ENNIS, _Saturday, Feb.

18._--I found it unnecessary to go on to Paris, and so returned to Ireland on Thursday night; we had a passage as over a lake.

In the train I met a lively Nationalist friend, whose acquaintance I made in America.

He is a man of substance, but not overburdened with respect for the public men, either of his own party or of the Unionist side.

When I asked him whether he still thought it would be safe to turn over Ireland to a Parliament made up of the Westminster members, of whom he gave me such an amusing but by no means complimentary account, he looked at me with astonishment:-- "Do you suppose for a moment we would send these fellows to a Parliament in Dublin ?" He told me some very entertaining tales of the methods used by certain well-meaning occupants of the Castle in former days to capture Irish popularity, as, for example, one of a Vice-Queen who gave a fancy dress ball for the children of the local Dublin people of importance, and had a beautiful supper of tea and comfits, and cakes served to them, after which she made her appearance, followed by servants bearing huge bowls of steaming hot Irish potatoes, which she pressed upon the horrified and overstuffed infants as "the true food of the country," setting them herself the example of eating one with much apparent gusto, and a pinch of salt! "Now, fancy that!" he exclaimed; "for the Dublin aristocracy who think the praties only fit for the peasants!" Of a well-known and popular personage in politics, he told me that he once went with him on a canvassing tour.