have been wounded by observing the full possession which the beggar boy held of her affections.

Our wanderer now entered on a scene of life totally different to any thing he had ever before witnessed he found himself at once in possession of all the comforts and even elegancies of life, secured by comparatively little labour, and compatible with much mental improvement. The servants appeared well inclined towards him, and his lady so greatly resembled Mrs. Tomlinson, that he had no doubt of being perfectly happy; and all he could possibly have to fear, was the continuance of so much good fortune.

William did not see his master till late in the evening of the second day, when he returned from an excursion to a distant town to hear a celebrated Methodist preacher. He was accompanied by several friends, and on the bell-ringing,

the new foot-boy was told it was his duty to attend.

William entered with a little trepidation lest he should appear awkward among strangers; but this was amazingly increased when a person of fierce countenance and haughty manners, hastily cried :

"Where's my Checks? hey! Where have you laid them; tell me this moment? Speak boy."

"Your Checks, Sir?"

Aye, my Checks? Fletcher's Checks? you scoundrel, where have you put them ?"

"Nowhere, Sir; indeed, Sir, I,—I, don't know what they are."

"Scoundrel!

not know Fletcher's

Checks to Antinomianism? Not know a book that is never out of my hand? You puppy, get out of my sight."

TALES OF THE PRIORY.

315

was closing the door, one of the guests rising, reached a book from the work table of the lady of the house, saying, "here it is, brother, do not disturb yourself.'

The speaker was a man of vulgar appearance, and his address mingled the servility of a fawning dependant, with the impudence of a conscious superior; so that even the hasty manner in which William saw the transaction struck him as very singular, while his own share of it was painful, and impressed him with the idea that his stay would be very short with such a hasty master. He began to arrange the tray for supper with much secret perturbation, not unmixed with curiosity; and when the butler en tered, could not forbear saying, though with much modesty'; "I thought Mrs. Tomlinson called my master a, a, a, religious gentleman ?"-"

"Most likely, for he has been so for

a year, or more, I believe; don't you see he has got a roomful of such like people about him; queer company for a gentleman, but that's neither my affair nor your's; ;-mind the spoons are clean." At this moment the housemaid looked in. 66 Pray," said she, "do you know how many of the strangers are likely to stay, my mistress has given no orders yet ?"

“Oh, every one, depend on't, they are all saints; and not one will leave the house while he can have the shadow of an excuse for stopping in it."

"I thought they were on business, for I heard 'em talking about iron ore, and Oakdale farm.'

وو

Very likely, we deal a good deal in mixtures at our house now-a-days; strange hodge-podge, grasping at money in all trades, pretending to despise the world and the things of the flesh too, hating all our neighbours, with nothing but

Scripture on our tongues; buthush, there's the supper-bell; No! 'tis the prayerbell."

The servants all immediately hastened to the parlour, where, on the preceding night, they had also met, whilst their pious and amiable mistress had read family prayer. Her place was now filled by an ignorant, conceited young man, who, without either talents or knowledge, uttered, with much noise and violent gesticulation, a rhapsody in which petition was offered to the majesty of heaven in language less energetic than impertinent, and frequently bordering on blasphemy. The moment this person ceased to speak, he was succeeded by another, whose prayer, though marked by less glaring impropriety, was uttered in such coarse language, and with such a multitude of unmeaning repetitions, that William could not help thinking, either Joseph or Betty were more calculated for public speakers; but he was