proceed in the praiseworthy undertaking? We

shall see.

One night at Almack's, in pursuance of his design, this artful hypocrite, after a long conversation, in which he praised Nugent to the skies, contrived to let Lady Georgina know that our hero was nearly every night during his stay in town at a certain gaming-house in St. James's-street, where the sums of money that he lost were incredible; that he had got into a bad set, not at all the better that there were one or two noblemen in it; and that his affairs were come to such a crisis, that he had been advised by some of his friends to shirk off paying half the money he owed, threaten them with a prosecution if they insisted, and, as a dernier ressort, get a commission in some dragoon regiment. All this, however, Herbert said he had heard from Adonis Millefleurs, to whom Lady Georgina might refer for a corroboration of what he had told her, but begged she would not mention his name in the affair. As for him

self, he had made a vow, when he first entered the guards, never to be seen in a place of the sort, and that therefore he could only speak on hearsay; and indeed he trusted, for the sake of his young friend, that the story had been exaggerated, or the report altogether groundless; yet he feared he feared

Lady Georgina would not believe it, she said; it was impossible, or she must have heard it from the, and here she stopped.

Herbert hoped it might not be true. He had only been induced to drop a hint of it to her ladyship, from the lively interest he knew she took in Mr. Nugent's welfare. He rather went too far there, for Georgina began to get angry at the impertinent insinuation his words conveyed. However, the captain continued, or rather ended, by saying that a few words of advice from the lips of a fair friend would have more effect in reclaiming Mr. Nugent from the destruction that awaited him, than volumes

of exhortation or remonstrance from one of the

rougher sex.

This, as it was intended by its perpetrator, sunk deep into the breast of Georgina, and gave her heartfelt uneasiness, which, however, a few days put a period to; for meeting Adonis Millefleurs, she was gratuitously informed by him that Herbert had, during the last week, lost a considerable sum of money at the very house he had mentioned as the scene of Hyde's gambling transactions. Being thus convinced that Herbert had not spoken the truth as regarded himself, she determined to reject his evidence altogether; and though sure that Hyde must have been wronged by his report, she had some wish to hear Millefleurs's opinion of the story; but while she wavered between the desire of asking him, and the reluctance to do so, he was called away by Herbert, and a few days after had to join his regiment at Brighton, so that the opportunity, fortunately for our hero, was lost.

Here, then, had Herbert over-reached himself, as most machinators do, sooner or later; and he consequently became more odious in the sight of Lady Georgina than ever; and, as the guardsman retrograded in her good opinion, our hero advanced, perhaps much more than he deserved.

Herbert's visits at Malmesbridge House now became more frequent, notwithstanding the coldness with which Lady Georgina received him, and the pertinacity with which she persisted in sending the marchioness to him, whenever he happened to surprise her alone, and notwithstanding the stiffness with which Lady Malmesbridge invariably made herself disagreeable, whenever she had to endure him for a quarter of an hour.

VOL. III.

B

CHAP. II.

A letter from my lord?

Oh, learn'd indeed were that astronomer,

That knew the stars as I his characters!

SHAKSPEARE.

HYDE, we have said, considering himself a thorough-bred sailor, having made two voyages, had effected a landing, through surf and through rain, in the most gallant manner, under the batteries at Portsmouth. He had, however, been nursed too long in the lap of luxury to acquire that degree of nautical hardiness with which Neptune invests his sons; and, perhaps