he knew enough of his uncle's surly and suspicious character, and of his distrust of banks (which he had once heard him characterize as "ready sinks for fools' money"), to leave only room for a passing wonder.

"I have brought you here, Master Bergan," said Rue, solemnly, "because this secret rightly belongs to you, as the future master of the Hall. It is the duty of each owner to make it known to his heir, on his death-bed, or earlier. The place was contrived by Sir Harry, because there was something like it in the English Bergan Hall, which served for a hiding place for men and women in troublous times; and he provided for the keeping and handing down of the secret, in the same way as it had been done there. It was only to be known to the owner and the heir."

return.

"Then how came you to know it?" asked Bergan. "I will tell you. When the third Harry Bergan was at the point of death, his heir was in Europe. The person whom he most trusted in the world was his body-servant, Cato. He gave the secret to him, to be kept till the heir's Cato was my great-great-great grandfather. He thought the same thing might happen again, and the secret be lost; so, on his death-bed, he told it to his son, and the son told it to his son, and so on, till my father, who had no son, told it to me. So, you see, the secret has run down in the black blood alongside of the white blood, and been kept just as sacredly. But the white blood has never known it till now, when I tell it to you, because I have no child living, and Brick is still too young to be trusted with such a matter."

"What a strange circumstance!" said Bergan, deeply interested. "Has the place ever been used except as a store-room for valuables?"

"Only once, to my knowledge. During the Revolution, Colonel Bergan was hidden here some days, when a party of British were quartered on the premises-some of the same party that Sergeant Jasper afterwards captured."

She paused for a moment, while Bergan silently looked round the narrow walls; and then she resumed.

"You see what use Master Harry makes of the place. And perhaps you know him well enough to understand that he will never tell any one where he keeps his money, until his breath is almost out of his body. That is why I brought you here. I cannot expect to outlive him; and if he should die suddenly, or with the secret only half-way off his tongue, it would die with him."

"Perhaps you have done well," said Bergan, after a

moment of thought. "Certainly, I shall regard it only as a trust for the future owner of the Hall, whoever he may be."

"He will be none other than yourself," returned Rue, decidedly. "I only wish I were as certain of the time as I am of the fact. And now," she continued, pointing to the bags of coin, "take as much of that as you need. Master Harry will never miss it; I don't think he ever counts it over, he is so sure that it is safe here. And it will all be your own some day."

"What do you mean?" exclaimed Bergan, angrily, starting back. "Do you take me for a thief?"

"Of course not, Master Bergan, of course not," answered Rue, earnestly and deprecatingly, laying her hand on his arm. "It is only because I know that it will be yours in time; and as Master Harry does not need it nor use it, why shouldn't you have the good of it now, when you need it more than you ever may again? If it suits you better, take it as a loan, and pay it back when you are able."

"No, no," said Bergan, turning hurriedly away, "it is impossible. You mean kindly, I know, Maumer Rue, but you do not seem to understand the facts. I have no more right to it than any stranger; I could not touch it, to save me from starving. Come, let us go! I have seen enough."

"I believe you are right," said Rue, after a pause, "and I am a foolish old woman. I could not bear to think that my dear Miss Eleanor's son was pinching himself in the least, when there was so much idle gold in the old house; but I see you are right, sir, and I beg your pardon."

It was not without a sense of relief that Bergan soon after closed the door of the old Hall behind him, and stepped out into the cool, fresh night air. Not that he had suffered any real trial of temptation-his principles were too true and firm for that; but there had been something in the whole sombre scene-the deserted, deathscented chamber, the concealed closet, the hoarded gold— that had left him with a sense of oppression, which kept hold of him all the way home.

It was late when he reached his office. To his surprise, it was not empty. A gentleman was sitting by the table, with a pile of papers before him, and a weary, discontented face, as if his waiting had outlasted his patience.

Bergan's heart gave a great leap. He divined that his long-looked-for client was before him!

