"If you had not told me of these Monseers' example,” answered Careless, who abhorred France so sincerely as to hate them more than even waiting for his dinner, "I should say one, or at most two. Our fathers, who were better than us, always did so. And let me tell you, when one has been after the dogs, or busy all day, a good sirloin (putting in his plate) is better at two or three o'clock, than all the kickshaws in the world, though you waited till nine for them."

"A palpable hit," observed the Doctor, laughing.

Georgina, too, smiled; and though she had too much natural good breeding to apologize for her dinner, she could not help saying something about a wish for a French cook, for Mr. Tremaine's sake. "And why so?" asked her father.

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Why indeed?" echoed Careless, "I'm sure you are not true Yorkshire, to wish for any such thing."

"Mr. Tremaine," answered Georgina, "has accustomed himself to particular things, which I am afraid he cannot do without."

"The lady is my best friend I am glad lo perceive," said Tremaine: "for, as to my two old schoolfellows here, I begin to believe they are in a plot, and have invited me to dinner, merely to laugh at me."

"Like the fox and the stork in the fable," observed Careless, as if he had made another hit.

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"I will have my revenge, however, like the stork;" continued Tremaine, good humouredly "for when Mr. Careless does me the honour to dine with me at Woodington, he shall have nothing but kickshaws."

"That's not the way I have been used to be treated at Woodington," rejoined Careless; "nor did I ever see there, what I never thought I should have lived to see at Lord Bellenden's, as I did t'other day."

2

This he uttered with a loud and long-drawn sigh.

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Pray what?" asked Tremaine.

"A round of beef sent to the side-board," added Careless.

"Monstrous!" remarked the Doctor.

"It will lose his brother the county," said Careless, seriously.

Tremaine stared, and remarked "that the county must be little worth having, if it depended upon that."

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Why, what should it depend upon?" replied, Careless.

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"I should have thought," remarked Tremaine, drawing up, upon integrity of character, sound principles of patriotism, and extensive connections.** "Why true," answered Careless; but principles

are best seen, I always think, in manners and customs; and if a person departs from the customs of his ancestors, how do I know that he has not lost their principles too?"

He said this with the air of a man confident in the strength of his position, so that it could not be answered. Indeed, to own the truth, it was not new; for he had made the same observation once or twice before, with considerable success, at the Hound-and-Horn club, a respectable and neighbourly meeting, which was held once a month at the little market-town of Belford, and which was sedulously attended by Careless, the vicar, and surgeon of the place, not to mention one or two squires of much larger fortune, and sometimes (perhaps once in each half-year) by Evelyn himself.

The dinner removed, a serious difficulty arose; for the good host vowed he had no claret in his cellar, and he knew Tremaine could not, or would

not drink port. Tremaine observed on being pushed upon it, that it was not his taste, but his constitution that felt the want of it.

"Suppose we try but this once," said the Doctor; "it is only diminishing the quantity in proportion to the strength, and my port is excellent."

"The best in the county," quoth Careless, holding it to the light, with the air of a connoisseur.

Tremaine was obliged to comply; when Careless

added, " 'twill keep the wind off your stomach, which I shrewdly suspect is the cause of all your complaints."

His refined school-fellow seemed a little hurt, and perceiving that Georgina was rather amused than shocked, began to meditate internally, upon the impossibility, after all, of a country education sufficing to the finishing polish of female manners. "At least you will allow it is sound," said the Doctor.

“It is remarkably good of its kind," answered Tremaine.

"And the palate ?"

"Rougher than claret," said the guest, "but not so unpleasant as might be expected."

"I will hope, then," added his friend, "my unlucky want of French wine may be borne with."

"My father," exclaimed Careless," used to say that he was no honest man that did not like port."

"Your grandfather," replied Tremaine, "would have said the same by ale."

The port, however, was extremely good, and the weak stomach of Tremaine having condescended to a very plain dinner, its master almost wondered at his own feelings of lightness and good humour. Pleased in himself, he was pleased with his companions; the worth which he had heard of in

Careless, always bore him up in his estimation, when his bluntness was ready to sink him down; and the good sense of Evelyn, together with the beauty and intelligence of his daughter, were never more conspicuous.

After coffee, Georgina gave them music; and the evening being delicious, the whole party strolled with Tremaine half the way home,-his horses attending him till they took leave.

The moon shone bright when he mounted, and so unusually pleasing were his meditations, that though he moved at a foot's pace, he wished the way had been longer.

Reader! wast thou ever in love?

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CHAP. XXXI.

A YOUNGER BROTHER.

Home-keeping youths have ever homely wits.".

SHAKSPEARE.

"AN important question that, with which you concluded the last chapter."

'Tis therefore I concluded, for surely to answer it requires a chapter by itself. And yet, much will depend upon the life, character and education, to