to the ten minutes.

"Dchuca di Crinola!" shouted Geraghty in his broadest brogue as
Crocker came in; determined not to be done out of the honour fairly
achieved by him.

"By Jove, yes! A Duke," said Crocker. "A Duke! My own especial
friend! Hampstead will be nowhere; nowhere; nowhere! Duca di Crinola!
Isn't it beautiful? By George, I can't believe it. Can you, Mr.
Jerningham?"

"I don't know what to believe," said Mr. Jerningham. "Only he was
always a most steady, well-behaved young man, and the office will
have a great loss of him."

"I suppose the Duke won't come and see us ever," said Bobbin. "I
should like to shake hands with him once again."

"Shake hands with him," said Crocker. "I'm sure he won't drop out
like that;--my own peculiar friend! I don't think I ever was so fond
of anybody as George Ro--, the Duca di Crinola of course I mean. By
George! haven't I sat at the same table with him for the last two
years! Why, it was only a night or two before he started on this
remarkable tour that I spent an evening with him in private society
at Holloway!" Then he got up and walked about the room impetuously,
clapping his hands, altogether carried away by the warmth of his
feelings.

"I think you might as well sit down to your desk, Mr. Crocker," said
Mr. Jerningham.

"Oh, come, bother, Mr. Jerningham!"

"I will not be spoken to in that way, Mr. Crocker."

"Upon my word, I didn't mean anything, sir. But when one has heard
such news as this, how is it possible that one should compose
oneself? It's a sort of thing that never happened before,--that one's
own particular friend should turn out to be the Duca di Crinola. Did
anybody ever read anything like it in a novel? Wouldn't it act well?
Can't I see the first meeting between myself and the Duke at the
Haymarket! 'Duke,' I should say--'Duke, I congratulate you on having
come to your august family title, to which no one living could do so
much honour as yourself.' Bancroft should do me. Bancroft would do me
to the life, and the piece should be called the _Duke's Friend_. I
suppose we shall call him Duke here in England, and Duca if we happen
to be in Italy together; eh, Mr. Jerningham?"

"You had better sit down, Mr. Crocker, and try to do your work."

"I can't;--upon my word I can't. The emotion is too much for me.
I couldn't do it if Aeolus were here himself. By the way, I wonder
whether Sir Boreas has heard the news." Then he rushed off, and
absolutely