ROXOBEL. 
 
 BY MRS. SHERWOOD, 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 TTLE HENRY AND HIS BEARER," tfc. %c. 
 
 IN THREE VOLUMES. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 PRINTED FOR IIOULSTON AND SON, 
 G5, Patevnoster-Row ; 
 
 AND AT WELLINGTON, SALOP. 
 
 1831.
 
 
 
 
 
 ! i / 
 
 ROXOBEL. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 XT is now scarcely twelve months since 1 
 was deprived, by death, of a friend who, for 
 the last fifteen years, has contributed more 
 largely to my happiness, and more decided- 
 ly, I trust, to my spiritual good and in- 
 tellectual improvement, than any human 
 being I ever have been, or ever can hope 
 to be associated with in this world of min- 
 gled good and evil. 
 
 I was a young man just entered into the 
 ministry when I first was honoured with his 
 notice, and, I rejoice to say, that, from the 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 '2 ROXOBEL. 
 
 period of our first acquaintance till the 
 moment of our separation, there was not 
 one interruption of the even and delightful 
 tenor of our friendly and, to me, highly 
 improving intercourse. 
 
 The beloved individual of whom I am 
 speaking, was, had he been measured by 
 line and rule as a tailor would measure his 
 customer, one of the least, and, altogether, 
 most minute of any individual of the hu- 
 man race, not exactly counted a dwarf, 
 with whom I ever met, although he rose 
 in the scale of real greatness above all 
 persons I ever knew, when the sterling 
 qualities of his mind and heart were duly 
 appreciated; for, assuredly, no mortal man 
 was ever elevated like this man above the 
 meaner passions with which our nature is 
 so frequently and so unhappily exercised. 
 But, strange to say, long as he dwelt with 
 us at Roxobel, we never knew his parent- 
 age, nor whence he came, nor his reasons for 
 remaining witli us. It is more than twenty- 
 five years since he first appeared in our 
 beautiful village, and, as he was a total 
 stranger when he took up his abode there,
 
 ROXOBEL. 3 
 
 no one, at that time, thought himself enti- 
 tled to ask any questions respecting his 
 former life: for, though he did not pre- 
 tend to any mystery, yet, as he was never 
 known, excepting in a very few instances, 
 to make any allusions to his past expe- 
 rience, it became a point of delicacy among 
 some of us, and a feeling of superstitious 
 dread among others,(forwe are mighty lovers 
 of the marvellous at Roxobel, as will be 
 hereafter seen,) never to put any questions 
 to him relative to these matters. We were 
 not, however, without our curiosity, neither 
 did we spare our conjectures; but, as he 
 was often seen to write, and as these writ- 
 ings were known to be committed to a safe 
 repository in his chamber, we had no doubt 
 but that, through their means, the mystery 
 would some time or other be developed. 
 But when we came to examine these ma- 
 nuscripts, soon after the death of the 
 beloved writer, we found much that inte- 
 rested us, indeed, but nothing which had 
 the slightest reference to the family history 
 of our departed friend. Neither was any 
 thing of this nature betrayed by his will.
 
 4 ROXOBEL. 
 
 All his property, which was very large, 
 had been invested in the funds under the 
 name by which he went with us: and as 
 he had been the most generous of men 
 while living, he gladdened many honest 
 hearts by the manner in which he be- 
 queathed an almost princely fortune, after 
 his death, to his friends in Roxobel. 
 
 The name which was written on his 
 trunks, when he first arrived at Roxobel, 
 and that by which the few letters he re- 
 ceived were directed, was Henry Airley ; and 
 he, of course, always went with us by that 
 appellation. Yet we were led to doubt 
 whether this was his real name, from his 
 having once been observed, when signing 
 a paper in haste, to have written another, 
 which he instantly defaced, not without 
 some signs of perturbation. 
 
 But what signifies a name, though ma- 
 ny have sold their souls and bodies for a 
 name ? Names are but empty sounds, and 
 are often as ill bestowed as ill deserved. 
 
 But to enlarge no further on this sub- 
 ject. Henry Airley was the name by 
 which this our departed friend was ever
 
 ROXOBEL. 5 
 
 designated at Roxobel ; and, sometimes, 
 we (that is, all those among us who could 
 be supposed to understand the allusion) 
 were accustomed to call him Ariel, a name 
 that he merited more than any corporeal 
 being who had ever fallen under our notice, 
 from the remarkable vivacity of his manner, 
 his extreme activity, the graceful airiness of 
 his deportment, and the purity, sportive- 
 ness, and elegance, of his conversation ; 
 added to the custom he had of being every 
 where, and knowing every thing, so that it 
 was impossible to say, when and where, 
 through all the lovely and various regions 
 of Roxobel, one might be assured that our 
 Ariel was not at hand. He often used to' 
 remind me of the song 
 
 " Where the bee sucks, there am I, 
 In the cowslip's bell I lie," &c. 
 
 I have hinted before, that he would not 
 have required many ells to make him a 
 coat. He was, in fact, the smallest man 
 I ever saw; being almost a dwarf: yet 
 he was perfectly formed, and, though he 
 b 3
 
 6 ROXOBEL. 
 
 must have been more than forty when I 
 first knew him, he wanted nothing but 
 dimensions to render him the handsomest 
 man I ever beheld. His features were 
 perfectly regular and beautiful, his eyes 
 were of a dark blue, and their expres- 
 sion was, on ordinary occasions, so peculi- 
 arly mild and innocent, that strangers sel- 
 dom attributed to their owner that strength 
 of intellect, and those other powers of 
 mind, which he undoubtedly possessed in 
 a degree beyond what commonly falls to 
 the lot of man. His hair grew gracefully 
 on his brow, and naturally formed those 
 flowing lines wherein chiefly consists the 
 beauty of that natural crown ; his mouth 
 was small, his teeth white and regular, 
 and when he smiled, every feature seemed 
 to be illuminated with a heavenly radiance. 
 His eyebrows were finely arched, and he 
 possessed, in a remarkable degree, that 
 fine contour of the head and shoulders 
 which seems to be so peculiarly appro- 
 priate to the embellishment of the royal 
 or heroic figure. 
 
 I never entertained a doubt, from a cer-
 
 ROXOBEL. 7 
 
 tain unstudied grandeur in his manner, 
 that he was not only conscious of noble 
 birth, but that he had associated with the 
 first orders of his fellow-creatures ; though 
 what his motives could have been for with- 
 drawing from his own family and from so- 
 ciety, I never could conjecture, unless it 
 had happened that he had met with a disap- 
 pointment in some case in which his heart 
 was engaged. This, however, was matter 
 of mere speculation : for we had no cer- 
 tain grouuds for any of our conjectures. I 
 shall therefore leave it to his own papers 
 to account for his appearance in our sweet 
 village, and also to describe his maimer 
 of living. Suffice it to say, that Roxobel 
 was blessed with his presence for more 
 than twenty-five years, and that, at his 
 funeral, it might have been rationally 
 supposed that each person present had 
 lost the dearest friend he possessed on 
 earth. 
 
 Ah ! poor Roxobel ! Sad, indeed, was 
 the day when the friendly stranger was 
 committed to the dust, amid thy bereaved 
 and weeping children ! What eye was
 
 8 ROXOBEL. 
 
 dry, on that melancholy day, through all 
 thy habitations? 
 
 How is he missed in his usual haunts ! 
 — on the down, on the heathy hill, on the 
 sunny lawn, in the wood-side path, on the 
 door-sill of the poor, near the cradle of 
 the orphan, by the bed of the dying ! 
 
 Where again shall we find a man so 
 holy, so devoted, so generous, so active, so 
 self-denying, as this our friend? Where 
 shall we find a character so far purified 
 from the corruptions of the natural man, 
 as that which our departed friend was 
 enabled to exhibit through the long course 
 of twenty -five years, in which, as I said 
 before, our village was blessed with his 
 presence ? 
 
 But, inasmuch as his character, in all 
 its beauty, simplicity, and Christian per- 
 fection, will reveal itself in the narrative 
 which I am about to present to the public, 
 I shall conclude what I have now to say, 
 in the beautiful lines of Goldsmith — 
 
 " Thus to relieve the wretched was his pride, 
 And e'en his failings lean'd to virtue's side."
 
 ROXOBEL. 9 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 SNOWDON. 
 
 Being the first memorandum, in point of date, which 
 was found among the papers of Henry Airley. 
 
 August 4th 1643. 
 My object, this morning, was to visit 
 the heights of Snowdon, " whence," as the 
 poet says, " are seen 
 
 Rivers, and woods, and towns, and verdant vales, 
 Misshapen mountains, deep embosom'd lakes, 
 And solemn seas, and dim disco ver'd shores ;" 
 
 but, arriving at a cottage, about midway up 
 the mountain, we were compelled to take 
 shelter from a heavy shower which conti- 
 nued some hours ; and when it terminated, 
 the day was too far spent to allow me to
 
 10 ROXOBEL. 
 
 effect my purpose. I was alone with my 
 guide, of whom I enquired whether there 
 might not be some place of entertainment 
 at no great distance, where I might find 
 shelter for the night. Such a place was 
 described to me as being in another direc- 
 tion of the mountain-path ; and, after about 
 an hour's walk, we arrived at a thatched 
 cabin, situate in a hollow of the hill, low, 
 but of tolerably large dimensions, having 
 a few cottages in its vicinity, and exhibit- 
 ing on its front a sign which, though wea- 
 therbeaten, was a sufficient indication of 
 the designation of the mansion. 
 
 It was about five o'clock when we came 
 to the door of this little inn, and were in- 
 troduced into a kitchen where a turf fire 
 was blazing under a wide chimney, a tole- 
 rably clean-looking woman, though without 
 shoes or stockings, being busy about certain 
 culinary preparations which already began 
 to emit no unpleasing savour. 
 
 It was, however, with no hospitable eye 
 that she looked upon us; and when my guide 
 asked her if we could have a lodging and 
 supper, she answered him in Welsh ; of
 
 ROXOBEL. 11 
 
 which language I just understood enough 
 to make me sensible that our visit was not 
 well timed. 
 
 It is pretended that our Cambrian neigh- 
 bours are occasionally somewhat choleric, 
 and my guide (who, by the by, was not much 
 taller than myself, although he would un- 
 doubtedly have required twice as much ma- 
 terial to have made him a coat) began to 
 threaten and foam at the mouth at this of- 
 fence, and was turning out of the house in 
 dire resentment, at the hazard of causing me 
 to spend the night on the bare heath, when 
 the good woman called after us, telling us, 
 that if we would walk upon the hill for an 
 hour or two, her supper would then be ready, 
 and she would endeavour to provide me with 
 a bed in the corner of the kitchen ; adding, 
 that, as I was but a little one, any bit of a 
 place would do for me. And here again I 
 was brought to make a reflection, which 
 had often occurred to me before, that al- 
 though persons of very small stature are 
 frequently exposed to a sort of ridicule 
 which they may not relish, yet they are 
 as frequently made the objects of kindness
 
 12 ROXOBEL. 
 
 for the same cause ; especially, if they can 
 submit themselves cheerfully to the misfor- 
 tune of being somewhat singular; which 
 certainly is a misfortune, as it draws after 
 it many inconveniences more than at first 
 sight appear. Hence those who have no- 
 thing peculiar in their persons have rea- 
 son to be grateful; though this, like other 
 ordinary benefits, is seldom, if ever, duly 
 appreciated. 
 
 With the hope, therefore, of a comforta- 
 ble cradle in the corner of Mrs. Gwynne's 
 kitchen, and of a good supper before I retir- 
 ed to rest, I left the cabin, with my guide, 
 to spend two hours more on the mountain. 
 I, however, did not bargain for a tremen- 
 dous shower which overtook me just as I 
 had, for the second time, obtained a view 
 of my inn. Nevertheless, I made my way 
 through the pelting rain, and arrived at the 
 door just as my hostess was in the very 
 heat and fever of her culinary prepara- 
 tions. Various kettles were hanging over 
 the fire, and the good woman was prepar- 
 ing to fry some eggs with certain rashers 
 of bacon.
 
 ROXOBEL. 13 
 
 The operations of Mrs. Gwynne were 
 somewhat arrested by my entrance. ' She 
 immediately set down her frying-pan, and, 
 taking up a three-legged stool, and hoist- 
 ing it over my head into a corner of the 
 wide chimney, she directed me to pull off 
 my coat, and to seat myself there ; then, 
 receiving the garment from me, and throw- 
 ing over my shoulders a blue cloth cloak 
 which she had taken from a peg on the wall, 
 she bade me keep myself quiet, and get my 
 shoes and stockings dry. 
 
 I make a point of taking things as I 
 suppose them to be meant, especially when 
 I imagine that any thing like kindness 
 is intended. I therefore did as desired, 
 enveloping my limbs in the mantle, and 
 stretching out my short legs towards the 
 fire; at the same time, using certain gri- 
 maces, by which, as I had intended, I set 
 a host of little bare-legged, fair-haired chil- 
 dren, who were huddling together in the other 
 corner of the chimney, into such a loud burst 
 of merriment, that, together with the hissings 
 and bubblings of the various articles which 
 were submitted to the operations of the fire, 
 vol. i. c
 
 14 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and the pattering of the rain against the ca- 
 bin windows, we actually drowned the voice 
 of Mrs. Gwynne, who was vainly attempt- 
 ing to issue some orders to another female 
 busied in the corner of the kitchen. 
 
 As might be expected, I received a very 
 severe reprimand for exciting this uproar, 
 and the choleric mother drove the little 
 urchins one and all out of the apartment, 
 though, by the by, they all re-appeared in 
 a short time, creeping in one by one, being 
 allured, no doubt, by the savoury smell of 
 the viands which were nearly ready to be 
 served up. 
 
 I had now leisure to look round me. The 
 kitchen, in the corner of which I was en- 
 sconced in my blue cloak, was a large room, 
 mud -built, and blackened with smoke. 
 Opening into this apartment, in different 
 directions, were several doors, one of which 
 seemed to lead into a kind of parlour, from 
 which several voices proceeded, and where 
 I supposed the company to be assem- 
 bled who were to partake of the dainties 
 which the busy dame was preparing. Near 
 this door was the foot of a sort of ladder
 
 ROXOBEL. 15 
 
 Or staircase which led to the upper rooms. 
 In the centre of the kitchen was a rude 
 table, and the rest of the apartment exhi- 
 bited a scene of such disorderly confusion 
 as is generally to be found in the houses 
 of the slovenly poor. A red-armed, bare- 
 footed wench, with cheeks like John-ap- 
 ples, and eyes like glass beads, was bust- 
 ling in and out of the parlour, setting the 
 table, as I supposed from the directions 
 given to her from time to time by Mrs. 
 Gwynne, who interlarded her injunctions 
 with much abuse and many pathetic ex- 
 clamations at the lefthandedness of the 
 damsel. 
 
 " You have your house full, Mrs. 
 Gwynne," I at length ventured to remark. 
 " Some persons of consequence, I sup- 
 pose?" 
 
 "There is no other comes here," was her 
 answer, in a tone which conveyed an idea 
 to my mind that I might as well sit still 
 like a good boy, and ask no questions. 
 
 A few minutes after this I began to finger 
 my coat, which hung by my side on the 
 back of a chair, with the intention of put-
 
 16 R0X0BEL. 
 
 ting it on, if it should be sufficiently aired : 
 but my hostess, perceiving my intentions, 
 twitched it off the chair, and swinging it up 
 upon a hook at the top of the kitchen, far 
 above my reach unless I had mounted on 
 the table, she bade me be quiet; adding, 
 " Your coat will be dry by the morn, and 
 you may be content with the cloak ; it's not 
 every one I should have made so welcome." 
 
 " Be it so," I replied, giving myself an- 
 other hug in the cloak, by which I produced 
 a new burst of laughter from the flaxen- 
 pated young things, who, by the by, seem- 
 ed to have conceived a sort of friendship 
 lor me, as being a creature not more re- 
 spectable than themselves. 
 
 And now the critical moment was come, 
 in which we were to see what the sauce- 
 pans which hung in Dame Gwynne's chim- 
 ney were able to produce. By this time the 
 dame was hotter than her own fire, and was 
 calling about her like a pilot in the midst 
 of a storm : and first she poured forth a 
 mess of porridge smelling strong of leeks 
 and toasted cheese; next appeared a cou- 
 ple of boiled fowls ; then a large portion of
 
 ROXOBEL. J7 
 
 bacon ; and finally, a small piece of corned 
 beef; which, together with the fried eggs 
 and divers sorts of vegetables, presented 
 so inviting a spectacle, that I had just 
 risen from my seat, and was beginning 
 to gather up the skirts of my cloak in pre- 
 paration for the regale, when Mrs. Gwynne, 
 observing my motions, bade me sit still, ap- 
 prizing me that I must wait till the gentry 
 in the parlour were served. 
 
 On hearing this, my blood mounted into 
 my cheeks, and I muttered something about 
 as good as they, and a well-lined purse, 
 with sundry other expressions of the same 
 tendency : but the dame, placing her mus- 
 cular hand upon my shoulder, and forcing 
 me back on my seat, replied, " Can't ye 
 have patience ? There will be plenty come 
 out of the parlour. You shall be served 
 by and by." 
 
 In the mean time, all the good cheer had 
 vanished through the door- way as if by ma- 
 gic, and I was left to endure my hunger for 
 another half-hour. However, I wanted not 
 amusement in the interim ; for, the par- 
 lour-door being left open, as the Hebe went 
 c 3
 
 18 R0X0BEL. 
 
 backwards and forwards conveying a large 
 jack of ale, a bottle of wine, and other 
 drinkables which were handed to her by 
 her mistress, I could distinctly hear much 
 which was passing among the august and 
 mysterious inhabitants of that apartment. 
 And first issued a shrill female voice from 
 the adyta, speaking to the following effect : 
 — " Brother — I say, brother Tim, dinner — 
 dinner, brother— dinner's on table." 
 
 A sort of snore or groan ensued, with 
 " Ay, sister, ay. What's it ? " 
 
 " Dinner, brother. Get up, can't you ? 
 Your lady is waiting." 
 
 I then heard another female voice, in a 
 rough, husky tone, but so indistinct that I 
 could make nothing of what was said. Then 
 followed a sort of creaking as from a crazy 
 couch suddenly relieved of a heavy burden, 
 and then a long yawn ending in a kind of 
 groan, and finished off with an oath and an 
 enquiry respecting what might be on the 
 table. 
 
 The first female voice was then heard 
 again, in somewhat offended accents, utter- 
 ing the following oration : — " There now,
 
 ROXOBEL. 19 
 
 was ever the like of that? I say, brother 
 Tim, did I not admonish you? Did I not 
 give you my best counsels? But nothing 
 will ever make a gentleman of you now. I 
 give it up. — I give it up, in total despair." 
 
 The husky voice then reached my ears, 
 and I caught the words, " Nay, dear sister, 
 I am sure his regard " but at that mo- 
 ment the hostess crossed the kitchen, shut 
 the parlour-door, and gave me a look signi- 
 ficant of her determination that I should 
 hear no more. 
 
 I now had nothing else to do but to en- 
 joy my supper in anticipation, though I was 
 not altogether without anxiety lest brother 
 Tim should scarcely leave me sufficient to 
 satisfy my cravings. I was, however, after 
 a while, relieved by the re-appearance of 
 part of a chicken and a good share of the 
 beef and bacon, on which I contrived to 
 make a very hearty meal. 
 
 It was nearly nine o'clock when 1 had 
 supped ; and I was looking about for my 
 bed, when the parlour-door was suddenly 
 opened, and two females appeared, followed 
 by a large man. One of these women was
 
 20 ROXOBEIv. 
 
 much taller than the other. She was hard- 
 featured, pale, or rather sallow, and pre- 
 senting angles in every direction. The 
 other was a somewhat smaller person, but 
 was so concealed by her companion, who 
 stepped before her, that I did not see 
 her face. She leaned on the arm of the 
 lady of many angles, and they both toge- 
 ther turned short up the stairs as soon as 
 they entered the kitchen. 
 
 In the mean time the man came on to- 
 wards the chimney, called for a pipe and 
 the brandy-bottle, and stood for a while 
 warming his back at the fire, and whistling 
 " Nancy Dawson." He was a great porter- 
 like figure, having his hair powdered and 
 tied behind in a large club. He wore a blue 
 coat, the rest of his dress being a bright 
 buff. A large silk handkerchief was loosely 
 tied round his neck, and a pair of brown- 
 topped boots adorned his legs. He re- 
 mained in the same attitude till Mrs.Gwynne 
 had set a little table by him, with the bran- 
 dy-bottle, hot water, sugar, and tobacco- 
 pipes ; and then he turned round, kicked 
 the log on the fire, and sat down on a chair
 
 ROXOBEL. 21 
 
 which she set behind him. I then had an 
 opportunity of observing his features, which 
 were regular though on a large scale ; and, 
 indeed, he might have been accounted a 
 handsome man had not his air and expres- 
 sion been singularly coarse, vulgar, and 
 stupid. 
 
 Having settled himself in his chair and 
 lighted his pipe, his eyes fell upon me, seated 
 on my stool in the corner ; and, being quite 
 at a loss what to make of me in my blue 
 cloak, he uttered several inelegant excla- 
 mations, and called to the hostess to know 
 what sort of animal she had got there. 
 
 Mrs. Gwynne was ready with her answer. 
 " It's only a little lad from over the moun- 
 tain, Sir," she said : " but would you choose, 
 Sir, that I should mix your grog?" at the 
 same time putting two or three lumps of 
 sugar into the tumbler. 
 
 " No molasses, no molasses," roared the 
 hero of the buff waistcoat : " you know that 
 I hate sweeteners." And then followed a 
 dialogue between the hostess and her guest, 
 which, not being particularly to my taste, 
 I forbear to recount. After a while, how-
 
 22 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ever, he resumed his pipe, and his large blue 
 eyes again fell upon ine, and he returned 
 to the charge, asking me if it might be the 
 custom for lads to wear blue cloaks in my 
 country ; using certain expressions which 
 excited my indignation in no small degree ; 
 and I was about to answer, and might have 
 exhibited more choler than judgment, when 
 suddenly my attention was attracted by the 
 figure of the taller of the two ladies, whom 
 I had previously seen coming out from the 
 parlour. She was now descending the stairs, 
 in the centre of which she stood still, looking 
 even taller than before, in her present ele- 
 vated situation, while her sallow face stood 
 out in strong relief from her dark drapery 
 and her black hood, or bonnet. 
 
 At the sound of her step, brother Tim 
 turned himself half round in his chair, and 
 we all waited in mute attention for what 
 was to come next. 
 
 At length she spoke in a shrill querulous 
 voice, and said, "Surely, Tim, it can't be 
 you that's smoking, when you know my 
 lady has such an abhorrence of tobacco!" 
 
 In reply to this, the amiable brother
 
 ROXOBEL. 23 
 
 sucked in a long fume from his pipe, by 
 which unusual effort his cheeks were drawn 
 in on either side till his face assumed the 
 semblance of a pair of Dutch nutcrackers, 
 and then, opening his mouth wide, he emit- 
 ted the vapour in the direction of the exalted 
 pedestal on which his sister stood. 
 
 The angry dame immediately descended, 
 marched up to her brother, and attempted 
 to seize the pipe from his hand, muttering 
 something about her lady. 
 
 " Fair and softly," said the brother, hold- 
 ing her off with one hand, and keeping hold 
 of the pipe with the other ; " your lady is 
 your lady, no question : but I take it, that, 
 as far as I am concerned, things are alter- 
 ed now ; and, therefore, you may tell your 
 lady that I'll smoke when and where 1 
 please ; accordingly, she had best make up 
 her mind to the smell of tobacco as soon as 
 she can." 
 
 " Brother," replied the indignant female, 
 
 "had I foreseen" and she pursed up 
 
 her mouth as if resolved not to add ano- 
 ther word; and went out of the kitchen, 
 leaving her brother to resume his pipe.
 
 24 ROXOBEL. 
 
 As soon as the sister was gone, the hostess 
 made me a bed in the corner of the kitchen, 
 where I laid myself down in my friendly 
 cloak, and soon fell asleep ; but, waking 
 again at twelve o'clock, I still saw Mr. 
 Timothy with his pipe and brandy-bottle. 
 
 In the morning I arose early, paid my 
 hostess, and took my leave of the cabin 
 and its mysterious visiters.
 
 ROXOBEL. 25 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE OVERTHROW. 
 
 Dated in 1G58. 
 
 It was a lovely evening in the month of 
 June ; — I had travelled from six o'clock in 
 the morning on the top of a stage-coach, 
 having on one side of me a respectable far- 
 mer, and on the other a tradesman from a 
 neighbouring town; — the sun was approach- 
 ing the western horizon ; — just as, at the 
 turn of a road, a fir-crowned peak or tu- 
 mulus was admitted to our view. Rising 
 from the centre of these dark trees was a 
 tower of stone, on which the last rays of the 
 setting sun were shedding their red glare. 
 Behind this object, as we advanced, other 
 hills and woods arose to view, giving a 
 vol. I. D
 
 26 ROXOBEL. 
 
 promise that a lovely country would soon 
 open before our eyes. On the road be- 
 tween us and the tower lay a wide common, 
 or rather rabbit-warren, for the rabbits were 
 so abundant that they crossed the road 
 even at the very feet of the horses. 
 
 On enquiring respecting these various 
 objects, the farmer informed me, that the 
 tower was the warrener's lodge of Roxobel, 
 that the woods and greener heights were in 
 the park of Roxobel, and the bluer hills on 
 the horizon were across the river, which 
 formed the northern boundary of Roxobel. 
 
 "Roxobel?" I repeated, as if I would 
 have asked ; " and what is Roxobel ? " 
 
 The tradesman immediately took me up 
 sharply, saying, " Why, Sir, where can you 
 have lived so long, not to have heard of 
 Roxobel, and its beautiful hall and park ? 
 and the curious village and hermitage of 
 Rockwood ? and the great fall in the up- 
 per park, beyond the dingle ? and the war- 
 rener's old tower? Why, Sir, Roxobel is 
 the wonder of our country ! Our people 
 at Beckington always make it their holiday 
 jaunt, to go to Roxobel ! "
 
 ROXOBEL. 27 
 
 By this time, we were come in a line 
 with the tumulus, and saw the warrener's 
 tower above us to the right ; and presently 
 afterwards we passed through a turnpike, 
 and entered upon a straight road bordered 
 by a sort of paling somewhat curiously 
 carved, behind which a thick and lofty 
 wood raised its luxuriant foliage, appearing 
 the more beautiful because of the pictu- 
 resque inequalities of the banks on which 
 it grew, which, in some places, being rough, 
 stony, and precipitous, seemed almost to 
 overhang our path, while in others they 
 retired from it in long ravines and deep 
 dingles ; and again, in other places, an 
 opening perspective afforded glimpses of 
 cool pools and reedy swamps, with here 
 and there a waterfall deep in the shade. 
 
 I was so filled with admiration of these 
 lovely scenes, which unfolded themselves 
 to me in rapid succession for the space of 
 more than a quarter of a mile, that I heard 
 little of what my companions were address- 
 ing to me during this time, till the farmer, 
 shouting in my ears, supposing, perhaps, 
 that I might be a little defective in the or-
 
 28 ROXOBEL. 
 
 gans of hearing, bade me have my eyes 
 about me, adding, " for we shall see the Hall 
 itself, Sir, in a minute; — and sure enough 
 the clock-house now rises above the woods. 
 And there, Sir, is the first pinnacle — and 
 the second — and there, now they are all 
 eight of them as distinct as my five fingers. 
 And now you catch the south front. Is not 
 it a noble mansion, Sir, fit for a king? It 
 is a thousand pities that the ladies are so 
 uncommon queer." 
 
 "What ladies, Sir?" I asked. 
 
 " The ladies of Roxobel," he answered, 
 somewhat peevishly. "Who else should 
 they be? The three Misses Helmsleys, the 
 co-heiresses as was." And then the honest 
 man plunged head and shoulders into the 
 Helmsley history; saying, "But the estates 
 did not come to the ladies by the father, 
 neither, Sir. No; the old squire had no 
 fortune of his own. The Roxobel property 
 came to him by his lady, and he changed 
 his name by act of parliament ; but it is 
 thought he paid dear enough for his high 
 fortune, for Madam was a very cat in tem- 
 per and disposition, and as covetous as the
 
 ROXOBEL. 29 
 
 grave: nevertheless, he enjoyed the estate 
 for his life, that is, if there was any enjoy- 
 ment in his life, and then it went to the 
 three daughters, the co-heiresses, that is, 
 Mrs. Winifred, Mrs. Grizzy, and Mrs. Judy. 
 Each lady has her part; though I can't say 
 how the lands are divided, but they all live 
 together at the Hall, and keep great state. 
 Not that they are so very old neither : but 
 they have the very spirit of old maids, and 
 a man might as well rob by the highway as 
 touch a hare on the estate, though the hares 
 are as rife at Roxobel as rats in a barn." 
 
 " Howsomever," remarked the trades- 
 man, "the ladies keep a good house; for 
 it is surprising what orders I had last 
 Christmas. At any rate, Mrs. Nuttall, 
 the housekeeper, is a very good friend of 
 mine." 
 
 "So they say, Mr. Claypole," retorted 
 the farmer, winking at me ; " and I have 
 heard it said that this good lady knows how 
 to spice her own cakes as well as any house- 
 keeper in the three kingdoms. Eh, Mr. 
 Claypole, is it not said so?" 
 
 " I know nothing about it," returned the 
 
 d a
 
 30 ROXOBEL. 
 
 grocer, with dignity. " I know only this, 
 that Mrs. Nuttall is very kind to me ; and 
 we must not speak ill of the boat that car- 
 ries us over the water." 
 
 What more the grocer might have added, 
 I know not, for at this instant the hinder 
 wheel of the coach gave way, and the 
 next moment I was thrown to the ground 
 with a stunning force, by which my arm 
 was broken, and I was for a time deprived 
 of my senses. It was through the kind 
 care of Providence that I was not actually 
 killed. Thus was I, a friendless indivi- 
 dual from a distant land, literally, not fi- 
 guratively, thrown upon the kindness of 
 strangers. 
 
 No person on the coach was hurt except- 
 ing myself, but, as I afterwards heard, my 
 fellow-passengers all alighted, and walked 
 on to Beckington. 
 
 In the mean time, my worthy companion, 
 Mr. Claypole, having procured assistance 
 from the gardens of the Hall, which were 
 close to where the accident had happened, 
 lent a strong hand to cany me up to the vil- 
 lage of Roxobel, where he had an intimate
 
 ROXOBEL. 31 
 
 friend, a surgeon and apothecary; taking 
 care, also, that whatever luggage I might 
 have with me in the coach should be brought 
 after me : and all this was done with that 
 celerity for which I afterwards found Mr. 
 Claypole was remarkable. 
 
 In this extraordinary manner, within two 
 hours after the hills of Roxobel had first pre- 
 sented themselves to my view, I was become 
 a resident in the place, with the prospect 
 of not very speedily quitting it. And surely 
 there was something very remarkable in 
 this dispensation : for it actually compelled 
 me to settle myself in this charming re- 
 treat till I became seriously unwilling to 
 leave it ; and this at a period when I had 
 long been in search of a resting-place, 
 and still remained wholly undecided in my 
 choice. Though the world was all before 
 me, yet to no one point did my affections 
 particularly tend. And yet how painfully 
 had I felt the solitariness — the loneliness of 
 my situation! It seems to me now, how- 
 ever, that a place of rest has been appointed 
 me. Here would I remain till I take m\ 
 last long journey, and till scenes more bright
 
 32 ROXOBEL. 
 
 than those which now surround me shall 
 unfold themselves to my astonished gaze. — 
 To proceed, however, with the details of my 
 fortunate catastrophe. 
 
 I was earned, by Mr. Claypole, as I be- 
 fore remarked, to the house of the village 
 surgeon, and placed on a sofa in the par- 
 lour; where, after I had been bled, and 
 my dislocated arm had been set, I opened 
 my eyes and recovered my senses, to find 
 myself surrounded by persons who were 
 wholly unknown to me, in a place of which 
 I had not the smallest recollection. The 
 state of the case, however, was soon ex- 
 plained to me; and then I had nothing to 
 do, but to make the best acknowledgments 
 in my power, for the kind attentions which 
 I had experienced. 
 
 The hands in which I found myself, were 
 those of Mr. Barnaby Semple, the Escula- 
 pius of Roxobel, to whose skill and atten- 
 tion I am indebted for the use of my right 
 arm. 
 
 This Mr. Semple, it seems, had been 
 lately settled in the village, under the pa- 
 tronage of Mrs. Judy Helmsley, whose pe-
 
 R0X0BEL. 33 
 
 culiar taste and pleasure it is, as I find, 
 to suppose herself an invalid; and hence, 
 it was natural for her to be anxious to 
 have a medical man entirely at her com- 
 mand — and, at any rate, it was better for 
 her to be under the direction of a skil- 
 ful practitioner and a man of probity, than 
 to be left to her own small discretion, to 
 manage herself as her nerves and caprices 
 dictated. 
 
 Mrs. Judy had been well advised in the 
 choice of her medical friend; for Mr. Bar- 
 naby Semple, if I may judge by personal 
 experience, is a man of sense, skill, and 
 decision; and he has fallen into a good 
 berth, to use a nautical phrase, for he re- 
 ceives a salary of a hundred a year from 
 Mrs. Judy, with the use, free of rent, of a 
 little neat, smart, new-built house, at the 
 entrance of the village, prepared expressly 
 for himself, with two bow windows in front ; 
 in one of which his phials and china jars 
 make a very handsome appearance from 
 the street, especially when the shop is 
 duly lighted up, as it is sometimes seen 
 to be on a dark night.
 
 34 ROXOBEL. 
 
 Mr. Bamaby Seniple is still perhaps un- 
 der thirty, and would be sufficiently well- 
 looking, were not his hair inclined to red, 
 and his mouth too wide ; nevertheless, his 
 teeth are as white as his own gallipots. 
 
 He is a great favourite I hear at the 
 Hall, being, as Mrs. Judy asserts, a very 
 genteel young man; and, as he is allowed 
 to exercise his savoir faire in any part of 
 the neighbourhood, at those hours when 
 not required to attend at the Hall, he 
 makes out a very handsome living. 
 
 I have somewhat broken the thread of 
 my story, in order to record what I after- 
 wards learned of the history of Mr. Semple, 
 and shall now return to myself. 
 
 I could say much of the various friendly 
 attentions which were shewn me as I lay 
 on the couch in Mr. Semple's parlour, and 
 of the questions which arose when it was 
 declared that I could not hope to be able to 
 continue my journey for some time. When 
 I understood this difficulty, I declared my 
 willingness to remain where I was, if a 
 convenient lodging could be provided for 
 me, to which I might be removed without
 
 R0X0BEL. 35 
 
 much trouble, and I further assured mv 
 new friends, that I was able and willing to 
 pay for any convenience with which I might 
 be supplied. 
 
 On this, there was a council called, the 
 result of which was, that, within a few 
 hours of my arrival at Roxobel, 1 was 
 admitted into my present lodgings. I was 
 conveyed on a mattress across the street, 
 and carried up a wide old-fashioned stair- 
 case, and through an ample sitting-room 
 into a large convenient bedchamber; where, 
 with the assistance of Mr. Semple, I was 
 laid in bed. 
 
 The ceremony of introduction to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Strickland, my landlord and landlady, 
 then "ensued, and I found them to be a wor- 
 thy couple, who were ready to shew me 
 every possible kindness. 
 
 They are elderly persons, having no 
 children; and Mr. Strickland is a sort of 
 bailiff to the Misses Helmsley. These good 
 people have a large house, and seem to be 
 in easy circumstances; and having more 
 rooms than they can occupy, are pleased, 1 
 think, by the opportunity of letting some of
 
 36 R0X0BEL. 
 
 them. I have engaged the sitting-room 
 and my bedchamber. They are airy apart- 
 ments, wainscoted with oak, and com- 
 manding a view of the gardens of the Hall. 
 
 As soon as I was laid in bed, Mr. Sem- 
 ple ordered that some tea should be admi- 
 nistered to me, and consented, to Mrs. 
 Strickland's entreaties, that a nurse should 
 be sent for who understood the manage- 
 ment of sick persons better than she pro- 
 fessed to do. 
 
 Thus these worthy persons settled and 
 arranged every thing for me, while I re- 
 mained perfectly quiescent, feeling the 
 assurance that I had fallen into good 
 hands, and being confirmed in this opi- 
 nion by seeing all my effects brought up, 
 and stowed in the corner of my room ; Mr. 
 Barnaby Scmple at the same time placing 
 my purse in my hand, and informing me 
 that he had taken it from my pocket when 
 I was in a fainting condition, fearing that 
 it might be mislaid. I, however, returned 
 it to him again, and begged him to be my 
 banker till I could assist myself. 
 
 I must continue a little time longer to
 
 ROXOBEL. 37 
 
 speak of myself; but I expect to have other 
 subjects for my pen by and by. 
 
 The tea was given me as had been di- 
 rected, and I soon fell asleep, but awoke 
 about eleven, and found my bones exces- 
 sively stiff, great pain in all my joints, and 
 a sort of feverishness about me, which 
 continued to increase all night, and be- 
 came so violent in the morning, that from 
 that time, for several days, I knew nothing 
 that passed ; though I remember receiving 
 many kind offices — hearing many condo- 
 lences and lamentations — and seeing many 
 sympathizing faces around me. There is 
 nothing which endears one human being 
 to another, like the attentions paid and 
 received in sickness; and according to this 
 rule, it happened, that my tender hostess 
 and nurse, (for Mrs. Goodwill, the village 
 nurse had been sent for,) had so won upon 
 me while I lay half insensible, that a sort 
 of affection was established between us even 
 before I knew their names, or half of what 
 I owed to them. 
 
 My fever hung upon me nine days, and 
 my life was in peril. But on the tenth 
 VOL. i. E
 
 38 ROXOBEL. 
 
 morning, after a very long and deep sleep, 
 I opened my eyes, and found myself still 
 weak, indeed, but perfectly restored to my 
 senses. I looked round me. I was lying 
 on a comfortable bed. All about me was 
 delicately neat ; and not a spot was to be 
 seen on the well-polished floor. The win- 
 dow was open, through which I could ob- 
 serve a green bank, closely shorn, and deco- 
 rated with many small trees and beautiful 
 flowering shrubs, in the centre of which was 
 a stone statue standing on an elevated pe- 
 destal. AVithin my room, at the foot of my 
 bed, sat an elderly woman, simply dressed, 
 and very busy with some needlework. She 
 was a person of a peculiarly sweet and 
 lovely countenance, which expressed more 
 intelligence than could have been expected 
 in her humble situation of a village nurse. 
 As I before said, she was engaged with her 
 needlework when I first became sensible 
 of my situation, but turned to observe me 
 soon afterwards. 
 
 That was a mild and sweet look which 
 I then received from the stranger. I 
 felt its kindness, though I did not speak.
 
 ROXOBEL. 30 
 
 She arose, and came to the head of my 
 bed. 
 
 " You are better, Sir," she said. " You 
 have enjoyed a long sweet sleep. God is 
 very good. I hope you may live to thank 
 and bless him. You have been very ill. 
 We feared we should have lost you : but 
 the Almighty has restored you." 
 
 " Kind, excellent people ! " I said ; "and 
 could a poor little stranger interest you so 
 much? Were you really anxious for my 
 recovery ? " 
 
 "We were," she answered, with simpli- 
 city, while the tear stood in her eye : " but 
 we will not talk of these things now. You 
 shall have some breakfast. You are very 
 weak. Be assured you are with friends — 
 quite safe with friends ; " and she left me in 
 order to fetch my breakfast. 
 
 This was nurse Goodwill. I shall have 
 more to say of this excellent woman here- 
 after. Her voice was very sweet to me : 
 when I first heard it I was reminded of my 
 mother. Ah ! why should I cling so to 
 the memory of my mother ? And the name 
 of sister; why should these recollections
 
 40 - ROXOBEL. 
 
 be so very dear to me ? But I am debar- 
 red from forming new connexions of a na- 
 ture as intimate as those of my childhood. 
 Those places in the heart of man which are 
 first devoted to a mother and a sister may 
 indeed be again filled up, yea, more than 
 filled up, by the wife and daughter. But 
 these are connexions I can never know. 
 Yet my heart shall not be a wilderness, if 
 I can help it. It cannot be. I must have 
 something to love ; and I have found many 
 things to love at Roxobel. 
 
 With my breakfast of tea and a slender 
 piece of toasted bread, came my worthy 
 hostess to congratulate me on my amend- 
 ment. Mrs. Strickland had not that supe- 
 rior air which had so much surprised me in 
 the nurse ; but she was honest and hearty, 
 and rejoiced over my bed as an affectionate 
 mother would rejoice over the bed of a son 
 snatched from the jaws of death. She 
 called me a dear gentleman, a dear little 
 gentleman, and thanked God for my re- 
 covery ; but her voice was rather loud, and 
 I was glad to be left with 3Irs. Goodwill. 
 
 My convalescence was long, and the
 
 ROXOBEL. 41 
 
 fracture of my arm rendered me exceed- 
 ingly helpless: so that for more than a 
 month Mrs. Goodwill remained in the 
 house. During this time I determined, 
 that if I could still be entertained at Mrs. 
 Strickland's, I would continue a while at 
 Roxobel ; and accordingly, when I got a 
 little better, I commenced preparations, 
 directing Mrs. Goodwill to unpack my 
 boxes, and arrange their contents, which 
 she accomplished entirely to my satisfac- 
 tion. This little task was a sort of amuse- 
 ment to me, as I lay on my sofa in my 
 sitting-room, during several weeks in which 
 I was unable to help myself. 
 
 It was summer time, as I before said, 
 and my couch was placed in a large oriel 
 window, which projects beyond the wall of 
 the house and overhangs the garden of the 
 Hall; my landlord's dwelling being situate 
 just opposite Mr. Barnaby Semple's new 
 tenement, the street running between them, 
 while one front of the house opens upon 
 the Hall gardens, giving to the upper rooms 
 a commanding prospect of the lawn, the 
 embowered walks, the triangular and heart- 
 e 3
 
 42 ROXOBEL. 
 
 shaped parterres, the grotesque statues, the 
 terraces, and the many and various quaint 
 devices, with which these old-fashioned pre- 
 mises are adorned. Over these repositories 
 of nature and art, the tower of the village 
 church is visible, with a part of the roof of 
 the schoolhouse, and a glimpse of the park 
 on the left: a calm, fragrant, and refresh- 
 ing scene, most attractively inviting to one 
 who, like me, has long desired a retired 
 and peaceful habitation among simple peo- 
 ple, where reciprocal acts of kindness may 
 endear us to each other until the end of 
 life. 
 
 I had already begun to fancy that Rox- 
 obel was the kind of place which would suit 
 me; and now, this charming prospect from 
 the window of my sitting-room finallv 
 determined me to sojourn here for some 
 months. 
 
 With this view I encouraged Mrs. Good- 
 will to talk to me, and give me some notion 
 of the sort of people who composed the 
 society of the place. And, as she sat 
 opposite my couch, putting my linen in 
 order, I had address enough to engage her
 
 ROXOBEL. 43 
 
 in this service without making her aware 
 of my object, for which purpose no incon- 
 siderable degree of management was neces- 
 sary, as I had clearly discovered that she 
 was very superior to persons in general in 
 her rank in life. 
 
 She soon gave me all the information 
 which I desired, and presently proceeded 
 to unravel the complicated clue of the 
 parish history, which she handled with so 
 much skill, that, before I left my room, 
 I was in possession of all the remarkable 
 characters within the boundaries of Rox- 
 obel, and was prepared to love some, to 
 honour others, and to feel an interest in all. 
 
 I must acknowledge, however, that al- 
 though the benevolent Mrs. Goodwill never 
 mingled any bitterness in her tales, there 
 was now and then a little archness blended 
 with her descriptions of character, which was 
 not altogether uncongenial with my taste. 
 Her own was the first tale which she unfold- 
 ed. She accounted for her superior man- 
 ners and intelligence, by informing me that 
 she was the daughter of a former Rector 
 of Roxobel, and the widow of a person who
 
 44 ROXOBEL, 
 
 had once known better days, but had died 
 insolvent: — that she was then residing in 
 a hamlet called Rockwood, or the Rock 
 Hamlet, and had only one surviving daugh- 
 ter, who had been married twice; hav- 
 ing one daughter living by her former hus- 
 band, though none of three or four whom 
 she had by the second now survived. She 
 did not mention her daughter's second 
 marriage with any satisfaction; but spoke 
 with delight of her little granddaughter, 
 then about nine years of age, expatiating 
 somewhat largely on her extraordinary 
 loveliness. I made allowances, at the 
 time, for parental partiality; but, when 1 
 saw Ellen some days afterwards, I found 
 that these allowances were quite unneces- 
 sary. 
 
 Her own little tale being told, the excel- 
 lent woman proceeded to give me a sort 
 of topographical and biographical history 
 of the parish ; which I shall endeavour to 
 set down, as nearly as possible, in her 
 own words. 
 
 " Roxobel," said Mrs. Goodwill, " is, as 
 niv father used to remark, a sort of Oasis
 
 ROXOBEL. 45 
 
 — a little fertile spot, existing in the per- 
 fection of its own loveliness, in the midst 
 of ordinary scenes — a little world within 
 itself, which has scarcely its equal in this 
 island. 
 
 "The parish is nearly foursquare, each 
 side facing one of the cardinal points. It 
 is bounded on the south, by that long- 
 range of woods, underneath which extends 
 the turnpike road for a considerable dis- 
 tance, at the end of which, the high road 
 suddenly taking a turn, the boundary is 
 continued in the same line, for two miles 
 or more, through one of the deepest, dir- 
 tiest lanes in all the neighbourhood — though, 
 like many other dirty lanes, it intersects a 
 country in which Nature shews herself in 
 her most lovely and fantastic garb. To the 
 north, the parish of Roxobel is bounded 
 
 by the river T , a wild mountain 
 
 stream, so full of falls, that no boat can 
 venture further on it, than from wear to 
 wear, or from one milldam to another. 
 The country on the other side of this river 
 rises boldly from the very banks, and 
 being covered with thick woods, presents
 
 46 ROXOBEL. 
 
 many very fair points of view from the 
 park and higher grounds of Roxobel. To 
 the east, the parish is bounded by a 
 wide sandy common, in the midst of which, 
 is seen the warrener's tower; of which 
 more hereafter. To the west, the country 
 is broken into hills and dales, and covered 
 with thick coppices. In that direction, 
 too, is what we call the hamlet of the 
 Rock, where I have a pretty cottage, in 
 which I shall be most happy to see you, 
 my good Sir, when you are able to walk. 
 And thus I have described the boundaries 
 of our lovely Roxobel. And now, Sir, 
 please to allow me to conduct you to the 
 Hall, which, though close at hand, you 
 can scarcely yet have seen. But please, 
 Sir, just to raise yourself, and, above those 
 higher shrubs, you will see the clock-house 
 with its gilt vane; which, by the by, re- 
 minds me of poor Mrs. Judy Helmsley — 
 for Mr. Barnaby Semple assures me that 
 whenever the weathercock turns its head 
 to the east, he is sure to have a summons 
 extraordinary to the Hall; Mrs. Judy 
 always having a lit of the nerves when the
 
 ROXOBEL. 47 
 
 wind is in the east; insomuch so that, 
 last winter, when the east wind blew so 
 long, the old butler made one of the foot- 
 men climb to the cupola, and tie the vane 
 in another direction; in consequence of 
 which, Mrs. Judy got suddenly better, 
 although the wind had not shifted a single 
 point." 
 
 I am not fond of interrupting people in 
 the midst of a story; however, I could 
 not help remarking in this place, that I 
 suspected there were some roguish people 
 at Roxobel, as well as in other places. 
 
 "O! no doubt, Sir," said Mrs. Good- 
 will, and went on with her story. " Well, 
 Sir, the Hall is a handsome edifice, built 
 about the time of William of Orange, and 
 in the Dutch style. Some say it is heavy 
 and tasteless: — and so, perhaps, it may be, 
 but I have been so long accustomed to see 
 it as it is, that I would not have it altered 
 on any account. It is built precisely in 
 the shape of the letter H, and presents three 
 handsome fronts; the fourth, which is to- 
 wards the village, being occupied by the 
 offices. Of the three principal fronts, one
 
 48 ROXOBEL. 
 
 nearly faces the country before us, and com- 
 mands a fine view of the park ; the second 
 looks over the woods, to the warrener's 
 tower, and the wide campaign beyond; 
 and the south front faces the prospect 
 down towards the high road; though the 
 road is not visible from it, by reason of 
 the irregularity of the ground, and the mul- 
 titude of trees with which it is covered. 
 This view, however, is much enlivened by 
 the spring which runs from the higher 
 parts of the park, to the east of the man- 
 sion, forming a kind of serpentine pool or 
 lake, between that and the road. 
 
 " There are eight little towers, or cupo- 
 las, on the eight corners of the roof; which, 
 in my opinion, have a handsome appear- 
 ance: though some persons much disap- 
 prove of them, as well as of the stone 
 frames of the windows, which are all case- 
 ment, and some of them enriched with paint- 
 ed glass. But, I think, these things are all 
 so much of a piece with the old-fashioned 
 gardens which surround the house, that I 
 would not have a single alteration made. 
 Moreover, it is a noble house within, and
 
 ROXOBEL. 49 
 
 has a magnificent hall, a superb staircase, 
 long and lofty galleries, an exceedingly 
 fine library full of old books, and various 
 parlours, dining-rooms, and withdrawing- 
 rooms, set oft" with old pictures, statues, 
 curious clocks and watches, rich china, 
 gilt furniture, and all sorts of curiosities, 
 of which the ladies are particularly care- 
 ful. And, indeed, they have little else to 
 do, than to take care that things are kept 
 in their places. But, we will hope, my 
 good Sir, that you will soon be able to 
 see these things yourself; and if you could 
 obtain permission to read in the library, 
 where a fire is always kept for the good 
 of the books, I have no doubt that you 
 would find there many valuable authors. 
 To read in the library was a privilege 
 possessed by my dear father, and which is 
 now enjoyed by our present rector; and I 
 have no doubt, that this favour might be 
 easily procured for you by Mr. Barnaby 
 Semple, who is a great man at the Hall. " 
 
 I could have got up and shaken the hand 
 of Mrs. Goodwill at this suggestion, which 
 was infinitely agreeable to me; but I re- 
 
 VOL. I. F
 
 50 ROXOBEL. 
 
 framed from interrupting her, as she seem- 
 ed to be proceeding- from a description of the 
 great mansion itself to an account of its 
 inhabitants. 
 
