rencontre. But later on in the night comes a yet
more violent disturbance, and it is now discovered
that, in spite of all precaution, the
Honourable Butler has succeeded in scaling the
back wall, and is actually in the hall, creating a
fearful uproar. Lover the second is locked into
an upper room, while Satanella herself descends
fearlessly to beard the Honourable Butler in the
hall. Lover the second, who knows nothing of
what is going forward, continues ringing the
bells of his upper chamber frantically; in the
hope of attracting the attention of persons in
the street. Then follows this extraordinary
dénoûment:

Stride meets the intruding Butler at the top
of the stairs, and asks him how he dared to
break in. He replies, with a ready effrontery,
that it is his house and his wife, and keep him
out nobody shall! To them in altercation enters
Satanella, robed in white, and encounters the
midnight disturber. The two, strange to say, are
seen to pass up-stairs to a little room, and fade
out of sight. In a few moments all is calm, and
then, wonderful to relate! word is passed below
for all hands, including discordant Stride, to
come aloft to the little chamber. Thereupon,
enter coachman, footman, butler, housemaids, the
whole retainers, wondering exceedingly what this
should mean. And behold, standing together on
the rug, their mistress and the Honourable
Butler! She then addresses them, and declares to
them that Mr. Butler wishes them to be informed
that he and she are man and wife: which
declaration, according to the Scottish laws, would
seem to be sufficient for a marriage. On the
receipt of which extraordinary piece of news,
the domestics retire, again wondering; and the
Honourable Butler, apparently quite satisfied,
departeth peacefully.

The other lover was in the mean time released
from his inglorious captivity, and smuggled away
by the discreet Stride; but he returned by-and-by,
attended by Captain Pollock, Mr. Charles
Stanley, and a strong party of friends, who were
gallant enough to remain on duty the whole
night for the protection of the lady.

After this date, the fortunes of the lovers
fluctuated with an extraordinary impartiality.
The ceremonial in the upper chamber, although
a little irregular, would appear to have given
the Honourable Butler a reasonable title to some
preference; and this would seem to have been
the juster view that at first prevailed in the
mind of Satanella; for we find the two
departing with a full train of attendants, carriages
and horses, and the Honourable Butler seated in
a domestic manner on the box.

Yet, shortly after, we find Mrs. Colebrooke
and Mr. Taaffe creeping down, disguised, and,
under circumstances of romance, to get on
board the Berwick smack. Finally, after much
mysterious peregrination, Mr. Taaffe and Mrs.
Colebrooke, in spite of the strong claims of
that Scottish ceremonial, are united in loyal
matrimony at Preston. There the piece ought
to have ended, with a valedictory " They lived
happily together for ever after;" the rather, as
the Honourable Butler witnessed this proceeding,
so much to his own prejudice, with a strange
acquiescence. But the pair did not live happily
together for ever after. It was said that the
little gentleman with the womanish face did not
treat the beautiful lady handsomely. It was
known that she was overwhelmned by debts, and
that any husband of respectable means would
be cast to creditors to be devoured. So Taaffe's
parent—far away at Smarmore Castle, in the
pleasant pastures of Louth—resolves to be
cruel, but wise; and, taking the disinheriting
knife in his hand, cuts Taaffe off without a
moment's hesitation. Away go the fine castle, the
gentle pastures, and that five thousand a year!
Naturally enough, this element does not sweeten
the nuptial nectar. By-and-by symptoms of insanity
develop themselves in the beautiful lady,
and we obtain a glimpse of a strange scene.
The disinherited husband lying dozing on a sofa,
and the distraught lady approaching him on
tiptoe with an open razor in her hand! Then
follow restraint, legal compulsion, and final separation;
and, at the end of all, poor Satanella,
grown worn and faded, sinks into poverty, and
expires in the arms of the faithful Stride. So
ends her share in the history.

Very much further on, years later, one of the
twin heroes of these adventures turns up again in
Italy. The " disinherited knight" is very much
with my Lord Byron and his merry men, at Pisa
and Genoa, and is enthusiastic almost to ferocity
about a fresh object of affection! This new
flame was, however, no creature in earthly
mould, but a literary inamorata, a translation of
the famous Dante, with a commentary annexed.
The noble peer, his friend, found time to write
home pressing letters to Mr. Murray, trying
to stimulate him into undertaking the business.
He pleads, too, with Mr. Moore. The
commentary on Dante is "excellent," but the
verse "is such as it has pleased God to endue
him withal; nevertheless, he is so firmly
persuaded of its equal excellence, that he won't
divorce the comment from the traduction, as I
ventured delicately to hint, not having the fear of
Ireland before my eyes, and upon the presumption
of having shotten very well in his presence
the day before " The eagerness of the young
knight of the Edinburgh parties to plunge into
the black Pactolus of printer's ink, is very
comical. "He is eager to publish all, and must be
gratified, though the reviewers will make him
suffer more tortures than are in his original.
Indeed,the notes are well worth publication, but he
insists upon the translation for company, so
they will come out together, like Lady C—t
chaperoning Miss * * *. Now, what shall we
do for him?" Then the noble friend proposes
adroit intercession with the terrible reviewers
Jeffrey and Giffard to allow him to pass by unnoticed
—a most comic test of his opinion of
the book. Perhaps the comment might be
noticed "without touching the text; but I
doubt the dogs—the text is too tempting."
We have another glimpse of him, riding out
furiously at Pisa with his noble friend and