one of the Genii, who accidentally extinguished his candle. "I am a Cloud," answered the winged Genius. "A Cloud! Just the thing. Now do me a shrewd turn, and Cupid is ever your debtor. Fly, fly, pretty Cloud, and encompass yon pavilion with your form. Away! ask no questions; swift as my word." "I declare there is a fog," said Venus. "An evening mist in Heaven!" said Minerva. "Where is Nox?" said Jove. "Everything goes wrong. Who ever heard of a mist in Heaven?" 'My candle is out," said Apollo. "And mine too," said Mars. "And mine, and mine, and mine," said Mercury and Ganymede, and the Muses and the Graces. "All the candles are out!" said Cupid; "a regular fog. I cannot even see the pavilion: it must be hereabouts, though," said the God to himself. "So, so; I should be at home in my own pavilion, and am tolerably accustomed to stealing about in the dark. There is a step; and here, surely, is the lock. The door opens, but the Cloud enters before me. Juno," whispered the God of Love, are all here. Be contented to escape, like many other innocent dames, with your reputation only under a cloud: it will soon disperse; and lo! the heaven is clearing." we "It must have been the heat of our flambeaux," said Venus, "for, see, the mist is vanished; here is the pavilion." Ganymede ran forward, and dashed open the door. Ixion was alone. "Seize him," said Jove. "I protest," said the King of Thessaly, "against this violation of the most sacred rites." "The marriage-tie?" said Mercury. "The dinner-hour?" said Jove. "It is no use talking sentiment to Ixion," said Venus; all mortals are callous." 66 Adventures are to the adventurous," said Minerva. "Here is Hercules! here is Hercules!" "Seize him!" said Jove; "seize that man." In vain the mortal struggled with the irresistible demigod. "Shall I fetch your thunderbolt, Jove?" inquired Ganymede. "Anything short of eternal punishment is unworthy of a God," answered Jupiter, with great dignity. "Apollo, bring me a wheel of your chariot." "What shall I do to-morrow morning?" inquired the God of Light. Order an eclipse," replied Jove. "Bind the insolent wretch to the wheel; hurl him to Hades; its motion shall be perpetual." "What am I to bind him with ?" inquired Hercules. "The girdle of Venus," replied the Thunderer. "What is all this?" inquired Juno, advancing, pale and agitated. "Come along; you shall see," answered Jupiter. "Follow me, follow me.' They all followed the leader, all the Gods, all the Genii; in the midst, the brawny husband of Hebe, bearing Ixion aloft, bound to the fatal wheel. They reached the terrace; they descended the sparkling steps of lapis-lazuli. Hercules held his burden on high, ready, at a nod, to plunge the hapless but presumptuous "Juno is not here," said Mercury, with an air of blended congratulation and dis-mortal through space into Hades. The appointment. "Never mind," said Jove; "scize him! He kept me waiting for dinner." "Is this your hospitality, giochus?" exclaimed Ixion, in a tone of bullying innocence. "I shall defend myself." "Seize him, seize him!" exclaimed Jupiter. "What! do you all falter? Are you afraid of a mortal?" "And a Thessalian?" asked Ganymede. No one advanced. "Send for Hercules," said Jove. heavenly group surrounded him, and peeped over the starry abyss. It was a fine moral, and demonstrated the usual infelicity that attends unequal connections. "Celestial despot!" said Ixion. In a moment all sounds were hushed, as they listened to the last words of the unrivaled victim. Juno, in despa. leant upon the respective arms of Venus and Minerva. "Celestial despot!" said Ixion, “I defy the immortal ingenuity of thy cruelty. "I will fetch him in an instant," said My memory must be as eternal as thy torGanymede. ture: that will support me.” BEACONSFIELD. WANTED A GOVERNESS. A GOVERNESS wanted-well fitted to fill The post of tuition with competent skill In a gentleman's family highly genteel. Superior attainments are quite indispensable, Health good-and reference quite undeniable. With everything, too, that's correct and os- THE CITIZEN AND THE THIEVES. Spanish ; Nor would there be harm in a trifle of German, The harp and piano-cela va sans dire— In drawing in pencil, and chalks, and the tinting That's call'd Oriental, she must not be stint in: She must paint upon paper, and satin and velvet; And if she knows gilding, she's no need to shelve it. Dancing, of course, with the newest gambades, The Polish mazurka, and best gallopades; Arithmetic, history joined with chronology, Heraldry, botany, writing, conchology, Grammar, and satin stitch, netting, geography, Astronomy, use of the globes, and cosmography. 