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One last touch of the hair-brush, and a little "balm of Columbia" on his exuberant whiskers (not less prized than those of John de Castro), and he seemed capable, in his own estimation, though not an unusually mean man, of accomplishing the conquest of any ordinary female heart. But (and the consciousness sadly troubled him) he perceived that the taste of the Virginian weed still lingered on his palate, and seemed momentarily to increase, while the mephitic odour proceeding from the same cause became evident to his olfactory sense.

He forthwith applied to his bottle of tincture of myrrh, and to prevent a recurrence of the unpleasant annoyance, he discharged the contents of a small box of gilt aromatic cachons into his pocket. Thus supplied, he sallied forth to pay some morning visits, for, in spite of his intense mental suffering, Gregory was not insensible to the propriety of keeping up appearances, and concealing his "grievances"; and nature had endowed him with the gift of doing sofor his face was not one 66 like a book, where men" might have read "strange matter."

His first call was on his friends the Bs. The servant who received his card, much to his surprise, seemed overcome by some unpleasant sensation, and slightly staggered back; but, recovering himself, he soon returned to conduct Gregory to the presence of the ladies. On entering the drawing-room, he was rather disconcerted on observing that the ladies were painfully affected by something evidently connected with himself. Mrs. B. offered him her cold fingers, which felt like a bunch of lizards, and Miss Julia saluted him distantly. He drew a chair beside the elder lady, and entered into conversation; but the topics on which he touched were exhausted in an unusually short space of time. He seemed running through an epitome of the encyclopedia of fashionable chit-chat, to no purpose. Mrs. B. complained of the oppressiveness of the weather, and desired that a window might be opened. In performing this duty, Miss Julia attached herself to that part of the room, and appeared to leave it with reluctance.

A thousand conflicting thoughts and surmises rushed through poor Gregory's brain. Had he disturbed the family in any particular business? Had his reputation been blasted by the voice of scandal? Was there anything outré in his dress? What could be the cause of the coldness and almost rudeness of his reception? Mrs. B. presently called for her vinagrette, but Mr. Gregory, like all his countrymen, was fond

of a

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"sederunt."

Really, Mr. Gordon," said the elder lady, with an expression of intense uneasiness-and then, correcting herself, the con

clusion of the sentence died on her pale lips! Julia too, was pale-deadly pale. What could it mean? Could he have been accused of murder? Was his poor Perianthe gathered to her fathers unknown to him, and he suspected of having- A horror seized upon him. Could the officers of justice be ready outside to apprehend him? He felt nervous and guilty, without any particular crime on his conscience. At last, the idea of the accursed cheroot struck him forcibly, and as he smuggled his hand into his waistcoat pocket for a cachon, what should it come in contact with but that stump! There it lay, as cold and disagreeable as the old lady's fingers. Plucking the abominable thing from its hiding-place, he cast it under the table, and, snatching up his hat, bowed farewell, rushed into the open air, where he sighed deeply as he again inhaled the pure ether, and hurrying away, he sought a perfumer's shop, where the contents of a vial of bergamot speedily saturated his handkerchief. He then hurried home, and flinging himself into the same old arm chair, gazed complacently round his apartment, satisfied that he had at length disposed of his tormentor for ever, or at least transferred the nuisance to his friends the Bs.-when his eye, wandering to the fire-place, again fell on the detestable stump, lying in precisely the same spot where he had left it!

"Abominable weed!" he exclaimed, driven almost to desperation, "Can I not get rid of thee, unless I reduce thee to ashes ?" Seizing a lucifer frantically, he lit the mephitic stump, and once more its reduced proportions began to disappear in smoke. Contrary to his expectations, Gregory now fell into a pleasing, dreamy mood, which gave certain evidence of the folly of having been discouraged by the desagrémen attending the first essays in life, and in his case foreshadowing the truth of the old proverb that a "faint heart never won fair lady." The sequel may demonstrate this conclusion.

CHAPTER VII.

"A smoke raised with the fume of sighs." SHAKSPEARE.

THE dreamy state in which we left our hero was succeeded by a calm, tranquil sleep, in which fairy forms and visions floated before his eyes. The tobacco had a soothing influence over his senses, and dispelled all those vain fancies that his excited imagination had conjured up regarding Perianthe, and the Mephistopheleslooking lover who had attended her. He laughed at the notion in his sleep, fancying how he could ever have suspected one so fair as her he loved, of inconstancy and cruelty; and wisely determined that jea

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APPEARANCES OF THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE ON JULY 18, 1860, AS OBSERVED IN SPAIN, AT THE

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lousy, at least, should be eradicated from his heart. Perianthe appeared to him in his dreams with youth and beauty, the sunshine of true health on her cheeks, and a diamond light lustrous in her eyes. She spoke to him, and in her calm, meek voice, upbraided him for his lukewarmness. Her words were tender reproaches, in which, woman-like, she accused him of neglect, yet bringing back the accusation to herself. She appealed to his feelings, to those hours they spent so happily at their trysting-spot; spoke of the vows he made of constancy and love; of her rashness in having loved so truly; and at last, in womanly weakness, she shed tears at his feet, begging him to forgive her upbraidings, banish his jealousy, and restore the image of his faithful Perianthe to its place in his heart.

On awakening, the sun was streaming in at his window, and he felt a new being-as if a load of oppression and care had been removed from his breast. But there was one sorrow still uppermost. Was this all a dream, or had the accursed weed been robbed of its power. Aye, there it lay, the ashes only of its former greatness. He was now convinced thoroughly, and turning over in his mind the great unhappiness he had experienced from irresolution, he determined to settle his fate at once, and call on Perianthe. This resolution was soon carried into execution. But whilst he is adorning himself, we will turn to Perianthe, and see what is occupying her attention.

