"Sit down,' said Judith, and I and my son will attend upon you.'

No, no, I acknowledge your duty; but I honour your affection and love: sit down, and do you, my son, with this knife, take of the pie to your mother.'

"The son, with the impetuosity of youth, dashed the knife through the unresisting crust, the sharp point struck against the bottom of the dish, and shivered it to atoms; it was not the sound of the broken dish which excited the burst of astonishment, but of three hundred piastres in gold, which seemed to leap upon the floor. Of meat and savoury messes there were none; but there was a scroll which had enveloped the gold, and on it was written, ‘Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thy hand to do it.'

"'So you see,' said I to the lawyer, 'you can get your cook into a lawsuit, and take out the extra wages, and all her wages in advice.'

Mosti's story terminated just as we arrived at the Porta del Popoli. So we will commence a new subject with a new chapter.

CHAPTER X.

ROME.

I was not much astonished at the curious gaze of the Romans, when Signore Mosti, with his double diligence, as our vetturino affair might be termed, stopped at the Porta del Popolo, whilst a search was made for our lasciar passare.

Italians have a very vague meaning of meum and teum, and bright and vigilant as were the eyes of us all, and perfectly on our guard as we were, for we always took especial care to close the window of the carriage on that side from which we did not descend, yet my "wide-awake," a most suspiciouscoloured, revolutionary-looking covering, had not been out of my hand one moment at Bologna, before it covered the crazy brains of

some disreputable Bolognese.

Mosti had

both his eyes open, and so had I; we walked round and round the carriage, and ultimately landed the whole twenty-seven boxes, trunks, and cases, safe in the Hotel de l'Amerique, Via Babuino.

It was Sunday, and about three o'clock, although we had only come from "Sette Vene" that day, and had experienced no other alarm than that occasioned by two of the Pope's gendarmerie à cheval, who, with more rudeness than gallantry, ordered us to stop to let a cardinal pass, and had recourse to the sinking case twice; the rest of the party preferred making themselves comfortable, to sight-seeing.

It was clear to me that my friend Mosti and his nephew were no admirers of the government which was directed by the church authorities; whenever we came to a bad part of the road, the "maledetto" was growled out; and in compliment to those to whom they were obliged to lift the hat, and draw on one side to let pass, they invariably called it a "Via Cardinale." I must, in respect to Mosti's local knowledge, here mention, that he gave me more useful wisdom concerning the Ro

mans than ever I picked up before during the course of my juvenile education.

"If you see a shadow close to your own, step aside instantly."

"If you have any respect for your handkerchief, don't air its end, by letting it dangle from your pocket."

Always carry small

money in your pocket

-and never carry a purse.

Beware how you ride a horse over the Roman pavement, and how you stop when on foot to look into a shop in the Corso; you may get a broken skull by neglecting the first, and be lighter by disregarding the second."

"Do not believe the cardinal virtues exist because there are plenty of cardinals."

“ Never strike a Roman; you may spit in his face, and call him horse;' but knives are easily concealed, and quickly used."

"Never get in the dark streets or narrow lanes after dark; and if you must walk there, always keep in the middle of the road."

"Avoid the whispers of licentious men ; they are at every corner, their avocation is as disreputable as their company is dangerous; what the law prohibits, may sometimes become

more general from the very prohibition; and those who pander for the maintenance of sin, frequently fall into crime."

"It is a bad plan to be late at the tabled'hôte. Early hours are good for the hungry, or the vetturino driver; the early bird gets the choice grain."

"If you are asked any price for a horse, be it by a prince or a dealer, do not fancy you will insult him by offering much less-he will honour your knowledge, and accept the proposition."

"Look well at the vase before you purchase it; flaws in china, like Roman virtue, are only discovered by the closest inspection."

"Do not believe that every woman who enters a church goes to say her prayers; she will cross herself devoutly, but her eyes are not always fixed on the altar."

"Never look at those who wish to conceal themselves; a pretty woman never wears a veil a lover's eye cannot see through."

"If you hire a carriage and horses during your stay at Rome, hire them from me; I shall make a handsome profit, and you will save money."

"Never mount high up if you are likely to