Fanshawe

g and chasing o'

ER S

mbered,-the discovery of Ellen Langton. By a strong effort he next attained to an uncertain recollection of a scene of madness and violence, followed, as he at first thought, by a duel. A little further reflection, however, informed him that this event was yet among the things of futurity; but he could by no means recall the appointed time or place. As he had not the slightest intention (praisewort

. He was tormented by a raging thirst, that seemed to have absorbed all the moisture of his throat and stomach; and, in his present agitation, a cup of icy water would have been his first wish, had all the treasures of earth and sea been at his command. His head, too, throbbed almost to bursting; and the whirl of his brain at every movement prom

fitted to sustain the part of Glumdalia, in the tragedy of "Tom Thumb." Her features were as excellent as her form, appearing to have been rough-hewn with a broadaxe, and left unpolished. The other was a short, squat figure, about two thirds the height, and three times the circumference, of ordinary females. Her hair was gray, her complexion of a deep yellow; and her most remarkable feature was a short snub nose, just discernible amid the broad immensity of her f

, what news

ker. "Poor Widow Butler died last night, after her long sickness. Poor woman! I

woman of the cottage which he had entered with Ellen an

es a bit, when Dr. Melmoth visited her yesterday, but was raving mad

n, then?" inq

e Lord preserve me from

off with Hugh Crombie, t

fifteen y

d nothing of him si

othing good," sa

Merchant Langton, Ellen's father, met him in foreign parts, and would have made a man of him; but there w

robably," obser

ime. And who knows but his own funeral will be the end

" repeated Edward. "What do

gh, I may say," replied

s run away wit

you speaking?" shouted Edward, seizing th

ulated, however, that the news would produce so violent an effect upon her auditor; and her voice faltered as she recounted what she knew of the affair. She had hardly concluded, before Edward-who, as she proceeded, had been making ha

aking the pipe from his mouth. "What shall it be?-a bumper of wine with an egg? or a glass of smooth,

arily at the bare mention of wine and strong drink. "Y

You come to order me to saddle my best hor

n what direction to turn my hors

ter Edward, I really have taken a strong liking to you; and, if y

expecting to be told in what

for she is as much lost to you as if she never had been born, or as if the grave had covered her. Come, come, man, toss off a quart of my old wine, and kept up a merry heart. This has been my way in many

t sank within him at the hopelessness of pursuit which Hugh'

inutes," rejoined the landlord. "I have spoken to you as I would to my own son, if I had s

said Edward. "I know your best hors

t to what he saw were Edward's suspicions. "The gray is a stout nag, and will carry you a round pace, though not so fast as to bring you up w

then, the start o

n ten miles, at farthest. But, if mortal man could recover the girl, that fellow would

tion from you as to the co

road in the direction of the town. "My old comrade trusts no m

unted with all expedition; but, as he was about to apply the spurs, his thirst, which t

est cider; and let it be a large one!" he exc

ctions. Indeed, he rather exceeded them, by mingling with the juice of the apple a gill of his old brandy, which

eel like a new man already," observed Edw

tudent rode off. "I heartily wish him success. I wish to Heaven my conscience had suffered m

ded sun. In spite of the adventure, so mysterious and vexatious, in which he was engaged, Edward's elastic spirit (assisted, perhaps, by the brandy he had unwittingly swallowed) rose higher as he rode on; and he soon found himself endeavoring to accommodate the tune of one of Hugh Crombie's ballads to the motion of the horse. Nor did this reviving cheerfulness argue anything against his unwavering faith, and pure and fervent love for Ellen Langton. A sorrowful and repining dis

ord with a horse much inferior to his own. The speed to which he had been put had almost exhausted the poor

xpressions of which I made use last evening. May I hope that, in consideration

and. "I saw your disturbed state of feeling, and it would have been u

the offered hand. "Unless we obtain some further information at

enced after the storm subsided, which would give them but a few hours the start of us. May I beg," he continued,

a foe might fear. Edward had not been so slow as his mistress in discovering the student's affection; and he could not but acknowledge in his heart that he was a rival not to be despised, and might yet be a successful one, if, by his means, Ellen Langton were restored to her friends. This consideration caused him to spur forward wi

make inquiries respecting the fugitives; for he observed through the windows the faces of several persons, whom curiosity, or some better feeling, had led to the house of mourning. R

The worthy president was toiling onward at a rate unexampled in the history either of himself or his steed; the excellence of the latter consisting in sure-footedness rather than

t chart or compass. The affair would undoubtedly have been perplexing to a man of far more experience than he; but the doctor pictured to himself a thousand difficulties and dangers, which, except in his imagination, had no existence. The perturbation of his spirit had compelled him, more than once since his departure, to regret that he had not invited Mrs. Melmoth to a share in the adventure; this being an occasion where her firmness, decision, and confident sagacity-wh

