Hey-day! roars out the younger, a lively, heedless fellow, who could not get on with his deciphering for laughter: This is a good joke indeed: "Here lies interred the soul." ... A soul interred! ... I should like to know the whimsical author of this ludicrous epitaph. With this sneer he got up to go away. His companion, who had more sense, said within himself: Underneath this stone lies some mystery; I will stay, and see the end of it. Accordingly, he let his comrade depart, and without loss of time began digging round about the stone with his knife till he got it up. Under it he found a purse of leather, containing a hundred ducats, with a card on which was written these words in Lathi: "Whoever thou art who hast wit enough to discover the meaning of the inscription, I appoint thee my heir, in the hope thou wilt make a better use of my fortune than I have done!" The student, out of his wits at the discovery, replaced the stone in its former position, and set out again on the Salamanca road with the soul of the licentiate in his pocket. Now, my good friend and reader, no matter who you are, you must be like one or the other of these two students. If you cast your eye over my adventures without fixing it on the moral concealed under them, you will derive very little benefit from the perusal: but if you read with attention you will find that mixture of the useful with the agreeable, so successfully prescribed by Horace. CONTENTS OF VOL. I. BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL NOTICE OF LE SAGE, BY GEORGE SAINTSBURY BOOK THE FIRST. CHAPTER I. The Birth and Education of Gil Blas. CHAPTER II. Gil Blas's Alarm on his Road to Pegnaflor; his Adventures on his Arrival in that Town; and the Character of the Men with whom he Supped. CHAPTER III. The Muleteer's Temptation on the Road; its Consequences, and the Situation of Gil Blas between Scylla and Charybdis. CHAPTER IV. Description of the Subterranean Dwelling and its Contents. CHAPTER V. The Arrival of the Banditti in the Subterraneous Retreat, with an Account of their Pleasant Conversation. CHAPTER VI. The Attempt of Gil Blas to Escape, and its Success. CHAPTER VII. Gil Blas, not being able to do what he likes, does what he can. CHAPTER VIII. Gil Blas goes out with the Gang, and Performs an Exploit on the Highway. CHAPTER IX. A more Serious Incident. CHAPTER X. The Lady's Treatment from the Robbers. The Event of the Great Design conceived by Gil Blas. CHAPTER XI. The History of Donna Mencia de Mosquera. CHAPTER XII. A disagreeable Interruption. CHAPTER XIII. The lucky Means by which Gil Blas escaped from Prison, and his Travels afterwards. CHAPTER XIV. Donna Mencia's Reception of him at Burgos. CHAPTER XV. Gil Blas dresses himself to more Advantage, and receives a second Present from the Lady. His Equipage on setting out from Burgos. CHAPTER XVI. Showing that Prosperity will slip through a Man's Fingers. CHAPTER XVII.