walk straight into one of the four traps
which are set to catch you in the ancient
and interesting city of York. Trap the first,
at Mr. Huxtable's house; trap the second, at
all the hotels; trap the third, at the railway
station; trap the fourth, at the theatre.
That man with the handbills has had an hour at
his disposal. If he has not set those four traps
(with the assistance of the local solicitor) by this
time, he is not the competent lawyer's clerk I
take him for. Come, come, my dear girl! if there
is somebody else in the background, whose
advice you prefer to mine——"

"You see that I am alone," she interposed,
proudly. "If you knew me better, you would
know that I depend on nobody but myself."

Those words decided the only doubt which
now remained in the captain's mind—the doubt
whether the course was clear before him. The
motive of her flight from home was evidently
what the handbills assumed it to be—a reckless
fancy for going on the stage, "One of two
things," thought Wragge to himself in his logical
way. "She's worth more than fifty pounds to me
in her present situation, or she isn't. If she is,
her friends may whistle for her. If she isn't, I
have only to keep her till the bills are posted."
Fortified by this simple plan of action, the
captain returned to the charge; and politely placed
Magdalen between the two inevitable alternatives
of trusting herself to him, on the one hand, or
of returning to her friends, on the other.

"I respect independence of character, where-
ever I find it," he said, with an air of virtuous
severity. "In a young and lovely relative, I
more than respect—I admire it. But (excuse
the bold assertion), to walk on a way of your
own, you must first have a way to walk on.
Under existing circumstances, where is your
way? Mr. Huxtable is out of the question, to
begin with."

"Out of the question for to-night," said
Magdalen; "but what hinders me from writing
to Mr. Huxtable, and making my own private
arrangements with him for to-morrow?"

"Granted, with all my heart—a hit, a palpable
hit. Now, for my turn. To get to to-morrow
(excuse the bold assertion, once more), you must
first pass through to-night. Where are you to
sleep?"

"Are there no hotels in York?"

"Excellent hotels, for large families; excellent
hotels, for single gentlemen. The very worst hotels
in the world for handsome young ladies, who
present themselves alone at the door, without
male escort, without a maid in attendance, and
without a single article of luggage. Dark as it
is, I think I could see a lady's box, if there was
anything of the sort in our immediate
neighbourhood."

"My box is at the cloak-room. What is to
prevent my sending the ticket for it?"

"Nothing—if you want to communicate your
address by means of your box—nothing
whatever. Think; pray think! Do you really
suppose that the people who are looking for you,
are such fools as not to have an eye on the cloak-
room? Do you think they are such fools—when
they find you don't come to Mr. Huxtable's at
eight to-night—as not to inquire at all the
hotels? Do you think a young lady of your
striking appearance (even if they consented to
receive you) could take up her abode at an
inn, without becoming the subject of universal
curiosity and remark? Here is night coming
on as fast as it can. Don't let me bore you:
only let me ask once more—Where are you to
sleep?"

There was no answer to that question: in
Magdalen's position, there was literally no
answer to it, on her side. She was silent.

"Where are you to sleep?" repeated the
captain. "The reply is obvious—under my
roof. Mrs. Wragge will be charmed to see you.
Look upon her as your aunt; pray look upon her
as your aunt. The landlady is a widow, the
house is close by, there are no other lodgers, and
there is a bedroom to let. Can anything be more
satisfactory, under all the circumstances? Pray
observe, I say nothing about to-morrow—I leave
to-morrow to you, and confine myself exclusively
to the night. I may, or may not, command
theatrical facilities, which I am in a position to
offer you. Sympathy and admiration may, or
may not, be strong within me, when I contemplate
the dash and independence of your
character. Hosts of examples of bright stars of
the British drama, who have begun their
apprenticeship to the stage as you are beginning yours,
may, or may not, crowd on my memory. These
are topics for the future. For the present, I
confine myself within my strict range of duty.
We are within five minutes' walk of my present
address. Allow me to offer you my arm. No?
You hesitate? You distrust me? Good
Heavens! is it possible you can have heard anything
to my disadvantage?"

"Quite possible," said Magdalen, without a
moment's flinching from the answer.

"May I inquire the particulars?" asked the
captain, with the politest composure "Don't
spare my feelings; oblige me by speaking out.
In the plainest terms, now, what have you
heard?"

She answered him with a woman's desperate
disregard of consequences, when she is driven to
bay—she answered him instantly:

"I have heard you are a Rogue."

"Have you, indeed?" said the impenetrable
Wragge. "A Rogue? Well! I waive my
privilege of setting you right on that point for a
fitter time. For the sake of argument, let us
say I am Rogue. What is Mr. Huxtable?"

"A respectable man, or I should not have seen
him in the house where we first met."

"Very good. Now observe! You talked of
writing to Mr. Huxtable, a minute ago. What
do you think a respectable man is likely to do
with a young lady, who openly acknowledges
that she has run away from her home and her