CHAPTER VIII.

"I'll tell you presently her very picture. Stay-yes it is so."

there

THE CAPTAIN. V. S. I. In a remote part of the city of Mwas a pretty little cottage, in the gothic style, surrounded by a neat garden, filled with every variety of floral beauty. This was the abode of Perianthe, and at this time she was taking a walk in the garden, plucking herself a bouquet, and turning her honey-suckles "in the way they should go." At length, she arrived at a small arbour, around which every imaginable coloured convolvulus had circled, besides innumerable other creepers. In this arbour she reclined, and taking up a book that she had left there, she commenced reading. The soft morning zephyr had imparted a bloom to her rosy cheeks, and given them a

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fresh delicious hue. Her mouth was small and delicate, with a pouting expression, as if some bee had stung it newly." But why should Perianthe's colour come and go, as she hears the garden gate swing open. Hath she been dreaming too, and now feels the realisation is at hand?

It must be so. That warm blush was never caused by fear, but comes from the heart that beats so wildly now. A footstep

VOL. I.-9

approaches, and in a few minutes Perianthe is clasped to Gregory Gordon's breast; and then a hurried tale is told, and tears flow from Perianthe's eyes. How could she ever have doubted him-or why should he ever have been irresolute ?

Love is made, confessed, acknowledged, in a very short time; and in a few seconds these two hearts were made happy, that, a few minutes before, had been most miserable. Gregory Gordon had pleaded his suit with earnestness, and sweet Perianthe had promised in a few days to become his bride.

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A TOTAL eclipse of the sun is a phenomenon of rare occurrence in any part of the world: hence we need not be amazed at the excitement in which learned philosophers are seen rushing from their homes to take up their post of observation on some spot, however distant, where the totality can be seen to the best advantage. But eclipses are visible in some countries more frequently than in others, and, to speak unscientifically, India appears to be the least favoured clime in which eclipses love to show themselves. During the remaining forty years of this century, only one total eclipse, that occurring on the 19th August 1887, will be visible in this country, and that, probably, only in the northern parts. To Indians, therefore, something about the total eclipse

on the 18th July last cannot fail to be interesting. Moreover, the advance science is each day making in photography, magnetism, and in constructing optical instruments, has tended to give the observations taken during each succeeding eclipse a value not possessed by those taken on previous occasions. Science is inventive both for good and for evil; and if it has devoted itself with such success to making war more bloody and destructive than ever, it has done even more for the benefit of man in his intellectual and bodily attainments. Hence it was, that the gentlemen who, on the 18th July last, stationed themselves in different parts of Spain, along the line of the totality, were furnished with an array of implements of science that the philosophers of the last century never dreamed of. These gentlemen were the representatives of science from every nation in Europe; the Spanish government was proud to receive them, and co-operated with their mission in every possible manner. The result of their observations each of these philosophers has published; the accompanying plate represents some of those taken by Father Secchi, the celebrated Roman astronomer. His station was on a group of mountains in the province of Valencia, between Oropesa and Castellon de la Plana, three miles or so from the Mediterranean, above which he stood at an elevation of 2,378 feet. As a clever general, the professor had assigned a special duty to each one of his numerous corps; no one was idle, and the greatest silence and order prevailed, though hundreds of the peasantry were collected around. The moment was drawing near, and the multitude withdrew to a discreet distance. The instant of the first contact was taken with one of Morse's electric registrators. At 2h. 39m. p. m., a little after the centre had become covered, darkness was quite perceptible, and ten minutes before the totality, it was so advanced that light was most valuable; the horizon around was dark and thick, as though a great storm was coming up; objects before one looked as though seen through obscure glass. But six or seven minutes before the totality, the light was visibly growing less and less,

painfully so; there was even something terrible about it. There was the deepest silence among all the bystanders-so much so, that the beat of the chronometers was as distinct as in the closet in the observatory at night. The work had now grown warm ; the philosophers were ardent in the pursuit of knowledge. Leaving the rest, we will allow the general of the party to describe in his own words one valuable part of his observations :—

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'Very convenient and complete

means of observation enabled me to estimate the size as well as the direction of the protuberances, and accurately to mark their appearance and disappearance. A short time before the total obscuration, I removed the coloured glasses from the telescope. I had them of different powers, and could change them instantaneously. I then followed the sun, looking at it through a micrometer or divided eyeglass, by Lerebours. Some moments before the entire disappearance, I perceived the corona through my glass, which was only slightly charged with colour. I took this glass away as soon as the eclipse became total, and I was astonished at the splendour of the aureole, which still hurt my vision; but it visibly diminished, and the edges of the sun became surrounded by a purple corona, which terminated in points of the same colour, which speedily disappeared. Immediately, I saw two magnificent protuberances shine forth directly above the point of disappearance. The first was conical, with the summit slightly elongated and bent, as flame is usually represented; one would have said it moved. The other was about half the height, but larger. It occupied an arc of about four or five degrees of the limb. The summit terminated in points like those of a saw, but very fine. At the first moments of the totality, no protuberance was visible on the opposite side of the moon; but in the middle of the eclipse, luminous points showed themselves on the other side of the black disk, and so numerous were they, that for a time I was perplexed which to choose for measure

ment.

"These brilliant phenomena grew larger as the moon passed onwards; and

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