“The church, I think, Mr. Burke, is, or ought to be, his destination.” “So, after all, you prefer to have my money and my property, along wid a good wife, to your brother Ned--Neddy I ought to call him, out of compliment to you--ha! ha! ha!” “Proceed, Mr. Burke, you are pleased to be facetious.” “To your brother Ned--Neddy--having them, and maybe along wid them the same, wife too?” “No, not exactly; but out of respect to your wishes. “What's that?” said the old man, staring at him with a kind of comic gravity--“out of respect to my wishes!” “That's what I've said,” replied the son. “Proceed.” His father looked at' him again, and replied, “Proceed yourself---it was you introduced the subject. I'm now jack-indifferent about it.” “All I have to say,” continued Hycy, “is that I withdraw my ultimate refusal, Mr. Burke. I shall entertain the question, as they say; and it is not improbable but that I may dignify the fair Katsey with the honorable title of Mrs. Burke.” “I wish you had spoken a little sooner, then,” replied his father, “bekaise it so happens that Gerald Cavanagh an' I have the match between her and your brother Ned as good as made.” “My brother Ned! Why, in the name of; all that's incredible, how could that be encompassed?” “Very aisily,” said his father, “by the girl's waitin' for him. Ned is rather young! yet, I grant you; he's nineteen, however, and two years more, you know, will make him one-and-twenty--take him out o' chancery, as they say.” “Very good, Mr. Burke, very good; in that case I have no more to say.” “Well,” pursued the father, in the same dry, half-comic, half-sarcastic voice, “but what do you intend to do with yourself?” “As to that,” replied Hycy, who felt that the drift of the conversation was setting in against him, “I shall take due time to consider.” “What height are you?” asked the father, rather abruptly. “I can't see, Mr. Burke, I really can't see what my height has to do with the question.” “Bekaise,” proceeded the other, “I have some notion of putting you into the army. You spoke of it wanst yourself, remimber; but then there's an objection even to that.” “Pray, what is the objection, Mr. Burke?” “Why, it's most likely you'd have to fight--if you took to the milintary trade.” “Why, upon my word, Mr. Burke, you shine in the sarcastic this evening.” “But, at any rate, you must take your chance for that. You're a fine, active young fellow, and I suppose if they take to runnin' you won't be the last of them.” “Good, Mr. Burke--proceed, though.” “An accordingly I have strong notions of buying you a corplar's or a sargent's commission. A good deal of that, however, depends upon yourself; but, as you say, I'll think of it.” Hycy, who could never bear ridicule, especially from the very man whom he attempted to ridicule most, bounced up, and after muttering something in the shape of an oath that was unintelligible, said, assuming all his polite irony:--