,illustration3 ,,chambers',s ,,journal ,,of ,,popular ,,literature1 ,,science1 ,,and ,,art ,fifth ,series ,,established ,,by ,,william ,,and ,,robert ,,chambers1 #ahcb ,,conducted ,,by ,r4 ,,chambers 7,,secundus7 ,,no4 #ab4--,,vol4 ,i4 ,,saturday1 ,,march #bb1 #ahhd4 ,,price #a;d4 ,,the ,,transvaal ,,gold-,,fields4 ,,by ,,one ,,on ,,the ,,spot4 ,the gold-fields of the ,transvaal1 which have been heard of by fits and starts during the last twelve years1 have of late begun to excite considerable attention both at home and in ,south ,africa2 and as the future of the ,transvaal1 and indeed a great portion of ,south-eastern ,africa1 depends very much on their proper development1 a short description of the gold-bearing region may prove interesting to readers of this ,journal4 ,gold has been found scattered over a considerable extent of country here1 and indeed is known to extend up to the ,zambesi2 but the part most frequented by the gold-seeker is a belt of country running almost north and south1 commencing on the ,kaap ,river1 a few miles east of the village of ,middleburg1 in the ,transvaal1 and terminating about ten miles north of ,pilgrim's ,rest1 in the ,lydenburg district4 ,the principal #8farms' on which gold has been found in the ,lydenburg district are ,pilgrim's ,rest1 ,berlin1 ,lisbon1 ,graskop1 ,mac-,mac1 ,spitzkop1 ,elandsdrift1 and ,hendriksdal--these so-called #8farms' being merely tracts of ground surveyed1 but in scarcely any case used for actual farming purposes4 ,there are numerous other #8farms' on which gold has been found2 but the above-named have1 up to the present time1 produced the largest quantity4 ,from the ,kaap ,river gold-fields1 about fifty miles from ,lydenburg1 a considerable quantity of gold has also been extracted1 partly on unallotted government ground1 and partly from the #8farms' of private owners2 but this district has not been so extensively worked of late1 owing to its unhealthiness in the lower reaches of the river1 and also to the difficulty of working in such a broken country4 ,at the present time1 comparatively little work is being carried on in either of the above districts1 from causes which will be explained presently2 but that gold exists in considerable quantities1 there is not the shadow of a doubt1 as the returns of banks and merchants for native gold purchased can show2 and although no capitalists have until recently made their appearance on the gold-fields1 yet several exceptionally lucky diggers who came here with nothing beyond experience and stout hearts1 have realised a competence1 in spite of the disadvantages and troubles which such a rough life implies4 ,all the gold hitherto found1 with very few exceptions1 has been of the kind known as alluvial--that is1 existing in the ground1 and capable of being extracted by means of water alone1 without the intervention of machinery2 but at present there are two ,companies with machinery starting work-crushing quartz1 the returns from which are looked forward to with much interest1 as it will then be seen whether it will pay to import machinery on a large scale or not4 ,when the gold-bearing ground lies at a comparatively low level1 enabling water from any of the numerous streams running through the country to be brought on it1 the process of gold-washing is very simple1 the ground being merely picked loose and thrown into the water1 or washed away by the water1 which is then conducted through a long box1 or race1 about eighteen inches in width and depth1 open on top1 and paved with hard rock or quartz on the bottom1 falling gradually for a distance of from twenty to two hundred feet in length1 according to the strength of the stream running through the ground1 and the quantity of ground washed per day4 ,once or twice a day the water is turned off from this race and a small stream of clean water run through it2 the race is then carefully examined from end to end2 and any nuggets or particles of gold which1 by the action of the water and their greater specific gravity1 may have been deposited in the ripples or inequalities of the bottom-paving1 are then picked up1 and the work resumed4 ,in cases where the gold is of a fine nature1 and liable to be carried away if the race alone were used1 the coarser stones are sifted from the ground1 and the combined ground and water run over coarse blankets1 which1 from the nature of their texture1 catch all the fine particles of gold and allow the lighter soil to flow away4 ,these blankets are periodically washed out2 and the fine particles of gold resulting are combined with quicksilver1 which1 from its affinity to gold1 brings the whole into one mass1 which is then placed in a retort1 and the quicksilver evaporated off and recaught for future use1 leaving the gold in a solid mass behind4 ,the above process1 costing very little in the way of outlay1 has been of necessity almost the only one adopted by the diggers1 who for the most part have been working-men1 with little or no money2 and in cases where the alluvial ground has lain so high above the level of the rivers as to prevent it being worked in the same way1 the only difference has been that the ground has had to be excavated and brought to the water-race by carting or otherwise1 the process of washing being the same4 ,but in the case of quartz containing gold1 the quartz has to be reduced almost to a powder in water by means of machinery2 the crushed quartz then flows over plates coated with quicksilver1 which catch the greater part of the gold2 and that which escapes the quicksilver is caught by means of the blankets before mentioned1 which receive it after passing the silvered plates4 ,it has struck many people who are acquainted with gold-mining in both ,australia and ,california1 that in no two places in the ,transvaal are the indications of gold the same4 ,in one place it is in vain to look for it except on the top of a hill2 in another1 the valley alone will yield gold2 and not a few geologists and so-called mining experts who have visited the gold-fields lately1 for the purpose of reporting on properties for intending purchasers1 have been much at fault regarding the possibility of finding payable gold1 and confessed that it is necessary to spend a considerable time before a property can be even cursorily examined4 ,in most cases1 it seems that the diggers themselves1 through their actual experience1 are better acquainted with the payable and non-payable ground than any stranger1 however experienced otherwise1 can be4 ,from #ahgc1 the gold-laws of the ,transvaal permitted a digger to take out a license for a claim on any gold-bearing property held to be the property of the government1 and the digger paying the amount of this license for his right to dig for gold4 ,when a claim was exhausted or found not payable1 the digger was at liberty to abandon it and mark out another1 in the event of this other not being occupied4 ,this law1 in a sparsely populated country1 where scarcely any agriculture was carried on1 worked very well and harmoniously2 but on the retrocession of the ,transvaal by the ,british government1 a new order of things sprang into existence4 ,in order to increase the revenue--which fell rapidly off on the departure of the ,british government1 and has in consequence caused a widespread distress ever since amongst those who were the first to rise against ,british authority--the ,volksraad or ,boer ,parliament granted concessions for every manufacture that could be carried on in the ,transvaal--that is1 allowing one man1 on the payment of a certain sum per annum1 the sole right to manufacture spirits2 another1 gunpowder2 another1 wool1 c4--in each case imposing a countervailing duty on articles of the same kind coming from ,europe1 so as1 if possible1 to insure the sale of the ,transvaal-made article4 ,it is to be remarked1 en passant1 that the ,european articles1 though thus hampered1 still continue to have by far the largest sale4 ,amongst other concessions1 a gold concession law was passed1 specifying that the owner of any gold-bearing farm could1 on the payment of a sum to be agreed upon per annum1 obtain the sole right to work for gold on his farm1 on condition that he compensated any diggers who might be on his property1 working under the old government license4 ,the consequence of the promulgation of this last law has been that nearly every owner of a gold-bearing farm who could pay a year or two's concession rental for his property1 has taken out a concession1 with the idea of disposing of both concession and farm at a high profit in the ,european market1 and in few cases with the intention of digging for gold4 ,as nothing is stated in the gold concessions about the time in which the original diggers are to be compensated1 or any fixed basis on which their claims are to be valued1 this has almost led to a dead-lock in the gold production1 and caused much litigation in the ,high ,court at ,pretoria4 ,the diggers decline to enhance the value of any concessionaire's property by further exploring and opening it up1 and the concessionaires in but few cases have the capital wherewith to compensate the diggers4 ,as ,european investors1 however1 are not so easily influenced by a high-flown prospectus as formerly1 it is probable that before long the owners of the farms bearing gold will see the propriety of again throwing them open at a rental to diggers1 and thereby increasing their own revenue and that of the country generally2 for1 with a large mining population1 both merchants and farmers find a ready sale for their goods and produce2 the natives are taught to work1 which is by far the most civilising influence that can be brought to bear upon them2 and money will be circulated in a country where the want of it has never been felt more than at present4 ,there is not throughout the country what can be called a mining town1 the nearest approach to one being ,pilgrim's ,rest1 about thirty-five miles from the district of ,lydenburg4 ,this is on the property of a ,london firm1 who appear to be sparing no expense1 either in money or machinery1 to test their property thoroughly4 ,the town is situated in a most picturesque valley1 reminding one more of ,switzerland than ,south ,africa2 and the old fashion amongst ,australians and ,californians of giving odd names to places is observable here1 in such names as ,jerusalem ,gully1 ,tiger ,creek1 c4 ,as usual1 the ,scotsman is here in force1 as may be naturally expected in the most out-of-the-way place where there is a chance of making money4 ,indeed1 one of the camps near ,pilgrim's ,rest is named ,mac-,mac1 after the number of ,macs who formerly lived there2 one of them1 who is buried near here1 being the unfortunate ,mac whose strange story was related in the account of ,st ,kilda published some years ago in this ,journal4 ,the country1 although very picturesque and well watered in the valleys1 is very rough to travel over1 and1 without exception1 has the worst roads traversing it in ,south ,africa4 ,from ,lydenburg to ,spitzkop1 another mining camp1 the road would make a ,london cab-driver's hair stand on end2 and the trouble and danger of conveying machinery along these roads by the cumbersome bullock-wagon can only be understood by those having experience of ,south ,africa4 ,from ,may till ,october it is possible to obtain goods from ,delagoa ,bay through the ,portuguese port of ,lorenco ,marques1 the road being fairly good in that direction2 but during the remainder of the year1 the dreaded tsetse fly abounds on the road1 and the rivers are so swollen by the rains that transport is impossible4 ,those ,companies intending to start work on the gold-fields are endeavouring to arrange to work their machinery by water-power1 the cost of fuel being very great here4 ,timber exists in considerable quantities in the kloofs or valleys of the mountains1 but of a kind of little use for fuel1 and almost inaccessible4 ,coal is found near ,middleburg2 but the cost of transport along these roads would almost prevent its use1 although the distance does not exceed one hundred miles4 ,water1 apparently1 will be the greatest difficulty in regard to any scheme of comprehensive working here1 as for gold-working generally it is necessary to obtain a good water-supply at a high level1 which is extremely difficult to obtain4 ,there are numerous streams in the valleys2 but their sources at a high level are very few1 and owing to the broken and diversified nature of the