Hark!

Tolv two elf kater ten (it can't be) sax.

Hork!

Pedwar pemp foify tray (it must be) Twelve!

And low stole o'er the stillness the heartbeats of sleep.

Methought as I was dropping asleep somepart in nonland of where's please I heard ^|5at zero hour^5| as 'twere the peal of ^|5vixen's laughter among^5| midnight's chimes from out the belfry of the cute old speckled church tolling so faint ^|5atwelve a goodmantrueº^5| as nighthood's unseen violet rendered all animated British ^|5and Irish^5| objects nonviewable to human watchers save 'twere perchance anon some glistery
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gleam darkling adown surface of affluvial flowandflow as again might seem garments of laundry reposing a leasward close at hand in full expectation. And as I was jogging along in a dream as dozing I was dawdling, arrah, methought broadtone was heard and all vociferated, echoating: Shaun! Shaun! Post the post! with a high voice and, O, the higher on high the deeper and low. I
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heard him so. And lo, meseemed somewhat came of the noise and somewho might amove among allmurk. Now 'twas as clump, now mayhap. When look was light and now 'twas as flasher, now more as the glow. Ah, in unlitness 'twas in verity, bless me, 'twas his belted lamp! Ay, he who so swayed a will of a wisp before me, dressed like an earl in just the correct wear, in a classy ^|5mac Frieze^5| o'coat of far superior ruggedness, indigo ^|5frieze braw^5|, tracked and tramped, freeswinging from his shoulthern, and thick welted brogues on him hammered to suit the ^|5Irish scotsmost^5| public and climate, iron heels and sparable soles, and his jacket of ^|5providence wellprovided^5| woollies with a softrolling lisp of a lapel to it and great sealingwax buttons and his invulnerable burlap ^|5waistcoat whiskcoat^5| and the ^|5damasker's^5| overshirt he sported inside, a starspangled zephyr with a decidedly surplice front with his motto through dear life ^|5embroidered embrotheredº^5| over it in peas, rice and yeggyolk, R for royal, M for Mail, R.M.D. hard cash on the nail, and the most successfully carried trousers now you ever breaking over the ankle and hugging the shoeheel, everything the best, was none other from (Ah, then, may the ^|5turtle's^5| blessings of God and Mary and ^|5Patrick ^|aIrishpatrick Haggispatrick^a|5| and ^|5Brigid Huggisbrigid^5| be ^|5tumbling souptumbling^5| all over him!) other than (and may his hundred thousand welcome ^|5stewed^5|
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letters multiply, ay, faith, and plultiply!) Shaun himself.

Had I the concordant wiseheads of Messrs Gregory and Lyons alongside of Dr Tarpey's and the reverend Mr MacDougall's, but I, poor ass, am but as their fourpart ^|5tinckler's^5| ass. Yet methought Shaun (holy messenger angels be uninterruptedly nudging him among and along the winding ways of random ever!) Shaun in proper person (now may all the bluebacksliding constellations continue to shape his changeable timetable!) stood before me. And I pledge you my word that young fellow looked the stuff, a prime card if ever was! Now without deceit it is hardly too much to say he was looking grand, so fired smart, in much more than his usual health. ^|5No mistaking that beamish brow!º The heart of the rollº!^5| He was immense, topping swell, for he was after having a great time of it in a porterhouse ^|5if you want to know^5| where he had recruited his strength by means of mounds of food constituting his three principal meals plus a collation, his breakfast of^|5, first,º a ^|abless us O^a| blood ^|aand thirsthy^a| orange, next,º the^5| half a pound of bacon with newlaid googs and a rice pudding ^|5and some cold steak from yesternight^5|, then
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came ^|5along^5| his dinner of a half a pound of round steak ^|5withº a side of riceypeasy alla mellonge^5| and bacon with a pair of chops thrown in by the proprietoress ^|5|aof the roastery^a| who lives on aº hill^5| and gravy and a bulby onion ^|5as well^5| and then finally to his regret his supper cum nightcap, vitellusit, bacon with broad beans and steak while 'twas after that he scoffed a duckeling snuggily stuffed following cold loin of veal with cabbage and^|5, in their green free state,º^5| peas^|5, last^5|. ^|5Drily thankful.^5| Bread free of charge. And the best of wine. ^|5And thicker will he grow now, grow
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now. At the sign of Mistress Vanhungrig.^5| Mind you, I don't mean to say for the moment that he was gluttonous as regards ^|5chewable^5| edibles but he ^|5liked grubbed^5| his tuck all right every time he felt like ^|5grubbing a bottle of porter ^|aerased on^a| a tart^5|. And he was so jaunty with a romp of a schoolgirl's complexion sitting pretty over his ^|5face printfaceº^5| and he was plainly out on the mash for he sproke.

When lo meheard I saw the voice of Shaun how so it sighed to scented nightlife as softly as the loftly marconimasts from Clifden sigh open tireless secrets to Nova Scotia's listing sisterpoles.

