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 Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page iii

®
Mastering UNIX Shell
Scripting

Bash, Bourne, and Korn Shell

Scripting for Programmers, System
Administrators, and UNIX Gurus
Second Edition

Randal K. Michael

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page ii
 Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page i

Mastering UNIX®Shell
Download from Wow! eBook <www.wowebook.com>

Scripting
Second Edition
Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page ii
 Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page iii

®
Mastering UNIX Shell
Scripting

Bash, Bourne, and Korn Shell

Scripting for Programmers, System
Administrators, and UNIX Gurus
Second Edition

Randal K. Michael

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

 Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page iv

Mastering UNIX®Shell Scripting: Bash, Bourne, and Korn Shell Scripting for
Programmers, System Administrators, and UNIX Gurus, Second Edition
Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
10475 Crosspoint Boulevard
Indianapolis, IN 46256
www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2008 by Randal K. Michael
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
ISBN: 978-0-470-18301-4
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted
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Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact
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 Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page v

This book is dedicated to my wife Robin, the girls, Andrea and Ana, and
the grandchildren, Gavin, Jocelyn, and Julia — my true inspiration.
Michael ffirs.tex V2 - 03/24/2008 4:19pm Page vi
 Michael fabout.tex V1 - 03/24/2008 4:34pm Page vii

About the Author

Randal K. Michael is a UNIX Systems Administrator working as a contract consultant.

He teaches UNIX shell scripting in corporate settings, where he writes shell scripts to
address a variety of complex problems and tasks, ranging from monitoring systems to
replicating large databases. He has more than 30 years of experience in the industry
and 15 years of experience as a UNIX Systems Administrator, working on AIX, HP-UX,
Linux, OpenBSD, and Solaris.

vii
Michael fabout.tex V1 - 03/24/2008 4:34pm Page viii
 Michael fcre.tex V1 - 03/24/2008 4:35pm Page ix

Credits

Executive Editor Production Manager

Carol Long Tim Tate

Development Editor Vice President and Executive Group

John Sleeva Publisher
Richard Swadley
Technical Editor
Vice President and Executive Publisher
John Kennedy
Joseph B. Wikert
Production Editor
Project Coordinator, Cover
Dassi Zeidel Lynsey Stanford
Copy Editor Proofreader
Kim Cofer Candace English
Editorial Manager Indexer
Mary Beth Wakefield Robert Swanson

ix
Michael fcre.tex V1 - 03/24/2008 4:35pm Page x
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xi

Contents

Acknowledgments xxv
Introduction xxvii

Part One The Basics of Shell Scripting

Chapter 1 Scripting Quick Start and Review 3
Case Sensitivity 3
UNIX Special Characters 3
Shells 4
Shell Scripts 4
Functions 4
Running a Shell Script 5
Declare the Shell in the Shell Script 6
Comments and Style in Shell Scripts 6
Control Structures 8
if . . . then statement 8
if . . . then . . . else statement 8
if . . . then . . . elif . . . (else) statement 9
for . . . in statement 9
while statement 9
until statement 9
case statement 10
Using break, continue, exit, and return 10
Here Document 11
Shell Script Commands 12
Symbol Commands 14
Variables 15
Command-Line Arguments 15
shift Command 16
Special Parameters $* and $@ 17
Special Parameter Definitions 17
Double Quotes, Forward Tics, and Back Tics 18

xi
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xii

xii Contents

Using awk on Solaris 19

Using the echo Command Correctly 19
Math in a Shell Script 20
Operators 20
Built-In Mathematical Functions 21
File Permissions, suid and sgid Programs 21
chmod Command Syntax for Each Purpose 22
To Make a Script Executable 22
To Set a Program to Always Execute as the Owner 23
To Set a Program to Always Execute as a Member of the
File Owner’s Group 23
To Set a Program to Always Execute as Both the File
Owner and the File Owner’s Group 23
Running Commands on a Remote Host 23
Setting Traps 25
User-Information Commands 25
who Command 26
w Command 26
last Command 26
ps Command 27
Communicating with Users 27
Uppercase or Lowercase Text for Easy Testing 28
Check the Return Code 29
Time-Based Script Execution 30
Cron Tables 30
Cron Table Entry Syntax 31
at Command 31
Output Control 32
Silent Running 32
Using getopts to Parse Command-Line Arguments 33
Making a Co-Process with Background Function 34
Catching a Delayed Command Output 36
Fastest Ways to Process a File Line-by-Line 37
Using Command Output in a Loop 40
Mail Notification Techniques 41
Using the mail and mailx Commands 41
Using the sendmail Command to Send Outbound Mail 41
Creating a Progress Indicator 43
A Series of Dots 43
A Rotating Line 43
Elapsed Time 44
Working with Record Files 45
Working with Strings 46
Creating a Pseudo-Random Number 47
Using /dev/random and /dev/urandom 48
Checking for Stale Disk Partitions in AIX 48
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xiii

Contents xiii

Automated Host Pinging 49

Highlighting Specific Text in a File 49
Keeping the Printers Printing 50
AIX ‘‘Classic’’ Printer Subsystem 50
System V and CUPS Printing 50
Automated FTP File Transfer 51
Using rsync to Replicate Data 51
Simple Generic rsync Shell Script 52
Capturing a List of Files Larger than $MEG 53
Capturing a User’s Keystrokes 53
Using the bc Utility for Floating-Point Math 54
Number Base Conversions 55
Using the typeset Command 55
Using the printf Command 55
Create a Menu with the select Command 56
Removing Repeated Lines in a File 58
Removing Blank Lines from a File 58
Testing for a Null Variable 58
Directly Access the Value of the Last Positional Parameter, $# 59
Remove the Column Headings in a Command Output 59
Arrays 60
Loading an Array 60
Testing a String 61
Summary 65
Chapter 2 24 Ways to Process a File Line-by-Line 67
Command Syntax 67
Using File Descriptors 68
Creating a Large File to Use in the Timing Test 68
24 Methods to Parse a File Line-by-Line 73
Method 1: cat while read LINE 74
Method 2: while read LINE bottom 75
Method 3: cat while LINE line 76
Method 4: while LINE line bottom 77
Method 5: cat while LINE line cmdsub2 78
Method 6: while LINE line bottom cmdsub2 79
Method 7: for LINE cat FILE 79
Method 8: for LINE cat FILE cmdsub2 80
Method 9: while line outfile 81
Method 10: while read LINE FD IN 81
Method 11: cat while read LINE FD OUT 83
Method 12: while read LINE bottom FD OUT 85
Method 13: while LINE line bottom FD OUT 86
Method 14: while LINE line bottom cmdsub2 FD OUT 87
Method 15: for LINE cat FILE FD OUT 87
Method 16: for LINE cat FILE cmdsub2 FD OUT 88
Method 17: while line outfile FD
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xiv