'Twere also as well she should be Calisthenical, That her charge's young limbs may be pliant to any call. Their health, play, and studies, and moral condition, Must be superintended without intermission; At home, she must all habits check that disparage, And when they go out must attend to their carriage. Her faith must be orthodox-temper most pliable From a Pamphlet, published in 1609. A CITIZEN, for recreation's sake, With drinking healths and shaking by the hand, As he had travell'd to some new-found land. I am a taker, thou must be a giver.' Unto a wood, hard by, they hale him in, Misters,' quoth he, 'pray hear me ere you BARDELL vs. PICKWICK. CONTAINING, ALSO, SAMUEL WELLER, JR'S. MR. PICKWICK's apartments in Goswell Street, although on a limited scale, were not only of a very neat and comfortable description, but peculiarly adapted for the residence of a man of his genius and observation. His sitting-room was the first floor front, his bed-room the second floor front; and thus, whether he were sitting at his desk in his parlor, or standing before the dressing-glass in his dormitory, he had an equal opportunity of contemplating human nature in all the numerous phases it exhibits, in that not more populous than popular thoroughfare. His landlady, Mrs. Bardell-the relict and sole executrix of a deceased custom-house officer-was a comely woman of bustling manners and agreeable appearance, with a natural genius for cooking, improved by study and long practice, into an exquisite talent. There were no children, no servants, no fowls. The only other inmates of the house were a large man and a small boy; the first a lodger, the second a production of Mrs. Bardell's. The large man was always home precisely at ten o'clock at night, at which hour he regularly condensed himself into the limits of a dwarfish French bedstead in the back parlor; and the infantine sports and gymnastic exercises of Master Bardell were exclusively confined to the neighboring pavements and gutters. Cleanliness and quiet reigned throughout the house; and in it Mr. Pickwick's will was law. To any one acquainted with these points of the domestic economy of the establishment, and conversant with the admirable regulation of Mr. Pickwick's mind, his appearance and behavior on the morning previous to that which had been fixed upon for the journey to Eatanswill, would have been most mysterious and unaccountable. He paced the room to and fro with hurried steps, popped his head out of the window at intervals of about three minutes each, constantly referred to his watch, and exhibited many other manifestations of impatience very unusual with him. It was evident that something of great importance was in contemplation, but what that something was, not even Mrs. Bardell herself had been enabled to discover. "Mrs. Bardell," said Mr. Pickwick, at last, as that amiable female approached the termination of a prolonged dusting of the apartment 'Sir," said Mrs. Bardell. "Your little boy is a very long time gone." "Why it's a good long way to the Borough, sir," remonstrated Mrs. Bardell. "Ah," said Mr. Pickwick, "very true, so it is.” Mr. Pickwick relapsed into silence, and Mrs. Bardell resumed her dusting. "Mrs. Bardell," said Mr. Pickwick, at the expiration of a few minutes. "Sir," said Mrs. Bardell again. "Do you think it a much greater expense to keep two people, than to keep one?" "La, Mr. Pickwick," said Mrs. Bardell, coloring up to the very border of her cap, as she fancied she observed a species of matrimonial twinkle in the eyes of her lodger; "La, Mr. Pickwick, what a question!" Well, but do you?" inquired Mr. Pickwick. "That depends-" said Mrs. Bardell, approaching the duster very near to Mr. Pickwick's elbow, which was planted on the table-" that depends a good deal upon the person, you know, Mr. Pickwick; and whether it's a saving and careful person, sir." "That's very true," said Mr. Pickwick, "but the person I have in my eye (here he looked very hard at