"When he got owld, an’ where he cud look into the other worruld, Nora came ivery night an’ brought more wid her, sper’ts av kings an’ bishops that rest on Cashel, an’ there’s thim that’s seen the owld man walkin’ in Cormac’s Chapel, Nora holdin’ him up an’ him discoorsin’ wid the mighty dead. They found him wan day, cowld an’ shtill, on Nora’s grave, an’ laid him be her side, God rest his sowl, an’ there he slapes to-day, God be good to him. [Illustration: "The Owld Man walkin’ in Cormae’s Chapel"] "They said he was only a poor owld innocent, but all is aqualized, an’ thim that’s despised sometimes have betther comp’ny among the angels than that of mortials." SATAN’S CLOVEN HOOF. [Illustration: Initial: "Satan’s Cloven Hoof"] Among the beautiful traits of the Irish character, none is more prominent than the religious element. Philosophers declare that the worshipping principle is strong in proportion to the lack of happiness in the circumstances of life, and at first glance there seems a degree of truth in the statement; for the rich, enjoying their riches, are likely to be contented and to look no further than this world; while the poor, oppressed and ground to the earth by those whom they feel to be no better than themselves, having that innate sense of justice common to all men, and discerning the inequality of worldly lots, are not slow to place implicit belief in the doctrine of a final judgment, at which all inequalities will be righted, and both rich and poor will stand side by side; the former gaining no advantage from his riches, the latter being at no disadvantage from his poverty. There is, however, good reason to believe that in the days of Ireland’s greatness there was the same strength of devotion as at present. Ireland is so full of ruined churches and ecclesiastical buildings as to give color of truth to the statement of a recent traveller, "it is a country of ruins." Rarely is the traveller out of sight of the still standing walls of a long deserted church, and not infrequently the churches are found in groups. The barony of Forth, in Wexford, though comprising a territory of only 40,000 acres, contains the ruins of eighteen churches, thirty-three chapels, two convents, and a hospital of vast proportions. Nor is this district exceptional, for at Glendalough, Clon-mac-nois, Inniscathy, Inch Derrin, and Innis Kealtra, there are groups of churches, each group having seven churches, the edifices of goodly size, and at Clonferth and Holy Cross, there are seven chapels in each town, so close together as to cause wonder whether all were called into use.