 " I know little of the history of the fami- 
 ly," continued Mrs. Goodwill, "previously 
 to the time in which my father entered upon 
 his living ; at which period, a Miss Tabitha 
 Helmsley was the sole possessor of this no- 
 ble estate. 
 
 "This lady, it is said, had neither the 
 best conditioned, nor the most agreeable of 
 persons; and she was withal so whimsical 
 that she rejected all the splendid offers 
 which were tendered her in her youth, in 
 order to marry a rough country squire, who 
 had not a single idea beyond a stable, a 
 dog-kennel, or a fox-earth. 
 
 "The fruits of this ill-assorted match, 
 ( for it proved to be quite as uncomfortable 
 as might have been expected,) were the 
 three present ladies of the Hall; — namely, 
 Mrs. Winifred, Mrs. Griselda, and Mrs. 
 Judy: — the eldest of whom must now be 
 more than fifty, and the youngest probably 
 six years less.
 
 ROXOBEL. 51 
 
 " Mrs. Tabitha Helmsley, whose sumanu 
 had been adopted by her husband, dieci 
 when her eldest daughter was about twenty- 
 five years of age; soon after which, Mr. 
 Helmsley married again, selecting for his 
 second wife a young lady, who, I may 
 venture to say, was at least very lovely 
 in person. By this marriage he had one 
 daughter only — poor Miss Emily Helmsley ; 
 a sweet young creature, indeed, but one 
 who drew a sorrowful lot; — for, losing 
 her mother when she was about fifteen, 
 she had much to endure from her elder 
 sisters; and often, poor thing, used to 
 come, with the tear in her eye, when my 
 poor husband was living, to tell those sor- 
 rows to me, which she dared not reveal 
 to another. In the mean time, the three 
 Misses Helmsley, of the first family, had 
 their several suitors ; and, it was currently 
 reported, from time to time, that one or 
 another was preparing to enter into the 
 holy state of wedlock. All these promisinu 
 appearances, however, came to nothing. 
 Perhaps the lovers let it appear that their 
 views were directed with less ardencv to-
 
 52 JR0X0BEL. 
 
 wards the ladies, than towards the lands, 
 by which means they might possibly dis- 
 gust those whom it was their object to 
 please: or it might be conjectured, on the 
 other hand, that the ladies themselves were 
 not altogether destitute of whim and ca- 
 price. However, one thing is certain : time 
 went on ; and the coheiresses remained 
 single. 
 
 "At length, Mr. Helmsley sent for a cou- 
 sin of his first lady, Mr. Edmund Lovel, 
 who, after his daughters, was the next heir 
 to the estates; and, as it is reported, the 
 old gentleman gave this young man to un- 
 derstand, that he would not be unfavour- 
 ably received as a son-in-law; little sus- 
 pecting, however, towards which member 
 of his family his choice would be directed. 
 
 "Edmund Lovel was perhaps as fine a 
 youth, both in intellect and person, as ever 
 was seen ; and he no sooner appeared at 
 the Hall, than it became apparent that 
 he might choose as he pleased among the 
 lands and ladies of Roxobel. 
 
 "Report, which is always busy, first 
 gave him to Mrs. Winifred, who, by her
 
 ROXOBEL. 53 
 
 mother's will, was to inherit the Hall and 
 park, and one-third of the lands; and then, 
 to Mrs. Grizzy, who was also to have a 
 third; and next, to Mrs. Judy — for the 
 youth amused himself with one and ano- 
 ther of these ladies, as young men who are 
 not strictly honourable are too apt to do; 
 although, in some way or other, they gene- 
 rally have reason to rue the fruits of such 
 follies. But, in the midst of all this vanity, 
 the old gentleman was suddenly cut off in 
 an apoplectic fit, and Mr. Lovel, after 
 following his uncle to the grave, absented 
 himself till the year of mourning had 
 expired; after which he returned, and, to 
 the amazement of all the country, solicit- 
 ed and obtained the hand of the lovely 
 Miss Emily, whom he preferred, with a 
 fortune of eight thousand pounds, be- 
 queathed by her father, to any one of her 
 elder sisters, who were each worth more 
 than six times eight. 
 
 "Roxobel was no comfortable place for 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Lovel after this. They 
 
 therefore left it immediately: and the three 
 
 elder ladies seemed to feel the slight which 
 
 f 3
 
 54 R0X0BEL. 
 
 had been put upon them more than could 
 have been expected. This, however, might 
 be only report; for they left us about that 
 time, and were absent a few years tra- 
 velling about, and when they returned, we 
 thought them considerably altered. 
 
 " In the mean time, Mr. and Mrs. Lovel, 
 as I was told, enjoyed much happiness, 
 and were blessed in the birth of two chil- 
 dren — Master Eugenius and Miss Lucy; 
 but soon after the birth of the little lady, 
 Mr. Lovel died suddenly, and his afflicted 
 lady returned, as she too truly said, to die 
 at Iloxobel. 
 
 "Being no longer an object of rivalry 
 to her sisters," continued Mrs. Goodwill, 
 "she was most kindly received at the Hall, 
 and I was sent for to attend her, and to 
 take charge of the infants; an under-nurse 
 being also provided. 
 
 " Alas ! poor Miss Emily, or rather I 
 should say poor Mrs. Lovel, how changed 
 she was when I first saw her on her return to 
 the Hall! — so thin, so pale; the blue veins 
 on her fair temples shewed as plain as if they 
 had been traced with a pencil; and there
 
 ROXOBEL. 55 
 
 was all the bereaved widow in the expres- 
 sion of her fine eyes. Poor Miss Emily! 
 Her figure is now before me, such as it 
 was in the very pride of her beauty; for 
 she was a lovely creature. I think I see 
 that sweet and saucy expression of her un- 
 der lip which she assumed when vexed or 
 grieved, and the April smile which so spee- 
 dily followed. It pained me more than I can 
 express to see her thus changed. I nursed 
 her long and carefully; but my care was of 
 no avail. The hand of death was upon 
 her: she pined and pined, and became a 
 mere skeleton. Yet, I have the happiness 
 of saying, that, in proportion as her mortal 
 part wasted away, her soul seemed more 
 and more prepared for a blessed change. 
 When I first went to her, indeed, I felt my- 
 self capable of giving her some instruction 
 on the doctrines of our salvation ; but the 
 scholar, by the divine blessing, so speedily 
 outran the teacher, that, before her depar- 
 ture, it was her office to teach, and mine 
 to learn. 
 
 "Her death was a blessed one, Sir — a very 
 blessed one. I shall never, never forget it.
 
 56 ROXOBEL. 
 
 We laid her in the family vault at the feet 
 of her father and mother, and by the side 
 of her husband, whose remains had been 
 brought to Roxobel by his own especial de- 
 sire: Mr. Lovel having been, as I before 
 said, cousin to the first Mrs. Helmsley, and, 
 after her daughters, next heir, in point of 
 law, to the estates. 
 
 " Thus Mrs. Lovel died. It is nine years 
 last Candlemas-day, since her interment. 
 Master Eugenius and Miss Lucy were both 
 brought to the church on the occasion; 
 Master Eugenius being then five years 
 old, and Miss Lucy only one. They were 
 dressed in black, and the poor little boy 
 was more affected than could have been 
 thought, and quite shrieked when the 
 coffin was lowered into the vault: but 
 the little lady laughed and crowed in my 
 arms, and tried to reach the silver ornaments 
 on the pall, which affected many of us very 
 much ; and particularly our clergyman's 
 lady, whose little daughter Sophia was just 
 about Miss Lucy's age. 
 
 "After the funeral, I brought the poor 
 babes back to the Hall, and was taking
 
 ROXOBEL. 57 
 
 them up to their nursery, when Mrs. Pene- 
 lope Nuttall, that is, Mrs. Winifred Helms- 
 ley's confidential servant, directed me to 
 bring the children to her lady, who was 
 sitting with her sisters in the brown par- 
 lour, which is the room the family generally 
 occupy, all the sisters, as well as the whole 
 family, being in deep mourning. 
 
 " I obeyed the command, with much sur- 
 prise ; and, as soon as I entered the room, 
 was desired to bring the children close up 
 to the ladies. My surprise arose from this 
 circumstance, that the ladies had never 
 previously taken any notice of the children ; 
 from which it had been inferred, that they 
 would send them to their father's friends 
 immediately after the funeral. However, 
 on this occasion they received them most 
 kindly, though not cordially: for the ladies 
 of the Hall seldom exhibit much cordiality 
 of manner, though they are not deficient 
 in kindness to their friends and depen- 
 dants. Mrs. Winifred shook hands with 
 the little gentleman, and bade him be a 
 good boy, and not cry, for he should 
 stay at the Hall, and have a horse to ride
 
 58 ROXOBEL. 
 
 upon when he was big - enough; which 
 very words were repeated, first by Mrs. 
 Grizzy, and then by Mrs. Judy, so that 
 they were well impressed upon my mind. 
 And then the ladies condescended to kiss 
 the baby, as I held her to them, though 
 sorely against the will of the little in- 
 fant; for she turned her face quite away 
 from them. And Mrs. Winifred then said, 
 ' Lucy, I think I shall love you ; ' laying a 
 stress on the word you, which I thought 
 rather strange, as it seemed almost as much 
 as to say, * I shall prefer you before your 
 brother/ which was what I could not un- 
 derstand. I was then asked if I would 
 choose to stay and take care of the chil- 
 dren, Mrs. Winifred propounding the ques- 
 tion somewhat solemnly, and the two others 
 repeating- it after her in the very same 
 words. Being thus entreated, I consented 
 to stay a month or two ; but as soon as 
 Miss Lucy had cut all her teeth, I was 
 obliged to give up my charge; delivering 
 it, however, to one who did justice by the 
 children, though she has not lived to see 
 them reared.
 
 ROXOBEL. 59 
 
 " Master Eugenius is now fourteen," pro- 
 ceeded Mrs. Goodwill, "and is instructed 
 by our rector, Dr. Beauchamp, in company 
 with the doctor's own son Theodore. Dr. 
 Beauchamp's pupils are both charming 
 boys. Miss Lucy is just ten, and still re- 
 mains with her maid at the Hall; and 
 surely, if I am not very partial, there is 
 not a lovelier creature in the world. 
 
 " She has been at Mrs. Strickland's many 
 times since your arrival, Sir, to ask after 
 you, and I hope to have the pleasure of 
 bringing- her up to you when next she 
 comes. She is a delicate creature, fair as a 
 lily, has a thousand dimples about her pret- 
 ty mouth, and has so little pride that she 
 exhibits but one set of courtesies in all 
 companies. I only hope that she may not 
 get spoiled when she knows her own con- 
 sequence. 
 
 "And now, Sir," continued Mrs. Good- 
 will, "I think I have made you pretty well 
 acquainted with the history of the family 
 at the Hall. 
 
 "Our ladies have a great many good 
 qualities, notwithstanding their singulari-
 
 GO ROXOBEL. 
 
 ties. They are kind landladies, indulgent 
 mistresses; very compassionate towards 
 the poor, and still more tender of their 
 dogs and horses, their game and poul- 
 try. They will not suffer a tree to be 
 cut down, nor even the form of a gate 
 or a stile to be altered, throughout their 
 domains. They hate new fashions, or 
 innovations as they call them; they ob- 
 serve all old customs, and are as rigorous 
 as papists or heathens in the observance 
 of days and festivals, forms and ceremo- 
 nies. The two younger sisters are said ne- 
 ver to have an opinion of their own, but to 
 be entirely governed by Mrs. Winifred, in 
 Avhom all the wit of the family is centered; 
 and if Mrs. Winifred were governed by 
 her own good sense, and were not in her 
 turn subjected in a most unaccountable 
 manner to the dominion of Mrs. Nuttall, her 
 own maid and housekeeper, many things 
 perhaps would be better done than they 
 now are. But the under-servants com- 
 plain a great deal of this Mrs. Nuttall, 
 who makes them all feel successively what 
 slavery it is to be the servant of servants ;
 
 R0X0BEL. 61 
 
 and this tyranny on the part of the house- 
 keeper, led to a great rejoicing at Roxobel 
 some months ago, on occasion of the said 
 Mrs. Nuttall being laid up with the con- 
 fluent small-pox. These exultations, how- 
 ever, proved premature : for Mr. Barnaby 
 Semple brought her through the disease, 
 and restored her to her old station at the 
 Hall, with diminished beauty indeed, but 
 unabated vigour, for which exploit he ob- 
 tained more favour from Mrs. Winifred 
 than popularity among the villagers." 
 
 I could not help smiling in this part of 
 Mrs. Goodwill's narrative, and asked her 
 if she was one of those who owed Mr. 
 Barnaby Semple a grudge lor the skill he 
 had exercised in favour of Mrs. Nuttall. 
 
 She smiled again, as she replied, "No, 
 dear Sir, not I, indeed ; — I wish Mrs. Nut- 
 tall no ill whatever. To use an old phrase, 
 I believe her bark is worse than her bite; 
 and, as far as I am myself concerned, I 
 have neither the one nor the other to com- 
 plain of." 
 
 Our conversation was interrupted in this 
 place by a gentle rap at the door; and 
 vol. I. G
 
 62 ROXOBEL. 
 
 Mrs. Strickland presented herself, request- 
 ing permission to introduce to me Miss 
 Lucy Lovel, a favour which I very readily 
 conceded.
 
 ROXOBEL. 03 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 CONTAINING MUCH WHICH IT IS REQUI- 
 SITE TO KNOW. 
 
 Well might Mrs. Goodwill say, she 
 trusted that Lucy Lovel would never be 
 spoiled. I add, may she never be changed. 
 Who can imagine a beauty superadded to 
 a snowdrop, to a violet, or to the bud of a 
 moss rose? Was ever creature more fair, 
 more fresh, more simple, more warm-heart- 
 ed, more truly lovely, than Lucy Lovel? 
 Lovely, I say; for the words lovely, Lucy, 
 and Lovel, are now united for ever in 
 my mind. Not merely is she brilliantly fair 
 and superbly fresh, far surpassing what 
 could be expected at ten years of age, but, 
 above all, she still remains delightfully in- 
 capable of receiving worldly ideas. — Mrs. 
 Goodwill truly affirmed, that she has but
 
 04 ROXOBEL. 
 
 one set of courtesies for all ranks and de- 
 grees; and these she bestows without par- 
 tiality or restraint ; not that she connects 
 with them the notion of politeness, but that 
 she seems to consider them as convenient 
 expressions of her pure good will. Every 
 man, I am told, however humble be his sta- 
 tion, is honoured by her with the title of 
 Sir; and every woman with that of Ma'am. 
 Her desire of assisting every one prompts 
 her to offer a helping hand on all occa- 
 sions. And the incompatibleness of her 
 delicate hands, with the tasks she would 
 assign to them, often excites the smile of 
 the beholder, and not unfrequently draws 
 forth the voice of praise, and even of flat- 
 tery: — but, as Mrs. Goodwill informs me, 
 Lucy is so organized, that flattery no fur- 
 ther affects her, than by exciting her grati- 
 tude towards the flatterer; and hence, it 
 appears, she has not yet been spoiled by 
 it. 
 
 But this sweet creature is only ten years 
 old; — what will she be at twelve? — what 
 at eighteen? Such a being at eighteen, — 
 so fresh, so fair, so simple, so brilliantly
 
 ROXOBEL. (55 
 
 lovely, so universally benevolent, — would 
 be the most captivating, the most delight- 
 ful, the most exquisite, of the human race. 
 Were I her father, I would say, " How- 
 shall we preserve this freshness?" And I 
 should answer, " By avoiding worldly con- 
 versation in her presence ; by endeavouring 
 to inspire her with the purest principles of 
 piety; and, above all, by avoiding that 
 most insidious of pollutions, the smile at 
 sinful communications, which too often be- 
 trays a lurking love of corruption even in 
 the hearts of those who aim at excellence." 
 
 Mrs. Strickland came forward, with the 
 little lady in her hand; the worthy young- 
 woman who is her maid bringing up the 
 rear. 
 
 " Sir," said my landlady, " I bring Miss 
 Lucy to see you. She has called often 
 since your illness; and to her you owe the 
 strawberries and currants which refreshed 
 you so much during your fever." 
 
 I raised myself to pay my compliments 
 
 to the little lady, who came up close to my 
 
 couch, made a low courtesy, and said, with 
 
 grave simplicity, "I am Lucy Lovel, Sir, 
 
 o 3
 
 66 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and I am come to ask you how you do." 
 And with that she presented me with a 
 superb nosegay arranged by her own 
 hands. 
 
 The fair creature, as she stood before 
 me, all glowing with youth and affection, 
 gave me the idea of an angel; and I ac- 
 cordingly answered her with profound re- 
 spect. 
 
 " Sir," she enquired, " are you better ? is 
 your arm well? was it quite broken in 
 two, Sir ? I hope you will be able to use 
 it again." And she looked upon the ban- 
 daged arm with a kind of shuddering sym- 
 pathy, adding, " Sir, does it hurt you 
 now?" 
 
 I then assured her that it was quite 
 easy, and likely soon to be well, on which 
 her countenance brightened, and she said, 
 " You will not go away, Sir, when you are 
 well, I hope. Will you stay here, and live 
 with Mrs. Strickland?" And then, as if 
 to fix my resolutions, she added, " I come 
 here very often, Sir, and when you are well, 
 I will take you to see my aunts." 
 
 " And you will ask them to let Mr. Airley
 
 ROXOBEL. G7 
 
 read in the library whenever he pleases, 
 Miss Lucy, will you not? " said Mrs. Good- 
 will. 
 
 "Would you like to read in the library, 
 Sir? " asked the little lady, drawing nearer 
 to me, and laying her hand in mine; "then 
 I will get leave for you. But, Sir," — and 
 then she hesitated a little, and speaking 
 lower, said, "do you think that you can 
 reach the books from the highest shelves? — 
 and all the picture books are at the top! " 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill and Mrs. Strickland were, 
 I perceived, a little afraid of the effect of 
 this remark; but there was no necessity 
 for fear. I readily comprehended the 
 young lady's artless feelings, and answered 
 her with the same simplicity, saying, " If 
 there arc any steps in the library, I can 
 get upon them, Miss Lucy, and so get the 
 books down." 
 
 "When you are able to come out, Sir," 
 she rejoined, " I will shew you a gre;it 
 many things;" — and she began to enume- 
 rate her playthings and little possessions, 
 under the impression, no doubt, that I was 
 a child like herself, and that I would feel
 
 68 ROXOBEL. 
 
 interested in the same objects; conclud- 
 ing with a promise that she would come 
 and see me again very soon. 
 
 I assured her, on my part, that the of- 
 tener she visited me, the better I should 
 be pleased; so forthwith a friendship was 
 established between us, which I trust, will 
 never be interrupted ; the first fruits of which 
 attachment was another visit, that very 
 evening, from Miss Lucy, bringing a phea- 
 sant from her aunts, with their compli- 
 ments and a polite assurance that I was 
 welcome to visit the library every day, 
 at any hour I chose, and to stay as long 
 as I thought proper. 
 
 In the mean time, my mind seemed to 
 be drawn more and more towards a resi- 
 dence in lovely Roxobel; agreeably to 
 which, I that very evening made my final 
 arrangements with Mr. and Mrs. Strick- 
 land, who were by this time as anxious 
 to retain me as I was to remain with them. 
 I likewise procured Mrs. Goodwill to write 
 to my agent in town to send me down my 
 books, my organ, my materials for draw- 
 ing, a box of Bibles, and some such little
 
 ROXOBEL. 69 
 
 articles as seemed likely to be useful to 
 me in propitiating the regard of the young 
 or the old, whom I might choose to set 
 down on my list of friends at Roxobel. 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill expressed some surprise 
 at the extent of my orders; yet, perhaps, 
 not quite so much as she would have dis- 
 covered, had I not already defrayed all 
 my debts up to that period, in a manner 
 which had given general satisfaction. 
 
 I felt somewhat fatigued by the exer- 
 tions of that day, but slept sweetly, — was 
 awakened by the carols of the birds, and 
 at breakfast was regaled with a little bas- 
 ket of strawberries, which had been ga- 
 thered and presented by the fairy hands 
 of the benevolent and lovely little Lucy. 
 
 When laid on my couch in my oriel, 
 I called on Mrs. Goodwill to go on with 
 her history, indicating the place in which 
 she should re-commence by saying, that 
 I had discovered across the garden, di- 
 rectly in the east, and a little on one 
 side of the tower of the church which arose 
 among the trees just beyond the bounda- 
 ries of the Hall gardens, the chimneys
 
 70 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and part of the gable-end, of an old edi- 
 fice. 
 
 " Yes," said she, " that is the schoolhouse. 
 It was founded and endowed many years 
 since by one of the Helmsleys. It is a very 
 old building, of timber, and lath and plaster, 
 and faces the churchyard. It is divided 
 into two tenements ; the one appropriated 
 to the mistress, and the other to the master. 
 Each house has its kitchen and its school- 
 room, with bed-rooms on the upper story, 
 and a little garden behind. The endow- 
 ment is but a moderate maintenance for a 
 family; but the master augments his income 
 by means of private pupils whom he teaches 
 to write and cipher, and the mistress con- 
 trives to increase hers by teaching some of 
 the higher class of children, the poor being 
 all free. 
 
 " Our present master, Mr. Pen Map," 
 continued Mrs. Goodwill, " is quite a singu- 
 lar character, and little suited to his situa- 
 tion. JJeing in favour at the Hall, he for- 
 merly instructed at odd hours Master Taffy 
 Vuttall, the housekeeper's nephew, who is 
 too great a man to attend the school. I do
 
 ROXOBEL. 71 
 
 not, however, mean to say, that Mr. Pen 
 Map has not some talents ; for he writes a 
 good hand, has a clear head for accounts, 
 and for measuring; lands and setting sun- 
 dials: but his poor mind is inflated with 
 self-conceit, which makes him at once for- 
 ward and ridiculous, and leads him to ad- 
 vance quite beyond his depth. He writes 
 epitaphs and epithalamiums ; uses hard 
 words out of their places; intrudes his com- 
 pany when not wanted; is 'hail, fellow, well 
 met,' with his betters ; is overcome with the 
 smallest cup of strong liquor, which may 
 possibly be imputed to his extreme loqua- 
 city, and the natural lightness of his brain ; 
 and is, above all, excessively hot and testy : 
 by all which weaknesses, without being a 
 bad man, he incurs the contempt of his 
 young people, and they are, in conse- 
 quence, little benefited by his instructions. 
 He is a tall, slender, sallow, middle-aged 
 person; but has a peculiar gait, and an 
 exceedingly pompous gravity of counte- 
 nance." 
 
 "Add no more, Mrs. Goodwill!" I ex- 
 claimed: "you have said enough; I have
 
 72 ROXOBEL. 
 
 Mr. Pen Map before me to the life. I shall 
 know him, when I meet him, without ano- 
 ther trait. — And now may I request that 
 you will proceed to the schoolmistress." 
 
 "Mrs. Tristram," subjoined Mrs. Good- 
 will, " is one of the ornaments of Roxobel. 
 She is one who has known many, many 
 sorrows ; a bereaved mother ; a widow ; 
 sunk in fortune ; weak in body ; elegant in 
 mind ; humble, laborious, gentle, and even 
 cheerful ; living by faith, and not by sight ; 
 and wholly devoted to the good of her 
 young people. She supports on her scanty 
 income an aged and childish mother, to 
 whose comfort she administers to the ut- 
 most of her power, by the sacrifice of all 
 her ease. 
 
 " Mrs. Tristram, Sir," added the excellent 
 speaker, " is worthy of your regard, and of 
 your benevolence; and I shall rejoice as 
 much in any good done to her, as in any 
 favour you could bestow on me. She has 
 called twice to enquire after you, Sir." 
 
 "Then, Mrs. Goodwill, when I am able 
 to walk, our first visit shall be to Miss 
 Lucy," I replied; "and our second to Mrs.
 
 R0X0BEL. 73 
 
 Tristram; — and when my box of varieties 
 comes, you shall choose a present for Mrs. 
 Tristram. And now, where shall we go 
 next?" 
 
 "Why, Sir," replied Mrs. Goodwill, 
 " where should we go, but to the dwelling 
 which stands nearest to the schoolhouse? 
 You have but to cross the churchyard, go 
 out at the gate towards the north, traverse 
 about half a quarter of a mile of the park, 
 and enter in at the rector's green gate. 
 And yet, before you enter, I could wish 
 you to pause a while, in order that I may 
 describe the situation. The parsonage 
 house is built of white stone from the 
 quarry in the park. Its front presents six 
 windows, two of which, on the ground- 
 floor are Venetian. Opposite the hall-door, 
 which is situated in the furthest side from 
 this place, is an extensive lawn; and at 
 the back of the dwelling is a shrubbery, 
 beautifully laid out. Behind it, the park 
 rises abruptly with its groves, and deep 
 shades, and haunts for deer, and water- 
 falls, and fairy knolls and dingles. But 
 you must see these places, Sir, before 
 
 VOL. I. H
 
 74 ROXOBEL. 
 
 you can imagine them. The parsonage is 
 indeed a sweet spot, and those who inhabit 
 it are not less lovely than their habitation ; 
 though, I am sorry to say, about seven 
 years since, precisely two years subse- 
 quent to the funeral of poor Mrs. Lovel, 
 we had a very heavy loss in the first wife 
 of our rector, who was one of the excellent 
 of the earth. The family now consists of 
 Dr. Beauchamp himself, his second wife, — 
 for he was one who could not live alone, — 
 and his two children by his former wife, 
 Theodore and Sophia, the latter of whom 
 is about the age of Miss Lucy, and you 
 must see her, Sir, to form a clear idea of 
 her, for in her manners she is just about 
 such another sweet little creature as the 
 young lady at the Hall, though she is not 
 so free with strangers : hence her father 
 often compares her to the fawns in the 
 park, which may be seen frisking at a dis- 
 tance, but are always frightened when ap- 
 proached. 
 
 Master Eugenius and Master Theodore 
 are always together, and remind me of the 
 portraits of Prince Rupert and Prince Mau-
 
 ROXOBEL. 75 
 
 rice in the gallery at the Hall ; though the 
 little boys are not like each other, for Mas- 
 ter Eugenius resembles his father, whose 
 figure was accounted one of the most ele- 
 gant that ever was seen, but Master Theo- 
 dore is a little sturdy rogue, with eyes as 
 black as sloes, and though warmhearted, 
 will, if I mistake not, give his parents 
 some heartaches before he sows his wild 
 oats ; and I am the more inclined to think 
 so, because his father, Dr. Beauchamp, sel- 
 dom can see any body's faults, much less 
 those of his children and friends; although, 
 in the abstract, he is fully convinced of the 
 depravity of human nature, and by no 
 means blinded to the perception of his own 
 defects. But the doctor has such an over- 
 flowing benevolence, such an exuberance of 
 Christian charity, that he seems quite una- 
 ble to exercise that strictness of discipline, 
 which is so necessary in the father of a 
 family, and the minister of a parish. And 
 then, Sir, he is a poet, a man of no common 
 talents; and his imagination dresses every 
 thing in rose colour: — so that he lives, as it 
 were, in a world of his own.
 
 76 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " Dr. Beauchamp's mode of looking at the 
 bright side," continued Mrs. Goodwill, " and 
 the method pursued by Mrs. Nuttall and 
 some others, of ruminating on the dismal, 
 remind me of the old fable of the spectacles, 
 which I suppose is well known to you, my 
 good Sir." 
 
 I however confessed my ignorance, and 
 begged Mrs. Goodwill would favour me by 
 repeating the fable, on which she related 
 the tale as follows. 
 
 " Jupiter one day enjoying himself over 
 a bowl of nectar, and in a merry humour, 
 determined to make mankind a present. 
 Momus was appointed to convey it to them, 
 who, mounted on a rapid car, was presently 
 on earth. 'Come hither,' said he, 'ye 
 happy mortals! Great Jupiter has opened, 
 for your benefit, his all gracious hands. 
 Tis true, lie made you somewhat short- 
 sighted; but to remedy that inconvenience, 
 behold how he has favoured you ! ' — So say- 
 ing, he unloosed his portmanteau; an infi- 
 nite number of spectacles tumbled out ; and 
 mankind picked them up with great eager- 
 ness. There was enough for all ; every man
 
 ROXOBEL. 77 
 
 had his pair. But it was found, that these 
 spectacles did not represent objects to every 
 individual alike: for one pair was purple, 
 another blue ; one was white, and another 
 black; some of the glasses were red, some 
 green, and some yellow; some magnified, 
 some diminished ; some were long-sighted, 
 some were short-sighted; and some were 
 cracked. In short, they presented colours 
 of every tint, and lenses of every variety. 
 However, notwithstanding this diversity, 
 every man was charmed with his own, as 
 believing them the best, and it was never 
 known that any man would submit to use 
 his neighbour's glasses." 
 
 "Upon my word, Mrs. Goodwill," I ex- 
 claimed, " you have some amusing ideas. I 
 shall not easily forget your fable of the spec- 
 tacles. And so you would pretend, that all 
 our friends at Roxobel are provided with 
 these gifts of Jupiter; and that the worthy 
 rector's glasses are du coleur de rose, Mrs. 
 Nuttall's black, and Mr. Pen Map's perhaps 
 a little cracked! — Pray, my good lady, have 
 you discovered the colour of my glasses? " 
 
 " There is, I think, a little tint of the pink 
 H3
 
 78 ROXOBEL. 
 
 in yours, my good Sir, — the glow of the 
 morning- at least," she replied with prompt- 
 ness; "but God bless you, and enable you 
 to keep a little of the gayer tint until a 
 brighter and fairer vision shall rise before 
 you to gild the evening of your days." 
 
 This was a pretty and affecting turn to 
 give to the conversation, and she followed 
 it up with the ensuing remark. 
 
 " Setting Jupiter and Momus, with their 
 spectacles, aside, I must add, that I should 
 not do Dr. Beauchamp justice, if I did not 
 say, that I believe his bright and happy 
 views proceed not wholly from his natural 
 temperament, but, in a great measure, from 
 his very warm and beautiful conceptions 
 of the divine mercy, as displayed in the 
 character of the Redeemer. Sometimes, 
 indeed, I think, that he applies the comforts 
 of religion too hastily; nevertheless he lias 
 had many seals to the faithfulness of his 
 ministry; and many, I believe, have been 
 laid in yonder churchyard, who are now 
 attesting thereunto, 'high in salvation and 
 the climes of bliss. '■ — Yet still, I must con- 
 fess, that he is sometimes over-indulgent;
 
 ROXOBEL. 79 
 
 but if, when you know him, you don't love 
 him, and say he is one of the sweetest 
 spirits that you ever met with, I am much 
 mistaken both in him and in you." 
 
 "You will not be mistaken, Mrs. Good- 
 will," I replied. " But one thing puzzles me. 
 — You say, you live in a cottage, among 
 poor people. Granting that you have had 
 a good education, how happens it that you 
 have been able to preserve that refinement 
 of mind which forms the only real dis- 
 tinction, in my opinion, between the diffe- 
 i-ent classes of human beings? You see 
 that I am plain with you: you will not 
 be offended!" 
 
 She coloured slightly, sighed, and then 
 replied, "I cannot be offended, Sir, for 
 there is no rudeness implied; far from it. 
 I am fully aware that low society na- 
 turally tends to degrade the mind, and this 
 I have found too in the case of my own 
 daughter, who, though a good woman, a 
 very good woman, is not a lady; but, for 
 my own part, since my depression in socie- 
 ty, I have seen much good company in my 
 capacity as nurse, and I have always loved
 
 80 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and cultivated a taste for reading. More- 
 over, Dr. Beauchamp, and all the family at 
 the parsonage, treat me as an equal ; so 
 that I have the advantage of their good 
 company." 
 
 "An equal ! " I repeated ; " and so you are." 
 
 "A worldly family would not think so, 
 Sir," was her answer. 
 
 "True," I replied ; " there are many whose 
 spectacles do not represent these things 
 accurately." 
 
 " But, Sir," she proceeded, " before we 
 leave the parsonage, and proceed in our 
 perambulation, I must speak of the present 
 Mrs. Beauchamp. She is a distant rela- 
 tion of the family — a middle-aged woman 
 — comely in her person, though not parti- 
 cularly genteel; and she won the doctor's 
 heart by her extreme kindness to his first 
 wife during her long illness, and her atten- 
 tion to his infant children after their mother's 
 death. She is a kind, good, charitable, ex- 
 cellent creature, but too indulgent, I fear, 
 to Master Theodore. As to Miss Sophia, 
 she is such a gentle lamb, that she would 
 not be easily spoiled."
 
 ROXOBEL. 81 
 
 Here we were interrupted by the appear- 
 ance of Miss Lucy's pheasant, smoking in 
 the dish. 
 
 AVhen the dinner apparatus was removed, 
 and Mrs. Goodwill was again stationed by 
 me with her needle, she resumed her dis- 
 course. " I am not going to take you far 
 this afternoon," she said: "we will only take 
 a turn in the village, and perhaps up to 
 Naboth's Vineyard, and by that time we 
 shall be ready for tea; for I understand, 
 that you are to expect company, Sir, this 
 afternoon." 
 
 "Company!" I repeated, rather in asto- 
 nishment; "perhaps Dr. Beauchamp may 
 intend to honour me with a call?" 
 
 " No, Sir," she replied : " the good doctor 
 would have been here as soon as he heard 
 that you had left your room, but he has 
 been absent for several days with his lady 
 and family, and Master Lovel. Your in- 
 tended visiter is Miss Lucy, who brought 
 some rusks while you were at dinner, 
 having heard that you were fond of them ; 
 and at the same time announced her intend- 
 ed presence at tea this evening."
 
 82 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " Thrice welcome be the lovely little 
 fairy," I said. " Lucy must always be wel- 
 come." 
 
 "Well, Sir," continued Mrs. Goodwill, 
 " now for our review of the other side of 
 the parish. Please to imagine yourself 
 on the top of the coach, passing- along the 
 road under the plantations of Roxobel." 
 
 "Indeed, my excellent Mrs. Goodwill," 
 I answered, "I would rather imagine my- 
 self where I am. What business had such 
 a little Phaeton as myself to be mounted so 
 high as I was before my fall? what had I 
 to do on the top of a coach? I think I was 
 lightly dealt with that I came oif only with 
 a few broken bones ; so, pray do not carry 
 me back to the turnpike road under the 
 Roxobel woods." 
 
 "Then, Sir," said Mrs. Goodwill, "we 
 will, if you please, turn out of the road at 
 the porter's lodge, and come up the long 
 avenue which leads to the Hall, and to the 
 village. We need not enter in at the gates 
 of the offices, but come on straight to the 
 village, the first house of which, on the 
 left hand, is Mr. Barnaby Scrapie's, the
 
 ROXOBEL. 83 
 
 only new house in Roxobel: and on the 
 right is this old mansion in which we are 
 now sitting, which once belonged to the 
 family-steward ; but, since the steward, 
 Mr. Jeffry Griffin, has lived in his own 
 rooms at the Hall, it has been appro- 
 priated to Mr. Strickland. Beyond these 
 two houses, the village begins to ascend, 
 forming a pretty steep street, which is 
 terminated by the park-gates, and by a 
 fine prospect of woods. There are about a 
 dozen cottages in the street, all thatched, 
 and standing in gardens; besides four bet- 
 termost houses; namely, the shop kept by 
 Mr. Smith, who married Mrs. Winifred 
 Helmsley's fostersister ; the Helmsley 
 Arms public-house, kept by the old butler 
 and housekeeper of the family, who made a 
 match about ten years ago; and Finchley 
 Cottage, where the three Misses Finchley 
 reside, living on their own private pro- 
 perty, being distant relations of Mrs. Nut- 
 tall. And between Finchley Cottage, as the 
 house is now called, and the Helmsley 
 Arms, is a by-road which leads to the Rock 
 Hamlet; and a by-road, indeed, it is,
 
 84 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and a deep road too ; for in winter time, 
 I have known the farmers to be obliged 
 to get spade and pickaxe, to dig out 
 the carts, which have sunk in the ruts. 
 So much, Sir, for the village, with whose 
 inhabitants I expect you will have oppor- 
 tunities of making yourself better acquaint- 
 ed at a future time: for I should have in- 
 formed you, that the Misses Finchley 
 have already indicated their expectations 
 that you will pay them a visit. We will now 
 therefore leave the precincts of Roxobel, 
 pass through the park-gates, and pursue 
 the path which winds along the brow of 
 the hill, and among the woods, to Naboth's 
 Vineyard." 
 
 Here I could not help interrupting the 
 speaker. " You have twice used the term 
 Naboth's Vineyard, Mrs. Goodwill," I said: 
 "what can you possibly mean?" 
 
 She smiled, and replied, "Have I, Sir? 
 Then it was without intention: and this 
 shews how careful we should be in adopt- 
 ing foolish expressions. But the place I 
 mean is Torville. It is situated on the very 
 brow of the park, facing the Hall ; and it
 
 ROXOBEL. 85 
 
 has been named in derision Naboth's 
 Vineyard, for a reason which I will ex- 
 plain. It is a little freehold estate of 
 about seven hundred acres, and has long- 
 been in possession of a family of the name 
 of Torville, a family which has always 
 prided itself on its antiquity; its ances- 
 tors having been Norman, as it is asserted, 
 and having come to England with William 
 the Conqueror. However this may be, it 
 is very certain, from the Roxobel register, 
 that the family has long resided in the 
 parish, and were in their pride before the 
 name of Helmsley had ever been repeated 
 by a single echo. Indeed, the monuments 
 in the church speak for the antiquity of the 
 family; and there is one, especially, of a 
 Knight Templar, which is highly prized by 
 Dr. Beauchamp, around which he has per- 
 suaded Mrs. Winifred to place an iron rail, 
 to prevent the figure from being defaced. 
 However, in the time of Oliver Cromwell, 
 and during the changes which then took 
 place, the Helmsleys rose, and the Torvilles 
 fell; this last family parting, little by little, 
 with all its ancient lands and lordships, till 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 86 R0X0BEL. 
 
 nothing remained belonging to it but a part 
 of the old mansion, or tower, of Torville, 
 and the ground immediately around it. 
 
 "The Torvilles were, however, allowed to 
 keep this little possession in peace, till the 
 father of the present ladies bethought him- 
 self of extending his park over the brow of 
 the hill, from the Hall to the Fall Woods, 
 and from the warren on one side to the 
 lands and farm in the dingle, between Rox- 
 obel and the Rock Hamlet on the other. 
 With this view he bought up several little 
 patches of freehold, and placed his eyes on 
 Torville, being determined, either by hook 
 or by crook, to make himself master of it. 
 The estate was not then entailed, the entail 
 having been destroyed some time before, in 
 favour of a daughter's children. Hence 
 there was no hindrance to his obtaining 
 possession, excepting the will of the owner. 
 
 " Torville was then occupied by an old 
 man, w ho had two sons. The old man cor- 
 dially hated, and probably envied Mr. 
 Ilelmsley; and, in consequence, declared 
 that he would rather perish by famine than 
 pa it with one inch of the old Torville estates to
 
 R0X0EEL. 87 
 
 any Helmsley under the sun. The old man 
 was, however, at length, called upon to pay 
 the debt of nature, and Mr. Helmsley im- 
 mediately applied to the eldest son, James 
 Torville, to sell the estate, making extreme- 
 ly advantageous offers of money, or ex- 
 change of land. The young man appeared 
 very willing to close with Mr. Helmsley'* 
 proposals ; but ere the business was con- 
 cluded he disappeared, and no one ever 
 discovered what was become of him. 
 
 "Mr. Helmsley endeavoured to fasten 
 the suspicion of murder on John Torville, 
 the younger brother, and his newly mar- 
 ried wife; John having incurred the hatred 
 of Mr. Helmsley by the violent opposition 
 which he had made to the sale of the es- 
 tate while it was in the power of his bro- 
 ther, and by the determination which he 
 still expressed, to do all that in him lay, 
 while life should last, to keep the old 
 roundhead family, as he always termed 
 that of the Helmsleys, out of the noble halls 
 of Torville. 
 
 " Mr. Helmsley left no means untried to 
 bring the shame and disgrace due to mur-
 
 88 ROXOBEL. 
 
 tier, upon John Torville; but, as the body 
 of the deceased was never found, no legal 
 trial could take place: yet the cruel pur- 
 poses of the persecutor were not without 
 their consequences: for John Torville, feel- 
 ing himself to be an object of universal sus- 
 picion, became gloomy and morose, and 
 died within five years after his brother's 
 disappearance. 
 
 "James Torville, were he living," con- 
 tinued Mrs. Goodwill, "would be about 
 the age of Mrs. Winifred, and John only 
 a few years younger. James Torville has 
 been missing more than thirty years. The 
 widow of John Torville still survives, but 
 never makes her appearance in public. 
 Her establishment consists of a labouring 
 man and his wife, of the name of Raw- 
 son ; stern, ill-conditioned, gloomy persons, 
 without any apparent sense of religion or 
 propriety, being never seen within the walls 
 of a church, or of any other place conse- 
 crated to religious purposes. The widow 
 keeps poultry, cows, and many dogs; but no 
 stranger is ever admitted beyond the gates 
 of the court-yard, which are always locked.
 
 ROXOBEL. 89 
 
 "Moreover, the old mansion has never 
 undergone any repairs but such as could 
 be made by Christopher Rawson, who is 
 a sort of Jack-of-all-trades. No trees have 
 ever been cut down, nor has a single branch 
 been lopped, with the permission of the 
 owner: in consequence of which, the woods 
 which encompass the house, are as compli- 
 cated and intertangled, as the forest which 
 is described to have grown up around the 
 castle of the Sleeping Beauty; and if a 
 light now and then be perceived to glimmer 
 through the gloom, the common people pre- 
 sently make out a story of the ghost of 
 James Torville. 
 
 " You will have pleasure, I am sure, Sir," 
 continued Mrs. Goodwill, "in examining 
 the place; though it is a sad eyesore to 
 Mrs. Winifred, and an inconvenience also, 
 as the widow has the right of carriage-road 
 through both sides of the park: — neverthe- 
 less, the story of Ahab and Naboth should 
 be a warning to us how we covet the 
 property of others." 
 
 In this part of our story, we were in- 
 terrupted by Miss Lucy, whose infant voice 
 i 3
 
 90 ROXOBEL. 
 
 w as heard some minutes before she entered 
 the room, giving me time to enquire how 
 it happened that the little lady had so 
 much liberty to visit where and when she 
 chose. 
 
 "Ah, Sir," replied Mrs. Goodwill, "I 
 hope that this liberty may not prove a 
 snare to her: for as long as she sits still 
 and behaves prettily when summoned to 
 the Brown Parlour, her aunts are satisfied, 
 and take no further cognizance of her pro- 
 ceedings. As to the rest, they leave her to 
 take her chance: but the Almighty is good, 
 and has hitherto tempered the wind to this 
 shorn lamb." 
 
 "Well," I replied, "it shall be my care, 
 that the little lady shall receive no ill counsel 
 from myself: nevertheless, I do not advise 
 my friends to trust their children with per- 
 sons of whom they know as little as the 
 good people of Roxobel know of me." 
 
 Miss Lucy's entrance put a stop to this 
 discourse; and one of a more childish na- 
 ture then ensued. 
 
 I had a fourth conversation with Mrs. 
 Goodwill the next day; in the course of
 
 ROXOBEL. 91 
 
 which she made me acquainted with seve- 
 ral other characters in Roxobel. Among 
 these was Black Tom, the warrener, who, I 
 found, was supposed to be as worthy of be- 
 ing transported for poaching - , as any man in 
 the three kingdoms. This man, as Mrs. 
 Goodwill informs me, lives in the War- 
 rener 's Lodge, which is a sort of tower 
 of great antiquity, keeping company, it 
 is suspected, with some of the worst peo- 
 ple in the country; — among whom is a 
 gang of gipsies, who haunt these parts, and 
 are a bone and terror to the whole neigh- 
 bourhood, on account of their idle habits 
 of fortune-telling and pilfering; though, 
 being strong in the favour of Mrs. Wini- 
 fred, their little encampments are never 
 allowed to be disturbed. Mrs. Goodwill 
 then led me from the Warrener's Lodge 
 back again to the park, informing me, 
 that behind the parsonage, in a very deep 
 valley, lie three pools, called the L 7 pper 
 Pool, the Swan's Pool, and the Lower Pool; 
 that on the bank of the Lower Pool stands 
 an old house, which had been formerly 
 occupied by a dowager of the Helmsley
 
 92 ROXOBEL. 
 
 family, wherein live the gamekeeper, his 
 wife, and one daughter, at this time but a 
 child; and that just above the Upper Pool, 
 on a high neck of land overhanging it, is a 
 large farm-house, situated beyond the verge 
 of the park, though appearing to the spec- 
 tator below as if peeping from the woods 
 within the park, near to a superb fall of 
 water. 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill also informed me, that this 
 farm-house has for its occupant a man of 
 the name of Taylor, whose wife being one 
 of the old school, rises at four in the morn- 
 ing, and calls her maids to their work with 
 a voice which out-roars the cataract, or 
 rather out-shrieks the owls that harbour 
 in the rocks from which it falls. 
 
 "Worthy people these," she said, — "kind 
 to those who serve them; and, though liv- 
 ing in a kitchen, richer than many who 
 inhabit their ceiled parlours." 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill also described another 
 farm-house, as standing on the other side 
 of the park, by the river, and she mentioned 
 a miller who had a very flashy wife resid- 
 ing on the river's brink.
 
 ROXOBEL. 03 
 
 She finished her narrative by taking me 
 on an imaginative ramble up the meadows 
 for two miles or more, till she brought me 
 across a dingle, and up a steep winding- 
 path, leading to the western quarter of Rox- 
 obel; "where," as she said, "runs a hollow 
 winding valley, opening northward; at the 
 bottom of which is a rugged broken rock 
 bulging from the hill; on the various shelv- 
 ing ledges of which are many little cottages 
 and gardens, all more lovely one than ano- 
 ther; and there," said she, "about halfway 
 up, is my little tenement, and just below me, 
 my daughter's house, and on the right a pret- 
 ty cottage, the best of the cluster, standing 
 in a garden, sheltered by a point of the 
 rock from the north wind. Here lives a 
 very old man who was once gardener at 
 the Hall, a sort of humourist, who devotes 
 his whole time to the cultivation of his flow- 
 ers, and the adornment of a little hermitage, 
 which is partly natural and partly scooped 
 by art. We call him Peter Wild," she 
 said, " and no doubt he will be proud to 
 shew you his hermitage, Sir, and his flow- 
 ers; especially if you will bestow on him
 
 94 ROXOBEL. 
 
 a few shells, or bits of coloured glass, to add 
 to his collection." 
 
 " I shall hope to pay my respects to Mr. 
 Peter Wild/' I answered, " as well as to all 
 your good neighbours on the rock, Mrs. 
 Goodwill ; and you must do me the honour 
 of introducing me." 
 
 "And now, Sir," remarked Mrs. Goodwill, 
 " I think I have done my part; and, in some 
 degree, made you acquainted with all the 
 distinguished characters in Roxobel. On 
 the whole, I think, that we are not a very 
 bad set : though, to be sure, there are some 
 black sheep in our flock." 
 
 I felt very well satisfied with this gene- 
 ral outline of the history of the place in 
 which I had resolved to fix the curtains of 
 my habitation, and began to be almost im- 
 patient of the weakness which kept me on 
 my couch in this, one of the finest months 
 of the year.
 
 ROXOBEL, 95 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Dated some davs after tlie former, 
 
 Tins morning-, my packages arrived, and 
 were brought up to the village in a cart. I 
 went down to inspect them. The whole vil- 
 lage was up. Mr Barnaby Semple called 
 over the street, and said, " I am glad to see 
 this, Sir ; it looks as if we were likely to keep 
 you some time with us." The larger pack- 
 ages were then removed into my landlady's 
 hall, and the lesser ones up to my room. 
 I opened my box of varieties immediately, 
 in order to select some presents. I was 
 unable to do any thing towards it myself; 
 but Mrs. Strickland and Mrs. Goodwill 
 were at hand. The lid was nailed down 
 so strongly, that we were obliged to call 
 over to Mr. Barnaby, who was standing in
 
 96 ROXOBEL. 
 
 his shop-door. He canie very willingly, 
 as if he had been waiting only for the invi- 
 tation : but there was another person before 
 him; it was Miss Lucy, who was down on 
 her knees, in a moment, lending a helping 
 hand. Mr. Barnaby soon forced up the 
 deal lid, and laughing, asked me if I meant 
 to set up a shop in Roxobel. Mrs. Strick- 
 land opened a large cupboard in the 
 wainscot, called the maid to dust it down, 
 and we began to unpack. My commis- 
 sioner had executed my commands won- 
 derfully well. Here was a sufficient sup- 
 ply of shawls, gowns, ribands, pictures, 
 and wooden babies ; besides knives, whips, 
 tops, scissars, and an infinitude of other 
 curiosities. I begged Miss Lucy to select 
 a baby for herself, and another for her 
 best friend ; on which she whispered the 
 name Sophia. I also gave her two or 
 three gilt books, and some coloured prints 
 for her brother and his friend. I then 
 made my presents to Mrs. Goodwill, and 
 Mrs. Strickland, and to the servant-maid; 
 and begged Mr. Semple to accept a gold 
 ring set with a handsome stone, which he
 
 ROXOBEL. 07 
 
 immediately placed on his little finger. The 
 two elderly women seemed rather disinclined 
 to receive their presents, alleging that they 
 had already been handsomely paid ; but the 
 servant-maid used no such ceremony: and 
 as to Miss Lucy, she was far too much ex- 
 cited, to pay compliments on the occasion. 
 She sparkled, and smiled, and glowed, and 
 laughed, and was the very picture of in- 
 nocent joy. At length, the curiosity of all 
 parties being fully satisfied, the uproar sub- 
 sided; and Mrs. Strickland stowed away 
 all that remained of the contents of the 
 box, locked up the cupboard, begged me to 
 take care of the key, courtesied again, re- 
 moved the packing-cases, swept the room, 
 and went off in triumph. 
 
