regretted the departure of their celestial visitants. On the 18th August he anchored at San Domingo, where he was received with the highest marks of distinction by the people, in which the governor saw fit to agree. There was, however, no friendly feelings between them, and Columbus found reason to complain of the way in which the island where he had so strong an interest had been governed. The condition to which Hispaniola had been reduced during the absence of Columbus, is the best refutation of the calumnies of his enemies. Ovando had been accompanied to the island by a large band of adventurers, who on their arrival set out for the mines, but, unaccustomed to labour, and ignorant of the method of collecting the precious metals, soon exhausted their store of provisions without any result, and returned in utter poverty to the town, where more than a thousand of them died of want and disease. Isabella had ordered the Indians to be set free, when they, of course, refused to labour in the mines. A new decree was then obtained, by which they were to work a short time for hire, and in order to aid in their conversion. On this pretence they were anew portioned out among their former masters, who treated them with the |_ most brutal cruelty. Las Casas, an eyewitness, says, they were compelled to labour by the lash, fed on unsubstantial cassava bread, and so sparingly that they scrambled like dogs under the table for the bones thrown to them by their masters; and when at last dismissed, were found dead on the road home, or lying gasping under the trees, faintly cryingHunger, hunger! Many fled to the mountains, others killed themselves in despair, and before twelve years from its first discovery was over, several hundred thousand of its once happy natives had been sacrificed to the lust and avarice of the white men. A more striking fate was reserved for the people of Xaragua, still independent, and governed by Anaconda, the wife of Caonabo, formerly mentioned. Ovando marched thither with three hundred men, and was received in the most friendly manner by the natives. On a Sunday afternoon he assembled the chiefs and people to witness a mock fight among his soldiers, but at an appointed signal took all the caciques who had met in bis lodgings, to the number of eighty, prisoners, forced from them by torture a confession of guilt, and then consumed them in the flames of the house. His troops, meanwhile, massacred the naked and defenceless Indians, shut up in a square from whence they could not escape. The excuse for this treachery was an alleged conspiracy of the natives, for which Anaconda was subsequently hanged, and the fertile country reduced to a desolate wilderness. Another province, Higuey, was still independent, but the Spaniards soon penetrated there also, and after an obstinate but unavailing resistance, massacred or subdued the people, and taking the cacique prisoner, hanged him like a common felon. In this war the Spaniards committed deeds of horrid and atrocious cruelty, such as cannot now even be related, so that their countryman Las Casas says, 'All these things, and others revolting to human nature, my own eyes beheld, and now I almost fear to repeat them, scarce believing self, or whether I have not dreamed them.' the winter, his health not permitting him to proceed to court, where the king received all his applications for justice with cold indifference. In May he was able to travel to Segovia, where he had an interview with Ferdinand, who received him with cold professions of kindness and evasive promises. The king never meant to keep his word—‘a little more delay, a little more disappointment, a little more infliction of ingratitude, and this loyal and generous heart would cease to beat; he should then be delivered from the just claims of a well-tried servant, who, in ceasing to be useful, was considered by him to have become importunate.' 1 And this event was now at hand. Tortured by disease, and despairing of justice, Columbus having made a will settling all his affairs with scrupulous minuteness, and performed the pious offices required by his religion, expired with great resignation on the 20th May, 1506, in about the seventieth year of his age. His remains were first deposited in the convent of St Francisco, whence they were transferred in 1513 to a monastery at Seville, and in 1536, along with the body of his son Diego, were transported to Hispaniola, and interred in the cathedral of San Domingo. Even there they were not destined to rest in peace, but in 1795, when the island was given up to France, were removed to Havannah in Cuba. Ferdinand erected a memorial to his memory, or rather of his own ingratitude, inscribed thus For Castile and Leon, Columbus found a New World.' The true monument of the great Genoese is the vast continent he made known to mankind-his true reward, the gratitude of posterity, and the fame that will attend him to the latest ages. His actions show his character in its truest and noblest light, especially when contrasted with those of his cotemporaries, with whom he came into immediate contact. His imagination was ardent, and apt to lead him astray, but regulated by a knowledge of science rare