‘My dear Hannah,’ replied Captain Hindes, ‘Henry might have told you the mail was due this morning. We reached London at noon, and only waited to settle the little ones at a hotel and see their creature comforts attended to before we came on here. We couldn’t wait till to-morrow, you know, to see you and dear old Hal. By the way, where is he? Not out, I hope!’ ‘No,’ replied Hannah, in the same timid manner, ‘he is not out. He never goes out of an evening now; but he is in bed. He retired quite an hour ago.’ ‘Hal in bed at eight o’clock!’ exclaimed Arthur. ‘Oh, impossible! What’s come to him? I must go and wake him again. I never heard of such a lazy fellow in my life.’ He was about to suit the action to the word, when Hannah stopped him. ‘No, Arthur, please don’t go. You must not wake him, indeed. He sleeps very badly, and is sometimes quite light-headed if roused unexpectedly. I cannot let him be disturbed.’ Captain Hindes sat down with a serious face. ‘So bad as that?’ he said; ‘you quite alarm me, Hannah! Light-headed--what should make him that?’ ‘Oh! nothing very serious, if he is only left to himself,’ she answered, trying to smile; ‘Henry suffers from neuralgia, you know, and he often takes morphia to dull the pain. It always causes a person to ramble and talk nonsense if disturbed.’ ‘But why does he not consult the doctor for this neuralgia?’ asked Arthur. ‘My wife has suffered very much from it at times, but it has always yielded to medicine.’ ‘Henry is not much addicted to doctors, you may remember,’ replied Hannah. ‘No; he never needed them. I never saw a stronger or healthier man than he used to be. What is he suffering from? What has caused the difference?’ ‘I don’t know,’ said Hannah, shaking her head; ‘but he has much gone off in strength and appearance lately. You will see a great difference in him when you meet.’ ‘He’s been moping, I suppose, over this Crampton business,’ returned Captain Hindes; ‘but, now I’ve come home, I won’t let him mope any more. I’ll make the old boy come out with me and show me round town. We used to have no end of larks in the old days. We’ll have them again. But now come, Hannah,’ he added, taking his sister-in-law’s hand, ‘just tell me the plain truth. What is the matter with him?’ END OF VOL. II. COLSTON AND COMPANY, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH. Transcriber’s Notes Errors in punctuation have been fixed. Page 23: “and and murmured” changed to “and murmured” Page 30: “heart of Pharoah” changed to “heart of Pharaoh” Page 31: “we me may” changed to “we may” Page 80: “he never seen” changed to “he’d never seen” Page 147: “with its nmates” changed to “with its inmates” Page 190: “he commmenced,” changed to “he commenced,” Page 193: “Roman Chnrch.” changed to “Roman Church.” Page 218: “reaching down his hat” changed to “reaching down for his hat”