ground1 would cost large sums of money to convey to any distance4 ,one very striking instance of perseverance in the above way is that of a miner over sixty years of age1 who1 unaided1 has spent five years in bringing a watercourse on towards his claims at ,spitzkop1 and expects to take three years longer to finish it4 ,in spite of numerous difficulties in the way of rocks and boulders1 he has steadily persevered1 and has now got through the worst of the work1 and makes good progress1 taking his age into consideration4 ,the length of this watercourse will be about eleven miles when finished1 although the distance from point to point does not exceed four4 ,the diggers are a wonderfully law-abiding community as a whole2 and it is astonishing to see what a slender staff under the ,boer government is employed to maintain order1 one solitary constable at ,pilgrim's ,rest being sufficient for twenty miles round4 ,much trouble was caused from #ahgf to #ahgi through the war with the native chief ,secocoeni1 and digging operations were almost suspended2 but his defeat by ,sir ,garnet ,wolseley in #ahgi left them free to work again until the end of #ahhj1 when the war between the ,boers and the ,british caused another cessation of work4 ,all these things1 together with their present troubles with the concessionaires1 before alluded to1 would naturally lead one to expect impatience and turbulence amongst a community many of whom come from ,australian and ,californian diggings1 where the revolver is the readiest argument2 but1 strange to say1 it is not the case here4 ,unless the working of the gold-fields brings more money into the country1 it is very difficult to see what the future of the ,transvaal will be4 ,the late war with the native chief ,mapoch has considerably impoverished the people2 the exports of the country are very trifling1 and the low state of the market at the ,diamond ,fields has done away with a large source of income in the sale of produce and coal4 ,the revenue of the country has steadily fallen since the retirement of the ,british troops2 the natives are either unable or unwilling to pay taxes2 and the ,boers themselves1 with very few exceptions1 wish the ,british were back again4 ,pretoria and ,potchefstroom1 the two principal towns1 look almost deserted1 and have numerous empty buildings4 ,when we add to this the high price of living1 owing to the duties imposed on goods1 c41 the lookout does not seem cheerful4 ,it is not probable that the ,british government will again resume its sway here1 even if invited unanimously by the ,boers1 but it is possible that some system of ,union or ,confederation will before long take place amongst the different states of ,south ,africa2 and should the railway be constructed from ,delagoa ,bay1 vi ,pretoria1 to ,kimberley1 it is certain that the country would benefit much by the improved means of communication4 ,these1 however1 are prospects of the far future2 and until the gold-fields are further developed by the present owners1 and the government capable of paying its way and seeing its course fairly before it on a firm basis1 it would be unwise for intending investors to place too much faith on the representations of promoters4 ,gold is in the ,transvaal1 and in considerable quantities1 but not everywhere1 and as yet comparatively little real exploration has been carried on below the surface to any depth4 ,the crushing now commencing at ,pilgrim's ,rest and ,ross ,hill will be the first real test as to the gold in the quartz1 and it is to be hoped will be satisfactory to those who have had the courage to lead the way4 ,,by ,,mead ,,and ,,stream4 ,,chapter ,,xviii4--,,the ,,sealed ,,letter4 ,philip drew his breath more freely4 ,he experienced that delightful sense of relief which rewards one who has been long overstrained1 when the strain is relaxed before the stage of exhaustion is reached4 ,but such is the perversity of human nature1 that his gladness was tinged with something resembling a degree of disappointment4 ,certainly the tinge was so delicate that he was not thoroughly aware of its real character4 ,to ,madge the shade was revealed in this way4 #8,i wish the accident had been a little more serious1' he said4 ,she opened her eyes in astonishment4 #8,what a wicked wish1' was her reproachful comment4 #8,we have made such a fuss about my going1' he went on1 turning things over in his mind1 #8that we shall look ridiculous to everybody when it becomes known that a stupid tumble off a horse has stopped me4' #8,i think we should only be ridiculous if we minded the foolish people who thought us so1' she answered very wisely4 #8,ah1 you never heard the story of the curate who in a moment of enthusiasm declared his intention of making a pilgrimage to ,jerusalem4' #8,what about him8' #88,what about him80 ,the poor beggar was so worried by everybody he met afterwards asking in surprise how he had managed to get back from ,jerusalem so soon--then why he hadn't gone--when he was going--and looking as if he had perpetrated a fraud--that he was forced to make the pilgrimage in order to escape being called a humbug4' #8,but you are not a curate1 and--,i don't think you are a humbug1 ,philip1' she said with a twinkle of fun in her eyes4 #8,i hope not1' he rejoined1 laughing4 #8,but what can have induced ,uncle ,shield to change all his plans so suddenly8' ,that question was a source of much marvel to them both4 ,during the afternoon1 an idea occurred to ,madge1 which seemed so extravagant1 that at first she only smiled at it1 as one smiles at the revelation of some pretty but absurd dream4 ,this was the idea3 that in some way this sudden change of plans by ,mr ,shield was associated with her and the memory of her mother4 ,she was nearer the truth than she imagined1 although the more she thought over it1 the more she was impressed by the possibility of the surmise finding some foundation in the motives which actuated ,mr ,shield's present conduct4 ,she did not1 however1 think the surmise of sufficient importance to speak about yet2 but she asked ,aunt ,hessy to tell ,philip on the first opportune occasion about her mother and his uncle4 ,philip ought to know about it1 whether or not there was anything in her fanciful idea4 ,aunt ,hessy1 with a little smile of approval1 gave the promise1 and1 passing her hand affectionately over the girl's head1 added3 #8,thou'lt be a happy woman1 dearie2 and bring peace to sore troubled breasts4 ,there never was ill but good lay behind it1 if we would only seek and find it4 ,that's an old saying2 but there's a deal of comfort in most old sayings4 ,seems to me as if they were the cries of folk that had proved them through suffering4' #8,what did ,mr ,shield say in his letter to you1 aunt8' ,the dame shook her head1 and although still smiling1 looked as she felt1 awkward4 #8,i am not to tell thee--anyway1 not now4 ,by-and-by1 when ,i come to understand it myself1 ,i will tell thee2 but do not thou ask again until ,i speak4 ,it will be best4' ,and ,madge knew that whatever ,aunt ,hessy chose to do--whether to speak or be silent--would be best4 ,so she said simply3 #8,very well1 aunt4' #8,i am going into the oak room to wrestle with the spirit1 as my father used to say when he wanted to be left quite by himself4 ,i want to be quite by myself till ,i get the right end of this riddle4 ,i have been trying it two or three times since you went out1 but the answer has not come yet4 ,i am to try again4 ,be not you afraid1 though ,i do not come out till tea-time4' ,she spoke as if amused at herself2 but when she had closed the door of the oak room and seated herself in a big armchair beside one of the gaunt windows1 the smile faded from her kindly face1 and her expression became one of mingled sadness and perplexity4 ,but everything ,dame ,crawshay had to do was done sedately--with that perfect composure which can be obtained only by a mind at rest with itself and innocent of all evil intention4 ,she put on her spectacles1 and quietly took from her pocket the two letters she had received from ,mr ,shield4 ,one was open1 and she had studied it many times that day1 for it presented the riddle she had not yet been able to solve3 the other1 which had been inclosed in the first1 was still unopened4 ,she settled herself down to make one more effort to find the right thing to do4 #8,dear ,friend1' said the open letter1 #8in telling me that ,i have still a kindly place in your memory1 you have given me a pleasure which ,i am glad to have lived long enough to experience4 ,thank you4 ,and ,i ask you to take this 8,thank you0 in its full sense of respect and gratitude4 #8,i knew that'--here there was a word scored out1 but the dame deciphered it to be #8,lucy'--#8she had left a daughter under your care4 ,i have thought of her--very often thought of her2 and wished that it might be in my power to serve her as ,i would have served her mother1 had ,i known of her misfortunes in time4 ,but whenever ,i thought of writing to you about her1 my pen was stopped by the same strange stupor--paralysis or whatever it may be that affects my brains whenever certain memories are stirred--the same which rendered me dumb and incapable of listening to you1 when you might have given me explanations that would no doubt have made my suffering less4 ,i do not ask for explanations now2 perhaps it would be best to give me none4 ,i am sure it would be best2 and yet ,i have a longing to know anything you may have to tell me about ,lucy4 ,time has taken the sting from memory3 there is no bitterness in my thought of her--,i do not think there ever was any bitterness in my thoughts about her4 ,looking back1 ,i only see the bright days when we were so happy together1 dreaming of our future4 ,then there is the black day when you told me she was married4 ,somebody died that day--my better self1 ,i always think4 ,since then1 ,i seem to have been toiling through a long tunnel1 so numbed with cold and sunk in darkness that ,i have felt nothing and seen nothing4 #8,but the information contained in your note about the intended marriage of ,lucy's child to ,philip ,hadleigh has brought me back into the daylight4 ,the change was so sudden1 that for a little while my eyes were dazzled and my mind confused4 ,i see clearly now4 ,here is my opportunity to serve ,lucy4 ,there can be nothing you can tell me which can affect my craving to serve her2 and ,i can only do it by guarding her daughter4 ,i proceed to ,england by the next steamer which leaves the nearest port4 #8,i am aware that you will find it difficult to understand me from what ,i have written here4 ,i have tried to make my purpose plain to you in the packet which is inclosed with this2 but what is put down there is for the present intended only for you4 ,before you break the seal1 ,i ask you1 in ,lucy's name1 to keep my confidence from your niece1 and even from your husband1 until we meet4 ,should this be asking too much1 ,i beseech you to put the packet into the fire without opening it4 ,let me assure you at once that in withholding my purpose for a time from others1 you will in nowise harm--or even run the risk of harming the living or the dead1 whilst you may be able to assist me greatly in the service ,i wish to do for your sister's child4 #8,decide as you will3 ,i trust you shall be satisfied that the grounds for your decision are as sufficient as mine are for the course ,i have adopted4' ,here was the question she found it so difficult to answer3 could she accept this trust8 ,it was contrary to all her notions of right that she should have any thought which she might not communicate to her husband4 ,she had never had a secret2 her life had run so smoothly that there had been no occasion for one4 ,she was grateful for having been spared the temptations to falsehood1 which a secret1 however trifling in itself1 entails4 ,but she took no special credit to herself on this account4 ,indeed1 the good woman found it hard to understand why there should be any mysteries in the conduct of people at all4 ,the straightforward course appeared to her so much easier to travel than the crooked ways which some choose or fall into unawares1 that she wondered why1 on purely selfish grounds1 they should continue in them1 when the way out was so simple4 ,at this moment her theory was put to a severe test4 ,she was asked to keep a secret1 but it was not her own or of her seeking4 ,then she should refuse to accept the trust4 ,on the other hand1 she was