The
consideration of this brings us to a family discussion; which it becomes
our duty to detail before we proceed any further in our narrative.
On the following day, then, nearly the same party of which we have
given an account in an early portion of this work, met in the same
eating-house we have already described; the only difference being that
instead of O'Donegan, the classical teacher, old Corbet himself was
present. The man called Thomas Corbet, the eldest son Anthony, Ginty
Cooper the fortune-teller, Ambrose Gray, and Anthony himself, composed
this interesting sederunt. The others had been assembled for some time
before the arrival of Anthony, who consequently had not an opportunity
of hearing the following brief dialogue.
"I'm afraid of my father," observed Thomas; "he's as deep as a
draw-well, and it's impossible to know what he's at. How are we to
manage him at all?"
"By following his advice, I think," said Ginty. "It's time, I'm sure, to
get this boy into his rights."
"I was very well disposed to help you in that," replied her brother;
"but of late he has led such a life, that I fear if he comes into the
property, he'll do either us or himself little credit; and what is still
worse, will he have sense to keep his own secret? My father says his
brother, the legitimate son, is dead; that he died of scarlet-fever
many years ago in the country---and I think myself, by the way, that he
looks, whenever he says it, as if he himself had furnished the boy with
the fever.
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