THERE

HERE are few English women better known than the Baroness Burdett-Coutts, and certainly there is no one more distinguished for good deeds. Hers has been a life devoted to the amelioration of the lot of her fellow-creatures. With every inducement which wealth could offer to live only for herself and her own gratification, she has spent her time and used her fortune for the benefit of others. Many in this land of ours, no doubt, have as benevo

as

vant, named Elizabeth Starkey, the daughter of a small Lancashire farmer. No one who knows anything of the world will suppose that this union was passed over by the banker's no doubt disappointed relations and friends without uncomplimentary remarks. Mr. Coutts, however, was quite indifferent as to what people said, and his marriage with Elizabeth Starkey proved a source of great happiness to him. She was a decidedly superior person, and her

three daughters, though children of a servant, all married noblemen; one the Marquis of Bute, another the Earl of Guildford, and the third Sir Francis Burdett, afterwards one of the most popular of English politicians.

Sir Francis Burdett having now come upon the scene, we shall condense into a paragraph all that is remarkable about his history. He was born in 1770. In 1793 he married Sophia, the youngest daughter of Mr. Coutts, and received with her a large fortune. His wedding took place after his return from a continental tour, in which he had become strongly imbued with the revolutionary principles then dominant in France and other countries. He entered Parliament, and, by his conduct there, soon acquired unbounded popularity with the mob. In 1807 he fought a duel, in which he was wounded, and soon after was returned to Parliament as member for Westminster, and Westminster he continued to represent, idolized by the London populace, for nearly thirty years. One of the most interesting incidents in his career is his quarrel with the House of Commons, when he resisted the Speaker's warrant for his arrest, and barricaded his house. The people supported him, and, in a street fight between them and the

character, and our story would not be complete if we did not glance first at the one and then at the other.

Mr. Thomas Coutts, the grandfather, came originally from Edinburgh, became a banker in the Strand, where the house of Coutts and Co. still exists, and by dint of industry and business capacity, amassed a large fortune. But none of these facts are worth enlarging upon just now. It is of more consequence to tell that he was twice married, and that his first wife was a domestic ser

military, some lives were lost. After two days the serjeant-at-arms, aided by the soldiers and police, effected an entrance, and carried Sir Francis off to the Tower. He regained his liberty on the prorogation of Parliament. In 1835 he capriciously changed his politics, and joined the Conservative party. Even when professing democracy he was a thorough aristocrat in personal feeling. In appearance he was handsome and commanding; no one ever answered better to the description of a high-bred English gentleman of the old school. Such was the Baroness Burdett-Coutts' father. He died in 1844.

Angela Georgina Burdett-afterwards the Baroness Burdett-Coutts-was born on the 25th of April, 1814. She was Sir Francis and Lady Burdett's youngest daughter.

It is necessary that we return now to Mr. Thomas Coutts, the banker. His first wife died, and in his old age, to the consternation of his family and expectant friends, he gave his hand to an actress, Miss Harriet Mellon. If his first marriage had given rise to criticism, the second occasioned an explosion of mingled sarcasm, wit, and malice. All sorts of tales were told: among other absurdities it was rumoured that "Mrs. Coutts was forced to maintain two stout men well armed, who slept in an adjoining room to protect her from the enmity of Mr. Coutts's family."

This ridicule, however, remarks Mr. Frederick Martin, in his "Stories of Banks and Bankers," had no other effect than that of strengthening the confidence of the husband in the wife. This confidence was displayed in a remarkable manner in the will made by Mr. Coutts before his death. By this will he left the whole of his fortune, amounting to above £900,000 to his widow, for her sole use and benefit, and at her absolute disposal, without the deduction of a single legacy to any other person." Many were surprised at this singular disposition of his property, but in the matter of wills one should be surprised at nothing.

Mr. Thomas Coutts died in 1822, at the age of eighty-seven. Angela Georgina Burdett, the subject of this memoir, was at that time, eight years of age, and she had been Mr. Coutts's pet grandchild. It seemed hard that she should have been left nothing: she was too young to think anything about it herself, but grown-up friends made remarks, as they always will do in such cases. But let us wait and see how things turned

out.

Mrs. Coutts married a second time, and her second husband was no other than the Duke of St. Albans. Under her marriage settlement she wisely reserved to herself the whole control of the immense fortune left to her by her first husband.

In 1837 the Duchess of St. Albans died. And what happened? Why, just this: it was found that she had left a will bequeathing her vast property to her first husband's favourite grandchild, Angela Georgina Burdett.

