er may not consider me a my imagination. one evening to a coffeeno, where an acquaintance ore carried me to play biled to find the latest newssmall table sat two gentleat chess. Some young ing at a window, in lively bout ghosts and the nature soul. A little elderly man, loak, was walking up and m with his hands behind a glass of Dantzic cordial aper. acted my attention so much an in scarlet. I forgot the 1 the Spanish war. There ure, in his movements, and something striking and recorresponded with his eviste in dress. He was somee usual size, but large-boned aldered. He seemed to be and sixty years of age, and his walk. His coal-black about his head. His tawny d his hawk's-nose and high ave him a very repelling ile his features were cold arge eye sparkled like the man; and yet one read in n, no soul. There, thought ecutioner, or grand inquisicaptain, or gipsy-king. For at man could set cities on ildren stuck upon pikes. I e to travel alone in a wood = has never smiled in all his

mistaken. He could smile. the young men at the wined. But what a smile! It ice. The malice of the inseemed to mock one from "If that man there in the Satan himself," thought I, Satan's brother." I looked t his feet for the cloven enough, he had one human but his left was a club-foot ; yet he did not limp with softly about as if among ch he did not care to break. ave let himself be exhibited ey, to make all the Voltaires

517

but kept peeping over it at this remarkable figure.

As the red-coat passed the chess-table, one of the players said to his antagonist, who seemed somewhat embarrassed, "You are lost now, beyond salvation." The red-coat stopped a moment, cast a glance upon the board, and remarked to the victor, "You are mistaken. In three moves you will be checkmated." The winner smiled haughtily, his opponent shook his head despairingly, and moved; at the third move the supposed victor was actually checkmated.

Whilst the chess-players were replacing their men, one of the young men at the window said warmly to the red-coat, "You smile, sir; our discussion appears to interest you; but your smile tells me that you are of a different opinion about the world and the Deity. Have you read Schelling?"

"Oh! yes,"
"said the red-coat.

"And what does your smile mean?" "Your Schelling is a sharp-minded poet, who takes the tricks of his imagination for truth, because no one can oppose him, except with other fancy webs which only require still greater acuteness to weave them. It is with philosophers now-a-days as ever: the blind dispute about the theory of colors, and the deaf about the laws of music. Alexander would willingly have been shipwrecked against the moon, in order to subdue it; and philosophers, dissatisfied in the sphere of reason, want to be super-rational."

So said the red-coat; some disturbance arose. But he waited not, but took his hat, and glided away.

I had not seen him since, but I did not forget the striking figure and the infernal physiognomy, and I was really frightened at the thought of dreaming about them.

And now he stood unexpectedly before me in my room!

on one; you my find it in Germany, Hungary, and must give me better voume business with you, and ted hither." "pardon me; I can not business; I am just upon ing, and have yet a thousee about. You must be è person, for I am neither erchant."

me, and said, "Indeed!" ilent for awhile, and apdepart; but began again: wever, been doing some Prague? Is not your e point of becoming bank

rown fire-red, for, as I beknown to no soul in the brother and myself. Here e one of his malicious smiles

ain mistaken, sir," said I; her, it is true, and more ne that fears bankruptcy." armured the tempter, and n became hard and iron. somewhat sensitively, for pleased that any one in know of my brother's cirI was afraid that the old to my play as he did into s at the coffee-house, "you een directed to the wrong beg pardon for requestief; I have not a moment

n me.

ce only a minute," replied tant for me that I should You appear disquieted. isagreeable happened to a stranger here. I myng to Prague; and I see the first time for twelve ave considerable experiYou look like an , need money?" , or rather grinned again, to buy my soul. His even more suspicious. Ina glance at his club-foot, an to feel a superstitious solved in no case to comhis suspicious gentleman, ed no money. Since you in your offers, sir, may I

you

n not be of much conse

quence to you," replied he; "that's nothing to the matter. I am a Mandeville. Does the name give you more confidence?" "A Man-devil!" said I, in odd embarrassment, and knew not what to say, or whether the whole thing were in jest or in earnest.

Just then some one knocked at the door. The landlord entered, and handed me a letter which had just come by the post.

"Read your letter first," said the redcoat, "and then we will talk further. The letter is, without doubt, from your lovely Fanny."