in those days. His ambition was lofty and soaring, and thus the source of much misfortune to him. He was not satisfied with common rewards, but sought others which the haughty dignity of the Spanish monarch felt degraded by granting, and the very importance of his services became a reason for withholding from him his due reward. Avarice seems to have influenced his mind less than honour and dignity, and he was always more disposed to maintain his authority by mildness than severity. His conduct to the poor Indians is the darkest spot on his character, and when we read of the misery and destruction his discovery entailed on that unoffending race, we almost feel as if his own sufferings were demanded by justice. Though he often tried to defend the natives from the oppressions of his followers, we cannot forget that it was his constant appeals to the low avarice of the Spanish court, and the visions of gold and precious stones by which he endeavoured to prove the value of his discoveries, that drew to the New World that horde of lawless ruffians who were the great cause of all his trials. He led out colonies by the hope of gold, wrested from the hands of weak and defenceless savages, and his reckless followery my-balked of their prey, turned on him as a deceiver. This curse of the greed of gold has adhered to the Spanish colonies even to the present day, like a malignant pestilence, wasting their strength and never suffering them to take root in the land. It is but justice to this great man to remark, that many of his errors were those of his time, and that even the church justified his treatment of the natives. His loftiest imaginings also fell short of the wonderful reality. How would his magnanimous spirit have been consoled,' says his eloquent historian, amidst the afflictions of age and the cares of penury, the neglect of a fickle public, and the injustice of an ungrateful king, could he have anticipated the splendid empires which were to spread over the beautiful world he had discovered; and the nations, tongues, and languages which were to fill its lands with his renown, and to revere and bless his name to the latest posterity.' Such was the state of the once rich and happy island when Columbus returned to it after his long absence, more like a region given as a prey to evil spirits, than the earthly paradise he originally imagined it. He left it for Spain on the 12th September, 1504, after assisting from his private funds many of the companions of his misfortunes, some of whom had been the most violent among the rebels. His vessel suffered much from tempests, and he himself was confined to bed by the gout, but arrived in Spain on the 7th November, and took up his residence at Seville. Trouble followed him even here, the revenue he should have received from the Indies being withheld by the governor, and his remonstrances to the king unheeded. The calumnies of his enemies prevailed against him, though, in his own words, he had served their majesties with as much zeal and diligence as if it had been to gain Paradise.' His best friend was now gone, Isabella having died on the 26th November, of deep melancholy caused by the death of her favourite children. Columbus remained in Seville during It may not be uninteresting to mention the subsequent fortunes of the family of Columbus. He was succeeded in his rights as viceroy of the New World by his son Diego, described as a man of great integrity, of respectable talents, and of a frank, generous, and gentle disposition. He came vat for some hours, to obtain a deposition of the dregs: but as soon as fermentation appears, it is transferred to the cask, and thus the natural operation is intentionally checked. At the Christmas after the vintage, during dry weather, the wine is racked and fined, frequently two or three times, and in the following March is put into bottles, very carefully examined as to strength. The fermentation then commences, and the undecomposed saccharine and tartarous principles promote a rapid and powerful effervescence; while, if they are in perfection, the wine will be of good quality or the reverse. All these wines do not begin to effervesce at the same time; for some will be active in a fortnight, others will require a month; and a change of temperature is very frequently required to accelerate them. Some wines will not effervesce until the August after the vintage, and will then develop the quality suddenly. The loss from the bursting of the bottles is very great; if it does not exceed 16 per cent., the grower is very well satisfied. The cellars of the great champagne-makers resemble a well-arranged manufactory. Every bottle has to be corked and uncorked more than once. M. Moét, of Epernay, sometimes keeps ten workshops going. His cellars are cut in the living rock, and are of vast extent, containing piles of bottles six feet high, as difficult to explore as the Cretan labyrinth. Oftentimes 600,000 bottles are thus heaped up to undergo the further care of perfecting. The piles are carefully watched, the workmen wearing masks of wire-gauze to protect their eyes from the splinters of glass that fly about on every side. All the spilled wine must be carefully drained