netrating keenness, as if manifesting a determination to bring the contest to an issue before the police could interfere. There was a sternness in their looks, as their swords crossed and blade clashed against blade, plainly showing that each had made himself up for mischief. Thus they watched with eager intent, when the marquis made a feint to throw the count off his guard; but it failed, and the latter, taking immediate advantage of it, would have run his gigantic adversary through the body, but his foot slipping, the point of his sword passed into the fleshy part of the marquis's thigh. The Italian, with a de. moniac grin, shortened in his weapon to give Lamont the coup de mort' but, in less than an instant-for it passed like a flash of lightning,-the Frenchman had disengaged himself-not by springing back, but by boldly rushing in to his man, and tearing away his sword by sheer muscular power as he darted behind him. Still he did not escape without hurt, for the marquis was not to be foiled; although, happily, as I scarcely need tell you, the wound was not mortal, and was instantly repaid by a lunge in the abdomen before the Italian could recover his guard. In fact, I never saw anything performed with more intrepidity and cleverness in my life.

"At this moment the door was burst in the gendarmes ran between and separated the opponents: we were all disarmed, and they were about to convey us away into safe custody, when the stranger who had officiated for the marquis took the serjeant aside, and in a few minutes O'Brien and myself were released upon our parole d'honneur to appear the next day. The marquis and the count had their wounds dressed, and, under the immediate surveillance of the gendarmes, were conveyed to separate apartments; the whole being arranged by the stranger, who, O'Brien subsequently discovered, by the medium of his uncle, was a chief agent of police under Fouché, who had instructed him to follow us from M. Talleyrand's, and in the Chief Consul's name, to order the marquis to quit the French territory within twenty four hours. The agent, however, had received no directions to prevent their fighting, and, being a Corsican, had aided the marquis.

"What further transpired I cannot tell you, as we heard no more of the matter; but if you are curious to ascertain, I make no doubt the Citizen Captain will afford you every information; and here he is to satisfy you."

The Frenchman advanced with a polite bow, and was addressed by his lordship," I was just relating to my young friend here, the cause of our first interview, monsieur."

"Ha! ha! c'était une affaire très-drôle, milord," replied he, shrugging his shoulders and laughing.

44

And how did it terminate, monsieur ?" inquired Lord Eustace, “I quitted Paris a day or two afterwards."

"De

"Oh, 'twas mere noting, milord," answered the Frenchman. marquis was blessé to confine to his lit,-vat you call couch,-no bed, -ah, bed, more for one mont, and den he marchez sans tambour for Italye;-moi, seulement tree week; den I ravish des dames wid ma galanterie, and come for my fregate: malheureusement pour moi! never sall be my fregate again!" and he sighed heavily.

Nugent," said his lordship, "send down to Mr. Plumstone to go round the decks with a guard, and see that the prisoners are all secure. There must be a picquet kept up throughout the night."

“Ay, ay, my lord!" responded the lieutenant; and calling to the

quarter-master, he directed him to request the marine officer's presence upon deck, where the captain's orders were repeated, and punctually obeyed.

Along the mess-berths were ranged the watch below, intermingled with nearly four times the number of men who had so lately fought against them, and who were now receiving a rough but brotherly attention. It is true that here and there Jack eyed his new messmate with a look that indicated suspicion or dislike; nor, if physiognomy is to be considered an index to human passions, were those feelings unmerited, for certainly there were some villanous countenances to be seen amongst the prisoners. The conversations were carried on in a jargon as barbarous and confused as that which terminated the building of Babel; for the French tried to speak English, and the English-not to be be hindhand in good feeling-tried to talk French; whilst at intervals some pretender to both languages would attempt a translation, and thereby make matters ten times worse.

On the old spot, just before the foremast on the forecastle, enjoying the delightful freshness of the evening, were assembled the inveterate yarn-spinners, with a pretty numerous auditory collected round them. But each of the petty officers now had his cutlass by his side and a brace of pistols in his belt by way of precaution, and the look-out men were well armed. At the weather cat-head was our old acquaintance Joe Nighthead, parading with a ship's musket over his shoulder, exposed to the jibes of his messmates, who inquired "when he had last seen Corporal Stunt." Joe, however, took it all with perfect goodhumor, stuck to his text about "King Herod," and wished he was ashore going a-shooting."

"Ah, you looks like a sporting character!" said Bob Martingal; "but I'm blow'd if I thinks you could hit a hare-unless you fired at a wig."

