a brilliant meteor in Lombard Street if I had been regularly bred to the business. I like nothing better than to observe the complicated transactions of this huge commercial Babel, where knaves, dupes, and honest men are alike actively employed. At present, I fear, honesty is somewhat at a discount. The great capitalists, usually so cautious, have been bitten by the mad dog, speculation; and hundreds of them, who would have looked very shy a year ago if asked to discount an ordinary bill, are now raging in the market, buying up every kind of scrip in expectation of a rise. Now, in order to bring that about, they are compelled to puff their projects to the uttermost. More than one clever fellow, with a turn for romance, has made a small fortune merely by drawing prospectuses; and as for the lies that are daily circulated on 'Change, they would exhaust the invention of Munchausen. But what is worst of all, many members of Parliament are deep in the game; and as they possess means, unknown to the rest of the world, of influencing the decisions of committees, they have at least twenty points out of sixty-three in their favour. But you'll know all about that in time-only don't be astonished if you should find men, who bear the highest character for probity and honour, engaged in tricks and traffickings that savour more of the atmosphere of the Old Bailey that that of the meeting-house."

Next morning Faunce drove me into town. I began rather to like him; for although it would not be accurate to say that his was a wise head upon young

shoulders, still it was a head of no ordinary capacity and cleverness, and the quaint humour of his remarks would have done no discredit to Lucian, immeasurably the most amusing of the satirical writers of antiquity. I chanced to ask him if he knew anything of an individual of the name of Speedwell, and the following was the prompt reply.

Speedwell? Do you mean a thick-set Jew, with bushy whiskers? I know the man perfectly by sight and reputation. He is as consummate a scoundrel as ever cheated the pillory-one of the very worst of the bill-discounters that infest this precious London of ours. The higher fellows in that line, who deal with the nobility, and assume the airs of men of fashion, are, Heaven knows, hard enough; but they are generous and liberal in comparison with such a dog-fish as this Speedwell. Woe betide the unfortunate sinner who falls into his clutches! He would strip him past the drawers on the frostiest night of January.”

"I conjectured as much," said I. 'And has this Mr Speedwell given the benefit of his remarkable talents towards the development of the railway system ?"

"You may assume that as a certainty," replied Faunce. "Not one remnant of the whole twelve tribes of Israel but is, at this moment, actively engaged in rigging the market. A speculative craze of this kind is a more important event for them than the return from the Captivity. Spoiling the Egyptians was a mere joke compared with it. I do not believe that

there is a single orange-boy, or vendor of sponges, or collector of cast raiment, who has not managed to get an allocation of hundreds of shares in some of the competing lines; and when that is the case, it is not likely that an acute Sadducee like Speedwell will fail to profit by the occasion. Indeed I have observed. him of late in close attendance at Westminster. There is no mistaking him. Curious that so deadly a snake, to whom concealment must often be an object, should be so fond of conspicuous colours!"

"But why should he haunt Westminster?" said I. Surely it would be easy to procure early intelligence in the city."

"Of a verity," said Faunce," you have got a great deal to learn. Go to any committee-room where there has been a regular stand-up fight between two competing lines for a fortnight or three weeks; for, when the prey is good, the lawyers have no fancy for abridging proceedings. There have been opening speeches, and evidence, and replies, until the five worthy senators who are to decide which is the better line, and who are usually selected on account of their entire ignorance of the peculiarities of the district, are utterly bewildered, sick of the whole concern, and well-nigh weary of their lives. At last, in desperation, the chairman orders the room to be cleared, that the committee may deliberate which preamble has been proved. In the mean time, mark you, and during the whole discussion, the price of each stock, or I should rather say scrip, has been fluctuating in the market. If Jack's line is preferred,

Jack pockets a cool thousand. If Tom's is thrown out, Tom must descend to the dreary valley of discount. But they are both confident of success, and to the very last moment the brokers are buying and selling. After an hour or two, the doors are opened. In rush, higgledy-piggledy, the barristers and solicitors,-the more wary speculators keep without. The chairman rises, and announces, with a provoking drawl, that the Wessex line has the preference. Then along the lobbies and down the stairs is a frantic race of Jews, jobbers, and publicans, each striving for dear life to be first to get into the city. Some throw themselves into cabs, others rush to the bridges for river-steamers, others trust to sculls.-Neck or nothing!--Devil take the hindmost!-Nothing like it on the Derby-day! Nay, I have been credibly informed that carrier-pigeons are sent off to convey the intelligence to Liverpool, Manchester, and Glasgow, in anticipation of the mail; and it is said that a knowing fellow, who was posted. with a gun near the premises of a Birmingham broker, brought down a bird that was worth two thousand pounds to his employer. Such things may seem strange to you, and doubtless will be disbelieved when told hereafter; nevertheless, there they are, facts that will not brook denial. But here we are in Jermyn Street, so for the present I shall bid you good-bye."

CHAPTER V.

A RAILWAY MONARCH, AND A POLITICAL CRIMP.

THE observation of a few weeks gradually opened my eyes to the true nature of the great speculative movement. To a casual observer, it doubtless must have appeared to be a mere scramble-a reckless rush of a desperate mob, struggling for admission at the door of the temple of Fortune. Or, to use a more classical simile, it might have been thought to resemble one of Homer's battles, in which the champions are represented as fighting indiscriminately, without any regard being paid to disposition, military arrangement, or skilful marshalling of the forces. But although there was, no doubt, a good deal of desultory skirmishing, and many attempts at pillage by mercenaries and camp-followers, the railway movement had a distinct organisation of its own. Let me try to explain this briefly.

In the infancy of the railway system, the chief, indeed the sole object was to facilitate and expedite intercourse between large towns; and by the connection of lines, to establish a thoroughfare for passengers