off, lest by its decay it should injure the sound. Gutters are everywhere provided for this purpose. If the breakage be more than 16 per cent., the wine is taken down and removed to a cooler cellar, or uncorked, to let off the superabundant gas, and again corked up. The most violent breaking of bottles is in August; it ceases by the end of September, and then the pile is removed, and all the fragments of broken bottles are taken away, and each bottle submitted to what is called the operation of dégagement, when the bottles are reversed to let the sediment fall into the neck, being shaken for the purpose once or twice forward to claim the restitution of the family offices and privileges; but Ferdinand was not inclined to bestow on the son what he had withheld from the higher merit of the father. After two years' vain solicitation, Diego only obtained leave to prosecute his claim in the ordinary courts of law. The suit, commenced in 1508 and continued for several years, was decided in his favour, but the court had no power to enforce compliance on the monarch. At last, Diego having married a niece of the celebrated Duke of Alva, the chief favourite of the king, the monarch yielded to this powerful influence what he had denied to justice. Ovando was recalled in compliance with a promise long before made to the queen on her deathbed; and Diego appointed with the same powers. He went out to San Domingo in 1509, with his wife, his two uncles, and his brother, and ruled with a degree of splendour hitherto unknown. But he could not reform the abuses that had crept into the colony; factious men still disputed his authority, and the oppression and destruction of the Indians continued. In 1510, Cuba was colonised, and the mines in Hispaniola being exhausted, the culture of the sugarcane, a more certain source of riches, was introduced. On the representations of the Dominican friars, the labour of the natives was diminished, and negro slaves from Africa employed instead, but treated with a barbarity surpassing even that inflicted on the Indians. In 1515, Diego repaired to court to answer charges brought against him; but though his innocence was admitted, he continued involved in long and troublesome litigation with the fiscal officers of the crown. He returned to the island in 1520, but was recalled about three years afterwards, and spent the rest of his life in the vain endeavour to obtain justice from the court, having died near Toledo in 1526. His wife claimed the inheritance for his son, Don Luis, who, finding his dignities and privileges mere sources of vexation to himself, resigned them to the Emperor Charles V., and in return was created Duke of Veragua, and received a fixed sum of money for his claim to a tenth of the produce of the Indies. In 1578, all the legitimate male heirs of Columbus were extinct, and a long lawsuit commenced, which was at last decided in favour of Don Nuno de Portugallo, a branch of the Portu-a-day. The wire over the cork is then untwisted, and the guese house of Braganza, and the great-grandson of Diego, the eldest son of Columbus. Columbus's brother, the Adelantado, survived him several years, but was never employed in any office of importance, the king being jealous of the too great influence of the family. Fernando, the second son of Columbus, made several voyages to the New World, and also travelled over many parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. He possessed good natural abilities and studious habits, and collected a library of more than twenty thousand volumes, which he left to the Cathedral of Seville, where he died in 1539, aged about fifty-one years. He wrote several works, the only one of which that is known being his history of his father the admiral. It is singular that this history only exists in Spanish, in a retranslation from an Italian translation of the original. This has given rise to many errors in names and dates, but the work is still entitled to great credit, and forms the foundation of all the biographies of Columbus. One of the best and fullest of these is the production of Washington Irving, a native of that continent Columbus was the first to discover. It is to this work that we have been chiefly indebted in drawing up this account of the fortunes of the illustrious Genoese, whose merits have survived all calumny, and are indelibly inscribed on the history of the world. MANUFACTURE AND ADULTERATION THE manufacture of this kind of wine (says a writer in cork withdrawn, so as to let the gas explode, which carries with it the deposition. A gauge is now introduced to measure how high the wine should ascend to the neck, and the bottle is filled to the allotted measure with champagne that has already undergone a dégagement. The bottle is then corked and wired again, and put by for sale. When the wine is purchased, before it is sent off it is submitted to a second dégagement; this is uniformly done about a fortnight before it is sent away. From this brief account it is plain that the exquisite delicacy and bouquet of this wine is not attained without great trouble and expense. The Medical Times mentions the following singular mode of increasing the intoxicating power of