A SCHERZO 175 



Upon being questioned as to what had become 

 of his candle, he could give no satisfactory infor- 

 mation, which caused an exhaustive, though fruitless, 

 search to be made. The only trace of the missing 

 article discoverable was a quantity of powdered wax 

 strewn about the bottom of the stairs — the seated 

 hero himself being copiously besprinkled with the 

 same — which induced one to conclude that the 

 candle had been absolutely pulverised upon violently 

 meeting the wall at the corner, where indeed a large 

 lump of plaster had been quarried out with the 

 impact of the shock. 



On further inquiry we gathered that the gentle- 

 man (we may leave him nameless), an arrival of 

 the previous day, who had come to take part in a 

 fishing competition — in which Mr. Gow (our worthy 

 host) was also going to participate — had been 

 spending a convivial evening in an upper sitting- 

 room, and was endeavouring to find his way down 

 to the front door, when he met with the slight 

 reverse just related. Having assisted the un- 

 fortunate warrior up the steps with some difficulty, 

 I could do no less — he having now no candle of 

 his own — than guide him to the staircase that led 

 down to the front door ; arrived at which base of 



