^■^>*^^ '^f^:. PAUL PERIWINKLE: STI&e i^ttjeJ^aauQ;. IN THREE BOOKS. THE AUTHOR OF "CAVENDISH," "the flvimg dctchman," "naval sukgeon," etc. ' ' I learnt it from a book certainly of no austere character ; — but, gentlemen, even from the least pretending volume much useful information may be gained." — Mr. Baron Alderson's Address to the Jury, Oxford Assizes, 1839. EMBELLISHED BY FORTY ETCHINGS, DRAWN AND ENGRAVED BY " PHIZ." LONDON : PRINTED FOR THOMAS TEGG, 73, CHEAPSIDE; R. GRIFFIN AND CO., GLASGOW; TEGG AND CO., DUBLIN; AND J. AND S. A. TEGG, SYDNEY AND HOBART TOWN. LONDON : BRADBUltY AND EVANS, PRINTEOS, WHITEFRIARS. DEDICATION. TO ROBERT ALLEN, ESQ. M.A. F.S.A. barrister at law. Dear Allen, As a very inadequate tribute of a most warm regard, do me the favour to accept these pages. Many of them were written in the enjoyment of your society, and containing as they do sketches of characters we both esteem, may thus acquire in your eyes an interest not otherwise to be discovered in their discursive story. Time out of mind it has been the privilege of the dedicator to say something handsome of the dedicatee. But though neither of us has been particularly accused of taciturnity, I confess in this case, though I exhausted my vocabulary, it would still leave untold the brightest part of that manly and accomplished excellence to which these lines shall be sacred. Wishing you in Oriental fashion, therefore, to take a year in the reading of each leaf, and yet to get safely to the end of my story. Believe me ever to remain. Dear Allen, Your faithful friend, W. JOHNSON NEALE. Middle Temple, Jan. 1841. ivi590921 CONTENTS. CHAPTER PAGE I. WHICH PLUNGES INTO THE MIDBLE OF OUR TALE . . 3 II. FRESH EVENTS DEVELOP THEMSELVES, AND NEW CHARACTERS 8 III. SUBORDINATE BUT NECESSARY PARTS OP OUR PICTURE . . 15 IV. HOW THE MAN OF WAR KEPT WATCH OVER THE MAN OF MURDER 19 V. THE CONSULTATION . . . . . . . . 25 VI. WHICH CONTAINS SOME UNEXPECTED DISCLOSURES . . 29 VII. AN ASSIZE TOWN THE DAY BEFORE THE TRIAL . . . 37 VIII. PORTRAYS THE PECULIAR MODESTY OF JONATHAN KICKUP 40 IX. EXPLANATION OF THE PAST INDICATIONS OF THE FUTURE . 44 X. HOW Jonathan's PROTEGE ENTERTAINED PATRON AND FRIEND 47 XI. WHICH DESCRIBES THE GRAND COURT OF THE *' * CIRCUIT . 55 XII. CONTAINS THE CASE OF LITIGATE VeVSUS STAND-ON-POTNTS, &C. 60 XIII. CONCLUDES THE REPORT OF " LITIGATE V. STAND-ON-POINTs" G9 XIV. INTRODUCES " EXCELLENT JACK ALIBl" TO THE READER . 7l XV. CLEARLY PROVES THERE IS SUCH A MAN AS MR. WRYNECKER 75 XVI. THE PRESSGANG ITS WORKINGS ITS MERCIES ITS DELIGHTS 81 XVII. WHAT MAY BE DONE BY SOME FOLKS* NOTIONS OF FIRMNESS OF MIND . . . . . . . . . . 86 XVIII. WHICH IS SET TO MUCH THE SAME TUNE AS THE LAST . . 92 XIX. THE SUBJECT OF THE FORMER CHAPTER CONTINUED . . 97 XX. WHAT FURTHER BEFEL THE HERO . . • . .98 XXI. EFFECTS OF IGNORANCE AND OBSTINACY ILLUSTRATED . . 103 XXII. SHOWS THE POWER OF DANGER IN DISCLOSING THE STRONGEST MINDS ... ...... 105 XXIII. TREATS OF A MIDSHIPMAn's GLORY . . . . . 108 XXIV. TOGGLE, THE MAN OF FEELING THE PURSER, A MAN OF PELF 115 XXV. THE LAUNCH OF THE RAFT, AND FURTHER HISTORY . . 120 XXVI. woman's REMEMBRANCES HER GRATITUDE & RETALIATIONS 124 XXVII. WHICH RETURNS TO OUR HERO . . . . . . 129 XXVIII. THE TRIAL ......... 136 XXIX. WHICH HAD BETTER BE READ TO BE UNDERSTOOD . . . 161 XXX. HOW COSTS- IN- THE -CAUSE WENT TO THE FOUNTAIN HEAD . 165 XXXI. WHICH CONTAINS AN ARGUMENT OF THE PERSONAL KIND . . l70 VI CONTENTS. CHAPTER P*GE XXXII. SHOWS THE GREAT CONVENIENCE OF A LEECH . . . l70 XXXIII. THE EXECUTION ........ 180 XXXIV. THE CHASE ........ 185 XXXV. IN WHICH THE TALE REVERTS TO OUR HEROINE . . . 190 XXXVI. THE VICARAGE ........ 193 XXXVII. THE devil's GUN AND CAVERN . . . . . . 1 97 XXXVIII. THE SEA NOVICE WHO IS HE ? . . . . . 202 XXXIX. THE VICTIM AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE . . . . 206 BOOK THE SECOND. I. THE FATE OP EVELINE THE IDENTITY OF THE ACTORS . . 219 II. WHICH INTRODUCES YET A NEW CHARACTER . . . 225 III. bamboozle's SORROWS — envee's TRiuaiPHS — Paul's plea- sures ......... 231 lY. THE ESCAPE ......... 235 V. THE FIRST EPISODE THE ADVENTURES OF JACK SPRATT . 242 VI. THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE WOUND ..... 248 VII. ANOTHER PHASIS OF THE PRESSGANG . . ... 251 VIII. CONTAINS A SURPRISE . . . . . . 257 IX. INTRODUCES TWO NEW CHARACTERS . . . . • 2f)4 X. CONTAINS THE PONTIFICAL EMBARKATION .... 272 XI. EXHIBITS THE PLEASURE OF A PRIVATEERS ACQUAINTANCE . 27G XII. IN WHICH THE ACTION WITH THE PRIVATEER IS CONCLUDED . 289 XIII. CONTAINS THE SECOND EPISODE ..... 303 XIV. THE SAN6IACK OF BOSNIA CONCLUDED . . . . . 321 XV. THE COURSE OP PROSPERITY RESUMED .... 323 XVI. MATTERS STILL LOOK WELL . . . . . . 332 . XVII. CATASTROPHE OF THE BAFFLED PRIVATEEr's-MEN . . 343 XVIII. EFFORTS OF THE SURVIVORS TO ESCAPE FROM THEIR DEADLY ENEMIES, FIRE AND WATER . . . . . . S5l XIX. IN WHICH ONE CHANCE OP RESCUE PRESENTS ITSELF . . 853 XX. THE NOVEL LIFE- BOAT AND THE INCONSOLABLE HUSBAND 363 XXI. THE PLEASURES OF A LEE-SHORE ... . 369 XXII. SUMMARY JUSTICE AT SEA ....... ,'^74 XXIII. IN WHICH THE CURRENT OF Oim STORY RETURNS TO CERTAIN OF OUR CHARACTERS IN ENGLAND SPRIGHTLY OBLIGES DICK DOl'BTFUL BY TnE LOAN OF A HORSE . . . 382 CONTENTS. Vn CHAPTER PAGE XXIV. DICK DOUBTFUl/s RIHiE TO DINNER ON THK LAST TERM DAY 395 XXV. WHICH CONTINLTES DICK DOUBTFUl/s PURSUIT OF HIS DINNER . 401 XXVI. CONTAINS A NIGHT ADVENTURE ..... 408 XXVII. PORTRAYS DICK DOUBTFUL IN LOVE . . . . . 4l7 XXVIII. A COUNTRY MAGISTRATE . . . . . . 437 XXIX. SIR job's INNOCENCE NO SHIELD AT LAST . . . . 446 BOOK THE THIRD. I. DISCLOSES A SLIGHT FISSURE IN THE SHIELD OF INNOCENCE 449 II. CONTAINS A PROPOSITION NOT FOUND IN EUCLID . . . 453 III. CONTAINS A lady's REASONS ...... 457 IV. PATE AND LADY PERIWINKLE FALL OUT AT SPITHEAD . 460 V. PUTTING TO SEA A SCENE AT SPITHEAD . . . . 466 VI. THE WRONGS OF ST. DOMINGO ...... 470 VII. SUNRISE IN THE TROPICS . t . . . . . 472 VIII. THE HEROINE IN DISTRESS ...... 481 IX. BABIBOOZLE DISCLOSES HIS GREAT AFFECTION FOR PAUL . . 484 X. THE hero's first PRIZE-TAKING AT SEA . . . 489 XI. SOMETHING VERY LIKE PIRACY . . . . . . 492 XII. THE INNOCENT CONSPIRACY ...... 503 XIII. CONSEQUENCES OF INJUSTICE AND OPPRESSION — SLAVE SYSTEM 513 XIV. PLEASURES OF A LANDSMAn's CRUISE IN THE WAR TIME . 532 XV. AN AWKWARD CUSTOM A ROUGH " PROFESSION" . . . 538 XVI. WALKING THE PLANK ....... 545 XVIX. THE BEAUTIES OF THE SLAVE TRADE . . . . . 561 XVIII. COLONIAL GOVERNMENT ....... 670 ' XIX. THE DANGER THICKENS . . . . . . . 677 XX. WHICH TREATS OF THE NOTIONS OF MRS. PONTIFEX ON LOVE 582 XXI. WHICH TREATS OF THE LOVE AND SORROWS OF PRESTONE . 698 XXII. A NIGHT MARCH AND THE BATTLE-FIELD . . . 609 XXIII, REVERTS TO THE FORTUNES OP ALIBI AND BAMBOOZLE . . 613 XXIV. WHICH SUPPLIES THE TAIL-PIECE OF OUR PICTURE . . 614 LIST OF PLATES. NO. PAGE 1. Shows how the Man of War kept watch and ward over the Man of Murder 21 Dr. Bamboozle's delicate Disclosure and Dismissal ..... 37 2. How Jonathan's Protege obliged his Friends 53 The grand Court of the * * Circuit 59 3. Messrs. Costs and Kickup conferring with Alibi 73 The Devil among the Dowagers . . . . . . .81 4. The Prcssgang 12« The Presssrang ib. 5. Mr. Wrynecker enjoyiajs i beautiful moniiug . . . . . • 135 " Pleji'^e Sir, your case is called on " . . * . . . 