ply even more nearly than the latter was himself aware. But, though evidently disconcerted, he contrived to conceal hist feelings, under an affected disdain to offer at this time any rejoinder leaving his fair worshippers now to take up the discourse.

“I wonder,” said Miss Ann Lucretia, "what pleasure one can take in common arithmetic: for my part, I always hated it. And as for the spelling-book why, I learned all there is in that before I was seven years old.”

"Well, I am willing all should follow their taste,” observed the next sister; "but as for myself, I have no notion of giving up the elegant pursuits of our select academy; at least, not for a common school, I am sure."

"Nor I,” said Miss Matilda Mandeville, as usual bringing up the rear of this refined and accomplished sisterhood. “O! it would be so excessively vulgaire! Now, do n't you think so, Professor Tilden ?"

"Why, I have only to say on the occasion, ladies," replied the professor, who by this time had prepared himself for what he supposed would be an annihilating discharge of his spleen, "I have only to say that there are those in the world whom you would labor in vain in trying to impress with any sense of the beauties of elegant literature.”

"And there are again those, you might justly add, sir," promptly rejoined Locke, "whom you can never impress with any sense of the beauties of the sound sciences, for the reason that they do not understand them."

Upon this, the professor chose to consider himself insulted, and so much disgusted withal, that he could no longer endure the presence of Amsden. And, hastily gathering up his hat, gloves, &c., from the table by which his rival had been sitting, he moved towards the door with the show of departing, when the three sisters with one accord rushed after him, and begged of him, for their sakes, to remain. Mrs. Carter, also,

muttering something about its being very strange that some folks could not understand their true position in society, earnestly joined in the request of her daughters. The soothed professor, being thus over-persuaded, returned to his seat. And Amsden, to relieve the company from his presence, rose to depart. Miss Maverick, whose pride and high sense of honor and justice had alike been deeply offended by this wanton attack on her friend, waited on him to the door with the most marked respect; and then, returning into the room with a face flushed with indignation, replaced the light she had taken, and instantly left the apartment without uttering a word.

Previous to the entrance of Amsden and Mary, the professor had been showing the ladies a guinea, upon the centre of which had been stamped, by some mechanic through whose hands it had passed, probably, some enigmatical letters and other signs. And this coin, when the former came in, had been left on the table at which the professor and his fair friends had been sitting, and by the side of which, when the position of the company became thus changed, Locke happened to be placed.

"What are you looking for, Professor Tilden ?" blandly asked Mrs. Carter, as she observed the former turning over the books and other articles on the table, as if in search of something missing.

"O, merely the little coin we were amusing ourselves with, when our refined visiter, who has just left, entered the room; but it is no matter; it is somewheres about here, I presume," said the professor carelessly.

This announcement brought all the ladies round the table. A thorough search was made; but the coin was not to be found.

"Let me see," said the professor, musingly, pretending not to remember the fact; "who sat down by the table when we rose, on the entrance of this visiter?"

Why, it was Mr. Amsden himself," replied Mrs. Carter, "So it was to be sure it was it certainly was; and the gold piece was lying on the table after he came in and took that seat," severally responded the sisters, exchanging surprised and significant glances among themselves and with their mother.

"I perceive what you think, ladies," said the professor, after permitting them to look at each other long enough to reach the conclusion to which he had artfully led them; "I perceive what you think; but I beg of you," he continued, with an air of generous forbearance, "I beg of you not to mention the circumstance. The little coin is really of no sort of consequence to me."

"Why should we keep it secret? I think the fellow should be exposed," said Mrs. Carter, indignantly.

"I highly appreciate your indignation, madam,” replied the professor, loftily; "I wonder not that you should feel such a bold insult on your house and family, to say nothing of the requirements of justice. But what proof could we make? Nothing that would answer the law. I must therefore insist that no public charge of the kind be made."

"It is just what I should expect of a vulgar pedagogue," exclaimed Miss Matilda Mandeville.

"And to think that Mary should have suffered him to come here!" said another sister.

"Yes, and the girl is still attending the fellow's school! but that must be stopped," added the mother.

"Perhaps that were unwise,” said the professor, here interposing. "By taking this step, you must give her the reason; and I really ask it as a great favor that not a syllable of the unfortunate affair be named to her, as it would be so very mortifying to her feelings. Whatever opinion you may consider it your duty to give your confidential friends respecting the man's true character, nothing must be named to her.

Indeed, for my part, I could wish that the transaction should be kept a secret from all; for I really cannot but pity the fellow."

The professor, having thus arranged the affair to his liking with his willingly duped worshippers, departed; secretly exulting in the thought that he had now struck a blow which must result in removing from his path the man whom he no less feared than hated. And, for a while, every thing seemed to promise fair to operate as he had designed it should. The story was studiously kept from Mary, and, in the shape of dark hints at least, confidentially whispered to others, who, in their turn, imparted it to a second round of friends, till it thus passed, in constantly widening circles, to the public.

Meanwhile the intended victim of this suddenly-devised and detestable plot to destroy his fair fame, continued diligently to discharge the daily duties of his fast improving school, having not the least suspicion of the withering whispers of detraction that were in progress around him. He was not permitted, however, to remain long without perceiving indications that something intimately affecting his interests was secretly operating to his disadvantage; but what that something could be, he was wholly unable to conjecture. He at first noticed a certain air of coldness and distrust towards himself among many of his village acquaintance, by whom he had been before met with respectful cordiality. His feelings were next tried by a withdrawal by their parents, on different pretexts, of some of the best pupils of his school. And, among the rest, his lovely friend, Mary Maverick, was unconsciously made to add poignancy to his regrets, and increase his growing uneasiness at the inauspicious appearances that seemed to be gathering over his path. She had been requested by her aunt to leave her school to assist in some business in the household line, which, as it was pretended,

had unexpectedly arisen, but which, it was also urged, must immediately be executed. And, feeling herself under obligations to comply, she had left the school, without giving her instructer, or deeming it necessary to give him, any definite reasons for so doing, since she then had as little suspicion of the true motives of the hypocritical request that had induced her to forego the pleasures of her pursuits at school, as she had of the existence of the contemptible plan laid for undermining the influence and character of her respected instructer.

But, although Amsden was made, for a while, to suffer, in the minds of many, by this pitiful conspiracy, intended to put the finishing touch to the other means which had been used to disparage and destroy him, he was yet destined soon to be exonerated from every injurious impression, in a manmer, which, had revenge been any part of his nature, would have afforded him all the triumph he could have desired over his despicable foe.

One evening, as Dr. Lincoln sat in his study, a boy entered, and, handing him a closely-sealed billet, disappeared. On opening it, he was surprised to find it a confidential note from Mary Maverick. He had before heard several vague hints relating to Amsden, which, owing to his unlimited confidence in the man, he had not understood. Some of the multiform aspersions, indeed, which had grown out of the professor's notable scheme of ruin, had lately reached his ears; but he had considered them so little worthy of notice, that they had passed from his mind. The note before him, however, brought the subject again to his thoughts, and he paused in its perusal to try to recall what he had heard. The writer commenced by mentioning the various attempts of the professor to asperse Mr. Amsden, related briefly what took place at Carter's while she was present, described the coin which she herself had noticed lying on the table, and