Miss Burdett now became the principal partner in the well-known banking-house of Coutts and Co. in the

Strand, and such she still remains, the business being conducted for her by trustees. One of her first acts after inheriting her grandfather's property, was to assume by Royal license the additional surname of Coutts. She thus became Miss Burdett-Coutts, and by that name was first heard of by an admiring public.

Possessed of great wealth, magnified by report to a fabulous sum, Miss Burdett-Coutts was now a subject of speculation. What would she do with it? Suitors innumerable, we are told, turned up; hands were laid on hearts; sighs were breathed into the air; vows were uttered; Holly Lodge, Highgate-Miss Coutts's residence -was besieged by lovers. Standing-metaphorically speaking, of course-in front of her hundred and seven flour sacks stuffed full of sovereigns, she mercilessly refused them all. It showed her good sense, so long as her money was the great attraction. And what praise is to be deemed sufficient when we find that she resolved to devote her life, her energies, her property, to furthering works of charity, benevolence, and philanthropy.

It is impossible for us to notice all her good deeds; the reader would speedily be bewildered by the, perhaps, mere enumeration of them. We may be permitted to dwell principally on the most important-her exertions on behalf of the squalid region of Bethnal Green. Bethnal Green used to be the resort of the worst classes, and the frequent scene of disgraceful riots. On the side nearest Shoreditch, there existed a seat of foulness and disease, moral and physical, called Nova Scotia Gardens. Here, amidst pestilential drains and heaps of refuse, stood some of the most miserable hovels ever seen, their inhabitants being amongst the most wicked and depraved of the people of London. It was at one time the haunt of the burkers, May, Bishop, and Williams, who procured bodies for dissection by secret assassination, and were convicted of the murder of a friendless Italian boy in 1831, after which Nova Scotia Gardens was called in the neighbourhood "Burker's Hole." Such a black spot in a great city has seldom been known. When the rector of an adjacent

parish sent his curate once to preach in the old church of Bethnal Green, soon after some serious disturbances there, he told him he might take for his text either, “The fear of the Lord is not in this place; they will slay me for my neighbour's wife," or, "Take heed, lest ye be devoured one of another."

By the benevolence of Miss Burdett-Coutts, aided by other energetic philanthropists, all this was soon changed. Nova Scotia Gardens-the dread of the police and the sorrow of the well-disposed-was bought by her, and she at once commenced a series of labours, with a view to improve the district and elevate the inhabitants. She pulled down all the old buildings, and on their site erected the model dwellings called Columbia Square, consisting of separate tenements let at low weekly rentals to upwards of three hundred families. Several years later, on the site of the "dust heap," she built a handsome market with which her name will ever be associated. It was

originally projected by her in consequence of hearing that the public authorities had determined to stop the markettraffic in the streets, which would have been, as all will allow, a serious hardship to the poor.

On the 28th of April, 1869, the formal opening of the market took place. We are now brought face to face with our heroine-for heroine she is surrounded by the people whom she has laboured to serve. An immense assemblage filled, not only the market, but the streets around it. As soon as Miss Burdett-Coutts had taken her seat in the centre of the quadrangle several addresses were presented to her. She was then waited upon by a deputation of young girls who presented her with an exquisite bouquet of feather flowers. A speech was afterwards made by the Archbishop of Canterbury who, in brief and simple language, dwelt on the benefits which she had conferred upon the neighbourhood, not only by this munificent gift, but by the establishment of model lodging-houses, and by all the efforts she had made, and still was making, year after year, to better the condition of the poor of Bethnal Green. A procession was then formed and passed round the building, and everywhere where a glimpse of Miss Burdett-Coutts could be seen, she was cheered till the quadrangle echoed again. The ceremony concluded by her formally declaring the market open, amid the enthusiasm of the people. At night the whole of the building was brilliantly illuminated with coloured lamps, and with the most exquisite effect.

The market is a splendid monument of princely munificence, and one of the handsomest architectural structures in north-eastern London. It occupies two acres of ground, and has for its chief feature a noble Gothic hall, fifty feet high. The exterior is richly decorated.