xiv Contents

Method 18: while line outfile FD OUT 90

Method 19: while line outfile FD IN AND OUT 91
Method 20: while LINE line FD IN 92
Method 21: while LINE line cmdsub2 FD IN 93
Method 22: while read LINE FD IN AND OUT 94
Method 23: while LINE line FD IN AND OUT 96
Method 24: while LINE line cmdsub2 FD IN AND OUT 97
Timing Each Method 98
Timing Script 99
Timing Data for Each Method 117
Timing Command-Substitution Methods 127
What about Using Command Input Instead of File Input? 128
Summary 129
Lab Assignments 129
Chapter 3 Automated Event Notification 131
Basics of Automating Event Notification 131
Using the mail and mailx Commands 132
Setting Up a sendmail Alias 134
Problems with Outbound Mail 134
Creating a ‘‘Bounce’’ Account with a .forward File 136
Using the sendmail Command to Send Outbound Mail 137
Dial-Out Modem Software 139
SNMP Traps 139
Summary 140
Lab Assignments 141
Chapter 4 Progress Indicators Using a Series of Dots, a Rotating
Line, or Elapsed Time 143
Indicating Progress with a Series of Dots 143
Indicating Progress with a Rotating Line 145
Indicating Progress with Elapsed Time 148
Combining Feedback Methods 151
Other Options to Consider 153
Summary 153
Lab Assignments 154

Part Two Scripts for Programmers, Testers, and Analysts

Chapter 5 Working with Record Files 157
What Is a Record File? 157
Fixed-Length Record Files 158
Variable-Length Record Files 159
Processing the Record Files 160
Tasks for Records and Record Files 164
Tasks on Fixed-Length Record Files 164
Tasks on Variable-Length Record Files 166
The Merge Process 169
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xv

Contents xv

Working with Strings 171

Putting It All Together 173
Other Things to Consider 183
Summary 184
Lab Assignments 184
Chapter 6 Automated FTP Stuff 187
Syntax 187
Automating File Transfers and Remote Directory Listings 190
Using FTP for Directory Listings on a Remote Machine 190
Getting One or More Files from a Remote System 192
Pre and Post Events 195
Script in Action 196
Uploading One or More Files to a Remote System 196
Replacing Hard-Coded Passwords with Variables 199
Example of Detecting Variables in a Script’s Environment 200
Modifying Our FTP Scripts to Use Password Variables 203
What about Encryption? 209
Creating Encryption Keys 210
Setting Up No-Password Secure Shell Access 210
Secure FTP and Secure Copy Syntax 211
Automating FTP with autoexpect and expect Scripts 212
Other Things to Consider 217
Use Command-Line Switches to Control Execution 217
Keep a Log of Activity 217
Add a Debug Mode to the Scripts 217
Reading a Password into a Shell Script 217
Summary 218
Lab Assignments 218
Chapter 7 Using rsync to Efficiently Replicate Data 219
Syntax 219
Generic rsync Shell Script 220
Replicating Multiple Directories with rsync 222
Replicating Multiple Filesystems with rsync 237
Replicating an Oracle Database with rsync 251
Filesystem Structures 252
rsync Copy Shell Script 254
Summary 289
Lab Assignments 289
Chapter 8 Automating Interactive Programs with Expect and
Autoexpect 291
Downloading and Installing Expect 291
The Basics of Talking to an Interactive Script or Program 293
Using autoexpect to Automatically Create an Expect Script 296
Working with Variables 304
What about Conditional Tests? 306
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xvi

xvi Contents

Expect’s Version of a case Statement 306

Expect’s Version of an if...then...else Loop 313
Expect’s Version of a while Loop 314
Expect’s Version of a for Loop 315
Expect’s Version of a Function 317
Using Expect Scripts with Sun Blade Chassis and JumpStart 318
Summary 323
Lab Assignments 324
Chapter 9 Finding Large Files and Files of a Specific Type 325
Syntax 326
Remember That File and Directory Permissions Thing 327
Don’t Be Shocked by the Size of the Files 327
Creating the Script 327
Narrowing Down the Search 333
Other Options to Consider 333
Summary 334
Lab Assignments 334
Chapter 10 Process Monitoring and Enabling Pre-Processing, Startup,
and Post-Processing Events 335
Syntax 336
Monitoring for a Process to Start 336
Monitoring for a Process to End 338
Monitor and Log as a Process Starts and Stops 342
Timed Execution for Process Monitoring, Showing Each PID,
and Timestamp with Event and Timing Capability 347
Other Options to Consider 367
Common Uses 367
Modifications to Consider 367
Summary 367
Lab Assignments 368
Chapter 11 Pseudo-Random Number and Data Generation 369
What Makes a Random Number? 369
The Methods 370
Method 1: Creating a Pseudo-Random Number Utilizing the
PID and the RANDOM Shell Variable 371
Method 2: Creating Numbers between 0 and 32,767 371
Method 3: Creating Numbers between 1 and a User-Defined
Maximum 372
Method 4: Creating Fixed-Length Numbers between 1 and a
User-Defined Maximum 373
Why Pad the Number with Zeros the Hard Way? 375
Method 5: Using the /dev/random and /dev/urandom
Character Special Files 376
Shell Script to Create Pseudo-Random Numbers 379
Creating Unique Filenames 384
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xvii

Contents xvii

Creating a File Filled with Random Characters 392

Other Things to Consider 399
Summary 399
Lab Assignments 400

Chapter 12 Creating Pseudo-Random Passwords 401

Randomness 401
Creating Pseudo-Random Passwords 402
Syntax 403
Arrays 403
Loading an Array 403
Building the Password-Creation Script 405
Order of Appearance 405
Define Functions 406
Testing and Parsing Command-Line Arguments 414
Beginning of Main 418
Setting a Trap 418
Checking for the Keyboard File 419
Loading the KEYS Array 419
Building a New Pseudo-Random Password 420
Printing the Manager’s Password Report for Safekeeping 421
Other Options to Consider 431
Password Reports? 432
Which Password? 432
Other Uses? 432
Summary 432
Lab Assignments 432