137 e. Paul Periwinkle rescued by Jack Alibi 183 Dr. Bamboozle approving Impressment . . . . ■. . .185 7. The Consultation in the De\irs Cavern ....... 200 Tlie Attack on the Vicarage . . . . . ... 217 8. The Heroine's Escape 237 Jack Spratt the London 'Prentice carried off by the Pressgang . . 253 i) The Haunted Bed 263 Mrs. Archdeacon Pontifex dancing a minuet with a twenty -four pounder . 280 10. The Collision with Prosperity ...... 2i'j The Sangiai'k of Bosnia . ^20 11. Contest for the Body of the Sangiack 321 Eveline singes a Gentlen:an's Whiskers ....... t^H 12. The Despair of Prosperity's Passenj;ers . ?54 The Prosperity going down .... .... 364 \^.. Dick Doubtful on hcrse^:.?' ....... . 39G A Night Surprise . . . . . . . . . . 410 4. Dick Doubtful meeting with two old Friends 427 Colonel Spr „'htly locked up against the grain 435 1 •. The warmth of Mr. Wrynecker's Friendship reprimanded . . .451 III tidings travel fast and far . 480 1 'J. Bamboozle flying from the wrath of Paul 49;) Van Scharap's Creditors, or the Bankrupt's Examination . . . . 523 17. Paul troubled by the Blacks ......... 532 Walking the Plank 549 18. The Beauties of tlie Slave-trade 560 The Rebels' Camp *'■■......., 577 19. Toussaint's Levee . . . . . . , . .581 Mrs. Archdeacon taking credit for rejecting the Addresses of Evelyn . 592 20. The Lovers' Paradise 6Q4 The Re-union •••......,. 634 ADVERTISEMENT. In offering to the Public the following Tale, the most distinct disclaimer is entered of the least intention to trespass on the domaia of Mk. Dickens, the originator of this species of publication. In style, plot, and story, the greatest dissimilarity will be found. But while the thirsty world of readers, are famished during the long intervals of the " greater rain " from month to month, it is conceived that the humble " water- course" of "The Pressgang," springing up betwixt and between, may serve to moisten the parched lips of a few of those literary imbibers, who, like the writer, delight in renewing a periodical acquaintance with the amiable and inimitable " Boz." PAUL PE Rl W INKLEj OR, THE PRESSGANG. CHAPTER THE FIRST, WHICH PLUNGES INTO THE MIDDLE OF OUU TALE. "Sir Job! — Sir Job Periwinkle! — For heaven's sake get up, Sir Job! Here's murder in the house!" vehemently exclaimed the old butler, knocking- long and loudly at his master's door. The grey twi- light of a December's day was just breaking, as the old domestic, half dressed and wholly frightened, stood shivering in the long oaken gallery, endeavouring to make his voice penetrate through the double door of Sir Job's chamber. It was in truth no easy matter. Fashioned in the same substantial manner as the rest of the old Grange, which had been built by a loyal officer of Ehzabeth's court, the thin voice of the caller appeared unable to arouse the sleeper within, whose slumbers were at no time of the lightest. In addition to this difficulty, the old man seemed to labour under some apprehension cf disturbing others for whom his summons vi^as not intended; still, as he repeated it, his eyes glanced fearfully round the grim-looking corridor, and his head was stretched out in that peculiar attitude which marks the act of listening. Nothing, however, appeared to move insight, unless it was the fitful lifting of some of the old pictures, which, covered with the smoke and dirt of a century and a half, looked like the portraits of the doomed, as they borrowed a degree of life from the sudden gusts of the north- east wind that shook the walls on which they hung, and howled round the many angles of the house outside. When the butler found that his efforts were ineffectual to gain attention, he took a few steps to and fro before the closed door, wringing his hands, as if uncertain what to do, he then repeated the summons once again, and finding it unan- swered, glided noiselessly to a recess where one of the old fashioned win- dows projected, in the middle of the building. Opening the lattice, he 4 PAt'L PERIWINKLE, OR looked out upon the view in front. The snow had been falling thickly in the early part of the ni^ht, and was stilllying deep upon the ground, while the sky wore that dull heavy appearance which bespoke it charj^^ed with much more. In the east, the light began to clear away the thick leaden clouds, and the wind poured down fiercely upon the vast expanse of ocean, where line upon line of dazzling foam, marked out the long seas rolling in towards the land, and spoke of the quarter from whence the wind blew, as intelligibly as the compass itself could have done. On the right, a huge headland reared its abrupt height, and the waves broke thundering at its base, filling the ear with the perpetual but not unpleasing murmur of their roar. Placed, as the Grange was, on an eminence that commanded an extensive view around, the beach itself was nevertheless hidden from the windows, by the gigantic trees of a v.inding avenue of oak and elm that led down almost to the sands, and was the nearest communication Avith the little fishing village to the left. From the branches of this avenue, innumerable rooks were rising, circling in the air, already on the look-out for prey, and making with their melancholy cries the only sound of life. But the attention of the butler was rivetted on a sight more intensely absorbing than any of the objects we have mentioned. Along the dazzlingly pure surface of the snow was seen a tract of footsteps, in- termingled with which, at every step, was a closely dotted line of blood, which wound their way together down the avenue, and with a slight deviation to the left, as if to avoid the lodge gates, crossed through a gap in the surrounding hedge, and made towards the sea. Still nearer, however, to the house, and almost immediately under its windows, a far larger stain seemed to have been caused by the same •sanguinary fluid, though of a much paler tint, and when the old man'a eyes rested on these deadly tokens, his agony seemed to increase ten- fold. Hastily closing the lattice, he hurried back to Sir Job Peri- winkle's door, and recommenced his attempts to awake the knight. At last a fall was heard within, that might have answered for the overthrow of the Farnesian Hercules ; three or four heavy footsteps followed, a night bolt was drawn up from the inner door, which at the same time unfastened the outer, and Sir Job Periwinkle, in his dress- ing-gown, stepped into the gallery. He was a tall commanding personage, in figure being something over six feet two inches high, and bulky in proportion ; the hair was fast retreating from his forehead, which was bold and open, but on the crown of the head, and round the temples, it still curled freely, though speaking plainly of the sixty years which had passed over it. " Oh, Sir Job !" exclaimed the butler, as he appeared, " I am so glad I've made you hear at last." The frown that had gathered on the knight's brow relaxed, as he looked on the pale and terrified countenance of his servant. " What's the matter, Corkindale ?'' " God only knows the whole of it, sir; but I fear something very terrible !" *' What is it ' what is it '" repeated Sir Job, passing his hand once THE PRESSGANG. O or twice before his eyes, as if rightly to comprehend