HOME AS FOUND. SEQUEL TO "HOMEWARD BOUND." BY J. FENIMORE COOPER. 6 Thou art perfect." PR. HON. COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUMB. HEW EDITION. NEW YORK: PUBLISHED BY HURD AND HOUG4HTON;alybritfg-e: 3tibgrrg/fe [Wr17.. 1871. RiOME AS FOUND. Entered according to the act of Congress, ill the year 1838, b3 J. FENNIMORE COOPER, in the clerk's office of the district court of the United Statea in and for the eastern district of Pennsylvania. PREFACE. TnIosE who have done us the favour to read' HOME WARD BOUND' will at once perceive that the incidents of this book commence at the point where those of the work just mentioned ceased. We are fully aware of the disadvantage of dividing the interest of a tale in this manner; but in the present instance, the separation has been produced by circumstances over which the writer had very little control. As any one who may happen to take up this volume will very soon discover that there is other matter which it is necessary to know it may be as well to tell all such persons, in the commencement, therefore, that their reading will be bootless, unless they have leisure to turn to the pages of Homeward Bound for their cue. We remember the despair with which that admirable observer of men, Mr. Mathews the comedian, confessed the hopelessness of success, in his endeavours to obtain a sufficiency of prominent and distinctive features to compose an entertainment founded on American character. The whole nation struck him as being destitute of salient points, and as characterized by a respectable mediocrity, that, however useful it might be in its way, was utterly without poetry, humour, or interest to the observer. For one who dealt principally with the more conspicuous absurdities of his fellowcreatures, Mr. Mathews was certainly right; we also iii V PREFACE. believe him to have been right in the main, in the general tenor of his opinion; for this country, in its ordinary aspects, probably presents as barren a field to the writer of fiction, and to the dramatist, as any other on earth; we are not certain that we might not say the most barren. We believe that no attempt to delineate ordinary American life, either on the stage, or in the pages of a novel, has been rewarded with success. Even those works in which the desire to illustrate a principle has been the aim, when.the picture has been brought within this homely frame, have had to contend with disadvantages that have been commonly found insurmountable. The latter being the intention of this book, the task has been undertaken with a perfect consciousness of all its difficulties, and with scarcely a hope of success. It would be indeed a desperate undertaking, to think of making anything interesting in the,way of a Roman de Societe in this country; still useful glances may possibly be made even in that direction, and we trust that the fidelity of one or two of our portraits will be recognized by the looker-on, although they will very likely be denied by the sitters themselves. There seems to be a pervading principle in things, which gives an accumulating energy to any active property that may happen to be in the ascendant, at the time being.-Money produces money; knowledge is the parent of knowledge; and ignorance fortifies ignorance. -In a word, like begets like. The governing social evil of America is provincialism; a misfortune that is perhaps inseparable from her situation, Without a social capital, with twenty or more communities divided by distance and political barriers, her people, who are PREFACE, V really more homogenous than any other of the same numbers in the world perhaps, possess no standard for opinion, manners, social maxims, or even language. Every man, as a matter of course, refers to his own particular experience, and praises or condemns agreeably to notions contracted in the circle of his own habits, however narrow, provincial, or erroneous they may happen to be. As a consequence, no useful stage can exist; for the dramatist who should endeavour to delineate the faults of society, would find a formidable party arrayed against him, in a moment, with no party to defend. As another consequence, we see individuals constantly assailed with a wolf-like ferocity, while society is everywhere permitted to pass unscathed. That the American nation is a great nation, in some particulars the greatest the world ever saw, we hold to be true, and are as ready to maintain as any one can be; but we are also equally ready to codcede, that it is very far behind most polished nations in various essentials, and chiefly, that it is lamentably in arrears to its own avowed principles. Perhaps this truth will be found to be the predominant thought, throughout the pages of " Home As Found." HOME AS FOUND. CHAPTER I.' Good morrow, coz., Good morrow, sweet Hero." SHAKSPEAD WStalI Mr. Effingham determined to return home, he sent orders to his agent to prepare his town-housein New York for his reception, intending to pass a month o: two in it, then to repair to Washington for a few weeks, at the close of its season, and to visit his country residence when the spring should fairly open. Accordingly, Eve now found herself at the head of one of the largest establishments, in the largest American town, within an hour after she had landed from the ship. Fortunately for her, however, her father was too just to consider a wife, or a daughter, a mere upper servant, and he rightly judged that a liberal portion of his income should be assigned to the procuring of that higher quality of domestic service, which can alone relieve the mistress of a household from a burthen so heavy to be borne. Unlike so many of those around him, who would spend on a single pretending and comfortless entertainment, in which the ostentatious folly Df one contended with the ostentatious folly of another a sum that, properly directed, would introduce order and system into a family for a twelvemonth, by comrn manding the time and knowledge of those whose study th y had been, and who would be willing to devote themselves to such objects, and then permit their wives (7a HOME AS FOUND. and daughters to return to the drudgery to which tile sex seems doomed in this country, he first bethought him of the wants of social life before he aspired to its parade. A man of the world, Mr. Effinghamn pos-.sessed the requisite knowledge, and a man of justice, the requisite fairness, to permit those who depended on, him so much for their happiness, to share equitably in the good things that Providence had so liberally bestowed on himself. In other words, he made two people comfortable, by paying a generous price for a housekeeper; his daughter, in the first place, by releasing her from cares that, necessarily, formed no more a part of her duties than it would be a part of her duty to sweep the pavement before the door; and, in the next place, a very respectable woman who was glad to obtain so good a home on so easy terms. To this simple and just expedient, Eve was indebted for being at the head of one of the quietest, most truly elegant, and best, ordered establishments in America, with no other demands on her time than that which was necessary to issue a few orders in the morning, and to examine a few accounts once a week. One of the first and the most acceptable of the visits that Eve received, was from her cousin, Grace Van Cortlandt, who was in the country at the moment of her arrival, but who hurried back to town to meet her old school-fellow and kinswoman, the instant she heard of her having landed. Eve Effingham and Grace Van Cortlandt were sisters' children, and had been born within a month of each other. As the latter was without father or mother, most of their time had been passed together, until the former was taken abroad, when a separation unavoidably ensued. Mr. Effingham ardently desired, and had actually designed, to take his niece with him to Europe, but her paternal grandfather, who was still living, objected his years and affection, and the scheme was reluctantly abandoned. This grandfather was now dead, and Grace had been left HOME AS FOUND. with a very ample fortune, almost entirely the mistress of her own movements. The moment of the meeting between these two warm-hearted and sincerely attached young women, was one of great interest and anxiety to both. They retained for each other the tenderest love, though the years that had separated them had given rise to so many new impressions and habits that they did not prepare themselves for the interview without apprehension. This interview took place about a week after Eve was established in Hudson Square, and at an hour earlier than was usual for the reception of visits. Hearing a carriage stop before the door, and the bell ring, our heroine stole a glance from behind a curtain and re. cognized her cousin as she alighted. " Qu'avez-vous, ma chere?" demanded Mademoiselle Viefville, observing that her &lve trembled and grew pale. "It is my cousin, Miss Van Cortlandt-she whom I loved as a sister-we now meet for the first time in so many years!" "Bien-c'est une tras jolie jeune personne!" returned the governess, taking a glance from the spot Eve had just quitted. " Sur le rapport de la personne, ma chere, vous devriez 3tre contente, anu moins." "If you will excuse me, Mademoiselle, I will go down alone-I think I should prefer to meet Grace without witnesses in the first interview." " Trks volontiers. Elle est parente, et c'est bien naturel." Eve, on this expressed approbation, met her maid at the door, as she came to announce that lMademoiselle de Cortlandt was in the library, and descended slowly to meet her. The library was lighted from above by means of a small dome, and Grace had unconsciously placed herself in the very position that a painter would have chosen, had she been about to sit for her por. trait. A strong, full, rich light fell obliquely on her 10 HOME AS FOUNv. as Eve entered, displaying her fine Person and beau. tliful features to the very best advantage, and they were features and a person that are not seen every day, even in a country where female beauty is so common She was in a carriage dress, and her toilette was rathei more elaborate than Eve had been accustomed to see, at that hour, but still Eve thought she had seldom seen a more lovely young creature. Some such thoughts, also, passed through the mind of Grace herself, who, though struck, with a woman's readiness in such matters, with the severe simplicity of Eve's attire, as well as with its entire elegance, was more struck with the charms of her countenance and figure. There was, in truth, a strong resemblance between them, though each was distinguished by an expression suited to her character, and to the habits of her mind. 4 "Miss Effingham!" said Grace, advancing a step to meet the lady who entered, while her voice was scarcely audible and her limbs trembled.; "Miss Van Cortlandt i" said Eve, in the same low, smothered tone. This formality caused a chill in both, and each unconsciously stopped and curtsied. Eve had been so much struck with the coldness of the American manner, during the week she had been at home, and Grace was so sensitive on the subject of the opinion of one who had seen so much of Europe, that there was great danger, at that critical moment, the meeting would terminate unpropitiously. Thus far, however, all had been rigidly decorous, though the strong feelings that were glowing in the bosoms of both, had been so completely suppressed. But the smile, cold and embarrassed as it was, that each gave as she curtsied, had the sweet character of her childhood in it, and recalled to both the girlish and affectionate intercourse of their younger days. i Grace!" said Eve, eagerly, advancing a step or two impetuously, and blushing like the dawn. 1HOME AS FOUND. 11 "Eve!" Each opened her arms, and in a moment they were locked in a long and fervent embrace. This was the commencement of their former intimacy, and before night Grace was domesticated in her uncle's house. it is true that Miss Effingham perceived certain peculiarities about Miss Van Cortlandt, that she had rather were absent; and Miss Van Cortlandt would have fell more at her ease, had Miss Effingham a little less reserve of manner, on certain subjects that the latter had been taught to think interdicted. Notwithstanding these slight separating shades in character, however, the natural affection was warm and sincere; and if Eve, according to Grace's notions, was a little stately and formal, she was polished and courteous, and if Grace, according to Eve's notions, was a little too easy and unreserved, she was feminine and delicate. We pass over the three or four days that succeeded, during which Eve had got to understand something of her new position, and we will come at once to a conversation between the cousins, that will serve to let the reader more intimately into the opinions, habits and feelings of both, as well as to open the real subject of our narrative. This conversation took place in that very library which had witnessed their first interview. soon after breakfast, and while the young ladies were still alone. " I suppose; Eve, you will have to visit the Green's..-They are Hajjis, and were much in society last winter." " Hajjis!-You surely do not mean, Grace, that they have been to Mecca?" "Not at all: only to Paris, my dear; that makes a Hajji in New-York." "And does, it entitle the pilgrim to wear the green turban?" asked Eve, laughing. "To wear any thing, Miss Effingham; green, blue. or yellow, and ti cause it to pass for elegance." 12 HOME AS FOUNDo "And which is the favourite colour with the famiiy you have mentioned?" " It ought to be the first, in compliment to the name, but, if truth must be said, I think they betray an aflfec tion for all, with not a few of the half-tints in addition." "I am afraid they are too prono.cdes for us, by this description. I am no great admirer, Grace, of walking rainbows." "1 Too Green, you would have said, had you dared; but you are a Hajji too, and even the Greens know that a Hajji never puns, unless, indeed, it might be one from Philadelphia. But you will, visit these people?" "Certainly, if they are in society and rentler it necessary by their own civilities." " They are in society, in virtue of their rights as Hajjis; but, as they passed three months at Paris, you probably know something of them." 6" They may not have been there at the same time with ourselves," returned Eve, quietly, " and Paris is a very large town. Hundreds of people come and go, that one never hears of. I do not remember those you have mentioned." "'I wish you may escape them, for, in my untrave!led judgment, they are anything but agreeable, notwithstanding all they have seen, or pretend to have seen." "It is very possible to have been all over christendom, and to remain exceedingly disagreeable; besides one may see a great deal, and yet see very little of a good quality." A pause of two or three minutes followed, during which Eve read a note, and her cousin played with the leaves of a book. 6" I wish I knew your real opinion of us, Eve," the last suddenly exclaimed.'"Why not be& frank with so near a.relative; tell me honestly, now-are you recon. ciled to your country?" "You are the eleventh person who has asked me HOME AS FOUND. 1I3 this question, which I find very extraordinary, as I have never quarrelled with my country.","Nay, I do not mean exactly that. I wish to hear how our society has struck one who has been educated abroad." " You wish, then, for opinions that can have no great value, since my experience at home, extends only to a fortnight. But you have many books on the country, and some written by very clever persons; why not consult them?" "6 Oh! you mean the travellers. None of them are worth a second thought, and we hold them, one and all, in great contempt." " Of that I can have no manner of doubt, as one and all, you are constantly protesting it, in the highways and bye-ways. There is no more certain sign of contempt, than to be incessantly dwelling on its intensity!" Grace had great quickness, as well as her cousin, mnd though provoked at Eve's quiet hit, she had the good sense and the good nature to laugh. " Perhaps we do protest and disdain a little too strenuously for good taste, if not to gain believers; but surely, Eve, you do not support these travellers in all that they have written of us?" "Not in half, I can assure you. My father and cousin Jack have discussed them too often in my presence to leave me in ignorance of the very many political blunders they have made in particular." -" Political blunders!-I know nothing of them, and had rather thought them right, in most of what they said about our politics. But, surely, neither your father nor Mr. John Effingham corroborates what they say of our society!"' I cannot answer for either, on that point." "Speak then for yourself. Do you think them right?" "You should remember, Grace, that I have not yet seen any society in New-York." 2 14 HOME AS FOUND "No society, dear!-Why you were at the Henderson's, and the Morgan's, and the Drewett's; three of the greatest reunions that we have had in two winters!" "I did not know that you meant those unpleasant crowds, by society." "Unpleasant crowds! Why, child, that is society, is it not?" " Not what I have been taught to consider such; I rather think it would be better to call it company." "And is not this what is called society in Paris?" "As far from it as possible; it may be an excrescence of society; one of its forms; but, by no means, society itself. It would be as true to call cards, which are sometimes introduced in the world, society, as to call a ball given in two small and crowaed rooms, society. They are merely two of the modes in which idlers endeavour to vary their amusements." "But we have little else than these balls, the mornn:g visits, and an occasional evening, in which there is no dancing." "I am sorry to hear it; for, in that case, you can have no society." "And is it different at Paris-or Florence, or Itome?" "4 Very. In Paris there are many houses open every evening to which one can go, with little ceremony. our sex appears in them, dressed according to what a gentleman I overheard conversing at Mrs. H3enderson's would call their "ulterior intentions," for the night; some attiredin the simplest manner, others dressed for concerts, for the opera, for court even; some on the way from a dinner, and others going to a late balf. All this matter of course variety, adds to the ease and grace of the company, and coupled with perfect good manners, a certain knowledge of passing events, pretty modes of expression, an accurate and even utterance, the. -,women usually find the means of' making tbein., HOME AS FOUND. 1 selves agreeable. Their sentiment is sometimes a little heroic, but this one must overlook, and it is a taste, mihoreover, that is falling into disuse, as people read better books." "And you prefer this heartlessness, Eve, to the nature of your own country.!" "I do not know that quiet, retenue and a good tone, are a whit more heartless than flirting, giggling and childishness. There may be more nature in the latter, certainly, but it is scarcely as agreeable, after one has fairly got rid of the nursery." Grace looked vexed, but she loved her cousin too sincerely to be angry. A secret suspicion that Eve was right, too, came in aid of her affection, and while her little foot moved, she maintained her good-nature, a task not always attainable for those who believe that their own 4" superlatives" scarcely reach to other people's " positives." At this critical moment, when there was so much danger of a jar in the feelings of these two young females, the library door opened and Pierre, Mr. Effingham's own man, announced"Monsieur Bragg." "Monsieur who?" asked Eve, in surprise. "Monsieur Bragg," returned Pierre, in French, " desires to see Mademoiselle."," You mean my father,-I know no such person." "He inquired first for Monsieur, but understanding Monsieur was out, he next asked to have the honour of seeing Mademoiselle." ~; Is it what they call a person in England, Pierre?" Old Pierre smiled, as he answered "He has the air, Mademoiselle, though he esteems himself a personnage, if I might take the liberty of judging." " Ask him for his card,-there must De a mistake, I hink." While this short conversation took place, Grace Van Cortlandt was sketching a cottage with a pen, without 16 IHOME AS FOUND. attending to a word that was said. But, when E ve received the card from Pierre and read aloud, with the tone of surprise that the name would be apt to excitd in a novice in the Jart of American nomenclature, the words " Aristabulus Bragg," her cousin began to laugh. "' Who can this possibly be, Grace?-Did you ever hear of such a person, and what right can he have to wish to see me?" "Adrmit him, by all means; it is your father's land agent, and he may wish to leave some message for my uncle. You will be obliged to make his acquaintance, sooner or later, and it may as well be done now as at another time." " You have shown this gentleman into the front drawing-room, Pierre?" "Oui, Mademoiselle." " I will ring when you are wanted." Pierre withdrew, and Eve opened her secretary, out of which she tbook a small manuscript book, over the leaves of which she passed her fingers rapidly. "H Here it is," she said, smiling, " Mr. Aristabulus Bragg, Attorney and Counsellor at Law, and the agent of'the Templeton estate." This precious little work, you must understand, Grace, contains sketches of the characters of such persons as I shall be the most likely to see, by John Effingham, A. M. It is a sealed volume, of course, but there can be no harm in reading the part that treats of our present visiter, and, with your permission, we will have it in common.-' Mr. Aristabulus Bragg was born in one of the western counties of lMassachusetts, and emigrated to New-York, after receiving his education, at the mature age of nineteen; at twenty-one he was admitted to the bar, and for the last seven years he has been a successful practitioner in all the courts of Otsego, filom the justice's to the circuit, Hlis talents are undeniable, as he commenced his education at fourteen and terminated it at twenty-one, the law-course included. Thig man is an epitome of al. HOME AS FOUND. i; that is good and all that is bad, in a very large class of his fellow citizens. He is quick-witted, prompt in action, enterprising in all things in which he has nothing to lose, but wary and cautious in all things in which he has a real stake, and ready to turn not only his hand, but his heart and his principles to any thing that offers an advantage. With him, literally, "6nothing is too high to be aspired to, nothing too low to be done." He will run for Governor, or for townclerk, just as opportunities occur, is expert in all the practices of his profession, has had a quarter's dancing, with three years in the classics, and turned his attention towards medicine and divinity, before he finally settled down into the law. Such a compound of shrewdness, impudence, common-sense, pretension, humility, cleverness, vulgarity, kind-heartedness, duplicity, selfishness, law-honesty, moral fraud and mother wit, mixed up with a smattering of learning and much penetration in practical things, can hardly be described, as any one of his prominent qualities is certain to be met by another quite as obvious that is almost its converse. Mr. Bragg, in short, is purely a creature of circumstances, his qualities pointing him out for either a member of congress or a deputy sheriff, offices that he is equally ready to fill. I have employed him to watch over the estate of your father, in the absence of the latter, on the principle that one practised in tricks is the best qualified to detect and expose them, and with the certainty that no man will trespass with impunity, so long as the courts continue to tax bills of costs with their present liberality.' You appear to know the gentleman, Grace; is this character of him faithful?" "I know nothing of bills of costs and deputy sheriffs, but I do know that Mr. Aristabulus Bragg is an amusing mixture of strut, humility, roguery and cleverness. He is waiting all this.time in the drawing. room, and you had better see him, as he may, now. be 2* 18 IsoME AS FOUN ID. almost considered part of the family. You know he has been living in the house at Templeton, ever since he was installed by Mr. John Effingham. It was there I had the honour first to meet himr" " First! - Surely you have never seen him any where else!" 6" Your pardon, my dear. He never comes to town without honouring me with a call. This is the price I pay for having had the honour of being an inmate of the same house with him for a week." Eve rang the bell, and Pierre made his appear. ance. " Desire Mr. Bragg to walk into the library." Grace looked demure while Pierre was gone to ushei in their visiter, and Eve was thinking of the medley of qualities John Effingham had assembled in his description, as the door opened, and the subject of her contemplation entered. " JMonsieur dristabule," said Pierre, eyeing the card, but sticking at the first name. Mr. Aristabulus Bragg was advancing with an easy assurance to make his bow to the ladies, when the more finished air and quiet dignity of Miss Effingham, who was standing, so far disconcerted him, as completely to upset his self-possession. As Grace had expressed it, in consequence of having lived three years in the old residence at Templeton, he had begun to consider himself a part of the family, and at home he never spoke of the young lady without calling her 1" Eve," or,"Eve Effingham." But he found it a very different thing to affect familiarity among his associates, and to practise it in the very face of its subject; and, although seldom at a loss for words of some sort or another, he was now actually dumb-founded. Eve relieved his awkwardness by directing Pierre, with her eye, to hand a chair, and first speaking. " I regret that my father is not in," she said, by way of turning the visit from herself; "but he is to be ex HOME AS FOUND. lo pected eXery moment. Are you lately from Temple. ton?" Aristabulus drew his breath, and recovered enough of his ordinary tone of manner to reply with a decent regard to his character for self-command. The intimacy that he had intended to establish on the spot, was temporarily defeated, it is true, and without his exactly knowing how it had been effected; for it was merely the steadiness of the young lady, blended as it was with a polished reserve,, that had thrown him to a distance he could not explain. EHe felt immediately, and with taste that did his sagacity credit, that his footing in this quarter was only to be obtained by unusually slow and cautious means. Still, Mr. Bragg was a man of great decision, and, in his way, of very far-sighted views; and, singular as it may seem, at that unpropitious moment, he mentally determined that, at no very distant day, he would make Miss Eve Effingham his wife. "I hope Mr. Effingham enjoys good health," he said, with some such caution as a rebuked school-girl enters on the recitation of her task-, he enjoyed bad health I hear, (Mr. Aristabulus Bragg, though so shrewd, was far from critical in his modes of speech) when he went to Europe, and after travelling so far in such bad corr pany, it would be no more than fair that he should have a little respite as he approaches home and old age." Had Eve been told that the man who uttered this nice sentiment, and that too in accents as uncouth and provincial as the thought was finished and lucid, actually presumed to think of her as his bosom companion, it is not easy to say which would have predominated in her mind, mirth or resentment. But Mr. Bragg was not in the habit of letting his secrets escape him pre. maturely, and certainly this was one that none but a wizard could have discovered without the aia of a di. reel oral or written communication. 20 HOME AS FOUND. "Are you lately from Templeton?" repeated Eve a little surprised that the gentleman did not see fit to answer the question, which was the only one that, as it seemed to her, could have a common interest with them both. 4"I left home the day before yesterday," Aristabulus now deigned to reply. " It is so long since I saw our beautiful mountains and I was then so young, that I feel a great impatience to revisit them, though the pleasure, must be deferred until spring." " I conclude they are the handsomest mountains in the known world, Miss Effingham!" "' That is much -more than I shall venture to claim for them; but, according to my imperfect recollection, and, what I esteem of far more importance, according to the united testimony of Mr. John Effingham and my father, I think they must be very beautiful." Aristabulus looked up, as if he had a facetious thing to say, and he even ventured on a smile, while he made his answer. " I hope Mr. John Effingham has prepared you for a great change in the house?" " We know that it has been repaired and altered under his directions. That was done at my father's request." "We consider it denationalized, Miss Effingham, there being nothing like it, west of Albany at least." " I should be sorry to find that my cousin has subjected us to this imputation," said Eve -smiling-perhaps a little equivocally; " the architecture of America being generally so simple and pure. Mr. Effingham laughs at his. own improvements, however, in which, he says, he has only carried out the plans of the original artiste, who worked very much in what was called the composite order." " You allude to Mr. Hiram Doolittle, a gentleman I never saw; though I hear he bhas left behind him many HOME AS F'OUND. 21 traces of his progress in the newer states. EX pede Herculem, as we say, in the classics, Miss Effingham I believe it is the general sentiment that Mr. Doolittle's designs have been improved on, though most people think that the Grecian or Roman architecture, which is so much in use in America, would be more republican. But every body knows that Mr. John Effingham is not much of a republican."' Eve did not choose to discuss her kinsman's opinions with Mr. Aristabulus Bragg, and she quietly remarked that she " did not know that the imitations of the ancient architecture, of which there are so many in the country, were owing to attachment to republicanism." " To what else can it be owing, Miss Eve?" " Sure enough," said Grace Van Cortlandt; 1" it is unsuited. to the materials, the climate, and the uses; and some very powerful motive, like that mentioned by Mr. Bragg, could alone overcome these obstacles." Aristabulus started from his seat, and making sundry apologies, declared his previous unconsciousness that Miss Van Cortlandt was present; all of which was true enough, as he had been so much occupied mentally, with her cousin, as not to have observed he,. seated as she was partly behind a screen. Grace received the excuses favourably, and the conversation was resumed. "I am sorry that my cousin should offend the taste of the country," said Eve, "but as we are to live in the house, the punishment will fall heaviest on the offenders." "Do not mistake me, Miss Eve," returned Aristabumus, in a little alarm, for he too well understood the influence and wealth of John Effingham, not to wish to be on good terms with him; "do not mistake me. I admire the house, and know it to be-a perfect spe&emen of a pure architecture in its way, but then public opinion is not yet quite up to it. I see all its beauties, [ would wish you to know, but then there are mnany, 22 HOME AS FOUND. a majority perhaps, who do not, and these persons think they ought to be consulted about such matters." "I be!ieve Mr. John Effingham thinks less of his own work than you seem to think of it yourself, sir, for I have frequently heard him laugh at it, as a mere enlargement of the merits of the composite order. He calls it a caprice, rather than a taste: nor do I see what concern a majority, as you term them, can have with a house that does not belong to them." Aristabulus was surprised that any one could disregard a majority; for, in this respect, he a good deal resembled Mr. Dodge, though running a different career; and the look of surprise he gave was natural and open. " I do not mean that the public has a legal right to control the tastes of the citizen," he said, " but in a republican government, you undoubtedly understand, Miss Eve, it wuill rule in all things." 1"I can understand that one would wish to see his neighbour use good taste, as it helps to embellish a country; but the man who should consult the whole neighbourhood before he built, would be very apt to cause a complicated house to be erected, if he paid much respect to the different opinions he received; or, what is quite as likely, apt to have no house at all." "I think you are mistaken, Miss Effingham, for the public sentiment, just now, runs almost exclusively and popularly into the Grecian school. We builMd little besides temples for our churches, our banks, our taverns, our court-houses, and our dwellings. A friend of mine has just built a brewery on the model of the Temple of the Winds." " Had it been a mill, one might understand the conceit," said Eve, who now began to perceive that hei visiter had some latent humour, though he produced it in a manner to induce one to think him any thing but a droll; 6"The mountains must be doublyv beautiful, if tley are decorated in the way you mention. I sin HOME AS FOUND. 23 cerely hope, Grace, that I shall find the hills as pleasant as the,y now exist in my recollection!" " Should they not prove to be quite as lovely as you imagine, Miss Effingham," returned Aristabulus, who saw no impropriety in answering a remark made to AMiss Van Cortlandt, or any one else, "I hope you will have the kindness to conceal the fact from the world." " I am afraid that would exceed my power, the disappointment would be so strong. May I ask why you show so much interest in my keeping so cruel a mortification to myself'!" "Why, Miss Eve," said Aristabulus, looking grave, "I am afraid that our people would hardly bear the expression of such an opinion from you." 4' From me!-and why not from me, in particular?" " Perhaps it is because they think you have travelled, and have seen other countries." " And is it only those who have not travelled, and who have no means of knowing the value of what they say, that are privileged to criticise?"'"I cannot exactly explain my own meaning, perhaps, but I think Miss Grace will understand me. Do you not agree with me, Miss Van Cortlandt, in thinking it would be safer for one who never saw any other mountains to complain of the tameness and monotony of our own, than for one who had passe'd a whole life among the Andes and the Alps?" Eve smiled, for ie saw that Mr. Bragg was capable of detecting and laughing at provincial pride, even while he was so much under its influence; and Grace coloured, for she had the consciousness of having already betrayed some of this very silly sensitiveness, in her intercourse with her cousin, in connexion with other subjects. A reply was unnecessary, however, as the door just then opened, and John Effingham made his appearance. The meetirg between the two gentlemen, for we suppose Aristabulus must be, in. 24 HOME AS FOUND. eluded in the category by courtesy, if not of right, was more cordial than Eve had expected to witness, for each really entertained a respect for the other, in reference to a merit of a particular sort; Mr. Bragg esteeming Mr. John Effingham as a wealthy and caustic cynic, and Mr. John Effingham regarding Mr. Bragg much as the owner of a dwelling regards a valuable house-dog. After a few moments of conversation, the two withdrew together, and just as the ladies were about to descend to the drawing-room, previously to dinner, Pierre announced that a plate had been ordered for the land agent. CHAPTER II. dI know that Deformed; he has been a vile thief this seven year he goes up and down like a gentleman." MucH ADO ABOUT NOTHING. EVE, and her cousin, found Sir George Templemore and Captain Truck in the drawing-room, the former having lingered in New-York, with a desire to be near his friends, and the latter being on the point of sailing for Europe. in his regular turn. To these must be added Mr. Bragg and the ordinary inmates of the house, when the reader will get a-view of the whole party. Aristabulus had never before sat down to as brilliant a table, and for the first time in his life, he saw candles lighted at a dinner: but he was not a man to be disconcerted at a novelty. Had he been a European of the same origin and habits, awkwardness would have betrayed him fifty times, before the dessert made its appearance; but, being the man he was, one who overlooked a certain prurient politeness that rather Illus HOME AS FOUND. 25 Lrated his deportment, might very well have permitted him to pass among the oi polloi of the world, were it not for a peculiar management in the way of providing for himself. It is true, he asked every one near him to eat of every thing he could himself reach, and that he used his knife as a coal-heaver uses a shovel; but the company he was in, though fastidious in its own deportment, was altogether above the silver-forkisms, and this portion of his demeanour, if it did not escape undetected, passed away unnoticed. Not so, however, with the peculiarity already mentioned as an exception. This touch of deportment, (or management, perhaps, is the better word,) being characteristic of the man, it deserves to be mentioned a little in detail. The service at Mr. Effingham's table was made in the quiet, but thorough manner that distinguishes a French dinner. Every dish was removed, carved by the domestics, and handed in turn to each guest. But there were a delay and a finish in this arrangement that suited neither Aristabulus's go-a-head-ism, nor his organ of acquisitiveness. Instead of waiting, therefore, for the more graduated movements of the domestics, he began to take care of himself, an office that he performed with a certain dexterity that he had acquired by frequenting ordinaries-a school, by the wav, in which he had obtained most of his notions of the proprieties of the table. One or two slices were obtained in the usual manner, or by means of the regular service; and, then, like one who had laid the foundation of a fortune, by some lucky windfall in the commencement of his career, he began to make accessions, right and left, as opportunity offered. Sundry entremets, or light dishes that had a peculiarly tempting appearance, came first under his grasp. Of these he soon accumulated all within his reach, by taxing his neighbours, when he ventured to send his plate, here and there, or wherever he saw a dish that promised to reward his trouble. By such mean. 26 HOME AS FOUND. which were resorted to, however, with a quiet and unobtrusive assiduity that escaped much observation, Mr. Bragg contrived to make his own plate a sample epitome of the first course. It contained in the centre, fish, beef, and ham; and around these staple article.q, he had arranged croquettes, rognons, rago ts, vegc tables, and other light things, until not only was the plate completely covered, but it was actually covered in double and triple layers; mustard, cold butter, salt, and even pepper, garnishing its edges. These different accumulations were the work of time and address, and most of the company had repeatedly changed their plates before Aristabulus had eaten a mouthful, the soup excepted. The happy moment when his ingenuity was to be rewarded, had now arrived, and the land agent was about to commence the process of mastication, or of deglutition rather, for he troubled Iimself very little with the first operation, when the report of a cork drew his attention towards the chamin paigne. To Aristabulus this wine never caine amiss, for, relishing its piquancy, he had never gone far enough into the science of the table to learn which were the proper moments for using it. As respected all the others at table, this moment had in truth arrived, though, as respected himself, he was no nearei to it, according to a regulated taste, than when he first took his seat. Perceiving that Pierre was serving it, however, he offered his own glass, and enjoyed a delicious instant, as he swallowed a beverage that much surpassed any thing he had ever known to issue out of the waxed and leaded nozles that, pointed like so inany enemies' batteries, loaded with headaches and disordered stomachs, garnished sundry village bars of his acquaintance. Aristabulus finished his glass at a draught, and when he took breath, he fairly smacked his lips. That was an unlucky instant, his plate, burthened with all its treasures, being removed, at this unguarded HOME AS FOUND. 27 moment; the man who performed the unkind office, fancying that a dislike to the dishes could alone ha ve given rise to such an omnium-gatherum. It was necessary to commence de novo, but this could no longer be done with the first course, which was removed, and Aristabulus set-to, with zeal, forthwith, on the game. Necessity compelled him to eat, as the different dishes were offered; and, such was his ordinary assiduity with the knife and fork, that, at the end of the second remove, he had actually disposed of more food than any other person at table. He now began to converse, and we shall open the conversation at the precise point in the dinner, when it was in the power of Aristabulus to make one of the interlocutors. Unlike Mr. Dodge, he had betrayed no peculiar interest in the baronet, being a man too shrewd and worldly to set his heart on trifles of any sort; and Mr. Bragg no more hesitated about replying to Sir George Templemore, or Mr. Effingham, than he would have hesitated about answering one of his own nearest associates. With him age and experience formed no particular claims to be heard, and, as to rank, it is true he had some vague ideas about there being such a thing in the militia, but as it was unsalaried rank, he attached no great importance to it. Sir George Templemore was inquiring concerning the recording of deeds, a regulation that had recently attracted attention in England; and one of Mr. Effingham's replies contained some immaterial inaccuracy, which Aristabulus took occasion to correct, as his first appearance in the general discourse. " I ask pardon, sir," he concluded his explanations by saying, " but I ought to know these little niceties, having served a short part of a term as a county clerk,4o fill a vacancy occasioned by a death." "You mean, Mr. Bragg, that you were employed to write in a county clerk's office," observed John HOME AS FOUND. Effingham, who so much disliked untruth, that he did not hesitate much about refuting it; or what he now fancied to be an untruth. "As county clerk, sir. Major Pippin died a year before his time was out, and I got the appointment. As regular a county clerk, sir, as there is in the fiftysix counties of New-York." " When I had the honour to engage you as Mr. Effingham's agent, sir," returned the other, a little sternly, for he felt his own character for veracity involved in that of the subject of his selection, 6"I believe, indeed, that you were writing in the office, but I did not understand it was as the clerk." "Very true, Mr. John,". returned Aristabulus, without discovering the least concern, "I was then engaged by my successor as a clerk; but a few months earlier, I filled the office myself." "Had you gone on, in the regular line of promotion, my dear sir," pithily inquired Captain Truck, "to what preferment would you have risen by this time?" "I believe I understand you, gentlemen," returned the unmoved Aristabulus, who perceived a general smile. " I know that some people are particular about keeping pretty much on the same level, as to office: but I hold to no such doctrine. If one good thing cannot be had, I do not see that it is a reason for rejecting another. I ran that year for sheriff, and finding I was not strong enough to carry the county, I accepted my successor's offer to write in the office, until something better might turn up." "You practised all this time, I believe, Mr. Bragg," observed John Effingham. "I did a little in that way, too, sir; or as much as I could. Law is flat with us, of late, and manvy of.he attorneys are turning their attention tg other callings." " And pray, sir," asked Sir George, "what is the favourite pursuit with most of them, just now?" HO1ME AS FOUND. 29 "6 Some our way have gone into the horse-line; but much the greater portion are, just now, dealing in western cities. "In western cities!" exclaimed the baronet, looking as if he distrusted a mystification. "In such articles, and in mill-seats, and rail-road lines, and other expectations." "Mr. Bragg means that they are buying and selling lands on which it is hoped all these conveniences may exist, a century hence," explained John Effingham. " The hope is for next year, or next week, even, Mr. John," returned Aristabulus, with a sly look, s" though you may be very right as to the reality. Great fortunes have been made on a capital of hopes, lately, in this country." "And have you been able, yourself, to resist thesz temptations?" asked Mr. Effingham. "I feel doubly indebted to you, sir, that you should have continued to devote your time to my interests, while so many better things were offering." 1" It was my duty, sir," said Aristabulus, bowing so much the lower, from the consciousness that he had actually deserted his post for some months, to embark in the western speculations that were then so active in the country, " not to say my pleasure. There are many profitable occupations in this country, Sir George, that have been overlooked in the eagerness to embark in the town-trade " "Mr. Bragg does not mean trade in town, but trade in towns," explained John Effingham. " Yes, sir, the traffic in cities. I nevei come this way, without casting an eye about me, in order to see if there is any thing to be done that is useful; and I confess that several available opportunities have offered, if one had capital. Milk is a good business." "Le lait!" exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville, involuntarily. 3* 30 HOME AS FOUND. "Yes, ma'am, for ladies as well as gentlemen. Sweet potatoes I have heard well spoken of, and peaches are really making some rich men's fortunes." "All of which are honester and better occupations than the traffic in cities, that you have mentioned," quietly observed Mr. Effingham. Aristabulus looked up in a little surprise, for with him every thing was eligible that returned a good profit, and all things honest that the law did not actually punish. Perceiving, however, that the company was disposed to listen, and having, by this time, recovered the lost ground, in the way of food, he cheerfully resumed his theme. "Many families have left Otsego, this and the last summer, Mr. Effingham, as emigrants for the west. The fever has spread far and wide." "' The fever! Is old Otsego," for so its inhabitants loved to call a county of half a century's existence, it being venerable by comparison, 1" is old Otsego losing its well established character for salubrity?" " I do not allude to an animal fever, but to the western fever." "' Ce pays de l'ouest, est-il bien malsain?" whispered Mademoiselle Viefville. "' Apparemment, Mademoiselle, sur plusieutrs rap. ports."; "The western fever has seized old and young, and it has carried off many active families from our part of the world," continued Aristabulus, who did not understand the little aside just mentioned, and who, of course, did not heed it; " most of the counties adjoining our own have lost a considerable portion of their population." " And they who have gone, do they belong to the permanent families, or are they merely the floating inhabitants?" inquired Mr. E-ffingham. 6 Most of them belong to the regular movers."' Movers!"' again exclaimed Sir George-" is there HOME AS FOUND. 31 any material part of your population who actually deserve this name?" "6As much so as the man who shoes a horse ought to be called a smith, or the man who frames a house a carpenter," answered John Efiing!lam.,"To be sure," continued Mr. Bragg, "we have a pretty considerable leaven of them in our political dough, as well as in our active business. I believe, Sir George, that in England, men are- tolerably stationary." "W We love to continue for generations on the same spot. We love the tree that our forefathers planted the roof that they built, the fire-side by which they sat, the sods that cover their remains." " Very poetical, and I dare say there are situations in life, in which such feelings come in'without much effort. It must be a great check to business opera.. tions, however, in your part of the world, sir!" "Business operations! —what is business, as you term it, sir, to the affections, to the recollections of ancestry, and to the solemn feelings connected with history and tradition'?" "Why, sir, in the way of history, one meets with but few incumbrances in this country, but he may do very much as interest dictates, so far as that is concerned, at least. A nation is much to be pitied that is weighed down by the past, in this manner, since-its industry and enterprize are constantly impeded by obstacles that grow out of its recollections. America may, indeed, be termed a happy and a free country, Mr. John Effingham, in this, as well as in all other things!" Sir George Templemore was too well-bred to utter all he felt at that moment, as it would unavoidably wound the feelings of his hosts, but he was rewarded for his forbearance by intelligent smiles from Eve and -race, the latter of whom the young baronet fanc(ied, just at that moment, was quite as beautiful as her .3V2 HOME AS FOUND. cousin, and if less finished in manners, she had the most interesting na;vet(. "I have been told that most old nations have to struggle with difficulties that we escape," returned John Eif fingham, "' though I confess this is a superiority on out part, that never before presented itself to my mind." " The political economists, and even the geographers have overlooked it, but practical men see and feel its advantages, every hour in the day. I have been told, Sir George Templemore, that in England, there are difficulties in running high-ways and streets through homesteads and dwellings; and that even a rail-road, or a canal, is obliged to make a curve to avoid a church-yard or a tomb-stone?" " I confess to the sin, sir." "Our friend Mr. Bragg," put in John Effingham, " considers life as all means and no end." "An end cannot be got at without the means, Mr. John Effingham, as I trust you will, yourself, admit. I am -for the end of the road, at least, and must say that I rejoice in being a native of a country in which as few impediments as possible exist to onward impulses. The man who should resist an improvement, in our part of the country, on account of his forefathers, would fare badly among his contemporaries." "; Will you permit me to ask, Mr. Bragg, if you feel no local attachments yourself," enquired the baronet, throwing as much delicacy into the tones of his voice, as a question that he felt ought to be an insult to a man's heart, would allow —"if one tree is not more pleasant than another; the house you were born in more beautiful than a house into which you never entered; or the altar at which you have long worshipped, more sacred than another at which you never knelt?" 6"Nothing.gives me greater satisfaction than to answer the questions of gentlemen that travel through our country," returned Aristabulus, "for I think., in HOME AS FOUND. 33 nlaking nations acquainted with each other, wve encourage trade and render business more secure. To reply to your inquiry, a human being is not a cat, to love a locality rather than its own interests. I have found some trees much pleasanter than others, and the pleasantest tree I can remember was one of my own, out of which the sawyers made a thousand feet of clear stuff, to say nothing of middlings. The house I was born in was pulled down, shortly after my birth, as indeed has been its successor, so I can tell you nothing on that head; and as for altars, there are none in my persuasion." "The church of Mr. Bragg has stripped itself as naked as he would strip every thing else, if he could," said John Effingham. "I much question if he ever knelt even; much less before an altar." " We are of the standing order, certainly," returned Aristabulus, glancing towards the ladies to discover how they took his wit, "and Mr. John Effingham is as near right as a man need be, in a matter of faith. In the way of houses, Mr. Effingham, I believe it is the general opinion you might have done better with your own, than to have repaired it. Had the materials been disposed of, they would have sold well, and by running a street through the property, a pretty sum might have been realized." " In which case I should have been without a home, Mr. Bragg." " It would have been no great matter to get another on cheaper land. The old residence would have made a good factory, or an inn." "Sir, I am a cat, and like the places I have long frequented." Aristabulus, though not easily daunted, was awed by Mr. Effingham's manner, and Eve saw that her father's fine face had flushed. This interruption, therefore, uddenly changed the discourse, which has been re-,ated at some length, as likely to give the reader a '34 HOME AS FOUND. better insight into a character that will fill sorre space in our narrative, than a more laboured description. "I trust your owners, Captain Truck," said John Effingham, by way of turning the conversation into another channel, " are fully satisfied with the manner in which you saved their property firom the hands of the Arabs?" " Men, when money is concerned, are more disposed to remember how it was lost than how it was recovered, religion and trade being the two poles, on such a point," returned the old seaman, with a serious face. "On the whole, my dear sir, I have reason to be satisfied, however; and so long as you, my passengers and my friends, are not inclined to blame me, I shall feel as if I had done at least a part of my duty." Eve rose from table, went to a side-board and re turned, when she gracefully placed before the master of the Montauk a rich and beautifully chased punchbowl, in silver. Almost at the same moment, Pierre offered a salver that contained'a capital watch, a pair of small silver tongs to hold a coal, and a deck trumpet, in solid silver. " These are so many faint testimonials of our feelings," said Eve-" and you will do us the favour to retain them, as evidences of the esteem created by skill, kindness, and courage." "My dear young lady!" cried the old tar, touched to the soul by the feeling with which Eve acquitted herself of this little duty, " my dear young lady-well, God bless you-God bless you all-you too, Mr. John Effingham, for that matter-and Sir George-that I should ever have taken that runaway for a gentleman and a baronet-though I suppose there are some silly baronets, as well as slfly lords-retain them?"-glancing furiously at Mr. Aristabulus Bragg, " may the Lord forget me, in the heaviest hurricane, if I ever forget whence these things came, and why they were given.' Here the worthy captain was obliged to swallov, HOME A' OU D. 35 some wine, by way of relieving his emotions, and Aristabulus, profiting by the opportunity, coolly took the bowl, which, to use a word of his own, hie hefted n his hand, with a view to form some tolerably accurate notion of its intrinsic value. Captain Truck's eye caught the action, and he reclaimed his property quite as unceremoniously as it had been taken away, nothing but the presence of the ladies preventing an outbreak ing that would have amounted to a declaration of war. "With your permission, sir," said the captain, drily, after he had recovered the bowl, not only without the other's consent, but, in some degree, against his will; " this'bowl is as precious in my eyes as if it were made of my father's bones." " You may indeed think so," returned the land-agent, "'for its cost could not be less than a hundred dollars."; "Cost, sir!-But, my dear young lady, let us talk r)f the real value. For what part of these things am I indebted to you?" " The bowl is my offering," Eve answered, smilingly, though a tear glistened in her eye, as she witnessed the strong unsophisticated feeling of the old tar. "I thought it might serve sometimes to bring me to your recollection, when it was well filled in honour of' sweethearts and wives.' " "It shall-it shall, by the Lord; and Mr. Saunders needs look to it, if he do not keep this work as bright as a cruising frigate's bottom. To whom do I owe the coal-tongs?" 1 "Those are from Mr. John Effingham, who insists that he will come nearer to your heart than any of us, though the gift be of so little cost."'" He does not know me, my dear young lady-nobody ever got as near my heart as you; no, not even my own dear pious old mother. But I thank Mr. John Efiingham from my inmost spirit, and shall seldom smoke without thinking of him. The watch I know is Mr. Effingham's, and I ascribe the trumpet to Sir.seorrhge." 36 HOME AS FOUrND. The bows of the several gentlemen assured the cap. tain he was right, and he shook each of them cordially by the hand, protesting, in the fulness of his heart, that nothing would give him greater pleasure than to be able to go through the same perilous scenes as those from which they had so lately escaped, in their good company again. While this was going on, Aristabulus, notwithstanding the' rebuke he had received, contrived to get each article, in succession, into his hands, and by dint of poising it on a finger, or by examining it, to form some approximative notion of its inherent value. The watch he actually opened, taking as good a survey of its works as the circumstances of the case would very well allow. "I respect these things, sir, more than you respect your father's grave," said Captain Truck sternly, as he rescued the last article from what he thought the impious grasp of Aristabulus again, 1"and cat or no cat, they sink or swim with me for the remainder of' the cruise. If there is anv virtue in a will, which I am sorry to say I hear there is not any longer, they shall share my last bed with me, be it ashore or be it afloat. My dear young lady, fancy all the rest, but depend on it, punch will be sweeter than ever taken from this bowl, and' sweethearts and wives' will never be so honoured again." "We are going to a ball this evening, at the house of one with whom I am sufficiently intimate to take the liberty of introducing a stranger, and I wish, gen tlemen," said Mr. Effingham, bowing to Aristabulus and the captain, by way of changing the conversation, l" you would do me the favour to be of o-ur party." Mr. Bragg acquiesced very cheerfullly, and quite as a matter of course; while Captain Truck, after protesting his unfitness for such scenes, was finally pre. vailed on by John Effingham, to comply with the reluest also. The ladies remained at table but a few HOME AS FOUJND. 37 minutes longer, when they retired, Mr. Effingham having dropped into the old custom of sitting at the bottle, until summoned to the drawing-room, a usage that continues to exist in America, for a reason no better than the fact that it continues to exist in England; -it being almost certain that it will cease in New-York, the season after it is known to have ceased in London. CHAPTER III. "Thou art as wise as thou art beautiful!" SIIAKSPEARE. As Captain Truck asked permission to initiate the new coal-tongs by lighting a cigar, Sir George Templemore contrived to ask Pierre, in an aside, if the ladies would allow him to join them. The desired consent having been obtained. the baronet quietly stole frim table, and was soon beyond the odours of the dininga-room. "You miss the censer and the frankincense," said Eve, laughling, as Sir George entered the drawingroom; "but you will remember we have no church establishment, and dare not take such liberties with the ceremonials of the altar." "That is a short-lived custom with us, I fancy, though far from an unpleasant one. But you do me injustice in supposing I am merely running away from the fumes of the dinner." "No, no; -we understand perfectly well that you have something to do with the fumes of flattery, and we will at once fancy all has been said that the occasion requires. Is not our honest old captain a jewel in his way?" "TUpon my word, since you allow me to speak of your father's guests, I do not think it possible to have 4 38 HnOME AS FOUND. brought together two men who are so completely the opposites of each other, as Captain Truck and this Mi Aristabulus Bragg. The latter is quite the most extra. ordinary person in his way, it.was ever my good fortune to meet with." " You call him a person, while Pierre calls him a personnage; I fancy he considers it very much as a matter of accident, whether he is to pass his days in the one character or in the. other. Cousin Jack assures me, that, while this man accepts almost any duty that he chooses to assign him, he would not deem it at all a violation of the convenances to aim at the throne in the White House." "Certainly with no hopes of ever attaining it!"' "One'annot answer for that. The man must undergo many essential changes, and much radical improvement, before such a climax to his fortunes can ever occur; but the instant you do away with the claims of hereditary power, the door is opened to a new chapter of accidents. Alexander of Russia styled himself ntn heureux accident; and should it ever be oui fortune to receive Mr. Bragg as President, we shall only have to term him un mnalheureux accident. 1 believe that will contain all the difference." "Your republicanism is indomitable, MBiss Efflngham, and I shall abandon the attempt to convert you to safer principles, more especially as I find you supported by both the Mr. Effinghams, who, while they condemn so much at home, seem singularly attached to their own system at the bottom." "They condemn, Sir George Templemore, because they know that perfection is hopeless, and because they feel it to be unsafe and unwise to eulogize defects, and thev are attached, because near views of other (countries have convinced them that, comparatively at least, bad as we are, we are still better than most of.ur neighbours." "I can assure you," said Grace, 1" that many of the opilnions of Mr John Effingham, in particular, are not HOME AS FOUND. 3a at all the opinions that are most in vogue here; he rather censur'es what we like, and likes what we censure. Even my dear uncle is thought to be a little heterodox on such subjects." "I can readily believe it," returned Eve, steadily. 6" These gentlemen, having become familiar with better things, in the way of the tastes, and of the purely agreeable, cannot disciedit their own knowledge so much as to extol that which their own experience tells them is faulty, or condemn that which their own experience tells them is.relatively good. Now, Grace, if you will reflect a moment, you will perceive that people necessarily like the best of their own tastes, until they come to a knowledge of better; and that they as necessarily quarrel with the unpleasant facts that surround them; although these facts, as consequences of a political system, may be much less painful than those of other systems of which they'have no knowledge. In the one case, they like their own best, simply because it is their own best; and they dislike their own worst, because it is their own worst. We cherish a taste, in the nature of things, without entering into any comparisons, for when the means of comparison offer, and we find improvements, it ceases to be a taste at all; while to complain of any positive grievance, is the nature of man, I fear!" " I think a republic odious!" "Le republ'ique est une horreur!" Grace thought a republic odious, without knowing tiny thing of any other state of society, and because it contained odious things; and Mademoiselle Viefville callad a republic une horreur, because heads fell and anarchy prevailed in her own country, during its early struggles for liberty. Though Eve seldom spoke more sensibly, and never more temperately, than while delivering.the foregoing opinions, Sir George Templemore doubted whether she had all that exquisite firesse and delicacy of features, that he had so much admired; and 40 HOME AS FOUN D. when Grace ourst out in the sudden and senseless exclamation we have recorded, he turned towards her sweet and animated countenance, which, for the moment, he fancied the loveliest of the two. Eve EfIingham had yet to learn that she had just entered into the most intolerant society, meaning purely as society, and in connexion with what are usually called liberal sentiments, in christendom. We do not mean by this, that it would be less safe to utter a generous opinion in favour of human rights in America than {in any other country, for the laws and the institutions become active in this respect, but simply, that the resistance of the more refined to the encroachments of the unrefined, has brought about a state of feeling-a feeling that is seldom just and never philosophical-which has created a silent but almost unanimous bias against,he effects of the institutions, in what is called the world. In Europe, one rarely utters a sentiment of this nature, under circumstances in which it is safe to do so at all, without finding a very general sympathy in the auditors; but in the circle into which Eve had now fallen, it was almost considered a violation of the' proprieties. We do not wish to be understood as saying more than we mean, however, for we have no manner of doubt that a large portion of the dissentients even, are so idly, and without reflection; or for the very natural reasons already given by our heroine; but we do wish to be understood as meaning that such is the outward appearance which American society presents to every stranger, and to every native of the country too, on his return from a residence among other people. Of its taste, wisdom and safety we shall not now speak, but content ourselves with merely saying that the effect of Grace's exclamation on Eve was unpleasant, and that, unlike the baronet, she thought her cousin was never less handsome than while her pretty face was covered with the pettish frown it had assumed for the occasion. HOME AS FOUND. 1 Sir George Templemore had tact enough to perceive there had been a slight jar in the feelings of these two young women, and he adroitly changed the conversa tion. With Eve he had entire confidence on the score of provincialisms, and, without exactly anticipating the part Grace would be likely to take in such a discussion, he introduced the subject of general society in New-York. "I am desirous to know," he said, "if you have your sets, as we have them in London and Paris. Whether you have your Faubourg St. Germain and your Chaussee d'Jntin; your Piccadilly, Grosvenor and Russel Squares." "I must refer you to Miss Van Cortlandt for an answer to that question," said Eve. Grace looked up blushing, for there were both novelty and excitement in having an intelligent foreigner question her on such a subject.'. I do not know that I rightly understand the allusion," she said, " although I am afraid Sir George Templemore means to ask if we have distinctions in society?" "And why afraid, Miss Van Cortlandt?" "Because it strikes me such a question would imply a doubt of our civilization." "There are frequently distinctions made, when the differences are not obvious," observed Eve. 1" Even London and Paris are not above the imputation of this folly. Sir George Templemore, if I understand him, wishes to know if we estimate gentility by streets, and quality by squares." "Not exactly that either, Miss Effingham —but, whuther among those, who may very well pass for gentlemen and ladies, you enter into the minute distinctions hat are elsewhere found. Whether you have your exclusives, and your (15gants and elegantes; or whether vou deem all within the pale as on an equality." 4A* 42 HOME AS FOUND. "Les femmes qmrnericaines sont bienjolies i" exclaimel Mademoiselle Viefville. "It is quite impossible that coteries should not form in a town of three hundred thousand souls." "I do not mean exactly even that. Is there no distinction between coteries; is not one placed by opinion, by a silent consent, if not by positive ordinances, above another?" "6 Certainly, that to which Sir George Templemore alludes, is to be found," said Grace, who gained courage to speak, as she found the subject getting to be more clearly within her comprehension. " All the old families, for instance, keep more together than the others; though it is the subject of regret that they are not more particular than they a-re." " Old families!" exclaimed Sir George Templemore, with quite as much stress as a well-bred man could very well lay on the words, in such circumstances.'" Old families," repeated Eve, with all that emphasis which the baronet himself had hesitated about giving. "As old, at least, as two centuries can make them; and this, too, with origins beyond that period, like those of the rest of the world. Indeed, the American has a better gentility than common, as, besides his own, he may take root in that of Europe." "Do not misconceive me, Miss Effingham; I am fully aware that the people of this country are exactly like the people of all other civilized countries, in this respect; but my surprise is that, in a republic, you should have such a term even as that of' old families.'" "The surprise has arisen, I must be permitted to say, from not having sufficiently reflected on the real state of the country. There are two great causes of dis. tinction every where, wealth and merit. Now, if a race of Americans continue conspicuous in their own society, through either or both of these causes, for a succession of generations, why have they not the same zlaims to be considered members of old families, as HOME AS FOUND. 