When carrying out instructions which I knew should not have been given, I never scrupled to point out the fatuity of the improper order in the strongest language that I could decently employ. I have revelled in these official correspondences, and look back to some of them as the greatest delights of my life. But I am not sure that they were so delightful to others. I succeeded, however, in getting the English district,--which could hardly have been refused to me,--and prepared to change our residence towards the end of 1859. At the time I was writing _Castle Richmond_, the novel which I had sold to Messrs. Chapman & Hall for £600. But there arose at this time a certain literary project which probably had a great effect upon my career. Whilst travelling on postal service abroad, or riding over the rural districts in England, or arranging the mails in Ireland,--and such for the last eighteen years had now been my life,--I had no opportunity of becoming acquainted with literary life in London. It was probably some feeling of this which had made me anxious to move my penates back to England. But even in Ireland, where I was still living in October, 1859, I had heard of the _Cornhill Magazine_, which was to come out on the 1st of January, 1860, under the editorship of Thackeray. I had at this time written from time to time certain short stories, which had been published in different periodicals, and which in due time were republished under the name of _Tales of All Countries_. On the 23d of October, 1859, I wrote to Thackeray, whom I had, I think, never then seen, offering to send him for the magazine certain of these stories. In reply to this I received two letters,--one from Messrs. Smith & Elder, the proprietors of the _Cornhill_, dated 26th of October, and the other from the editor, written two days later. That from Mr. Thackeray was as follows:-- 36 Onslow Square, S.W., October 28th.