what was tlie matter. " One would think the French had begun the war with an invasion. Have they landed, or what? " " Oh no, sir ; something much -worse than that, I fear." " Worse than that, you scoundrel ; what d'ye mean ? what can hap- pen worse than that?" " Oh, sir, it's nothing to do with the French ; 'tis some terrible calamity in our own family. I got up this morning, sir, just before •daybreak, as I usually do, and went to open the window and look out, for I thought Fd heard some curious noises during the night. Well, sir, I could not see anything just then ; it was too dark ; so I went away and dressed, and presently, when I came to look, there I saw footsteps right from the front door, with drops of blood, going all tlie way down the avenue, while directly a'most under my window was a large splash, as if some bloody water had been thrown out of the house ; well, directly I saw this, sir, I took the light I had been dress- ing with, and went down stairs, and on this floor, sir," here the butler lowered his voice and looked fearfully round, " I found the drops of blood leading directly out of Mr, Paul's room, all the way down the great staircase, to the very door; well, sir, I thought some accident might have happened, so I crept back, and opening the door as softly as I could, I looked in, and there was Master Paul lying in bed covered with blood, the bedclothes blood all over, and the floor too; while Mr. Jack, you know, sir, who took half his bed last night to make room for Counsellor Doubtful, who came so late — " " Yes, yes, I remember." " Well, sir, Mr. Jack was not in the room. Do come and see, sir, what's happened, for we've all of us suspected, that is, the servant's of the house, sir, that there would be some terrible quarrel between the two young gentlemen." " Quarrel, Corkindale ! How— why— -on what account ?" "Miss Nora, sir. They've been heard at high words several times lately, sir, and the young lady's name was mentioned several times be-tween them, and no one can have helped seeing that neither of 'em are ever out of her company, sir, if they can help it. Two or three times I have been a'going to mention it to you, sir, but 1 was afraid of doing wrong. I only wish I bad, for now I fear worse has come of it." " Of course, you old fool I of course ; anything of importance you must put off till it's too late to be useful. If it had been some cursed rubbish, as a barrel of ale running out a week too soon, I should have been sure to hear of it ; however, come away and let me see what the truth is;" and Sir Job, who had gone into his dressing-room for some further clothing, now walked quickly, but quietly, towards his son's door. By this time the degree of light that streamed through the narrow, but numerous windows of Berrylea, the name of the Grange, was quite sufficient to distinguish every object. The first point to which the father directed his attention, was the blood upon the floor,. Avhich, as Corkindale had said, went down the chief staircase to the front door. (l PAUL PERIWINKLE, OR Having' opened tlie latter, and looked out at the continuance of the fatal line throufjh the snow, he then returned, gently opened his son's door, and looked within. Sir Job Periwinkle was one of those to whom nature had given an iron constitution, both of frame and mind; neither the one nor the other was easily disturbed from its usual course. Forced to fight his way through the world single-handed, without the aid of money or friends, he had risen from the lowest ranks of commercial life to its highest point : from earning a scanty livelihood as a clerk at twenty- three shillings a week, to occupying the chair of London's first ma- gistrate, to which dignity he had a few weeks since been elected. But, however accustomed to bear the huffets of the world, everything in his family had hitherto gone well with him ; when he heheld, there- fore, his son's bedroom dabbled over with bloody footsteps, the pillow, the counterpane, the clothes on which the young man lay, all covered with the same revolting marks, the colour forsook liis ruddy cheek with instantaneous rapidity, and compressing his lips together, he. stood for a moment as if utterly at a loss how to act. During this saddening pause, time was afforded him for more narrow observation of everything around. Inside the bed, some one, whom, from the dark colour of his hair, he took to be his son, Paul Peri- winkle, was lying with his face buried in his hands, and looking more like one who had been weeping violently, than sleeping peacefully in his own chamber. His appearance at once tending to confirm the fears that had already been raised in Sir Job's mind, he waited for a few seconds to see if his son spoke. The heaving of the body, as the breath was drawn, was visible, and a low moaning sound every now and then broke forth, but no attempt was made to discover who were the intruders on his repose, nor any sig-n given that their presence was perceived. With suspicions still more strongly excited at every moment, Sir Job stepped into the centre of the room, and there beheld, in the wash-hand basin, the remains of some bloody water, as if some one, with hands incarnadine, had been attempting to wash out the stains, thrown away the impure water, and yet left enough behind to tell the fatal tale. \Vith a motion of the head, that plainly told how this appear- ance had [been translated. Sir Job strode towards the window, and throwing it open, perceived the bright yellow surface of the house outside bearing too evident traces of just such a stream having been sprinkled down it in the passage of the water to the ground. Scarcely daring to hope tbat all these odious appearances could be satisfactorily explained away, he returned to the bedside. Still the son neither- at- tempted to move nor speak. Unable any longer to bear the suspense. Sir Job laid his hand somewhat roughly, as well as powerfully, on the young man's shoulder, and turning him over on his back, it was evi- dent, as had been expected, that he had been weeping violently — his eyes and eyelids being much inflamed, and the traces of tears still visible on his cheeks. " What's the matter, sir," demanded his father. THE PRESSGANG. 7 " Nothing, my Jord, nothing ; only let me sleep," was the reply, as Paul, quickly facing round to the wall, pretended to be yet half slum- bering, " Come, come, sir, this won't do," resumed the other; " I insist on knowing what has happened — where is your cousin Jack ? " The very mention of the last named seemed to afiect the son with some strange emotion, and after gasping forth some inarticulate sounds between a sob and a groan, he dashed his hand violently on the clothes beside him, exclaiming, " I may never see his face again !" " Come, sir," and the stern tones of Sir Job's voice bespoke how much he was alarmed, " sit up this instant, and tell me what you have done with your cousin ? — where is he ?— -what has happened between you ?---what is the meaning of all this blood about your room and clothes ?" " Blood 1" repeated Paul, now for the first time awakening, or seem- ing to awaken, to the consciousness of what was going on around him. " Where is there blood ?