Chapter 13 Floating-Point Math and the bc Utility 433

Syntax 433
Creating Some Shell Scripts Using bc 434
Creating the float add.ksh Shell Script 434
Testing for Integers and Floating-Point Numbers 440
Building a Math Statement for the bc Command 441
Using a Here Document 442
Creating the float subtract.ksh Shell Script 443
Using getopts to Parse the Command Line 449
Building a Math Statement String for bc 450
Here Document and Presenting the Result 451
Creating the float multiply.ksh Shell Script 452
Parsing the Command Line for Valid Numbers 458
Creating the float divide.ksh Shell Script 460
Creating the float average.ksh Shell Script 467
Other Options to Consider 472
Creating More Functions 472
Summary 473
Lab Assignments 473
 Michael ftoc.tex V3 - 03/24/2008 4:38pm Page xviii

xviii Contents

Chapter 14 Number Base Conversions 475

Syntax 475
Example 1: Converting from Base 10 to Base 16 476
Example 2: Converting from Base 8 to Base 16 476
Example 3: Converting Base 10 to Octal 477
Example 4: Converting Base 10 to Hexadecimal 477
Scripting the Solution 477
Base 2 (Binary) to Base 16 (Hexadecimal) Shell Script 478
Base 10 (Decimal) to Base 16 (Hexadecimal) Shell Script 481
Script to Create a Software Key Based on the Hexadecimal
Representation of an IP Address 485
Script to Translate between Any Number Base 490
Using getopts to Parse the Command Line 495
Example 5: Correct Usage of the equate any base.ksh
Shell Script 495
Example 6: Incorrect Usage of the equate any base.ksh
Shell Script 495
Continuing with the Script 497
Beginning of Main 498
An Easy, Interactive Script to Convert Between Bases 500
Using the bc Utility for Number Base Conversions 506
Other Options to Consider 512
Software Key Shell Script 512
Summary 512
Lab Assignments 513
Chapter 15 hgrep: Highlighted grep Script 515
Reverse Video Control 516
Building the hgrep.Bash Shell Script 517
Other Options to Consider 524
Other Options for the tput Command 524
Summary 525
Lab Assignments 525
Chapter 16 Monitoring Processes and Applications 527
Monitoring Local Processes 527
Remote Monitoring with Secure Shell and Remote Shell 530
Checking for Active Oracle Databases 536
Using autoexpect to Create an expect Script 539
Checking if the HTTP Server/Application Is Working 545
What about Waiting for Something to Complete Executing? 546
Other Things to Consider 547
Proper echo Usage 548
Application APIs and SNMP Traps 548
Summary 548
Lab Assignments 549
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
below, toward the skylight, which had unfortunately been left open,
and gave an additional draught. Wherever an open door presented
itself, the flames were seen rushing in, licking the door-posts and the
wainscoting; the heat was scorching; the smoke was suffocating;
and every step that Burrel took forward, he felt uncertain whether
the beams over which he trod would not give way beneath his feet.
Still, however, he strode on, till he reached the spot where the
flames were rushing up the great staircase more furiously than any
where else, from the additional mass of fuel that there supplied the
fire. His foot was on the edge of the landing, to cross over toward
the stone stairs, and he had just time--warned by a sudden crash--to
draw back, when the whole staircase and part of the corridor above
it gave way, and fell into the vestibule below. It was a fearful sight;
but he was not a man to leave any chance of safety to be snatched
from him by terror. The rest of the corridor beyond the gap appeared
more sound than that he had already past. He remembered having
seen a side-door in his own room, which he had just left behind; and
re-treading his steps, he entered the chamber, drove in the door he
had remarked--which was but weakly fastened--with a single kick,
and running through a room, the tenant of which had made his
escape, he passed on into a dressing-room, and thence regained the
corridor, beyond the point where it had been connected with the
great staircase.

The fall of so much lime-rubbish had in a degree deadened the

fire; and, striding on, Burrel reached the door which opened on the
stone staircase. The rush of cool air and the joy of escape revived
him, almost suffocated as he was with the heat and smoke; and,
bending down his head over his fair burden, he said--the most
natural thing in the world--"Dear girl, you are safe!"--Ay, though he
had only seen her twice in all his life!

Though they were now in comparative security, the fire had made
sufficient progress even there to render haste imperative, and Burrel
lost not a moment till he reached a small door which led out upon
the lawn by some ascending steps. At about the distance of fifty or
sixty yards were assembled the whole of the late inmates of the
dwelling--mistress, visitors, and servants, with twenty or thirty
country men and women--all engaged in the laudable occupation of
seeing the house burn.

Dr. Wilton was the only one in a state of activity; and he, in his
shirt and breeches, which, with the exception of his shovel hat, were
the only articles of apparel he had saved, was endeavoring to
instigate some of the servants and peasantry to get up a ladder to
the window of Miss Delaware's room, which--what between fear,
wonder, and stupidity--they were performing with extraordinary
slowness. At the same time, one of the Molly Dusters was
corroborating to the rest of the company the assertion of Burrel's
servant, who informed them that his master had gone to fetch Miss
Delaware; and the very likely consummation that they would both be
burned together was prophesied manfully, just as he was making his
way across the green toward them, to prove that he did not intend
to participate in such a holocaust.

On seeing Burrel, and guessing what it was that he carried in his

arms, Mrs. Darlington, who was really a good-tempered woman,
gave way a great deal more to her feelings than her usual
_bienseance_ permitted, and literally screamed for joy. Since her
escape she had found time to get cool in body if not in mind and,
indeed, the latter part of the mixed whole was by this time
sufficiently tranquillized to admit the vision of a pretty little quiet
romance to cross her mind concerning Burrel and Blanche Delaware,
and to suggest the propriety of letting her house burn away in
peace, while she took shelter, and guarded against taking cold, in
the cottages just below the lodge. Thither, too, she requested Burrel,
who would give up his fair burden to no one, to follow her; and she
herself led the way, with a thousand encomiums on his heroic
gallantry, mingled with thanks to Heaven that all her title-deeds
were at the banker's, and manifold aspirations concerning the fire-
resisting powers of the plate-chests.
 Burrel thought of nothing but her he carried in his arms. It was
not love he felt, but it was intense interest; and I will defy any man
to carry a beautiful girl that he has already admired and liked,
though dangers such as those, pressed close to his own bosom, and
with her heart beating against his, without feeling very differently
toward her from what he ever did before. He had, however, a quality
which few young men possess much of--considerable delicacy of
mind; and, as soon as he had placed Miss Delaware in safety in the
cottage, he left her with Mrs. Darlington, without any of the
troublesome inquiries about her health and comfort which some
foolish people might have made.

