"But what brought you to town?" said | frowzy Cerberus, the innocent and child-like Fred, mixing for his uncle a glass of brandy- Chang, the pale, lustrous-eyed Polly, the musical-voiced Estelle, the diabolical Mephistopheles, and the sanguinary Tom. and-water. If "Ah!" sighed Mr. Savage; "it's a long story, Fred. But you shall hear it all, my boy. you had only been as candid with me as I shall be with you, I should not have seen this terrible day. But I won't complain; since you are saved, I won't complain." Mr. Savage paused and looked at his nephew. Certainly Fred was exceedingly handsome. As he stood there, flushed and expectant, he looked like a young Apollo. Mr. Savage looked upon him, and took a long breath of relief. How did he ever escape with such legs? he thought. There was altogether an appetizing look about his nephew that would have tempted a cannibal. "What do you think of a monster that devours human legs?" said Mr. Savage. Fred started, and looked at his uncle in "And a girl with a voice like an angel, that shrieks about somebody being murdered, and leaving her alive-and a devil inside of a bird for a watch-dog-and a room with a trapdoor?" "He's gone mad!" exclaimed Fred, in alarm. "No," said Mr. Savage, "I am not mad, although I've had enough to make me so. Do you doubt the existence of all these things? Go to 219 Blank Street, and you'll find them?" When his uncle mentioned this number and this street, Fred's face shone with a sudden light; a colour flamed into his cheek. 66 Two hundred and nineteen!" he repeated softly. "Yes, 219," replied his uncle. "I've been there to-day." "You?" cried Fred. "And why did you go there? and how did you get in?" Now these were embarrassing questions. Mr. Savage was compelled then to own that he had played the spy. It had a nasty sound about it that jarred upon the old gentleman grievously. But did not the end in this case justify the means? At all events, the story must be told. And told it was, thoroughly and graphically. Mr. Savage, having drunk his brandy-and-water, resting in comfortable security in his arm-chair, with Fred for an auditor, entered into the spirit of the narrative. He described the The old gentleman was so taken up with his story that he failed to notice its effect upon Fred. At first his nephew was inclined to laugh, then to be grave, and at last an expression of vexed perplexity rested upon his face. His uncle waxed impatient with his continued silence. "Do you mean to say, sir," he cried, "that you are indifferent to the horrors I have described? Can you listen unmoved to scenes like these going on in the heart of a Christian community? What do you mean, Fred, by staring in that stupid way! Haven't you been listening to me?" "Ye-es, sir," stammered Fred, collecting his faculties. "I-I am so horrified that I don't know what to say or do. I-I'd like to think it over, sir. Would you mind, Uncle Sol, if I went out for a little walk?" "Now, Fred, my boy," said his uncle, quite satisfied with his nephew's emotion, "don't let the matter excite you too much. By the help of Providence and the guileless simplicity of that Chinese, I have escaped, probably, a fearful death. Heaven knows what crimes have been committed in that house, or how deep the cellars may be with human gore and the bones of their victims. But to-morrow the whole matter shall be thoroughly investigated. To-night I must strive to restore repose to my shattered nerves. Of course, my boy, go out for a walk; the air will do you good. But return early and get to bed, so that we shall be prepared for the morning. As for me, I shall get to bed immediately.' Mr. Savage went to bed, and, what with excitement, fatigue, and brandy-and-water, soon snored lustily. Fred made an elaborate toilet, and then went out. He walked rapidly across town, and reaching Blank Street, stopped at 219. One would scarcely have known the house for the gloomy and repelling mansion of the morning. Lights gleamed from the windows; sounds of revelry and mirth were heard from the first story; the great hall-door was opened wide, leaving the pretty little vestibule, with its lace and curtains, the inviting portal. Fred ran lightly up the steps, and through the vestibule, pausing for a moment at the door of the room on the right. A girlish laugh fell upon his ear, and in a moment a flush of emotion sprang into his face. Then he entered. The scene before him was allur- | I wanted a model. The legs were in Polly's ing. A lofty room, brilliantly lighted, warmly carpetted, tastefully furnished. In its centre a dining-table, upon which, the heavier articles being removed, there rested a dainty repast of fruits and pastries. At one corner gleamed a decanter of wine and some half-filled glasses. At this table sat two charming women and a man. One of the women-a blonde, with lustrous eyes of a deep violet, pale, high brow, and hair of a faint golden colour-went over to Fred, and put out to him a charming hand. The man, of perhaps thirty-five, in a negligent toilet of drab pants and vest, brown velvet coat, and flowing neckerchief, raised high his glass of wine. "A la bonne heure," he