We started early; and on reaching the town where we were to breakfast and exchange our own for post-horses, found the place in feverish excitement. A hundred anxious inquirers were collected in the market-place. Three hours beyond the usual time of the mail-delivery had elapsed,--wild rumors were spread abroad,--a general rising in Leinster was announced,--and the non-arrival of the post had an ominous appearance, and increased the alarm. We hurried over the morning meal,--the horses were being put to,--the ladies already in the carriage,--when a dragoon rode in at speed, and the worst apprehensions we had entertained were more than realized by this fresh arrival. The mail-coach had been plundered and burned, while everywhere, north, east, and west, as it was stated, the rebels were in open insurrection,--all communication with Dublin was cut off,--and any attempt to reach the metropolis would have been only an act of madness. Another express from the south came in. Matters there were even worse. The rebels had risen _en masse_ and committed fearful devastation. The extent of danger in attempting to reach the capital, or return to his mansion, were thus painfully balanced; and my father considering that, as sailors say, the choice rested between the devil and the deep sea, decided on remaining where he was, as the best policy under all circumstances. The incompetency of the Irish engineering staff, and a defective commissariat, at that time was most deplorable; and although the town of ---- was notoriously disaffected, the barrack chosen, temporarily, to accommodate the garrison--a company of militia--was a thatched building, two stories high, and perfectly commanded by houses in front and rear. The captain in charge of the detachment knew nothing of his trade, and had been hoisted to a commission in return for the use of a few freeholders. The Irish read character quickly. They saw at a glance the marked imbecility of the devoted man; and by an imposition, from which any but an idiot would have recoiled, trapped the silly victim and, worse still, sacrificed those who had been unhappily intrusted to his direction. That the express had ridden hard was evident from the distressed condition of his horse; and the intelligence he brought deranged my father's plans entirely. Any attempt either to proceed or to return, as it appeared, would be hazardous alike; and nothing remained but to halt where he was, until more certain information touching the rebel operations should enable him to decide which would be the safest course of action to pursue. He did not communicate the extent of his apprehensions to the family,--affected an air of indifference he did not feel,--introduced himself to the commanding officer on parade, and returned to the inn in full assurance that, in conferring a commission on a man so utterly ignorant of the trade he had been thrust into as Captain --- appeared to be, "the King's press had been abused most damnably."