He then hastened back as fast as possible toward the house, with

a determination of doing all that he rationally could to save whatever
portion of it remained, but without the slightest intention in the
world of bringing his life into jeopardy, or enacting wonders worthy
of a demi-god, either to preserve the property of a rich old widow
lady, about whom he did not care a sixpence, or to astonish worthy
Dr. Wilton and half-a-dozen lackeys and cowherds who were looking
on. When he arrived at the spot, however, he found that the
occupation which he had proposed to himself had been already
seized by a stout agile young fellow, in a sailor's jacket and trowsers,
who had arrived on the ground during his absence, and had inspired
one or two of the peasantry with some activity.

The efforts of this young man were energetic, bold, and cleverly
executed; but, from being ill-directed, did little comparative good,
while his own life was every moment hazarded. Indeed, personal
security seemed the last thing that he considered; and perhaps this
somewhat superabundant display of daring might do some good, if
only by stirring up the more slothful to a tolerable degree of activity.
Burrel paused and looked on for an instant, but not from either over-
prudence or laziness. What is best to be done may be always better
considered before doing any thing than after, provided too much
time is not bestowed upon it; and, in the single moment that Burrel
gave to consideration, he perceived that the young sailor was not
only doing no good, but running himself and others into certain
destruction, by continuing to labor at the center of the house--the
interior of which was completely consumed, and the roof of which
threatened to fall--while, by cutting off the communication between
the _corps de logis_ and the wings, a considerable part of the
building might be saved. The moment his mind was made up, he
entered the principal door, and catching the young sailor by the arm,
as he stood in what had been the vestibule, he called upon him to
desist.

The lad, for he was scarcely a man, turned round upon him for a
moment with a countenance, which haste, heat, and impetuosity of
disposition, rendered somewhat furious at the interruption; but a
few calm, reasonable words from Burrel, at once showed him the
rationality of what he proposed, and after a single oath, escaping, as
it were, by the safety valve of his tongue, he agreed to follow. Burrel
then hastened to get out of the stifling heat and smoke; but finding
that the other still lingered, he turned again at the door. The sailor
had paused to recover a bucket, and was at the very instant taking
his first step after Burrel, when a small quantity of heated rubbish
came pattering from above, and then, with a considerable crash, a
thick beam detached itself from the roof, caught upon the ruins of
the staircase, and swung blazing for a single instant above the
vestibule. The young man sprang forward toward the door; but he
was too late to escape entirely. The beam came thundering down--it
struck him, and he fell.

Something more was now at stake than the bed and table linen of
an old woman. A life is always worth the peril of a life, and Burrel at
once plunged in again, and dragged him out, though certainly at the
risk of much more than he would have hazarded to save Mrs.
Darlington's abode, or any inanimate thing it ever contained. He was
scarcely clear of the doorway when the roof fell in, and the rush and
the roar, and the subsequent silence, and the suddenly smothered
flame, showed him what he had escaped, and made him pause for
an instant with a thankful exclamation to that Being, before whose
eyes a sparrow falls not to the ground unheeded.

Henry Burrel then drew the man he had rescued forward, beyond
the influence of the heat. I say drew, because he evinced a strange
inaptitude to voluntary locomotion, from which Burrel did not augur
very favorably; and being within an inch of six feet high, with a very
tolerable proportion of sinew and muscle, he was not quite so
portable in one's arms as Blanche Delaware.

"Now, my good friends," said Burrel, laying the lad down upon the
smooth turf of the lawn, and addressing those who crowded round,
"if you want really to render any assistance, get what axes, picks,
crows, and other things of the kind you can, and break down entirely
yon little gallery which lies between the house and the right wing.
You run no risk; for the fire has not yet caught the gallery, and you
will save the wing. Never mind this young man, I will attend to him.
Here, Harding," he added, speaking to his servant, "you are a
cowardly--. Take care of yourself, the next time I meet you in a
house on fire, that I do not throw you into the flames, to prevent
your running away when I want your assistance."

The man replied nothing, as usual, and his master proceeded,

"Have you a penknife in your pocket?"

"No, sir," answered the servant; but Dr. Wilton supplied the
deficiency.

"Here is one!" he cried, groping in his breeches pocket; "what are

you going to do, my dear Harry? The poor lad seems dead."

"Only stunned, I hope," replied Burrel, "but, at all events, the best
thing one can do for him is to cut the artery in the temple, and let
him bleed freely. If he be dead, it can do him no harm; if there be
any life left, it will recall it."
 Thus speaking, with little ceremony, he drew the penknife sharply
across the artery, much to the wonder of the bystanders, some of
whom thought him a fine, bold gentleman; some concluded that he
was but little troubled with that civil understrapping virtue of
discretion. The effect, however, soon become visible. The blood at
first hardly flowed, but, in a moment after, it burst forth with rapid
jerks. A deep sigh followed from the hurt man, and in an instant
after he looked faintly round.

"I thought I was gone!" he cried, raising himself, and looking

toward the fire. "My head's bad enough still; but I rather think I owe
you my life, sir. Well, there is an old woman down in the village will
pray God bless you!"