Two years after the opening of the market, that is to say, in May, 1871, Miss Burdett-Coutts was surprised by the Prime Minister with the offer from Her Majesty of a peerage. It was just at the time, so fresh still in our recollection, when depraved and misguided women were going about Paris, flinging glass balls full of petroleum through the gratings of cellars, with the diabolical intention of setting fire to the city. Miss Burdett-Coutts hesitated about accepting the honour, for she is unambitious and of a retiring disposition. Ultimately, however, she did accept, and her creation is thus given in Debrett's Peerage, “Baroness Burdett-Coutts of Highgate and Brookfield, in the county of Middlesex, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom."

The Baroness took a modest view of her newly acquired dignity. A few days after she had ceased to be plain Miss Burdett-Coutts, three congratulatory addresses were presented to her at Holly Lodge. In reply she said, " She could not sufficiently express her sense of the kind way in which Mr. Gladstone had conveyed to her Her Majesty's wishes; nor, while gratefully acknowledging Her Majesty's favour, could she altogether regard the conferring of the dignity as a personal compliment to herself. She rather considered it as a mark of the royal

favour to a class, of which she happily, in her person, was the representative. By one of her names she was connected with the ancient gentry of the country, and her father was content with and sought nothing beyond his ancestral honours. By the other she was allied with the important and influential interests which, in a great commercial country, must always have weight. To this union in her person, to these advantages, rather than any personal merit, she attributed the favour shown her by the Queen, the fountain of all honour in this country."

The public, however, thought differently. Few elevations to the ranks of the aristocracy ever gave greater satisfaction. It was felt that Miss Burdett-Coutts in her own person was deserving of all the honour that could be bestowed upon her. She had the esteem and admiration of every section of the community. To give an example of the feeling entertained towards her let us go back to the time of the great Reform procession of 1868. That procession occupied nearly three hours in passing Miss Coutts's well-known corner house in Piccadilly, No. 1, Stratton Street. Miss Coutts, seated at an open window with one or two friends, was recognized from the thronged street. "Though," says Mr. Julian Young, in his journal, "she stood more out of sight than any of us, in an instant a shout was raised. For upwards of two hours and a half the air rang with reiterated huzzas, huzzas unanimous and heartfelt, as if expressing a national sentiment."

We proceed now to tell that on the 3rd of November, 1871, Lady Burdett-Coutts formally handed over Columbia Market as a gift to the Corporation of the City of London. A portion of the market had been curtained in for the occasion and decorated with a few banners and exotic plants. On either side were ranged the children of St. Thomas' School, which adjoins the market, and beyond these were the Columbia Shoeblack Brigade and the members of the Baroness' Sewing School. Most of the leading members of the Corporation took part in the proceedings. A written address from Lady Burdett-Coutts to the Lord Mayor and Corporation was read by the Earl of Harrowby. It expressed her gratification at being able, by this act, to link her name with that of the Corporation of London. "From the time," said her ladyship, "when the fond partiality of one long since gone to rest placed me, as my grandfather's representative, in the house which bears his name, I have ever received kindness and support from members of that body."

We regret to add that up to the present time Columbia Market has entirely failed, so far as doing any trade is concerned. It was to have been devoted almost entirely to the sale of fish, but salesmen shun its stalls, and the cathedral-like building and marble slabs have a forlorn, deserted aspect. Out of a host of good enterprises, some are sure to miscarry, but it is a pity that this, the most conspicuous of all the Baroness's undertakings, should have been thus unsuccessful. However, it is not yet too late in the day; something may turn up for Co

lumbia Market, and ere long we may see it the centre of bustling traffic, and a source of real benefit to the surrounding district.

An honour, perhaps more distinguished even than that of being made a baroness, awaited Lady BurdettCoutts. On the 18th of July, 1872, the freedom of the City of London was conferred upon her. "Hers," said the Chamberlain, in his address on the occasion, "is the first female name ever recorded in the lists of those whom the citizens have so delighted to honour." The Lord Mayor presided, and the aldermen and members of the Court of Common Council, mustered in large numbers, wearing their distinctive robes. The Baroness received the freedom of the City in a handsome golden casket from the hands of the Lord Mayor. She accepted the casket, bowing her acknowledgments, and then repeated the quaint oath of citizenship and signed the customary declaration.