champagne, which has recently been discovered in Germany. It ap pears that a wine merchant of Rheims has for some years past enjoyed the almost exclusive privilege of supplying the kingdom of Wurtemberg with that wine, and that an extraordinary effect has been noticed to attend the drinking of a single glass thereof. After several analyses of the wine had been made, the contents of some of the bottles were examined by Liebig, who ascertained, by analysing its gases, that it contained one volume of carbonic acid gas, and two of the laughing-gas or protoxide of nitrogen. The last-named gas, the peculiar effects produced by which on the animal economy, when it has been respired, are well known, is prepared by the decomposition of the nitrate of ammonia. If this salt be at all impure, and not unfrequently when it is used absolutely pure, nitrous acid is evolved in the first instance during its decomposition. Chemists, therefore, when preparing the laughing-gas, are in the habit of throwing away the first proportions of gas that come over, and farther test the character of the gas before they allow it to be inspired, as the nitrous acid gas would act on the economy as a dangerous poison. Furthermore, if the lungs contain air when this gas is inhaled, nitrous acid gas would be formed and danger result. There is another danger occasionally encountered, when this gas is used for purposes of exhilaration by respiration. In persons of consumptive habit it may cause severe pain at the chest, difficulty of breathing, and even spitting of blood. In those who have a tendency to apoplexy or palsy, mischief in the head may be caused by its incautious use. How far these results may be modified by the gas being taken into the stomach, it is at present impossible to say, but the subject admits of and deserves farther inquiry. At all events, there is the danger of a portion of nitrous acid gas being used in the wine, together with the laughing-gas, and the adulteration is one of a most improper as well as singular character. It can hardly be regarded as altogether innocuous. THE DISCLOSURE; OR, A NIGHT AT THE CASTLE. THE winter's sun was retiring behind the lofty hills of Glencroe, as two gentlemen, mounted on horseback, were slowly traversing that dreary district. The wildness and sublimity of the scene were eminently calculated to excite the admiration of the elder traveller-the alpine grandeur which rose on either side, the mountain torrents frozen in their descent down the craggy precipices, the death-like silence of the glen, undisturbed, save by the wild cry of the bird of prey, the expanse of purest snow, unbroken but by some abrupt crag or ruined cottage, all and everything around awakened in his bosom the deepest impression of the nothingness of man, the sublimity of nature, and the wisdom and power of its divine Architect. But another feeling arrayed, in his imagination, this scene in tenfold grandeurit was his native country. In his varied travels in distant lands, in preference to the pomp and pageantry of the Eastern courts, or the pearled treasures of India, his country, his native land, was the object of his adoration-to visit it, the wish of his life-and yet that country scarcely knew him. He had left it when a youth-the friends he then associated with-the parents he then loved, and whose memory he still so fondly cherished-the very scenes he had been accustomed to visit, had either altogether disappeared or been changed by the decay of nature or the operations of art; yet it was his native land-the soil from which he sprung-the air he first breathed. There was an air of dignity and reverence in the appearance of the elder Stewart, which could not fail to attract attention and command respect. He was middle-aged, but long and arduous services for his country in foreign climates had prematurely whitened his locks and given him a patriarchal look beyond his years. His costume was simple and plain, consisting of a broad military bonnet, a surtout, large riding boots and spurs; his weapons were a good trusty toledo, which had been used in several engagements abroad, and in his belt shone two highly polished pistols. The manner in which his dress was adjusted was sufficient evidence of his profession; his broad shoulders were the monuments of a frame more powerful than that allotted to the generality of mankind, and the grace with which he managed his charger, displayed his superior skill in horsemanship. Having for some time contemplated the magnificent theatre of nature around, he turned to his younger companion, who was muffled up in a great military cloak, to shelter himself from the piercing cold. My son,' said he, 'this is the land of my fathers, and here you have a view of its wildest and most majestic scenery." 6 'And, father,' replied Lewis Stewart, do you offer these bleak mountains and dreary glens and withered shrubs, for the rich foliage of the East-is this really all my country can boast of?' Tush, boy, you speak like a child; what think you these rocky cliffs can produce?' 'Nothing, seemingly, but a scanty herbage for the halfstarved sheep and cattle.' 