he had fully prepared himself. But, alas! the chance of meeting Captain Thompson, alias Jimmy Dabbs, alias the Honourable Wilmington Skimminggrove, alias Bluff Jim, alias Teddy the tight one, unless at the Old Bailey, was but small.

And oh! to hear Nubley's lamentations over his London Particular Madeira, Gordon, Duff and Bean's own, bought by himself in their hospitable mansion, or rather palace, in the Rua das Esmeralda, at Funchal-four pipes, with two quarter pipes to fill up ullage-all gone-his delicious Paxton Port-the entire emptied, carried off in detail, under the darkness of the night, and the Captain gone too-fled-leaving nothing but his baggage behind him, and that of a nature not detainable by law. As for the duel, it was a flea-bite to this damage, which was very extensive, and which must have been managed with consummate dexterity by the gentleman who, as a set-off for his wholesale robbery, had threatened the sufferer with a horse-whipping.

Nubley bore the intelligence, however, manfully, and determined to proceed with the officer to Chittagong, to examine into the particulars of the case: his first stipulation, however, was, that the ladies should be released, accompanied with a promise, that if they had not the means of going, he would pay their passage to town by the first conveyance.

"A woman," said Nubley, "never should suffer for the ill-doings of a man to whom she is attached-eh ?—No-a woman's heart is always kind-and if once interested-eh? -clings to the object of her affections through right and wrong-not from bad principle, but because he teaches her to believe him right—eh ?—I have been young myself.—Poor things! they are pretty.-What will they do now ?-eh? don't you see?-send them off-let them go before I get there -eh? I should make a fool of myself, and a crying old man is a stupid sight.”—Then, unconscious, as usual, of these ejaculations, which the Bow-street officer "very much applauded," as believing them addressed to himself, the kind-hearted "old man" turned to me, and said "Now, Gilbert, I can start for Bath in the morning with that young Jezebel; and, Gilbert my boy! I'll see you righted." He squeezed my hand, picked his chin, and said to himself" I will, by Jove!"

I can hardly describe my sensations when I saw Nubley preparing to follow the officer, who, in pursuance of his desire, at all events to remove the unfortunate females out of his sight before he arrived, preceded him. The extraordinary

extrication from a very disagreeable affair-the enlightenment as to the Captain's character, to whom he had incautiously let his house-and the sudden advocacy of my case with Cuthbert which he had adopted, seemed really too many happy incidents in my life to occur in one day, and that a day the least likely in the whole calendar to produce any thing to me and mine but sorrow and lamentation.

When the dear old man-and how I reproached myself with my former distaste of his peculiarities, and my then too ready disposition to laugh at his infirmities!-had taken his departure, it was, I confess, something exciting and almost delightful to tell my dear Harriet the whole history of what had occurred. Of course she reproached me not only for exposing myself to the vengeance of Jimmy Dabbs, but for having concealed the circumstances connected with so important an event from her. All these little temporary differences existing more in love than anger, I contrived effectually to soothe, and found that Kate, overcome by excitement, had fallen into a slumber, not, however, before she had written a note to Mr. Sniggs, which her little short-legged minister, Wilkins, had carried down to his house; and that Jane, tired of endeavouring in vain to get forgiven for the rash allusion to the dancing-master, had returned with Harriet to the boudoir, expressing, in the strongest terms, her anxiety to remain where she was.

Mrs. Nubley, during these days of storm, still remained in her own room. A ci-devant beauty, especially a blonde, who either forgets the march of time, or does not perceive the advance of age, cannot bear to "show," after a pulling-down of any sort; and a cold, with a tendency to toothache, and the slightest suspicion of a swelled face, kept the dear simpleton-much to my delight-still an inmate of her chamberof her bed, I believe. Harriet usually devoted two or three of her morning hours to her, and after tea remained with her till she was ready for sleep; but my belief is, that if she had been as brisk and screeching as usual, Nubley's own natural impulses would never have had fair play; for although she neither had the power nor probably the inclination to direct his proceedings, the constant state of feverish irritation in which her absurdities kept him, would have most seriously operated in curdling the milk of human kindness, of which, to my joy, and I admit, to my surprise-I found him full.

It was about half-past three o'clock, when I was somewhat surprised after what had previously occurred, at perceiving Mr. Sniggs striding along the drive from the Lodge, with a

look of seriousness and importance in his face well suited to his vocation and the circumstances of the morning: I heard his ring at the bell—heard his admission into the house: but heard nothing by way of announcement.-I certainly had the curiosity to open my door and look at what was going on, and all I perceived was, that as soon as he had reached the bottom of the staircase, Wilkins, Kate's maid, was ready to receive and conduct him to Kate's room, whence I inferred that she had felt it necessary to summon him to her presence, but whether in his medical capacity, or as her counsellor and secretary, I could not of course decide. I thought it, however, my duty to let Harriet know what was going on-and she accordingly, much against her will-but from a sense of what was due to the girl and herself-proceeded to the apartment.-Nothing I dare say could have been more disagreeable to Kate-or, if truth were known, to Sniggs himself-for he had taken his line and seemed resolved to maintain it.— Nubley's note had unquestionably disconcerted him-for whatever Miss Kitty's own view of the case might be, Sniggs could by no means abstract her from Ashmead against our will and command, both of which I felt myself justified to enforce under such a sanction as that of Cuthbert's oldest friend and partner.