43 Europeans under the same circumstances? A republican history is as much history as a monarchical history; and a historical name in one, is quite as much entitled to consideration, as a historical name in another. Nay, you admit this in your European republies, while you wish to deny it in ours." "I must insist on having proofs; if we permit these charges to be brought against us without evidence, Mademoiselle Viefville, we shall finally be defeated through our own neglect." 1" C'est une belle illustration, celle de l'antiquite," observed the governess, in a matter of course tone. "If you insist on proof, what answer can you urge to the Capponi?' Sonnez vos trompettes, et je vaisffaire sonner mes cloches,'-or to the Von Erlachs, a family that has headed so many resistances to oppression and invasion, for five centuries?" " All this is very true," returned Sir George, " and yet I confess it is not the way in which it is usual with us to consider American society." "' A descent from Washington, with a character and a social position to correspond, would not be absolutely vulgar, notwithstanding!" "Nay, if you press me so hard, I must appeal to Miss Van Cortlandt for succour." "On this point you will find no support in that quarter. Miss Van Cortlandt has an historical name herself, and will not forego an honest pride, in order to relieve one of the hostile powers fi-om a dilemma." "While I admit that time and merit must, in a certainsense, place families in America in the same situation with families in Europe, I cannot see that it is in conformity with your institutions to lay the same stress on, the circumstance." " In that we are perfectly of a mind, as I think the American has mulch the best reason to be proud of his Family," said Eve, quietly. "You delight in paradoxes, apparently, this evening, J'-ss Effingham, for I now feel very certain you can 44 HOME AS FOUND. hard y make out a plausible defence of this new post. tion." " If I had my old ally, Mr. Powis, here," said Eve touching the fender unconsciously with her little foot, and perceptibly losing the animation and pleasantry of her voice, in tones that were gentler, if not melancholy, " I should ask him to explain this matter to you, for he was. singularly ready in such replies. As he is absent, however, I will attempt the duty myself. In Europe, office, power, and consequently, consideration, are all hereditary; whereas, in this country, they are not, but they depend on selection. Now, surely, one has more reason to be proud of ancestors who have been chosen to fill responsible stations, than of ancestors who have filled them through the accidents, heureux ou malheureux, of birth. The only difference between England and America, as respects family, is that you add positive rank to that to which we only give consideration. Sentiment is at the bottom of our nobility, and the great seal at-the-botto-m of yours. And now, having established the fact that there are' families in America, let us return whence we started, and enquire how far they have an influence in every-day society." " To ascertain which, we must apply to Miss Van Cortlandt." "Much less than they ought, if my opinion is to be taken," said Grace, laughing, "for the great inroad of strangers has completely deranged all the suitablenesses, in that respect." " And yet, I dare say, these very strangers do good," rejoined Eve. " Many of them must have been re. spectable in their native places, and ought to be an acquisition to a society that, in its nature, must be, Grace, tant soit peu, provincial." "Oh!" cried Grace, "I can tolerate any thing but the FHajjis!" "The what?" asked Sir George, eagerly-", will you suflbr me to ask an expla ration, Miss Van Cortlandt.' HOME AS FOUND. 4r "The Hajjis," repeated Grace laughing, though she blushed to the eyes. The baronet looked from one cousin to the other. and then turned an inquiring glance on Mademoiselle Viefville. The latter gave a slight shrug, and seemed to ask an explanation of the young lady's meaning herself. "A Hajji is one of a class, Sir George Templemore," Eve at length said, " to which you and I have both the honour of belonging." " No, not Sir George Templemore," interrupted Grace, with a precipitation that she instantly regretted: "he is not an American." " Then I, alone, of all present, have that honour. It means the pilgrimage to Paris, instead of Mecca; and the Pilgrim must be an American, instead of a Mahommedan." "Nay, Eve, you are not a t-ajji, neither." "Then there is some qualification with which I am not yet acquainted. Will you relieve our doubts, Grace, and let us know the precise character of the animal." " You stayed too long to be a Hajji-one must get innoculated merely; not take the disease and become cured, to be a true Hajji." "' I thank you, Miss Van Cortlandt, for this description," returned Eve in her quiet way. " I hope, as I have gone through the malady, it has not left me pitted." "I should like to see one of these Hajjis," cried Sir George.- "l Are they of both sexes?" Grace laughed and nodded her head. "Will you point it out to me, should we be so fortu. nate as to encounter one this evening?" Again Grace laughed and nodded her head. "I have been thinking, Grace," said Eve, after a short pause, "-that we may give Sir George Temple. more a better idea of the sets about which he is so 464 HOME AS FOUND. curious, by doing what is no more than a dity of our own, and by letting him profit by the opportunity. Mrs. Hawlker receives this evening without ceremony; we have not yet sent our answer to Mrs. Jarvis, and might very well look in upon her for half an hour, after which we shall be in very good season for Mrs. Houston's ball." "Surely, Eve, you would not wish to take Sir George Templemore to such a house as that of Mrs. Jarvis!" "I do not wish to take Sir George Templemore any where, for your Hajjis have opinions of their own on such subjects. But, as cousin Jack will accompany us, he may very well confer that important favour. I dare say, Mrs. Jarvis will not look upon it as too great a liberty." " I will answer for it, that nothing Mr. John Effingham can do will be thought mal a propos by Mrs. Jared Jarvis. His position in society is too well established, and hers is too equivocal, to leave any doubt on that head." "This, you perceive, settles the. point of coteries," said Eve to the baronet. "Volumes might be written to establish principles; but when one can do any thing he or she pleases, any where that he or she likes, it is pretty safe to say that he or she is privileged." "- All very true, as to the fact, Miss Effingham; but I should like exceedingly to know the reason." 1" Half the time, such things are decided without a reason at all. You are a little exacting in requiring a reason in New-York for that which is done in London without even the pretence of such a thing. It is sufficient that Mrs. Jarvis will be delighted to see you without an invitation, and that Mrs. Houston would, at least, think it odd, were you to take the same liberty with her." " It follows," said Sir George, smiling, "that Mrs. Jarvis is much the most hospitable person of the two," HOME AS FOUN D. 47 "But, Eve, what shall be done with Captain Truck and Mr. Bragg?" asked Grace. "We cannot take them to Mrs. Hawker's!" " Aristabulus would, indeed, be a little out of place in such a house, but as for our excellent, brave, straight-forward, old captain, he is worthy to go any where. I shall be delighted to present him to Mrs. Hawker, myself." After a little consultation between the ladies, it was settled that nothing should be said of the two first visits to Mr. Bragg, but that Mr. Effingham should be requested to bring him to the ball, at the proper hour, and that the rest of the party should go quietly off to the other places, without mentioning their projects. As soon as this was arranged the ladies retired to dress, Sir George Templemore passing into the library to amuse himself with a book the while; where, however, lie was soon joined by John Effingham. Here the former revived the conversation on distinctions in society, with the confusion of thought that usually marks a European's notions of such matters. CHAPTER IV. " Ready." "And I." "And I." "Where shall we go?" MIDSUMMER-NIGHT'S DREAM. GRACE VAN CORTLANDT was the first to make her appearance after the retreat from the drawing-room. It has often been said that, pretty as the American females incontestably are, as a whole they appear better in derni-toilette; than when attired for a ball. With what would be termed high dress in other parts 48 HOME AS FOUND. of the world, they are little acquainted; but reversing the rule of Europe, where the. married bestow the most care on their personal appearance, and the single are taught to observe a rigid simplicity, Grace now seemed sufficiently ornamented in the eyes of the fas tidious baronet, while, at the same time, he thought her less obnoxious to the criticism just mentioned, than most of her young countrywomen, in general. An embonpoint that was just sufficient to distinguish her from most of her companions, a fine colour, brilliant eyes, a sweet smile, rich hair, and such feet and hands as Sir George Templemore had, somehowhe scarcely knew how, himself-fancied could only belong to the daughters of peers and princes, rendered Grace so strikingly attractive this evening, that the young baronet began to think her even handsomer than her cousin. There was also a charm in the unsophistic-ated simplicity of Grace, that was particularly alluring to a man educated amidst the coldness and mannerism of the higher classes of England. In Grace, too, this simplicity was chastened by perfect decorum and retenue of deportment; the exuberance of the new school of manners not having helped to impair the dignity of her character, or to weaken the charm of diffidence. She was less finished in her manners than Eve, certainly; a circumstance, perhaps, that induced Sir George Templemore to fancy her a shade more simple, but she was never unfeminine or unladylike; and the term vulgar, in despite of all the capricious and arbitrary rules of fashion, under no circumstances, could ever be applied to Grace Van Cortlandt. In this respect, nature seemed to have aided her; for had not her associations raised her above such an imputation, no one could believe that she would be obnoxious to the charge, had her lot in life been cast even many degrees lower than it actually was. It is well known that, after a sufficient similarity HOMEn AS FOUND. 49 has been created by education to prevent any violent shocks to our habits or principles, we most affect those whose characters and dispositions the least resemble our own. This was probably one of the reasons why Sir George Templemore, who, for some lime, had been well assured of the hopelessness of his suit with Eve, began to regard her scarcely less lovely cousin, with an interest of a novel and lively nature. Quick-sighted and deeply interested in Grace's happiness, Miss Effingham had already detected this change in the young baronet's inclinations, and though sincerely rejoiced on her own account, she did not observe it without concern; for she understood better than most of her countrywomen, the great hazards of destroying her peace of mind, that are incurred by transplanting an American woman into the more artificial circles of the old world. "I shall rely on your kind offices, in particular, Miss Van Cortlandt, to reconcile Mrs. Jarvis and Mrs. Hawker to the liberty I am about to take," cried Sir George, as Grace burst upon them in the library, in a blaze of beauty that, in her case, was aided by her attire; " and cold-hearted and unchristian-like women they must be, indeed, to resist such a mediator!" Grace was unaccustomed to adulation of this sort; for though the baronet spoke gaily, and like one half trifling, his look of admiration was too honest to escape the intuitive perception of woman. She blushed deeply, and then recovering herself instantly, said wTith a naivete that had a thousand charms with her listener"I do not see why Miss Effingham and myself should hesitate about introducing you at either place. Mrs. Hawker is a relative and an intimate-an inti mate of mine, at least-and as for poor Mrs. Jarvis she is the daughter of an old neighbour, and will be 5 50 HOME AS FOUND. too glad to see us, to raise objections. I fancy any one of a certain —— " Grace hesitated and laughed. "Any one of a certain?" said Sir George inquiringly. 4" Any one from this house," resumed the young lady, correcting the intended expression, "will be welcome in Spring street." "Pure, native aristocracy!" exclaimed the baronet with an air of affected triumph. "This you see, Mr. John Effingham, is in aid of my argument." "I am quite of your opinion," returned the gentleman addressed —" as much native aristocracy as you please, but no hereditary." The entrance of Eve and Mademoiselle Viefville interrupted this pleasantry, and the carriages being just then announced, John Effingham went in quest of Captain Truck, who was in the drawing-room with Mr. Effingham and Aristabulus. "I have left Ned to discuss trespass suits and leases with his land-agent," said John Effingham, as he followed Eve to the street-door. "By ten o'clock, they will have taxed a pretty bill of costs between them!" Mademoiselle Viefville followed John Eiffngham; Grace came next, and Sir George Templemore and the Captain brought up the rear. Grace wondered the young baronet did not offer her his arm, for she had been accustomed to receive this attention from the other sex, in a hundred situations in which it was rather an incumbrance than a service; while on the other hand, Sir George himself would have hesitated about offering such assistance, as an act of uncalled-for familiarity. Miss Van Cortlandt, being much in society, kept a chariot for her own use, and the three ladies took their seats in it, while the gentlemen tookl possession of Mr. Effingham's coach. The order was given to drive to Spring street, and the whole party proceeded. The acquaintance between the Effirghams and Mr. HOME AS FOdJND. 51 farvis flad arisen from the fact of their having been near, and, in a certain sense, sociable neighbours in the.Country. Their town associations, however, were as distinct as if they dwelt in different hemispheres, with the excep:ion of an occasional morning cail, and, now and then, a family dinner given by Mr. Effinghamln. Such had been the nature of the intercourse previously to the family of the latter's having gone abroad, and there were symptoms of its being renewed on the same quiet and friendly' footing as formerly. But no two beings could be less alike, in certain essentials, than Mr. Jarvis and his wife. The former was a plain pains2 taking, sensible man of business, while the latter had an itching desire to figure in the world of fashion. The first was perfectly aware that Mr. Effingham, in education, habits, associations and manners, was, at least, of a class entirely distinct from his own; and without troubling himself to analyze causes, and without a feeling of envy, or unkindness of any sort, while totally exempt from any undue deference or unmanly cringing, he quietly submitted to let things take their course. His wife expressed her surprise that any one in New-York should presume to be better than themselves; and the remark gave rise to the following short conversation, on the very morning of the day she gave the party, to which we are now conducting the reader. "'lHow do you know, my dear, that any one does think himself our better?" demanded the husband. " Why do they not all visit us then!" "Why do you not visit everybody yourself? A pretty household we should have, if you did nothing but visit every one who lives even in this street!" "You surely would not have me visiting the grocers' wives at the corner:, and all the other rubbish of the neighbourhood. What I mean is that all the peo.',le of a certain sort ought to visit all the other people'f a certain sort, in the same town."'You saurely will make an exception, at least on 2 HOIE AS FQUND. account of numbers. I saw number three thousand six hundred and fifty this very day on a cart, and if the wives of all these carmen should visit one anoiher, each would have to make ten visits daily in order to. get through with the list in a twelvemonth." "I have always bad luck in making you comprehend these things, Mr. Jarvis." "I am afraid, my deal', it is because you do not very clearly comprehend them yourself. You first say that everybody ought to visit everybody, and then you insist on it, you will visit, none but those you thinkl good enough to be visited by Mrs. Jared Jarvis." "What I mean is, that no one in New-York nas a right to think himself, or herself, better than ourselves." "Better?-In what sense better?" "In such a sense as to induce'them to think themselves too good to visit us." "That may be your opinion, my dear, but others may judge diffierently. You clearly think yourself too good to visit Mrs. Onion, the grocer's wife, who is a capital woman in her way; and how do we know that certain people may not fancy we are not quite refined enough for them? Refinement is a positive thing, Mrs. Jarvis, and one that has much more influence on the pleasures of association than money. We may want a hundred little perfections that escape our ignorance, and which those who are trained to such matters deem essentials." "I never met with a man of so little social spirit, Mr. Jarvis! Really, you are quite unsuited to be a citizen of a republican country." "Republican!-I do not really see what republican has to do with the question. In the first place, it is a droll word for youl to use in this sense at least; for, taking your own meaning of the termt-, you are as antirepublican as any woman I know. But a republic does not necessarily infer equality of condition, or even equality of rights,-it meaning merely the substitution HOME AS FOUND. 53 ~f the right of the commonwealth for the right of a prince. Had you said a democracy there would have been some plausibility in using the word, though even then its application would have been illogical. If I am a freeman and a democrat, I hope I have the justice to allow others to be just as free and democratic as I am myself." " And who wishes the contrary? —all I ask is a claim to be considered a fit associate for anybody in this country-in these United States of America."'".1 would quit these United States of America next week, if I thought there existed any necessity for such an intolerable state of things." " Mr. Jarvis!-and you, too, one of the Committee of Tammany Hall!" "Yes, Mrs. Jarvis, and I one of the Committee of Tainmany Hall! What, do you think I want the three thousand six hundred and fifty carmen running in and out of my house, with their tobacco saliva and pipes, all day long?" 1 "Who is thinking of your carmen and grocers!-I speak now only of genteel people." "In other words, my dear, you are thinking only of those whom you fancy to have the advantage of you, and keep those who think of you in the same way, quite out of sight. This is not my democracy and freedom. I believe that it requires two people to make a bargain, and although I may consent to dine with A ——, if A --- will not consent to dine with me, there is an end of the matter." "Now, you have come to a case in point. You often dined with Mr. Effingham before he went abroad, and yet you would never allow me to ask Mr.'Effiugham to dine with us. That is what I call meanness." "d It might be so, indeed, if it were done to save my money. I dined with Mr. Efiinghamn because I like hilml; because he was an old neighbour; because he asked me, and because I found a pleasure in the quiet.5 * 54 HOME AS FOUND. elegance of his table and society; and I did not ask him to dine with me, because I was satisfied he would be better pleased with such a tacit acknowledgement of his superiority in this respect, than by any bustling and ungraceful efforts to pay him in kind. Edward Effingham has dinners enough, without keeping a debtor and credit account with his guests, which is cather too New-Yorkish, ev, n for me." "Bustling and ungraceful!" repeated Mrs. Jar-,is, bitterly; "I do not know that you are at all more bustling and ungraceful than Mr. Efingham himself." "' No, my dear, I amn a quiet, unpretending man, like;he great majority of my countrymen, thank God." ~" Then why talk of these sorts of differences in a country in which the law establishes none?" " For precisely the reason that I talk of the river at the foot of this street, or because there is a river. A thing may exist without there being a law for it. There is no law for building this house, and yet it is built. There is no law for making Dr. Verse a better preacher than Dr. Prolix, and yet he is a much better preacher; neither is there any law for making Mr. Effingham a more finished gentleman than I happen to be, and yet I am not fool enough to deny the fact. In the way of making out a bill of parcels, I will not turn my back to him, I can promise you." " All this strikes me as being very spiritless, and as particularly anti-republican," said Mrs. Jarvis, rising to quit the room;;" and if the Effinghams do not come this evening, I shall not enter their house this winter. I am sure they have no right to pretend to be our betlers, and I feel no disposition to admit the impudent claim." " Before you go, Jane, let me say a parting word," rejoined the husband, looking for his hat, " which is just this. If you wish the world to believe you the equal of any one, no matter whom, do not be always tallking about it, lest they see you distrust the facl EHOME AS FOUND. 5V Vourself. A positive thing will surely be seen, and they who have thefhighest claims are the least dislposed to be always pressing them on the attention of the world. An outrage may certainly be dclone those social rights which have been established by common consent, and then it may be proper to resent it; but beware betraying a consciousness of your own inferiority, by letting every one see you are jealous of your station.'Now, kiss me; hlere is the m'oney to pay tor your finery this evening, and let me see you as happy to receive Mrs. Jewvett from Albion Place, as you would be to receive Mrs. Hawker herself."'6 Mrs. Hawker!" cried the wife, with a toss of her head, " I would not cross the street to invite Mrs. Htawker and all heraclan." Which was very true, as Mrs. Jarvis was thoroughly convinced the trouble would be unavailing, the lady in question being as near the head of fashion in New-York, as it was possible to be in a town that, in a moral sense, resembles an encampment, quite as much as it resembles a permanent and a long-existing capital. Notwithstanding a great deal of management on the part of Mrs. Jarvis to get showy personages to attend her entertainment, the simple elegance of the two carriages that bore the Effingham party, threw all the other equipages into the shade. The arrival, indeed, was deemed a matter of so much moment, that intelligence was conveyed to the lady, wlho was still at her post in the inner drawing-room, of the arrival of a party altogether superior to any thing that had yet appeared in her rooms. It is true, this was not expressed in words, but it was made sufficiently obvious by the breathless haste and the air of importance of /iMrs. Jarvis' sister, who had received the news from a servant, and who communicated it proprie, per.ona to the mistress of the house. The simple, useful, graceful, almost indispensable usage of announcing at the door, indispensable to those HOME AS FOUND. who receive much, and where there is the:'isk of meeting people known to us by name and not in person, is but little practised in America. Mrs. Jarvis would have shrunk from such an innovation, had she known that elsewhere the custom prevailed, but she was in happy ignorance en this point, as on many others that were more essential to the much-coveted social eclat at which she aimed. When AMademoiselle Viefville appeared, therefore, walking unsupported, as if she were out of leading-strings, followed by Eve and Grace and the gentlemen of their party, she at first supposed there was some mistake, and that her visiters had got into the wrong house; there being an opposition party in the neighbourhood. %" What brazen people!" whispered Mrs. Abijah Gross, who having removed from an interior NewEngland village, fully two years previously, fancied herself au fait of all the niceties of breeding and social tact. "There are positively two young ladies actually walking about without gentlemen!" But it was not in the power of Mrs. Abijah Gross,,with her audible whisper and obvious sneer and laugh, to put down two such lovely creatures as Eve and het cousin. The simple elegance of their attire, the indescribable air of polish, particularly in the former, and the surpassing beauty and modesty of mien ot both, effectually silenced criticism, after this solitary outbreaking of vulgarity. Mrs. Jarvis recognized Eve and John Effingham, and her hurried compliments and obvious delight proclaimed to all near her, the importance she attached to their visit. Mademoiselle Viefville she had not recollected in her present dress, and even she was covered with expressions of delight and satisfaction. 6 I wish particularly to present to you a friend that we all prize exceedingly," said Eve, as soon as there was an opportunity of speaking.' This is Captaiu Truck, the gentleman who comreands the MIontauk, HYOME AS FOUND. 57 the slip of which you have heard so much. Ahl! Mr. Jarvis," ofhiring a hand to him with sincere cordiality, for Eve had knownt him from childhood, and always sincerely respected him —" yol will receive my friend with a cordial welcome, I am certain." She then explained to Mr. Jarvis who the honest captain was, when the former, first paying the proper respect to his other guests, led the old sailor aside, and began an earnest conversation on the subject of the recent passage. John Effiingham presented the baronet, whom Mrs. Jarvis, out of pure ignorance of his rank in his own country. received with perfect propriety and selfrespect. "We have very few people of note in town at present, I believe," said Mrs. Jarvis to John Effingham. " A great traveller, a most interesting man, is the only person of that sort I could obtain for this evening, and i shall have great pleasure in introducing you. He is there in that crowd, for he is in the greatest possible demand; he has seen so much.-Mrs. Snow, with your permission-really the ladies are thronging about him as if he were a Pawnee, —have the goodness to step a little this way, Mr. Effingham —Miss Efingham —Mrs. Snow, just touch his arm and let him know I wish to introduce a couple of friends.-Mr. Dodge, Mr. John Effingham, Miss Effingham, Miss Van Cortlandt. I hope you may succeed in getting him a little to yourselves, ladies, for he can tell you all about Europesaw the king of France riding out to Nully, and has a prodigious knowledge of things on the other side of the water." It required a good deal of Eve's habitual self-command to prevent a smile, but she had the tact and discretion to receive Steadfa.t as an utter stranger. John Effinghamn bowed as haughtily as man can bow, andll then it was whispered that he and Mr. Dodge were rivjal travellers. The distance of the former, coupled ROME AS FOUND. with an expression of countenance that aid not invite tamiliarity, drove nearly all the company over to the side of Steadfast, who, it was soon settled, had seen much the most of the world, understood society the best, and had moreover travelled as far as Timbuctoo in Afri'ca. The clientele of'Mr. Dodge increased rapidly, as these reports spread in the rooms, and those who had not read the s" delightful letters published ill the Active Inquirer," furiously envied those who had enjoyed that high advantage. "It is Mr. Dodge, the great traveller," said one young lady, who had extricated herself from the crowd around the'lion,' and taken a station near Eve and Grace, and who, moreover, was a'blue' in her own set; "his beautiful and accurate descriptions have attracted great attention in England, and it is said they have actually been republished!" " Have you read them, Miss Brackett?" "Not the letters themselves, absolutely; but all the remarks on them in the last week's Hebdomad. Most delightful letters, judging from those remarks; full of nature and point, and singularly accurate in all their facts. In this respect they are invaluable, travellers do fall into such extraordinary errors!" " I hope, ma'am," said John Eflingham, gravely, "that the gentleman has avoided the capital mistake of commenting on things that actually exist. Comments on its facts are generally esteemed by the people of a country, impertinent and unjust; and your true way to succeed, is to treat as freely as possible its imaginary peculiarities." Miss Brackett had nothing to answer to this observation, the Hebdomad having, among its other profundities, never seen proper to touch on the subject. She went on praising the'6 Letters," however, not one of which had she read, or would she read; for this young lady had contrived to gain a high reputation in he-r own coterie for taste and knowledge in book.s, by HOME AS FOUND. 59 merely skimming the strictures of those who do nJot even skim the works they pretend to analyze. Eve had never before been in so close contact with so much flippant ignorance, and she could not but wonder at seeing a man like her kinsman overlooked, in order that a man like Mr. Dodge should be preferred. All this gave John Effingham himself no concern, but retiring a little from the crowd, he entered into a short conversation with the young baronet. I should like to know your real opinions of this set," he said; " not that I plead guilty to the childish sensibility that is so common in all provincial circles to the judgments of strangers, but with a view to aid you in forming a just estimate of the real state of the country." " As I know the precise connexion between you and our host, there can be no objection to giving a perfectly frank reply. The women strike me as being singularly delicate and pretty; well dressed, too, I might add; but, while there is a great air of decency, there is very little high finish; and what strikes me as being quite odd, under such circumstances, scarcely any downright vulgarity, or coarseness." "' A Daniel come to judgment! One who had passed a life here, would not have come so near the truth, simply because he would not have observed peculiarities, that require theemeans of comparison to be detected. You are a little too indulgent in saying there is no downright vulgarity; for some there is; though surprisingly little for the circumstances. But of the coarseness that would be so prominent elsewhere, there is hardly any. True, so great is the equality in all things, in this country, so direct the tendency to this respectable mediocrity, that what you now see here, to-night, may be seen in almost every village in the land, with a few immaterial exceptions an the way of furniture and other city appliances, and not miuch even in these." (10 HOME AS FOU:ND.'Certainly, as a inediocritv, this is respec-table though a fastidious. taste might see a multitude of faults." " I shall not say that the taste would be merely fastidious, for much is wanting that would add to the grace and beauty of society, while'much that is wanting would be missed only by the over-sophisticated. Those young -men, who are sniggeiing over some bad joke in the corner, for instance, are positively vulgar, as is that young lady who is indulging in practical coquetry; but, on the whole, there is little of this; and, even our hostess, a silly woman, devoured with the desire of being what neither her social position, education, habits nor notions fit her to be, is less obtrusive, bustling, and offensive, than a similar person, elsewhere." I' arm quite of your way of thinking, and intended to ask you to account for it." " The Americans are an imitative people of necessity, and they are apt at this part of imitation, in particular. Then they are less artificial in all their practices, than older and more sophisticated nations; and this company has got that essential part of good breeding, simplicity, as it were per fiorce. A' step higher in the social scale, you will see less of it; for greater daring and bad mod~ls lead to blunders in matters that require to be exceedingly well done, if done at all. The faults here would be more apparent, by an approach near enough to get into the tone of nind, the forms of speech, and the attempts at wit." "Which I think we shall escape to-night, as I see the ladies are already making their apologies and taking leave. We must defer this investigation to -another timne." "It may be indefinitely postponed,'as it would scarcely reward the trouble of an inquiry." The gentlemen now approached Mrs. Jarvis. paid their parting compliments, hunted up Captain Truclk, OMRE AS FOUr D. 6 1 wtom they tore by violence from the good-natured hospitality of the master of the house, and then saw the ladies into their carriage. As they drove of L the worthy mariner protested that Mir. Jarvis was one of the honestest men he had ever met, and announced that he intended giving him a dinner on board the Montauk, the very next day. The dwelling of Mrs. Hawker was in Hudson Square; or in a portion of the city that the lovers of the grandiose are endeavouring to call St. John's Park; for it is rather an amusing peculiarity amonc a certain portion of the emigrants who have flocked into the Middle States, within the last thirty years, that they are not satisfied with permitting any family, or thing, to possess the name it originally enjoyed, if there exists the least opportunity to change it. There was. but a carriage or two before the door, though the strong lights in the house showed that company had collected. 4 "Mrs. Hawker is the widow and the daughter of men of lorg established New-York families; she is childless, affluent, and universally respected where known, for her breeding, benevolence, good sense, and heart," said John Effingham, while the party was driving from one house to the other. " Were you to go into most of the sets of this town, and mention Mrs. Hawker's name, not one person in ten would know there is such a being in their vicinity; the pele nmee of a migratory population keeping persons of her character and condition in life, quite out of view. The very persons who will prattle by the hour, of the establishments of Mrs. Peleg Pond, and Mrs. Jonah Twist, and Mrs. Abiram Wattles, people who first appeared on this island five or six years since, and, who having accumulated what to them are relatively large fortunes, have launched out into vulgar, and uninstructed finery, would look with surprise at hear.. in Mrs. Hawker mentioned as one having any claims 6 62 HOME AS FOUND. to social distinction. Her historical names are over shadowed in their minds by the parochial glories of certain local prodigies in the townships whence they emigrated; her manners would puzzle the comprehension of people whose imitation has not gone beyond the surface, and her polished and simple mind would find little sympathy among a class who seldom rise above a common-place sentiment without getting upon stilts." "' Mrs. Hawker, then, is a lady," observed Sir George Templemore. 1" Mrs. Hawker is a lady, in every sense of the word; by position, education, manners, association, mind, fortune and birth. I do not know that we ever had more of her class than exist to-day, but certainly we once had them more prominent in society." " I suppose, sir," said Captain Truck, " that this Mrs Hawker is of what is called the old school?" s" Of a very ancient school, and one that is likely tq continue, though it may not be generally attended." " I am afraid, Mr. John Effingham, that I shall be like a fish out of' water in such a house. I can get along very well with your Mrs. Jarvis, and with the dear young lady in the other carriage; but the sort of woman you have described, will be apt to jam a plain mariner like myself. What in nature should I do, now, if she should ask me to dance a minuet?" "' Dance it agreeably to the laws of nature," returned John Effingham, as the carriages stopped. A respectable, quiet, and an aged black admitted the party, though even he did not announce the vlsiters, while he held the door of the drawing-room open for them, with respectful attention. Mrs. Hawker arose, and advanced to meet Eve and her companions, and though she kissed the cousins affectionately, her recep-'ion of Mademoiselle Viefville was so simply polite as to convince the latter she was valued on account of her services. Tohnl Effingham, who was ten or fifteen HOME AS FOUND. 63 years the junior of the old lady, gallantly kissed her hand, when he presented his two male companions. After paying the proper attention to the greatest stranger, Mrs. Hawker turned to Captain Truck and said-'This, then, is the gentleman to whose skill and courage you all owe so much —ve all owe so much, I might better have said-the commander of the Moru tauk?" "I have the honour of commanding that vessel, ma'am," returned Captain Truck, who was singularly awed by the dignified simplicity of his hostess, although her quiet, natural, and yet finished manner, which extended even to the intonation of the voice, and the smallest movement, were as unlike what he had expected as possible; " and with such passengers as she had last voyage I can only say, it is a pity that she is not better off for one to take care of her." "Your passengers give a different account of the matter, but, in order that I may judge impartially, do me the favour to take this chair, and let me learn a few of the particulars from yourself." Observing that Sir George Templemore had followed Eve to the other side of the room, Mrs. Hawker now resumed her seat, and, without neglecting any to attend to one in particular, or attending to one in a way ~to make him feel oppressed, she contrived, in a few.ninutes, to make the captain forget all about the minuet,.nd to feel much more at his ease than would have been the case with Mrs. Jarvis, in a month's intercourse. In the mean time, Eve had crossed the room to join a lady whose smile invited her to her side. This was a young, slightly framed female, of a pleasing countenance, but who would not have been particularly distinguished, in such a place, for personal charms. Still, her smile was sweet, her eyes were soft, and the expression of her face was what might almost be called illuminated As Sir George Templemore followed her. 64 HOME AS FOUTN). Eve mentioned his name to her acquaintance, whom she addressed as Mrs. Bloomfield.;" You are bent on perpetrating further gaiety tonight," said the latter, glancing at the ball-dresses of the two cousins; " are you in the colours of the Hous. ton faction, or in those of the Peabody." ",Not in pea-green, certainly," returned Eve, laughing-" as you may see; but in simple white." "'You intend then to be'led a measure' at Mrs. Houston's. It were more suitable than among the other faction." " Is fashion, then, faction, in New-York?" inquired Sir George. " Fractions would be a better word, perhaps. But we have parties in almost every thing, in America; in politics, religion, temperance, speculations, and taste; why not in fashion?" " I fear we are not quite independent enough to form parties on such a subject," said Eve. "Perfectly well said, Miss Effingham; one must think a little originally, let it be ever so falsely, in order to get up a fashion. I fear we shall have to admit our insignificance on this point. You are a late arrival, Sir George Templemore?" " As lately as the commencement of this month; I had the honour of being a fellow-passenger with Mr. Effingham and his family." " In which voyage you suffered shipwreck, captivity, and famine, if half we hear be true." "Report has a little magnified our risks; we encountered some serious dangers, but nothing amounting to the sufferings you have mentioned." "Being a married woman, and having passed the crisis in which deception is not practised, I expect to hear truth again," said Mrs. Bloomfield, smiling. "I trust, however, you underwent enough to qualify you all for heroes and heroines, and shall content myself with knowing that you are here, safe and happy- if. HOME AS FOUND. 65 she added, looking inquiringly at Eve, "one who has been educated abroad can be happy at home." "One educated abroad may be happy at home, though possibly not in the modes most practised by the world," said Eve, firmly. " Without an opera, without a court, almost without society!" "An opera would be desirable, I confess; of courts I know nothing, unmarried females being eyphers in Europe; and I hope better things than to think I shall be without society." " Unmarried females are considered cyphers too, here, provided there be enough of them with a good respectable digit at their head. I assure you no one quarrels with the cyphers under such circumstances. I think, Sir George Templemore, a town like this must be something of a paradox to you." "Might I venture to inquire the reason for this opinion!" "Merely because it is neither one thing nor another. Not a capital, nor yet merely a provincial place; with something more than commerce in its bosom, and yet with that something hidden under a bushel. A good deal more than Liverpool, and a good deal less than London. Better even than Edinburgh, in many respects, and worse than Wapping, in others." "You have been abroad, Mrs. Bloomfield?" "Not a foot out of my own country; scarcely a foot out of my own state. I have been at Lake George, the Falls, and the Mountain House; and, as one does not travel in a balloon, I saw some of the intermediate places. As for all else, I am obliged to go by report." " It is a pity Mrs. Bloomfield was not with us, this evening, at Mrs. Jarvis's," said Eve, laughing. "'She might then have increased her knowledge, by listening to a few cantos from the epic of Mr. Dodge." "I have glanced at some of that author's wisdom." returned Mrs. Bloomfield, "but I soon found it was fi* 66 HOME AS FOUND. learning backwards. There is a never-failing rule, by which it is easy to arrive at a traveller's worth, in a negative sense, at least." 1"That is a rule which may be worth knowing,' said the baronet, " as it would save much useless wear of the eyes." "When one betrays a profound ignorance of his own country, it i's a fair presumption that he cannot be very acute in his observation of strangers. Mr. Dodge is one of these writers, and a single letter fully satisfied my curiosity. I fear, Miss Effingham, very inferior wares, in the way of manners, have been lately imported, in large quantities, into this country, as having the Tower mark on them." Eve laughed, but declared that Sir George Templemore was better qualified than herself to answer such a question. ",We are said to be a people of facts, rather than a people of theories," continued Mrs. Bloomfield, without attending to the reference of the young lady, " and any coin that offers passes, until another that is better, arrives. It is a singular, but a very general mistake, I believe, of the people of this country, in supposing that they can exist under the present regime, when others would fail, because their opinions keep even pace with, or precede the actual condition of society; whereas, those who have thought and observed most on such subjects, agree in thinking the very reverse to be the case.""This.would be a curious condition for a government so purely conventional," observed Sir George, with interest, " and it certainly is entirely opposed to the state of things all over Europe." " It is so, and yet there is no great mystery in it, after all. Accident has liberated us from trammels that still fetter you. We are like a vehicle on the top:)f a hill, which, the moment it is pushed beyond the point of resistance, rolls down of itself, without the aid HOME AS FOUND. ( of horses. One may follow with the team, and hook on when it gets to the bottom, but there is no such thing as keeping company with it until it arrives there." "You will allow, then, that there is a bottom?" "There is a bottom to every thing-to good and bad; happiness and misery; hope, fear, faith and charity; even to a woman's mind, which I have sometimes fancied the most bottomless thing in nature. There may, therefore, well be a bottom even to the institutions of America." Sir George listened with the interest with which an Englishman of his class always endeavours to catch a concession that he fancies is about to favour his own political predilections, and he felt encouraged to push the subject further: "And you think the political machine is rolling downwards towards this bottom?" he said, with an interest in the answer that, living in the quiet and forgetfulness of his own home, he would have laughed at himself for entertaining. But our sensibilities become quickened by collision, and opposition is known even to create love. Mrs. Bloomfield was quick-witted, intelligent, cultivated and shrewd. She saw the motive at a glance, and, notwithstanding she saw and felt all its abuses, strongly attached to the governing principle of her country's social organization, as is almost universally the case with the strongest minds and most generous hearts of the nation, she was not disposed to let a stranger carry away a false impression of her senti. ments on such a point. "Did you ever study logic, Sir George Templemore?" she asked, archly. "' A little, though not enough I fear to influence my mode of reasoning, or even to leave me familiar with the terms." "Oh! I am not about to assail you with sequiturs 68 HOME AS FOUND. and non sequiturs dialectics and all the mysteries o; Denk-Lehre, but simply to remind you there is such a thing as the bottom of a subjec'. When I tell you we are flying towards the bottom of our institutions, it is in the intellectual sense, and not, as you have erroneously imagined, in an unintellectual sense. I mean that we are getting to understand them, which, I fear, we did not absolutely do at the commencement of the'experiment.' " " But I think you will admit, that as the civilization of the country advances, some material changes must occur; your people cannot always remain stationary; they must either go backwards or forward." " Up or down, if you will allow me to correct your phraseology. The civilization of the country, in one sense at least, is retrogressive, and the people, as they cannot go' up,' betray a disposition to go' down.'" " You deal in enigmas, and I am afraid to think I understand you." "1 I mean, merely, that gallowses are fast disappearing, and that the people-le peuple you will understand -begin to accept money. In both particulars, I think there is a sensible change for the worse, within my own recollection." Mrs. Bloomfield then changed her manner, and from using that light-hearted gaiety with which she often rendered her conversation piquante, and even occasionally brilliant, she became more grave and explicit. The subject soon turned to that of punishments, and few men could have reasoned more sensibly, justly oi forcibly, on such a subject, than this slight and fragilelooking young woman. Without the least pedantry, with a beauty of language that the other sex seldom attains, and with a delicacy of discrimination, and a sentiment that were strictly feminine, she rendered a theme interesting, that, however important in itself, is forbidding, veiling all its odious and revolting features in the refinement a nd finesse of her own polished mind. HOME AS FOUND. (09 Eve could have listened all night, and, at every syllable that fell from the lips of her friend, she felt a glow of triumph; for she was proud of letting an intelligent foreigner see that America did contain women worthy to be ranked with the best of other countries, a circumstance that they who merely frequented what is called the world, she thought might be reasonably justified in distrusting. In one respect, she even fancied Mrs. Bloomfield's knowledge and cleverness superior to those which she had so often admired in her own sex abroad. It was untrammelled, equally by the prejudices incident to a factitious condition of society, or by their reaction; two circumstances that often obscured the sense and candour of those to whom she had so often listened with pleasure in other countries. The singularly feminine tone, too, of all that Mrs. Bloonmfield said or thought, while it lacked nothing in strength, added to the charm of her conversation, and increased the pleasure of those that listened. " Is the circle large to which Mrs. Hawker and her friends belong?" asked Sir George, as he assisted Eve and Grace to cloak, when they had taken leave. "A town which can boast of half-a-dozen such houses need not accuse itself of wanting society." " Ah! there is but one Mrs. Hawker in New-York," answered Grace, " and not many Mrs. Bloomfields in the world. It would be too much to say, we have even half-a-dozen such houses." " Have you not been struck with the admirable tone of this drawing-room," half whispered Eve. " It may want a little of that lofty ease that one sees among the better portion of the old Princesses et Duchesses, which is a relic of a school that, it is to be feared, is going out; but in its place there is a winning nature, with as much dignity as is necessary, and a truth that gives us confidence in the sincerity of those around us." "Upon my word, I think Mrs. Hawker quite fit for a Duchess." 70 HOME AS FOU N D. " Y ou mean a Duchesse," said Eve, " and yet she is without the manner that we understand by such a word. Mrs. Hawker is a lady, and there can be no higher term." 6 She is a delightful old woman," cried John Effing ham, " and if twenty years younger and disposed to change her condition, I should really be afraid to enter the house." ", My dear sir," put in the captain, " I will make her Mrs. Truck to-morrow, and say nothing of years, if she could be content to take up with such an offer. Why, sir, she is no woman, but a saint in petticoats! I felt the whole time as if talking to my own mother, and as for ships, she knows more about them than I do!" The whole party laughed at the strength of the cap. tain's admiration, and getting into the carriages proceeded to the last of the houses they intended visiting that night. CHAPTER V. "So turns she every man the wrong side out; And never gives to truth and virtue, that Which simpleness and merit purchaseth." MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING. MRs. HOUSTON was what is termed a fashionable voman in New-York. She, too, was of a family of local note, though of one much less elevated in the olden time than that of Mrs. Hawker. Still her claims were admitted by the most fastidious on such points, for a few do remain who think descent indisputable to gentility; and as her means were ample, and her tastes perhaps superior to those of most around her, she kept what was thought a house of better tone than corn HOME AS FOUND. 71 mnon, even in the highest circle. Eve had but a slight acquaintance with her; but in-Grace's eyes, Mrs. Houston's was the place of all others that she thought might make a favourable impression on her cousin. Her wish that this should prove to be the case was so strong, that, as they drove towards the door, she could not forbear from making an attempt to prepare Eve for what she was to meet. " Although Mrs. Houston has a very large house for New-York, and lives in a uniform style, you are not to expect ante-chambers, and vast suites of rooms, Eve," said Grace; "such as you have been accustomed to see abroad." "' It is not necessary, my dear cousin, to enter a house of four or five windows in front, to see it is not a house of twenty or thirty. I should be very unreasonable to expect an Italian palazzo, or a Parisian hotel, in this good town." "We are not old enough for that yet, Eve; a hundred years hence, Mademoiselle Viefville, such things may exist here."," Bien sir. C'est naturel." " A hundred years hence, as the world tends, Grace, they are not likely to exist any where, except as taverns, or hospitals, or manufactories. But what have we to do, coz, with a century ahead of us? young as we both are, we cannot hope to live that time." Grace would have been puzzled to account satisfactorily to herself, for the strong desire she felt that neither of her companions should expect to see such a house as their senses so plainly told them did not exist in the place; but her foot moved in the bottom of the carriage, for she was not half satisfied with her cousin's answer. *" All I mean, Eve,"9 she said, after a pause, " is, that one ought not to expect in a town as new as this, the improvements that one sees in an older state of society." 72 1HOME AS FOUND. i" And have Mademoiselle Viefville, or I, ever been so weak as to suppose that New-York is Paris, or Rome, or Vienna?" Grace was still less satisfied, for, unknown to herself, she had hoped tnat Mrs. Houston's ball might be quite equal to a ball in either of those ancient capitals; and she was now vexed that her cousin considered it so much a matter of course that it should not be. But there was no time for explanations, as the carriage now stopped. The noise, confusion, calling out, swearing, and rude clamour before the house of Mrs. Houston, said little for the out-door part of the arrangements. Coachmen are nowhere a particularly silent and civil class; but the uncouth European peasants, who have been preferred to the honours of the whip in New-York, to the usual feelings of competition and contention, added that particular feature of humility which is known to distinguish. " the beggar on horseback." The imposing equipages of our party, however, had that effect on most of these rude brawlers, which a display of wealth is known to produce on the vulgar-minded; and the ladies got into the house, through a lane of coachmen, by yielding a little to a chevau defrise of whips, without any serious calamity. "a One hardly knows which is the most terrific," said Eve, involuntarily, as soon as the door closed on them " the noise within, or the noise without!" This was spoken rapidly, and in French, to Made. moiselle Viefville, but Grace heard and understood it, and for the first time in her life, she perceived that Mrs. Houston's company was not composed of nightingales. The surprise is that the discovery should nave come so late. "' I am delighted at having got into this house," said Sir George, who, having thrown his cloak to his own servant, stood with the two other gentlemen waiting the descent of the ladies from the upper room, where HOME AS FOUND. 73 the bad arrangements of the house compelled them to uncloak and to put aside their shawls, "as I am told it is the best house in town to see the other sex." "' To hear thenm, would be nearcri the truth, perhaps," returned John Effingham. " As ibr pretty women, one can hardly go amiss in New-York; and your ears now tell you, that they do not come into the world to be seen only." The baronet smiled, but he was too well bred to contradict or to assent. Mademoiselle Viefville, unconscious that she was violating the proprieties, walked into the rooms by herself, as soon as she descended, followed by Eve; but Grace shrank to the side of John Effingham, whose arm she took as a step necessary even to decorum. Mrs. Houston received her guests with ease and dignity. She was one of those females that the American world calls gay; in other words, she opened her own house to a very promiscuous society, ten or a dozen times in a winter, and accepted the greater part of the invitations she got to other people's. Still, in most other countries, as a fashionable woman, she would have been esteemed a model of devotion to the duties of a wife and a mother, for she paid a personal attention to her household, and had actually taught all her children the Lord's prayer, the creed, and the ten commandments. She attended church twice every Sunday, and only staid at home from the evening lectures, that the domestics might have the opportunity of going (which, by the way, they never did) in her stead. Feminine, well-mannered, rich, pretty, of a very positive social condition, and naturally kind-hearted and disposed to sociability, Mrs. H1ouston, supported by an indulgent husband, who so much loved to see people with the appearance of happiness, that he was not particular as to the means, had found no difficultv in rising to the pinnacle of fashi >n, and of having her name in the mouths of all those who find it necessary 7 74 HOME AS FOUND. to talk of somebodies, in order that they may seem tc be somebodies themselves. All this contributed to Mrs. Houston's happiness, or she fancied it did; and as every passion is known to increase by indulgence, she had insensibly gone on in her much-envied career until, as has just been said, she reached the summit. " These rooms are very crowded," said Sir George, glancing his eyes around two very pretty little narrow drawing-rooms, that were beautifully, not to say richly, furnished; "one wonders that the same contracted style of building should be so very general, in a town that increases as rapidly as this, and where fashion has no fixed abode, and land is so abundant." "Mrs. Bloomfield would tell you," said Eve, " that these houses are types of the social state of the country, in which no one is permitted to occupy more than his shale of ground." "But there are reasonably large dwellings in the place. Mrs. Hawker has a good house, and your father's for instance, would be thought so, too, in London even; and yet I fancy you will agree with me in thinking that a good room is almost unknown in New-York." "I do agree with you, in this particular, certainly,. for to meet with a good room, one must go into the houses built thirty years ago. We have inherited these snuggeries, however, England not having much to boast of in the way of houses." " In the way of town residences, I agree with you entirely, as a whole, though we have some capital exceptions. Still, I do not think we are quite as compact as this-do you not fancy the noise increased in consequence of its being so confined?" Eve laughed and shook her head quite positively. "What would it be if fairly let out!" she said; " But we will not waste the precious moments, but turn our eves about us in quest of the belles. Grace, you who are so much at home, must be our cicerone, and telb us which are the idols we are to wcrship." HOME AS FOUND. 75 "Dftes moi premieremenrt; que veut dire une belle a Yew- York?" demanded Mademoiselle Viefville../Jp. paremment, tout le monde est joli." 1" A belle, Mademoiselle," returned John Effingham "is not, necessarily beautiful, the qualifications for the character, being various and a little contradictory. One may be a belle by means of money, a tongue, an eye, a foot, teeth, a laugh, or any other separate feature, or grace; though no woman was ever yet a belle, I believe, by means of the head, considered collectively. But why deal in description, when the thing itself confronts us? The young lady standing directly before us, is a belle of the most approved stamp and silvery tone. Is it not Miss Ring, Grace?" The answer was in the affirmative, and the eyes of the whole party turned towards the subject of this remark. The young lady in question was about twenty, rather tall for an American woman, not conspicuously handsome, but like most around her of delicate features and frame, and with such a physique, as, under proper training, would have rendered her the beau ideal of feminine delicacy and gentleness. She had natural spirit, likewise, as appeared in her clear blue eye, and moreover she had the spirit to be a belle. Around this young creature were clustered no less than five young men, dressed in the height of the fashion, all of whom seemed to be entranced with the words that fell from her lips, and each of whom appeared anxious to say something clever in return. They all laughed, the lady most, and sometimes all spoke at once. Notwithstanding these outbreakings, Miss Ring did most of the talking, and once or twice, as a young man would gape after a most exhilarating show of merriment, and discover an inclination to retreat, she managed to recall him to his allegiance, by some remark particularly pertinent to himself, or his feelings. "Qui est cette dame?" asked Mademoiselle Viefviile, very much as one would put a similar question, on 76 HOME AS FOUND. seeing a man enter a church during service with hins hat on. "Elle est demoiselle," returned Eve. "Quelle horreur!" "Nay, nay, Mademoiselle, I shall not allow you to set up France as immaculate on this point, neither-" said John Effingham, looking at the last speaker with an affected frown —" A young lady may have a tongue, and she may even speak to a young gentleman, and not be guilty of felony; although I will admit that five tongues are unnecessary, and that five listeners are more than sufficient, for the wisdom of twenty in petticoats." C' C'est une horreur!" "I dare say Miss Ring would think it a greater horror to be obliged to pass an evening in a row of girls, unspoken to, except to be asked to dance, and admired only in the distance. But let us take seats on that sofa, and then we may'go beyond the pantomime, and become partakers in the sentiment of the scene." Grace and Eve were now led off to dance, and the others did as John Effingham had suggested. In the eyes of the belle and her admirers, they who had passed.thirty were of no account, and our listeners succeeded in establishing themselves quietly within ear-shot-this was almost at duelling distance, too, -without at all interrupting the regular action of the piece. We extract a little of the dialogue, by way of giving a more dramatic representation of the scene. "Do you think the youngest Miss Danvers beautiful?" asked the belle, while her eye wandered in quest of a sixth gentleman to "entertain," as the phrase is. In my opinion, she is absolutely the prettiest female in Mrs. Houston's rooms this night." The young men, one and all, protested against this judgment, and with perfect truth, for Miss Ring was too original to point out charms that every one could see. HOME AS FOUND. 77 6 They sav it will not be a match between her and Mr. Egbert, after every body has supposed it settled so long. What is your opinion, Mr. Edson?" This timely question prevented Mr. Edson's retreat, for he had actually got so far in this important evolution, as to have gaped and turned his back. Recalled, as it were by the sound of the bugle, Mr. Edson was compelled to say something, a sore affliction to him always. " Oh! I'm quite of your way of thinking; they have certainly courted too long to think of marrying." "I detest long courtships; they must be perfect antidotes to love; are they not, Mr. Moreland?" A truant glance of Mr. Moreland's eye was rebuked by this appeal, and instead of looking for a place of refuge, he now merely looked sheepish. He, however, entirely agreed with the young lady, as the surer way of getting out of the difficulty. 4" Pray, Mr. Summerfield, how do you like the last Hajji-Miss Eve Eflingham? To my notion, she is prettyish, though by no means as well as her cousin, Miss Van Cortlandt, who is really rather good-looking." As Eve and Grace were the two most truly lovely voung women in the rooms, this opinion, as well as the loud tone in which it was given, startled Mademoiselle Viefville quite as much as the subjects that the belle had selected for discussion. She would have moved, as listening to a conversation that was not meant foi their ears; but John Effingham quietly assured her that Miss Ring seldom spoke in company without intending as many persons as possible to hear tier. "Miss Effingham is very plainly dressed for an only daughter" continued the young lady, " though that lace of her cousin's is real point! I'11 engage it cost every cent of ten dollars a yard! They are both engagedl 14 be married, I hear." 7~ 78 HOME AS FOUND. "Cil t" exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville. "Oh! That is nothing," observed John Effingham coolly. " Wait a moment, and you'll hear that they have been privately married these six months, if, indeed, you hear no more." 1" Of course this is but an idle tale?" said Sir George Templemore with a concern, which, in despite of his good breeding, compelled him to put a question that, under other circumstances, would scarcely have been permissible. "As true as the gospel. But listen to the bell, it is ringing for the good of the whole parish." s" The affair between Miss Eifingham and Mr. Morpeth, who knew her abroad, I understand is entirely broken off; some say the father objected to Mr. Morpeth'swant of fortune; others that the lady was fickle, while some accuse the gentleman of the same vice. Don't you think it shocking to jilt, in either sex, Mr. Mosely?" The retiring Mr. Mosely was drawn again within the circle, and was obliged to confess that he thought t was very shocking, in either sex, to jilt. " If I were a man," continued the belle, "I would never think of a young woman who had once jilted a over. To my mind, it bespeaks a bad heart, and a woman with a bad heart cannot make a very amiable wife." "What an exceedingly clever creature she is," whispered Mr. Mosely to Mr. Moreland, and he now made up his mind to remain and be' entertained' some time longer. "I think poor Mr. Morpeth greatly to be pitied; for no man would be so silly as to be attentive seriously to a lady without encouragement. Encouragement is the ne plus ultra of courtship; are you not of my opinion, -Mr. Walworth?" Mr. Walworth was number five 6f the entertainees, and he did understand Latin, of which the young lady, HOME AS FOUND. 79 tIlugh fond of using scraps, knew literally nothing. He smiled an assent, therefore, and the belle felicitated herself in having 6 entertained' him efflctually; nor was she mistaken. "Indeed, they say Miss lEfingham had several affairs of the heart, while in Europe, but it seems she was unfbrtunate in them all.".Mais, ceci est trop fort! Je ne peux plus scouter." "My dear Mademoiselle, compose yourself. The crisis is not yet arrived, by any means." "I understand shte still corresponds with a German Baron, and an Italian Marquis, though both engagements are absolutely broken off. Some people say she walks into company alone, unsupported by any gentleman, by way of announcing a firm determination to remain single for life." A common exclamation from the young men proclaimed their disapprobation; and that night three of them actually repeated the thing, as a well established truth, and two of the three, failing of something better to talk about, also announced that Eve was actually engaged to be married. "There is something excessively indelicate in a young lady's moving about a room without having a gentleman's arm to lean on! I always feel as if such a person was out of her place, and ought to be in the kitchen." 1" But, Miss Ring, what well-bred person does it?" sputtered Mr. Moreland. " No one ever heard of such a thing in good society.'Tis quite shocking! Altogether unprecedented." L' It strikes me as being excessively coarse!" Oh! manifestly; quite rustic!" exclaimed M.r Ed(S on. "6 What can possibly be more vulgar?" added JiNr. Walworth. "I never heard of such a thing among the right sort!" said Mr. Mosely. 80 HOME AS FOUND. 6" A young lady who can be so brazen as to come into a room without a gentleman's arm to lean on, is, in my judgment at least, but indifferently educated, Hajji or no Hajji. Mr. Edson, have you ever felt the tender passion's I know you have been desperately in love, once, at least; do describe to me some of the symptomns,.in order that I may know when I am seriouslv attacked myself by the disease." "6 JMais, ceci est ridicule! L'enfant s'est sauvte du Charenton de.N7'- York."9 "From the nursery rather, Mademoiselle; you perceive she does not yet know how to walk alone." Mr. Edson now protested that he was too stupid to feel a passion as intellectual as love, and that he was afraid he was destined by nature to remain as insensible as a block. "6 One never knows, Mr. Edson," said the young lady, encouragingly. "Several of my acquaintances, who thought themselves quite safe, have been seized suddenly, and, though none have actually died, more than one has been roughly treated, I assure you." Here the young men, one and all, protested that she was excessively- clever. Then succeeded a pause, for Miss Ring was inviting, with her eyes, a number six to join the circle, her ambition being dissatisfied with five entertainees, as shie saw that Miss Trumpet, a rival belle, had managed to get exactly that number, also, in the other room. All the gentlemen availed themselves of the cessation in wit to gape, and Mr. Edson took the occasion to remark to Mr. Summerfield that he understood "6 lots had been sold in seven hundredth street that morning, as high as two hundred dollars a lot." The quadrille now ended, and Eve returned towards her fi-ends. As she approached, the whole party cornpared her quiet, simple, feminine, and yet dignified air, with the restless, beau-catching, and worldly look of the belle, and wondered by what law of' nature, or of HOME AS FOUND. 