," exclaimed Lawless,
attempting to wrest the paper out of his hand.

"Be quiet, Lawless," rejoined Coleman, holding him off, "sit down
directly, sir, or I won't write a word for you: I _must see_ what all
your ideas are in order to get some notion of what you want to say;
besides, I've no doubt they'll be very original."

~363~~

I

"'Sweet Fanny, there are moments
When the heart is not one's own,
When we fain would clip its wild wing's tip,
But we find the bird has flown.

II

"'Dear Fanny, there are moments
When a loss may be a gain,
And sorrow, joy--for the heart's a toy,
And loving's such sweet pain.

III

"'Yes, Fanny, there are moments
When a smile is worth a throne,
When a frown can prove the flower of love,
Must fade, and die alone.'

--"Why, you never wrote those, Lawless?"

"Didn't I?" returned Lawless, "but I know I did, though--copied them out
of an old book I found up there, and wrote some more to 'em, because I
thought there wasn't enough for the money, besides putting in Fanny's
name instead of--what, do you think?--Phillis!--there's a name for you;
the fellow must have been a fool. Why, I would not give a dog such an
ill name for fear somebody should hang him; but go on."

"Ah, now we come to the original matter," returned Coleman, "and very
original it seems."

IV

"'Dear Fanny, there are moments
When love gets you in a fix,
Takes the bit in his jaws, and, without any pause,
Bolts away with you like bricks.

V

"'Yes, Fanny, there are moments
When affection knows no bounds,
When I'd rather be talking with you out a-walking,
Than rattling after the hounds.

VI

"'Dear Fanny, there are moments
When one feels that one's inspired, And... and...'

--"It does not seem to have been one of those moments with you just
then," continued Freddy, "for the poem comes to an abrupt and untimely
conclusion, unless three ~364~~ blots, and something that looks like a
horse's head, may be a hieroglyphic mode of recording your inspirations,
which I'm not learned enough to decipher."

"Eh! no; I broke down there," replied Lawless; "the muse deserted me,
and went off in a canter for--where was it those young women used