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Pope "lisped in numbers;" and that Sir Richard Arkwright, originally a barber, even after his marriage, would leave a gentleman in the suds, lay down his razor, and draw diagrams and wheels with chalk on the pannels of his shaving-shop, till his wife, concluding that he was going out of his senses, and taking counsel with her next-door neighbour, a prudent, pains-taking tailor, he, like the curate with Don Quixote, advised her to take away the cause, and the effect would cease. In compliance with this sage advice, all the barber's wheels and models were, one morning before he got up, blazing in a bonfire, when, instead of losing time in scolding or beating his rib, he patiently and perseveringly set to work till the whole were replaced. These, and many other instances of the triumphs of genius, were urged by Andrew, who concluded by affirming, that, should he ever have a son, he would allow him to make his own choice of the path he was to follow through life. Francis, with equal information, and not less obstinacy, adhered to his former opinion; and declared his fixed resolve, that should he ever be a father, he would determine what business his son should follow while the child was in leading-strings, and make him pursue that course of education best adapted to qualify him for his destined employment.

Their opinions about love and marriage were not less opposed to each other; Andrew affirmed, that love was wholly an affair of the heart; that there was a delicacy and purity in a first love that no subsequent passion could inspire; and that in marriage, every consideration about future happiness, founded on the cold, calculating principles of what was often named prudence, was no other than mean, selfish cunning, unworthy of the name of love, and never found a place in the heart glowing with that passion in its genuine and spotless purity. In a word, the heart and feelings only should be consulted if worldly wisdom were allowed to interfere, it operated like a blighting frost, or a worm in the rose, withering the bud before it had expanded into blossom. Opposed to this romantic theory, Francis argued,

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that such a love was the fever of the brain, the child of Fancy nursed by Folly; and that the chances were an hundred to one, that a union, founded on such a visionary basis, would never produce domestic happiness. That, in as far as he was capable of judging, every love, or liking, not sanctioned by prudence, ought to be considered as a disease, and cured as speedily as possible. That if the seat of Wisdom were allowed to be in the head, and that of Feeling in the heart, the qualities which might attract a lover were often very different from those which would continue to please a husband. Courtship might be an affair of feeling ;* but in marriage, the judgment and common sense should always be consulted. Human life, not being an elysium of uninterrupted felicity, but a shifting scene of cares and rational enjoyments, woman was not to be considered as a toy, to smile, fondle, and talk sentimental nonsense, but to perform the more important duties of a prudent housewife and careful mother. Hence, marriage was an act which required cool and cautious deliberation; for which reason, a prudent man would avoid falling in love, as he would shun the contagion of an infectious fever. He who resolved to marry, would look around him for a woman of plain common sense, of a good, or at least respectable family; and although fortune was not to be considered as a sine qua non, yet it should form a very desirable appendage. A match thus founded would produce esteem, the only soil in which that rational love could spring the fruit of which was domestic happiness.

Andrew heard all this with indifference, bordering on contempt; for his imagination was soaring in airy dreams, as far elevated above the region of common sense as the other was sunk below the true dignity of man, in the mire of grovelling selfishness.

During the last session that Andrew attended college, he boarded in a family consisting of a widow and her daughter. The mother had a small annuity, her daughter was a milliner and fashionable dress-maker; and, as an addition to their income, they received one or two respectable

boarders. Miss Lindsay had received a fashionable education, and Nature had endowed her with a handsome stature and fine face: she sung with delicate feeling, and played on the spinnet with good taste, (piano-fortes were not then in fashion.) From the nature of her business, she had occasion to see several ladies above her own rank, and caught many of their amiable weaknesses, with a tolerable share of sentimental affectation, which rendered her still more attractive in the eyes of Andrew, whose imagination had always invested a woman worthy of being beloved with a fascinating delicacy and refined sensibility, resembling what Miss Lindsay now exhibited; and before the close of the session he was deeply in love. It was the first attack, and his mind was so susceptible, that it tingled in every vein. His enthusiasm shed around it a halo of such imaginary purity and transporting ecstacy, that his heart was intoxicated with an ideal and voluptuous draught of his own creation. Although his every look and action plainly indicated the state of his heart, he had not ventured to whisper the tender tale; for he held her virgin delicacy in such esteem, or rather such idolatrous adoration, that he shrunk from the disclosure.