'No, Lewis, something more than that; think, my son, that from these barren hills spring the children of freedom, the hearts of honesty, the arms of bravery; and do these afford no recompense for the cold and heartless obedience of the Turk, the deep conspiracies of the Spaniard, or the hated tyranny of a despot. We are poor indeed, but we are rich in the possession of so many noble feelings; we may be beggars perhaps, but we borrow not from the swarthy Moor and the ungrateful Persian; we are situated in the confines of a frozen ocean, but our hearts are not chilled, or our friendships blunted by its influence; we are exposed Nay, stop, stop, you would have me believe yourI beg pardon-our countrymen are free from the failings of humanity.' 'Not so, Lewis, not so; but I own my weakness in my country's praise; it clings around my heart like the twisting ivy to the ruined tower, and I would you loved it too.' Well, give me time, father-give me time, for you must certainly own my first reception has not been very warm or inviting,' said Lewis, smiling. The dress of Lewis partook more of the military spirit of other countries than of the land in which he now journeyed; on his head he wore a military cap. surmounted by a nodding plume of the deepest black, which formed an agreeable contrast with his fair hair, flowing in abundance over his athletic shoulders; his eyes were piercing and commanding; his moustache appeared to the best advantage under a finely formed Roman nose; he was encircled with a military cloak, at an opening of which peeped a massy silver chain, to which his rapier was attached, while his jack-boots and large silver spurs completed the tout ensemble of the youthful cavalier. There was little resemblance in his features to those of his father, so that the family physiognomist would have been staggered in the contemplation. Where do you intend to halt to-night, father?' inquired the young soldier. On the banks of Loch Lomond we shall obtain a resting-place, and on the morrow we will reach Dumbarton; but, Lewis, look in the direction of the loch, and tell me if you descry no singular object.' No, father, I see nothing save the snowy amphitheatre and the gloomy waters of the loch in the distance.' They rode on at a brisk pace, but could see or hear nothing to indicate their approach to the supposed object. As they reached a projecting cliff, a strong and commanding voice summoned them to stand. Stop at your peril, or I shall make the first that moves a feast for carrion.' The travellers reined up their mettled steeds, and demanded an explanation for so unexpected an interruption, and of a threat so extraordinary. 'Ask me not,' rejoined the robber; we are little accustomed to hold parley with the benighted traveller.' He had no sooner uttered these words, than the report of a pistol was heard from behind the rock. If such be your character, desperate villain, know that we are as little accustomed to converse with such as you,' said the young soldier, discharging a pistol at the robber. The ball took effect almost instantaneously, and the robber fell lifeless from his horse. Lewis and his father rushed forward to the spot whence the report proceeded, and timeously interfered to preserve the life of an individual who lay bleeding on the ground. One of the banditti was busily engaged ransacking a trunk, while another was in the act of plunging a dagger into the breast of the bleeding gentleman: a beautiful and interesting female, supporting his head, and intercepting herself between the raised weapon and the body of her father. Villains, fiends, hold at your peril,' thundered the loud and unexpected voice of the elder Stewart. The robbers sprang to their feet, and prepared to defend themselves, but a thrust from the blade of Lewis saved the younger that trouble; the other, better accustomed to such tumults than his younger friend, retired a few paces to recover his ground and obtain a deliberate aim. He fired at Lewis, but without injury, as the ball merely grazed his shoulder; and the father, who by this time had dismounted, rushed suddenly upon the villain, and grasped him by the throat ere he could draw the other pistol from his belt. A fierce and desperate wrestle ensued, 6 in which Lewis, knowing his father's temper, dared not to interfere. They struggled for a few moments with amazing strength, and with nearly equal success, but the robber was at last overpowered and fell. The victor placed his knee on his breast, and seizing hold of a pistol which, in the scuffle, had fallen from his belt, threatened to shoot him. The robber pleaded carnestly for his life, and the elder Stewart, turning towards his son, with an inquiring look, asked him what was to be done. 