Burrel now endeavored to stanch the blood; but, like many other
persons, he had not previously calculated all the consequences of
what he was going to do; and he might have found the undertaking
somewhat difficult, had it not fortunately happened that the flames
of Mrs. Darlington's villa had alarmed the whole of the little town
and neighborhood of Emberton, and thus people were flocking up
both on foot and on horseback. Among the first that arrived was, of
course, her late guest, the village surgeon--one at least of the
learned professions being more peculiarly and unhappily obnoxious
to Rochefaucault's sneering assertion, that there is always something
pleasant to ourselves in the misfortunes of our friends. The surgeon,
then, was among the first, of course, sparing not his horse's breath,
in order to condole and sympathize, and look grave, and set a limb
or tend a bruise, or dress a burn, or, in short, perform any of those
small acts which are the sources of emolument, present or future, to
a country apothecary. His arrival happened at a fortunate moment
for Burrel's patient; and, after having ascertained that no one of
more consequence was hurt, he complimented the young stranger
highly on his prompt and skillful treatment of poor Wat Harrison, as
he called him, suffered the bleeding to continue for another
moment, merely to show how much he approved of what had been
done, and then proceeded to stop it.
 The adventures of the night were now soon concluded. By
Burrel's directions, and the exertions of the peasantry, stimulated at
last to some degree of activity, one wing of the house, as well as the
stabling and offices, was saved; and from the part thus preserved,
apparel was procured sufficient to clothe the half-naked bodies of
those who were its late denizens. This apparel, indeed, was of
somewhat an anomalous description, and the metamorphoses
produced were rather strange; for though Miss Delaware came out
most beautifully as a pretty dairymaid, and Mrs. Darlington did not
look ill as a housekeeper, yet Dr. Wilton had a somewhat fantastic air
when a footman's greatcoat was added to his black breeches, silk
stockings, and shovel hat. Burrel himself adhered to his own
dressing-gown, though many a hole was burnt in the gay flowers
that covered it, and many a stain and scorch obscured the original
colors. A general smile, which even the serious calamity that had
reduced them to that state could not repress, played upon the lips of
the whole party, as they met in such strange attire at the door of the
cottages, just as the pale light of the morning was pouring faint and
bluish through the air. On the countenance of Blanche Delaware,
however, that smile mingled with a flickering blush as she answered
Burrel's inquiries concerning her health; and Burrel, though he could
not but think it as beautiful a thing as ever the eyes of the morning
rested on, hastened, by quiet and easy words of deep but
unceremonious respect, to remove the glow, with the
embarrassment that caused it.

By this time all sorts of chaises and vehicles had arrived from
Emberton, and Mrs. Darlington's own carriage and horses had been
brought up from the stables. Burrel handed the two ladies in to
proceed to the village, the inn of which place, Mrs. Darlington
declared, should be her abode for the next day or two. He declined,
however, a seat beside them; and bidding his servant take care of
his horses, and bring them down afterward, he himself--the fire
having nearly expended itself--got into a hack chaise for Emberton,
and, accompanied by the young sailor who had been hurt, drove
slowly down into the valley.
 Dr. Wilton, whose living lay at a considerable distance in a
different direction, had before taken leave of him, with many a
pressing invitation to the rectory, and had preceded him in
departing. One by one, the people of the town returned, and the
peasantry dropped away; and, with one man left to keep watch, the
ruins of Mrs. Darlington's house remained smoldering in silent
solitude, like the history of a battle, which, full of fire, confusion, and
destruction while it lasts, leaves, after the lapse of a few years,
nothing but vacancy, ruin, and the faint smoke of fame.
 CHAPTER VI.

It is quite wonderful what a fund of conversation one has with

one's self, when one is left alone for a few minutes, after an hour or
two of that excitement, during which the mind at one moment has
enough to do in calculating what the body is to do the next. This
conversation is sometimes pleasant, of course, and sometimes
severe, according to the circumstances of the case and character of
the person, or rather of the persons concerned. I hold the plural to
be the right number in speaking of such conversation; for therein,
more or less, the two spirits which Araspus, and every other man felt
or feels in his own bosom, hold commune with each other; and--
being two twin brothers, who, though good and evil in their several
natures, have still a bond of kindred sympathy between them--
although they wrangle and oppose each other in the busy strife of
the world, yet, when they thus calmly meet in solitude and silence,
to talk together over the past, there is a strain of melancholy
affection mingles with their intercourse, which renders it always
pleasing, though sometimes sad. The good spirit--for it is his
moment of power--rebukes his evil brother gently for every abuse of
his sway; and the evil one bows contrite, or playfully evades the
charge.

All this, however, has very little to do with Henry Burrel (some
persons may think), who, in companionship with a hurt lad, half
peasant, half sailor, was slowly winding onward, in a creaking post-
chaise, toward the small town of Emberton. Nevertheless,
notwithstanding that fact--and whether any one understands some
of the foregoing sentences or not, which probably they will not do
without reading them over twice--nevertheless, Henry Burrel's
thoughts were suffered to flow, hardly interrupted (for the young
sailor was still in a dozy, half lethargic state), and the two spirits,
though the good one could scarcely be said to have lost its
ascendency during the hours lately passed, had full leisure for
conversation in his bosom.

"I must take care what I am about," thought Burrel, as soon as

he had fallen back in the chaise, after a few kindly words to his poor
companion, which remained half unanswered; "I must take care
what I am about;" and it may hardly be necessary to inform the
reader that he was thinking of Blanche Delaware. "And yet," he
continued, the next moment, half smiling, "why should I take care?--
whom have I to care for but myself?"

That was one point gained, at least! It was settled, thenceforth

and forever, that there was no reason on earth why he should not
fall in love with Blanche Delaware, if he liked it. By the way, men
very seldom get so far as that without being somewhat in love
already. Few people think of attacking a fort without being in the
army. The next step to be taken by a reasonable man--and Burrel
was one of those people whose natural inclination to act by impulse
was so strong, that he was very anxious, on all occasions, to give
impulse a good reason, lest she should act without one, and then
laugh at him for his pains--the next step to be taken, was to find
some good and legitimate cause, altogether independent of passion,
why such a cool and considerate person as Henry Burrel looked upon
Henry Burrel to be--and which he really was by habit, though not by
nature--should fall in love with Blanche Delaware; and as it is not
very easy mathematically to find a sufficient cause for falling in love
at all, Burrel was obliged to proceed cautiously in the matter, from
axiom to postulate, and so on.

He accordingly set himself to think over all he had seen of

Blanche Delaware; and he did not find it in the least difficult to
imagine, to assume, to demonstrate, that she had plenty of high
qualities (independent of her beauty) to make her a desirable wife
for any man. He next considered the question of marriage in the
abstract, and was naturally led to conclude, with St. Paul, as cited by
the Book of Common Prayer, that it is a state honorable among all
men. All these steps being taken, he next looked into his own
condition, and found that marriage might do him a great deal of
good, and could do him very little harm. Then putting the points
already gained in relative position with his own situation, he deduced
the following:--Marriage is good and honorable in all men; marriage
in his own case was peculiarly advisable; and Blanche Delaware was
peculiarly eligible for any man as a wife.