But

Miss Lindsay was not blind, nor was her heart invulnerable; it also was wounded, although not so deeply; and it depended on contingencies whether the wound admitted of cure. However, she contrived to give Andrew a fair opportunity, and soon led him to an explicit declaration of his sentiments, to which she replied with fascinating blushes and maidenly modesty, which gave new virulence to the poison, and, without kindling hope, had no tendency to nurse despair. It was only when he was about to leave town, that, as he fondly pressed her trembling hand, she acknowledged a respect for him, which might probably in time ripen into a softer and more delicate feeling, but she was inclined to keep both her heart and hand disengaged as long as possible.

Soon after being licensed, Andrew was engaged as tutor in a gentleman's family, where he continued three years. Faithful to his first love,

he had visited Miss Lindsay every year, and she continued to fan the flame, but prudently avoided coming under any promise to one whose future establishment in life was so precarious. However, the tutor had given such complete satisfaction to his employer, that the incumbent of a parish of which he had the patronage dying, the tutor received a presentation to the kirk. No sooner was he settled, than, "faithful to his former fires," the now Reverend Andrew Baxter flew on the wings of love, and again, with respectful tenderness, but greater confidence, pressed his suit. To reward such welltried and unshaken constancy, Miss Lindsay, now, with delicate sensibility,

Smil'd, sigh'd, and blush'd, as willing to be woo'd;

And in a languid whisper breathed con

sent.

I saw the happy couple, as they visited at my father's during the honey-moon. He had a manly and graceful air; she was slender, but beautifully elegant in form and stature, with a mild but melting lustre in her eye, and a blush of winning softness suffusing her cheek; and they seemed a couple mutually loving and beloved.

Fortune, although a little more tardy in conferring her favours, had not forgotten Halliday, who, in about a year after the settlement of his friend, obtained a crown presentation to a charge in a country town within a few miles of the manse occupied by his former College chum. From what has been already stated of Francis, it will not be supposed that his heart was very susceptible of the tender passion; indeed, he was too prudent to entangle himself in the toils of Love. However, now that he was sure of a competency for life, it was necessary to have a housekeeper, and he believed no one would act so faithfully as one who had an interest in the economy and prosperity of his establishment, and that must be a wife. But as it was probable that this appendage to his household would also bring the addition of other claimants on their protection, he deemed it prudent, if possible, to obtain a partner whose fortune, added to his stipend, might enable them to

make a better provision for their progeny. After having been repulsed in his addresses to the daughter of a country squire, and next thing to jilted by the rich banker's widow, who, after some deliberation, preferred cheerful scarlet to gloomy black, he at last wooed, and won the heart of a farmer's daughter, with a fortune of one thousand pounds.

New pursuits led me from that quarter of the country, to which I returned after an absence of seven years. Soon after my arrival, I was invited, along with my father's family, to dine at the manse with Mr Baxter. "I am glad of this invitation," said I ; " Mrs Baxter was, and still must be, a fine woman; her figure was elegantly graceful, and her face the index of a meek and cheerful mind." My mother smiled, but made no reply. The manse was situate near the bottom of a sloping bank, the garden in front stretched to the margin of a rivulet, clear as rock crystal, which murmured on the mossy rocks in a narrow glen; the stream was overshaded by shrubs, under which the vernal primrose bloomed, while the blushing wild rose on the bank, and the pendulous fox-glove on the cliffs, gave beauty to the summer; while finches, thrushes, and blackbirds, with their melody, waked the echoes around. We approached the manse by a little gate, which opened on the rivulet; our path leading through the garden, on each side of which was a rustic arbour, covered with honeysuckle, eglantine, and clematis, so that, from their situation, either sun or shade could be enjoyed. Across the bottom of the garden run a smooth and closely-shorn velvet walk, which exhibited evident marks that it was the goodman's retreat, both for exercise and contemplation; it was bounded on the outside by a high and impervious hedge of evergreen holly, and on the other with a variety of shrubs and flowers; from this, a trim gravel walk, bordered with boxwood, led to a circular green in the middle of the garden, in the centre of which stood a sun-dial constructed by the parson, with this motto, Tempus edax rerum; it stood on a narrow mound, raised to a considerable height, and surrounded by three terraces above

each other, all of turf, in which were interspersed snow-drops, crocuses, daisies, and other flowers. The gar den was separated from the house by a clean paved court, and bounded by a low wall, decorated with a light and neat wooden railing. The parson had observed our approach, and, according to the good old fashion of the times, which indicated a hearty wel come, met us on our egress from the garden. After exchanging compli ments, I had time to observe a cherrytree spread out on the front-wall of the house; the window of the minister's study, as I could perceive from the number of books and a small portable desk on the table, was richly festooned on the outside with woodbine and roses; a box of mignionette occupied the outer sill, and a swallow's nest was stuck in the upper corner.

