great standing army in pure waste, or for purposes of senseless ambition, a nation must be under the dominion of a king or an oligarchy empowered to take the money of the tax-payers without their consent-such as the kings who ruined France in playing their game of war, or the oligarchy which, reigning in England through the rotten boroughs, dragged us, for its own interests, into the struggle against the French Revolution. The Prussian Chamber would reduce its standing army were it not prevented by the King and the nobility who support him. The Provisional Government of France showed, during its short tenure, a disposition to reduce military expenditure, which would alone have been enough to entitle it to our sympathy and regret. The representatives of the great towns-that is, of the .democratic element in our Parliamentincline the same way. Switzerland is almost without a standing army, though, being encircled by military powers of an aggressive disposition, she is obliged to keep up a highly-trained militia. The republics of antiquity, to which allusion is often made as examples of republican aggressiveness, were not, like the American commonwealth, industrial communities with universal suffrage, but dominant races spurning peaceful industry and supported by slaves. Rome, indeed, even as regarded the dominant race, was no more a republic than Venice; she was an aristocracy conquering the world with a standing army raised by conscription. A really republican government, in truth, is almost devoid of the motives for keeping up a large army, as well as of the power to do it. It has no dynastic objects to promote. If it conquers, it will not, like the Roman aristrocracy, engross the plunder. It rests on the convictions and the free allegiance of the people, and has no

need, like the European despots, of military force to prolong the existence of the obsolete and noxious form of government by a person among nations ripe for rational allegiance to the law.

The saying that the Americans are "fighting for empire" on the present occasion, is one of those careless misrepresentations which become mischievous when uttered by statesmen. They

are fighting only, as any people not reduced by luxury or shop-keeping to the condition of sheep would struggle, for the preservation of their unity as a nation. Whatever desire of territorial aggrandisement may reside in them will find ample vent in the illimitable West, and all the restless enterprise of the more unsettled members of the community, who might otherwise wish to follow the drum, will naturally expend itself in the same direction. It will do so, at least, unless an independent nation is interposed between the populous states of the East and the waste lands of the West; for then the vent might be stopped, and the explosive force (if any) would burst forth in some other direction.

On the other hand a slave power, judging from the historical precedents at which we have glanced, is likely to be warlike. The South, if made independent, would commence its career as a nation with a great number of disbanded soldiers-men, before they were drawn into the army, of loose habits, admirably trained to war, and trained to nothing else. The visions of a vast slave empire in the West cherished by these men are at an end. Thus much at least the Federals have gained for themselves and for humanity in the Mexico appears also to be cut off. Cuba, long coveted, and the West Indies with their negro inhabitants remain.

war.

CHAPTER XVI.

HARRY Frankland's return made a great difference to the tutor, between whom and the heir of the house there existed that vague sense of jealousy and rivalship which was embittered on the part of young Frankland by a certain consciousness of obligation. He was a good-natured fellow enough, and above the meanness of treating unkindly anybody who was in a dependent position; but the circumstances were awkward, and he did not know how to comport himself towards the stranger. "The fellow looks like a gentleman," he said privately in confidence to his mother; "if I had never seen him before we might have got on, you know; but it's a horrible nuisance to feel that you're obliged to a fellow in that kind of position-neither your equal, you know, nor your inferior, nor- What on earth induced the governor to have him here? If it hadn't been for these cheap Scotch universities and stuff, he'd have been a ploughman that one could have given ten pounds to and been done with him. It's a confounded nuisance

having him here."

"Hush, Harry," said Lady Frankland. "He is very nice and very gentlemanly, I think. He used to be very amusing before you came home. Papa, you know, is not entertaining after dinner; and really Mr. Campbell was quite an acquisition, especially to Matty, who can't live without a slave," said the lady of the house, with an indulgent, matronly smile.

"Oh, confound it, why did the governor have him here?" cried the discontented heir. "As for Matty, it appears to me she had better begin to think of doing without slaves," he said moodily, with a cloud on his face; a

up with a quick movement of anxiety, though she still smiled.