---\Vhat ? " and again he passed his hands over his eyes. " Am I awake, or am I still dreaming ? What is the mean- ing of all this ? Who has made the room in this disgusting state ? '' " Look at yourself, sir," said Sir Job, " before you feign so much astonishment ! Your room might have been covered with bloody foot- marks without your knowing it, though that would not have been easy ; nor do I see who could have equally daubed your bedclothes without your knowledge, or, still more, what purpose it could have answered ; yet these acts mir/hi be within the bounds of possibility. But all the acting in the world won't suffice to prove you ignorant of some person having tried to wash the blood off your face and hands, and only left the traces of it more undeniable. I suppose you know nothing of him either." As Sir Job Periwinkle said these words, he handed to his son, with a degree of abhorrence and disgust he could not control, the looking- glass. Snatching it eagerly from his father's hands, Paul gave but one glance. Too truly did it reflect the terrible condition of his per- son, since all round his face and ears, as Sir Job had said, was smeared a blurred red tint, deeper in some places than others, and evidently arising from the cause attributed. On his hands, these damning proofs were still more strongly at- tested. Letting fall the glass before him, the v/retched young man looked first at the right hand, slowly scrutinizing now the inside and now the out, and then at the left ; then, looking up in his father's face, while the most ghastly pallor overspread his own, replied — " I know no more of this than I do of the rest! " " Answer me this one question, sir ! " continued the knight, his scorn and rage rising at every denial of facts so self-evident. " Did you wash your hands in that basin, and throw the water out of window ? " " Not I ! I don't remember any thing about the basin. Yet stay," — -for a minute he hesitated, then jumped out of bed, looked at the basin in question, then out of the open window. When he returned from his inspection, he was seen passionately to clasp first one hand 8 PAUL PERIWINKLE, OK and then the other, raise them to his face, and burst into a flood of tears. The poor father was scarcely less affected. No convulsive twitch- ing- appeared in his limbs, as in that of his son. Paralyzed by the intense force with which the brows w^ere knit together and the lips compressed, contracting- every few seconds like the Avrithing of tlie whip-cord under some very heavy power; these symptoms showed, as he paced up and down the room, with his hands folded behind him, that his agony was not less than that of the accused. Still he uttered no reproach, expressed no word that might be construed into intimi- dation, unless the few syllables, "So unlike a Briton!" which he seemed unable to refrain from half growling to himself, at every few minute's interval. As for the butler, true old Corkindale, he stood just outside the door, now throwing himself into one attitude, now into another, and making a thousand expressions to the idle sounds, and muttering whole sentences, which none could hear, for his master had peremp- torily cautioned him to say or do nothing till he came out of the room. NEW CHAPTER, IN WHICH FRESH EVENTS DEVELOPE THEMSELVES, AND NEW CHARACTERS ARE INTRODUCED. While Sir Job's son stood near the window, to all appeara ice utterly unable to suppress the deep grief that moved him, Sir Job himself continued his slow pace, to and fro, across the room, trying if, in the dismal mist before him, hope could discern any land of comfort, how- ever distant, or experience suggest to him what course would be the most proper to pursue. He now also began to remember, that sur- prise had, for an instant, banished the necessity of making instant and unceasing search for his nephew. Turning- round to Paul once more, he said, " Now, sir, have you determined yet what answer you think most desirable to my question — whether you used that basin, and then threw its contents out of window ? First you denied it ; then it seemed to me you were about to acknowledge it. Pray which do you think the best line of the two ? " " I do not deserve this at your hands, Sir Job. I remember how I did use it ; but how the water came to be tinged with blood, I know no more than you do." " Do you know, then, sir, how you became so anxious to throw it away, out of a front window ? " " Yes ; I thought I heard my cousin's dog howling just below, and I wanted to get to sleep." " Sir, I sleep one story nearer to the ground than you do, but I , heard no dog; and pray, sir, do you generally get up in the dark, at night, to wash your face and hands ? " THE IMIKSSGANG. 9 *' No." " Then what led to this exception ? " " 1 %vas feverish and uneasy." " What made you feverish and uneasy, sir, last night particularly, after a hard day's shooting- ? " In reply to this query, Paul was silent ; and as Sir Job fixed his bright glance upon the young man's countenance, it gradually deep- ened into a hue that entirely shamed and hid the washy tint before evident upon it, and while his head as slowly sank upon his bosom, the latter responded to the shocks of the heart, with a vehemence that denoted the intense excitement under which he laboured. For several seconds the old man also stood silent, hoping that the suspicions his son was now every moment rendering darker, might yet be dispelled by some sort of explanation, however lame or impar- tial. But when Sir Job perceived that not even an attempt was made at this, he turned away, exclaiming, as he lifted up his hands — " Oh, Paul Periwinkle ! you have this night disgraced a British family. Storm after storm have we braved, and every sea has left us — like the little shell from which we are named — more firmly rooted to the land where we were born. But a stream like this," pointing to the clothes of Paul, and the bed from which he had risen, " unde- fended, unexplained — who can stand before it ? If you wish to do a favour to a father you've done your best to ruin, answer me this : Have you had any quarrel with your cousin Jack ? " " Yes, sir, I confess I have." " Did it relate to my niece, Nora?" At th^ mention of that name, all Paul's agitation seemed to return. His blanched cheek was again crimsoned, his bosom once nio.