the scene.

Both experienced sensations unknown till then, and they had each a glass of ice-cream before them.

"How beautiful is the firmament, with all its countless myriads of twinkling stars," observed Thomas Augustus Phelps, looking upwards. "Beautiful indeed!" sighed Julia.

"And this ice-cream aint so coarse neither," said he.

"No-by no means," responded she.

"Methinks," continued Thomas, "I could sit for ever thus, with thee by my side, gazing upon the blue vault of heaven, beloved Julia!"

Julia did not answer, but her silence spoke more eloquently than words; she bowed her head, and it is presumed blushed, but, as the lamp wanted trimming, there was not light enough distinctly to ascertain that fact. Thomas Augustus gently drew the sweet girl towards him, and oh! extremity of bliss! she did not resist. The coldness of worldly restraint was broken down-they exchanged vows of everlasting fidelity, and Thomas was about to seal the covenant on her lovely lips, when the man that goes about to gather up the empty glasses, unceremoniously popped his head into the box, and observed, "that he did not allow of them there sort of proceedings in his garden!"

Thomas Augustus would have resented this injurious insinuation on the instant, only he was by no means athletic, and did not possess a particle of courage. He therefore contented himself with declaiming for some time in a style of lofty invective, and wound up by indignantly paying the man what he owed him, tucking Julia under his arm, and walking out of the shrubbery.

It is necessary, however, to premise that twelve months antecedent to the tender passages on which we have been dilating, Mr. Phelps commenced business on his own account in Canal-street. His debut was made during that auspicious period denominated the "Canal-street fever," when, in consequence of the lowness of the rents in that part of the city, every body flocked thither, which caused the landlords to quadruple their original demands, by which judicious proceeding they ruined their tenants and got no rent at all. He had invariably represented his affairs to Julia as being in a most prosperous state; but unfortunately, though he was a young man possessed of many virtues, a love of truth was not one of them. Indeed, they who knew him best, affirmed that he was a notorious liar, and there is no reason to doubt their word. As he had started altogether on credit, and as he spent all the money that came in as the goods went out, when

his bills fell due, he told his creditors he was extremely sorry, but that he had no funds to meet their demands: they in return assured him that they were extremely sorry to, hear it, seized upon the residue of his stock, and turned him out of doors. This was hard to bear, and he flew on the wings of love to find consolation in the society of his beloved Julia; but she was not at home. The next day he called, and still the same answer. On the evening of the third day he was admitted to her presence, but "Oh frailty-thy name is woman!" she had heard of his misfortunes, and received him with chilling politeness. The lady was not at all mercenary; but then she had found it convenient, as she informed him, to plight her virgin vows to Mr. Raphael Jackson, (familiarly termed Ralph Jackson) and they were to be married early in the ensuing week. Thomas stood mute and motionless, for, as the poet justly ob

serves,

"Oh! colder than the wind that freezes
Founts, that but now in sunshine played,

Is the congealing pang which seizes

The trusting bosom when betrayed."

What barbed the dart and made the matter worse, was that this Mr. Raphael Jackson-a young lawyer with a good deal of cunning, and more impu

dence, consequently likely to do well in the world

-was his most particular friend. Julia aroused him from his trance by asking him if he would not "stay to tea?" this offer he indignantly spurned, and immediately quitted the premises. The next morning he found on his table an invitation to the wedding. It was, of course, never suspected that he would accept it, and was purely meant as a piece of gratuitous insolence on the part of the bride. Whoever calculated, however, on his not coming, reckoned without their host. "Yes!" ex

claimed he mentally, as he surveyed the perfumed rose-colored note; "yes; I will see her once more --for the last-ay, for the last time!"

About seven o'clock in the evening of the twentysecond of April, 1827, a jovial wedding party were assembled at the house of Mr. Carmine, in Divisionstreet, to celebrate the nuptials of his accomplished daughter. All was prepared for the impressive ceremony. The bride had got through shedding the preliminary tears usual on these occasions; the bridegroom was doing his best, as in duty bound, to look joyous and happy; the bridesmaids were tittering and laughing for some reason or reasons best known to themselves; the groomsmen were endeavoring to be uncommonly facetious, and the clergyman had put on a look meant to rebuke all

tittering and facetiousness, when the door suddenly opened, and a figure stalked into the room. It was Mr. Thomas Augustus Phelps, but alas, how changed! He looked not like one who had come to participate in a scene of happiness. His boots were dirty, his hat was slouched over his eyes, his coat was buttoned up to his chin, his cravat was far from clean, and his hands were stuck into his trowsers' pockets. The company recoiled, the bride uttered a faint exclamation, and the bridegroom stepped forward and demanded in a bullying tone of voice," the meaning of this extraordinary intrusion?" Phelps spoke not a word, but drew from his right-hand coat pocket the perfumed rose-colored invitation note, and presented it to the bridegroom. He then drew from his left-hand coat pocket an uncommonly large horse-pistol, upon which Mr. Raphael Jackson retreated with great precipitation. Phelps deliberately cocked the pistol, and an uncommon curiosity took possession of the guests to see which one of them he intended to sacrifice. This interesting suspense was soon ended; for slowly bringing the fatal weapon in a line with his own forehead, he proceeded to pull the irrevocable trigger. A struggle ensued, and dreadful to relate, in the scuffle the pistol went off full in the face of one of the fair young bridesmaids. Fortu