 In the evening, after tea, Mrs. Goodwill 
 proposed a walk. " You are now quite fit 
 for such an exertion, Sir," she said; " and, 
 perhaps, you would like to take a view of 
 the Hall?" 
 
 " I should wish to call on Miss Lucy," I 
 
 replied; "but I think that I will wait till 
 
 I can also pay a visit in form to the ladies, 
 
 and it must not be at this hour. We will, 
 
 vol. i. K
 
 98 ROXOBEL. 
 
 therefore, if agreeable, pay our compliments 
 now to Mrs. Tristram." 
 
 We accordingly set out, being provided 
 with a present of a shawl and of a few 
 books for this excellent person; but we had 
 scarcely arrived in the street before we 
 were met by Miss Lucy and her maid; when 
 the young lady insisted on being permitted 
 to accompany us, pleading to her maid that 
 she might always be trusted with Mrs. 
 Goodwill. The little pleader soon prevail- 
 ed; and we walked around the house, and 
 entered into the park just under the iron 
 palisades of the Hall garden. The scene 
 was most lovely, and I stopped a few 
 minutes to contemplate it, turning myself 
 around in all directions. The noble old 
 mansion, with its eight cupolas, and its 
 dome in the centre, faced me to the south. 
 Elevated, as it were, on a terrace above 
 the gardens, and bordered by many trees to 
 the north, arose the park, a region rich in 
 beauty, broken into dales and uplands, 
 lawns and majestic groves ; while a water- 
 fall, tumbling from the higher regions, was 
 then sparkling in the evening sun, and
 
 ROXOBEL. 9}) 
 
 presented the appearance of a cluster of 
 diamonds set in a border of emerald. Be- 
 fore us, as we advanced towards the east, 
 was the church, embosomed in a thick 
 grove ; a venerable Gothic structure, which 
 reminded the beholder of remote ages, and 
 generations passed away. I was filled with 
 rapture, and Mrs. Goodwill had discern- 
 ment enough to let me enjoy my delight 
 without interruption. As to little Lucy, 
 she had run gaily forward, to announce our 
 approach to Mrs. Tristram. 
 
 We wound round the porch of the church, 
 and entered the churchyard, where, straight 
 before us, was the school-house, a building 
 which, like the sacred edifice near to which 
 it stood, reminded of elder days. 
 
 Miss Lucy was tapping at Mrs. Tris- 
 tram's door as we came in sight. Mrs. 
 Goodwill expressed a hope that we might 
 not be obliged to encounter the schoolmas- 
 ter; and, to avoid this, we hurried on- 
 ward, entering into a narrow passage which 
 intersects the mistress's tenement, having 
 the door of the kitchen on one side, and that 
 of the school-room on the other.
 
 100 ROXOBEL. 
 
 At the kitchen-door, Miss Lucy was 
 ready to hand me in, and to introduce me 
 to Mrs. Tristram, which ceremony she per- 
 formed in her own peculiar way, one which 
 is at once sweet and easy, without the least 
 tendency towards vulgar familiarity ; for 
 she is the little lady in all that she does, 
 exacting respect in the best and truest 
 mode, by always paying it to the uttermost. 
 
 " This is the gentleman, Mrs. Tristram," 
 she said, "who gave me the doll, and sent 
 one for Sophia ; and he is come to live at 
 Roxobel ; and he is very kind, and wishes 
 us all to love him ; and I am come here 
 with him ; and I am sure that you are very 
 glad to see him." 
 
 The room into which I was ushered was 
 a large, old-fashioned, vaulted kitchen, 
 bearing the appearance of having been 
 lately whitewashed. It was hung around 
 with kitchen-articles, all of superlative 
 brightness, and arranged with great atten- 
 tion to order. The fire-place had been 
 constructed on a small scale suitable to the 
 establishment, and displayed on its neat 
 mantleshelf some pretty figures of Dresden
 
 ROXOBEL. 101 
 
 china which spoke of better days. Abo\< 
 the chimneypiece hung; an old portrait, and 
 before the hearth lay a little square of car- 
 peting;. Mrs. Tristram, though tall, was 
 spare in her person ; and, though she seemed 
 to be dressed with great attention to neat- 
 ness, yet her drapery exhibited that sort of 
 scantiness which betokens poverty. She had 
 been sitting by the open window, working at 
 a small, round, mahogany board, the scol- 
 loped border of which indicated, that it had 
 been designed for the purpose of arranging 
 the paraphernalia of the tea-table. Near 
 to this little table sat a very old woman in 
 a wicker chair, her countenance betraying 
 marked indications of a second childhood. 
 By her stood a little girl, who was, as I 
 afterwards understood, supported by Mrs. 
 Tristram, from motives of charity. Both 
 the old woman and the child were more 
 comfortably clad than the mistress of the 
 house, and shewed fewer evidences in their 
 features of a too spare diet. They also 
 looked cheerful; and the old lady seemed 
 inclined to begin to talk, and, perhaps, 
 would thus have confirmed my opinion of 
 k 3
 
 102 ROXOBEL. 
 
 her imbecility, had she not been checked 
 by the child, who drew off her attention to 
 an object without the window. 
 
 Mrs. Tristram received me in a manner 
 which spoke much in her favour, but was 
 anticipated by Miss Lucy in her attempts 
 to set me a chair. I began the conversa- 
 tion by speaking with admiration of the 
 view from her window, on which she made 
 some remark expressive of her gratitude 
 for the great comforts of her situation; 
 among which, she particularized, as one of 
 her chief benefits, the Christian society 
 and Christian instruction which she had the 
 happiness of enjoying. 
 
 I had brought a small gift with me for this 
 excellent individual, but should hardly have 
 known how to have presented it, had I not 
 been helped through my difiiculty by the 
 ever ready Lucy, who straightways inform- 
 ed the schoolmistress of my intentions, and 
 begged to be permitted to open the packet. 
 
 When Mrs. Tristram saw the contents of 
 the parcel, she blushed slightly, and said, 
 " You are a stranger, Sir, to me, and I 
 scarcely know how to account for this ge-
 
 ROXOBEL. 103 
 
 nerosity. I would not wish to be too ready 
 to receive presents, however acceptable they 
 may be, unless I could imagine any way in 
 which it might be possible for me to evince 
 my gratitude." 
 
 " If I must explain myself, then," I re- 
 plied, "the truth of the matter is this, — that 
 I am asolitary being,of whom the friends who 
 loved me in my youth are now no more ; and 
 the society in which I once moved does not 
 now accord with my feelings. I have there- 
 fore been for some time a wanderer. Provi- 
 dence threw me in a helpless state on the 
 kindness of strangers : and such has been 
 my reception among them, such the conge- 
 niality to my feelings of the charmingscenery 
 which surrounds their habitations, such the 
 promise of comfort in my present dwelling, 
 that I am resolved to set up my tabernacle 
 in this happy spot. But I must have my 
 friends. I must be cared for by some per- 
 sons ; and I am come to you to say, that I 
 shall desire of you to number yourself 
 among my wcllwishers, and to be prepared 
 to take an interest in my welfare." 
 
 "That is, until I am found unfit for your
 
 104 ROXOBEL. 
 
 favour, Sir," said she. "I have already 
 heard much of you. Roxobel is not so 
 large a place that a stranger can visit it 
 without observation ; and I needed not 
 these handsome presents to induce me to 
 become one of your wellwishers. 
 
 "And now, Sir," she added, "you shall 
 have the pleasure of seeing my poor mother 
 arrayed in this handsome shawl. My poor 
 mother!" she repeated : " I thank God, Sir, 
 that she has the harmlessness as well as 
 the imbecility of infancy. She will be 
 delighted with these brilliant colours. The 
 time was, dear Sir, when she was the wisest 
 and the best of parents. But we may look 
 at her now, and cease to glory in the strength 
 of human intellect." 
 
 So saying, she folded the shawl, and 
 placed it across the old lady's shoulders, 
 who startled me by the expression of child- 
 ish delight which she exhibited on the oc- 
 casion ; an expression which would have 
 been sweetly suited to the dimpled features 
 of infancy, but was here frightfully contrast- 
 ed with the wrinkles of age. 
 
 Mrs. Tristram observed my change of
 
 ROXOBEL. 105 
 
 countenance, and said, " Ah, Sir ! it is, in- 
 deed, a melancholy sight — a humbling sight! 
 but, blessed be God, she retains a strong 
 sense of religion ; and I often see her kneel- 
 ing by her bed-side, and hear her simple and 
 humble supplications to the throne of grace. 
 And she is also very happy, Sir ; especially 
 since I got little Margaret to attend her. 
 The child is very good to her ; and, there- 
 fore, I shall, with your permission, present 
 her with one of these little gilt books." 
 
 In this part of our conversation we were 
 startled by a loud knock at the door, and I 
 instantly recognized Mr. Pen Map, who strut- 
 ted into the room, and made a nourishing 
 bow. I do not recollect much that he said. 
 He apologized for the intrusion ; but added, 
 that it was owing to his anxiety to see one 
 of whom he had already heard so much. I 
 shook hands with him, promised him a visit, 
 and told him that I should have the plea- 
 sure ere long of presenting him with a few 
 books. We then took our leave, and re- 
 turned home. 
 
 This morning, just as I had written so 
 far, a messenger arrived from the Hall with
 
 106 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the ladies' compliments; adding, that, if 
 agreeable to me, they would pay me a visit 
 in half an hour. 
 
 What an uproar, what a bustle, did this 
 message excite in poor Mrs. Strickland's 
 house! It might have been supposed that 
 the king, queen, and all the royal family, 
 were about to make their appearance ; and 
 we were scarcely all set in " apple-pie order," 
 before the three ladies appeared in sight, 
 threading the mazes of the garden, habited 
 in their hoops, negliges, hoods, and long 
 ruffles, being preceded at some distance 
 by a footman, and followed by Mr. Porter, 
 the butler or major-domo. It is very im- 
 polite to be seen peeping; — I therefore 
 shrunk from the window, at the moment 
 that a turn of the walk brought the pro- 
 cession in a line with me, and had scarcely 
 time to gather up my features into a so- 
 lemnity befitting the occasion, before the 
 high heels of the ladies were heard rattling 
 upon the stairs; — added to which was a 
 peculiar rustling, which indicated the rich- 
 ness of the silks that composed the 
 negliges.
 
 ROXOBEL. 107 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill had placed herself at the 
 further end of my room, to be ready to 
 hand the cake and chocolate, and Mrs. 
 Strickland stood outside the door; which 
 being opened wide, Mrs. Winifred entered 
 first, Mrs. Grizzy followed, and Mrs. Judy 
 brought up the rear; — an order of march 
 from which these excellent personages have 
 never been known to deviate for the last 
 forty years. 
 
 There is so much of the old-fashioned 
 gentlewoman in Mrs. Winifred, that it is 
 impossible not to feel respect for her the 
 moment she appears. As to the other 
 two, I have not yet looked long enough 
 at either of them to know what they are: 
 excepting, that they are less than Mrs. 
 Winifred, but dressed exactly in her style. 
 They impressed me with the feeling that 
 they had no character of their own, but 
 that they were mere echoes and shadows of 
 their more substantial elder. 
 
 The three ladies formed into line, just 
 within the door of my apartment, and 
 dropped very deep courtesies; which ac- 
 quired additional grace from the dimen-
 
 L08 ROXOBEL. 
 
 sions of their hoops, and the richness of 
 their silks; which, not giving way as they 
 bent their knees, formed a very elegant 
 circle around each individual. On the 
 other hand, I trust that I was not back- 
 Avard in proving my good breeding. — I 
 arose from my chair at the moment the 
 ladies appeared — I advanced in front of 
 their line — I waved my single arm, my other 
 arm being confined by the sling — and I 
 bowed profoundly to each lady. I then 
 presented my hand to Mrs. Winifred, and 
 was successful in getting all the three sis- 
 ters duly seated according to their birth- 
 rights, in less time, and with less con- 
 fusion, than I had at first anticipated. This 
 being done, and before I resumed my 
 seat, I, as in politeness bound, made an 
 acknowledgment of the high and deep 
 sense which I entertained of the favour con- 
 ferred on me: and I was very well pleas- 
 ed with my own manner of bringing the 
 words honour, obligation, distinction, ex- 
 alted birth, superior rank, high station, to 
 stand in contrast with those of stranger 
 unknown, little importance, ivithout friends,
 
 ROXOBEL. 109 
 
 having no claims, and so on. In reply 
 to my elegant harangue, the three ladies 
 bowed; yet not at once, but according to 
 their respective seniority: and when I 
 ceased to speak, Mrs. Winifred said, " I 
 beg, Sir, that you will not stand ; you must 
 remember your accident and late fever, 
 and not try your constitution too much." 
 
 "And not try your constitution too 
 much," repeated Mrs. Grizzy. 
 
 " Too much," re-echoed Mrs. Judy. 
 
 Being thus politely pressed, what could I 
 do but sit down? And then Mrs. Winifred 
 made me a very handsome speech, in 
 which she most kindly offered me every 
 accommodation which her library or gar- 
 den would afford; superadding some pret- 
 ty compliments, in rather a low tone, of 
 which I recollectonly these words: — "Hand- 
 some present — my niece — agreeable neigh- 
 bour — great acquisition — manners that 
 mark the gentleman ! " 
 
 "That mark the gentleman!" repeated 
 Mrs. Grizzy. 
 
 "The gentleman!" reiterated Mrs. Judy. 
 It must be observed, that, as Mrs. Wini- 
 
 VOL. I. L
 
 110 ROXOBEL. 
 
 fred concluded her speech, I bowed; and 
 my bow was brought lower and lower as 
 her last words were passed along the line 
 in faint and fainter echoes. 
 
 I then thought it right to account for 
 my continuance at Roxobel, by informing 
 the ladies, that being wholly independent 
 of connexions in society, and having an 
 easy fortune, I had long been in quest of 
 an agreeable situation wherein to sit down 
 during the remainder of my life; and that 
 having by a strange accident been made to re- 
 main awhile in this delightful village, I had 
 formed so strong an attachment to the place, 
 that I had conceived a wish to live and die 
 where I was; adding, that I was more than 
 satisfied with the reception I had received, 
 and that I could not and did not expect 
 any further testimonies of regard or confi- 
 dence, till my conduct and behaviour for a 
 considerable length of time had fully proved 
 my real character. 
 
 Mrs. Winifred replied, that what I said 
 was at once candid and rational ; and 
 that she hoped and believed that nothing 
 would ever arise to compel her to alter
 
 ROXOBEL. Ill 
 
 the good opinion which she had formed of 
 me. 
 
 "To alter the good opinion which my 
 sister has formed of you, Sir," said Mrs. 
 Grizzy. 
 
 "Which my sister has formed of you, 
 Sir," said Mrs. Judy. 
 
 I had three bows prepared, in reply to 
 these speeches of the three ladies, and they 
 were not merely bows of form but of feel- 
 ing ; although I could scarcely repress my 
 mirth at the whimsical habit which the 
 younger sisters had acquired of continually 
 performing the parts of Echo to their elder. 
 
 Soon after these compliments had been 
 concluded, the chocolate was handed round, 
 of which my company partook with consi- 
 derable relish ; and I then succeeded in 
 conducting them from the house, in as much 
 order, and with as much ceremony, as that 
 which was observed on their entrance; 
 after which, we parted in the street with 
 many courtesies on both sides. 
 
 As soon as the ladies were gone, Mrs. 
 Strickland came up to felicitate me on the 
 compliment which had been paid me; and
 
 112 ROXOBEL. 
 
 1 could not help smiling at the stress which 
 she laid upon this visit; a stress which 
 reminded me of a reflection that I had 
 often made, of the tendency of the mind 
 to magnify those objects which are under 
 continual observation. Poor Mrs. Strick- 
 land had lived at Roxobel, till she could 
 imagine nothing on earth so great, or of so 
 much consequence, as the Mrs. Helmsleys. 
 In her judgment, poor woman, these three 
 old ladies were the very centre and foun- 
 tain of all human glory; and it was not 
 my business to endeavour to undeceive 
 her, especially at the moment in which I 
 really felt myself most obliged to these ex- 
 cellent spinsters.
 
 ROXOBEL. 113 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 A VISIT TO THE HALL. 
 
 My strength being now greatly restored, 
 I informed my worthy friend, Mrs. Good- 
 will, that I should soon be able to dispense 
 with her attentions. " You shall help me," 
 I said, " to arrange all my possessions, and 
 then you shall return to your little cottage ; 
 and be assured, that, as soon as I feel my- 
 self equal to the undertaking, I shall pay 
 my compliments to you in your own house." 
 
 This day, after breakfast, having sent for 
 the joiner of the village, I set him to work 
 to make me some bookcases ; and I sent to 
 my friend the grocer, at Beckington, to pro- 
 cure some person who could put up my 
 organ; for I cannot live without music. 
 These things being put in hand, I assumed 
 my best coat and my cocked hat, (for I like 
 l 3
 
 114 ROXOBEL. 
 
 to pay every possible respect to the ladies,) 
 and descended my stairs with that deter- 
 mined air which people assume when they 
 have resolved upon an expedition of some 
 importance. Mrs. Strickland regarded me 
 with satisfaction as I passed through her 
 hall, and complimented me on my amended 
 looks. 
 
 I was just stepping out into the street, 
 (for we call the lane which intersects our 
 half-dozen cottages at Roxobel, the street,) 
 when the blooming Lucy, running some 
 paces in advance of her maid, appeared 
 before me, and understanding my purpose, 
 slipped her dimpled hand within my arm, 
 and declared her determination to become 
 my guide. 
 
 To have this child of ten years old, 
 lovely as she is, leaning on my arm, with 
 a feeling of equality, was certainly de- 
 rogatory to my dignity. However, what 
 could I do? It was not possible for me 
 to offend the little fairy who had asso- 
 ciated herself thus familiarly with me : 
 I therefore delivered myself up with a 
 good grace to the guidance of the young
 
 ROXOBEL. 115 
 
 lady, and was led by her through various 
 embowered walks, and along several grassy 
 terraces, till I found myself in the wide 
 area in front of the mansion. We then 
 ascended a high flight of stone steps, and 
 entered a noble hall, encircled by a wide 
 gallery, or corridor, into which opened the 
 doors of many upper chambers. The light 
 thrown on this hall, was from a lofty win- 
 dow in the south, richly decorated with 
 painted glass. 
 
 At the entrance of the hall, Lucy di- 
 rected me to wait, being observant of 
 some domestic rule, by which, it seems, 
 that it was not permitted for me to ad- 
 vance a step further, on this my first visit, 
 unless introduced by that most respectable 
 and portly gentleman-usher, Mr. Porter, 
 the butler, who presently appeared from 
 the same wide door-way through which 
 the little lady had disappeared. By this 
 most important personage I was ushered 
 from the hall along an extensive matted 
 gallery to the common sitting-room of the 
 family, where a door being thrown wide- 
 ly open, I saw before me an immense,
 
 116 ROXOBEL. 
 
 gloomy, oak wainscoted parlour, hung with 
 family portraits in the most abominable 
 taste; each smirking lady, in trebled ruf- 
 fles, having a gentleman opposite to her in 
 a tie-wig, and a waistcoat with long flaps. 
 There was no carpet in this comfortless 
 apartment; but the floor was so nicely 
 waxed, that I had some difficulty in en- 
 tering into the august presence of the ladies 
 in any other way than by a long slide suc- 
 ceeded by a grievous fall. 
 
 In the centre of the room, seated in a 
 semicircle, were the three ladies, a well- 
 polished table being placed before them, 
 though apparently for no other earthly 
 purpose than form, it being entirely bare ; 
 though the ladies were not idle, for they 
 were knitting with great vivacity. 
 
 On the annunciation of my name, the 
 ladies arose, and the ceremony of low cour- 
 tesies and profound bows then ensued ; 
 after which, I took the chair which had 
 been placed for me by Mr. Porter directly 
 opposite my three hostesses. 
 
 We were silent, after the first compli- 
 ments, till Mr. Porter was gone out ; after
 
 ROXOBEL. 117 
 
 which, I said something, which I meant to 
 be very well spoken, on the magnificence 
 of the house, and the beautiful prospects 
 which it commanded : and this being hand- 
 somely taken, I ventured some more re- 
 marks in the same strain, and, if I mistake 
 not, succeeded in making my company ex- 
 ceedingly acceptable: for Mrs. Winifred 
 looked very graciously, and said several 
 agreeable things, which I could not easily 
 forget, as the echoes did not fail to per- 
 form their office on every occasion which 
 a pause in the conversation afforded them. 
 There was, however, some variety in the 
 tones of the three, to compound for the de- 
 ficiency of that agreeable quality in their 
 sentiments : Mrs. Judy's voice being small 
 and weak although high-set, Mrs. Grizzy's 
 remarkably deep, and Mrs. Winifred's in 
 other respects somewhat peculiar. Upon the 
 whole, however, I was not sorry when this 
 interview was interrupted by the re-appear- 
 ance of Mr. Porter bearing chocolate on a 
 salver of massive silver richly embossed. 
 Mr. Porter was followed by a gaunt fe- 
 male, dressed in faded silk and a fly-cap
 
 118 ROXOBEL. 
 
 with lappets, whom I instantly recognized 
 as the renowned Mrs. Nuttall, being assured 
 that I could not be mistaken, inasmuch as 
 her person reminded me of Mrs. Goodwill's 
 history of the small-pox, the recent ravages 
 of which terrrible disease were still very 
 evident upon her face. In looking upon 
 her, I could not help sympathizing with 
 Sancho Panza, who describes himself as 
 having had a natural antipathy to duennas; 
 and, as the waiting-maid approached, I felt 
 a sort of creeping or shuddering through- 
 out my whole frame, for which I could give 
 no rational account, as the dame was all 
 smirking civility, and pressed me most gra- 
 ciously to partake of some very rich cake, 
 several sorts of which she tendered for my 
 acceptance. 
 
 " And to what are we indebted for your 
 company, Nuttall?" said Mrs. Winifred, 
 half familiarly — half angrily, as I thought : 
 " but I suppose that you wished to see our 
 new friend?" 
 
 " You wished to see our new friend?" re- 
 verberated Mrs. Grizzy. 
 
 " Our new friend?" repeated Mrs. Judy.
 
 ROXOBEL. 119 
 
 " I came, ladies," replied the housekeeper, 
 "to offer my services to shew the gentle- 
 man through the house, after he has taken 
 his chocolate." 
 
 " Very right, Nuttall," said Mrs. Wini- 
 fred. 
 
 " Right, Nuttall," said Mrs. Grizzy. 
 
 " N attall," said Mrs. Judy. 
 
 Accordingly, the chocolate being duly 
 sipped, I arose, took my leave, and was 
 conducted by the housekeeper throughout 
 the spacious mansion, being introduced into 
 every apartment which was open to the 
 view of strangers. 
 
 I do not love descriptions of fine places 
 nor of fine furniture. On the present oc- 
 casion, it is perhaps sufficient to say, that 
 I was really gratified by the antique mag- 
 nificence of Roxobel Hall, and that I re- 
 garded the library with that kind of inte- 
 rest which an epicure might be supposed 
 to take in the luxurious contemplation of a 
 rich and royal repast. I did not, however, 
 forget the advantage which the intellectual 
 cormorant possesses over the natural one : 
 being duly sensible, that the enjoyment and
 
 120 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the appetite of the former become quick- 
 ened by indulgence, while those of the lat- 
 ter become clogged and satiated. 
 
 When all had been seen which it was 
 requisite to see, Mrs. Nuttall brought me 
 down a back staircase, and, stopping at the 
 door of her own parlour in the offices, in- 
 vited me to walk in. 
 
 As the duenna had given herself so much 
 trouble on my account, and was a person 
 of so much consequence at the Hall, I 
 neither considered it to be good manners, 
 nor good policy, to reject her suit; being 
 apprehensive lest by some underhand ma- 
 noeuvre, of a kind which ladies' maids 
 and other politicians so well understand, 
 I should be debarred from those visits to 
 the library on which I had set my heart 
 so deeply. I therefore did not hesitate 
 to accept Mrs. Nuttall's invitation ; and 
 was ushered into a large and lofty room, 
 which I should have thought tolerably com- 
 fortable had it not smelt of plum-cakes, 
 brandy, and lemons, none of which articles 
 are agreeable to me. 
 
 This chamber seemed to be literally lined
 
 ROXOBEL. 121 
 
 with cupboards, which were indicated by 
 bunches of keys dangling here and there 
 from the wainscoted wall. Over the chim- 
 neypiece hung a large unframed painting, 
 representing a boy in a jockey cap with a 
 face like the knave of spades, leading a 
 horse well curried and docked, and trimmed 
 with great accuracy. In the back-ground 
 of this picture, appeared a race-ground 
 and booths ; and I could not help remark- 
 ing, that whereas the sky in the painting 
 was as hard as that of the frozen zone, the 
 grass was as green and as smooth as that 
 of a swamp in Bengal. 
 
 On Mrs. Nuttall's remarking that my eye 
 rested on this picture, I enquired who the 
 youth there represented might be, and was 
 told that he was no other than the late 
 'squire himself, who had been accounted in 
 his day an exceedingly handsome man. 
 
 This portrait of the 'squire was the only 
 piece of furniture, of which I took any par- 
 ticular notice in this apartment, with the 
 exception of a large, old-fashioned, greasy 
 couch; though I certainly did observe, 
 that there was as motley an assemblage of 
 
 VOL. I. M
 
 122 ROXOBEL. 
 
 old-fashioned chairs, tables, desks, and 
 wardrobes, as ever were congregated in any 
 housekeeper's or steward's room that I had 
 hitherto chanced to visit. 
 
 The study of human nature is my pecu- 
 liar delight; and hence, every new scene 
 seems to unfold a fresh page of my favourite 
 volume. On the present occasion, I had 
 reason to consider Mrs. Nuttall herself as 
 presenting no uninteresting specimen of the 
 gens humana: nor was I long in the com- 
 pany of this precise and demure duenna, 
 without inferring from certain circum- 
 stances, that she entertained some schemes 
 which had not yet specifically disclosed 
 themselves to my penetration. Some object 
 beyond the simple desire of filling her purse, 
 and providing a comfortable nest for her- 
 self in her old age, seemed to occupy her 
 attention. What this object was, however, 
 I could not even surmise, although I felt 
 an ardent curiosity to discover it, and with 
 that desire I no doubt looked rather more 
 intently upon her, while conversing with 
 her, than was perfectly polite; lor I re- 
 marked, that her eye fell under mine seve-
 
 R0X0BEL. 123 
 
 ral times in the course of our interview, and 
 that she seemed half afraid of me. Yet, 
 notwithstanding my intimidating aspect, 
 she was extremely attentive to me ; and 
 was by no means discouraged from attempt- 
 ing to elicit from me what I thought of the 
 individuals in the parish with whom I had 
 already become acquainted; in which at- 
 tempt, however, I completely baffled her, 
 by bestowing a certain degree of praise 
 indiscriminately on every one. 
 
 While the housekeeper and myself were 
 thus engaged in mutual attempts to under- 
 stand each other better, a bushy red head 
 was suddenly obtruded into the room from 
 an inner door, and as quickly withdrawn; 
 though the door was not pulled to after the 
 owner of the bush. The quick eye of Mrs. 
 Nuttall caught the object, though it had 
 disappeared so suddenly, and although she 
 sat with her back more turned towards the 
 door than mine was : and she instantly 
 called aloud, "Is it you, Taffy? is it you, 
 nephew? Come in, my dear: it's only Mr. 
 Airley who is with me." 
 
 This call brought the head forward
 
 124 ROXOBEL. 
 
 again, but no other part of the body yet 
 became visible: on which, the housekeeper 
 addressing herself to me, said, " It is my 
 nephew, Sir, David Nuttall: the dear boy 
 is just come for a day's holiday from Beck- 
 ington, where he is at the grammar-school ; 
 but he is so modest, Sir, so bashful, he 
 don't like to come in when there's com- 
 pany." And then the duenna, turning to the 
 door, behind which the head had again dis- 
 appeared, made me start with the shrill 
 tone in which she vociferated, "Come 
 forward, Taffy, can't you? Don't be so 
 shamefaced. It's only Mr. Airley paying 
 his first visit at the Hall. What makes you 
 so uncommon shy?" 
 
 At this second summons, a great lubberly 
 boy of about fourteen, with a bushy red 
 head, large dull light eyes, and a somewhat 
 bottle nose, entered the room, and stood 
 about a second looking at me, measuring 
 me from head to foot, with his eye, as it 
 were, much in the same manner as that in 
 Avhich the giant is said to have measured 
 Tom Thumb. 
 
 " It's Mr. Airley, Taffy," said the house-
 
 ROXOBEL. 125 
 
 keeper. " Where's your bow 1 Why don't 
 you speak to the gentleman? What do 
 you stand staring there for, looking as if 
 you was lost in a wood ? " And then turning 
 to me, and assuming a pathetic tone, she 
 added, " You can't think, Mr. Airley, how 
 shocking bad the boy's manners have be- 
 come since he went to Beckington!" 
 
 I have a great notion of my own dignity, 
 and therefore could not think of making 
 the first approach towards this youth. I 
 thought I did quite enough in being prepared 
 to receive any advances which the young 
 gentleman might choose to make towards 
 me. I therefore remained perfectly still, 
 trying if I could distinguish in the boy any 
 symptoms of that modesty and bashfulness 
 to which his aunt had alluded. Mrs. Nut- 
 tall, however, who is a sort of Juno in her 
 temper, appeared to feel highly provoked at 
 her nephew's rudeness: and being resolved 
 to combat his obstinacy, she bade him either 
 make me a due reverence, or else leave the 
 room. 
 
 On this he honoured me with a sort of 
 nod, muttering something of which I heard 
 m 3
 
 126 ROXOBEL. 
 
 only ray own name: after which, turning 
 abruptly to his aunt, he said, " I came here 
 for my snaffle : give me my snaffle, and then 
 I'll go." 
 
 "And is my apartment a proper place," 
 exclaimed the indignant spinster, " wherein 
 you expect to find the furniture of your 
 horse? Is this room a proper depository 
 for whips, and boots, and bridles? Go to 
 the groom, and to the stables, and look 
 your rubbish there. What have I to do 
 with sucli trash?" 
 
 " It a'n't in the stable," replied the boy. 
 
 " May be not," she replied: "neither is it 
 here. I tell you, that no such trumpery 
 shall ever be harboured in my parlour." 
 
 The boy did not seem to pay the slight- 
 est attention to the angry exclamations of 
 his aunt, but proceeded to scrutinize every 
 corner of the room, opening cupboard after 
 cupboard, in pursuit of his bridle, while the 
 fiery eyes of his incensed relative pursued 
 him through all his researches. 
 
 " Cannot you let the cupboards alone, 
 TalFy?" she at length enquired. 
 
 The boy still persevered in his undertak-
 
 ROXOBEL. 1'27 
 
 ing, with the most perfect coolness and de- 
 termination of manner. 
 
 "What do you want?" repeated the 
 dame, stamping her foot as she sat on the 
 sofa. " Can't you leave Mr. Airley and me 
 to converse in peace? What, I say, do you 
 come here for? what do you want?" 
 
 " My snaffle," replied the boy. 
 
 " You are looking for the cake, that you 
 are," exclaimed Mrs. Nuttall; "but it is 
 out of your reach ; you can't get at it.'" 
 And then addressing me, she said, " I am 
 always forced to lock up the cake when he 
 is at home, Mr. Airley, or we should never 
 have any at command." 
 
 " I don't want no cake, aunt," remarked 
 the boy : " I want my snaffle." 
 
 "And what," said the indignant spins- 
 ter, "what, I ask, have I to do with 
 your snaffle? Get away with you to the 
 stable; — which, let me tell you, is the pro- 
 perest place for you." 
 
 " I shan't go till I've found my snaffle," 
 said the boy. 
 
 "You are not going to ride, are you?" 
 asked the aunt.
 
 128 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " I am though," replied young Hopeful. 
 
 " And what animal are you going to 
 mount?" enquired Mrs. Nuttall. "You 
 surely are not going to ride the roan mare ? " 
 
 The boy nodded his answer to this last 
 question. 
 
 " Did not my lady forbid you to cross 
 the roan, the very last time you were here, 
 Sir?" said the duenna. 
 
 " She did," replied the boy. 
 
 "And will you dare to disobey her, 
 Tafiy?" asked the housekeeper. 
 
 " Ye'es," replied the boy, smiling: "I will 
 try how she will take it." 
 
 "Indeed!" I said, putting in my voice 
 when perhaps I should have done better to 
 have been silent, "and you really will? — 
 and how do you expect that your disobe- 
 dience will be looked upon?" 
 
 Had a cricket chirped at the boy's 
 feet, he would probably have taken about 
 as much notice of it, as he seemed to take 
 of my remark; and I think that he treated 
 me very properly, as I was certainly med- 
 dling with what did not concern me. But 
 he returned to the charge against his aunt,
 
 ROXOBEL. 129 
 
 with the most determined perseverance, 
 saying, " I know, aunt, that the snaffle is in 
 this here room." 
 
 "Was there ever on the face of the 
 earth," exclaimed Mrs. Nuttall, " a crea- 
 ture so tiresome and troublesome as you 
 are, Taffy? I wish to my heart there 
 were no such things as holidays." And 
 then, turning to me, " It is always so, Mr. 
 Airley," she said. " When Taffy is at home, 
 then farewell to peace : — it's always just 
 as you see ; I am teazed out of my very 
 life." 
 
 Before I could reply, the persevering 
 tormentor, after fumbling under the couch 
 where his aunt was seated, and bring- 
 ing out various articles of the rubbish 
 which had gathered under it ; (for there is 
 not a better slut-hole in the world than an 
 old-fashioned sofa or couch, provided the 
 cover be but wide and large enough;) at 
 length, drew forth, with a roar of exulta- 
 tion, this same snaffle which had caused 
 so much disturbance. " Did I not tell you 
 it was in this room? did I not?" said the 
 unmannered lad, holding up the snaffle;
 
 130 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " and you would have, it was not. — Just 
 like you, aunt Nuttall! — just like you!" 
 
 " Get out with you, you ill-mannered 
 lad," cried the aunt, " and take your rub- 
 bish with you ! " and then rising in high 
 displeasure, she had laid her hand on his 
 shoulder, to push him out of the room, when 
 a door which opened in the direction of the 
 great hall was gently opened, and Miss 
 Lucy appeared, evidently looking for me; 
 but she scarcely had had time to step for- 
 ward into the room, when Master Taffy 
 sprang towards her, and throwing his bri- 
 dle over her neck, exclaimed, " Now, Miss, 
 for once I have caught you; — you can't 
 get away now." 
 
 The little lady reddened to her very fore- 
 head, stamping in pretty indignation as 
 she struggled to get free ; — crying, " Let 
 me alone, you great boy! I hate you, you 
 disagreeable boy, that I do!" 
 
 The boy grinned and chuckled, and kept 
 his hold. 
 
 " Let Miss alone, can't you, Taffy?" said 
 the housekeeper, addressing her nephew; 
 though by no means with so much displea-
 
 ROXOBEL. 131 
 
 sure in her manner as the occasion seemed 
 to demand. And then turning - to Lucy, 
 and speaking in a fawning, canting tone, 
 she tried to reconcile her to the freedoms 
 of the boy, by expressions to this effect. — 
 " Don't be angry, dear Miss, don't be an- 
 gry; its only Taffy's drollery. He is only 
 at play. You know he loves you dearly. 
 You know you used to say you would be 
 Taffy's wife." 
 
 "Taffy's wife! Taffy's wife, indeed!" re- 
 plied the little lady, in high and beautiful 
 indignation. "If I ever said I would be 
 Taffy's wife, it must have been before I 
 knew what it was to be any body's wife." 
 And she made another effort to get rid of 
 her leather collar, at the same time extend- 
 ing her arms to me, and calling upon me 
 to assist her. 
 
 I certainly am not the most proper per- 
 son in the world to become a lady's cham- 
 pion, especially where strength of hand is 
 required. It was, however, impossible to 
 resist such an appeal as the present : and 
 I therefore arose, or rather slid dow n from 
 my chair, raised myself to my utmost height,
 
 132 ROXOBEL. 
 
 seized my little staff, and, marching up to 
 Taffy, insisted on the immediate libera- 
 tion of the lady. 
 
 " You had best let them alone, Mr. Air- 
 ley," said Mrs. Nuttall; " the pretty dears 
 like a little play: they are old friends, and 
 love each other very much. Is it not so, 
 Taffy?" 
 
 "Yes," replied the boy; "yes, we like 
 each other very well : that is, when nobody 
 meddles between us. Don't we, Miss?" 
 
 "No, indeed!" returned Lucy: "no; I 
 don't like you at any time. I hate you : 
 and if you will not let me go, I will scream 
 so loud, that they shall hear me in the oak 
 parlour." 
 
 "Do then, Miss," said the boy; "for I 
 won't let you go, not while you threaten 
 me. 
 
 On this, the little lady burst into tears; 
 and Mrs. Nuttall and I both interfering, 
 the boy at length loosed his hold, and she 
 sprang to me, seizing my arm, and drawing 
 me out of the room. " Come with me, Mr. 
 Airley, come with me," she said, " I want 
 to shew you the garden on the other side of
 
 ROXOBEL. 133 
 
 the house." And as she passed through the 
 great hall with a hurried step, she looked 
 back from time to time to observe if we were 
 followed. 
 
 At length, being quite out of hearing 
 from the housekeeper's room, she gave way 
 to her displeasure, in the language indeed 
 of a child, but in a manner which excited 
 my astonishment more and more. 
 
 " I hate that Taffy, Sir, I do hate him," 
 she said. " He will catch me, and play 
 with me whenever he can ; and I don't like 
 him to play with me. And Mrs. Nuttall is 
 not angry with him when he is rude ; and 
 she says I ought to love him because I 
 have known him so many years." 
 
 "Why do you go into Mrs. Nuttall's 
 room, then, Miss Lucy?" I asked. 
 
 " I never do, Sir," she replied, " when I 
 know that Taffy is at home. I did not 
 know that he was at home to-day." 
 
 " But why don't you tell your aunt Wi- 
 nifred, when this boy is rude?" I enquired. 
 
 " I have told her many times, Sir," an- 
 swered the little lady. , 
 
 "And does she not reprove the boy?" 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 134 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " I do not know, Sir," she rejoined. 
 " She does not take any notice when I tell 
 her. Only once she said, ' Don't be proud, 
 Lucy Lovel: you despise poor Taffy, be- 
 cause his aunt is a servant.' " 
 
 " I hope that is not really your feeling, 
 Lucy?" I said. 
 
 The little girl looked in my face, and re- 
 plied, " My aunt says it is, Sir ; but I don't 
 know. I did not think about it, till Mrs. 
 Winifred mentioned it; but I should not 
 love Theodore, Sir, if he were like Taffy; 
 and Theodore is not a servant's child." 
 
 This little affair with the housekeeper 
 and her nephew filled me with many strange 
 and perplexing thoughts, and I deemed 
 it right to caution the dear little orphan 
 against familiarity with her aunt's servants ; 
 advising her not to go into the offices, and 
 never to visit Mrs. Nuttall's room. This 
 advice being offered and accepted, we 
 waved the subject of Taffy and his aunt, 
 and the sunshine was speedily restored 
 to the features of my Lucy.
 
 ROXOBEL. 135 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A SUNDAY AT ROXOBEL. 
 
 The day after my visit to the Hall was 
 Sunday; and Mrs. Strickland's pew be- 
 ing very small, the ladies of the Hall did 
 me the honour to invite me into that belong- 
 ing to them; a compliment which I valued 
 the more as it was an acknowledgment of 
 their good opinion of the little man in the 
 presence of the whole parish. There, be- 
 ing enshrined among crimson cushions and 
 quarto Prayer-Books, and not choosing to 
 mount upon a hassock, (for I am rather 
 particular in matters of decorum,) I saw 
 no one during the service but the three 
 elder ladies and the blooming Lucy. How- 
 ever, I had the pleasure of hearing an ex- 
 cellent sermon from Dr. Beauchamp, who, 
 I was informed, had returned to the par-
 
 136 ROXOBEL. 
 
 son age the evening before, with his lady 
 and the children. 
 
 As we made our entrees and our exits by 
 a side-door which led from the family-pew, 
 through a little shrubbery, into the Hall 
 gardens, I was spared all greetings in the 
 porch, which pleased me well, as I have a 
 particular dislike to that gossiping which 
 too frequently takes place in going in and 
 out of a village church. In consequence 
 of this uninterrupted transition from devo- 
 tion to retirement, I was enabled to retain 
 that sweet frame of mind into which the 
 service had tended to place me, till I reach- 
 ed the privacy of my own apartments. 
 
 When Mrs. Strickland brought up my 
 first dish, which she makes a point of doing 
 every day, she took occasion to felicitate 
 me on the compliment which the ladies had 
 paid me, informing me that I was the first 
 stranger who had ever been invited to the 
 family-pew, and hinting, that I owed this 
 preferment to a word spoken in Mrs. Ju- 
 dy's ears by Mr. Barnaby Semple. 
 
 " So," thought I, " there have been 
 manoeuvres, and counter-manoeuvres, for
 
 ROXOBEL. 137 
 
 aught I know, respecting the pew the little 
 man was to sit in at church ; and my friends 
 have carried the day, and are trium- 
 phant!" 
 
 In the evening I again went to church, 
 and heard another sermon; but I found 
 only Miss Lucy and her maid in the pew. 
 After service, the little lady wished me to 
 accompany her in a walk to the parsonage, 
 having received permission to spend the 
 evening there : but I thought proper to de- 
 cline this tempting offer, as I had not yet 
 received a call from Dr. Beauchamp. 
 
 After drinking tea, I set out about six 
 o'clock to take a walk in the park. 
 
 Above all things, I love a solitary hour 
 spent in some quiet place on a Sunday 
 evening; and if to quiet, I can add the epi- 
 thet beautiful, so much the better. I ac- 
 cordingly issued from my lodging, and made 
 my way in a straight line towards the higher 
 regions of the park. Crossing a velvet lawn, 
 I entered a woody region, having Torville on 
 my left hand, and the parsonage on my right, 
 and began to ascend beneath the shade of a 
 winding walk entirely sheltered by tufted 
 n 3
 
 138 ROXOBEL. 
 
 trees; a cool and fragrant region — a place 
 for the sound of rushing waters, and rust- 
 ling leaves. Passing on, yet continually 
 ascending, I came out on a wide glade en- 
 tirely encircled with woods, in the centre of 
 w hich many deer were assembled in groups; 
 and at the further end of the lawn, under 
 two aged yew trees, was an old-fashioned 
 wooden rotunda opening upon a deep din- 
 gle to the left. These ancient yew trees, 
 extending their arms as if to embrace each 
 other, reminded me of the story of Baucis 
 and Philemon, as given by Dryden. They 
 seemed so old that they appeared to have 
 belonged to ages long forgotten. Amid 
 the higher regions of the woods which en- 
 compassed this glade, were the nests of 
 many rooks, who at this calm period of the 
 evening were all in motion in their aerial 
 city, setting things in order, as it were, 
 against the hour of rest. I proceeded on- 
 ward, musing on many things, till I had 
 come up close to the yew trees, and to the 
 wooden rotunda between their huge trunks; 
 and then, making my way around it, I sud- 
 denly found myself brought in the face of a
 
 ROXOBEL. 139 
 
 large party seated within. I started back; 
 but before I could make my escape, I was 
 hailed by an infant voice, and seized by an 
 infant hand, and was thus arrested in my 
 intended retreat. It was Lucy who had 
 taken possession of me. 
 
 " O, Mr. Airley, I am so glad to see you," 
 said this affectionate little creature : " we 
 were just talking- of you, and wishing for 
 you here. Papa, (I always call Dr. Beau- 
 champ papa,) and Mrs. Beauchamp, and 
 Eugenius, and Sophia, and Theodore, were 
 all vexed because I had not brought you. 
 But come in, and you shall see them all to- 
 gether." 
 
 I now found myself seized by the 
 friendly hand of the doctor himself, drawn 
 into the alcove, and addressed on all sides 
 with such hearty welcomes, that I felt my- 
 self to be among old acquaintances almost 
 before I had chosen a seat. 
 
 " Well, this is kind, most kind," said the 
 doctor, his eyes glistening with Christian 
 charity, and the good man never doubting 
 but that I had come, not by accident, but on 
 purpose to join the party. " This is setting
 
 140 ROXOBEL. 
 
 aside ceremony. I meant to have called on 
 you to-morrow; but Sunday is better than 
 Monday for our meeting. ' The better day 
 the better deed : ' and what deed so good 
 as one which evinces our love for our fellow- 
 creatures? Right welcome are you, dear 
 Sir, to Roxobel. We are all prepared to 
 love you." And then he called on the boys 
 to offer me their hands, and drew forward 
 his little Sophia for the same purpose. 
 
 A lovely creature indeed she is, with those 
 soft sleepy eyes which are always so beau- 
 tiful ; and more especially so, when they are 
 capable of being lighted up, and exchang- 
 ing their dovelike simplicity for a more 
 animated expression. I soon perceived, 
 that this pretty creature was highly pre- 
 possessed in my favour; for although she 
 did not venture to address a single word to 
 me, yet she looked half shily, half kindly 
 upon me, and, when brought near by her 
 father, she stood still by my side, not seem- 
 ing to desire to remove. 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill had well described Mrs. 
 Beauchamp ; one glance assured me that 
 she is the kindest and the best of creatures ;
 
 R0X0BEL. 141 
 
 but there is more deep study required to 
 penetrate the characters of the two boys, 
 who, though entirely different, are in their 
 way each uncommonly handsome : Eugenius, 
 whom I looked upon as the future possessor 
 of the wide domains around me, being as 
 elegant a boy as I ever beheld ; and Theo- 
 dore, on the other hand, as remarkable for 
 the vivacity and fire of his dark eyes, and 
 for the spirited turn of his well-defined fea- 
 tures. On the whole, therefore, I thought 
 that I never had seen four more promising 
 young people than those before me ; and I 
 naturally loved them the more for the 
 friendliness of their manner towards myself, 
 and for the unequivocal evidences of good- 
 will which they exhibited. 
 
 It is a law of our nature, from which the 
 worst of men never wholly depart, to love 
 those who love us. Hence it is found, that 
 those teachers of religion who chiefly expa- 
 tiate on the goodness and mercy of God, as 
 displayed in his having given his only- 
 begotten Son for our lost race, are always 
 more successful in exciting our better feel- 
 ings than those who take delight in exhibit-
 
 142 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ing the terrors of divine justice. Neverthe- 
 less, a perfect display of the Christian reli- 
 gion consists in a correct statement of all the 
 divine attributes, and in an accurate dis- 
 play of the wonderful manner in which they 
 all harmonize in the work of salvation 
 through Christ our Saviour. But whither 
 am I wandering? and how have I happened 
 to glide into matters apparently so remote 
 from my subject? 
 
 "Well, Sir," said the good doctor, after a 
 short silence, "and how do you like my chil- 
 dren? I see that you have been physiogno- 
 mizing them. They are all very diiferent. 
 Nevertheless," and he smiled, and paused, 
 " I hardly know which is the worst among 
 them. A fine legacy, indeed, did dear Emily 
 Lovel leave me when she passed from this 
 life to a better, in leaving me her two 
 good-for-nothing children ; and she ex- 
 pected me to take these young cuckoos 
 into my nest, yea, into my very heart. 
 How unreasonable some people are ! " 
 And the good man's eyes filled with tears, 
 while he held a hand to the orphan brother 
 and sister, who both rushed to his bosom,
 
 ROXOBEL. 143 
 
 the little girl in the ardour of her embraces 
 displacing his bushy grey wig. "There 
 now," he added, looking at me, while he 
 arranged his wig; " see what liberties these 
 creatures take. But come, come, all to 
 your places. Who can remind me of what 
 we came here for?" 
 
 " To sing some hymns, papa," replied the 
 little modest Sophia ; " and for you to ex- 
 plain to us a chapter in the Bible." 
 
 "Well," said the doctor, "and we will 
 have our hymns, though Mr. Airley is come. 
 Who will lead the band?" 
 
 Each person then produced a little edition 
 of Dr. Watts's Hymns, and there was a sort 
 of pause till I volunteered my services. 
 
 Music has been my delight from infancy, 
 and nature has endowed me with some 
 voice and ear. I sung a well known simple 
 old psalm-tune ; and the young people fol- 
 lowed me up with spirit. And when we 
 had concluded, the doctor said, " Delight- 
 ful! most delightful, Mr. Airley! You 
 shall teach my children to sing." 
 
