作者：Walter Besant 字数：7.7万字

Sir Walter Besant was a novelist and historian from London. His sister-in-law was Annie Besant, the prominent Theosophist. The son of a merchant, he attended Christ's College, then taught, becoming professor of mathematics at the Royal College, Mauritius. Returning to England because of poor health, he became Secretary to the Palestine Exploration Fund, and began writing in collaboration with James Rice, including "Ready-money Mortiboy" and "The Golden Butterfly," Following the death of Rice, he continued to write by himself, producing "All in a Garden Fair," "Dorothy Forster," "Children of Gideon," and "All Sorts and Conditions of Men" among others. He was a social critic, trying to arouse the public conscience to the trials of the poorer classes in the cities. "In Luck at Last" is a little novel that was published originally as the Christmas number of "All the Year Round" in 1884. "All the Year Round" was edited by Charles Dickens, and this story has a bit of the same social commentary that Dickens is noted for. Old Mr. Emblem, proprietor of a used book shop, must somehow raise three hundred and fifty pounds to cover a debt. He can do so only by drawing upon funds put aside for his granddaughter, whose mother and father are long dead, and who is about to come into her inheritance. He cannot bring himself to do so, and stands to lose his shop. . .

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