cried. "Dinner is over, but Bridget shall fetch you in a plate." The other woman, a girl of perhaps twenty, with eyes like stars, a warm olive skin, and hair falling in thick curls upon a beautiful neck, scarcely arose from her chair; but her eyes were full of a tender and questioning interest. "Come, Fred," said Tom, "have a glass of wine." "No," said Fred, averting his eyes from the beautiful brunette, while a hot flush leaped into his cheek. "Before I ever touch my lips to a morsel in this house again I must have an explanation. Nobody is fonder of a joke than I am. The untrammelled freedom of our lives here has been very pleasant to me; but there is a limit to everything. The dearest person in the world to me, except one, has been exposed to the most agonizing terror and wanton insult in this house to-day. To amuse an idle moment, you have condescended to torture the kindest, the best creature in the world." "Hold there!" said Tom. "Those are hard words. What the deuce do you mean? Be kind enough to explain as you go along." "I have only to say that the old gentleman for whose benefit the comedy was enacted here to-day at two o'clock was my uncle." Tom looked at Polly, Polly looked at Estelle. "I can't make him out," said Tom. "What does he mean?" "Do you deny then," said Fred, "that at two o'clock to-day you put on an old dressinggown and scarlet cap, smeared a streak of red paint over your face, and, throwing a billet of wood down the stairs, called for the leg of a man, well-formed and muscular?" Tom reddened a little. "Of course I don't," he said. "I was in nfounded hurry finishing a picture, and room, and when she's writing you might as well try to arouse the dead. As for my toilet, you'll allow me to choose that for myself, I suppose A man's house is his castle." "But how about Polly and Estelle?" said Fred, his voice softening. "Why in the world did Polly declare to Estelle that she had murdered a man, and was heart-broken about it?" 'Oh, Fred, you goose!" said Polly. "I was in the very height of my novel, when they declared I must kill my hero to make an effect. Just fancy how wretchedly I felt about it. I only went in where Estelle was studying her part to get a little consolation from her." Estelle started; a look of half amusement and half vexation stole over her face. "You don't mean to say, Fred, you heard me practising for the rehearsal to-morrow?" "I didn't," said Fred; "but my uncle did. He was in the closet yonder." "The insane gentleman!" burst from the lips of the three. "We thought he was a lunatic, and shut him up in the room until we could make some inquiries about him. Half an hour after he was gone. How the deuce did he get out?" "Then it was not a joke upon the old gentleman? I thought you couldn't be capable of such cruelty. I beg your pardon, Tom; you know I never intrude upon you in the middle of the day, and I thought you had got the whole thing up as a joke." "A joke!" repeated Tom. "By Jove! he frightened us as much as we did him. We thought he was a maniac. How the deuce did he get out?" How did he get in?" said Polly. "Surely Bridget did not" My "No, indeed," said Fred; "she even refused a five-dollar gold piece; you must have hired something new in the way of a servant. uncle described a mild-eyed melancholy creature, with a yellow skin, and long, narrow eyes" Ah!" said Polly. "That heathen Chinee,'" sighed Tom. 'My uncle came to my lodgings more dead than alive." "Poor old boy! How the deuce did you manage it?" "I didn't manage it at all; I thought first I'd come down here and see you." "I don't suppose he'll take to us now," said Tom. "I'm afraid it's all up with you and Estelle." "If I thought that," said Fred, "I'd go out and shoot myself." Estelle moved a little nearer to him, and put her hand softly upon nis, as it lay on the table. Fred grasped it fervently. "You'll be faithful to me," he said; "faithful and fond, even if my uncle does prove a little obdurate?" "Of course she will," said Polly. "Come, Fred, cheer up. Tom, don't get stupid. Where's the use in having genius if we can't tide over a little scrape of this kind? Come, let's consult together." "I tell you what," said Tom, casting a look of genuine admiration upon his wife, "if Polly takes the matter in hand it's all right.' And it was all right. Next morning Pollythat is, Mrs. Ingoldsby-was introduced to Mr. Savage, and explained to him all that had appeared to him so diabolical. Her laments were for the hero of her novel, whom she had been obliged to kill by order of her publisher, to create a "sensation." Estelle's fearful exclamation "Murdered! Dead! And I alive!" -was only the climax of the new play which she had been rehearsing; and the leg which Tom Ingoldsby had so savagely demanded, was nothing more than a model he required for his picture. Who can describe the emotions of Mr. Savage when he again entered 219? Who can depict the rapture of Fred, the amusement of Tom, the delight of Polly, the joy of Estelle, the rage of Toffy, the amazement of Bridget, and the mild abstraction of Chang? Estelle did not go upon the stage. She and Fred were married in the fall. Tom liked the