The scene of warlike operations, judging by the number of outrages committed, appeared just then to be transferred to parts of Columbia and Northumberland Counties; hence, in accordance with Mr. Franklin’s orders, as well as to give Linden a free course until he should be quite familiar with his future field of campaign, McKenna resolved to pay a visit to Canning, County Delegate, and resume the acquaintance of the Mollies thereabouts, with whom he had previously made himself popular. As an excuse for the trip, one day, after this idea was fully formed in his mind, he gave out to Tom Donahue, brother of “Yellow Jack” Donahue, that he had, when in the vicinity, not long before, formed a great liking for the youngest daughter of the celebrated Pat Hester. The latter was known to be at the head of the clan, as far as deviltry was concerned, in that region. Donahue he knew to be an intimate friend of Hester, quite at home at his house, and, McKenna had reason to believe, knew more of the late troubles in that vicinity than some living in more close neighborhood. Therefore, assuming a sober air, the operative made known his wish to go to see Miss Hester, but he was rather bashful, and did not exactly know how to accomplish a fair beginning of his proposed courtship. He told his friend Tom, that “everything depended upon a good commencement.” This was assented to by Donahue, who was on a protracted spree, at Girardville, where this conversation occurred, in Jack Kehoe’s hotel. The idea of the devil-may-care Jim McKenna having experienced a qualm of the tender passion caused Donahue to smile, but the confession of embarrassment made him nearly go into convulsions of merriment. Such a thing as bashfulness connected with McKenna—proverbial, the country over, for the brassiness of his entire composition—was altogether too much for Donahue. He roared with laughter, but soon found voice to exclaim: “An’ is it yourself that ye are, or some _cruddy gorsoon_, right from the auld sod? Be me sowl, I niver entertained a thought that ye had a shadow of bashfulness in your whole body until this minit!” “Sure,” answered McKenna, blushing all over his face, like a verdant boy being interrogated by a handsome school-mistress, “an’ I can’t be brass through and through! There must be some tenderness in a fellow—an’ mine is Pat Hester’s younger daughter. I’m free to confess it’s a new thing for me, but there must be a starting, and I want to see her! I’m not much acquainted with Pat, her father, an’ what I’m axin’ of you is to go wid me to his house an’ give me an introduction to the whole family. I’ll trate ye well if ye’ll do it!” “I’ve only been away from there, this day’s but wan wake,” responded Donahue; “beside, I’m out of money, an’ can’t get enough for me whisky, let alone gallavantin’ around like a country parson. It costs cash to ride on the cars, an’ I have none of the commodity, good, bad, or indifferent!”