Cadiz, or Cairo, or Castellamare; and all the men within earshot wished they were Lord Scamperdown, and could follow his Lordship's noble example. Foodles, too, of the "Reform," who had failed the previous week for something over the respectable sum of £200,000, committed suicide. The "intelligent British Jury," who ought to have known all about it, found as their verdict that Foodles had committed the rash act in aberration of mind, occasioned by miasmatic vapours acting upon an excitable temperament,” and would have separated, quite happy at having thus secured Christian burial for Foodles (who, between ourselves, was the most stony-hearted old heathen imaginable), had not the Coroner-whose wife had just presented him (for the second time) with twins, both of whom were doing well, and who lived near the Lambeth Potteriesremarked, in a hollow voice, that "he hoped he might not himself be the next victim to a combination of fog and coal-smoke." That was a very unpleasant observation to make, and so the Jury felt it.

Gradually the chilly, searching wind increased in force, and as it did so, it drove the fog-which, white on the Essex marshes, had become black as ink in London-up the river, involving town after town,

and village after village, in its sooty folds, so that, as evening fell over Hampton, the fog was almost as thick there as it had been in London at midday.

A train was due at the Molesey Station at five o'clock; but there were several detentions upon the line, and a long one (of course) at Clapham Junction, and the Palace clock had chimed out a quarter to seven upon the darkness, when a fly, heavily loaded with luggage, drove up through the mean barrack court, to the stately principal entrance of the magnificent dwelling erected by Cardinal Wolsey in the plenitude of his wealth and power. A single gaslight flickered above the gateway as the vehicle stopped, and illumined the cloaked figure of Jack Watchet, a smart young soldier of the 29th Lancers, who stood sentry at the entrance.

"Some old cat out late!" This was the first irreverent thought which occurred to Jack's mind as he stood in the conventional attitude of military respect, when, to his surprise and delight, a young lady-without waiting for the slow old coachman to disencumber himself of his numerous wrapsopened the fly door herself before he had time to offer his assistance, and springing out, followed by a beautiful spaniel, confronted him on the pavement.

Can you be so kind as to direct me to Miss Manwaring's set of apartments in the Palace?" asked the young lady in a clear, musical voice.

"It minded me of a mavish," said Jack-who was a Norfolk man, and had loved to hear the throstles singing in the leafy lanes of his native county— when describing the incident in bed that night to his particular chum and comrade, Tom Wakefield. On the present occasion he answered-"Don't know the name, Miss; but I will soon see;" and so saying, the young soldier, who felt as if a ray of sunshine had burst through the fog and darkness, turned from the side into the central arch of the grand old Tudor gateway, where, by the uncertain light of a still dimmer lamp than that which flickered outside, he looked down the list of the names of those ladies and gentlemen who, by the grace and favour of our Sovereign Lady the Queen, enjoyed the privilege of occupying apartments in her Royal Palace of Hampton Court. No name of Manwaring, however, appeared upon the list.

"The rooms I am in search of," said the young lady, "were those lately occupied by Lady Glengriskin;" and then Jack pointed out the following inscription :

FOUNTAIN COURT.

Staircase. Number Ten.

GROUND FLOOR.

Lady Lavinia Gathercole.
Admiral Grogrum, C.B.

SECOND FLOOR.

Miss Strong.
Lady Glengriskin.

THIRD FLOOR.

Hon. and Rev. Orlando fforester.

Gen. Sir T. Blazer Brown, K.C.B.

"Thank you very much," said the young lady; "I am afraid I am giving you a great deal of trouble; but now, can you tell me where I can find any one to help the driver to carry my boxes upstairs?"

"Very sorry I can't go myself, Miss," answered Jack, hastily, and looking as if he was sorry; "but I'm going off sentry in a minute or two, and there's an odd man about the canteen who does jobs for the quality in the Palace, and I'll send him to you in a jiffey."

In fact, while he was speaking, the clank of arms was heard, and the relief appeared through the fog, who, leaving another man in his place, bore back with them Jack Watchet to the barracks, while the young lady, whose name the reader, from the

heading of this chapter, and from the inquiries she made, will have rightly conjectured to have been Miss Evelyn Manwaring, remained standing in the cold under the gateway. So true, however, was Jack to his word, that in the specified "jiffey," which in this case was a period of less than five minutes, the "odd man" arrived, and, showing himself thoroughly acquainted with the somewhat labyrinthine topography of the Palace, conducted the lady through the silent and deserted quadrangles and echoing cloisters to the apartments of the late Lady Glengriskin, where she found a single candle guttering upon the drawing-room table, and a wretched apology for a fire glimmering upon the hearth; but her maid, who had preceded her the previous evening, was nowhere to be found.

Nearly half-an-hour elapsed before the driver and the "odd man"-who seemed to regard one another with mutual distrust and abhorrence, and who had several unpleasant differences of opinion upon the staircase had brought up the last of Miss Manwaring's trunks; but at last these worthies, having been abundantly satisfied for their trouble, consented to depart, and the young lady found herself alone. She had, in fact, feared that her two assistants would have broken out into open warfare. Thus