 "And to play, too," I replied. "Will 
 you be my scholars, my little ladies?" I
 
 144 ROXOBEL. 
 
 added. " Make the little man useful, if you 
 can, Dr. Beauchamp. Shall I be your mu- 
 sic and drawing-master, my little people? 
 I shall require a high salary though, in re- 
 turn for my labours ; namely, your good- 
 will — the friendship of all here present." 
 
 I had thought some time of making this 
 proposal, with regard to Miss Lucy, as I 
 had espied a neglected harpsichord in the 
 library at the Hall ; and I was glad to 
 find, that my proposition was most joy- 
 fully received by all parties. 
 
 Other subjects suitable to the day were 
 then introduced. A chapter was read by 
 the young people, and some remarks were 
 made upon it by Dr. Beauchamp ; after 
 which, we looked about on the lovely 
 prospect which was extended before us. 
 
 "I cannot wonder at the ancient hea- 
 thens," remarked Dr. Beauchamp, " for 
 converting their Avoods and groves into the 
 temples of their idols. The unconverted 
 man, indeed, pollutes every thing with 
 which he meddles. Nevertheless, the first 
 idea was noble and natural : for where do 
 we feel disposed to indulge such holy aspi-
 
 ROXOBEL. 145 
 
 rations, as amid scenes where the loveliest 
 objects of creation are spread around us? 
 And this, Sir, is my reason for bringing my 
 children out on a Sunday evening, after the 
 public services of the day, to study the 
 word, and to sing the praises of God, 
 among his exquisite works." 
 
 At this moment, two crows alighted on 
 the grass, at no great distance from our al- 
 cove. One of these most amiable specimens 
 of the feathered race was grasping in his 
 beak a portion of a dead horse, or some 
 other such delicate morsel, and seemed to 
 consider himself in a sort of dilemma; not 
 daring to loose the savoury bit lest his 
 companion should snap it up, and yet not 
 knowing how to transfer it to his maw 
 without first dropping it on the earth. No 
 doubt he had changed his place, and had 
 flown from tree to tree, till he was wearied 
 with his various manoeuvres, and despair- 
 ed of thus delivering himself from his fellow 
 bird, who had made up his mind, with true 
 crow-like impudence, to have his share in 
 the dainty. And now, both parties having 
 alighted on the grass, we were not a little 
 vol. i. o
 
 146 ROXOBEL. 
 
 amused with their various gestures, their 
 struttmgs and flutterings to and fro, and 
 their manifold hoppings and sidlings. The 
 careless air of the empty-mouthed bird, on 
 the one hand, and the looks of vigilance 
 and defiance which were cast upon him by 
 the bearer of the prey on the other, toge- 
 ther with the various cawings and croak- 
 ings which proceeded from their throats, 
 were likewise extremely entertaining. At 
 length, on the boys' bursting into a loud 
 laugh, the birds took wing, and we saw 
 them no more. 
 
 As soon as they were out of sight, Euge- 
 nius remarked, that he had often envied 
 the vizier in the Arabian Tales, who un- 
 derstood the language of birds and beasts ; 
 and that he had no doubt that those crows 
 understood each other's cawings, as well 
 as he could understand the discourse of his 
 companions. 
 
 " That vizier," I replied gravely, " was 
 certainly to be envied ; but if he under- 
 stood the language of birds and beasts only, 
 he was but partly instructed, Master Lo- 
 vel : for I once knew a person who, in
 
 ROXOBEL. 147 
 
 some measure, understood not merely the 
 language of birds and beasts, but also that 
 of stars and planets, brooks and rivers, 
 trees and herbs, rocks and hills, and of 
 almost every production of nature." 
 
 " O, Mr. Airley," replied Eugenius, 
 "you are surely joking. There is no such 
 thing as this language of which you speak, 
 is there, Sir ?" 
 
 " Yes," said Miss Lucy, looking very 
 hard in my face, and smiling, " he is joking. 
 I know when he jokes, and when he is seri- 
 ous ; though his face is always most grave 
 when he is joking. I know him very well: 
 he is very naughty sometimes." 
 
 " Nay but, Miss Lucy, I am not joking 
 now," I replied. 
 
 "Then what do you mean?" enquired 
 the little girl. 
 
 " Why, my little lady," I answered, " I 
 mean what I say." 
 
 "What! that trees, and brooks, and stars, 
 can speak?" asked Theodore. 
 
 " I did not say that they could speak, 
 Master Theodore," I replied; "but that 
 they have a kind of language; or rather,
 
 148 ROXOBEL. 
 
 I would say, that they exhibit certain signs, 
 or symbols, by means of which they have 
 the faculty of communicating ideas to those 
 whose minds are prepared to comprehend 
 them : and this they accomplish with as 
 much and perhaps with more accuracy, 
 than you would find it possible to attain 
 by the use of any words that you have it 
 in your power to select." 
 
 "I cannot understand the subject, Sir," 
 said Eugenius ; " please to explain. Are 
 you trying to puzzle us? Is there any 
 trick in what you are saying ?" 
 
 " I give you my word, Master Eugenius," 
 I replied, " that there is no trick at all in 
 what I assert ; nothing but the plain truth. 
 I repeat, that trees, brooks, hills, stars, 
 and all the various tribes of nature, are so 
 constituted as to convey to the minds of 
 those who have studied their language, nu- 
 merous and highly important ideas respect- 
 ing things invisible." 
 
 " And you say, Sir, that you understand, 
 that is, that you can read this language? 
 and describe the ideas which these natural 
 objects are intended to convey?" said the boy.
 
 ROXOBEL. 149 
 
 " I did not say, Master Lovel," I rejoin- 
 ed, "that I, or any one, was an adept in 
 this science ; far from it : but I know so 
 much of it as to be anxious to know more. 
 I believe, I am so far advanced, that when I 
 am placed in the midst of a beautiful coun- 
 try, abounding with the wonderful works of 
 God, I feel as if I were set down in an ex- 
 tensive and valuable library, with the ca- 
 pacity to read and be benefited; and this 
 would not be the case, as you well know, 
 with a ploughboy who could not put two 
 syllables together." 
 
 " Then, Sir," said Eugenius, " you un- 
 derstand the letters or characters of this 
 language? and can put them together?" 
 
 " I know some of the characters, and 
 some of their combinations," I replied ; (no 
 one indeed has yet discovered them all ;) 
 and I can read many passages in this book 
 of nature. I also hope, that in these lovely 
 woods of Roxobel, I shall be able to im- 
 prove myself in this science, and to attain 
 greater knowledge and skill in the myste- 
 ries which the works of nature are qualified 
 to explain." 
 o 3
 
 150 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " Sir," said Eugenius, changing his seat, 
 and coming nearer to me, his fine features 
 displaying an intellectual glory, which 
 added incalculably to his beauty ; " I don't 
 understand you, but I shall not be satisfied 
 till I do. Please to tell me more about 
 these things." 
 
 " But we are keeping all the conversation 
 to ourselves," I answered, looking at Doc- 
 tor and Mrs. Beauchamp. 
 
 " Go on, go on," said the doctor ; " I am 
 all attention: go on, I beseech you. I say 
 with Eugenius, tell us more about these 
 things. You are arranging ideas which 
 have haunted my imagination at times for 
 years past." 
 
 " Sir," I replied, " my great difficulty is 
 to make myself intelligible to these young 
 people, though there is no deficiency of 
 intellect on their part. But Master Lovel 
 and I, with your permission, will take an 
 opportunity of studying these matters alone : 
 for which purpose we will take some soli- 
 tary walks, that is, when I have fully es- 
 tablished myself in your confidence; for 
 I must not expect you to give me a full
 
 ROXOBEL. 151 
 
 letter of credit, at this early period of our 
 acquaintance." 
 
 " I cannot but give you my confidence 
 already," replied the doctor. " I like your 
 countenance and your conversation. I am 
 rejoicing in the prospect of obtaining such 
 a friend for my children." 
 
 " Good man," I thought, " may you never 
 be deceived!" — and I then returned to the 
 subject of our discourse. 
 
 "I take my text, my good Sir," I said, 
 " from the four first verses of the nineteenth 
 Psalm ; and I am thereby induced to believe, 
 that all things visible are types or signs 
 of things invisible; representations of reali- 
 ties that exist within the veil of the celes- 
 tial sanctuary. I also believe, that every 
 natural object has received the impress, as 
 it were, of the spiritual object which it re- 
 presents ; and that its very being and ex- 
 istence is an evidence and demonstration 
 of another being and existence which in- 
 habits the unseen world. I also consider 
 that every one of these types has a sig- 
 nification perfectly definite, though liable 
 to be modified by circumstances ; and that
 
 152 ROXOBEL. 
 
 all of them, viewed under their various 
 combinations, no less than when regarded 
 separately, are capable of suggesting cer- 
 tain truths to the mind, and of disclos- 
 ing certain ordinances of the divine will, 
 which might otherwise have remained un- 
 discovered by human intellect. I likewise 
 apprehend, that this language of types is 
 capable of being systematically arranged, 
 and that a kind of dictionary and gram- 
 mar might be formed of it. I believe, 
 too, that it is a science which is becoming 
 better understood every day ; and that in 
 proportion as it becomes cultivated, the 
 Old Testament will open its marvels to our 
 astonished view, and reveal its glories with 
 greater and greater magnificence." 
 
 " Give me your hand, Sir," said Dr. 
 I5eauchamp ; " I felicitate myself on the 
 acquisition of your society. We must have 
 conversations without end on this subject. 
 I take in the grand outline of your ideas. 
 Where have I been till now? I have 
 always desired to read the Creator and his 
 attributes in his works ; but I have hitherto 
 read with dim and dazzled eyes. I now
 
 
 ROXOBEL. 153 
 
 begin to conceive, that those objects which 
 I have heretofore viewed indistinctly, as 
 the fairy visions of a dream, may really be 
 arranged and reduced to order. Indeed, 
 my good Sir, you have opened a new world 
 to me. And so you conceive, that every 
 natural object is so contrived by divine 
 wisdom as to form the type and emblem 
 of something spiritual? and that these ob- 
 jects, in their various combinations, and 
 under their various modifications, may com- 
 municate such information as kings have 
 desired to be acquainted with, and have 
 not been permitted? You consider, that 
 the sun, the moon, the stars, the winds, the 
 waves, the waters, the birds of the air, and 
 the beasts of the field, are moveable and 
 lively types occupying the places assigned 
 them in the book of nature by the Creator, 
 and continually unfolding their sacred lore, 
 in order that man may read and be wise 
 unto salvation ? Here, indeed, is food for 
 meditation ; here, indeed, is a feast for the 
 imagination. I shall not sleep to-night, 
 Mr. Airley ; not a wink. But come, before 
 we break up for the evening, (for Mrs.
 
 154 ROXOBEL. 
 
 Beauchamp is looking at her watch,) pray 
 read us one chapter of your book ; be so 
 good as to read us the page which is open 
 before you at this moment : you would not 
 speedily find a fairer." 
 
 " I must first call upon you, Dr. Beau- 
 champ," I replied, " to describe the scene 
 as you behold it; and then for my inter- 
 pretation." 
 
 " I see, before me," said Dr. Beauchamp, 
 " and, as it were, spread at my feet, a 
 deep dingle, opening sufficiently to bring 
 within our view a cascade, which, tumbling 
 from the hills above, presently loses itself 
 in the depths of the dell. I see lofty woods 
 rising on the further bank; the ground be- 
 neath, even to the edge of the brook, being 
 covered with underwood and intertangled 
 bushes. I see the long golden rays of the 
 setting sun shooting athwart the woods, and 
 the well-defined streams of light shedding 
 their glories over the deep mass of shade. 
 I see also, nearly opposite to us, the vast 
 trunk of a tree, which has been sometime 
 felled, and whose brown and seared bark 
 forms a fine contrast with the many tinted
 
 ROXOBEL. 155 
 
 greens of the neighbouring vegetables. I 
 finish my description with those splendid 
 columns of violet, purple, and golden clouds, 
 which rise on either side of the setting sun, 
 and resemble the pillars of a glorious portal, 
 opening upon the regions of eternal bliss." 
 "Very well, Sir," I said. "You have 
 done your part ; and now for mine. — I see 
 before me, and as it were spread at my feet, a 
 small portion of the Church of Christ with- 
 drawn from the view of worldly men. I 
 understand that the beneficial influences of 
 the Holy Spirit are richly descending there- 
 on; being conveyed through the instrumen- 
 tality of yonder distinguished ecclesiastical 
 establishment, which through its exalted 
 station has been blessed in being rendered 
 the resting-place of many who have been 
 witnesses for the truth. I remark, in ob- 
 serving the flourishing estate of both the 
 lowly and the elevated persons who com- 
 pose the little portion of the Church now 
 spread before me, that the Holy Spirit, 
 thus abundantly shed among them, ex- 
 tends his salutary influences to every in- 
 dividual thereof: and that hence the con-
 
 156 ROXOBEL. 
 
 gregation of Christians derive their spiri- 
 tual strength, and vigour, and stability. 
 Neither can I doubt, but that the good 
 works of such as are visited with these 
 wholesome influences are answerable to 
 the honourable situation which they are 
 permitted to occupy; each individual being 
 enabled to bring forth his fruit in due sea- 
 son. I also perceive, that the Sun of Righ- 
 teousness, even Christ our Saviour, sheds 
 his glories, his spiritual warmth and light, 
 even on this little retired congregation. 
 And I doubt not, that though he withdraw 
 his immediate presence, spiritual illumi- 
 nation will still be reflected from him 
 through the ordinances and appointments 
 of his Church. I am also aware, that one 
 of the most flourishing members of this 
 society, has been cut off by the stroke of 
 death ; but I have reason to think, that 
 his life is not perished, and that his root 
 will spring again ; or, to speak in other 
 words, that, in the day of the resurrection, 
 he will awake again, and be renewed in 
 glory. I see also, as it were, on the right 
 hand and on the left of the Son of God,
 
 ROXOBEL. 157 
 
 those multitudes of glorified spirits, who 
 have been raised from the mass of man- 
 kind to be witnesses for the truth, and to 
 become instruments in the divine hand of 
 dispensing new blessings, by means of their 
 writings and testimonies, on those that still 
 remain within the pale of the church mili- 
 tant on earth." 
 
 When I had finished, the doctor broke 
 out into a sort of ecstasy. " No more 
 to-night," he exclaimed: "I will not, my 
 dear friend, hear another word. I have 
 too many ideas already ; I have not room 
 for one more." And then suddenly chang- 
 ing his high ecstatic tone, he turned affec- 
 tionately to me, gave me his hand again, 
 and said, " Don't do me the injury to let me 
 discover that you are not the really good 
 man that I take you to be." 
 
 So saying, we arose; for Mrs. Beau- 
 champ insisted that I should return with 
 them to supper: after which, Miss Lucy 
 and I, with a servant from the Hall, di- 
 rected our steps towards our respective 
 residences. 
 
 vol. i. p
 
 158 ROXOBEL. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 VARIOUS EXCURSIONS. 
 
 J* 
 
 Dated some days after tlie last. 
 
 Every thing in my rooms is now ar- 
 ranged to my fancy. My organ, too, is set 
 up, and well tuned. I have improved my 
 acquaintance at the parsonage, and have 
 begun to instruct the young people in 
 music and drawing. I visit the library at 
 the Hall every day. Nobody notices me 
 during these daily visits, excepting Miss 
 Lucy, who spends some hours with me 
 there every morning. I am endeavouring 
 to give her some education: and she ap- 
 pears most anxious to learn. A crown 
 to the footman, now and then, secures me 
 every comfort. The ladies have sent to
 
 R0X0BEL. 159 
 
 thank me for my attentions to Lucy. I 
 still wonder at their trusting me so much, 
 for they know nothing about me besides 
 what I have chosen to tell. I hope that I 
 shall be a blessing to the little fair one. 
 Indeed, she wants a friend near at hand; 
 for she has hitherto received no education 
 but what she has picked up at intervals at 
 the parsonage. 
 
 Yesterday afternoon, I went into the 
 park, and directed my steps towards Tor- 
 ville. This little estate is situated on the 
 very brow of the hill, overlooking the Hall 
 and all its appurtenances. In itself it is no 
 unpleasing object, for it looks like an en- 
 chanted tower, ensconced in tangled woods. 
 The whole of this little domain is encircled 
 by high undipped hedges, much out of re- 
 pair; and within the hedges it is entirely 
 tilled up with woods, excepting to the north, 
 where there is a field sufficiently large for 
 the maintenance of two or three cows. It 
 has the right of road through the park in 
 several directions. 
 
 I walked under the hedge of this wild 
 little ten-it ory, till I came to a gate of ad-
 
 160 ROXOBEL. 
 
 mittance. The gate was locked; but I 
 climbed over it, and walked on through a 
 gloomy wood for about half a quarter of 
 a mile, when I found that I had arrived 
 close under the tower. I could not help 
 asking myself what business I had in this 
 place ; but though I could give no satis- 
 factory reply to this question, curiosity still 
 urged me on, and on I proceeded, till, as I 
 have said, I found myself under the very 
 walls of the building. I went round it, 
 in order that I might inspect it the bet- 
 ter : and for this purpose had to scram- 
 ble over many briars and brambles, and 
 got myself well stung with nettles. I also 
 encountered a large rat, who no doubt won- 
 dered at what I could be doing there. 
 However, I brandished my walking-stick, 
 and looked valiantly; and the rat with- 
 drew. 
 
 I trust, that if any one should happen to 
 see these papers when I am no more, he 
 will not be reminded in this place of the 
 contest between Gulliver and a certain 
 long-nosed quadruped which assaulted him 
 in his bed, while he resided with the father
 
 ROXOBEL. 161 
 
 of his Glumdalclitch in Brobdingnag. At 
 any rate, should the idea occur to him, let 
 him not take credit to himself for its origi- 
 nality ; for I not only thought first of the 
 simile, but spoke first : and so no more of 
 the rat ; there is no credit to be got by him. 
 The Tower of Torville, (for so this build- 
 ing is called,) I found to be composed of 
 exceedingly small bricks, nearly blackened 
 by damp. It seemed to be three stories 
 high, not reckoning two ranges of chambers, 
 the windows of which jutted from the roof, 
 like small dead eyes overhung with heavy 
 eyelids. The lower windows had stone 
 frames, and consisted of diminutive trian- 
 gular panes of a greenish glass, many of 
 which were deficient. The first floor pro- 
 jected considerably over the ground-floor. 
 On the top of the roof was a sort of cupola, 
 or clock-house, in a ruinous condition. The 
 lowest windows of the house were so high 
 from the ground that it was impossible for 
 me to peep in; nor did any sound what- 
 ever issue from within, though various me- 
 lodies seemed to proceed from some place 
 not far off, for I heard a dog howl at in- 
 p 3
 
 162 ROXOBEL. 
 
 tervals, and poultry chuckle, and geese 
 cackle. 
 
 Having well examined the front and one 
 side of the house, and reflected that the 
 country people had not transgressed the 
 rules of poetic propriety, in placing a ghost 
 in this gloomy residence; (for one would 
 almost have supposed that ghosts might rise 
 spontaneously at Torville, like funguses 
 in a warm bog;) I turned back by the 
 path from whence I came, and began to 
 survey the other side of the building. At 
 the back of the house was a wide court- 
 yard, the enclosure being formed partly by 
 a high wall, and partly by a multitude of 
 outhouses, which threatened destruction 
 to the heads of all that came under them. 
 Among these outhouses, towered an old- 
 fashioned pigeon-house, to which, had ] 
 seen it in France, I should certainly have 
 attributed the privilege of bestowing a 
 title ; not having forgotten the old story 
 of the baron, who, having sold every thing 
 but his pigeon-house, was hence desig- 
 nated, " Le Baron de Tour de Tourterelles." 
 St seems, that the regular and obvious
 
 ROXOBEL. 163 
 
 door to this court of ruins, was blocked up. 
 However, being possessed with the spirit of 
 curiosity, — than which there is not a more 
 troublesome nor a more active spirit in ex- 
 istence, — I traversed the briars on the out- 
 side of the wall, and, after a little perse- 
 verance, found a door open, and a way 
 which led through a cowhouse, and brought 
 me into the yard. I now had a clearer 
 view of the mansion, which seemed larger 
 than I had at first imagined ; having two 
 entrance-doors, with steps to ascend to 
 them, one of which seemed as if it had not 
 been opened for years, being, like the cha- 
 rity-box in Hogarth's picture, covered with 
 a complicated drapery wrought by Arachne 
 and her nymphs. The many outhouses, 
 whose backs I had before seen, now gaped 
 upon me in all directions, with their open 
 and empty mouths ; most of them being 
 unprovided with the means of being closed. 
 In the centre of the yard was an ordinary 
 looking, bony, meagre, coarsely clad female, 
 feeding a variety of poultry, geese, and 
 ducks, which made such a clatter, that, for 
 a moment, the barking of a large mastiff,
 
 164 ROXOBEL. 
 
 chained to the wall, was not heard by her. 
 But on a cessation of noise among the fea- 
 thered creatures, she heard the alarm, and 
 turning around, beheld the intruder. She 
 instantly threw away the remainder of her 
 ducks' meat from the cracked plate which 
 she held in her hand, and advanced towards 
 me with long strides : and before she could 
 be heard without a scream, she enquired 
 what I had to do there. 
 
 I was half afraid of the woman, for I had 
 never seen a worse countenance, and was 
 for a moment at a loss what apology to 
 make for my intrusion ; on which she re- 
 peated her question, in no very civil lan- 
 guage. 
 
 What could I do? what could I say? 
 The amazon might have annihilated me 
 with one blow. I was at my wit's end ; yet 
 my good genius did not forsake me. I 
 made a profound obeisance ; and, in a tone 
 of the softest courtesy, begged to know if 
 her ladyship could inform me, whether one 
 Anthony Grimshaw resided in that house? 
 
 "Anthony! Anthony!" repeated the 
 virago ; " Grimshaw, indeed ! Was ever
 
 ROXOBEL. 165 
 
 such a name heard in a Christian country? 
 You know as well as I do, that there is no 
 such a person here." And then lowering 
 her tone, " I will tell you one thing, you 
 little thief," she added, " that if you do not 
 get out from hence, I w ill make you remem- 
 ber your visit as long as you live." 
 
 Great as my peril was, the spirit of mis- 
 chief would not let me refrain from further 
 provocation. I therefore bowed again, and 
 begged to know if she could give me any 
 information respecting my friend. 
 
 "Are you daft, or deaf?" replied the fury. 
 And she seized the handle of a broom, 
 which lay near to her, and balancing it in 
 her hand like a quarter-staff, " Begone," 
 she said, " and never let me see your face 
 within these walls again." 
 
 I lost no time in retreating beyond the 
 reach of her arm ; and then, honouring her 
 with another obeisance, I thanked her for 
 her courtesies, and, promising her another 
 visit, made the best of my way through 
 the open door of the cowhouse, being fol- 
 lowed by her good wishes, which no doubt 
 continued to reverberate among the echoes
 
 166 ROXOBEL. 
 
 of the old walls long after I was out of 
 sight. 
 
 When I got into the wood, I actually 
 sat down to laugh : and my features were 
 scarcely composed when I arrived at my 
 lodgings. The same evening, Dr. Beau- 
 champ called upon me, and I related my 
 adventure. 
 
 " You are a bold man," said he, " to 
 face Mrs. Jenny Rawson. That woman, I 
 might venture to say, is the worst charac- 
 ter in the parish ; unless I except her hus- 
 band Christopher, or Kit as he is usually 
 called. And yet I know not exactly what 
 charges could be brought against the man 
 and his wife ; although I have an indefin- 
 able horror of them. Strange it is, Mr. 
 Airley, that we have but two freehold es- 
 tates in the parish; that women are at the 
 head of each of them; and that these women 
 are both governed by their female servants. 
 As to the widow Torville, she has not been 
 seen for many years; and is, it is suppos- 
 ed, as entirely under the control of Jenny 
 Llawson, as Mrs. Winifred is under that 
 of Mrs. Nuttall. Probably Mrs. Torville
 
 ROXOBEL. 167 
 
 is a weak, ignorant, low-spirited person. 
 But the influence of Mrs. Nuttall over Mrs. 
 Winifred, is what I cannot understand ; it 
 is quite incomprehensible : and I have seen 
 Mrs. Winifred herself wince under it like a 
 galled horse. And then the liberties which 
 are allowed to David Nuttall, or Taffy as 
 they call him, are intolerable. Eugenius 
 has not half the influence at the Hall which 
 Master Taffy possesses. I am sorry for 
 the boy, however. He must be ruined, in- 
 evitably. Nothing can save him, humanly 
 speaking. However, I have not failed 
 to speak my mind to his aunt ; though 
 I believe I gained no favour by my in- 
 terference, either with the maid or the 
 mistress. After all, Mr. Airley, we are a 
 curious set of people at Roxobel; a very 
 entertaining assemblage. But I should 
 advise you not to trust your head again in 
 the way of Mrs. Rawson, lest we should 
 have another ghost at Torville : and one 
 ghost in a parish is quite enough for the 
 animadversions of the people; another 
 would rather perplex us. 
 
 "But Torville, Mr. Airley," continued
 
 168 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the doctor, "is riot the only black hole in 
 the neighbourhood. Not to speak of the 
 housekeeper's room at the Hall, there is 
 the Warrener's Tower, and the Gipsy 
 Wood ; and Master Tom, the warrener, is 
 himself one of the inexplicables. There- 
 fore, I really would not advise you to visit 
 him ; though I do not suppose that he 
 would murder you, which is more than I 
 dare assert of Jenny Rawson and her hus- 
 band. But there is a sad nest in the 
 quarter of the warren; and there is no 
 touching one of the gang, because they are 
 so strongly favoured in the seat of empire, 
 which, you doubtless understand, is in Mrs. 
 Nuttall's apartments." 
 
 So saying, the doctor shook my hand, 
 and took leave. 
 
 There are some people to whom a warn- 
 ing against any particular thing, place, or 
 person, always acts as a kind of attraction ; 
 and these people, I believe, compose the 
 mass of mankind. Tell a child that he is 
 not to touch or taste any particular thing, 
 (even supposing him to be what is called a 
 good child,) and he will immediately desire
 
 ROXOBEL. 169 
 
 to do what you forbid, and will have some 
 difficulty in preventing himself from doing 
 it. This is undoubtedly one of the charac- 
 teristic traits of our nature ; and it is one 
 of those qualities which, with a few more 
 which I forbear now to enumerate, makes 
 the natural man that sweet and amiable 
 creature which we feel and find him to be, 
 and renders the law totally inefficacious in 
 amending him. 
 
 Now, in accordance with the forejroinsr 
 remark, Dr. Beauchamp had no sooner 
 left me, than I began to enquire within 
 myself, whether I was yet strong enough 
 for a walk to the Warrener's Tower ; and 
 the result of my meditations was, that I 
 determined to set off the very next after- 
 noon. 
 
 Accordingly, after I had dined, I en- 
 quired the road; and being told that I 
 must pass between the church and the par- 
 sonage, and direct my steps towards the 
 east till the hill and the Tower rose before 
 me, I set out and trudged away till I had 
 left the village considerably behind. My 
 route lay through the park, in one part 
 vol. i. Q
 
 170 ROXOBEL. 
 
 of which was a grove which promised me 
 shade for the space of a quarter of a mile; 
 and I had scarcely entered this sequester- 
 ed path, before I was overtaken by a de- 
 cent-looking female, whom I presently re- 
 cognized to be Mrs. Nuttall. 
 
 The housekeeper addressed me civilly, 
 and, indeed, as graciously as I could have 
 expected. And when I informed her whi- 
 ther I was going, she offered to accompany 
 me part of the way, saying, that she was 
 come out purposely to settle some business 
 in the same direction. 
 
 Mrs. Nuttall is not a person to whom 
 I feel the smallest inclination to open my 
 mind: I therefore allowed her to lead the 
 conversation ; and contented myself with 
 making a remark, and putting in a question 
 now and then. 
 
 She lirst apologized to me for her ne- 
 phew's behaviour in my presence on a late 
 occasion; and I ventured to observe, that, 
 as the boy seemed to be a spirited one, I 
 thought he would probably be better at a 
 school further from home, and with a 
 stricter master.
 
 ROXOBEL. 171 
 
 "My lady would not hear of his going 
 to a distance ! " was her reply. 
 
 " Your lady ! " I said, in some surprise : 
 " what voice can your lady have in the bu- 
 siness?" 
 
 She caught up her words as it were, and 
 added, "My lady is so considerate about 
 my feelings. She knows how attached I 
 am to the dear boy." 
 
 " Attached ! " I repeated : " but surely, in 
 a case of this kind, you would only consider 
 his good, and not your own feelings. Be- 
 sides, as his spirits are so high, it must be 
 troublesome to you, to have him at the 
 Hall, lest any thing should happen to dis- 
 please the ladies." 
 
 "Deai- lad!" she replied. "The poor 
 fellow is very manageable. You can't think 
 how very manageable he is, Mr. Airley." 
 
 "He is your nephew?" I rejoined; — "a 
 brother's son, I suppose, Mrs. Nuttall?' 
 not well knowing what more to say. 
 
 " Yes, Sir," she replied, looking as pa- 
 thetically as her unmoved features would 
 permit : " the son of a dear and only bro- 
 ther, now no more, who was cut off in the
 
 172 ROXOBEL. 
 
 flower of life. But we are all liable to 
 death, Sir." And she sighed. 
 
 "True, Mrs. Nuttall," I rejoined, with a 
 responsive sigh. " And this Master Taffy 
 is the sole representative of your dear bro- 
 ther?" 
 
 " Yes, Sir," was her answer, " and his 
 picture, too ; though I don't say in face and 
 feature, altogether, but in his ways, Sir. 
 The dear boy has just his father's ways." 
 
 "Indeed, Mrs. Nuttall," I replied, "I 
 don't wonder then at your remembering 
 your brother with delight, if he resembled 
 your nephew." 
 
 T forget the remainder of our discourse ; 
 an omission, which I the more regret, as our 
 topics could not fail of being particularly 
 agreeable, and perhaps useful, for I remem- 
 ber that our conversation ran for a long 
 time upon pickled cucumbers. 
 
 At length, the old Tower arose before us 
 in all its majesty; and Mrs. Nuttall, as- 
 suming her most insinuating manner, said, 
 " My dear Sir, may I be so bold as to ask 
 you what your business is at the Warren- 
 er's Tower?"
 
 ROXOBEL. 173 
 
 "O merely to look alx>ut me, Mrs. 
 Nuttall," I replied, "and to make ac- 
 quaintance with Mr. Thomas, the 
 warrener." 
 
 " I wish," said Mrs. Nuttall, " that I 
 could walk on and introduce you ; but my 
 business calls me another way, and we 
 must presently part. But if you will please 
 to mention my name to Mr. Thomas, you 
 will make sure of a kind reception at the 
 lodge." 
 
 " And no bad thing to make sure of," 
 thought I, not forgetting what Dr. Beau- 
 champ had said. I, however, kept my co- 
 gitations on this subject to myself. 
 
 " And which way do you think of return- 
 ing, Mr. Airley?" said the duenna, after a 
 moment's silence. 
 
 "Probably by the turnpike, Mrs. Nut- 
 tall," was my answer ; " for I should like 
 to inspect the place of that accident which 
 has ended so happily in being the means 
 of my introduction to so many agreeable 
 persons at Roxobel, and, among others, to 
 you, Mrs. Nuttall." 
 
 I accompanied the latter part of my 
 q 3
 
 174 ROXOBEL. 
 
 speech with a handsome bow, which caused 
 the features of the duenna to relax into a 
 sort of smile ; and she said, " Upon my 
 word, Mr. Airley, you are the politest of 
 men." 
 
 We had now reached the boundary of 
 the park, and saw before us a ladder with 
 a hand-rail, intended to assist the pas- 
 senger in crossing the paling. I handed 
 Mrs. Nuttall over the enclosure ; and we 
 then exchanged compliments, and parted, 
 [ to walk on to the Warrener's Tower, 
 and the dame to proceed towards a little 
 village, consisting of about a dozen cot- 
 tages, which appeared to the left, deeply 
 embosomed in woods. 
 
 I soon reached the foot of the tumulus, 
 or circular hill, on which the Tower stands. 
 A clump of Scotch firs crowned the sum- 
 mit of the hill, in the centre of which arose 
 the venerable edifice ; and I already heard 
 several voices proceeding from the door. 
 The building, as it appeared between the 
 tall shafts of the pines, seemed to be of 
 very ancient masonry; its walls being 
 pierced with long narrow windows, which
 
 ROXOBEL. 175 
 
 had been originally intended for arrow- 
 slits. The tumulus was covered with short 
 crisp grass, which rendered my ascent very 
 difficult. 
 
 When I had penetrated through the trees, 
 I found that I must wind round part of the 
 Tower in order to find the door ; though I 
 was informed of the direction in which it 
 lay by the loud voices of men who seemed 
 to be carousing within. Must I confess, 
 that I now felt half inclined to return with- 
 out improving my acquaintance with Black 
 Tom 1 Nevertheless, remembering the doc- 
 tor's words, I proceeded ; saying to myself, 
 " He will not murder me : who is afraid V 
 
 A little perseverance brought me in a 
 direct line with the door-way. The door 
 itself, of massive oak, studded with bosses 
 of iron, was wide open; and I saw within 
 a company of savage-looking men, seated 
 at a table, where were drinking-horns, and 
 two or three blackjacks, or pitchers. 
 
 The men were in deep discourse, and J 
 spe dily distinguished Black Tom the mas- 
 ter of the Tower ; a tall stately figure, but 
 almost lost in the abundance of his black
 
 17G ROXOBEL. 
 
 bushy whiskers. He wore a short shoot- 
 ing-jacket, a belt and pouch over his breast, 
 and thick half-boots. He was in the midst 
 of an oration, of which I only heard the 
 few last words, namely, " and so, as I said, 
 I fetched him a blow across the chops, which 
 made the blood spout ;"• — when suddenly 
 seeing me, he raised his eyebrows, and 
 tixed his eyes upon me, looking fiercely; 
 till, at length, his features relaxed into 
 something more than a smile, and he ex- 
 claimed, yet not without an oath, " What 
 have we got here? the king's fool? or Tom 
 Thumb?" 
 
 It was not for me to put up with so gross 
 an insult as this ; it was worse than the 
 affront which I had received at the hands 
 of Miss Lucy, when she inserted her fairy 
 arm within mine. I therefore looked as 
 big as I could, drew my features into their 
 utmost solemnity, and said, " Mr. Thomas, 
 my name is Airley, and I come to pay my 
 compliments to you on the part of Mrs. 
 Nuttall." 
 
 " Sir," said Black Tom, " I beg par- 
 don. I know now who you are — the stranger
 
 ROXOBEL. 177 
 
 gentleman, who has made such a noise in 
 Roxobel. I beg pardon. I hope no offence. 
 I am a rough man, Sir; but I means no 
 harm. Pray, Sir, sit down, and take a 
 cup." And he very civilly offered me a chair. 
 
 I was quite disarmed by this rough cour- 
 tesy, and said, " I am not in the least offend- 
 ed, Mr. Thomas, If I am short, you are tall ; 
 if I am little, you are big : these things are 
 as Providence pleases. I am never angry 
 at being laughed at in a friendly wry ; the 
 intention, you know, is every thing : and 
 I am sure you meant me no ill. I will 
 therefore, if you please, take my seat beside 
 you, though I cannot drink with you : an 
 acorn cup of your good ale would be too 
 much for me ; so you must excuse me." 
 
 "Well, Sir," said Black Tom, "every 
 man is to do what he likes here. You 
 shan't be pressed to drink; but we are 
 proud of your company, and you should be 
 welcome, though you could drink a gallon 
 full to the brim, instead of an acorn cup." 
 
 As I had volunteered a visit to Black 
 Tom, I thought myself bound to be com- 
 plaisant : I therefore sat down, and we fell
 
 178 ROXOBEL. 
 
 into conversation. We talked of the Tower, 
 which he maintained to be as old as the 
 Conquest; and he vaunted his cellars also, 
 hinting to me, with a wink, that they had 
 formerly been used for other purposes than 
 to keep ale good in a thunderstorm. The 
 hall in which we sat, was a vaulted or 
 arched apartment, of great strength and 
 height. It was hung round with deer's 
 horns, fowling-pieces, fishing-tackle, nets, 
 stuffed birds, and the skins of hares and 
 rabbits. There was a wood fire, almost 
 extinct, in the wide chimney, and several 
 massive doors appeared in the sides of the 
 room, opening into small closets or cham- 
 bers within the wall, which last seemed to 
 be of immense thickness. Beyond one of 
 the door-ways, I observed a narrow stone 
 staircase, like those that we sometimes see 
 in the towers of churches. 
 
 " And how do you like my castle, Sir?" 
 asked Black Tom. " I see you are looking 
 about you. I have lived here, boy and 
 man, these thirty years, Mr. Airley, by fa- 
 vour of the ladies of the Hall." 
 
 He then gave a sort of nod to his com-
 
 ROXOBEL. 179 
 
 panions, who were rising to go, adding, " So 
 you're off? — good luck to you; call again 
 when you come this way." Then turning 
 to me, he proceeded with the subject on 
 which he had commenced. " So, Sir, as I 
 was saying, I am fondish like of these old 
 stones, and would not change them for 
 never a palace in the land, and the Hall to 
 boot, that would not I. But I understand 
 Mrs. Nuttall has directed you to come here? 
 Belike you may be some sort of kin to she ? " 
 
 I denied the honour assigned to me, and 
 tried to give the conversation a more se- 
 rious turn. — "And so, Mr. Thomas," I 
 said — 
 
 " Black Tom, Sir, if you please," put 
 in my auditor ; " they call me Black 
 Tom." 
 
 "Well, it shall be Black Tom," I re- 
 plied, "when we are a little better ac- 
 quainted. And so you say that you have 
 lived in this tower thirty years. I was 
 thinking that thirty years was no long time 
 to look back upon, and not much more 
 to look forward to. But when thirty and 
 thirty are put together, it brings a man
 
 180 ROXOBEL. 
 
 pretty nearly to the end of his tether ; and 
 then it will not much matter whether he 
 has lived in a tower or a dungeon, pro- 
 vided he has taken some thought about 
 what is to come after this life." 
 
 " Very true, Sir, very true," replied 
 Tom, looking seriously; "but, honoured 
 Sir, it is my luck to live in a sort of 
 way which does not leave me much time 
 for serious thoughts." 
 
 " As to time, my friend," I said, " all 
 men have time for thinking, though they 
 may not have much for reading." 
 
 " Well then, to be plain, Mr. Airley," he 
 replied, " I have no heart to think of these 
 things. The sort of life I lead is so con- 
 trary to," — and he stopped a moment, as if 
 for a word; but directly added, " Pshaw! 
 what am I standing at ? The truth, Sir, is, 
 that a man who lives as I do, would rather 
 forget the next world, than encourage him- 
 self in thinking of it." 
 
 "Why so?" I said; "your calling is an 
 honest one?" 
 
 " It is so, Sir, in itself," he answered ; 
 " but, Sir, Mr. Airley, you and I are new
 
 ROXOBEL. 181 
 
 acquaintance, and you are in some sort a 
 stranger here; but if you are the man I 
 take you to be, that is, a sort of friend to 
 every one ; a person who hears every thing, 
 but tells nothing ; (for that's the character 
 they give of you in our village ;) why then, 
 Sir, I may be tempted to open my mind to 
 you sometime or other. And now, Sir, I 
 call that fair speaking, and if I was not 
 much your inferior, I would offer you my 
 hand upon it." 
 
 I immediately stretched out my hand to 
 him, and he gave it a hearty grasp. After 
 which, promising to call again, and hoping 
 that I had already said enough to lead him 
 to reflection, I took my leave, promising 
 to repeat my visit at some future time. 
 
 I walked round the Tower, when I had 
 left its hospitable master, till being arrived 
 on the north side of the tumulus, I saw, 
 in a kind of hollow, the little hamlet, whose 
 thatched roofs I had before noticed ; and 
 near to it, a thick dark wood. I felt my- 
 self disposed to examine this village, and 
 with that intention I descended the hill, and 
 made my way to its entrance. The cot- 
 vol. I. R
 
 182 EOXOBEL. 
 
 tages of which it was composed stood 
 around a green, each house being situated 
 within a garden, encircled by a high clipped 
 hedge, with the exception of one tenement, 
 which was placed somewhat in advance of 
 the rest, and was distinguished by a sign, 
 swinging on a beam, and exhibiting the 
 triumphant figure of St. George fighting 
 with a fire-breathing green dragon. 
 
 I had heard that this village, commonly 
 called Burrow-Town, contained as many 
 poachers as men, and as many thieves as 
 women and children ; and indeed, I never 
 beheld a set of darker countenances than 
 those which peeped at me over the hedges 
 and half-doors of the cottages. However, I 
 was permitted to pass on unmolested, till, 
 being in a line with the Green Dragon, a 
 short lane, terminating in the dark wood 
 which I had seen from the summit of the 
 tumulus, opened on my right. I immediately 
 bent my steps in that direction ; and as I 
 proceeded, obtained a view of the river 
 which forms the northern boundary of Rox- 
 obel. 
 
 I had no sooner reached the wood, than
 
 ROXOBEL. 183 
 
 I found myself involved in a deep shade, 
 which was the more agreeable, on account 
 of its contrast with the strong glare of the 
 warren which I had just traversed. A few 
 winding half-beaten paths then appeared, 
 promising no very direct passage to open 
 daylight; but the song of the blackbird, 
 and the note of the wood-pigeon, tended 
 greatly to enliven the place. Onward I 
 then proceeded, till suddenly a glade open- 
 ed before me, and a scene well worthy of the 
 pencil of the artist presented itself, where 
 the trees cast their deepest shade. In this 
 glade was a kettle, hanging on a transverse 
 stick, supported bv two upright posts of the 
 same rough materials; and near to it a boy, 
 who had been probably set to watch the 
 process of the cookery, but had fallen into 
 a deep sleep, in a sitting attitude, his head 
 leaning against the trunk of a tree. A lit- 
 tle on one side of him, a donkey was stand- 
 ing, in a state of motionless stupidity, which 
 I conceive to be the most perfect enjoyment 
 of which this long-eared quadruped is ca- 
 pable ; and at some distance behind the 
 sleeping boy, was a sort of tent, as ragged
 
 184 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and various in colour as any lover of the 
 picturesque could have desired. Long deep 
 rays of light were streaming across the 
 scene, and formed a beautiful contrast with 
 the shade of the trees in the back-ground. 
 I recollected that I had heard, that this 
 neighbourhood was haunted by gipsies; 
 and thus being able to account for the ob- 
 jects before me, I sat down on a low bank, 
 in the best point of view I could select, 
 and, taking out my pencil and sketch-book, 
 I busied myself in drawing the outline of 
 the rural scene. 
 
 Such a little man as I am is easily hidden, 
 insomuch so that I have often been screen- 
 ed from observation when I really had no 
 intention whatever of using concealment. 
 This was my present case ; for I had un- 
 premeditatedly set myself down on the 
 right of a thick holly bush, which would 
 have overshadowed me from head to foot 
 even from the eyes of Argus himself. 
 
 While I was here sketching with all 
 my might and main, a female voice pro- 
 ceeded from the thicket beyond the holly 
 hush, pronouncing these words. — " You will
 
 ROXOBEL. 185 
 
 not fail us, Nelly? My lady is very un- 
 easy; and we are anxious to know who he 
 is." 
 
 The voice was Mrs. Nuttall's; and the 
 duenna was using her most insinuating 
 manner. 
 
 "But, good Madam," replied another 
 female, in a deep provincial accent, "how 
 is I to satisfy you, unless I sees him? Hear- 
 say won't do in matters of this kind. Be- 
 sides, they tells me he changes his shapes, 
 and looks one thing at one time, and ano- 
 ther thing at another." 
 
 "Well, then," replied the duenna, " if you 
 must see him, why not call at Mrs. Strick- 
 land's ? Cannot you make out some busi- 
 ness there ? " 
 
 "What!" screamed the other, "to be 
 called after for a witch and a thief? and, 
 perhaps, to be hunted with the dogs out of 
 the village ? No, no, my lady, that won't 
 do. And, to be plain with your majesty, 
 I don't at all like the service. Them little 
 folks have ten times the deepness which 
 bigger ones have; and I had much ra- 
 ther you would employ another than me 
 r 3
 
 186 ROXOBEL. 
 
 in the business. And if I cannot have the 
 bargain for the kitchen grease, why, my 
 lady, I shall scarce know how to make it 
 out: I fear I must leave my trade and 
 go to work, for I canna see my little lads 
 and lasses starving." 
 
 " Pshaw!" said Mrs. Nuttall; " did I not 
 promise you the kitchen stuff, if you would 
 do this service for us ? " 
 
 " Then I must see the gentleman, at all 
 events," rejoined the other ; " and if he is 
 not willing to let me look into his palm, I 
 fear it will be beyond my art and power to 
 tell you aught about him." 
 
 " Come, come, Nelly," replied Mrs. Nut- 
 tall, " I know you love to make difficulties 
 where there are none. Come, here's a 
 crown, and the promise of the grease. Are 
 you satisfied now?" 
 
 The tone of the gipsy seemed cjianged 
 when she spoke again ; by which I was led 
 to understand that she had touched the sil- 
 ver: and her next address was in that 
 fawning, canting style, which indicates 
 self-interest of the most sordid descrip- 
 tion.
 
 ROXOBEL. 187 
 
 " I am bound to pray for you, dear lady," 
 she said, " and for that dear youth, Master 
 Taffy. Bless his sweet face. It does me 
 good to look at him, with his pretty grey 
 eyes, and his hair as bright as the sun. Sure, 
 he is born for great things. I know nothing 
 of future events, if there is not a dainty little 
 lady growing up to be his wife ; — a lady of 
 high blood, and one that is fair as a lily, 
 with eyes so bright and blue! Master 
 Taffy is born to marry greatly, or I have 
 no skill, and will be content to be burned 
 as a witch and a liar." 
 
 "If every liar were to be burned," thought 
 I, " you would not be long before you smelt 
 the savour of the faggot, my good woman." 
 But, hark! Mrs. Nuttall was speaking 
 again, and I did not dare to stir, for fear of 
 bringing both the ladies upon me. 
 
 " And do you think that there is a chance 
 of my dear Taffy's being settled according 
 to my wishes, Nelly?" said the house- 
 keeper, complacently. " Not that I expect 
 that he is to raise himself by marriage ; 
 such an idea is far from my thoughts." 
 
 "And why?" replied the other, as if in
 
 188 ROXOBEL. 
 
 surprise. "Why should you doubt that 
 the sweet youth should raise himself by 
 wedlock, as others have done? And is 
 there not a little lady, a sweet little lady 
 of noble degree, ready to his hands?" 
 
 " Surely," thought I, " it is not my Lucy 
 whom this witch is promising to Master 
 Taffy! He shan't have her. He never 
 shall have her." And with that, hearing a 
 rustling in the thicket, as if the ladies were 
 on the move, I crept from my place, darted 
 down the first path which offered, and, as 
 I believe, got away unseen.
 
 ROXOBEL. 189 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 VISIT TO ROCKSIDE, AND MEETING WITH 
 THE GIPSY WIFE. 
 
 Dated the following day. 
 
 I WAS thinking, the next morning after 
 my walk to the Warrener's Tower, of mak- 
 ing a visit to my first friend in Roxobel, Mrs. 
 Goodwill, and had looked several times at 
 the sky, hoping that the afternoon might not 
 prove too hot for my intended excursion,' — 
 when a little boy brought me a note from 
 Dr. Beauchamp, begging me to accompany 
 himself, his lady, and their family, that is 
 to say, their four children, on an annual 
 visit to the Hermit of the Rock; and desir- 
 ing me to join the party at four o'clock pre- 
 cisely, in the alcove of the yew trees.
 
 190 ROXOBEL. 
 
 I immediately sat down, and penned my 
 cordial acquiescence in the plan. 
 
 When I met my pretty Miss Lucy, in the 
 library, she adverted to the doctor's scheme, 
 and told me that she would accompany me 
 at three, in my walk to the yew tree seat. 
 "And we must all carry something, Sir," 
 she added, "either to help the feast, or 
 to give away. I have got some cakes, 
 and some sweetmeat and fruit, from Mrs. 
 Nuttall." 
 
 "And I, for my part, will take some 
 little books," I added, "and I shall be at 
 your command at the time agreed on." 
 
 I was ready according to appointment, 
 and set out with Miss Lucy, soon after three 
 o'clock. We were all assembled in the 
 yew tree seat, just as the clock in the clock- 
 house of the Hall was heard to strike four, 
 indistinctly heard indeed, but yet perceiv- 
 able to those who listened for it. 
 
 The joyful little company then marched 
 forth, each charged with some packet or 
 basket; and various were the lovely dingles, 
 hill-side coppices, breezy downs, and sha- 
 dowy wood-walks, which we intersected in
 
 R0X0BEL. 191 
 
 our path ; diversifying our way with such 
 an interchange of delightful converse, as I 
 have seldom enjoyed. Perhaps few men 
 ever possessed talent for conversation 
 equal to that of Dr. Beauchamp. With 
 the appearance of never being particularly 
 guarded, he yet seemed perfectly free from 
 every feeling of which man has need to 
 be ashamed. His mind was stored with 
 beautiful and elegant associations, to the 
 multitude of which he seemed to be mak- 
 ing a continual addition ; gleaning from 
 every person, and every thing, some new 
 idea, and instantly arranging, combining, 
 and refining his newly acquired possession, 
 by a sort of mental process, which, like 
 the touch of Midas, rapidly converted even 
 the basest metal into gold ; pure intellec- 
 tual gold, without alloy. 
 
 I have often thought, that one of the 
 most remarkable differences between one 
 mind and another, consists in the ability 
 of forming combinations and associations. 
 One man is endowed, divinely so no doubt, 
 with a peculiar facility of associating that 
 which is lovely or improving, with every
 
 192 ROXOBEL. 
 
 thing which meets his senses. Another is 
 astonishingly quick in remarking the hi- 
 therto unobserved resemblances by which 
 objects apparently dissimilar may be hap- 
 pily classed together. And a third is un- 
 fortunately ready to connect ideas the most 
 gross and disgusting, with every object 
 which presents itself to his apprehension. 
 