lakes and mountains so well that he took the whole family down on a visit to Mr. Savage to get some sketches. But of all the Bohemian household Mr. Savage's favourite was Polly. MRS. FRANK M'CARTHY. APOLLO'S SONG OF DAPHNE. My Daphne's hair is twisted gold, My Daphne's brow enthrones the graces, JOHN LYLY (1592). WRITTEN IN THE HIGHLANDS OF. Blue was the loch, the clouds were gone, The legend on the stone was read. The fairy-isles fled far away; Night fell; and dark and darker grew The shatter'd fortress, whence the Dane The prow wakes splendour; and the oar, Glad sign, and sure! for now we hail Oh blest retreat and sacred too! Oft, like some loved romantic tale, SAMUEL ROGERS. A BREACH OF DISCIPLINE. BY THE OLD SAILOR. During the long war beween England and France, which terminated in the abdication of Bonaparte and his retreat to Elba, it is well known that at various times most of the Continental powers were compelled by Napoleon and the presence of a French army to enter into an alliance with the emperor, and to assist him in his career of ambition. The merchant-ships, several hundred in number, with their white sails expanded and covering a space of six or seven miles, were led by a ship of the line, carrying the commodore's flag, ahead of which none dared advance. On each side of the fleet, at intervals, were frigates, sloops, and gun-brigs, to defend the merchantvessels and keep them within bounds; and the rear was protected by other frigates and brigs, which were also occasionally employed in tak ing the dull sailers in tow, and, with every stitch of canvas set, dragging them up into the body of the fleet. Close to the shore the enemy's gun-boats and well-manned armed vessels could be seen rowing along, and ready to take advantage of any shift of wind that might force a straggler within a probable distance of being captured, when they would boldly dart upon their prey, and, in spite of every exertion on the part of the British menof-war, were not unfrequently successful. If the wind died away and a calm ensued, the long guns seldom failed of doing considerable execution; and the rapidity with which they shifted their stations, and the smallness of the object they offered for a mark, generally enabled them to escape with impunity from a fire in return. On the land strong detach ments of horse-artillery kept parallel with the gun-vessels, ready to repel any attack which might be made by the boats of the men-ofwar, supported by the armed brigs of a light draught of water. In the northern parts of Europe this influence would have been ruinous to British com-gun-boats were particularly active, for their merce but for the gallant services of our navy and the daring prowess of our seamen; for one look at the map will show the utter impossibility there is for ships to proceed to the ports of the Baltic except through the very heart, as it were, of the kingdom of Denmark. With Russia and Sweden we were at peace, but with Denmark we were at war; and thus the market in Russia must have been closed against British produce (excepting that which was conveyed overland from Gottenburg to Stockholm, and thence by a precarious voyage to the Gulf of Finland), but that the proud flag which Nelson had triumphantly borne before the conquered ships and batteries of Copenhagen still floated in supremacy through every part of the northern seas. Our enemies had the mortification of seeing large fleets, composed of several hundred merchant-ships richly freighted, passing within a short distance of their shores, under the protection of men-of-war, that were constantly employed in convoying them. These ships, arriving from different parts of England, assembled at the general rendezvous in Wingoe Sound on the coast of Sweden, and when a sufficient number were collected, they were formed into divisions, and made their passage through the Cattegat into the Great Belt, where, during the summer, ships of the line and frigates were stationed, at proper distances, to assist the convoys and to guard them over the Baltic Sea into the Gulf of Finland; and perhaps there never was a more interesting and spirit-stirring spectacle than the passage of the fleet through the Great Belt. It was on a lovely day at the commencement of July, 1811, that an English seventy-four stationed off Reefness observed a convoy ap proaching, and, having joined it, proceeded in company through the Great Belt to the south end of Langeland, where she left the convoy with a westerly wind, and trimmed her sails to return to her old station. They gradually receded from each other, till the seventy-four appeared the only ship floating on the smooth waters of the Belt. The weather was extremely beautiful; the cool breeze tempered the atmospheric heat and swelled the sleeping sails; the sun shone in rich splendour; the shore scenery was finely picturesque; and the enemy's armed vessels were slowly returning to their different ports, disappointed in their expectations of a prize. The tall ship glided swiftly along; and on the starboard side of the quarter-deck the captain and the first lieutenant paced to and fro in earnest conversation; many