262
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WYLDER'S HAJVD.
friend, Captain Lake. Why should not I share in the
profit — if such there be — by getting my hand too upon
the instrument of compression? It is worth trying. Let
us try."
The Reverend William Wylder was often at the Lodge
now. Larkin had struck out a masterly plan. The Vi-
car's reversion, a very chimerical contingency, he would
by no means consent to sell. His little man — little
Fairy — oh! no, he could not. The attorney only touched
on this, remarking in a friendly way —
"But then you know, it is so mere a shadow."
This, indeed, poor William knew very well. But
though he spoke quite meekly, the attorney looked rather
black, and his converse grew somewhat dry and short.
This sinister change was sudden, and immediately fol- -
lowed the suggestion about the reversion; and the poor
Yicar was a little puzzled, and began to consider whether
he had said anything gauche or offensive — " it would be
so very painful to appear ungrateful."
The attorney had the statement of title in one hand,
and leaning back in his chair, read it demurely in silence,
with the other tapping the seal end of his gold pencil-case
between his lips.
"Yes," said Mr. Larkin, mildly, "it is so very sha-
dowy — and that feeling, too, in the way. I suppose we
had better, perhaps, put it aside, and maybe something
else may turn up." And the attorney rose grandly to «
replace the statement of title in its tin box, intimating
thereby that the audience was ended.
But the poor Vicar was in rather urgent circumstances
just then, and his troubles had closed in recently with a
noiseless, but tremendous contraction, like that iron shroud
in Mr. Mudford's fine tale ;, and to have gone away into
outer darkness, with no project on the stocks, and the at-