 The first of these characters, is a refined, 
 amiable, and lovely individual, who will 
 hereafter be admitted into the society of 
 angels. The second is a wit, who makes 
 his auditors wonder, and admire, and ex- 
 hibit the usual demonstrations of mirthful 
 astonishment. And the third is a vulgar 
 and degraded being, whose talents are suit- 
 ed only to the morals and the intellect of 
 an alehouse-bench. — With this last cha- 
 racter I have no desire to be acquainted. 
 
 Dr. Beauchamp is an eminent example 
 of the first of these characters ; and, as 
 such, it may easily be conjectured how 
 interested he was in my theory of the 
 language of nature, and of its capability 
 of being digested into a regular system. 
 Accordingly, this day, as we walked along,
 
 ROXOBEL. 193 
 
 enjoying the various and beautiful scenes 
 which environed our path, he endeavoured 
 to make himself acquainted with some of 
 the simplest characters of this new lan- 
 guage, and became more and more charm- 
 ed with the study as he proceeded. 
 
 Thus we discoursed, till, having crossed 
 the higher ground, and emerged from the 
 shade of the woods, we saw before us a 
 rugged dingle much broken with large 
 stones, winding away towards the north : 
 and beyond this, rising abruptly, we per- 
 ceived a bold rock, on whose shelving and 
 mossy banks were many little thatched 
 dwellings, standing like the nests of eagles 
 rather than the habitations of men. The 
 whole scene was backed by woods, and 
 many tufts and bushes of low wild shrubs 
 grew here and there among the houses, 
 while a stream of pure water fell spark- 
 ling and foaming from the heights, and, 
 hastening on its course through the bottom 
 of the valley, presently lost itself in the 
 river. 
 
 'There," said Dr. Beauchamp, turning 
 round to enjoy my surprise, " are we come 
 vol. i. s
 
 194 ROXOBEL. 
 
 here for nothing? — Is not this worth see- 
 ing?" 
 
 "This is, indeed, a new chapter in our 
 book of nature," I replied : " here is 
 the Rock, standing beyond the reach of 
 the floods, and pouring forth its living wa- 
 ters ; and there are those who, having built 
 their houses thereon, are safe in its protec- 
 tion." 
 
 By this time we had descended into the 
 glen, and having crossed the stream by a 
 few stepping-stones, we were presently dis- 
 cerned from some of the cottages, when an 
 evident stir and commotion was immedi- 
 ately seen to ensue ; the little ones of the 
 society being observed to gather in groups 
 at the cottage-doors. 
 
 When arrived at the foot of the Rock, 
 we began to ascend by steps cut in the 
 living stone, and passed before one or two 
 cottages, the inhabitants of which the kind 
 pastor addressed by name, patting their 
 little rosy-cheeked children on their heads ; 
 while I, at the suggestion of Lucy and 
 Sophia, produced some of my small gilt 
 penny and two-penny publications, which
 
 ROXOBEL. 195 
 
 the little ladies took upon themselves to 
 distribute, pointing me out, as I could per- 
 ceive from time to time, as the liberal donor. 
 
 At length we reached a garden, situa- 
 ted on a ledge of the Rock, very curiously 
 laid out, and most gaudy with carna- 
 tions, tulips, and ranunculuses. The cot- 
 tage within this garden was certainly the 
 most superb of any that I had seen on the 
 Rock ; being distinguished by a rude porch, 
 and by some painted glass in the window. 
 
 " Here," said the doctor, " here is our 
 resting-place ; this is Master Peter's dwell- 
 ing. Call aloud, and knock, boys ; we must 
 rouse the old man. He will not come to 
 meet us, that is not his way : he must be 
 courted to be civil; for he is a man of con- 
 sequence. Yes; — you may look, Mr. Air- 
 ley: you perhaps did not expect to find a 
 man of consequence here; but I never 
 could see so much difference in human 
 beings, as to think self-importance vastly 
 more ridiculous in one poor mortal than in 
 another." 
 
 By this time the young gentlemen had 
 made the old man understand that we were
 
 196 ROXOBEL. 
 
 come to beg- permission to sit awhile and 
 refresh ourselves in his hermitage ; and he 
 had signified his acquiescence in our re- 
 quest in due form, and was coming forth to 
 perform the honours of his domain. He 
 was a venerable old man, had apparently 
 been singularly handsome in his day, and 
 was dressed with the greatest attention to 
 neatness. 
 
 Mrs. Beauchamp repeated our request, 
 on his appearance ; and compliments hav- 
 ing passed on both sides, he led us round his 
 house to a more retired and beautiful por- 
 tion of his premises, where he introduced 
 us to a really pretty hermitage, cut out of 
 the rock, and tastefully adorned with shells 
 and petrifactions. In the centre of this 
 cavern, was a rude circular table, around 
 which were fixed convenient seats. We 
 there unpacked our baskets, and arranged 
 our store of refreshments, while the old 
 man hastened to set his kettle over the fire, 
 that we might make tea. In the mean time 
 I had missed my little ladies ; but while I 
 was looking for them, they appeared again, 
 in company with Mrs. Goodwill, and the
 
 ROXOBEL. 197 
 
 pretty little black-eyed Ellen, Mrs. Good- 
 will's granddaughter. 
 
 Mrs. Goodwill and I met, as we ought to 
 have met, namely, as old friends ; and we 
 made the excellent woman sit down, and 
 partake with us. While the water was 
 boiling, the doctor proposed that we should 
 sing a hymn of praise and thanksgiving 
 for the happiness we were enjoying, and I 
 made no scruple to lead the song; which 
 being concluded, Mrs. Goodwill begged 
 for another, and would have asked for a 
 third, I believe, if the kettle had not 
 made its appearance. She then, with tears 
 in her eyes, thanked us for the treat ; say- 
 ing, "Now, my good Mr. Airley, I trust 
 you are quite resolved never to leave us ? " 
 
 "And why should I stay with you?" I 
 said, affecting to be saucy. 
 
 " Because we begin to love you ; and 
 we hope to join with you in many songs of 
 praise like this on earth, and to renew them 
 with you in heaven," replied the good wo- 
 man, with the tears in her eyes. 
 
 " I often think, and feel," said Dr. Beau- 
 champ, " that there is more real piety in 
 s 3
 
 198 ROXOBEL. 
 
 being happy, than in any other act of 
 life." 
 
 " I do not know whether you can call 
 being happy an act, Dr. Beauchamp," I 
 rejoined. 
 
 " I know," answered the doctor, " that 
 being miserable is often a voluntary act. 
 There are people who will be miserable; 
 and to will is an active verb : and there- 
 fore, I suppose, that to be happy may also 
 be a voluntary act, and a Christian duty 
 also, as often as circumstances will permit." 
 
 " But are there not some sorts of happi- 
 ness which are contrary to all that is right. 
 Dr. Beauchamp?" said his lady. 
 
 " Some sorts of pleasures are sinful, my 
 dear," replied the doctor ; " but I doubt 
 whether these ever confer happiness for 
 one moment. I maintain that no man can 
 be happy without deserving it." 
 
 "Deserving it?" said Mrs. Goodwill. 
 " Ah ! who deserves happiness ? " 
 
 "Who, indeed?" subjoined Mrs. Beau- 
 champ. 
 
 " Those," replied the doctor, " who are 
 rich in the merits of the Redeemer."
 
 ROXOBEL. 199 
 
 "Well come off," I remarked. " I thought 
 you had got yourself into a scrape, my good 
 Sir, and that the ladies had the best of the 
 argument." 
 
 Thus we conversed, till Mr. Peter, hav- 
 ing served all that was necessary, was made 
 to sit down with us. 
 
 The doctor then enquired after his ilow- 
 ers, which were his delight. And I asked 
 him how he spent his time in winter. 
 
 " I will answer for him," said the doctor. 
 " Peter is a great reader ; and I rejoice to 
 say that he has lately been led to love his 
 Bible. There was a time when he desired 
 to have his good things on earth, and his 
 paradise here, where flowers fade and blos- 
 soms perish. But he has better thoughts 
 now. He is now anxious principally for 
 that land of pure delight — 
 
 " Where everlasting spring abides, 
 And never withering flowers." 
 
 Peter then took us to see his flower- 
 garden ; alter which, being admonished by 
 the progress of the shades to return to- 
 wards our happy homes, we set out without 
 further delay. But we were not destined
 
 200 ROXOBEL. 
 
 to close the evening without an adventure, 
 which shall be related in due course. 
 
 We had entered into the darkest part of 
 the woods, through which we had to pass; — 
 Mrs. Beauchamp, who was not fond of the 
 evening air, had hastened forward with the 
 children ; and the doctor and I were in 
 deep conversation; — when suddenly, as it 
 were ascending out of the earth, or rising 
 to view probably from beneath the under- 
 wood, appeared a tall gaunt female figure, 
 in a grey cloak and clouted petticoat, with 
 a headdress which was neither cap, bon- 
 net, nor turban. She stood still before us, 
 and addressed the doctor in fawning ac- 
 cents. 
 
 " Bless your sweet face, good Sir ! " she 
 exclaimed; "it is very long since I have 
 seen you. I hope Madam is well, and that 
 pretty blue-eyed Miss, your daughter? 
 Heaven bless her! But I have been down 
 at the parsonage to ask Madam for some 
 of her salve, Sir, for a poor woman who is 
 sorely scalded ; and though I could have 
 put something to the scald which would 
 have healed it in a trice, yet nothing would
 
 ROXOBEL. 201 
 
 satisfy the poor creature but some of Ma- 
 dam's green salve. And I went to the par- 
 sonage, and Madam was out: so I came 
 this way, hearing that the family was gone 
 to the Rock." So saying, she dropped se- 
 veral courtesies. 
 
 " Well, good woman," replied the doctor, 
 " you have nothing to do but to trudge 
 back again, which will be all in your way 
 home, and you will find Mrs. Beauchamp. 
 But, Nelly, why don't I see some of you 
 at church now and then ? Do you suppose 
 that gipsies have no souls ? And, as you 
 have no enemies but yourselves hereabouts, 
 there is no occasion to hide and skulk as 
 you do. For shame ! leave off your idle 
 courses ; make interest with your friend, 
 Mrs. Nuttall, for a cottage, and sit down, 
 you and your brats, (I think you have six 
 of them,) in a decent way, to earn your 
 bread as rational creatures ought to do." 
 
 " I don't say, good Sir," replied the gip- 
 sy, " but that I may take your good coun- 
 sel before it is long." 
 
 "And have not you said as much these 
 last ten years, you gipsy wife?" replied
 
 202 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the good doctor, cheerfully. " Well, Nelly, 
 I shall remember you and your brats in my 
 prayers ; for I am sorry for you, and for 
 them too." 
 
 So saying, he put something into her 
 ready hand, and we were walking on, when 
 she again addressed him. 
 
 " Honoured Sir, I was adreamt of you 
 last night," she said, " and you was in this 
 very wood, and you had a mitre or some 
 sort of crown on your head, and this very 
 same little gentleman was with you. I 
 knewd him again as soon as ever I clapped 
 my eyes on him. And I only wish, my 
 good gentleman," she added, " that you 
 would but stand still, and let me tell you 
 what this dream betokens: for I had it just 
 in the peep of the morn, by the token that 
 when I awoke I heard the cock crow ; and 
 a dream just at the dawn is sure, they say, 
 to come true." 
 
 " Well, and it is come true, Nelly," said 
 the doctor ; " and no miracle neither, only 
 unfortunately, or fortunately, perhaps, there 
 is no mitre in the case." 
 
 *' Well, but, good Sir, if you would but
 
 ROXOBEL. 203 
 
 be pleased to let me see the lines in your 
 palm?" 
 
 "Begone, baggage," said the doctor, 
 good-humouredly, " you shan't touch the 
 tip of my little finger. Don't think of 
 putting upon me with all this nonsense. 
 Go home, woman, and mind your brats." 
 
 The gipsy then turning from the doctor 
 to me, begged, in the most fawning accent, 
 to see my palm. 
 
 " Most willingly, my good woman," I 
 said ; " but the light will not serve here. 
 Let us pass on to a more open part of the 
 wood." 
 
 "Pshaw!" said the doctor; "don't encou- 
 rage the woman in her fooleries. Though 
 I don't believe that she deceives herself 
 by them, yet there are some in our parish 
 who have a firm faith in her prognostics." 
 
 "Let me alone, my good Sir," I replied. 
 " I know what I am about." 
 
 This was said in a low voice ; and the 
 doctor acquiescing, we proceeded to a point 
 where the last rays of the evening shone 
 full on the path. 
 
 "There now, my good woman," I said,
 
 204 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " here is my hand, examine the palm, and 
 tell me what the lines forebode." 
 
 The gipsy wife pored awhile over my 
 hand, and then said, " You have been among 
 greater folks in your former life, my good 
 Sir, than those you now live and keep com- 
 pany with?" 
 
 I nodded. 
 
 " Your lordship has had titled folks 
 among your kin ? " said the woman. 
 
 I nodded again. 
 
 " Death has been busy in your family?" 
 was her next remark. 
 
 " In every family death is busy, at one 
 time or another," I replied ; " and there- 
 fore, it behoves us so to live, that we 
 may not dread the visitation of death." 
 
 " You have pretensions to a great in- 
 heritance?" said the gipsy. 
 
 " I have," I replied ; " to that of the king- 
 dom of heaven." 
 
 " You have somewhere a cruel enemy," 
 said the witch. 
 
 " I have," I answered ; " my own evil 
 heart." 
 
 The woman seemed at a loss how to
 
 ROXOBEL. 205 
 
 get on in this place, and had recourse to 
 fawning. 
 
 " And was it not," she said, "on account 
 of some dire disappointment, that you came 
 to Roxobel? You were crossed in love 
 by a fair lady: now weren't you, Sir?" 
 
 " Come, come," I replied, " you can make 
 nothing of me; you know nothing whatever 
 about me, but what every one else may 
 know in Roxobel. But tell me this, have 
 you ever heard of the little wizard, the 
 dwarf, or cunning man, who came in the 
 tail of the east wind across the sea?" 
 
 She started, and looked amazed. 
 
 " Well, such a man am I ; and, therefore, 
 you cannot find me out : I am beyond 
 your art." 
 
 "Bless you, Sir!" said the gipsy; "there 
 be no such things as wizards in the world 
 — not in these days, any how." 
 
 " What!" I said, looking her hard in the 
 face, "how dare you say so? No wi- 
 zards? no male fortune-tellers and con- 
 jurors? Why, I tell you, that there are 
 just as many, number for number, mea- 
 sure for measure, head for head, tongue 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 206 ROXOBEL. 
 
 for tongue, as there are female fortune- 
 tellers and prognostic ators, in the wide 
 world. Shew me a woman who can read 
 the stars, and I will shew you a man who 
 can do it better. Shew me a woman who 
 knows the waxings and the wanings of the 
 moon, and I will bring you a man that 
 knows its phases, and can tell all its spots. 
 Shew me a woman who can read the 
 tokens of the pole-star, and I will bring 
 you a man, to whom the barkings of the 
 dog-star are as audible, as the death-watch 
 in the chamber of the dying. In a word, 
 I am ready to challenge you, to dare you, 
 and to brave you to the utmost. Collect 
 your female fortune-tellers, your witches, 
 your prognostic ators, your women cunning 
 in palmistry, your studiers of the stars, 
 whether crowned with bonnet", cap, veil, or 
 hood, and I will undertake to match them 
 with as many wizards, bearded or smooth- 
 chinned, shaven or undipped, as it may 
 chance, and each carrying a wand or 
 staff;" — (and I shook my little stick as 1 
 spoke ;) — " and each prepared to assert the 
 honour of his order, against all who pre-
 
 ROXOBEL. 207 
 
 suine to doubt their skill. Name but your 
 place and time ; by daylight, dawn, or 
 moonlight ; in shade, or sunshine ; in fo- 
 rest, heath, or bog ; above or under ground ; 
 and we will have a dance and minstrelsy ; 
 and we will feast." And I shook my stick 
 again, with a vehemence which made the 
 woman start back a pace or two. 
 
 " Ah ! ah ! ah ! " exclaimed the doctor, 
 laughing till he aw akened the echoes of the 
 woods, while the poor woman was visibly 
 embarrassed, and even alarmed. 
 
 I however preserved my gravity, called 
 the doctor to order, and again maintained 
 that I was assuredly able to produce as 
 many veritable wizards as she could real 
 witches and true prognosticators of the 
 other sex. 
 
 " But surely, Sir," she said, " you cannot 
 really tell fortunes ? " 
 
 " And why not ? " I answered. " Why 
 should not I be as clever as you are ? " 
 
 " O, to be sure, Sir ; — yes, to be sure," 
 she answered. " But would your worship 
 please only to prove to me that you can tell 
 fortunes, only as it were for an example?" 
 
 i
 
 208 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " With all my heart," I said. " Stand back 
 a step or two, and look me full in the face. 
 What shall I tell you? how much gold you 
 have in your bag ? or what henroost was 
 last pillaged by your gang?" 
 
 The gipsy looked at the doctor in evident 
 alarm; and then trying to seem uncon- 
 cerned, " I reckon these things are beyond 
 your knowledge, good Sir," she said. 
 
 " Well, well," I answered ; " I will be 
 merciful, and not betray you." 
 
 The woman then took courage, and laugh- 
 ing, said, " Thank you, Sir, for your kind- 
 ness ; but those who do not know our 
 secrets, may be trusted not to tell them." 
 
 " What!" I said, looking keenly at her, — 
 " think you that the mysteries of your trade 
 are hidden from me? Shall I speak?" I 
 added; "shall I tell what I see? Who 
 has robbed the dripping-pan ? who has cut 
 the candle-end ? who has purloined the suet 
 from the mighty baron? who has carried it 
 to the hiding-place ? Is not the vessel full ? 
 is it not running over, with fat, and grease, 
 and oil? For whom is it destined, and for 
 what service is the rich reward prepared,
 
 ROXOBEL. 209 
 
 but for her — for her who can read the lines 
 in the palm of him whose history is inex- 
 plicable? and of him of whom nothing is 
 known?" 
 
 I was about to add more, when the gipsy, 
 suddenly turning from me, plunged into the 
 bushes, and disappeared from our view. 
 
 " Well done, well done, thou man of rid- 
 dles ! thou wizard! thou necromancer!" 
 exclaimed the doctor ; " thou hast foiled the 
 witch with her own weapons. But take care 
 how thou walkest in the dark : she will set 
 loose all her imps and hobgoblins upon 
 thee; thou wilt be pinched till thou art 
 black and blue." 
 
 " No, no, Sir," I replied ; " she will let 
 me alone; I don't fear her ; she will meddle 
 no more with me." 
 
 " But," added the doctor, " I must be at 
 the bottom of this affair ; this matter must 
 be explained, unless you would have me 
 think you a wizard in good earnest. Tell 
 me, my good friend, how T did you contrive 
 thus to out-herod Herod?" 
 
 " You shall know it all," was my an- 
 swer : and I related to the doctor the 
 t 3
 
 210 ROXOBEL* 
 
 whole history of my last night's adven- 
 ture. 
 
 The doctor laughed heartily; saying, 
 "So much for the sapient Mrs. Nuttall. And 
 does she think that she is to obtain my 
 Lucy for Master Tafty? What egregious 
 folly! But this I say, Sir; we must watch 
 over our little girl : for what, with the 
 absurd schemes of one party, and the gross 
 neglect of another, the little one is in a 
 dangerous position." 
 
 Our approach to the parsonage termi- 
 nated the conversation, and I returned to 
 our end of the parish, with my pretty Lucy, 
 under convoy of a footman from the HalL
 
 ROXOBEL. 211 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 AN EVENING WALK. 
 
 I have as yet said but little of Eugenius 
 and his friend Theodore, two noble lads, 
 whose characters are well worth studying. 
 
 One day, I was proposing a general in- 
 spection of those parts of the park which I 
 had not yet seen, and the doctor proposed 
 that the two boys should be my compa- 
 nions. We accordingly set out on a fine 
 warm evening, which was only the more 
 desirable for being somewhat cloudy and 
 overshadowed. The doctor had advised 
 us to wind our way, in the first instance, 
 through that deep and exceedingly beau- 
 tiful dingle at the back of the parsonage ; 
 saying, he regretted that another engage- 
 ment prevented him from accompanying 
 us.
 
 212 ROXOBEL. 
 
 Never had I beheld more lovely scenes 
 than those which opened to us every mo- 
 ment as we advanced. I was all rapture 
 and ecstasy, and talked away and exclaim- 
 ed like one in a delirium. In the mean 
 time Eugenius walked by my side, while 
 Theodore made a thousand excursions, 
 now to the right, now to the left, till his 
 cheeks were all in a flame. 
 
 Eugenius allowed me to exhaust a few of 
 my ecstatic feelings without interruption, 
 and then said, " Mr. Airley, will you tell me 
 a little more about what we were talking of 
 the day we first met? I have been thinking, 
 that any person, understanding as you do 
 the language of types, must have such plea- 
 sure in rambling in the country, as no other 
 person can have. Perhaps you will think 
 me very silly, Sir, but I have always had 
 a kind of fancy, whenever I have been 
 walking in these woods, to people every 
 place I see with creatures of my own in- 
 vention. One time it was knights and 
 ladies, and enchanters, and little fairies 
 dancing by moonlight, with which I in im- 
 agination filled the woods. And then it was
 
 ROXOBEL. 213 
 
 with birds and beasts, which could speak 
 and reason like the creatures in iEsop's 
 Fables. And then it was with the gods 
 and goddesses, and wood-nymphs, and sa- 
 tyrs, and fauns, of the ancient Greek and 
 Roman mythology. But I think, Sir, that 
 if I could find those objects in these wild 
 scenes which would discourse with me on 
 subjects relating to history, and prophecy, 
 and religion, I should soon forget the wild 
 creations of my young fancy; and perhaps, 
 then, I should become more holy minded." 
 " You would, at any rate, be in the way 
 to become so, my dear boy," I answered; 
 " because every study which leads to me- 
 ditations upon the Holy Scriptures must 
 be improving: for the Bible has a peculiar 
 and wonderful effect in cleansing the heart. 
 And, indeed, no study is worth much, which 
 does not lead us, either directly or indirect- 
 ly, to Scripture : and I have often thought, 
 that a person well acquainted with the types 
 and symbols used in the Bible, would fre- 
 quently be much delighted, when studying 
 the classical authors, to find the same types 
 and emblems used in the same senses, and
 
 214 ROXOBEL. 
 
 to the same purposes, by these last. For 
 instance : the Scriptures compare the roar- 
 ing of the ocean, to a noisy and impetuous 
 multitude ; and the motion of the air, to the 
 whisperings of a spiritual influence; — both 
 of which similies are found in the classics. 
 The ancient customs of many nations, also, 
 confirm and enlarge our ideas of types 
 and emblems ; and give a new and delight- 
 ful interest to the study of history." 
 
 "Sir," said Eugenius, "I hope you will 
 be so kind as to take occasion, when you 
 are in the library at the Hall, to talk some- 
 times to Lucy ; and to teach her a little 
 about these things. Poor Lucy! she is 
 not so happy as I am, in living at Dr. 
 Beauchamp's ; and, sometimes, I almost 
 fear, that she will not know how to keep 
 herself out of low company." 
 
 " We must endeavour, then, to impart to 
 her," I answered, " (the Almighty helping 
 us,) that true humility, and dignity of mind, 
 which will enable us to pass through the 
 snares of life, without contracting that which 
 is evil. If we can but succeed in giving our 
 sweet little girl a true notion of that which
 
 ROXOBEL. 215 
 
 composes the real lady, we need not en- 
 tertain any fears on her account : but we 
 must look to God the Holy Spirit to assist 
 us so to do." 
 
 "Do you love Lucy, Sir?" enquired Eu- 
 genius, turning round and fixing his fine 
 eyes upon me. 
 
 "I do, Eugenius," I replied. "I loved 
 her the first moment I saw her; and I will 
 explain to you how it happened. But, in 
 order to this, I must unfold to you a little 
 of my history. 
 
 " I never knew my father. He died when 
 I was quite in infancy: but my mother 
 was spared many years to me. She was 
 one of the excellent of the earth : such 
 a woman as I fancy your mother to have 
 been, Eugenius. And I had one only sis- 
 ter, but no brother. My sister and I were 
 twins, and were very much alike. But 
 those traits which are thought beautiful 
 in a woman are seldom admired in a man. 
 Excessive smallness and delicacy of com- 
 plexion and of feature, rendered us both 
 pretty infants : but youth being departed, 
 I am left in insignificance, as it regards
 
 216* ROXOBEL. 
 
 my person, while my sister, had she lived, 
 might still have been thought a lovely little 
 woman. 
 
 " We lived in retirement, among some of 
 the fairest scenes of nature. Great pains 
 were taken with our education: and the 
 affection which subsisted between me and 
 my Henrietta was such as hardly can be 
 imagined. At the age of eighteen, however, 
 my lovely sister died; and, in three years 
 more, I lost my mother. 
 
 " I was so situated, that I could not think 
 of forming new connexions ; and for some 
 years, yea, many years, I was a wanderer 
 on the face of the earth. My sadness, after 
 a while, however, softened into a tender 
 melancholy, which last, by degrees, as- 
 sumed a brighter hue: and here I now am, 
 a happy man, content with the present, 
 and full of hope for the future. But if, in 
 the gentle eye of your little sister, I thought 
 that I again beheld the expression so ad- 
 mired, so loved, so lamented, of my Henri- 
 etta, you will not wonder, Eugenius, if my 
 heart warmed towards her at the first 
 glance: and I will confess the truth, that I
 
 ROXOBEL. 217 
 
 am as anxious to instruct and benefit her 
 as if I really stood in the relation of a pa- 
 rent to her." 
 
 " But was your sister quite as lovely as 
 Lucy, Sir?" said Theodore, who had drawn 
 up to us, unobserved by me, and had been 
 listening with an expression of feeling which 
 did him credit. " If she were like Lucy, I 
 do not wonder at your grief when you lost 
 her." 
 
 " I think her so," I replied, " and that is 
 quite the same, as far as I am concerned." 
 
 " But, Sir," continued Theodore, " do you 
 imagine that those foolish old women at the 
 Hall will try to make Lucy marry Taffy? 
 I have heard that the fellow calls her his 
 little wife." 
 
 " Absurd ! " exclaimed Eugenius, with 
 vehemence. " Can you suppose that my 
 aunts would entertain a notion so prepos- 
 terous? Be assured they have more pride 
 than to think of such an alliance." 
 
 "I should have supposed as much," return- 
 ed Theodore ; " yet I wonder that Taffy 
 meets with no reproof for speaking as he 
 does. I understand, that this is the lan- 
 vol. i. u
 
 218 ROXOBEL. 
 
 guage he constantly uses in the house- 
 keeper's room." 
 
 " And pray, my good young gentleman, 
 by what means did you become so deeply 
 initiated in the secrets of Mrs. Nuttall's 
 private apartment?" I enquired. 
 
 Theodore reddened, as if something was 
 implied in my speech which derogated from 
 his honour; and he quickly answered, " I 
 learned what I have told you, Sir, from Taffy 
 himself." 
 
 "How so?" I asked. " Will Master 
 Taffy tell tales against himself?" 
 
 " He did not mean it for a tale," was 
 Theodore's reply, " but for a boast. I 
 met him, when he was last at home, by the 
 Swan-Pool, when they were fishing it; and he 
 was talking very big, and saying what he 
 would do when he was a man. And then 
 he said he would pick and choose among 
 the fairest in the parish." 
 
 " Well," I said, « and what then?" 
 
 " Why, then," replied Theodore, "I asked 
 him if he counted Miss Lovel among those 
 from whom he meant to pick and choose; 
 and he said to be sure he did. I asked him
 
 ROXOBEL. 219 
 
 if he were not afraid to speak of his young 
 lady in such a manner : and he said he was 
 not ; and that he always called her his little 
 wife before all the servants. And with 
 that, I dealt him a blow, and tumbled him 
 into the mud, leaving- those who would, to 
 pick him out. Eugenius says I did wrong, 
 and that I ought not to have meddled with 
 such a blackguard : — but I say I did right ; 
 and I only wish, that I had another such 
 a chance of rolling young Nuttall in the 
 mire." 
 
 " I must confess, Master Theodore," I 
 answered, " that my opinion coincides with 
 that of your friend. I think that a person 
 who aspires to the character of a gentleman, 
 not to speak of that of a Christian, should 
 not meddle in such brawls as that you men- 
 tion. But, pray, what did your father say 
 on the subject?" 
 
 " Why, to be sincere, he never knew a 
 word about the affair;" was the young gen- 
 tleman's reply. 
 
 " Then, Eugenius and I might have 
 spared our endeavours to convince you 
 that you had done wrong," I rejoined.
 
 •220 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " How so, Sir?" asked Theodore, blush- 
 ing. 
 
 In answer to this, I said, " Master Theo- 
 dore, did you ever hear the story of a cer- 
 tain rector, who, having invited a friend to 
 preach for him, begged that he would give 
 the congregation a rousing sermon on the 
 subject of excessive drinking? 
 
 " The friend made no reply to his solici- 
 tation, but went up into the pulpit and de- 
 scended again without once mentioning the 
 besetting sin of the parish, contenting him- 
 self with what was much better, namely, a 
 clear, luminous, and affectionate exhibi- 
 tion of the great work of man's salvation, 
 as displayed in the offices of the three 
 Persons of the Holy Trinity. 
 
 " The rector, however, when eating his 
 beef and pudding after service, politely up- 
 braided his friend with his neglect of the 
 hint which he had given him. 
 
 "'Sir,' said the friend, 'I am not fond 
 of labouring in vain. You may depend 
 upon it, that there is not a man in your 
 congregation who is not as much convinced 
 of the sin of drunkenness as you and I
 
 ROXOBEL. 221 
 
 are. But I very much doubt whether your 
 people are so well acquainted with those 
 subjects which I have now set before 
 them.'" 
 
 "I understand you, Sir," replied Theo- 
 dore; "and I perceive that you under- 
 stand me. You mean to say, that I know 
 what is right, although it too often pleases 
 me to do what is wrong." And the noble 
 boy blushed, and looked modestly on the 
 ground. 
 
 I shook his hand, and we became better 
 friends than ever. 
 
 We were now arrived at a point where 
 the path began to ascend, though still over- 
 shadowed with bushes. Onward we pro- 
 ceeded, and, as we advanced, the steepness 
 was such that I was obliged to stop for 
 breath. At length, the boys proposed that 
 each of them should hold one end of my 
 stick, and that I should grasp the centre, 
 and be pulled forward by their united force. 
 This scheme afforded us much merriment, 
 especially when I compared myself to the 
 tortoise between the two ducks as mention- 
 ed in the fable, 
 u 3
 
 222 ROXOBEL. 
 
 After continued exertion, we emerged 
 from the wood, and came out upon a breezy 
 and thymy down, whence the whole sur- 
 rounding neighbourhood appeared, clothed 
 in all the vividness of a panoramic repre- 
 sentation, united with the clearness and 
 truth of reality. Over this down we pass- 
 ed, till, coming to the northern brow of the 
 height, we found another valley, the oppo- 
 site side of which was steep and craggy, 
 richly wooded, and presenting, on one of its 
 boldest heights, an old farm-house, which 
 exhibited two gable-ends of lath and plas- 
 ter, and black timbered joists, frowning 
 over a perpendicular declivity, on the very 
 edge of which the building appeared to be 
 constructed ; although this, as I afterwards 
 discovered, was a deception of the visual 
 organ. 
 
 From the highest point of the precipice, 
 nearly in a line with the house, we be- 
 held an abundant and beautiful torrent of 
 water, which, in its descent towards the 
 valley, appeared to be collected into three 
 pools, successively elevated one above an- 
 other, the waters of each being divided from
 
 ROXOBEL. 223 
 
 those of the other by a strong natural dam 
 rising between them: and, as Eugenius 
 informed me, after copious rains, the wa- 
 ters sometimes pour over the barriers with 
 a noise that may be heard to a great dis- 
 tance. The banks of these pools were 
 closely set with trees, the hanging branches 
 of some of which dipped their extremities 
 in the water, and were reflected in softer 
 colours from below. 
 
 " Stop, Mr. Airley," said Eugenius, " and 
 listen. One of the delights of this place is 
 to hear the murmur of many lovely sounds. 
 And first," he added, " we must notice the 
 voice of Echo. I will call to her, and see 
 if she is in a humour to reply." He then 
 elevated his voice, which was remarkably 
 tuneful, and repeated aloud the name So- 
 phia. 
 
 The echo reiterated, three several times, 
 " Sophia! " the voice being heard more and 
 more remotely. 
 
 We were silent for a moment, and then 
 Eugenius thought proper again to call upon 
 the solitary nymph ; and she was again 
 made to repeat the name of Sophia.
 
 224 ROXOBEL. 
 
 He then turned to me, glowing with 
 delight at the success of his attempts. On 
 which I asked, " Can your Echo say no- 
 thing but Sophia, Master Eugenius?" 
 
 " He never accustoms her to any other 
 name," answered Theodore : " but I have 
 a mind to teach her another lesson." So 
 saying, he shouted aloud, and made the 
 woods resound with the cognomen of 
 Taffy. 
 
 Upon this, Eugenius turned away in dire 
 resentment. " Come away, Mr. Airley," 
 he said, " he has profaned these solitudes : 
 he has degraded the nymph for ever. She 
 shall never again repeat the name of So- 
 phia." 
 
 I looked hard at Eugenius, supposing 
 that he was affecting the indignant: but 
 not so ; he was in reality irritated, and 
 walked a considerable distance without 
 deigning to favour us with another word. 
 
 We now descended a little way in a line 
 with the pools, and presently came to the 
 second, where we saw many swans swim- 
 ming majestically on the surface of the 
 water. " That creature of all others," I
 
 ROXOBEL. 225 
 
 observed, " is most beautiful on water, and 
 most awkward on shore." 
 
 "I never look at a swan," said Euge- 
 nius, recovering his temper, "without think- 
 ing of the friend of Phaeton, who fretted till 
 he was turned into a swan." 
 
 "It seems," I remarked, "that, in old 
 times, it was supposed to be a common 
 effect of grief and sympathy to change peo- 
 ple into fowls: witness the birds of Dio- 
 medes, and the fate of Alcyone. And might 
 not this notion, strange as it may seem, 
 have some connexion with the Scriptural 
 figures in which birds are represented as 
 the emblems of souls, or spirits ; as in the 
 Psalms, ' My soul is as a bird caught in 
 the snare of a fowler?' If we are correct 
 in this respect, we may readily understand 
 how grief might convert men into birds, 
 namely, by destroying their bodies, and 
 releasing their souls. I am very fond of 
 tracing such expressions to their sources." 
 
 " But are birds always considered to be 
 types of incorporeal beings, Sir?" enquired 
 Theodore. 
 
 "Always so in Scripture," I answered:
 
 226 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " witness the Holy Spirit, who is repre- 
 sented as a dove. And wings are the em- 
 blem of protection : a bird hovering over 
 its young is the type, therefore, of a pro- 
 tecting spirit ; a beautiful and affecting em- 
 blem, which is used by our Saviour in his 
 pathetic address to Jerusalem." 
 
 "Sir," said Eugenius, "is not the hal- 
 cyon the kingfisher ? " 
 
 I replied in the affirmative. "And," I 
 added, " as the kingfisher only appears in 
 fine weather, the poets have called happy 
 and fortunate seasons ' the days of the hal- 
 cyon.'" 
 
 Between the second and third pool was 
 a descent of several feet, and the valley 
 seemed contracted on each side of the dam, 
 but opened most beautifully beyond ; the 
 woods retreating, and the banks appearing 
 smooth and green over the whole circumfe- 
 rence. Where the stream parted from the 
 pool, there was a rude bridge, on the op- 
 posite side of which, considerably elevated 
 on the bank, stood an ancient and gloomy 
 mansion which seemed to have been one of 
 the contemporaries of Torville : for it was
 
 ROXOBEL. 227 
 
 built of the same kind of small brick, and 
 had similar small windows encased in huge 
 stone frames. 
 
 " That was the ancient residence of my 
 
 ancestors," remarked Eugenius ; " and now 
 
 it is left to the gamekeeper and his amiable 
 
 consort, to whom we will introduce you, 
 
 Mr. Airley, if agreeable." 
 
 " It is very agreeable to me to be intro- 
 duced to every person in Roxobel," was 
 my answer. So we pushed on, and cross- 
 ing the bridge, were saluted with the bay- 
 ings of multitudes of dogs, which seemed to 
 resound from some inner court, accompa- 
 nied with the gobblings of as many turkeys. 
 "This is a most delightful chorus: I 
 wonder it does not awaken your friend 
 Echo, young gentlemen!" I said. 
 
 " The sound would not be worse than 
 that which awakened her just now," replied 
 Eugenius, with returning ill humour. 
 
 " Don't remind him of my offence," said 
 Theodore. " Though he never conde- 
 scended to employ his honourable fists in 
 knocking Master Taffy down, yet he hates 
 him more cordially than I do."
 
 228 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " I don't hate him," said Eugenius. 
 
 "Then you despise him, and that is 
 worse," returned the other. " I would ra- 
 ther be hated than despised." 
 
 " Hate ! and despise ! and are these 
 words," I remarked, " fit to proceed from 
 the mouths of gentlemen? — for I cannot 
 separate the character of gentleman from 
 that of Christian ! What can this silly 
 Taffy have done to excite such violent re- 
 sentment ? " 
 
 " Why," rejoined Theodore, " the boy 
 presumes to exist, and to be very ugly and 
 disagreeable." 
 
 " Well, he can neither help existing, nor 
 being ugly," I answered. 
 
 "Yes, but he need not be so presum- 
 ing withal," replied both the boys in a 
 breath. 
 
 " Come, come," I said, " there is too 
 much malevolence in all this, my good 
 young gentlemen. Depend upon it, that the 
 world will be wide enough for you and 
 Master Taffy too. The situation of every 
 man in life is appointed by Providence, and 
 we cannot alter what God decrees, by
 
 ROXOBEL. 229 
 
 giving way to evil passions. Take my ad- 
 vice: don't speak of Tally any more, and 
 do him a good turn if it comes in your 
 way; and as to the rest, let him alone." 
 
 By this time we had reached the front 
 of the mansion, and two or three tall grey- 
 hounds were come out to look at us. We 
 ascended the steps, and entered one of 
 those great halls, which in old time appro- 
 priated to themselves the best part of every 
 edifice. This apartment was hung round 
 with fowling-pieces, powder-horns, bucks' 
 antlers, foxes' brushes, hares' skins; and 
 other insignia of office, denoting that the 
 master of the house was much addicted 
 to wood-craft. An immensely long table 
 was stretched along the higher end of the 
 room, and a stout short matron, of about 
 forty, sat sewing at a smaller one placed 
 near it. This dame was dressed in a gown 
 besprinkled with large flowers resembling 
 pionies, and had a very flaming riband in 
 her cap, which suited her the less, as her 
 face was of so bright a red that the out- 
 lines of her features were hardly to be 
 defined except when very near her. At 
 vol. i. x
 
 ;>30 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the sight of her visiters, she arose, and 
 before Eugenius could speak, " Is it you, 
 Master Lovel?" she said, in a voice attuned 
 to flattery. " Well, this is kind ; it is so 
 long since I have seen your precious fea- 
 tures. And how are all the good family at 
 the doctor's? and our ladies at the Hall? 
 and pretty Miss Lucy ? Dear little lady, I 
 have not seen her sweet face since the 
 audit. And Master Theodore too ! How 
 are you, Sir? and the strange gentleman, 
 I suppose, from Mrs. Strickland's ! Pray 
 be seated, gentlemen. What will you please 
 to have ? Every thing in this house is at 
 your service, as it ought to be, Master 
 Lovel ; for it will all be your own by and 
 by, though Heaven forbid any thing should 
 happen to the good ladies. Yet, as I was 
 saying to my husband but yesterday, wo- 
 men, be they never so high born and bred, 
 can't live for ever; nor men neither, for 
 that matter. So pray be seated, gentlemen, 
 and tell me what I shall get you?" 
 
 We all sat down, but found there was 
 no occasion to trouble ourselves to speak. 
 
 " And my daughter Esther, she is at
 
 ROXOBEL. 231 
 
 home," proceeded the dame ; " come home 
 for the wake up at Clifton, which was yes- 
 terday, and is to-day, and I dare say she 
 is somewhere within call." With that she 
 elevated her voice, and made the old roof 
 to resound again with the name of Esther. 
 
 The young lady, it seemed, was not very 
 distant, for she immediately appeared, ar- 
 rayed in all the glory of her village finery. 
 Her efforts at display, however, were not 
 very successful before the present company, 
 for she exhibited a very bad specimen oi 
 the worst boarding-school education. The 
 little girl did not appear to be many years 
 older than Lucy Lovel, and was, naturally, 
 a very fine child ; having a good form, a 
 glowing complexion, and sparkling hazel 
 eyes : nevertheless, I could not refrain from 
 disgust at the excessive forwardness of 
 her manner, and the worldly spirit with 
 which she pressed the cake, which her 
 mother had produced from some reposi- 
 tory in the wall, on the heir of Roxobel, 
 passing over the son of the rector, as a 
 person of very inferior importance. 
 
 We made our visit here as short as pos-
 
 232 ROXOBEL. 
 
 sible, and were no sooner quite clear of 
 the house, than Eugenius exclaimed, " So 
 much for that paragon of vulgarity, Miss 
 Esther Stephens !" 
 
 I did not approve of the manner in which 
 these words were spoken, and remarked, 
 that low breeding in a place like that which 
 we had just quitted, was more to be ex- 
 pected than in a cottage, and ought not, 
 therefore, to excite such indignation as 
 Master Lovel had expressed. 
 
 Eugenius asked me how that could 
 be, and I added, that the mode of life 
 which is led by persons a little above the 
 lowest grade, is even less calculated 
 for the benefit of the individual, than ab- 
 solute poverty ; inasmuch as the situa- 
 tion combines, in some degree, the temp- 
 tations both of high and low life, without 
 the advantages of either. For, on the one 
 hand, when any individual has actually 
 attained the rank of a gentleman, he is 
 subjected to a thousand observances, with- 
 out which he cannot preserve his station 
 in society; and, on the other hand, when a 
 man is poor and necessitous, his very wants
 
 ROXOBEL. 233 
 
 compel him to a proper degree of submis- 
 sion : but the well-fed inferior sort of far- 
 mer, or tradesman, who feels that his purse 
 is well lined, and that he has little need of 
 dependence on those in whose society he 
 mingles familiarly, is the very person most 
 likely to render himself and his family un- 
 acceptable to his associates. 
 
 " It is a good thing, my young friends," 
 I continued, "to know what to expect of 
 certain persons in society. It saves us a 
 vast deal of irritation, and relieves us from 
 the trouble of using the words ' vulgar ! 
 commonplace! illiterate!' and so on — words 
 which never sound well in the mouth of a 
 gentleman, nor accord with that urbanity 
 of character, which is inferred in the ety- 
 mology of the word." 
 
 Eugenius was silent, but Theodore re- 
 plied, good-naturedly, "Mr. Airley is deter- 
 mined to make gentlemen of us, Eugenius ; 
 and I hope he may succeed." 
 
 " I do not wish to persuade you to any 
 
 thing but what is reasonable, and consistent 
 
 with common sense," I rejoined. " But 
 
 what is the use of crying ' prodigious ! mar- 
 
 x 3
 
 234 ROXOBEL. 
 
 vellous ! wonderful ! ' when we have found 
 good manners in a court ; and exclaiming 
 ' vulgar! low! under-bred!' when we have 
 met with ill manners in a coal-barge ?" 
 
 " Very true," observed Theodore, shrug- 
 ging up his shoulders ; " but we should have 
 no pleasure in visiting these queer people, 
 if it were not to ridicule them." 
 
 " And what a sad thing it would be for 
 young gentlemen to lose all interest in 
 low society!" was my rejoinder. 
 
 "Mr. Airley," said Theodore, "you are 
 armed at all points; there is no such a 
 thing as overcoming you in argument." 
 
 " No rolling me in the mud and mire of 
 false opinions? is that what you would say, 
 Master Theodore? Well, I wish it may 
 be so ; but I am far from reckoning infalli- 
 bility among my qualities. I must confess, 
 however, that it would give me sincere de- 
 light, to see you, my dear boys, attain, in 
 some measure, to that first of characters, 
 the true gentleman." 
 
 " Do you really think so highly, Sir, of 
 the character of a gentleman?" asked Eu- 
 genius.
 
 ROXOBEL. 235 
 
 u I do," I replied ; " and I will endeavour 
 to give you my reasons for so doing. It is 
 my opinion, that the first and only exam- 
 ple of the perfect gentleman, which was ever 
 given to man, was in the character and 
 conduct of our blessed Lord during his so- 
 journ upon earth. All who have since ap- 
 peared in that character with any success, 
 have been imitators of this one great pro- 
 totype; while others who, desiring to be 
 thought gentlemen, have yet not succeed- 
 ed in the eyes of persons of real taste, 
 have failed, more or less, either from a 
 wrong conception of their model, or from 
 having become copyists of spurious imita- 
 tions. — And, in such cases we may ration- 
 ally conclude, that the great original has 
 been veiled from their view by the delusions 
 of the world, the flesh, or the devil." 
 
 " This is a new notion to me, Sir," said 
 Eugenius. " From the period when I was 
 a very little child, I have certainly felt a 
 strong desire to be a perfect gentleman. 
 I think the fancy was first suggested to me 
 by reading the Seven Champions of Chris- 
 tendom ; an odd book, you will perhaps
 
 236 ROXOBEL. 
 
 say, Sir, to convey such an idea to the mind 
 of a little boy. Yet it did so : and after I 
 had read the book, or rather studied it 
 over and over again for many months, I 
 was ardently eager for a long time, to emu- 
 late St. George ; and Theodore and I made 
 a kind of play of the feats of knight-erran- 
 try in the woods, and Theodore personated 
 the dragon, and was to try to devour Lucy 
 and Sophia, whom we used to bind to the 
 trees, while I killed him." 
 
 " And don't you remember," added The- 
 odore, " how Lucy once got free, and ran 
 away, and we pursued her, and then she 
 was called to go back to the Hall, and 
 we went with her, leaving little Sophia 
 tied in the wood, and quite forgot her till 
 we were at the Hall ? and do you remem- 
 ber how you flew back again to set her 
 free?" 
 
 " Ah ! " said Eugenius, " can I ever for- 
 get that day? and how Sophia wept, and 
 sobbed, and put her little arms round my 
 neck, and told me of a sheep with horns 
 which had come and looked at her; — and 
 how I wiped her eyes with my pinafore,
 
 ROXOBEL. 237 
 
 and carried her home in my arms. Little 
 lovely Sophia! You will be some time be- 
 fore you are acquainted with Sophia, Mr. 
 Airley ; but when you are so, you will love 
 her as much as you love Lucy. But we 
 have almost forgotten what we were talk- 
 ing about. I was saying, that the Seven 
 Champions of Christendom first made me 
 think about being a gentleman." 
 
 " The old romances, written in the days 
 of chivalry, or soon afterwards, my dear 
 Eugenius," I replied, " contain much clearer 
 notions of the character of the true gentle- 
 man, than any which can be found in the 
 writers before the Christian era. The 
 knights in these books, are often described 
 as being valiant, chaste, constant, gene- 
 rous, and self-denying; scorning a false- 
 hood, and humane to the fallen foe. There 
 are, however, generally to be found many 
 false colours in the portraiture of the real 
 gentleman as depicted in the ancient ro- 
 mances, no less than in authentic history. 
 These false colours consist of vengeance, 
 violence, and vain-glory ; not a tincture 
 of which qualities can I ever allow to exist
 
 238 ROXOBEL. 
 
 in the real Christian gentleman. Such a 
 one can only admit of one permanent mo- 
 tive of action, namely, the advancement 
 of the glory of God, and the well-being of 
 his creatures. This motive elevates him 
 above the petty meannesses of life, and re- 
 moves from him all clamour, malice, and 
 evil-speaking. His tastes and desires be- 
 ing purified by the inspiration of the Holy 
 Spirit, he cannot but love and choose that 
 which is lovely, that which is holy, and 
 that which is of good report. Being in- 
 capable of enjoying that sort of gossipping 
 discourse which, with the greater part of 
 mankind, is the substitute for books, he 
 becomes a reader, and thus, with the divine 
 blessing, he daily rises higher and higher 
 in the scale of intellectual beings, and 
 becomes more fit, from year to year, for 
 that transfer to his real home, to which 
 he is continually looking forward through 
 the death and merits of his beloved Sa- 
 viour." 
 
 When conversing with young people, it 
 is a rule with me, never to protract a seri- 
 ous subject. Here a little, and there a little,
 
 ROXOBEL. 239 
 
 is the law of my discourse with them : for 
 all long discussions with such would only 
 produce satiety and disrelish. On this sub- 
 ject, indeed, we may derive instruction from 
 the playful infant, on the indulgent mother's^ 
 breast, who takes a single draught of the 
 sweet cordial prepared for him by a tender 
 Providence, and then turns away to smile 
 and use some little blandishment; till again 
 recollecting himself, he takes another and 
 another draught, and thus insensibly inhales 
 enough of that which is to make him grow 
 and prosper. In like manner, the instruc- 
 tion communicated to youth should be im- 
 bibed at intervals, seasoned with innocent 
 play, and rendered sweet by the gentle and 
 agreeable manner in which it is insinua- 
 ted. Such instructions should be as the 
 showers of April descending on the blos- 
 soms of an orchard, while every honeyed 
 drop is sparkling with the reflection of a 
 kindly sunbeam. 
 
