d hot-sausage and gingerbread stalls in abundance. But the
deafening martial music poured forth from a barrel-organ by means of a
steam-engine, belonging to the proprietor of a huge "Merry-go-round,"
and the wet and muddy condition of the ground from the effects of the
recent thunderstorm, make us glad to get away.

A MYSTERIOUS DICKENS-ITEM.

Mr. C. D. Levy, Auctioneer, etc., of Strood, was good enough to lend me
what at first sight, and indeed for some time afterwards, was supposed
to be a most unique Dickens-item. It came into his possession in this
way. At the sale of Charles Dickens's furniture and effects, which took
place at Gad's Hill in 1870, Mr. Levy was authorized by a customer to
purchase Dickens's writing-desk, which, however, he was unable to
secure. In transferring the desk to the purchaser at the time of the
sale, a few old and torn papers tumbled out, and being considered of no
value, were disregarded and scattered. One of these scraps was picked up
by Mr. Levy, and proved on further examination to be a sheet of headed
note-paper having the stamp of "Gad's Hill Place, Higham by Rochester,
Kent."--On the first page were a few rough sketches drawn with pen and
ink, which greatly resembled some of the characters in _The Mystery of
Edwin Drood_--Durdles, Jasper, and Edwin Drood. At the side was a
curious row of capital letters looking like a puzzle. On the second and
third pages were short-hand notes, and on the fourth page a few lines
written in long-hand, continued on the next page,--wonderfully like
Charles Dickens's own handwriting,--being the commencement of a speech
with reference to a cricket match. The sheet of paper had evidently been
made to do double duty, for after the sketches had been drawn on the
front page, the sheet was put aside, and when used again was turned
over, so that what ordinarily would have been page 4 became page 1 for
the second object. No "Daniel" in Strood or Rochester had ever been able
to decipher the mysterious hieroglyphics, or make known the
interpretation thereof, during twenty years, or give any explanation of
the sketches. But everybody thought that in some way or other they
related to _The Mystery of Edwin Drood_--and possibly contained a clue
to the solution of that exquisite fragment. So, as a student and admirer
of Dickens, Mr. Levy kindly left the matter in my hands to make out what
I could of it. Reference was accordingly had to several learned pundits
in the