I was more startled than ever.

"Now do you know," continued the stranger, with a grin-" do you not now know who I am, and what I want with you?"

It was upon my lips to say, "You are, sir, I verily believe, Satan himself, and want my poor soul for a breakfast;" but I restrained myself.

"But further," added he, "you are going to Eger. Good! my way lies through that town. I start to-morrow. Will you take a place in my carriage ?"

I thanked him, and said that I had already ordered a post-chaise.

At this he became disturbed, and said, "There is no getting at you-but your Fanny, and the little Leopold, and Augustus, I must get acquainted with in going through. Can you not guess who I am, and what I want? The deuce! Sir, Í would render you a service. Do speak."

"Well," said I, at last, "since you are a wizard, my pocket-book is missing. Advise me how I shall get it again."

"Bah! what signifies a pocket-book? Is there not something else

"But in the pocket-book were important papers-more than fourteen hundred dollars in value. Advise me what I shall do if it is lost, and what if stolen."

"How did the pocket-book look ?" "It had a silk cover, light-green, with embroidery, and my initials wrought in flowers-a piece of my wife's work."

"Then the cover is worth more than the fourteen hundred dollars." With this he smiled upon me with his horrible familiarity, and then added, "We must see about it. What will you give me, if I supply your loss?"

At these words he looked at me as sharply and strangely as if he expected me to answer, "I will make you a present

but as I remained embarent, he plunged his hand ; and drew out my pocket

you your jewel, the fourlollars, and all," said he. myself. "How came you I, tearing it open, and find

yesterday afternoon, about on the Moldau Bridge." st about that time I had idge, had had the pocketnds, and had, as I thought, pocket."

ly did not go into the he red-coat. "But I could r it had been lost by a peron horseback, before or bevaited an hour upon the ng to meet some one in As no one came, I went to ead the contents of the leter the loser. An address name and your residence ave come now to you. I evening, but did not find

y be deceived by a man's I was ready to throw my the neck of my man-devil. obliging things to him. now as excessive as my tion had been. But he o none of my thanks. I s long as I lived I would ust to physiognomical im

me to your beautiful Fant journey to you! We other again," said he, and

ETURN HOME.

resolved to be off. I had ; and my servant with my ack was going before me, eps of the hotel I met my ose account I had come to

I thoughts of starting imat an end. We went back er. There I heard with e embarrassed circumstanother had been relieved, dvantage. Instead of sufense loss, he had made a a speculation in cotton and

coffee; and he had now hastened to Prague to attend to his affairs himself.

"I have got my sheep out of the pit now," said he, "but I have had worry enough. I will bid good-by to business. I will put my money out at moderate interest, and so run no risk of being to-day a millionaire, and to-morrow a beggar and swindler. I have come now to thank you for your brotherly kindness, and to bring my business connections for ever to a close."

I had to accompany my brother to dif ferent houses. But he saw my impatience and home-sickness, and therefore, after a few days, advised me to return home without him. I resolved to do so the more readily, as his stay in Prague would be prolonged several weeks. I took an extra post, and flew toward my dear home.

On the way, the strange Mandeville continually arose before my imagination. I could not forget the odd figure with the red coat, the club-foot, and the illomened features. I could not help thinking, too, of the bushel of black hair which stood about his brow. Perhaps there was a little horn under it; and then was he Beelzebub complete, from top to toe.

It is true, he had brought back my pocket-book; no man in the world could have acted more honestly. He had read Fanny's letters, and my brother's instructions to me, and so, naturally enough, had become acquainted with my secrets. But-his face-no, nature could not have written so illegibly! Enough, had I ever believed in the existence of a Mephistopheles, I should have had no doubt of it now for a single moment.

I followed this train of thought, and will not deny that I gave myself up right willingly to the play of my imagination; for it beguiled the time. I concluded that my honest man-devil might be the real devil, and his honesty a mere trick to snap up my poor soul on the way to heaven. And if he really were the devil, what had he to offer me? Gold and goods? I was never avaricious. A throne? Yes, that I would have been glad to have for a week, in order to give peace to the world; but then I should want to go back again to my own simple dwelling, to cultivate turnips with my own hand, like a second Cincinnatus. Pretty women? A harem full of the most beautiful Helens, Armidas, and Armandas?