 While we were conversing in the man- 
 ner I have described, we were ascending a 
 winding wood-walk on the verge of the 
 height which overlooked the pools, and our
 
 24:0 ROXOBEL. 
 
 path was diversified by the various views 
 of the waters below, as they opened and 
 retreated from our view. 
 
 " And where," I asked, " may you now 
 be dragging the little man?" — for the boys 
 had grasped their stick again, and had 
 caused me to lay hold on the centre of it. 
 
 " To a nice house and nice people," an- 
 swered Theodore : " to Mr. Taylor's, of the 
 Fall- Farm. There we shall get a hearty 
 welcome, and some tea without flattery : 
 for these good people don't know the diffe- 
 rence between Theodore the poor parson's 
 son, and Master Lovel the heir of Roxobel." 
 
 " Nonsense, Theodore ! " cried Eugenius. 
 "Who ever does make any difference be- 
 tween us ? " 
 
 "Who?" repeated Theodore : "why Mr. 
 Porter, the butler, with his superb peri- 
 wig, Mr. Barnaby Semple with his new 
 ring, the three elegant Misses Finchley, 
 and Mr. Jeffry Griffith, cum multis aids 
 qui nunc describere longum est." 
 
 At this moment I withdrew my hands 
 from the stick, and stood with them held 
 upon my ears. The boys stood also look-
 
 ROXOBEL. 241 
 
 ing anxiously at me, and enquiring what 
 was the matter. 
 
 " Nothing," I replied. " Nothing, ex- 
 cepting that I felt a sudden pain in my 
 ears." 
 
 " Take your hands away, Sir," said The- 
 odore, laughing. " You shall not feel it any 
 more. You shall have no more reason to 
 complain of us." 
 
 When arrived on the brow of the hill, and 
 quite clear of the wood, we found ourselves 
 on the very verge of the park, the paling 
 being just before us, and ladders being 
 fixed to it for the purpose of passing over 
 to the other side. Immediately beyond the 
 enclosure, on the highest spot thereabouts, 
 stood the farm-house, and, in the back- 
 ground, were many barns, ricks, stables, 
 and other appurtenances of an opulent 
 farm-yard. 
 
 We had no sooner crossed the stile than 
 we perceived, standing on the steps at the 
 kitchen-door, a figure which amused me 
 excessively. The person was that of a fe- 
 male, apparently somewhat more than forty 
 years of age, tall, and shaped from the 
 
 VOL. I. Y
 
 "242 ROXOBEL. 
 
 waist downward after the resemblance of 
 a lizard with the point of its tail cut off, 
 her hips being uncommonly large, and look- 
 ing the more protuberant in consequence 
 of the excessive tightness of her waist. 
 Her dress, which was of dark blue and 
 made very full, being somewhat shorter 
 than that usually worn by ladies, displayed 
 a pair of high-heeled shoes, set forth with 
 silver buckles and old-fashioned square 
 toes. Her stockings were delicately white. 
 She wore a white apron and bib ; and her 
 shoulders, over which hung a muslin hand- 
 kerchief, rivalled her hips in extent. Her 
 sleeves were short, her arms thick and 
 robust, as if made for labour, and her head 
 and face were remarkably small, looking 
 the more diminutive on account of the com- 
 pactness of her headdress. There was a 
 general air of cleanliness and health about 
 this person ; and when we came nearer we 
 discerned the remains of a remarkably 
 handsome face. 
 
 As soon as the dame beheld us, she ap- 
 proached to meet us, welcoming us, to use 
 a homely expression, " at the top of her
 
 R0X0BEL. 243 
 
 voice;" and, without waiting for an intro- 
 duction, she accosted me, as if perfectly 
 acquainted with me, saying, "And I am 
 glad to see you too, Sir. I have heard a 
 deal how good you are, and I am sure we 
 ought to be thankful that such a gentleman 
 should think of coming among us. But 
 walk in, my pretty masters ; and you, 
 good Sir: the kettle is boiling, and you 
 shall have tea directly. Master Beau- 
 champ used to love my brown bread, and so 
 did Master Lovel. The dear rogues, how 
 they used to enjoy it ! — it did one's heart 
 good to see them. And how is the doctor? 
 and Madam ? and the pretty little ladies ? 
 But come in, for I am sure you must be 
 hungry." 
 
 We did not deny the charge, and were 
 accordingly ushered into a wide old-fa- 
 shioned kitchen, hung with flitches of ba- 
 con, and numerous brown paper bags, such 
 as are often seen in farm-houses, though I 
 never could understand the purport of 
 them: for, to my certain knowledge, the 
 same bag is sometimes suffered to hang in 
 the same place, without ever being opened,
 
 244 ROXOBEL. 
 
 for a dozen years at least. However, I 
 don't pretend to understand all these house- 
 hold mysteries. 
 
 The dame set a table for us with her own 
 hands, and then calling to her waiting- 
 maids, with a voice like great Tom of Ox- 
 ford, one of them presently appeared, a stout 
 awkward girl, without a gown, but wear- 
 ing a sort of green bodice, and short white 
 sleeves. " Call Robert," said Mrs. Taylor, 
 " and you mind the dairy, and tend the 
 calves ; I will wait on the gentlefolks." 
 She then turned to me, and apologized for 
 her servant's dress, by saying, that the 
 lasses were best without their gowns in 
 the hot weather. 
 
 While Mrs. Taylor was arranging the 
 tea-things, a fine, dark-complexioned boy, 
 about the age of Eugenius, with a very 
 animated countenance, entered the kitchen, 
 smiling, and even grinning with delight, 
 at the sight of us. I was pleased to see 
 that my two young gentlemen rose and 
 shook hands with him, while his mother, 
 turning to me with exultation, said, " That's 
 our Robert, Sir."
 
 ROXOBEL. 245 
 
 "And a fine fellow he is," I answered. 
 "I hope you give him a good education?" 
 
 " To be sure we does, Sir," she replied. 
 " He was with Mrs. Tristram till he was in 
 coat and trowsers, and then he learned to 
 read like a prince. And since then he has 
 been with Mr. Pen Map ; and every one 
 knows that Mr. Pen Map is a capital scho- 
 lar. Why, Sir, Mr. Pen Map writes an 
 epitaph in rhymes every year, on Mrs. 
 Winifred's birthday ; and he pens all the 
 verses on the grave-stones in our church- 
 yard, barring those which the doctor in- 
 dites. Moreover, Sir, he understands 
 the stars, and has told Robert a power 
 about them ; and he can clean clocks, and 
 set sun-dials." 
 
 " Wonderful ! " I replied. " He must be 
 a prodigious scholar ! " 
 
 We never enjoyed a pleasanter meal than 
 that which was set before us ; after partak- 
 ing of which, we took our leave, though not 
 before I had told Robert, that if he would fa- 
 vour me with a visit, I would give him a book, 
 having heard that he was fond of reading. 
 From the Fall-Farm we proceeded 
 y 3
 
 246 ROXOBEL. 
 
 across the yard, through a little field, into 
 a shady lane, which the young gentlemen 
 informed me ran in a direct line from the 
 turnpike at Roxobel, over the warren, and 
 through Burrow-Town, to the ford. We 
 pursued this lane for some time, till we 
 came to the northern brow of the hill, 
 where we had a full view of the river, and 
 of some high woody eminences on the 
 other side, and, among other objects, we 
 descried the white steeple of a little church 
 peeping from amid the trees. 
 
 " That church is Clifton," said Eugenius, 
 " and Mrs. Stephens tells us that this is 
 their wake. Dr. Beauchamp, after many 
 efforts, has broken through the wake at 
 Roxobel, which he very much disapproved 
 of, as it led only to wickedness; and in 
 revenge for this deprivation, some of our 
 Roxobel people make a practice of fre- 
 quenting Clifton wake ; and the miller, 
 whose house you will presently see, has 
 lent a little field on the other side of the 
 water, for the people to meet in, and he 
 laughs heartily at the idea of having over- 
 reached the parson."
 
 ROXOBEL. 247 
 
 " This miller of yours must be an amia- 
 ble gentleman!" I said. 
 
 " You shall see him presently," replied 
 Eugenius, " when we come to the mill. I 
 dare say we shall find him regaling some of 
 his friends. He was once a famous bruiser: 
 the people called him Ben the Bruiser ; 
 but he is now called Ben Tolly, and by 
 some people Jolly Tolly, or Jolly Ben 
 Tolly. He is something quite different 
 from all you have yet seen at Roxobel." 
 
 As the lane was deep and shady, the 
 boys advised that we should turn out of it 
 to a stile on the left, and after proceeding 
 onwards a little while, we came in full 
 view of the mill and the mill-stream ; be- 
 yond which, a little lower down, on the 
 northern bank of the river, we descried 
 a field, where were booths and stalls, and 
 a great concourse of people gathered in a 
 circle around two boxers. All this we 
 could discern from the eminence on which 
 we stood. 
 
 "We shall not see the miller to-day," 
 said Theodore, "for he will certainly be 
 with the boxers. However, we will go
 
 248 ROXOBEL. 
 
 down to the mill, and we will go in and ask 
 if they have any fish, for I heard my mo- 
 ther enquire for some yesterday." 
 
 We now descended the path directly 
 leading to the mill ; but just as we entered 
 the yard in front of the house, we were 
 overtaken by a woman, riding briskly on 
 horseback, who passed us, and went on to 
 the steps, of which she seemed inclined to 
 make a sort of horseblock. 
 
 " That is the Widow Watchum," whis- 
 pered Theodore. " She is a good study." 
 
 We walked on, and stood behind the 
 horse, while the lady called out to those 
 within, saying, " Who's at home ? I hear 
 your tongues ; who's at home V 
 
 In answer to this summons, two persons 
 appeared, whom I instantly recognized as 
 the miller and his wife. I knew the miller 
 by a dustiness of dress which always dis- 
 tinguishes men of his calling ; and likewise 
 by the self-satisfaction and insolence of 
 manner which was of course to be expect- 
 ed in the individual who had acquired 
 the cognomen of Jolly Ben Tolly. He 
 was, however, a handsome comely man,
 
 ROXOBEL. 249 
 
 and one from whom a downright blow 
 would have been sufficient to have annihi- 
 lated such a pigmy as myself. His lady was 
 a dainty dame, bedizened in many colours, 
 and might have passed for something tole- 
 rable, had she taken a vow of never speak- 
 ing ; but her voice and accent being loud 
 and coarse, my opinion did not long remain 
 favourable to her. We were so far behind 
 the horse, that neither the young gentle- 
 men nor I were at first observed by the 
 miller or by his wife, and, in consequence, 
 our presence was no restraint upon their 
 discourse with the new-comer. 
 
 " Halloo! come at last?" said the miller; 
 "better late than never. Clifton wake, 
 and no Widow Watchum till the second 
 day ! and we were looking for you all yes- 
 terday. Some said you were dead, and 
 others that you were buried. But what 
 has kept you so long ? " 
 
 " Why, what should it be ?" was the wi- 
 dow's reply ; " but my son Tom, an unlucky 
 rogue, he fell out of the big pear-tree yes- 
 terday morning, and we thought him dead, 
 and I have left him now abed, and blind
 
 250 ROXOBEL. 
 
 as a beetle. But I am come at last, you 
 see; so give us your hand, for I am as stiff 
 as a dead salmon." 
 
 The miller took the old lady in his arms, 
 and lifting her off her horse, set her on the 
 steps, where she stood shaking down her 
 clothes, and exhibiting such a grotesque 
 figure as set the boys to laugh. 
 
 She was a short thick-set woman, enve- 
 loped in what the country people call a safe- 
 guard, namely, a stuff or calamanco petti- 
 coat tied over her other habiliments. In 
 addition to this splendid article of apparel, 
 we discovered a small red shawl, a mob 
 cap, and a man's beaver hat, fastened down 
 on each side over a nut-cracker face. When 
 the old lady had shaken herself into order, 
 the miller accompanied her into the house ; 
 but his wife having espied us as the horse, 
 of its own accord, moved off to some well- 
 known hovel, addressed us with a sort of 
 cold civility, and asked what we pleased to 
 want. 
 
 "Have you any fish?" enquired Theo- 
 dore ; speaking quite as concisely as the 
 lady had done.
 
 ROXOBEL. 251 
 
 " I don't know," she answered, " but I'll 
 ask Ben ; please to walk in." 
 
 " Do let us," said Theodore, whispering 
 to me, and he led the way, while I and 
 Eugenius followed. We passed through a 
 kitchen into a parlour, where we were de- 
 sired to take seats, amidst a throng of 
 people, not one of whom was known to me, 
 excepting that most erudite personage, that 
 centaur Chiron, the preceptor of the heroes 
 of Roxobel, known by the name of Mr. 
 Pen Map. 
 
 In a very few glances I surveyed every 
 article of furniture in the room. The walls 
 were painted, or rather daubed, with gau- 
 dy-coloured flowers, in that style which we 
 call slap-dash. They were also hung with 
 coloured prints, glazed and in black 
 frames, representing the whole history of 
 the Prodigal Son, with the full-length por- 
 traits of his friends and family, attired in 
 the costume of the present reign. The 
 chairs were rush-bottomed, and two splen- 
 did tea-trays were displayed on the chini- 
 neypiece. In one corner of the room, was 
 a little round table, on which were placed
 
 252 ROXOBEL. 
 
 jugs and glasses ; and the tea-equipage 
 was set out in an opposite angle of the ap- 
 partment. 
 
 The miller hardly nodded as we entered, 
 and we should have felt ourselves rather 
 awkwardly situated, had we not been as- 
 sisted by the polite Mr. Pen Map, who 
 did us the honour of handing us the chairs, 
 and was the first to address me. " Mr. 
 Airley," he said, "we are all rejoiced to 
 see you and these young gentlemen, at 
 this our rural festivity. It must be pleas- 
 ing to a mind like yours, Sir, to witness 
 the innocent gaiety and simplicity of rustic 
 life." Then growing poetical, he added, 
 
 " Happy the swain whose simple soul 
 
 Nor guile nor envy knows ; 
 Whose blameless hours in quiet roll, 
 
 In peace and sweet repose !" 
 
 The Widow Watchum here put in a 
 word. " I hope, Sir, as I did not dust you 
 as I passed by on my mare," she said. " I 
 am sure I did not think you was coming 
 this way, or I should have held her in, 
 though she is so hard-mouthed, that it's not 
 always easy to do so all of a sudden."
 
 ROXOBEL. 253 
 
 Before I could reply, the miller offered 
 me some ale, and did not seem pleased at 
 my refusing it, for he immediately added, 
 addressing Theodore, "We have had a 
 rare season for the wake this year, Master 
 Beauchamp, and more company than ever 
 I see'd together in this place, anyhow ; and 
 Parson Green, of Clifton, he was down 
 with Madam last evening, and seemed 
 quite pleased. Why did not you bring the 
 doctor with you? We should have been 
 mighty glad to have seen him, and I would 
 have given him a lift over the river in my 
 boat, if he had been minded to see the 
 fight." The miller grinned as he spoke, 
 and shewed teeth as white as his own meal- 
 bags. 
 
 This impertinent speech was not receiv- 
 ed with the same freedom with which it was 
 delivered ; for Theodore reddened, and 
 looked so indignant, that I thought it best 
 to speak for him, and said, " We were not 
 aware of the wake when we set out, Mr. 
 Tolly ; but we came to ask if you had any 
 fish to part with. As you are now en- 
 gaged, however, we will take our leave, 
 vol. i. z
 
 254 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and call another time." I then got up, 
 and bowed out of the room, followed by 
 the young gentlemen ; to whom, when at 
 a sufficient distance from the mill, I re- 
 marked, " We have done a foolish thing ; 
 we had no business to go into such com- 
 pany : and had we been insulted, we should 
 have had no one to blame but ourselves." 
 
 " That miller is a blackguard," said the 
 boys, with heat. 
 
 " Very probably," I replied ; " but gen- 
 tlemen should never meet a blackguard on 
 his own ground. Depend upon it, when 
 Jolly Ben comes to pay his rent at the 
 Hall, he is a very different man from what 
 he is when sitting in his own parlour, and 
 with his own set." 
 
 " Well," returned Theodore, " I only wish 
 that he had not so long a lease of the mill, 
 for he is a real nuisance in the parish, and 
 there are no means of touching him." 
 
 Thus closed our adventures of this day, 
 for we walked home very quietly, being all 
 much fatigued.
 
 R0X0BEL. 255 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 A NOTE OF INVITATION. 
 
 On my arrival at home, Mrs. Strickland 
 put a note into my hand, which contained 
 the following words : " The Misses Finch- 
 ley present their compliments to Mr. 
 Airley, and hope to enjoy the honour of his 
 company to tea on Tuesday evening, to 
 meet a few select friends. The Misses 
 Finchley trust that Mr. Airley will not be 
 later than five o'clock." 
 
 "Whom do these ladies visit?" was my 
 first question. 
 
 "O, every body," replied Mrs. Strickland. 
 " The ladies from the Hall have drank tea 
 there twice, and the doctor and his family 
 met them both times." 
 
 " O, very well," I replied ; " then I trust 
 I shall see the doctor there to-morrow."
 
 256 ROXOBEL. 
 
 And as the note I had received was gilt- 
 edged, and perfectly genteel in every re- 
 spect, I mended a pen, took out my finest 
 paper, and my largest seal, and dispatched 
 my answer in the best possible style. 
 
 The next evening, at the appointed hour, 
 being dressed in my newest suit, I set out 
 to walk up the street towards Finchley 
 Cottage. The Hall clock had struck five 
 about five minutes before ; I therefore sup- 
 posed myself to be in good time, and walk- 
 ed leisurely up the street, thinking that I 
 should have a very pleasant evening, not 
 doubting, that in the word " select," used in 
 the note, I had an assurance of meeting 
 the families of the Hall and the parsonage. 
 However, when coining in a direct line 
 with Finchley Cottage, which my reader 
 must understand to be an ordinary red 
 brick house, standing in as ordinary a 
 garden, I was surprised to see the head 
 of Mrs. Nuttall protruded from one of the 
 upper windows, and that of Mr. Jeffry 
 Griffith, the steward, from another. 
 
 It was impossible now to retreat ; but I 
 felt excessively angry at the Misses Finch-
 
 ROXOBEL, *i57 
 
 ley's definition of the word "select;*' 
 though, by the by, the word, as it stands 
 separately, cannot convey a very definite 
 idea; for a company may be selected for 
 their disagreeablenesses as well as for 
 their agreeablenesses, for their ill quali- 
 ties as well as for their good ones. 
 
 While walking up the garden to the 
 house, I was in twenty minds concerning 
 the temper by which I should probably 
 be governed during the next three hours ; 
 but having spent a little of my indignation 
 upon the knocker of the door, I found my- 
 self better, and having followed a servant- 
 maid up stairs, was ushered into a room 
 where were assembled, Mrs. Xuttall and 
 her nephew Taffy, Mr. Jeffry Griffith, Mr. 
 Barnaby Semple, my new friend Mrs. 
 Taylor, and my old friend Mr. Clay- 
 pole, the grocer, from Beckington. With 
 these personages were assembled the three 
 Misses Finchley, who now shone upon my 
 astonished gaze for the first time. 
 
 I looked about for some one to intro- 
 duce me to my hostesses : but no person 
 present appearing to be mindful of this 
 z 3
 
 258 ROXOBEL. 
 
 piece of etiquette, I came forward my- 
 self, and bowed gracefully to each of the 
 spinsters ; then turning round, I paid my 
 compliments to Mrs. Nuttall, who, not- 
 withstanding my polite demeanour, receiv- 
 ed my attentions with such a marked fri- 
 gidity, that I felt assured she must have 
 been made acquainted with my conversa- 
 tion with the gipsy wife. After these cere- 
 monials, I ensconced myself in a corner, 
 under the protection of Mrs. Taylor, who 
 was in my opinion by far the most agree- 
 able woman in the room. 
 
 I have seen numberless persons like the 
 three Misses Finchley. When seen to- 
 gether, they are not alike; though, when 
 seen separately, it is impossible to re- 
 collect which is which. I consider that 
 the best method of describing them is by 
 negatives. They are not young, and they 
 are not old. They are not handsome, and 
 they are not ugly. They are not tall, and 
 they are not short. They are not genteel, 
 and they are not vulgar. They are not 
 wise, and they are not foolish. They are 
 not stupid, and they are not amusing.
 
 ROXOBEL. 259 
 
 They are not talkative, and they are not 
 silent. There is no one thing about them 
 that fixes on the memory. I think it would 
 be impossible to hate or to love them. No 
 man would ever marry one of them, but 
 for money or convenience; and for this 
 reason, that no one could think long enough 
 of either of the fair sisters to feel himself 
 particularly attached to her; at least, 
 such was the opinion I conceived on first 
 beholding them. 
 
 As soon as I was fairly seated, a con- 
 versation which had been interrupted was 
 resumed. Mr. Jeffry Griffith was the 
 speaker; and he seemed to have been ad- 
 dressing Mr. Barnaby Semple previously 
 to my entrance. 
 
 This Mr. Jeffry is a large, substan- 
 tially built man, ill-featured, sallow, and 
 deeply channelled with the small -pox; 
 between forty and fifty years of age, a good 
 dresser, and possessed of two, if not three, 
 sets of manners, which, like the curate's 
 coats in the old story, I shall choose to 
 denominate " hightum, tightum, and raff." 
 The first of these sets, or suits, he puts
 
 260 ROXOBEL. 
 
 on whenever he is honoured with an in- 
 vitation to make up a rubber with his la- 
 dies in the brown parlour, or on other 
 equally important occasions. The second 
 suit, designated " tightuin," was that which 
 he wore on the evening of his visit to the 
 Misses Finchley. It is his most flashy 
 dress; and, as I perceived, was thought 
 to become him well by the young ladies 
 in the present company. When he as- 
 sumes this suit, he is very jocose and 
 very complimentary, affecting much de- 
 votion to the fair sex. His third suit, 
 namely, that which answers to the curate's 
 third coat, denominated " raff," is what the 
 good steward wears in his own room, in 
 the housekeeper's apartments, and like- 
 wise in the houses of the inferior tenants. 
 This is his favourite suit, and he has been 
 sometimes accused of letting the other two 
 lie by till they have become moth-eaten. 
 For this last assertion, however, I can- 
 not vouch, as I have never yet actually 
 faced the worthy man in his third suit, 
 though I have seen him in it from my 
 window, while he was occupied in di-
 
 ROXOBEL. 261 
 
 recting some workmen below in the gar- 
 den. 
 
 I soon discovered, that the subject on 
 which this gentleman had been conversing 
 before my entrance related to the gang of 
 gipsies on the warren; and Mr. Griffith 
 was alluding to some story respecting them 
 which I did not comprehend at once, and 
 which seemed to set Mrs. Nuttall in a 
 dreadful fidget, for she reddened, and bri- 
 dled, and " looked unutterable things." 
 
 Now every person who understands the 
 politics of Roxobel Hall is fully aware that 
 there exists a deadly feud between Mr. 
 Jeffry Griffith and Mrs. Xuttall ; and, in- 
 deed, had I not known this before my visit, 
 I should have perceived it on the present 
 occasion, so obvious was the pleasure which 
 the steward received whenever his jests 
 appeared to provoke the duenna. 
 
 Accordingly, looking seriously at me, he 
 said, " If I mistake not, Mr. Airley had a 
 hand in the business. They say, Sir, that 
 you contrived to frighten poor Nelly almost 
 into fits the other evening. I was on horse- 
 back, just at the edge of the wood, and she
 
 262 ROXOBEL. 
 
 came darting out of it, looking so guilty 
 and so conscious, that I was going to clap 
 her into the stocks ; but she muttered some- 
 thing about you, and told me you were a 
 wizard." 
 
 " If I confess that I am one," I replied, 
 "will you have me burned, Mr. Grif- 
 fith?" 
 
 " Not I," replied the steward ; " but I 
 would not answer for Mrs. Nuttall." And 
 he looked very saucily at her, winking at 
 the same time at Mr. Semple. " She has 
 such an objection to witchcraft, and for- 
 tune-telling, and such things as those, that 
 I would not be a witch or wizard in her 
 way on any account." 
 
 " But there is no such thing as real witch- 
 craft," said Master Taffy, looking at me. 
 " You may say what you will, Mr. Airley, 
 and Nelly may say what she will, and my 
 aunt too ; but I'll no more believe that you 
 are a wizard than that I can fly over the 
 moon." 
 
 " Hold your tongue, Taffy," said Mrs. 
 Nuttall. " If Mr. Griffith chooses to plague 
 us with his nonsense, it is no business of
 
 ROXOBEL. 263 
 
 yours. Come, cousin Finchley, do let us 
 have our tea, and afterwards a rubber of 
 whist ; and then," she added, " if Mr. Bar- 
 naby Semple will be my partner, we will 
 take our revenge on you, Mr. Griffith." 
 
 " Then I bespeak Mr. Airley for my 
 partner," replied Mr. Griffith, with another 
 wink. "We shall, at least, be sure of the 
 odd trick." 
 
 I replied, that if I accepted this chal- 
 lenge I feared I should shew more odd tricks 
 than my partner would like, as I actually 
 did not know one card from another." 
 
 This brought a host upon me. 
 
 " Why, sure, Mr. Airley!" said Mrs. 
 Taylor. 
 
 "Surprising!" exclaimed another. 
 
 "Astonishing!" cried a third. 
 
 "Impossible!" ejaculated a fourth. 
 
 And the steward remarked, that he would 
 never believe that Mr. Airley, being by his 
 own confession a conjurer, could possibly 
 be ignorant of the art of card-playing. 
 
 " Perhaps," remarked Mr. Claypole, with 
 a patronizing air, "Mr. Airley may have 
 some religious objection to card-playing;
 
 264 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and then, ladies, I am sure that you would 
 not think of introducing cards in his pre- 
 sence. Dr. Beauchamp, I know, has no 
 opinion of them." 
 
 Upon this, all eyes were turned towards 
 me ; and Miss Finchley said, " Mr. Airley, 
 if you have the smallest objection, the 
 cards shall not be introduced this evening." 
 
 " Madam, I thank you," I replied : " but 
 I desire that I may place no constraint on 
 the company. If the thing is wrong, I am 
 sure that no one here would choose to in- 
 dulge their propensities at the expence of 
 their consciences ; and, if the amusement 
 is harmless, why should I prevent my 
 friends from enjoying it?" 
 
 The ladies looked puzzled at this ; and 
 Mr. Barnaby Semple said, " But, seriously, 
 Mr. Airley, do you think there is any harm 
 in card-playing?" 
 
 "My thoughts are really of no conse- 
 quence, Mr. Semple," I answered. " We 
 have but two rules of action that I know 
 of in matters of this kind, namely, the Scrip- 
 tures, and the law of the land." 
 
 " But surely, Sir," said the steward,
 
 ROXOBEL. 265 
 
 " cards are never mentioned in the Holy 
 Scriptures?" 
 
 "I never consulted the Bible with the 
 view of making the discovery, Sir," I re- 
 plied. "I will not affirm that they are 
 mentioned by name ; but, perhaps, we 
 might find some passages which would ap- 
 ply to them in one way or another, either 
 approving or condemning them ; and I think 
 it would be well, if anv of these ladies have 
 any scruples, that they should turn over 
 the Bible, in order to satisfy themselves." 
 
 This observation was received in simpli- 
 city by most of the party ; but the steward 
 regarded me slily, and turning to the tea- 
 making Miss Finchley, he attempted to 
 draw the conversation into another chan- 
 nel ; exclaiming, " How excellent your tea 
 is, Miss Betty ! where might you procure it ? " 
 
 The young lady smiled, and gave a sig- 
 nificant glance, by which our eyes were 
 directed towards the grocer, who had on 
 the occasion what the French call un acces 
 de modestie. 
 
 " It is the very same that I send to you, 
 Mr. Griffith," said Mr. Claypole. 
 
 VOL. I. A A
 
 266 ROXOBEL. 
 
 "Then," rejoined the steward, " the diffe- 
 rence must arise from the want of skill in 
 the tea-maker. If Miss Betty could but be 
 prevailed on to superintend my tea-table, 
 what a happy man should I be!" 
 
 "O, Mr. Griffith !" was the lady's reply; 
 " how droll you always are ! Think of me 
 coming over twice a day to make tea for 
 you in your rooms!" 
 
 "And why not, Miss Betty?" said Mr. 
 Griffith. " It would be but an act of kind- 
 ness to Mr. Claypole, to give every possible 
 advantage to his bohea." 
 
 " Bohea, Mr. Griffith ! " said the vender 
 of spiceries. " Do you not know that this 
 is the superfine green?" 
 
 "Indeed!" said the steward, shrugging 
 up his shoulders. " And do I always drink 
 the best green, and not know it ? See what 
 it is to want a lady to superintend my tea- 
 table." 
 
 Much more of this most facetious and 
 witty conversation passed between Miss 
 Betty and the gentleman while we sipped 
 our tea, leading me to make the reflection, 
 that, in every condition of life, the natu-
 
 ROXOBEL. 267 
 
 ral feelings of human beings are the same, 
 varying only in the modes in which they 
 are concealed or exhibited. 
 
 At length, the tea-equipage being remov- 
 ed, two card-tables were set, and Mrs. Nut- 
 tall, Miss Finchley, the steward, and Mr. 
 Semple, sat down to whist. 
 
 A demur then ensued as to what should 
 be the second game. Both loo and com- 
 merce were proposed; but no one would 
 give a decisive opinion, so that the com- 
 pany might have remained till now compli- 
 menting each other, if Master Taffy, who 
 had been holding his head out of the 
 window for the last quarter of an hour, had 
 not suddenly drawn it in, and declared his 
 determination to play at no other game 
 than Pope Joan. 
 
 " Well, Sir, it shall be Pope Joan," said 
 the eldest Miss Finchley; "and my sister 
 Betty will sit out to amuse Mr. Airley." 
 
 " By no means ! " I exclaimed, in alarm : 
 " I will be a looker on. I beg I may not 
 deprive Miss Betty of the pleasure of play- 
 ing at the round game. I will sit in the 
 window-seat, and look about me."
 
 268 ROXOBEL. 
 
 This, however, was not to be allowed; 
 and the two card-parties being made up, 
 Miss Betty and I sat down vis-a-vis in the 
 window-seat. 
 
 For some moments, neither Miss Betty 
 nor I could have been audible, had we at- 
 tempted to address each other, by reason 
 of the clamour excited by Master Taffy, 
 who having taken up his cards, and found 
 something in his hand which he liked very 
 much, cried " Halloo ! tantivy ! here we 
 go ! " exclamations which he repeated every 
 time that he threw down a card ; no one 
 rebuking him but the steward, who asked 
 him more than once if he fancied himself 
 following the hounds. 
 
 Taffy, however, took no manner of notice 
 of these reproofs, but continued to vocife- 
 rate till he had played his good hand and 
 had got a bad one, when a short silence 
 ensued, during which an interesting con- 
 versation took place between me and Miss 
 Betty, which I propose to record in the dia- 
 logue fashion, for the edification of posterity. 
 
 Miss Betty. It's a fine afternoon, Mr. 
 Airley.
 
 ROXOBEL. 269 
 
 The little man, (being in an ill humour.) 
 It is, Ma'am. 
 
 Miss Betty. You are fond of walking, 
 Mr. Airley? 
 
 The little man, (still sulky.) Yes, Ma'am, 
 in pleasant company. 
 
 Miss Betty. The walks hereabouts are 
 very pretty, Sir, though too much up hill 
 and down. And the woods, Sir! — don't 
 you think it a pity some of them weren't 
 cleared? 
 
 The little man, (in indignation.) The 
 hills and the woods, Miss Betty, are the 
 principal ornaments of Roxobel. 
 
 Miss Betty, (politely.) To be sure, Sir. 
 Very true. And, as Mr. Claypole says, 
 if there were but a few pretty neat modern 
 boxes stuck here and there about the park, 
 Roxobel would be a perfect paradise. 
 
 The little man, (in high dudgeon, but try- 
 ing to conceal his displeasure.) Mr. Clay- 
 pole is a man of taste, no doubt, Miss Betty. 
 
 Mr. Claypole, (from the card-table.) Who 
 takes my name in vain, Miss Betty? I 
 don't allow it. 
 
 The conversation now took some lively 
 
 A A 3
 
 270 ROXOBEL. 
 
 turn between Mr. Claypole and Miss Betty, 
 during which I severely chid myself for 
 my rudeness and ingratitude. " These 
 poor people are trying to oblige me," 
 thought I, "and I am behaving like a 
 bear ; because, forsooth, they are not bless- 
 ed with refined minds. Give me leave to ask 
 you, friend Airley, whether it is not deci- 
 dedly more incompatible with the spirit of 
 Christianity to give way to bad tempers, 
 than to be playing the fool with those little 
 bits of painted paper? Let me have no more 
 of your pride and ill humour in this com- 
 pany. Are not you ashamed of yourself, 
 you little fool?" Thus I expostulated 
 with myself; and, in consequence, when 
 Miss Betty spoke to me again, I answered 
 cheerfully, and concluded by begging that 
 she and her sisters would honour me with 
 their company at my lodgings, at the 
 same time, extending my invitation to 
 every member of the present party, and 
 fixing a day for the occasion ; by all which 
 courtesies I somewhat reconciled the little 
 man to himself. My invitation was ac- 
 cepted with eagerness ; and Mr. Griffith
 
 ROXOBEL. 271 
 
 suggested very politely that no person 
 would think of cards, as I was no card- 
 player, and was provided with so many 
 amusements in my organ, my prints, and 
 my new publications. Thus every one was 
 put in good humour; and if I constrained 
 myself to be civil, it was no more than 
 what I ought to have done. 
 
 I have often thought that certain temp- 
 tations particularly attend persons of a 
 quick discernment, who have sensitive 
 feelings, and are admirers of excellence: 
 and such a one I consider myself, both by 
 nature and education. Such individuals 
 always shrink with horror from what they 
 conceive to be vulgar; though, perhaps, 
 they are not so much disgusted when they 
 meet with it in decidedly low life, being 
 habitually prepared for such rencontres, 
 and knowing that it would be absurd to 
 expect any thing otherwise. When, how- 
 ever, they fall in with it among those nearer 
 to their own rank, then comes the time of 
 trial, and their pride taking alarm, they 
 often yield to the same temptation as that 
 which overcame the little man when sit-
 
 272 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ting in the window-seat with Miss Betty 
 Finchley. — But to proceed from these lu- 
 cubrations to attend to the company. 
 
 The eventful moment was at length ar- 
 rived, in which the palm of victory was 
 to be adjudged, at the Pope Joan table, 
 either to Mr. Claypole or to Master Taf- 
 fy; and the competitors had just agreed 
 to divide the spoils, when the figures of 
 Mrs. Grizzy and Mrs. Judy Helmsley ap- 
 peared walking up the street, followed by 
 two footmen, each carrying a small fat 
 lap-dog. 
 
 The ladies were dressed in stiff silks, their 
 trains being drawn up behind like the fes- 
 toons of a curtain, each having on a black 
 lace cloak which hardly reached to her 
 ruffled elbows, and having her head en- 
 veloped in a large calash of fawn-coloured 
 silk somewhat resembling the tilt of a Lon- 
 don waggon. The figures of both these 
 venerable sisters were altogether as far 
 from the line of beauty as can possibly be 
 conceived, being composed of two squares, 
 the lesser set upon the larger, and both 
 surmounted by a monstrous oval.
 
 ROXOBEL. 273 
 
 " Dear me! " cried Miss Betty, " how far 
 the ladies have come this evening! Sure 
 they don't mean to call?" But while she 
 spoke, they passed the gate. 
 
 " Which of the ladies are they, Betty V 
 asked Miss Finchley, who was dealing 
 again for another turn at Pope Joan. Be- 
 fore an answer could be returned, Taffy 
 had his head out of the window, exclaim- 
 ing, as he drew it in, " O ! it's only the 
 two pugs and their mistresses!" 
 
 " Hold your tongue, Taffy : how dare 
 you?" said Mrs. Nuttall. 
 
 " I'll tell you what, young master," re- 
 marked the steward, colouring, " you will 
 not rest till you get yourself fairly turned 
 out of the Hall." 
 
 Taffy gave the steward an insolent look, 
 and then setting himself to the Pope Joan 
 table, took up his cards ; but finding he 
 had a bad hand, he threw them down again, 
 saying, he would play no more : after which, 
 the amiable youth protruded his head out of 
 the window between me and Miss Betty, 
 exclaiming, "Why, aunt, if they are not 
 gone in at the park gate at the end of the
 
 274 ROXOBEL. 
 
 street! and the two pugs have found their 
 four legs, and are waddling along by their 
 mistresses! They'll be sure to keep their 
 beds all day to-morrow, and you'll have 
 some chicken broth to order for them, aunt 
 Nuttall." 
 
 No one replied to this sally, but the whist 
 party looked black as thunder. 
 
 " Sir," said Taffy, addressing Mr. Barna- 
 ble Semple, as if resolved to make him 
 speak, " don't you never prescribe for 
 Mrs. Judy's lap-dog? I am sure you do 
 now, if you would but speak the truth." 
 
 " I shall prescribe for you presently, 
 Master Taffy," returned Mr. Semple, red- 
 dening with indignation. 
 
 " And I trust it will be a good horse- 
 whipping," added the steward. 
 
 " And who is to apply the prescription?" 
 said Mr. Claypole, softly, and as if half 
 afraid that he might be going too far. No 
 one however answered him. 
 
 Taffy's head was now again protruded 
 from the window, and as speedily drawn 
 in, with a call upon his aunt : " Aunt Pen, 
 I say, Aunt Pen, if there is not Mrs. Wi-
 
 ROXOBEL. 275 
 
 nifred in her pony chair, coming down from 
 the park, and little Miss with her ; and if 
 I don't have a ride home, I am mis- 
 taken." 
 
 " Hold your tongue, can't you," said Mrs. 
 Nuttall, sternly. 
 
 " There now," said the boy, looking out 
 of the window, " there she comes through 
 the gates. Where's my hat? If I don't 
 have a ride, you shall see." And out of 
 the room he flew, banging the door after 
 him ; and the next minute we saw him at 
 the garden gate. 
 
 The card-tables were instantly aban- 
 doned, and every one rushed to the two 
 windows, while the angry duenna vocife- 
 rated to this effect: "Come back, Taffy, 
 come back this moment, or I will make 
 you remember it as long as you live." 
 
 The boy did not pay the smallest atten- 
 tion to the outcries of his aunt; but the 
 head of the pony appearing at that instant, 
 from behind the wall of a neighbouring 
 cottage, the company withdrew a little from 
 the windows, though not so far as that we 
 could not see and hear what passed. Mrs.
 
 276 ROXOBEL. 
 
 Nuttall was the only one who sat down, 
 and I perceived that she turned quite yellow 
 with vexation, biting her lips till the blood 
 almost started. 
 
 " Stop, stop," cried Taffy to the man who 
 was driving the pony carriage, " let me get 
 up behind. I want to ride home. Stop; 
 do you hear?" 
 
 Mr. Griffith muttered something between 
 his teeth, and then again listened. 
 
 The driver was proceeding, when Mrs. 
 Winifred spoke from the carriage: " Do 
 you hear, Joseph? why don't you stop?" 
 
 The man obeyed, the horse was stopped, 
 and Taffy sprang up behind, and was driven 
 off in high style, waving his hand triumph- 
 antly to the party in the windows. 
 
 " Well," said the steward, returning to 
 his place at the table, "I will never say 
 that I am surprised again. If Master Lovel 
 had done as much as this, he would have 
 heard of it for twelve months to come, and 
 there would have been, ' Young people 
 never know how to keep their distance,' 
 and ' It was not so, sister Grizzy, in our 
 time;' — and I don't know what else. But
 
 ROXOBEL. 277 
 
 women are simpletons, and that's the plain 
 truth." 
 
 " Come, come, Mr. Griffith," said Mr. 
 Barnaby Semple, directing the steward's 
 eye to Mrs. Nuttall ; " 'tis but boys' play." 
 
 "Pshaw!" replied the steward, "I am 
 not blaming the young fool ; it is the old 
 one that " 
 
 Here Mr. Semple raised his voice, say- 
 ing, "Come, Mr. Jeffry, come, come; 
 look at your cards; mind your play; don't 
 chafe yourself with what does not belong 
 to you." 
 
 " I beg, Mr. Semple," said Mrs. Nuttall, 
 " that you will not prevent Mr. Griffith from 
 speaking his mind, out of compliment to me. 
 I no more approve of Taffy's behaviour 
 than Mr. Griffith himself does. The boy 
 has taken a great liberty, and if my lady 
 does not choose to resent it, as she ought to 
 do, out of the regard she has for me, it 
 must be my business to use the correction 
 which is necessary." So saying, she pursed 
 up her mouth, drew her person into an 
 erect form, took up her cards, asked what 
 was trumps, and begged that the company 
 vol. i. b B
 
 278 ROXOBEL. 
 
 might be no more disturbed by the vaga- 
 ries of her nephew ; thus intimating, that 
 the subject was to be no further alluded to 
 at that time. Accordingly, the rest of the 
 evening passed off heavily enough, because 
 we were all occupied in thinking upon one 
 subject, while we were constrained to con- 
 verse upon another. However, I accom- 
 plished a happy retreat, by taking my 
 leave at an early hour. 
 
 The next morning, I was in the library 
 at the Hall, with little Lucy, when she 
 said, " Mr. Airley, you can't think how 
 Mrs. Xuttall has been quarrelling to-day 
 with my aunt Winifred !" 
 
 " Quarrelling with her ! " I said ; " what, 
 the maid quarrelling with the mistress? 
 that is turning the world upside down, 
 indeed !" 
 
 " I was in my aunt's room," continued 
 Miss Lucy, " where I went to shew my 
 sampler, and I was standing in the win- 
 dow to unpick a stitch in the parrot's tail, 
 for I have worked a parrot in my sam- 
 pler, and in came Mrs. Nuttall, with my 
 aunt's chocolate, which she took to her
 
 ROXOBEL. 'J79 
 
 bedside; and I suppose Mrs. Nuttall did 
 not see me, for she scolded ray aunt so 
 about Taffy, you never heard any thing 
 like it, Sir : and my aunt said she would 
 never do so again." 
 
 "Well, my dear," I replied, "I don't 
 think that when you happen to hear things 
 by accident, in this sort of way, you ought 
 to repeat them, at least not to every one." 
 
 The little girl looked at me for a moment, 
 as if considering the meaning of what I 
 had said, and then replied with vivacity, 
 and unchanged good humour, " O verj 
 well, Sir, then I won't do it again." 
 
 Upon reflection, however, I thought it 
 right to add, " If any thing which you hap- 
 pen to hear, may have respect to yourself, 
 ray dear little girl, you may tell me, be- 
 cause I am your tutor now. Your aimts 
 have allowed me to instruct you; and 
 should you meet with any difficulty, I would 
 endeavour to give you my very best advice. 
 But I don't want to be made acquainted 
 with any secrets of the family, which have 
 no reference to yourself; and I wish to 
 know such as really concern you, only that
 
 280 R0X0BEL. 
 
 I may have the opportunity of counselling 
 and directing you." 
 
 I could not quite ascertain whether the 
 little girl understood the distinction which 
 I had made ; but I was pleased to observe, 
 that her sweet face expressed the greatest 
 attention, without the exhibition of even 
 the shadow of a cloud on her serene and 
 open brow. 
 
 The little story related by Lucy increas- 
 ed my astonishment respecting the licence 
 allowed to Tafty at Helmsley Hall. How- 
 ever, as it was no business of mine, I re- 
 solved to keep my cogitations to myself.
 
 ROXOBEL. 281 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE VILLAGE SCHOOL. 
 
 I took a walk this evening to the school, 
 and arrived there about four o'clock. I 
 first went into Mrs. Tristram's school- 
 room, where I found the excellent woman, 
 sitting- with her young- pupils around her, 
 all busily engaged with their needles. The 
 little creatures were dressed more decently 
 than might have been expected, consider- 
 ing the condition of many of their parents. 
 They all rose up as I entered, and I made 
 as low a bow to them as I would have 
 made to a drawing-room of court beauties, 
 for I consider that females are always re- 
 spectable when neat, modest, and found in 
 their duty. " And now, my good Mrs. 
 Tristram," I said, "sit down, and let me also 
 have a chair ; don't let me disturb work." 
 b b 3
 
 282 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " Sir," answered Mrs. Tristram, " we 
 always spend our last hour in the evening 
 in reading a story; I am generally the 
 reader ; then we have a prayer ; after 
 which every body goes home. This is 
 what we call our happy hour." 
 
 Upon this, the little ones all looked up, 
 as if to say, " Yes, indeed, it is our hap- 
 py hour, Sir." 
 
 I then declared the object of my visit. — 
 "Mrs. Tristram," I said, "I have just 
 received such a treasure from London." 
 
 "Indeed, Sir!" replied Mrs. Tristram. 
 
 " Yes," I answered ; " a box of books ; 
 little books, with gilt covers and pictures." 
 
 "Really, Sir!" said Mrs. Tristram, 
 smiling. 
 
 " Yes, I assure you ; and I have a great 
 mind to come here some afternoon and 
 drink tea with you, and then we will open 
 the box; and I intend to give a book 
 to every little girl who desires to be en- 
 abled to behave better this year than she 
 behaved during the last. Or shall I make 
 presents only to those little girls who have 
 been good during the last year?"
 
 ROXOBEL. 283 
 
 " In that case, Sir," said one of the 
 elder girls, archly, " you would not be 
 much the poorer for your gifts." 
 
 "And why?" I asked. 
 
 "Because there is none good, no, not 
 one," she answered. 
 
 " Very true," I replied ; " you have been 
 properly taught, I see. And what happy 
 children you are, in being thus led in the 
 holy way so early in life! Well, my little 
 people," I added, " I am come to live 
 among you. Perhaps I may stay many 
 y ears, till y ou are all grown up ; and I hope 
 to come often to see you, and to watch you 
 from year to year as you grow bigger. 
 And how pleasant it will be to me to see 
 you all become holy and industrious wo- 
 men ! Then, when all the little ones who 
 now play about in the fields of Roxobel, 
 are become men and women ; — if not 
 before, my time will come to be laid in 
 this quiet churchyard, there to lie till the 
 morning of the resurrection. And then, if 
 in this life I have loved my Saviour, and 
 have been assisted by the grace of the Holy 
 Spirit to do the will of my heavenly Father,
 
 284 ROXOBEL. 
 
 I shall rise in glory, and be taken to dwell 
 with God in everlasting happiness. I shall 
 then be looking again for you, my dear 
 children : and with what pleasure shall we 
 meet in the heavenly regions, never to be 
 parted any more!" I added a few other 
 observations to the same purpose, and then 
 fixing the next Tuesday, the tenth of Au- 
 gust, for my visit, that day being Lucy's 
 birth -day, I was rising to take leave, when 
 one of the little girls, though apparently 
 half afraid, pressed a little forward, as if 
 desirous of attracting my particular notice. 
 It was Ellen, my dear Mrs. Goodwill's 
 granddaughter. I immediately recollected 
 her, extended my hand to her, and asked 
 after her grandmother. 
 
 Then walking out of the house, though 
 not till I had invited the old lady and 
 little Margery to my feast, I proceeded 
 to the boys' school, which I did not find in 
 that calm and comfortable state in which 
 I had found the little girls. These poor 
 boys I found to be very deficient in reli- 
 gious instruction; indeed, Dr. Beauchamp 
 had informed me that this was what I
 
 ROXOBEL. 285 
 
 might expect : I therefore resolved to 
 watch particularly over them; to lend them 
 suitable books; and, if their master would 
 permit, to read to them for an hour, two or 
 three times a week. I almost anticipated 
 a refusal from Mr. Pen Map; but having 
 propitiated the pedagogue, by presenting 
 him with a case of mathematical instru- 
 ments, which I had purposely brought in 
 my pocket, I found my way quite smooth, 
 nor did I encounter any difficulty with the 
 boys, who, I perceived, had already ac- 
 quired a sort of liking for me, though some 
 of the young rogues were making game at 
 me from behind the forms and desks. 
 
 " Poor little fellows," I thought, " how 
 unapprehensive are ye of the troubles which 
 await you in after-life ! How easy is it 
 now to set you a chuckling and capering!" 
 It is one of my opinions, however, that 
 giggling children are by no means so much 
 to be suspected as the graver and more 
 demure sort ; and that so long as their 
 laughter is foolish and not wicked, there is 
 little harm to be dreaded. I believe, it is 
 a remarkable trait in the character of some
 
 286 HOXOBEL. 
 
 nations, that they are seldom excited to 
 mirth, but by something grossly sinful : 
 but I am happy to think that this is not, 
 in general, the English character; and 
 though commonly accounted a grave na- 
 tion, I believe that we laugh more than any 
 other people in the known world. 
 
 Robert Taylor was the only boy in the 
 school with whom I had been previously 
 acquainted; and I was pleased to see him 
 come forward before his schoolfellows to 
 claim the privilege of being known to me. 
 He had already called upon me several 
 times ; and I had given him one or two 
 books. We were, therefore, tried friends, 
 and I was sure of his good word at least ; 
 and in order to make a sudden attack on 
 the hearts of the other boys, I made the 
 same proposal to them as I had made to 
 the young ladies, begging a half-holiday 
 on the next Tuesday evening. I also pro- 
 mised to appear with a box; which box, 
 however, I did not intend to fill with 
 books, as I had some doubts whether the 
 taste for literature had as yet developed 
 itself so far in the academy of Mr. Pen
 
 ROXOEEL. 287 
 
 Map, as to render books, however gilt, or 
 however adorned with cuts, precisely the 
 most acceptable presents that I could be- 
 stow. 
 