81 fashion, the one could possibly become the subject of the othter's comments. Eve never appeared better than that evening. Her dress had all the accuracy and finl ish of a Parisian toilette, being equally removed fromn exaggeration and neglect; and it was worn with the ease of one accustomed to be elegantly attired, and vet never decked with finery. Her step even was that of a lady, having neither the mincing tread of a Paris grisette, a manner that sometimes ascends even to the bourgeoise, the march of a cockneyess, nor the tiptoe swing of a belle; but it was the natural though regulated _step, of a trained and delicate woman. Walk alone she could certainly, and always did, excepl. on those occasions of ceremony that demanded a part ner. Her countenance, across which an unworthy thought had never left a trace, was an index, too, tc the p.urity, high principles and womanly self-respec, that controlled all her acts, and, in these particulars was the very reverse of the feverish, half-hoydenish half-affected expression of that of Miss Ring. "They may say what they please," muttered Cap tain Truck, who had been a silent but wondering listener of all that passed; " she is worth as many oi them as could be stowed in the Montauk's lower hold." Miss Ring perceiving Eve approach, was desirous of saying something to her, for there was an e'clat about a Hajji, after all, that rendered an acquaintance, or even an intimacy desirable, and she smiled and curtsied. Eve returned the salutation, but as she did not care to approach a group of six, of which no less than five were men, she continued to move towards her own party. This reserve compelled Miss Ring to advance a step or two, when Eve was obliged to stop Curtsying to her partner, she thanked him for his attention, relinquished his arm, and turned to meet the adv. At the same instant the five'entertainees' escaped in a body, equally rejoiced at their release, and proud of their captivity. S2.HOME AS FOUNYD. "I have been dying to come and speak to you, Miss Effinghamn," commenced Miss Ring, "but these jive giants (she emphasized the word we have put in italics) so beset me, that escape was quite impossible. There ought to be a law that but one gentleman should speak to a lady at a time." "I thought there was such a law already;" said Eve, quietly. "You mean in good breeding; but no one thinks of those antiquated laws now-a-days. Are you beginning to be reconciled, a little, to your own country?" " It is not easy to effect a reconciliation where there has been no misunderstanding. I hope I have nevei quarrelled with my country, or my country with me." "Oh! it is not exactly that I mean. Cannot one need a reconciliation without a quarrel? What do you say to this, Mr. Edson?" Miss Ring having detected some symptoms of desertion in the gentleman addressed, had thrown in this question by way of recal; when turning to note its eftbet, she perceived that all of her clientelle had escaped. A look of surprise and mortification and vexation it was not in her power to suppress, and then ncame one of horror. " How conspicuous we have made ourselves, and it is all my fault!" she said, for the first time that eventng permitting her voice to fall to a becoming tone.'Why, here we actually are, two ladies conversing together, and no gentleman near us!" "Is that being conspicuous?" asked Eve, with a simplicity that was entirely natural. "c I am sure, Miss Eflingham, one who has seen as much of society as you, can scarcely ask that question seriously. I do not think I have done so improper a thing, since I was fifteen; and, dear me! dear nle' how to escape is the question. You have permitted your partner to go, and I do not see a gentleman ol' my acquaintance near us, to give me his arm!" HOMWE AS FOUNl'D. 3 "As your distress is occasioned by my company," said Ele, "it is fortunately in my power to relieve it." Thus saying, she quietly walked across the room, and took her seat next to Mademoiselle Viefville. Miss Ring held up her hands in amazement, and then fortunately perceiving one of the truants gaping at no great distance, she beckoned him to her side. "Have the goodness to give me your arm, Mr. Summerfield," she said, "I am dying to get out of this unpleasantly conspicuous situation; but you are the first gentleman that has approached me this twelvemonth. I would not for the world do so brazen a thing as. Miss Effingham has just achieved; would you believe it, she positively went from this spot to her seat, quite alone!" " The Hajjis are privileged." "They make themselves so. But every body knows how bold and unwomanly the French females are. One could wish, notwithstanding, that our own people would not import their audacious usages into this country." "It is a thousand pities that Mr. Clay, in his compromise, neglected to make an exception against that article. A tariff on impudence would not be at all sectional." "It might interfere with the manufacture at home, notwithstanding," said John Effingham; for the lungs were strong, and the rooms of Mrs. Houston so small, that little was said that evening, which was not heard by any who chose to listen. But Miss Ring never listened, it being no part of the vocation of a belle to perform that inferior office, and sustained by the protecting arm of Mr. Summerfield, she advanced more boldly into the crowd, where she soon contrived to catch another group of even six "entertainees." As for Mr. Summerfield, he lived a twelvemonth on the elputation of the exceedingly clever thing he had just utt ered. SPS4 HOME AS FOUND. I"There come Ned and Aristabulus," said Jolhnm Effingham, as soon as the tones of Miss Ring's voice were lost in the din of fifty others, pitched to the same key. ". present, JAademoiselle, ye vains nous venge?." As John Effingham uttered tils, lihe took Captain Truck by the arm, and went to meet his cousin and the land agent. The latter he soon separated from Mr. Eiflingham, and with this new-recruit, he managed to get so near to Miss Ring as to attract her attention. Although fifty, John Efiingham was known to be a bachelor, well connected, and to have twenty thousand a year. In addition, he was well preserved and singularly handsome, besides having an air that set all pretending gentility at defiance. These were qualities that no belle despised, and illkassorted matches were, moreover, just comingin into fashion in New-York. Miss. Ring had an intuitive knowledge that he wished to speak to her, and she was not slow in offering the opportunity. The superior tone of John Effingham, his caustic wit and knowledge of the world, dispersed the five beaux, incontinently; these persons having a natural antipathy to every one of the qualities named.;'I hope you will permit me to presume on an acquaintance that extends back as far as your grandfather, Miss Ring," he said, "to present two very intimate friends; Mr. Bragg and kiMr. Truck; gentlemen who will well reward the acquaintance." The lady bowed graciously, for it was a matter of conscience with her to receive every man with a smile. She was still too much in awe of the master of ceremonies to open her batteries of attack, but John Effincngham soon relieved her, by affecting a desire to speak to another lady. The belle had now the two strangers to herself, and having heard that the Effinohatms had an Englishman of condition as a companion, who was travelling under a false name, she fancied herself very clever in detecting him at once in the HOME AS FOUND. 85 person ot Aristabulus; while by the aid of a llvely imagination, she thought Mr. Truck was his travelling ilentor, and a divine of the church of' England. The incognito she was too well bred to hint at, though she wished both the gentlemen to perceive that a be/le was not to be mystified in this easy manner. Indeed, she was rather sensitive on the subject of her readiness in recognizing a man of fashion under any circumr!stances, and to let this be known was her very first object, as soon as she was relieved from the presence of John Effingham. "You must be struck with the unsophisticated nature and the extreme simplicity of our society, Mr. Bragg," she said, looking at him significantly;' we are very conscious it is not what it might be, but do you not think it pretty well for beginners?" Now, Mr. Bragg had an entire consciousness that he had never seen any society that deserved the name before this very night, but he was supported in giving his opinions -by that secret sense of his qualifications to fill any station, which formed so conspicuous a trait in his character, and his answer was given with an,plomh that would have added weight to the opinion of the veriest ~lI/-gart of the Chausst:e d'J]ntin.'6 It is indeed a good deal unsophisticated," he said, 4" and so simple that any body can understand it. I find but a single fault with this entertainment, which is, in all else, the perfection of elegance in my eyes, and that is, that there is too little room to swing the legs in dancing." "Indeed!-I did not expect that-is it not the best usage of Europe, now, to bring a quadrille into the very minimum of space?" " Quite the contrary, Miss. All good dancing requires evolutions. The dancing Dervishes, for instance would occupy quite as much space as both of these sets that are walking before us, and I believe it is now 8 86 HOME AS FOUND. gellerally admitted that all good dancing needs room for the legs." ";VWe necessarily get a little behind the fashions, in this distant country. Pray, sir, is it usual for ladies to walk alone in society'!" " Woman was not made to move through life alone, Miss,". returned Aristabulus with a sentimental glance of the eye, for he never let a good opportunity for preferment slip through his fingers, and, failing of Miss Efingham, or Miss Van Cortlandt, of whose estates and connections he had some pretty accurate notions, it struck him Miss Ring might, possibly, be a very eligible connection, as all was grist that came to his mill; "this I believe, is an admitted truth." "By life you mean matrimony, I suppose." "Yes, Miss, a man always means matrimony, when he speaks to a young lady." This rather disconcerted Miss Ring, who picked her nosegay, for she was not accustomed to hear gentlemen talk to ladies of matrimony, but ladies to talk to gentlemen. Recovering her self-possession, however, she said with a promptitude that did the school to which she belonged infinite credit,-' You speak, sir, like one having experience."' (Certainly, Miss; I have been in love ever since I was ten years old; I may say I was born in love, and hope to die in love." This a little out-Heroded Herod, but the belle was not a person to he easily daunted on such a subject. She smiled graciously, therefore, and continued the conversation with renewed spirit., "You travelled gentleman get odd notions," she said, "and more particularly on such subjects. I always feel afraid to discuss them with foreigners, though with my own countrymen I have few reserves. Pray, Mr. Truck, are you satisfied with America?-Do you find it tle country you expected to see?" "Certainly, marm;" for so they pronounced this HOME AS FOUND. 7 word in the rive.r, and the captain cherished hlis first'rnpressions;' when we sailed from Portsmouth. I expected that the first land we should make would be the Highlands of Navesink; and, although a little disappointed, I have had the satisfaction of laying eyes on it at last." "Disappointment, 1 fear, is the usual fate of those who come from the other side. Is this dwelling of IIMrs. Houston's equal to the residence of an English nobleman, Mr. Bragg?" "Considerably better, Miss, especially in the way of republican comfort." Miss Ring, like all belles, detested the word republican, their vocation being clearly to exclusion, and she pouted a little affectedly. " I should distrust the quality of su-coh comfort, sir," she said, with point; "' but, are the rooms at all coimparable with the rooms in Apsley House, for instance?" " My dear Miss, Apsley House is a toll-gate lodge, compared to this mansrion! I doubt if there be a dwelling in all England half as magnificent —indeed, I cannot imagine any thing more brilliant and rich." Aristabulus was not a man to do things by halves, and it was a point of honour with him to know something of every thing. It is true he no more could tell where Apsley }louse is, or whether it was a tavern or a gaol, than he knew half the other things on which he delivered oracular opinions; but when it became necessary to speak, he was not apt to balk conversation from any ignorance, real or affected. The opinion he had just given, it is true, had a little surpassed Miss Ring's hopes; for the next thing, in her ambition to being a belle, and of " entertaining" gentlemen, was to fancy she was running her brilliant career in an orbit of fashion that lay parallel to that of the " nobility and gentry" of Great Britain. a "Well, this surpasses my hopes," she said. " although r was aware we are nearly on a level with the more 88 HOME AS FOUIND. impr(:ved tastes of Europe: still, I thought we were a little inferior to that part of the world, yet." "Inferior, Miss! That is a word that should never pass your lips; you are inferior to nothing, whether in Europe or America, Asia or Africa." As Miss Ring had been accustomed to do most of the flattering herself, as behoveth a bele, she began to be disconcerted with the directness of the compliments of Aristabulus, who was disposed to' make hay while the sun. shines;' and she turned, in a little confusion, to the captain, by way of relief; we say confusion, for the young lady, although so liable to be misunderstood, was not actually impudent, but merely deceived in the relations of things; or, in other words, by some confusion in usages, she had hithe-rto permitted herself to do that in society, which female performers sometimes do on the stage; enact the part of a man. "You should tell Mr. Bragg, sir," she said, with an appealing look at the captain, that flattery is a dangerous vi.ce, and one altogether unsuited to a Christian."' t is, indeed, marmn, and one that I never indulge in. No one under my or-ders, can accuse me of flattery.' By'under orders,' Miss Ring understood curates and deacons; for she was aware the church of England had clerical distinctions of this sort, that are unknown in America. "I hope, sir, you do not intend to quit this country without favouring us with a discourse." "Not I, marm-I am discoursing pretty much from morning till night, when among my own people, though t own that this conversing rather. puts me out of my reckoning. Let me get my foot on the planks I love, with an attentive audience, and a good cigar in mv mouth, and I'11 hold forth with any bishop in the universe." "A cigar!" exclaimed Miss Ring, in surprise. " Do gentlemen of your profession use cigars when on uty?" HOME AS FOUND 9 "Does a parson take his fees? Why, Miss, there is not a man among us, who does not smoke fronm morning till night." "Surely not on Sundays!" "Two for one. on those days, more than on any other." "And your people, sir, what do they do, all this time?" "Why, marm, most of them chew; and those that don't, if they cannot find a pipe, have a dull time of it. For my part, I shall hardly relish the good place itself, if cigars are prohibited." Miss Ring was surprised; but she had heard that the English clergy were more free than our own, and then she had been accustomed to think every thing English of the purest water. A little reflection reconciled her to the innovation; and the next day, at a dinner party, she was heard defending the usage as a practice that had a precedent in the ancient incense of the altar. At the moment, however, she was dying to impart her discoveries to others; and she kindly proposed to the captain and Aristabulus to introduce them to some of her acquaintances, as they must find it dull, being strangers, to know no one. Introductions and cigars were the captain's hobbies, and he accepted the offer with joy, Aristabulus uniting cordially in the proposition, as he fancied he had a right, under the Constitution of the United States of America, to be introduced to every human being with whom he came in contact. It is scarcely necessary to say how much the party with whom the two neophytes in fashion had come enjoyed all this, though they concealed their amusement under the calm exterior of people of the world. From MNr. Effingham the mystification was carefully concealed by his cousin, as the former would have fi:lt it due to Mrs. Houston, a well-meaning, but silly Woman, to put an end to it. Eve and Grace laughed, 30 HOME AS FOUN D as merry girls would be apt to laugh, at such anloc. currence, and they danced the remainder of the eve. ning with lighter hearts than ever. At one, the cornm pany retired in the same informal manner, as respects announcements and the calling of carriages. as that in which they had entered; most to lay their drowsy heads on their pillows, and Miss Ring to ponder over the superior manners of a polished young Englishman, and to dream of the fragrance of a sermon that was preserved in tobacco. CHAPTER VI.' Marry, our play is the most lamentable Comedy, and most cruel death of Pyrarnus and Thisby." PETER QU:NCE. OUR task in the way of describing town society will soon be ended. Tfle gentlemen of the Eflingham family had been invited to meet Sir George Templemore at one or two dinners., to which the latter had been invited in consequence of his letters, most of which were connected with his pecuniary arrangements. As one of, these entertainments was like all the rest of the same character, a very brief account of it will suffice to let the reader into the secret of the excellence of the genus. A well-spread board, excellent viands, highly respectable cookery, and delicious wines, were every where met. Two rows of men clad in dark dresses, a solitary female at the head of the table, or, if fortuoate, with a supporter of the same sex near her, inva riably composed the convives. The exaggerations of a province were seen ludicrously in one particular custotn. The host, or perhaps it might have been the HOME- AS FOUND. 91 hostess, had been told there should be a contrast. between the duller light of the reception-room, and the brilliancy of the table, and John Effingham actually hit his legs against a stool,; in floundering through the obscurity of the first drawing-room he entered on one of the occasions in question. When seated at table, the first great duty of restauration performed, the conversation turned on the prices of lots, speculations in towns, or the currency. After this came the regular assay of wines, during which it was easy to fancy the master of the house a dealer, for he usually sat either sucking a syphon or flourishing a cork-screw. The discourse would now have done credit to the annual meeting and dinner of the German exporters, assembled at Rudesheim to bid for the article. Sir George was certainly on the point of forming a very erroneous judgment concerning the country, when Mr. Effingham extricated him from this set, and introduced him.properly into his own. Here, indeed, while there was much to strike a European as peculiar, and even provincial, the young baronet fared much better. He met with the same quality of table, relieved by an intelligence that was always respectable, and a manliness of tone which, if not unmixed, had the great merit of a simplicity and nature that are not always found in more sophisticated circles. The occasional incongruities struck them all, more than the positive general faults; and Sir George Templemore did justice to the truth, by admitting firankly, the danger he had been in of forming a too hasty opinion. All this time, which occupied a month, the young baronet got to be more and more intimate in Hudson Square, Eve gradually becoming more frank and unreserved with him, as she grew sensible that he had abandoned his hopes of success with herself, and Gra'ee gradually more cautious and timid, as she became con 92 HOME AS FOUND. scious of his power to please, and the interest he tock in herself. It might have been three days after the ball at Mrs. Houston's that most of the family was engaged to look in on a Mrs. Legend, a lady of what was called a literary turn, Sir George having been asked to llake one of their party. Aristabulus was already returned to his duty in the country, where we shall shortly have occasion to join him, but an invitation had been sent to IMr. Truck, under the general, erroneous impression of his real character. Taste, whether in the arts, literature, or any thing else, is a natural impulse, like love. It is.true both may be cultivated and heightened by circumstances, but the impulses must be voluntary, and the flow of feeling, or of soul, as it has become a law to style it, is not to be forced, or commanded to come and go at will. This is the reason that all premeditated enjoyments connected with the intellect, are apt to baffle expectations, and why academies, literary clubs, coteries and dinners are commonly dull. It is true that a body of clever people may be brought together, and, if left to their own impulses, the characters of their mind will show themselves; wit will flash, and thought will answer thought spontaneously; but every effort to make the stupid agreeabie, by giving a direction of a pretending intellectual nature to their efforts, is only rendering dullness more conspicuous by exhibiting it in contrast with what it ought to be to be clever, as a bad picture is rendered the more conspicuous by an elaborate and gorgeous frame. The latter was the fate' of most of Mrs. Legend's literary evenings, at which it was thought an illustration to understand even one foreign language. But, 1t was known that Eve was skilled in most oel the Euro. pean tongues, and, the good lady, not feeling' that such accomplishments are chiefly useful as a rieans, i.ooked about her in order to collect a set, ameoncl wh,-hrm our HOME AS FOUNVD 93 neroine might find some one with whom to converse In each of her dialects. Little was said about it, it is true, but great efforts were made to cause this evening to be memorable in the annals of conversazioni. In carrying out this scheme, nearly all the wits, writers, artists and literati, as the most incorrigible members of the book clubs were styled, in New-York, were pressingly invited to be present. Aristabulus had contrived to earn such a reputation for the captain, on the night of the ball, that he was universally called a man of letters, and an article had actually appeared in one of the papers, speaking of the literary merits of the "' Hon. and Rev. Mr. Truck, a gentleman travelling in our country, from whose liberality and just views, an account of our society was to be expected, that should, at last, do justice to our national character." With such expectations, then, every true American and Americaness, was expected to be at his or her post, for the solemn occasion. It was a rally of literature, in defence of the institutions-no, not of the institutions, for they were left to take care of themselves-but of the social character of the community. Alas! it is easier to feel high aspirations on such subjects, in a provincial town, than to succeed; for merely calling a place an Emporium, is very far fronm giving it the independence, high tone, condensed intel. ligence and tastes of a capital. Poor Mrs. Legend, desirous of having all the tongues duly represented. was obliged to invite certain dealers in gin fromJ.HJolland, a German linen merchant from Saxony, an Italian Cavaliero, who amused himself in selling beads, and a Spanish master, who was born in Portugal, all of whom had just one requisite for conversation in their respective languages, and no more. Bat such assem. blies were convened in Paris, and why not in New York? We shall not stop to dwell on the awful sensations with which Mrs. Legend heard the first ring at her - 04 HOME AS FOUND. door, on the eventful night in question. It was the precursor of the entrance of AMiss Annual, as reguial a devotee of letters as ever conned a primer. Tile mee-ting was sentimental and affectionate. Before either had time, however, to disburthen her mind of one half of its prepared phrases, ring upon ring pro. claimed more company, and the rooms were soon as much sprinkled with talent, as a modern novel with jests. Among those who came first, appeared ail the foreign corps, for the refreshments entered as something into the account with them; every blue of the place, whose social position in the least entitled her to be seen in such a house, Mrs. Legend belongoing quite positively to good society. The scene that succeeded was very characteristic. A professed genius does nothing like other people, except in cases that require a display of talents. In all minor matters, he, or she, is sui generis; for sentimnent is in constant ebullition in their souls; this being what is meant by the flow of that part of the human system. We might here very well adopt the Homeric method, and call the roll of heroes and heroines, in what the French would term a catalogte raisonnee; but our limits compel us to be less ambitious, and to adopt a simpler mode of communicating facts. Among the ladies who now figured in the drawing-room of Mrs. Legend, besides Miss Annual, were Miss Monthly, Mrs. Economy, S. R. P., Marion, Longinus, Julietta, Herodotus, D. O. V. E., and Mrs. Demonstration; besides many others of less note; together with at least a dozen female Hajjis, whose claims to appear in such society were pretty much dependent on the fact, that having seen pictures and statues abroad, they necessa~ily must have the means of talking of them at home. The list of men was still more formidable in numbers, if not in talents. At its head stood Steadfast Dodge, Esquire, whose fame as a male Hajji had so far swollep since Mrs. Jarvis's reunion, that, for the first time in HOME AS FOUTND. 95 his life, he now entered one of the better houses of his own country. Then there were the authors of "l Hapis Lazuli," " The Aunts," "The Reformed," "1 Ihe Conformed," " The Transformed," and " The Deformed;" with the editors of "The Hebdomad," " The Night Cap," "The Chrysalis," "TThe Real Maggot," and " The Seek no Further;" as also, "Junius," " Junius Brutus," "Lucius Junius Brutus," " Captain Kant," "Florio," the'Author of the History of Billy Linkumn Tweedle', the celebrated Pottawattamie Prophet, " Single Rhyme," a genius who had prudently rested his fame in verse, on a couplet composed of one line; besides divers amateurs and connoisseurs, Hajjis, who must be men of talents, as they had acquired all they knew, very much as American Eclipse gained his laurels on the turf; that is to say, by a free use of the whip and spur. As Mrs. Legend sailed about her rooms amid such} a circle, her mind expanded, her thoughts diffused themselves among her guests on the principle of Animal Magnetism, and her heart was melting with the tender sympathies of congenial tastes. She felt herself to be at the head of American talents, and, in the secret recesses of her reason, she determined that, did even the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah menace her native town, as some evil disposed persons had' dared to insinuate might one day be the case, here was enough to save it from destruction. It was just as the mistress of the mansion had come to this consoling conclusion, that the party from Hudson Square rang. As few of her guests came in carriages, Mrs. Legend, who heard the rolling of wheels, felt persuaded that the lion of the night was now indeed at hand; and with a view to'a proper reception, she re. quested the company to divide itself into two lines, in order that he might enter, as it were, between lanes of genius. It may be necessary to explain, at this point of our narrative, that John Effingham was perfectli tware fJ6 HOME AS FOUND. of the error which existed in relation to the real character of Captain Truck, wherein he thought great injustice had been done the honest seaman; and, the old man intending to sail for London next morning, had persuaded him to accept this invitation, in order that the public mind might be disabused in a matter of so much importance. With a view that this might be done naturally and without fuss, however, he did not explain the mistake to his nautical friend, believing it most probable that this could be better done incidentally, as it were, in the course of the evening; and feeling certain of the force of that wholesome apothegm, which says that " truth is powerful and must prevail." "If this be so," added John Effingham, in his explanations to Eve, J" there can be no place where the sacred quality will be so likely to assert itself, as in a galaxy of geniuses, whose distinctive characteristic is'an intuitive perception of things in their real colours." When the door of Mrs. Legend's drawing-room opened, in the usual noiseless manner. Mademoilsele Viefville, who led the way, was startled at finding herself in the precise situation of one who is condemned to run the gauntlet. Fortunately, she caught a glimpse of Mrs. Legend, posted at the other end of the proud array, inviting her, with smiles, to approach. The invitation had been to a " literary'fete," and Mlademoiselle Viefville was too much of a Frenchwoman to be totally disconcerted at a little scenic effect on the occasion of afete of any sort. Supposing she was now a witness of an American ceremony for the first time, for the want of representation in the country had been rather a subject of animadversion with her, she advanced steadily towards the mistress of the house; bestowing smile for smile, this being a part of the programme at which a Parisienne was not easily outdone. Eve followed, as usual, sola; Grace came next; then Sir George; then John Effingham; the captain bringing up the rear. There had been a friendly contest, HOME AS FOUND. 97 for the precedency, between the two last, each des; ring to yield it to the other on the score of merit; but the captain prevailed, by declaring'" that he was navi gating an unknown sea, and that he could do nothing wiser than to sail in the wake of so good a pilot as Mr. John Effingham." As Hajjis of approved experience, the persons who led the advance in this little procession, were subjects of a proper attention and respect; but as the admiration of mere vulgar travelling would in itself be vulgar, care was taken to reserve the condensed feeling of the company for the'celebrated English writer and wit, who was known to bring up the rear. This was not a common house, in which dollars had place, or belles rioted, but the temple of genius; and every one felt an ardent desire to manifest a proper homage to tne abilities of tne established foreign writer, that should be in exact proportion to their indifference to the twenty thousand a year of John.Effingham, and to the nearly equal amount of Eve's expectations. The personal appearance of the honest tar was well adapted to. the character he was thus ca'lled on so unexpectedly to support. His hair had long been getting grey, but the intense anxiety of the chase, of the wreck, and of his other recent adventures, had rapidly, but effectually, increased this mark of time; and his head was now nearly as white as snow. The hale, fresh, red of his features, which was in truth the result of exposure, might very well pass for the tint of port, and his'tread, which had always a little of the quarterdeck swing about it, might quite easily be mistaken by a tyro, for the human frame staggering under a load of learning. Unfortunately for those who dislike mystifications, the captain had consulted John Effingharr on the subject of the toilette, and that kind and indulgent friend had suggested the propriety uf appearing in black small-clothes for the occasion, a costume thac he often tore himself of an evening. Reality, ill this 9 98 HOME AS FOUND. instance, then, did not disappoint expectation, and the burst of applause with which the captain was received. was accompanied by a general murmur in commendation of the admirable manner in which he "lookea the character." "What a Byronic head," whispered the author of "The Transformed" to D. O. V. E.; "6 and was there ever such a curl of the lip, before, to mortal man!"9 The truth is, the captain had thrust his tobacco into " an aside," as a monkey is known to erpocher a spare nut, or a lump of sugar. -" Do you think him Byronic?-To my eye, the cast of his head is Shaksperian, rather; though I confess there is a little of Milton about the forehead!" "6 Pray," said Miss Annual, to Lucius Junius Brutus, "which is commonly thought to be the best of his works; that on a-a-a,-or that on e-e-e?" Now, so it happened, that not a soul in the room, but the lion himself, had any idea what books he had written, and he knew only of some fifteen or twenty log-books. It was generally understood, that he was a great English writer, and this was more than sufficient. 6"I believe the world generally prefers the a-a —a," said Lucius Junius Brutus;,but the few give a decided preference to the e-e-e " ",Oh! out of all question preferable!" exclaimed half a dozen, in hearing. " With what a classical modesty he pays his compliments to Mrs. Legend," observed " S. R. P."-"6 One can always tell a man of real genius, by his tenu l" He is so English!" cried Florio. " Ah! they are the only people, after all!" This Florio was one of those geniuses who sigh most for the things that they least possess. By this time Captain Truck had got through witn listening to the compliments of Mrs. Legend, when he was seized upon by a circle of rabid literati, who HOME AS FOUND. (39 badgered him with questions concerning his opinions, notions, inferences, experiences, associations, sensations, sentiments and intentions, in a way that soon threw the old man into a profuse perspiration. Fifty times did he wish, from the bottom of his soul, that soul which the crowd around him fancied dwelt so nigh in the clouds, that he was seated quietly by the side of Mrs. Hawker, who, he -mentally swore, was worth all the literati in Christendom. But fate had decreed otherwise, and we shall leave him to his fortune, for a time, and return to our heroine and her party. As soon as Mrs. Legend had got through with her introductory compliments to the captain, she sought Eve and Grace, with a consciousness that a few civilities were now their due. "I fear, Miss Effingham, after the elaborate soirees of the literary circles in Paris, you will find our reunions of the same sort, a little dull; and yet I flatter myself with having assembled most of the talents of New-York on this memorable occasion, to do honour to your friend. Are you acquainted with many of the company?" Now, Eve had never seen nor ever heard of a single being in the room, with the exception of Mr. Dodge and her own party, before this night, although most of them had been so laboriously employed in puffing each other into celebrity, for many wearyr years; and, as for elaborate soirees, she thought she had never seen one half as elaborate as this of Mrs. Legend's. As it would not very well do, however, to express all this in words, she civilly desired the lady to point out to her some of the most distinguished of the company. " With the greatest pleasure, Miss Effingham," Mrs. Legend taking pride in dwelling on the merits of her guests. —" This heavy, grand-looking personage, in whose air one sees refinement and modesty at a glance, is Captain Kant, the editor of one of our most dle 100 HOHME AS FOUND ^idedly pious newspapers. His mind is distinguished tbr its intuitive perception of all that is delicate, reserved and finished in the intellectual world, while, in opposition to this quality, which is almost feminine, his character is just as remarkable for its unflinching love of truth. He was never known to publish a falsehood, and of his foreign correspondence, in particular, he is so exceedingly careful, that he assures me he has every word of it written under his own eye." "On the subject of his religious scruples," added John Effingham, "he is so fastidiously exact, that I hear he'says grace' over every thing that goes from his press, and'returns thanks' for every thing that comes to it." "You know him, Mr. Effingham, by this remark Is he not, truly, a man of a vocation?" " That, indeed, he is, ma'am. He may be succinctly said to have a newspaper mind, as he reduces every thing in nature or art to news, and commonly imparts to it so much of his own peculiar character, that it loses all identity with the subjects to which it originally belonged. One scarcely knows which to admire most about this man, the atmospheric transparency of his motives, for he is so disinterested as seldom even to think of paying for a dinner when travelling, and yet so conscientious as always to say something obliging of the tavern as soon as he gets home-his rigid regard to facts, or the exquisite refinement and delicacy that he imparts to every thing he touches. Over all this, too, he throws a beautiful halo of morality and religion, never even prevaricating in the hottest discussion, unless witlh the unction of a saint!" "Do you happen to know Florio?" asked Mrs. Le gend, a little distrusting John Effingham's account of Captain Kant. " If I do, it must indeed be by accident. What are his chief characteristics, ma'am?" "Sentiment, pathos, delicacy, and all in rhyme, too. HOME AS' FOUND. 101 You no doubt, have heard of his triumph over Lord Byron, Miss Eflingham?" Eve was obliged to confess that it was new to her. "Why, Byron wrote an ode to Greece, commencing with'The Isles of Greece! the Isles of Greece!' a very feeble line, as any one will see, for it contained a useless and an unmeaning repetition." "And you might add vulgar, too, Mrs. Legend," said John Effingham, "since it made a palpable allu.. sion to all those vulgar incidents that associate themselves in the mind, with these said common-place isles. The arts, philosophy, poetry, eloquence, and even old Homer, are brought unpleasantly to one's recollection, by such an indiscreet invocation." " So Florio thought, and, by way of letting the world perceive the essential difference between the base and the pure coin, he wrote an ode on England, which commenced as such an ode should!" "Do you happen to recollect any of it, ma'am?" "Only the first line, which I greatly regret, as the rhyme is Florio's chief meriit. But this line is, of itself, sufficient to immortalize a man." "Do not keep us in torment, dear Mrs. Legend, but let us have it, of heaven's sake!" "It began in this sublime strain, sir — Beyond the wave!-Beyond the wave!' Now, Miss Effingham, that is what I call poetry!" "And well you may, ma'am," returned the gentleman, who perceived Eve could scarce refrain from breaking out in a very unsentimental manner —" So much pathos." 1" And so sententious and flowing!" "Condensing a journey of three thousand miles, as It might be, into three words, and a note of admiration. I trust it was printed with a note of admiration, Mrs. Legend?"' Yes, sir, with two-one behind each wave —and such waves, Mr. Effingham!" 9 * 102 HOME AS FOUND. " Indeed, ma'am, you may say so. One reall) gets a grand idea of them, England lying beyond each." " So much expressed in so few syllables!" "I think I see every shoal, current, ripple, rock, island, and whale, between Sandy Hook and the Land's End." "He hints at an epic." "Pray God he may execute one. Let him make haste, too, or he may get' behind the age,''behind the age.'" Here the lady was called away to receive a guest. " Cousin Jack!" " Eve Effingham?" 4 Do you not sometimes fear offending?" " Not a woman who begins with expressing her adiniration of such a sublime thing as this. You are safe with such a person, any where short of a tweak of the nose." " Mais, tout ceci est bien drole i" "You never were more mistaken in your life, Mademoiselle; every body here looks upon it as a matter of life and death." The new guest was Mr. Pindar, one of those careless, unsentimental fellows, that occasionally throw off an ode that passes through Christendom, as dollars are known to pass from China to Norway, and yet, who never fancied spectacles necessary to his appearance, solemnity to his face, nor soirees to his renown. Aftei quitting Mrs. Legend, he approached Eve, to whom he was slightly known, and accosted her. " This is the region of taste, Miss Effingh'am," he said, with a shrug of the jaw, if such a member can shrug; 6" and I do not wonder at finding you here." He then chatted pleasantly a moment, with the party, and passed on, giving an ominous gape, as he drew nearer to the oi polloi of literature. A moment after appeared Mr. Gray, a man who needed nothing but taste in the public, and the encouragement that would HOME AS FOUND 103 follow such a taste, to stand at, or certainly near, the head of the poets of our own time. HEe, tot, looked shily at the galaxy, and took refuge in a corner. Mr. Pith followed; a man whose caustic wit needs only a sphere for its exercise, manners to portray, and a society with strong points about it to illustrate, in order to enrol his name high on the catalogue of satirists. Another ring announced Mr. Fun, a writer of exquisite humour, and of finished periods, but who, having perpetrated a little too much sentiment, was instantly seized upon by all the ultra ladies who were addicted to the same taste in that way, in the room. These persons came late, like those who had already been too often dosed in the same way, to be impatient of repetitions. The three first soon got together in a corner, and Eve fancied they were laughing at the rest of the company; whereas, in fact, they were merely laughing at a bad jolie of their own; their quick perception of the ludicrous having pointed out a hundred odd combinations and absurdities, that would have escaped duller minds. " Who, in the name of the twelve Cmesars, has Mrs. Legend got to lionize, yonder, with the white summit and the dark base?" asked the writer of odes. "' Some English pamphleteer, by what I can learn," answered he of satire; " some fellow who has achieved. a pert review, or written a Minerva Pressism, and who now flourishes like a bay tree among us. A modern Horace, or a Juvenal on his travels." " Fun is well badgered," observed Mr. Gray. —" Do you not see that Miss Annual, Miss Monthly, and that young alphabet D. O. V. E., have got him within the circle of their petticoats, where he will be martyred on a sigh?" "He casts tonging looks this way; he wishes you to go to his rescue, Pith." 4"I! -Let him take his fill of sentiment! I am no aomcmpathist in such matters. Large doses in quick 104 HOME AS FOUND. succession will soonest work a cure. Here conies the lion. and he oreaks loose from his cage, like a beast that has been poked up with sticks." " Good evening, gentlemen," said Captain Truck. wiping his face intensely, and who having made his escape from a throng of admirers, took refuge in the first port that ofiered. "You seem to be enjoying yourselves here in a rational and agreeable way. Quite cool and refreshing in this corner." "And vet we have no doubt that both our reason and our amusement will receive a large increase from the addition of your society, sir," returned Mr. Pith.-, "Do us the favour to take a spat, I beg of you, and rest yourself." "With all my heart, gentlemen; for, to own the truth, these ladies make warm work about a stranger. I have just got out of what I call a category." "4You appear to have escaped with life, sir," observed Pindar, taking a cool survey of the other's person. "Yes, thank God, I have done that, and it is pretty much all," answered the captain, wiping his face. "I served in the French war-Truxtun's war, as we call it-and I had a touch with the English in the privateer trade, between twelve and fifteen; and here, quite lately, I was in an encounter with the savage Arabs down on the coast of Africa; and I account them all as so much snow-balling, compared with the yard-arm and yard-arm work of this very night. I wonder if it is permitted to try a cigar at these con versation-onies, gentlemen?" " I believe it is, sir," returned Pindar, coolly. " Shall I help you to a light?" " Oh! Mr. Truck!" cried Mrs. Legend, following the chafed animal to his corner, as ones would pursue any other runaway,; "instinct has brought you into t~his good company. You are, now, in the very ffocus of American talents." HOME AS FOUND. 10o "Having just escaped from the focus of Amnerican talons," whispered Pith. "I must be permitted to introduce you myself. Mi. Truck, Mr. Pindar —Mr. Pith-Mr. Gray-gentlemen, you must be so happy to be acquainted, being, as it were, engaged in the same pursuits!" The captain rose and shook each of the gentlemen Cordially by the hand, for he had, at least, the consolation of a great many introductions that night. Mrs. Legend disappeared to say something to some other prodigy. " Happy to meet you, gentlemen," said the captain "6 In what trade do you sail?" "6 By whatever name we may call it," answered Mr. Pindar-" we can scarcely be said to go before the wind." "Not in the Injee business, then, or the monsoons would keep the stun'sails set, at least."'"No, sir.-But yonder is Mr. Moccasin, who has lately set up, secundurn artem, in the Indian business, having written two novels in that way already, and begun a third." "Are you all regularly employed, gentlemen?" "' As regularly as inspiration points," said Mr. Pith. c" Men of our occupation must make fair weather of it, or we had better be doing nothing." " So I often tell my owners, but'go ahead' is the order. When I was a youngster, a ship remained in port for a fair wind; but, now, she goes to work and makes one. The world seems to get young, as I get old." s" This is a rum litterateur," Gray whispered to Pindar. *"It is an obvious mystification," was the answer; "poor Mrs. Legend has picked up some straggling oorpoise, and converted him, by a touch of her magical wand, into a Boanerges of literature. The thing is as clear as day, for the worthy fellow smells of tar 106 HOME AS FOUND. and cigar smoke. I perceive that Mr. Effingham is laughing out of the corner of his eyes, and will step across the room, and get the truth, in a minute." The rogue was as good as his word, and was soon back again, and contrived to let his friends understand the real state of the case. A knowledge of the captain's true character encouraged this trio in the benevolent purpose of aiding the honest old seaman in his wish to smoke, and Pith managed to give him a lighted paper, without becoming an open accessary to the plot. " Will you take a cigar yourself, sir," said the captain, offering his box to Mr. Pindar. " I thank you, Mr. Truck, I never smoke, but am a profound admirer of the flavour. Let me entreat you to begin as soon as possible." Thus encouraged, Captain Truck drew two or three whiffs, when the rooms were immediately filled with the fragrance of a real Havana. At the first discovery, the'whole literary pack went off on the scent. As for Mr. Fun, he managed to profit by the agitation that followed, in order to escape to the three wags in the corner, who were enjoying the scene, with the gravity of so many dervishes. "As I live," cried Lucius Junius Brutus, "there is the author of a —a-a actually smoking a cigar!How excessively piquant!" " Do my eyes deceive me, or is not that the writer of e-e-e- fumigating us all!" whispered Miss Annual. "Nay, this cannot certainly be right," put in Florio, with a dogmatical manner. "Al. the periodicals agree that smoking is ungenteel in England." " You never were more mistaken, dear Florio," replied D. 0. V. E. in a cooing tone. " The very last novel of society has a chapter in which the hero and heroine smoke in the declaration scene." 6 "Do they, indeed!-That alters the case. Really, one would not wish to get behind so great a nation, HOME AS FOUND. 1D07 nor yet go Inuch before it. Pray, Captain Kant, wha' do your friends ill Canada say; is, or is not smoking permitted in good society there? the Canadians nmust, at least, be ahead of Us." "Not at all, sir," returned the editor in his softest tones; "it is revolutionary and jacobinical." But the ladies prevailed, and, by a process that is rather peculiar to what may be called a " credulous" state of' society, they carried the day. This process was simply to make one fiction authority for another. The fact that smoking was now carried so far in England, that the clergy actually used cigars in the pulpits, was affirmed on the authority of Mr. Truck himself, and, coupled with his present occupation, the point was deemed to be settled. Even Florio yielded, and his plastic mind soon saw a thousand beauties in.the usage, that had hitherto escaped it. All the literati drew round the captain in a circle, to enjoy the spectacle, though the honest old mariner contrived to throw out such volumes of vapour as to keep them at a safe distance. His four demure-looking neighbours got behind the barrier of smoke, where they deemed themselves entrenched against the assaults of sentimental petticoats, for a time, at least. " Pray, Mr. Truck," inquired S. R. P., " is it commonly thought in the English literary circles, that Byron was'a developement of Shakspeare, or Shakspeare a shadowing forth of Byron?" "Both, marm,'" said the captain, with a coolness that would have done credit to Aristabulus, for he had been fairly badgered into impudence, profiting by the occasion to knock the ashes off his cigar; " all incline to the first opinion, and most to the last." "What finesse!" murmured one. " How delicate!" whispered a second. "A dignified reserve!" ejacuated a third. " So English!" exclaimed Florio.,'Do you think, Mr. Truck," asked 1). 0. v R,. that the profane songs of Little have more pathos I 08 HOME AS MOUND. than the sacred songs of Moore; or thai the sacred songs of Moore have more sentiment than the profane songs of Little?" ~ A good deal of both, marm, and something to spare. I think there is little in one, and more in the other." 1"Pray, sir," said J. tR. P., "do you pronounce the name of Byron's lady-love, Guy-kee-oh-ly, or, Gwyky-o-lee?" "4 That depends on how the wind is. If on shore, I anm apt to say' oh-lee;' and if off' shore,' oh-lie.'" "That's capital!" cried Florio, in an extasy of admiration. "What man in this country could have said as crack a thing as that?" "Indeed it is very witty," added Miss Monthly"what does it mean?" "Mean! More than is seen or felt by common' minds. Ah! the English are truly a great nation! — How delightfully he smokes!" -"I think he is much the most interesting man we have had out here," observed Miss Annual, " since the last bust of Scott!" "s Ask him, dear D. O. V. E.," whispered Julietta. who was timid, from the circumstance of never having published, "' which he thinks the most ecstatic feeling, hope or despair?" The question was put by the more experienced lady, according to request, though she first said, in a hurried tone, to her youthful sister-" you can have felt but little, child, or you would know that it is despair, as a matter of course." The honest captain, however, did not treat the matter so lightly, for he improved the opportunity to light a fresh cigar, throwing the' still stmolting stump} into Mrs. Lecrend's grate, throungh a lane of literati, as he afterwards boasted, as coolly as he could have thrown t overboard, under other circumstances. Luckily for his reputation for sentiment, he m-istoolk " ecstatic," a HOME AS FOUND. 109 word he had never heard before, for " erratic;" and recollecting sundry roving maniacs that he had seen, he answered promptly"l)espair, out and out." "I knew it," said one. 6It's in nature," added a second. "All can feel its truth," rejoined a third. "This point may now be set down as established," cried Florio, "and I hope no more will be said about it." ~' This is encouragement to the searchers after truth," put in Captain Kant. "Pray, Hon. and Rev. Mr. Truclk," asked Lucius Junius Brutus, at the joint suggestion of Junius Brutus and Brutus, "does the Princess Victoria smoke?" 6If she didnot, sir, where would be the use in being a princess. I suppose-you know that all the tobacco seized in England, after a deduction to informers. goes to the crown." "I object tci this usage," remarked Captain Kant, i" as irreligious, French, and tending to stans-culotteism. I am willing to admit of this distinguished instance as an exception; but on all other grounds, I shall maintain that it savours of infidelity to smoke. The Prussian government, much the best of our times, never smokes." 1" This man thinks he has a monoply of the puffing, himself," Pindar whispered into the captain's ear; 6" whiff awav, my dear sir, and you'11 soon throw him into the shade." The captain winked, drew out his box, lighted an. other cigar, and, by way of reply to the envious remark, he put one in each corner of his mouth, and soon had both in full blast, a state in which he kepi them for near a minute. " This is the very picturesque of social enjoyment,' exclaimed Florio, holding up both hands in a glow of T'apture. "It is absolutely Homeric, in the way of usages! Ah! the English are a great nation "1" 10 110 HOME AS FOUND. "I should like to know excessively if there was really such a person as Baron Mun-ehaw-sen?" said Julietta, gathering courage from the success of her last question. "There was, Miss," returned the captain, through his teeth, and nodding his head in the affirmative. " A regular traveller, that; and one who knew him well, swore to me that he hadn't related one half of what befel him." "How very delightful to learn this from the highest quarter!" exclaimed Miss Monthly. " Is Gatty (Goethe) really dead?" inquired Longinus, "6 or, is the account we have had to that efect, merely a metaphysical apotheosis of his mighty soul'" "Dead, marm-stone dead-dead as a door-nail," returned the captain, who saw a relief in killing as many as possible. "You have been in France, Mr. Truck, beyond question?" observed Lucius Junius Brutus, in the way one puts a question. "' France -!I was in France before I was ten years old. I know every foot of the coast, from Havre de Grace to Marseilles." 4"Will you then have the goodness to explain to us whether the soul of Chat-to-bri-ong is more expanded than his reason, or his reason more expanded than his soul?" Captain Truck had a very tolerable notion of Baron Mlunchausen and of his particular merits; but Chateaubriant was a writer of whom he knew nothing. After pondering a moment, and feeling persuaded that a confession of ignorance might undo him; for the old man had got to be influenced by the atmosphere of the place; he answered coolly"Oh! Chat-to-bri-ong, is it you mean?-As whole. souled a fellow as I know. All soul, sir, and lots of rea. son, be-ides." " low simple and unaffected!" HOME AS FOUND. 11l Crack!" exclaimed Florio. "A thorough Jacobin!" growled Captain Kant, who was always offended when any one but himself took liberties with the truth. Here the four wags in the corner observed that head went to head in the crowd, and that the rear rank of the company began to disappear, while Mrs. Legend was in evident distress. In a few minutes, all the Romans were off; Florio soon after vanished, grating his teeth in a poetical frenzy; and even Captain Kant, albeit so-used to look truth in the face, beat a retreat. The alphabet followed, and even the Annual and the Monthly retired, with leave-takings so solemn and pre. cise, that poor Mrs. Legend was in total despair. Eve, foreseeing something unpleasant, had gone away first, and, in a few minutes, Mr. Dodge, who had been very active in the crowd, whispering and gesticulating, made his bow also. The envy of this man had, in fact, become so intolerable, that lihe had let the cat out of the bag. No one now remained but the party entrenched behind the smoke, and the mistress of the house. Pindar solemnly proposed to the captain that they should go and enjoy an oyster — supper, in company; and, the proposal being cordially accepted, they rose in a body, to take leave. "4 A most delightful evening, Mrs. Legend," said Pin. dar, with perfect truth, "much the pleasantest I ever passed in a house, where one passes so many that are agreeable." "I cannot properly express my thanks for the obligati;n you have conferred by making me acquainted with Mr. Truck,", added Gray. "I shall cultivate it as far as in my power, for a more capital fellow never breathed." "Really, Mrs. Legend, this has been a Byronic night!" observed Pith, as he made his basw. " [ shall iong remember it, and I think it deserves to be com. memorated in verse" 112 HOME AS FOUND. Fun endeavoured to look sympathetic and sentimental, though the spirit within could scarcely refrain firom grinning in Mrs. Legend's face. He stammered out a few compliments, however, and disappeared. " Wel, good night, -marilm," said Captain Trucik, offeringr his hand cordially. "'This has been a pleasant evening, altogether, though it was warm work at first. If you like ships, I should be glad to show you the Montauk's cabins when we get backl; and if you ever think of Europe, let me recommend the London line as none of the worst. We'Cll try to makel vou comfortable, and trust to me to choose a state-room, a thing I am experienced in." Not one of the wags laughed until they were fairly confronted with the oysters. Then, indeed, they burst out into a general and long fit of exuberant merriment, returning to it, between the courses fi'om the kitchen, like the refiaiir of a song. Captain Truch, who was uncommonly well satisfied with himself, did not understand the meaning of all this boyishness, but he has often declared since, that a heartier or a funnier set of fellows he never fell in with, than his four companions proved to be that night. As for the literary soiree, the most profound silence has been maintained concerning it, neither of the wits there assembled having seen fit to celebrate it in rhyme, and Florio having actually torn up an impromptu for the occasion, that he had been all the previous may writing. HOME AS FOUND. 113 CHAPTER VI1. "There is a history in all men's lives, Figuring the nature of' the times deceased, The which observed, a man may prophesy With a near aim, of the main chance of things, As ye.t not come to life." KING HENR Y VI. THE following morning the baronet breakfasted in Hudson Square. While at table, little was said concerning the events of the past night, though sundry smiles were exchanged, as eye met eye, and the recollection of the mystification returned. Grace alone looked grave, for she had been accustomed to consider Mrs. Legend a very discriminating person, and she had even hoped that most of those who usually figured in her rooms, were really the clever persons they laid claim to be. The morning was devoted to looking at the quarter of the town which is devoted to business, a party having been made for that express purpose under the auspices of John Effingham. As the weather was very cold, although the distances were not great, the carriages were ordered, and they all set off about noon. Grace had given up expecting a look of admiration from Eve in behalf of any of the lions of New-York, her cousin having found it necessary to tell her, that, in a comparative sense at least, little was to be said in behalf of these provincial wonders. Even Mademnoiselle Viefville, now that the freshness, of her feelings were abated, had dropped quietly down into a natural way of speaking of these things; and Grace, who was quick-wtitted, soon discovered that when she did make any allusions to similar objects in Europe, it was alwavs to those that existed in some country town. A 10 * 114 HOME AS FOUND. silent convention existed, therefore, to speak no more on such subjects; or if any thing was said, it arose incidentally and as inseparable from the regular thread of the discourse. When in Wall street, the carriages stopped and the gentlemen alighted. The severity of the weather kept the ladies in the chariot, where Grace endeavoured to explain things as well as she could to her companions. "6 What are all these people running after, so intently?" inquired Mademoiselle Viefville, the conversation being in French, but which we shall render freely into English, for the sake of the general reader. ("Dollars, I believe, Mademoiselle; am I right, Grace?" " I believe you are," returned Grace, laughing, " though I know little more of this part of the town than yourself." 6" Quelle foule! Is that building filled with dollars, into which the gentlemen are now entering? Its steps are crowded." "; That is the Bourse, Mademoiselle, and it ought to be well lined, by the manner in which some who fiequent it live. Cousin Jack and Sir George are going into the crowd, I see." We will leave the ladies in their seats, a few minutes, and accompany the gentlemen on their way into the Exchange. "I shall now show you, Sir George Templemore," said John Effingham, "what is peculiar to this coun. try, and what, if properly improved, it is truly wortn a journey across the ocean to see. You have been at the Royal Exchange in London, and at the Bourse of Paris, but you have never witnessed a scene lilie that which I am about to introduce you to. In Paris, you have beheld the unpleasant spectacle of women gambling publicly in the funds; but it was in driblets, compared to what vou will see here." While speaking, Johin Effingham led the way up stairs into the office of one of the most considerable HOME AS FOUNuD. 115 auctioneels. The wvalls were lined with maps, some representing houses. some lots, some streets, some entire towns. "This is the focus of what Aristabulus Bragg calls the town trade," said John Effingham, when fairly confronted with all these wonders. "Here, then, you may suit yourself with any species, of real estate that heart can desire. If a villa is wanted, there are a dozen. Of farms, a hundred are in market; that is merely half-a-dozen streets; and here are towns, of dimensions and value to suit purchasers." "Explain this; it exceeds comprehension." "' It. is simply what it professes to be. Mr. Hammer, do, us the favour to step this way. Are you selling today?" "Not much, sir. Only a hundred or two lots on this island, and some six or eight farms, with one western village." "Can you tell us the history of this particular piece of property, Mr. Hammer?" " With great pleasure, Mr. Effingham; we know you to have means; and hope you may be induced to purchase. This was the farm of old Volkert Van Brunt, five years since, off of which he and his family had made a. livelihood for more than a century, by selling milk. Two years since, the sons sold it to Peter Feeler for a hundred an acre; or for the total sum of five thousand dollars. The next spring Mr. Feeler sold it to John Search, as keen a one as we have, for twenty-five thousand. Search sold it, at private sale, to Nathan Rise for fifty thousand, the next week, and Rise had parted with it, to a company, before the purchase, for a hundred and twelve thousand cash. The map ought to be taken down, for it is now eight months since we sold it out in lots, at auction, for the gross sum of three hundred thousand dollars. As we have received our commission, we look at that land as out of the market, for a time.' 116 HOME AS FOUND.' "Have you other property, sir, that affords the same wonderful history of a rapid advance in value?" asked the baronet. "These walls are covered with maps of estates in the same predicament. Some have risen two or three thousand per cent. within five years, and some only a few hundred. There is no calculating in the matter, for it is all fancy." "And on what is this e-normous increase in value founded?-Does the town extend to these fields?" " It goes much farther, sir; that is to say, on paper. In the way of houses, it is still some miles short of them. A good deal depends on what you call a thing, in this market. Now, if old Volkert Van Brunt's property had been still called a farm, it would have brought a farm price; but, as soon as it was surveyed into lots. and mapped —— " "Mapped!" "Yes, sir; brought into visible lines, with feet and inches. As soon as it was properly mapped, it rose to its just value. We have a good deal of the bottom of the sea that brings fair prices in consequence of being well mapped." Here the gentlemen expressed their sense of the auctioneer's politeness, and retired. "We will now go into the sales-room," said John Effingham, "where you shall judge of the spirit, or energy, as it is termed, which, at this moment, actuates this great nation." Descending, they entered a crowd, where scores were eagerly bidding against each other, in the fearful delusion of growing rich by pushing a fancied value to a point still higher. One was purchasing ragged rocks, another the bottom of rivers, a third a bog, and tall on the credit of maps. Our two observers remained some time silent spectators of the scene. "When I first entered that room," said John Effingham, as they left the place, "it appeared to me to be HOME AS FUUND. 11, filled with maniacs. Now, that I have been in it several times, the impression is not much altered." "'And all those persons are hazarding their means of subsistence on the imaginary estimate mentioned by the auctioneer?" " They are gambling as recklessly as he who places his substance on the cast of the die. So completely has the mania seized every one, that the obvious truth, a truth which is as apparent as any other law of nature, that nothing can be sustained without a foundation, is completely overlooked, and ne who should now proclaim, in this building, principles that bitter experience will cause every man to feel, within the next few years, would be happy if he escaped being stoned. I have witnessed many similar excesses in the way of speculations; but never an instance as gross, as wide-spread, and as alarming as this." "You apprehend serious consequences, then, from the reaction?" "In that particular, we are better off than older nations, the youth and real stamina of the country averting much of the danger; but I anticipate a terrible blow, and that the day is not remote when this town will awake to a sense of its illusion. What you see here is but a small part of the extravagance that exists, for it pervades the whole community, in one shape or another. Extravagant issues of paper-money, inconsiderate credits that commence in Europe; and extend throughout the land, and false notions as to the value of their possessions, in men who five years since had nothing, has completely destroyed the usual balance of things, and money has got to be so completely the end of life, that few think of it as a means. The history of the world, probably, cannot furnish a parallel in. stance, of an extensive country that is so absolutely under this malign influence, as is the fact with oul own at this present instant. All principles are swallowed ap in the absorbing desire for gain; national honour, 1 18 HOME AS FOUNl). permanent security, the ordinary rules of society, law, the constitution, and every thing that is usually so dear to men, are forgotten, or are perverted, in order to sustain this unnatural condition of things." " This is not only extraordinary, but it is fearful!" " It is both. The entire community is in the situation of a man who is in the incipient stages of an exhilarating intoxication, and who keeps pouring down glass after glass, in the idle notion that he is merely sustaining nature in her ordinary functions. This wide-spread infatuation extends from the coast to the extremest frontiers of the west; for, while there is a justifiable foundation for a good deal of this fancied prosperity, the true is so interwoven with the false, that none but the most observant can draw the distinction, and, as usual, the false predominates." "By your account, sir, the tulip mania of Holland was trifling compared to this?" "That was the same in principle as our own, but insignificant in extent. Could I lead you through these streets, and let you into the secret of the interests, hopes, infatuations and follies that prevail in the human breast, you, as a calm spectator, would be astonished at the manner in which your own species can be deluded. But let us move, and something may still occur to offer an example." "Mr. Effingham-I beg pardon-Mr. Effingham, said a very gentlemanly-looking merchant, who wa, walking about the hall of the exchange, "what do you think now of our French quarrel?" " I have told you, Mr. Bale, all I have to say on thal subject. When in France, I wrote you that it was not the intention of the French government to comply with'he treaty; you have since seen this opinion justified in the result; you have the declaration of the French minister of state, that, without an apology from this gove;~nment, the mone'y will not be paid; and I have given it as my opinion, that the vane on yonder steeple HOME AS FOUND. 