of the officers were walking on the larboard side, whilst the seamen grouped themselves together on the forecastle, sporting their sea-wit and crack- | his boat he audibly whispered, "'Tis the ing their nautical jokes at the expense of packet! be ready, men!" and the utmost the Danish flotilla. Suddenly the lieutenant silence prevailed, broken only by the dashing quitted the side of his chief, and immediately and hissing of the spray as the Danish vessel afterwards the shrill pipe of the boatswain's cut through the yielding waters. mate was heard, followed by his deep, hoarse voice, exclaiming, "Bargemen, away! Pinnacers, away!" In a few minutes the crews of the two boats named were on the quarterdeck, and received orders to hold themselves in readiness for night-duty. The captain of marines was also directed to have a party equipped for the same service, and a few of the best men were selected from the ship's company to complete the expedition. About midnight, when a little to the southward of the track between Nyborg on the island of Fünen and Corsoer on the island of Zealand, the boats, with the addition of a double-banked cutter, put off from the ship under the command of the second lieutenant, who received orders to lie in the course which a vessel going from one town to the other would probably take, and detain every boat he might fall in with. Should nothing present itself that night his boats were to make for the islet in mid-passage, and, lying concealed throughout the day, again to row guard as soon as darkness returned. These orders were punctually obeyed; and, nothing appearing to attract their notice, Lieutenant Montagu at the approach of day: light repaired with his small squadron to the ilet; the boats were carefully concealed, and the men directed not to appear at all where it was possible they might be seen. The ship had continued her course, and no traces of her were visible; the day passed on; the westerly wind prevailed; and, just before sunset, Montagu, by the aid of his glass, discovered several small vessels preparing to quit Nyborg, and one that was larger and better equipped than the others he knew to be the mail-packet. This pleasing intelligence he communicated to his brother-officers and the seamen and marines, and joyful expectation of a rich prize animated all. It was evident that the Danes were unacquainted with the proximity of the boats: the signal-posts had reported the ship to be at anchor off Ramsoe; and thus they indulged in hopes of sending across to Zealand without any danger of capture. Darkness came on; the British boats were extended in a line; and, after two hours of anxiety, Lieutenant Montagu, who occupied the central station, had the satisfaction of seeing a dark object approaching through the twilight gloom, and running down full upon him. As it neared It was known that the packet (a cutter of about thirty tons burden) never went unarmed, and every heart beat high as she came down booming before the wind. Montagu forbore making the preconcerted signal to the other boats, as he was not without a hope of taking the packet by surprise; he therefore placed the barge right in her track, and was not discovered till close under her bows, when, by a judicious movement, he clapped alongside, and boarded with his men. Resistance would have been equally foolish and unavailing; and thus, without a blow being struck, or scarcely any noise being made, he took possession of his prize. To send every one below whilst he shortened sail and brought the cutter to the wind was but the work of a few minutes; and he was soon made sensible by several musketshots that his other boats had been equally on the alert, and were bringing the vessels to. In less than an hour nine market-vessels, laden with goods and every delicacy of the season, and the packet, with passengers and baggage, were captured. But there was also, in a national point of view, a more important seizure made; for so sudden and unexpected had been the attack that the captain had not time to sink the mail, and thus very important despatches, together with an immense number of notes on the bank of Denmark, fell into the hands of the English. Montagu had ordered the marines and three seamen to remain with him on board the cutter, and had sent the barge away to assist his comrades. He then descended to the cabin of the packet, where the passengers in indescribable terror were crowded together, and uttering bitter lamentations. But there was one who attracted his attention more than all the rest, and awakened every generous emotion of his heart. It was a young female of exquisite beauty, apparently about seventeen years of age, but her countenance was that of fixed despair. Her dress was elegant, though somewhat soiled and negligently put on; and at her feet lay a female domestic giving way to convulsive bursts of anguish. Montagu felt all the soft yearnings of tenderness and compassion stealing through his breast; he gazed in admiration and with pity on his captive; their eyes met, and in an instant she flung herself before him, and clung to his knees. At the first moment the sudden sobbings of |