g, after breakfast, as I
was poring over a map of Switzerland, "Murray" on my right hand and
"Bradshaw" on my left, his card was brought to me, together with an
urgent request that I would see him immediately and alone; and before I
had had time to send a reply, he came clattering into the room, trailing
his sabre behind him, and dropped into the first arm-chair with a
despairing self-abandonment which shook the house to its foundations.

"Mr. Jenkinson," said he, "I am a ruined man!"

I answered rather drily that I was very sorry to hear it. If I must
confess the truth, I thought he had come to borrow money of me.

"A most cruel calamity has befallen me," he went on; "and unless you
will consent to help me out of it--"

"I am sure I shall be delighted to do anything in my power," I
interrupted, apprehensively; "but I am afraid--"

"You cannot refuse me till you have heard what I have to say. I am aware
that I have no claim whatever upon your kindness; but you are the only
man in the world who can save me, and, whereas the happiness of my
whole life is at stake, the utmost you can have to put up with will be
a little inconvenience. Now I will explain myself in as few words as
possible, because I have only a minute to spare. In fact, I ought to be
out on the ramparts at this moment. You have not forgotten what I told
you about myself and the Signorina Martinelli, and how we had agreed to
seize the first opportunity that offered to be privately married, and to
escape over the mountains to my father's house, and throw ourselves upon
his mercy?"

"I don't remember your having mentioned any such plan."

"No matter--so it was. Well, everything seemed to have fallen out most
fortunately for us. I found out some time ago that the marchese would
be going over to Padua this evening on business, and would be absent
at least one whole day, and I immediately applied for my leave to begin
to-morrow. This I obtained at once through my father, who now expects
me to be with him in a few days, and little knows that I shall not come
alone. Johann and the marchese's housekeeper arranged the rest between
them. I was to meet my dear Bianca early in the morning on the Lido;
thence we were to go by boat to Mestre, where a carriage was to be in
waiting for us; and the same evening we were to be married by a priest,
to whom I have given due notice, at a place called Longarone. And so
we should have gone on, across the Ampezzo Pass homewar