her watch, her rings, her trinkets, All-all her little ones, at one fell swoop! Oh! Macduff's agony was nothing to Inkpen's. The chancery-clerk's soul sank within him; he already looked ten years older than he did two hours before. Two o'clock at length came, and Inkpen, anxiously gazing towards the west, fancied the blue-eyed maid, Hope, was beckoning him with smiles to her whom his heart loved most dearly; with alacrity he jumped into the carriage, and far different now was the sound of the starting-bell,—the monster-engine gave forth its last grunt, and away rolled the mail-train. Now they whizz past Wandsworth, Kingston comes and goes like the baseless fabric of a vision; in fact, the journey was a series of dissolving views, worked upon by lightning. Southampton is gained at last, and out Jemmy Inkpen jumped to make anxious inquiry after his missing better-half.

Alas! at the station he could gain no tidings. Her description answered that of at least a hundred other ladies; and, with a face the picture of despair, the poor disconsolate chancery-clerk wandered joyless amidst throngs of happy faces, casting his lack-lustre, but enquiring, eye around him. Hotels were visited; barmaids, waiters, chambermaids questioned, but it was all fruitless; not a vestige of Mrs. Inkpen was to be discovered. At last the idea struck him, could she have returned to town? á train had started during his sojourn! He felt assured she was not at Southampton. To think was to act; and Jemmy walked quickly to the station, and took his place in the slow luggage-train, determined to inquire at every station they stopped at, offering a reward to any one who would bring him intelligence of Mrs. Inkpen.

When he arrived at Basingstoke he received information, conveyed certainly in a very vague sort of manner, that a lady answering his wife's description had been taken ill going down in the morning-train, and was at the Coach and Horses at Southampton. Jemmy's heart beat within him; and, without waiting for the next train, he ordered a post-chaise at Basingstoke, and directed the post-boy to drive as fast as possible on towards Southampton. After proceeding some distance, by some unlucky mischance or other, the off-horse broke down.

This determined Jemmy to walk the five miles, being, as he said, quite fresh. The night was oppressively hot, and it was evident a thunderstorm was brewing aloft, so Jemmy, a capital walker, now animated by a feeling which would throw the speed of a redshank into a cripple, started off briskly. He had not, however, cleared half-a-mile before down it came in pailsful. The thunder rolled, making a magnificent uproar in the firmament, and the vivid lightning flashed, dazzling the poor, drenched Inkpen, and distracting him at every step.

We have already specified his attire-our readers may then well imagine his condition. His trowsers hung like wet sacks to his shaking legs; his new superfine coat was rapidly losing its brilliancy; the Paris-velvet white tile was a shapeless mass. However what will not love do? onward he ran, now puffing and blowing hard, now pulling up to recover wind, then rushing on with desperation. At last he reached South-, ampton, and made directly for the Coach and Horses. He rang lustily at the bell, which was quickly answered by Boots.

You have a lady, I think, who came by the train to-day, who has been taken ill, said Jemmy, shaking his drenched hat with one hand, and wiping down his coat with the other.

Boots stared at him, and replying in the affirmative, which gave a glow of satisfaction to Jemmy, he was told to walk in. What a dreadful night!» said Jemmy, « to get this terrible soaking in only so short a distance! »

"

Lauks me! so you have, indeed,» said chambermaid, sich a little ways, indeed. The lady has been expecting you ever so long.

་་

"

"Ah! I dare say," said Jemmy, no doubt of it,-no doubt of it. Sad business; but these things will happen. »

"

So they will, sir," said she.

"

Yes, interrupted Jemmy, so they will. Better late than never, though, hey?»

Ah! very true, sir.

That's what I say when gentlemen

rings in sich a hurry. The lady wanted to send for somebody else."

The devil she did!" said Jemmy.

"Yes, said chambermaid; but my missis said as how she was sartain sure you'd come. »

Much obliged to her, ejaculated Jemmy, relieved.

I'll just go and tell the lady you are here, sir, and be back in a minute. Please step in the coffee-room. »

་་

Well, thought Inkpen, though bad began this day, let me hope now that nothing worse remains behind. Here I am at last under the same roof, after all my anxieties, with my adorable Juliana-a pretty pickle, I must confess, though, for a bride-groom on his marriage-night. Never mind- let fate do its worst. »

Jemmy perked up, and actually tried a whistle, when the chambermaid returned.

Please to walk up, sir this way, ushering the ardent and impatient Jemmy into No. 3, second pair front. « Here is the gentleman you wanted to see, ma'am,» said the damsel, closing the door, leaving the happy couple alone.

