I told the story of our tracing him to the north of Scotland, and he gave me the particulars, in return, of his bolting from Darrock Hall.

They are rather amusing, William; would you like to hear them ?" I told Mr.Dark that he had anticipated the very question I was about to ask him.
"Well," he said, "this is how it was: To begin at the beginning, our man really took Mrs.Smith, Number Two, to the Mediterranean, as we heard.
He sailed up the Spanish coast, and, after short trips ashore, stopped at a seaside place in France called Cannes.

There he saw a house and grounds to be sold which took his fancy as a nice retired place to keep Number Two in.

Nothing particular was wanted but the money to buy it; and, not having the little amount in his own possession, Mr.James Smith makes a virtue of necessity, and goes back overland to his wife with private designs on her purse-strings.

Number Two, who objects to be left behind, goes with him as far as London.