ell, mighty well, sir, to swear by the honour of your
ancestors; for very few of your modern stars have a ray of that same
meteoric light to illumine their own milky way."

"That flash of your wit, lieutenant, comes upon one like the electric
shock of an intended insult, and I must expect you will apologize."

"Then I fear, young valiant, you will die of the disease that has killed
more brave men than the last twenty years' war."

"And what is that, sir, may I ask?"

"Expectation, my jewel! I've breakfasted, dined, supped, and slept upon
it for the last half century, and am not one step higher in the army
list yet."

"But, lieutenant, let me observe that--that--"

"That we are both pretty nigh bosky, and should not therefore be too
fastidious in our jokes over the bottle."

Enter Waiter. "The claret, gentlemen. Mr. Long's compliments, and he
requests permission to assure you that it is some of the late Duke of
Queensberry's choice stock, marked A one."

"Which signifies, according to Long's edition of Cocker, that we must
pay double for the liqueur. Come, Lionise, fill a bumper; and let us
tails of the lion toast our caput, the sovereign, the first corinthian
of his day, and the most polished prince in the world."

"Tiger, Tiger,"{1} ejaculated a soft voice in the adjoining box; "ask
Tom who the trumps are in the next stall, and if they are known here,
tell them the Honourable Thomas Optimus fills a bumper to their last
toast."

1 Since the death of the Earl of Barrymore, Tom has
succeeded to the "vacant chair" at Long's; nor is the Tiger
Mercury the only point in which he closely resembles his
great prototype.

~196~~A smart, clever-looking boy of about fifteen years of age darted
forward to execute the honourable's commands; when having received the
requisite information from the waiter, he approached the lieutenant and
his friend, and with great politeness, but no lack of confidence, made
the wishes of his master known to the _bon vivants_; the consequence
was, an immediate interchange of civilities, which brought the
honourable into close contact with his merry neighbours; and the result,
a unanimous resolution to make a night of it.

At this moment our _tete-a-tete_ was interrupted by the appearance of
old Crony, who, stanch as a well-trained pointer to the scent of
game, had tracked me hither from my lodgings; from him I learned
the lieutenant was a fellow of infinite jest and st