119 will not turn more readily than all this policy will be abandoned, should any thing occur in Europe to render it necessary, or could the French ministry believe it possible for this country to fight fior a principle. These are my opinions, in all their phases, and you may compare them with facts and judge for yourself."," It is all General Jackson, sir-all that monster's doings. But for his message, Mr. Effingham, we should have had the money long ago." s" But for his message, or some equally decided step, Mr. Bale, you would never have it." "' Ah, my dear sir, I know your intentions, but I fear you are prejudiced against that excellent man, the King of France! Prejudice, Mr. Effingham, is a sad innovator on justice." Here Mr. Bale shook his head, laughed, and disappeared in the crowd, perfectly satisfied that John Effingham was a prejudiced man, and that he, himself, was only liberal and just. "Now, that is a man who wants for neither abilities nor honesty, and yet he permits his interests, and the influence of this very speculating mania, to overshadow all his sense of right, facts plain as noon-day, and the only principles that can rule a country in safety." "He apprehends war, and has no desire to believe even facts, so long as they serve to increase the danger." "Precisely so; for even prudence gets to be a per7erted quality, when men are living under an infatuation like that which now exists. These men live like the fool who says there is no death." Here the gentlemen rejoined the ladies, and the carriages drove through a succession of narrow and crooked streets, that were lined with warehouses filled with the products of the civilized world. "Very much of all this is a part of the same lamentable illusion," said John Efiungham, as the carriages made their way slowly through the encumbered 120 tHOME AS FOUND. streets. "The man who sells his inland lots at a profit, secured by credit, fancies himself enriched, and he extends his manner of living in proportion; the boy from the country becomes a merchant, or what is here called a merchant, and obtains a credit in Europe a hundred times exceeding his means, and caters to these fancied wants; and thus is every avenue of society thronged with adventurers, the ephemera of the same wide-spread spirit of reckless folly. Millions in value pass out of these streets, that go to feed the vanity of those who fancy themselves wealthy, because they hold some ideal pledges for the payment of advances in price like those mentioned by the auctioneer, and which have some such security for the eventual payment, as one can find in calling a thing, that is really worth a dollar, worth a hundred." "Are the effects of this state of things apparent in your ordinary associations?" " In every thing. The desire to grow suddenly rich has seized on all classes. Even women and clergymen are infected, and we exist under the active control of the most corrupting of all influeonces — the love of money.' I should despair of the country altogether, did I not feel certain that the disease is too violent to last, and entertain a hope that the season of calm reflection and of repentance, that is to follow, will be in proportion to its causes." After taking this view of the town, the party returned to Hudson Square, where the baronet dined, it being his intention to go to Washington on the following day. The leave-taking in the evening was kind and friendly; Mr. Effingham, who had a sincere regard for his late fellow-traveller, cordially inviting him to visit him in the mountains in June. As Sir George took his leave, the bells began to ring for a fire. In New-York one gets so accustomed to these alarms, that near an hour had passed before any of the Effingham family began to reflect on the long HIOE AS FouND. 121 continuance of the cries. A servant was then sent out to ascertain the reason, and his report made the matter more serious than usual. We believe that in the frequency of these calamities. the question lies between Constantinople and NewYork. It is a common occurrence for twenty or thirty buildings to be burnt down, in the latter place, and for the residents of the same ward to remain in ignorance of the circumstance, until enlightened on the fact by the daily prints; the constant repetition of the alarms hardening the ear and the feelings against the appeal. A fire of greater extent than common, had occurred only a night or two previously to this; and a rumour now prevailed, that the severity of the weather, and the condition of the hoses and engines, rendered the present.danger double. On hearing this intelligence, the MAessrs. Effinghams wrapped themselves up in their over-coats, and went together into the streets. " This seems something more than usual, Ned," said John Effingharn, glancing his eye upward at the lurid vault, athwart which gleams of fiery light began to shine;'the danger is not distant, and it seems serious.' Following the direction of the current, they soon found the scene of the conflagration, which was in the very heart of those masses of warehouses, or stores, that John Effingham had commented on, so lately. A short street of high buildings was already completely in flames, and the danger of approaching the enemy, added to the frozen condition of the apparatus, the exhaustion of the firemen from their previous efforts, and the intense coldness of the night, conspired to make the aspect of things in the highest degree alarming. The firemen of New-York have that superiority over those of other places, that the veteran soldier obtains over the recruit. But the best troops can be appalled, and, on this memorable occasion, these cele11 122 HOME AS FOUND. brated firemen, from a variety of causes, became for a time, l ttle more than passive spectators of the terrible scene. There was an hour or two when all attempts at checking the conflagration seemed really hopeless, anid even the boldest and the most persevering sciarcciy knew which way to turn, to be useful. A failure of' water, the numnerous points that required resistance, the conflagration extending in all directions from a common centre, by means of numberless irregular and narrow streets, and the impossibility of withstanding. the intense heat, in the choked passages, soon added despair to the other horrors of the scene. They who stood the fiery masses, were freezing on one side with the Greenland cold of the night, while their bodies were almost blistered with the fierce flames on the other. There was something frightful in this contest of the elements, nature appearing to condense the heat within its narrowest possible limits, as if purposely to increase its fierceness. The effects were awful; for entire buildings would seem to dissolve at their touch, as the forked flames enveloped- them in sheets of fire. Every one being afoot, within sound of the alarm, though all the more vulgar cries had ceased, as men would deem it mockery to cry murder in a battle, Sir George Templemore met his friends, on the margin of this sea of fire. It was now drawing towards morning, and the conflagration was at its height, having already laid waste a nucleus of blocks, and it was extending by many lines, in every possible direction. "Here is a fearful admonition for those who set their hearts on riches," observed Sir George Templemore, recalling the conversation of the previous day. "What, indeed, are the designs of man, as compared with the will of Providence!" " I foresee that this is le comnrnencement de la fin returned John Effingham. "' The destruction is already HOME AS FOUND. 1 9 o3 great, as to threaten to bring down with it the usual safe-guards against such losses, and one pin knocked out of so frail and delicate a fabric, the whole will become loose, and fall to pieces." "Will nothing be done to arrest the flames?" "As men recover from the panic, their plans will improve and their energies will revive. The wider streets are already reducing the fire within more certain limits, and they speak of a favourable change of wind. It is thought five hundred buildings have already been consumed, in scarcely half a dozen hours." That Exchange, which. had so lately resembled a bustling temple of Mammon, was already a dark and sheeted ruin, its marble walls being cracked, defated, tottering, or fallen. It lay on the confines of the ruin, and our party was enabled to take their position near it, to observe the scene. All in their immediate vicinity was assuming the stillness of desolation, while the flushes of fierce light in the distance marked the progress of the conflagration. Those who knew the localities, now began to speak of the natural or accidental barriers, such as the water, the slips, and the broader streets, as the only probable means of arresting the destruction. The crackling of the flames grew distant fast, and the cries of the firemen were now scarcely audible. At this period in the frightful scene, a party of seamen arrived, bearing powder, in readiness to blow up various buildings, in the streets that possessed of themselves, no sufficient barriers to the advance of the flame. Led by their officers, these gallant fellows, carrying in their arms the means of destruction, moved up steadily to the verge of the torrents of fire, and planted their kegs; laying their trains with the hardy indifference that practice can alone create, and with an intelligence that did infinite credit to their coolness. rhis deliberate courage was rewarded with complete L24 HOME AS FOUNDD success, and house crumbled to pieces after house under the dull explosions, happily without an accident. From this time the flames became less ungovernable. though the day dawned and advanced, and another night succeeded, before they could be said to be got fairly under, Weeks, and even months passed, however, ere the smouldering ruins ceased to send up smoke, the fierce element continuing to burn, like a' slumbering volcano, as it might be in the bowels of the earth. The day that succeeded this disaster, was memorable for the rebuke it gave the rapacious longing for wealth. Men who had set their hearts on gold, and who prided themselves on their possession, and on that only, were made to feel its insanity; and they who had walked abroad as gods, so lately, began to experience how utterly insignificant are the merely rich, when stripped of their possessions. Eight hundred buildings containing fabrics of every kind, and the raw material in various forms, had been destroyed, as it were in the twinkling of an eye. A faint voice was heard from the pulpit, and there was a moment when those who remembered abetter state of things, began to fancy that principles would once more assert their ascendency, and that the community would, in a measure,. be purified. But this expectation ended in disappointment, the infatuation being too wide-spread and corrupting, to be stopped by even this check, and the rebuke was reserved for a form that seems to depend on a law of nature, that of causing a vice to bring with it its own infallible pun-,shment. HOME AS FOUND. 125 CHAPTER VIII. ",First, tell me, have you ever been at Pisa." SHAKSPEARF. THE: conflagration alluded to, rather than described, in the proceeding chapter, threw a gloom over the gaieties of New-York, if that ever could be properly called gay, which was little more than a strife in prodigality and parade, and leaves us little more to say of the events of the winter. Eve regretted very little the interruption to scenes in which she had found no pleasure, however much she lamented the cause; and she and Grace passed the remainder of the season quietly, cultivating the friendship of such women as Mrs. Hawker and Mrs. Bloomfield, and devoting hours to the improvement of their minds and tastes, without ever again venturing however, within the hallowed precincts of such rooms as those of Mrs. Legend. One consequence of a state of rapacious infatuatioi, like that which we have just related, is the intensity of selfishness which smothers all recollection of the past, and all just anticipations of the future, by condensing life, with its motives and enjoyments, into the present moment. Captain Truck, therefore, was soon Forgotten, and the literati, as that worthy seaman had termed the associates of Mrs. Legend, remained just as vapid, as conceited, as ignorant, as imitative, as dependent, and as provincial as ever. As the season advanced, our heroine began,o look with longings towards the country. The town life of an American offers little to one accustomed to a town,ife in older and more permanently regulated communities; and Eve was already heartily weary of crowded and noisy balls, (for a few were still given;) belles, the struggles of an uninstructed taste, and a represent11i 126 HOME AS FOUND. ation in which extravagance was so seldom relieved by the elegance and convenience of a condition of society, in which more attention is paid to the fitness of things. The American spring is the least pleasant of its four seasons, its character being truly that of "winter lingering in the lap of May." Mr. Etfingham, who the reader will probably suspect, by this time, to be a descendant of a family of the same name, that we have had occasion to introduce into another work, had sent orders to have his country residence prepared for the reception of our party; and it was with a feeling of delight-that Eve stepped on board a steam-boat to escape from a town that, while it contains so much that is worthy of any capital, contains so much more that is unfit for any place, in order to breathe the pure air, and to enjoy the tranquil pleasdre of the country. Sir George Templemore had returned from his southern journey, and made one of the party, by express arrangement. "Now, Eve," said Grace Van Cortlandt, as the boat glided along the wharves, "if it were any person but you, I should feel confident of h;aving something to show that would extort admiration." " You are safe enough, in that respect, for a more imposing object in its way, than this very vessel, eye of mine, never beheld. It is positively the only thing that deserves the name of magnificent I have yet seen, since our return,-unless, indeed, it mav be magnificent projects." "I am glad, dear coz, there is this one magnificent object, then, to satisfy a taste so fastidious." As Grace's little foot moved, and her voice betrayed vexation, the. whole party smiled; for the whole party, while it felt the justice of Eve's observation, saw the real feeling that was at the bottom of her cousin's remark. Sir George, however, though he could not conceal from himself the truth of what had been said by HOME AS FOUND. 12'i the one party, and the weakness betrayed by the other had too much sympathy for the provincial patriotism of one so young and beautiful, not to come to the rescue. "You should remember, MIiss Van Cortlandt," he said, "6 that Miss Effingham has not had the advantage yet of seeing the Delaware, Philadelphia, the noble bays of the south, nor so much that is to be found out of the single town of New-York." " 46 Very true, and I hope yet to see her a sincere penitent for all her unpatriotic admissions against her own country. You have seen the Capitol, Sir George Templemnore; is it not, truly, one of the finest edifices of the world?"'" You will except St. Peter's, surely, my child," observed Mr. Effingham, smiling, for he saw that the baronet was embarrassed to give a ready answer. " And the Cathedral at Milan," said Eve, laughing. "E' E le Louvre!" cried Mademoiselle Viefville, who had some such admiration for every thing Parisian, as Eve had for every thing American. " And, most especially, the north-east corner of the south-west end of the north-west wing of Versailles," said John Effingham, in his usual dry manner. "I see you are all against me," Grace rejoined, "but I hope, one day, to be able to ascertain for myself the comparative merits of thingso As nature makes rivers, I hope the Hudson, at least, will not be found unworthy of your admiration, gentlemen and ladies." 6" You are safe enough, there, Grace," observed Mr Effingham; " for few rivers, perhaps no river, offers so great and so pleasing a variety, in so short a distance, as this." It was a lovely, bland morning, in the last -week of May; and the atmosphere was already getting the soft hues of summer, or assuming the hazy and solemn calm that renders the season so quiet arid soothing, after the fiercer strife of the elements. Under such a sky, the 128 HOM;E1 AS FOUND. Palisadoes, in particular, appeared well; for, thoughi wanting in the terrific grandeur of an Alpine nature, and perhaps disproportioned to the scenery they adorn. ed, they were bold and peculiar. The great velocity of the boat added to the charm of the passage, the scene scarce finding time to pall on the eye; for, no sooner was one object examined in its outlines, than it was succeeded by another. "6 An extraordinary taste is afflicting this country, in the wvay of architecture," said Mr. Effingham, as they stood gazing at the eastern shore; "nothing but a Grecian temple being now deemed a suitable residence for a man, in these classical times. Yonder is a structure, for instance, of beautiful proportions, and, at this distance, apparently of a precious material, and yet it seems better suited to heathen worship than to domestic comfort." 6(The malady has infected the whole nation," returned his cousin, " like the spirit of speculation. We are passing from one extreme to the other, in this, as in other things. One such temple, well placed in a wood, might be a pleasant object enough, but to see a river lined with them, with children trundling hoops before their doors, beef carried into their kitchens, and smoke issuing, moreover, from those unclassical objects chimnies, is too much even of a high taste; one might as well live in a fever. Mr. Aristabulus Bragg, who is a wag in his way, informs me that there is one town in the interior that has actually a market-house on the plan of the Parthenon!" "61 Capo di Bove would be a more suitable model for such a structure," said Eve, smiling. " But I think I have heard that the classical taste of our architects is any thing but rigid." "This ewas the case, rather than is," returned John Eflingham, "6 as witness all these temples. The country has made a quick and a great pas, ev acvaft, in the way of the fine arts, and the fact shows what mighi HOME AS FOUND. 1't be done with so ready a people, under a suitable direction. The stranger who comes among us is apt to hold the art of the nation cheap, but, as all things are comparative, let him inquire into its state ten years since, and look at it to-day. The fault just now, is perhaps to consult the books too rigidly, and to trust too little to invention; for no architecture, and especially no domestic architecture, can ever be above serious reproach, until climate, the uses of the edifice, and the situation, are respected as leading considerations. Nothing can be uglier, per se, than a Swiss cottage, or any thing more beautiful under its precise circumstances. As regards these mushroom temples, which are the offspring of Mammon, let them be dedicated to whom they may, I should exactly reverse the opinion, and say, that while nothing can be much more beautiful, per se, nothing can be in worse taste, than to put them where they are." "We shall have an opportunity of seeing what Mr. John Effingham can do in the way of architecture," said Grace, who loved to revenge some of her fancied wrongs, by turning the tables on her assailant, "for I understand he has been improving on the original labours of that notorious Palladio, Master Hiramrn Doolittle!" The whole party laughed, and everyeye was turned on the gentleman alluded to, expecting his answer. c" You will remember, good people," answered the accused by implication, "that my plans were handed over to me from my great predecessor, and that they were originally of the composite order. If, therefore, the house should turn out to be a little complex and mixed, you will do me the justice to remember this important fact. At all events, I have consulted coimfort; and that I would maintain, in the face of Vitruvius himself, is a sine qua non in domestic architeclure." "I took a run into Connecticut the other day," said 1 30 HOME AS FOUND. Sir George Templemore, " and, at a place called New Haven, I saw the commencement of a taste that bids fair to make a most remarkable town. It is trule, you cannot expect structures of much pretension in the wav of cost and magnitude in this country, but, so fiar as fitness and forms are concerned, if what I hear be true, and the next fifty years do as much in proportion for that little city, as I understand has been done in the last five, it will be altogether a wonder in its way. There are some abortions, it is true, but there are also somne little jewels." The baronet was rewarded for this opinion, by a smile from Grace, and the conversation changed. As the boat approached the mountains, Eve became excited, a very American state of the system by the way, and Grace still more anxious. "The view of that bluff is Italian;" said our heroine, pointing down the river at a noble headland of rock, that loomed grandly in the soft haze of the tranquil atmosphere. "One seldom sees a finer or a softer outline on the shores of the Mediterranean itself." "But the Highlands, Eve!" whispered the uneasy Grace. "We are entering the mountains." The river narrowed suddenly, and the scenery became bolder, but neither Eve nor her father expressed the rapture that Grace expected. I must confess, Jack," said the mild, thoughtful Mih Effingham, " that these rocks strike my eyes as much less imposing than formerly. The passage is fine, beyond question, but it is hardly grand scenery." "You never uttered a juster opinion, Ned, though after your eye loses some of the forms of the Swiss and Italian lakes, and of the shores of Italy, you will thinlk better of these. The Highlands are remark-.able for their surprises, rather than for their g,randeur', -as we shall presently see. As to the latter, it is nan aftair of fieet and inches, and is capable of arithmelic, l demonstration. We have often been on lakes, beneat}' HOME AS F'OUND. 131 beetling cliffs of from three to six thousand feet in height; whereas, here, the greatest elevation is materially less than two. But, Sir George Temiplemore, and you, Miss Efingham, do me the fatvour to combine vour cunning, and tell me wThence this stream cometh, and whither we are to go?" The boat had now approached a point where tl:e river was narrowed to a width not much exceeding a quarter of a mile, and in the direction in which it was steering, the water seemed to become still more contracted until they were lost in a sort of bay, that ap. peared to be closed by high hills, through which, how. ever, there were traces of something like a passage. "' The land in that direction looks as if it had a ravine-like entrance," said the baronet; "and yet it is scarcely possible that a stream like this can flow there!" "If the Hudson truly passes through those mountains," said Eve, "I will concede all in its favour that you can ask, Grace." "Where else can it pass?" demanded Grace, exultingly. "Sure enough-I see no other place, and that seems insufficient." The two strangers to the river now looked curiously around them, in every direction. Behind them was a broad and lake-like basin, through which they had just passed; on the left, a barrier of precipitous hills, the elevation of which was scarcely less than a thousand feet; on their right, a high but broken country, studded with villas, farm-houses, and hamlets; and in their front the deep but equivocal bay mentioned. " I see no escape!" cried the baronet, gaily, " unless indeed, it be by returning." A sudden and broad sheer of the boat caused him to turn to the left, and then they whirled round an angle of the precipice, and found themselves in a reach of the river, between steep declivities, running at right angles to their former course. 132 HOIME AS FOUND. I''This is one of the surprises of which I spoke," said John Effinghamt, "6 and which render the highlands so unique; for, while the Rhine is very sinuous, it has nothing like this." The other travellers agreed in extolling this and many similar features of the scenery, and Grace was delighted; for, warm-hearted, affectionate, and true, Grace loved her country like a relative or a friend, and took an honest pride in hearing its praises. The patriotism of Eve, if a word of a meaning so lofty can be applied to feelings of this nature, was more discriminating from necessity, her tastes having been formed in a higher school, and her. means of comparison being so much more ample. At West Poit they stopped for the night, and here every body was in honest raptures; Grace, who had often visited the place before, being actually the least so of the whole party. 6 6Now, Eve, I know that you do love your countty," she said, as she slipped an arm affectionately through that of' her cousin. " This is feeling and speaking like an American girl, and as Eve Effingham should!" Eve laughed, but she had discovered that the provincial feeling was so strong in Grace, that its discussion would probably do no good. She dwelt, therefore, with sincere eloquence on the beauties of the place, and for the first time since they had met, her cousin felt as if there was no longer any point of dissension between them. The following morning was the first of June, and it was another of those drowsy, dreamy days, that so much aid a landscape. The party embarked in the first boat that came up, and as they entered Newburgh bay, the triumph of the river was established. This is a spot, in sooth, that has few equals in any region. though Eve still insisted that the excellence of the view was in its softness rather than in its grandeur. The country-houses, or boxes, for few could claim to HOME AS FOUND. 133 ueI much more, were neat, well placed, and exteedingly numerous. The heights around the town of Newburgh, in particular, were fairly dotted with themn, though Mr. Effinghamrn shook his head as he saw one Grecian ternple appear after another. "As we recede from the influence of the vulgar architects," he said, 6" we find imitation taking the place of instruction. Many of these buildings are obviously disproportioned, and then, like vulgar pretension of any sort, Grecian architecture produces less pleasure than even Dutch."' "S I am surprised at discovering how little of a Dutch character remains in this state," said the baronet; i "1 can scarcely trace that people in any thing, and yet, 1 believe, they had the moulding of your society, having carried the colony through its infancy." "' When you know us better, you will be surprised'at discovering how little of any thing remains a dozen years," returned John Effingham. "Our towns pass away in generations like their people, and even the names of a place undergo periodical mutations, as well as every thing else. It is getting to be a pe.dominant feeling in the American nature, I fear, to love change." "' But, cousin Jack, do vou not overlook causes, in your censure. That a nation advan(,ing as fast as this in wealth and numbers, should desire better strlucturea than its fathers had either the means or the taste to build, and that names should change with persons, are both things quite in rule." "All very true, though it does not account foi' the peculiarity I mean. Take Templeton, for instance; this little place has not essentially increased in numDers, within my memory, and yet fully one-half its names are new. When he reaches his own home, yoUe father will not know even the names of one-half his neighbours. Not only will he meet with new faces, but he will find new feelings, new opinions in the place 112 134 HOME AS FOUNDe )f traditions that he may love, an indifference to every thing bhit the present moment, and even those who may have better feelings, and a wish to cherish all that belongs to the holier sentiments of man, afraid to ttter them, lest they meet with no sympathy." "No cats, as Mr. Bragg would say." "Jack is one who never paints en beau," said Mr. Effingham. " I should be very sorry to believe that a dozen short years can have made all these essential changes in my neighbourhood." "A dozen years, Ned! You name an age. Speak of three or four, if you wish to find any thing in America where you left it! The whole country is in such a constant state of mutation, that I can only liken it to that game of children, in which as one quits his corner, another runs into it, and he that finds no corner to get into, is the laughing-stock of the others. Fancy that dwelling the residence of one man from childhood to old age; let him then quit it for a year or two, and on his return he would find another in possession, who would treat him as an impertinent intruder, because he bad been absent two years. An American'always,' in the way of usages, extends no further back than eighteen months. In short, every thing is condensed into the present moment; and services, character, for evil as well as good unhappily, and all other things, cease to have weight, exce-pt as they influence the interests of the day." "' This is the colouring of a professed cynic," observed Mr. Effingham, smiling. "But the law, Mr. John Effingham," eagerly inquired the baronet —" surely the law would not permit a stranger to intrude in this manner on the rights of an owner." " The law-books would do him that friendly office, perhaps, but what is a precept in the face of practices so ruthless.'Les absents ont totljours tort,' is a maxinof peculiar application in America." HOME AS FOUND. 135 6 Property is as secure in this country as in any other, Sir George; and you will make allowances for the humours of the present annotator." "rWell, well, Ned; I hope you will find every thing couleur de rose, as xyou appear to expect. You will get quiet possession of your house, it is true, for I have put a Cerberus in it, that is quite equal to his task, difficult as it may be, and who has quite as muchl relish for a bill of costs, as any squatter can have for a trespass; but without some such guardian of your rights, I would not answer for it, that you would not be compelled to sleep in the high-way." "I trust Sir George Templemore knows how to make allowances for Mr. John Effinghatm's pictures," cried Grace, unable to refrain from expressing her discontent any longer. A laugh succeeded, and the beauties of the river again attracted their attention. As the boat continued to ascend, Mr. Effingham triumphantly affirmed that the appearance of things more than equalled his expectations, while both Eve and the baronet declared that a succession of lovelier landsgapes could hardly be presented to the eye. "Whited sepulchres!" muttered John Effingham — " all outside. Wait until you get a view of the defbrmity within." As the boat approached Albany, Eve expressed her satisfaction in still stronger terms; and Grace was made perfectly happy, by hearing her and Sir George declare that the place entirely exceeded their expectations. "I am glad to find, Eve, that you are so fast recovering your American feelings," said her beautiful cousin, after one of those expressions of agreeable disappointment, as they were seated at a late dinner, in an inn. "You have at last found words to praise the exterior of Albany; and I hope, by the time we return, you will he disposed to see New-York with different eyes' HOME AS FOUND. "1 expected to see a capital in New-York, Grace, and in this I have been grievously disappointed. Instead of finging the tastes, tone, conveniences, architecture, streets, churches, shops, and society of a capital, I found a huge expansion of common-place things, a commercial town, and the most mixed and the least regulated society, that I had ever met with. Expecting so much, where so little was found, disappointment was natural. But in Albany, although a political capital, I knew the nature of the government too well, to expect more than a provincial town; and in this respect, 1 have found one much above the level of similar places in other parts of the world. I acknowledge that Albany has as much exceeded my expectations in one sense, as New-Yorlk has fallen short of them in another." "' In this simple fact, Sir George Templemore," said Mr. Effingham, " you may read the real condition of the country. In all that requires something more than usual, a deficiency; in all that is deemed an average, better than common. The tendency is to raise every thing that is elsewhere'degraded to a respectable height, when there commences an attraction of gravitation that draws all towards the centre; a little closer too, than could be wished perhaps." " Ay, ay,"Ned; this is very pretty, with your attractions and gravitations; but wait and judge for yourself of this average, of which you now speak so complacently. 6' Nay, John, I borrowed the image from you; if it be not accurate, I shall hold you responsible for its defects." "They tell me," said Eve, "6 that all American vil-.ages are the towns in miniature; children dressed in hoops and wigs. Is this so, Grace?" "A little; there is too much desire to imitate the towns, perhaps, and possibly too little feeling for counrt try life." HOME AS FOUND. 137 "This is a very natural consequence, after all, of people's living entirely in such places," observed Sir George Templemore. "One sees much of this on the continent of Europe, because the country population is purely a country population; and less of it in England, perhaps, because those who are at the head of society, consider town and country as very distinct things." "La campagne est vraiment dclicieuse en 2]me. rique," exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville, in whose eyes the whole country was little more than camjpagne. The next morning, our travellers proceeded by the way of Schenectady, whence they ascended the beau tiful valley of the Mohawk, by means of a canal-boat, the cars that now rattle along its length not having,commenced their active flights, at that time. With the scenery, every one was delighted; for while it differed essentially from that the party had passed through the previous day, it was scarcely less beautiful. At a point where the necessary route diverged from the direction of the canal, carriages of Mr. Effinghanm's were in readiness to receive the travellers, and here they were also favoured by the presence of Mr. Bragg, who fancied such an attention might be agreeable to the young ladies, as well as to his employer. CHAPTER IX. "Tell me, where is fancy bredOr in the heart, ornin the head? How begot, how nourished?" SONG IN SHAKSPEARE. THE travellers were several hours ascending into the mountains, by a country road that could scarcely be surpassed by a French wheel-track of the same sort, 12X 138 HOME AS FOUND. fir Mademnoselle Viefville protested, twenty times in the course of the morning, that it was a thousand pities Mr. Effingham had not the privilege of the corvl'e, that he might cause the approach to his terres to be kept in better condition. At length they reached the summit, a point where the waters began to flow south, when the road became tolerably level. From this time their progress became more rapid, and they continued to advance two or three hours longer at a steady pace. Aristabulus now informed his companions that, in obedience to instructions friom John Eflingham, he had ordered the coachmen to take a road that led a little from the direct line of their journey, and that they had now been travelling for some time on the more ancient route to Templeton. " I was aware of this," said Mr. Effingham, "though ignorant of the reason. We are on the great western turnpike."' "Certainly, sir, and all according to Mr. John's request. There would have been a great saving in distance, and agreeably to my notion, in horse-flesh, had we quietly gone down the banks of the lake." " Jack will explain his own meaning," returned Mr, Effingham, "and he has stopped the other carriage, and alighted with Sir George, —a hint, I fancy, that we are to follow their example." Sure enough, the second carriage was now stopped, and Sir George hastened to open its door. " Mr. John Effingham, who acts as cicerone," cried the baronet, "insists that every one shall put pied a terre at this precise spot, keeping the important reason still a secret, in the recesses of his own bosom." The ladies complied, and the carriages were ordered to proceed with the domestics, leaving the rest of the travellers by themselves, apparently in the heart of a oorest. " It is to be hoped, Mademoiselle, there are no ban-ditti in America," said Eve, as they looked around HOME AS FOUND. 139 them at the novel situation in which they were placed, apparently by a pure caprice of her cousin. "Om des sautages," returned the governess, who, in spite of her ordinary intelligence and great good sense, had several times that dav cast uneasy and stolen glances into the bits of dark wood they had occasionally passed. "I' will ensure your purses and your scalps, mesdames," cried John Effingham gaily, "on condition that you will follow me implicitly; and by way of pledge for my faith, I solicit the honour of supporting Mademoiselle Viefville on this unworthy arm." The governess laughingly accepted the conditions, Eve took the arm of her father, and Sir George offered his to Grace; Aristabulus, to his surprise, being left to walk entirely alone. It struck him, however, as so singularly improper that a young lady should be supported on such an occasion by her own father, that he frankly and gallantly proposed to Mr. Effingham to relieve him of his burthen, an offer that was declined with quite as much distinctness as it was made. a'I suppose cousin Jack has a meaning to his melo. drama," said Eve, as they entered the forest, "and I dare say, dearest father, that you are behind the scenes, though I perceive determined secrecy in your face." "John may have a cave to show us, or some tree of extraordinary height; such things existing in the country." " We are very confiding, Mademoiselle, for 1 detect treachery in every face around us. Even Miss Van Cortlandt has the air of a conspirator, and seems to be in league with something or somebody. Pray Heaven, it be not with wolves." "Des loups " exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville, stopping short, with a mien so alarmed as to excite a general laugh-~" est ce qu'il y a des loups el des sa.n-,l'iers dans cette folret?" 6No, Mademoiselle," returned her conmpanion —"this 140 HOME AS FOUND. is only barbarous America, and not civilized France. Were we in le departement de la Seine, we might ap prehend some such dangers, but being merely in the mountains of Otsego, we are reasonably safe."'" Je'espere," murmured the governess, as.she reluctantly and distrustfully proceeded, glancing her eyes incessantly to the right and left. The path now became steep and rather difficult; so m-nuch so, indeed, as to indispose them all to conve;sation. It led beneath the branches of lofty pines, though there existed, on every side of them, proofs of the ravages man had committed in that noble forest. At length they were compelled to stop for breath, after.having ascended considerably above the road they had left. " I ought to have said that the spot where we entered on this path, is memorable in the family history," observed John Effingham, to Eve-" for it was the precise spot where one of our predecessors lodged a shot in the shoulder of another." "' Then I know precisely where we are!" cried our heroine, "6 though I cannot yet imagine why we are led into this forest, unless it be to visit some spot hallowed by a deed of Natty Bumppo's!" " Time will solve this mystery, as well as all others Let us proceed." Again they ascended, and, after a few more minutes of trial, they reached a sort of table-land, and drew near an opening in the trees, where a small circle had evidently been cleared of its wood, though it was quite small and untilled. Eve looked curiously about her, as did all the others to whom the place was novel, and she was lost in doubt. "There seems to be a void beyond us," said the baronet —" I rather think Mr. John Effingham has led us to the verge of a view." At this suggestion the party moved on in a body. and were well rewarded for the toil of the ascent, by a coztp d'eil that was allmost Swiss in character and beauty. HOME AS FOUND. 14 "Now do I know where we are," exclaimed Eve, clasping her hands in rapture-" this is the' Vision,' and yonder, indeed, is our blessed home!" The whole artifice of the surprise was exposed, anc after the first bursts of pleasure had subsided, all to whom the scene was novel felt, that they would not have missed this piquante introduction to the valley of the Susquehannah, on any account. That the reader may understand the cause of so much delight, and why John Effingham had prepared this scene for his friends, we shall stop to give a short description of the objects that first met the eyes of the travellers. It is known that they were in a small open spot in a forest, and on the verge of a precipitous mountain. The trees encircled them on every side but one, and on that lay the panorama, although the tops of tall pines, that grew in lines almost parallel to the declivity, rose nearly to a level with the eye. Hundreds of feet beneath them, directly in front, and stretching leagues to the right, was a lake embedded in woods and hills. On the side next the travellers, a fringe of forest broke the line of water; tree tops that intercepted the view of the shores; and on the other, high broken hills, or low mountains rather, that were covered with farms, beautifully relieved by patches of wood, in a way to resemble the scenery of a vast park, or a royal pleasure ground, limited the landscape. High valleys lay among these uplands, and in every direction comforta ble dwellings dotted the fields. The contrast between the dark hues of the evergreens, with which all the heights near the water were shaded, was in soft contrast to the livelier green of the other foliage, while the meadows and pastures were luxuriant with a verdure unsurpassed by that of England. Bays and points added to the exquisite outline of the glassy lake on this shore, while one of the former withdrew towards the north-west, in a way to leave the eye doubtful whether it was the termination of the transparent sheet oi not, I 112,_~ HOME AS FOUND. Towards the south, bold, varied, but cultivated hills, also bounded the view, all teeming with- the fruits of human labour, and yet all relieved by pieces of wood,'in the way already mentioned, so as to give the entire region the character of park scenery. A wide, deep, even valley, commenced at the southern end of' the lake, or nearly opposite to the stand of' our travellers, and stretched away south, until concealed by a curvature in the ranges of the mountains. Like all the mountain-tops, this valley was verdant, peopled, wooded in places, though less abundantly than the hills, and teeming with the signs of life. Roads wound through its peaceful retreats, and might be traced wvorking their way along the glens, and up the weary ascents of the mountains, for miles, in every direction. At the northern termination of this lovely valley, and immediately on the margin of the lake, lay the village of Templeton, immediately under the eyes of the party. The distance, in an air line, from their stand to the centre of the dwellings, could not be much less than a mile, but the air was so pure, and the day so calm, that it -did not seem so far. The children and even the dogs were seen running about the streets, while the shrill cries of boys at their gambols, ascended distinctly to the ear. As this was the Templeton of the Pioneers, and the progress of society during half a century is connected with the circumstance, we shall give the reader a more accurate notion of its present state, than can be obtained from incidental allusions. We undertake the office more readily because this is not one of those places that shoot up in a day, under the unnatural effolrts of speculation, or which, favoured by peculiar advantages in the way of trade, becomes a precocious city, while the stumps still stand in its streets; but a sober county town, that has advanced steadily, pars padss with the surrounding country, and offers a fair specimen of the more regular advanceiment of the whole nation, in its progress towards civilization. HOME AS FOUND, 1,13 The appearance of Templeton, as seen front tile height where it is now exhibited to the reader, was pe. nerally beautiful and map-like. There might be a dozen streets, principally crossing each other at rightangles, though sufficiently relieved from this precise delineation, to prevent a starched formality. Perhaps the greater part of the buildings were painted white, as is usual in the smaller American towns; though a better taste was growing in the place, and many of the dwellings had the graver and chaster hues of the grey stones of which they were built. A general air of neatness and comfort pervaded the place, it being as unlike a continental European town, south of the Rhine, in this respect, as possible, if indeed we except the pic. turesque bourgs of Switzerland. In England, Templeton would be termed a small market-town, so far as size was concerned; in France, a large bourg; while in America it was, in common parlance, and legal appellation, styled a village. Of the dwellings of the place, fully twenty were of a quality that denoted ease in the condition of their occupants, and bespoke the habits of those accustomed to live in a manner superior to the oi polloi of the human race. Of these, some six or eight had small lawns, carriage sweeps, and the other similar appliances of houses that were not deemed unworthy of the honour of bearing names of their own. No less than five little steeples, towers, or belfries, for neither word is exactly suitable to the architectural prodigies we wish to describe, rose above the roofs, denoting the sites of the same number of places of worship; an American vii lage usually exhibiting ps many of these proofs of hiberty of conscience-caprices of conscience would perhaps be a better term-as dollars and cents will by any process render attainable. Several light carriages, such as wrvere suitable to a mountainous country:. were passing to and fro in the streets; *and, here and there. a single-horse vehicle was fastened before the door of 144 -HOME AS FOUND. a shop, or a lawyer's office, denoting the presence of some customer, or client, from among the adjacent Lills. Templeton was not sufficiently a thoroughfare toe possess one of those monstrosities, a modern American tavern, or a structure whose roof should overtop that of all its neighbours. Still its inns were of respectaule size, well piazzaed, to use a word of our own inven tibn, and quite enough frequented. Near the centre of the place, in grounds of rather limited extent, still stood that model of the composite order, which owed its existence to the combined knowxledge and taste, in the remoter ages of the region, of Mr. Richard Jones and Mr. Hiram Doolittle. We will not say that it had been modernized, for the very reverse was the effect, in appearance at least; but, it had since undergone material changes, under the more instructed intelligence of John Effingham. This building was so conspicuous by position and size, that as soon as they had taken in glimpses of the entire landscape, which was not done without constant murmurs of pleasure, every eye became fastened on it, as the focus of interest. A long and common silence denoted how general was this feeling, and the whole party took seats on stumps and fallen trees before a syllable was uttered, after the building had attracted their gaze. Aristabulus alone permitted his look to wander, and he was curiously examining the countenance of Mr. Effingham, near whom he sate, with a longing to discover whether the expression was that of approbation, or of disapprobation, of the fruits of his cousin's genius. " Mr. John Effingham has considerably regenerated and revivified, not to say transmogrified, the old dwelling," he said, cautiously using terms that might leave his own opinion of the changes doubtful. "The work of his hand has excited some speculation, a good deal of inquiry,' and a little conversation, HOME AS FOUN D. 14 throughout the country. It has almost nroduced an excitement!" "6 As my house came to me from my father," said Mr. Effingham, across whose mild and handsome face a smile was gradually stealing.',I knew its history, and when called on for an explanation of its singularities, could refer all to the composite order. But, you, Jack, have supplanted all this, by a style of your own, for which I shall be compelled to consult the authorities for explanations."'" Do you dislike my taste, Ned?-To my eye, now, the structure has no'Dad appearance from this spot!" "Fitness and comfort are indispensable requisites for domestic architecture, to use your own argument. Are you quite sure that yonder castellated roof, for instance, is quite suited to the deep snows of these mountains?" John Effingham whistled, and endeavoured to look unconcerned, for he well knew that the very first'winter had demonstrated the unsuitableness of his plans for such a climate. He had actually felt disposed to cause the whole to be altered privately, at his own expense; but, besides feeling certain his cousin would resent a liberty that inferred his indisposition to pay for his own buildings, he had a reluctance to ad-.mit, in the face of the whole country, that he had made so capital a mistake, in a branch of art in which he prided himself rather more than common; almost as much as his predecessor in the occupation, Mr. Richard Jones. "6If you are not pleased with your own dwelling, Ned," he answered, 1" you can have, at least, the con solation of looking at some of your neighbours' houses, and of perceiving that they are a great deal worse off: Of all abortions of this sort, to my taste, a Grecian abortion is the worst-mine is only Gthic, and that too, in a style so modest, that I should think it might pass unrmolested." 13 1 46 HOMIE AS FOUND. It swas so unusual to see John Effingham on the defensive, that the whole party smiled, while Aristabulus who stood in salutary fear of his caustic tongue, both smiled and wondered. "Nay, do not mistake me, John," returned the pro. Drietor of the edifice under discussion —" it is not youL_ taste that I call in question, but your provision against the seasons. In the way of mere outward show, I really think you deserve high praise, for you have transformed a very ugly dwelling into one that is almost handsome, in despite of proportions and the necessity of regulating the alterations by prescribed limits. Still, I think, there is a little of the composite left about even the exterior." "6 I hope, cousin Jack, you have not innovated on the interior," cried Eve; "for I think I shall remember that, and nothing is more pleasant than the cattism of seeing objects that you remember in childhood-pleasant, I mean, to those whom the mania of mutation has not affected." " Do not be alarmed, Miss Eflingham," replied her kinsman, with a pettishness of manner that was altogether extraordinary, in a man whose mien, in common, was so singularly composed and masculine; "you will find all that you knew, when a kitten, in its proper place. I could not rake together, again, the ashes of Queen Dido, which were scattered to the four winds of Heaven, I fear; nor could I discover a reasonably good bust of Homer; but respectable substitutes are provided, and some of them have the great merit of puzzling all beholders to tell to whom they belong, which I believe was the great characteristic of most of Mr. Jones's invention." "I -am glad to see, cousin Jack, that you have, at least, managed to give a very respectable'cloudcolour' ta the whole house." "Ay, it lay between that. and an invisible green," the gentleman answered, losing his momentary spleen HOME AS FOUND. 147 in his n tural love of the ludicrous-" but finding tha the latter would be only too conspicuous in the droughts that sometimes prevail in this clirate, I settled down into the yellowish drab, that is, indeed, not unlike some of the richer volumes of the clouds." 6On the whole, I think you are fairly entitled. as Steadfast Dodge, Esquire, would say, to'the meed.of our thanks.'" "What a lovely spot!" exclaimed Mr. Effingham, who had already ceased to think of his own lwelling, and whose eye was roaming over the soft landscape. athwart which the lustre of a. June noontide w-las throwing its richest glories. " This is truly a place where one might fancy repose and content were to be found for the evening of a troubled life." "Indeed, I have seldom looked upon a more bewitching scene," answered the baronet. " The lakes of Cumberland will scarce compete with this!" "'Or that of Brienz, or Lungerca, or Nemi," said Eve, smiling in a way that the othei understood to be a hit at his nationality. "C'est, charmant!" murmured Mademoiselle Viefville. " On pense a'e'ternite, dans une telle calme!" "'The farm you can see lying near yonder wood, Mr. Effingham," coolly observed Aristabulus, "sold last spring for thirty dollars the acre, and was bought for twenty, the summer-before!" ~" Chacun a son gout!" said Eve. "And yet, I fear, this glorious scene is marred by the envy, rapacity, uncharitableness, and all the other evil passions of man!" continued the more philosophical Mr. Effingham. " Perhaps, it were better as it was so lately, when it lay in the solitude and peace of the' wilderness, the resort of birds and beasts." "Who prey on each other, dearest father, just as the worst of our oxVn species prey on their fellows." 1" True, child-true. And yet, I never gaze on one of these scenes of holy calm, without wishing that the 148 HOME AS FOUNI). great tabernacle of nature might be tenanted only b) those who have a feeling for its perfection." "I)o you see the lady," said Aristabulus, "that is just coming out on the lawn, in front of the'Wigwamrn?'" for that was the name John Effingham had seen fit to give the altered and amended abode. "Here, Miss Effingham, more in a line with the top of the pine beneath us." "I see the person you mean; she seems to be looking in this direction." You are quite right, miss; she knows that we are to stop on the Vision, and no doubt sees us. That lady is your father's cook, Miss Effingham, and is thinking of the late breakfast that has been ordered to be in readiness against our arrival." Eve concealed her amusement, for, by this time, she had discovered that Mr. Bragg had a way peculiar to himself, or at least to his class, of using many of the commoner words of the English language. It would perhaps be expecting too much of Sir George Templnemore, not to expect him to smile, on such an occasion.'"Ah 1" exclaimed Aristabulus, pointing towards the lake, across which several skiffs were stealing, some in one direction, and some in another, "there is a boat out, that I think must contain the poet." " Poet!" repeated John Effingham. "Have we reached that pass at Templeton'?" "Lord, Mr. John Effingham, you must have very contracted notions of the place, if you think a poet a great novelty in it. - Why, sir, we have caravans of wild beasts, nearly every summer!" " This is, indeed, a step in advance, of which I was ignorant. Here then, in a region, that so lately was tenanted by beasts of prey, beasts are already brought as curiosities. You perceive the state, of the country in thi- fact, Sir George Templemore." TIOME AS FOUND. 149 "I do indeed; but I should like to hear froIm Mr 3ragg, what sort of animals are in these caravans?" "All sorts, from monkeys to elephants. The last had a rhinoceros."' "Rhinoceros!-Why there was but one, lately, in all Europe. Neither the Zoological Gardens,- nor the Jatc.din des Plantes, had a rhinoceros! I never saw but one, and that was in a caravan at Rome, that travelled between St. Petersburgh and Naples." "Well, sir, we have rhinoceroses here; —and monkeys, and zebras, and poets, and painters, and congressmen, and bishops, and governors, and all other sorts of creatures." " And who may the particular poet be, Mr. Bragg," Eve, asked," who honours Templeton, with his presence just at this moment?" 6That is more than I can tell you, miss, for, though some eight or ten of us have done little else than try to discover his name for the last week, we have not got even gas far as that one fact. He and the gentleman who travels with him, are both uncommonly close on such matters, though I think we have some as good catechisers in Templeton, as can be found any where within fifty miles of us!" "There is another gentleman with him-do yot suspect them both of being poets?" " Oh, no, Miss, the other is the waiter of the poet; that we know, as he serves him at dinner, and otherwise superintends his concerns; such as brushing his clothes, and keeping his room'in order." "This is being in luck for a poet, for they are of a class that are a little apt to neglect the decencies. May I ask why you suspect the master of being a poet, if the man be so assiduous?" "W6 hy, what else can he be? In the first place, Miss Effingham, he has no name." "That is a reason in point," said John Effinghamn' very few poets having names." 131 # 150 HOME AS FOUND. "Then he is out on the lake half his time, gazing up at the' Silent Pine,' or conversing with the'Speaking Rocks,' or drinking at the' Fairy Sring.'" "All suspicious, certainly; especially the dialogue with the rocks; though not absolutely conclusive." "But,-Mr. John Effingham, the man does not take his food like other people. H[e rises early, and is out on the water, or up in the forest, all the morning, and then returns to eat his breakfast in the middle of the forenoon; he goes into the woods again, or on the lake and comes back to dinner, just as I take my tea." "This settles the matter. Any man who presumes to do all this, Mr. Bragg, deserves to be called by some harder name, even, than that of a poet. Pray, sir, how long has this eccentric person been a resident of Templeton?" " Hist-there he is, as I am a sinner; and it was not he and the other gentlemen that were in the boat." The reburked manner of Aristabulus, and the dropping of his voice, induced the whole party to look in the direction of his eye, and, sure enough, a gentleman approached them, in the dress a man of the world is apt to assume in the country, an attire of itself that was sufficient to attract comment in a place where the general desire was to be as much like town as possible, though it was sufficiently neat and simple. He came from the forest, along the table-land that crowned the mountain for some distance, following one of the footpaths that the admirers of the beautiful landscape have made all over that pleasant wood. As he came out into the cleared spot, seeing it already in possession of a party, he bowed, and was passing on, with a delicacy that Mr. Bragg would be apt to deem eccentric, when suddenly stopping, he gave a look of intense and eager interest at the whole party, smiled, advanced rapidly nearer, and discovered his entire person.' I ought not to be surprised," he said, as he advanced so neai as to render doubt any longer imlpossible, "' fox HOME AS FOUND. 151 I knew you were expected, and indeed waited for youi arrival, and yet this meeting has been so unexpected as to leave me scarcely in possession pf my faculties." It is needless to dwell upon the warrith and number of the greetings. To the surprise of' Mr. Bragg, his poet was not only known, but evidently much esteemed by all the party, with the exception of Miss Van Cortlandt, to whom he was cordially presented by the name of Mr. Powis. Eve managed, by an effort of womanly pride, to suppress the violence of her emotions, and the meeting passed off as one-of mutual surprise and pleasure, without any exhibition of unusual feeling to attract comment. "1 We ought to express our wonder at finding you here before us, my dear young friend," said Mr. Effingham, still holding Paul's hand affectionately between his own; "and, even now, that my own eyes assure me of the fact, I can hardly believe you would arrive at New-York, and quit it, without giving us the satisfaction of seeing you." " In that, sir, you are not wrong; certainly nothing could have deprived me of that pleasure, but the know-'edge that it would not have been agreeable to yourselves. My sudden appearance here, however, will be without mystery, when I tell you that I returned firom England, by the way of Quebec, the Great Lakes, and the Falls, having been induced by my friend Ducie to take that route, in consequence of his ship's being sent to the St. Lawrence. A desire for novelty, and particularly a desire to see the celebrated cataract, which is almost the lion of America, did the rest." "We are glad to have you with us on any terms, and I take it as particularly kind, that you.did not pass my door. You have been here some days?" "Quite a weel. On reachingUtica I diverged from the great route to see this place, not anticipating, the plea sure of meeting you here so early; but hearing yoVl were.xpected, I determined to remain, with a hope, wv hicll I 152 HOME AS FOUND. rejoice to find was not vain, that you would not be sorry to see an old fellow-traveller again." Mr. Elffingham pressed his hands warmly again, before he relinquished them; an assurance of welcome that Paul received with thrilling satisfaction. 6I have been in Templeton almost long enough,' the young man resumed, laughing, "6 to set up as a candidate for tihe public favour, if I rightly understand the claims.of a denizen. By what I can gather from casual remarlks, the old proverb that'the new broom sweeps clean' applies with singular fidelity throughout all this region." " Iave you a copy of your last ode, or a spare epigram, in your pocket?" inquired John Efflngham. Paul looked surprised, and Aristabulus, for a novelty, was a little dashed. Paul looked surprised, as a matter of course, for, although he had been a little annoyed by the curiosity that is apt to haunt a village imaagination, since his arrival in Templeton, he did not in the least suspect that'his love of a beautiful nature had been imputed to devotion to the muses. Perceiving, however, by the smiles of those around him, that there was more meant than was expressed, he had the tact to permit the explanation to come from the person who had put the question, if it were proper it should come at all. "We will defer the great pleasure that is in reserve," continued John Effinghamn, " to another time. At present, it strikes me that the lady of the lawn is getting to be impatient, and the d'jezuer at a fbturchette, tnat I have had the precaution to order, is probably waiting our appearance. It must be eaten, though under the penalty of being thought moon-struck'rhymers by the whole State. Come, Ned; if you are sufficiently satisfied with looking at the Wigwamn in a bird's-eye view, we will descend and put its beauties to the severer test oi a close examination."'I'his proposal was readily accepted, though all tore HOME AS FOUND. 153 themselves from that lovely spot with reluctance, and not until they had paused to take another look. " Fancyv the shores of this lake lined with villas," said Eve, " churqh-towers raising their dark heads among these hills; each mountain crowned with a castle, or a crumbling ruin, and all the other accessories of an old state of society, and what would then be the charms of the view!" Less than they are to-day, Miss Effingham," said Paul Powis; "for though poetry requires-you all smile, is it forbidden to touch on such subjects?'!" "Not at all, so it be done in wholesome rhymes," returned the baronet. " You ought to know that you are expected even to speak in doggerel." Paul ceased, and the whole party walked away from the place, laughing and light-hearted. CHAPTER X. It is the spot, I came to seek, My father's ancient burial placeIt is the spot —,I know it well, Of which our old traditions tell." BRYANT. FR'OM the day after their arrival in New-York, or that on which the account of the arrests by the English cruiser had appeared in the journals, little had been said by any of our party concerning Paul Powis, or of the extraordinary manner in which he had left the packet, at the very moment she was about to enter her haven. It is true that Mr. Dodge, arrived at Dodgeopolis, had dilated on the subject in his hebdorladal, with divers additions and conjectures of his own, and this, too, in a way to attract a good deal of attention in the interior; but, it being a rule with those 154 HOME AS FOUNT). who are supposed to dwell at the fountain of foreign intelligence, not to receive any thing from those who ought not to be better informed than themselves, the Ehfinghams and their friends had never heard of his account of the matter While all thought the incident of the sudden return extraordinary, no one felt disposed to judge the young man harshly. The gentlemen knew that military censure, however unpleasant, did not always imply moral unworthiness; and as for the ladies, they retained too livelv a sense of his skill and gallantry, to wish to imagine evil on grounds so slight and vague. Still, it had been impossible altogether to prevent the obtrusion of disagreeable surmises, and all now sincerely rejoiced at seeing their late companion once more among them, seemingly in a state of mind that announced neither guilt nor degradation. On quitting the mountain, Mr. Effingham, who had a tender regard for Grace, offered her his arm as he would have given it to a second daughter, leaving Eve to the care of John Effingham. Sir George attended to Mademoiselle Viefville, and Paul walked by the side of our heroine and her cousin, leaving Aristabulus to be what he himself called':a "miscellaneous companion;" or, in other words, to thrust himself into either set, as inclination or accident might induce. Of course the parties conversed as they walked, though those in advance would occasionally pause to say a word to those in the rear; and, as they descended, one or two changes occurred to which we may have occasion to allude. " I trust you have had pleasant passages," said John Ehngham to Paul, as soon as they were separated in the manner just mentioned. " Three trips across the Atlantic in so short a time would be hard duty to a landsman, though you, as a sailor. will probably think less of it." "6In this respect I have been f,rtunate; the Foam, OiME AS FOUND. I 55 as we know fron experience, being a good traveller, and Ducie is altogether a fine fellow and an agreeable messmate. You know I had him for a companion both going and coming." This was said naturally; and, while it explained so little directly, it rerfioved all unpleasant uncertainty, by assuring his listeners that he had been on good terms at least, with the person who.had seemed to be his pursuer. John Effingham, too, well understood that no one messed with the commander of a vessel of' war, in his own ship, who was, in any way, thought to be an unfit associate. "You have made a material circuit to reach us, thedistance by Quebec being nearly a fourth more than the direct road."'" Ducie desired it so strongly, that I did not like to deny him. Indeed, he made it a point, at first, to obtain permission to land rme at New-York, where he had found me, as he said; but to this I would not listen, as I feared it might interfere with his promotion, of which he stood so good a chance, in consequence of his suiccess in the affair of the money. By keeping constantly before the eyes of his superiors, on duty of interest, I thought his success would be more certain." "And has his government thought his perseverance in the chase worthy of such a reward?" " Indeed it has. He is now a post, and all owing to his good luck and judgment in that affair; though in his country, rank in private life does no harm to one in public life." Eve liked the emphasis that Paul laid on " his couitry," and she thought the whole remark was made in a spirit that an Englishman would not be apt to betray. "Has it ever occurred to you," continued John Ef: fingharn, " that our sudden and unexpected separation, has caused a grave neglect of duty in me, if not in both of us'!" L5t10 HO-ME AS FOUND. Paul looked surprised, and, by his manner, he demanded an explanation. " You may remember the sealed package of poor Mr. Monday, that we were to open together on our arrival in New-York, and on the contents of which, we were taught to believe depended the settling of' some important private rights. I gave that package to you, at the moment it was received, and, in the hurry of leaving us, you overlooked the circumstance" " All very true, and to my shame I confess that, un til this instant, the affair has been quite forgotten by me. I had so much to occupy my mind while in England, that it was not likely to be remembered, and then the packet itself has scarce been in my possession since the day I left you." " It is not lost, I trust!" said John Effingham quickly. "Surely not-it is safe, beyond a question, in the writing-desk in which I deposited it. But the moment;we got to Portsmouth, Ducie and myself proceeded to London together, and, as soon as he had got through at the Admiralty, we went into Yorkshire, where we remained, much occupied with private matters of great importance to us both, while his ship was docked; and then it became necessary to make sundry visits to our relations 9 Relations!"' repeated Eve involuntarily, though she did not cease to reproach herself for the indiscretion, during the rest of the walk. " Relatdons-" returned Paul, smiling. " Captain Ducie and myself are cousins-german, and we made pilgrimages together, to sundry family shrines. This duty occupied us until a few days before we sailed for Quebec. On reaching our haven, I left the ship to visit the great lakes and Niagara, leaving most of my effects with Ducie, who has promised to bring them on with himself. when he followed on m-v track, as he expected soon to do, on his way to the West Indies, wrhere he is to find a frigate. HTe owed me this atten. HOME AS FOUND. 