We have now looked at the more prominent public events of the Baroness's life; let us return to speak of her philanthropic labours. "In no direction," says one writer, "are her sympathies so fully expressed as in favour of the poor and unfortunate of her own sex." The course taught at the national schools, and sanctioned by the Privy Council, include many literary accomplishments which a young woman of humble grade may not require on leaving school; but the more familiar arts essential to her aftercareer are overlooked. The Baroness's exertions have done much to remedy this defect.

Towards the close of 1871, she issued an address on the subject of industrial education. The question which she addressed herself more particularly to answer was— How are we best to prepare the daughters of poor parents for the duties that they may be eventually called upon to fill as the wives of poor and labouring husbands? Lady Burdett-Coutts would not only have them taught needlework, but is anxious that there should be for them the further opportunity of the acquisition of those elementary principles and rudiments of household economies and administration which may prevent the "waste and discomfort arising from incompetent and slovenly management.'

Many years ago, when Spitalfields became a mass of destitution, Lady Burdett-Coutts began a sewing-school there for adult women, who were not only taught, but fed and provided with work. Government contracts were undertaken, and executed with remarkable success. Nurses were sent out daily from this unpretending charity amongst the sick, and wine and other comforts were distributed with a bountiful hand to all who really stood in need of them. Outfits were also given to poor servants, and winter clothing to deserving women.

In the cause of emigration the Baroness is deeply. interested. When there was great distress in one of the Scottish islands, she advanced a large sum for the benefit of the starving families there, to enable them to seek to better their fortunes under the skies of Australia. another time the people of Cape Clear, Shirkin, close to Skibbereen, in Ireland, had sunk into the most distress

At

ing poverty. Lady Burdett-Coutts aided some to emigrate, and those who remained at home she supplied with a store of food and clothing, and-best aid of all-with a vessel to help them in fishing, their chief means of livelihood. Many years ago she established in a western suburb of London, a private Home for Young Women who had fallen into evil courses and desired to reform.

In his endeavours to improve the condition of the Dyaks of Sarawak, the chivalrous Sir James Brooke derived material assistance from Lady Burdett-Coutts, and a model farm was lately, if it is not still in existence, entirely supported by her, in which such important lessons in agriculture were taught to the natives that the production of the country was greatly improved.

Lady Burdett-Coutts, both in purse and principles, is a consistently liberal Churchwoman, and no one needs to be told that she has granted princely sums to the Establishment in all parts of the world. Besides subscribing towards the building of new churches and schools in various poor districts throughout the country, she has, at her sole cost, erected the handsome church of St. Stephen's, Westminster, with its three schools and parsonage; and also the Church of St. Stephen's, at Carlisle. She has also endowed, at an outlay of not far short of £50,000, three colonial bishoprics-those of Adelaide, Cape Town, and British Columbia-and founded an establishment in South Australia for the benefit of the

aborigines. The funds for Sir Henry James's Topographical Survey of Jerusalem were supplied by her, and she offered to restore the aqueducts of Solomon, which of old supplied that city with water, but the scheme was abandoned, government failing to keep its promise to countenance and aid the work.

Of art, the Baroness is a liberal and discriminate patroness. In many arts she is herself highly accomplished. That she believes in the dominion of the beautiful, any one may see from Columbia Market, to which the odd objection has been made that it is much too handsome for a place of the kind.

It would be unpardonable to pass by the drinking fountains with which she has enriched the metropolis. One about sixty feet high, in the midst of Victoria-park, was erected at a cost of £5,000; another stands near Columbia Market, and a third is at the entrance to the Zoological Gardens, in Regent's-park.

Her hospitality deserves mention as well as her charity. In July, 1867, she gave at her seat, Holly Lodge, Highgate, one of the largest dinner parties on record. Upwards of 2,000 Belgian volunteers were invited to meet the Prince and Princess of Wales, and some 500 royal and distinguished guests. This immense company was entertained with as much comfort and social enjoyment as if it had been a small social gathering,

Besides being a benefactor to human kind, she is a fast friend to dumb animals. At the close of 1870 we find her on the platform at a public meeting at Islington,