It is not too much to say that in the best collieries, the interests of the workmen are cared for in the most enlightened manner. Situated as are many colliery villages, beyond the oversight of regularly constituted municipalities, the whole onus of sanitary and other regulations falls upon the master, and he does not shirk his duty in such cases. Means of social enjoyment are provided—the physical, intellectual, moral, and spiritual well-being of the populace are cared for, and the colliers of to-day are in consequence an intelligent and respectable class of men. Crime is proportionately small amongst mining villages, and those who best know the miner are aware that he is possessed of much kindness of heart, and that in the prosecution of his dangerous calling he often exhibits true heroism. GEORGE HANNAY’S LOVE AFFAIR. CHAPTER V.—THE EDITOR’S SANCTUM—A DISCLOSURE. Alfred Roberton felt the smart of Nan’s summary dismissal more than he could have expected, or even than he owned to himself. His vanity was sorely hurt, and he lost a good deal of that audacious _insouciance_ in his manner towards the opposite sex for which he had been before remarkable. He sent back Nan’s letters honourably enough, and set himself to forget her, as she had him. In order to effect this, he determined to supplant the old love by a new; and commenced paying marked attentions to Miss Curtiss, the twenty-thousand-pound young lady. His suit prospered, and the fair one capitulated; but the terms of the surrender were to be fixed by her friends. They made objections to the smallness and uncertainty of his income. On the other hand, Alfred’s solicitor found the young lady’s properties were so heavily mortgaged as only to leave a very small margin of income; and the result was the negotiations were broken off. Then, somehow or another, his society was no longer so eagerly sought after. A young violinist had taken the place he formerly held in Mrs Judson’s social circle, and when that gentleman was present, Alfred was cast entirely in the shade. But there was worse than that: he could no longer find a market for the remainder of his manuscripts. The publishers and editors who had patronised him before were desirous of seeing what course the _Olympic_ took with regard to him. It was very singular, they thought, that there never was any second article from his pen inserted in it. Some ill-speaking folks even went the length of hinting that he wasn’t ‘Ariel’ at all; that the claim he made to that _nom de plume_ was a mere ruse to get into society, and get some of his trashy manuscripts palmed off on unsuspicious editors and publishers.