157 tion, as he insisted, on account of having induced me to go so far out of my way, with so much luggage, to oblige him. The packet is, unluckily, left behind witif the other things." "Aind do you expect Captain Ducie to arrive in this country soon?-The affair of the packet ought not to be neglected much longer, for a promise to a dying man is doubly binding, as it appeals to all our generosity. Rather than neglect the matter much longer, I would prefer sending a special messenger to Quebec." " That will be quite unnecessary, as, indeed, it would be useless. Ducie left Quebec yesterday, and has sent his and my effects direct to New-York, under the care of his own steward. The writing-case, containing other papers that are of interest to us both, he has promised not to lose sight of, but it will accompany him on the same tour, as that I have just made; for, he wishes to avail himself of this opportunity to see Niagara and the lakes, also: he is now on my track, and will notify me by letter of the day he will be in Utica, in order that we may meet on the line of the canal, near this place, and proceed to New-York, in company."' His companions listened to this brief statement with an intense interest, with which the packet of poor Mr. Monday, however, had very little connection. John Effingham called to' his cousin, and, in a few words, stated the circumstances as they had just been related to himself, without adverting to the papers of Mr. Monday, which was an affair that he had hitherto kept to.himself. " It will be no more than a return of civility, if we invite Captain Ducie to diverge from his road, and pass a few days with us, in the mountains," he added. "At what precise time do you expect him to pass, Powis?" 6 Within the fortnight. I feel certain he Nwould be 14 158 HOME AS FOUND. glad to pay his respects to this party, for he oftet. expressed his sincere regrets at having been crmployed on a service that exposed the ladies to so much peril and delay." "Captain Ducie is a near kinsman of Mr. Powis, dear father," added Eve, in a way to show her parent, that the invitation would be agreeable to herself, for Mr. Effingham was so attentive to the wishes of his ds ighter, as never to ask a guest to his house, that he thought would prove disagreeable to its mistress. " I shall do myself the pleasure to write to Captain Ducie, this evening, urging him to honour us with his company," returned Mr. Effingham. "We expect other friends in a few days, and' I hope he will not find his time heavy on his hands, while in exile among us. Mr. Powis will enclose my note in one of his letters, and will, I trust, second the request by his own solicitations." Paul made his acknowledgments, and the whole party proceeded, though the interruption caused such a change in the figure of the promenade, as to leave the young man the immediate escort of Eve. The party, by this time, had not only reached the highway, but it had again diverged from it, to follow the line of an old and abandoned wheel-track, that descended the mountain, along the side of the declivity, by a wilder and more perilous direction than suited a modern enterprise; it having been otne of those little calculated and rude roads, that the first settlers of a country are apt to male, before there are time and means to investigate and finish to advantage. Although much more difficult and dangerous than its successor, as-a highway, this relic of the infant condition of the country'was by far the most retired and beautiful; and pedestrians continued to use it, as a common foot-path to the Vision. The seasons had narrowed its surface. and the second growth had nearly covered it with theii branches, shading it like an arbour; and Eve expressed HOME AS FOUND. 1 59 her delight with its wildness and boldness, mingled, as both were, with so pleasant a seclusion, as they descended along a path ais safe and convenient as a French alhSe. Glimpses were constantly obtained of the lake and the village, while they proceeded; and altogether, they'who were strangers to the scenery. were loud in its praises. "Most persons, who see this valley for the first time," observed Aristabulus, "5 find something to say in its favour; for mny part, I consider it as rather curious myself." " Curious!" exclaimed Paul; that gentleman is, at least, singular in the choice of his expressions." " You have met him before to-day," said Eve, laughing, for Eve was now in a humour to laugh at trifles. "This we know, since he had prepared us to meet a poet, where we only find an old friend." " Only, Miss Effingham! —Do you estimate poets so high, and old friends so low?"'" This extraordinary person, Mr. Aristabulus Bragg, really deranges all one's notions and opinions in such a manner, as to destroy even the usual signification of words, I believe. He seems so much in, and yet so much out of his place; is both so Xruse and so unpractised; so unfit for what he is, and so ready at every thing, that I scarcely know how to apply terms in any matter with which he has the smallest connection. 1 fear he has persecuted you since your arrival in Templeton?" " iNot at all; I am so much acquainted with men of his cast, that I have acquired a tact in managing them. Perceiving that he was disposed to suspect me of a disposition to'poetize the lake,' to use his own term, i took care to drop a couple of lines, roughly written (ff. like a hasty and imperfect effusion, where I felt slurl he would find them, and have been living for a whole week on the fame thereof." " You do indulge in such tastes, then?" said Eve smiling a little saucily. l (}0 HOME AS FOUND. " I am as innocent of such din ambition, as of wishing to marry the heiress of the British throne, whiclj, I believe, just now, is the goal of all the Icaruses of our own time. I am merely a rank plagiarist-for the rhyme, on the fame of which I have rioted for a glorious week, was two lines of Pope's, an author so effectuall;y forgotten in these palmy days of literature, in which all knowledge seems so condensed into the productions of the last few years, that a man might al. most pass off an entire classic for his own, without the fear of detection. It was merely the first couplet of the Essay on Man, which, fortunately, having an allusion to the'pride of Kings,' would pass for original as well as excellent, in nineteen villages in twenty in America, in these piping times of ultra-republicanism. No doubt Mr. Bragg thought a eulogy on the' people' was to come next, to be succeeded by a glorious picture of Templeton and its environs." " I do not know that I ought to admit these hits at liberty fiom a foreigner," said Eve, pretending to look graver than she felt; for never before, in her life, had our heroine so strong a consciousness of happiness, as she had experienced that very morning. " Foreigner, Miss Effingham!- And why a fo-reigner?" "Nay, you know your own pretended cosmopolitism; and ought not the cousin of Captain Ducie to be an Englishman?" "' I shall not answer for the ought, the simple fact being a sufficient reply to the question. The cousin of Captain Ducie is not an Englishman; nor, as I see you suspect, has he ever served a day in the British navy, or in any other navy than that of his native land." "This is indeed taking us by surprise, and that most agreeably," returned Eve, looking up at him with undisguised pleasure, while a bright glow crimsoned her face. "We could not but feel an interest in one whe HOME AS FOUND. 1 3 1 had so effectually served us; and both my father and Mr. John Eflingham " "Cousin Jack-" interrupted the smiling Paul. "Cousin Jack, then, if you dislike the formality I used; both my father and cousin Jack examined the American navy registers for your name, without success, as I understood, and the inference that followed was fair enough, I believe you will admit." 1" Had they looked at a register of a few years' dtate, they would have rmet'with better luck. I have quitted the service, and am a sailor only in recollections. For the last few years, like yourselves, I have been a tra. veller by land as well as by water." Eve said no more, though every syllable that the young man uttered was received by attentive ears, and retained with a scrupulous fidelity of memory. They walked some distance in silence, until they reached the grounds of a house that was beautifully placed on the side of the mountain, near a lovely wood of pines. Crossing these grounds, until they reachtd a terrace in front of the dwelling, the village of Templbton lay directly in their front, perhaps a hundred feet beneath them, and yet so near, as to render the minutest object distinct. Here they all stopped to take a more distinct view of a place that had so much interest with most of the party. "I hope you are sufficiently acquainted with the localities to act as cicerone," said Mr. Eflngham to Paul. "In a visit of a week to this village, you have scarcely overlooked the Wigwam." "Perhaps I ought to hesitate, or rather ought to blush to own it," answered the young man, discharging tile latter obligation by colouring to his temples; "but curiosity has proved so much stronger than manners, that I have been induced to trespass so far on the politeness of this gentleman, as to gain an admission to vour dwelling, in and about which more )f my time 14e 1 62 HOME AS FOUND. has been passed than has probably proved agreeable to its inmates." " I hope the gentleman will not speak of it," said Aristabulus. " In this country, we live pretty much in common, and with me it is a rule, when a gentleman drops in, whether stranger-or neighbour, to show hiln the civility to ask him to take off his hat." "It appears to me," said Eve, willing to change the conversation, 1" that Templeton has an unusual number of steeples; for what purpose can so small a place possibly require so many buildings of that nature?" "All in behalf of orthodoxy, Miss Eve," returnea Aristabulus, who conceived himself to be the proper person to answer such interrogatories. " There is a shade of opinion beneath every one of those steeples." " Do you mean, sir, that there are as many shades of faith in Templeton, as I nov see buildings that have the appearance of being devoted to religious purposes?" Double the number, Miss, and some to spare, in the bargain; for you see but five meeting-houses, and the county-buildings, and we reckon seven regular hostile denominations in the village, besides the diversities of sentiment on trifles. This edifice that you perceive here, in a line with the chimneys of the first house, is New St. Paul's, Mr. Grant's old church, as orthodox a house, in its way, as there is in the diocese, as you may see by the windows. This is a gaining concern, though there has been some falling off of late, in consequence of the clergyman's having caught a bad cold, which has made him a little hoarse; but I dare say he will.get over it, and the church ought not to be abandoned on that account, serious as the matter undoubtedly is, for the moment. A few of us are deter-. mined to back up New St. Paul's in this crisis, and I make it a point to go there myself, quite half the time." "I am glad we have so much of your company," said Mr. Ef fingham " fo" that is our o-wn church, and HOME AS FOUND. 163 n it my daughter was baptized. But, do you divide your religious opinions in halves, Mr. Bragg?" "In as many parts, Mr. Effingham, as there are de. nominations in the neighbourhood, giving a decided preference to New St. Paul's, notwithstanding, under the peculiar circumstances, particularly to the windows. The dark, gloomy-looking building, Miss, off in the distance, yonder, is the Methodist affair, of which not much need be said; Methodism flourishing but little among us since the introduction of the New Lights who have fairly managed to out-excite them, on every plan they can invent. I believe, however, they sticl pretty much to the old doctrine, which, no doubt, is one great reason of their present apathetic state; for the people do love novelties." "Pray, sir, what building is tJis nearly in a line with New St. Paul's, and which resembles it a little, ir, colour and form?" Windows excepted; it has two rows of regulaT square-topped windows, Miss, as you may observe. That is the First Presbyterian, or the old standard: a very good house, and a pretty good faith, too, as times fo. I make it a point to attend there, at least once every fortnight; for change is agreeable to the nature of man. I will say, Miss, that my preference, so far as I have any, however, is for New St. Paul's, and I have experienced considerable regrets, that these Presbyterians have gained a material advantage over us, in a very essential point, lately." " I am sorry to hear this, Mr. Bragg; for, being an Episcopalian myself, and having great reliance on the antiquity and purity of my church, I should be sorry to find it put in the wrong by any other." " I fear we must give that point up, notwithstanding, for these Presbyterians have entirely outwitted the church people in that matter;" " And what is the point in which we have been so ii'ignally worsted?" 164 HOME AS FOUND. " Why, Miss, their new bell weighs quite a hundred more than that of New St. Paul's, and has altogether the best sound. I know very well that this advantage will not avail them any thing to boast of, in the last great account; but it makes a surprising difference in the state of probation. You see the yellowish looking building across the valley, with a heavy wall around it, and a belfry? That, in its regular character, is the county court-house, and gaoi; but, in the way of religion, it is used pretty much miscellaneously." "Do you mean, really, sir, that divine service is ever actually performed in it, or that persons of all denominations are occasionally tried there?" "It would be truer to say that all denominations occasionally try the court-house," said A ristabulus, simpering; " for I believe it has been used in this way by every shade of religion short of the Jews. The Gothic tower in wood, is the building of the Universalists; and the Grecian edifice, that is not yet painted, the Baptists. The Quakers, I believe, worship chiefly at home, and the different shades of the Presbyterians meet, in different rooms, in private houses, about the place." "Are there then shades of difference in the denominations, as well as all these denominations?" asked Eve, in unfeigned surprise; " and this, too, in a population so small?" "' This is a free county, Miss Eve, and freedom loves variety.' Many men, many minds.' " "Quite true, sir," said Paul; "but here are many minds among few men. Nor is this all; agreeably to your own account, some of these men do not exactly know their own minds. But, can you explain to us what essential points are involved in all these shades of opinion?" "6 It would require a life, sir, to understand the half of them. Some say that excitement is religion, and others, that it is contentment. One set cries up T)rac HOME AS FOUND. 16. tice, and another cries out against it. This man maintains that he will be saved if he does good, and that man affirms that if he only does good, he will be damned; a little evil is necessary to salvation, with one shade of opinion, while -another thinks a man is never so near conversion as when he is deepest in sin." "Subdivision is the order of the day," added John Effingham; "every county is to be subdivided that there may be more county towns, and county offices; every religion decimated, that there may be a greater variety and a better quality of saints." Aristabulus nodded his head, and ho would have winked, could he have presumed to take such a liberty with a man he held as much in habitual awe, as John Effingham. "3 Monsieur," inquired Mademoiselle Viefville, "is there no Cglise, no veritable eglise, in Templeton?" "Oh, yes, Madame, several," returned Aristabulus, who would as soon think of admitting that he did not understand the meaning of veritable 6glise, as one of the sects he had been describing would think of ad-. mitting that it was not infallible in its interpretation of Christianity —" several; but they are not be seen from this particular spot." "How much more picturesque would it be, and even christian-like in appearance, at least," said Paul,' could these good-people consent to unite in worshipping God i —and how much does it bring into strong relief, the feebleness and ignorance of man, when you see him splitting hairs about doctrines, under which he has been told, in terms as plain as language can make it, that he is simply required to believe in the goodness and power of a Being whose nature and agencies exceed his comprehension." " All very true," cried John Effingham, "s but what would become of liberty of conscience in such a case'! Most men, now-a-days, understand by faith, a firm re-!inn e on their own opinions!" Bei| HOME AS FOUND. "In that case, too," put in Aristabululs, "6 we snould want this handsome display of churches to adorn our village.'.rhere is good comes of it; for any nman would be more likely to invest in a place that has fiyo churches, than in a place with but one. As it is, Templeton has as beautiful a set of churches as any village I know." "Say, rather, sir, a set of castors; for a stronger resemblance to vinegar-cruets and mustard-pots, than is borne by these architectural prodigies, eye never beheld." " It is, nevertheless, a beautiful thing, to see the high pointed roof of the house of God, crowning an assemblage of houses, as one finds it in other countries,' said Eve, 6" instead of a pile of tavern, as is too much the case in this dear home of ours." When this remark was uttered, they descended the step that led from the terrace, and proceeded towards the village. On reaching the gate of the Wigwam, the whole party stood confronted with that offspring.of John Effingham's taste; for so great had been his improvements on the original production of Hiram Doolittle, that externally, at least, that distinguished architect could no longer have recognized the fruits of his own talents. "This is carrying out to the full, John, the conceits of the composite order," observed Mr. Effingham, drily. ".T shall be sorry, Ned, if you dislike your house, as it is amended and corrected." "Dear cousin Jack," cried Eve, "it is an odd jumble of the Grecian and Gothic. One would like to know your authorities for such a liberty.'" " What do you think of the faccade of the cathedral of Milan, Miss," laying emphasis on the last words, in imitation of the manner of Mr. Bragg. "Is it such C aovelty to see the two styles blended; or is architec HOME AS FOUND. 16'7 tiV-, a0 pure in America, that you think I have com mr,,rud the unpardonable sin." "Nay, nothing that is out of rule ought to strike one, in a country where imitation governs in all things immaterial, and originality unsettles all things sacred and dear." "By way of punishment for that bold speech, I wish I had left the old rookery in the state I found it, that its beauties might have greeted your eyes, instead of this uncouth pile, which seems so much to offend them. Mademoiselle Viefville, permit me to ask how you like that house?" " Mais, c'est unn petit chiteau." " Un chaiteau, Effinghamise," said Eve, laughing. "Efinghamisei si vous voulez, ma chore; pou1'tant c'est un chateau." i" The general opinion in this part of the country is," said Aristabulus, "that Mr. John Effinghaim has altered the building on the plan of some edifice of Europe, though I forget the name of the particular temple; it is not, however, the Parthenon, nor the temple of Mirnerva." "I hope, at least," said Mr. Effingham, leading the way up a little lawn, "it will not turn out to be the Temple of the Winds." CHAPTER XI. "Nay, I'll come; if I lose a scruple of this sport, let me be o ileJ to death with melancholy." —SHAKSPEARE. THEi progress of society in America, has been distinguished by several peculiarities that do not so properly belong to the more regular and methodical advances of civilization in other parts of the world. On the one hand, the arts of life, like Minerva, who was 168 HOME AS FOUND. struck out of the intellectual being of her father at a blow, have started full-grown into existence, as the legitimate inheritance of the colonists, while, on the other, every thing tends towards settling down into a medium, as regards quality, a consequence of the conmunity-character of the institutions. Every thing she had seen that day, had struck Eve as partaking of this mixed nature, in which, while nothing was vulgar, little even approached to that high standard, that her European education had taught her to esteem perfect. In the Wigwam, however, as her father's cousin had seen fit to name the family dwelling, there was more of keeping, and a closer attention to the many little things she had been accustomed to consider essential to comfort and elegance, and she was better satisfied with her future home, than with most she had seen since her return to America. As we have described the interior of this house, in another work, little remains to be said on the subject, at present; for, while John Effingham' had comr pletely altered its external appearance, its internal was not much changed. It is true, the cloud-coloured covering had disappeared, as had that stoop also, the columns of which were so nobly upheld by their super-. structure; the former having given place to a less obtrusive roof, that was regularly embattled, and the latter having been swallowed up by a small entrance tower, that the new architect had contrived to attach to the building with quite as much advantage to it, in the way of comfort, as in the way of appearance. In truth, the Wigwam had none of the more familiar features of a modern American dwelling of its class. There was not a column about it, whether Grecian, Roman, or Egyptian; no Venetian blinds; no verandah or piazza; no outside paint, nor gay blending of colours. On the contrary, it was a plain old structure, built with great solidity, and of excellent materials. and in that style of respectable dignity and propriety, that HOME AS FOUND. 169 was perhaps a little more peculiar to our fathers than it is peculiar to their successors, our worthy selves. In addition to the entrance tower, or porch, on its northern front, John Effingham had also placed a prettily devised conceit on the southern, by means of which the abrupt transition from an inner room to the open air was adroitly avoided. He had, moreover, removed the "firstly" of the edifice, and supplied its place with a more suitable addition that contained some of the offices, while it did not disfigure the building, a rare circumstance in an architectural after-thought. Internally, the Wigwam had gradually been undergoing improvements, ever since that period, which, in the way of the arts, if not in the way of chronology, might be termed the dark ages of Otsego. The great hall had long before lost its characteristic decoration of the severed-arm of Wolf, a Gothic paper that was better adapted to the really respectable architecture of the room being its substitute; and even the urn that was thought to contain the ashes of Queen Dido, like the pitcher that goes often to the well, had been broken in a war of extermination that had been carried on against the cobwebs by a particularly notable housekeeper. Old Homer, too, had gone the way of all baked clay' Shakspeare, himself, had dissolved into dust, "leaving not a wreck behind;" and of Washington and Franklin, even, indigenous as they were, there remained no vestiges. Instead of these venerable memorials of the past, John Effingham, who retained a pleasing recollection of their beauties as they had pre. sented themselves to his boyish eyes, had bought a few substitutes in a New-York shop, and a Shakspeare, and a Milton, and a Caesar, and a Dryden, and a Locke, as the writers of heroic so beautifully express it, were now seated in tranquil dignity on the old medallions that had held their illustrious predecessors. Although time had, as yet, done little for this new co, IF. 170 HOME AS FOUND. lection in the way of colour, dust and neglect were already throwing around them the tint of antiquity. 6" The lady," to use the language of Mr. Bragg, who did the cooking of the Wigwam, having every thing in readiness, our party took their seats at the brealkfias table, which was spread in the great hall, as soon as each had paid a little attention to the toilette. As the service was neither very scientific, nor sufficiently peculiar, either in the way of elegance or of its opposite quality, to be worthy of notice, we shall pass it over in silence. " One will not quite so much miss European architecture in this house," said Eve, as she took her seat at table, glancing an eye at the spacious and lofty room, in which thev were assembled; "here is at least size and its comforts, if not elegance." "Had you lost all recollection of this building, my child?" inquired her father, kindly; "I was in hopes you would feel some of the happiness of returning home, when you again found yourself beneath its roof!" "I should greatly dislike to have all the antics I have been playing in my own dressing-room exposed,' returned Eve, rewarding the parental solicitude of her father by a look of love, 1" though Grace, between hei laughing and her tears, has threatened me with su~c a disgrace. Ann Sidley has also been weeping, and, as even Annette, always courteous and consideiate, has shed a few tears in the way of sympathy, you ought not to imagine that I have been altogether so stoical as not to betray some feeling, dear father. But the paroxysm is past, and I am beginning to philosophize. I hope, cousin Jack, you have not forgotten that the drawing-room is a lady's empire!" "I have respected your rights, Miss Effingharn though, with a wish to prevent any violence to yolry tastes, I have caused sundlry altediluvian paintings an; engravings to be'c:nilned to the " HOME AS FCUND. 171 "Gal ret?" inquired Eve, so quickly as to- interrupt tLie speaker. "Fire," coolly returned her cousin. "The garret is now much too good for them; that part of the house being converted into sleeping-rooms for the maids. Mademoiselle Annette would go into hysterics, wrere she to see the works of art, that satisfied the past generation of masters in this country, in too close familiarity with her Louvre-ized eyes." "' Point du tout, monsieur," said Mademoiselle Viefville, innocently; ". lnalette a du gout dans son metiec sans doute, but she is too well bred to expect impossibilites. No doubt she would have conducted herself with decorum.'' Every body laughed, for much light-heartedness pre. vailed at that board, and the conversation continued. " I shall be satisfied if Annette escape convulsions," Eve added, " a refined taste being her weakness; and, to be frank, what I recollect of the works you mention, is not of the most flattering nature." " And yet," observed Sir George, " nothing has surprised me more than the respectable state of the arts of engraving and painting in this country. It was unlooked for, and the pleasure has probably been in proportion to the surprise."'" In that you are very right, Sir George Templemore," John Effingham answered; " but the improvement is of very recent date. He who remembers an American town half a century ago, will see a very different thing in an American town of to-day; and this is equally true of the arts you mention, with the essential difference that the latter are -taking a right direction under a proper instruction, while the former are taking a wrong direction, under the influence of money, that has no instruction. Had I left much of the old furniture, or any of the old pictures in the Wigwam, we should have had the bland features of Miss 172 HOME AS FOUND. Effingham in frowns, instead of bewitching smiles, at this very moment." " And yet I have seen fine old furniture in this country, cousin Jack." "Very true; though not in this part of it. The means of conveyance were wanting half a century since, and few people risk finery of any sort on corduroys. This very house had some respectable old things, that were brought here by dint of money, and they still remain; but the eighteenth century in general, may be set down as a very dark antiquity in all this region." When the repast was over, Mr. Effingham led his guests and daughter through the principal apartments, sometimes commending, and sometimes laughing, at the conceits of his kinsman. The library was a good sized room; good sized at least for a country in which domestic architecture, as well as public architecture, is still in the chrysalis state. Its walls were hung with an exceedingly pretty gothic paper, in green, but over each' window was a chasm in the upper border; and as this border supplied the arches, the unity of the entire design was broken in no less than four places, that being the precise number of the windows. The defect soon attracted the eye of Eve, and she was not slow in demanding an explanation. "The deficiency is owing to an American accident," returned her cousin; " one of those calamities of which you are fated to experience many, as the mistress of an American household. No more of the border was. to be bought in the country, and this is a land:of shops and not of fabricants. At Paris, Mademoiselle, one would send to the paper-maker for a supply; but, alas! he that has not enough of a thing with us, is as badly off as if he had none. We are consumers, and- not producers of works of art. It is a long way to send to France for ten or fifteen feet of paper hangings, HOME A.S FOUND. 173 and yet this must be done, or my beautiful gothic arches will remain forever without their key-stones!" "One sees the inconvenience of this," observed Sir cqeorge —"we feel it, even in England, in all that relates to imported things." " And we, in nearly all things, but food." "And does not this show that America can never become a manufacturing country?" asked the baronet, with the interest an intelligent Englishman ever feels in that all-absorbing question. " If you cannot manufacture an article as simple as that of paper-hangings, would it not be well to turn your attention, altogether, to agriculture?" As the feeling of this interrogatory was much more apparent than its logic, smiles passed from one to the other, though John Effingham, who really had a regard for Sir George, was content to make an evasive reply, a singular proof of amity, in a man of his caustic temperament. The survey of the house, on the whole, proved satis. factory to its future mistress, who complained, however, that it was furnished too much like a town resisidence. "For," she added, "you will remember, cousin Jack, that our visits here will be something like a villeggiatura." " Yes; yes, my fair lady; it will not be long before your Parisian and Roman tastes will be ready to pronounce the whole country a villeggiatura!" "This is the penalty, Eve, one pays for being a Hajji," observed Grace, who had been closely watching the expression of the others' countenances; for, agreeably to her view of things, the Wigwam wanted nothing to render it a perfect abode. "The things hat mwe enjoy, you despise." 66 That is an argument, my dear coz, that would apply equally well, as a reason for preferting brown sugar to white." 15 t 174 HOME AS FOUND. "In coffee, certainly, Miss Eve," put in the attentive Aristahulus, who having acquired this taste, in virtue of an economical mother, really fancied it a pure one. 6"CEvery body, in these regions, prefers the brown in coffee." " Oh, mon pere et ma mere, comme je vous en veux," said Eve, without attending to the nice distinctions of Mr. Bragg, which savoured a little too much of the neophyte in cookery, to find favour in the present company, "'comme je vous- en veux for having neglected so many beautiful sites, to place this building in the very spot it occupies." "In that respect, my child, we may rather be grateful at finding so comfortable a house, at all. Compared with the civilization that then surrounded it, this dwelling was a-palace at the time of its erection; bearing some such relation to the humbler structures around it, as the chateau bears To the cottage. Remember that brick had never before been piled on brick, in the walls of a house, in all this region, when the Wigwam was constructed. It is the Temple of Neptune of Otsego, if not of all the surrounding counties." Eve pressed to her lips the hand she was holding in both her own, and they all passed out of the library into another room. As they came in fi'ont of the hall windows, a party of apprentice-boys were seen coolly making their arrangements to amuse themselves with a game of ball, on the lawn directly in front of the house. "Surely, Mr. Bragg," said the owner of the Wigwam, with more displeasure in his voice than was usual for one of his regulated mind, " you do not countenance this liberty?" "Liberty, sir! — I am an advocate for liberty wherever I can find it. Do you refer to the young men on the lawn, Mr. Efingham?" "Certainly to them, sir; and permit mt to say, I think they might have chosen a more suitable spot fo? HOME AS FOUND. 175,heir sports. They are mistaking liberties for liberty I fear." "Why, sir, I believe they have always played bal. in that precise locality." " Alwhays!-I can assure you this is a great mistake. What private family, placed as we are in the centre of.a village, would allow of an invasion of its privacy in this rude manner? Well mav the house be termed a Wigwam, if this whooping is to be tolerated before its door." "You forget, Ned," said John Effingham, with a sneer, "that an American always means just eighteen months. AJntiquity is reached in five lustres, and the dark ages at the end of a human life. I dare say these amiable young gentlemen, who enliven their sports with so many agreeable oaths, would think you very unreasonable and encroaching to presume to tell them they are unwelcome." "To own the truth, Mr. John, it would be downright unpopular." "As I cannot permit the ears of the ladies to be offended with these rude brawls, and shall never consent to have grounds that are so limited, and which so properly belong to the very privacy of my dwelling, invaded in this coarse manner, I beg, Mr. Bragg, that you will, at once, desire these young men to pursue their sports somewhere else." Aristabulus received this commission with a very ill grace; for, while his native sagacity told him that Mr. Effinghamn was right, he too well knew the loose habits that had been rapidly increasing in the country during the last ten years, not to foresee that the order would do violence to all the apprentices' preconceived notions of their immunities; for, as he had truly stated, thilngs move at so quick a pace in America, and popuar feeling is so arbitrary, that a custom of a twelve nmonths' existence is deemed sacred, until the public,'tself; sees fit to alter it. He was reluctantly quitting 176 HOME AS FOUND. the patty, on his unpleasant duty, -when Mr. Effingham turned to a servant, who belonged to the place, and bade him go to the village barber, and desire him to come to the Wigwam to cut his hair; Pierre, whc usually performed that office for him, being busied in unpacking trunks. "Never mind, Tom," said Aristabulus obligingly, as he took up his hat; 1"I am going into the street, and will give the message to Mr. Lather.",'I [cannot think, sir, of employing you on such a duty," hastily interposed Mr. Effingham, who felt a gentleman's reluctance to impose an unsuitable office on any of his dependants —" Tom, I am sure, will do me the favour." "'Do not name it, my dear sir; nothing makes me happier than to do these little errands, and, another time, you can do as much for me." Aristabulus now went his way more cheerfully, for he determined to go first to the barber, hoping that some expedient might suggest itself, by means of which he could coax the apprentices from the lawn, and thus escape the injury to his popularity, that he so much dreaded. It is true, these apprentices were not voters, but, then some of them speedily would be, and all of them, moreover, had tongues, an instrument Mr. Bragg held in quite as much awe as some men dread salt-petre. In passing the ball-players, he called out in a wheedling tone to their ringleader, a notorious street brawlver"A fine time for sport, Dickey; don't you think there would be more room in the broad street than on this cro'wded lawn, where you lose your ball so often in the shrubbery " "This place will do, on a pinch," bawled Dickey"thouglh it might be better. If it warn't for that plagued house, we couldn't ask for a better ball-ground." 6 ( don't see," put in another, " what folks built a nOME AS FOUND. 177 house Just in that spot for; it has spoilt the very best play-ground in the village." 6" Some' people have their notions as well as others," returned Aristabulus; "6but, gentlemen, if I were in your place, I would try the street; I feel satisfied you would find it much the most agreeable and convenient." The apprentices thought differently, however, or they were indisposed to the change; and so they reconmenced their yells, their oaths, and their game. In the mean while, the party in the house continued their examination of John Effingham's improvements; and when this was completed, they separated, each to his or her own room. Aristabulus soon reappeared on the lawn; and, approaching the ball-players, he began to execute his commission, as he conceived, in good earnest. Instead of simply saying, however, that it was disagreeable to the owner of the property to have such an invasion on his privacy, and thus putting a stop to the intrusion for the future as well as at the present moment, he believed some address necessary to attain the desired end. "Well, Dickey," he said, "there is no accounting for tastes; but, in my opinion, the street would be a much better place to play ball in than this lawn. I wonder gentlemen of your observation should be satisfied with so cramped a play-ground!" "I tell you, Squire Bragg, this will do," roared Dickey; " we are in a hurry, and no way particular; the bosses will be after us in half an hour. Heave away, Sam." iThere are so many fences hereabouts," continued Aristabulus, with an air of indifference; "it's true the village trustees say there shall be no ball-playing'n the street, but I conclude you don't much mind what they think or threaten." "Let them sue for that, if they like," bawled a pal*icularlv amiable blackguard, called Peter, who struck uis ball as he spoke, quite into the principal st:'eet of 178 RnoiE AS FOUND. the rillage. _" Who's a trustee, that he should tell gentlerrmen where they are to play ball!" "Sure enough," said Aristabulus,."' and, now, by fiollo:1wing tip that blow, you can bring matters to an issue. I think the law very oppressive; and you can n!ever have so good an opportunity to bring things to a i::sis. Besides, it is very aristocratic to play bail timo)ng roses and dahlias." The bait took; for what apprentice-American apm prentice, in particular-can resist an opportunity of showing how much he considers himself superior to the law? Then it had never struck any of the party before, that it was vulgar and aristocratic to pursue the sport among roses, and one or two of them actually complained that they had pricked their fingers, in searching for the ball. "I know Mr. Effingham will be very sorry to have you go," continued Aristabulus, following up his advantage; " but gentlemen cannot always forego their pleasures for other folks." " Who's Mr. Effingham, I would like to know?" cried Joe Wart. " If he wants people to play ball on his premises, let him cut down his roses., Come, gentlemen, I conform to Squire Bragg, and invite you all to follow me into the street." As the lawn was now evacuated, en masse, Aristabulus proceeded with alacrity to the house, and went into the library, where Mr. Effingham was patiently waiting his return. " I am happy to inform you, sir," commenced the anlbassador, "that the ball-players have adjourned; and as for Mr. Lather, he declines your proposition." "Declines my proposition!" "Yes, sir; he dislikes to come; for he thinks it wil) be altogether a poor operation. His notion is, that if it be worth his while to come up to the Wigwam to cut your hair, it may be worth your while to go down to the shop,, to have it cut. Considering the matter in HOMiE AS FOUND. 179 ail its bearings, therefore,' he concludes he would rather not engage in the transaction at all." "I regret, sir, to have consented to your taking so disagreeable a commission, and regret it the rnore, now I fine that the barber is displosed to be troublesome." " Not at all, sir. Mr. Lather is a good man, in his way, and particularly neighbourly. By the way, Mr Effingham, he asked me to propose to let him take down your garden fence, in order that he may haul some manure on his potato patch, which wants it dread. fully, he says." "Certainly, sir. I cannot possibly object to his haul. ing his manure, even through this house, should he wish it. He is so very valuable a citizen, and one who knows his own business so well, that I am only surprised at the moderation of his request." Here Mr. Effingham rose, rang the bell fbr Pierre, and went to his own room, doubting, in his own mind, from all that he had seen, whether this was really the Templeton he had known in his youth, and whether he wsas in his own house or not. As for Aristabulus, who saw nothing out of rule, oi contrary to his own notions of propriety, in what had passed, he hurried off to tell the barber, who was so ignorant of the first duty of his trade, that he was at liberty to pull down Mr. Effingham's fence, in order to manure his own potato patch. Lest the reader should suppose we are drawing caricatures, instead of representing an actual condition of society, it may be necessary to explain that Mr. Bragg was a standing candidate for popular favour;'hat, lilie Mr. Dodge, he considered every thing that presented itself in the name of the public, as sacred and pararnount, and that so general and positive was his deference for majorities, that it was the bias of his mind to think half-a-dozen always in the right, as opposed to one, although that one, agreeably to the great decision of the real majority of the entire corn I80 1HOMHE AS FOUND. munity, had not only the law on his side, but all the abstract merits of the disputed question. In short, te such a pass of fieedorm had Mr. Bragg, in common with a large class of his countrymen, carried his notions, that he had really begun to imagine liberty was all means and no end. CHAPTER XII. "In sooth, thou wast in very gracious fooling last night, when thou;.pokest of Pigrogromotus, of the Vapians passing the equinoctial of Queubus;'t was very good i' faith." - SIR ANDREn AGUE-CHEER. THE progress of society, it has just been said, in what is termed a 1" new country," is a little anomalous. At the commencement of a settlement, there is much of that sort of kind feeling' and mutual interest, which men are apt to manifest towards each other, when they are embarked in an enterprise of common hazards. The distance that is unavoidably inseparable from education, habits and manners, is lessened by mutual wants and mnutual efforts; and the gentleman, even while he may maintain his character and station, maintains them with that species of good-fellowship and familiarity, that marks the intercourse between the officer and the soldier, in an arduous campaign. Men, and even wonien, break bread together, and otherwise commingle, that, in different circumstances, would be strangers; the hardy adventures and rough living of the forest, ap)a'arently lowering the pretensions of the man of cultivatio>n and mere mental resources, to something very near the level of those of the man of physical energy, and manual skill. In this rude intercourse, the parties meet, as it might be, on a sort of neutral ground, one yielding some of his superiority, and the other layinq HOMF AnS FOUND. 181 claims to an outward show of equality, that he secretly knows, however. is the result of the peculiar cir~urnmstances in which he is placed. In short, the state of society is favourable to the claims of mere animal force, and unfavourable to those of the higher qualities. This period may be termed, perhaps, the happiest of the first century of a settlement. The great cares of life are so engrossing and serious, that small vexations are overlooked, and the petty grievances that would make us seriously uncomfortable in a more regular state of society, are taken as matters of course, or laughed at as the regular and expected incidents of the day. Good-will abounds; neighbour comes cheerfully to the aid of neighbour; and life has much of the reckless gaiety, careless association, and buoyant merriment of childhood. It is found that they who have passed through this probation, usually look back to it with regret, and are fond of dwelling on the rude scenes and ridiculous events that distinguish the history of a new settlement, as the hunter is known to pine for the forest. To this period of fun, toil, neighbourly feeling and adventure. succeeds another, in which society begins to marshal itself, and the ordinary passions have sway. Now it is, that we see the struggles for place, the heart-burnings and jealousies of contending families, and the influence of mere money. Circumstances have probably established the local superiority of a few beyond all question, and the condition of these serves as a goal for the rest to aim at. The learned professions, the ministry included, or what, by courtesy, are so called, take precedence, as a matter of course, next to wealth, however, when wealth is at all supported by appearances. Then commence those gradations of social station, that set institutions at defiance, and which as necessarily follow civilization, as tastes and nabits are a consequence of indulgence. 16 182: HOME AS FOUND. This is, perhaps, the least inviting condition (I society that belongs to any country that can claim to be free and removed from barbarism. The tastes are toe uncultivated to exercise anyr essential influence; and when they do exist, it is usually with the pretension and effort that so commonly accompany infandt know. ledge. The struggle is only so much the more severe, in consequence of the late pale mrle, while men law claim to a consideration that would seem beyond their reach, in an older and more regulated community.. It is during this period that manners suifer the most, since they want the nature and feeling of the first condition, while they are exposed to the rudest assaults of the coarse-minded and vulgar; for, as men usually defer to a superiority that is long established, there being a charm about antiquity that is sometimes able to repress the passions, in older communities the marshalling of time quietly regulates what is here the subject of strife. What has just been said, depends on a general and natural principle, perhaps; but the state of society we are describing has some features peculiar to itself. The civilization of America, even in its older districts, which supply the emigrants to the newer regions, is unequal; one state possessing a higher level than another. Coming as, it does, from different parts of this vast country, the population of a new settlement, while it is singularly homogenous for the circumstances, necessarily brings with it its local peculiarities. If to these elements be added a sprinkling of Europeans of various nations and conditions, the effects of the commingling, and the temporary social struggles that follow, will occasion no surprise. The third and last condition of society in a 6" new country," is that in which the influence of the particular causes enumerated ceases, and men and things come within the control of more general and regular laws. The effect, of course, is to leave the cormmunitv in possession of a civilization that conforms to HoIME AS FOUND. 183 that of the whole region, be it higher or be it lower, and with the division into castes that are more or less rigidly maintained, according to circumstances. The periods, as the astronomers call the time taken in a celestial revolution, of the two first of these epochs in the history of a settlement, depend very much on its advancement in wealth and in numbers. In some places, the pastoral age, or that of good fellowship, continues for a whole life, to the obvious retrogression of the people, in most of the higher qualities, but to their manifest advantage, however, in the pleasures of the time being; while, in others, it passes away rapidly, like the buoyant animal joys, that live their time, between fouiteen and twenty. The second period is usually of longer duration, the migratory habits of the American people keeping society more unsettled than might otherwise prove to be the case. It may be said never to cease entirely until the great majority of the living generation are natives of the region, knowing no other means of comparison than those under which they have passed their days. Even when this is the case, there is commonly so large an infusion of the birds of passage, men who are adventurers in quest of advancement, and who live without the charities of a neighbourhood, as they may be said almost to live without a home, that there is to be found, for a long time, a middle state of society, during which it may well be questioned whether a community belongs to the second or to the third of the periods named. Templeton was properly in this equivocal condition, for while the third generation of the old settlers were in active life, so many passers-by came and went, that the influence of the latter nearly neutralized that of time and the natural order of things. Its population was pretty equally divided between the descendants of the earlier inhabitants, and those who flitted like Pwallows and other migratory birds. All of those who 184 HOME AS FOUNiD, had origina-lly entered the region in the pride of man hood, and had been active in converting the wilderness into the abodes of civilized men, if they had not been literally gathered to their fathers, in a physical sense had been laid, the first of their several races, beneath those sods that were to cover the heads of so many of their descendants. A few still remained among those who entered the wilderness in young manhood, but the events of the first period we have designated, and which we hlave imperfectly recorded in another work, were already passing into tradition.' Among these original settlers some portion of the feeling that had distinguished their earliest communion with their neighbours yet continued, and one of their greatest delights was to talk of the hardships and privations of their younger days, as the veteran loves to discourse of his marches, battles, scars, and sieges. It would be too much to say that these persons viewed the more ephemeRal part of the population with distrust, for their familiarity with changes acculstomed them to new faces; but they had a secret inclination for each other, preferred those who could enter the most sincerely into their own feelings, and naturally loved that communion best, where they found the most sympathy. To this fragment of the community belonged nearly all there was to be found of that sort of sentiment which is connected with locality; adventure, with them, supplying the place of time; while the natives of the spot, wanting in the recollections that had so many charms for their fathers, were not yet brought sufficiently within the influence of traditionary interest, to feel that hallowed sentiment in its proper force. As opposed in feeling to these relics of the olden time, were the birds of passage so often named, a numerous and restless class, that, of themselves, are almost sufficient to destroy whatever there is of poetry, or of local attachment, in any region where they resort. In Templeton and its adjacent district, however, the HOME AS FOUND. 185 two hostile influences might be said to be nearly equal, the descendants of the fathers of the country beginning to make a manly stand against the looser sentiment, or the want of sentiment, that so singularly distin guishes the migratory bands. The first did begin to consider the temple in which their fathers had worshipped more hallowed than strange altars; the sods that covered their fathers' heads more sacred than the clods that were upturned by the plough; and the places of their childhood and childish sports dearer than the highway trodden by a nameless multitude. Such, then, were the elements of the society into which we have now ushered the reader, and with which it will be our duty to make him better acquainted, as we proceed in the regular narration of the incidents of our tale. The return of the Effinghams, after so long an absence, naturally produced a sensation in so small a place, and visiters began to appear in the Wigwam as soon as propriety would allow. Many false rumours prevailed, quite as a matter of course: and Eve, it was reported, was on the point of being married to no less than three of the inmates of her father's house, within the first ten days, viz: Sir George Templemore, Mr:. Powis, and Mr. Bragg; the latter story taking its rise in some precocious hopes that had 6scaped the gentleman himself, in the'" excitement" of helping to empty a bottle of bad Breton wine, that was dignified with the name of champagne. But these tales revived and died so often, in a state of society in which matrimony is so general a topic with the young of the gentler sex, that they brought with them their own refutation. The third day, in particular, after the arrival of our party, was a reception day at the Wigwam; the gentlemen and ladies making it a point to be at home and disengaged, after twelve o'clock, in order to do honour to their guests. One of the first who made his appearanee was a Mr. Howel, a bachelor of about the same 10 X 186t HOME AS FOUND. age as Mr. Effingham, and a man of easy fortune and quiet habits. Nature had done more towards making Mlr. Howel a gentleman, than either cultivation or association; for he had passed his entire life, with very immaterial exceptions, in the valley of Templeton, where, without being what could be called a student, or a scholar, he had dreamed away his existence in an indolent communication with the current literature of the day. Hie was fond of reading, and being indisposed to contention, or activity of any sort, his mind had admitted the impressions of what he perused, as the stone receives a new form by the constant fall of drops of water. Unfortunately for Mr. Howel, he understood no language but his mother tongue; and, as all his reading was necessarily confined to English books, he had gradually, and unknown to himself, in his moral nature at least, got to be a mere reflection of those opinions, prejudices, and principles, if such a word can properly be used for such a state of the mind, that it had suited the interests or passions of England to promulgate by means of the press. A perfect bonnefom prevailed in all his notions; and though a very modest man by nature, so very certain was he that his authority was always right, that he was a little apt to be dogmatical on such points as he thought his authors appeared to think' settled. Between John Effingham and Mr. Howel, there were constant amicable skirmishes in the wav of discussion; for, while the latter was so dependent, limited in knowledge by unavoidable circumstances, and disposed to an innocent credulity, the first was original in his views, accustomed to see and think for himself, and, moreover, a little apt to estimate his own advantages at their full value. "Here comes our good neighbour, and my old school. fellow, Tom Howel." said Mr. Effingham, looking out at a window, and perceiving the person mentioned crossing the little lawn in front of the house, by following a winding foot-path-" as kind-hearted a man. HOME AS FOUND. 18 Sir George Templemore, as exists; one who is really American, for he has scarcely quitted the county halfa-dozen times in his life, and one of the honestest felb lows of my acquaintance." "Ay," put in John Effingharn, " as real an American as any man can be, who uses English spectacles for all he looks at, English opinions for all he says, English prejudices for all he condemns, and an English palate for all he tastes. American, quotha! The man is no more American than the Times' newspaper, or Charing Cross! He actually made a journey to New-York last war, to satisfy himself with his own eyes that a Yankee frigate had really brought an Englishman nto port." " His English predilections will be no fault in my eyes," said the baronet, smiling —" and I dare say we shall be excellent friends." "I am sure Mr. Howel is a very agreeable man," added Grace-," of all in your Templeton coterie, he is my greatest favourite." " Oh! I foresee a tender intimacy between Templemore and Howel," rejoined John Effingham; "and sundry wordy wars between the latter and Miss Effingham." "' In this you do me injustice, cousin Jack. I remember Mr. Howel well, and kindly; for he was ever wont to indulge my childish whims, when a girl." -" The man is a second Burchell, and, I dare say never came to the Wigwam when you were a child, without having his pockets stuffed with cakes, or bon. bonrs." The meeting was cordial, Mr. Howel greeting the gentlemen like a warm friend, and expressing great -lelight at the personal improvements that had been made in Eve, between the ages of eight and twenty John Effingham was no more backward than the others, Eor he, too, liked their simple-minded, kind-hearted, but credulous neighbour. 188 HOME AS FOUND. "You are welcome back —you are welcome back,'added Mr. Howel, blowing his nose, in order to conceal the tears that were gathering in his eyes. " I did think of going to New-York to meet you, but the distance at my time of life is very serious. Age, gentlemen, seems to be a stranger to you." " And yet we, who are both a few months older than yourself, Howel," returned Mr. Effiugham, kindly, "have managed to overcome the distance you have just mentioned, in order to come and see youz!" " Ay, you are great travellers, gentlemen, very great travellers, and are accustomed to motion.-Been quite as far as Jerusalem, I hear!" ":;Into its very gates, my good friend; and I wish, with all my heart, we had had you in our company. Such a journey might cure you of the home-malady." " I am a fixture, and never expect to look upon the ocean, now. I did, at one period of my life, fancy such an event might happen, but I have finally abandoned all hope on that subject. Well, Miss Eve, of all the countries in which you have dwelt, to which do you give the preference?' "' I think Italy is the general favourite," Eve answered, with a friendly smile; "although there are some agreeable things peculiar to almost every country." " Italy!-Well, that astonishes me a good deal! I never knew there was any thing particularly interesting about Italy! I should have expected you to say, England." "England is a fine country, too, certainly; but it wants many things that Italy enjoys." "Well, now, what?" said Mr. Howel, shifting his legs from one knee to the other, in order to be more convenient to listen, or, if necessary, to object. " What can Italy possess, that England does not enjoy in a still greater degree?" " Its recollections, for one thing, and all that interest which time and great events throw around a region." HOME AS FOUND. 1 89 "And is England wanting in recollections and great events? Are there not the Conqueror? or, if you will, King Alfred? and Queen Elizabeth, and Shakspeare-think of Shakspeare, young lady-and Sir Walter Scott, and the Gun-Powder Plot; and Cromwell, Oliver Cromwell, my dear Miss Eve; and Westminster Abbey, and London Bridge, and George IV., the descendant of a line of real kings,-what, in the name of Heaven, can Italy possess, to equal the interest one feels in such things as these?" "They are very interesting fno doubt;" said Eve, endeavouring not to smile —" but Italy has its relics of former ages too; you forget the Cesars." "Very good sort of persons for barbarous times, I dare say, but what can they be to the 1English monarchs? I would rather look upon a bona fide English king, than see all the Cuesars that ever lived. I never can think any man a real king but the king of Eng land.' "' Not King Solomon!" cried John Effingham. "Oh! he was a Bible king, and one never thinks of them. Italy! well, this I did not expect from your father's daughter! Your great-great-great-grandfather must have been an Englishman born, Mr. Eflingham?' " I have reason to think he was, sir." "And 1Milton, and Dryden, and Newton, and Locke! These are prodigious names, and worth all the C0esars put together. And Pope, too; what have they got in Italy to compare to Pope?" "They have at least the Pope," said Eve, laughing. "And, then, there are the Boar's Head in East-Cheap; %nd the Tower; and Queen Anne, and all the wits of tier reign; and-and-and Titus Oates; and Bosworth Field; and Smithfield, where the martyrs were burned, and a thousand more spots and persons of intense interest in Old England!" "Quite true," said John Effingham, with an air ot 190 HOME: AS FOUND. sympathy —" but, Howel, you have forgotten Peeping Torm of Coventry, and the climate!" " And Holyrood-House; and York-Minster; and St Paul's;" continued the worthy Mr. Howel, too much bent on a catalogue of excellencies, that to him were sacred, to heed the interruption, " and, above all, Windsor Castle. What is there in the world to equal Windsor Castle as a royal residence? Want of breath now gave Eve an opportunity to reply, and she seized it with an eagerness that she was the first to laugh at lerself, afterwards. " Caserta is no mean house, Mr. Howel; and, in my poor judgment, there is more real magnificence in its great stair-case, than in all Windsor Castle united, if you except the chapel."' But, St. Paul's!"* "Why, St. Peter's may be set down, quite fairly, I think, for its pendant at least." "lTrue, the Catholics do say so;" returned' Mr. Howel, with the deliberation one uses when he greatly distrusts his own concession; " but I have always considered it one of their frauds. I don't think there can be any thing finer than St. Paul's. Then there are the noble ruins of England! They, you must admit, are unrivalled." "' The Temple of Neptune, at Paestum, is commonly thought an interesting ruin, Mr. Howel." "Yes, yes, for a temple, I dare say; though I do not remember to have ever heard of it before. But no temple can ever compare to a ruined abbey!" 1" Taste is an arbitrary thing, Tom Howel, as you and I know when as boys we quarrelled about the beauty of our ponies," said Mr. Effingham, willing to put an end to a discussion that he thought a little premature, after so long an absence. "Here are two young friends who shared the hazards of our late passage with us, and to whom, in a great degree, we owe our present happy security, and I am anxious to make you IOME AS FOUND. 19 acquainted with them. This is our countryman, Mr. Powis, and this is an English friend, who, I -am certain, will be happy to know so warm an admirer of his own country-Sir George Templemore." Mr. Howel had never before seen a titled Englishman, and he was taken so much by surprise that he made his salutations rather awkwardly. As both the young men, however, met him with the respectful ease that denotes familiarity with the world, he soon recovered his self-possession. "' I hope you have brought back with you a sound American heart, Miss Eve," resumed the guest, as soon as this little interruption had ceased. " We have had sundry rumours of French Marquisses, and German Barons; but I have, all along, trusted too much to your patriotism to believe you would marry a fbreigner." " I hope you except Englishmen," cried Sir George, gaily: " we are almost the same people." " I am proud to hear you say so, sir. Nothing flatters me more than to be thought English; and I certainly should not have accused Miss Effingham of a want of love of country, had — — "," She married half-a-dozen Englishmen," interrupted John Effingham, who saw that the old theme was in danger of being revived. "But, Howel, you have paid me no compliments on the changes in the house. I hope they are to your taste." 6 A little too French, Mr. John." "French!- There is not a French feature in the whole animal. What has put such a notion into your head?" "It is the common opinion, and* I confess I should like the building better were it less continental." "4 Why, my old friend, it is a nondesci ipt-originalEffingham upon Doolittle, if you will; and, as for models, it is rather more English than any thing else." "Well, Mr. John, I am glad to hear this, for'I do ionfess to a disposition rather to like the house. I anm HOME AS FOUND. dying to know, Miss Eve, if you saw all our distinguished contemporaries when in Europe? —That to me, would be one of the greatest delights of travelling!" " To say that we saw them all, might be too much; though we certainly did meet with many." "Scott, of course." "Sir Walter we had the pleasure of meeting, a few times, in London." "And Southey, and Coleridge, and Wordsworth, and Moore, and Bulwer, and D'Israeli, and Rogers, and Campbell, and the grave of Byron, and Horace Smith, and Miss Landon, and Barry Cornwall, and-" "Cum multis allis," put in John Effingham, again, by way of arresting the torrent of names. " Eve saw many of these, and, as Tubal told Shylock,' we often came where we did hear' of the rest. But you say nothing, friend Tom, of Goethe, and Tieck, and Schlegel, and La Martine, Chateaubriant, Hugo, Delavigne, Mickiewicz, Nota, Manzoni, Niccolini, &c. &c. &c. &c. &c. &c." Honest, well-meaning Mr. Howel, listened to the catalogue that the other ran volubly over, in silent wonder; for, with the exception of one or two of these distinguished men, he had never even heard of them; and, in the simplicity of his heart, unconsciously to nimself, he had got to believe that there was no great personage still living, of whom he did not know something. "Ah, here comes young Wenham, by way of preserving the equilibrium," resumed John Effingham, looking out of a window —" I rather think you must have forgotten him, Ned, though you remember his father, beyond question." Mr. Effingham and his cousin went out into the hall to receive the new guest, with whom the latter had become acquainted while superintending the repairs of the Wigwam. HOME AS FOUND. 193 Mr. Wenham was the son of a successful lawyer in the county, and, being an only child, he had also succeeded to an easy-independence. His age, however, brought him rather into the generation to which Eve belonged, than into that of the father; and, if Mr. Howel was a reflection, or rather a continuation, of' all the provincial notions that America entertained of England forty years ago, Mr. Wenham might almost be said to belong to the opposite school, and to be as ultra-American, as his neighbour was ultra-British.If there is La jeune France, there'is also la jeune.m('krique, although the votaries of the latter march-with less hardy steps than the votaries of the first. Mr. Wennam fancied himself a paragon of national independence, and was constantly talking of American excellencies, though the ancient impressions still lingered in his moral system, as men look askance for the ghosts which frightened their childhood on crossing a churchyard in the dark. John Effingham knew the penchant of the young man, and when he said that he came happily to preserve the equilibrium, he alluded to this striking difference in the characters of their two friends. The introductions and salutations over, we shall resume the conversation that succeeded in the drawingroom. 