assured by one in whose honesty she had every reason to place implicit faith1 that the secret meant no harm to any one--that she was only required to keep it for a time1 and that by so doing she would aid him in carrying into effect his design for the welfare of ,madge4 ,she took a practical view of the mode in which he proposed to benefit the child of the woman he had loved long ago4 ,he was rich1 he was childless3 of course his purpose must be to make her his heiress4 ,then why should he make such a mystery of such a generous act8 ,she had heard of people who took the drollest possible way of bequeathing their fortunes4 ,maybe it amused them3 maybe they were a little wrong in the head1 and were therefore to be pitied4 ,why1 then1 should she not humour him1 by letting him have his own way so long as it was harmless1 as she would do with any person whose eccentricity could not be agreeably dealt with otherwise8 ,this was coming nearer to a settlement of her doubts4 ,now she could either burn the sealed letter1 or send it to him at his lawyer's1 whose address he gave her for further communications4 ,but the argument was in favour of opening it2 and what lingering hesitation she might have on the subject was decided by that strain of curiosity which the best of women have inherited4 ,she deliberately cut the envelope with her scissors and unfolded the paper on her lap4 ,the contents were somewhat of the nature she expected2 but the way in which he purposed benefiting ,madge was different from anything she could have guessed4 #8,although events which in the first hours of their occurrence appeared to be too hard for me to live through have become in time only sad memories1 flitting at intervals across my mind without causing pain or interfering with my ordinary ways1 your letter has brought me so close to the old times1 that ,i seem to be living in them again4 ,the old interests--the old passions are as strong upon me at this moment as they were when ,i still possessed the greatest of all fortunes--,youth and ,hope4 #8,even when ,i knew that she was lost to me1 there remained the prospect that some day she might need my help1 and ,i should find consolation in giving it4 ,her death took that comfort from me1 and ,i settled down to the dull business of living without a purpose4 ,luck1 not labour1 brought me money--that is why ,i am indifferent to it4 ,this was how it came4 #8,you remember the old hawthorn tree in your father's garden1 where so many glad hours were spent with ,lucy8 ,well1 on a green patch of this land which ,i was lazily farming here was an old hawthorn tree1 and associating it with the one which had such deep root in my memory1 it became my favourite resting-place4 ,i made a seat beneath it as like the old one as possible1 and there ,i used to sit reading or thinking of the dead man who was my former self4 ,under this tree ,i found a diamond3 it was the first of many4 ,but you have read about the diamond fields--and now you know the source of my wealth4 #8,my intention has been from the first that ,lucy's daughter should benefit by my luck4 ,i could not feel1 and you could not expect me to feel1 much active interest in her childhood1 knowing that she was under your protection1 and therefore well cared for4 ,your information that she is engaged to marry ,philip ,hadleigh has roused me from a long sleep4 ,i have formed a good opinion of the young man from his letters4 ,i purposed having him here with me for a year or so1 in order to judge of his character before deciding in what manner ,i should best fulfil the promise given to my sister1 to do what ,i could for him in the future4 ,the fact that you and your husband regard him with so much favour as to give your niece to him1 would be in the case of another a sufficient guarantee that he is worthy of all trust4 #8,but he is ,lloyd ,hadleigh's son4 #8,what that means to me1 ,i do not care to explain1 and it is unnecessary to do so4 ,it is sufficient to tell you that it compels me to make him prove that he is worthy of trust--above all1 that he is worthy of ,madge ,heathcote4 #8,i intended to judge of him by observing his ways during his stay with me4 ,now ,i intend to put him to the severest test of human nature--the test of what is called ,good ,fortune4 #8,you love your niece4 ,you cannot trust the man if you object to let him prove his worth4 ,,austin ,,shield4' ,,chapter ,,xix4--,,the ,,first ,,interview4 ,a few days had passed when ,philip startled little ,dr ,joy with the information that he had walked two miles and felt equal to two more4 #8,but you must not try it1 though1' said the doctor quickly2 #8you are a strong fellow1 but you must not be in too great a hurry to prove it4 ,we must be economical of our strength1 you know1 as well as of everything else4 ,you are getting on nicely--very nicely and with wonderful rapidity4 ,don't spoil it all by too much eagerness4' #8,don't be afraid--,i'll take care4' ,the afternoon post brought him a note from ,mr ,shield1 announcing his arrival at the ,langham ,hotel1 and inquiring if he felt strong enough to call there next day at eleven4 #8,i am quite strong enough to be with you at the time mentioned1' was ,philip's prompt reply2 and he kept the engagement punctually4 ,being expected1 he was conducted immediately to the sitting-room of one of the finest suites of apartments on the first floor4 ,evidently ,mr ,shield had an idea of taking advantage of all the comforts of the old country1 to make up for whatever inconveniences he had submitted to in his colonial life4 ,standing at one of the windows was a big brawny man1 dressed in dark-brown tweed4 ,he turned as ,philip entered1 and showed a face covered with thick1 shaggy hair1 which had been black1 but was now plentifully streaked with silver4 ,of his features1 only the eyes and nose were distinguishable1 for the shaggy hair fell over his brow1 too1 in defiance of combs and brushes4 ,philip's idea of ,mr ,shield's appearance had been vague enough2 but somehow this man was so unlike every preconceived notion of him1 that he would have fancied there was a mistake1 had not all doubt been at once removed by the greeting he received4 #8,how do you do1 ,philip8 ,glad to see you4' ,he held out a big horny hand1 which betokened a long friendship with pickaxe and spade4 ,his manner was somewhat rough1 but it was frank and good-natured4 ,still it was unlike the manner of one who had received some education and had been accustomed to move in ordinary society4 ,all this1 however1 ,philip quickly accounted for by recalling the fact1 that ,mr ,shield had been living so many years on the outskirts of civilisation1 that he must have forgotten much1 and unconsciously adopted some of the characteristics of his uncouth associates4 #8,i am glad to see you at last1 sir1' he said1 grasping the extended hand cordially4 #8,that's right4 ,i like a man who can give you a grip when he does shake hands4 ,if he can't1 he ought to leave it alone4 ,i don't bother much with hand-shaking4 ,a nod's as good in our part4 ,but coming so far1 you see---- ,oh1 all right' 7the last phrase was like a private exclamation1 as he suddenly remembered something74444 #8,sit down4 ,have anything8' #8,no2 thank you4' #8,ah1 right1 right4 ,under orders1 ,i suppose4 ,forgot your accident4 ,how's the ribs8' #8,pretty well1 ,i am happy to say1' answered ,philip1 smiling at the droll1 gruff1 abrupt style of his uncle1 and appreciating the kindliness which was clearly visible through it4 #8,the doctors tell me ,i shall never know that the accident happened4' #8,that's good4 ,now you know what we are not to speak about1 and what we are to speak about is yourself4' #8,that is generally an agreeable subject4' #8,should be always to a youngster like you4 ,now1 ,i want to start you in life4 ,that was my promise1 and ,i am able to keep it4 ,what is your notion of a start8' #8,i have not decided yet4 ,the result of my journey to you was to settle what was to follow4 ,as that journey is now unnecessary1 ,i think of entering for the bar or medicine4' #8,stuff4 ,too many lawyers and doctors already4 ,you keep in mind who it was wished you to come to me8444 ,you needn't speak4--,i see you do4 ,then will you obey her1 and become my partner8' #8,your partner6' ejaculated ,philip1 astounded by the abruptness of this extraordinary proposal4 #8,don't you like the notion8 ,most young fellows would snap at it4' #8,i am aware of that1 ,mr ,shield2 but ,i have no capital except what my fa'---- #8,that's all right4 ,you go to ,hawkins and ,jackson4 ,they will satisfy you that you have plenty of capital1 and will explain to you that there is a chance for you to become one of the biggest men in ,london--,m4,p4--,lord ,mayor--anything you like1 if you only enter into partnership with me4' #8,i am a little bewildered1 sir1 and would like to understand exactly'---- #8,hawkins is waiting for you1' said ,mr ,shield1 looking at his watch2 #8he will make everything plain to you before you leave him4 ,he has full orders--instructions1 that is to say4 ,i have somebody else to see now4 ,you'll write and tell me how you take to the plan1 and ,i'll let you know when we are to meet again4' #8,i ought to thank you2 but'---- #8,don't bother about that--time enough for it--time enough4 ,good-bye4' ,the interview was over4 ,philip was metaphorically hustled out of the room by the brusque1 good-natured relative he had just found4 ,he felt confused and bewildered as he walked slowly down ,regent ,street1 trying to realise the meaning of all the suggestions which had been made to him4 ,there was something humorous1 too1 in having a fortune thrust upon him in this singular fashion4 ,for he knew that to become the partner of ,austin ,shield was equivalent to inheriting a large fortune4 ,in their correspondence of course1 ,mr ,shield had told him that he meant to #8see what could be done for him2' but he had added that everything would depend upon how they got on together1 after they had lived for a time under the same roof4 ,now everything was given to him when they had been only a few minutes together--indeed had been given before they met at all1 for all arrangements in reference to the partnership had been already made1 and only awaited his acceptance4 #8,he is an odder fish in person than he has shown himself in his letters1' thought ,philip4 #8,we'll see what ,hawkins says4' ,he took a cab1 and as he was driving to the office of the solicitors1 his thoughts cleared4 ,there was no doubt that the prospect so freely offered him was a brilliant one2 but there was a cloud upon it4 ,how would his father regard this arrangement8 ,a ,,practical ,,science ,,and ,,art ,,school4 ,,gordon',s ,,college1 ,,aberdeen4 ,our ,minister for ,education1 ,mr ,mundella1 in a recent visit to ,glasgow and ,edinburgh1 delivered a series of speeches remarkable not only for the interesting accounts he gave of the progress of elementary education under the national system established by the ,education ,acts1 but for their strong advocacy of the necessity of providing still higher and more useful education by means of secondary and technical schools4 ,he indicated that this might in some measure be attained by a judicious reform of existing educational endowments1 and he instanced one case of such reorganisation1 which he held up as a model worthy of imitation4 ,the case referred to was that of the institution now known as ,robert ,gordon's ,college1 ,aberdeen4 ,the #8reform' achieved by this institution has been so thorough and so successful1 and has been conducted so much in the direction indicated by ,mr ,mundella1 that some details of its nature and the work now being accomplished by its agency may prove interesting in themselves1 and advantageous as furnishing an illustration of how our general educational system may be improved and perfected4 ,the institution was founded by a ,robert ,gordon1 who had been at one time a merchant in ,danzig1 but ultimately settled in ,aberdeen1 where he died in #agca4 ,he bequeathed all his property to certain trustees1 for the building of a hospital1 and for the maintenance and education of young boys whose parents were poor and indigent1 and not able to maintain them at school or put them to trades and employments4 ,owing to the civil disorders of the time1 the hospital was not opened till #agej4 ,the trust funds1 together with the value and revenue of a separate estate bequeathed in #ahaf by a ,mr ,alexander ,simpson of ,collyhill1 now amount to an annual revenue of over eight thousand pounds4 ,there were latterly two hundred boys in the hospital1 forty of these being nominated by the ,collyhill trustees4 ,the period of residence was five years2 the education imparted was a fairly good1 sound1 elementary one1 with a little instruction in mathematics and chemistry1 and a smattering of ,latin and ,french4 ,the bulk of the boys drifted into mercantile pursuits4 ,the passing of the ,educational ,endowments ,act of #ahgh opened up for the institution a new and wider sphere of usefulness4 ,in ,june #ahha1 the governing body obtained a ,provisional ,order under the ,act1 greatly altering the constitution and objects of the original trust1 and constituting the hospital a ,college1 in which the chief subjects of study shall be ,english ,language and ,literature1 ,history and ,geography1 ,modern ,languages1 ,mathematics1 and the ,elements of ,physical and ,natural ,science4 ,the number of foundationers was reduced to one hundred and twenty1 and the #8hospital' system was almost entirely abolished4 ,the hospital buildings were converted into a day school2 the standard of education was raised2 evening classes were established2 and provision was made for the amalgamation with the ,college of any mechanics' institute1 scientific or technical school1 or other educational institution4 ,the ,college1 therefore1 as now constituted consists of a day school and an evening school4 ,it is not necessary for our purposes to detail the work of the day school in the junior department2 but in the senior1 the work branches off into three divisions1 the studies being specialised with a regard to the line of work the boys intend pursuing on leaving school4 ,in the ,commercial ,school prominent attention is given to modern languages 7,french and ,german71 mathematics1 arithmetic1 book-keeping1 and letter and prcis writing1 the studies in science being also continued4 ,in the ,trade and ,engineering ,school the studies carried forward are ,english and one foreign language 7,french or ,german72 but most of the time is devoted to mathematics1 experimental science1 and drawing2 applied science and technical drawing being the features of the second year4 ,the teaching in both years is accompanied by systematic instruction in the workshop 7in wood and iron72 while for intending young engineers there is a special course in steam and the steam-engine2 and for those aiming at the building trades1 a special course in building construction and drawing4 ,the workshop1 which is under the superintendence of a practical man1 is large and well equipped4 ,it has thirteen benches and a lathe1 and a forge and three vice-benches2 and a proposal is about to be submitted to the governing body for the further development of this practical department by providing a steam-engine and other appliances4 ,the third division of the school--the ,classical--is for boys intending to proceed to the university4 ,at the present time1 there are five hundred and eighty day scholars1 one hundred and twenty of whom are foundationers4 ,ninety day scholars are receiving instruction in the workshop in relays of fifteen at a time1 one hour being devoted to the workshop1 and four hours to ordinary teaching4 ,the school-hours are five per day1 and most of the school-work is done in that time1 the pupils1 though not altogether exempt from home-work1 not being oppressed by it4 ,plenty of time is thus given for exercise and enjoyment2 and there is no complaint of #8over-pressure1' either on the part of teachers or taught4 ,the evening school1 which is open to adults1 and to girls as well as to boys1 is divided into two sections4 ,there is a ,general and ,commercial section1 in which instruction is given in such subjects as ,english1 arithmetic1 ,french1 ,german1 theory of music1 phonography1 and political economy4 ,then there is a ,science and ,technology section1 having classes for practical plane and solid geometry1 machine and building construction and drawing1 applied mechanics and steam1 metal working tools1 carpentry and joinery1 magnetism and electricity1 electrical engineering1 inorganic chemistry1 and botany4 ,to the ,physics and ,chemistry lecture-rooms are attached a large apparatus-room and commodious laboratories2 and the means and appliances are enlarged from time to time1 one hundred pounds being devoted this year to the purchase of scientific apparatus and chemicals4 ,in the ,applied ,mechanics class1 the strength of materials and the strains in structures are investigated experimentally2 while the class meets occasionally on ,saturday afternoons for experiments in practical mechanics in the laboratory1 or to study the actual applications of mechanics in some of the engineering works in the town4 ,the classes in the ,science section are specially adapted for students qualifying for the examinations of the ,science and ,art ,department and of the ,society of ,arts1 and for the ,city and ,guilds of ,london examinations in ,technology2 and the ,college--under the able direction of the head-master1 the ,rev4 ,alexander ,ogilvie1 ,,ll4,d4--is now beginning to take a high position in connection with these examinations4 ,dr ,ogilvie first instituted ,science and ,art classes in ,gordon's ,hospital in #ahge1 not only for boys in the hospital1 but also for those who had completed their education there and were serving apprenticeships in ,aberdeen4 ,the beginnings were small1 classes for magnetism and electricity and physical geography being first started4 ,in course of time1 however1 botany was added1 followed by mathematics1 theoretical mechanics1 and inorganic chemistry2 and soon half-a-dozen classes were in full swing1 yielding by-and-by very satisfactory results1 all the more satisfactory as teaching in these special subjects was given out of school-hours1 or1 as the inspector reported1 #8,science has taken its place in the institution1 and has displaced nothing4' ,the reorganisation of the ,college1 which came into practical operation in ,august #ahha1 gave a new impetus to the evening classes and the science teaching4 ,during session #ahha-hb1 two hundred and four scholars attended the evening classes1 of whom one hundred and seventy-one presented themselves at the examinations of the ,science and ,art ,department4 ,of these1 sixty-nine gained eighty-eight ,queen's prizes1 value twenty-eight pounds ten shillings1 and first-class certificates2 eighty-seven gained second-class certificates2 and fifteen failed4 ,the total ,department 7government7 grants that fell to the teachers amounted to three hundred and forty-six pounds ten shillings4 ,in session #ahhb-hc1 the number of tickets issued for the evening classes was--,for ,general and ,commercial classes1 six hundred and eighty-two2 for ,science classes1 five hundred and eighty-seven3 total1 twelve hundred and sixty-nine4 ,of this number1 three hundred and eighty-one individual students attended the ,science classes1 of whom two hundred and thirty-five were present at the examinations4 ,ninety of these gained one hundred and twenty-two ,queen's prizes1 of the value of thirty-nine pounds five shillings1 with first-class certificates2 one hundred and four gained second-class certificates2 and forty-one failed4 ,the grants earned from the ,department amounted to three hundred and sixty-five pounds4 ,in the ,society of ,arts' examinations1 sixty-nine candidates were examined--the largest number from any institution1 except the ,birmingham and ,midland ,institute--and fifty-three passed1 four gaining first-class certificates1 and twenty second-class certificates4 ,in the ,city and ,guilds' examination1 the number presented in technology--metal working tools--was eight1 of whom two gained first-class honours1 five stood first-class in the ordinary grade1 and one second-class4 ,one student so distinguished himself1 being second in the examination of all the candidates in the ,united ,kingdom1 that he was awarded a prize of three pounds and a bronze medal4 ,within the past year1 the ,science teaching in the ,college has been largely developed by a provisional amalgamation with the ,aberdeen ,mechanics' ,institution1 in connection with which there has been for many years a ,school of ,art and ,science classes4 ,the ,science classes and the scientific apparatus of the ,mechanics' ,institution have been transferred to the ,college1 which has become thereby the ,science school for the city4 ,the amalgamation--almost certain to be permanently ratified--coupled with the more complete and systematic instruction in ,gordon's ,college1 promises to be fruitful of good results1 which may1 indeed1 be already anticipated1 for no fewer than fifteen hundred and forty-seven students have enrolled themselves in the various evening classes for the current session4 ,the value of the work which the ,college is accomplishing can hardly be over-estimated4 ,the objects of the institution1 as now recast1 are--in addition to the education of foundationers--to afford a good elementary education at fees so small as to make it within the reach of the sons of working-men even2 to help its own scholars1 and boys leaving ,board ,schools1 to a knowledge of subjects not otherwise readily attainable2 and to furnish to the apprentice and the artisan instruction in science and technology of a higher grade4 ,the ,college1 in short1 aims at being a complete and efficient secondary school1 and really forms for the city of ,aberdeen the much-desiderated link between elementary and university education--a link that will be more apparent and more serviceable when the universities come to be reformed1 and when more attention will likely be paid to scientific than to classical studies4 ,even as things are1 a number of the scholars have already found their way to the university1 and have been successful in gaining bursaries and other honours2 and two of them--educated partly in the ,hospital and partly in the ,college--have recently passed the competitions for the ,indian ,civil ,service without the preliminary #8coaching' in ,london1 generally regarded as essential4 ,one of the two is now in receipt of one hundred and fifty pounds a year during his two years of probation1 after which he will become one of ,her ,majesty's civil servants in ,india4 ,the ,commercial ,school provides an education well suited for young men who intend engaging in the various occupations and industries of the town and district2 while in the evening classes they have every opportunity of continuing their studies as their inclinations or their pursuits dictate4 ,but the most important work of the ,college is the scientific and technical education it imparts4 ,the object here is to furnish in the day school such an elementary practical knowledge as will prepare boys to become intelligent apprentices2 in the evening school1 on the other hand1 to furnish higher theoretical instruction to boys and men really at work4 ,the workshop is for the use of day scholars only2 the evening pupils find their practical training in their daily work1 and come to the ,college to learn the theory4 ,the day school aims at teaching the pupils on the technical side the elements of the constructive arts and the character of materials1 concurrently with thorough education in the interpretation of working drawings4 ,it is explicitly intimated that #8it is by no means intended that a boy should learn his trade in the ,college1 but only that he should lay the foundation of the scientific and technical knowledge which has become an essential concomitant of trade experience and manual dexterity4' ,this distinction has to be borne in mind2 for ,gordon's ,college is not an #8apprenticeship school1' such1 for instance1 as the one maintained by the ,paris municipality in the ,boulevard de la ,villette1 which turns out its pupils1 at the end of a three years' course1 as having finished their apprenticeship1 and as being ready for employment as journeymen1 or even as foremen4 ,the fault of this system of training artisans is that it underrates what is to be learned in the ordinary workshop2 and instead of having recourse to it1 the governing body of ,gordon's ,college set to work on the lines just mentioned4 ,it is obviously impossible as yet to discern the effect which this improved technical education will have upon the arts and industries of the town2 but some estimate of the actual work accomplished may be formed from the following account