th the steamer to-night; and he is so
ashamed to show, that he is snug in his berth all this time."

"But what does he mean by that?"

"He 's in a scrape, Jack, and had to get away from England to save
himself from a jail; but I 'll tell you the story this evening,--or,
better still, I 'll make him tell you, if you can manage to persuade him
to come on shore."

"That he shall do," said Jack. "He behaved like a trump to me once when
I was in trouble; and I don't forget it." And so saying, he hastened
on board the packet, and hurried below, to re-appear in a few minutes,
holding Cutbill by the collar, as though he were his prisoner.

"Here's the culprit," cried Jack; "and if he won't land his luggage, he
must take to a Montenegro rig like mine; and he 'll become it well."

"There, don't collar me that fashion. See how the fellows are all
staring at us. Have you no decency?"

"Will you come quietly, then?"

"Yes; let them hand up my two trunks and my violin case. What a droll
place this is."

"There 's many a worse, I can tell you, than our villa yonder. If it
were my own, I 'd never ask to leave it."

"Nor need you, Jack," whispered Augustus. "I've brought back money to
buy it; and I hope it will be our home this many a day."

"What's this scrape of yours, Cutty?" said Jack, as they made their way
homewards. "Whom have you been robbing this time, or was it forgery?"

"Let him tell you," said Cutbill, doggedly, as he motioned with his
hand towards Gusty.

"It's a mixed case of robbery with housebreaking," said Augustus.
"Pracontal had taken it into his head that certain papers of great value
to himself were concealed in some secret press in our house at Castello;
and Cutbill was just as convinced that there were no papers and no
press, and that the whole was a dream or a delusion. They argued the
case so often that they got to quarrel about it."

"No, we did n't quarrel," broke in Cutbill, sulkily; "we betted."

"Yes, that is more correct Pracontal was so firmly persuaded that the
papers existed that he offered three to one on it, and Cutbill, who
likes a good thing, took it in hundreds."

"No. I wish I had. It was in fifties."

"As they had no permission to make the search, which required to break
down the wall, and damage a valuable fresco--"

"No. It was under the fresco, in a pedestal. I 'd engage to make it good
for thirty shillings," broke in Cutbill.

"Well, we 'll not dispute that The essentia