-.» laboured — "Suspect me, wrong me, torture me if you will; but do not attempt to drag from me any answer to such a question. Uh, that I had never seen her fatal beauty !" And flinging himself down on the spot from which he had risi^n, he gave way to the intolerable anguish that seemed weighing on his mind. Finding that it was utterly hopeless to expect from this quarter any clue by which to arrive at a solution of the tragic mystery whifh the past night had produced. Sir Job left his son's room, scarcely less mournful, though more composed. " Corkindale!" addressing the butler, Avho was still waiting at tlie door, " remain in Mr. Paul's chamber till my return ; see that he does himself no harm. Above all, do not let the knowledge of what has happened transpire to a sing-le being more than you can help — especially the ladies of the family. Miss Nora and Lady Periwinkle in particular; and try if you can send up some story by and by to keep the chattering maid-servants in bed an hour later to day tlian usual. I am going to call Mr. Charles, and see if my nephew can by any happy chance be found to explain these appearances." " Very well, my lord," replied the old man, whose scattered senses had not before alloutd him to bear in iniiui the fact of his master's c: 10 PAUL PERIWINKLE, OR nevvly-acquired dignities as chief citizen, an honour which, in truth, that master was ah'eady beginning to discover, gave additional point to every sting in life, as well as additional pleasure to it. As the old man watched the knight depart, he shook his head sorrowfully, muttering, "Ye may search long enough before these old eyes see Mr. John in life or health again, I fear." From the room of sorrow, and agony, and shame, in which we have just left Paul Periwinkle, let us now accompany the father to that of his eldest surviving son, Charles ; or, as he was affectionately called by his family, from his profession. Counsellor Charley. It was a good old fashion of a good old time, when men were designated after their various callings. The ancient and legitimate name and style of parson, in the church, and its aforesaid corollary in law, seem to have been somewhat unwisely allowed by the two professions to vanish from among us, leaving the doctors and professors only in the field ; yet who can recal the clerical designation without a thought of Fielding, and the whole file of connected worthies ? or hear the legal*" cognomen given in the provinces, and not linger for a moment on the memory of Silvertongue and Balthasar in the Merchant of Venice ? It lessened, moreover, the chances of awkw^ard positions. Now, a man is as likely to venture on some sly touch at church-rates or tithes to a reverend vicar, or growl out the reminiscences of some unhappy suit to one of the long robe, as utter them safely and softly to good Mr. Thomson, who deals wholesale in cheeses or cotton-twist, just as the case may be. You may tell a naval man by the cut of his jib; a military hero by his having his head up and his coat buttoned ; but when art has refined the rest of the world to the high pitch of wear- ing black and saying nothing, it has become somewhat difficult to respect your neighbour's avocations. " Charles, my boy !' said the father, entering the room of his son, who like himself was a heavy sleeper ; a partial snore, and a turn round on the other side, as if to get out of the way, formed the only reply. " Charles, Charles!" repeated the knight, bestowing his heavy fist most freely on his heir's shoulder. In an instant the barrister was sitting up, rubbing his eyes, and groaning most dreadfully. " I say, Mr. My Lord Mayor, this won't do, you know, this won't do. I object, my lord — I object most decidedly to this line of proceeding. You don't call this, 1 hope, leniter manus imposuit ; according to the pleadings. I'm sure such a slap as that was not laying your ' hand gently on liim as you lawfully might ' No, my lord, I say it was a dead case of assault ; one that calls for heavy damages: and I shall get them, too, from a person in your station: and it's no use your saying anything in defence, for I won't be interrupted, my lord. It isn t because a nian's made Lord Mayor, you know, that he's to knock about every poor devil in his house at six o'clock in a winter's morning, when there isn't light enough to see even whether his bruises are black or blue. I shall state the case at length to the jury, you may depend upon it, my THE PRESSGAKG. 11 lord. You think,. I suppose, because there are no witnesses, you may come here and whack me as much as you please : I know, since you've got on the Mansion-house bench, and that sort of thing, you imagine you're a lawyer made all at once ; but that intuitive law won't do, it won't hold water. Be pleased to remember an indictment will lie for the breach of the peace, at any rate ; and I'm not sure I couldn't make it out a burglary, at a pinch. You've no business, ^ you know, to break and enter my room ; and that you've come-with a felonious intent I see in your eye. You've heard, I suppose, of my picking up a fee or two last sessions ; but you're too late, old boy, they're all spent. — Won't do — won't do ; though it's equally bad of you to come and try to bone 'em. First break my neck, and then bone my fees ! Too bad ; too bad." "Charles, my poor boy!" said Sir Job, seating himself on the couch, and taking his son's hand, with a melancholy smile, " I can- not laugh to-day, not even with you ; something has happened in our ♦family — " The old man could go no farther. As the vivid contrast came be- fore him — the exuberant gaiety of one son, and the deadly anguish of the other, a large tear gathered on his eyelid and rolled slowly down his cheek. It was but the weakness of the moment. Dashing it instantly aside, he resumed, in his usually collected voice, " Something, I fear, has happened in our family, which may banish laughter from this old house for the rest of our lives. John and Paul have, I fear, had some dreadful quarrel, as far as I can learn, about poor little Nora ; John is missing, and Paul's bed-clothes and room are covered with blood : forpohn, you know, took part of Paul's bed, last night, to make room for your friend, Mr. Doubtful, who came after the servants had all retired. I have been endeavouring to get from Paul some account or explanation of the affair, and the many appearances that make so much against him, but he will give nothing of the sort." " Well, this is a nice tale for a December morning, certainly. But don't be alarmed ; I dare say it may turn up all right. Cousins and brothers always light, but rarely do one another much damage ; and when such a pretty face as Nora's is in the case, we must make extra allowance ; besides, Jack and Paul are both good-natured fellows enough. Have you had any search made for the body? " " No; I've only just been called up myself." " Oh, then, I'll tell you all about it. — Paul and Jack each began to sing out little Nora's name in their sleep. One wakes the other, and the other wakes the one ; both claim exclusive right to the personal property ; and neither has a right to mention it, without the other's consent. First, they have some words ; then an altercation ; then, as the night is cold, two or three anucable rounds in bed, just to keep them warm ; Paul, who's much the better boxer of the two, gives Jack, you see, a bloody nose, and then they think they've fought enough; but, as the bleeding won't stop. Jack goes quietly off to take a dip in the sea, sees a light in the village public-house, goes in, insists on a bottle of grog, and, what's more, won't start till it's 12 PAUL rtUIWINKLE, OR finished ; and now, as I'm dressed, you and I will go quietly down there, and lind him over his last glass, with nothing on but his trowsers and shirt, a cigar in his mouth, and the landlady's daughter on his knee ; and that little fool, Nora, all the while is fast asleep, slighting poor Paul, and dreaming of her constant Jack." As Charles ran on in this way, more with the kind view of relieving the deep fears he saw so plainly expressed in his father's counten- ance, than with any solid belief himself, that the affair was likely to have any such favourable termination, he dashed througli his toilet with the rapidity that belonged to all his actions, and