of models exhibited at the last distribution of prizes1 which we take from a local paper3 #8,a large number of drawings by the pupils attracted much attention1 and a special feature was an exhibition of models executed in the workshop in the course of the year4 ,these models were the work of the pupils1 and an examination showed that they were highly finished1 and that in every instance the greatest care had been taken1 down even to the most minute detail4 ,the models were large in number1 and diverse in character4 ,one was a very fine sample of a suspension bridge1 measuring twelve feet in length1 and weighted so as to show the strain it was capable of sustaining4 ,there was also what is known as a roof-truss1 an arrangement for finding what1 under given circumstances1 would be the strain put upon the rafters and the rods4 ,then there was a model crane adjusted for a precisely similar purpose1 and very neatly finished apparatus for experimenting with the inclined plane1 the lever1 and friction coil1 c4 ,a number of well-finished specimens of electrical apparatus formed part of the exhibits1 including one or two very good galvanometers and a small electrical engine4 ,in woodwork the variety was large4 ,a walking-stick was shown which on occasion could be transformed into a tripod stand for surveying4 ,there were also models of the various jointings employed in woodwork1 and several excellent specimens of work both in wood and iron4 ,possibly the most striking feature of the whole display was a sectional model of a steam-engine1 which measured some thirteen feet in length and showed all the working parts4 ,it was also provided with means of adjustment to find by experiment the effect of varying the dimensions of the various parts4 ,the entire model was coloured in accordance with the ordinary rule in engineering works4 ,among the ordinary articles shown were a grindstone frame1 a vice-bench1 and a number of smithy tools4 ,it may be mentioned that the whole of the work in connection with the models was not only executed by the boys themselves1 but that in every case they had also prepared the working drawings4' ,it is not too much to infer that elementary instruction which produces such results as these will prove an important factor in the work of after-life2 and we may safely conclude that the ,college is not unlikely to realise a large measure of the success which it deserves1 besides serving as an example to other scholastic and commercial communities4 ,,the ,,miner',s ,,partner4 ,,in ,,four ,,chapters4--,,conclusion4 ,never before had ,ben from mental excitement passed a sleepless night2 his seasoned1 iron nerves had borne him through a multitude of perils--from hostile ,indians1 from white enemies2 from the bear1 the wolf1 the snake2 from fire and flood2 and when the time had come for him to sleep1 he slept soundly2 when his rough meals were prepared1 he ate well4 ,but it was different now4 ,the recollection of the face which confronted his own at the restaurant1 haunted him1 broke his sleep into fitful dozing1 and filled these unrefreshing snatches with terrible dreams4 ,yet1 when the bright morning came1 he persuaded himself that he must have been mistaken--that he had exaggerated some chance resemblance into the identity of his dead partner4 ,ben's reflections touched upon what was growing into another dreadful form of mental excitement4 ,he began to fear that he had not seen the man at all1 that it was merely a delusion1 a vision of the brain4 ,and that such a delusion should take the form of ,rube ,steele was not surprising1 bearing in mind the fact1 which was never long absent from his thoughts1 that he had given this man a blow which1 if it had not1 as he formerly supposed1 caused the man's death1 must have very nearly done so4 ,no doubt the blow was struck in self-defence2 but even murder in self-defence is not a thing which a man can in his calmer moments recall without some sense of remorse4 ,he was early at the hotel1 and taking his regular seat1 waited with a nervous anxiety1 such as he had rarely experienced before1 the appearance of the stranger4 ,he had not long to wait4 ,almost as soon as he was seated1 a figure entered the saloon which there was no mistaking1 and all ,ben's consolatory theories as to a casual resemblance deceiving him1 fled on the instant4 ,the stoop of the long body and neck1 the crafty glance the man threw around on entering1 his very step--these were all ,rube ,steele's2 and to the dismay of ,ben1 the new-comer evidently glanced round the saloon in search of him1 for the moment he saw him1 his face lighted up with a smile1 and he came to the table4 #8,glad to see you again6' said he1 extending a hand which a horrible fascination compelled ,ben to seize and shake2 but the familiarity of the touch was more horrible still4 ,he felt--he knew for a certainty1 he had touched that hand a thousand times4 #8,i thought mebbe you made this your regular dining location1' continued the other2 #8and ,i have kinder taken a fancy to you4' #8,in-deed6' gasped ,ben1 wondering as to what would come next4 #8,yes1 ,i have2 that is so1' replied the stranger4 #8,i reckon you have not been located in this city very long8' #8,not very long1' said ,ben1 who had not once removed his eyes from the other's face4 #8,i came from the ,west--from the mining country4' #8,possible6' ejaculated the stranger4 #8,wal1 now1 ,i take a great interest in the mining countries1 and like to hear tell of them4 ,were you from ,californy1 or ,nevady1 or'---- #8,from ,colorado1' gasped ,ben1 who almost began to fancy that he was losing his senses1 so certain was he that the man was ,rube1 and yet so inconsistent with this belief was the whole of his conversation1 especially his liking for ,ben1 and his anxiety to hear of the mines4 ,when they separated1 it was with another shake of the hand1 and a strongly expressed hope on the part of the stranger that they might meet again the next day4 #8,either the critter is a ghost1' thought ,ben--#8and in that case there are ghosts--or ,i am going crazy2 or he is ,rube ,steele2 and ,i know that is impossible4 ,i won't go to this hotel any more2 and soon as we get married1 ,ruth and ,i will live out of the city1 and that is a comfort4' ,fortified by this reflection1 he was able to bear up somewhat better on this day1 and to accept ,mr ,showle's invitation with a calmer mind4 ,he arrived early at the merchant's house4 ,ruth came in soon afterwards1 and he was pleased to see that she1 too1 looked more cheerful4 ,ruth had relieved her mind1 as she confessed to ,ben1 by telling him her trouble2 and now he knew it1 she felt that the worst was over4 ,it was to avoid her half-brother1 she owned1 that she had wished ,ben to live so far from town1 and as he had now really arrived1 he was glad they had agreed upon this precaution4 ,they were conversing cheerfully enough1 when a knock was heard at the outer door1 and ,mr ,showle1 rising1 exclaimed3 #8,there is ,morede6 ,i know his knock4 ,indeed1 he takes care we shall hear him4--,i am sure you will like him1 ,creelock1 and he is very anxious to see you4--,ah6 ,mr ,morede6 you are punctual1 then6 ,come in1 and let me introduce you to our friend ,creelock4' ,saying this1 he shook hands with the new arrival1 and led him to where ,ben was standing4 #8,i think1' said ,mr ,morede1 as he took ,ben's hand with a smile1 #8,i am not entirely a stranger to ,mr ,creelock4 ,i have had the pleasure of dining with him more than once at the ,ocean ,house4' ,yes1 he had2 of course he had4 ,of course he was not a stranger to ,ben--far from it1 and ,ben knew it well2 for here was his mysterious companion at dinner1 the new partner in ,showle and ,bynnes1 and ,ruth's half-brother1 all turning out to be not only one and the same person1 but were also each and every one ,rube ,steele1 his treacherous partner1 whom he had left for dead in ,colorado6 ,and why did he not recognise ,ben1 as ,ben had recognised him8 ,of all the strange features in this bewildering matter1 this was the strangest4 ,ben shook hands1 as an automaton might have done1 and spoke as though in a trance2 the odd tone and character of his replies1 and his fixed stare1 evidently attracting the notice of ,ruth and ,mr ,showle4 #8,come1 ,creelock6' cried the latter presently2 #8you are not yourself to-night4 ,where are your mining stories and your prairie adventures8 ,i have been praising you all the time to our friend ,morede here1 as a sort of live volume of entertainment on these matters1 and you are not saying a word about them4' #8,mr ,showle is entirely right2 he is so1' said ,morede2 #8and ,i reckon ,i shall be quite pleased to sit around and hear somethin' about the western mines4 ,i always do like to hear tell of them4' #8,do you8' exclaimed ,ben1 rousing himself in a species of desperation1 and resolving to bring this horrible torture to a finish4 #8,shall ,i tell you an adventure of my own8' #8,just so1' returned ,morede1 with a pleased smile4 #8,i should like it above all things4' #8,then1' said ,ben--and his answering smile was of a somewhat grimmer character1 in spite of himself1 than ,morede's had been--#8then ,i will tell you how my pardner at the mines introduced a stranger1 who robbed me of fifteen hundred dollars4 ,this stranger came1 ,i should tell you1 with information about ,indians1 on the war-path who were likely to be around our camp4 ,but it was an arranged plot4 ,he was a mean cuss1 this stranger2 he or his friends robbed the placers and broke the stamp-mill4 ,it was either him or my pardner that shot at me from a gully2 and the bullet went through my hat and cut away some of my hair4 ,that was not the only time my pardner got his desperadoes to shoot at me2 so ,i will tell you about him4' ,thereupon1 stimulated by the desperate impulse we have alluded to1 ,ben proceeded to relate a part of the plot which had been devised for his ruin by his crafty partner2 the incidents attendant on which greatly excited1 and sometimes almost appalled his hearers1 none among whom listened with more palpable interest than did ,mr ,morede4 ,ben told all1 up to the action of the ,vigilantes1 but could not bring himself to speak of the final scene at the pool2 there was something too horrible in the idea of describing that to his listeners4 ,when ,ben had finished1 which he did by saying1 #8,what do you think of that1 ,mr ,morede8' and looking his new partner straight in the face1 the latter exclaimed1 in what seemed the most genuine manner possible3 #8,first-rate1 ,mr ,creelock6 ,i admire you4 ,i see you have the real grit2 and ,i wish ,i had been there to help you in such a fix4 ,but1 to my thinking1 your partner was the worse of the two4' #8,he was1' said ,ben drily4 #8,and he ought to have had his reward1' continued ,morede4 #8,he had it1' said ,ben1 with increased dryness4 #8,good6 ,good6' cried ,morede2 and other comments being made1 the conversation became general4 ,morede bore his part all through the evening without a single allusion which could induce ,ben to suppose he had the slightest remembrance of him1 or had ever before heard a syllable relating to the dangerous stranger or the robberies4 ,when they parted for the night1 too1 he was particularly demonstrative in his friendliness to ,creelock1 making quite a #8smart oration1' as ,mr ,showle afterwards remarked1 on the agreeable evening he had passed1 and the pleasure it would give him to be associated in business1 and as he hoped1 in still closer relationship with a man whom he admired and liked so much at first sight as he did ,mr ,creelock4 ,ben went home after this speech in doubt as to whether it was himself or every one around him that was going mad4 ,day after day passed1 and the new partners in the firm met frequently1 with no diminution in the friendship which ,mr ,morede had from the first professed for ,ben4 ,they did not meet at the hotel1 however2 the strain on ,ben's nerves was bad enough when they met as part of a group4 ,a tte--tte was more than he could stand with a man whom he believed to have killed1 but who was now walking about as unconcernedly as though he had never been stretched by the side of that ,colorado pool4 ,so confounded had ,ben been by the apparition1 that he had never thought of asking the ,christian name of ,mr ,morede1 and it came upon him as a new shock when he received a note from the warehouse on some business matters signed #8,reuben ,morede1' while he could have sworn to