'Spare the villain's life, but bind him securely with this rope; he may be the means of explaining the cause of this affair.' The robber was firmly secured with the rope of the trunk which he had just been rifling, and speedily bound to the horse of the younger Stewart. Having thus secured their prisoner, the attention of the travellers was next directed to the unfortunate gentleman and his lovely companion. During the rencontre she had swooned, and he still lay exhausted on the ground. The wound was discovered to be in the arm, but the rough surgery of a napkin stopped the bleeding, and a little wine (found in the portmanteau) restored him to his senses, and reminded him of his daughter. Is she alive?' was his first inquiry. She has but fainted,' replied Lewis. speaks.' Hush! She The young lady fell upon her knees, and with her hands clasped before her, and her eyes directed towards heaven, muttered some inward but inaudible petition. Sir,' interrupted the elder Stewart, remember the danger of your present condition, and although we have subdued this party, another may not be far distant.' A whistle from a neighbouring group of shrubs was a convincing evidence of the truth of what he said, and mustering his remaining strength, the wounded gentleman requested Lewis and his father to lead him to his carriage a few yards distant. The lady and gentleman were placed inside the coach driver, a singular old man, now popping his head from behind a withered oak, 'was extremely happy they had made friends after a', for quarrelling was an unco sad thing,' mounted the box-while Lewis and his captive charge on one side, and the father on the other, served as a guard d'honneur to the cavalcade. consider these occurrences as strange, they no sooner ceased than his thoughts were directed to a far more interesting object-the beautiful female whose property and life he had been the happy instrument of protecting. By a sudden turn they reached the castle, as the vanity of ancestral days had denominated a structure of a strange, though almost unfortified appearance. Its fosse was filled up, its drawbridge removed, and the former strength of its loopholed towers was impaired by the operations of modern architecture. The elder Stewart took charge of Evans Campbell, the lord of the manor, and his daughter; while Lewis, like a true soldier, conducted the robber to his dungeon. In this task he was assisted by a tall Highlander, who acted as turnkey, and whose body had been in a state of perpetual motion since the company entered the castle walls. On the retiring of his master, however, Donald stopped his pendulous see-saw motion, and dragged the reluctant bravo along, who was muttering to himself in broken sentences such as these: Welcome old walls; may the spirit of the Douglas haunt his maddened brain, and tell him the man yet lives who dares revenge it; and will it be the last time -my wife-ah! poor Margery, and my bairns; curse on their chicken hearts that would suffer their father thus to be dragged, and not revenge.' Cease your growling, savage,' interrupted the sturdy mountaineer; leave prating to the parrot; follow this way.' They descended two storeys beneath the level of the ground, on steps well worn with age, covered with moss, and wet with the damp of the subterranean dungeon. They led the unhappy captive along a narrow passage, which was not illuminated by a ray of light, save that borrowed from the cells on either side. As they proceeded towards the cell, the robber whispered to Lewis in a significant tone of voice: Meet me at midnight, young man ; fear nothing-but meet me.' Having reached the termination of the winding passage, the Highlander unlocked a door, placed a small lamp on a stone bench, and dragging the robber in, relocked the door, and left him to his own bitter reflections. The turnkey walked on before to guide Lewis in the proper path, who, as he slowly retired from the cell, distinctly heard this fearful prayer: May the revenge of the clan feast on the remains of the hated fratricide!' and the robber threw his exhausted body on a bundle of straw. The young Stewart, anxious to decipher the meaning of so strange an expression, would willingly have lingered behind, but the iron voice of Donald was not to be resisted. This way, your honour, this way,' as they as cended from the dismal prison-house. Lewis noted the various windings, and when they reached the top of the stair, he observed where the jailer deposited the keys of the cells below. He introduced Lewis into a small and well furnished parlour. On a sofa lay the Campbell, whose arm was now carefully dressed; and from the fatigue he had undergone, was enjoying a slight slumber. The younger Stewart stood for a few moments to consider the features before him; even in his sleep there was a harshness of expression peculiarly uninviting, while half-muttered sentences and violent contraction of the muscles indicated some strong mental struggle; his hair, of a coarse dark brown, lay in hideous neglect on his shoulders; his brow was large, but Having travelled nearly two miles at a pace as rapid as the state of the road would permit, the carriage stopped at an antique and somewhat baronial gateway, which consisted of one solid and massive arch, on the key-stone of which were rudely sculptured the armorial bearings of the family, while on either side a richly carved pillar completed the entrance; the long grass was visible on every projecting part of the structure, and the tops of the wild briers, seen over the snow, told a dismal tale of the neglect of cultivation and the unrestrained dominion of nature. An oaken gate, a few feet in height, was placed in the room of the ancient door, and formed a striking contrast