mile gallop before the hunting began. Of course, Hemplow Hills, being stationary, we reached in due time: some to join in a pretty good twenty-five minutes' ring with some stiffish fencing, and a select few of a tolerably good sort; others to kick their heels against the sides of their beaten hacks, until their hunters cast up in time for the second part of the day's amusement.

I wish Lord Hopetoun every success in his new career. He has a splendid country, and his hounds were looking in excellent condition: to do Charles Payne justice, they generally are. His servants (the same as last year), not to be beat for civility, quickness, and neatness of appearance, and business-like manner; and his lordship has mounted them in a way which ought to ensure a first-rate performance on their parts.

The show of foxes is very good this season; the large covers want rattling well. Badby Wood and Ashby St. Ledgers have already been treated to a turn. This week will exhibit Crick and the Braunston gorse 66 for better for worse." The former was lamentably deficient last year; the latter afforded some sport late in the season, and has of course increased in strength and cover. I may add, that his lordship has commenced the season with a virtue which should be eminently characteristic of masters of fox-hounds-I mean, punctuelity. Yours ever, SCRIBBLE.

Nov. 13, 1852..

THE UNSUCCESSFUL MAN;

OR,

PASSAGES IN THE LIFE OF TILBURY NOGO, ESQ.

BY FOXGLOVE.

CHAP. XXVI.

"They reached the hotel; forth streamed from the front-door

A tide of well-clad waiters, and around

The mob stood."

"And laughed, and blushed, and oft did say

Her pretty oath by yea and nay

She could not, would not, durst not play.

At length, upon the harp, with glee,

Mingled with arch simplicity,

A soft, yet lively air she rung,
While thus the wily lady sung."

I knew how it would be.

DON JUAN.

MARMION.

"Such conduct," as Mrs. Nogo remarked, "must never be repeated. Was it to be borne that, not satisfied with neglecting her by day, in the pursuit of those field-sports which rendered me so fatigued in the evening that a hog would have been a live

lier, and less snoring companion for the drawing-room-not content with lavishing my energies, and wasting my substance in these ridiculous attempts at achieving fame as a sportsman-attempts which met with invariable failure and derision, I should likewise make a practice of leaving my home at daybreak, and regardless of the terror I inflicted on the weak nerves of my delicate spouse, spend the night in carousing with boon companions at some disreputable farmer's, and return the following day glorying in, rather than ashamed of, such an utter subversion of all marital duties, and domestic subordination ?"

Such is an abbreviated summary of the lecture which Mrs. Nogo thought proper to inflict as a slight castigation for my misdemeanors, on the eventful day that witnessed the triumph of my gallant little pack, and the first and last appearance of enthusiastic Doctor Dott in the hunting-field. But alas! this was not all. So good an opportunity of at once assuming the reins of government was not lost on the female diplomatist at the head of the home department. The agitation of mind endured for my sake (now could I resist such an argumentum ad hominem?) very naturally brought on one of those organic affections of the nerves, which I need not call on heads of families to bear me witness, so mysteriously baffle constitutional vigour and professional skill. Little Doctor Dott shook his head as though conscious that he too was in the scrape; while he avowed his utter inability to minister relief to this inexplicable affliction. Aware that he had participated in its origin, he felt so uneasy in the immediate presence of the sufferer that he implored me to allow him to curtail his visit, and return forthwith to the bosom of his family, and that London practice, which he always thought it necessary to extol, as equal to that of the late Sir Henry Halford-a weight of responsibility, Mr. Nogo, that few shoulders could bear."

66

But, at least," said I, "before you go, Doctor, set my mind at ease by recommending some beneficial treatment for Mrs. Nogo, as I am exceedingly anxious about her state of health."

"Not the slightest cause for alarm, my dear Sir," was the reply. "Between ourselves, in professional confidence, Mrs. Nogo is as well as you or I, but " (and here the Doctor laid his finger to his nose, and looked unutterable things) "your good lady will never get better here. She has taken a dislike to the place, Sir, and consequently it disagrees with her. Take her away, Mr. Nogo, take her to Leamington, Cheltenham, Malvern, Bath-anywhere you think you can command a certain amount of gaiety and amusement, and I am prepared to stake my reputation as a physician, that she is quite recovered in a fortnight."