Mrs. Bardell) I think possesses these qualities; and has, moreover, a considerable knowledge of the world, and a great deal of sharpness, Mrs. Bardell; which may be of material use to me.' "La, Mr. Pickwick," said Mrs. Bardell; the crimson rising to her cap-border again. "I do," said Mr. Pickwick, growing energetic, as was his wont in speaking of a subject which interested him. "I do, indeed; and to tell you the truth, Mrs. Bardell, I have made up my mind." "Dear me, sir," exclaimed Mrs. Bardell. "You'll think it very strange now," said the amiable Mr. Pickwick, with a good-humored glance at his companion, | you-dear, kind, good, soul;" and, with that I never consulted you about this these words, Mrs. Bardell clung the matter, and never even mentioned it, till tighter. I sent your little boy out this morningeh?" Mrs. Bardell could only reply by a look. She had long worshipped Mr. Pickwick at a distance, but here she was, all at once, raised to a pinnacle to which her wildest and most extravagant hopes had never dared to aspire. Mr. Pickwick was going to propose a deliberate plan, too-sent her little boy to the Borough, to get him out of the way-how thoughtful-how considerate! "Well," said Mr. Pickwick, "what do you think?" "Oh, Mr. Pickwick," said Mrs. Bardell, trembling with agitation, "you're very kind, sir.' "It'll save you a good deal of trouble, won't it?" said Mr. Pickwick. "Oh, I never thought anything of the trouble, sir," replied Mrs. Bardell; "and, of course, I should take more trouble to please you then, than ever; but it is so kind of you, Mr. Pickwick, to have so much consideration for my loneliness." "Ah, to be sure," said Mr. Pickwick; "I never thought of that. When I am in town, you'll always have somebody to sit with you. To be sure, so you will." "I'm sure I ought to be a very happy woman," said Mrs. Bardell. "And your little boy-” said Mr. Pickwick. "Bless his heart!" interposed Mrs. Bardell, with a maternal sob. "He, too, will have a companion," resumed Mr. Pickwick, "a lively one, who'll teach him, I'll be bound, more tricks in a week than he would ever learn in a year." And Mr. Pickwick smiled placidly. "Oh, you dear-" said Mrs. Bardell. Mr. Pickwick started. "Oh, you kind good playful dear," said Mrs. Bardell; and without more ado, she rose from her chair, and flung her arms round Mr. Pickwick's neck, with a cataract of tears and a chorus of sobs. "Bless my soul," cried the astonished Mr. Pickwick ;- "Mrs. Bardell, my good woman-dear me, what a situation-pray consider-Mrs. Bardell, don't-if anybody should come-" 'Mercy upon me," said Mr. Pickwick, struggling violently, "I hear somebody coming up the stairs. "Don't, don't, there's a good creature, don't." But entreaty and remonstrance were alike unavailing; for Mrs. Bardell had fainted in Mr. Pickwick's arms; and before he could gain time to deposit her on a chair, Master Bardell entered the room, ushering in Mr. Tupman, Mr. Winkle and Mr. Snodgrass. Mr. Pickwick was struck motionless and speechless. He stood with his lovely burden in his arms, gazing vacantly on the countenances of his friends, without the slightest attempt at recognition or explanation. They, in their turn, stared at him; and Master Bardell, in his turn, stared at everybody. The astonishment of the Pickwickians was so absorbing, and the perplexity of Mr. Pickwick was so extreme, that they might have remained in exactly the same relative situations until the suspended animation of the lady was restored, had it not been for a most beautiful and touching expression of filial affection on the part of her youthful son. Clad in a tight suit of corderoy, spangled with brass buttons of a very considerable size, he at first stood at the door astounded and uncertain; but by degrees, the impression that his mother must have suffered some personal damage, pervaded his partially developed mind, and considering Mr. Pickwick as the aggressor, he set up an appalling and semi-earthly kind of howling, and butting forward with his head, commenced assailing that immortal gentleman about the back and legs, with such blows and pinches as the strength of his arm, and the violence of his excitement, allowed. "Take this little villain away," said the agonized Mr. Pickwick, "he's mad." "What is the matter?" said the three tongue-tied