reply.

And then he up and told ARCHIBALD the whole story.

The latter was so thoroughly dumbfounded that a decently-smart boy could
have blown him over without any apparent effort.

"Why, JEFF," said he, "only to think of it. Ain't it awful? And ANN
BRUMMET, too; ain't I glad it ain't me, though."

"That's no way to console a fellow, you fool," said JEFFRY. "You'd
better offer to help me out of the scrape."

"Why, so I will, of course," said ARCHIBALD. "If I hadn't saved your
life, of course you wouldn't have got into it; and so I feel bound, you
know, to see you out of it. What shall I do?"

"Why, just go over to the Half-way House, and tell ANN I can't come.
Tell her I've got the small-pox, or broke my leg, or my old man's
dying--or anything, so that she understands I can't come."

"You'd better give me a letter," said ARCHIBALD, "and I'll slip it under
her door and run off. I never could remember all that, I should be so
flustered, you know."

"No," replied JEFFRY, "I shan't give you any letter. I ain't fool enough
to commit myself to any woman in black and white."

"Well," replied ARCHIBALD drearily, "just as you say. Oh, what a knowing
man the Hon. MICHAEL is! He said you'd make me pay that debt of saving
your life, sooner or later, and it's turned out sooner. But I'll go,
JEFFRY, if I can get away from BELINDA. She tags me round everywhere,
and wants to court me all the time. Ain't it dreadful? What time shall I
go?"

"Three o'clock," answered JEFFRY. "Tell her I'd come if I could but I
can't _anyhow_. Be sure and tell her _that_, and anything else you've a
mind to."

(To be continued.)

* * * * *

PIGEON ENGLISH.

Certainly newspaper writers are given to making very remarkable
statements. In describing General CHANGARNIER, a newspaper lately
informed us that "he stoops his head, which is sprinkled over with a few
gray hairs when walking." Now, if the general's head be sprinkled when
walking, we may fairly infer that the gray hairs, unless brushed off,
remain upon it when it stands still. We are additionally mystified by
the further statement--still with reference to the same officer--that
"he enjoys the personal demeanor of the French people to a remarkable
degree." This we are very much delighted to hear, although we have not
the slightest idea what it means.

* * * * *

Corroborative.

A late item of war news states that "the