Such was the farewell advice of my kind-hearted friend, as I packed him up in the dog-cart on his return to the metropolis; and when I thought it over in my own mind, and found with what avidity the idea was seized upon by my wife, I resolved-though sorely against my inclination-upon quitting Wildwood, selling the harriers, breaking up the establishment, and leaving the farm to take care of itself—a method that, at least, could not pay worse than the present one. No sooner had this course been decided on, than I had reason to admire Doctor Dott's professional foresight, in the immediate improvement which took place in my wife's health; and by the time our arrangements for departure were concluded, and Bath-that city of precipices-fixed upon as

our temporary residence, she was so well, that for the life of me I could not perceive any reason why we should go away at all. However, it was too late to repent. The farm-house was shut up, the furniture put away and covered, the stables deserted and desolate, with here and there a melancholy pitchfork propping the open door of some comfortless loose-box-for I had sent on the three horses I determined to keep, that I might get a little hunting during my banishment. The kennels were cleaned and emptied; the very garden looked like a wilderness; and as the woman "left in possession," with soapy arms, and coarse apron, curiously folded round her skirt, made her farewell curtsey, and shut the front-door upon our departing carriage, I threw myself into the corner of the vehicle, and for the first time in my life felt very much disposed to quarrel with Mrs. Nogo, for the unfeeling state of high spirits in which she left her home.

What a contrast was it, after a few hours of travelling, to rattle up to the door of the White Rose Hotel, where we had determined to take up our abode until we could procure a suitable residence in the valetudinarian city of Bath! How the post-boy, conscious of the dignity which in these railroad days is attached to a real travelling-carriage and appendages, boiled up his merriest canter, to stop dead-short with a jerk that nearly sent my nose through the front-window! How the magnificent proportions of "James" and his cauliflower-head struck dumb the throng of idlers, who are always ready to witness the descent of a private individual from his carriage! How the landlord attended Mrs.

Nogo into his house, with a deference usually reserved for princesses of the blood; while the head-waiter-a privileged and plethoric individual in black silk shorts and gold knee-buckles-asked after my brother-inlaw, Mr. Topthorne, and "hoped I had enjoyed good sport with my 'ounds"! How the ostlers and attendants without, and the chambermaid and boots within, all seemed to know me personally as a friend, and to revere me immeasurably as a superior: and how I hugged myself in the conviction that although I might have driven up to the door of the Clarendon, nor found that the name of Mr. Nogo commanded attention from one regardless functionary of that metropolitan establishment, yet my arrival at the "White Rose Hotel," Bath, was heralded with all the honours, and attended with all the distinctions due to a visitor whose stay was likely to be prolonged to an indefinite length, and whose bill would bear due proportion, multiplying its items and increasing in its volume, as the termination of his sojourn was further and further postponed !

"The bill of fare, Sir-this morning's paper-list of visitors in Bath -and card of appointments of the hounds!" wheezed the fat waiter, as he entered our sitting-room with all these important documents in his hands.

"Like to see your apartments, Ma'am?" added an elderly and smartly-dressed female, who had evidently made a capital race with the waiter up-stairs, and only been beaten on the post.

"I trust you will find the suite of rooms I have prepared comfortable," continued the landlord, as following on the heels of his myrmidons, he conducted us through a labyrinth of passages, and across spacious and stately halls, to the comfortable dormitories prepared for our recep

tion.

And here I leave Mrs. Nogo, in her glory, to arrange with James about bringing up cap-boxes, parcels, and imperials; and with her own Abigail and all the chamber-maids, to discuss warming, airing, and unpacking, whilst I flee from the inextricable confusion to consult with my first friend, the fat waiter, as to ordering dinner, and afterwards to refresh my agitated mind with a stroll through the town.

"There is no solitude like solitude in a crowd;" but at the same time, few things are more amusing than to find oneself suddenly dropped among a set of people, to all of whom one is unknown, and to be able as an unobserved observer to watch the habits, and study the peculiarities of these unconscious fellow-creatures. I knew nobody in Bath, and nobody knew me ; and as I turned down Milsom-street at that hour in the afternoon the fashionable resort of all the distinguished individuals, whose names I had perused in the Visitor's List at the "White Rose," I felt the same sort of interest in remarking on the customs and manners of the aborigines, as if I had been a visitor in Paris, a stranger in St. Petersburgh, a wayfarer in Warsaw, or a missionary swaggering down the principal promenade of that enlightened capital which rejoices in the residence of His Majesty the King of Congo. Nor was I destined to remain long without exercise of my perceptive faculties. Groups of "fashionables" thronged the street on either side, and like the figures in a spectacle, " got up regardless of expense," by the spirited lessee of a minor theatre, I remarked that those who challenged my admiration as they sauntered down the street on this side, failed not in due rotation to re-appear, slowly toiling up the steep ascent of the opposite pavement, again to pass before my eyes, now beginning to recognize their respective toilettes on their downward career, and so on ad infinitum, in what could not but appear to me a circular course of labour in vain.

