the committee;-bearing this sacred secret about him, he enters into this brawl. Talk away, each louder than the other. Rattle and crack jokes. Laugh and tell your wild stories. It is strange to take one's place and part in the midst of the smoke and din, and think every man here has his secret ego most likely, which is sitting lonely and apart, away in the private chamber, from the loud game in which the rest of us is joining!

Arthur, as he traversed the passages of the hotel, felt his anger rousing up within him. He was indignant to think that yonder old gentleman whom he was about to meet, should have made him such a tool and puppet, and so compromised his honour and good name. The old fellow's hand was very cold and shaky when Arthur took it. He was coughing; he was grumbling over the fire; Frosch could not bring his dressing-gown or arrange his papers as that dd confounded impudent scoundrel of a Morgan. The old gentleman bemoaned himself, and cursed Morgan's ingratitude with peevish pathos.

You can't do better.

The confounded impudent scoundrel! He was drunk last night, and challenged me to fight him, Pen; and, begad, at one time I was so excited that I thought I should have driven a knife into him; and the infernal rascal has made ten thousand pound, I believe-and deserves to be hanged, and will be; but, curse him, I wish he could have lasted out my time. He knew all my ways, and, dammy, when I rang the bell, the confounded thief brought the thing I wanted—not like that stupid German out. And what sort of time have you had in the country? Been a good deal with Lady Rockminster? She is one of the old school-vieille école, bonne école, hey? Dammy, they don't make gentlemen and ladies now; and in fifty years you'll hardly know one man from another. But they'll last my time. I ain't long for this business: I am getting very old, Pen, my boy; and, gad, I was thinking to-day, as I was packing up my little library, there's a Bible amongst the books that belonged to my poor mother; I would like you to keep that, Pen. I was thinking, sir, that you would most likely open the box when it was your property, and the old fellow was laid under the sod, sir,' and the major coughed and wagged his old head over the fire.

His age-his kindness, disarmed Pen's anger somewhat,

and made Arthur feel no little compunction for the deed. which he was about to do. He knew that the announcement which he was about to make would destroy the darling hope of the old gentleman's life, and create in his breast a woful anger and commotion.

'Hey-hey-I'm off, sir,' nodded the Elder; ‘but I'd like to read a speech of yours in the Times before I go"Mr. Pendennis said, Unaccustomed as I am to public speaking "hey, sir? hey, Arthur? Begad, you look dev'lish well and healthy, sir. I always said my brother Jack would bring the family right. You must go down into the west, and buy the old estate, sir. Nec tenui penna, hey? We'll rise again, sir-rise again on the wing -and, begad, I shouldn't be surprised that you will be a baronet before you die.'

His words smote Pen. And it is I,' he thought, 'that am going to fling down the poor old fellow's air-castle. Well, it must be. Here goes.-I-I went into your lodgings at Bury Street, though I did not find you,' Pen slowly began and I talked with Morgan, uncle.'

'Indeed!' The old gentleman's cheek began to flush involuntarily, and he muttered, 'The cat's out of the bag now, begad!'

'He told me a story, sir, which gave me the deepest surprise and pain,' said Pen.

The major tried to look unconcerned. 'What-that story about-about-What-d'you-call-'em, hey?'

About Miss Amory's father-about Lady Clavering's first husband, and who he is, and what.'

Hem- a devilish awkward affair!' said the old man, rubbing his nose. ‘I—I've been aware of that—eh-confounded circumstance for some time.'

'I wish I had known it sooner, or not at all,' said Arthur gloomily.

6

'He is all safe,' thought the senior, greatly relieved. Gad! I should have liked to keep it from you altogether --and from those two poor women, who are as innocent as unborn babes in the transaction.'

You are right. There is no reason why the two women should hear it; and I shall never tell them—though that villain, Morgan, perhaps, may,' Arthur said gloomily. 'He seems disposed to trade upon his secret, and has already proposed terms of ransom to me. I wish I had known of

the matter earlier, sir. It is not a very pleasant thought to me that I am engaged to a convict's daughter.'

'The very reason why I kept it from you-my dear boy. But Miss Amory is not a convict's daughter, don't you see? Miss Amory is the daughter of Lady Clavering, with fifty or sixty thousand pounds for a fortune; and her father-inlaw, a baronet and country gentleman, of high reputation, approves of the match, and gives up his seat in Parliament to his son-in-law. What can be more simple ?'

'Is it true, sir ?'

