New Acquaintance.-Old French Style.-The Portrait.- Taciturnity. The evergreen Tree. The dark Hour.- The Flash.-Ancestors.-A fortunate Man.-A posthumous Child. Antagonist Ideas.-The Hawks.-Flaws. - The Maternal Anxiety.-The Baronet.-Little Zest.-Country Trepidations.—Subtle Principle.-Perverse Imagination.— Are they mine?-Another Book.-How hard!--Agricul Disturbed Slumbers.-The Bed-post.-Two Wizards.- What can I do?-Real Library.-The Rev. Mr Platitude -Toleration to Dissenters.-Paradox.-Sword of St. Peter. -Enemy to Humbug.-High Principles.-False Concord. 66 ONE-and-ninepence, sir, or the things which you have brought with you will be taken away from you!" Such were the first words which greeted my ears, one damp misty morning in March, as I dismounted from the top of a coach in the yard of a London inn. I turned round, for I felt that the words were addressed to myself. Plenty of people were in the yard -porters, passengers, coachmen, hostlers, and others, who appeared to be intent on anything but myself, with the exception of one individual, whose VOL. II. B business appeared to lie with me, and who now confronted me at the distance of about two yards. I looked hard at the man-and a queer kind of individual he was to look at a rakish figure, about - thirty, and of the middle size, dressed in a coat smartly cut, but threadbare, very tight pantaloons of blue stuff, tied at the ancles, dirty white stockings and thin shoes, like those of a dancing-master; his features were not ugly, but rather haggard, and he appeared to owe his complexion less to nature than carmine; in fact, in every respect, a very queer figure. "One-and-ninepence, sir, or your things will be taken away from you!" he said, in a kind of lisping tone, coming yet nearer to me. I still remained staring fixedly at him, but never a word answered. Our eyes met; whereupon he suddenly lost the easy impudent air which he before wore. He glanced, for a moment, at my fist, which I had by this time clenched, and his features became yet more haggard; he faltered; a fresh" oneand-ninepence," which he was about to utter, died on his lips; he shrank back, disappeared behind a coach, and I saw no more of him. "One-and-ninepence, or my things will be taken away from me!" said I to myself, musingly, as I followed the porter to whom I had delivered my scanty baggage; am I to expect many of these greetings in the big world? Well, never mind! I think I know the counter-sign!" And I clenched my fist yet harder than before. So I followed the porter, through the streets of London, to a lodging which had been prepared for me by an acquaintance. The morning, as I have before said, was gloomy, and the streets through which I passed were dank and filthy; the people, also, looked dank and filthy; and so, probably, did I, for the night had been rainy, and I had come upwards of a hundred miles on the top of a coach; my heart had sunk within me, by the time we reached a dark narrow street, in which was the lodging. 66 66 Cheer up, young man," said the porter, we shall have a fine afternoon!" And presently I found myself in the lodging which had been prepared for me. It consisted of a small room, up two pair of stairs, in which I was to sit, and another still smaller above it, in |