Explore "A Nine Day's Wonder" by B.M. Croker on Textopian. Read with annotations and highlights.
Within the next five minutes the man in the frieze coat was pioneering the man in the grey tweed through the jungle of fuchsias and arbutus which smothered the steep footpath leading down to the lake. A broken gate lying on the ground marked the extreme limit of Lota. Presently the lawyer and labourer were striding by the water's edge side by side, and Mike resumed the relation of his story, precisely as if the thread had never been snapped.
"Ye see, old John Foley, who was terribly proud of Mary, was took off of a sudden in a fit, and of late his wife got queer in her head. They do say her mother was the same, though some made out it was tay-drinking; sure enough, she never had the taypot out of her hand. Whatever it was, she turned so mortal strange that Mary had to get her aunt Bridgie, Katty's sister, to come over and help mind her; but it wasn't better, but worse, she got-shockingly unaisy and restless and worrying in herself, or else sitting and never speaking, all as wan as some stone image. At long last she bid them send for the priest, as she had something on her soul. And when he come, she ups and she told him, and she told Mary, and she told any one that would listen, what I'm about to tell _you_."