So far all was fair and prosperous, and he was like a ship with full
sails and favorable wind, dancing over a sunny sea toward the port
of matrimony; and a very comfortable port, too, let me tell you.
However, there was still one little obstacle to be got over, which the
reader, unless he be an undergraduate, will never divine. The fact is,
that no man who has been long at either of the two learned
universities can bear the idea of falling in love. He looks upon it as a
sort of disgrace; and Burrel, who was of Christ Church, would not
admit for a moment that he was the least little bit in love in the
world. At the same time, with that sort of odd perversity which, on
some subject or another, is to be found in the breast of every one,
he had no idea of any one marrying without being in love, unless,
indeed, some point of honor or propriety required it. This latter
opinion came, of course, from reading novels, and romances, plays,
poetry, and rich trash; and in his course through the world hitherto,
these contending principles, always in opposition to each other, had
kept him safe, sound, and unmarried, up to the respectable period
of seven-and-twenty years. His Master of Arts degree had acted as a
shield to his heart from the many arrows which had been directed
against it; and a romantic disposition had guarded him against that
sort of abstract matrimony which is undertaken without love.

"He was an odd man, this Mr. Henry Burrel!"

 "He was so, sir! Just such another bundle of contrarieties as you
or I, or any one else. We are all odd men, if you look at us closely."

The simple fact of Burrel's situation at that moment was merely

this--He was not over head and ears in love with Blanche Delaware.
He had not had time, sir! A man does not fall in love by steam! No;
but he had at least advanced two or three steps in that quagmire,
and he was not very likely to get out of it in a hurry. If any one who
reads this book--and pray heaven they may be many!--have ever
ridden a thorough-bred horse over a shaking moor, he will have seen
that the animal, at the first two or three steps over the boggy
ground, trembles at every limb, and if you let him, he will sink to a
certainty. Your only way is to stick your spurs into his sides, keep a
light hand and his head up, and gallop as hard as you can till you
get upon firm ground. Now Burrel felt very much inclined to gallop.
He got a little frightened at his situation, especially when he found
himself stringing together so many reasons for marrying Blanche
Delaware, and it was even betting, whether he staid to fall in love,
or got into the ten o'clock stage, and dined in London.

The way that Love got over it was as follows: Burrel began to
think about the events of the foregoing night, and the remembrance
of saving the life of Blanche Delaware; and carrying her out through
the flames in his arms, was, of course, too pleasant a little spot for
memory not to pause upon it agreeably. The flickering blush, also,
which had risen in her cheek when she had seen him afterward, rose
up sweetly; and his next thought was to consider whether it would
be more delicate again to apologize for entering her chamber in the
middle of the night, or to leave it in silence, and never mention it at
all. That was soon settled; but he then thought, "The story will, of
course, be told about the country--ay, and with additions and
improvements, which may, very likely, injure that sweet girl, and will,
at all events, hurt her feelings if she should hear them. I would not
have it so for a world--and yet what can one do to prevent it!"
 At that moment, connecting itself with the blush, by one of those
fine invisible links of thought which defy all grasp, for who can

"Trace to its cloud the lightning of the mind?"--

At that moment the few words he had spoken, at the top of the
stone staircase, when he first found they were in safety--the
outpouring of joy which had sparkled over the lip of the cup--the
"Dear girl you are safe!"--were gathered up by memory, and held up
to his sight; and Burrel, who was a gentleman, and considered the
point of honor more sacred and more delicate toward a woman than
even toward a man, believed that he said too much not to say more,
if he found that to say it would not offend.

"Doubtless she will forget it!" he said to himself; "doubtless she

will never think of it more; but yet I have spoken what was either an
insult or a declaration, and for my own honor's sake I can not quit
the country till I have pursued it further."

Well done, Maître Cupidon! Strangely well managed for a little

blind gentleman, strongly suspected of being lame in one leg! But
'tis time to give over gossiping, for I have a long story to tell, and
very little space to tell it in; and if we stop investigating every thing
that passes in the mind of all the principal personages in this tale,
we shall never get half through all the perils, and dangers, and
hairbreadth escapes, which have not yet begun.

Well, the chaise rolled on; but as, for the sake of his hurt
companion, Burrel had ordered it to roll slowly, his own thoughts
rolled a considerable deal faster, and he had got happily over the
above cogitations, and a great many more to boot, before the
vehicle entered the little town of Emberton. All the good folks in the
place were agog with the joy and excitement of a fire, and the
misfortunes of their fellow-creatures; and, although it had been
discovered, by the arrival of Mrs. Darlington's carriage, that
unfortunately no one had been killed, yet every body looked out
anxiously for the next comers from the scene of action, in order to
have the pleasure of a detailed account of the property destroyed.
Good Lord! what a pleasure and a satisfaction it was to the ladies of
Emberton to commiserate Mrs. Darlington! There is certainly no
affection of human nature half so gratifying as commiseration! It
raises us so infinitely above the object we commiserate; and, oh! if
that object have been for long years a thing or person to be envied!-
-Ye gods! quit your nectar, for it is not worth a sup, and learn to
commiserate one another!

"Poor Mrs. Darlington! Only think how unfortunate to have her

fine place entirely destroyed!" cried Commiseration. "She that was so
smart and gay, and held her head so high!" observed Envy. "No
great harm; it will lower her pride!" said Hatred. "They say all her
title-deeds are burned, and she is likely to lose the whole estate!"
whispered Malice. "It was ill enough got, I dare say!" added All
Uncharitableness; "for no one could tell how her father made his
money!" And thus the matter being settled to the satisfaction of
every one who had lungs to cry out "Poor Mrs. Darlington!" the good
people of Emberton waited anxiously for the next arrival, to see
whether it would afford them any thing equally new and pleasant to
say upon the subject.

The next arrival, as we before hinted, was that of Henry Burrel,

Esq., carrying in the post-chaise along with him "Poor Wat Harrison,"
as the surgeon had called him; and this conjunction of two such very
opposite planets in one post-chaise, was wonderfully prolific of
agreeable speculations to the folks of Emberton. Some declared that
Poor Wat Harrison, or Sailor Wat, as he was called, had been
detected in plundering the house, and had been brought down in
irons. Some vowed that he had insulted Mr. Burrel, and had been
knocked down by that gentleman with a blow which had fractured
his skull. One little boy, who saw him pass with a bloody
handkerchief round his head, ran across to his father on the other
side of the way, crying out, "Oh, papa, they have brought home the
widow's son, at the end of the lane, with his throat cut! You used
always to say he would be hanged!"

