all unpleasant. Then there was a mar- time," pursued Mrs. Bacon with evident ried aunt of the M.P.'s, the chaperon of pride in the narration, "a government dethe party, a certain Mrs. Bacon, stout spatch boat steamed after us fifty miles and laughter-loving, and an aristocratic with John's message, and was pretty nearlooking Miss Wyvern, haughty but grace-ly lost with all hands in the fog.' ful.

Well," replied Miss Chancellor in hesitating tones, "I don't quite know. John" her brother, no doubt "has given us carte blanche to go where we like, but not more than twelve hours distant from England, for he may want to consult Mr. Wyvern at any moment; and then, you see, he is naturally anxious to join us as often as possible."

Here Mrs. Bacon interposed with her habitual happy laugh,

,,

And yet, in spite of all this devotion, it was evident from the aspect of Hilda's face as she reappeared once more, that she was scarcely made happy by it. But, at this present moment, the chief object of her solicitude is her father; tall and rather stooping, with his rosy, well-preserved west-country face and aquiline and clearly-cut features. The steps and the encumberment of the decks puzzle him a little, and he leans heavily on his daughter's arm till he has taken his seat on deck, when he looks benevolently round as he takes his glasses and begins to scrutinize the place and its surroundings.

"Rather different sight," he began, after taking a long look at the forts that shut us in, at the huge rock towering above us, and the sparsely scattered craft about the harbor, "rather different from Cherbourg in 1858, when I assisted, as the French would say, at the meeting between their emperor and our queen, at the "Oh, that is quite natural. I remem-inauguration of the new fortifications. I ber, when Charles and I - that is Mr. brought my yacht over, and upon my word Bacon, you know were courting, and II thought we should have been blown out was ordered by the doctors to the Spas" of the water, with the saluting and firing "Yes, you told us that story yesterday, of big guns. Ah, the French are a fickle aunt," interrupted Miss Chancellor has- people, Mrs. Bacon!" tily.

"But these gentlemen haven't heard it," persisted Mrs. Bacon.

I made a friend of Mrs. Bacon from that moment, by listening attentively and respectfully to her story. It was not a very old story after all, for Mrs. Bacon was still young and buxom, and might even now have drawn admirers to the Spas.

But just then I heard a voice, whose thrilling accents could never be mistaken. It was Hilda, who, speaking from the companion-ladder, was calling in sweet but commanding tones,

"Mr. Wyvern, Mr. Wyvern, have the letters come on board?"

"Just this moment come!" cried Mr. Wyvern, handing Hilda a packet of despatches which she looked hastily over, and then, with a disappointed face, retired once more.

"I don't know what news she'd have," | cried Mrs. Bacon; "there couldn't be a more devoted lover than John. He sends her a telegram every four hours. And there's sure to be one to rouse us all up in the middle of the night! The last

And poor Mrs. Bacon, thus singled out she evidently rather dreaded the old gentleman and preferred to keep out of the radius of his observations - could only say that she had always heard that the French were a fickle people.

By this time the squire's faded brown eyes had passed over me without any sign of recognition, and then my face came under Hilda's more trying scrutiny. And next moment she called Tom Courtney to her side.

"Yes, Lamallam," I heard Tom say. "French? He may be originally, or Dutch or Hebrew; but a goodish sort of fellow anyhow. Shall I bring him to you?"

Miss Chudleigh made a hasty sign of dissent, and at that moment Mr. Wyvern burst in upon the group on deck with a programme fully arranged.

"We've got to go up the mountain to Fort du Roule, first of all. That's what everybody does, and as it's the only thing to do at Cherbourg, we must make the most of it. There are voitures for those who don't like to walk."