"I

"I can't make out either you or Matty," said Lady Frankland. wish you would be either off or on. With such an appearance of indifference as you show to each other usually—"

Oh, indifference, by Jove!" said Harry, breaking in upon his mother's words; and the young man gave a short whistle, and, jumping up abruptly, went off without waiting for any conclusion. Lady Frankland was not in the habit of disturbing herself about things in general. She looked after her son with a serious look, which, however, lasted but a moment. She returned immediately to her placidity and her needlework. "I daresay it will come all right," she said to herself, with serene philosophy, which perhaps accounted for the absence of wrinkles in her comely, middle-aged countenance. Harry, on the contrary, went off in anything but a serene state of mind. It was a foggy day, and the clouds lay very low and heavy over the fen-country, where there was nothing to relieve the dulness of nature. And it was afternoon-the very time of the day when all hopes and attempts at cheering up are over-and dinner was still too far off to throw its genial glow upon the dusky house. There had been nothing going on for a day or two at Wodensbourne. Harry was before his time, and the expected guests had not yet arrived, and the weather was as troublesome and hindersome of every kind of recreation as weather could possibly be. Young Frankland went out in a little fit of impatience, and was met at the hall-door by a mouthful of dense white steaming air, through which even the jovial trees of holly, all glowing with Christmas berries, loomed like two prickly ghosts. He uttered an

the broad stone steps, not quite sure what to do with himself-whether to face the chill misery of the air outside, or to hunt up Matty and Charley, and betake himself to the billiard-room within. But then the tutor-confound the fellow! Just at this moment Harry Frankland heard a laugh, a provoking little peal of silver bells. He had an odd sort of affection-half love, half dislike-for his cousin. But of all Matty's charms, there was none which so tantalized and bewitched him as this laugh, which was generally acknowledged to be charming. "Much there is to laugh about, by Jove!" he muttered to himself, with an angry flush; but he grew grimly furious when he heard her voice.

"You won't give in," said Matty; "the Scotch never will, I know; you are all so dreadfully argumentative and quarrelsome. But you are beaten, though you won't acknowledge it; you know you are. I like talking to you," continued the little witch, dropping her voice a little, "because hush! I thought I heard some one calling me from the house."

"Because why?" said Colin. They were a good way off, behind one of those great holly-trees; but young Frankland, with his quickened ears, discerned in an instant the softness, the tender admiration, the music of the tutor's voice. "By Jove!" said the heir to himself; and then he shouted out, "Matty, look here come here!" in tones as different from those of Colin as discord is from harmony. It did not occur to him that Miss Matty's ear, being perfectly cool and unexcited, was quite able to discriminate between the two voices which thus claimed her regard.

"What do you want?" said Matty. "Don't stand there in the fog like a ghost; if you have anything to say, come here. I am taking my constitutional; one's first duty is the care of one's health," said the wicked little creature, with her ring of laughter; and she turned back again under his very eyes along the terrace without looking

land, the words which escaped from his excited lips were not adapted for publication. If he had been a little less angry he would have joined them, and so made an end of the tutor; but, being furious, and not understanding anything about it, he burst for a moment into profane language, and then went off to the stables, where all the people had a bad time of it until the dressing-bell

rang.

"What a savage he is," said Matty, confidentially. "That is the bore of cousins; they can't bear to see one happy, and yet they won't take the trouble of making themselves agreeable. How nice it used to be down at Kilchurn that summer you remember? And what quantities of poetry you used to write. I suppose Wodensbourne is not congenial to poetry? You have never shown me anything since you came here."

"Poetry is only for one's youth," said Colin; "that is, if you dignify my verses with the name- -for one's extreme youth, when one believes in everything that is impossible; and for Kilchurn, and the Lady's Glen, and the Holy Loch," said the youth, after a pause, with a fervour which disconcerted Matty. "That summer was not summer, but a bit of paradise-and life is real at Wodensbourne."

