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..0.,UR ‘MUTUAL FRIEND:
' "- I see fem together, TI’otherest Governor, on the ve
day when‘GaEer was towed ashore.’T, .. , I s I
Bradley could have hidden a. reserved piecevof infor-
mation from the sharp eyes of a whole inquisitive class,
' but he couldInot veil from the eyes of the. ignorant Ri-
derhoodrthe withheld question next in his breast. . “ You
shall put it plain if you Want it answered," thought the
Rogue, doggedly ; , " I ain’t a-going a wolunteering.” 1
“ ‘Vell l, was he insolent to her too?” asked Bradley
after a struggle. ‘,‘Or, did he makefa shounof :being
kiYld,i30,l1el'.?,’4’..":: ‘I’ ’; (2 I, , .. r:, .I.3 -
‘g‘ He made a- show of , being most uncommon kind to
hex-,”,said Riderhood. ' ‘f By George I now I-’.’ I .
‘ His iiyingoff at a tangent was indisputably natural.
Bradley, looked at him for the reasonn; I -I I I I, .
“ Now I think of it,” said ‘Mr. Riderhood, evasively,‘
for he was substituting the words for, “ Now I see ‘you
so jealous,”.which.wasIthe phrase really in( his Jnind;
“ P’:-’aps he went and took me down wrong, a purpose,‘
on account 0’ being sweet;upon her I ”. ,. . . -
The basenessof confirming him. in this .suspicion .01‘.
pretence of one (for he could not have really entertained
‘it),‘was a liue’s breadth;beyond thernark the schoolmas-
ter had reached. ' The baseness of -communing and in‘-
triguing:with the fellow,whowouldhave set that stain
upon her, and upon her brother. too, was attained. ,,The
lines breadth further, lay b,eyond.. Hcinade no reply,
but walked on-withlmvering face. E ; I .I '
VVhat he might gain by this acquaintance,,heIcou.ld
not workout in his slowand cumbrous thoughts. .;.The
man had. aninjury against ..thei object of his hatred, and
that was something; though,it.was lessthan he>sup-
posed, for there dwelt in the man.’ nosuchadeadly rage
and resentment as burned inhis own breast. The. man
knew her. and-might by a‘ fortunate,cbance -see her, or.
hear of her ; that was something,‘ as enlisting onepair of.
eyes and ears the more. - The‘rnan was a bad‘man',land
willing enough to be.in his. pay. ; 'I‘.hat,'.Was something,
for his own state and purpose ,)vas: as bad as bad’-‘could
be, and he seemed to derive a vague support from the
possession of a congenial.instrumen,t;7though it:rnight
tneverbe used...w-I‘.:..i.' :'.'::s .-rim .::I., .1. '
Suddenly he stood still, and asked.Riderho0d point-
blank if he know where she Was‘). ,' Clearly, he :did not.
know. I He asked Riderhood if:heI would be willing, in
case anyintelligence ofher,-or of :VVrayburn as seeking
her or associating .with;her, should fa1lIin his .way, to
communicate it if it were paid for? . He would be very
-willing indeed: , He was ‘.‘ agiu.’em both,’.’.ho said with.
an oath, and for why? .’Cause they l111(l1l)0tl1ISt00(l bo-
1t)wixt him and his getting his living by. the sweat of his
row.I.=; I ‘.
“It will not be long then,” said Bradley Headstone,-
nfter some more ‘discourse to this effect, “ before we see
one another again. Here is the country road, and hero’
18 the day. - Both have come upon me by surprise.".
“But, .T’,otherest Governor,” ged Mr. Ridcrhood,‘
"I don’t know where to find you." .I I. ?IIm
’ “ It is 'of no consequence, I know Iwhere to ‘find you,
and I'll come toyour Lock.’.’ I I; .1 II ‘
“ But,. T’othorest Governor,” urged Mr. Riderhood
again, "no luck never 'con1'e yet of.a dry acquaintance.
Let’s wet it, in a mouthful of rum and milk, 'I"otherest
Governor.” 5 V I .:I I‘ ...' . . I .
