ficer, as he pointed to his head, and looked
significantly, as much as to say, "Some mad patient of yours, I
suppose."

"You are much mistaken, sir," said Dr. Chillingworth; "this gentleman
has been cruelly used, I have no doubt. He has, I am inclined to
believe, been made the victim, for a time, of the intrigues of that very
Sir Francis Varney, whose conduct has been the real cause of all the
serious disturbances that have taken place in the country."

"Confound Sir Francis Varney," muttered the officer; "he is enough to
set a whole nation by the ears. However, Mr. Magistrate, if you are
satisfied that this young man is not one of the rioters, I have, of
course, no wish to hold him a prisoner."

"I can take Mr. Chillingworth's word for more than that," said the
magistrate.

Charles Holland was accordingly released, and then the doctor, in
hurried accents, told him the principal outlines of what had occurred.

"Oh! take me to Flora," he said; "let me not delay another moment in
seeking her, and convincing her that I could not have been guilty of the
baseness of deserting her."

"Hark you, Mr. Holland, I have quite made up my mind that I will not
leave Bannerworth Hall yet; but you can go alone, and easily find them
by the directions which I will give you; only let me beg of you not to
go abruptly into the presence of Flora. She is in an extremely delicate
state of health, and although I do not take upon myself to say that a
shock of a pleasurable nature would prove of any paramount bad
consequence to her, yet it is as well not to risk it."

"I will be most careful, you may depend."

At this moment there was a loud ringing at the garden bell, and, when it
was answered by one of the dragoons, who was ordered to do so by his
officer, he came back, escorting no other than Jack Pringle, who had
been sent by the admiral to the Hall, but who had solaced himself so
much on the road with divers potations, that he did not reach it till
now, which was a full hour after the reasonable time in which he ought
to have gone the distance.

[Illustration]

Jack was not to say dumb, but he had had enough to give him a very jolly
sort of feeling of independence, and so he came along quarrelling with
the soldier all the way, the latter only laughing and keeping his temper
admirably well, under a great deal of provocation.

"Why, you land lubbers," cried Jack, "what do you do here, all of you, I
wonder! You are all wamphighers,