in a few minutes was leading the way down stairs. " Would to heaven, Charles, we miglit find this matter no worse than you make out." " Never fear, sir ; it's just like one of these sailor's tricks — I know them so well. First, they will go to sea, whether you like it or not ; then they find out they've got hold of a deucedly bad bargain ; next they run away on the first opportunity, come into a quiet family, play the devil's delight at home, make love to all the girls in the neighbourhood, get up a mutiny among the servant-maids, and when they've thrown everything into the most utter confusion, you go oft" to find the general disturber, and discover him ensconced in some snug corner, with his hand in his breeches' waistband, enjoying the best of whatever's going, and when you begin to express your wonder, he says something markedly uncivil to your eyes, and tells you what weak nerves you've got, not to take things more coolly. But stay, before we set off, we'll go and call Dick Doubtful, and ask him to follow us. In a case of this sort, Dick's invaluable. His judgment and good sense are unfailing, and he never allows his fancy to outrun discretion, or a single point to escape without examination. It's true I have to bully him, now and then, for splitting hairs, yet Dick's a capital lawyer and most useful auxiliary. Which is his room ? next but one to mine, isn't it?" "Yes." " Oh, here we have it ; come in ; let's draw the blind up ; that will wake him. Now, just look at the careless fellow. Hang me, if he has not got into bed, and gone fast asleep, with his black cloth waistcoat on. View his hat, too, stuck on his pillow, with one of his stockings hanging out of it, and no doubt the other's still on his leg; and here 'a a volume of La Place stuck under his pillow. So like the man ! Dick — Dick, you lazy rascal, jump up." In an instant Dick was on the floor, with one stocking on, as Charles had prophesied, "What's the matter, Charles. — Ah, my lord! I hope I see you well. Has anything happened ? " " Yes ; my brother and cousin have had a fall out, and the latter is missing I " " Indeed ! — Indeed ! — That's rather awkward — isn't it ? But stay ; let us see how this is ! " Dick first pushed one hand through his dishevelled locks, and then THE rUliSSGANG, 13 placed the tip of one forefinger on the point of the other, in a style peculiar to himself, when about to dissect an argument to its most subtle depths. " No, no ; I can't stay a moment," replied his impetuous brother of the robe, as soon as he saw this demonstration on Dick's part. " But my dear fellow," replied Dick, " I should certainly doubt — " " Of course you would— you always do. It's only going again at your old story ; but I won't hear a single doubt you have to express, or you'll go on till you raise the question, whether doubt itself be doubting; and cite cases, on circumstantial evidence, that would last from now till then, and back again ; beginning, no doubt, with that ever- lasting, never-dying, ever- to-be-remembered, never-to-be-forgotten case, in the time of lord Hale — a man was supposed to have murdered his niece ; Second Pleas of the Crown, page 290, &c. &c. &c. ; so make haste, and follow us dov/n the avenue, but take care you don't interfere with the track of blood-drops which, I'm told, you'll find in the centre." And away he went, without giving Dick, who was a person of grave deportment, a moment's time to express any opinion that might reconvey Sir Job to that state of apprehension, from which Charles' assumed coolness had rescued him, only to feel the weight transferred to his own mind. As they descended the stairs, the early rays of a December sun enabled both plainly to see the fatal track, which led down to the front door, hence following it out on the snow, they pursued the line in the direct course which Corkindale had mentioned, till it crossed the hedge, at some little distance from the lodge gates, and directed its course towards the village. At this instant they heard Dick Doubtful's voice shouting in their rear ; he soon came up, and they all went forward together. The trail on which they were proceeding, now suddenly turned down to the beach, and winded along towards some secluded rocks, a spot which had not the best'reputation. After proceeding onwards a few hun- dred yards, the tract was lost in a general disturbance of the sand and snow, as if a violent trampling had taken place by more than one man, at least ; and, indeed, the place bore the marks of a regular conflict. It was plentifully sprinkled over with blood, and partly washed by the sea, Avhich, there being spring tides, seemed to have come 'up since the affray, and obliterated all further trace. The three paused for some minutes, and were mournfully discussing these appearances, each afraid to confess the extent of his own thoughts, and wondering whether these footsteps hadn't been continued round the rocks, which the state of the water now rendered inaccessible. Presently, Sir Job said, " What is that?" pointing to a dark rugged object, which appeared to have been buried in the sand, and partially washed out again by the tide. " See if you can extricate it from the surrounding sand, Charles," continued the old knight, unable himself to approach it from extreme agitation. •'Why, it's woollen," said Charles, complying with the request 14 PAl-L PERIWINKLE, OK made to him, and dragging the soaked clothes to light, there appeared a torn soiled jacket, with mother of pearl buttons. " Know you not whose that is ? " inquired the father, shading his eyes from the sight as he spoke. Neither of the young men attempt- ed to answer him, for both distinctly remembered to have seen that very article of dress, only the night before, on the person of poor Jack Periwinkle, who, full of glee and happiness, sat amidst the cheerful circle, amusing all with jokes and stories from his sea life. In a romp at blind man's buff, only a few hours before, he had ac- cidentally torn the cuff from one of the sleeves, which Nora had replaced with pins. There lay the cuff before them, pinned precisely as they had observed it at supper. The sand upon it was dyed of the same red hue as the chamber in which he had gone to rest, and in turning it over, to see if it bore any other marks, two large stabs were ob- served in the left breast, and the other sleeve was wanting ; while, in lifting it from the ground, to lay it on a dry part of the beach, there became disentangled from it an open clasp knife, which fixed with a spring, and was covered with blood also. At Charles' desire. Doubtful picked this up, and there, on a silver plate upon the handle, was engraved, at full length, the namf of — Paul Periwinkle. Surprise and horror seemed to render Charles utterly speechless. So little had he imagined anything of this nature could possibly have arisen, that even now he seemed unable to believe it. Poor Sir Job bent his steps back towards his house, like one who was heart- broken by some sudden stroke of calamity and shame. On the road back was also espied one of Paul's shoes. Doubtful endea- voured to suggest subjects for comfort, and grounds to question whether their suspicions might not have taken a wrong direction ; but the proofs were so strong, that they had