, 1886-10-15

bright. indeed. were they that. as he left
the station, he staggered and almost fell
to the ground, his hair bristled, and he
burst into n cold perspiration.
The fiddle had been left in the train!
For at least ten minutes his horror was
such that he could do nothing; then he
began to telegraph everywhere down
the line, following, himself. by the next
train, and making inquiries at every
station for the missing Instrument. In
this he spent the night, until
the trains stopped running. All he could
learn was that at the next station a man
had got out of the train with a violin
case and had disappeared.
The following morning he sen to the
office to say that he was seriously i'll,
and the whole day was spent in a fruit
less search for the fiddle. On the Sum
day he gave up the instrument as lost
and set himself to find another Guarne-
rius. and to raise the money to buy it.
for. knowing his chiefs character pretty
well, he felt that if the-or, rather. a
fiddle were not forthcoming. his chances
of the post he sought were practically at
an end.
Monday morning came. n Mr.. Philip
Pottinger Pipps went to his chief with his
story. "When he got home. to his in
tense sorrow. the fiddle fell out of the
case (the springs being out of order. and
the ia | Jared the finger-bo board and one
of the blocks: he had taken it to be re-
paired to n German repairer whom he
knew, and who happened. very fortu-
nately, to he staying with a friend in
London. He had promised to put the
damage right nv the end of the week"
Sir Dash Blank. X. C. B.. was
very angry, but said little; mean
while, the appointment became prac-
tically n certainty. and on the strength
of it the unlucky Pipps began borrow
ing. from every money lender between
Regent street and Bond street the price
of the Guarnerius he had to buy. He
knew that any Gnarnerius, so long as it
was really genuine. would do to return,
for his chief, not beng a real connois-
seur. would not notice that it was a diff
frrent fiddle; but. alas, the dealer he APP
piled to told him that there was only
one for sale in London. and this instru-
In"nt belonged to an amateur. who
wanted eight hundred pounds sterling
for il.
1t was frightful; still. it was neck or
nothing. so he craped the money to-
gether and bought the flile throu,h
the dealer. He was received with very
sour looks bv Sir Dash when he took il
to him, and he had the pleasure of being
told that his chief believed there was
something wrong somewhere that he
would never lend linn n fddle amin
and that had the episode occurred be-
fore he had pledred himself to sunnort
Mr.. Pipps' candidature that support
would not have been forthcomino
Fortunately. however. he did NOT look at
the instrument. which his subordinate
replaced beneath the chair whence he
had taken the original.
A week later Pbilip Pottincer Pinps
retary for the paper fastner and J-pen
department, crushed by the reflection
that before the wear was ont he vould
have to nav the Israelites, who had as
sisted him in his dire distress. close upon
two thousand pounds sterling for value
received.
The sequel is not difficult to forcsee.
Me.srs. Shadrach. Meshack, Abednego,
and the rest of them began to put on the
screw. The miserable under secretary,
having ruined his social and official posi-
ton by borrowing of all his friends and
co leagues to pay off what he could OF
his (for HIM enormous liability. the
TaprG HAVING found that hA had 1Ana