190 Dubliners
wonderful when you come to think of it?’
‘O, of course,’ said Mr. Power, ‘great minds can see
t hings.’
‘As the poet says: Great minds are very near to madness,’
said Mr. Fogarty.
Mr. Kernan seemed to be troubled in mind. He made
an effort to recall the Protestant theology on some thorny
points and in the end addressed Mr. Cunningham.
‘Tell me, Martin,’ he said. ‘Weren’t some of the popes—
of course, not our present man, or his predecessor, but
some of the old popes—not exactly ... you know... up to the
knocker?’
There was a silence. Mr. Cunningham said
‘O, of course, there were some bad lots... But the astonish-
ing thing is this. Not one of them, not the biggest drunkard,
not the most... out-and-out ruffian, not one of them ever
preached ex cathedra a word of false doctrine. Now isn’t
that an astonishing thing?’
‘That is,’ said Mr. Kernan.
‘Yes, because when the Pope speaks ex cathedra,’ Mr.
Fogarty explained, ‘he is infallible.’
‘Yes,’ said Mr. Cunningham.
‘O, I know about the infallibility of the Pope. I remember
I was younger then.... Or was it that——?’
Mr. Fogarty interrupted. He took up the bottle and
helped the others to a little more. Mr. M’Coy, seeing that
there was not enough to go round, pleaded that he had not
finished his first measure. The others accepted under pro-
test. The light music of whisky falling into glasses made an