Pickwickians. "I don't know." replied Mr. Pickwick, pettishly. "Take away the boy" (here Mr. Winkle carried the interesting boy, screaming and struggling, to the further end of the apartment). Now, help me lead this woman down stairs." “Oh, I am better now," said Mrs. Bar "Oh, let them come," exclaimed Mrs. Bardell, frantically; "I'll never leavel dell, faintly. "Let me lead you down stairs," said the ever gallant Mr. Tupman. "Thank you, sir-thank you," exclaimed Mrs. Bardell, hysterically. And down stairs she was led accordingly, accompanied by her affectionate son. "I cannot conceive-" said Mr. Pickwick when his friend returned-"I cannot conceive what has been the matter with that woman. I had merely announced to her my intention of keeping a man servant, when she fell into the extraordinary paroxysm in which you found her. Very extraordinary thing." Very," said his three friends. "Placed me in such an extremely awkward situation," continued Mr. Pickwick. Very," was the reply of his followers, as they coughed slightly, and looked dubiously at each other. 64 This behavior was not lost upon Mr. Pickwick. He remarked their incredulity. They evidently suspected him. "There is a man in the passage now," said Mr. Tupman. "It's the man I spoke to you about," said Mr. Pickwick. "I sent for him to the "That's the pint, sir," interposed Sam; "out vith it, as the father said to the child, wen he swallowed a farden." "We want to know, in the first place," said Mr. Pickwick, "whether you have any reason to be discontented with your present situation." "Afore I answers that 'ere question, gen'lm'n," replied Mr. Weller, "I should like to know, in the first place, whether you're a goin' to purwide me with a better." A sunbeam of placid benevolence played on Mr. Pickwick's features as he said, "I have half made up my mind to engage you myself." "Have you, though?" said Sam. Mr. Pickwick nodded in the affirma tive. "Twelve pounds a year," replied Mr. Pickwick. "Clothes?" "Two suits." "Work?" "To attend upon me; and travel about with me and these gentlemen here." "Take the bill down," said Sam, em Borough this morning. Have the good-phatically. "I'm let to a single gentleness to call him up, Snodgrass." Mr. Snodgrass did as he was desired; and Mr. Samuel Weller forthwith presented himself. Oh-you remember me, I suppose?" said Mr. Pickwick. "I should think so," replied Sam, with a patronizing wink. "Queer start that 'ere, but he was one too many for you, warn't he? Up to snuff and a pinch or two over-eh?" "Never mind that matter now," said Mr. Pickwick hastily, "I want to speak to you about something else. Sit down." "Thank'ee, sir," said Sam. And down he sat without farther bidding, having previously deposited his old white hat on the landing outside the door. "Ta'nt a werry good 'un to look at, "said Sam, "but it's an astonishin' 'un to wear; and, afore the brim went, it was a werry handsome tile. Hows'ever, it's lighter without it, that's one thing, and every hole lets in some air, that's another-wentilation gossamer I calls it." On the delivery of this sentiment, Mr. Weller smiled agreeably upon the assembled Pickwickians. "Now with regard to the matter on which I, with the concurrence of these gentlemen, sent for you," said Mr. Pickwick. man, and the terms is agreed upon." "You accept the situation?" inquired Mr. Pickwick. "Cert'n'ly," replied Sam. "If the clothes fits me half as well as the place, they'll do." "You can get a character of course?" said Mr. Pickwick. "Ask the landlady o' the White Hart about that, sir," replied Sam. "Can you come this evening?" "I'll get into the clothes this minute, if they're here," said Sam with great alacrity. "Call at eight this evening," said Mr. Pickwick; "and if the inquiries are satisfactory, they shall be provided." With the single exception of one amiable indiscretion, in which an assistant housemaid had equally participated, the history of Mr. Weller's conduct was so very blameless, that Mr. Pickwick felt fully justified in closing the engagement that very evening. With the promptness and energy which characterized not only the public proceedings, but all the private actions of this extraordinary man, he at once led his new attendant to one of those convenient emporiums where gentlemen's new and second-hand clothes are provi |