with what imagination conceived would once have been there. A cry of peculiar harshness from the driver brought an old and debilitated female to the porch, who, selecting one from a bunch of keys, unlocked the gate and admitted the party. The feelings of each individual, as they slowly rode up the dismal avenue, rendered still more dreary by the fall of the leaf and the winter's cold, were of a varied character. The wounded gentleman was grateful for the pre-hung in a very disagreeable manner over his shaggy eyeservation of his life, and anxious about the future disposal of his captive; the young lady was planning the best mode of treatment for her father, and perhaps turning her thoughts, if not her eyes, on the young and handsome soldier; the elder Stewart rejoiced in the opportunity so early afforded his son of judging of Scotch kindness and hospitality, and yet regretting the wreck and wildness of the surrounding shrubbery; Lewis, feeding on the romantic occurrences of the day, fondly anticipated further enjoyment. He could observe, notwithstanding the advancing darkness, a sudden change on the features of the robber as he crossed the threshold of the property, and a wildness in his look, which he could ill conceal, portrayed some inward struggle; his lips moved involuntarily, but no audible or intelligible sounds escaped from them. Though Lewis could not but brows; in short, his whole visage was far from being prepossessing. From this spectacle, Lewis turned to consider the contrast presented by the face and figure of the lovely Matilda. Her countenance partook more of the cast of the Spanish than the Scotch; her eyes and hair were jet-black; those features which at ordinary times could not fail to attract attention and excite admiration, were rendered doubly interesting by the anxiety with which she watched her wounded parent. On Lewis's entrance, a nod of recognition, and an extended hand of gratitude and welcome, alone interrupted her devoted attendance. In a short time the sleeper awoke, and raising himself, suddenly exclaimed: Not yet! not yet! his very spirit may seek revenge.' There was in his countenance, as he thus spoke, an aspect peculiarly wild and unnatural; but freeing himself from the trammels of his dream, he composed himself for the situation in which he was placed. The two Stewarts looked in astonishment at each other, unable to define the meaning of such expressions, and yet half admiring the ready control he exercised over himself; for in an instant his face assumed a more pleasing appearance, and he prepared himself to receive his guests with the proverbial hospitality of his country. Gentlemen, you are welcome within the castle of the Campbell; and let me apologise for not having welcomed you already. The cheer we offer is not sumptuous, but its simplicity is, in my opinion, better than luxuriance, if of fered with a good grace. Matilda, my dear, have you ordered supper?' Yes, my dear father, I have; but pray do not exert yourself in your present condition. Is not excitement dangerous, sir?' said the fair girl to the elder Stewart. *Very bad, indeed, fair lady; besides, sir, it is not required on your part, as my son and I are well accustomed to selfdenial, which, by the way, does not seem required here,' as the aforesaid Highlander placed a collation on the table. Mr Campbell was anxious to rise and perform the duties of the supper-table, but the entreaties of his affectionate daughter, and the remonstrances of his guests, prevailed, and he again composed his body in the least painful position. Perhaps, gentlemen, as you object to my company at table, you will permit me to converse with you at this distance.' Oh! not to-night, father, not to-night. You had better retire to rest, and, with the blessing of God, you may be stronger to-morrow.' 'I believe the child talks wisely, sirs, for I must own I feel considerable pain in my arm. 'Rest assured, said the elder Stewart, 'your presence in your wounded state would rather add pain than pleasure, for it is vain to affect hilarity when the body is ill at ease; therefore, let me advise you to retire, and your daughter shall bring you a potion, to which, I imagine, you will have no objections; a beverage highly prized in foreign parts, and of which, with your kind permission, lady, I shall be the compounder.' One question, sir, ere you retire, if you please,' interrupted Lewis. What are your intentions as to the disposal of your prisoner?' Of that, my young friend, I shall be better qualified, to speak on the morrow; at present I shall rather follow the advice of your father, tempered as it is by the promise of the all-curing potation,' said the Campbell, smiling; but in that smile there was a coldness and hypocrisy which he could ill disguise, and which showed that the heart had no share in the words of the lips. He retired, and in a short time Matilda returned and seated herself at the head of the table. 'My father,' said she, on entering the room, is now in bed, and will, I trust, soon fall asleep. He begged me to say that you will both consider your own comfort, and make yourselves happy, and if anything lies in my power, I am sure I should gladly add to the pleasure of those who have so generously protected him and myself.' 