We were now conducted to the drawing-room, and I was introduced to Mrs Baxter. I do not know that I ever felt equal surprise on so trivial an occasion; I have already expressed what she appeared to me when I last saw her, but her face and form were now so metamorphosed, that I could scarcely persuade myself that it was the same person before me.

I like to see a matron em-bon

point, but Mrs Baxter was corpu lent and unwieldy; when she sat down, the sopha might be said to groan with her weight; the rose which, seven years ago, bloomed more sweetly on her cheek, from the delicate whiteness with which it was surrounded, had now not only assumed a deeper and less pleasing tint, but had banished the lily from every part of her face and neck that was visible; not merely her complexion, but also her features were changed, and neither for the better; her voice was also strangely disagreeable, for by affecting a languid sensibility, she endeavoured to modulate her voice accordingly, and it seemed to me as an unnatural but abortive effort of ventriloquism. Four children were now introduced; the eldest a boy, I was told, in his seventh year; the youngest not as many months, and in the nurse's arms; for Mr Baxter said her health had become so delicate, that she had nursed only her first child. When the infant began to

cry, she ordered the nurse to take it away, for her nerves were torn with its abominable squalling.

Soon after, the Rev. Francis Halliday and his lady arrived, their vehicle of conveyance being a common cart; their cushions-sacks stuffed with straw, and their carpet clean dry hay: Mrs Halliday was a tall, masculine-looking woman, very plain ly dressed, and, both in personal appearance and apparel, forming a striking contrast to Mrs Baxter, who was dressed in the extreme of the fashion. In a few minutes we sat down to dinner, our attendant being a woman on the wrong side of forty, blind of an eye, and her face not only pitted, but scared and seamed by the small-pox. The table displayed dishes and delicacies, as I thought, unsuitable to the income of a country clergyman, while we were teased with apologies about the poorness of our entertainment, uttered with a languor which seemed to come from the lips of some delicate fair in the last stage of a consumption, rather than those of the Dutch-built vrow at the head of the table. "The dinner is excellent, and I shall do it justice," said Mrs Halliday, "for my ride has given me a good appetite."" For which I envy you," replied the fine lady; "I am sure, had I rode a mile in such a vehicle, my nerves would have been all shattered; I should never have recovered the shock." "All want of custom, and too little exercise," said the other. "In this rural paradise, with your cows, dairy, and poultry, and the fine scenery for walking, you might get as rich as Jews, and healthy as a milk-maid, Mrs Baxter." "Ah! I wish I could encounter all that; when I walk out with Mr Baxter, I am deaved with the lowing of cows,-the cackling of poultry tear my nerves at home,-the dairy is too fatiguing for me,-I am compelled to go to the kitchen, Nelly is so awkward,-and my maternal feelings oblige me to visit the nur sery; so that you see I am fatigued with exertion."

Tom, her first born, was seated at table, and she was constantly checking him for some impropriety. "Tommy, my dear, hold your knife rightdon't bawl so for what you want see what a cloth you are making!"

and many other equally important injunctions. After the cloth was removed, the two parsons resumed their old argument about the innate propensities of genius, over their wine, each tenaciously adhering to his early opinions. We then went out to have a walk in the garden. Mrs Halliday requested Mrs Baxter to shew her the cows, and inquired how many pigs she kept? "Oh! do not mention the detestable brutes,→→→ you make me sick with the thought, I should faint at the sight of them." I happened to mention an acquaintance about whom Mr Halliday was interested, and he requested that I would call on him when in town, that we might talk over the subject. After tea, the parson and his wife departed, seated beside each other in the cart." My gracious! how vulgar," exclaimed Mrs Baxter, "to see the minister and his lady in a dung cart! but I suppose she still thinks herself on her father's farm; for she can talk of nothing but cows, pigs, and poultry: faugh! I have been told that the parson married her for money; and if so, he is rightly served; for she is neither qualified to be his companion, nor to give dignity to his vocation."

