188 HEIRESS. 



the fortune of war, and the opportunities 

 the military profession afforded for ac- 

 quiring a knowledge of the world. 



My friend had kept the box-seat for 

 me, and no sooner had I placed myself 

 beside him, than, anxious to know how 

 I had spent the preceding evening, he 

 asked me many questions as to my 

 opinion concerning my host, which I 

 did not fail to answer in the favour- 

 able manner his handsome treatment and 

 interesting conversation warranted. He 

 then told me that the house he occupied 

 was his father's property, and that his 

 family, anxious to know the cause of his 

 choosing this part of the country for his 

 abode, had discovered that he was laying 

 siege to the heart of a young heiress 

 in the neighbourhood. In the event of 

 this ending successfully, I learnt that my 

 friend had been promised the four best 

 coach-horses England could produce. 