Speak of Robinson's rush for the Derby, the struggle for the best place at a sight, speak of anything indicative of onward powerful impulse, and our readers will but faintly come up to the affectionate ardour of Jemmy Inkpen. To seize her in his arms with rapturous grasp,-to stifle her with kisses, was the work of a moment,-and but the work of a moment; for, when relaxing for a second to draw breath and gaze upon her, he uttered «Oh! Juliana-my life, my love! he was astonished to find himself by a violent effort shaken off, while the lady replied to his exclamation by a loud, wild shriek, shouting with a very unfeminine howl, «Och! murther! murther! robbery !- murther! adding to every word, by way of accompaniment, a terrific pull at the bell. It need scarcely be told that the house was in a few minutes in an uproar. Doors were heard opening in every direction, and, following the sound, No. 3 was soon filled with men and women, clothed with what things they could huddle on. There stood Jemmy Inkpen, shivering like a dog in a wet sack, his eyeballs glaring in a wild stare of astonishment,

-the lady in either real or affected hysterics. In the midst of the confusion, when everybody was questioning, and nobody answering, in bounced a big, black-whiskered, mustachioed man, a light in one hand, and a boot-jack in the other, followed by the chambermaid trembling.

<«< What the divil's all this?» said he, banging down the candlestick, and hitting the drawers a crack that disordered its chest for the term of its natural life, - what the blazes is all this about?- spake, Katty, spake, said he, spake, my heart!»

"

Och! Mike, groaned the lady, some vagabond, like the divil drawn through the Liffey, has broke into my room.»

Is it dramin' you are? said Black-whiskers.

D

Och! sure, no drame at all at all, said the lady, rising up in bed; and giving a faint scream, sank down, pointing to Jemmy, saying, There's the murderin' villain ! »

Black-whiskers would have annihilated Jemmy on the spot, but for the chambermaid. He had already grasped the unfortunate Chancery-clerk by the throat, and was strangling him very scientifically, shaking him as an ogre might an infant, the boot-jack- was vengefully uplifted, when the chambermaid held his arm, and said there must be some dreadful mistake, aud begged him not to commit murder.

"Who are you? » said Black-whiskers, in a voice of thunder, his wild eye flashing fire, spake! » A horrible guttural sound alone escaped from Jemmy

"He's Dr. Leech's new assistant," said the chambermaid, and come to see your sister. Hasn't been here more than two minutes. »

་

Oh, oh! said Black-whiskers, somewhat mollified, and perhaps not altogether desirous of continuing the scene; then, by the powers, he'll see the last of her. »

So saying, he dragged the unfortunate Jemmy out of the room, and fixing him at the head of a rather precipitous flight of stairs, took full measure of his distance, and with a furious kick sent the doomed Chancery-clerk, head first, down to the bottom of the flight. Aided by the instinct evoked by desperate circumstances, Jemmy in the hubble-bubble con

trived to reach the door, and bolted out like a shot from a shovel.

The flashing of lights at an unusual hour, the screams that were heard distant at the dead hour of midnight, as may be imagined, roused the peaceful vicinity, and the police on duty were attracted to the spot. Poor, luckless Jemmy, breathless, gasping, groaning, soaked through, half-choked, his bones aching, through his shaking, kick, and fall, stumbled rather than walked across the street, where he sank down in the last stage of anguish and despair on the steps of a door, wishing death might come and relieve him from the miseries of his situation. Poor devil! he groaned aloud, but none cheered his woe; he held his head drooping between his knees in helpless agony, while his frame shook and quivered with every heart-drawn sob.

-

Such was the bridegroom on his wedding-night,—such was his situation through no fault of his, such is the result of the vanity of human expectations, even while acting up to the best intentions.

Jemmy had not remained in this dolorous position five minutes before he was awakened from a drowsiness, the combined result of over-anxiety, fatigue, and their concomitants, which he was falling into, by the broad, blinding glare of what is called a policeman's bull's-eye held up to his face.

Come, get up, said the constable, gruffly, «Mister-I wants you."

«Do you? said Jemmy, faintly. What for?»

་་

"Oh! you'll know soon enough what for; but I thinks you knows what for without my telling of you. "·

"

I say, and I'll swear, and I'll prove it was all a mistake, said Jemmy.

"

a

Very well, said the constable, « prove it if you can; but things look very dark against you. But come along.» So saying, he took hold of Inkpen by the arm, and brought him to the station-house.

Arrived there, the inspector and another constable were seen intently examining a printed paper, and alternately reading it and scrutinizing Jemmy, who by this time appeared to

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