own
five years older in the last five days, I shuffled after the girl now
flitting before me down Broome Street. As I did so, I noticed her dress
to its minutest details, somewhat surprised to find how ragged and
uncouth it was. That Mr. Blake should stop a girl wherever seen, clad
in a black alpaca frock, a striped shawl and a Bowery hat trimmed with
feathers, I could easily understand; but that this creature with her
faded calico dress, dingy cape thrown carelessly over her head, and
ragged basket, should arrest his attention, was a riddle to me. I
hastened forward with intent to catch a glimpse of her countenance if
possible; but she seemed to have acquired wings to her feet since her
interview with Mr. Blake. Darting into a crowd of hooting urchins that
were rushing from Centre Street after a broken wagon and runaway horse,
she sped from my sight with such rapidity, I soon saw that my only hope
of overtaking her lay in running. I accordingly quickened my steps when
those same hooting youngsters getting in the way of my feet, I tripped
up and--well, I own I retired from that field baffled. Not entirely so,
however. Just as I was going down, I caught sight of the girl tearing
away from a box of garbage on the curb-stone; and when order having
been restored, by which lofty statement I mean to say when your humble
servant had regained his equilibrium, I awoke to the fact that she had
effectually disappeared, I hurried to that box and succeeded in finding
hanging to it a bit of rag easily recognized as a piece of the old
calico frock of nameless color which I had been following a moment
before. Regarding it as the sole spoils of a very unsatisfactory day's
work, I put it carefully away in my pocket book, where it lay till--But
with all my zeal for compression, I must not anticipate.

When I came home that afternoon I found myself unexpectedly involved in
a matter that for the remainder of the day at least, prevented me from
further attending to the affair I had in hand. The next morning Mr.
Blake did not start out as usual, and at noon I received intimation
from Fanny that he was preparing to take a journey. Where, she could
not inform me, nor when, though she thought it probable he would take an
early train. Mrs. Daniels was feeling dreadfully, she informed me; and
the house was like a grave. Greatly excited at this unexpected move on
Mr. Blake's part, I went home and packed my valise with something of the
spirit of her