 Having paid both these visits, I returned 
 home, and set myself the next morning to 
 prepare all things for my gala. My first 
 step was to secure the presence of my little 
 sunbeam, my Lucy dear; and then that of 
 the beloved family at the parsonage. I 
 then sent to my friend Mr. Claypole, to en- 
 treat his co-operations, and to beg him to 
 buy up all the tops, balls, pen, and clasp 
 knives in the little town of Beckiugton ; 
 also to send me a sufficient modicum of 
 tea and sugar to regale fifty persons, with 
 some enormous cakes, and other articles 
 specified : and Mr. Claypole was actually 
 so astonished and puzzled with this order, 
 that he hired a gig, and appeared himself 
 on the eventful morning, in the front of 
 Mrs. Strickland's door, saying, that if 
 agreeable to me, he would take his dinner 
 with his friends the Misses Finchley, and 
 assist (to use a figure of speech of our 
 neighbours across the channel) at the af-
 
 288 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ternoon merry-making. This was cer- 
 tainly giving too much eclat and publicity 
 to my little treat: but, as I have often con- 
 sidered, people must have their amuse- 
 ments of some sort or other. And certain 
 it is, that those who busy themselves in cut- 
 ting off the hydra heads of human absurdity, 
 often find, that, where one branch has been 
 lopped off, a dozen more will sprout out in 
 its place. Activity, or rather restlessness, 
 is one of the properties of our nature ; 
 hence, a kind Providence has ordained, 
 that man, in most conditions of life, shall 
 either earn his maintenance, or preserve 
 that maintenance, already earned, by the 
 sweat of his brow. But human beings 
 cannot always be at work. The busiest 
 man must sometimes play ; and to find 
 harmless amusements for him, when so in- 
 clined, is perhaps one of the most difficult 
 tasks of persons in places of authority. 
 
 I should, however, have been better 
 pleased had my little gala gone off in the 
 quiet way I had intended : but it was not 
 to be. Before noon, on that important day, 
 I had a dozen messages at least, all im-
 
 ROXOBEL. 289 
 
 porting that the utmost notoriety was to 
 be given to my tea-drinking. 
 
 Mr. Claypole's gig had, as I should 
 have thought, scarcely reached Finchley 
 Cottage, before a message was brought 
 from the Misses Finchley, offering their 
 services to infuse bohea at the school in 
 the afternoon. It was impossible to say 
 " No," though I groaned at the apprehen- 
 sion of a second tete-h-Ute with Miss 
 Betty. 
 
 The next message came from Mrs. Tay- 
 lor, accompanied with a huge pot of cream, 
 and her best respects, and imported that 
 she would be down with some fresh butter 
 and pikelets a little after three in the after- 
 noon. 
 
 Mrs. Strickland brought in the pot of 
 cream, and delivered the message. 
 
 " Give my best respects to Mrs. Taylor," 
 I answered, "and assure her that I shall 
 be most happy in her company. But, my 
 good Mrs. Strickland," I added, " where 
 am I to put all these good people ? " 
 
 "O, Sir!" replied Mrs. Strickland, "we 
 can sit out at the door." 
 vol. i. c c
 
 290 ROXOBEL. 
 
 "We?" I repeated: "why, surely, you 
 are not to be present ? " 
 
 She dropped a courtesy, and replied, with 
 a smile, " To be sure, Sir, you won't re- 
 fuse to admit me? Mrs. Goodwill is com- 
 ing to dinner, that she may go along with 
 me." 
 
 " Well, be it so," I answered. " If it 
 must, it must." 
 
 Returning a moment afterwards to the 
 door of my room, Mrs. Strickland met me, 
 saying, " If you please, Sir, Mr. Barnaby 
 Semple has sent his servant-girl, to ask if 
 she can be of use this evening at the school." 
 
 " Give my compliments," I replied, " and 
 
 But you had better say 'Yes' at once 
 
 to every one, and give yourself no further 
 trouble to come up the stairs." And I 
 therewith sat down in a sort of sulky hu- 
 mour, which, however, evaporated, after I 
 had exclaimed once or twice "Pshaw!" 
 and "Pish!" for then, like the child who, 
 having been naughty, called out, after a 
 while, " The good feel is come now, papa ! " 
 I felt in a better temper, and began to 
 laugh at myself, and at all the good peo-
 
 ROXOBEL. 291 
 
 pie around me, exclaiming, though alone, 
 " Well, and what harm? Where is the sin 
 in creatures who are made to associate, 
 liking to meet on a fine afternoon in a 
 lovely country place, to eat bread-and-but- 
 ter, and see a number of poor children 
 made happy?" 
 
 My dinner was on the table punctually 
 to the moment, and Mrs. Strickland herself, 
 dressed in a gown which I had given her, 
 and in a very showy riband, came to clear 
 away, apologizing for her intrusion, by say- 
 ing that the girl was gone to the school 
 with the cream. " And look, Sir," she 
 exclaimed, peering out of the window, as 
 she passed round the table to gather up the 
 dishes, "the folks are beginning to come!" 
 
 I rose, and went to the window, and " sure 
 enough," (to use a phrase of Mrs. Strick- 
 land's,) there were people seen in all direc- 
 tions crossing the park in threes and fours, 
 and every party, as they approached, turn- 
 ing towards the schoolhouse. 
 
 "Run to the the baker's!" I exclaimed, 
 "and buy all the bread in the shop! we 
 shall not have a crumb for each!"
 
 292 ROXOBELi 
 
 "Why, Sir," replied the good woman, 
 " they only come to look on." 
 
 "What!" I cried: "and am I to send 
 away all those poor mothers who are lead- 
 ing their babes across the park, without 
 any refreshment? I would rather go with- 
 out a new coat for the~ next dozen years." 
 
 "Well, Sir," said Mrs. Strickland, "you 
 need not be uneasy; for, besides all that 
 you have provided, the girl says, (for she 
 has been twice down at the school already,) 
 that Mrs. Taylor has sent pikelets and but- 
 ter enough for forty people." 
 
 At this instant, the blooming Lucy came 
 dancing into the room, too happy to pay 
 any compliments, and, with her, my excel- 
 lent Mrs. Goodwill, and little Ellen; Miss 
 Lucy's attendant not being far behind. 
 
 Lucy sprang to the window-seat, and 
 calling Ellen to get up by her on a chair, she 
 cried, " Here we can see them all. There 
 are two of the Miss Finchleys, and Mr. 
 Barnaby Semple ; and there is Miss Betty, 
 and Mr. Claypole!" And she perfectly 
 shrieked in ecstasy, a thing not uncommon 
 with the little damsel.
 
 ROXOBEL. 293 
 
 In the mean time, it was far from the 
 little lady of the Hall to have discovered 
 that Ellen was not altogether her equal in 
 rank. Lucy is not so well provided with 
 various assortments of manners, as that 
 important personage Mr. Jeffry Griffith : 
 for she has but one suit, though that is al- 
 ways fair and fresh, and tinted with the 
 dyes of heaven. 
 
 " Look at that little angel," said Mrs. 
 Goodwill, addressing me, in a low voice ; 
 " see how kind she is to my Ellen. And yet 
 she never lowers herself; she is the lady 
 in all she does. O may she ever preserve 
 that sweet simplicity, and true dignity of 
 character ! She will be a blessing, then, 
 to all with whom she may ever dwell." 
 
 " O, Mr. Airley," exclaimed Lucy, " there 
 are Sophia, and Eugenius, and Theodore, 
 running down the park, and Dr. and Mrs. 
 Beauchamp are behind. We must go ; we 
 shall be wanted. The clock has struck 
 three this half-hour. Come, Mr. Airley; 
 come, Ellen!" — And there was no possi- 
 bility of delaying another moment. 
 
 And now the plot thickened. Lucy had 
 c c 3
 
 294 ROXOBEL. 
 
 seized my arm, repeating, " We shall be 
 wanted, Mr. Airley; make haste." By the 
 by, Lucy, on all interesting occasions, uses 
 the first person plural. At present she 
 has the sweet and delightful habit, in its 
 utmost perfection, of sympathizing so com- 
 pletely in the feelings of others, as almost, 
 as it were, to forget herself. May she ever 
 retain this rare and excellent quality ! 
 
 I was drawn forward by the smiling little 
 cherub to the nearest path into the park, 
 where I was saluted by half a dozen 
 groups from the Rockside Hamlet, all 
 decked in their best, and each decorated 
 with a gaudy posy in his breast. But 
 where were their credentials ? Not one in 
 a dozen of them had received an invitation. 
 The eclat seemed such, however, that I 
 certainly expected every minute to hear the 
 bells strike up; but, fortunately, nobody 
 had thought of this. 
 
 A most joyful greeting took place be- 
 tween the little lady of the Hall and 
 Sophia, at some little distance from the 
 churchyard-gate; and the doctor, extend- 
 ing his hand to me, with an arch look,
 
 ROXOBEL. 295 
 
 stroking his chin at the same time, ex- 
 claimed, " Who would have thought of 
 the quiet Mr. Airley making such an up- 
 roar ? But we good people at Roxobel do 
 love a bustle. Well, and be it so. I like to 
 see them happy. Poor souls, they have not 
 many such gala days as this. Don't grudge 
 it them, Mr. Airley, though it is at your 
 expence." 
 
 "That I am sure I do not," I replied, 
 "if there is but sufficient bread and but- 
 ter." 
 
 " Don't let that trouble you," said the 
 good-natured Mrs. Beauchamp. "I have 
 prepared a basket of eatables, which will 
 be here immediately; for when I saw the 
 people pouring over the park, I began to 
 fear that you might be taken by surprise. 
 But only look at them," she added, smil- 
 ingly: "both the school areas are full, and 
 the churchyard is swarming!" 
 
 "Honest souls," said the rector, "much 
 good may it do them ! Don't think me an 
 old fool, Mr. Airley ; but I am as well 
 pleased as the youngest among them." 
 
 We were now arrived in full view of the
 
 296 ROXOBEL. 
 
 two schoolhouses, which resembled bee- 
 hives in the swarming season. The crowd, 
 indeed, was so thick, that I could not dis- 
 tinctly recognize any other persons but my 
 old friend Mr. Claypole, who was bustling 
 in all directions, as if to arrange some im- 
 portant ceremonial ; and my new acquaint- 
 ance, the Widow Watchum, which last 
 personage had entered the churchyard by 
 some back-road, and having just dismount- 
 ed, was shaking herself into order upon a 
 high tombstone. 
 
 The appearance of this extraordinary 
 figure was too much for me ; and I yielded 
 to a sudden and incontrollable fit of laugh- 
 ter, which caused the doctor to stand still 
 to look at me. 
 
 " What can you be laughing at?" he said, 
 in his good-humoured manner. "When 
 you have been used to us a little longer, 
 you will cease to be diverted with our odd 
 ways. We are, no doubt, a set of originals, 
 a combination of marked characters ; but, 
 nevertheless, I do not allow of my people 
 being made sport of." 
 
 "But if I am not to laugh, Dr. Beau-
 
 ROXOBEL. 297 
 
 champ," I replied, " I should not have seen 
 that worthy dame who has just dismount- 
 ed, and stands on the tombstone." 
 
 The doctor turned in the direction to 
 which I pointed, and then exclaimed, "Ah, 
 my old friend, the lady of the side-saddle 
 and the safeguard ! I am glad she is come; 
 the festivity would not have been complete 
 without her. The Widow Watchum, my 
 good Mr. Airley, is one of our most cele- 
 brated characters ; she has attended every 
 merry-making and funeral in the country 
 for these last forty years, and has supplied 
 us with three weddings, in propria persond. 
 She scents a crowd at ten miles distance, 
 as readily as the vultures discriminate a 
 field of battle; though I believe, I may add, 
 that the creature is quite harmless." 
 
 We were now approaching the gates of 
 the schoolhouse, that is to say, Dr. and 
 Mrs. Beauchamp and myself, the rest of 
 the party having gone forward : and on my 
 appearance, I say my appearance, there 
 was a. mighty stir among the people, and a 
 whisper, like the murmuring of the wind 
 amid rustling branches, ran along the areas,
 
 298 ROXOBEL. 
 
 to this effect:— "It's Mr. Airley ; Mr. 
 Airley himself; Mr. Airley is come;" and, 
 at the same instant, Mr. Claypole brushed 
 through the crowd, presented his hand, 
 and led me to a place of honour, in the 
 centre of a line of chairs, arranged in front 
 of the houses. 
 
 "But may I not go in?" I asked. 
 
 "No, Sir, if you please, Sir," was Mr. 
 Claypole's answer. " Please to remain 
 here a little, till I bring up the doctor and 
 his lady." 
 
 "What's to be done now?" thought I; 
 " but, however, things shall take their 
 course, and I will endeavour to conjugate 
 the verb Je m 'amuse, in the present tense, 
 indicative mood." 
 
 The doctor was shaking hands in all di- 
 rections, and would infallibly have lost 
 himself in the crowd, had he not been re- 
 scued by Mr. Claypole, and led to a chair 
 on my left-hand, Mrs. Beauchamp being- 
 seated on my right, and all the second-hand 
 nobility of Roxobel being arranged on 
 seats, conveniently placed on either side 
 of me. In every place where I have occa-
 
 ROXOBEL. 299 
 
 sion to employ this tender little monosylla- 
 ble me, I take care to honour it with ex- 
 pressive italics, for me or I was, this even- 
 ing, the pivot on which every important 
 circumstance appeared to turn, and I as- 
 sure you that I felt perfectly sensible of 
 my increased consequence. 
 
 The doctor being at length seated, Mr. 
 Claypole was again in motion, pushing back 
 the ignobile vulgus, the plebeian mob, which 
 consisted chiefly of decent cottagers, with 
 their children and red-armed servant- 
 maids ; together with some saucy inferior 
 servants from the Hall. 
 
 "What is to be done next, I wonder?" 
 said I to the doctor. 
 
 The doctor looked archly, stroked his 
 chin again, and seemed hardly able to over- 
 come a disposition to laugh, which had 
 seized him with some violence. 
 
 In the mean time, Miss Betty leaned 
 across Mrs. Beauchamp, and said, "We 
 are much obliged to you indeed, Mr. Airley, 
 for this delightful gala. I am sure, Sir, 
 you are the greatest possible benefit to the 
 parish."
 
 300 ROXOBEL. 
 
 I bowed and replied ; " Ma'am, dear Miss 
 Betsy — no obligation — great pleasure — su- 
 perior satisfaction — rural felicity ; " adding 
 sundry other expressive fragments of sen- 
 tences, which were exceedingly well re- 
 ceived. Indeed, it is a rule with me, when 
 returning a lady's compliments, to reject 
 all parts of speech excepting nouns, with 
 which last I supply myself liberally, fill- 
 ing up what might be thought wanting to 
 complete my meaning, with smiles, bows, 
 shrugs, exaltations of the eyebrows, and 
 other significant gestures. It was during 
 my residence in the French court, some 
 years past, that I learned the value of 
 this mode of communication. Among its 
 numerous advantages, in the first place, it 
 pleases the fair sex, conveying many agree- 
 able ideas to the mind of the auditress, 
 for which she is disposed to feel suitably 
 grateful. Having also little or no mean- 
 ing, at the same time that it flatters the 
 lady, it leaves the gentleman free as the 
 wind. And I may likewise add, that sub- 
 stantives and adjectives, however lavish- 
 ly used, can never implicate the honour of
 
 ROXOBEL. 301 
 
 the speaker; for no speech which wants 
 the verb can ever be misinterpreted into 
 an offer of marriage : and therefore I would 
 particularly recommend this cautious mode 
 of expression to those unfortunate young 
 men who, being possessed of superior 
 attractions, find themselves liable to be 
 seized upon and appropriated by every 
 unmarried young lady of their acquain- 
 tance. 
 
 But I am forgetting my newly acquired 
 dignity, and must look back to see where 
 I am. I am seated in the front of the 
 schoolhouse, on the chair used by Mr. Pen 
 Map for his desk, which is, in consequence, 
 somewhat more elevated than ordinary 
 ones ; the doctor is placed on one side of 
 me, and his lady on the other. The mo- 
 ment is critical: Mr. Claypole, having ar- 
 ranged the company, and formed a hand- 
 some arena between the nobility and the 
 plebeians, is seen darting down its centre, 
 breaking through the crowd, and again 
 bursting forth to view, leading the redoubt- 
 able Mr. Pen Map clad in his very best. 
 
 "What now?" said I to the doctor. But 
 
 VOL. I. D D
 
 ■W2 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the doctor did not dare to trust his voice 
 in reply, though he shook as if he had been 
 troubled with the palsy. 
 
 Mr. Pen Map then advanced; and Mr. 
 Claypole retired, and was lost in the crowd. 
 The schoolmaster stood still in the centre 
 of the area. His eye fell on me. I was 
 directly before him. He bowed ; I return- 
 ed the compliment. He extended one foot ; 
 he raised one hand ; and, in a loud and im- 
 passioned tone, uttered the following lines. 
 
 " Daughter of Jove, inspire my pen, 
 
 And teach my humble quill to sing 
 The virtues of this first of men. 
 
 Divine Apollo, too, your tribute bring. 
 
 " Britain's glory, Britain's friend, 
 
 The pride and grace of Roxobel ! 
 Bend down the clouds, ye muses, and descend, 
 
 The praise of Airley in loud shouts to tell! 
 
 " Arise, ye wood-nymphs, and ye satyrs, too ! 
 
 To celebrate our Airley's praise. 
 In sympathy sublime, ye waters, flow, 
 
 To add your tribute to our simple lays. 
 
 " Long may the friendly stranger still be spar'd 
 
 Our lovely valleys to delight, 
 Till the bright scenes for faithful men reserv'd 
 
 Shall open all their glories to his sight."
 
 ROXOBEL. 303 
 
 While the schoolmaster was repeating 
 these lines, I had lived an hour, if time may 
 be calculated by the succession of ideas 
 and feelings. At first I had been amazingly 
 inclined to laugh at the extraordinary man- 
 ner and peculiar figure of the orator, toge- 
 ther with the happy idea of teaching a quill 
 to sing ; and this inclination had been vio- 
 lently irritated by the agonies of the poor 
 doctor, whose mirth was combating most 
 vehemently with his good-nature, making 
 him tremble and shake from head to foot. 
 Then, at the sound of my own name, 
 thus introduced among wood-nymphs and 
 satyrs, I felt thoroughly mortified and 
 ashamed. And, finally, I was so com- 
 pletely softened by the kind feelings ex- 
 pressed in the last verse, that I rose up, 
 shook the poor schoolmaster by the hand, 
 and thanked him aloud for his very 
 friendly wishes so kindly expressed to- 
 wards me. 
 
 The poor man was quite satisfied with 
 this public acknowledgment of his merits ; 
 and, when I turned from him, I was in- 
 stantly rewarded for the force that I had
 
 304 ROXOBEL. 
 
 put upon my feelings, by a look from Dr. 
 Beauchamp, whose eyes were filled with 
 tears, while his expressive features dis- 
 played approbation in every lineament. 
 Neither did the good man fail to tell me, 
 when next we were alone, that I had risen 
 higher in his affections than I had ever 
 done before, by the constraint which I had 
 put upon my feelings in getting up to 
 thank Mr. Pen Map for his panegyric, 
 whereby he had only escaped the danger of 
 making us both truly ridiculous through 
 the excessive simplicity of the audience. 
 
 Mr. Map's superlative eulogy being 
 concluded, the quality walked into the 
 schoolrooms, where I was much pleased to 
 find a very profuse assortment of all that 
 is desirable for constituting what is tech- 
 nically called " tea" a hearty, substantial, 
 and delicious meal: and in addition to 
 all other refreshments, I observed a quan- 
 tity of fine fruit, which I was informed was 
 a present from the Hall. 
 
 I made up my mind to take my seat 
 with the little damsels, having Miss Lucy 
 on one side of me, and Miss Sophia on the
 
 ROXOBEL. 305 
 
 other; and I likewise requested Mrs. 
 Beauchamp to take her station in the boys' 
 school, with the two young gentlemen on 
 either side of her. I soon found that my 
 table was voted the genteel one, and, ac- 
 cordingly, I was honoured by the presence 
 of the three Misses Finchley, Mr. Bar- 
 naby Semple, and some others of the most 
 distinguished characters in Roxobel. Mrs. 
 Tristram and Mrs. Goodwill sat opposite 
 to me, at the bottom of the table, and 
 between them Mrs. Tristram's poor old 
 mother, displaying a new riband, and the 
 shawl that I had given her, which she had 
 resolutely determined to exhibit on this 
 momentous occasion, in despite of the heat 
 of the apartment. As to the children, we 
 had not room for many of them ; but they 
 were seated out of doors in groups, along 
 with their parents, while Mr. Claypole flew 
 from place to place, together with some of 
 the elder boys and girls, to administer the 
 good things which had been provided. — 
 With regard to the doctor, I cannot posi- 
 tively say whether he ever took a seat; 
 for I perceived him almost continually in 
 D d 3
 
 •306 ROXOBEL. 
 
 motion, walking in at one door and out at 
 another, and bestowing a word of kindness 
 on every one, not excepting the Widow 
 Watchum, whom he handed in style to our 
 table, and seated, all smirking and sim- 
 pering as she was, between Mrs. Taylor 
 and Mrs. Strickland. 
 
 While we were arranging ourselves, 
 there was such a clatter, and such an up- 
 roar, that no conversation could take place. 
 Indeed we were a very noisy party through- 
 out the whole evening. Mr. Barnaby Sem- 
 ple however made himself very agreeable 
 between the two elder Misses Finchley, 
 and Miss Betty contrived to insinuate some 
 pretty compliments to me, on the very 
 fine eulogium pronounced on me by Mr. 
 Pen Map, which she asserted to contain 
 not a word of praise more than I merited. 
 
 I ventured to ask wherefore Mrs. Nuttall 
 had not honoured the meeting with her pre- 
 sence; on which Miss Betty replied, that 
 she was sure the worthy lady would be 
 much hurt at not being present, when 
 made acquainted with the brilliancy of the 
 assembly.
 
 ROXOBEL. 307 
 
 After tea, when most of us had taken as 
 much as we conveniently could, (though, 
 by the by, the quantity of adulation which 
 I had swallowed, had somewhat injured 
 my appetite,) we proceeded to display and 
 divide the contents of the boxes, my little 
 ladies and gentlemen being employed to 
 distribute the presents ; and, after this 
 important business was accomplished, the 
 doctor having proposed that we should 
 first sing a hymn, we prepared to separate. 
 
 The hymn was led by me, all the com- 
 pany having crowded in and about our 
 room ; and I was so judiciously and 
 powerfully supported by several voices in 
 the company, especially by that of Mr. 
 Claypole, that the harmony was very pleas- 
 ing, and very affecting ; and every one 
 also must have felt that the few words ad- 
 dressed to us by the doctor, at the moment 
 of separation, were very delightful. 
 
 " My friends," he said, " let us pray 
 that we may be so led to a sweet and 
 lasting communion with the blessed Sa- 
 viour, that all who have now sung the 
 praises of redeeming love together in this
 
 308 ROXOBEL. 
 
 place, may meet to unite in the same song, 
 more melodiously sung, more divinely at- 
 tuned, in that land which is very far off." 
 
 Thus concluded this interesting and hap- 
 py day.
 
 ROXOBEL. 309 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A DESCENT INTO ORDINARY LIFE. 
 
 I am now withdrawn, into ordinary life; 
 and though I am no longer the hero of the 
 day, yet, I am quite as well contented as 
 ever with my residence at Roxobel, and 
 with my dear friends in this delightful 
 place. 
 
 I have now begun to discharge the 
 business of my days according to a set- 
 tled plan, intending to retain determinate 
 occupations for every hour. I rise at six, 
 and when Mrs. Strickland hears the first 
 note of my organ, at seven, she comes, with 
 her husband and their maid-servant, into 
 my sitting-room ; and I sing a hymn, and 
 read, and pray, taking care not to detain 
 the good people more than a quarter of an 
 hour. Being thus attuned for the duties
 
 310 ROXOBEL. 
 
 of the day, we part to follow our parti- 
 cular employments. I then make my tea, 
 set my feet upon the fender, for the cold 
 season is now coming on, and read and sip 
 by turns. Sometimes I am thus engaged 
 for more than an hour, and this I call 
 my Bible reading hour, and I generally 
 reckon it among ray happiest hours. 
 
 Immediately after breakfast, I sit down 
 to write or settle my accounts, and remain 
 thus occupied till ten. I then put on my 
 hat, and walk to the Hall. 
 
 Richard, the footman, the same boy, (for 
 he is very young,) who tied the weather- 
 cock, as mentioned before, always opens 
 the door for me at the first summons from 
 the bell, and then I duly enquire after the 
 health of the ladies, and am ushered into 
 the library. By the by, the ladies have 
 requested me to look over the books, 
 according to an old catalogue, which was 
 handed to me by the steward; and, with the 
 help of Richard, I have dusted and set 
 them in order : and I am now preparing a 
 new catalogue, bound in red leather, and 
 arranged alphabetically, to be kept on the
 
 KOXOBEL. 311 
 
 library table. And since this last great 
 work has been in hand, Mrs. Winifred has 
 requested that no one will take down a 
 book without my permission, and without 
 having his name entered in a kind of day- 
 book ; the doctor himself, who is the chief 
 borrower, being obliged to submit to this 
 restriction. 
 
 "I am astonished," said he, when in- 
 formed of this neAv rule, "how the ladies 
 can trust you with their books ? " 
 
 "Why so, Sir?" I asked. 
 
 " Because," said he, " you have acknow- 
 ledged yourself to be a wizard ; and why 
 may not you fly away with the library and 
 books all together, as the enchanter did 
 with Don Quixote's Romances, and his 
 book-closet to boot?" 
 
 "Or rather," I replied, "as the crafts 
 priest pretended, when he himself was in 
 fact the thief." 
 
 " Very fair," said the doctor ; " but I do 
 owe you a grudge nevertheless." 
 
 "And wherefore?" I asked. 
 
 " Why, I am jealous of every man who 
 enjoys the privilege of turning over so fine
 
 312 ROXOBEL. 
 
 a library as this. Such a privilege possess- 
 ed by another, excites all that is bad in 
 my nature." 
 
 But I am wandering from my subject. I 
 was describing my manner of spending my 
 day, and have unfortunately forgotten 
 where my pursuits have led me. 0! into 
 the library. AVell, suppose me arrived, and 
 the world to be shut out for at least three 
 hours. And first, I stir the fire, and fix 
 the position of my table. I then arrange 
 my pencils, and crayons, and drawing : ma- 
 terials, which I have brought into this room. 
 At this time I am engaged in taking various 
 views of Roxobel, meaning to make a pre- 
 sent of my collection, when complete, to 
 Mrs. Winifred, as some return for her kind- 
 ness towards me. I am scarcely settled at 
 my table, with my drawing-apparatus be- 
 fore me, when the door is quietly opened, 
 and my Lucy enters. Lucy always reads 
 to me while I draw. I am instructing her 
 in French and English grammar, and in 
 some other branches of polite education. I 
 then make it her business to draw and prac- 
 tise music, while I read. She is an amiable
 
 R0X0BEL. 313 
 
 and apt little scholar. Twice in the week, 
 my academy is augmented by the presence 
 of Sophia, Eugenius, and Theodore. Mrs. 
 Winifred has honoured us with a visit 
 several times, and has always expressed 
 herself as being truly obliged by the pains 
 I seem to be taking with the young people. 
 As to the other two Mrs. Helmsleys, I have 
 never yet seen them at all on these my 
 daily visits to the library. 
 
 At one o'clock, I take my leave of my 
 sweet little Lucy, though seldom without 
 the prospect of meeting her in the evening 
 at the parsonage. 
 
 When I return to my house, I have about 
 half-an-hour before my dinner is ready. 
 This is usually a very pleasant interval, 
 a season of rest, in which I allow myself a 
 more amusing book than in any other part 
 of the day; and I generally continue my 
 reading while at dinner. 
 
 At three o'clock I again leave home. 
 
 Three times a week I visit the schools, 
 giving one day to the little females, and 
 two to the boys, with which last I am 
 gaining such ground that I shall venture, 
 
 VOL. I. E E
 
 314 ROXOBEL. 
 
 when I make niy next annual presents, to 
 give them books instead of tops, and whips, 
 and knives. 
 
 I never spend more than an hour with 
 the children at each visit; and the rest of 
 my evenings, till the usual time for drink- 
 ing tea arrives, I spend in walking, some- 
 times alone, and without any particular 
 object, excepting occasionally that of in- 
 creasing my number of sketches ; and 
 sometimes for the express purpose of mak- 
 ing a call at some poor cottage or farm ; 
 my w r alks not unfrequently terminating at 
 the parsonage, where, at Mrs. Beauchamp's 
 tea-table, I have already enjoyed some of 
 the sweetest hours of my life. And here I 
 have often met my little Lucy again ; and 
 here I have improved my acquaintance 
 with that most delicate and lovely young 
 creature, Sophia Beauchamp. And how 
 delightful is it to me on these occasions, to 
 be permitted to instruct these charming 
 young people in such branches of education 
 as come not precisely within the reach of 
 the doctor! The little Sophia brings her 
 drawings to me with such a smiling and
 
 ROXOBEL. 315 
 
 modest grace, and looks so happy when I 
 am able to praise her diligence ; and Theo- 
 dore is so ardent, and Eugenius so highly 
 gifted, that it is indeed a most delightful 
 privilege to be permitted to instruct them. 
 
 O! how these lovely children have al- 
 ready wound themselves around my heart ! 
 And there are others too, in lower life, 
 who are already dear, inexpressibly dear 
 to me, in this sweet place. 
 
 O, lovely Roxobel! here I am resolved 
 to remain ! here do I hope to live, and here 
 to die ! The life I now lead is that for 
 which I long have sighed, and which 
 I have at length found where I sought it 
 not. 
 
 Yesterday I had an affecting conversa- 
 tion with Dr. Beauchamp. I was coming 
 out of the schoolhouse, when, observing a 
 number of persons in the churchyard, and 
 the doctor among them without his hat, I 
 was aware that they were committing some 
 poor corpse to its last cold bed. Crossing 
 the churchyard, and taking my place among 
 the crowd, I perceived that it was the fu- 
 neral of some very poor person, although
 
 316 ROXOBEL. 
 
 this by no means appeared from the man- 
 ner in which the pastor performed the af- 
 fecting duty. 
 
 Who can hear these solemn words, " ashes 
 to ashes, and dust to dust," without feeling 
 the importance of this awful truth, that one 
 day or another the same doom must be 
 pronounced over his own remains? Yet 
 as at this time I stood over the grave, many 
 pleasant thoughts arose in my mind, and 
 mingled themselves with my more melan- 
 choly reflections. Among other things, I re- 
 membered a story which I had heard some 
 time before, respecting the owner of a cer- 
 tain portion of territory in the New World. 
 Having caused a field, hitherto unculti- 
 vated, to be broken up and planted with 
 fruit trees, he waited several years in ex- 
 pectation of obtaining a rich reward for 
 his labours. The soil, however, did not 
 appear to agree with these trees, for they 
 produced no fruit, notwithstanding all the 
 skill and pains bestowed upon them, and 
 were, therefore, condemned to the usual 
 fate of barren trees, namely, to be cut 
 down, and to have their roots grubbed up.
 
 ROXOBEL. 317 
 
 The land being thus cleared, the owner 
 was awaiting the proper season to plant 
 another orchard, to which he trusted that 
 the soil would prove more congenial than 
 to the former one, when, behold, to his 
 great amazement, there appeared among 
 the sods multitudes of tender shoots, which 
 soon bursting into life, produced thousands 
 of healthy and beautiful young plants, little 
 known in that province, or for hundreds of 
 miles around, and these scarcely waited 
 maturity before they broke forth into blos- 
 soms promising fruit in the rarest and 
 richest abundance. Now this fair forest 
 was no new creation, neither had the birds 
 of the air conveyed the germs from some 
 distant region: it was merely an old or- 
 chard regenerated, whose fruitful boughs 
 had probably flourished and drunk of the 
 rain of heaven, in years, and perhaps in 
 ages, long gone by. And thus the roots, 
 or germs, which had been reposing in the 
 earth in a hopeless condition, — while new 
 generations were blooming and flourishing 
 in the place where they had formerly af- 
 forded their shadows, their fragrance, and 
 e e 3
 
 318 ROXOBEL. 
 
 their fruits, — now arose again to new life, 
 new vigour, and a fresher verdure. 
 
 " And so," thought I, " so will it be with 
 many who have been slumbering in this 
 churchyard, in the sure and certain hope 
 of a blessed resurrection: they will rise 
 again, to bloom for ever in the gardens of 
 the celestial paradise, fulfilling the words 
 of the prophet, ' Thy dead men shall live, 
 together with my dead body shall they 
 arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in 
 dust, for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, 
 and the earth shall cast out her dead.' ' 
 
 While I meditated on this subject, the 
 ceremony was concluded, and Dr. Beau- 
 champ then addressed a few affectionate 
 words to the people gathered round him. 
 
 " We have now, my friends," said he, 
 " committed to the dust one of the most wor- 
 thy members of our little community, poor 
 Mary Field. I have been acquainted with 
 her habits and character for the last twenty 
 years, and I never knew her make a deter- 
 mined departure from her course of humble 
 and retired duties. Notwithstanding that 
 she drew a painful lot in life, had a weak
 
 ROXOBEL. 319 
 
 and foolish husband, was exceedingly poor, 
 and was deprived of all her children by an 
 hereditary disease which carried them off 
 one by one in the bloom of youth; yet this 
 poor creature bore all her afflictions with- 
 out a complaint, and often consoled her- 
 self, yea, rejoiced, yea, triumphed, in the 
 delightful assurance that all her dear ones, 
 even her poor childish husband, had depart- 
 ed in the faith of Jesus, and in the hope of 
 everlasting happiness. To add to her trials 
 in her latter days, she was left alone till 
 within a few weeks of her death, struggling 
 under the pressure of heavy corporal suf- 
 ferings in a solitary cottage. Yet she 
 never complained; and when, at length, 
 she received assistance from her richer 
 friends, she accepted it not as her right, 
 but as a free and undeserved favour. In- 
 deed, she possessed a truly humble and 
 thankful spirit, one which this world can- 
 not appreciate, because it is not of this 
 world. But she is now gone where she will 
 find herself at home with spirits like her 
 own. And my dear friends, my children," 
 continued the affectionate pastor, "permit
 
 320 ROXOBEL. 
 
 me to ask you, what does it now signify 
 to our departed sister, whether her dwell- 
 ing on this earth was a cottage or a palace, 
 a royal city or a straw-built shed? Yet O! 
 of what amazing, of what infinite impor- 
 tance is it to her, whether she was enabled 
 to live as a Christian, to enjoy communion 
 with her Saviour, and to die in the faith! 
 No human tongue can find words to ex- 
 press the change which has already passed 
 on the soul of this departed one, nor is 
 human language adequate to describe the 
 joy with which she is at this moment 
 crowned. You will perceive, my friends, 
 that I have no doubt of her eternally bless- 
 ed condition : — and it is my earnest prayer, 
 that I may never be called to commit any 
 one to the dust, in this or in any other 
 place, on whose behalf I may not be able 
 to entertain the same blessed and joyful 
 assurances. And now farewell, poor 
 corpse," said the speaker, looking towards 
 the grave ; " we shall meet again, I trust, 
 in a happier world. I only wish I had 
 been able to shew thee more kindness in 
 thy lifetime."
 
 ROXOBEL. 321 
 
 So saying, the good man turned away, 
 the tear trembling in his eyes, motion- 
 ing to me at the same time to follow 
 him. 
 
 This tender father and pastor then walk- 
 ed into the church, and I found him in the 
 chancel standing before a square tomb 
 encompassed with a railing. 
 
 The church at Roxobel is a fine old 
 Gothic building, and is kept in the most 
 perfect repair. The chancel is filled with 
 monuments, the oldest of which belong to 
 the ancient family of Torville, and the more 
 modern to those of Helmsley and Lovel. 
 
 Dr. Beauchamp shewed me the mutilated 
 figure of the Knight Templar with a sort 
 of triumph, assuring me, that he would not 
 see a further injury done to it for a thou- 
 sand pounds. He then pointed out the 
 white marble tablet which recorded the 
 names of Edmund and Emily Lovel ; and 
 then leading me back to the body of the 
 church, he paused, and directed my atten- 
 tion to another tablet, on which were in- 
 scribed these words : " Sacred to the 
 memory of Mitissa, the beloved wife of
 
 322 ROXOBEL. 
 
 George Beauchamp, who departed this life, 
 August, 17," &c. Underneath were these 
 lines. — 
 
 " Thine was the holiest form of female worth; 
 The gentlest grace of virtue which the mind 
 Of moralizing poet ever drew ; 
 Drew from his fancy — seldom found on earth. 
 But once on earth the model might he find, 
 Prepare his tint3 again, and paint from you." 
 
 " That," said Dr. Beauchamp, with some 
 agitation in his voice, " was the mother of 
 my children. She was a little, delicate wo- 
 man, and her spirits were always subject 
 to some degree of depression from the influ- 
 ence of an exceedingly feeble constitution. 
 But, in certain particulars, I never saw, 
 and never shall see, her equal. Her whole 
 life was one continued act of self-denial. 
 Even the progress of disease could not 
 divert her from one object, namely, the 
 promotion of the good of her fellow-crea- 
 tures. Her piety was warm, her charity 
 extensive ; her conversation not only as 
 pure, but as luminous and as brilliant, as 
 the rays of light glancing athwart yon 
 archway. I would have taken her opinion,
 
 R0X0BEL. 323 
 
 Mr. Airley, before that of any human be- 
 ing on the face of the earth. If there be 
 any good in me, any piety, any prudence, 
 I owe it, under God, entirely to my Mi- 
 tissa. Indeed, Mr. Airley, I have been 
 most blessed in matrimony. To my first 
 beloved wife, I owe all that is consistent 
 in my character, whatever that may be ; 
 and to my second, all my present happi- 
 ness. I therefore consider these dear com- 
 panions of my life, as the best earthly gifts 
 of God; and I trust that I am grateful for 
 his abundant kindness, though I never can 
 be sufficiently so. 
 
 " But come, Mr. Airley," continued the 
 doctor, " are you otherwise engaged ? or 
 can you give me a few hours? Let us 
 leave this place. There are some trains 
 of thought which mortals cannot pursue 
 for any great length of time; and hence 
 the ignorance of those who would wish to 
 prolong the offices of praise and prayer for 
 many hours. Our Saviour knew us better 
 when he reproved the Pharisees on ac- 
 count of their ' long prayers ; ' and so did 
 the inspired apostle, who enjoins us to
 
 324 ROXOBEL. 
 
 • pray without ceasing ; ' in which last in- 
 junction I understand to be implied those 
 frequent ascensions of the pious soul to- 
 wards a reconciled God, which resemble 
 the speaking glances of the infant eye to- 
 wards the mother's face ; those dovelike 
 glances by which so many tender feelings 
 of dependence and affection are expressed." 
 
 The good doctor and I by this time had 
 left the church, and were directing our 
 steps towards the woodier regions of the 
 park. 
 
 "Here are some quiet nooks," said Dr. 
 Beauchamp, " some cool and solitary spots, 
 which as yet have remained undetected 
 by you, and to which I shall have great 
 pleasure in introducing you. These woods 
 are not less lovely now," he proceeded, 
 " because they have assumed their au- 
 tumn dress : for they resemble the human 
 countenance in advanced age, when en- 
 lightened by an improved intellect, and 
 beaming with Christian charity, which is 
 often much more interesting in my eyes 
 than the countenance of youth. Every 
 season of life, however, and every period
 
 ROXOBEL. 325 
 
 of the year, has its peculiar charms and 
 its particular pleasures; and I greatly 
 mistake, (all other things being equal,) 
 whether the decline of life is not more 
 serene and calm, nay, on the whole, more 
 happy, than the days of youth. 
 
 "I am going," he added, "to shew you 
 what was the habitation of the poor crea- 
 ture whose remains I have just now com- 
 mitted to the dust. You have heard me 
 say, over her grave, that few persons had 
 ever drawn a harder lot in life ; and yet 
 I will venture to assert, that during the 
 last live years, in which I have known 
 more of her than ever I before knew, she 
 has been one of the happiest of human 
 beings. She had done with the world ; 
 she had lost all the ties that bound her 
 to it; her entire trust was placed in her 
 Saviour; and while awaiting her change, 
 she was almost ready to welcome every 
 infirmity which seemed to promise her 
 speedy dissolution. In the mean time, she 
 was so filled with love and gratitude, and 
 with every benign and holy feeling, that 
 her soul was kept in a continual glow, 
 VOL. I. f F
 
 32C) ROXOBEL. 
 
 and every word that she uttered was a 
 blessing. Now, tell me, Mr. Airley, could 
 a woman of such feelings have been un- 
 happy?" 
 
 " But why," I asked, " was I not intro- 
 duced to this excellent person 1 " 
 
 "Because," said the doctor, "she has 
 been bedridden ever since you came to 
 Roxobel ; and another reason is this, that 
 I almost fear to overdrive the willing 
 horse. You are so profuse, my friend, in 
 your charities, that, to be plain with you, 
 you are almost the last man of whom I 
 would ask a shilling." 
 
 "Make yourself easy at once on that 
 head, dear Sir," I replied ; " for I assure 
 you, that I have such a horror of pe- 
 cuniary difficulties, that, if I could not 
 be affluent in a parlour, I would live 
 in a kitchen. Of all cares, the sordid 
 cares attending money are what I most 
 dread." 
 
 " I have the same feeling," answered the 
 doctor; " and will now, without reluctance, 
 apply to you in need. But come on now, 
 I have promised you a new scene; advance
 
 ROXOBEL. 327 
 
 now to the edge of this height, and look 
 down." 
 
 I did as I was desired, and saw at my feet 
 a deep and narrow valley, shaded with 
 thick copses, at the bottom of which ran a 
 pure stream, which glistened here and 
 there from amid the alders that oversha- 
 dowed it. The softest sounds of rustling 
 leaves, together with the notes of such 
 birds as haunt the deepest solitudes, added 
 infinite charms to this romantic scene. 
 
 " Look and admire," said Dr. Beau- 
 champ, turning to me, " and meditate these 
 lovely lines : — 
 
 'When rising Cynthia sheds her silver dews, 
 And the cool evening breeze the meads renews ; 
 Here linnets fill the woods with tuneful sound, 
 And hollow shores the halcyon's voice resound.' 
 
 " But just advance to this ledge, and 
 you will see further into the glen," added 
 the doctor. " Do you not perceive, close 
 by the side of the brook, under the shade 
 of that impending cliff, a little hovel, 
 thatched, and with one window in the 
 thatch? In that shadowy and solitary
 
 328 ROXOBEL. 
 
 place, and all alone, for many years, lived 
 the poor creature now in bliss. Conceive, 
 if you can, the change which must have 
 taken place at the moment when the glo- 
 ries of another world first burst upon a 
 being who had been confined for years 
 amid this dark and lonely scenery. Love- 
 ly as the scene undoubtedly is, there is a 
 gloom shed over it, which faith alone could 
 penetrate and animate. Nevertheless, as 
 I before said, the poor creature who dwelt 
 here alone, and in penury, was one of the 
 happiest persons that I ever knew ; and, 
 as she often told me, she would not have 
 changed her condition for that of the great- 
 est queen on earth. Her infirmities had 
 long prevented her from attending public 
 worship ; but I visited her several times 
 a week, and the rest of my family as fre- 
 quently, so that she was seldom a whole 
 day without seeing some of us, and we 
 always found her spinning, and singing 
 hymns, or reading her Bible. She had 
 made acquaintance, she said, with every 
 tree and every bird within the glen, and 
 u as so completely withdrawn from the busy
 
 ROXOBEL. 829 
 
 concerns of the world, that it was become 
 painful to her even to hear them spoken 
 of." 
 
 " I have often considered," I replied, 
 " that it must be one of the most painful 
 circumstances attending poverty, when the 
 mind of an individual has passed through 
 any refining process, whether intellectual 
 or spiritual, to be still condemned to the 
 society of gross and vulgar persons." 
 
 "There," said the doctor, "you have 
 touched upon what has always seemed to 
 me to be the real evil of a descent into an 
 inferior rank in life. The evil does not 
 appear to consist in living in a kitchen in- 
 stead of a parlour, or in drinking tea out 
 of delf instead of china; but in beine- 
 obliged to associate with coarse and dis- 
 agreeable companions, and to see human 
 nature continually in its least amiable 
 form. For, after all which moralists and 
 philosophers may have said, good man- 
 ners are a very decent and becoming garb, 
 and very useful in default of a better." 
 
 We were now descending into the glen, 
 where every step brought us into a deeper 
 f f 3
 
 330 ROXOBEL. 
 
 and still deeper shade. The fallen leaves 
 were moist under our feet, and there was 
 a chilly dampness in the air ; for it is only 
 in the burning heat of summer that the 
 air of these deep glens is pleasant. 
 
 We were approaching the cottage, when 
 the voices of young persons met our ears, 
 and we immediately saw Eugenius, Theo- 
 dore, and Sophia, gathered in a cluster, 
 before the cottage-door. 
 
 " And what may have brought you here, 
 my young ones ? " said the doctor, his face 
 relaxing into its wonted smile. But again 
 looking grave, he added, "Sophia, my 
 beloved, what are those tears?" for we 
 perceived, as we approached, that Sophia 
 was weeping and sobbing, while Eugenius 
 was endeavouring to comfort her. 
 
 " She would come here, Sir," replied Eu- 
 genius, "though I tried to persuade her 
 not to come ; but she promised that she 
 would not cry. She said she wanted to 
 see poor Mary's house, and when she got 
 here, she began to sob and cry, and I could 
 not comfort her." 
 
 " Come, come, my little girl," said the
 
 ROXOBEL. 331 
 
 doctor, taking Sophia's hand ; " restrain 
 your tears. If you expected that the visit 
 would have this effect upon you, you ought 
 not to have come here : we must not seek 
 occasions of being unhappy, unless they 
 lead us where we can do some good. Poor 
 Mary is in peace now, happier far than 
 we are who are left behind. I must not 
 allow my little girl to give way to over- 
 strained sensibility." 
 
 The father spoke decidedly, and I thought 
 him right: but Eugenius reddened, and, 
 looking up to his tutor, he said, "But 
 she can't help it, Sir; please not to be 
 angry." 
 
 On hearing these pleadings, the father 
 opened his arms, and Sophia rushed into 
 them, and renewing her sobs, at length she 
 said, " It was the robin, papa ; I should 
 not have cried but for the robin." 
 
 "What does she mean?" enquired the 
 doctor, looking at Eugenius. 
 
 "What do you mean, dear Sophia?" 
 asked Eugenius, bending down tenderly 
 towards her. 
 
 Sophia whispered a few words in his
 
 332 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ear, and he then explained the mystery 
 to us. 
 
 " It was the sight of poor Mary's favou- 
 rite robin which made her cry, Sir," said 
 the boy. " You know how Mary loved 
 that robin, and how she fed it every 
 day ; and Sophia saw the robin sitting on 
 the ledge of the window in the thatch, and 
 that sight, she says, made her cry ; because 
 she feared that the robin would not now be 
 taken care of by the people who are to in- 
 habit the house." 
 
 On hearing this, the doctor stooped 
 and embraced his child; but what he 
 said to her I did not hear, for he led her 
 a little way from us, and continued to walk 
 with her till they were beyond the glen. 
 In the mean time, the two young gentlemen 
 having run back to the cottage, I was left 
 alone to follow the doctor at my own 
 pace. 
 
 When arrived at the head of the dell, 
 I saw Dr. Beauchamp waiting for me, 
 and nearly as I came up, the young gen- 
 tlemen overtook us, and I heard them 
 whisper these words of consolation to So-
 
 ROXOBEL. 333 
 
 phia : " Don't cry any more ; we have pro- 
 mised to give the people in the cottage two- 
 pence a week as long as the robin lives." 
 
 A hearty embrace was the reward the 
 delighted little girl gave her two brothers, 
 for this act of kindness; after which, all 
 three went bounding together down the hill 
 towards the parsonage, reminding me of 
 those pretty lines, so applicable to youth, 
 
 "The tear forgot as soon as shed, 
 The sunshine of the breast." 
 
 I then joined the doctor, who thought it 
 right to account to me for his having spoken 
 harshly, as he called it, to his little girl, 
 saying, " That little sweet one has such 
 strong feelings, and they are so easily ex- 
 cited, that I am sometimes compelled to 
 seem to treat her with coldness, when I 
 would willingly mingle my tears with hers." 
 
 " You do right, Sir," I replied, " and I 
 understood your motives before you ex- 
 plained them." 
 
 We then walked on to the parsonage, 
 where I spent the remainder of that most 
 interesting afternoon with the sweet family 
 residing there.
 
 334 ROXOBEL. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE BIRTHDAY AT THE MANSION-HOUSE. 
 
 The following- morning, while I was in 
 the library with Lucy, Mrs. Nuttall, hav- 
 ing- tapped at the door, entered with much 
 ceremony, to deliver a note from her ladies, 
 the purport of which was to request the 
 honour of my company to dinner at three 
 o'clock on the following Thursday. Hav- 
 ing previously requested the duenna to be 
 seated, I hastened to answer this polite 
 invitation, not observing that Miss Lucy 
 was looking over me the whole time I was 
 writing. 
 
 " And pray, Miss Lovel," said Mrs. Nut- 
 tall, " how long has it been the fashion for 
 young ladies to look over gentlemen's let- 
 ters?" 
 
 Lucy had climbed on the back of my
 
 ROXOBEL. 335 
 
 chair, from which she sprang down on hear- 
 ing this question, but not with the smallest 
 appearance of detected guilt ; and she an- 
 swered with her usual simplicity, " I was 
 afraid, Mrs. Nuttall, that he would not have 
 accepted the invitation, and I knew that 
 the note was to ask him to dine here on 
 my aunt's birthday." 
 