Bradley assenting, went with him into an early public-
house, haunted by unsavoury smells of musty hay and
Stale straw, where returning carts, farmers’ men, gaunt
dpgs, fowls of a beery breed,‘ and certain human night-
brrds fluttering home to roost, were solacing themselves
after their several manners ;’and where not one of Itlre
1
Wligbtbirds hovering about the sloppy. bar failed to discern
at a glancein the passion-wasted -nightbird with the‘ re-
spectable feathers, the worst nighthird of all. ‘ '
fhl inspiration of adectiou for a half-drunken carter
gfllng his way led to Mr. Riderhood’s being elevated on a.
lllgh heap of baskets. on a Waggon, and pursuing. his
Journey recumbent on hisback with his head on his bun-
dle. Brzrdlev then turned"to retrace his steps, and by-‘
‘"1 -l)y,struck off through little traversed ways, and ‘by-
and-by reached school and’ home. Up cametlre sun to
WI him washed and -brushed, methodically. dressed in
, -decentgblack coat and waistcoat, decent formal blackgtie,
and pepper-and-salt pantaloons, with his decent silver
watch in his pocket, and its decent hair-guard round his
neck ; a scholastic huntsman clad for the field, with his
fresh pack yelping and barking around him.‘ - 2 ‘
Yet more really bewitched than the miserable creatures .
of the much-lamented times, who accused themselves of
irnpossibilities under a contagion of horror and ‘the
' strongly suggestive influences of Torture, he had been
ridden hard by Evil Spirits in the night that was newly
gone. He had been spurred and whipped and heavily
sweated. ‘ If a record of the sport had usurped the places
of thevpeaceful texts from Scripture on the wall, the
most advanced of the scholars might have taken fright
and run away from the master. ‘
CHAPTER XII.
rlfeaning Mischief.
UP came the sun, streaming all over London, and in,
its glorious impartiality even condescending to make pris-
maticsparkles in the whiskers of Mr. Alfred Larnmle
as he sat at breakfast. In need of some brightening
from without, was Mr. Alfred Lammle, for he had the
air of being dull enough within, and looked grievously
discontented. I 'I I ’ I ' II I I ' '
Mrs. Alfred Lammlo faced her lord.‘ The happy pair of
swindlers,’ with the comfortable tie between them that
each had swindled the other,‘sat moodily observant of
the table-cloth. "Things looked so gloomy in the break-
fast room, albeit on the sunny ‘side of Sackville Street,
that any of the family tradespeople glancing through the
blinds might have takenthe hint to send in his account
and press for it.‘. I But this, indeed, most’ of- the‘ family
tradespeople had already done without the hint. ‘ " '
‘f It seems to me,’.’ said Mrs. Lammlc, “ that you have
had no money at all,’ ever since we have been married.”
‘f.“’lrat seems to you,” said Mr. Lnmmle, “to have-
been the case, may possibly have been the case. ‘It doesn’t’
matter.’-’ . "I . - I -
W'as it the specialty of Mr. and Mrs. Lammle, or does
it ever obtain with other loving couples? I In these mat--
1-irnonial dialogues they never addressed each other, but
always. some invisible presence that appeared to take a
station about midway between them. Perhaps the skele-
ton in the cupboard comes out to be talked to, on such
domestic occasions? I 9 ' ‘ '
“ I have never seen any money in the house,” said Mrs.
Lamnrloto the skeleton, “ except my own annuity. That
I swear.” ' ' ‘ ‘ ’
> “ You ncedn’t take the trouble of swearing," said Mr.
Lammlo to the skeleton ; “ once more, it doesn't matter.
You never turned your annuity to so good an account." ’
.“ Good on account I In what way?” asked Mrs. Lanrmle.
5‘ In the way of getting credit, and living well,” said
Mr. Lamrnlc. I 7 ' . ' ‘ ‘
Perhaps the skeleton laughed scomfully on being in-
trusted with this question and this answer ; certainly
Mrs. Lammlo did, and Mr. Lanunle did.” -' ‘ ‘ ‘
“ And what is to happen next?” asked Mrs. Larnmlc of
the skeleton. . ‘ ‘ '
‘.‘ Smash is to happen next,” said‘Mr. Lrurimle to the
II same authority. .
After this, Mrs. Lamrnle looked disdainfully at the
skeleton-but without carrying the look on to Mr. Lam-
mle-and drooped her eyes. After that Mr. Larnmle, did
exactly the same thing, and drooped Iris eyes: A‘servant
then entering with toast, the skeleton retired into the
closet, and shut itself up. ’ ‘ ' ‘ " -
“ Sophronia,” said Mr. Lannnlo when the servant had
withdrawn. And then, very much louder: “ Sophro-
uia!” ’ ' ' - ‘
“Well?" ' " ‘V j " '
“ Attend to me, if you please.” Ile eyed her stcrnly
until she did attend, and then went on. “. Iwvant toitakc
counsel with you. Come, come : no more trifling. ion
know our league and covenant. “e are to work to-
gether for our jointinterest, and you are as knowing a .
hand 1151 am. ‘Va shouldn't be together, if youwvcre
not. What's to be done? We are hemmed into’ a cor-
ncr. “'hat shall we do?” ‘ ' ’ ' ‘ - '
513 A