k;
for I noo stood greatly in awe o' my ain name--no bein sure what
mischief it micht lead me into.

"There's a gentleman up in the hoose wants to see you directly," said
the lad.

"But I canna go till him, man--ye see the coach is just gaun to start,"
said I.

"Ay, but he says that's o' nae consequence. Ye maun come till him. He
has something o' importance to say to ye."

Thinkin it wasna advisable to slight a message o' sae pressin a nature,
an' curious to ken wha it was that could be wantin me, an' what he could
be wantin me for, I leaped down, resolvin to mak my legs, which were gay
an' lang an' souple anes, save my distance, an' havin nae doubt they
wad, critical as the case was. I up the close like a shot, an' into the
hoose; but, though _I_ was in a hurry, the waiter wha had come for me
was in nane. He didna appear for five minutes after; an', as he was the
only person wha kent onything aboot a message bein sent after me, I had
to wait his return, before I could find oot the person wha wanted me.
This, however, he noo effected for me; but not before a good deal mair
time was lost. The gentleman who wished to see me was dressin; so I was
shewn into a room, while the waiter went to inform him o' my arrival. In
a minute or twa after--durin which I was dancin aboot in a fever of
impatience, for fear o' losin the coach--the door o' the apartment flew
open, an' a laughin, joyous-lookin fellow, with a loud "Aha, Bob!" an'
extended hand, rushed in; but he didna rush far. The instant he got his
ee fairly on me, he stopped short, an', lookin as grave's a rat, bowed
politely, an' said he was exceedingly sorry to perceive that he had
committed a gross mistake.

"The fact is, my dear sir," he said, becomin again affable, to
reconcile me, I suppose, to the unfortunate blunder, an' speakin wi'
great volubility, "my name is Smith, which, I suppose, is yours too,
sir. I'm from London. Now, you see, my dear sir, my brother Bob, who
lives in Ireland, and whom I haven't seen for some years, was to have
met me here last night, agreeably to arrangements made by letter, and we
were to have gone this morning, as it were, by the same coach in which
you were going, to visit some friends in that part of the country to
which it runs. Well, you see, I arrived here only this morning early;
but the first thing I did was to inquire if there was a Mr. Smith in the
house, and I was distinctly told by the rascal of a waiter that there
was n