the handwriting in a court of justice4 ,this did not increase his certainty1 for it could admit of no increase2 he was certain1 and could not go beyond that2 but it seemed to make the position more dreadful and complicated4 ,now and then1 too1 he would find1 if he turned quickly round1 ,mr ,morede gazing fixedly upon him--an earnest gaze1 as though he were striving to recall something to his memory2 and this was not agreeable to ,creelock4 ,he asked ,ruth1 as guardedly as possible1 about her brother's past career2 but she knew nothing of it since he had left home4 ,he had gone ,west1 she knew2 but he would not now utter a syllable in explanation1 or even say how he had been employed4 ,ben could not press her very much upon the subject1 as it was evidently a painful one4 ,his departure from home had been caused by some disgraceful1 possibly fatal broil--that was clear2 so ,ben forbore to question her4 ,the day of his wedding drew nigh4 ,ruth had left her school2 their home was so far advanced in its improvements that it would be quite ready by the time they returned from their trip2 and then--to add still greater pleasure and clat to the festivities--the gallant energetic old gentleman ,mr ,bynnes paid a short visit to ,cincinnati4 ,like the restless ,yankee he was1 he had already sold his new estate at a very considerable profit2 so was now1 at seventy years of age1 looking out for some fresh investment for his dollars1 and employment for his time4 ,he had seen ,ben before leaving ,cincinnati1 and appeared to like him then2 and seeing him a little more at leisure now1 he liked him more4 ,the bluff1 straightforward1 perhaps rough manner1 which ,creelock could never shake off1 seemed to please the old man mightily1 and he was never so happy as when in his company4 ,ben1 with his nightmare always oppressing him1 had asked a little about ,reuben ,morede1 who he knew was a connection of ,mr ,bynnes4 ,but the latter was not communicative about the new partner1 although there was a tantalising hesitation in his manner1 which made ,ben think he could a tale unfold1 did he choose4 ,well1 the wedding-day came2 and the simple ceremony performed in ,mr ,showle's drawing-room1 made ,ben and ,ruth man and wife4 ,then came what answers to the wedding-breakfast of the ,britisher1 and this was on a scale1 for variety and display1 to put the old country on its mettle1 although it was only given by an ,american storekeeper4 ,after the first part of the feast was over1 ,mr ,bynnes got ,ben by himself and insisted upon having a final glass of champagne with him4 #8,i know you have got just the best wife in the ,states1' said the old gentleman2 #8and you are the kind of man to make a good husband1 ,i can see4 ,i feel as glad to see little ,ruth ,alken happily settled1 as if she was a gal of my own--,i do4 ,after all these years1 too1 to think her brother is going to clear up and quit his tricks6 ,i always liked the boy2 but he has had some real bad ways4 ,you asked me about him1 you know4' #8,yes1 ,i did1' said ,ben4 #8,wal1 ,i did not like to let out agen him1' pursued ,mr ,bynnes2 #8but it can't do harm now anyway1 that ,i can see4 ,he has been mining in ,colorado1 and has been up to some queer tricks there4 ,he was nigh killed by his partner--he was2 that is so4' #8,nearly killed6' echoed ,ben4 #8,ah6 most oncommon nigh1' said ,mr ,bynnes4 #8,also he was nigh upon lynched by the ,vigilantes4 ,his partner found out that he was--,rube was1 ,i mean--playing him false1 planning to rob and perhaps murder him2 so it is supposed from the mark on his head that he hit him down with some blunt instrument1 possibly a club1 and left him for dead at the mine4 ,he was found lying by some of the miners1 who carried him to ,flume ,city1 and ,i heard all about it from the doctor who attended him4 ,it is a real extraordinary case4 ,he recovered1 as you see2 but his memory from a certain time has entirely gone4 ,his boyish days he remembers quite well2 but does not appear to have the least idea that he ever went to the mines or was ever injured4 ,we have tried him in every way2 but his mind is a perfect blank4 ,strange1 is it not8' #8,very strange1' assented ,ben1 who1 we need hardly say1 was listening with breathless interest4 #8,his brain is injured1 no doubt1' continued the elder2 #8for his skull was fractured4 ,the doctor says it is to be hoped that he will never recover his memory2 for if he does1 he will probably go mad1 and do some more mischief before he dies4 ,it is a strange case4--,here we are6 just having a friendly drink at parting4' ,this was in reply to one or two of the party who came to interrupt the lengthened gossip1 and the conference was broken up4 99 99 99 99 99 ,often1 during his eastern trip1 did ,ben recur to the strange story he had heard1 and often did he debate with himself whether or not he should tell his wife what he had learned2 but he thought it better on the whole to be silent4 ,it was with a great feeling of relief1 however1 that he found1 upon his return to ,cincinnati1 that ,morede was absent1 having just left to accompany ,mr ,bynnes in his inspection of a property in ,colorado4 ,in about a week after this time1 ,mr ,showle received a letter from ,mr ,bynnes announcing the almost sudden death of ,morede6 #8,and we had a bad time with him1' said the writer4 #8,perhaps it was because we came to ,colorado that he all at once got back his mind2 but whatever it was1 he woke one morning like a fiend or a wild ,indian4 ,he raved about the mines1 talked of horrible things he had done2 said the fellows here would tremble even now at ,rube ,steele's name2 and we have found out that he1 or some one like him1 was known in these parts as ,rube ,steele1 a year or two back4 ,tell ,mr ,creelock that he was frantic against him4 ,he was sensible enough in other things2 but he was always calling for his pistol1 and vowed that he would shoot ,ben ,creelock on sight6 ,told me that ,ben was the man who had broken his skull and had set the ,vigilantes on his friends4 ,i tell you1 ,abel ,showle1 it was real frightful1 and we were all glad when he died2 though my heart ached for him1 when ,i recollected the bright1 clever boy he was2 his mother's only son1 too4 ,but he is gone now2 and bad as he may have been1 ,i don't think we will tell ,ruth of his later life1 as he had caused her a deal of misery1 and she don't need to think any worse of him4'#a ,the kindly1 shrewd old merchant's advice was followed2 and ,ruth ,creelock1 although she did not feign passionate grief for the half-brother who had so injured all who ought to have been dear to him1 yet spoke of him with a softened feeling1 which must have been changed had she known of the deadly enmity which once existed between the dead man and her husband4 #a ,for a similar case of lapsed memory1 see ,carpenter's ,mental ,physiology1 #dth edition1 pp4 #dfj-dfe4 ,,miss ,,marrable',s ,,elopement4 ,,in ,,two ,,chapters4--,,chapter ,i4 ,miss ,martha ,marrable1 a spinster lady of five-and-fifty1 is the last of her race4 ,her only brother1 ,mr ,clement ,marrable1 never married1 and died twenty years ago at ,baden-,baden1 whither he had gone to drink the waters2 and her two sisters1 ,maria and ,ltitia1 although they did marry1 did not live to become middle-aged women4 ,the elder1 ,maria1 after becoming the wife of ,mr ,langton ,larkspur1 of the firm of ,scrip1 ,larkspur1 and ,company1 bankers1 of ,threadneedle ,street1 gave birth to a single child1 a daughter1 who was named ,lucy2 and the younger1 ,ltitia1 having been led to the altar by ,mr ,septimus ,allerton1 of the firm of ,allerton1 ,bond1 and ,benedict1 brokers1 of ,pancake ,lane1 presented her husband with twin girls1 of whom one only--and she was called ,amy--survived her extreme infancy4 ,it is therefore not astonishing that ,miss ,martha ,marrable1 a well-to-do woman without family ties1 is exceedingly fond of the daughters of her two dead sisters4 ,she usually has them to stay with her at least twice a year--once in the early summer at her house in ,grosvenor ,street2 and once in the autumn at the seaside1 or in ,italy1 whither she goes occasionally1 accompanied--to the great wonder of the foreigners--by a courier1 a man-servant1 two maids1 eleven boxes1 and a green parrot4 ,and as she is very kind to her nieces1 and denies them nothing1 it is not surprising that they are fully as fond of her as she is of them4 ,but ,miss ,martha ,marrable is growing old2 whereas ,miss ,lucy ,larkspur and ,miss ,amy ,allerton are both young1 and intend to remain so for some years to come4 ,it is not1 therefore1 to be expected that the three ladies should invariably think exactly alike on all subjects4 ,and indeed1 ,i am happy to say that there are not many women who do agree with ,miss ,marrable upon all questions2 for although she is as good-hearted an old spinster as ever breathed1 she is1 unfortunately1 a man-hater4 ,i have looked into the dictionary to see what the verb #8to hate' signifies1 and ,i find that it means #8to despise1' or #8to dislike intensely4' ,let it not1 however1 be supposed that the word #8man-hater' is a stronger one than ought to be applied to ,miss ,marrable2 for ,i am really not quite certain that it is altogether strong enough4 ,she regards men as inferior animals1 and looks down upon them with lofty contempt4 #8,who1' she once said to her niece ,lucy1 #8has turned the world upside down1 filled it with poverty and unhappiness1 and deluged it with blood8 ,it is ,man1 ,lucy4 ,if woman had always governed the earth1 we should have had no ,csar ,borgias1 no ,judge ,jefferieses1 no ,bonapartes1 and no ,nana ,sahibs4' ,and yet ,miss ,martha ,marrable can never see a vagrant begging in the street without giving him alms4 ,the truth is1 that although she detests and despises man1 she pities him2 just as she pities the poor idiot whom she sometimes sees grinning and gibbering by the wayside in ,italy4 ,these being her sentiments1 ,miss ,marrable has not1 of course1 many male acquaintances4 ,she is on good1 but not affectionate terms with her widowed brothers-in-law1 ,mr ,langton ,larkspur and ,mr ,septimus ,allerton4 ,she once a year invites her man of business1 ,mr ,john ,bones1 of ,cook's ,court1 to dine with her and them in ,grosvenor ,street2 and she is civil to the rector of her parish1 and to the medical man whom she would call in to attend her in case of illness4 ,yet ,mr ,larkspur once told ,mr ,allerton that this feminine dragon had had a violent love-affair when she was nineteen2 and ,mr ,allerton--whose connection with the ,marrable family is of much more recent date than that of ,lucy's father--actually declared that he could well believe it4 ,if1 however1 ,miss ,marrable did have a love-affair in her youth1 ,i am not inclined at this time of day to cast it as a reproach in her teeth4 ,boys will be boys2 and girls1 ,i suppose1 will be girls1 though they may live to see the error of their ways1 and be none the worse for their follies4 ,one thing is certain1 and that is1 that at the present time1 and for at least five-and-twenty years past1 ,miss ,martha ,marrable has ceased to dream of the tender passion4 ,she still occasionally talks vaguely of going up the ,nile1 or of visiting the ,yellowstone ,region1 ere she dies2 but she never contemplates the possibility of getting married2 and ,i believe that she would as soon think of allowing a man to believe that she regarded him with anything but polite aversion1 as she would think of going into business as a steeple-jack1 and learning to stand on one leg on the top of the cross at the summit of ,st ,paul's ,cathedral4 ,and yet ,miss ,martha ,marrable was last year the heroine of a terrible scandal2 and many of her misanthropic female friends have never since been able to completely believe her professions of hatred of man4 ,the affair gave rise to many whispers1 and was even1 ,i understand1 guardedly alluded to1 with just and virtuous deprecation1 in the columns of the ,woman's ,suffrage ,journal1 as a terrible but happily rare instance of womanly weakness and frivolity2 and since the true story has never been told1 ,i feel that it is only fair to tell it1 and by telling it1 to defend ,miss ,marrable from the dastardly charges that have been made against her established reputation for good sense and unflinching contempt of the rougher sex4 ,towards the end of ,august1 ,miss ,marrable and her two nieces left ,london for ,north ,wales1 and after a long and tiresome