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The conversation turns to the past and Maria tries to say good things about Alphy. However, her attempt to mend the gap between the two brothers does not work and Joe becomes angry. He claims that God should strike him dead if ever he speaks a word to his brother again. This upsets both Maria and Joe’s wife who scolds her husband for speaking in such a way. Joe becomes defensive and practically causes a scene at the party. He then gets a better handle on his emotions, claiming that he does not want to spoil the evening, and asks his wife to fetch some more stout.
With the evening back on track, the party guests decide to play a traditional Hallow Eve game. The two girls from next door help the children to arrange a series of saucers filled with different objects that each represent a different omen. To play the game, each guest is blindfolded and led to the table where they choose a saucer at random. Some find a prayer book, others find water, and one girl even finds a ring. Finally, Maria is blindfolded and led to the table. Maria touches the saucer and feels something soft and wet. The object is never explicitly stated but given the story’s title and the rules of the game, it’s implied Maria touched a mound of wet clay, which in games of this sort represents early death. Joe’s wife reproves the visiting girls, as though clay should not be an option given its bad omen. The partygoers have Maria play again and this time she touches a prayer book, forecasting a pious life in a convent.
The festivities continue happily and Maria remarks that Joe had never been so nice to her. Finally, Joe asks Maria to sing an old Irish song for the family. With Mrs. Donnelly at the piano, Maria timidly sings “I Dreamt that I Dwelt,” a popular opera aria written by a nineteenth-century Irish composer. Maria sings the first stanza twice, but no one points out her mistake. Joe is visibly moved to tears from the nostalgia and remarks that no time is better than the past and no music is better than that of “poor old Balfe.” To cover up his reaction, Joe asks his wife where the corkscrew is.
