Published: Civil and Military Gazette, 2 January 1888.

Attribution: Signed by ‘The Reveller’, a pseudonym also used at this time on ‘A Merry Christmas’, CMG, 31 December, and on ‘The Luck of Roaring Camp’, CMG, 17 January 1888, as well as on ‘The New Year's Sermon’. The first two stories are positively identified as being by RK (Scrapbook 28/4, p. 44). The evidence of circumstance and style makes RK's authorship nearly certain.

Text: Civil and Military Gazette. The story as reprinted in ‘Turnovers’ shows a number of small variations from the text in the CMG, some of which I have recorded in the notes. They are, perhaps, evidence of RK's participation in the editing of ‘Turnovers’; the publication of this series of reprints was an enterprise of the CMG. The alterations are, in my judgement, such as only an author might make.

Notes: Reprinted in ‘Turnovers’, i, 1888, and in Harbord, iv, 1945–7.

With a punctuality that did them infinite discredit, the Sind, Sagur and S. P. and D. Bank sent home the balanced bank-book on the night of December 31st, to the house of the owner. By a curious coincidence the year and the last page of the bank-book ended together with the sumptuous total in hand of Rs. 46-3-9 only, as the cheques say. The owner and his Familiar Imp took council together. But there was no New Year jocoseness about the Imp. He sat himself comfortably upon the top of the reading-lamp, where the heat best consorted with his ideas of the fitness of things, and coughed politely. The Bank-Book was still lying in its wrapper. “You had better open that interesting publication,” said the Imp suavely: “you'll find it better fun than the newspaper.” “I shan't,” said the owner. “I know all about it, and this is my New Year's holiday.” “Don't think that you know everything though,” said the Imp. “Permit me!” There was a rustling of torn paper, and in another minute the Imp had returned to his place on the reading-lamp with the book balanced on his knees. “You'll forgive a stranger meddling with your private affairs, won't you?” “It's gross insol—” “Not at all – you know nothing about it: we'll begin at the beginning.”