Ere I had been thus occupied for half an hour, I began to make acquaintance with the forms and features of the well-dressed individuals thus continually passing in review before me, and to speculate on the different characters and pursuits of these indefatigable promenaders. Here I beheld, with an admiration not wholly unmingled with awe, the passée beauty, for whose failing charms, alas! even the healing waters of King Bladud, recommended in sheer despair by the "family physician," must prove a hopeless remedy. In vain to o'erlay that parchment skin with paint, and plaister it with cosmetics; in vain to conceal that grizzled "crop" beneath those dark, flowing ringlets, shorn from some guilty head, whose very beauty, perhaps, was the primary cause of the female convict's disgrace and punishment; as she minces down Milsom-street in shoes a "world too tight" for those lame and swollen feet, not all the charm of "manner," not all the hypocrisy of "dress," can conceal the unwelcome fact that the toast of long-forgotten revellers, the "flower" of days gone by, has shrivelled into an ugly old woman at last! But see with tottering step and bow of the old school (alas! that its flexibility should be so damaged by chronic rheumatism) a cotemporary Damon staggers up to this antiquated Phyllis, and in croaking tones they exchange greetings and inquiries, mutual compliments, and welcome bits of scandal, with an eagerness and a concern which prove how anxious they still are to retain their slippery foot-hold in societyhow they are still gasping and struggling to stem "The tide, nor leave

the world which leaveth them." And now a fine old admiral, frank of countenance and bluff of bearing, but whose limbs, alas! "the bullets and the gout" have rendered incapable of supporting his jolly frame, is wheeled up in an invalid's chair, which, much to the danger of the toes of an inattentive public, he persists in steering himself, and joins these faded fashionables, to whom he forms a pleasing and instructive contrast. The living stream thus stemmed for an instant, rapidly accumulates its volume of idlers, and ere long the pavement is blocked up by the gossiping throng. A tall, handsome girl, with bright sunny ringlets (such an one-so thinks ancient Phyllis-as she herself was, not so very long ago!), chaperoned by a stout lady, who is doubtless the mamma, forms an additional attraction to the group, and accounts by her presence for the number of young gentlemen who swell the conclave, and offer to the curious in costume an interesting study indeed. Various are their garments; and of a cut and texture seldom seen, save amongst their own immediate set. But the prevailing taste appears to be a habit in which the wearer, without the slightest inconvenience to himself, is prepared to jump into the saddle, and ride to London at a moment's notice. That noble animal, the horse, furnishes with his accoutrements the favourite ornaments of these his adorers. As the ladies of ancient Rome caused their jewels to be shaped into such talismanic forms as were best appreciated by those virtuous matrons, so does Young England, in its outward adornment, affect an equine style of decoration, which shall argue a corresponding taste within; and whilst a turquoise horseshoe fastens the folds of a cambric bosom, picked out with Derby winners, the snaffle connects his button-holes, the curbchain secures his watch, and the top of his walking-stick is dignified with a representation (wrought in the precious metal) of that quadruped to whom certain cynics will opine the owner is but a first-cousin once removed.

What a relief to discover the honest, handsome countenance! to recognize the manly simplicity of dress which distinguishes my friend Joe Bagshot, amongst this bevy of second-rate dandies! His greeting is kind and cordial, as usual; he links his arm within mine, and soon in our multitude of confidences and inquiries we forget faded belles, superannuated bucks, mutilated warriors, juvenile tigers, Milsom-street, Bath, and all but our own concerns and our own proceedings.

"Kate will be so glad to hear you have arrived!" says my friend, "come to us to-morrow evening at half-past eight. She has a sort of quiet at-home' in our small house. I cannot ask you to dinner, old fellow, for our cook gave up her place yesterday, because Kate objected to her wearing her hair in long ringlets: only don't say I told you so; but drop in to-morrow night, any time before twelve, and bring Mrs. Nogo with you."

And with these words-it being now lamplight-my friend took leave of me on the steps of the "White Rose," and betook himself to his own home, and the society of his wife, who, I could not help suspecting, was a helpmate by no means adapted for my frank-hearted old schoolfellow.

The whole of the ensuing day we spent in what Mrs. Nogo terms "settling"-a mysterious evolution, of which it is difficult to describe the nature or the details. My own share of the performances was limited to an inspection of my stud, who had arrived the day before by