already overcome his own belief, and therefore left him but a poor chance of arguing against that of others. No reply was moreover made to bis well-intended arguments, and by degrees he lapsed into a silenCe as deep as that of his friend. " What course, Mr. Doubtful, do you consider I ought to pursue, with regard to rendering i\Ir. Paul Periwinkle up to justice, on the grounds that have come lo my knowledge?" inquired Sir Job, as they drew near to the house. But before Dick could frame a reply, one of Sir Job's servants stepped out from the side of the avenue, saying, ** Please, my lord, in your absence a warrant has con)e here from Admiral Acorn, to apprehend ]\lr. Paul, on suspicion of murdering his cousin, John ; we wouldn't let the officers take him till you came back, sir, and we've got the carriage out in readiness." Had a thunderbolt fallen at Sir Job's feet, he could not have more suddenly altered in his whole bearing; pride and rage seemed to fill his soul to the last pitch of endurance, and in the tempest of the moment even his grief was forgotten. Nor was the matter without a great share of awkwardness for Doubtful, to whom old Acorn stood in the near and double relation of uncle and trustee. Between the admiral and the alderman had long raged a feud of THE PRESSGANG. 15 most unmitigated ferocity, exacerbated to a fearful extent since the alderman had been made Lord Mayor. The causes of this we will explain hereafter; but Acorn having learnt, through some extraor- dinary channel, what had happened at the Grange, took this step as the surest means, and certainly also a somewhat remorseless one, of making his old enemy participate in the grief of the Douglas, who, stricken at Chevy Chase, seemed to find the bitterest pang of death in the fact, " Earl Percy sees me fall." But Sir Job's good sense soon came to his aid ; " Pitiful, decrepid old despot," he muttered. The wisest thing, after all, for a father so cruelly placed is, to take no part in such a measure. "Tell the con- stables," addressing the servant, "when they've finished their refresh- ment, they have only to consult their own duty and the feelings of their prisoner." Then sending a request to Lieutenant Envee, to allow his men to search the rocks for the body, as soon as the tide went down. Sir Job retired to his room. CHAPTER THE THIRD. WHICH PUTS IN SOME OF THE SUBORDINATE BUT NECESSARY PARTS OF THE PICTURE. While the unfortunate prisoner is being conveyed for examination to the residence of the testy Admiral Acorn, it will conduce to the better understanding of the reader, if we detain him a few minutes with a little more precise detail of the characters and persons of the parties to our story than w^e have yet had breathing time to afford. The night before the fatal morning which thus converted into a day of the deepest woe a festival usually so merry as that of Christ- mas, few families seemed less threatened by calamity, more favoured by fortune, or more thankful for those favours. Supper had been served in the great oak hall ; and the servants having retired to the entertainments provided for them in their own quarters, Sir Job sat with all his family and sisters around, the very picture of virtue, hos- pitality, and happiness. In his front blazed and roared that most cheering and delightful even of English fires, the yule log, a vast pile of ash and holly, well backed by huge layers of oak, in a fire-place whose capacity recalled the oldest and best time of " merrie Eng- land ;" while the additional comfort and refinements wliich were added to its rude hospitality, spoke also of the improvements of more modern days. Large iron dogs, modelled from the life, of tAvo favourite bull-terriers, and kept perfectly bright, supported the burning stack on either side; and oaken seats, beautifully carved and stuffed, filled up each of these recesses, time-honoured by the name of chimney- corner. Two sprites of wondrous guise, boldly sculptured in the same wood, extended their wings and arms in form of a roof, as if to sup- 16 PAUL PERIWINKLE, OR port the chimney ; and the space enclosed by tlie latter served as the vent through which the fragrant smoke eddied. In one of these seats on the left of the fire, sat the young sailor, Jack, and inside him, in the extreme nook, young Nora Creina, the orphan child of Sir Job's only brother. Her uncommon personal beauty, and melancholy story, seemed to have drawn from her uncle a degree of attachment, stronger, if such a thing were possible, than that which he felt for his own children. Till nearly eight years old, she had been brought up by her father, who was a widower, long residing, and ultimately murdered, for some real or believed political offence, in one of the wildest parts of the South of Ireland. With some slight traces of her country yet linger- ing on her lip, her countenance at once bespoke that land which seems to concentrate the beauty of its daughters into fewer specimens, for the purpose of rendering them more exquisite in themselves, and re- sistless by others ; a noble forehead, a complexion transparent almost to a fault, large deep blue eyes, and a profusion of the darkest hair, were added to a form most synmietrically proportioned, Avith advan- tages of mind scarcely less conspicuous or decided : still you could not regard her for a moment w'thout being struck by the expression of deep melancholy that seemed to pervade her features— a singular circumstance that has more than once been remarked in those whose after-lives have experienced a more than ordinary share of human trials. A narrower observer of circumstances might, perhaps, have found a readier solution of this appearance, by watching the furtive glances that occasionally stole from beneath the eyelids of the young sailor sitting next her, whose face, tanned by an Indian sun, and naturally dark, offered the deepest contrast to her own. It might, too, have been observed by accident, that while pretending most affectionately to nurse Lady Periwinkle'^ -dog on the lady's knee and his own, some- thing very like a hand of Jack's clasped one of the young Nora's. In the 'Opposite corner sat Lady Periwinkle herself, a tall damsel of a very certain age, with considerable rouge, high cheek hones, and the greatest dignity. Indeed, no poor idea will be gained at once of her character and person, when we say that Counsellor Charley, her son-in-law, for she was Sir Job's second wife, generally called her Lady Macbeth, which she took to be a very great compliment, — "Though," she was heard to remark, " with regard to that leddy's moral character, I have heard it surmised she was not altogether canny; and though I have na' read the play myself, yet if all that J\lr. Shakespeare says of her is true, she must have been a shocking black- guard ;" a term by which her ladyship was always pleased to express her opinion of the worst faults in her sex. She had, however, her good points ; and provided her family wore flannel, and went at least twice to church on Sundays, held up their heads, regarded the proprieties of sayings and doings, and Sir Joh kept up his cellar of old port wine, there were many worse })coplc in the world than Lady Periwinkle. On her right hand sat her favourile Tin: I'Ul'SSC ANG. 17 daughter, Julia; a