Year: 1870

couraged me with the remark, "Steady,
now, old fellow and good luck to you ~
and calmly proceed to relight his cigar,
while was rapidly hauled through the air
to place of safety.


This young man was Dick Farrell.


The rope was again let down, and he soon
made his appearance beside me. Luckily
he could speak French of which l did not
know a single word, and l appealed to him
to rescue me from the police, who had
promptly arrested me on a charge of fhaving
attempted to commit suicide. Dicks per-
suasive oratory secured my release, and
being thus doubly indebted to him, l felt
obliged to invite him to the hotel and to
dinner.


He proved to be painter of some sort
know nothing about art-on his way to
Rome, and though he was il the main
honest and always good tempered, he was
altogether too much of a vagabond to be a
suitable companion for gentleman of my
age and position. / felt this strongly,
when after much champagne, he proposed
that we should journey to Rome together.


But what was to do? Clearly l could
not say to the man who had just saved my
life ''Sir | cannot consent to travel in
your company, because you wear prepos-
ferrous hat, and are addicted to perpetual
smoking and untimely singing" Of course
I lacked the courage to say this and hence
it followed that for the next two weeks we
were constantly together. | will do him
the justice to say that he never attempted
to borrow money from me, and he rendered
me considerable service by acting interpre-
ter between myself and the natives Still
his undignifed habits were constant
source of annoyance to me. He would in
sist upon my accompanying him into third
class cars, where he smoked, and sang, and
drank cheap wine from casual bottles, with
chance acquaintances, in manner disrep-
utable in the extreme. | acquit him of
any intentional disrespect in representing
to the police of st. Jean that | was luna
tic, and he was my keeper, since he sol
emnly averred that by no other pretence
could he have saved me from arrest.
cannot however, excuse his habit of calling
me sold boy" and the gross familiarity
with which he criticised my personal ap-
pearance, and what he was pleased to call
"my jolly greenness."


After we reached Rome. as was quite nat
n ,,no1 Jna1 nf oil
so happened that we one day visited the
Catacombs of st. Calixtus. The guide
who was with us was explaining tho
skeletons and things with great apparent
marks to me with comments and additions
of his own, when we came upon another
party, consisting of middle aged lady, hel
daughter, and of course, their guide. Al
they were evidently Americans, we stopped
, and conversed few moments with them
ultimately accepting their invitation to ac
company them through the rest of the cat
acombs-Dick escorting the mother, whilt
walked by the side Of her pretty daughter


Pretty is just the word which described
her. She was not strictly beautiful, bu
her manner was extremely attractive, an,


she had, moreover an idea of the respec
due to a man of character and position il


life, which have found that young girls
as a rule seldom have. soon learned Cha
. her mother was a widowfrom New York
+ and that they were both well acquainte


with the family of my business partner
, We therefore rapidly became as familiar a


old acquaintances; and presently, Will
, Dick, with his accustomed impudence, wa


giving the old lady a history Of the cata


combs-of which am certain that he kne,
q absolutely nothing-the daughter drel
, close to me and whispered


II " Would you dare to get me little piec
: of bone out of the inches? They are a
l saints bones you know, but the guide won


let me have any and besides l can't reac
y them, tho l do so long for piece of saint ?
/ need not say that stole some saint