A Quarrel with some Old Acquaintances. By Laman Blanchard, Esq. 550 Literature of the Month (for MAY): Woman and her Master. By Lady 130 to 143 (for JUNE): The City of the Caliphs. By 278 to 287 423 to 431 (for JULY): The Dream; and other Poems. Queen Anne: a Novel. By the Hon. Grantley Berkeley. Wander- ings in Germany. By E. Wilkey.-Italy and the Italians. By F. Von Raumer.- The Correspondence of William Wilberforce. Edited by his Sons.--Queen Victoria, from her Birth to her Bridal.-The Pa- radise of Dante translated. By Ichabod Wright, M.A.-Narrative of a Tour through Armenia, Kurdistan, Persia, and Mesopotamia. By the Rev. H. Southgate.-A Descriptive Tour in Scotland. Т. II. С. By 556 to 568 THE NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE FATHERS AND SONS.* BY THE EDITOR. CHAP. V. THE arrival of Jane Bruff in Harley-street, must be considered by those who take an interest in her fate, an "event" in her life; they who have begun to care for her will not fail to turn over in their minds the combination of ills, miscalculated by the " elders" as advantages, awaiting her-the full stop of her father's favoured horses at the door brings her to a "period," and the tripled and quintupled knock at the street-door of her paternal home, is in fact the most grievous assault upon her heart and feelings that has ever yet been made upon themit is the heralding sound of her coming sorrows. The moment, however, has arrived the blow has been struck, and our poor dear girl is already in the dingy, dusty atmosphere of a London drawing-room, in which the cased furniture and canvassed lamps proclaimed the dulness of the season, and the unfrequency of those social sociable meetings, to which Jane had during her happy association with the hospitable Amershams become habituated. "Where is papa?" said Jane, to the servant who ushered her up stairs. "The colonel is not come in yet, miss," was the answer. Jane staid but a minute in the drawing-room, and then hurried up the precipitous ladder, which in second-rate houses with lofty salons, is dignified with the name of "stairs," to seek refuge in her own accustomed room, where she remained alone and unattended until the process of unpacking the carriage, and getting down Miss Harris, who almost shrieked at the chance of showing her legs in pirouetting off the step of the rumble-Miss Harris being rather of the heavy-heeled order of Christians-to witness which disembarkation of the baggage, sundry little boys, and one or two "children of a larger growth," in the shape of men and women, drew themselves up, near and round about the door of the colonel's residence. And this circumstance (one of every-day occurrence) certainly does afford matter for speculation-such things happen * Continued from No. ccxxxii., page 453. May. VOL. LIX. No. Ccxxx. B nowhere out of England, rarely out of London-but so it is, that a man cannot call a hackney-coach from a stand and get into it, without attracting an assembly of spectators; a carriage driving up to a house, transfixes to the spot the occupants of the trottoir, who remain staring, and wondering, and waiting, to see a dandy lord, or a dowdy dowager, make the brief trajet from the steps of the equipage to those of the hall. They who have suddenly returned to an empty house, from one full of all possible agrémens, need not be awakened to a sense of poor Jane's situation; even the unusual absence of the generally-officious Smylar, added to her dissatisfaction; inasmuch as, besides the amusement which, in spite of her ordinary dislike of her, her flippant descriptions of "things in general" afforded her, the circumstance of her nonappearance seemed to a certain extent to justify the apprehensions which she had previously entertained, that she was destined shortly to assume a new character in the establishment. Under these circumstances it is not to be wondered at, that Jane felt a sinking in her heart, and anxiety of mind which only found relief in tears. While the poor girl remained in this state of agitation, the gallant and disagreeable colonel was in consultation with his intended connexion, Sir George Grindle, who was nearly as nervous as Jane herself, lest by some unforeseen accident or incident, the golden opportunity of repairing his circumstances should be lost, and therefore resolved scarcely to lose sight of Bruff, during the brief period which was to intervene, as Carey says, "between The Saturday and Monday;" and such was the gracefulness and plausibility of the worthy baronet's conversation and manner, that as the time approached for the introduction of the principal, the distinguished officer became gradually more and more delighted with the projected union between the families, which nevertheless seemed to threaten all parties concerned with more or less misery and distress in their different degrees. Having completed her descent from the hinder part of the carriage, Miss Harris having moreover ascertained that the parcels, and boxes, and trunks, &c., were safely arrived, that modest, retiring young person, the very model of a lady's maid, waited on Jane to take her orders with regard to dressing, inasmuch as the day was waning, and the colonel was expected home to dinner. Still Mrs. Smylar did not make her appearance, and Jane magnifying all her fears as time wore on, inquired where that usually bustling and officious gentlewoman was. She was out, but expected home before dinner-time. Jane felt what vulgar people call " above" asking any more questions on the subject; but there was something in the expected date of Mrs. Smylar's return, too sympathetic with that of the colonel to please her or even tranquillize her apprehensions; and before she did go to dress, she had firmly made up her mind, that she must have been sent for to hear the announcement of her father's marriage, or perhaps to be an early