might succeed better; but meanwhile, to avoid dilatoriness, they rush upon destruction. They know perfectly well, that a great deal more evil in business arises from over-confidence than from over-caution; and yet their advice is, shun procrastination at all risks.

The only pleasure business ever brought me, was the exercise of a "free-born Englishman's" privilege of postponing it as long as I could; and never was it worse executed at last, for being then imperative upon me, and the instant result of the inward settled conviction, "Now it must be done."

The spur supplied by that necessity, often ensures a steady, as well as a speedy, leap over every difficulty.

But procrastination must not be partially patronized; if adopted at all, it must be followed out as a principle of your nature. It will not do to defer a point of business simply because it is disagreeable-which would be a dangerous sanctioning of Barnardine's whim, in objecting to get up and be hanged;-business, to be safely delayed, must be delayed because it is business. Otherwise, one would procrastinate here, and another there, and a stoppage would be the result, for the want of a general understanding and the observance of a rule. But make the rule universal, and where is the inconvenience? I promise a prompt attention, and you know that I shall procrastinate. I postpone the performance of my engagement, and you defer your expectation to a distant day;-all thus is as well as ever. When you know (as I have remarked on another occasion), that a man will not keep his word, when you can rely on his disappointing you, the convenience is as great as when you can place confidence in his punctuality.

The true procrastinator will never give you much trouble. He stirs, when he can stand still no longer. You are sure of his help, when he cannot help himself. There is also an advantage in knowing what he will not do. If you have given him provocation, resenting his delays, he will scarcely call you out within a twelvemonth, when his anger will have cooled. If he write to complain, he will never put the letter in the post. If he meditate a pamphlet against you, he will never get beyond the title-page. In the end, his memory, much musing, but sleeping half its time, will grow confused; and he will begin to doubt whether you cruelly injured him, or he you.

His impression will probably be, that he has acted very shamefully, and ought to have apologized. He will then talk of shooting himself; but will die quietly of old age, before he can decide upon the respective claims of hair-triggers and the New River.

THE BARNABYS IN AMERICA.

BY MRS. TROLLOPE.

CHAP. XIII.

WHEN Major Allen Barnaby learned from his wife that the travelling party, to be composed in the manner already agreed upon by the two ladies, was actually arranged, he smiled very good-humouredly, and said,

you-as

"That's all very well, my Barnaby, and a capital hand you are, to set a machine in action. But you don't quite calculate, do these curious fellows say-upon my being ready to pack up, and to go away at a moment's warning? You do not in sober earnest expect that, do you?" These words

Of doubt and dread

came like a thunderbolt or rather like an avalanche, for nothing could be more chilling-on the ears and the heart of poor Mrs. Allen Barnaby. Never having been from her earliest infancy in the habit of doubting her own powers, she had no sooner fully conceived the scheme of writing a book, than a well-assured and very brilliant success immediately rose before her mind's eye, as being perfectly certain ; and that too, no mere idle, windy, wordy success, born in the drawingroom, and buried on the staircase, but solid, profitable, money-getting success, that might do as much to help them forward, or very nearly so, as one of the major's best games at piquet in Curzon-street; and overlooking the possibility that her husband's view of the case might not be precisely the same as her own, she felt as much shocked and disappointed at bearing him thus speak to her, as if he had suddenly declared that he meant to turn hermit, and for the future should require no money at all.

The dismay expressed by her countenance was so great, and to say truth, so comical, that the major for one moment laughed outright. But this was a species of amusement that, upon principle, he rarely indulged in, and before the fire which he saw mounting to his lady's eyes had fully flashed upon him, the foolish fit was over, and his laugh exchanged for a smile of the most amiable domestic amenity.

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Come, come, wife," said he, "you must not take what I say too gravely, either, and I cannot help laughing when I see you getting it into your head, that I mean to take up my dwelling in this cursed place and remain here to be broiled everlastingly. Set your heart at rest upon that point, my Barnaby. If you are in such haste to be off, it's lucky for you, perhaps, that the set here are just what they are. Why, my dear, will you believe it, I don't think that out of the thirty or forty playing-men, that I have either tried myself, or watched others try, I don't believe that out of the whole number, there's half a dozen that isn't as keen witted as myself you understand me? Now that won't do, you know, by any means. What's good play, or a sharp eye, or the help July.-VOL. LXV. NO. CCLIX.

X

of Tornorino, or any thing else with such a set of fellows? The difference between London and New Orleans seems to be just this. On our side of the water there's a population of flats, with just a respectable sprinkling of sharps among them to keep men from going to sleep, and sinking into absolute stupidity. But here, upon my honour and soul, the whole population, old and young, strikes me as being sharps, with such a scanty supply of flats amongst them, as it breaks one's spirit to think of. And as for the diamond-cut-diamond sort of business, that is carried on here, it would not suit me at all. I am not used to it, and besides I am not quite so young as I was, my dear, and ceaseless, never-ending hard work, don't suit me. I won't say but what I might be a match for them if I tried hard for it, but the profit I would be little or none, for after a fair trial between me and most of 'em, I am greatly mistaken if we should not one and all come to pretty nearly the same conclusion, and that would just be to let one another alone."

"But how do these gentlemen make the thing answer themselves, my dear Donny?" demanded his wife, with her usual shrewdness.

Why, I suppose, by watching for every new arrival, like sharks after a dead body," he replied; but that would never answer for us, my dear Barnaby. Besides, if it did, they would get so confounded jealous of me, being an Englishman, that I should have no peace of my life. No, wife, I shan't stay here, I promise you-you have no reason to be terrified by that notion."

"But you have not lost any thing to speak of yet, have you, my dear?" said she, her own satisfaction at the idea of their departure being for a moment lost sight of, in her domestic anxiety for the welldoing of every member of her beloved family. "You have not paid very dear, I hope, for what you have learned?"

"No, my dear," he replied," that is not my way, and I should have thought you might have guessed as much. No; I thought I detected something the first night, just before the party broke up, that looked a little like a determination to let me win, but I was not sure of it; so last night I became a good deal more heedless and gay-hearted, you see, than before, and then I saw-ay, and heard too-what put me up to them. Why they had found me out in no time, and all their scheming was not to get the better of me, but to get me dropped out of the one or two set-to games they had been planning, where they had got something like a novice to work at. So I very quietly let them have their way about it, and I think that puzzled them again a little. But that's only the fun of a moment, mind you, and would not last, I'll engage for it, long enough to make me sure of a dozen dollars. However, we can't suppose, you know, that they are all finished up in this high style, in every part of the union, and further on I hope we shall fare better, my Barnaby. I shall do very well by and by, I dare say, so don't look uneasy about it."

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Heaven grant we may fare better, my dear!" replied his wife, "for confident as I am of the success of my work, it will by no means do, Donny, for us all to depend upon it, you know."

"No, my dear," said he very demurely, "I don't think it will. Nevertheless, wife, I do not intend, mind you, to set off post haste, just after what happened last night. They would understand it exactly