town, overtook
him with a letter, on delivering which the messenger, waiting for no
answer, hastened back the way he had come. Randal recognized Avenel's
hand on the address, broke the seal, and read as follows:

(Private and Confidential.)

DEAR LESLIE,--Don't be down-hearted,--you will know to-night or
to-morrow why I have had cause to alter my opinion as to the Right
Honourable; and you will see that I could not, as a Family Man, act
otherwise than I have done. Though I have not broken my word to
you,--for you remember that all the help I promised was dependent on
my own resignation, and would go for nothing if Leonard resigned
instead,--yet I feel you must think yourself rather bamboozled. But
I have been obliged to sacrifice you, from a sense of Family Duty,
as you will soon acknowledge. My own nephew is sacrificed also; and
I have sacrificed my own concerns, which require the whole man of me
for the next year or two at Screwstown. So we are all in the same
boat, though you may think you are set adrift by yourself. But I
don't mean to stay in parliament. I shall take the Chiltern
Hundreds, pretty considerable soon. And if you keep well with the
Blues, I'll do my best with the Yellows to let you walk over the
course in my stead. For I don't think Leonard will want to stand
again. And so a word to the wise,--and you may yet be member for
Lansmere.

R. A.

In this letter, Randal, despite all his acuteness, could not detect the
honest compunction of the writer. He could at first only look at the
worst side of human nature, and fancy that it was a paltry attempt
to stifle his just anger and ensure his discretion; but, on second
thoughts, it struck him that Dick might very naturally be glad to be
released to his mill, and get a quid pro quo out of Randal, under the
comprehensive title, "repayment of expenses." Perhaps Dick was not
sorry to wait until Randal's marriage gave him the means to make the
repayment. Nay, perhaps Randal had been thrown over for the present,
in order to wring from him better terms in a single election. Thus
reasoning, he took comfort from his belief in the mercenary motives of
another. True; it might be but a short disappointment. Before the next
parliament was a month old, he might yet take his seat in it as member
for Lansmere. But all would depend on his marriage with the heiress; he
must hasten that