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115 cc Brittles always was a slow boy, ma’am,”’ replied the attendant. And seeing, by-the-by, that Brittles had been a slow boy for upwards of thirty years, there appeared no great probability of his ever being a fast one. “He gets worse instead of better, I think,” said the elder lady. ) “Tt is very inexcusable in him if h stops to play with any other boys,” said the young lady, smiling. r. Giles was apparently eee the propriety of indulging in a respectfu smile himself, when a gig drove up to the garden-gate, out of which there jumped a fat gentleman, who ran straight up to the door, and getting quickly into the house by some mysterious process, burst into the room, and nearly overturned Mr. Giles and the breakfast-table together. “T never heard of such a thing!” exclaimed the fat gentleman. " My dear Mrs. Maylie —bless my soul— in the silence of night too—lI never heard of such a thing!” With these expressions of condolence, the fat gentleman shook hands with both ladies, and drawing up a chair, inquired how they found themselves. “You ought to be dead — positively dead with the fright,” said the fat gentleman. “ Why didn’t you send? Bless me, my man should have come in a minute, or I myself and my assistant would have been delighted, or anybody: I’m sure, under such .circumstances; dear, dear — so unexpected — in the silence of izht too !” he doctor seemed especially troubled by the fact of the robbery having been unexpected, and attempted in the night time, as if it were the established custom of gentlemen in the house-breaking way to transact business at noon, and to make an appointment by the twopenny post a day or two previous. “And you, Miss Rose,” said the doctor, turning to the young lady, §1——" “Oh! very much so, indeed,” said Rose, interrupting him; “ but there is a poor creature up stairs whom aunt wishes you to see.” “ Ah! to be sure,” replied the doctor, “so there is. That was your handywork, Giles, Í understand.” Mr. Giles, who had been feverishly putting the tea-cups to rights, blushed very red, and said that he had had that honour. c Honour, eh?” said the doctor; “ well, I don’t know, perhaps it’s as honourable to hit a thief in a back kitchen, as to hit our man at twelve paces. Fancy that he fired in the air, and you’ve fought a duel, Giles.” | Mr. Giles, who thought this light treatment of the matter an unjust attempt at diminishing his glory, answered respectfully, that it was not for the like of him to judge about that, but he rather though: it was no joke to the opposite party. “Gad, that’s true!” said the doctor. c Where is he? Show me the way. I'll look in again as | come down, Mrs. Maylie. That’s the little window that he got in at, eh? . Well, I couldn’t have lieved it.” Talking all the way, he followed Mr. Giles up stairs; and while he is going up stairs the reader may be in- — formed, that Mr. Losberne, a surgeon, in the neighbourhood, known through a circuit of ten miles round as "the doctor,” had grown fat more from good humour than from good living, and was as kind and hearty, and withal as eécentric an old bachelor as will bé found in five times that space by any explorer alive. — The doctor was absent much longer than either he or the ladies had anticipated. A large flat box was fetched out of the gig, and a bed-room bell was very often, and the servants ran up and down stairs perpetually, from which tokens it was justly concluded that something important was going on above. At length he returned; and in reply to an anxious inquiry after his patient, looked agy mysterious, and closed the door carey. “This is a very extraordinary thin Mrs. Maylie," said the doctor,” sanding eszet his back to the door as if to keep it ut. “He is not in danger, I hope?” said the old lady." “ Why, that would not be an extraordinary thing, under the circumstances,” replied the doctor, “though I don’t think he is. Have you seen this thief?” No," rejoined the old lady. “ ag heard anything about him ?” 66 No.” “IT beg your pardon, ma’am,” interposed Mr. Giles; “but I was going to tell you about him when Doctor Losberne came in.” The fact was, that Mr. Giles had not at first been able to bring his mind to the avowal that he had only shot a boy. Such commendations had been bestowed upon his bravery, that he could not for the life of him Melb postponing the explanation for a few delicious minutes,
