was pretty well known as a sort of ship and
insurance broker among foreign houses, and would
no doubt be looked upon by the magisterial
magnates as "a highly respectable man." The witness
in Mr. Fanst's favour was rich, and could, no
doubt, bring forward witnesses as to his respectability.
They could lose nothing if the case went
before the Lord Mayor, for the worst that could
happen to them was that I should be declared not
guilty of the charge. But whatever way the
matter turned I must be the sufferer. My
solicitor was right, and every friend I consulted gave
me the same advice. I had fallen among thieves.

Messrs. Fanst and Steinmetz had put their
affair into the hands of one of the lowest of the
very low criminal attorneys. There is a peculiar
race of these men, who dare not practise before
magistrates who are lawyers like themselves, but
who generally have it very much their own way
with those who administer the law by virtue of
their eminence as tradesmen. My solicitor
advised me to treat with the gang through Mr.
Snips; who, having been the innocent cause of
introducing me to the scoundrels, was now most
anxious to get me out of the mess. In the mean
time, I was not to leave London, but was not to
show myself needlessly, so that, failing to find me,
Mr. Fanst and his friend would perhaps come into
terms which would be easier for me.

The first overture Mr. Snips made to Mr.
Fanst was, that I should give a bill at three
months for seventy pounds, being the original
fifty pounds, with interest at the rate of one
hundred and sixty per cent per annum: which
bill he, Mr. Snips, would put his name to.
The offer was rejected with scorn. Mr. Fanst
declared that I was a scoundrel, a swindler,
a rascal, and that he would show me up at
Guildhall as a man who obtained money by
false pretences. If any arrangement was to be
made, he, Mr. Fanst, would have nothing to do
with it. Mr. Snips might see the solicitor in
whose hands the case was put; but, so far as he
(Mr. Fanst) was concerned, he had determined
to take out a summons or a warrant against me.

To the solicitor of this worthy, Mr. Snips
repaired, and was at once met with the indispensable
condition, that before anything could be
done his costs must be paid, and these costs he
made out to be ten guineas. This amount must
be paid down in cash, and then he would talk of
what terms he would advise his clients to consent
to respecting the bill. Mr. Snips said he must
consult me before he could say anything, and next
day, by letter, told me what were the results of
his interview with the attorney.

With me there was the difficulty not only of
making terms with this gang of thieves, but
also of finding the money to do it. The last
difficulty, however, was smoothed by Mr. Snips,
who offered me assistance. He had several meetings
with Mr. Steinmetz at the Eastern Coffee-
house to try and bring him to reason; but
the more he made advances, the more the
other drew back, and so offensive was his bullying
and blustering, that at last Mr. Snips declined
to meet him any more.

Acting always under the advice of my solicitor,
Mr. Snips for several days did not go near the
lawyer for the other side, merely leaving his
address with him, so that when they came to their
senses they might know where to find him. After
a short time this treatment produced the desired
effect. The rascals saw that, although they had
taken out a summons against me at Guildhall,
they did not know where to find me. In order
to put them still more off the scent, I repaired
abroad, so that my letters bearing a foreign
postmark were shown to them, by way of
confirming Mr. Snips's assertion that I had left
England for the present. To remain out of the
country any length of time being, however,
impossible for me, I felt anxious that the affair
should be arranged. In the mean time I had come
into funds, and, through Mr. Snips, offered in
hard cash half the amount of the original bill,
and a bill at three months for the balance: the
bill to be endorsed by Mr. Snips. This they
would not listen to.

At last, and just as I had given up all hope
of settlement, Mr. Snips wrote to me that he
had arranged the business. He had paid down
ten pounds in cash for their solicitor's costs;
twenty pounds as a first instalment of the
fifty pound bill; and had given five bills of twenty
pounds each, payable one, two, three, four,
and five months after date. These, bearing my
signature and his endorsement, were accepted by
Mr. Fanst, and thus I had to pay altogether
one hundred and forty pounds for the temporary
advance of thirty-seven. No wonder that bill
discounting is a gainful trade, more particularly
in view of the recently adopted device of threatening
the non-payer with criminal proceedings.

             ALL SORTS OF THINGS.

All sorts of things are to be met with in a
large building of two or three stories—not very
bright; for the windows and skylights are not
allowed to interfere more than is necessary with
wall-space and overhead-space; not very clean,
for all sorts of things include many that are
unavoidably dusty and dirty; not very pretty, for
prettiness would neither be looked for nor wanted
in such a place; but very orderly. It is a Railway
Storehouse. No matter which nor where;
no matter to which of the great companies it
may belong, nor whether in or out of town. Such
storehouses are all pretty much alike in general
scope, however they may differ in details. At
one depot a company may make some of their
locomotives, and repair all; at another, they may
make and repair passenger carriages, and at
another goods waggons and coal-trucks; but
whatever may be the extent of their manufacturing
and handicraft arrangements, a storehouse
filled with all sorts of things is an                                                             indispensable accompaniment. It would never do to
send to the ironmonger, nor to the oilman, when
the things are wanted; they must be procured
before they are wanted, or an enormous amount
of time (which is money) would be wasted.