Besides this gentle vaticination of his ultimate destiny, various

were the reports that his appearance in Burrel's post-chaise
produced. Nevertheless, the chaise rolled on, and passing through
the town, turned up the lane leading by the park wall toward the
mansion-house, and, after proceeding about a couple of hundred
yards, stopped at the door of a neat cottage, humble and small, but
clean and decked with flowers.

"Stay, and let me help you out!" said Burrel to his companion, as
the postillion opened the door.

"No, no!" cried the lad, rousing himself from the sort of dozing
state in which he had hitherto continued. "It will frighten her. Let me
get out myself. She has had frights enough already."

He was next the door, and he staggered down the steps with an
effort; but, before his foot touched the ground, a female figure
appeared at the entrance of the cottage. It was that of a woman
about forty years of age, with traces of considerable beauty, less
withered apparently by time than by sorrow; for the braided hair
upon her forehead was but thinly mingled with gray, the teeth were
fine and white, the eye clear and undimmed. But there was many a
line about the mouth which seemed to hold every smile in chains,
and there was an expression of deep, habitual anxiety in the eyes,
fine as they were, that can only be fixed in them by care. They
seemed always asking, "What new sorrow now?" She was dressed in
the garb of a widow--not deep weeds--but those habiliments which
might still be worn as marks of the eternal mourning of the heart,
after time and the world's changes had banished the memory of her
loss from every bosom but her own. They were neat and clean, but
plain and even coarse; and her appearance--and it did not belie her
state--was altogether that of a person in the humbler class of life;
but with a mind, and perhaps an education, in some degree superior
to those of her own station.

As the young man got out of the chaise, she took two or three
quick steps forward to meet him, exclaiming, with an anxious gaze
at his face, "Oh, my boy! what has happened now!"

"Nothing, mother, nothing!" answered the young man; "a knock

on the head!--that's all! Nothing at all!--it will be well to-morrow;"
and he strove to pass into the house, as if to hide himself from the
anxious eyes which were scanning his pale face, dabbled as it was
with blood.

Burrel sprang out of the chaise, and putting his right hand under
the lad's elbow, so as to support him steadily, he gently displaced his
mother's hand by taking it in his own, and leading her on with them
into the cottage, saying, as he did so, "Your son, my good lady, has
had a severe blow on the head, from the falling of a beam, as he
was aiding gallantly to extinguish the fire at Mrs. Darlington's. We
have been obliged to bleed him; but, as you see, he is much better
now; and I doubt not, with care and good medical advice, will soon
be quite well."

By this time he had got the young man into the cottage, and
seated him on a wooden chair near the door; but the words of
comfort that he spoke seemed to fall meaningless on the ears of the
widow, who stood and gazed upon her son's face, with an
expression of anxious care which we must have all seen at some
time or another, but which is hardly describable. It was not only the
sorrow and the anxiety of the moment, but it was the crushed heart,
prophesying many a future woe from long experience of grief--it was
the waters of bitterness, welling from the past, and mingling its gall
with all things present or to come.

Her son was her first thought, but she marked Burrel's words,
though she answered them not; for the next moment she said, as if
speaking to herself--for distress had done away with courtesy, for
the moment--"Where am I to get good medical advice?"

"That shall not be wanting, my good lady," replied Burrel, kindly.

"Come, come, the matter is not so bad as you think it. Get your son
to bed, and as soon as Mr. Tomkins, the surgeon, returns he shall
have my orders to give him every attention. He will soon be better;
so set your mind at ease."

"Oh, sir!" answered the widow, looking, for the first time, at the
person who spoke to her, "I have not known what a mind at ease is,
for many a long year. But you are very good, sir, and I ought to have
thanked you before."

"That you ought, mother," said the young man; "for he got me
out of the fire, and saved my life. God bless you, sir! I can be
thankful enough for a good turn, in spite of all that the people of this
place may say against me. They first drove me to do a bad thing and
then gave me a worse name for it than I ever deserved."

"I believe it is too often so," answered Burrel, laying his hand with
a gentle motion upon his arm; "and many a man, like you, my poor
fellow, may be driven from small faults to great ones. But it is never
too late to correct one's mistakes, and as I will bear witness to your
gallant exertions to save Mrs. Darlington's property, you will now
have a good foundation to raise a better name for yourself, than you
seem to say you have hitherto obtained. Let this make a new
beginning for you, and I will take care you shall not want
encouragement."

The young sailor suddenly grasped his hand, and wrung it tight in
his own. "God bless you, sir!" he said, "God bless you!" and Burrel
fully understood that the words of hope he had spoken found their
way straight to a heart that might have gone astray, but was not
entirely corrupted. After a few more kind words to the widow and
her son, he got into the chaise again, and returned to his lodging.
His first care was to provide medical aid for the young sailor, and he
sent immediately for Mr. Tomkins, the surgeon, who had by this time
returned. After giving full orders and authority to see the young
man, God willing, completely restored to health, with all the
necessary attendance and medicaments to be charged to his
account, Burrel learned from the apothecary the history of the young
sailor, which is as simple a one as ever was told.

His father and mother had married young, principally upon the
strength of that chamelion fricasee--hopes and expectations; and his
father had settled in a small shop in Emberton, became a bankrupt,
and died. There is nothing wonderful in that; for oxalic--nay, prussic
acid itself, has no advantage over broken hopes except in being a
quicker poison. If one takes up the Gazette, and looks at the names
of the great bankers and merchant that have figured in its sad lists
during the last twenty years, we shall find that two out of three have
not survived their failure three years. Well, he died: and his widow
did hope that the liberal creditors would allow her the means of
carrying on her husband's trade again, or at least supporting herself
and her child. But no. The world is a very good world, and a liberal
and generous world, _et cetera, et cetera, et cetera:_ but let no one,
as they value peace, count upon its kindness or generosity for a
moment. The liberal creditors left her not a shred on the face of the
earth that they could take, and turned her and her beggar boy into
the street. To the kindness of Sir Sidney Delaware she owed the
small cottage in which she dwelt; but Sir Sidney, God help him had
hardly enough for himself; and though many a little act of
comforting kindness was shown by the poor family of the park to the
poor family in the cottage, yet that was not enough for support, and
want was often at the door. As the boy grew up, his heart burned at
his mother's need; and in an evil hour he became connected with a
gang of poachers--plundered the preserves of Sir Timothy Ridout--
was detected--resisted. The gamekeeper was struck and injured in
the affray, and poor Wat Harrison, as he was called, was nearly
finding his way to Botany Bay; when, by some kind management, he
was allowed to go to sea, and remained in Captain Delaware's ship
till she was paid off, a few months before the time of which I now
write.

