Margaret—nothing at all—and can you not account for it."

"No, otherwise than I am sure he is ill—nothing else could be the reason of such unexampled silence. It was after supper when he made the offer, and I cannot help fearing that the champagne and the lobster salad may have been too much for his constitution."

"Did he take much champagne then?"

"Much—no, not much, that is, not enough to—to—just you know to raise his spirits a good deal; I did not count the glasses!"

"And it was then he proposed to you—are you sure he was sober at the time, Margaret?"

"What questions you ask, Sam—sober! you quite shock me—remember you are talking to a young lady."

"Well, I will not forget that, but really I don't see anything so bad in the question, and I know no more delicate way of putting it to suit you: are you sure he was not drunk at the time?—will that do?"

"Upon my word—worse and worse, as if I should talk to a man who was drunk, what do you take me for?"

"I am sorry to offend you, my dear sister, but I have known Tom Musgrove a long time, and some times seen him very drunk. Indeed, in my opinion, he is just the sort of man to make a fool of himself first, and then of any girl who would listen to him."

"How excessively unkind you are, Sam," pouted Margaret, apparently on the point of crying—"I am quite sure you are wrong. Tom never could or would make a fool of me. He is not the sort of man at all; but, as I have heard nothing of him since that evening, I wish you to go and call on him—tell him how much pleased you are to hear of the engagement, and beg him to come and see me—there is no occasion to shut him out of the house, though we do not admit other visitors."

"That's your plan, is it? But suppose he declines altogether—suppose he should say it was a dream on your part—a delusion—a mistake; suppose that is the reason of his silence, what am I to do then?"

"Oh! if he were to do that, you must challenge him! You could not do less for such an insult to your sister, you must send him a challenge, and I could bring an action against him for breach of promise!"

"Well, if you mean to do that, I think I had better let the challenge alone; because the one might interfere with the other; if I 

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