"By what authority have you absented yourself

t such a conjuncture, and when the head of the inst

, my dear Edward, I advise that we continue our journey together, as your youth and inexperience will stand in need of the wisdom of my

concatenation of events had procured him such treatment, endeavored to obey his master's wishes. Edward had sufficient compassion

knight-errant and his squire, in search of a stray damsel. Methinks I am an epitome of the church militant, or a new species of pol

ight," replied Edward, whose imagination was high

. "But wherewith shall I defend myself, my hand being empty,

, exhibiting a brace of pistols, "will serve to begin

ich end proceeds the bullet," said Dr. Melmoth. "But were it not better, seeing we are so well provided with

valiant and experienced, should ride forward, lance in hand (your l

hed in my study a learned treatise, important not only to the present age, but to posterity, for whose sakes I must take heed to my safety.-

men of peace, as we shall shortly see. The foremost is somewhere near your own years, and rides like a grave, substantial

quiesced Dr. Melmoth, recovering his usual quantum of intrepidity. "We will ride

College, through almost its whole extent, had been rough and wild, and the country thin of population; but now, standing frequent, amid fertile fields on each side of the way, were neat little cottages, from which groups of white-headed children rushed

in which the stranger sat his horse, which a man's good opinion of himself, unassisted by the concurrence of the world in general, seldom bestows. The two servants rode at a respectable distance in the rear; and the heavy portmanteaus at their backs intimated that the party had journeyed from afar. Dr.

ents expressive of as much surprise and pleasure as were consistent

im in the face a moment. "Yes, it is my old friend indeed:

Langton, a father's anxiety overcoming the coldness and reserve th

Melmoth unable to meet the eye of his friend. "But-but I have been a ca

n of Mr. Langton's strong features, as quick to come and go as a flash of lightning; and then his countenance was as composed-though, perhaps, a little sterner-as before. He seemed about to inquire into the particul

n a steady voice; "and at your leisure I shall desire

at a haughty distance from the road, were evidently the abodes of the aristocracy of the village. It was not difficult to distinguish the owners of these-self-important personages, with canes and well-powdered periwigs-among the crowd of meaner men who bestowed their attention upon Dr. Melmoth and his friend as they rode by. The town being the nearest mart of a large extent of back country, there are many rough farmers and woodsmen, to whom the cavalcade was an object of curiosity and admiration. The former feeling, indeed, was general throughout the village. The shop-keepers left their customers, and looked forth from the doors; the female portion of the community thrust their heads from the windows; and the people in the street formed a lane through which,

Had Edward Walcott been called to their conference, he might, by disclosing the adventure of the angler, have thrown a portion

ibility, and as his own wisdom dictated: he chose to be an independent ally, rather than a subordinate assistant. But, as a step preliminary to his proceedings of every other kind, he found it absolutely necessary, having journeyed

tinue the pursuit. The village was the focus of several roads, diverging to widely distant portions of the country; and which of these the fugitives had taken, it was impossible to determine. One point, however, might be considered certain,-that the village was the first stage of their flight; for it commanded the only outlet from the valley, except a rugged path among the hills, utterly impassable by horse. In this dilemma, express

observation, that her flight must have commenced after the subsiding of the storm, recurred to him. On inquiry, he was informed that the violence of the rain had continued, with a few momentary intermissions, till near

deemed a witch for this trackless journey. Truly, I could wish I

there were many in the village, and who had much of a sailor-like dress and appearance. A second and more attentive observation, however, convinced Edward that this man's life had not been spent upon fresh water; and, had any stronger evidence than the nameless marks which the ocean impresses upon its sons been necessary, it would have been found in his mode of locomotion. While Edward was observing him, he beat slowly up to one of Mr. La

slight; yet, in the perplexity of the whole affair, they induced Edward to resolve to get at the hear

the banks of the river. His arms were folded, and his hat drawn over his brows. The lower part of his face, which alone was visible, e

lcott, laying his hand upon his shoulder, after

violence, and prepared to resist it; but, perceiving the youthful and solit

you with m

kept a careless watch," said

put in the language of the stranger's countenance, a set of words different from those to which he subsequently gave utterance had risen to his

id, contemptuously. "Away! back whence you came, or"-And he

tone, fellow, and that speedily," he observed. "I order you to l

m, but finally adopted a more

with me?" he inquired. "I am a boatman

e are private here," he continued, looking around. "I have no desire or intention to do yo

put myself under your o

g captain for such

he means of capturing you myself," he continued, observing the seaman's eye to wander rather scornfully over his youthful and slender figure, "there

loud, "Well, what is your will with me? D--d ungenteel treatment this! But put your quest

ch are not already beyond the village?" The seaman paused long before he answered, and gazed earnestly at Edward, apparently endeavor

" he said. "I warrant you they are many a

h, then, since midn

dark and rough one it wa

f they passed at all, it mus

seaman. "They could not have missed me. So, you see, your best way is to g

they did not commence their flight before midnight. You have made it evident that they have not passed

ou have drawn me in to betray my comrade; but, before you leave this place, you must answer a question or two of mi

hat then?" demanded Edward. "Nay, nothing: only you or I might not have gone

has come too late to do either good or harm. Look towards the inn: my compa

n groups, conversing eagerly; and the pale cheeks, uplifted eyebrows, and outspread hands of some of the female sex filled Edward's mind with undefined but into