1" You must be much gratified, Miss Effingham," observed Mr. Wenham, who, like a true American, being a young man himself, supposed it de rigueur to address a young lady in preference to any other present,-" with the great progress made by our country since you went abroad." Eve simply answered that her extreme youth, when she left home, had prevented her from retaining any precise notions on such subjects. "I dare say it is all very true," she added, " but one, like myself, who remembers only older countries. is, I think, a little more apt to be struck with the deficiencies. 7 194 HOiME AS FOUND. than with what may, in truth, be improx ements, though they still fall short of excellence." Mr. Wenham looked vexed, or- indignant would be a better word, but he succeeded in preserving his coolness-a thing that is not always easy to one of provincial habits and provincial education, when he finds his own beau ideal lightly estimated by others. "Miss Effingham must discover a thousand imperfections." said Mr. Howel, "coming, as she does, directly from England. That music, now,"-alluding to the sounds of a flute that were heard through the open windows, coming from the adjacent village-" must be rude enough to her ear, after the music of London." " The street music of London is certainly among the best, if not the very best, in Europe," returned Eve, with a glance of the eye at the baronet, that caused him to smile, " and I think this fairly belongs to the class, being so freely given to the neighbourhood." " Have you read the articles signed Minerva, in the Itebdomad, Miss Effingham," inquired Mr. Wenham. who was determined to try the young lady on a point of sentiment, having succeeded so ill in his first attempt to interest her —" they are generally thought to be a great acquisition to American literature." "Well, Wenham, you are a fortunate man," interposed Mr. Howel, "if you can find any literature in America, to add to, or to substract from. Beyond almanacs, reports of cases badly got up, and newspaper verses, I know nothing that deserves such a name." "We may not print on as fine paper, Mr. IHowel, or do up the books in as handsome binding as other people," said Mr. Wenham, bridling and looking grave, "but so far as sentiments are concerned, or sound sense, American literature need turn its back on no, literature of the day." "By the way, Mr. Effingham, you were in Russia.; did you happen to see the Emperor?" "I had that pleasure, Mr. Howel." HOME AS FOUND. 195 "And is he really the monster we have been taught to believe him?" " Monster!" exclaimed the upright Mr. Effingham, fairly recoiling a step in surprise. "In what sense a monster, imy worthy friend? surely not in a physical?" " I do not know that. I have somehow got the no. tion he is any thing but handsome. A mean, butchering, bloody-minded looking little chap, I'll engage." " You are libelling one of the finest-looking men of the age." "I think I would submit it to a jury. I cannot believe, after what I have read of him in the English publications, that he is so very handsome." " But, my good neighbour, these English publications must be wrong; prejudiced perhaps, or even malignant." " Oh! I am not the man to be imposed on in that way. Besides, what motive could an English writer have for belying an Emperor of Russia?" "Sure enough, what motive!" exclaimed John Effingham.-"s You have your answer, Ned!" " But vou will remember, Mr. Howel," Eve interposed,'" that we have seen the Emperor Nicholas." 1" I dare say, Miss Eve, that your gentle nature was disposed to judge him as kindly as possible; and, then, I think most Americans, ever since the treaty of Ghent, have been disposed to view all Russians too favourably. No, no; I am satisfied with the account of the English; they live much nearer to St. Petersburg than we do, and they are more accustomed, too; to give accounts of such matters." "But living nearer, Tom Howel," cried Mr. Effingham, with unusual animation, " in such a case, is of no avail, unless one lives near enough to see with his own eyes." s" Well-well-my good friend, we will talk of this another time. I know your disposition to look at every body with lenient eyes. I will now wish you all a t96 HOME AS FOUND. good morning, and hope soon to see you again. Miss Eve, I have one word to say, if you dare trust yourself with a youth of fifty, for a minute. in the library." Eve rose cheerfully, and led the way to the room her father's visiter had named. When within it, Mr. Howel shut the door carefully, and then with a sort of eager delight, he exclaimed"For heaven's sake, my dear young lady, tell me who are these two strange gentlemen in the other room." "Precisely the persons my father mentioned, Mr. Howel; Mr. Paul Powis, and Sir George Templemore." 4" Englishmen, of course!" " Sir George Templemore is, of course, as you say, but we may boast of Mr. Powis as a countryman." " Sir George Templemore! —What a superb-looking young fellow!" " Why, yes," returned Eve, laughing; " he, at least, you will admit is a handsome man." "He is wonderfil!-The other, Mr.-a-a-a —I forget what you called him-he is pretty well too; but this Sir George is a princely youth." "I rather think a majority of observers would give the preference to the appearance of Mr. Powis," said Eve, struggling to be steady, but permitting a blush to heighten her colour, in despite of the effort. " What could have induced him to come up among these mountains —an English baronet!" resumed Mr. ~Ilowel, without thinking of Eve's confusion. "Is he a real lord?" "Only a little one, Mr. Howel. You heard what my father said of our having been fellow-travellers." " But what does he think of us. I am dying to know what such a man really thinks of us?" "It is not always easy to discover what such men really think; although I am inclined to believe that he's disposed to think rather favourably of some of us." HOME AS FOUND. 197 "Ay, of you, and your father, anc Mr. John. You hiave travelled, and are more than half European; but what can he think of those who have never left America?" "Even of some of those," returned Eve, smiling, " I suspect he thinks partially."' Well, I am glad of that. Do vou happen to know his opinion of the Emperor Nicholas?" 6Indeed I do not remember to have heard him men. tion the Emperor's name; nor do I think he has evex seen him." 1" That is extraordinary! Such a man should have seen every thing, and know every thing; but I'11 engage, at the bottom, he does know all about him. If you happen to have any old English newspapers, as wrappers, or by any other accident, let me beg them of you. I care not how old they are. An English journal fifty years old, is more interesting than one of ours wet from the press." Eve promised to send him a package, when they shook hands and parted. As she was crossing the hall, to rejoin the party, John Effingham stopped her. "Has Howel made proposals?" the gentleman inquired, in an affected whisper. "' None, cousin Jack, beyond an offer to read the old English newspapers I can send him." "'Yes, yes, Tom Howel will swallow all the nonsense that is timbre a Londres." " I confess a good deal of surprise at finding a respectable and intelligent man so weak-minded as to give credit to such authorities, or to form his serious -pinions on information derived from such sources." "You may be surprised, Eve, at hearing so frank avowals of the weakness; but, as for the weakness itself, you are now in a country for which England does all the thinking, except on subjects that touch the current interests of the day.' "Nav, I will not believe this! If it were true, how 17' X1I8 HOME AS FOUND came we independent of her-where did we get spirit to war against her."' "The man who has attained his majority is independent of his father's legal control, without being independent of the lessons he was taught when a child. The soldier sometimes mutinies, and after the contest is over, he is usually the most submissive man of the regiment." " All this to me is very astonishing! I confess that a great deal has struck me unpleasantly in this way, since our return; especially in ordinary society; but I never could have supposed it had reached to the pass in which I see it existing in our good neighbour Howel." "' You have witnessed one of the effects, in a matter of no great moment to ourselves; but, as time and years afford the means of observation and comparison, you will perceive the effects in matters of the last moment, in a national point of view. It is in human nature to undervalue the things with which we are familiar, and to form false estimates of those which are remote, either by time, or by distance. But, go into the drawing-room, and, in young Wenham, you will find one who fancies himself a votary of a new school. although his prejudices and mental dependence are scarcely less obvious than those of poor Tom Howel." The arrival of more company, among whom were several ladies, compelled Eve to defer an examination of Mr. Wenham's peculiarities to another opportunity. She found many of her own sex, whom she had left children, grown into womanhood, and not a few of them at a period of life when they should be cultivating their physical and moral powers, already oppressed with the cares and feebleness that weigh so heavily oin the young American wife. hOMEl AS FOUND. 199 CHAPTER XIII. "Nay we must longer kneel; I am a suitor." QUEEN KATHERINE. THE Effinghams were soon regularly domesticated, and the usual civilities had been exchanged. Many of their old friends resumed their ancient intercourse, and some new acquaintances were made. The few first visits were, as usual, rather labored and formal; but things soon took their natural course, and, as the ease of country life was the aim of the family, the temporary little bustle was quickly forgotten. The dressing-room of Eve overlooked the lake, and, about a week after her arrival, she was seated in it enjoying that peculiarly ladylike luxury, which is to be found in the process of having another gently disposing of the hair. Annette wielded the comb, as usual, while Ann Sidley, who was unconsciously jealous that any one should be employed about her darling, even in this manner, though so long accustomed to it, busied herself in preparing the different articles of attire that she fancied her young mistress might be disposed to wear that morning. Grace was also in the room, having escaped from the hands of her own maid, in order to look into one of those books which professed to give an account of the extraction and families of the higher classes of Great Britain, a copy of which Eve happened to possess, among a large collection of books,.lmancachs de Gotha, Court Guides, and other similar works that she had found it convenient to possess as a traveller. "Ah! here it is," said Grace, in the eagerness oI one who is suddenly successful after a long and vexaious search. "6 Here is what, coz?" 200 HOME AS FOUND. Grace colouLred, and she could have bitten her toncue for its indiscretion, but, too ingenuous to deceive, she reluctantly told the truth. " I was merely looking for the account of Sir George Templemore's family; it is awkward to be domesticated with one, of whose family we are utterly ignorant." "Have you found the nane?" "Yes; I see he has two sisters, both o4 whom are married, and a brother who is in the Guards. But —--- "But what, dear?" "His title is not so very old." "The title of no Baronet can be very old, the order having been instituted in the reign of James I.";I did not know that. His ancestor was created a baronet in 1701, I see. Now, Eve " " Now, what, Grace?" " We are both-" Grace would not confine the remark to herself —" we are both of older families than this! You have even a much higher English extraction; and I think I can claim for the Van Cortlandts more antiquity than one that dates from 1701!" "LNo one doubts it, Grace; but what do you wish me to understand by this? Are we to insist on preceding Sir George, in going through a door?" Grace blushed to the eyes, and yet she laughed, involuntarily. "' What nonsense! No one thinks of such things in America." "Except at Washington, where, I am told,' Senators' ladies' do give themselves airs. But you are quite right, Grace; women have no rank in America, beyond their general social rank, as ladies or no landies, and we will not be the first to set an example of breaking the rule. I am afraid our blood will pass for nothing, and that we must give place to the baronet, unless, indeed, he recognizes the rights of the sex." "You know I mean nothing so silly. Sir George HOME AS FOUND. 20'.emplemnore does not seem. to think of rank at all; even Mr. Powis treats him, in all respects, as an equal, and Sir George seems to admit it to be right." Eve's maid, at the moment, was twisting her hair, with the intention to put it up; but the sudden manner in which her young mistress turned to look at Grace, caused Annette to relinquish her grasp, and the shoulders of the beautiful and blooming girl were instantly covered with the luxuriant tresses. "'And why should not Mr. Powis treat Sir George Templemore as one every way his equal, Grace?" she asked, with an impetuosity unusual in one so trained in the forms of the world. " Why, Eve, one is a baronet, and the other is but a simple gentleman." Eve Effingham sat silent for quite a minute. Her little foot moved, and she had been carefully taught, too, that a lady-like manner, required that, even this beautiful portion of the female frame should be quiet and unobtrusive. But America did not contain two of the same sex, years, and social condition, less alike in their opinions, -or it might be said their prejudices, than the two cousins. Grace Van Cortlandt, of the best blood of her native land, had unconsciously imbibed in childhood, the notions connected with hereditary rank, through the traditions of colonial manners, by means of novels, by hearing the vulgar reproached or condemned for their obtrusion and ignorance, and too often justly reproached and condemned, and by the aid of her imagination, which contributed to throw a gloss and brilliancy over a state of things that singularly gains by distance. On the other hand, with Eve, every thing connected with such subjects was a matter of fact. She hlad been thrown early into the highest associations of Europe; she had not only seen royalty on its days of gala and representation, a mere raree-show that is addressed to the senses, or purely an observance of forms that may possibly have their mean 202 HOME AS FOUND. ing, but which can scarcely be said to have their reasons,. but she had lived long and intimately among the high-born and great, and this, too, in so many different countries, as to have destroyed the influence of the particular nation that has transmitted so many of its notions to America as heir-looms. By close observation, she knew that arbitrary and political distinctions made but little difference between men of themnselves; and so far from having become the dupe of the glitter of life, by living so long within its immediate influence, she had learned to discriminate between the false and the' real, and to perceive that which was truly respectable and useful, and to know it from that which was merely arbitrary and selfish. Eve actually fancied that the position of an American gentleman might readily become, nay that it ought to be the highest of all human stations, short of that of sovereigns. Such a man had no social superior, with the exception of those who actually ruled, in her eyes, and this fact she conceived, rendered him more than noble, as nobility is usually graduated. She had been accustomed to see her father and John Effingham moving in the best circles of Europe, respected for their information and independence, undistinguished by their manners, admired for their personal appearance, manly, courteous, and of noble bearing and principles, if not set apart from the rest of mankind by an arbitrary rule connected with rank. Rich, and possessing all the habits that properly mark refinement, of gentle extraction, of liberal attainments, walking abroad in the dignity of manhood, and with none between them and the Deity, Eve had learned to regard the gentlemen of her race as the equals in station of any of their European associates, and as the superiors of most, in every thing that is essential to true distinction. With her, even titular princes and dukes had no estimation, merely as princes and dukes; and, as her quick mind glanced over the long catalogue of artificial social gradations H-OWME AS'FOUND. 20 and she found Grace actually attaching an importance to the equivocal and purely conventional condition of an English baronet, a strong sense of the ludicrous connected itself' with the idea. "A simple gentleman, Grace!" she repeated slowly after her cousin; " and is not a simple gentleman, a simple.J1merican gentleman, the equal of any gentleman on earth-of a poor baronet, in particular?" "Poor baronet, Eve!" "Yes, dear, poor baronet; I know fully the extent and meaning of what I say. It is true, we do not know as much of Mr. Powis- family," and here Eve's colour heightened, though she made a mighty effort to be steady and unmoved, as we might; but we know he is an A./nerican; that, at least, is something; and we see he is a gentleman; and what American gentleman, a real American gentleman, can be the inferior of an English baronet? Would your uncle, think you; would cousin Jack; proud, lofty-minded cousin Jack, think you, Grace, consent to receive so paltry a distinction as a baronetcy, were our institutions to be so far altered as to admit of such social classifications?" "Why, what would they be, Eve, if not baronets?" "Earls, Counts, Dulkes, nay Princes! These are the designations of the higher classes of Europe, and such titles, or those that are equivalent, would belong to the higher classes here." " I fancy that Sir George Templemore would not be persuaded to admit all this!" " If you had seen Miss Eve, surrounded and admired by princes, as I have seen her, Miss Grace," said Ann Sidley, "you would not think any simple Sir George half good enough for her." " Out good Nanny means, a Sir George," interrupted Eve, laughing, " and not the Sir George in question. But, seriously, dearest coz, it depends more on our. selves, and less on others, in what light they are to egard us, than is coirnmonly supposed. Do you not 204 HO1ME AS FOUND. suppose there are families in America wnc, it dislosea to raise any objections beyond those that are purely personal, would object to baronets, and the wearers of red ribands, as unfit matches for their daughters, on the ground of rank? What an absurdity would it be, for a Sir George, or the Sir George either, to object to a daughter of a President of the United Stales for instance, on account of station; and yet I'11 answer for it, ybu would think it no personal honour, if Mi. Jacks son had a son, that he should propose to my dear father for you. Let us respect ourselves properly, take care to be truly ladies and gentlemen, and so far from titular rank's being necessary to us, before a hundred lustres are past, we shall bring all such distinctions intc discredit, by showing that they are not necessary to any one important interest, or to true happiness and respectability any where." "6 And do you not believe, Eve, that Sir George Templemore thinks of the difference in station between us?9' "I cannot answer for that," said Eve, calmly. "' The man is naturally modest; and, it is possible when he sees that we belong to the highest social condition of a great country, he may regret that such has not been his own good fortune in his native land; especially, Grace, since he has known you." Grace blushed, looked pleased, delighted even, and yet surprised. It is unnecessary to explain the causes of the three first expressions of her emotions; but the last may require a short examination. Nothing but time;and a change of circumstances, can ever raise a province or a provincial town to the independent state of feeling that so strikingly distinguishes a metropolitan country, or a capital. It would be as rational to expeat that the inhabitants of the nursery should disregard the opinions of the drawing-room, as to believe that the provincial should do all his own thinking.' Political dependency, moreover, is much more easily HOME AS FOUND. 205 thrown aside than mental dependency.- It is not sulrprising, therefore, that Grace Van Cortlandt, with her narrow associations, general notions of li'e, origin, and provincial habits, should be the very opposite of Eve, in all that relates to independence of thought, on subjects like those that they were now discussing. Had Grace been a native of New England, even, she would have been less influenced by the mere social rank of the baronet than wvas actually the case; for, while the population of that part of the Union feel more of the general subserviency to Great Britain than the population of any other portion of the republic, they probably feel-less -ofit, in-this particular form, from the circumstance that their colonial habits were less connected with the aristocratical usages of the mother country. Grace was allied by blood, too, with the higher classes of England, as, indeed, was the fact with most of the old families among the New York gentry; and the traditions of her, race came in aid of the traditions of her colony, to continue the profound deference she felt for an English title. Eve might have been equally subjected to the same feelings, had she not been removed into another sphere at so early a period of liie, where she imbibed the notions already mentionednotions that were quite as effectually rooted in her moral system, as those of Grace herself could be in her own. "This is a strange way of viewing the rank of a baronet, Eve!" Grace exclaimed, as soon as she had a little recovered from the confusion caused by the personal allusion. " I greatly question if you can induce Sir George Templemore to see his own position with your eyes." "No, my dear; I think he will be much more likely to regard, not only that, but most other things, with the eyes of another person. We will now talk of more agreeable things, however; for I confess, when I lo dwell on titles, I have a taste for the more 18 206 HOME AS FOUND. princely appellations; and that a simple chevalier can scarce excite a feeling that such is the theme." "Nay, Eve," interrupted Grace, with spirit, " an English baronet is noble. Sir George Templemore assured me that, as lately as last evening. The heralds, I believe, have quite recently established that fact to their own satisfaction." " I am glad of it, dear," returned Eve, with difficulty refraining from gaping, i as it will be of great importance to them, in their own eyes. At all events, I concede that Sir George Templemore, knight or baronet, big baron or little baron, is a noble fellow; and what more can any reasonable person desire. Do you know, sweet coz, that the Wigwam will be full to overflowing next week?-that it-will be necessary to light our council-fire, and to smoke the pipe of many welcomes?"'I have understood Mr. Powis, that his kinsman, Captain Ducie, will arrive on Monday." "' And Mrs. Hawker will come on Tuesday, Mr. and Mrs. Bloomfield on Wednesdav, and honest, brave straight-forward, literati-hating Captain Truck, on Thursday, at the latest. We shall be a large countrycircle, and I hear the gentlemen talking of the boats and other amusements. But I believe my father has a consultation in the library, at which he wishes us to be present; we will join him, if you please." As Eve's toilette was now completed, the two ladies rose, and descended together to join the party below. lir. Effingham was standing at a table that was covered with maps, while two or three respectable-looking -men, master-mechanics, were at his side. The manners of these men were quiet, civil, and respectful, having a mixture of manly simplicity, with a proper deference for the years and station of the master of the house; though all but one, wore their hats. The one who formed the exception, had become refined bx u long intercourse with this particular family; and his HOME AS FOUND. 207 acquired taste had taught him that, respect for himself; as well as for decency, rendered it necessary to observe the long-established rules of decorum, in his intercourse with others. His companions, though vithout a particle of coarseness, or any rudeness of intention, were less decorous, simply from a loose habit, that is insensibly taking the place of the ancient laws of propriety in such matters, and which habit, it is to be feared, has a part of its origin in false and impracticable political notions, that have been stimulated by the arts of demagogues. Still, not one of the three hardworking, really civil, and even humane men, who now stood covered in the library of Mr. Efiingham, was probably conscious of the impropriety of which he was guilty, or was doing more than insensibly yielding to a vicious and vulgar practice. "I am glad you have come, my love," said Mr. Effingham, as his daughter entered the room, " for I find I need support in maintaining my own opinions here. John is obstinately silent; and, as for all these other gentlemen, I fear they have decidedly taken sides against me." " You can usually count on my support, dearest father, feeble as it may be. But what is the disputed point to-day?" " There is a proposition to alter the interior of the church, and our neighbour Gouge has brought the plans, on which, as he says, he has lately altered several churches in the county. The idea is, to remove the pews entirely, converting themn into what are called' slips,' to lower the pulpit, and to raise the floor, am phitheatre fashion." "Can there be a sufficient reason for this change?" demanded Eve, with surprise. "Slips! The word has a vulgar sound even, and savours of a useless innovat;on. I doubt its orthodoxy." "It is very popular, Miss Eve," answered Aristabulus, advancing from a window, where he had been 208 HOME AS FOUND. whispering assent. "This fashion takes universally and is getting to prevail in all denominations." Eve turned involuntarily, and to her surprise she perceived that the editor of the Active Inquirer was added to their party. The salutations, on the part of the voung lady, Qwere distant and stately, while Mr. Dodge, who had not been able to resist public opinion, and had actually parted with his moustachios, simpered, and wished to have it understood by the spectators, that he was on familiar terms with all the family. " It may be popular, Mr. Bragg," returned Eve, as soon as she rose from her profound curtsey to Mr. Dodge; " but it can scarcely be said to be seemly. This is, indeed, changing the order of things, by elevating the sinner, and depressing the saint." 6" You forget, Miss Eve, that under the old plan, the people could not see; they were kept unnaturally down, if one can so express it, while nobody had a good look-out but the parson and the singers in the front row of the gallery. This was unjust." " I do not conceive, sir, that a good look-out, as you term it, is at all essential to devotion, or that one cannot as well listen to instruction when beneath the teacher, as when above him." " Pardon me, Miss;" Eve recoiled, as she always did, when Mr. Bragg used this vulgar and contemptuous mode of address; " we put no body up or down; all we aim it is a just equality-to place all, as near as possible, on a level." Eve gazed about her in wonder; and then she hesitated a moment, as if distrusting her ears. "Equality! Equality with what? Surely not with the ordained ministers of the church, in the performance of their sacred duties! Surely not with the Deity!" "We do not look at it exactly in this light, ma'am. The people build the church, that you will allow, HOME AS FOUND. 209 Miss Effingham; even you will allow this, Mr. Effingham." Both the parties appealed to, bowed a simple assent to so plain a proposition, but neither spoke. " Well, the people building the church very naturally ask themselves for what purpose it was built?" " For the worship of God," returned Eve with a steady solemnity of manner that a little abashed even the- ordinarily indomitable and self-composed Aristabulus. "Yes, Miss; for the worship of God and the accolmmodation of the public." " Certainly," added Mr. Dodge; "for the public accommodation and for public worship;" laying due emphasis on the adjectives. "Father, you, at least, will never consent to this?" "Not readily, my love. I confess it shocks all my notions of propriety to see the sinner, even when he professes to be the most humble and penitent, thrust himself up ostentatiously, as if filled only with his own self-love and self-importance." "You will allow, Mr. Effingham," rejoined Aristabulus, " that churches are built to accommodate the public, as Mr. Dodge has so well remarked."." No, sir; they are built for the worship of God, as my daughter has so well remarked." " Yes, sir; that, too, I grant your " "As secondary to the main object-the public convenience, Mr. Bragg unquestionably means;" put in John Effingham, speaking for the first time that morning on the subject. Eve turned quickly, and looked towards her kinsman. He was standing near the table, with folded arms, and his fine face expressing all the sarcasm and contempt that a countenance so singularly calm and gentlemanlike, could betray. " Cousin Jack," she said earnestly, " this ought net tUo be." 1Q ff 210 HOME AS FOUND "Cousin Eve, nevertheless this will be." 6Surely not-surely not! Men can never so tat forget appearances as to convert the temple of God into a theatre, in which the convenience of the spectators is the one great object to be kept in view!" "You have travelled, sir," said John Effingham, in dicating by his eye that he addressed Mr. Dodge, in particular, " and must have entered places of worshirp in other parts of the world. Did not the simple beauty of the manner in which all classes, the great and the humble, the rich and the poor, kneel in a common humility before the altar, strike you agreeably, on such occasions; in Catholic countries, in particular?" "' Bless me! no, Mr. John Effinghanm. I was dis. gusted at the meanness of their rites, and really shocked at the abject manner in which the people knelt on the cold damp stones, as if they were no better than beggars." "And were they not beggars?" asked Eve, with almost a severity of tone: " ought they not so to consider themselves, when petitioning for mercy of the one great and omnipotent God?" "Why, Miss Effingham, the people will rule; and it is useless to pretend to tell them that they shall not have the highest seats in the church as well as in the state. Really, I can see no ground why a parson should be raised above his parishioners. The neworder churches consult the public convenience, and place every body on a level, as it might be. Now, in old times, a family was buried in its pew; it could neither see nor be seen; and I can remember the time when I could just get a look -of our clergyman's wig, for he was an old-school man; and as for his fellow-creatures, one might as well be praying in his own closet. I must say I am a supporter of liberty, if it be only in pews." "I am sorry, Mr. Dodge," answered Eve, mildly., HOME AS FOUND. 211 "you did not extend your travels into the countries of the Mussulmans, where most Christian sects might get some useful notions concerning the part of worship, at least, that is connected with appearances. There you would have seen no seats, but sinners bowing down in a mass, on the cold stones, and all thoughts of cushioned pews and drawing-room conveniences unknown. We Protestants have improved on our Catholic forefathers in this respect; and the innovation of which you now speak, in my eyes is an irreverent, almost a sinful, invasion of the proprieties of the temple." " Ah, Miss Eve, this comes from substituting forms for the substance of things," exclaimed the editor. "' For my part, I can say, I was truly shocked with the extravagancies I witnessed, in the way of worship, in most of the countries I visited. Would you think it, Mr. Bragg, rational beings, real bond fide living men and women, kneeling on the stone pavement, like so many camels in the Desert," Mr. Dodge loved to draw his images from the different parts of the world he had seen, " ready to receive the burthens of their masters; not a pew, not a cushion, not. a single comfort that is suitable to a free and intelligent being, but every thing conducted in the most abject manner, as if accountable human souls were no better than so many mutes in a Turkish palace." "' You ought to mention this in the Active Inquirer," said Aristabulus. "All in good time, sir; I have many th.,gs in ieserve, among which I propose to give a few remarks, I dare say they will be very worthless ones, on the impropriety of a rational being's ever kneeling. To my notion, gentlemen and ladies, God never intended an _merican to kneel." The respectable mechanics who stood around the table did not absolutely assent to this proposition, for one of them actually remarked that " he saw no great 212 HOME AS FOUND. harm in a man's kneeling to the Deity;" but they evidently inclined to the opinion that the new-school or. pews was far better than the old. "It always appears to me, Miss Effingham," said one, "that I hear and understand the sermon betler in one of the low pews, than in one of the old high-backed things, that look so much like pounds." "But can you withdraw into yourself better, sir? Can you more truly devote 11 your thoughts, with a suitable singleness of heart, to the worship of God?" 4" You mean in the prayers, now, I rather conclude?" "Certainly, sir, I mean in the prayers and the thanksgivings." "Why, we leave them pretty much to the parson; though i will owTn it is not quite as easy leaning on the edge of one of the new-school pews as on one of the old. Theyr are better for sitting, but not so good for standing. But then the sitting posture at prayers is quite coming into favour among our people, Miss Effingham, as well as among yours. The sermon is the main chance, after all." "Yes," observed Mr. Gouge, "give me good, strong prea ching, any day, in preference to good praying. A man may get along with second-rate prayers, but he stands in need of first-rate preaching.'" " These gentlemen consider religion a little like a cordial on a cold day," observed John Effingham, " which is to be taken in sufficient doses to make the blood circulate. They are not the men to be pounded in pews, like lost sheep, not they?" " Mr. John will always have his say;" one remarked: and then Mr. Effingham dismissed the party, by telling them he would think of the matter. When the mechanics were gone, the subject was discussed at some length between those that remained-all the Effinghams agreeing that they would op HOME AS FOUND. 213 pose the innovation, as irreverent in appearance, unsuited to the retirement and self-abasement that best comported with prayer, and opposed to the delicacy of their own habits; while Messrs. Bragg and I)odge contended to the last that such changes were loudly called for by the popular sentiment-that it was unsuited to the dignity of a man to be' pounded,' even in a church-and virtually, that a good,'stirring' sermon, as they called it, was of far more account, in public worship, than all the prayers and praises that could issue from the heart or throat. CHAPTER XIV. " We'll follow Cade-we'll follow Cade." MOB. d" THE views of this Mr. Bragg, and of our old fellow-traveller, Mr. Dodge, appear to be peculiar on the subject of religious forms," observed Sir George Templemore, as he descended the little lawn before the Wigwam, in company with the three ladies, Paul Powis, and John Efingham, on their way to the lake. " I should think it would be difficult to find another Christian, who objects to kneeling at' prayer." " Therein you are mistaken, Templemore," answered Paul; "for this country, to say nothing of one sect which holds it in utter abomination, is filled with them. Our pious ancestors, like neophytes, ran in'to extremes, on the subject of forms, as well as in other matters. When you go to Philadelphia, Miss Effingham, you will see an instance of a most ludicrous nature-ludicrous, if there were not something painfully revolting mingled with it-of the manner in which men can strain at a gnat and swallow a camel; and 214 HOME AS FOUND. which, I am sorry to say, is immediately connected with our own church." It was music to Eve's ears, to hear Paul Powis speak of his pious ancestors, as being American, and to find him so thoroughly identifying himself with her own native land; for, while condemning so many of its practices, and so much alive to its absurdities and contradictions, our heroine had seen too much of other countries, not to take an honest pride in the real excellencies of her own. There was, also, a soothing pleasure in hearing him openly own that he belonged to the same church as herself. " And what is there ridiculous in Philadelphia, in particular, and in connection with our own church?" she asked. " I am not so easily disposed to find fault where the venerable church is concerned." "You know that the Protestants, in their horror of idolatry, discontinued, in a great degree, the use of the cross, as an outward religious symbol; and that there was probably a time when there was not a single cross to be seen in the whole of a country that was settled by those who made a profession of love for Christ, and a dependence on his expiation, the great business of their lives?" "Certainly. We all know our predecessors were a little over-rigid and scrupulous on all the points con. nected with outward appearances." "They certainly contrived to render the religious rites as little pleasing to the senses as possible, b. aiming at a sublimation that peculiarly favours spiritual pride and a pious conceit. I do not know whether travelling has had the same effect on you, as it has produced on me; but I find all my inherited antipathies to the mere visible representation of the cross, superseded by a sort of solemn affection for it, as a symbol, when it is plain, and unaccompanied by any of those bloody and minute accessories that are sc often seen around it in Catholic countries. The Ger HObE AS FOUND. 215 man Protestants, who usually ornament the altar with. a cross, first cured me of the disrelish I imbibed, on this subject, in childhood." "We, also, I think, cousin John, were agreeably struck with the same usage in Germany. From feeling a species of nervousness at the sight of a cross, I came to love to see it; and I think you must have undergone a similar change; for I have discovered no less than three among the ornaments of the great window of the entrance tower, at the Wigwam." "You might have discovered one, also, in every door of the building, whether great or small, young lady. Our pious ancestors, as Powis calls them, much of whose piety, by the way, was any thing but meliorated with spiritual humility or Christian charity, were such ignoramuses as to set up crosses in every door they built, even while they veiled their eyes in noly horror whenever the sacred symbol was seen in a church." "' Every door 1" exclaimed the Protestants of the party. "Yes, literally every door, I might almost say certainly every panelled door that was constructed twenty years since. I first discovered the secret of our blunder, when visiting a castle in France, that dated back from the time of the crusade. It was a chateau of the Montmorencies, that had passed into the hands of the Conde family by marriage; and the courtly old domestic, who showed me the curiosities, pointed out to me the stone croix in the windows, which has caused the latter to be called croisees, as a'rious usage of the crusaders. Turning to a door, I saw the same crosses in the wooden stiles; and if you cast an eye on the first humble door that you may pass in this village, you will detect the same symbol staring you boldly in the face, in the very heart of a population that would almost expire at the thoughts 216 HOME AS FOUND. of placing such a sign of the beast on their very thresholds."' The whole party expressed their surprise; but the first door they passed corroborated this account, and proved the accuracy of John Effingham's statements. Catholic zeal and ingenuity could not have wrought more accurate symbols of this peculiar sign of the sect; and yet, here they stood, staring every passenger in the face, as if mocking the ignorant and exaggerated pretension which would lay undue stress on the minor points of a religion, the essence of which was faith and humility. "And the Philadelphia church?" said Eve, quickly, so soon as her curiosity was satisfied on the subject of the door; " I am now more impatient than ever, to learn what silly blunder we have also committed there." " Impious would almost be a better term," Paul answered. "The only church spire that existed for half a century, in that town, was surmounted by a mitre, while the cross was studiously rejected!" A silence followed; for there is often more true argument in simply presenting the facts of a case, than in all the rhetoric and logic that could be urged, by way of auxiliaries. Every one saW the egregious folly, not to say presumption, of the mistake; and at the moment, every one wondered how a commonsense community could have committed so indecent a blunder. We are mistaken. There was an exception to the general feeling in the person of Sir George Templemore. To his church-and-state notions, and anti-catholic prejudices, which were quite as much political as religious, there was every thing that was proper, and nothing that was wrong, in rejecting a cross for a mitre. " The church, no doubt, was Episcopal,. Powis," he remarked, " and it was not Roman. What better symbol than the mitre could be chosen?" HOME AS FOUND, 21'J 6" Now I reflect, it is not so very strange," said CGrace, eagerly, "6 for you will remember, Mr. Effingham, that Protestants attach the idea of idolatry to the cross, as it is used bv Catholics." "And of bishops, peers in parliament, church and state, to a mitre." 1" Yes, but the church in question I have seen; and it was erected before the war of the revolution. It was an English rather than an American church." " It was, indeed, an English church, rather than an American; and Templemore is very right to defend it, mitre and all." "I dare say, a bishop officiated at its altar?" "I dare say —nay, I know, he did; and, I will add, he would rather that the mitre were:woehundred feet in the air, than down on his own simple, white-haired, apostolical-looking head. But enough of divinity for the morning; yonder is' Tom with the Doat, let us to our oars." The party were now on the little wharf that served as a village-landing, and the boatman mentioned lay off, in waiting for the arrival of his fare. Instead of using him, however, the man was dismissed; the gentlemen preferring to handle the oars themselves. Aquatic excursions were of constant occurrence in the warm months, on that beautifully limpid sheet of water, and it was the practice to dispense with the regular boatmen, whenever good oarsmen were to be found among the company. As soon as the light buoyant skiff was brought to the side of the wharf, the whole party embarked; and Paul and the baronet taking the oars, they soon urged the boat from the shore. " The world is getting to be too confined for the adventurous spirit of the age," said Sir George, as he and his companion pulled leisurely along, taking the direction of the eastern shore, beneath the forest-clad cliffs of which the ladies had expressed a wish to be 218 HOME AS FOUND. rowed; " here are Powis and myself actually rowing together on a mountain lake of America, after having boated as companions on the coast of Africa, and on the margia of the Great Desert. Polynesia, and Terra Australis, may yet see us in company, as hardy cruisers." "The spirit of the age is, indeed, working won1 ders in the way you mean," said John Effingham. "Countries of which our fathers merely read, are getting to be as familiar as our own homes to their sons; and, with you, one can hardly foresee to what a pass of adventure the generation or two that will follow us may not reach." " Vraiment, c'est fort extraordinaire de se trouver sur un lac Americain," exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville. "More extraordinary than to -find one's self on a Swiss lake, think you, my dear Mademoiselle Viefville?" " Jon, non, mais tout aussi extraordinaire pour une Parisienne." "1 am now about to introduce you, Mr. John Effingham and Miss Van Cortlandt excepted," Eve continued, " to -the wonders and: curiosities of this lake and region. There, near the small house that is erected over a spring of delicious water, stood the hut of Natty Bumppo, once known throughout all these mountains as a renowned hunter; a man who had the simplicity of a woodsman, the heroism of a savage, the faith of a Christian, and the feelings of a poet. A better than he, after his fashion, seldom lived." "We have all heard of him," said the baronet, looking round curiously; "and must all feel aln interest in what concerns so brave and just; a man. I would I could see his counterpart." "Alas!" said John Effingham, "the days of the'Leather-stockings' have passed away. He preceded me in life, and I see few remains of his character in a region where speculation is more rife than mo HOME AS FOUND. g19 ralizing, and emigrants are plentier than hunters. Natty probably chose that spot for his hut on account of the vicinity of the spring: is it not so. Miss Effingham?" "He did; and yonder little fountain that vou see gushing from the thicket, and which comes glancing like diamonds into the lake, is called the'Fairy Spring,' by some flight of poetry that, like so many of our feelings, must have been imported; for I see.no connection between the name.and the character of the country, fairies having never been known, even by tradition, in Otsego." The boat now came under a shore where the trees fringed the very water, frequently.overhanging the element that mirrored their fantastic forms At this point, a light skiff was moving leisurely along in their own direction, bnt a short distance in advance. On a hint from John Eflingham, a few vigorous strokes of the oars brought the two boats near each other. 4" This is the flag-ship," half whispered John Effingham, as they came near the other skiff, "'containing no less a man than the' commodore.' Formerly, the chief of the lake was an admiral, but that was in times when, living nearer to the monarchy, we retained some of the European terms; now, no man rises higher than a commodore in America, mwhether it be on the ocean or on the Otsego, whatever may be his merits or his services.- A charming day, commodore; I rejoice to see you still afloat, in your glory." The commodore, a tall, thin, athletic' man of seventy, with a white head, and movements that were quick as those of a boy, had not glanced aside at the approaching boat, until he was thus saluted in the well-known voice of John Effingham. He then turned his head, however, and scanning the whole party through his spectacles, he smiled good-naturedly made 220 HOME AS FOUND. a flourish with one hand, while he continued paddling with the other, for he stood erect and straight in tne stern of his skiff, and answered heartily"A fine morning, Mr. John, and the right time of the moon for boating. This is not a real scientific dav for the fish, perhaps; but I have just come out to see that all the points and bays are in their right places." " How is it, commodore, that the water near the,village is less limpid than common, and that even up here, we see so many specks floating on its surface?" "' What a question for Mr. John Effingham to ask on his native water! So much for travelling in far countries, where a man forgets quite as much as ite learns, I fear." Here the commodore turned entirely round, and raising an open hand in an oratorical manner, he added,-" You must know, ladies and gentlemen, that the lake is in blow." "IIn blow, commodore! I did not know that the lake bore its blossoms." " It does, sir, nevertheless. Ay, Mr. John, and its fruits, too; but the last must. be dug for, like potatoes. There have been no miraculous draughts of the fishes, of late years, in the Otsego, ladies and gentlemen; but it needs the scientific touch, and the knowledge of baits, to get a fin of any of your true game above the water, now-a-dayvs. Well, I have had the head of the sogdollager thrice in the open air, in my time; though I am told the admiral actually got hold of him once with his hand." " The sogdollager," said Eve, much amused with the singularities of the man, whom she perfectly remembered to have been commander of the lake, even in her own infancy; "we must be indebted to you for an explanation of that term, as well as for the meaning of your allusion to the head and the open air." HOME AS FOUND. 221 " A oogdollager, young lady, is the perfection of a thing. I know Mr. Grant used to say there was no such word in the dictionary; but then there are many words that ought to be in the dictionaries that have been forgotten by the printers. In the way of salmon trout, the sogdollager is their commodore. Now, ladies and gentlemen, I should not like to tell you all!now about the patriarch of this lake, for you woula scarcely believe me; but if he would not weigh a hundred when cleaned, there is not an ox in the county that will weigh a pound when slaughtered." "You say you had his head above water'!" said John Effingham. "Thrice,. Mr. John. The first time was thirty y ears ago; and I confess I lost him, on that occasion, by want of science; for the art is not learned in a day, and I had then followed the business but ten years. The second time was five years later: and I had then been fishing expressly for the old gentleman, about a month. For near a minute, it was a matter of dispute between us, whether he should come out of the lake or I -go into it; but I actually got his gills in plain sight. That was a glorious haul! Washingington did not feel better the night Cornwallis surrenJered, than I felt on that great occasion!" "One never knows the feelings of another, i seems. I should have thought disappointment at the loss would have been the prevailing sentiment on that great occasion, as you so justly term it." " So it would have been, Mr. John, with an unscientific fisherman; but we experienced hands know better. Glory is to be measured by quality, and not by quantity, ladies and gentlemen; and I look on it as a greater feather in a man's cap, to see the sog dollager's head above water, for half a minute, than to bring home a skiff filled with pickerel. The last tifne I got a look at the old gentleman, I did not trv to get himn into the boat, but we sat and conversed 19* 22 HOME AS FOUND. for near two minutes; he in the water, and I in the skiff" "Conversed!" exclaimed Eve, "and with a fish, too! What could the animal have to say!" " Why, young lady, a fish can talk as well as one of ourselves; the only difficulty is to understand what he says. I have heard the old settlers affirm, that the Leather-stocking used to talk for hours at a time, with the animals of the forest." "You knew the Leather-stocking, commodore?" "' No, young lady, I am sorry to say I never had the pleasure of looking on him even. He twas a great man! They may talk of their Jeffersons and Jacksons, but I set down Washington and.Natty Bumppc as the two only really great men of my time." "What do you think of Bonaparte, commodore?" inquired Paul. "Well, sir, Bonaparte had some strong points about him, I do really believe. But he could have been nothing to the Leather-stocking, in the woods! It's no great matter, young gentleman, to be a great man among your inhabitants of cities-what I call umbrella people. Why, Natty was almost as great with the spear as with the rifle; though I never heard that he got a sight of the sogdollager." " Ve shall meet again this summer, commodore," said John Effingham; " the ladies wish to hear the echoes, and we must leave you." "All very natural, Mr. John," returned tne commodore, laughing, and again flourishing his hand in his own peculiar manner. "The women all love to hear the echoes, for they are not satisfied with what they have once said, but they like to hear it over again. I never knew a lady come on the Otsego, but one of the first things she did was to get paddled to the Speaking Rocks, to have a chat with herself. They come out in such numbers, sometimes, and then all talk at once, in a way quite to confuse the echo I HOME AS FOUND. 225 ippose you have heard, young lady, the opinion peo. Ive have now got concerning these voices." " I cannot say I have ever heard more than that they are some of the most perfect echoes known;" answered Eve, turning her body, so as to face the old man, as the skiff of the party passed that of the veteran fisherman. " Some people maintain that there is no echo at all, and that the sounds we hear come from the spirit of the Leather-stocking, which keeps about its old haunts, and repeats every thing we say, in mockery of our invasion of the woods. I do not sav this notion is true, or that it is my own; but we all know that Nat.. ty did dislike to see a new settler arrive in the mountains, and that he loved a tree as a muskrat loves water. They show a pine up here on the side of the Vision, which he notched. at every new-comer, until reaching; seventeen, his honest old heart could go no farther, and he gave the matter up in despair." " This is so poetical, commodore, it is a pity it cannot be true. I like this explanation of the'Speaking Rocks,' much better than that implied by the name of' Fairy Spring."' " You are quite right, young lady," called out the fisherman, as the boats separated still farther; "there never was any fairy known in Otsego; but the time has been when we could boast of a Natty Bumppo." Here the commodore flourished his hand again, and Eve nodded her adieus. The skiff of the party continued to pull slowly along the fringed shore, occasionally sheering more into the lake, to avoid some overhanging and nearly horizontal tree, and then returning so closely to the land, as barely to clear the pebbles of the narrow strand with the oat. Eve thought she had never beheld a more wild or beautifully variegated foliage, than that which the whole leafy mountain-side presented. More than half of the forest of tall, solemn pines, that had veiled the 224 HOME AS FOUND. earth when the country was first settled, had already disappeared; but, agreeably to one of the mysterious laws by which nature is governed, a rich second growth, that included nearly every variety of Ameri. can wood, had shot up in their places. The rich Rembrandt-like hemlocks, in particular, were per.fectly beautiful, contrasting admirably with the live lier tints of the various deciduous trees. Here and there, some flowering shrub rendered the picture gay, while masses of the rich chestnut, in blossom, lay in clouds of natural glory among the dark tops of the pines. The gentlemen pulled the light skiff fully a mile under this overhanging foliage, occasionally frightening some migratory bird from a branch, or a water-fowl from the narrow strand. At length, John Effingham desired them to cease rowing, and managing the skiff for a minute or two with the paddle which he had used in steering, he desired the whole party to look up, announcing to them that they were beneath the' Silent Pine.' A common exclamation of pleasure succeeded the upward glance; for it is seldom that a tree is seen to more advantage than that which immediately attracted every eye. The pine stood on the bank, with its roots embedded in the earth, a few feet higher than th level of the lake, but in such a situation as to bring the distance above the water into.the apparent height of the tree. Like all of its kind that grows in the dense forests of America, its increase, for a thousand years,' had been upward; and it now stood in solitary glory, a memorial of what the mountains which were yet so rich in vegetation had really been in their days of nature and pride. For near a hundred feet above the eye, the even round trunk was branchless, and then commenced the dark-green masses of foliage, which clunc axround the stem like smoke ascending in awreaths. The tall column-like tree had inclined to HOME AiS I'UND. 225 wards the light when struggling among its fellows, and it now so far overhung the lake, that its summit may have been some ten or fifteen feet without the base. A gentle, graceful curve added to the effect of this variation from the perpendicular, and infused enough of the fearful into the grand, to render the picture sublime. Although there was not a breath of wind on the lake, the currents were'strong enough above the forest to move this lofty object, and it was just possible to detect a slight, graceful yielding of the very uppermost boughs to the passing air. "This pine is ill-named," cried Sir George Templelnore, "for it is the most eloquent tree eye of mine has ever looked on!"' " It is, indeed, eloquent," answered Eve; "one hears it speak even now of the fierce storms that have whistled round its tops —of the seasons that have passed since it extricated that verdant cap from the throng of sisters that grew beneath it, and of all that has passed on the Otsego, when this limpid lake lay, like a gem embedded in the forest. When the Conqueror first landed in England, this tree stood on the spot where it now stands! Here, then, is at last, an American antiquity!" "A true and regulated taste, Miss Effingham," said Paul, " has pointed out to you one of the real charms of the country. Were we to think less of the artificial, and more of our natural exceliencies, we should render ourselves less liable to criticism." Eve was never inattentive when Paul spoke; and her colour heightened, as he paid this compliment to her taste, but still her soft blue eye was riveted on the pine. "Silent it may be, in one respect, but it is, indeedl, all eloquence in another," she resumed, with a fervour that was not lessened by Paul's remark. " That crest of verdure, which resembles a plume of iea, 226 HOIME AS FOUND. thers, speaks of a thousand things to thu imagina tion." "I have never known a person of any poetry, who came under this tree," said John Effingham, " that did not fall into this very train of thought. I once brought a man celebrated for his genius here, and, after gazing for a minute or two at the high, green tuft that tops.the tree, he exclaimed,' that mass of green waved there in the fierce light when Columbus first ventured into the unknown sea.' It. is, indeed, eloquent; for it tells the same glowing tale to all who approach it —a tale fraught with feeling and recollections." " And yet its silence is, after all, its eloquence," added Paul; " and the name is not so misplaced as one might at first think."' It probably obtained its name from some fancied contrast to the garrulous rocks that lie up yovnder, half concealed by the forest. If you will ply the oars, gentlemen, we will now hold a little communion with the spirit of the Leather-stocking." The young men complied; and in about five minutes, the skiff was off in the lake, at the distance of fifty rods from the shore, where the whole mountainside came at one glance into the view. Here they lay on their oars, and John Effingham called out to the rocks a'"good morning," in a clear distinct voice. The mocking sounds were thrown bac k again, within closeness of resemblance that actually startled the novice. Then followed other calls and other repetitions of the echoes, which did not lose the minutest intonation of the voice. "This actually surpasses the celebrated echoes of the Rhine"' cried the delighted Eve; " for, thoughl those do give the strains of the bugle so clearly, 1 do not think they answer to the voice with so mucte fidelity." Y' eou are very right, Eve," replied her kinsman, HOMNE AS F'OUNr. 227 "' for I can recall no place where so perfect and accurate an echo is to be heard as at these speaking rocks. By increasing our distance to half a mile. and using a bugle, as I well know, from actual experiment, we should get back entire passages of an air. The interval between the sound and the echo, too, would be distinct, and would give time for ant undivided attention. Whatever may be said of the'pine,' these rocks are most aptly named; and if the spirit of Leather-stocking has any concern with the matter, he is a mocking spirit." John Effingham now looked at his watch, ana then he explained to the party a pleasure he had in store for them. On a sort of small, public promenade, that lay at the point where the river flowed out of the lake, stood a rude shell of a building that was called the "gun-house." Here, a speaking picture of the entire security of the country, from foes wvithin as well as from foes without, were kept two or three pieces of field artillery, with doors so open that any one might enter the building, and even use the guns at will, although they properly belonged to the organized corps of the state. One of these guns had been sent a short distance down the valley; and John Effingham informed his companions that they might look momentarily for its report, to arouse- the echoes of the mountains. He was still speaking when the gun was fired, its muzzle beIng turned eastward. The sound first reached thlside of the Vision, abreast of' the village,. whence the reverberations reissued, and rolled along the range, from cave to cave, and cliff to cliff, and wood to wood, until they were lost, like distant thunder, two or three leagues to the northward. The experiment was thrice repeated, and always with the same magnificent effect, the western hills actually echoing the echoes of the eastern mountains, like the dy ing strains of some falling mullsic. 228 HOMEi] AS FOUND. 1t Such a locality would be a treasure in the vicinity of a melo-dramatic theatre," said Paul, laughing, " for certainJy, no artificial thunder I have ever heard has equalled this. This sheet of water might even receive a gondola."'6 And yet, I fear one accustomed to the boundless horizon of the ocean, might in time weary of it," answered John Efliungham, significantly. Paul made no answer; and the party rowed away in silence. "' Yonder is the spot where we have so long been accustomed to resort for Pic-Nics," said Eve, pointing out a lovely place, that was beautifully shaded by oid oaks, and on which stood a rude house that was-much dilapidated, and indeed injured, by the hands of rnman. John Effingham smiled, as his cousin showed the place to her companions, promising them an early and a nearer view of its beauties. "By the way, Miss Effingham," he said, "I suppose you flatter yourself with being the heiress of that desirable retreat?" 6 It is very natural that, at some day, though I trust a very distant one, I should succeed. to that which belongs to my dear father." "Both natural and legal, my fair cousin; but you are yet to learn that there is a power that threatens to rise tip and dispute your claim." "' What power-human power, at least-can dispute the lawful claim of an owner to his property? That Point has been ours ever since civilized man has dwelt among these hills; who will presume to rob us of it!?" 66 You will be much surprised to discover that there is such a power, and that there is actually a dispositi rn to exercise it. The public-the all-powerf'ul omnipotent, overruling, law-maki-ng, law-breaking public-has a passing caprice to possess itself of your HOME AS FOUND. 229 beioved Point; and Ned Effingham must show unusual energy, or it will get it?"' Are you serious, cousin Jack t"' As serious as the magnitude of the subject can render a responsible being, as Mr. Dodge would say." Ive said no more, but she looked vexed, and remained alrnest silent until they landed, when she hastened to seek hler father, with a view to communicate what she had heard. Mr. Efingham listened to his daughter, as he always did, with tender interest; and when she had done, he kissed her glowing cheek, bidding her not to believe that which she seemed so seriously to dread, possible. "But. cousin John would not trifle with me on such a subject, father," Eve continued;' he knows how much I prize all those little heir-looms that are connected with the affections.'.' "' We can inquire further into the affair, my child, if it be your desire; ring for Pierre, if you please." Pierre answered, and a message was sent to Mr. Bragg, requiring his presence in the library. Aristabulus appeared, by no.nmeans in the best humour, for he disliked having been omitted in the late excursion on the lake, fancying that he had a corrmunity-right to share in all his neighbour's amusements, though he had sufficient self-command to conceal his feelings. "I wish to know, sir," Mr. Effingham commenced, without introduction, "whether there can be any mistake concerning the ownership of the Fishing Point or, the,w;est side of the lake." "Certainly not, sir; it belongs to the public.." Mr. Effingham's cheek glowed, and he looked astonished; but he remained calm. ".The public! Do you gravely affirm, Mr. Bragg, that the public pretends to claim that Point?" "Claim, Mr. Effingham i as long as I have resided in this county, I have never heard its right disputed.': 20 23}0 HOlME AS FOUND). "Your residence in this county, sir, is not of vels ancient date, and nothing is easier than that you may be mistaken. I confess some curiosity to know in what manner the public has acquired its title to the bpot. You are a lawyer, Mr. Bragg, and may give an intelligible account of it." "Why. sir, your ftather gave it to them in his lifetime. Every body, in all this region, will tell you as much as this." " Do you suppose, MIr. Bragg, there is any body in all this region who will swear to the fact? Proof; you well know, is very requisite even to obtain justice." " I much question, sir, if there be any body in all this region that will not swear to the fact. It is the common tradition of the whole country; and, to be frank with you, sir, there is a little displeasure, because Mr. John Eflingham has talked of giving private entertainments on the Point." "This, then, only shows how idly and inconsiderately the traditions of the country take their rise But, as I wish to understand all the points of the case, do me the favour to walk into the village, and inquirt of those whom you think the best informed in the matter, what they know of the Point, in order that 1 may regulate my course accordingly. Be particular, if you please, on the subject of title, as one would not wish to move in the dark." Ari'stabulus quitted the house immediately, and Eve, perceiving that things'were in the right train, left her father alone to meditate on what had just passecr Mr. Ef/ingham walked up and down his library for some time, much disturbed, for the spot in question was identified with all his early feelings and recollec tions; and if there were a foot of land on earth, to which he was more attached than to all others, next to his immediate residence, it was this. Still, he could not'' inceal from himself, in despite of his opposition HOME AS FOUND. 