Mrs. Bacon and the squire were the

the descent, she brightened up and tried | through in the presence of a large audito interest herself in the conversation. ence of soldiers and sailors of the navy But she was evidently preoccupied, and - the latter exquisitely neat in their blue her politeness cost her an effort. Why and white, fine-looking young fellows, did I not then make myself known, and each with a rose in his breast- the arena appeal to the memory of our old love-pas- was cleared for the grand military spectasages? Something at the moment re- cle of the defeat of the Kroumirs. The strained me. I must have feared my fate young soldiers trooped off behind the too much, and then the opportunity was scenes; they had all been admitted gralost; we had joined the main body of the tuitously in order to assist in the military party. And Mr. Wyvern had joined us spectacle. now, and evidently thought that as the representative of his chief, he should almost monopolize Hilda's society. And the poor girl seemed to acknowledge the claim, and did her best to be cheerful and bright in his presence. Young Courtney hardly had a chance of speaking to his cousin; perhaps he did not want a chance, for he was, or seemed to be, entirely engrossed in Miss Chancellor's conversation.

At this interesting moment a carriage arrived to carry the ladies back to the yacht, with a message from Mr. Wyvern that all must be on board by eleven, as the "Sea-Mew" might have to sail with the tide. But we were determined to see the end of the performance, and, indeed, put down Mr. Wyvern's announcement as a little piece of extra officiousness.

By-and-by the band struck up the grand march of the Kroumirs, and presently a The chief pleasure in yachting is gener-party of the same dashed upon the arena, ally acknowledged to be the coming a party of two at least, brandishing their ashore, and hence the whole party on board the "Sea-Mew," with the exception of Mr. Wyvern and his sister, and the old squire and Hilda, had agreed to dine at the table d'hôte of the chief hotel, and amuse themselves somewhere afterwards. The theatre was closed, but there was a circus in a big, desolate place close by, where something like a fair was going on stalls crammed with parcels of gingerbread, all to be attained by some combina tion of skill or chance. In all of these Tommie distinguished himself, knocking over dolls, and unfailingly hitting the bull's-eye in the mimic shooting-galleries, and finally carried off the grand prix of the Tombola, a huge ball of silvered glass as big as the head of the giant Cormoran.

All this success excited great disapprobation among the stall-keepers. Monsieur was an expert, they said with one accord, and it was not fair that he should engage in entertainments that were intended for honest bourgeois, their wives, and innocent children. Tommie was inclined to go on and break all the banks, sweeping away their reserve of gingerbread and nuts, and petrified sponge-cakes; but the townspeople took the side of the stall keepers, and then some sailors came along from an English ship in the harbor, and were inclined to back up their country

man.

A row seemed imminent, but I managed to drag Tommie away out of the confusion, and safely into the circus, where an animated performance was going on. The regular circus routine having been gone

spears and uttering fierce war-cries. Hardly had they gone when a French officer appeared at the head of a picquet, and posted a sentry over a heap of old saddles that was supposed to represent a fountain. Exit the picquet, and the sentry begins his march up and down to slow music, which quivers and quavers in notes of warning and grief as those rascally Kroumirs creep up and drive a poniard into the heart of the poor soldier. Then the relief approaches and looks in vain for the sentry, till they almost tumble over his body. The dagger is discovered, and the French officer, raising it to the sky, imprecates vengeance upon the heads of the assassins.

Immediately, with a dexterous application of mats and screens, the arena is converted into the palace of the bey of Tunis. The bey appears to be a wicked old fellow with a penchant for bayadères, a troupe of whom appear and dance gracefully before him. All the eligible girls of Cherbourg, we are told, have been pressed into the service, but then the girls of Cherbourg don't appear to be designed by nature for bayadères, and the general effect is skinny and bony. But the bey himself is perfection, a most respectable old gentleman, who claps his hands, when he has had enough of the bayadères, with quite Parisian grace. But his face is wrinkled with care. He has a world of trouble on his hands, for the French ambassador - or perhaps he is only a consul-is thundering at the gate. Enters the French ambassador in evening dress; enters a

