cation; for although his countenance was prepossessing, his appearance, so far as dress went, was certainly not calculated to inspire very high ideas of his ability to resist temptation. He was barefooted and barelegged; he wore no covering on his head; and both his trousers and jacket were in rags. But in despite of all this, there was something redeeming in the expression of the boy's countenance, and Captain Chillingham did not fail to perceive it. He had a fine expressive dark eye in his head, and there was a frankness and manliness in his manner, which at once took the soldier's fancy, and induced him instantly to express his readiness to accept the services of the son when he could not command those of the father. From this period the boy gradually gained ground in the good opinion of the captain, who found him all and more than his father had represented him to be: and he at length became so great a favourite, that Mr Chillingham altogether dispensed with the services of the former, and relied solely on his son.

'You would make a capital soldier, James,' said Captain Chillingham to his little ragged messenger one day, after he had been some time in his service. Would you like to enlist?'

"I would have no objection, sir,' said the boy, 'if you could make me an officer at once, and give me the command of men; but I would na like to gang into the ranks.

Captain Chillingham looked for an instant at the bare feet and legs and ragged jacket of the speaker, and burst into a fit of laughter. On my word, you are an ambitious chap,' said the captain; but in the meantime take this card to Mr Wilson's, the advocate. He lives in the Canongate, you know; and bring me his answer.

'I'll do that,' replied the boy; and he withdrew to execute his commission.

About three months after, Captain Chillingham's regiment received orders to proceed to Portsmouth, where it was to be embarked for Gibraltar. On the morning of their leaving the castle, James presented himself before

his patron, from whom he had experienced much kindness, and to whom he was greatly attached, to take leave of him, which the warm-hearted boy did with tears in his eyes. His feelings were still more excited when his patron, the captain, made him a present of a sevenshilling piece, in recompense for any extraordinary trouble which he might have had with his commissions. As this was the first gold coin which Jemmy had ever been in possession of, his gratitude was immeasurable; and after thanking and making his best bow to one who had shewn him such kindness, he departed to his home at the head of the Cowgate, one of the happiest boys in Edinburgh.

It would not further our story, nor is it in any way essential to it, to enumerate the various destinations to which Captain Chillingham's regiment was assigned during the following ten years, but it is essential to state, that at the end of this period it was ordered to the East Indies. During this long interval, Captain Chillingham had never once been in England; but his constitution was now so much shattered by the vicissitudes of climate, to which he had been so long exposed, that he found it necessary, after he had been in India about two months, to solicit leave to return home for the benefit of his health. Having obtained this indulgence, he embarked at Bombay with a party who were about to proceed to England by the way of the Red Sea, where they were to disembark, and proceed overland, through part of Arabia and Egypt, to Alexandria.

The ship in which Captain Chillingham sailed with his party, which consisted of five persons, arrived safely at Cosseir, where they landed, and made preparations for crossing the Desert. At the close of the second day after their debarkation, these preparations were completed, and the travellers proceeded on their journey, accompanied by a long line of camels loaded with their luggage, and a week's supply of provisions for themselves and attendants. During the two subsequent days nothing of any consequence occurred to the travellers in the Desert.

They met, indeed, with several straggling Arabs and Turks, mounted on horseback and armed to the teeth, but these always conducted themselves civilly towards them, and generally went off after two or three words of courtesy. On the third day, however, just as the travellers were preparing to bivouac for the night, they were thrown into a state of great alarm by suddenly descrying a large body of armed and mounted Arabs, who rapidly approached them, and when within musket-shot, halted, as if to reconnoitre and arrange some plan of attack. They then formed themselves into a crescent, couched their spears, and in the next instant dashed at full gallop into the midst of the caravan, encircling it at the same time, so as to prevent the escape of any of the party. A number of the troop next dismounted, and commenced plundering the luggage of the travellers, and in a few minutes the ground was covered with opened and rifled packages. During this operation, he who seemed to be the leader of the troop, a remarkably fine-looking man of about six or eight-and-twenty years of age, and splendidly attired in the Turkish military fashion, remained at a short distance from the spoilers, in whose proceedings he took no part, and, indeed, seemed to take no interest. There was one object, however, which appeared to engross an extraordinary share of his attention: this was Captain Chillingham. On this gentleman he continued gazing with an earnestness and an expression of inquiry, that both attracted the notice and greatly surprised him who was the subject of it. Nor was this surprise by any means lessened, when he saw the Turkish or Arabian chieftain, or whatever he was, suddenly put spurs to his horse, and advance towards him at full gallop. observing this, Captain Chillingham's first impression was, that he was about to be attacked, and he instinctively drew a pistol from his belt, cocked it, and held it in readiness in his hand to discharge it at his supposed enemy. The Turk on approaching nearer observed this indication of hostility on the part of the captain, and waved his hand impatiently to deprecate any inimical intentions.