witness of the domestic happiness which its previous celebration had secured to the parties concerned. Nor was it till long after dinner that she became fully aware of the real state of the case, except, indeed, that the absence from table of the dreaded object, satisfied her that the worst she had anticipated had not actually taken place. Thus encouraged, she inquired after the lady, of her father, who chuckled and gave one of his significant looks and said, she was out upon business, shopping, and doing little odd jobs: and then the distinguished officer chuckled again. His reception of Jane was more than usually cordial, and at dinnera meal to which he devoted all his energies-he talked infinitely more than was his wont. Of course, while the servants remained in waiting, neither she could ask, nor he impart, that which she most longed to hear. "Hope you didn't misbehave, Miss Jenny, at the Amershams?" said the colonel. "I think not," said Jane; "if I" "That'll do that'll do," interrupted her father. "Give Miss Bruff some champagne-sweet of course. Jane-eh! it will do you good after your drive-eat luncheon-eh?" "No," said Jane, "I had no appetite for luncheon; parting with friends like the Amershams, is not likely to mend my spirits "That'll do," said Bruff, or-" bore coming home-eh? Dull work in Harley-street with papa-however, that's not for long." And so by degrees the dialogue assumed a business air; and by the time the dessert was put down, and Bruff and his daughter were left alone, their mutual explanations came in, just in their proper place and season. "Jenny," said the colonel, filling Jane's glass with claret and his own with port, " your health, Jenny-glad to see you, my girl-health and happiness to you:" saying which, he took her hand and kissed it. Jane was so overcome by this very unexpected mark of kindness that her eyes filled with tears. "That'll do that'll do," said Bruff, "don't cry, that's silly-what you have come up about is no crying matter." "I am only too happy," said Jane, "to receive any mark of your affection, my dear father, now" "That'll do," interrupted Bruff as usual; "but tell me to be sure you are not overwise-not what I call long-sighted-have you any guess-any suspicion why I sent for you?" No," said Jane; "all I thought about it was, that as it was your wish that I should come, it was my duty to obey." "That'll do, my girl," said the colonel; "stick to that notion and we shall agree capitally-do as I bid you, and I shall never complain of your conduct, rely upon that." " And I," said Jane, "have such confidence in your goodness, that I am sure you will never bid me do that, which I cannot do agreeably to myself." "Ah!" said Bruff, "that, Jenny, is quite another affair, because I might require you to do some things which you might not like. However, in the present instance, what I have to ask is no great matter." "Well, what is it papa?" said Jane, rather comforted by the way in which the sacrifice at hand was characterized. "Why, Jenny," said the colonel, " as I grow older, I feel the want of a head to my establishment." " Ye-s," said Jane, tremblingly. "I find that without a lady at the head (or at the side as she best chooses) of my table, things go wrong-and I can't receive lady visiters -and-so-you won't be angry-" - "No, no," said Jane. "I have sent for you-" "Yes." "I have sent for you to do the honours of a little dinner which I give on Monday." The relief which this, so different an announcement from that which she had anticipated, afforded to the anxious daughter, is indescribable.r "Oh!" cried she, "I shall be too happy and too delighted." "That'll do that'll do," said the colonel; "I relied upon your being here, so I wrote at least Mrs. Smylar did, in your name, to ask old Lady Gram and Miss Pheezle, and they are coming-and our old friend the doctor. And-then-let me see-oh-Sir George Grindle, and perhaps his son or sons, and I'll see if I can pick up Tom Jaccus, who will sing and play, and make a fool of himself in the evening." "All this sounds very gay for you, my dear father," said Jane, who saw nothing indicative of Mrs. Smylar's promotion; " but who is Sir George Grindle-have I ever seen him here?" "No," said Bruff, "no-not here of course you must have met him about, because he is every where he is an exceedingly agreeable man-like myself, a widower-and-a great friend of mine-I want you to like him-very much indeed." " I am sure," said Jane, "any friend of yours-" "That'll do that'll do," said Bruff. "And so you see there is the whole of my plot against you." This Jane, with all her apparent simplicity, and what her unpleasant parent called "know-nothingness," did not exactly believe. In the first place, at that season of the year, Colonel Bruff would not give a dinner without some specific object. In the next place, if that specific object had not been somehow connected with herself, she would not have been sent for; inasmuch as notwithstanding all that Bruff said about female society, he had given half-a-dozen small dinners to men, and never cared for a lady, or ever thought of sending for his daughter; and therefore, however relieved from her worst fears, the young lady felt perfectly assured that something "more was meant than met the ear." "I am all obedience," said Jane, " and will behave my very best." "That'll do," said Bruff. "And then," continued she, "I may write to Emma to say she may expect me back on Tuesday, because their great country-ball will be-" "No, no," said Bruff, "that won't do I shall want you much longer than that I shall have more dinners-and you can always have balls yourself in the season-and-no-no-if the Amershams wish for your society, they must come to you-eh?" "Yes," said Jane, " but this is not the season for balls-nor for dinners-and-" - "That'll do that'll do," said the colonel, "we'll talk that over |