"I hope," said Harriet, as she entered the room," that Kitty is not ill enough to require your professional attendance, Mr. Sniggs?"

"No, Ma'am, no," said Sniggs.

"I'm sure I am," said Kate, "I am very ill indeed." "If I had thought so, my dear, said Harriet, "I should have been too ready to send for Mr. Sniggs

"Thank you,' ," said Kate," but I was quite able to send for him myself-Pappy put me under his care-and I have a great deal to say to him to say to Pappy”

you?.

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"Then," said Harriet, "I suppose Ι may leave

Why," said Sniggs, with that peculiar screw of his eyebrows, which indicated a sort of uncertain determination, if such a feeling may be said to exist-" I-really-I am sure you will forgive me, Mrs. Gurney-but I think perhaps it would be better-I know that-eh ?

"Oh, I am too glad to leave her in such good hands," said Harriet "all that I thought was, that she might wish me to be with her.".

"I think not," added Sangrado, with an expression of countenance meant to convey the notion that although he was

humouring Kitty, he was furthering the interests of the family- young folks have their whims."

Harriet behaved extremely well, and left the apothecary and his patient to themselves with a complacency almost miraculous; her disgust at Kate's conduct, by no means diminished by the airs she had given herself-nor her esteem for Mr. Sniggs considerably increased by the sort of patronising air of protection which he had thought proper to assume as regarded the young lady.

During the period in which the interesting dialogue betweeen Kitty and her medical or political adviser was in pro gress, poor dear Nubley had satisfied himself of the entire truth of his having been most extensively swindled by Jimmy Dabbs, alias Captain Thompson, and moreover convinced by ocular demonstration of the absence, without leave, of his wine and sundry others of his movables; but, strange to say-one does meet with oddities-and never existed upon the face of the earth a greater oddity than that very man : his mind-all abroad as it was-had received a new impulse by the sense he entertained of the cruel persecutions which he saw and felt conscious that I was undergoing, and his own loss, and the demolition and deterioration of his property, scarcely seemed to affect him, although at any other time, and if his wife had been well enough to keep him up to a proper pitch of irritation, he would have been in a violent state of excitement-but no-he made only a short stay in the field of waste and destruction-he had, as he said, ordered the gratuitous removal of the ladies to be secured-and under such really vexatious circumstances, when he came back in less than an hour, seemed to feel rather gratified and certainly very much soothed because the soi-disant Captain Thompson had been considerate enough to leave him the house and fixtures, which he could not very well have contrived to carrry off.

Upon his return the worthy old gentleman came to Harriet and myself in her boudoir before he repaired to his lady-wife's room; Jane who was excluded from the council holden by Sniggs and Kitty, being with us.

"Well," said he, "I have been what in my early days they would have called bamboozled ;' I admit it-Thompson was neither military nor naval-nor, Gilbert, as you found, civil. He he! that's the best joke I've made for many a dayeh-don't you see?-well-they've stolen my wine-when I say stolen, they have taken it away-my furniture is goneeh-I won't say too much, or they'll say I was a fool for leaving

it but I don't care-I don't-no-eh-I don't-I care more about you and yours-eh-don't you think so?"

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"You bear your loss with great philosophy," said Harriet. Philosophy!" exclaimed Nubley; to be sure—ehcan't always be wise-my-fault-I admit it-hope they won't tell Mrs. Ñ. I said so-only you know-you need not say-eh -don't you see ?-plausible man-what?-good-looking man-eh-pretty girls the nieces, he! he! he!-I thought the ladies rather suspicious-eh-odd-Madeline, as he called her, was-he! he! but you know that-eh-I don't bother myself about such things-only just to speak-eh-I have got possession of the house again—and so-eh-I'm all right—and besides all that, I have other matters to look after-eh ?"

At this period a tap at the door-mark of subservient civility-produced the inevitable-except under very peculiar circumstances" Come in," and lo and behold the once familiar Sniggs stood before us.

Jane instinctively drew nearer to Harriet as he approached.

"I have been talking to Miss Kate," said Galen, "as to the time when she would like me to take her and Miss Jane, back to Bath, but-whether to-morrow, or the next day

66 Why," said I," Kate very recently expressed a wish to stay here for a day or two longer."

"Yes," said Sniggs, "that is the point-she wished to stay here till, as despatches say, we receive further orders." "All I can say," said I, "is, that as long as she chooses tó remain here we shall of course be happy in her presence -and

66

Why,” said the apothecary, “I think she wishes to pass a day or two with us at our humble dwelling if you have no objection-and as Mrs. Brandyball has written very kindly to Mrs. Sniggs, I was thinking

"I'll save you all the trouble of thinking, Sir," said Nubley," and of acting upon this point-I mean to take Miss Falwasser back to Bath with me to-morrow-so you may spare yourself any further pains-done him there-eh-don't you see?—I have some very important matters to talk over with her father-in-law, who is my oldest friend as I think you by this time in all probability know-so if you have any thing to send a bill 1 suppose-eh-don't you see?—you can send it by me."

"Sir," said Sniggs, somewhat indignantly, "I really was