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Captain Chillingham understood the sign, and immediately dropped the point of his weapon. In the next instant the Turkish leader was beside him; and what was his amazement when the former, looking at him again attentively for a moment, said in a low whisper, and in as good English as he himself could have spoken: 'Pray, sir, are you not Captain Chillingham of the 29th Regiment of Foot?'

It was some time before the extreme surprise of the latter, at being thus addressed by a Turk in full military costume, and in the middle of the deserts of Arabia, would permit his making any reply. At length, however, he stammered out, that he certainly was the person who had just been named.

"I thought so,' replied the Turk; and immediately added smilingly: 'Do you not recollect me, captain? Look at me again;' and he now raised his turban high on his forehead, to give a fuller view of his countenance.

'No; upon my word, I do not,' said Chillingham; 'that is, perhaps, I think '— and here he became extremely perplexed, for some of the features of this strange personage had begun to make certain confused and undefined impressions on him—I think I may have seen a face somewhat resembling yours before, but where or when I really cannot tell, and, even in this, I think it very probable that I am mistaken.'

'Not at all,' answered the Turk; 'you are quite right. I'm James Campbell, frae the head o' the Cowgate, the son of old Tammas Campbell the caddie, the little barefooted, ragged boy that used to run your messages when your regiment was quartered in the castle of Edinburgh.'

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"Can it be possible that you are that person?' 'Indeed it is,' replied the disguised Scotchman ; need not say that he was really the person he announced himself to be. 'I am, I assure you, captain, no other than your old acquaintance James Campbell, frae the head o' the Cowgate; and though mony a day sin' syne, I have never forgotten your kindness in gicing me the gold

seven-shilling piece. It was with that money I got some education at a school at the fit o' the Bow, and I have therefore reason to be mindful of what you did for me.'

We need not attempt to convey to the reader any idea of Captain Chillingham's surprise on this extraordinary disclosure being made to him, nor need we record the exclamations which that surprise elicited from him. All this will be readily conceived by the reader himself without our interference.

'But,' said Captain Chillingham, after a little desultory conversation had in some measure renewed the intimacy of the parties, and after Campbell had given a brief account of the various circumstances which had combined to place him in his present extraordinary situation – excuse me, I would rather see you, James'

'Abdel Hassan, if you please,' interrupted the latter, with a smile on his moustached lip.

'Oh, I beg your pardon! Well, then, Abdel Hassan, since it is so, I say I would rather have met you again as an Edinburgh caddie than as the chief, which I take you to be, of a band of Arabian robbers.'

Oh, but you mistake, Mr Chillingham,' replied Campbell hastily. These men, though they have attacked you certainly for the purpose of plundering you, are not robbers by profession: they are soldiers in the pay of the Turkish government, and I am their commander; but they could not resist the temptation of spoiling you, such opportunities rarely coming in their way; and it would have been more than my life was worth to have attempted to prevent them; but I will have every rascal of them soused for this when we get to Cosseir. I shall have the head taken from the shoulders of every tenth man of them at least, and the rest bastinadoed till they cannot stand: that they may depend upon. In the meantime, Captain Chillingham,' continued Campbell, 'I shall try, though at the risk of having my throat cut, to save your property, at anyrate, from their clutches, if you will be good enough to point it out to me. of your friends, if it can be recovered at all, must be

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