Begad, yes, it is true, of course it's true. Amory's dead. I tell you he is dead. The first sign of life he shows, he is dead. He can't appear. We have him at a dead-lock, like the fellow in the play-The Critic, hey ?-devilish amusing play that Critic. Monstrous witty man Sheridan; and so was his son. By Gad, sir, when I was at the Cape,

I remember——'

The old gentleman's garrulity, and wish to conduct Arthur to the Cape, perhaps arose from a desire to avoid the subject which was nearest his nephew's heart; but Arthur broke out, interrupting him—' If you had told me this tale sooner, I believe you would have spared me`and yourself a great deal of pain and disappointment; and I should not have found myself tied to an engagement from which I can't, in honour, recede.'

'No, begad, we've fixed you-and a man who's fixed to a seat in Parliament, and a pretty girl, with a couple of thousand a year, is fixed to no bad thing, let me tell you,' said the old man.

.

Great Heavens, sir!' said Arthur; are you blind? Can't you see?'

،

See what, young gentleman ?' asked the other.

See, that rather than trade upon this secret of Amory's,' Arthur cried out, I would go and join my father-in-law at the hulks! See, that rather than take a seat in Parliament as a bribe from Clavering for silence, I would take the spoons off the table! See, that you have given me a felon's daughter for a wife; doomed me to poverty and shame; cursed my career when it might have been-when it might have been so different but for you! Don't you see that we have been playing a guilty game, and have been over-reached ;-that in offering to marry this poor girl, for the sake of her money, and the advancement she would

bring, I was degrading myself, and prostituting my honour ?'

'What in Heaven's name do you mean, sir?' cried the old

man.

'I mean to say that there is a measure of baseness which I can't pass,' Arthur said. 'I have no other words for it, and am sorry if they hurt you. I have felt, for months past, that my conduct in this affair has been wicked, sordid, and worldly. I am rightly punished by the event, and having sold myself for money and a seat in Parliament, by losing both.'

'How do you mean that you lose either?' shrieked the old gentleman. Who the devil's to take your fortune or your seat away from you? By G, Clavering shall give 'em to you. You shall have every shilling of eighty thousand pounds.'

'I'll keep my promise to Miss Amory, sir,' said Arthur. 'And, begad, her parents shall keep theirs to you.'

Not so, please God,' Arthur answered. 'I have sinned, but, Heaven help me, I will sin no more. I will let Clavering off from that bargain which was made without my knowledge. I will take no money with Blanche but that which was originally settled upon her; and I will try to make her happy. You have done it. You have brought this on me, sir. But you knew no better and I forgive

"Arthur-in God's name-in your father's, who, by Heavens, was the proudest man alive, and had the honour of the family always at heart-in mine-for the sake of a poor broken-down old fellow, who has always been dev'lish fond of you don't fling this chance away-I pray you, I beg you, I implore you, my dear, dear boy, don't fling this chance away. It's the making of you. You're sure to get on. You'll be a baronet; it's three thousand a year: dammy, on my knees, there, I beg of you, don't do this.'

And the old man actually sank down on his knees, and seizing one of Arthur's hands, looked up piteously at him. It was cruel to remark the shaking hands, the wrinkled and quivering face, the old eyes weeping and winking, the broken voice. Ah, sir,' said Arthur, with a groan, you have brought pain enough on me, spare me this. You have wished me to marry Blanche. I marry her. For God's sake, sir, rise, I can't bear it.'

'

'You-you mean to say that you will take her as a

beggar, and be one yourself?' said the old gentleman, rising up and coughing violently.

'I look at her as a person to whom a great calamity has befallen, and to whom I am promised. She cannot help the misfortune; and as she had my word when she was prosperous, I shall not withdraw it now she is poor. I will not take Clavering's seat, unless afterwards it should be given of his free will. I will not have a shilling more than her original fortune.'

And

Have the kindness to ring the bell,' said the old gentleman. 'I have done my best, and said my say; and I'm a dev'lish old fellow. And-and-it don't matter. -and Shakespere was right-and Cardinal Wolsey-begad -" and had I but served my God as I've served you yes, on my knees, by Jove, to my own nephew-I mightn't have been Good-night, sir; you needn't trouble yourself to call again.'

66

Arthur took his hand, which the old man left to him; it was quite passive and clammy. He looked very much oldened; and it seemed as if the contest and defeat had quite broken him.

On the next day he kept his bed, and refused to see his nephew.

CHAPTER LXXI

IN WHICH THE DECKS BEGIN TO CLEAR

HEN, arrayed in his dressing-gown, Pen walked up, according to custom, to Warrington's chambers next morning, to inform his friend of the issue of the last night's interview with his uncle, and to ask, as usual, for George's advice and opinion, Mrs. Flanagan, the laundress, was the only person whom Arthur found in the dear old chambers. George had taken a carpet-bag, and was gone. His address was to his brother's house, in Suffolk. Packages addressed to the