— ^|5Alas, alack, alanna, aroon! ^|aAllo Alo^a|, alass, aladdin,º amobus!^5| Shaun yawned, addressing himself ^|5ex alto^5| and complaining it was so close as of the fact of him
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earning his board in the sweat of his feet as, having moistened his mouth upon the quiet and scooping
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molars and grinders clean with his two forefingers, he sank down at once, ^|5disgusted (disgusted^5| with himself ^|5that the combined weight was too much for him)^5|, upon the native heath he loved, covered with virgin bush. Well, I'm literally shot seeing myself in this trim! How all too unworthy am I, a mere mailman of peace, a poor hastehater ^|5of the first degree^5|, for such eminence, or ^|5unproº^5| promenade rather, to be ^|5much^5| more exact, as to be the bearer extraordinary of these missive on his majesty's service. I cannot on my solemn merits recollect ever having done of anything of the kind to deserve of such. ^|5Saint Anthony Guide!º^5|

— But have we until now ever besought you, dear Shaun, we remembered, who it was, to begin with, who gave you the permit?
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— ^|5Everybody Goodbye^5|, Shaun ^|5replied. replied, everybody.^5| My heaviest cross it is. I have it from Saint Columbkiller's prophecies.

— Then, we explained, you possibly might be so by order?

— Forgive me, Shaun repeated from his liquid lipes, it was condemned on me by the prophecies and there ^|5is does be^5| a power ^|5coming^5|
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over me that is put upon me from on high and so as it is ^|5hereditary becoming heredittary^5| I have nothing in view to look forward at ^|5and. Almost might I say^5| I am now ^|5becoming^5| about fed up ^|5be^5| going about and that is why I was ^|5utterly complexed by^5| thinking of the river as a way out ^|5or ^|aburyº myself deep in^a| the wineupon pontoon^5| as I am hopeless to ^|5do be doing^5| anything concerning.

— Honest Shaun, we agreed, a whisper reaches us that in the end it may well turn
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out to be you who will bear these open letter.

— As, Shaun replied patly, to that I have the power. And that has a lot to do with everything.

— Would you mind telling us, Shaun honey, we proposed to such a dear youth, where mostly are you able to work?

— I, Shaun replied ^|5whileº he was fondling one of his cowheel cuffs^5|, mostly am able to walk^|5, being too soft ^|ato for^a| work proper^5|. I am always telling them how
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it was foretold for me by brevet, ^|5while possessing stout legs,º^5| to be disbarred ^|5after holy orders^5| from unnecessary servile work of all sorts ^|5for the relics of my time,º^5| for otherwise I would get into a blame there. His ^|5holy hungry^5| will be done! But, believe me, in my simplicity I am awful good^|5, I believe,^5| so I am, at the root of me. And I can now truthfully declare with my palms on the epistles that I do my reasonable best to recite my ^|5prayers g_unreadn grocery ^|abears beads^a| for mummy and dummy^5| regularly ^|5genuflections enclosed^5|. In fact, always have^|5, Iº believe^5|.

— Yet one minute's observation, dear domestic Shaun, as we point out how you have painted our town green.

— O murder! Shaun replied, smiling the oily way up his ^|5sleeve lampsleeveº^5|, so shy of light was he then. Well, so be it! And I will confess to have, yes. And I am afraid it wouldn't
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be my first time like the regular fellow I am. Somebody may perhaps say I was wrong. No such a thing! You never made a more frightful mistake! But it is grandiose^|5, byº my ways of thinking,º^5| from the prophecies, and they were particularly arranged ^|5for me gentlemen only^5| by a scripchewer ^|5gentleman for gentlemen only in ^|aCanada Whofoundlandº^a| who ^|asays finds^a| he is ^|amy a^a| relative^5|. And it was with my ^|5postlamp. extravert ^|alamp. davy, my heart's dee daylight, thumb, thumb.^a|5|

— Do you mean, we gathered ^|5substantively^5|, whether varnish would or verdure ^|5dyes^5|?

— It is a confounded ^|5lie ^|aanjective injective ^a|5| to say it, Shaun, the fiery boy, shouted, naturally incensed^|5, asº he shook the ^|ared^a| pepper out of his ^|aears auricles^a|5|. And another time please confine your glaring insinuations to some other ^|5mordant^5| body. What on the face of this ^|5furnished^5| planet would I be doing besides your ^|5varnish? verjuice?º^5| That is more than I can ^|5say fix^5| anyway. So let you and I now kindly drop that^|5., angryman!^5| Understand me when I tell you that under the past ^|5parcel purcell's^5| office, so deeply deplored by my erstwhile ^|5elder^5| friend, Miss Sanders, ^|5postmistress poachmistress^5| in ^|5general particular^5| to the Irish ^|5Goat Poorº Men's ^|aCows' Cow's^a|5| Society, albethey blessed with ^|522,000 twentytwo ^|athousands thousand^a|5| sorters out of a biggest possible ^|522,000, twentytwo thousand,º^5| too much ^|5administrative privet^5| stationery was ate up ^|5larchly^5| by those ^|5nettlesome^5| goats ^|5out of pension^5|. It is also one of my avowed intentions at some time, when I am not prepared to say, to comprose quite ^|5a patent the makings of a verdigrease^5| savingsbook surrounding this matter so long as,
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thank destiny, I am prepaid.

— Otherwise, frank Shaun, we pursued, what would be the biography of your softbodied uniform?

— None whatsoever, Shaun replied ^|5(heº was peering rather close at the ^|apastle paste^a| of his winklering)^5|, though it would be more or less romantic. All of it, I might say, was handled over by me myself ^|5in the name of Mr van Howten^5| among my neighbours and nephews of every description, entitled our evicted tenants. What I say is and I am no greenhorn, permit me to tell you. ^|5I never spent it. It went.^5| Therefore I am as plain as possible enveloped, inhowmuch you will shortly receive, care of one of Mooseyears Guinness's registered barrels.