder oneasy all the time that I wuz a-lookin’ at it; he wuz afraid of what thoughts I might be entertainin’ in my mind onbeknown to him, and he hurried me onwards.

But the very next place we come to be wuz still more anxious to proceed rapidly, for this wuz the Irish Village, where native wimmen make the famous Irish laces.

It wuz a perfect Irish village, lackin’ the dirt, and broken winders, and the neighborly pigs, and etc.

At one end of it is the exact reproduction of the ancient castle Donegal, famed in song and story.  In the rooms of this castle the lace wuz exhibited—­beautiful laces as I ever see, or want to see, and piles and piles of it, and of every beautiful pattern.

I did hanker for some of it to trim a night-cap.  As I told Josiah, “I wouldn’t give a cent for any of the white lace dresses, not if I had to wear ’em, or white lace cloaks.”  Sez I, “I’d feel like a fool a-goin’ to meetin’ or to the store to carry off butter with a white lace dress on, or a white lace mantilly, but I would love dearly to own some of that narrer lace for a night-cap border.”

But his anxiety wuz extreme to go on that very instant.

He wanted to see the Blarney stun on top of the tower of the castle.  It is a stun about as big as Josiah’s hat, let down below the floor, so’s you have to stoop way down to even see it, let alone kissin’ it.

Josiah wuz very anxious to kiss it, but I frowned on the needless expense.

Sez I, “Men don’t need to kiss it; Blarney is born in ’em, as you may say, and is nateral nater to ’em.”

Sez he, “But it is so stylish to embrace it, Samantha, and it only costs ten cents.”

[Illustration:  “But it is so stylish, Samantha, and it only costs ten cents.”]

“But,” I sez firmly, “you hain’t a-goin’ to kiss no chunk of Chicago stun, Josiah Allen, or pay out your money for demeanin’ yourself.”

Sez I, “The original Blarney stun is right there in its place in the tower of Blarney Castle in Ireland.  It hain’t been touched, and couldn’t be.”

“I don’t believe that Lady Aberdeen would allow no sech works to go on,” sez he.

Sez I, “Lady Aberdeen can’t help herself.  How can a minister keep the hull of his congregation from lyin’?”

Sez I, “She is one of the nicest wimmen in the world—­one of the few noble ones that reach down from high places, and lift up the lowly, and help the world.  I don’t spoze she knows about the Blarney stun.  And don’t you go to tellin’ her,” sez I severely, “and hurt her feelin’s.”

Sez he, in a morbid tone, “We hain’t been in the habit of visitin’ back and forth, and probable if we wuz, you’d tell her before I could if you got a chance.  Wimmen have sech long tongues.”