498 Curiosities of Legal Experience. 



Roulette wheel twirls the other ; this time, at any rate, it has dropped 

 into the right hole, and we have won." Tried it a second time, 

 luck again, but he does not change a muscle, nor seems to care 

 which way it goes. Well, I hope he 



" Halloo, what is the matter, eh ? Brown, rny good fellow, there 

 is something wrong, there will be a riot here : let us be olF imme- 

 diately. Good gracious! the doors are shut, and we shall all be 

 murdered. Call the police, some one, Halloo there, Police, Police. 

 What the devil brought me here ? They will kill that man, Gentle- 

 men, for Heaven's sake, keep the peace Police there keep off, you 

 scoundrel, keep off" * * 



Soon after the above arrangement Mrs. S. retired into the country, 

 and for some time enjoyed a quiet, if not a happy life in the society 

 of her aunt and children. To the latter she was attached beyond 

 expression ; their education engrossed her whole care; and if her 

 affection for them exceeded even the ordinary partiality of a mother's 

 love, she had every excuse in the extreme beauty and gentle dispo- 

 sition of her little ones. Cornelia may have been prouder of her 

 sons, but could not have loved them more. This feeling of exclusive 

 attachment was increased by the loneliness of Mrs. Sherborne's situ- 

 ation ; her husband was a source of terror instead of support ; her 

 parents had long been dead, and she was the only surviving child. 

 One sister, many years older than herself, she remembered as the 

 companion of her infancy ; but her, for a length of time, she had 

 never seen, and all inquiry had been so carefully evaded, that it. was 

 only on her father's death that she became acquainted with her sister's 

 fate. A clandestine marriage with one of low rank and doubtful 

 character had occasioned the entire alienation of her family; 

 unable to dig and ashamed to beg, the unhappy couple had struggled 

 with poverty in vain, and at length, as a last resource, had emigrated 

 to America. From that time to the present, a period of more than 

 fifteen years, no tidings of them had ever been received. Death or 

 pride had sealed their lips; either they lived in stern defiance of 

 home and home feelings, or else, worn out with hardships and suffer- 

 ing, they had died in the Forest, and "made no sign" of reconci- 

 liation and forgiveness. It is no wonder, therefore, that Mrs. Sher- 

 borne, feeling herself thus alone in the world, should turn to her 

 children with an all-absorbing interest. Like Andromache she felt 

 that to her they were " father, mother, brother, husband, all." 



My connexion with her affairs, during this period, consisted chiefly 

 in paying Mr. S. his stipulated allowance, and in occasional services, 

 both friendly and professional, which I was enabled to render. But 

 a year had scarcely elapsed, before I heard from her that Mr. S. had 

 renewed his applications for money and his threats as to the children ; 

 by which last she was so much alarmed, that the poor little things 

 were only allowed to play on the lawn in sight of the windows. 

 This went on for some time, and on Mr. S.'s part with increasing 

 violence. Something was to be done ; the plan of buying off the 

 enemy had failed ; perhaps, by throwing a sword into the scale, 

 we might succeed better ; at all events it was worth the trial, and ac- 

 cordingly Mrs. S. determined, on my recommendation, to apply to 