"I wish you would not speak in riddles," said Miss Matty, who was in the humour to have a little more of this inferred worship. "I should have thought life was a great deal more real at Ramore than here. Here we have luxuries and things-and-and-and books and-" She meant to have implied that the homely life was hard, and to have delicately intimated to Colin the advantage of living under the roof of Sir Thomas Frankland; but, catching his eye at the outset of her sentence, Matty had suddenly perceived her mistake, and broke down in a way most unusual to her. As she floundered, the young man looked at her with a full unhesitating gaze, and an incomprehensible smile.

At

ever attempted before to take the superiority out of her hands, little trifler and fine lady as she was-he had been quite content to lay himself down in the dust and suffer her to march over him in airy triumph. But, while she was only a little tricksy coquette, taking from his imagination all her higher charms, Colin was a true man, a man full of young genius, and faculties a world beyond anything known to Matty; and, when he was roused for the moment, it was so easy for him to confound her paltry pretensions. "Pardon me," he said, with the smile which piqued her, which she did not understand; "I think you mistake. Ramore I was a poor farmer's son, but we had other things to think of than the difference between wealth and poverty. At Ramore we think nothing impossible; but here" said Colin, looking round him with a mixture of contempt and admiration, which Matty could not comprehend. "That, you perceive, was the age of poetry, the age of romance, the golden age," said the young man, with a smile. "The true knight required nothing but his sword, and was more than a match for all kinds of ugly kings and wicked enchanters; but Wodensbourne is prose, hard prose-fine English if you like, and much to be applauded for its style." The tutor ran on, delivering himself up to his fancy. "Not Miltonian, to be sure; more like Macaulay-fine vigorous English, not destitute of appropriate ornament, but still prose, plain prose, Miss Frankland-only prose!"

"It appears to me that you are cross, Mr. Campbell," said Matty, with a little spite; for her young vassal showed signs of enfranchisement when he called her by her name. "You like your rainy loch better than anything else in the world; and you are sorry," said the syren, dropping her voice, "you are even so unkind as to be sorry that you have come here?" "Sometimes, yes," said Colin, suddenly clouding over. "It is true." "Sempre si," said Matty; "though you cannot deny that we freed you from

Thomas after dinner," she went on, with a laugh. "Dear old uncle, why does he snore? So you are really sorry you came? I do so wish you would tell me why. Wodensbourne, at least, is better than Ardmartin," said Miss Matty, with a look of pique. She was rather relieved and yet horribly disappointed at the thought that Colin might perhaps be coming to his senses, in so far as she herself was concerned. It would save him a good deal of embarrassment, it was true, but she was intent upon preventing it all the same.

I will tell you why I am sorry, if you will tell me why I ought to be glad," said Colin, who was wise enough, for once, to see that he had the best of the argument.

"Oh, I don't know," said Matty; "if you don't see yourself-if you don't care about the advantages-if you don't mind living in the same-I mean, if you don't see the good-"

"I don't see any good," said Colin, with suppressed passion, "except one which, if I stated it plainly, you would not permit me to claim. I see no advantages that I can venture to put in words. On the other hand, Wodensbourne has taught me a great deal. This fine perspicuous English prose points an argument a great deal better than all the Highland rhymings in existence," said the young man, bitterly; "I'll give you a professional example, as I'm a tutor. At the Holy Loch we conjugate all our verbs affirmatively, interrogatively. Charley and I are getting them up in the negative form here, and it's hard work," said Charley's tutor. He broke off with a laugh which sounded strange and harsh, an unusual effect, in his companion's ear.

"Affirmatively? Interrogatively?" said Miss Matty, with a pretty puzzled look; "I hate long words. How do you suppose I can know what you mean? It is such a long time since I learnt my verbs-and then one always hated them so. Look here, what a lovely hollyleaf! Il m'aime, il ne m'aime pas ?" said Miss Matty, pricking her fingers on