It has before been shown, however, that Wat Harrison had

established for himself a bad character in the little town which saw
his birth. To such a degree even had he done this, that the peculiar
class of wiseacres, who have a prepossession in favor of hanging,
uniformly agreed that poor Wat Harrison would be hanged. Such a
reputation once established, is not easily shaken off; and although,
at his return, he bore a high character from Captain Delaware, who
reported him--what he really was--a brave, active, gallant lad,
somewhat rash and headstrong, and with a disposition that, in good
guidance, might be led to every thing good and noble--still the
wiseacres shook the knowing head, and declared that all that might
be very true, but that bad company would soon make him as bad as
ever.

Burrel listened to the story with some attention; but by this time
he had resumed his impenetrability, which had been a little shaken
within the last four-and-twenty hours; and the good doctor could by
no means discover what Henry Burrel intended to do in favor of poor
Wat Harrison, or whether he intended to do any thing.

It is not improbable that, as the surgeon was really a kind hearted

man, he would have given what medical aid was required by the
widow's son, even had no pecuniary remuneration brightened with
its golden rays the horizon of a long attendance; but the unlimited
order he received to do every thing that was necessary for the
youth's complete recovery, inspired a new alacrity into all his
movements; for there is no charity which is half so active as that
which is paid for. Away, then, hied worthy Mr. Tomkins, undivided
surgeon to the whole little township of Emberton and its
dependencies, to attend poor Wat garrison, with as much eager zeal
as if the lad had been a Calender, a king's son, instead of a poor
widow's; and his prompt appearance, as well as several mysterious
"nods and becks, and wreathed smiles," which he joined to some
mysterious words about her son having secured a powerful
protector, served greatly to soothe the heart of poor widow Harrison.
In good truth, much did it need soothing; for her only child had soon
fallen into the same fearful drowsy state again, from which his first
arrival at her humble dwelling had roused him, and either left her
questions unanswered, or answered _à tort et à travers_. This had
terrified and alarmed her to a dreadful degree; and the assurance of
the surgeon, that her son would do well, joined to the hints he gave,
that her future prospects were brightening, brought the first rays of
the blessed daystar of joy to shine in upon her heart, which had
found their way through the casement of her cottage for many a
year.

The lad was by this time in bed, and a second bleeding relieved
him; but it was now discovered that the beam had struck his side as
well as his head, and there appeared some reason to fear
inflammation, from the feverish state of his pulse. Cooling drinks and
refrigerants of all kinds were recommended; and as Mr. Burrel's
orders had been dictated in a spirit of liberality, to which the mind of
the village surgeon was averse to set bounds, yet afraid to give full
course, he deemed it best to wait upon that gentleman, and state
what he thought necessary.

"In regard to medicines, and every thing of that kind, my dear

sir," replied Burrel, who was found with half a dozen half-written
letters before him, "in regard to medicines, and every thing of that
kind, I must let him trust to you. As to diet, the _juvantia_ and
_lœdentia_ must be explained to my man, who shall have full orders
to provide all that is necessary for him."

The letters on the table were a sufficient hint to a man, a part of

whose profession it is to understand hints quickly; and after the
words of course, he took leave once more and departed.

A short time after, Burrel's silent servant, Harding, appeared at

the cottage, bringing with him all that could make a sick man
comfortable. He himself was active and attentive; and, considering
his wonted reserve, Master Harding might be looked upon as
loquacious. He showed none of those airs which the servants of fine
gentlemen sometimes affect when called upon to attend the poor or
sick, in any of those cases in which their masters find it convenient
to do the less pleasant parts of charity by deputy; but, sitting down
by the bed of the sick man, he asked kindly after his health--talked
over the accident which had occasioned the injury from which he
suffered--turned up his nose at his own master, when widow
Harrison called down blessings on Burrel's head--declared that the
time was fast coming when such men would find their right level--
and hoped in his days to see the national debt wiped away with a
wet sponge, and a reasonable limit fixed to the fortunes of private
men, so that no such unequal distribution of things that were
naturally in common should take place.

Widow Harrison was silent from astonishment, and her son was
ill, and not logical; so that the oration of Burrel's silent servant
passed unquestioned, and he returned to his master's lodging,
where, to do him all manner of justice, although he was perfectly
respectful, his lips did not overflow with any of those warm
professions of attachment and devotion which used to characterize
the determined rascals in days of old. It is to be remarked, here,
that the character of the scoundrel, the pickpocket, and the thief,
has changed within the last five or six years most amazingly; and
that the leaven of liberal sentiments, of one kind or another, which
has been so industriously kneaded up with the dough-like and
ductile minds of Englishmen, has been naturally communicated in a
greater proportion to the thieves, pickpockets, cheats, and valets-de-
chambre, than to any other class in the state.

Far from finding fawning and cringing in the knavish valet--far

from meeting courtesy and gentleness in the highwayman--far from
being treated with urbanity and persiflage by the swindler--the first,
when about to steal his master's silver spoons, discusses the origin
of the idea of property; the second, when he lays you prostrate with
a club, or blows your brains out with a pistol, swaggers about the
rights of the people; while the swindler is sure to cheat you under
the guise of a lecture on political economy; and the man who
meditates cutting your throat in your bed, views you with cool
indifference--reads Cato before he goes to rest--and, ere he sets to
work, lies down to take an hour or two of sleep, and dream of
Brutus. Oh, ye gods, it is a goodly world! and those who see most of
the march of intellect, begin to suspect that its progression is
somewhat like that of the crab.

CHAPTER VII.

About three o' the clock of the day at which we are still pausing,
the sky began to show a strong disposition to weep. A heavy shower
came on, and if there were a spark left till then unextinguished
among the blackened remains of Mrs. Darlington's house, there
certainly now came down from above the wherewithal to drown it
out effectually. The whole heavens became black and gloomy, and
for about an hour there was nothing to be seen but a scanty
allowance of prospect, half obscured by the gray drizzle. Shortly
after, however, a yellow break made its appearance on the
southwestern edge of the horizon, and the rays of a September sun,
mingling with the falling shower, poured through the streaks of rain,
and seemed to fringe the cloud with an edging of spun glass. Moving
slowly onward, the heavy mass of vapors left room for the evening
sun to burst forth, and, while the rainbow waved its scarf of joy in
the air, the whole world sparkled up, refreshed and brightened by
the past rain.
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