journey1 reached ,abermaw1 in ,merionethshire1 and took rooms at the ,cors-y-,gedol ,hotel4 ,they were accompanied1 as usual1 by the two maids and the green parrot2 but the courier and the man-servant1 being males1 and their services not being imperatively required1 they were left behind in ,london4 ,lucy had just celebrated her twenty-third birthday1 and ,amy was just about to celebrate her twenty-first2 and--although ,i am sorry to have to record it--,i am by no means astonished that they were both in love4 ,lucy1 during the whole of the previous season1 had been determinedly flirting with a designing young artist named ,robert ,rhodes2 and ,amy1 younger and less experienced than her cousin1 had been carrying on1 even more sentimentally1 with ,mr ,vivian ,jellicoe1 who1 being heir to a baronetcy1 found that position so arduous and fatiguing1 that he was quite unfitted for any active occupation of a laborious character4 ,of course ,miss ,marrable knew nothing of these affairs4 ,had she suspected them1 she would perhaps have not taken her nieces with her to ,abermaw2 for it happened that at that very watering-place1 ,sir ,thomas ,jellicoe and his son ,vivian were staying when the three ladies1 the two maids1 and the green parrot arrived4 ,but no foresight on ,miss ,marrable's part could have prevented ,mr ,robert ,rhodes from following ,lucy to ,north ,wales4 ,that adventurous artist had made up his mind to spend the autumn in ,miss ,larkspur's neighbourhood2 and even if ,miss ,marrable had carried off her elder niece to ,timbuctoo or the ,society ,islands1 ,mr ,rhodes would have gone after the pair by the next train1 steamboat1 diligence1 or caravan available4 ,upon the morning1 therefore1 after ,miss ,marrable's arrival at ,abermaw1 she and her nieces were comfortably installed at the ,cors-y-,gedol ,hotel2 while at the ,red ,goat1 close by1 ,sir ,thomas ,jellicoe and ,vivian occupied rooms on the first floor1 and ,mr ,rhodes had a bedroom on the third4 ,in the course of that afternoon1 ,miss ,martha ,marrable1 accompanied by her nieces1 and followed at a respectful distance by the two maids1 walked in the sunshine upon the hard sands that stretch1 for ,i do not know how many hundred yards at low water1 between the rocky hills behind the little town and the margin of ,cardigan ,bay4 ,the weather was hot and sultry1 and the unrippled sea looked like molten lead in the glare4 ,much exercise was therefore out of the question2 and ere long1 the three ladies sat down on the seaward side of a rush-grown sandhill to read1 leaving the two maids to stroll farther if they chose to do so1 and to explore at their leisure the unaccustomed wonders of the seashore4 ,miss ,martha having arranged her sunshade to her satisfaction1 opened a little volume on ,the ,rights of the ,slaves of ,england1 while ,lucy devoted herself to one of ,ouida's novels1 and ,amy plunged deep into ,keats4 ,in five minutes ,the ,rights of the ,slaves of ,england fell heavily to the sand2 and in three minutes more1 ,miss ,marrable was emitting sounds which1 but that ,i know her to be a woman who has no weakness1 ,i should call snores4 ,from that moment1 ,lucy and ,amy1 as if by common consent1 read no more4 #8,lucy1' said ,amy mysteriously to her cousin1 #8,i have seen him4' #8,so have ,i1' said ,lucy4 #8,what a curious coincidence6' #8,not at all4 ,he told me that he intended to follow us4' #8,what6 ,vivian told you8' #8,o no6 ,bother ,vivian6 ,you are always thinking of ,vivian4 ,i mean ,robert4' #8,he here too6' exclaimed ,amy4 #8,i meant ,vivian4 ,i saw him half an hour ago1 with his father4' #8,well1 ,i advise you not to let ,aunt ,martha know too much1' said ,lucy4 #8,if she suspects anything1 she will take us back to ,london this afternoon4' ,miss ,marrable murmured uneasily in her sleep4 ,a fly had settled on her chin4 #8,hush6' exclaimed the girls in unison1 and then they were silent4 ,not long afterwards1 they caught sight of two young men who were walking arm-in-arm along the sand1 a couple of hundred yards away4 #8,look6 ,there they are6' whispered ,lucy4 #8,aunt must not see them4 ,we must go and warn them4' ,and1 stealthily accompanied by her cousin1 she crept away from ,miss ,marrable1 and ran towards the approaching figures4 ,i need not describe the greetings that ensued4 ,such things are the commonplaces of seaside encounters between young men and young women who have likings for each other1 and they have been described a thousand times4 ,suffice it to say that1 a few minutes later1 ,lucy and ,robert were sitting together under the shadow of a bathing-machine1 while ,amy and ,vivian were confidentially talking nonsense a dozen yards off4 ,more than half an hour elapsed ere the girls returned to ,miss ,marrable2 but fortunately the excellent spinster was still murmuring sleepily at the fly on her chin2 and when she awoke1 she had no suspicion that she had been deserted by her charges4 ,as she walked back with them to the hotel1 nevertheless1 as if with a strange intuitive comprehension of danger in the air1 she held forth to them upon her favourite topic--the unfathomable baseness of man2 and gravely warned them against ever allowing themselves even for a single moment to entertain any feeling1 save one of polite aversion to the hated sex4 ,thus matters went on for a week or more1 ,lucy and ,amy meeting their lovers every day in secret1 and ,miss ,marrable suspecting nothing4 ,although she knew ,sir ,thomas ,jellicoe and his son1 she treated them1 whenever she encountered them1 with such freezing courtesy1 that they did not seek her society4 ,as for ,robert ,rhodes1 she did not know him2 and he therefore escaped her lofty slights4 ,but in due time a crisis arrived2 and in order that the full bearings of the situation may be properly understood1 ,i must briefly explain the characters of ,miss ,martha ,marrable's undutiful nieces4 ,lucy ,larkspur has but little romance in her composition2 she has strong feelings1 but not much sentiment2 and she is one of those girls who are perfectly open with their hearts4 ,she loved ,robert ,rhodes1 and1 as she knew quite well that he also loved her1 she made no secret to him of her affection for him4 ,amy ,allerton1 on the other hand1 is1 and always has been1 sentimentally inclined4 ,she believes1 rightly or wrongly1 that it is a very charming thing to ,let concealment1 like a worm i' the bud1 ,feed on her damask cheek2 and she would as soon have thought of permitting ,vivian ,jellicoe to think that she loved him1 as of attempting to win and woo the ,sultan of ,turkey4 ,the consequence was that ,miss ,marrable1 who fondly imagined that she knew all the thoughts of her elder niece1 trusted her much more than she trusted her younger4 ,she regarded ,lucy as an open book that might be easily read1 and ,amy as a kind of oracular voice that1 while saying or appearing to say one thing1 might mean exactly the opposite4 ,miss ,marrable was destined to discover that she was to some extent wrong in her estimate1 so far1 at all events1 as ,lucy was concerned2 and her discovery of her error was1 ,i grieve to say1 accompanied by a good deal of pain and mortification4 ,ten days had passed2 and the two pair of lovers had made considerable progress4 ,amy1 it is true1 had not declared herself to ,vivian1 who1 being a bashful young man1 had1 perhaps1 not pressed her sufficiently2 but ,lucy and ,robert understood one another completely1 and were secretly engaged to get married at the earliest opportunity4 ,vivian's bashfulness could not1 however1 endure for an unlimited time4 ,one morning1 he and ,amy found themselves together on the rocks behind the town1 and the opportunity being favourable1 he screwed up his courage1 told her that he had never loved any one but her2 and obtained a coyly given promise that she would be his4 ,natures like ,amy's1 when they once take fire1 often burn rapidly4 ,on ,monday1 she became engaged to ,vivian ,jellicoe2 on ,tuesday1 ,vivian begged her to name a day for the wedding1 and she refused2 and on ,wednesday1 ,vivian1 knowing the peculiar sentiments of ,miss ,martha ,marrable1 and doubtful also1 perhaps1 whether his father would not throw impediments in the way of his early marriage1 proposed an elopement2 and ,amy1 with some hesitation1 consented4 ,when she returned from her secret meeting with her lover1 she of course confided her plan to her cousin4 #8,how foolish you are1' said ,lucy2 #8you know that your father would not have you do that for the world2 and you will make an enemy of ,aunt ,martha1 who is like a mother to us girls4' #8,but she would never agree to our marrying1 if we consulted her1' objected ,amy2 #8and if she knew anything of our plans1 ,i am sure that she would manage to frustrate them4 ,she is a dear old thing1 but---- ,well1 she is peculiar on those points4' #8,i have told you what ,i think1' said ,lucy1 with an assumption of wisdom that was perhaps warranted by her superior age4 #8,don't be foolish4' ,but ,amy was already beyond the influence of counsel4 ,she persisted in her intention1 and even claimed ,lucy's sympathy and assistance1 which1 of course1 ,lucy could not ultimately withhold4 ,ere an elopement can be successfully carried out1 in the face especially of the jealous watchfulness of a man-hating spinster lady of middle age1 numerous preparations have to be made2 and1 in the case of ,vivian and ,amy1 the making of these preparations involved correspondence4 ,amy1 therefore1 bribed one of her aunt's maids to act as a go-between2 and the maid in question1 with a fidelity that is rare1 and at the same time a treachery that1 ,i fear1 is common in her kind1 promptly carried ,vivian's first letter to her mistress4 ,miss ,martha ,marrable without scruple tore open the envelope and angrily perused its contents4 #8,,my ,,own ,,amy1' ran the audacious communication--#8,let us settle1 then1 to go on ,wednesday4 ,at nine o'clock in the evening1 a carriage-and-pair shall be ready to take us to ,harlech1 where you can stay for the night with the ,joneses1 who are old friends of ours2 and on ,thursday by mid-day we shall be married1 and1 ,i trust1 never afterwards parted again4 ,we can arrange the details between this and then4 ,but write1 and tell me that you agree4--,your ever devoted ,,vivian4' ,a ,,few ,,words ,,about ,,the ,,polecat4 ,of the several interesting animals which constitute the weasel tribe in the ,british ,isles1 not the least noteworthy is the polecat4 ,it is at once the largest and most predaceous of the three most common mustelid1 and one of the greatest natural enemies of game with which preservers have to contend1 and at the same time a most persevering and successful poultry-yard thief4 ,it is1 notwithstanding all these unfavourable traits in its character1 but scantily known as far as its appearance and general mode of existence are concerned2 gamekeepers1 for obvious reasons1 not wholly unconnected with the animal's bodily discomfort1 seeming to possess almost a monopoly of information concerning the natural characteristics and habits of this somewhat sturdy varmint4 ,the polecat is popularly supposed to be1 as far as outward form goes1 a larger type of stoat1 while actually it is a very different-looking animal1 although possessing the peculiar formation of body and litheness of limb so typical of the weasel tribe4 ,in several details it offers some not inconsiderable difference from the generality of weasels4 ,the somewhat more thickly set head and the bushy tail are the most prominent divergences4 ,but taken as a whole1 its appearance imbues one with the idea that it might form a very satisfactory connecting link between the mustelid and the felid--the weasels and the cats4 ,hence1 probably1 its name4 ,in colour1 polecats vary to some extent1 on account of the nature of their furry covering4 ,this consists of two lengths of fur2 the one--which lies close to the skin--being thick and woolly1 of a pale yellowish brown2 and the other1 long and of more hair-like texture1 a bright deep brown1 darkening into a shiny black4 ,as these two furs do not grow and are not shed simultaneously1 but are regulated in this respect by the seasons1 it is sufficiently obvious that superficial observation of these animals at different times of the year might lead one to suppose that polecats were of various and irregular colouring4 ,the polecat is yearly becoming rarer and rarer in the more cultivated districts of the country2 while its numbers