THE SMUGGLER. 247 



heart's best feelings, not checking his energies, but saddening 

 all his enjoyments. How often is it in the world that we thus 

 see the bright, the admired, the powerful, the prosperous, with 

 the grave hue of painful thoughts upon the brow, the never 

 uurningled smile, the lapses of gloomy meditation, and ask 

 ourselves, " What is the secret sorrow in the midst of all this 

 success? what is the fountain of darkness that turns the stream 

 of sunshine grey? what the canker- worm that preys upon so 

 bright a flower ? ' ' Deep, deep in the recesses of the heart, it 

 lies gnawing in silence, but never ceasing and never satisfied. 

 Now, however, there was a light in the heavens for him ; and 

 whether it was as one of those rays that sometimes break 

 through a storm, and then pass away, no more to be seen till 

 the day dies in darkness, or whether it was the first glad har- 

 binger of a serene evening after a stormy morning, the conclu- 

 sion of this tale must show. 



"I'll tell you something, my dear boy," continued Mr. 

 Croyland, forgetting that he was speaking to the colonel of a 

 dragoon regiment, and going back at a leap to early days. 

 " Your father was my old school-fellow and dear companion; 

 your uncle was the best friend I ever had, and the founder of 

 my fortune, for to his interest I owe my first appointment to 

 India, ay, and to his generosity, the greater part of my outfit 

 and my passage. To them I am indebted for everything, to 

 my brother for nothing; and I look upon you as a relation 

 much more than upon him, so I have no very affectionate 

 motives for countenancing or assisting him in doing what is 

 not right. I'll tell you something more, too, Harry; I was 

 sure that you would do what is honourable and right, not be- 

 cause you have got a good name in the world, for I am always 

 doubtful of the world's good names ; and, besides, I never heard 

 the name of Sir Harry Layton till this blessed day, but because 

 you were the son of one honest man, and the nephew of an- 

 other, and a good, wild, frank boy too. So I was quite sure 

 you would not come to my house under a false name, when 

 my niece was in it, without, at all events, letting me into the 

 secret; and you have justified my confidence, young man." 



" I would not have done such a thing for the world," replied 

 the young officer; "but may I ask then, my dear Mr. Croy- 

 land, if you recognised me in the stage-coach, for it must be 

 eighteen or nineteen years since you saw me." 