stout French general in embroidered uni- I was participating in heathen rites, whose form and képi; enters, in violent excite-origin goes back to the early primitive life ment, the French capitaine, waving the of mankind, without a serious thought, inKroumir's dagger; enters the Italian chargé d'affaires with a scarf of green, white, and blue, who prompts the bey to resistance. But when an ultimatum is presented by the stout and fierce French general, the bey trembles, turns pale; he falls back on his wily friend in the green tricolor; but he too has lost confidence. He may wring his hands, protest, but all is in vain. The bey signs his submission, and exeunt the French in a triumphant, tumultuous rush, while the bayadères pose themselves in attitudes of grief and submission. At this moment a placard is exhibited which brings down the house "France will have her frontiers respect· ed."

deed, in his head, Tom Courtney plunged into the thick of the fun, clasping on one side the hand of a pretty, dark-eyed little ouvrière, while on the other he hooked on to a dark-bearded, savage-looking young fellow, presumably the girl's sweetheart. The little ouvrière did not seem to dislike the change of partners, and chatted gaily with Tommie during the intervals of the dance. But the young sweetheart was not so well pleased. Tommie's French was imperfect, and perhaps, in his happy ignorance of the language, he may have said more than he intended. Anyhow, the black-bearded young fellow took umbrage, words ensued, and then a slight scuffle, and then, in less time than it takes But still the Kroumirs have to be dealt to tell it, the sergents de ville were on the with, and the arena is presently occupied scene, and all the parties to the fray were with battles, marches, bivouacs, with a marched off to the guard-house. The comic element in the shape of a bibulous black-bearded young fellow, who was very and vivacious private, who is continually excited, and in a highly dangerous mood, on the point of bestowing a kick or a buf- was detained for the night, while Tommie, fet upon his commanding officer, but who who took the thing more quietly, was per recovers his sense of discipline in time to mitted to leave on our promise to appear convert the assault into a respectful sa- next morning at the tribunal of correc lute. A pathetic element, too, is provided | tional police, and we were favored with in the death of a soldier and his horse, the the escort of a sergent de ville, nominally former sharing the last drop from his for our protection, but in reality, I fancy, water-bottle with his faithful charger. The to make sure of our not breaking our pamassacre of this gallant pair by a crowd | of Kroumirs was the last drop in the cup of their iniquities. From that moment they were slaughtered like flies, a gallant vivandière of course performing prodigies of valor, amid fanfares of trumpets and incessant detonation of crackers, while the band burst forth into a triumphal march, and the audience rose en masse, while the sailors laughed and cheered at the exploits of their brethren in arms.

By the time we had turned out of the circus it was nearly midnight, and yet the town showed no sign of turning in for the night or what was left of it. Half the population of the town was in the streets; children ran about and danced, while at all the open spaces a concourse of people had gathered, who were formed into a ring, and were dancing round and round, chanting some monotonous refrain, slowly at first, and then faster and faster, till the dance became a mad whirl, and the ring broke up by its own centrifugal force amid universal laughter and applause.

It was the St. Jean d'été, the feast of Midsummer Day, that the worthy Cherbourgeois were celebrating in this primitive fashion. Without a thought that he

role; a sergent who mounted guard patiently on the steps of the hotel, and seemed disposed to stay there all night.

Already, we were told, half-a-dozen urgent messages had come from the yacht, and one of the cabin-boys was awaiting our arrival to say that the "Sea-Mew was on the point of sailing, and that the pilot could wait no longer. There was no time to write, even to explain the situation, and we could only send a message excusing ourselves on the ground of an unexpected engagement on the following morning, and hoping to rejoin the "SeaMew" at her next port of call.

And presently we heard her beating through the water in the silence of the night a silence broken also by the distant cries of those who were still keeping up the St. Jean- the reflection of her lights pirouetting in the swell she raised in turning. Bells sounded, the engines went on full speed, and presently she shot quietly out of the harbor, and was lost in the indefinite haze beyond.