little gem, Avell worthy of heing a favourite with anyone. Her face was one perpetual picture of harmless delight; and though her younger promise could not compare with her cousin's more matured beauty, yet Lady Periwinkle " prophecied " — here fol- lowed three nods of the head," but what her ladyship prophecied she never told any body, which is certainly the wisest way of doing it. Beside Juha sat her brother, Paul Periwinkle, abstracted and silent; his gaze steadfastly fixed on the sparkling pile before him, or only lifted for a few seconds to glance liurriedly and in no slight agitation, at his cousins, Nora and her too happy companion. In this oc- cupation was engaged one v^hose appearance was the strongest contrast to that of every person in the room ; for while a feeling of happiness and satisfaction mantled over the face of all present, with the exception of Paul, the guest we are describing fixed at in- tervals, when he fancied himself unseen, a look of such intense hatred and malice on the lovers, and more especially Jack, as might well have curdled the blood of an observer. A broad lowering face, in which the worst ravages of the small-pox and traces of the mulatto were equally evident, little deep set twinkling eyes, brows singed away by gunpov\der, a " villainous low forehead," and strait black. hair, here and there streaked with gi'ey, combined with a small pug nose, and a large thin-lipped mouth, turned down at the corners, to poict out a man with whom no prudent person would willingly ven- ture down a dark lane at night. But still he styled himself a man of honour; and on occasions, if nobody were likely to contradict him, talked loudly of vindicating it to his sovereign and brother officers — for he too was an officer — Lieutenant Envee of the pressgang, with a build of figure sufficiently powerful to back up and encourage any plan likely to be engendered in such a head. Placed in coannand of a station in the neighbourhood, he was among the first to pay his respects to Sir Job, when the rich aldern|iin, two years since, pur- chased the old Grange of Berrylea, a sort of trysting-spot for his comniercial soul; where a few weeks holiday, spent in sight of a Briton's idol, the sea, and refreshed by the breezes of the Channel, sent him back to 'Change stringent as a tariff, and sharp as a bill- broker. Now there was one idea in Sir Job's mind, most aptly carried out by nature in his huge body, and this was — British. If a matter was not British, it ft'as nothing. Towards this grand stream flowed every little tributary that irrigated his capacious soul. He was a Pro- testant, because it was Biitish; he loved his wife and family — they were all British ; it was Biitish so to do. In the same spirit did he eat, drink, sleep, and hate the French, the four great necessaries of a Briton's life. He swore most fervently — aye, and what's more, believed it too, that one Englishman could thrash three Frenchmen ; it was a true British principle, and ought to be upheld. Moreover, he had a vast variety of arguments to show that whatever had been done, at whatever place, and in whatever time, was done by — The ancient Britons. Did any one inadvertantly let fall a hint that his country had formerly been conquered by the foreign power of Rome, 1) ]« PALI. PEKI WINKLE, OR lie bluslied at their ignorance ; it was but a more family-visit, or quanel — for these two were generally much tlie same, he observed. yEneas and Caractacus were cousins, somewhat removed, 'twas true, but yet sprung from the same branch. Even the far back Phoenicians were but a colony from our mother-country ; and the very Jews themselves, merely the descendants of some expatriated Druids, .slifrhtly altered by time and cliange of climatf?. By what extreme dexterity he managed to reconcile those patriotic notions with some other little credences of his, was a point on which no one ventured to examine his lordship. Like the rest of the an- cient Britons, Sir Job Periwinkle was hot and hasty, and would have thought much less of kicking an offender from Dan to Beer- sheba, than travelling the same distance. Everything about him was in the same keeping, his house, horses, dogs, children, servants — even his very oaths were ancient British to the back bone. As a proof, moreover, of his sincerity, and that his patriotism could stand that harshest test, self-interest, there was not a collector in the countr)', from the extreme of window-lights to the abyss of poors '- rates, but was sure of instant payment, a ready smile, and a bumper of port, on the Jirst time of calling ! mark that, good reader. If that be not great, where is grandeur to be found ? The port en- couraged the British commerce with Portugal, and what in the world was half so British as taxation? These being the integral principles of Sir Job's character, he no .«iOoner learnt that the British officer in command had sent in Jiis pasteboard, than he instantly returned the visit in person ; went over the guard-room of the station ; expressed his great delight ; and gave ihe lieutenant a cordial invitation to dine at the Grange. The first resolution which presented itself to the mind of Envee, on the acquisition of this unexpected acquaintance, was, that the wealthy cit should get him his promotion. He had not, however, been many minutes in the drawing-room of Lady Periwinkle, before he became cognizant of the fact of that majestic dame having herself a son in the navy, and that this young hopeful would prove a perfect absorbent of all the family interest at the admiralty. While deeply deploring in his soul this contre temps, and pondering in vhat other way he could turn to account what he conceived to be the simple nature of the cit, there entered Sir Job's niece, Nora Cnina. .At the first glance, her striking beauty made as deep an impression as anything could do on such a nature, and he soon discovered her to be a gnat favourite with the knight. As there were no bounds either to the vanity or avarice of Envee, he at once determined that Nora should be his wife. No doubt she would have a rich fortune, and be a much more desirable acquisition than mere promotion. From that day for- ward, all his plans were directed to this issue. Nor was he one to frustrate his own schemes by any inadvertent up, any haste, oversight, or ebullition of personal feeling. He soon perceived how much he was detested as a suitor. This merely led him to vow ample re\eu'^e. Neither would he allow his admiration of Noras beauty to lead him into such decided attentions, as might by Tlli: PllKSSfiAXO. 1!) her be considered sutiiciently annoyinj^ for complaint. He saw that he had two foniiidable rivals in Paul Periwinkle and the absent Jack, who was then at sea ; that the former of these was as much formed in person to inspire love, as he himself was to afiFrig'ht it; while Jack, by- all accounts, possessed some charms of form, or mind, or manner, which had kept pace with those of Paul himself. Still his modest self- reliance never forsook him. He trusted to the chapter of accidents. Jack mig-ht be drowned or shot, or both, and Paul might be jockeyed. In the meantime, a better house than the Grange of Berrylea never yet offered for any short-paid officer to play the tame lion in, so he stuck t