 " Well, and what have I said, Miss 
 Lucy?" I asked. 
 
 " You have been very good," she replied, 
 "very good indeed, and I will love you for 
 it." 
 
 " But my little lady," I added, " I hope 
 you will remember what Mrs. Nuttall has 
 very properly hinted, that it is not polite to 
 look over people's letters." 
 
 The duenna bridled and seemed pleased 
 at this, as I expected ; and my sweet 
 Lucy, looking innocently in my face, re- 
 plied, " Then, Sir, I will not do it any more." 
 
 " Well, Sir," said Mrs. Nuttall, as she 
 took my note to carry to her ladies, "I 
 am glad to find that it is a favourable an- 
 swer I have to bear. Mrs. Winifred's 
 birthday is always a grand occasion. We
 
 336 ROXOBEL. 
 
 have three tables filled, the head table, the 
 steward's table, and that in the servant's 
 hall ; besides what is given at the lodge to 
 the poor. But Mrs. Winifred has the spirit 
 of a princess ! " 
 
 She then swam out of the room. 
 
 It cannot be expected, that from this 
 day, which was Monday, my mind could 
 have remained in a very settled state with 
 the prospect of the wonderful event or 
 events which were to take place on 
 Thursday. However, I was very well 
 pleased with the prospect of the new scenes 
 which were to be acted before me on this 
 grand day of festivity. 
 
 " I do hope that we may have a fine day 
 to-morrow," said Mrs. Strickland, as she 
 brought in my candles on the Wednesday 
 evening. 
 
 " Are you to be at the Hall, Mrs. Strick- 
 land?" I asked. 
 
 She almost dropped the snuffer-pan on 
 hearing this question, and looking at me 
 with astonishment, " Sir ! " she exclaimed ; 
 " to be sure, Sir. Why should I not ? My 
 husband and I always dine in the steward's
 
 ROXOBEL. 337 
 
 room on Mrs. Helmsley's birthday? But 
 Mr. Griffith, he does not preside nei- 
 ther that day, because he is in the dining- 
 room with the quality, to help to carve. 
 But Mrs. Nuttall, she sits at the head of the 
 table, and Mr. Porter at the bottom, and 
 so we don't have our dinner till it is over in 
 the parlour, and the dessert is sent in ; and 
 then we have any nice dish which has not 
 been cut in the parlour, besides other fresh 
 joints. And that which has been cut, Sir, 
 goes to the servants' hall; because you 
 know, Sir, that as we are bettermost sort 
 of people in the steward's room, Mrs. Wi- 
 nifred don't choose that we should be treat- 
 ed with indignation." 
 
 " Very judicious and proper," I replied. 
 
 At length the auspicious morn arose, and 
 arose auspiciously: not a cloud was visi- 
 ble through the whole expanse of the clear 
 blue ether; the gales of autumn were 
 attempered for the occasion; the trees 
 refused to drop a single leaf. And, as the 
 little man of Roxobel opened his cham- 
 ber-window, a pleasing omen, big with the 
 anticipation of approaching joys, present- 
 vol. I. g G
 
 338 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ed itself to his delighted eyes. This 
 omen was no other than the figure of the 
 Widow Watchum riding up the street, in 
 her usual accoutrements, and displaying 
 an appendage attached to the crupper of 
 her steed, which, no doubt, contained a 
 supply of more splendid habiliments. On- 
 ward she proceeded, and the eyes of the 
 stranger followed the omen till it arrived 
 at the door of the Helmsley Arms, where 
 anon it disappeared. But I fear that I 
 am growing too poetical; and apprehend- 
 ing that I might in the end intrude on the 
 privileges of Mr. Pen Map, the poet laureat 
 of Roxobel, I will endeavour to descend 
 to humble prose. 
 
 The morning passed away as other morn- 
 ings do. But, at two o'clock, Mrs. Strick- 
 land looked in at my door, and said, " Sir, 
 it will be time soon for you to start for the 
 Hall, for the ladies are very particular 
 about hours." 
 
 I sprang up from my book, hastened to 
 equip myself in a new suit of plain black, 
 for I always prefer black, and having as- 
 sumed my silk stockings and pumps, and
 
 ItOXOBEL. 339 
 
 placed my cocked hat under my arm, I was 
 ready "to start," to use a word of Mrs. 
 Strickland's, precisely ten minutes before 
 three o'clock, calculating that I had a 
 chance of being too soon after all. 
 
 In my progress towards the house of en- 
 tertainment, I saw not a single living crea- 
 ture, with the exception of Mrs. Strickland 
 and Mrs. Goodwill, whom I left behind me; 
 Mrs. Strickland having, I believe, deter- 
 mined to see me fairly out of the house 
 before she and her party quitted it. When 
 I knocked at the door of the Hall, it was 
 opened to me by Mr. Porter, on whose 
 physiognomy were traced deep lines of care 
 and consequence, the attributes of high 
 authority. His walk before me, as we tra- 
 versed the hall and ascended the stairs, 
 indicated the importance of the occasion, 
 and admonished me to assume my best 
 drawing-room manners. 
 
 At length, the leaf of an immense folding- 
 door in the lobby being opened, my conse- 
 quential conductor announced "Mr. Air- 
 ley," and I walked forward along a superb 
 Brussels carpet, in the face of an awful
 
 340 ROXOBEL. 
 
 circle, consisting 1 of several ladies arranged 
 in due form, and according to their respec- 
 tive precedence, on the one side, and as 
 many gentlemen on the other. 
 
 I am not quite certain whether the old- 
 fashioned magnificence of the exalted 
 apartment into which I had been ushered, 
 with its rich carvings and gildings, its lofty 
 mantlepiece, its damask hangings, its china 
 vases, and its massive chairs and sofas, 
 was not altogether more imposing to my 
 mind than the extraordinary perfections of 
 the phalanx of ladies already drawn up to 
 receive my compliments. 
 
 I have hinted before, though somewhat 
 obscurely, that I am not wholly unac- 
 quainted with courts ; and it will therefore 
 be supposed, that I am able, on becoming 
 occasions, to use similar formalities to 
 those which are requisite in a royal resi- 
 dence. It accordingly occurred to me, as 
 I entered the august presence of the Mrs. 
 Helmsleys, on this most important occa- 
 sion, that I could not do better than dis- 
 play, at this time, some specimens of my 
 courtly breeding. With this intention, I
 
 ROXOBEL. 341 
 
 advanced towards Mrs. Winifred, the queen 
 of the day, who sat at the upper end of 
 the room, in a large chair, which was more 
 than filled by the circumference of her 
 ample petticoat of rich brocaded silk, and 
 bowed before her, till my head, which is 
 never elevated very far above the earth, 
 was bent down almost to her knees. I 
 then proceeded to pay my compliments, 
 the same in kind but different in degree, 
 to the two junior Mrs. Helmsleys, who sat 
 beside her, and I then passed on to the 
 other ladies, namely, Mrs. Beauchamp, the 
 three Misses Finchley, and two strangers, 
 whose names I do not remember, and in 
 whom I noticed nothing worthy of parti- 
 cular description, excepting that one was 
 stout, and the other slender, and that both 
 sat as if awe-struck and silence-struck by 
 the enormous splendour with which they 
 found themselves encompassed. 
 
 Having thus conducted myself, as I 
 trusted, to the general satisfaction of the 
 company, I turned round to the gentle- 
 men, and discovered that this division 
 of our party consisted of Dr. Beauchamp, 
 g g 3
 
 342 ROXOBEL. 
 
 the steward, Mr. Barnaby Semple, Eu- 
 genius and Theodore, and four other gen- 
 tlemen, (as 1 chose to designate them,) 
 namely, two young and two old ones, who, 
 as I afterwards found, appertained to the 
 stranger ladies, each being able to claim 
 one husband and one son. 
 
 It is impossible, that conversation should 
 flag in the presence of Dr. Beauchamp. 
 I was scarcely seated, before he began 
 upon some subject which seemed to set 
 most of the party at ease : in consequence 
 of which, the five minutes we had to sit 
 before dinner, passed off as easily as pos- 
 sible. 
 
 At length, the solemn Mr. Porter an- 
 nounced the dinner, and the ladies filed 
 off according to precedence out of the 
 room and down stairs, the gentlemen fol- 
 lowing; although there was some demur 
 respecting the place I was to hold in the 
 procession, which was settled by the doc- 
 tor, who insisted on my marching first. 
 
 The dining-room at the Hall is a noble 
 apartment, and the dinner was set out in a 
 magnificent old style ; but we should again
 
 ROXOBEL. 343 
 
 have discovered our want of conversation, 
 had it not been for the doctor, who talked 
 with precisely the same freedom as he would 
 have used in his own study, though he was 
 ill supported by any one but Mrs. Wi- 
 nifred, for the residue of the visiters, es- 
 pecially the ladies, seemed to be all awed 
 into perfect taciturnity. However, we did 
 pretty well, even during the first course; 
 and when the second course appeared, we 
 were helped on by several of the gentle- 
 men. We were also repeatedly assisted, 
 during a dearth of ideas, by Mrs. Grizzy 
 and Mrs. Judy, who never once so far 
 departed from their characters of echoes, 
 as to hazard a sentiment of their own ; 
 although they failed not to repeat, in dif- 
 ferent tones, all that their elder sister said, 
 or, at least, the last clause of every speech 
 which she made ; by which services, they at 
 any rate, prevented that most awkward of 
 all awkward things in a mixed company, 
 namely, an English moment, or, in other 
 words, a dead silence. 
 
 At length, the second and third courses 
 being removed, the dessert being set on the
 
 344 ROXOBEL. 
 
 table, and the servants having withdrawn, 
 the door was again opened, and the lovely 
 little ladies, Lucy and Sophia, entered the 
 room. Sophia was simply, and therefore 
 elegantly, dressed in white ; but my Lucy 
 was arrayed in a profusion of finery. She 
 wore a transparent gauze, underneath which 
 was another drapery of rose colour, and she 
 was likewise bedizened with lace, riband, 
 artificial flowers, and even jewels ; all as- 
 sumed, on this most important day, for the 
 honour of the House of Helmsley. Yet I 
 soon saw, and saw with pleasure, that as far 
 as concerned the little lady herself, all these 
 fine ornaments were entirely thrown away: 
 for there was not the smallest indication in 
 her expressive countenance, of being con- 
 scious that she was smarter than another ; 
 not the least intimation that she had disco- 
 vered this to be a day in which she stood a 
 chance of being noticed, and of being set 
 up by her inferiors as the niece of the great 
 ladies of Roxobel. She entered the room, 
 and came forward with the same easy and 
 unaffected grace, with which she used to ac- 
 cost me in a morning, in the library. She
 
 ROXOBEL. 345 
 
 answered every one who spoke to her, with 
 kindness, and even with affection, and then 
 seated herself in the chair which was offered 
 to her near the ladies, with that sort of ani- 
 mated politeness, which seemed to be the 
 result of the warmest and most extensive 
 feelings of Christian love. 
 
 And now, the ladies who had hitherto 
 sat as if they had been tongue-tied, or 
 as if it were painful to them to utter 
 even a formal monosyllable, began to 
 level their flatteries at the little lady. 
 " How charming Miss Lovel looks to- 
 day ! Dear Miss Lovel, I was afraid we 
 should not have seen you. How pretty! 
 how becoming ! how delicate ! how well 
 fancied ! What beautiful lace ! what sweet 
 trimming!" and so on; while Mrs. Wini- 
 fred and her sisters qualified and deduct- 
 ed, as mothers and aunts often do on such 
 occasions ; each qualification and each de- 
 duction being thrice repeated, till every 
 piece of flattery was rung four several times 
 in the child's ears. I certainly did expect 
 to find that my favourite's simplicity would 
 not be proof against all this, and I looked
 
 346 ROXOBEL. 
 
 with apprehension, lest I should see some 
 symptoms of beginning conceit or affecta- 
 tion : I looked however in vain ; no change 
 passed on that sweet face, no affected 
 motion was imparted to that fair head ; 
 and I was obliged at last to bring my 
 mind to the conclusion, that Lucy had no 
 faculty by which she could make any thing, 
 either good or bad, of flattery ; and that 
 she only considered its language as being 
 a sort of mode by which one person endea- 
 vours to make another comprehend that 
 he or she is dear to him. 
 
 In the mean time, I could not help re- 
 marking the great distinction which Mrs. 
 Winifred made between Lucy and Euge- 
 nius ; her behaviour to Lucy was even 
 caressing, but to Eugenius she was only 
 distantly polite. It struck me that this 
 might originate in some lingering resent- 
 ment against the father of these young 
 people, for Eugenius is said to be the very 
 picture of his father. 
 
 Mrs. Winifred also paid every kind and 
 polite attention to little Sophia, whom she 
 caused to be placed on one side of her,
 
 ROXOBEL, 347 
 
 while Lucy occupied a seat on the other ; 
 in consequence of which arrangement, Miss 
 Beauchamp obtained a share of the com- 
 pliments which fell from the visiters. 
 
 At length, Mrs. Winifred made a move- 
 ment, and with her all the ladies and the 
 young people. I flew to the door; I open- 
 ed it, and bowed lowly and severally to 
 the ladies as they passed, and then closing 
 the door after them, I returned to the gen- 
 tlemen. 
 
 Mr. Jeffry Griffith was in the act of cross- 
 ing his legs and throwing himself back in 
 his chair as I came back to the table, by 
 which motions we were made to understand 
 that we were now to consider all formality 
 at an end, and to make ourselves easy and 
 comfortable for the next half-hour. 
 
 " The bottle stands with you, Mr. Air- 
 ley," were the first words of the steward, as 
 I sat down. 
 
 " We are at liberty here, Mr. Griffith, I 
 presume, to do as we please with respect 
 to taking wine?" I replied. 
 
 The steward rather hesitated : on which 
 the doctor said, " My good Mr. Airley, Mr.
 
 348 E.OXOBEL. 
 
 Griffith is a friend of liberty, I know, and 
 wishes all his guests to make themselves 
 comfortable." And upon this he appealed 
 to the rest of the party, by whom he was 
 upheld, though somewhat coldly. 
 
 Dr. Beauchamp and I then passed the 
 wine from before us ; and the doctor, who 
 is certainly the most universally agreeable 
 man in conversation whom I ever met with, 
 began some long tale exactly suited to the 
 capacity of his audience. This relation, 
 though not in the least low or vulgar, was 
 yet excessively amusing, and was moreover 
 interspersed with some of the finest Chris- 
 tian sentiments, which burst in here and 
 there upon his narrative, like the rays of 
 meridian glory through the vistas of a 
 shady coppice. 
 
 In the mean time, the decanters were very 
 active, and I think that I had the honour 
 of giving them eight or ten moves in the 
 space of half-an-hour ; at the expiration of 
 which time, that most respectable and im- 
 portant personage, Mr. Porter, announced 
 the infusion of the Chinese herb. 
 
 We immediately obeyed the summons,
 
 ROXOBEL. 349 
 
 in order that we might not be deficient in 
 politeness to the Mrs. Helmsleys. The 
 post of honour was again assigned me ; and 
 as we filed off through the hall and up 
 the great stairs, I could not help compar- 
 ing myself to some little fifer or drummer 
 preceding a line of recruits. 
 
 At length, the folding-doors of the draw- 
 ing-room were thrown open by Mr. Porter, 
 (who was ever alive to the duties of his 
 office,) and we entered; and some of us 
 being inspired by the juice of the grape, 
 and others by the exhilarating influence of 
 the ladies' smiles, we ventured to inter- 
 mingle ourselves among the fair ones of 
 the company, and to take our places here 
 and there, on sofas, chairs, or stools, as 
 our will inclined, or as circumstances per- 
 mitted. 
 
 As Lucy and Sophia were without the 
 circle, deeply engaged in conversation with 
 their companions, Eugenius and Theodore, 
 while Mrs. Beauchamp was entrenched 
 between two of the Misses Finchley, I was 
 driven, rather by a sort of repelling force 
 exercised upon me by the rest of the ladies, 
 
 VOL. I. H H
 
 350 ROXOBEL. 
 
 than by any inherent quality of attraction 
 possessed by the person herself, to en- 
 sconce myself in an immense chair next 
 to Mrs. Winifred, who was undoubtedly 
 by far the least unpleasant female in the 
 room, after those whose names I have 
 just mentioned. She immediately entered 
 into conversation with me in a very lively 
 manner; and the doctor bringing his forces 
 in the same direction, our corner became 
 very animated, and Mrs. Winifred laughed 
 very heartily, each merry peal being re- 
 peated in fainter murmurs by the ever 
 ready echoes on her left. 
 
 In the mean time, the steward, who had 
 swallowed down with his wine his usual 
 awe of his household goddesses, (that is to 
 say, the Mrs. Helmsleys,) and Mr. Barnaby 
 Semple, who was in some degree similarly 
 circumstanced, made themselves very busy 
 among the ladies, in handing the cake, 
 which they took off from the massive silver 
 salvers held by the footmen, for the pur- 
 pose of shewing their superior gallantry. 
 They likewise added to this piece of ser- 
 vice various other little attentions, such as
 
 ROXOBEL. 351 
 
 are often very useful in varying the tedium 
 of an afternoon visit, and in passing awaj 
 some awkward moments. 
 
 At length, all appearances of tea, cake, 
 coffee, and salvers, having passed away, 
 there was a kind of pause, during which 
 the ladies busied themselves in drawing on 
 their gloves. 
 
 "Mr. Airley," said Mrs. Winifred, who 
 always treated me with great respect, 
 " you will not, I hope, be offended at our 
 old-fashioned custom : but as this is a 
 sort of gala-day, which comes only once a 
 year, Ave always conclude it with a dance, 
 and in this dance every respectable person 
 who has been invited to the several tables 
 is allowed to mingle. It has been a cus- 
 tom in the family from our grandfather's 
 time, and one from which we never de- 
 part." 
 
 " Yes," repeated Mrs. Grizzy ; " it was a 
 custom in the family in our grandfather's 
 time, and one from which we never depart." 
 
 "From which we never depart," re- 
 echoed Mrs. Judy. 
 
 " And why should you, ladies ? " I repli-
 
 352 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ed, " since it makes the poor people happy: 
 and though I am not myself a dancer, yet 
 I shall have great amusement in witnessing 
 the scene." 
 
 Mrs. Winifred politely expressed her re- 
 gret at my never dancing, saying, " Really, 
 Mr. Airley, I am sure you can dance, and 
 well, too. I cannot be mistaken in the 
 carriage of one who is well acquainted 
 with that elegant accomplishment." 
 
 "Well acquainted with that elegant ac- 
 complishment," said Mrs. Grizzy. 
 
 " Elegant accomplishment," said Mrs. 
 Judy. 
 
 My accomplishments having thus become 
 the topic of discourse, my name was taken 
 up by the row of ladies on my left, begin- 
 ning with Miss Finchley and running round 
 the whole circle, or, I should rather say, 
 half-circle, and various complimentary 
 speeches were uttered, all together com- 
 posing the following sentence. — "What 
 a pity it is that Mr. Airley doesn't dance! 
 Surely Mr. Airley could dance delight- 
 fully if he would! Mr. Airley is made for 
 dancing! Can no one induce Mr. Airley
 
 ROXOBEL. 353 
 
 to dance? Miss Betty, cannot you per- 
 suade Mr. Airley to dance ? Beaux are so 
 scarce, that Mr. Airley ought to dance. I 
 think we ladies should force Mr. Airley to 
 dance." 
 
 To all this it was necessary for me to be 
 modestly inattentive; but when I heard 
 that Miss Betty was to try her persuasive 
 powers, I became more than modestly inat- 
 tentive, I became obstinately so, and said 
 to myself, " Pshaw ! if they wanted me to 
 dance, they should bribe me with one of 
 those little fairies at the other end of the 
 room, the rosebud, or the lily, and none 
 of their Miss Bettys. I would not dance 
 now, even if I had intended it before." 
 
 And now again the folding-doors were 
 opened, and Mr. Porter announced the rea- 
 diness of every thing in the next apartment 
 for the opening of the ball. 
 
 Mrs. Winifred immediately offered her 
 hand to me. " Mr. Airley," she said, " as 
 you and I are neither of us dancers, I shall 
 claim you for my beau for the evening, 
 and we will, if you please, lead the way." 
 
 I arose and bowed, for I had determined 
 h h 3
 
 354 ROXOBEL. 
 
 to be the very pink of courtesy during the 
 whole evening: and we walked forward 
 in grand style, the company retreating to 
 the right and left as we approached ; I being 
 now transformed, in my own mind, from the 
 little lifer to the court-page handing his 
 sovereign princess from one royal hall into 
 another. 
 
 We crossed an extensive lobby, where I 
 distinguished groups of persons crowded 
 together to give us room to pass, Mr. Por- 
 ter going before us with two waxen tapers, 
 and were introduced into a large upper 
 room, which had been prepared for dancing 
 by being stripped of all its furniture, with 
 the exception of a sofa and some chairs. It 
 was brilliantly illuminated, and in one cor- 
 ner was a temporary stage erected for the 
 band, which consisted of a tabor and pipe, 
 and several violins. 
 
 Mrs. Winifred and I seated ourselves on 
 the sofa; and I prepared my mind for 
 much amusement. We had so far preceded 
 the rest of the company, that we had taken 
 our places a minute or two before any one 
 appeared.
 
 ROXOBEL. 355 
 
 "I see you are prepared to be amused, 
 Mr. Airley," said Mrs. Winifred, smiling. 
 
 "I am, Madam," I replied, "and to be 
 pleased too. This is entirely a new scene 
 to me, and a very agreeable one." 
 
 At that moment the doctor entered, with 
 the two waiting-maids of Juno, alias, Mrs. 
 Judy, and Mrs. Grizzy ; who came swim- 
 ming into the room, as goddesses ought to 
 do. I looked with some apprehension lest 
 the doctor should set them near me ; but he 
 was merciful, and placed them at a consi- 
 derable distance; and then coming round, 
 he seated himself on my left. 
 
 These arrangements were hardly com- 
 pleted, before the company began to enter. 
 And first and fairest, came two lovely 
 young couples, Lucy and Theodore, Sophia 
 and Eugenius. These little fairies would 
 hardly have bent a blade of grass, so 
 lightly did they step to their places. They 
 took their station at the upper end of the 
 room : for Mrs. Winifred never allowed 
 any one, on this annual occasion, to take 
 precedence of the members of the family. 
 The eyes of all four sparkled with unmin-
 
 356 ROXOBEL. 
 
 gled delight, and those of the two young- 
 ladies were more than once directed to me, 
 as if to intreat that I would sympathize 
 in happiness so rare and complete. In that 
 gay moment, indeed, not one worldly or 
 ambitious ideal, not one emotion of pride, 
 not one envious thought, not one care for 
 the future, appeared to disturb their peace- 
 ful breasts. 
 
 " If all dancers were like these little 
 ones," thought I, " a ball-room would be a 
 place of harmless enjoyment, at least. But 
 when earthly passions mingle in our meet- 
 ings, there is scarcely a more dangerous 
 and trying situation for a young mind than 
 the assembly-room, where, in the course of 
 the country-dance, there is so much oppor- 
 tunity for the disclosure and the display of 
 some of those feelings, which it ought to 
 be our endeavour as well as our duty, not 
 only to conceal from others, but even, if 
 possible, from ourselves." — But the com- 
 pany is waiting ; and it is my business to 
 usher them in. 
 
 The thin lady and the thick lady now 
 appeared, each being handed in by the son
 
 ROXOBEL. :}.)/ 
 
 of her companion. And these grotesque 
 couples placed themselves, as if for foils, 
 next to the blooming pairs who occupied 
 the superior stations. Then followed Mr. 
 Jeffry Griffith, with Miss Finchley, Mr. 
 Barnaby Semple with Miss Kitty, and the 
 amiable Miss Betty with my friend Mr. 
 Claypole, of whose presence at the Hall I 
 was, till then, wholly unawares. But, no 
 doubt, he had been a guest at the second 
 table; and perchance, had I solicited the 
 honour of Miss Betty's hand, as had been 
 suggested, I should have disconcerted a 
 long-laid plan, and, as the French would 
 have said, on such an occasion, I should 
 perhaps have destroyed the union of two 
 devoted hearts, and made the misery of 
 two most amiable personages. 
 
 I hope that I shall be excused, if in de- 
 scribing the events of Mrs. Winifred's birth- 
 day I should occasionally fall into a style 
 more florid and more elevated than is usual 
 with me. Though, by the by, I should have 
 said rise, instead of fall, because people do 
 not commonly fall into things more elevated 
 than themselves. I mention this for the
 
 358 ROXOBEL. 
 
 benefit of those who may hereafter read 
 these most wonderful and entertaining 
 memorandums. 
 
 And now, having arranged and provided 
 for all those ladies of our society who 
 were thought worthy to dine on china and 
 plate, I proceed to the second degree. The 
 next couple which entered, were Mrs. 
 Taylor, attended by Mr. Pen Map, which 
 worthy pair, as they came up the room, 
 sunk and bowed, with much grace, to Mrs. 
 Winifred. Mrs. Taylor was prodigiously 
 fine, as respected the colours of her varie- 
 gated dress ; though as to the cut and 
 fashion of it, it seemed very similar to those 
 in which she usually appeared. Some other 
 couples now approached, none of whom 
 particularly attracted my attention. But 
 I was quite thrown off my guard by the 
 three next who entered, and fairly broke 
 out into a loud chuckle. These were the 
 miller and the AVidow Watchum, the game- 
 keeper's wife and Black Tom, and the 
 miller's lady, set forth in all the colours of 
 the rainbow, with a partner, who, by the 
 by, I thought too good for her, namely,
 
 ROXOBEL. 359 
 
 young Robert Taylor, who scarcely came 
 up to her shoulder, for she is immensely 
 tall, at least she appeared to be so with 
 her high heels and her very high cap. 
 
 At the bottom of the dance, was a hete- 
 rogeneous mass of housemaids, footmen, 
 and inferior persons ; and on chairs, at the 
 lower end of the room, sat many decent 
 matrons of the parish, for whom I had so 
 much regard, that I was glad to see that 
 they did not offer to join in the dance. 
 Among these last, were Mrs. Strickland, 
 and Mrs. Goodwill with Ellen by her side. 
 There were fewer elderly men in the room 
 than elderly women, from which circum- 
 stance I inferred, that there was a party 
 drinking, and perhaps smoking, with Mr. 
 Porter, the old coachman, and some other 
 of the grey-headed domestics. 
 
 When most of the party were assembled, 
 I missed two persons of consequence, 
 namely, Mrs. Nuttall and her nephew 
 Taffy. The housekeeper appeared first, 
 dressed in stiff silk and fine laces, in no 
 degree inferior to those of her ladies; aud, 
 with ten times their consequence of man-
 
 360 ROXOBEL. 
 
 ner, she walked up the room, spoke fami- 
 liarly to the ladies at the head of the dance, 
 with the air of one who has no fear of 
 giving offence, and walked back again to 
 the lower end of the apartment. 
 
 Miss Lucy was now asked to name the 
 dance, and she mentioned "The Bed of 
 Roses," which I thought not quite apropos, 
 as I saw but two flowers in the whole par- 
 terre, and of those one only was a rose, or 
 rather a rosebud, the other being a lily of 
 the valley. The musicians had scarcely 
 begun to try the tune, when Master Taffy 
 abruptly entered, pursued by Miss Esther 
 Stephens, a well-matched pair, I thought, 
 at any rate. These young people pushed 
 boldly into the set, and took their places 
 next to Sophia and Eugenius. 
 
 "What now, Sir?" said the steward, 
 sharply, addressing Taffy : " take your 
 proper place ; don't come here." 
 
 Taffy stared at him, but made no reply. 
 
 " Don't come here, Taffy," said Euge- 
 nius ; " you have no business here." 
 
 Taffy on one side, and Miss Esther on 
 the other, stood their ground.
 
 ROXOBEL. 361 
 
 There was some little delay respecting 
 the air which was to be played; and dur- 
 ing this interval, the dispute continued be- 
 tween the steward and Taffy ; Mr. Griffith 
 having, as I before hinted, made rather deep 
 libations to the mighty Bromius. 
 
 At length, the musicians "having found 
 tongue," (to use an expression which I 
 caught during the evening from Black Tom,) 
 Mrs. Winifred called to the young people, 
 rather sharply I thought, to mind the dance, 
 and not quarrel about places ; and Master 
 Taffy was left to enjoy his triumph without 
 further molestation, although the steward 
 looked exceedingly black upon the occasion. 
 
 While the dance had extended no lower 
 than the first two couples, or even the first 
 three, it was pleasing in the extreme : the 
 little fairies skipped about with so much 
 grace and ease, and looked so happy and 
 so lovely, that I could hardly take my eyes 
 from them. But when the agitation was 
 communicated to the other couples, and 
 the whole party was set in motion, all in 
 their turns being brought in contrast with 
 the blooming and sparkling Lucy, the ele- 
 
 VOL. I. I I
 
 362 ROXOBEL. 
 
 gant and modest Sophia, the graceful Euge- 
 nius, and the animated Theodore, the scene 
 became irresistibly ridiculous. My polite- 
 ness, indeed, was so overcome, that I fairly 
 laughed aloud, in which breach of good 
 manners I was joined by the doctor, who 
 exclaimed, " Good souls, how they foot it ! 
 it is better than any comedy that was ever 
 represented." The sound of the music, 
 and the measured beating of the many 
 heavy feet, however, was much in our fa- 
 vour, and prevented our merry comments 
 from being heard. By this time, too, every- 
 one was so busy, or so warm, that we were 
 very little noticed. And, in addition to 
 these propitious circumstances, we were 
 made more easy by the example of Mrs. Wi- 
 nifred herself, who was a little thrown off 
 her guard at the figure of Mrs. Watchum, 
 whom the miller was twisting under his arm 
 in the first style. Mrs. Winifred informed 
 me, that Mr. Tolly is considered a su- 
 perlatively fine dancer in his own society: 
 and indeed, his steps seemed perfectly true 
 to the music, and a great deal of skill was 
 displayed in his capers.
 
 ROXOBEL. 363 
 
 In the progress of my observations on 
 this dance, (which I must inform those who 
 may hereafter read my memorandums was 
 the first of the kind that I had ever seen,) 
 I was, however, led to make several reflec- 
 tions of a serious nature. It appears to 
 me to be not unreasonable that occasions 
 should be afforded to the various ranks of 
 society to intermingle with each other for 
 the purposes of innocent festivity; since 
 such an intercourse, properly regulated, 
 might tend to make them feel their joint 
 participation in one common nature, and 
 their mutual dependence on each other for 
 rational enjoyment. On such occasions, 
 however, care should be taken not to ex- 
 cite in the lower classes those feelings 
 which might lead to lawless freedom and 
 familiarity, or to an unrestrained display 
 of the coarseness of their characters, in 
 the presence of their superiors. 
 
 The contempt of superiors, now so pre- 
 valent in England, has a morally bad effect 
 on the lower classes. It is closely con- 
 nected with a contempt of government, and 
 a disregard of religious obligations: and
 
 36'4 R0X0BEL. 
 
 hence it has sometimes been a subject of 
 enquiry with me, whether frequent visits 
 to the poor, excepting in cases of illness or 
 affliction, are generally productive of the 
 good effects which many are led to expect 
 from them. This, however, is a query, 
 which I leave to other and wiser persons 
 to answer. 
 
 On the present occasion, as the evening 
 advanced, I saw more and more of the evil 
 consequences of the excitement which was 
 caused by the dancing and music in this 
 ill-assorted assembly. The men, who at 
 first had not dared to open their mouths, 
 began to talk and to laugh aloud, and the 
 women were emboldened to answer them; 
 and after the first few dances had been 
 called, and the genteeler persons were 
 removed to the bottom of the set, dances of 
 a coarser kind were introduced, with clap- 
 ping of hands and snapping of fingers, in 
 time to the music. 
 
 In the mean while, Mrs. Winifred had 
 withdrawn into another room, accompa- 
 nied by one or two of the other ladies, who 
 had complained of fatigue ; but I re-
 
 ROXOBEL. 365 
 
 mained with the doctor and Mrs. Beau- 
 champ in the dancing-room, agreeing with 
 them that our best occupation was to 
 watch the little ladies. 
 
 The dancing had continued without in- 
 termission for three hours, when the infe- 
 rior members of the company were called 
 out to take refreshments; and cake and 
 wine, lemonade and punch, were handed 
 round to the quality, A\ho remained in 
 the room. I was still seated on the sofa, 
 and the two little ladies came to sit by 
 me. They were full of the happiness which 
 they had enjoyed, and Lucy told me with 
 glee, that Sophia was to stay with her 
 till Monday ; " and you will have two in- 
 stead of one of us to teach, Mr. Airley." 
 
 While I was expressing the pleasure I 
 should experience in having two such scho- 
 lars, Master Taffy entered the room, and 
 coming up to the sofa, "Miss Lucy," he 
 said, " we are to change partners now, and 
 you must dance with me." 
 
 "Indeed I shan't, Taffy," replied the 
 little lady. 
 
 " But Mrs. Winifred says we are to 
 i i 3
 
 366 ROXOBEL. 
 
 change partners now; and there is nobody 
 but me young enough for you to dance 
 with," rejoined Taffy. 
 
 " Well, but I am engaged," answered the 
 little lady. 
 
 " But you are not to dance with the same 
 all the evening," returned young Nuttall. 
 
 " I know that," replied Miss Lucy; " but 
 I have secured another partner, and so 
 has Sophia; and therefore you need not 
 trouble yourself about us." 
 
 "You mayn't dance with your brothers 
 neither," said Taffy. 
 
 " Who says so?" asked Lucy: "we will, 
 if we like it." 
 
 " But you mayn't though," replied the 
 boy: "it a'n't the custom." 
 
 " It is not your affair, Master Taffy," said 
 little Sophia, reddening. " If we like our 
 brothers best, what can it matter to you? I 
 shall dance with Theodore, and Lucy with 
 Eugenius." 
 
 " Now, is that fair?" said Taffy, looking 
 at me. 
 
 " I don't see why it is not," I replied. " If 
 the young ladies wish to dance with their
 
 ROXOBEL. 367 
 
 brothers, surely they have a right to do 
 
 so." 
 
 "What's that you are talking of?" said 
 Eugenius, suddenly appearing. 
 
 " He wants to dance with rue," answered 
 Lucy. 
 
 " That's what you shall not do," exclaim- 
 ed Eugenius, seizing his sister's hand ; " she 
 is my partner, and she shall dance with me." 
 
 At that moment the steward entered, 
 and seemed as if he had been adding to his 
 libations ; for he no sooner heard what was 
 passing, than he took Master Taffy by the 
 shoulders, and turned him off to another end 
 of the room, while Eugenius remained, 
 muttering at the insolence of the boy. 
 
 When the dancing recommenced, I saw- 
 young JNuttall standing opposite to the 
 gamekeeper's daughter, his former partner; 
 but they both looked sullen. 
 
 From that time things proceeded as 
 before, till the dance previous to that 
 which was to be the closing one ; during 
 which, I was startled by a noise at the 
 bottom of the room. The musicians play- 
 ed a few false notes, and then ceased en-
 
 368 ROXOBEL. 
 
 tirely; the dancing was also stopped; and 
 nothing was heard but voices in high alter- 
 cation. The voices were those of Theodore 
 and Taffy. 
 
 "I will!"— "You shan't !"— " You are 
 a fine gentleman ! " — " You are a true-born 
 blackguard!" — "I'll make you feel!" — 
 " I'll make you remember ! " Then a blow 
 resounded — then another — and then ano- 
 ther — and then followed a noisy scuffle, in 
 which the two boys dealt blows upon each 
 other with the rapidity of mill-wheels. 
 
 This scene, so congenial to Black Tom 
 and the miller, threw both these heroes off 
 their guard. The Hall, with its dazzling 
 pomp and magnificence, seemed to have 
 disappeared in an instant from their view, 
 and, no doubt, they already began to fancy 
 themselves in some of their lowest haunts. 
 
 " Well done ! well done ! " cried Black 
 Tom. 
 
 "Well done !" exclaimed the miller. "To 
 and again, Master Theodore! Pay him 
 well ! Give it him downright ! There, 
 right forward ! On and again j Pay him 
 off! Pay him off!"
 
 ROXOBEL. 369 
 
 The women shrieked ; the children cried ; 
 and little Sophia, in her agony, fell on her 
 knees, and prayed that the boys might not 
 kill each other. 
 
 The steward and Mr. Barnaby Semple 
 had much difficulty in parting the combat- 
 ants ; and, when they had succeeded in 
 parting them, they had still more difficulty 
 in holding them in. Theodore was like 
 a lion in the toils struggling to be free, 
 champing, foaming, and gnashing his teeth ; 
 his face flushed, and wet with perspiration ; 
 his hair disordered ; his eyes flashing fire : 
 while Taffy snuffled and sniffled, mutter- 
 ing vengeance on his opponent, and, now 
 and then, making a furious effort to get 
 loose. 
 
 While things were in this state, Mrs. 
 Winifred and her sisters, with Dr. and 
 Mrs. Beauchamp, who had only gone out 
 for a few moments, entered the room, fol- 
 lowed by Mrs. Nuttall, and by several 
 other persons who had been summoned 
 by the noise. 
 
 "What is all this?" said Mrs. Winifred, 
 in high displeasure.
 
 370 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " He struck me," said Taffy, pointing to 
 young Beauchamp. 
 
 " And I will again, when I can reach 
 him," said Theodore. 
 
 "Peace, boy!" exclaimed the doctor, in 
 high indignation. "Do you take this house 
 for a bear-garden ? " 
 
 " It is not his fault, papa," said Sophia, 
 weeping bitterly. "Poor Theodore, it is 
 not his fault." 
 
 " It's mine ! all mine ! " exclaimed Eu- 
 genius. " I ought not to have told him, and 
 then this would not have happened." 
 
 "Told him what?" was enquired from 
 various quarters. 
 
 " About my dancing ! " — " About his 
 dancing!" — "About our dancing!" said 
 several young impatient voices, at once. 
 
 " He struck me, that he did," said Taffy. 
 
 "Yes, because you touched Lucy; and 
 you sha'n't touch her!" exclaimed Theo- 
 dore. 
 
 "And why mayn't I touch her?" asked 
 Taffy. 
 
 " You wanted to dance with her, that 
 you did," rejoined Theodore.
 
 ROXOBEL. 371 
 
 " Come, come/' said Mrs. Winifred ; " 110 
 more of this in this place. We are disturb- 
 ing these good people. David, go to your 
 aunt, and let me hear no more." — And, so 
 saying, she walked away in high displea- 
 sure. The doctor, at the same time, led 
 the four young people into another room, 
 and I followed them. 
 
 " Come," said the doctor, when the door 
 was shut, " I must have all this explained 
 to me." 
 
 I then related what I supposed to have 
 been the beginning of the affray, namely, 
 the conversation which had taken place 
 while the little ladies were seated by my 
 side. Eugenius also added his part. 
 
 "I was very imprudent, Sir," he said, 
 " in telling Theodore that Taffy had spoken 
 about Lucy's dancing with him; and when 
 Taffy came to our place in the dance, he 
 again said something to Lucy about dan- 
 cing with him the next ; and Theodore said 
 she should not; and then Taffy said she 
 should." 
 
 "And then I said I would not," added 
 Lucy; "and then Taffy said I should."
 
 372 ROXOBEL. 
 
 " And then I fetched him a blow," said 
 Theodore. 
 
 "And then he gave you another?" added 
 the doctor. "And the end of it is, that 
 you have disgraced yourself; you have lost 
 the good opinion of Mrs. Winifred; and 
 Eugenius, Lucy, Theodore, and Sophia, 
 will be parted henceforward." 
 
 As the doctor uttered these words, the 
 tears gushed from his eyes, he sank on a 
 chair, and sobbed audibly. The four chil- 
 dren rushed into his arms ; and the cry of 
 anguish was universal and exceedingly af- 
 fecting. 
 
 "There is only one thing now to be done," 
 observed the doctor, after some reflec- 
 tion. " Theodore must beg Mrs. Winifred's 
 pardon without loss of time. Eugenius is 
 out of the scrape, and let him remain so." 
 
 " No, Sir, no, I am not/' said Eugenius. 
 
 "Take my advice," said the doctor: 
 " keep in the back-ground till called upon. 
 You will then, I am sure, be ready to do 
 all that is required of you." 
 
 " I would do any thing, I would die, ra- 
 ther than be separated from Theodore and
 
 ROXOBEL. 373 
 
 Sophia!" exclaimed the charming- boy, 
 bursting afresh into tears, " and from you, 
 ray father and my friend, and my beloved 
 mother;" — and he again sank on the bo- 
 som of the doctor. 
 
 In the mean time, Sophia and Lucy had 
 each taken a hand of Theodore, and were 
 drawing him out of the room towards Mrs. 
 Winifred. 
 
 " Follow them, my friend," said the doc- 
 tor to me, " we must avert the consequences 
 of this folly, if possible." 
 
 I willingly obeyed, and, hastening after 
 the young people, saw them enter the draw- 
 ing-room, and advance with quick steps to 
 Mrs. Winifred. Then, falling on their 
 knees before the old lady, Lucy spoke first, 
 saying, "We are come to ask your par- 
 don, aunt. Theodore is very, very sorry." 
 
 " Poor Theodore is very, very sorry," re- 
 peated Sophia. 
 
 " I have done wrong, Ma'am ; will you 
 please to pardon me," said the boy : " and 
 if you will call Taffy, I will tell him so in 
 your presence, and I will shake hands with 
 him before all the people." 
 
 VOL. I. K K
 
 874 ROXOBEL. 
 
 "Yes, Ma'am," rejoined Lucy, "he will 
 shake hands with him before all the people. 
 Please to forgive him." 
 
 " Please to forgive him," added the sob- 
 bing Sophia. 
 
 " Certainly," replied Mrs. Winifred. " I 
 cannot refuse to forgive Master Beau- 
 champ, if he is willing to make such ho- 
 nourable amends to the poor boy whom 
 he has insulted. But I have another con- 
 dition to make, Lucy. "Will you dance 
 with David, and thus prove before all the 
 company that you do not despise him?" 
 
 I dreaded the result of this question, or 
 rather command . It brou ght the colour into 
 the face of Theodore, but he refrained from 
 speaking. 
 
 " I will, Ma'am," replied Lucy, " if my 
 partner " and there she hesitated. 
 
 "Will give you up?" said Mrs. Winifred. 
 " I can, however, hardly suppose," she ad- 
 ded, haughtily, "that any person in this 
 house would dare to oppose my wishes in 
 this particular. Things, however, may be 
 altered since my youth. But this matter 
 may be soon ascertained." Then address-
 
 ROXOBEL. 375 
 
 ing her niece, and looking at Theodore, " Is 
 this your partner, Lucy Lovel?" she said. 
 
 " No, Ma'am," replied Lucy, " Eugenius 
 is my partner." 
 
 " Let him be called," said Mrs. Winifred. 
 
 I immediately ran out to apprize Euge- 
 nius of what was required of him. 
 
 "I expected this," observed the doctor: 
 "and now, Eugenius, it is your turn to 
 shew how far you will go to make peace." 
 
 " What ought I to do, Sir? " asked Eu- 
 genius, trembling with restrained feeling. 
 
 " If I were older " and he hesitated. 
 
 " But 1 shall be older " And then again 
 
 striving to obtain self-command, he said, 
 " Please, Mr. Airley, to tell my aunt that I 
 am willing." 
 
 " You must go yourself, Eugenius," said 
 the doctor, " if you wish to undo the mis- 
 chief which your impatience has done." 
 
 Eugenius obeyed. He went to the draw- 
 ing-room, and I accompanied him. Mrs. 
 Nuttall and her nephew were then there. 
 
 " Eugenius," said Mrs. Winifred, "David 
 wishes to dance this last dance with your 
 sister Lucy. Will you give her up?"
 
 370 ROXOBEL. 
 
 "I will do what you wish, Madam," 
 replied Eugenius. " You have a right to 
 command me." 
 
 "Well, then," returned Mrs. Winifred, 
 " all is as it should be." Then addressing 
 the housekeeper, she added, "The young 
 gentleman has made a proper apology to 
 your nephew, Nuttall. The boy is not 
 much hurt, you say, and you ought to be 
 satisfied. Taffy, take your partner; and I 
 will go in and see the concluding dance." 
 
 Lucy's fair face flushed high as Taffy 
 took her hand to lead her out. Mrs. Wi- 
 nifred followed with the other ladies, and I 
 remained with Sophia, her brother, and 
 Eugenius. 
 
 " Oh, Mr. Airley," said Eugenius, " why 
 do I feel this so much ? Where is the pride 
 of the Helmsleys and the Lovels now?" 
 
 " The pride of the Helmsleys is like all 
 other piide, Eugenius," I answered, "which 
 generally ends in abasement. Your good 
 aunt is infatuated by an artful waiting- 
 woman; and hence the influence of her 
 nephew : but the circumstance is not worth 
 a thought ; and by saying much, and think-
 
 ROXOBEL. 377 
 
 iug much about it, you give it importance. 
 Don't shew yourself mortified. As Theo- 
 dore has robbed you of your partner, let 
 him give you his, and let us see if little 
 Sophia cannot comfort you." 
 
 Sophia had shrunk from young Lovel 
 during this conversation, being awed by his 
 serious looks, but she now drew near, and 
 said, in her sweetest tone, " Come, dear 
 Eugenius, don't be uneasy; Mrs. Winifred 
 has pardoned us, and we may be happy 
 again now : and if Theodore will only wait 
 a moment, I will fetch such a partner for 
 him as I know he will like next best to me." 
 
 So saying, she darted out of the room, and 
 presently returned with the little black- 
 eyed Ellen, who had been sitting all the 
 evening by the side of her grandmother. 
 
 " Well done, Sophia ! " cried Theodore. 
 " You have done better than I expected ; 
 but I doubt whether she knows one step 
 of the dance." 
 
 " O yes, Sir," said the little girl. " Yes, 
 I can make steps. And Miss Sophia says 
 I am to follow her, and to follow you, Sir ; 
 and to go up, and to go down, and to go
 
 378 ROXOBEL. 
 
 in, and to go out ; and I think I can ma- 
 nage." 
 
 " To be sure you can," said Theodore, 
 whose spirits were now nearly as high as 
 ever. " Only come with us ; we shall do 
 vastly well. It's Sir Roger de Coverley, is 
 not it, that we are going to dance ? Make 
 haste, or we shall be too late." Then 
 taking his little partner by the hand, he 
 flew out of the room with such an air that 
 I ventured to predict that the drubbing he 
 had already gotten would not be the last 
 by many to which this enterprising youth 
 would entitle himself. 
 
 Lucy Lovel and David Nuttall had just 
 taken their station at the upper end of the 
 room, when Eugenius and Theodore led 
 their little partners to the bottom; and 
 Taffy seemed somewhat perplexed, and the 
 company much amused, when it was found 
 that it was little Ellen with whom David 
 was to execute all the manoeuvres which 
 form a part of the figure of the old dance 
 of Sir Roger de Coverley. The presence, 
 however, of Mrs. Winifred, kept every one 
 in order; and no comments were made.
 
 ROXOBEL. 379 
 
 The dance was soon concluded, and the 
 party broke up immediately afterwards; 
 though I have reason to believe that they 
 kept up their hilarity in the steward's room 
 and the servants' hall, till the dawn of the 
 following morning. 
 
 Though it was long after my usual time 
 when I retired to rest, I could not sleep. 
 My cogitations were numerous and per- 
 plexing. I could not understand how Mrs. 
 Nuttall could possess so powerful an influ- 
 ence over her mistress, as was discover- 
 ed in the anxiety which Mrs. Winifred had 
 evidenced, to make her own nephew and 
 niece humble themselves, in order to please 
 the nephew of her housekeeper. Neither 
 had it escaped my notice, that Mrs. Grizzy 
 and Mrs. Judy had both looked extremely 
 blank while their niece was dancing with 
 young Nuttall. 
 
 I had my thoughts, too, respecting the 
 sort of amusement which had taken place 
 that evening at the Hall ; and I felt that 
 the English are not the kind of people to 
 whom such amusements can be permitted 
 with impunity.
 
 380 ROXOBEL. 
 
 John Bull, when uneducated, is a sulky 
 being, though he has many good qualities ; 
 and, when he lays aside his sullenness, 
 he becomes free and familiar. Neither 
 do we, who have been educated, know so 
 well how to manage our amusements, as 
 our friends do over the water. A balle 
 champitre in France would never degene- 
 rate into such low scenes as I have de- 
 scribed as taking place in Roxobel Hall. 
 And there is something in the different 
 style of dancing which prevails in the 
 two nations : the French quadrille admit- 
 ting of better selection than the English 
 country-dance, and being less liable to sink 
 into inelegance. 
 
 Such were my musings ; and before I 
 fell asleep, I decided, in my own mind, 
 that I had not as yet seen any thing at 
 Roxobel which had pleased me so little 
 as the ball at. the mansion-house. 
 
 END OF VOL. I.
 
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 ooctipied bv precisely the same kind of personages in many respects; but the world 
 through which their path mast lead is liable to change, is, in fact, a shifting quicksand, 
 moving with everv tide. The lines of approach, too, of the kingdom of darkness, which 
 would impede the'pilgrim's proeress, ofien vary their position, and the emissaries of Sa- 
 tan, who mingle themselves with the travellers on the road, are perpetually altering their 
 oUguise. We could wish, therefore, if a Bunyan could be found, that every age had its 
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 Extract of a Letter from Calcutta. 
 
 George Desmond is mooh admired in India, and likely to do good. People cannot 
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 Thongh the moral dangers incident to Europeans proceeding to India are in some 
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 many temptations to sloth and self-indulgence incident to the climate, are rocks upon 
 which many a fair character has been shipwrecked; and we are greatly indebted to the 
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