As for Tom Courtney, he was so contrite that it was impossible to reproach him, and, indeed, except for an excess of youthful spirits there was nothing to

blame in his conduct. And this view was third volume of his "Frederick the taken by the presiding magistrate next Great" to throw some light on it, abanmorning, who dismissed Tommie with a doned the task in impatient despair. fine of two francs and a half and costs, Mere inanity and darkness visible-such which amounted to as much more. His are his expressions-reign in all Volenemy, now calmed and contrite, was taire's biographies over this period of his mulct in the same amount, and as Tom- life. Seek not to know it; no man has mie insisted on defraying the whole costs inquired into it, probably no competent of the entertainment, the utmost harmony man ever will. It happened, however, prevailed, and prisoners, guardians of the that at the very time Carlyle was thus expeace, and witnesses adjourned to the pressing himself, a very competent man nearest café, where many bottles of wine was engaged on the task. The researches were opened and drunk, to the health of of Desnoiresterres succeeded in disperseverybody concerned, and to the continuing a portion at least of the obscurity ance of the entente cordiale. which hung over Voltaire's movements

But, in the mean time, where was the during these mysterious years. He took "Sea-Mew"?

From The Cornhill Magazine.
VOLTAIRE IN ENGLAND.

PART I.

immense pains to supply the deficiencies of preceding biographers. Judging rightly that all that could now be recovered could be recovered only in scattered fragments, he diligently collected such information as lay dispersed in Voltaire's own correspondence and writings, and in the correspondence and writings of those with THE residence of Voltaire in England whom his illustrious countryman had is an unwritten chapter in the literary his- when in England been brought into contory of the eighteenth century. And yet tact. Much has, it is true, escaped him; assuredly few episodes in that history are much which he has collected he has not, so well worth attentive consideration. In perhaps, turned to the best account; but his own opinion it was the turning-point it is due to him the fullest and the most of his life. In the opinion of Condorcet satisfactory of Voltaire's biographers it was fraught with consequences of mo- to say that his chapter "Voltaire et la mentous importance to Europe and to Société Anglaise" must form the basis of humanity. What is certain is that it left all future inquiries into this most interestits traces on almost everything which he ing subject. To higher praise he is not, subsequently produced, either as the pro- we think, entitled. Some of Desnoiresfessed disciple and interpreter of English terres's deficiencies are supplied by Mr. teachers, or as an independent inquirer. Parton, whose "Life of Voltaire" ap. Its influence extended even to his poetry peared in two goodly octavos a few months and to his criticism, to his work as an his-ago. Mr. Parton has made one or two torian and to his work as an essayist. unimportant additions to what was alNor is this all. The circumstances under which he sought our protection; his strange experiences among us; his relations with Pope, Swift, and Bolingbroke, with the court, with our aristocracy, with the people; the zeal and energy with which he studied our manners, our government, our science, our history, our literature; his courageous attempts to distinguish himself as a writer in English, -all combine to form one of the most interesting passages in his singularly interesting career.

But unfortunately no portion of Voltaire's biography is involved in greater obscurity. "On ignore," writes Charles Rémusat, "à peu près quelle fut sa vie en Angleterre. Ces deux années sont une lacune dans son histoire. C'est un point de sa biographie qui mériterait des recherches." Carlyle, who attempted in the

ready known, but he has, we are sorry to
find, done little more. We gratefully
acknowledge our obligations both to Des-
noiresterres and to Mr. Parton.
these obligations are slight.

But

The first point to be settled is the exact date of his arrival in England, and that date can, we think, be determined with some certainty. On May 2 (n.s.), 1726, an order arrived for his release from the Bastile, on the understanding that he would quit France and betake himself, as he had offered to do, to England. On May 6 he was, as his letter to Madame de Ferriole proves, at Calais; and at Calais he remained for some days the guest of his friend Donoquet. How long he remained at Calais it is not possible to discover, but he tells us himself that he disembarked at Greenwich, and it is clear from the passage which follows that he landed