'Young lady,' said the elder Stewart, talk no more of our services, they are already amply repaid, for in assisting persons in such a situation, we only act according to the dictates of common humanity. And pray, sir, did you find your companion very agreeable? I presume his conversation was very instructive?' said the smiling Matilda to Lewis, who was contemplating the beauty of the features before him. Instructive, sweet lady,' replied Lewis, in the same | ironical style; it was truly most edifying. I think he did take the trouble to utter one groan-one single sigh.' 'But, jesting apart, poor infatuated man, is it not a lamentable exhibition and degradation when one man is so far lost to all sense of honour and of God as to live by the murder and robbery of others?' It is a sad picture of humanity,' rejoined the elder Stewart; and while we abhor the sight, it forces us to admire the fair side the more; but, pray, how did the scuffle cominence?' 'As suddenly and unexpectedly as it closed. We were proceeding down the glen, and had reached that horrid cliff, where three ruffians lay concealed. Our captive, the ringleader, summoned the driver to stop-nay, don't laugh at his whimsical appearance, for he is a good-natured man, and a great favourite of mine-well, the coach-door was forcibly opened, and, ere my father could ascertain the cause of the interruption, he was dragged by the two elder bandits behind the cliff; the one retired to watch, the other fired upon my father and wounded him in the arm; the third, a youth indeed in years, though not perhaps in crimes, ransacked our only trunk; and in this state you rescued our lives from danger.' And said they nothing?' inquired Lewis. "They talked about their time having come for revenge, and that they would have their reckoning; but, really, sir, I was in such a state of agitation at the time that I paid but little attention to their words.' Have you properly secured the captive, Lewis?' inquired the father. As safe as bars and bolts can make him; it is a cold damp cell, but I daresay the villain has been in a worse.' The party shortly afterwards separated for the night, and Donald acted as fille-de-chambre. I am extremely sorry, gentlemen,' said the robust Highlander, you canna baith sleep in the self-same room, for you'll observe we're no oure muckle visited in this auld castle, which my granny used to tell me was haunted, but no a whit did I mind her auld goblin stories of lang white sheets, and chains, and skulls, though I used to shake my head and aye be saying, ay that's vera true and very awfu’; but this way, gentlemen, if you please.' Upon my word, Donald, but you act wonderfully well to have had so little practice,' said the elder Stewart, at the same time bidding good-night to Matilda and his son. What a wayward lot is mine,' said Lewis, placing the lamp upon the table. From my infancy I have been the child of fortune, tossed from clime to clime, and when I thought my wanderings were to cease, here I am in some romantic world of my own formation. But this gay frostwork must be dissolved, and I shall adjourn to the cell of the robber; the hour has not yet come; and yet, should I go, 'tis but to feed my mind with some new absurdity. Yet, how significant his words; I go, I am resolved.' As the castle clock struck twelve, Lewis snatched up his lamp and repaired to the captive's cell. He experienced considerable difficulty in guiding himself through the labyrinths of the castle, but at length reached the apartment of the Highland turnkey. On a bed of the coarsest materials was deposited the body of the mountaineer, who, in entire forgetfulness, groaned at stated intervals. Lewis having placed his own lamp on the outside, cautiously entered the room, and, directed by the dubious glimmering of another light which burned by the bedside, was in the act of taking down a bunch of rusty keys from a huge nail behind the door, when he was suddenly and disagreeably interrupted by, What are you wanting there, birkie?' from the sonorous voice of the half-waked Donald, who, in his movement, upset the stool on which the lamp was placed, and left the chamber in total darkness. Lewis had his hand upon the keys, and remained motionless; the fears of the Highlander being however allayed from the deathlike silence that ensued, which probably was more easily achieved from his reluctance entirely to disengage himself from the embraces of Morpheus, in a few moments his welcome snoring was resumed. Having secured the object of his search, the youth cautiously stole out of the room, and guided more by probabilities than certainties, and the ray of his little lamp, reached at length the lonely dungeon of the captive. He paused for a moment to consider the danger of his situation, and the consequences that might ensue from his undertaking; he guessed from the broken sentences of the robber that he had been formerly confined within the castle, and might therefore be intimately acquainted with its every turning and winding? Might the villain not overpower him and make his escape? Might he not murder him? Or might he not secure him and expose |