"I remembers, some years ago," said the captain of the forecastle, "having a prime bit o' fun in the sporting way. I was a fore-topman in the Plover sloop-of-war as was fitting in Portsmouth harbor, and had charge of the jolly boat. So, one day the purser axes me whether I'd go with him and the master out a-shooting, just to carry the game and some grub;—I supposes they meant me for a pointer. So, in course, messmates, I says Yes,' and away we started; them with a long gun each, and I with powder and shot, and a bread-bag with some biscuit, a piece of beef, and a full bottle of rum. Now, messmates, thinks I, 'Where the devil's the use of going a-sporting without dogs?' and so, going through Oyster-street, I sees a bandy-leg cur as come waddling and barking out of a barber's shop, and I chirps to him like a bird, and throws him a bit of beef, and I'm blessed if he didn't follow me as nat❜ral as a child would its daddy, and so I christens him 'Beauty;' and he twinkles his daylights and wags his outrigger abaft, as had ounly a short stump left; and I gives him another piece of beef, and he joins company just as rational as anybody else as was hungry. Presently afterwards I falls in with a larger hanimal as was caulking under the lee of a butcher's shamble;-I thinks he was what they calls the bull breed,-but he was blind of one eye, and precious fine in his scantling, seeing as he showed his ribs through 'em. So I pitches him a piece of beef: for says I to myself, It 's best to have a pair on 'em, seeing as mayhap we may go a-hunting afore we gets into port again,'-for, shipmates, as all on you knows, there's never such a thing

as telling what may turn up when onest you 're in chase. So, as I said, I pitches him a lump of beef, and Yo-hoy!' says I, will you haul your wind and go along wi' me? So he picks up the beef, and winks his one eye at me, as much as to say, Don't let my master know, and I'll be under your starn in a minute. All's well and good,' says I, ' and there's no more about it.' So I christens him 'Boney,' and coaxes and pats him; and away he dropt into my wake alongside o' Beauty, just as nat❜ral as life.

messmates, as we went sailing First, there was Muster Gun

"And a pretty fleet there was of us, along all ship-shape, in three divisions. ter, the master, reg'ler Dutch build, weighing about eighteen stone, and as full of blubber as a sparmacity. By his side was Muster Stork, the purser, as fat as a match, and his legs swelled as thick as tobacco. pipes: he was nearly a fathom in length, and he looked for all the world as if his mother had stretched him out like a thread-paper that his figure might keep tally with his name. These two, with their guns over their shoulders, formed the wan division. Then there was me, Bill Thompson, made the centre division; and the two hanimals, Boney and Beauty, brought up the rear. So away we goes into the fields, where I hadn't been for many a long day-no, not since I was a younker and went birds'-nesting. Howsomever, away we went, and every now and then the guns went bang! but we couldn't never see no game whatsomever to pick up; so I sarches along in the dykes, and the dogs follows me; and, being out of sight of the officers, I sarves out the rum in fair drams atwixt myself and the hanimals, seeing as we had most of the work to do."

"You don't mean to say, Bill, that you gave the dogs the rum ?" said the sergeant of marines, who stood leaning against the mast.

"But I do, though!" responded Bill somewhat angrily. "Do you think I'd cheat a messmate? for I baled 'em out full measures, and axed 'em to take it, and if they wouldn't, why then in good right as belonging to the same mess, it was mine; and so every time as I took a nip myself, in course I sarved it out to them. I defy any messmate as ever I had, to say I ever wronged him!"

"I'm satisfied, Bill," said the sergeant of marines, laughing; "such messmates, when they pipe to grog, would be convenient every day.— But go on my boy!"

"Well, shipmates," continued Bill, "d- the thing could we find, though both the purser and master swore they'd hit every thing they'd fired at; and, being cowld, I got behind a haystack with the hanimals, and fell foul of the beef and bread, whilst the officers were sarching 'for hares, and rabbits, and pheasants, and ducks, and partridges; and a precious lot on 'em they shot, ounly the creatures couldn't be found. At last the grub was all gone, and we'd emptied the bottle; so I made convenient to drop the bag as we were crossing some stubble to join the rest of the fleet; and then I got a blowing-up for my carelessness, and they swore I was drunk,-as if one bottle of rum was likely to tosticate three on us. But they were cowld and hungry, and so we bore up for a snug village; where we got into a capital roadstead, and the master ordered a fresh supply of provisions,-eggs and bacon, and roast pork, with a glorious mixing of hot flip and ale, and brandy pawney. So the officers dines by theirsels, in course, in one room; and we-that's me, and Boney, and Beauty-pipes to dinner in another and so I makes each on 'em sit up at table all messmate-like, and sarves out the grub

reg'lar fair and square, and offers 'em the suction as I did afore, and, as they wouldn't stow it away, I was compelled to take their share and my own too. And a jovial time we had of it! we lived like fightingcocks, and Boney wink'd his one eye, and Beauty wagged his stump as I drank Better times to us!' and the lubbers in the galley laughed, and there was precious shindy.

