cheque
for thirteen thousand pounds sterling. Give three to the widdy, with
my respects; give four to dear Emma Gray, with my best love and
blissin'; give two to Mister Lewis, with my compliments; an' give four
to young Lawrence, with my benediction, for his father's sake. As for
the old 'ooman Roby, you don't need to give nothin' to her. She and I
understand each other. _I'll_ look after her myself. I'll make her
my residooary legatee, an' wotever else is needful; but, in the
meantime, you may as well see that she's got all that she wants.
Build her a noo house too. I'm told that Grubb's Court ain't exactly
aristocratic or clean; see to that. Wotever you advance out o' yer
own pocket, I'll pay back with interest. That's to begin with, tell
'em. There's more comin'. There--I'm used up wi' writin' such a long
screed. I'd raither dig a twenty-futt hole in clay sile any day.--
Yours to command, Willum.

"P.S.--You ain't comin' back soon--are you?"

"Now, mother, what d'ee think o' that?" said the Captain, folding the
letter and putting it in his pocket.

"It's a good, kind letter--just like William," answered the old woman.

"Well, so I'm inclined to think," rejoined the Captain, busying himself
about breakfast while he spoke; "it provides for everybody in a sort o'
way, and encourages 'em to go on hopeful like--don't it strike you so?
Then, you see, that's four to Miss Emma, and four to Dr Lawrence, which
would be eight, equal to four hundred a year; and that, with the
practice he's gettin' into, would make it six, or thereabouts--not bad
to begin with, eh?"

The Captain followed his remark with a sigh.

"What's the matter?" asked Mrs Roby.

"Why, you remember, mother, before goin' abroad I set my heart on these
two gettin' spliced; but I fear it's no go. Sometimes I think they
looks fond o' one another, at other times I don't. It's a puzzler.
They're both young an' good-lookin' an' good. What more would they
have?"

"Perhaps they want money," suggested the old woman. "You say Dr
Lawrence's income just now is about two hundred; well, gentlefolks find
it summat difficult to keep house on that, though it's plenty for the
likes of you an' me."

"That's true. P'r'aps the Doctor is sheerin' off for fear o' draggin' a
young creeter into poverty. It never struck me in that light before."

Beaming under the influence of this hopeful view of the case, the
Captain proceede