231 to John Effinglim's sarcasms, that his native country had undergone many changes since he last resided in it, and that some of these changes were quite sensibly bor the worse. The spirit of misrule was abroad, and the lawless and unprincipled held bold language, when it suited their purpose to intimidate. As he ran over in his mind, however, the facts of the case, and the nature of his right, he smiled to think that any one should contest it, and sat down to his writing, almost forgetting that there had been any question at all on the unpleasant subject. Aristabulus was absent for several hours, nor did he return until Mr. Effingham was dressed for dinner, and alone in the library, again, having absolutely lost all recollection of the commission he had given his agent. " It is as I told you, sir-the public insists that it owns the Point; and I feel it my duty to say, Mr. Effingham, that the public is determined to maintain its claim.",'Then, Mr. Bragg, it is proper I should tell the public that it is not the owner of the Point, but that I am its owner, and that I am determined to maintain my claim." "' It is hard to kick against the pricks, Mr. Effingham." " It is so,. sir, as the public will discover, if it per severe in invading a private right." "Why, sir, some of those with whom ] have core versed have gone so far as to desire me to tell youI trust my motive will not be mistaken " 6If you have any communication to make, Mr. Bragg, do it without reserve. It is proper I should know the truth exactly." W' ell, then, sir, I am the bearer of something like a defiance; the people wish you-to know that they hold your right cheaply, and that they laugh at;t Not to mince matters, they defy you." 232 IHOMFE AS FOUNSNAll "I thank you for this frankness, Mr; Bragg, and increases my respect for your character. Affairs are now at such a pass, that it is necessary to act. If you will amuse yourself with'a book for a morment, I shall have further occasion for your kindness." Aristabulus did not read, for he was too much filled with wonder at seeing a man so coolly set about contending with that awful public which he himself as habitually deferred to, as any Asiatic slave defers to his monarch. Indeed, nothing but his being sustained by that omnipotent power, as he viewed the power of the public to be, had emboldened him to speak so openly to his employer, for Aristabulus felt a secret confidence that, right or wrong, it was always safe in America to make the most fearless professions in favor — of the great body of the commrnunity. In the mean time, Mr. Effingham wrote a simple advertisement against trespassing on the property in question, and handed it to the other, with a request that he would have it inserted in the number of the village paper that was to appear next morning. Mr. Bragg took the advertisement, and went to execute: the duty without comment. The evening arrived before Mr. Effingham was again alone, when, being by himself in the library once more, Mr. Bragg entered, full of his subject. Hle was followed by John Effingham, who had gained an inkling of what had passed. "I regret to say, Mr. Effingham," Aristabulus commenced, "that your advertisement has created one of the greatest excitements it has ever been my ill-fortune to witness in Templeton." "All of which ought to be very encouraging to us, Mr. Bragg, as men under excitement are usually vvron.g" Very true, sir, as regards Indiviaua excitemnent, )ut this is a public excitement." "I arn not at all aware that the fact, in ti,'ast WOME AS FOUND 233 alters the case. If one excited mall is apt to do silly things, half a dozen backers will be very likely to increase his folly." Aristabulus listened with wonder, for excitemcnt was one of the means for effecting public objects, so much practised by men of his habits, that it had never crossed his mind any single individual could be indifferent to its effect. To own the Iruth, he had anticipated so much unpopularity, firom his unavoidable connexion with the affair, as to have contributed himself in producing the excitement, with the hope of " choking Mr. Eflingham off," as he had elegantly expressed it to one of his intimates, in the vernacular of ihe country. " A public excitement is a powerful engine, Mr. Effingham!" he exclaimed, in a sort of politico pious horror. " I am fully aware, sir, that it may be even a fearfully powerful engine. Excited men, acting in masses, compose what are called mobs, and have committed a thousand excesses." "' Your advertisement is, to the last degree, disrelished; to be very sincere, it is awfully unpopular!" "I suppose it is always what you term an unpop-alar act, so far as the individuals opposed are concerned, to resist aggression." "But they call your advertisement aggression, sir." S" In that simple fact exist all the merits of the question. If I own this property, the public, or that portion of it which is connected with this affair, are aggressors; and so much more in the wrong that they are many against one; if they own the property, I am not only wrong, but very indiscreet." The calmness with which Mr. Efhingham spoke had an effect on Aristabulus, and, for a moment, he: as staggered. It was only for a moment, however, as the pains and penalties of unpopularity presented themselves afresh to an imagination that had been so 20 O34 ME AS FOUND. long accustomed to study the popular caprice, that i, had got to deem the public favour the one great good of life. " But they say, they own the Point, Mr. Effingham.' "And I say, they do not own the Point, Mr. Bragg; never did own it; andd with my consent, never shall own it." "This is purely a matter of fact," observed John Effingham, " and I confess I am curious to know how or whence this potent public derives its title. You are lawyer enough, Mr. Bragg, to know that the public can hold property only by use, or by especial statute. Now, under which title does this claim present itself." " First, by use, sir, and then by especial gift." "The use, you are aware, must be adverse, or as opposed to the title of the other claimants. Now, I am a living witness that my late uncle permitted the *ublic'to use this Point, and that the public accepted the conditions. Its use, therefore, has not been adverse, or, at least, not for a time sufficient to make title. Every hour that my cousin has permitted the public to enjoy his property, adds to his right, as well as to the obligation conferred on that public, and increases the duty of the latter to cease intruding, whenever he desires it. If there is an especial gift, as I understand you to say, from my late uncle, there must also be a law to enable the public to hold, or a trustee; which is the fact?" "I admit, Mr. John Effingham, that T have seen neither deed nor law. and I doubt if the latter exist. Still the public must have some claim, for it is impossible that every body should be mistaken." " Nothing is easier, nor any thing more commnon, than for whole communities to be mistaken, at,u more. particularly when they commence with excltement." Whiile his cousin was saiking, AMr. Effingham HOME AS FOUND'234 went to a secretary, and taking out a large bundie oi papers, he laid it down on the table, unfolding sevei al parchment deeds, to which- massive seals, bearing the arms of the late colony, as well as those of England, were pendent. "Here are my titles, sir," he said, addressing Aristabulus pointedly; "if the public has a better, let it be produced, and I shall at once submit to its claim." " No one doubts that the King, through his auther-'zed agent, the Governor of the colony of New-Y crk, granted this estate to your predecessor, Mr. Efit':gham; or that it descended legally to your immediate parent; but all contend that your parent gave this spot to the public, as a spot of public resort." " I am glad that the question is narrowed down within limits that are so easily examined. What evidience is there of this intention, on the part of my late father?" " Common report; I have talked with twenty people in the village, and they all agree that the' Point' has been used by the public, as public property, from time immemorial." "Will you be so good, Mr. Bragg, as to nam' some of those who affirm this." Mr. Bragg complied, naming quite the number of persons he hlad mentioned, with a readiness that proved he thought he was advancing testimony of weight. "Of all the names you have mentioned," returned Mr. Effingham.,' I never heard but three, and these are the names of mere boys. The first dozen are certainly the names of persons' who can know -no more of this village than they have gleaned in the last few years; and several of them, I understand, have dwelt among us but a few weeks'; nay, days." 66 Have I not told you, Ned," interrupted John Eiffiuham, "that an American'alwavs' means eigheen months, aand that' time immemorial' is only ai:ic,R'hJe last freneral c:risi i'n the money malrket!" 236 HOME AS FOUND. " The persons I have mentioned compose a part ol the population, sir," added Mr. Bragg, c" and, one and all, they are ready to swear that your father, by some means or other, they are not very particular as to minutim, gave them the right to use this property." " They are mistaken, and I should be sorry that any one among them should swear to such a falsehood. But here are my titles-let them show better, or, if they can, any, indeed." "PerhaDs your father abandoned the place to the public; this might make a good claim." " That he did not, I am a living proof to the contrary; he left it to his heirs at his death, and I myself exercised full right of ownership over it, until I went abroad. I did not travel with it in my pocket, sir, it is true; but I left it to the protection of the laws, which, I trust, are as available to the rich as to the poor, although this is a fiee country." "Well, sir, I suppose a jury must determine the point, as you seem firm; though I warn you, Mr. Effingham, as one who knows his country, that a verdict, in the face of a popular feeling, is rather a hopeless mnatter. If they prove that your late father intended to abandon or give this property to the public, vou-t case will be lost." Mr. Effingham looked among the papers a moment, and selecting one, he handed it to Mr. Bragg, first pointing out to his notice a particular paragraph. " This, sir, is my late father's will," Mr. Effingham said mildly; 1" and, in that particular clause, you will find that he makes a special devise of this very'Point,' leaving tt to his heirs, in such terms as to put any intention to give it to the public quite out of the question. This, at least, is the latest evidence I, his only son, executor, and heir possess of his final wishes; if that wondering and time-immemorial pub.'ic of which you speak, has a better, I wait with patience that it may be produced." FOME AS FOUND. 2it; The composed manner of Mr. Effingham had de ceivecl Aristabulas, who did not anticipate any proof so completely a4nnihilating to the pretensions of tht public, as that he now held in his hand. It was a simple, brief devise, disposing of the piece of property in question, and left it without dispute, that Mr. Effingham had succeeded to all the rights of his father, with no reservation or condition of any sort. "This is very extraordinary!" exclaimed Mr. Ir'agg, when he had read the clause so eil times, each perusal contributing to leave the case still clearer in favour of his employer, the individual, and still stronger against the hoped-for future employers, the people. "The public ought to know of this bequest, f the late Mr. Effingham."." I think it ought, sir, before it pretended to deprive his child of his property; or, rather, it ought to be certain, at least, that there was no such devise."'" You will excuse me, Mr. Effingham, but I think it is incumbent on a private citizen, in a case of this sort, when the public has taken up a wrong notion. as I now admit is clearly the fact as regards the Point, to enlighten it, and to inform it that it does not own the spot." "This has been done already, Mr. Bragg, in the advertisement you had the goodness to carry to the printers, although I deny that there exists any sucI obligation." " But, sir, they object to the mode you have chose n to set them right." " The mode is usual, I belleve in the case of trespasses." "They expect something different, sir, in an affaii in which the public is-is-is-all —" " Wrong," put in John Effingham, pointedly. "I have heard something of this out of doors, Ned, and blame you for your moderation. Is it true that vou had told several of your neighbours that you have io ,138 hV LhuIui o FOUND. wish to prevent them from using the Pou;!t, but that your sole object is merely to settle the question of right, and to prevent intrusions on your family when it is enjoying its own place of retirement?" "Certainly, John, my only wish is to preserve the property for those to whom it is especially devised, to allow those who have the best, nay, the only right to it, its undisturbed possession, occasionally, and to prevent any more of that injury to the trees that has been committed byv some of those rude men, who always fancy themselves so completely all the public, as to be masters, in their own particular persons, whenever the public has any claim. I can have nm wish to deprive my neighbours of the innocent plea sure of visiting the'Point, though I am fully detei mined they shall not deprive me of my property." "You are far more indulgent than I s-hould be, or perhaps, than you will be yourself, when you rea~~ this." As John Efingham spoke, he handed his kinsman a small handbill, which purported to call a meeting for that night, of the inhabitants of Templeton, to re sist his arrogant claim to the disputed property. This handbill had the usual marks of a feeble and vulgar malignancy about it, affecting to call Mr. Effingham, "' one Mr. Effingliam," and it was anonymous. " This is scarcely worth our attention, John," said Mr. Effingham, mildly. " Meetings of this sort rinnot decide a legal title, and no man who respects himself will be the tool of so pitiful an attempt to frighten a citizen. from maintaining his rights." "I agree with you, as respects the meeting, which has been conceived in ignorance and low malice, and will probably end, as all such efforts end, in ridicule. But " "Excuse me, Mr. John," interrupted Aristabulus, "there is an awful excitement! Some have evesi spoken of Lynching!" HOME AS FOUrsU. 239 "' Then," said Mr. Effingha m,' it does, indeed, require that we should be more firm. Do you, sir, know of any person who has dared to use such a menace?" Aristabulus quailed before the stern eve of Mr. Effingham, and he regretted having communicated so much, though he had communicated nothing but the truth. Hle stammered out an obscure and half-intelligible explanation, and proposed to attend the meeting. in person, in order that he might be in the way of Lu derstanding the subject, without falling into the. danger of mistal b To this Mr. Effingham assented, as he felt too indgnant at this outrage on all his rights, whether as a citizen or a man, to wish to pursue the subject with his agent that night. Aristabulus departed, and Joh6n Effingham remained closeted with his kinsman until the family retired. During this long, interview, the former communicated many things to the latter, in relation:o this very affair, of which the owner of the propex ty, until then, had been profoundly ignorant. 24 () HOME AS FOUND. CHAPTER XV. "4 There shall be, in England, seven half-penny loaves sold for a penny, t1he three-hooped pot shall have ten hoops; and I will make it felony to drink sna:]l beer: all the realm shall be in common, and, in Cheapside shal my palfrey go to grlass. "-JACK CADE. THOUGH the affair of the Point continued to agitate the village of Templeton next day, and for many days It was little remembered in the Wigwam. Confidersn of his right, Mr. Effingham, though naturally indignant at the abuse of his long liberality, through which alone the public had been permitted to frequent the place, and this too, quite often, to his own discomfort and disappointment, had dismissed the subject tempo rarily from his mind, and was already engaged in his ordinary pursuits. Not so, however,with Mr. Bragg. Agreeably to promise, he had attended the meeting; and now he seemed to regulate all his movements by a sort of mysterious self-importance, as if the reposi. tory of some secret of unusual consequence. No one regarded his manner, however; for Aristabulus, and his secrets, and opinions, were all of too little v:alue, in the eyes of most of the party, to attract peculiar attention. He found a. sympathetic listener in Mr. Dodge, happily; that person having been invited, through. the courtesy of Mr. Effinghatm, to pass the day with those in wlhose company. though very unwil HOMqE AS FOUND. 241 lingly on the editor's part certainly, he had gone through so many dangerous trials. These two then, soon became intimate, and to have seen their shrugs, significant whisperings, and frequent conferences in corners, one who did not know them, might have fanied their shoulders burthened with the weight of the state. But all this pantomime, which was intended to -awaken curiosity, was lost on the company in general. The ladies, attended by Paul and the Baronet, proceeded into the forest on foot, for a morning's wallk, while Lhe two Messrs. Effinghams continued to read the daily journals, that were received from town each morning, ~Nith a most provoking indifference. Neither Ar:stabulus, nor Mr. Dodge, could resist any longer; aid, after exhausting their ingenuity, in the vain effort tc induce one of the two gentlemen to question them in relation to the meeting of the previous night, the desire to be doing fairly overcame their affected mysteriousness, and a formal request was made to Mr. Effingham to give them an audience in the library. As the latter, who suspected the nature of the interview, reql ested his kinsman to make one in it, the four were soon alone, in the apartment so often named. Even now, that his own request for the interview was granted, Aristabulus hesitated about proceeding until a mild intimation from Mr. Effingham that he wa ready to hear his communication, told the agent that it was too late to change his determination. " I attended the meeting last night, Mr. Enfilgham," Aristabulus commenced, "agreeably to our arrangement, and I feel the utmost regret at being compelled to lay the result before a gentleman for whomr I entertain so profound a respect." " There was then a meeting?" said Mr. Effingham, inclining his body slightly, by way of acknowledgment for the other's compliment.' There was, sir; and I think, Mr. Dodge, we rf'ay say an overflowing one." 21 242 HOME AS FOUND. "The public was fairly represented," returned the editor, "as many as fifty or sixty having been present." " The public has a perfect right to meet, and to con. suit on its claims to anything it may conceive itself enm titled to enjoy," observed Mr. Effingham; " I can have no possible objection to such a course, though I think it would have consulted its own dignity more, had it insisted on being convoked by more respectable per; sons than those who, I understand, were foremost in this affair, and in terms better suited to its own sense of propriety." Aristabulus glanced at Mr. Dodge, and Mr. Dodge glanced back at Mr. Bragg, for neither of these political mushrooms could conceive of the dignity and fairmindedness with which a gentleman could view an affair of this nature.' They passed a set of resolutions, Mr. Effingham;" Aristabulus resumed, with the gravity with which he ever spoke of things of this nature. "A set of resolutions, sir!" "That was to be expected," returned his employer, smiling; "the Americans are a set-of-resolutions-passing people. Three cannot get together, without naming a chairman and secretary, and a resolution is as much a consequence of such an'organization,'-I believe. that is the approved word,-as an egg is the accompaniment of the cackling of a hen." "But, sir, you do not yet know the nature of those resolutions!" "Very true, Mr. Bragg; that is a piece of knowledge I am to have the pleasure of obtaining from r9lt. "* Again Aristabulus glanced at Steadfast, and Steadfast threw back the look of surprise, for, to both it Awas matter of real astonishment that any man should be so indifferent to the resolutions of a meeting that had been regularly organized, with a chairman ard secretary ROME AS FOUND. 245 at its head, and which so unequivocally professed to be the public. " I am reluctant to discharge this duty, Mr. Effing ham, but as you insist on its performance it must be done. In the first place, they resolved that your father meant to give them the Point." "A decision that must clearly settle the matter, and which will destroy all my father's own resolutions on the same subject. Did they stop at the Point, Mr. Bragg or did they resolve that my father also gave them his wife and children?" " No, sir, nothing was said concerning the latter." "I cannot properly express my gratitude for the for. bearance, as they had just as good a right to pass this resolution, as to pass the other." "' The public's is an awful power, Mr. Effingham!"' Indeed it is, sir, but fortunately, that of the re-pubic is still more awful, and I shall look to the latter for support, in this' crisis' —that is the word, too, is it not, Mr. John Effingham?" " If you mean a change of administration, the upsetting of a stage, or the death of a cart-horse; they are all equally crisises, in the American vocabulary." " Well, Mr. Bragg, having resolved that it knew my late father's intentions better than he knew them himself, as is apparent from the mistake he made in his will, what next did the public dispose of, in the plenitude of its Doower?" "It resolved, sir, that it was your duty to carry out the intentions of your father." "In that, then, we are perfectly of a mind; as the public will most probably discover, before we get through with this matter. This is ohe of the most nious resolutions I ever knew the public to pass. Did it proceed any farther?" Mr. Bragg, notwithstanding the long-encouraged truckling to the sets of men, whom he was accustomed to dignify with the name of the public, had a profound 244 HOME AS FOUND. defeience'or the principles, character, and station of Mr. Effingham, that no sophistry, or self-encouragcement in the practices of social confusion, could overcome; and he paused before he communicated the next resolution to his employers.. But perceiving that both the latter and his cousin were quietly waiting to hear it, he was fain to overcome his scruples. " They have openly libelled you, by passing resolutions declaring you to be odious." "That, indeed, is a strong measure, and, in me interest of good manners and of good morals, it may call for a rebuke. No one can care less than myself, Mr. Bragg, for the opinions of those who have sufficiently demonstrated that their opinions are of no value, by the heedless manner in which they have permitted themselves to fall into this error; but it is proceeding too far, when a few members of the community presume to take these liberties with a private individual, and that, moreover, in a case affecting a pretended claim of their own; and I desire you to tell those con cerned, that if they dare to publish their resolution de. ciaring me to be odious, I will teach them what they now do not appear to know, that we live in a country of laws. I shall not prosecute them, but I shall indict them for the offence, and I hope this is plainly expressed." Aristabulus st6od aghast! To indict the public was a step he had never heard of before, and he began to perceive that the question actually had two sides. Still. his awe of public meetings, and his habitual regard for popularity, induced him not to give up the matter, without another struggle. " They have' already ordered their proceedings to be published, Mr. Efingham!" he said, as if such an order were not to be countermanded. I fancy, sir, that when it comes to the issue, and the penalties of a prosecution present themselves, their readers will begin to recollect their individuality, and HOM:E AS FOUND. 24 to think less of their public character. They who hunt in droves, like wolves, are seldom very valiant when singled out fronm their pack. The end will show." " I heartily wish this unpleasant affair might be amicably settled," added Aristabulus. "One might, indeed, fancy so," observed John Effingham, 1" since no one likes to be persecuted." "But, Mr. John, the public thinks itself persecuted, in this affair." "' The term, as applied to a body that not only makes, but which executes, the law, is so palpably absurd, that I am surprised any man can presume to use it. But, Mr. Bragg, you have seen documents that cannot err, and know that the public has not the smallest right to this bit of land." "' All very true, sir; but you will please to remember, that the people do not know what I now know." "And you will please to remember, sir, that when neople choose to act affirmatively, in so high-handed a manner as this, they are bound to know what they are about. Ignorance in such a matter, is like the drunkard's plea of intoxication; it merely makes the offence worse." 6 Do you not think, Mr. John, that Mr. Effingham might have acquainted these citizens with the real state of the case? Are the people so very wrong that they have fallen into a mistake?" "Since you ask this question plainly, Mr. Bragg, it shall be answered with equal sincerity. Mr. Effingham is a man of mature years; the known child, executor, and heir of one who, it is admitted all round, was the master of the controverted property. Knowing his own business, this Mr. Effingham, in sight of the grave of his fathers, beneath the paternal roof, has tile intolerable impudence " "Arrogance is the word, Jack," said Mr. Effinghalm, smiling. 46 A? "i intolerable alrogance to suppose that his 21 " 246 HOME AS FOUND. oawn is his own;' and this Ihe dates to affirm, without having had the politeness to send his title-deeds, and private papers, round to those who have been so short a time in the place, that they might well know every thing that has occurred in it for the last half century. Oh thou naughty, arrogant fellow, Ned!" "Mr. John, you appear to forget that the public has more claims to be treated with attention, than a single individual. If it has fallen into error, it ought to be undeceived." "No doubt, sir; and I advise Mr. Effingham to send you, his agent, to every man, woman and child in the county, with the Patent of the King, all the mesne conveyances and wills,.in your pocket, in order that you may read them at length to each individual, with a view that every man, woman and child, may be satisfied that he o.r she ks not tne owner of Edward Effingham's lands!" " Nay, sir, a shorter process might be adopted."' It might, indeed, sir, and such a process has been adopted by my cousin, in giving the usual notice, in the news-paper, against trespassing. But, Mr. Bragg, you must know that I took great pains, three years since, when repairing this house, to correct the mistake on this very point, into which I found that your immaculate public had fallen, through its disposition to know more of other people's affairs, than those con. cerned knew of themselves." Aristabulus said no more, but gave the matter up in despair. On quitting the house, he proceeded forthwith, to inform those most interested of the determination of Mr. Effingham, not to be trampled on by any pretended meeting of the public. Common sense, not to say common honesty, began to resume its sway, and prudence put in its plea, by way of applying the corrective. Both he and Mr. Dodge, however, agreed that there was an unheard-of temerity in thus resistin, the people, and this too without a com mens' rala-l HOME AS FOUND. 247 object, as the pecuniary value of the disputed poiilt was of no material consequence to either party. The reader is not, by any means, to suppose that Aristabulus Bragg and Steadfast Dodge belonged to the same variety of the humuan species, in consequence of their unity of sentiment in this affair, and certain other general points of resemblance in their manner and modes of thinking. As a matter of necessity each partook of those features of caste, condition, or(i gin, and association that characterize their particular set; but when it came to the nicer distinctions that mark true individuality, it would not have been easy to find two men more essentially different in character. The first was bold, morally and physically, aspiring, self-possessed, shrewd, singularly adapter to succeed in his schemes where he knew the parties, intelligent, after his tastes, and apt. Had it been his fortune to be throw;n earlier into a better sphere, the same natural qualities that rendered him so expert in'his present situation, would have conduced to his improvement, and most probably would have formed a gentleman, a scholar, and one who could have contributed largely to the welfare and tastes of his fellow-creatures. That such was not his fate, was more his misfortune than his fault, for his plastic character had readily taken the impression of those things that from propinquity alone, pressed hardest on it. On the other hand Steadfast was a hypocrite by nature, cowardly, envious, and malignant; and circumstances had only lent their aid to the natural tendencies of his disposition. That two men so differently constituted at their births, should meet, as it might be in a common centre, in so many of their.habits and opinions, was merely the result of accident and education. Among the other points of resemblance between these two persons, was that fault of confounding the 3ause with the effects of the peculiar institutions under,hich they had been educated and lived. Because 248 HOME AS FeOUTD. the law gave to the public, that authority which, undol other systems, is entrusted either to one, or to the fiwv they believed the public was invested with far more power than a right understanding of their own. prin, ciples would have shown. In a word, both these per sons made a mistake which is getting to be too corn mon in America, that of supposing the institutions of the country were all means and no end. Under this erroneous impression they saw only the machinery of the government, becoming entirely forgetful that the power which was given to the people collectively, was only so given to secure to them as perfect a liberty as possible, in their' characters of individuals. Neithei had risen sufficiently- r-dboe —fVulgar notions, to understand that public opinion, in order to be omnipotent, oi even formidabhle-beyond the2nfliegions of the moment, must be right; and that, if a solitary man renders himself contemptible by taking up false notions inconsiderately and unjustly, bodies of men, falling into the same error, incur the same penalties, with the additional stigma of having acted as cowards. There was also another common mistake into which Messrs. Bragg and Dodge had permitted themselves to fall, through the want of a proper distinction between principles. Resisting the popular will, on the part of an individual, they considered arrogance and aristocracy, per se, without at all entering into the question of the right, or the wrong. The people, rightly enough in the general signification of the term, they deemed to be sovereign; and they belonged to a numerous class, who view disobedience to the sovereign in a democracy, although it be in his illegal caprices, very much as the subject of a despot views disobedience to his prince. It is scarcely necessary to say, that Mr. Effingham and his cousin viewed these matters differently. Clear headed, just-iminded, and liberal in all his practices, the. former, in particular, w1as greatly pained iy thec recent IHOME AS'FOUND. 24xccurrence; and he paced his library in silence, for se ieral minutes after Mr. Bragg and his companion had withdrawn, really too much grieved to speak. "' This is, altogether, a most extraordinary proce. dure, John," he at length observed, 1" and, it strikes me, that it is but an indifferent reward for the liberality with which I have permitted others to use my property, these thirty years; often, very often, as you well know, to my own discomfort, and to that of my friends." " I have told you, Ned, that you were not to expect the America on your return, that you left behind you on your departure for Europe. I insist that no coun. try has so much altered for the worse, in so short a time." "That unequalled pecuniary prosperity should sensibly impair the manners of what is termed the world, by introducing suddenly large bodies of uninstructed and untrained men and women into society, is a' natural consequence -of obvious causes; that it shouId;corrupt morals, even, we have a right to expect, for we are taught to believe it the most corrupting influence under which men can live; but, I confess, I did not expect to see the day, when a body of strangers, birds of passage, creatures of an hour, should assume a right o call on the old and long-established inhabitants of a country, to prove their claims to their possessions, and this, too, in an unusual and unheard-of manner, unde' the penalty of being violently deprived of them n!" "Long established!" repeated John Effinghamn, laughing; " what do you term long established? Have you not been absent a dozen years, and do not these people reduce everything to the level of their own habits. I suppose, now, you fancy you can go to Rome, or Jerusalem, or Constantinople, and remain four or five lustres, and then come coolly back to Templeton. and, on taking possession of. this house again, call yourFelf an old resident." 250 HOME AS FOUND. "I certainly do suppose I have that right. How inany English, Russians, and Germans, did we meet in Italy, the residents of years, who still retained all their natural and local right and feelings "' "Ay, that is in colnutries where society is permarent, and mhen get accustomed to look on the same objects, hear the same names, and see the same faces fbr their entire lives. I have had the curiosity to inquire, and have ascertained that none of the old, permanent families have been active in this affair of the Poinl, but that all the clamour has been made by those you call the birds of passage. But what of that? T'hese people fancy everything reduced to the legal six months required to vote; and that rotation in persons is as necessary to republicanixm as rotation in office." " Is it not extraordinary that persons who can know so little' on the subject, should be thus indiscreet and positive?" " It is not extraordinary in America. Look about you, Ned, and you.will see adventurers uppermost everywhere; in the government, in your towns, in your villages, in the country, even. We are a nation of changes. Much of this, I admit, is the fair consequence of legitimate causes, as an immense region, in forest, cannot be peopled on any other conditions. But this necessity has infected the entire national character, and men get to be impatient of any sameness, even though it be useful. Everything goes to confirm this feeling, instead of opposing it. The constant recurrences of the elections accustom men to changes in their public functionaries; the great increase in the population brings new faces; and the sudden accumulations of property place new men in conspicuous stations. The architecture of the country is barely becoming sufficiently respectable to render it desirable to preserve the buildings, without which we shall have no monuments to revere. In short, everything con rt JAoi AS FOUNa. 251 tributes to produce such a state of things, painful as it may be to aal of any feeling, and little to oppose it." "You colour highly, Jack; and no picture loses in tints, in being retouched by you." " Look into the first paper that offers, and you will see the youzng men of the country hardily invited to meet by themselves, to consult concerning public affairs, as if they were impatient of the counsels and experience of their fathers. No country can prosper, where the ordinary mode of transacting the business connected with the root of the government, commences with this impiety." "6 This is a disagreeable feature in the national character, certainly; but we must remember the arts employed by the designing to practise on the inexperienced." 1" Had I a son, who presumed to denounce the wisdom and experience of his father, in this disrespectful manner, I would disinherit the rascal!" I"Ah, Jack, bachelor's children are notoriously well educated, and well mannered. We will hope, however, that time will bring its changes also, and that one of them will be a greater constancy in persons, things, and the affections." " Time will bring its changes, Ned; but all of them that are connected with individual rights, as opposed to popular caprice, or popular interests, are likely to be in the wrong direction." " The tendency is certainly to substitute popularity for the right, but we must take the good with the bad. Even you, Jack, would not exchange.this popular oppression for any other system under which you have lived." 4"I don't know that-I don't know that. Of all ty. ranny, a vulgar tyranny is to me the most odious." " You used to admire the English system, but I thinh observation has lessened your particular admiration in that quarter;" said Mr. Effingham, smiling in a way that his cousin pealircllti understood. 252 2HOME AS FOUNeD.'Harkee, Ned; we all take up false notions in youth, and this was one of mine; but, of the twvo, I should prefer the cold, dogged domination of English law, with its fi'uits, the heartlessness of a sophistication without parallel, to being trampled on by every arrant blackguard that may happen to traverse this valley, in his wanderings after dollars. There is one thing you yourself must admit; the public is a little too apt to neglect the duties it ought to discharge, and to assume duties it has no right to fulfil." This remark ended the discourse. CHAPTEIR XVI. Her breast was a brave palace, a broad street, Where all heroic, ample thoughts did meet, Where nature such a tenement had ta'en, That other souls, to hers, dwelt in a lane. JOHN NOJtTON. THE village of Templeton, it has been already inti. mated, was a miniature town. Although it contained within the circle of its houses, half-a-dozen residences with grounds, and which were dignified with names, as has been also said, it did not cover a surface of more than a mile square; that disposition to concentration, which is as peculiar to an American town, as the disposition to' diffusion is peculiar to the country population, and which seems almost to prescribe that a private dwelling shall have but three windows in front, and a facade of twenty-five feet, having presided at the bir'th of this spot, as well as at the birth of so many of its predecessors and contemporaries. In one of its more retired streets (for Templeton had its publicity and retirement, the latter after a very village. ROME AS FOUND. 253 fashion, however,) dwelt a widow-bewitched of small worldly means, five children, and of great capacity foil circulating intelligence. Mrs. Abbott, for so was this demi-relict called, was just on the verge of what is termed the 1" good society " of the village, the'most uneasy of all positions for an ambitious and ci-devani pretty woman to be placed in. She had not yet abandoned the hope of obtaining a divorce and its suites; was singularly, nay, rabidly devout, if we may coin the adverb; in her own eyes she was perfection, in those of her neighbours slightly objectionable; and she was altogether a droll, and by no means an unusual compound of piety, censoriousness, charity, proscription, gossip, kindness, meddling, ill-nature, and decency. The establishment of Mrs. Abbott, like her house, was necessarily very small, and she kept no servant but a girl she called her help, a very suitable appella. tion, by the way, as they did most of the work of the manage in common. This girl, in addition to cooking and washing, was the confidant of all her employer's wandering notions of mankind in general, and of her neighbours in particular; as often, helping her mistress in circulating her comments on the latter, as in anything else. Mrs. Abbott knew nothing of the Effinghams, except by a hearsay that got its intelligence from ner owvn school, being herself a late arrival in the place. Sne had selected Templeton as a residence on account of its cheapness, and, having neglected to comply with,he forms of: the world, by hesitating about making the customary visit to the Wigwam, she began to resent, in her spirit at least, Eve's delicate forbearance from obtruding herself, where, agreeably to all usage, she had a perfect right to suppose she was not desired. It was in this spirit, then, that she sat, conversing with Jennv, as the maid of all work was called, the morning aftter the conversation related in the last chapter, in her snug little parlour, sometimes plying her needle, and 22 25,i HOME AS FOUND. oftenel thrusting her head out of a window which commanded a view of the principal street of the place, in order to see what her neighbours might be about. "This is a most extraordinary course Mr. Effingham has taken concerning the Point," said Mrs. Abbott, 6" and I do hope the people xwill bring him to his senses. Why, Jenny, the public has used that place ever since I can remember, and I have now lived in Templeton quite fifteen months.-What can induce Mr. Howel to go so often to that barber's shop, which stands directly opposite the parlour windows of Mrs. Bennett-one would think the man wvas all beard." "I suppose Mr. Howel gets shaved sometimes," said the logical Jenny. "Not he; or if he does, no decent man would thinli of posting himself before a lady's window to do such a thing.-Orlando Furioso," calling to her eldest son, a boy of eleven, "run over to Mr. Jones's store, and! listen to what the people are talking about, and bring me back the news, as soon as any thing worth hearing drops from any body; and stop as you come back, my son, and borrow neighbour Brown's gridiron. Jenny, it is most time to think of putting over the potatoes." "Ma'-" cried Orlando Furioso, from the friont door, Mrs. Abbott being very rigid in requiring that all her children should call her' ma',' being so much behind the age as actually not to know that'mother' had got to be much the genteeler term of the two; " Ma'," roared Orlando Furioso, " suppose there is no news at Mr. Jones's store?" "Then go to the nearest tavern; something must be stirring this fine morning, and I'm dying to know what it can possibly be. Mind you bring something besides the gridiron back with you. Hurry, or never come-.iome again as long as you live! As I was saying, Jenny, the right of the public, which is our right, foi we are a part of the public, to this Point, is as clear a< dlav, and I am only astonished at the impudence of Mi' HO'MU As FOUAN 255 Efingham in pretending to deny it. I dare say his French daughter has put him up to it. They say she is monstrous arrogant!" "Is Eve Etiingham, French," said Jenny, studiously avoiding any of the usual terms of civility and propriety, by way of showing her breeding —" well, I had always thought her nothing but Templeton born!" "What signifies where a person was born? where they live, is the essential thing; and Eve Effingham has lived so long in France, that she speaks nothing but broken English; and Miss Debby told me last week, that in drawing up a subscription paper for a new cushion to the reading-desk of her people, she actually spelt' charity' carrotty."' "' Is that French, Mliss Abbott?" "I rather think it is, Jenny; the French are very niggardly, and give their poor carrots to live on, and so they have adopted the word, I suppose. You, Byansy-Alzumy-Ann, (Bianca-Alzuma-Ann!") "Marm!" "Byansy-Alzumy-Ann! who taught you to call me marm! Is this the way you have learned your catechism? Say, ma', this instant." "Ma'." "Take your bonnet, my child. and run down to Mrs. Wheaton's, and ask her if any thing new has turned up about the Point, this morning; and, do you hear, Byansy-Alzumy-Ann Abbott-how the child starts away, as if she were sent on a matter of life and death!" "Why, ma', I want to hear the news, too." "Very likely, my dear, but, by stopping to get your errand, you may learn more than by being in such a hurry. Stop in at Mrs. Green's, and ask how the people liked the lecture of the strange parson, last eveln ing —and ask her if she can lend me a watering-pot. Now, run, and be back as soon as possible. Nevei loiter when you carry news, child." 25OMRE S rFOUrD. "No one has a right to stop the mai, I believe, Miss Abbott," put in Jenny, very appositely. "That, indeed, have they not, or else we could not calculate the consequences. You may remember, Jenny, the pious, even, had to give up that point, public convenience being too strong for them. RogerDemetrius-Benjamin!'-calling to a second boy, two years youLger than his brother —" your eyes are better than mine-who are all those people collected together in the street. Is not Mr. Howel among them?" "I do not know, ma'!" answered Roger-DemtetriusBenjamin, gaping. "Then run, this minute, and see, and don't stop to!ook for your hat. As you come back, step into the tailor's shop and ask if your new jacket is most done, and what the news is? I rather think, Jenny, we shall find out something worth hearing, in the course of the day. By the way, they do say that Grace Van Cortlandt, Eve Effingham's cousin, is- under concern." "Well, she is the last person I should think would be'troubled about any thing, for every body says she is so desperate rich she might eat off of silver, if she liked; and she is sure of being married, some time or other." " That ought to lighten her concern, you think. Oh! it does my heart good when I see any of those flaunty:eople right well exercised! Nothing would make me happier than to see Eve Effingham groaning fairly in the spirit! That would teach her to take away the people's Points." "But, Miss Abbott, then she would become almost as good a woman as you are yourself." "I am a miserable, graceless, awfully wicked sinner! Twenty times a day do I doubt whether I am actually converted or not. Sin has got such a hold of my very heart-strings, that I sometimes think they will crack before.it lets go. Rinaldo-RinaldiniTimothy, my child. do you toddle across the alay, and HOME AS FOUND. 257 give my compliments to Mrs. Hulbert, and inquiriif it be true that young Dickson, the lawyer, is really engaged to Aspasia Tubbs or not? and bLorrow a skimmer, or a tin pot, or any thing you carl carry, for we may want something of the sort in the course of the day I do believe, Jenny, that a worse creature than myself is hardly to be found in Templeton." "'Why, Miss Abbott," returned Jenny, who had heard too much of this self-abasement to be much alarmed at it, "6 this is giving almost as bad an account of youselif, as I heard somebody, that I won't name, give ofi' you last week.",'And who is your somebody, I should like to know? I dare say, one no better than a formalist, who thinks that reading prayers out of a book, kneeling, bowing, and changing gowns, is religion! Thank Heaven, I'm pretty indifferent to the opinions of such people. Harkee, Jenny; if I thought I was no better than some persons I could name, I'd give the point of salvation up, in despair!" " Miss Abbott," roared a rugged, dirty-faced, bare. footed boy, who entered without knocking, and stood in the middle of the room, with his hat on, with a suddenness that denoted great readiness in entering other people's possessions; "Miss Abbott, ma' wants to know if you are likely to go from home this week?" " Why, wwbat in nature can she want to know that for, Ordeal Bumgrum?" Mrs. Abbott pronounced this singular name, however, " Ordeel." " Oh! she cwarnts to know." " So do I warnt to know; and know P will. Run home this instant, and ask your mother why she has sent you here with this message. Jenny, I am much exercised to find out the reason Mrs. Bumgrum should iave sent Ordeal over with such a question." 6; I did hear that Miss Bumgrum intended to make l surncey herself, and she may want your company." "GIere comes Ordeal back, and -w shall soon be 22 * 258 HO)ME AS FOUNTD out of the c'ouds. What a boy that is for errands He is worth all my sons put together. You never see him losing time by going round by the streets, but away he goes over the garden fences like a cat, or he will whip through a house, if standing in his way, as if he were its owner, should the door happen to be open. Well, Ordeal?" But Ordeal was out of breath, and although Jenny shook him, as if to shake the news out of him, and Mrs. Abbott actually shook her fist, in her impatience to be enlightened, nothing could induce the child to speak, until he had recovered his wind. " I believe he does it on purpose," said the provoked naid. "It's just like him!" cried the mistress; "the very best news-carrier in the village is actually spoilt because he is thick-winded." "I wish folks wouldn't make their fences so high,' Ordeal exclaimed, the instant he found breath. " 1 can't see of what use it is to make a fence people can't climb!" "What does your mother say?" cried Jenny repeating her shake, con amore. "Ma, wants to know, Miss Abbott, if y ou don'. intend to use it yourself, if you will lend her your name for a few days, to go to Utica with? She says folks don't treat her half as well when she is called Bumgrum, as when she has another name, and she thinks she'd like to try yours, this time." "Is that all! -You need n't have been so hurried about such a trifle, Ordeal. Give my compliments to your mother, and tell her she is quite welcome to my name, and I hope it will be serviceable to her." "She says she is willing to pay for the use of it, if you will tell her what the damage will be." "Oh! it's not worth while to speak of such a trifle I dare say she will bring it back quite as good as when she took it away. I am no such unneighbourly or aris. HOME AS FOUND. 259 tocratical person as to wish to keep my name all to myself. Tell your mother she is welcome to mine, and to keep it as long as she likes, and not to say any thing about pay; I may want to borrow hers, or something else, one of these days, though, to say the truth, my neighbours are apt to complain of me as unfriendly and proud for not borrowing as much as a good neighbour ought." Ordeal departed, leaving Mrs. Abbot in some such condition as that of the man who had no shadow. A rap at the door interrupted the further discussion of the old subject, and Mr. Steadfast Dodge appeared in answer to the permission to enter. Mr. Dodge and Mrs. Abbott were congenial spirits, in the way of news, he living by it, and she living on it. " You are very welcome, Mr. Dodge," the mistress of the house commenced; "' I hear you passed the day, yesterday, up at the Effinghamses." "Why, yes, Mrs. Abbott, the Effinghams insisted on it, and I could not well get over the sacrifice, after having been their shipmate so long. Besides it is a little relief to talk French, when one has been so long in the daily practice of it." "I hear there is company at the house?" "Two of our fellow-travellers, merely. An English baronet, and a young man of whom less is known than one could wish. He is a mysterious person, and I hate mystery,.-Mrs. Abbott." "In that, then, Mr. Dodge, you and I are alike. I think every thing should be known. Indeed, that is not a free country in which there are any secrets. I keep nothing from my neighbours, and, to own the truth, I do not like my neighbours to keep any thing from me." "Then you'll hardly like the Effinghams, for I never yet met with a more close-mouthed family. Although I was so long in the ship with Miss Eve, I never heard her once speak of her want of appetite; of sea-s:ckness, or of any thing relating to her ailings even: non 260 HlOME AS FOUND ~:an you imagine how close she is on the subject of the beaux; I do not think I ever heard her use the word, or so much as allude to any walk or ride she ever took with a single man. I set her down, Mrs. Abbott, as unqualifiedly artful!" "T' hat you may with certainty, sir, for there is no more sure sign that a young woman is all the while thinking of the beaux, than her never mentioning them." "' That I believe to be human nature; no ingenuous person ever thinks much of the particular subject of conversation. What is your opinion, Mrs. Abbott, of the contemplated match at the Wigwam?" "M' atch!" exclaimed Mrs. Abbott. —" What, already! It is tiWe most indecent thing I ever heard of! Why, Mr. Dodge, the family has not been home a fortnight, and to think so soon of getting married! It is quite as bad as a widower's marrying within the month." Mrs. Abbott made a distinction, habitually, betwcei the cases of widowers and widows, as the first, she maintained,' might get married whenever they pleased, and the latter only when they got offers; and she fell just that sort of horror of a man's thinking of marrying too soon after the death of his wife, as might be expected in one who actually thought of a second husband before the first was dead. 6 "Why, yes," returned Steadfast, "it is a little premature, perhaps, though they have been long acquainted. Still, as you say, it would be more decent to wait and see what may turn up in a country, that, to them, may be said to be a foreign land." "But, who are the parties, Mr. Dodge." "Miss Eve Effingham, and Mr. John Effinghan "Mr. John Effingham!" exclaimed the lady, who had lent her name to a neighbour, aghast, for this was knocking on~e of her own day-dreams in the head, "well this is too much! But he shall not marry her, HOME AS FOUNI:. 261 sir; the law will prevent it, and we live in a country of laws. A man cannot marry his own niece."', It is excessively improper, and ought to be put a stop to. And yet these Effinghams do very much ar they please." " I am very sorry to hear that; they are extremely disagreeable," said Mrs. Abbott, with a look of eager inquiry, as if afraid the answer might be in the nerative. "As much so as possible; they have hardly a way that you would like, my dear ma'am; and are as close. mouthed as if they were afraid' of committing themselves." " Desperate bad news-carriers, I am told, Mr. Dodge. There is Dorindy (Dorinda) Mudge, who was employed there by Eve and Grace one day; she tells me she tried all she could to get them to talk, by speaking of the most common things; things that one of. my chi)dren knew all about; such as the affairs of the neigilbourhood, and how people are getting on; and, though they would listen a little- -and that is something, I admit, not a syllable could she get in the way of answer, or remark. Sho tells me that, several times, she had a inind to quit, for it is monstrous unpleasant to associate with your tongue-tied folks." "I dare say Miss Effingham could throw out a hint now and then, concerning the voyage and her late fellow-travellers," said Steadfast, casting an uneasy glance at his companion. "I Not she. Dorindy maintains that it is impossible to get a sentiment out of her concerning a single fellow-creature. When she talked of the late unpleasant affair of poor neighbour Bronson's family-a melan-,holy transaction that, Mr. Dodge, and I shouldn't wonder if it went to nigh break Mrs. Bronson's heart —but wvhen Dorindy mentioned this, which is bad enough to stir the sensibility of a frog, neither of my young ladies replied, or put a single question. In this respect Grace 262 HOME AS FOUND. is as bad as Eve, and Eve is as bad as Grace, they say. Instead of so much as seeming to wish to know any more, what does my Miss Eve do, but turn to some daubs of paintings, and point out to her cousin what she was pleased to term peculiarities in Swiss usages. Then the two hussies would talk of nature, " our beau. tiful nature" Dorindy says Eve had the impudence to call it, and, as if human nature and its failings and backsliding were not a fitter subject for a young woman's discourse, than a silly conversation about lakes, and rocks, and trees, and as if she owVned the nature'about Templeton. It is my opinion, Mr. Dodge, that downright ignorance is at the bottom of it all, for Dorindy says that they actually know no more of the intricacies of the neighbourhood than if they lived in Japan.'" "All pride, Mrs. Abbott; rank pride. They feel themselves too great to enter into the minutiae of common folks' concerns. I often tried Miss Effingham coming from England; and things touching private interests, that I know she did and must understand, she always disdainfully refused to enter into. Oh! she is a real Tartar, in her way; and what she does not wish to do, you never can make her do!" "Have you heard that Grace is under concern?' "Not a breath of it; under whose preaching was she sitting, Mrs. Abbott?" " That is more than I can tell you; not under the church parson's, I'll engage; no one ever heard of a real, active, regenerating, soul-reviving, spirit-groaning and fruit-yielding conversion under his ministry." " No, there is verv little unction in that persuasion generally. How cold and apathetic they are, in these soul-stirring times! Not a sinner has been writhing on 9heir floor, I'll engage, nor a wretch transferred into a saint, in the twinkling of an eye, by that parson. Well,,e have every reason to be grateful, Mrs. Alzbott."' 1"That we have, for most glorious have beer Dur HOME AS FOUND. 263 privileges! To be sure that is a sinfu pride that (:an puff up a wretched, sinful being like Eve Efihngham to such a pass of conceit, as to induce her to th.nk she is raised above thinking of, and taking an interest in the affairs of her neighbours. Now, for my part, conr version has so far opened my heart, that I do actually feel as if I wanted to know all about the meanest creature in Templeton." That's the true spirit, Mrs. Abbott; stick to that, and your redemption is secure. I only edit a newspapei, by way of showing an interest in mankind." 1" I hope, Mr. Dodge, the press does not mean to let this matter of the Point sleep; the press is the true guardian of the public rights, and I can tell you the whole community looks to it for support, in this crisis." "We shall not fail to do our duty," said Mr. Dodge, looking over his shoulder, and speaking lower." "What! shall one insignificant individual, who has not a single right above that of the meanest citizen in the county, oppress this great and powerful community! What if Mr. Effingham does own this point of land —— " "But he does not own it," interrupted Mrs. Abbott. "Ever since I have known Templeton, the public has owned it. The public, moreover, says it owns it, and what the public says, in this happy country, is law." " But, allowing that the public does not own- " " It does own it, Mr. Dodge," the nameless repeated, positively. 1"Well, ma'am, own or no own, this is not a country in which the press ought to be silent, when a solitary individual undertakes to trample on the public. Leave that matter to us, Mrs. Abbott; it is in good hands, and shall be well taken care of." " I'm piously glad of it!" "I mention this to you, as to a friend," continued Mr. Dodge, cautiously drawing from his pocket a man uscript, which he prepared to read to his companion who sat with a devouring curiosity, ready to listen. 264 HOME AS FOUND. The manuscript of Mr. Dodge contained a professea accouit of the affair of the Point. It was written obscurely, and was not without its contradictions, but the imagination of Mrs. Abbott supplied all the vacuums, and reconciled all the contradictions. The article was so liberal of its professions of contempt for Mr. Effingham, that every rational man was compelled to wonder, why a quality, that is usually so passive, should, in this particular instance, be aroused to so sudden and violent activity. In the way of facts, not one was faithfully stated; and there were several deliberate, unl mitigated falsehoods, which went essentially to colour the whole account. "I think this will answer the purpose," said Stead fast, "6 and we have taken means to see that it shall be well circulated." "This will do them good," cried Mrs. Abbott; alm' st breathless with delight. "I hope folks will belie. re it." "N'o fear of that. If it were a party thing, now, one half would believe it, as a matter of course, and the other half would not believe it, as a matter of course; but, in a private matter, lord bless you, ma'an people are always ready to believe any thing that will give them something to talk about." Here the tete a tete was interrupted by the return of Mrs. Abbott's different messengers, all of whom, unlike the dove sent forth from the ark, brought back something in the way of hopes. The Point was a general theme, and, though the several accounts flatly contradicted each other, Mrs. Abbott, in the general benevolence of her pious heart, found the means to extract corroboration of her wishes from each. Mr. Dodge was as good as his word, and the account appeared. The press throughout the country seized with avidity on any thing that helped to fill its columns. No one appeared disposed to inquire into the truth of the account, or after the character of the VOME AS FOUND. 265 original authority. It was in print, and that stru-lk the great majority of the editors and their readers, as a sufficient sanction. Few, indeed, were they, who lived so much under a proper self-control, as to hesitate; and this rank injustice was done a private citizen, as much without moral restraint, as without remorse, by those, who, to take their own accounts of the matter,'were'lie regular and habitual champions of human rights John Effingham pointed out this extraordinary scent: of reckless wrong, to his wondering cousin, with the cool sarcasm, with which he was apt to assail the weaknesses and crimes of the country. His firmness. united to that of his cousin, however, put a stop to the publication of the resolutions of Aristabulus's meeting. and when a sufficient time had elapsed to prove that these prurient denouncers of their fellow-citizens had taken wit in their anger, he procured them. and had them published himself, as the most effectual means of exposing the real character of the senseless mob, that had thus disgraced liberty, by assuming its professions and its usages. To an observer of men, the end of this affair presented several strong points for comment. As soon Ias the truth became generally known, in reference to the real ownership, and the public came to ascertain that instead of hitherto possessing a right, it had, in fact been merely enjoying a favour, those who had commit!ed themselves by their arrogant assumptions of facts, and their indecent outrages, fell back on their self-love, and began to find excuses for their conduct in that of the other party. Mr. Effingham was loudly condemned for not having done the very thing, he, in truth, had done, viz: telling the public it did not own his pro. perty; and when this was shown to be an absurdity, the complaint followed that what he had done, had been done in precisely such a mode, although it was the mode constantly used by every one else. From these. vague and indefinite accusations, those most imn 23 266 HOME AS FOUND. plicated ill the wrong, began to aeny all their own original assertions, by insisting that they had knownV all along, that Mr. Effingham owned the property, but that they did not choose he, or any other man, sho:li! presume to tell them what they knew already. short, the end of this affair exhibited human nature i, its usual aspects of prevarication, untruth, contradi_tion, and inconsistency, notwithstanding the high pr(,fession of liberty made by those implicated; and they who had been the most guilty of wrong, were loudest in their ccrmplaints, as if they alone had suffered. 6 "This is not exhibiting the country to us, certainly, after so long an absence, in its best appearance," said Mr. Effingham, "' I must admit, John; but error belongs to all regions, and to all classes of institutions." "Ay, Ned, make the best of it, as usual; but, if you do not come round to my way of thinking, before you are a twelvemonth older, I shall renounce prophesying. I wish we could get at the bottom of Miss Eftingham' thoughts, on this occasion." "Miss Effinghcm has been grieved, disappointed, nay, shocked," said Eve, "but, still she will not despair of the republic. None of our respectable neighbours, in the first place, have shared in this transaction, and that is something; though I confess I feel some surprise that any considerable portion of a community, that respects itself, should quietly allow an ignorant fragment of its own numbers, to misrepresent it so grossly, in an affair that so nearly touches its own character for common sense and justice." "You have yet to learn, Miss Effingham, that men can get to be so saturated with liberty, that they become insensible to the nicer feelings.. The grossest enormities are constantly committed in this good republic of ours, under the pretence of being done by the public, and for the public. The public have got to bow to that bugbear, quite as submissively as Gesler ould have wished the Swiss to bow to his own cap, HOME AS FOUND. 26t; as to the cap of Rodolph's substitute. Men will havt idols, and the Americans have merely set up themselves." "And yc.., cousin Jack, you would be wretched were you doomed to live under a system less free. I fear you have the affectation of sometimes saying that which' you do not exactly feel." CHAPTER XVII. "'Come, these are no times to think of dreamsWe'll talk of dreams hereafter." SHAKSPEARE. THE day succeeding that in which the conversation just mentioned occurred, was one of great expectation and delight in the Wigwam. Mrs. Hawker and the Bloomfields were expected, and the morning passed away rapidly, under the gay buoyancy of the feelings that usually accompany such anticipations in a country-house. The travellers were to leave town the previous evening, and, though the distance was rnar two hundred and thirty miles, they were engaged to arrive by the usual dinner hour. In speed, the Ameri-,cans, so long as they follow the great routes, are unsurpassed; and even Sir George Templemore, coming, as he did, from a country of MacAdamized roads and excellent posting, expressed his surprise, when given to understand that a journey of this length, near a hundred miles of which were by land, moreover, was to be performed in twenty-four hours, the stops included. "One particularly likes this rapid travelling," he remarked,' when it is to bring us such friends as Mrs. Ela -I\ v1ker." And Mrs. Bloomfield," added Eve,'quickly. I" 2i8 HOME AS FOUND. rest the credit of the American females on Mrs. Bloomn field." "More so, than on Mrs. Hawker, Miss Effillngham'" "Not in all that is amiable, respectable, feminine, and lady-like; but certainly more so, in the way of mind. I know, Sir George Templemore, as a European, what your opinion is of our sex in this country." "Good heaven, my dear Miss Effingham! — Mr opinion of your sex, in America! It is impossible fo: any one to entertain a higher opinion of your country. women-as I hope to show-as, I trust, my respect and admiration have always proved-nay, Powis, you, as an American, will exonerate me from this want of taste-judgment-feeling -" Paul laughed, but told the embarrassed and really distressed baronet, that he should leave him in the very excellent hands into which he had fallen. " You see that bird, that is sailing so prettily above the roofs of the village," said Eve, pointing with her parasol in the direction she meant; for the three were walking together on the little lawn, in waiting for the appearance of the expected guests; "' and I dare say you are ornithologist enough to tell its vulgar name." "You are in the humour to be severe this morning -the bird is but a comnmon swallow." "One of which will not make a summer, as every one knows. Our cosmopolitism is already forgotten, and with it, I fear, our frankness." " Since Powis has hoisted his national colours, I do not feel as free on such subjects as formerly," returned Sir George, smiling. "When I thought I had a secret ally in him, I was not afraid to concede a little in such things, but his avowal of his country has put me on mny guard. In no case, however, shall I admit my insensibility to the qualities of your countrywomen. Powis, as a native, may take that liberty; but, als for myself, T shall insist they are, at least, the equals of any lenmales I know," HOME AS FOITND. 269 " In noaivete, prettiness, delicacy of appearance, sim. plicity, and sincerity "'Kin sincerity, think you, dear Miss Effingham?" "In sincerity, above all things, dear Sir George Iemplemore. Sincerity-nay, frankness is the last quality I should think of denying them." "But to return to Mrs. Bloomfield-she is clever, exceedingyS clever, I allow; in what is her cleverness to be distinguished from that of one of her sex, on the other side of the ocean?" " In nothing, perhaps, did there exist no differences in national characteristics. Naples and New-York are in the same latitude, and yet, I think you will agree with me, that there is little resemblance in their populations." "I confess I do not understand the allusion-are you quicker witted, Powis?" "I will not say that," answered Paul; "but I think I do comprehend Miss Effingham's meaning. Yout have travelled enough to know, that, as a rule, there is more aptitude in a southern, than in a northern people. They receive impressions more readily, and are quicker in all their perceptions." "I believe this to be true; but, then, you will allow that they are less constant, and have less perseverance?" i" In that we are agreed, Sir George Templemore," resumed Eve, 1" though we might differ as to the cause. The inconstancy of which you speak, is more connected with moral than physical causes, perhaps, and we, of thiq region, might claim an exemption from some of them. But, Mrs. Bloomfield is to be distinguished from her Eurcpean rivals, by -a firame so singularly feminine as to appear fragile, a delicacy of exterior, that, were it not for that illumined face of hers, might indicate a general feebleness, a sensitiveness and quickness of intellect that amnount almost to inspiration; and, y,'t ll is balanced by a practceal comemon sense, thal 23 3 270 HOME AS FOUND. renders her as safe a counsellor as she is a wvarn friend. This latter quality causes you sometimes to doubt her genius, it is so very homely and available, Now it. is in this, that I think the American woman, when she does rise above mediocrity, is particularly to be distinguished from the European. The latter, as a genius, is almost always in the clouds, whereas, Mrs. Bloomfield, in her highest flights, ismeither all heart, or all good sense. The nation is practical, and the practical qualities get to be imparted even to its highest order of talents." c" The English women are thought to be less excitable, and not so much under the influence of sentimentalism, as some of their continental neighbours." "And very justly-but -" "But, what, Miss Effingham-there is, in all this, a slight return to the cosmopolitism, that reminds me of our days of peril and adventure. Do not conceal a thought, if you wish to preserve that character." "Well, to be sincere, I shall say that your women live under a system too sophisticated and factitious to give fair play to common sense, at all times. What, for instance, can be the habitual notions of one, who, professing the doctrines of Christianity, is accustomed to find money placed so very much in the ascendant, as to see it daily exacted in payment for the very first of the sacred offices of the church? It would be as rational to contend that a mirror which had been cracked into radii, by a bullet, like those we have so often seen in Paris, would reflect faithfully, as to suppose a mind familiarized to such abuses would be sensitive on prac. tical and common sense things." "But, my dear Miss Effingham, this is all habit." "I know it is all habit, Sir George Templemore, and a very bad habit it is. Even your devoutest clergymen get so accustomed to it, as not to see the capital mistake they make. I do not say it is absoluteiy sinful, where there is no compulsion; but, I hope you HOME AS FOUND. 