On our way home, my mother, smiling, said, "Well, do you find Mrs Baxter much improved since you last saw her ?" She is so changed that I could hardly believe her the same woman." Ay, she is indeed changed, and that the poor man, her husband, feels every hour of his life: she affects the fine airs and foibles of a lady of fashion; is proud as a duchess, and, with all her pretensions to delicacy and susceptible nerves, is a gross sensualist; indolent in the extreme, and yet a slave to her passions. Her fondness for her husband, whether real or affected, makes him miserable. He is a popular preacher, and often called out on sacramental occasions; but as she always insists on accompanying him, and is too proud to ride in his own cart, she has compelled him to purchase a fine phaeton and splendid harness. When appointed to represent the Presbytery in the General Assembly, she went with him, and with difficulty he obtained her consent to dine for one day at the

Commissioner's table, and she was in hysterics before he came in; he was obliged every day after to come home the moment the Assembly left St. Giles's, and either take her out, or sit, tied to her apron-string, during the evening. He is fond of walking, to admire and contemplate the beauties of Nature, for which the scenery around the manse is well adapted; but he dares not stir beyond the garden, without her by his side. She is too indolent to rise in the morning; but at breakfast she will examine his shoes, to find whether the mud which adheres to them inay betray that he has been beyond his limits; she keeps no female servant of more attractive features than the woman who attended us at dinner. In a word, with his small stipend, her nameless caprices, vanity, fantastic follies and extravagance, the good man is utterly deprived of domestic happiness, for he is plunged in debt over head and ears. I have heard that their marriage was the result of first love, contracted when he was at College, before he knew the world; if so, he has paid for his romantic folly." Agreeably to my promise, when in town I called on Mr Halliday, when the door was opened by a maid-servant, half naked, and up to the elbows in soap-suds. She conducted me to the garden, informing me the minister was there. As I passed through the back court, I was fiercely attacked by a brood-hen, surrounded by her chickens; as I staggered to one side to avoid her attack, and afraid of trampling on her chirping brood, which were fluttering about my legs, I landed my foot over the shoe in a dunghill, which I soon perceived lay close to the cowhouse, while the maternal screams of this feathered mother alarmed a sow with a numerous progeny, whose stye flanked the other side of the court, as a counterpart to the cow-house; proceeding, I next frightened a covey of ducks and ducklings, swimming in a wooden trough in front of a pump well, and in their fluttering retreat they besprinkled my clothes and face with a liberal effusion of the foul and filthy element. On entering the garden, I found the parson digging potatocs;

the earth was wet, and he was in mud over the knuckles; however, after rubbing his hands on the grass, and then wiping them with a handkerchief, which seemed to have been long in use, he extended a horny fist, like that of a ploughman, to bid me welcome, making an awkward apology that the maid was washing, and as he was fond of potatoes, he came out to dig a few for dinner. I had now an opportunity of observing his dress, every part of which appeared to have seen much service; the crown of his hat had fallen in, and the brim in some places pointed to the zenith, and in others to the nadir; his rusty black coat was out at elbows, and also fringed at the wrists; his vest, from a paucity of buttons, betrayed the secret that his linen was ready for the girl who had acted as porter to me; from some parts of his small-clothes, I perceived they had once been cotton velvet, but the knees and upper parts of the thighs exhibited a lustre which might almost have rivalled Day and Martin's blacking, had it then been invented; his stockings were a mixture of black and white worsted, the heels having been repeatedly darned with divers colours, of which white was predominant, still, from more than one hiatus, the skin was visible; of his shoes I shall only say, they were in keeping with his general costume.

On entering the parlour, we found it filled with screens covered with wet linen, and he led me to his study: there we found three or four children clambering on chairs around a large atlas on the table. One was daubing it with gamboge, another pricking it with pins, and a third shading the indentations of land and water with black lead, or defacing them with chalk. I observed the father's face colour; however, he said nothing, but turned out the urchins, and laid the atlas aside. Our interview was long, for the minister had much to inquire; he invited me to stay dinner, which I declined; but he insisted till I complied, lest my obstinacy should give offence. Mrs Halliday now appeared in a very plain dress, and not overclean, and her husband took the opportunity of equipping himself a little more in

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