"Arter a good tuck-out, and hoisting in a proper allowance o' strong flip, the master would go out and try his luck with the gun again; so away we went; and I'm blessed if I didn't see plenty of game,-for every sparrow looked to me as big as a turkey-cock; but somehow or other, they all got away. At last says Muster Gunter, says he, Hould on, Thompson; there's a fine hare!' And sure enough there was someut upon a ridge near the middle of the field as looked werry much like it ; though Muster Stork, who was more aloft than we, swore it was no such thing. Howsomever the master would let fly at it, and sartenly he knock. ed it over between the ridges dead enough; but whilst we were going towards the place we hears the terriblest rumpus behind, and I 'm blessed if there warn't a bull coming up astarn within a few fathoms of us! his spanker-boom rigged straight out abaft, and his bow-chasers pointed towards ould Muster Gunter. Run, master, run!' shouts the purser, make sail away, and trusting to the length of his heels. Run, your honor!' says I, or else I'm d- if he don't mean boarding on you!' And so the ould man starts, and carries on a taut press; and I tries by sending a shot at the hanimal to draw him off the chase. Well, he hauls his wind for an instant; but, seeing there wur three on us in the centre and rear division, he ups stick again, and cracks on arter the master, who luckily had got a start through the diversion I had made, and reached the hedge leading into the next field; but he couldn't get through, for the passage was choked by one of them yarn-winch stiles and he got jammed hard and fast in the middle of it just as the bull was coming to close quarters.

"Hurrah, messmates!' says I to the two dogs. 'Hurrah, Boney! hurrah, Beauty! bear down to the rescue!' And so off we set, the hanimals understanding me all the same as natʼral-born Christens; so that just as the bull was going to sky Muster Gunter up like a ha'penny for heads or tails, Boney seizes him by the nose and pins him down, whilst beauty catches hould of his neck. And that's my darlings!' says I; they're reg'lar hunters; nothing comes amiss to 'em, from a cockroach to a buffalo!' Well, shipmates, at that very momentum,— the master stuck hard and fast, and the bull repelling the boarding-party,-up comes a gang of liberty-boys from the ould Rattlesnake, as was lying next hulk to ours, who had come out for a country-cruise, and we soon drove the bull off, with the help of Boney and Beauty; and having got the master out of limbo by rousing down the stancheon, we look'd out for the purser; but, like the game they 'd shot, he warn't nowhere to be seen, till at last we diskivered a pair of heels sticking out of a hedge, and I'm blowed if they warn't Muster Stork's ! He'd taken a run to jump over, thinking the hanimal's horns were in his starn; had made a bit of a slip, and come down head-foremost on the top of the hedge, burying his head and shoulders in the bushes, and jamming his arms like Jackson so as he had no manner o' use on 'em; and there he stuck, with his legs spread out, looking for all the world like the letter Y, or more like the Shears beacon in the Swin.-Well, arter a good deal o' trouble and man-handling we roused him out o' that, and set him on eend all ataunto, except his figure-head, which had got d-ly

mauled amongst the brambles. But the master would go for the hare he had shot, and so we all made sail along with him to the place; and when we got there, he lifts it up from atwixt the ridges and what do you think it was, shipmates? Well, then, I'm blowed if it warn't the bread-bag as I'd dropped there afore dinner! and the shot had knocked the rum-bottle all to shivers, so that me and my messmates were saved from blame in regard of the stuff being gone.'

A general laugh followed this announcement, which brought a command from the quarter-deck for "less noise, and a better look-out on the fokstle!"

"Well, shipmates," continued Bill, as soon as the usual "Ay, ay, my lord!" had been given, " away we sherried with the master's hare, shaping our course for the public-house; and if we didn't have a jovial sheave-o for the rest of the day, then nobody never had a jovial sheave-o in their lives: and Boney and Beauty were treated to the best the place could afford, and if they 're alive now, they arn't forgot no more nor me, the day we went out a-shooting."

THE THREE DAMSELS.

THREE damsels looked down from the castle tower
That frowned o'er the winding vale,

Where, borne on his steed of matchless breed,

Rode their sire in knightly mail.

"And welcome, Sir Father! and welcome," they cried,
"To thy daughters, who long for thy coming have sighed !
Oh, say, what gifts dost thou bring?"

"On thee thy fond father hath thought to-day,
My fair girl in yellow drest;

For dear to thy heart is the toilet's art,

And jewels and gems please thee best.
So take thou this chain of ruddy gold;
I won it in fight from a gallant bold,

And that gallant bold I slew!"

The damsel hath flung that glittering chain

Her swan-like neck around;

And she sought out the spot where the gallant slain

All drenched in his gore she found.

Oh, shame, that a knight like a knave should lie

The scorn and the scoff of each vulgar eye!

Hath my loved one no resting-place ?"

And his ghastly corse in her arms she bore
To the ground that the priests had blest;

And she murmured a prayer as she laid him there
In the tomb where her fathers rest.

And close round her neck the chain she drew
Till the last breath of life from her bosom flew,

And she slumbered by him she loved!

Two damsels looked down from the castle tower
That frowned o'er the winding vale,

Where, borne on his steed of matchless breed,
Rode their sire in knightly mail.

"And welcome, Sir Father! and welcome," they cried,
"To thy daughters, who long for thy coming have sighed !
Oh, say, what gifts dost thou bring ?"