are also slowly but seemingly very surely diminishing in those parts which the hand of man has permitted to remain in a state congenial to its tastes and habits4 ,we need not be at any pains to enumerate the districts throughout the ,united ,kingdom where it is still to be found1 because1 when the nature of the haunts which it loves are presently set forth1 such districts will naturally suggest themselves4 ,the stoat and the weasel are both to some extent gregarious2 but the polecat seems to prefer a more solitary mode of existence2 and it rarely happens that if some few of them are found to frequent any particular spot1 many more of their kind have taken up their abode in the near neighbourhood4 ,the polecat chiefly haunts small dark fir-woods1 where the surface is rough and broken1 and much overgrown with tangled and inhospitable brake4 ,if such a clump of trees be situated at the corner of a field or along some irregular farm-road1 it has additional recommendations4 ,in the hilly uncultivated parts1 the streams invariably pursue a troubled course through rough and broken ground1 where large boulders and low thickly bristling brake alternate with gorse and bracken-covered level ground4 ,here the polecat also finds a congenial haunt1 away from the abodes of man1 and in a situation where provender1 in the shape of rabbits and hares and winged game1 is likely to be plentiful and easily obtained4 ,when nothing else will grow on the steep and barren hillside1 large areas of oak are often planted1 not to grow into large spreading trees1 but only into oak-coppice1 which may afford oak-bark for the tanner1 and firewood for the dwellers in the country4 ,amongst this copse the polecat has many inducements to form its lair1 and there it will find many animals and birds upon which to prey4 ,in fact1 it is not particular as to its haunts1 if it can only be situated in rough and tree-grown parts1 where it may obtain that security from observation and molestation which seems a necessity of its existence4 ,the actual lair of the animal may be anywhere--in any crevice of a rock1 in a hollow tree or hole in the ground2 but the place where its young are born and reared1 is chosen after seemingly greater deliberation1 and with an evident object4 ,it prefers for this important purpose a burrow in the soil1 and as a rule1 adapts to its use and occupation that of some departed rabbit4 ,failing this1 it will be at evident pains to scoop out a burrow for itself2 though this is but a poor affair beside the convenient and more secure subterranean dwelling usually formed by the ubiquitous and nimble rodent in question4 ,but if rabbit-burrows be scarce1 and the polecat disinclined for burrowing1 it will perforce seek out some warm1 secure nook amongst the interstices of some boulders1 or beneath some irregular heap of large stones collected by the industrious agriculturist1 and set about forming its lair in that4 ,this lair resembles to some extent the breeding-place formed by the rabbit1 but is usually distinguishable from that by the greater regularity and evenness with which the dry leaves1 dry grass1 moss1 and the like are formed and worked together to afford a suitable receptacle for the young when born4 ,these are usually five or six in number1 occasionally more1 not unfrequently less4 ,the months of ,may and ,june seem to be about the time when they are brought forth2 but they rarely make their appearance above ground till some time after they are born4 ,it is uncertain whether1 while the young are being reared1 the male becomes the sole provider of food2 but we fancy not1 and that when the female can snatch an occasion1 she exercises her predatory desires in common with her mate4 ,polecats are not by any means night-hunters1 although1 no doubt1 they filch a good deal of their prey under cover of the darkness4 ,their favourite time for hunting seems to be the early morning2 and as soon as they leave the shelter of their domain they1 as a rule1 set off for some rabbit-burrow--whether tenanted or not is immaterial--and indulge in a run through its winding tunnels4 ,after this1 they will get to some hedgerow1 and hunt it down4 ,if there be any old palings or a gate adjacent1 they are sure to stop and rub themselves against the woodwork2 and if several of the varmint be together1 they may throw off their sober exterior1 and indulge in a little play2 and then they set off in serious fashion to obtain their food1 which they draw1 as a rule1 in small portions from many victims4 ,like all the weasel tribe1 the polecat seems to possess an extreme and bloodthirsty rapacity4 ,it is never content to capture and kill sufficient for its own immediate use1 but will destroy often as many birds and animals in one day as would serve it for a week1 nay1 ofttimes for a month's sustenance4 ,hence the large amount of damage this predaceously inclined little creature will commit4 ,the catalogue of what is to its taste in the shape of birds and animals is a long one--all kinds of furred and feathered game1 poultry even1 to turkeys2 rats and some kinds of mice2 frogs1 eels1 and fish4 ,the rabbit1 where plentiful1 is its most common victim1 for it finds bunny a somewhat easy capture in its burrow1 where1 lying probably unconscious of impending danger1 it may suddenly find the enemy at its throat1 whence in a few seconds the marauder will have sucked its life-blood4 ,possessed of powers of scent far keener than any hound1 the polecat can and will track hares long distances in their wanderings1 and eventually effect their capture4 ,upon the little nut-brown partridge or the more sober-looking grouse it will steal in the early dawn or at #8even's stilly hour2' and sometimes1 before the former is aware of the polecat's presence1 it will have1 by a sharp irresistible bite into its brains1 transferred it and perhaps several others beyond the reach of the sportsman's gun4 ,being at need a strong and rapid swimmer1 the polecat has often been known to take eels and other fish from the streams2 but unless other food be scarce1 it usually refrains from entering the unstable element in search of food4 ,amongst poultry1 its operations are often wholesale1 and must be disheartening to a degree to the industrious henwife2 for1 as we said before1 it does not confine itself to supplying its actual wants1 but1 given the chance of some wholesale killing1 it indulges its cruel instincts apparently more for the pleasure than for the necessity of the thing4 ,it is this habit1 common to all the animals and birds coming under the definition #8vermin1' which renders them so extremely destructive4 ,one thing may be said in the polecat's favour1 which is1 that it is a very determined enemy of the rat1 although the latter's fierceness often prevents the former from bringing to a successful conclusion any crusade it may have opened against it4 ,but the polecat is all the same a most courageous little animal2 and its fierceness when attacked1 the pluck with which it will fight against superior odds1 and the wonderful amount of activity it can bring to bear1 prove it to be no mean enemy for a terrier of two or three times its size4 ,moreover1 it does not disdain when #8cornered1' or when its progeny are threatened1 to attack human beings4 ,under the circumstances1 it is a dangerous creature to deal with1 its bite being very painful and lasting4 ,in addition to these qualities for attack1 the polecat is possessed of a peculiar and very disagreeable means of defence4 ,this consists in the secretion of a liquid substance of disgustingly fetid odour1 which the animal has the power of emitting at will4 ,this it uses in case of attack chiefly by men or dogs2 and as we fancy it is as objectionable and intolerable to its canine as to its human enemies1 the benefit it derives from this possession may be better imagined than described4 ,owing doubtless to this habit1 the animal frequently goes by the name of foulemart in ,england1 and foumart in ,scotland4 ,no one who has any actual knowledge of the habits of the polecat can come to any other conclusion than that it is a most destructive animal1 and one whose presence is not to be tolerated1 much less desired1 either in the game preserve or in the neighbourhood of the poultry-yard2 and yet one of the most ridiculous of superstitions obtains amongst many farmers and country-people as to this animal4 ,it is said to be capable of appreciating hospitality1 and acting in accordance with the unwritten laws of such1 so that if one encourage the animal and afford it shelter1 it will refrain from destroying the live-stock of the person who so amiably entertains it4 ,this is1 one must admit1 a very pretty little piece of nonsense4 ,but1 notwithstanding this1 polecats are unmistakably becoming fewer and fewer every year1 and we shall soon see it a very rare animal4 ,,an ,,old1 ,,old ,,story4 ,a casual meeting--one of merest chance2 ,an introduction--bows1 a smile1 a dance4 ',twas thus we met2 and little dreamed ,i then ,he would be more to me than other men4 ,of course ,i thought him handsome1 bright1 and gay2 ,but so were others--he not more than they4 ,my heart1 that might the future have revealed1 ,was stilled and sleeping1 all its secrets sealed4 ,to meet so coolly seems a mystery now2 ,to part so gaily--ah1 ,i wonder how6 ,to clasp his hand1 to lean upon his arm1 ,yet no soft flutterings fill me with alarm2 ,to stand beside him1 close beside his heart1 ,nor dream that of my own it formed a part-- ',twas all so natural6 ,oh1 we little knew ,what fate was shaping out betwixt us two2 ,what each to each1 what heart to heart might be1 ,what ,i should be to him--what he to me4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a moment when ,i first had dared to feel ,emotions which my pride would fain conceal1 ,when sudden thoughts across my mind were cast1 ,and sudden flutterings made my heart beat fast2 ,when fancies strange as sweet1 and sweet as strange1 ,sought shy admittance1 through my heart to range4 ,o timid hopes1 soft doubts1 and tender fear6 ,o coy concealment from the one most dear6 ,o burning blushes that unbidden rise6 ,o faltering tongue1 and traitorous tell-tale eyes6 ,o sweet anxiety1 and pleasing pain1 ,to love--to love2 and not to love in vain6 ,to watch his eye1 and half in wonder see ',twas always brightest when it fell on me2 ,to mark1 when by my side1 his tender tone1 ,his hand's soft pressure when it held my own2 ,o thus to watch1 and wait for him to tell1 ,what my heart whispered that it knew full well6 99 99 99 99 99 ,a summer evening1 calm1 and bright1 and fair2 ,a moonlit garden1 he beside me there2 ,my trembling hand above my heart was pressed1 ,to calm its thrills of happy1 sweet unrest4 ,i longed so much his tale of love to hear1 ,yet when he spoke was filled with fluttering fear-- ,a fear lest ,i might all unworthy prove ,of his affection true1 of his deep love2 ,and something of my fears he seemed to know1 ,his manly voice had grown so soft and low4 ,ah6 what a tale he whispered in my ear1 ,so hard to answer1 but how sweet to hear6 ,i could not answer2 all my heart seemed filled ,with language1 but my recreant tongue was stilled4 ,and oh6 so tender was his melting mood6 ,he clasped my hand--the clasp ,i understood2 ,he sought my eyes--but oh6 ,i dared not raise ,those little tell-tales to receive his gaze2 #8,one little word1' he said1 with fond caress4 ,i spoke2 that word1 that little word was--#8,yes6' 99 99 99 99 99 ,a morning when the sunshine seemed to be ,the fairest thing on this fair earth to me1 ,for--so at least old tales and stories run-- ,the bride is blessd whom it shines upon4 ,assembled friends with presents rich and rare2 ,a laughing group of girlish bridesmaids fair2 ,a father--mother1 clasping to their heart ,the darling child with whom they fear to part1 ,the daughter who1 like timid bird caressed1 ,prepares to flutter from the parent nest4 ,and dearer1 dearest to that blushing bride ,is he whose place till death is by her side4 ,ah1 ever side by side1 and hand in hand1 ,and heart to heart1 henceforth those twain must stand4 ,then many a fond caress mid tearful smiles2 ,bells pealing1 holy altar1 flower-strewn aisles2 ,a wreath--a snowy robe--a bridal veil-- ,a happy bride1 who tells this #8old1 old tale6' ,,florence ,,nixon4 99 99 99 99 99 ,printed and ,published by ,w4 ,r4 ,,chambers1 #dg ,paternoster ,row1 ,,london1 and #cci ,high ,street1 ,,edinburgh4 99 99 99 99 99 ,all ,rights ,reserved4