134 TJie Cotirsc, the Camp, the Chase 



Another very sensational and rather unusual crime, for 

 Ireland, also took place during ray residence in Westmeath. 

 A young man named Croghan had just succeeded to a 

 small freehold farm, left him by his father, about half a 

 mile from Mullingar, and resided there with his mother 

 and his two sisters. After a short time, he came to lay 

 information before the magistrates that he believed his 

 sisters were trying to poison him, alleging that they put 

 some poison into his tea. They were bound over to keep 

 the peace ; yet, within a year, the man died, although 

 nothing was ever proved against the young women. 

 There was a considerable difference in their ages — the 

 elder having seen more than thirty summers, while the 

 younger, the acknowledged belle of the town, was scarcely 

 twenty, and the favourite of her mother. The manager of 

 the bank informed me that the moment the brother had 

 died, before even his death had become known, the elder 

 sister drove up to the bank on a car, and demanded that 

 all the money at her brother's credit should be at once 

 handed over to her. She was informed, however, that she 

 must wait until his will had been proved, and that if she 

 was the heiress she would then be able to claim the 

 money. She had hardly left before the mother and 

 the other sister appeared and made the same request, but, 

 of course, received the same answer. Eventually it was 

 found that everything had been left to the mother, and 

 she accordingly was placed in full possession of her son's 

 effects. 



Shortly afterwards the elder sister, Anne, suspected 

 that her mother was making her will, and believing that 

 she would leave everything to her sister, she hired a ruffian 

 to shoot the latter for the magnificent sum of seven shillings 



