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the "inventory " he had prepared to the first astonished and then thunder-struck Major. The narrative entered into minute details of the Major's peccadilloes, viz., the receiving of divers and sundry bribes and presents given to him in his capacities of a Licensing Magistrate, and Commissioner of Crown Lands, such as a load of hay from one man, a hamper of wine from another, a case of whisky from a third, a ^"5-note from a fourth, and ringing the changes from a h a m of bacon, a bag of potatoes, a fat goose, a load of wood, a hen and clutch of chickens, a wheelbarrow of bottled beer, and a basket of fresh butter, d o w n to two dozen of eggs. T h e names and residences of the donors, with date of delivery, even the quality of the articles, were enumerated, in a resolved, defiant tone, the Major during the recitation moving in his chair like a cat on a hot griddle; and when at length it came to a close, Finn wound up by saying " N o w , Major St. John, is it to be peace or war between us? Y o u may some day have m e locked up in the watch-house, but I'll then bring an action against you, and certainly will get heavier damages than Kerr did, for he was obnoxious to three-fourths of the jury panel s u m m o n e d in the case. Y o u cannot have m e dismissed from the Herald, as you did poor Byrne, for your friend Cavenagh cannot do without me. N o w should there be a second ' set-to ' between you and m e at the Police Office upon any pretext whatever, as I'm a living man, the following day, will find Superintendent Latrobe in possession of even a longer ' black list' than you have heard from m e to-night; and to prevent the possibility of his ' burking' it, which I think impossible, I shall transmit a duplicate by the ensuing overland mail to the Colonial Secretary at Sydney. Say then, once for all, are w e to have peace or war?" T h e Major was n o w working into a state of intense excitement, though he affected an unnatural coolness. At length he burst out :—" I don't believe you read what you pretend is written in that paper, at all. It is only a sham • show m e the paper and let m e see." T h e paper was handed to him, and clutching it eagerly, he threw it into thefire,stirred the logs, and a sudden flame blazed up the chimney. " H a !" roared the Major, "you confounded little thief, there goes your pack of lies, and a brass pin would m a k e m e shove you up the chimney after them. I defy you now, you rascal." Finn burst out laughing and rejoined, " Major, you must suppose m e a born idiot, if you fancy I would be fool enough to hand you that paper if I had not the original at home. W h y , man, it's only a copy, and surely, as a Magistrate of no small experience, you must know that an original is the real thing." " I suppose," responded the Major, " it is so. You're a bigger rogue than one would think for your size. C o m e , let us mix another glass, and by the time 'tis drunk, I'll tell you what I m e a n to do with you." T h e punch was encored and leisurely drank, and the unwelcome guest praised the whisky a couple of times, at which the Major most perceptibly winced. After the tumblers had been emptied, the Major turned round suddenly, and, with a cordial smile, said—" Look here, I always believed that the Irish were good-hearted fellows. M y wife is an Irish w o m a n and a countrywoman of yours. Give m e your hand, and promise solemnly that what has passed to-night shall never be revealed as long as I a m in the colony, or alive. F l D m your years you will in all likelihood outlive me, and when I a m dead I care not w h o knows. Promise m e this, and you and I, so far as I can prevent it, shall never quarrel more." T h e offer was accepted, the plight was given, and as the Major showed his visitor to the door, and bade him good-night, he expressed a strong desire that all notice of the fracas might be kept out of the newspapers. This was easily managed, as only the one reporter, the actor in the scene, was present when it occurred. T h e Major's marked courtesy to the Herald reporter thenceforward, was often the subject of remark and wonderment, but the reason why, never transpired. Anything in the way of exclusive local news, official or otherwise, in the Major's power to communicate, was imparted either verbally or in notes to the office, so that Mr. Cavenagh, the Herald editor, was frequently surprised, and tried unavailingly to penetrate the mystery. Both the high contracting parties faithfully adhered to the treaty negotiated through the m e d i u m of the un-paid for whisky. Meanwhile, the Major travelled rapidly along the road to ruin, and Finn's " log-book" continued to receive some racy additions to its previous collection. At length his d o o m overtook St. John, and his misdemeanours became the subject of a Supreme Court trial, described elsewhere. J.P. Fawkner, at a public meeting, denounced the Superintendent, as conniving at the Major taking bribes, whereupon Mr. Latrobe directed St. John to bring a civil action for libel, which eventuated in the cause celebre of S T . J O H N V F A W K N E R tried in the Supreme Court, and the jury disagreed. Messrs. Fawkner and T. M'Combie took m u c h trouble in hunting up evidence for the defence, and tried hard to elicit some information from Mr. Finn, who it was surmised, could put them on the trail of m u c h valuable