271 agree with me, Mi, Powis, when I say I think a clergymyan ought to be so sensitive on such a subject, as to refuse even the little offerings for baptisms, that it is the practice of the wealthy of this country to make." "I agree with you entirely, for it would denote a more just perception of the nature of the office they are performing; and they who wish to give can alb ways make occasions.''~ A hint might be taken from Frianklin, who is said to have desired his father to ask a blessing on the porkbarrel, by way of condensation," put in John Effingham, who joined them as he spoke, and who had heard a part of the conversation. " In this instance, an average might be struck in the marriage fee, that should embibace all future baptisms. But here comes neighbour Howel to favour us with his opinion. Do you like the usages of the English church, as respects baptisms, Howel?" "Excellent, the best in the world, John Effingham." "Mr. Howel is so true an Englishman," said Eve, shaking hands cordially with their well-meaning neighbour, 6 that he would give a certificate in favour of polygamy, if it had a British origin." "And is not this a more natural sentiment for an American than that which distrusts so much, merely because it comes from the little island?" asked Sir George, reproachfully. "That is a question I shall leave Mr. Howel himself to answer." "Why, Sir George," observed the gentleman alluded to, "I do not attribute my respect tor your country, in the least, to origin. I endeavour to keep myself free froim all sorts of prejudices. My admiration of' england arises from conviction, and I watch all her movements with the utmost jealousy, in order to see if I cannot find her trpping, though I feel bound to say I have never yet detected her in a single error. Whllat a wvery different picture, France-I hope your govern 272 HOME AS FOUND. ess is not within hearing, Miss Eve; it is not her fault she was born a. French woman, and we would not wish to hurt her feelings-but what a different picture France presents! I have watched her narrowly too, these forty years, I may say, and I have never yet found her right; and this, you must allow, is a. great deal to be said by one who is thoroughly impartial." "' This is a terrible picture, indeed, Howel, to come from an unprejudiced man," said John Effingham; " and I make no doubt Sir George Temnplemore will have a better opinion of himself for ever after-he for a valiant lion, and you for a true prince. But yonder is the' exclusive extra,' which contains our party." The elevated bit of lawn on which they were walking commanded a view of the road that led into the village, and the travelling. vehicle engaged by Mrs. Hawker and her friends, was now seen moving along it at a rapid pace. Eve expressed her satisfaction. and then all resumed their walk, as some minutes must still elapse previously to the arrival. "Exclusive extra!" repeated Sir George; "that is a peculiar phrase, and one that denotes any thing but democracy." " In any other part of the world a thing would be sufficiently marked, by being' extra,' but here it requires the addition of'exclusive,' in order to give it the'tower stamp,'" said John Effingham, with a curl of his handsome lip. " Any thing may be as exclusive as it. please, provided it bear the public impress. A stage. coach being intended for every body, why, the more exclusive it is, the better. The next thing we shall hear of will be exclusive steamboats, exclusive rail. roads, and both for the uses of the exclusive people." Sir George now seriously asked an explanation of the meaning of the term, when Mr. Howel informed him that an' extra' in America meant a supernumerary roach, to carry any excess of the ordinary nu!mbe of passeig ers; whereas -an'exclusive exlra' meant a coach expressly c, ngaged by a particular individual. HOME AS FOUNDo 273 6The latter, then, is American posting," observed Sir George. i "You have got the best idea of it that can be given," said Paul. "It is virtually posting with a coachman, instead of postillions, few persons in this country, where so much of the greater distances is done by steam, using their own travelling carriages. The American' exclusive extra' is not only posting, but, in many of the older parts of the country, it is posting of a very good quality." " I dare say, now, this is all wrong, if we only knew it," said the simple-minded Mr. H-owel. "There is nothing exclusive in England, ha, Sir George?" Every body laughed except the person who put this question, but the rattling of wheels and the tramping of horses on the village bridge, announced the near approach of the travellers. By the time the party had reached the great door in front of the house, the carriage was already in the grounds, and at the next moment, Eve was in the arms of Mrs. Bloomfield. It was apparent, at a glance, that more thanthe expected number of guests was in the vehicle; and as its contents were slowly discharged, the spectators stood around it, with curiosity, to observe who would appear. The first person that descended, after the exit of Mrs. Bloomfield, was Captain Truck, who, however, instead of saluting his friends, turned assiduously to the door he had just passed through, to assist Mrs. Haw.ker to alight. Not until this office had been done, dia he even look for Eve; for, so profound was the worthy captain's admiration and respect for this venerable lady, that she actually had got to supplant our heroine, in some measure, in his heart. Mr. Bloomfield appeared next, and an exclamation of surprise and pleasure proceeded from both Paul and the baronet, as they caught a glimpse of the face of the last of the travellers that got out. 6Ducie!" cried Sir George. "This is even better khan vwe expected." 274 EOME AS FOUND. "Ducie!" added Paul, " you are severat days before the expected time, and in excellent company." The explanation, however, was very simple Captain Ducie had found the facilities for rapid motion much greater than he had expected, and he reached Fort Plain, in the eastward cars, as the remainder of the party arrived in the westward. Captain Truckwho had met Mrs. Hawker's party in the river boat, had been intrusted with the duty of making the arrangements, and recognizing Captain Ducie, to their mutual surprise, while engaged in this employment, and ascertaining his destination, the latter was very cordially received into the c" exclusive extra." Mr. Effingham welcomed all his guests with the nospitality and kindness for which he was distinguished. We are no great admirers of the pretension to peculiar national virtues, having ascertained, to our Dwn sat;sfaction, by tolerably extensive observatiOl, that Aix.. moral difference between men is of no great amount' but we are almost tempted to say, on this occasion, that Mr. Effingham received his guests with A nerlcan hospitality; for if there be one quality that tlis peol.le can claim to possess in a higher degree tha i that of most other christian nations, it is that of a si nple, sin-. cere, confiding hospitality. For Mrs. Hawke:, in common with all who knew her, the owner of the Wigwam entertained a profound respect; and though his less active mind did not take as much pleasure as that of his daughter, in the almost intuitive intelligence of Mirs. Bloomfield, he also felt for this lady a very fri iendly regard. It gave him pleasure to see Eve surrounded by persons of her own sex, of so high a tone of thought and breeding; a tone of thought and breeding, moreover, that was as far removed as possible from any,hing strained or artificial: and his welcomes were cordial in proportion. Mr. Bloomfield was a quiet, sensible, gentleman-like man, whom his -wife fervently [ovred, without making any parade of her attachment nHOME AS FOTND. 275 and he was also one who had the good sense to mnake himself agreeable wherever he went. Captain Ducie, who, Englishman-like, had required some urging to be induced to present.himself before the precise houl named in his own letter, and *,ho had seriously contemplated passing several days in a tavern, previously to showing himself at the Wigwam, was agreeably disappointed at a reception, that would have been just as frank and warm, had. he come without any notice at all: for the Effinghams knew that the usages which soohistication and a crowded population perhaps render necessary in older countries, were not needed in their own; and then the circumstance that their quondan pursuer was so near a kinsman of Paul Powis', did not fail to act essentially in his favour. " We can offer but little, in these retired mountains, to interest a traveller and a man of the world, Captain Ducie, " said Mr. Effingham, when he went to pay his compliments more particularly, after the whole party was in the house;'6 but there is a common interest in our past adventures to talk about, after all other topics fail. Wheq we met on the ocean, and you deprived us so unexpectedly of our friend Powis, we did not know that you had the better claim of affinity to his company." Captain Ducie coloured slightly, but he made his an. swer with a proper degree of courtesy and gratitude. "It is very true," he added, " Powis and myself are relatives, and I shall place all my claims to your hospitality to his account; for I feel that I have been the unwilling cause of too much suffering to your party to bring with me any very pleasant recollections, notwithstanding your kindness in including me as a friend, n the adventures'of which you speak." "Dangers that are happily past, seldom bring very udnpleasant recollections, more especially when they were connected with scenes of exciternent. I under. stand, sir, that the unhappy young man, wlho was tthe 276 HOME AS FOUiND. principal cause of all that passed, anticipated the senll tence of the law, by destroying himself." "He was his own executioner, and the victim of a silly weakness that, I should think, your state of society was yet too young and simple to encourage. The idle vanity of making an appearance, a vanity, by the way, that seldom besets gentlemen, or the class to which it may be thought more properly to belong, ruins hundreds of young men in England, and this poor creature was of the numbelr. I never was more rejoiced than when he quitted my ship, fbr the sight of so much weakness sickened one of human nature. Miserable as his fate proved to be, and pitiable as his condition really was. while in my charge, his case has the alleviating cir cumstance with me, of having made me acquainted with those whom it might not otherwise hlave been my good fortune to meet!" This civil speech was properly acknowledged, and Mr. Effingham addressed himself to Captain Truck, to whom, in the hurry of the moment, he had not yet said half that his feelings dictated. "I am rejoiced to see you under my roof, my worthy friend," taking the rough hand of the old seaman between his own whiter and more delicate fingers, and shaking it with cordiality, "for this is being under my roof, while those town residences have less the air of domestication and familiarity. You will spend many of your holidays here, I trust; and when we get a few years older, we will begin' to prattle about the marvels we have seen in company." The eye of Captain Truck glistened, and, as he returns ed the shake by another of twice the energy, and the gentle pressure of Mr. Efingham by a squeeze like that of a vice, he said in his honest off-hand manner- " The haupsiest hour I ever knew was that in which l discharged the pilot, the first time out, as a ship-master; the next great event of my life, in the away of hai"pin-ess, was the moment I found mryself on the deck,:( the Montauk, after we had given those greasy Arabs a HOME AS FOUND. 277 hint that their roomn was better than their company; and I really think this very instant must be set down as the third. I never knew, my dear sir, how much I truly loved you and your daughter, until both were out of sight "That is so kind and gallant a speech, that it ought not to be lost on the person most concerned. Eve, my Love, our worthy friend has just made a declaration which will be a novelty to you, who have not been much in the way of listening to speeches of this nature." Mr. Effingham then acquainted his daughter with what Captain Truck had just said. "' This is certainly the first declaration of the sort I ever heard, and with the simplicity of an unpractised young woman, I here avow that the attachment is reciprocal," said the smiling Eve. " If there is an indiscretion in this hasty acknowledgement, it must be ascribed to surprise, and to the suddenness with which 1 have learned my power, for your parvenues are not aiways perfectly regulated." "I hope Mamlselle V. A. V. is well," returned the Captain, cordially shaking the hand the young lady bad given him, " and that she enjoys herself to her liking',l this outlandish countryi?" 4" Mademoiselle Viefville will return you her thanks in person, at dinner; and I believe she does not yet regret la belle France unreasonably; as I regret it myself, in many particulars, it would be unjust not to pernit a native of. the country some liberty in that way." "I perceive a strange face in the room-one of the family, my dear young lady?" " Not a relative, but a very old friend. —Shall I have the pleasure of introducing you, Captain?" " I hardly dared to ask it, for I know you must have been overworked in this way, lately, but I confess I,hoZld like an introduction; I have neither introduced, nor been introduced since I left New-York, with the exception of the case of Captain Ducie, whom I made properly acquainted with Mrs. Hawker and her party as vou mav suppose. They know each other regi) 24 278 HOME AS FOUND. [arly now, and you are saved the trouble of going through the ceremony yourself." "An I how is it with you and the Bloomfields? Did' Mrs. Hawker name you to them properly?" "' That is the most extraordinary thing of the sort l ever knew! Not a word was said in the way of introduction, and yet I slid into an acquaintance with Mrs. Bloomfield so easily, that I could not tell how it was done, if my life depended on it. But this very old friend of yours, my dear young lady " "Captain Truckl, Mr. Howel; Mr. Howel, Captain Truck;" said Eve, imitating the most approved manner of the introductory spirit of the day with admirable self-possession and gravity. "I am fortunate in having it in my power to make two persons whom 1 so much esteem acquainted." "Captain Truck is -the gentleman who commands the Montauk?" said Mr. Howel, glancing at Eve, as much as to say, " am I right?" 4 The very same, and the brave seaman to whom we are all indebted for the happiness of standing here at this moment." "You are to be envied, Captain Truck; of all the men in your calling, you are exactly the one I should most wish to supplant. I understand you actually go to England twice every year!" " Three times, sir, when the winds permit. I have even seen the old island four times, between January and January.","What a pleasure! It must be the very acmne of navigation to sail between America and England!" "It is not unpleasant, sir, from April to November, but the long nights, thick weather, arid heavy winds knock off a good deal of the satisfaction for the rest of the year." " But I speak of the country; of old England itself; ~iot of the passages."'Well, England has what I call a pretty fa;r coast. HOME AS FOUND.'279 ft is high, and great attention is paid to the lights; but of what account is either coast or lights, if the wea-. ther is so thick, you cannot see the end of your flyingjib-boom!" "Mr. H-Towel alludes more particularly to the country, inland," said Eve; " to the towns, the civilization and the other proofs of cultivation and refinement. To the government, especially." " In my judgment, sir, the government is much too particular about tobacco, and some other trifling things I'could name. Then it restricts pennants to King's ships, whereas, to my notion, my dear young lady; a New-York packet is as worthy of wearing a pennan as any vessel that floats. I mean, of course, ships of the regular European lines, and not the Southern traders." "But these are merely spots on the sun, my good sir," returned Mr. Howel; "' putting a few such trifles out of'the question, I think you will allow that England is the most delightful country in the world?" "' To be frank with you, Mr. Howel, there is a gooa deal of hang-dog weather, along in October, Novema. ber and December. I have known DMarch any thing but agreeable, and then April is just like a young girl with one of your melancholy novels, now smiling, and now bliubbering." "I But the morals of the country, my dear sir; the moral features of England must be a source of neverdying delighL to a true philanthropist," resumed Mr. Howel, as Eve, who perceived that the discourse was likely to be long, went to join the, ladies. "An Englishman has most reason to be proud. of the moral excellencies of his country!" ", Why, to be frank with you, Mr. Howel, there are;ome of the moral features of London, that are any thing but very beautiful. If you could pass t1vent-y. four hours in the neighbourhood of St. Catharine's. you would see sights tha.t would throw Te'nll)'eto., 280 HOME AS FOUND. into fits. The English are a handsome people, I allow.; but their morality is none of the best-featured." 4"Let us be seated, sir; I an afraid we are not exactly-agreed on our terms, and, in order that we may continue this subject, I beg you will let me take a seat next you, at table." To this Captain Truck 1 ery cheerfully assented, and then the two took chairs, continuing the discourse very much in the blind and ambiguous manner in which it had been commenced; the one party insisting on seeing every thing through the medium of an itmagination that had got to be diseased on such subjects, or with a species of monomania; vwhile the other seemed obstinately determined to consider the entire country as things had been presented to his limited and peculiar experience, in the vicinity of the docks. "'We have had a very unexpected, and a very agreeable attendant in Captain Truck," said Mrs Hawker, when Eve had placed herself by her side, and respectfully taken one of her hands. "I really think if I were to sufler shipwreck, or to run the hazard of captivity, I should choose to have both occur in his good company." "Mrs. Hawker makes so many conquests," observed aMrs. Bloomfield, 1" that we are to think nothing of her success with this mer-man; but what will you say, Miss Effingham, when you learn that I amrn also in favour, in the same hfigh quarter. I shall think the better of masters, and boatswains, and Trinculos and Stephanos, as long as I live, for this specimen of their c raft." "Not Trinculos and Stephanos, dear Mrs. Blfom field; for, a I' exception pres de Saturday-nights, and sweet-hearts and wives, a more exemplary person in the way of libations does not exist than our exceilent Captain Truck. He is much too religious and moral for so vulgar an excess as drinking." "'Religious!" exclaimed Mrs. Bloomfield, in sur HOME AS FO.UND. 281 prise. 66 This is a merit to which I did not know he possessed the smallest claims. One might imagine a little superstition, and somre short-lived repentances in gales of wind; but scarcely any thing as much like a trade wind, as religion!" " Then you do not know him; for a more sincerely devout man, though I acknowledge it is after a fashion that is perhaps peculiar to.the ocean, is not often met with. At any rate, you found him attentive to our sex?" " The pink of politeness, and, not to embellish, there is a manly deference about him, that is singularly agreeable to our frail vanity. This comes of his packettraining, I suppose, and we may thank you for some portion of his merit. His tongue never tires in your praises, and did I not feel persuaded that your mind is made up never to be the wife of any republican Ames rican, I should fear this visit exceedingly. Notwithstanding the remark I made concerning my being in favour, the affair lies between Mrs. Hawker aqd yourself. I know it is not your habit to trifle even on that very popular subject with young ladies, matrimony; but this case forms so complete an exception to the vulgar passion, that I trust you will overlook the indiscretion. Our golden captain, for copper he is not, p'rotests that Mrs. Hawker is the most delightful oki lady he ever knew, and that Miss Eve Effingham is the most delightful young lady ie ever knew. Here, then, each may see the ground she occupies, and play her cards accordingly. I hope to be forgiven for touching on a subject so delicate." "In the first place," said Eve, smiling, "I should( wish to hear M[rs. Hawker's reply." "I have no more to say, than to express my p'erfect gratitude," answered that lady, "to announce a determination not to change my condition, on accoun1 of extreme youth, and a disposition to abandon the tiiid to my younger, if not fairer, rival." 24 * 282 HOME AS FOUND;6 Well, then," resumed Eve, anxious to change thl subject, for she saw that Paul was approaching their group, "'I believe it will be wisest in me to suspend a decision, circumstances leaving so much at. my disposal. Time must show what that decision will be." "Nay," said Mrs. Bloomfield, who saw no feeling involved in the trifling, 6" this is unjustifiable coquetry, and I feel bound to ascertain how the land lies.'You will remember I am the Captain's confidant, and you know the fearful responsibility of a friend in an affair of this sort; that of a friend in the duello being insignificant in comparison. That I may have testinmony at need, Mr. Powis shall be mlade acquainted with the leading facts. Captain Truck is a devout admirer of' this young lady, sir, and I am endeavouring to discover whether he ought to hang himself on her father's lawn, this evening, as soon as the moon rises, or live another week. In order to do this, I shall pursue the categorital and inquisitorial method-and so defend yourself Miss Effingham. Do you object to the country of your admirer?" Eve, though inwardly vexed at the turn this pleasantry had taken, maintained a perfectly composed manner, for she knew that Mrs. Bloomfield had tor much feminine propriety to say any thing improper, or any thing that might seriously embarrass her. "6 It would, indeed, be extraordinary, should I object to a country which is not only my own, but which has so long been that of my ancestors," she answered steadily. "On this score, my knight has nothing to fear." "I rejoice to hear this," returned Mrs. Bloomfield, glancing her eyes, unconsciously to herself, however, towards Sir George Templemore, 1"and, Mr. PowTis, you, who I believe are a European, will learn humility in the avowal. Do you object to your swain that he is a seamlan?" HOME AS FOt ND. 283 Eve blushed, notwithstanding a strong effort to apoear composed, and, for the first time since their acquairitance, she felt provoked with AMrs. Bloomfield. She hesitated before she answered in the negative, and this too in a way to give more meaning to her reply, although nothing collld. be farther from her intentions. " The happy man may then be an American and a seaman! Here is great encouragement. Do you object to sixty?" "6 In any other man I should certainly consider it a blemish, as my own dear father is but fifty." Mrs. Bloomfield was struck with the tremor in the voice, and with the air of embarrassment, in one who usually was so easy and collected; and with feminine sensitiveness she adroitly abandoned the subject, though she often recurred to this stifled emotion in the course of the day, and from that moment she became a silent observer of Eve's deportment with all her father's guests. " This is hope enough for one day," she said, rising; 6the profession and the flag must counterbalance the years as best they may, and the Truck lives another revolution of the sun! Mrs. Hawker, we shall be late at dinner, I see by that clock, unless we retire soon." Both the ladies now went to their rooms; Eve, who was already dressed for dinner, remaining in the drawing-room. Paul still stood before her, and, lilie herself, he seemed embarrassed.,' There are men who would be delighted to hear even the little that has fallen from.your lips in this trifling," he said, as soon as Mrs. Bloomfield was out of hearing. "To be an American and a seaman, then, are not serious defects in your eyes?" Al m I to be made responsible for Mrs. Bloomfield's caprices and pleasantries?","By no means;' but I do think you hold yourserf responsible for Miss Efingham's truth and sincerity 284 HOME AS FOUND. I can conceive of your silence, when questioned too far, but scarcely of any direct declaration, that shall not possess both these high qualities." Eve looked up gratefully, for she saw that profound respect for her character dictated' the remark; but rising, she observed" This is making a little badinage about our honest, lion-hearted, old captain, a very serious affair. And now, to show you that I iam conscious of, and thankful for, your own compliment, I shall place you on the footing of a friend to both the parties, and request you will take Captain Truck into your especial care, while he remains here. My father and cousin are both sincerely his friends, but their habits are not so much those of their guests, as yours will probably be; and to you, then, I commit him, with a request that he may miss his ship and the ocean as little as possi. ble." "I would I knew how to take this charge, Miss Effingham!-To be a seaman is not always a recomrnendation with the polished, intelligent, and refined." ~" But when one is polished, intelligent, and refined, to be a seaman is to add one other particular and useful branch of knowledge to those which are more familiar. I feel certain Captain Truck will be in good hands, and now I will go and do my devoirs to my own especial charges, the ladies." Eve bowed as she passed the youtng man, and she left the room with as much haste as at all became her. Paul stood motionless quite a minute after she had vanished, nor did he awaken from his reverie, until aroused by an appeal -from Captain Truck, to sustain him, in some of his matter-of-fact opinions concerning England, against the visionary and bookish notions of Mr. Howel. "Who is this Mr. Powis?" asked Mrs. Bloomfield of Eve, when the latter appeared in her dressing.roon, with an unusual im1 qtience of manner. HOME AS FOUND. 285 "You know, my dear Mrs. Bloomfield, that he wa.a our fellow-passenger in the Montauk, and that he was of infinite service to us, in escaping from the Aiabs." " All this I know, certainly; but he is a European, is he not?" Eve scarcely ever felt more embarrassed than in answering this simple question. "I believe not; at least, I think not; we thought so when we met him in Europe, and even until quite lately; but he has avowed himself a countryman of our own, since his arrival at Templeton." " Has he been here long?" "We found him in the village on reaching home. He was from Canada, and has been in waiting for his cousin, Captain Ducie, who came with you." "' His cousin!-He has English cousins, then! M1. Ducie kept this to himself, with true English reserve. Captain Truck whispered something of the latter's having taken out one of his passengers, the Mr. Powis. the hero of the rocks, but I did not know of his having found his way back to our-to his country. Is he as agreeable as Sir George Templemore?" "Nay, Mrs. Bloomfield, I must leave you to judge of that for yourself. I think them both agreeable men; but there is so much caprice in a woman's tastes, that I decline thinking for others." " He is a seaman, I believe," observed Mrs. Bloomfield, with an abstracted manner —" he must have been, to have manceuvred and managed as I have been told he did. Powis-Powis-that is not one of our names, neither- I should think he must be from the south." Here Eve's habitual -truth and dignity of mind did her good service, and prevented any further betrayal of embarrassment. "We do not know his family," she steadily answered. " That he is a gentleman, we see; but of his origin and connections he never speaks." "6 His profession would have given him the notions 28;6 nHOME AS FOUNTD. of a gentleman, fbr he was in the navy I have heard, although I had thought it the British navy. I do not know of any, Powises in Philadelphia, or Baltimore, oi Richmond, or Charleston; he must surely be from the interior." Eve'could scarcely condemn her friend for a curiosity that had not a little tormented herself, though she would gladly change the discourse. "Mr. Powis would be much gratified, did he know what a subject of interest he has suddenly become with Mrs. Bloomfield," she said, smiling. " I confess it all; to be very sincere, I think him the most distinguished young man, in air, appearance, and expression of countenance, I ever saw. When this is coupled with what I have heard of his gallantry and coolness, my dear, I should not be woman to feel no interest in him. I would give the world to know of what State he is a native, if native, in truth, he be." " For that we have his own word.'He was born in this country, and was educated in our own marine." " And yet from the little that fell from him, in our first short conversation, he struck me as being educated above his profession." "Mr. Powis has seen much as a traveller; when we met him in Europe, it was in a circle particularly qualified to improve both his mind and his manners." "' Europe! Your acquaintance did not then commence, like that with Sir George Templemore, in the packet?" "Our acquaintance with neither, commenced in the packet. My father had often seen both these gentlemen, during our residences in different parts of Europe." "And your father's daughter?" "My father's daughter, too," said Eve, laughing. "With Mr. Powis, in particular, we were acquainted under circumstances that left a vivid recollection of H14o0i AS FOUND. 287 his manliness and professional skill. He was of almost as much service to us on one of the Swiss lakes, as he has subsequently been on the ocean." All this was news to Mrs. Bloomfield, and she looked as if she thought the intelligence interesting. At this moment the dinner-bell rang, and all the ladies descended to the drawing-room. The gentlemen were already assembled, and as Mr. Effingham led Mrs. Hawker to the table, Mrs. Bloomfield gaily took Eve by the arm, protesting that she felt herself privileged, the first day, to take a seat near the young mistress of the Wigwam. "1 Mr. Powis and Sir George Templemore will not quarrel about the honour," she said, in a low voice, as they proceeded towards the table. "Indeed you are in error, Mrs. Bloomfield; Sir George Templemore is much better pleased with being "at liberty to sit next my cousin Grace." " Can this be so!" retuined the other, looking intently at her young friend. "Indeed it is so, and I am very glad to be able to affirm it. How far Miss Van Cortlandt is pleased that it is so, timie must show: but the baronet betrays every day, and all day, how much he is pleased with her." "He is then a man of less taste, and judgment, and intelligence, than I.had thought him." "Nay, dearest Mrs. Bloomfield, this is not nec essarily true; or, if true, need it be so openly said?" i" Se non e vero, e ben trovato." '28R HOME AS FOUND. CHAPTER XVIII. "Thine for a space are theyYet shalt thou yield thy treasures up at last; Thy gates shall yet give way, Thy bolts shall fall, inexorable Past." BRYANT CAPTAIN DUCIE had retired for the night, and waa sitting reading, when a low tap at the door roused him from a brown study. He gave the necessary permission, and the door opened. "I hope, Ducie, you have not forgotten the secretary I left among your effects," said Paul entering the room, it and concerning which I wrote you when you were still at Quebec." Captain Ducie pointed to the case, which was standing among his other luggage, on the floor of the room.,"Thank you for this care," said Faul, taking the secretary under his arm, and retiring towards the door; "it contains papers of much importance to.myself, and some that I have reason to think are of importance to others." " Stop, Powis —a word before you quit me. Is T'emplemore de trop?" s" Not at all; I have a sincere regard for Templemore, and should be sorry to see him leave us." "And yet I think it singular a man of his habits should be rusticating among these hills, when I know that he is expected to look at the Canadas, with a view to report their actual condition at home." "'Is Sir George really entrusted with a commission of that sort?" inquired Paul, with interest. "Not with any positive commission, perhaps, for none was necessary. Templemore is a rich fellow, and has no need of appointments; but, it is hoped and HOME AS FOUND. 289 understood, that he will look at the provinces, ana report their condition to the government. I dare say he will not be impeached for his negligence, though it may occasion surprise." "6 Good night, Ducie; Templemore prefers a wigwam to your walled Quebec, and natives to colonists, that s all." In a minute, Paul was at the door of John Effingham' room, where he again tapped, and was again told to enter. "Ducie has not forgotten my request, an( - -is the secretary that contains poor Mr. Monday's p', " he remarked, as he laid his load on a toilet-table,:ileaking in a way to show that the visit was expected. " We have, indeed, neglected this duty too long, and it is to be hoped no injustice, or wrong to any, will be the consequence." "Is that the package?" demanded John Effingham, extending a hand to receive a bundle of papers that Patti had taken from the secretary. " We will break the seals this moment, and ascertain what ought to be done, before we sleep." "These are papers of my own, and very precious are they," returned the young man, regarding them a moment, with interest, before he laid them on the toilet. "Here are the papers of Mr. Monday." John Effingham received the package from his young friend, placed the lights conveniently on the table, put on his spectacles, and invited Paul to be seated. The gentlemen were placed opposite each other, the duty of breaking the seals, and first casting an eye at the contents of the different documents, devolving, as a matter of course, on the senior of the two, who, in truth, had alone been entrusted with it. 6" Here is something signed by poor Monday himself, in the way of a general certificate," observed John Etlingham, who first read the paper, and then handed it to Paul. It was, in form, an unsealed letter25 290 HOMf3 AS FOUND, and it was addressed "to all whom it may concern.' The certificate itself was in the following words: "1, John Monday, do declare and certify, that all the accompanying letters and documents are genuine and authentic. Jane Dowse, to whom and from whom, are so many letters, was my late mother, she having intermarried with Peter Dowse, the man so often named, and who led her into acts for which I know she has since been deeply repentant. In committing these papers to fpe, my poor mother left me the sole judge of the cc se I was to take, and I have put them in this fog in order that they may yet do good, should I be Bited suddenly away. All depends on discovering who the person called Bright actually is, for he was never known to my mother, by any other name. She knows him to have been an Englishman, however, and thinks he was, or had been, an upper servant in a gentleman's family. JOHN MON-DAY." This paper was dated several years back, a sign that the disposition to do right had existed some time in Mr. Monday,; and all the letters and other:papers had been carefully preserved. The latter also appeared to be regularly numbered, a precaution that much aided the in. vestigations of the two gentlemen. The original letters spoke for themselves, and the copies had been made in a clear, strong, mercantile hand, and with the method of one accustomed to business. In short, so far as the contents of the different papers would allow, nothing was wanting to render the whole distinct and intelligible. John Effingham read the paper No. 1, with deliberation, though not aloud; and when he had done, he handed it to his young friend, coolly remarking"That is the production of a deliberate villain." Paul glanced his eye over the document, which was an original letter signed,' David Bright,' and addressed to'I Mrs. Jane Doxvse.' It -was written with exceeding art, made many professions of friendship, spoke of the HOME AS FOUND. 291 writer's knowledge of the woman's friends in EBngland, and of her first husband in particular, and freely professed the writer's desire to serve her, while it also contained several ambiguous allusions to certain means of doing so, which should be revealed Nwhenever the person to whom the letter was addressed should discover a willingness to embark in the undertaking. This letter was dated Philadelphia, was addressed to one in New-York, and it was old. " This is, indeed, a rare specimen of villany," said Paul, as he laid down the paper, " and has been written in some such spirit as that employed by the devil when he tempted our common mother. I think I never read a better specimen of low, wily, cunning." "And, judging by all that we already know, it would seem to have succeeded. In this letter you will find the gentleman a little more explicit; and but - little; though he is evidently encouraged by the inte rest and curiosity betrayed by the woman in this copS of the answer to his first epistle." Paul read the letter just named, and then he laid it down to wait for the next, which was still in the hands of his companion. "This is likely to prove a history of unlawful love, and of its miserable consequences," said John Effingham in his cool manner, as he handed the answers to letter No. 1, and letter No. 2, to Paul. " The world is full of such unfortunate adventures, and I should think the parties English, by a hint or two you will find in this very honest and conscientious communication. Strongly artificial, social and political distinctions rendder expedients of this nature more frequent, perhaps,, in Great Britain, than in any other country. Youth is the season of the passions, and many a man in the thoughtlessness of that period lays the foundation of bitter regret in after life." As John Effingham raised his eyes, in the act of extending his hand towards his companion, he perceived 29'2 HOME AS FOUND. that the fi'esh ruddy hue of his embrowned cheek deep.ened, until the colour diffused itself over the whole of liis fine brow. At first an unpleasant suspicion flashed on John Effingham, and he admitted it with regret, for Eve and her future happiness had got to be closely associated, in his mind, with the character and conduct of the young man; but when Paul took the papers, steadily, and by an effort seemed to subdue all unpleasant feelings, the calm dignity with which he read them completely effaced the disagreeable distrust. It was then John Eflingham remembered that he had once believed Paul himself might be the fruits of the heartless indiscretion, he condemned. Commiseration and sympathy instantly took the place of the first impression, and he was so much absorbed with these feel ings that he had not taken up the letter which was to follow, when Paul laid down the paper he had last been required to read. "This does, indeed, sir, seem to foretell one of those painful histories of unbridled passion, with the still more painful consequences," said the young man with the steadiness of one who was unconscious of having a personal connexion with any events of a nature so unpleasant. "Let us examine farther." John Effingham felt emboldened by these encouraging signs of unconcern, and he read the succeeding letters aloud, so that they learned their contents simultaneously. The next six or eight communications betrayed nothing distinctly, beyond the fact that the child which formed the subject of the whole correspondence, was to be received by Peter Dowse and his wife, and to be retained as their own offspring, for the -onsideration of a considerable sum, with an additional engagement to. pay an annuity. It appeared by these letters also, that the child, which was hypocritically alluded to under the name of the pet,' had been actually transferred to the keeping of Jane Dowse, and that several years passed, after this arrangement, be. HOME AS FOUND. 293 fore the correspondence terminated. Most of the later letters referred to the payment of the annuity, although they all contained cold inquiries after the'pet,' and answers so vague and general, as sufficiently 5o prove that the term was singularly misapplied. In the whole, there were some thirty or forty letters, eacdh of which had been punctually answered, and their dates covered a space of near twelve years. The perusal of all these papers consumed more than arn hour, and when John Effingham laid his spectacles on~the table, the village clock had struck the hour of midnight. "6 As yet," ihe observed,' "we have learned little more than the fact, that a child was made to take'a false character, without. possessing. any other clue to the circumstances than is given in the names of the parties, all of whom are evidently obscure, and one of the most material of whom, we are plainly told, must have borne a fictitious name. Even poor Monday, in possession of so much collateral testimony that we want, could not have known what was the-precise injustice done, if any, or, certainly, with the intentions he manifests, he would not have left that important particular in the dark." "This is likely to prove a complicated affair," returned Paul, i" and it is not very clear that we can be of any immediate service. As you are probably f.atigued, we may without impropriety defer the further examination to another time." To this John Effinghlam assented, and Paul, during the short conversation that followed, brought the secretary fiom the toilet to the table, along with the bundle of important papers that belonged to himself, to which he had alluded, and busied himself in replacing the whole in the drawer from which they had been taken. " All the formalities about the seals, that we observed when poor Monday gave us the packet, would scein to be unnecessary," he remarked, while thus ocr upied, 6 and itwill probably be sufficient if I leave the secretary in your roomn, and keep the keys myself" 25 " 294 HOME AS FOUND. "' One never knows," returned John Effingham, with the greater caution of experience and age. "We have not read all the papers, and there are wax and lights before you; each has his watch andt seal, and it will be the work of a minute only, to replace every thing as we left the package, originally. When this is done, you may leave the secretary, or remove it, at your o-wn pleasure." "I willIleave it; for, though it contains so much that I prize,;and which is really of great importance to myself, iit contains nothing for which I shall have immediate,. ccasion." "I, Th'eaet case, it were better that I place the pack-age in which we have a common interest in an armoire, or in my secretary, and that you keep your precious effects more immediately under your own eye." "It is immaterial, unless the case will inconvenience you, for I do not know that I am not happier when it is out of my sight, so long as I feel certain of its security, than when it is constantly before my eyes." Paul said this with a forced smile, and there was a sadness in his countenance that excited the sympathy of his companion.'The latter, however, merely bowed his assent, and the papers were replaced, and the secretary was locked and deposited in an armoire, in silence. Paul was then about to wish the other good night, when John Effingham seized his hand, and by a gentle effort induced him to resume his seat. An embarrassing, but short pause succeeded, when the latter spoke. " We have suffered enough in company, and have seen each other in situations of sufficient trial to be friends," he said. " I should feel mortified, did I believe you could think me influenced by an improper curiosity, in wishing to share more of your confidence than you are perhaps willing to bestow; I trust,ou will attribute to its right motive the liberty I am dOME AS FOUND. 295 now taking. Age makes some difference between ur, and the sincere and strong interest I feel in your wel fare, ought to give me a small claim not to be treated as a total stranger. So jealous and watchful has this interest been, I might with great truth call it affection, that I have discovered you are not situated exactly as other men in your condition of life are situated, and feel persuaded that the sympathy, perhaps the advice, of one so many years older than yourself, might be usefuil. You have already said so much to me, on the subject of your personal situation, that I al most feel a right to ask for more." John Effingham uttered this in his mildest aiud.most winning manner; and few men could carry with them, on such an occasion, more of persuasion in their voices and looks. Paul's features w.orked, and it was evident to his companion that he was moved, while, at the same time, he was not displeased. " I am grateful, deeply grateful, sir, for this interest in my happiness," Paul answered, " and if I knew the particular points on which you feel any curiosity, there is nothing that I can desire to conceal. Have the further kindness to question me, Mr. Effingham, that I need not touch on things you do not care to hear." "i All that really concerns your welfare, would have interest with me. You have been the agent of rescuing not only myself, but those whom I most love, from a fate worse than death; and, a childless bachelor myself, I have more than once thought of attempting to supply the places of those natural friends that I fear you have lost. Your parents-" "Are both dead. I never knew either," said Paul. who spoke huskily, " and will most cheerfully accept your generous offer, if you will allow me to attach to it a single condition." "Beggars must not be choosers," returned Johr, PP' gham, 1" and if you will allow me to feel this inte 296 HOME AS FOUND. rest in you, and occasionally to share in the confidence of a father; I shall not insist, on any unreasonable terms. What is your condition?l" " That the word money may be struck out of oun vocabulary, and that you leave your will unaltered. Were the world to be examined, you could not find a worthier or a lovelier heiress, than the one you have already selected, and whom Providence itself has given you..~ Compared with yourself, I am not rich, but I have a gentleman's income, and as I shall probably never marry, it will suffice for.all my wants." John Eifingham was more pleased than he cared to exprss-s with this frankness, and with the secret symptfhy that had existed between them; but he smiled at the injunction; for, with Eve's knowledge, and her father's entire approbation, he had actually made a codicil to his will, in which their young protector was left one half of his large fortune. "The will may remain untouched, if you desire it," he answered, evasively, "and that condition is disposed of. I am glad to learn so directly from yourself, what your manner of living and the reports of others had prepared me to hear, that you are independent. This fact, alone, will place us solely on our mutual esteem, and render the friendship that I hope' is now brought within a covenant, if not now first established, more equal and frank. You have seen much of the world, Powis, for your years and profession?" 6 It is usual to think that men of my profession see much of the world, as a consequence of their pursuits; though I agree with you, sir, that this is seeing the world only in a very limited circle. It is now several years since circumstances, I might almost say the imperative order of one whom I was bound to obey, induced me to resign, and since that time I have done little else but travel. Owing to certain adventitious causes, I have enjoyed an access to Europyean society that few of our countrymen possess, and I hope tho HO1E AS FOUND. 297 advantage hlas not been entirely thrown away. It was as a traveller on the continent of Europe, that I had the pleasure of first meeting with Mr. and Miss Effingham. I was much abroad, even as a child, and owe some little skill in foreign languages to that circumstance." " So my cousin has informed me. You have set the question of country at rest, by declaring that you are an American, and yet I find you have Ernglish relatives. Captain Ducie, I believe, is a kinsman?" 1" He is; we are sister's children, though our firiendship has not always been such as the connexion would infer. When Ducie and myself met at sea, there was an awkwardness, if not a coolness, in the interview, that, coupled with my sudden return to England, I fear did not make the most favourable impression, on those who witnessed what passed." "6 We had confidence in your principles," said John Eftingham, with a frank simplicity, " and, though the first surmises were not pleasant, perhaps, a little reflection told us that there was no just ground for suspicion." " Ducie is a fine, manly fellow, and has a seaman's generosity and sincerity. I had last parted from him on the field, where we met as enemies; and the circumstance rendered the unexpected meeting awkward. Our wounds no longer smarted, it is true; but, perhaps, we both felt shame and sorrow that they had ever been inflicted." " It should be a very serious quarrel that could arm sister's children against each other," said John Effingham, gravely. " I admit as much. But, at that time, Captain Ducie was not disposed to admit the consanguinity, and the offbnce grew out of an intemperate resentment of some imputations on nmy birth; between two military men, the issue could scarcely be avoided. Ducin chal-'enged, and I was not then in the humour to balk hi-m. 298 HOMe ASs FOUND. A coup.e of flesh-wounds happily terminated the affair But an interval of three years had enabled my enemy to discover that he had not done me justice; that I had been causelessly provoked to the quarrel, and that we ought to be firm friends. The generous desire to make suitable expiation, urged him to seize the first occasion of coming to America that offered; and when ordei ed to chase the Montauk, by a telegraphic communication from London, he was hourly expecting to sail for our seas, where he wished to come, expressly that we might meet. You will judge, therefore, how happy he was to find me unexpectedly in the vessel that contained-hnis principal object of pursuit, thus killing, as it:right be, two birds with one stone." "And did he carry you away with him, with any such murderous intention?" demanded John Effingham, smiling. "By no means; nothing could be more amicable than Ducie and myself got to be, when we had been a few hours together in his cabin. As often happens, when there have been violent antipathies and unreasonable prejudices, a nearer view of each other's character and motives removed every obstacle; and long before we reached England, two warmer friends could not be found, or a more frank intercourse between relatives could not be desired. You are aware, sir, that our English cousins do not often view their cis-atlantic relatives with the most lenient eves." "This is but too true," said John Effingham proudly, though his lip quivered as he spoke, "and it is, in a great measure, the fault of that miserable mental bond age which has left this country, after sixty years of nominal independence, so much aft the mercy of a hostile opinion. It is necessary that we respect ourselves in order that others respect us." "I agree with you, sir, entirely. In my case, however, previous injustice disposed my relatives to recelve me better, pwrhaps, than might otherwise lhave HOMIE'AS FOU N D. 299 been the case. I had little to ask in the way of fortune, and feeling no disposition to raise rquestion that might disturb the peerage of the Ducies, I became a favourite." "A peerage!-Both your parents, then, were English?'!" 6 "Neither, I believe; but the connection between the two countries was so close, that it can occasion no surprise a right of this nature should have passed into the colonies. My mother's mother became the heiress of one of those ancient baronies, that pass to the heirs-general, and, in consequence of thq deaths of two brothers, these rights, which however were never actually possessed by any of the previous generation, centered in my mother and my aunt. The former being dead, as was contended, without issue~" "' You forget yourself!" "Lawful issue," added Paul, reddening to the temples,'"I should have added-Mrs. Ducie, who was married to the younger son of an English nobleman; claimed and obtained the rank. My pretension would have left the peerage in abeyance, and I probably owe some little of the opposition I found, to that circumstance. But, after Ducie's generous conduct, I could not hesitate about joining in the application to the crown that, by its decision, the abeyance might be determined in favour of the person who was in possession; and Lady Dunluce is now quietly confirmed in her claim." "There are many young men in thii country, who would cling to the hopes of a British peerage with greater tenacity!" ",It is probable there are; but my self-denial is not of a very high order, for; it could scarcely be expected the English ministers would consent to give the rank to a foreigner who did not hesitate about avowing his principles and national feelings. I shall not say I did not covet this peerage, for it would be supererogatory; bo't 1 am born an American, and will die an American; 300 HOME AS FOUND. and an American who swaggers about such a claim, is like the daw among the peacocks. The less that is said about it, the better."'"You are fortunate to have escaped the journals, which, most probably, would have begraced you, by elevating you at once to the rank of a duke." "Instead of which, I had no other station than that of a dog in the manger. If it makes my aunt happy to be called Lady Dunluceg I anm sure she is welcome to the priviiege; and when Ducie succeeds her, as will one day be.the case, an excellent fellow will be a peer of Englaxid. VoiRa tout! You are the only countrymap>, ir, to whom I have ever spohen of the circumstance, and with you I trust it will remain a secret." 6 "What! am I precluded from mentioning the facts in my own family? I am not the only sincere, the only warm fiiend, you have in this house, Powis." " In that respect, I leave you to act your pleasure, my dear sir. If Mr. Effingham feel sufficient interest in my fortunes, to wish to hear what I have told you, let there be no silly mysteries,-or-or Mademoiselle Viefville.-" "60r Nanny Sidley, or Annette," interrupted John E ffingham, with a kind smile. "Well, trust to me for that; but, before we separate for the night, I wish to ascertain beyond question one other fact, although the circumstances you have stated scarce leave a doubt of the reply." 6" I understand you, sir, and did not intend to leave you in any uncertainty on that important particular. If there can be a feeling, more painful than all others, with a man of any pride, it is to distrust the purity of his mnother. Mine was beyond rdproach, thank God, and so it was most clearly established, or I could certainly iave had no legal claim to the peerage." " Or your fortune-" added John Effingham, dra wing a long breath, like one suddenly relieved from an) unpleasant suspicion. HOME AS FOUND. 301 "[My fortune comes from neither parent, but irom one of those generous dispositions, or caprices, if you will, that sometimes induce men to adopt those who are alien to their blood. My guardian adopted ine, took me abroad with him, placed me, quite young, in the navy, and dying, he finally left me all he possessed As he was a bachelor, with no near relative, and had been the artisan of his own fortune, I could!nave no hesitation about accepting the gift he so liberally bequeathed. It was coupled with the condition that I should retire from the service, travel foir five years, return home, and nmarry. There is no silly forfeiture exacted in either case, but such is the general icqurse solemnly advised by a man who showed himself my true friend for so many years." " I envy him the opportunity he enjoyed of serving. you. I hope he would have approved of your national pride, for I believe we must put that at the bottom of your disinterestedness, in the affair of the peerage." "He would, indeed, although he never knew anil thing of the claim which arose out of the death of the two lords who preceded my aunt, and who were the brothers of my grandmother. My guardian was in all respects a man, and, in nothing more, than in a manly national pride. While abroad a decoration was offered him, and he declined it with the character and dignity of one who felt that distinctions which his country repudiated, every gentleman belonging to that country ought to reject; and yet he did it with a respectful gratitude for the compliment, that was due to the governmlent from which the offer came." "I almost envy that man," ms'id John Effingham, with warmth. s" To have appreciated you, Powis, was a mark of a high judgment; but it seems he properly appreciated himself, his country, and human nature." " And yet he wa's little appreciated in.his turn. That man passed years in one of our largest towns, of ne nore apparent account among its population than any 26 302 HOME AS FOUND. one of its commoner spirits, and of not half as much as one of its bustling brokers, or jobbers." "In that there is nothing surprising. The class of the chosen few is too small every where, to be very numerous at any given point, in a scattered population like that of America. The broker will as naturally appreciate the broker, as the dog appreciates the dog, or the Wvolf the wolf. Least of all is the manliness you have n.med, likely to be valued among a people who have been put into men's clothes before they are out of leadi;ig-strings. I am older than you, my dear Paul,".-.. xvwas the first time John Effingham ever used,-so familiar an appellaticn, and the young man thought it sounded kindly-" I am older than you, my dear Paul, and will venture to tell you an important fact that may hereafter lessen some of your own mor. tifications. In most nations there is a high standard to which man at least affects to look; and acts are extolled and seemingly appreciated, for their naked merits. Little of this exists in America, where no man is much praised for himself, but for the purposes of party, or to feed national vanity. In the country in which, of all others, political opinion ought to be thle freest, it is the most persecuted, and the communitycharacter of the nation induces every man to think he has a right of property in all its fame. England exhibits a great deal of this weakness and injustice, which it is to be feared, is a vicious fruit of liberty; for it is certain that the sacred nature of opinion is most appreciated in those countries in which it has the least efficiency. We are constantly deriding those governtnents which fetter opinion, and yet I know of no nation in which the expression of opinion is so certain to attract persecution and hostility as our own, though it may be, and is, in one sense, free."," This arises from its potency. Men' quarrel about opinion here, because opinion rules. It is but one mode of struggling for power. But to return to my guar IHOME AS FOUND. 303 irlan; he was a man to think and act for himself, and as far from the maga.zine and newspaper existence that most Americans, in a moral sense, pass, as any man could be." "It is indeed a newspaper and magazine existence," said John Efhngham, smiling at Paul's terms, V"to know life only through such mediums! It is,s bad as the condition of those English who form their notions of society from novels written by men and womlen who have no access to it, and from the re:ords of the court journal. I thank you sincerely, Mr. Powis, for this confidence, which has not been idly soAi'!c.ted on my part, and which shall not be abused. At no c,tant day we will break the seals again, and renew our investigations into this affair of the unfortunate Monday, which is not yet, certainly, very promising in the way of revelations." The gentlemen shook hands cordially, and Paul. lighted by his companion, withdrew. When the young man was at the door of his own room, he turned, and saw John Effingham following him with his eye. The latter then renewed the good night, with one of those winning smiles that rendered his face so brilliantly handsome. and each retired. CHA PTER XIX. "Item, a capon, 2s. 2d. Item, sauce, 4d. Item, sack, two gallons, 5s: 8d. Item, bread, a half-penny." SHAKSPEARE. THE next day John Effingham made no allusion to the conversation of the previous night, though the squeeze of the hand he gave Paul, when they met, was 304 HOME AS FOUND. an assurance that nothing was forgotten. As he had a secret pleasure in obeying any injunction of Eve's, the young man himself sought Captain Truck, even before they had breakfasted, and, as he had made an acquaintance with Ithe commodore,' on the lake, previously to., the arrival of the Effinghams, that worthy was summnoned, and regularly introduced to' the honest ship.mnalster. The meeting between these two distinguished men was grave, ceremonious and dignified, each probally feeling that he was temporarily the guardian o~ a particular portion of an element that was edaYily dear to both. After a few minutes passed,, -itf might be, in the preliminary points of etiquette, a better feeling and more confidence was established, and it was soon settled that they should fish in company, the rest of the day; Paul promising to row the ladies out on the lake, and to join them in the course of the afternoon. As the party quitted the breakfast-table, Eve took an occasion to thank the young man for his attention to their common friend, who, it was reported, had taken his morning's repast at an early hour, and was already on the lake, the day by this time having advanced within. two hours of noon. "I6 have dared even to exceed your instructions, Miss Effingham," said Paul, " for I have promised the Captain to endeavour to persuade you, and as many of the ladies as possible, to trust yourselves to my seamanship, and to submit to be rowed out to the spot where we shall find him and his friend the commodore riding at anchor." "An engagement that my influence shall be used to see fulfilled. Mrs. Bloomfield has already expressed a desire to go on the Otsego-Water, and I make no doubt I shall find other companions. Once more let me thank you for this little attention, for -I too well know your tastes, not to understand that you migh. find a more agreeable ward." HOME AS FOUND. 305 "Upon my word, I feel a sincere regard for our old Captain, and could often wish for no better companion. Were he, however, as disagreeable as I find him, in truth, pleasant and frank, your wishes would conceal all his faults." -:' You have learned, Mr. Powis, that smrall attentions are as much remembered as importantservices, and after having saved our lives, wish to prbive that you can discharge les petits devoi7rs socials, as well as perform great deeds. I trust you will persuade Sir George Templemore to be of our party, and at four we shall be ready to accompany you; until' then I am contracted to a gossip with Mrs. Bloomfield iil h.er dressing-room." We shall now leave the party on the land, and fobl low those xvho, have already taken boat, or the fishermen. The beginning of the intercourse between the salt-water navigator and his fresh-water companion was again a little constrained and critical. Their professional terms agreed as ill as possible, for when the Captain used the expression'ship the oars,' the commodore understood just the reverse of what it had been intended to express; and, once, when he told his com.panion to' give wvay,' the latter took the hint so literally as actually to cease rowing. All these professional niceties induced the worthy ship-master to undervalue his companion, who, in the main, wsas very skllful in his particular pursuit, though it was a skill that he exerted after the fashions of his own lake, and not after the fashions of the ocean. Owing to several contre-tems of this nature, by the time they reached the fishing-ground the Captain began to entertain a feeling for the commodore, that ill comported with the deference due to his titular rank., "I have come out with you, commodore," said Captain Truck, when they had got to their station, and laying a peculiar emphasis on the appellation he u sed, " in orlder to enjoy myself, and you will confer an 26'* 306 HOME AS FOUND. especial favour on me by not using such phrases as'cable-rope,,' (casting anchor,' and' titivating.' As for the two first, no seaman ever uses them; and I never heard such. a word on board a ship, as the last. tO 9 — e, sir, if I believe it is to be found in the dictionary, even." "You, amaze me, sir!' Casting anchor,' and' cablero pe' arl'e both Bible phrases, and they must be right." 6" That 11llows by no means, commodore, as I have some reasoni to know; for my father having been a parson, anc I being a seaman, we may be said to have the wholp.subject, as it were, in the family. St. Paulvyoluinave heard of such a man as St. Paul, commodliore? 9" I I know him almost by heart, Captain Truck; but St. Peter and St. Andrew were the men, most after my heart. Ours is an ancient calling, sir, and in those two instances you see to what a fisherman can rise. I do not remember to have ever heard of a sea-captain who was converted into a saint." " ASy, ay, there is always too much to do on board ship to have time to be much more than a beginner in religion. There was my mate, v'y'ge before last, Tom Leach, who is now master of a ship of his own, had he been brought up to it properly, he would have made as- conscientious a parson as did his grandfather before him. Such a man would have been a seaman, as well as a parson. I have little to say against St. Peter or St. Andrew, but, in my judgment, they were none the better saints for having been fishermen; and, if the truth were known, I dare say they were at the bottom of introducing such lubberly phrases into the Bible, as' casting-anchor,' and' cable-rope." "Pray, sir," asked the commodore, with dignity, "what are you in the practice of saying, when you speak of such matters; for, to be fiank withl you, we tilways use these terms on these lakes." "Ay, ay, there is a fresh-water smell about them. HOME AS FOUND. 307 We say' anchor,' or' let go the anchor,' or' dropped the anchor,' or some such reasonable expression, and not' cast anchor,' as if a bit of iron, weighing two or three tons, is to be jerked about like a stone big enough to kill a bird with. As for the cable-rope,' as you call it, we say the' cable,' or D the chairn,' or'the ground tackle,' according to reason and', circumstances. Yol never hear a real' salt' flourishing his'cable-ropes,' and his'casting-anchors,' v.,,~bch are altogether too sentimental and particular f~)r his manner of speaking. As for' ropes,' I suppose you have not got to be a commodore, and need being told how many there are in a ship." " I do not pretend to have counted them, but I have seen a ship, sir, and one under full sail, too, and I know there were as many ropes about her as there are pines on the Vision." "Are there more than seven of these trees on your mountain? for that is just the number of ropes in a merchant-man; though a man-of-war's-man counts one or two more." " You astonish me, sir! But seven ropes in a ship? -I should have said there are seven hundred!" " I dare say, I dare say; that is just the way in which a landsman pretends to criticise a vessel. As for the ropes, I will now give you their names, and then you can lay athwart hawse of these canoe gentry, by the hour, and teach them rigging and modesty, both at the same time. In the first place," continued the captain, jerking at his line, and then beginning to count on his fingers -- There is the'man-rope;' then come the'bucket-rope,' the'tillerrope,' the'bolt-rope,' the'foot-rope,' the'top-rope,' and the'limber-rope.' I have followed the seas, now., more than half a century, and never yet heard of a cable-rope,' from any one who could hand, reef; and teeo his rade," sr. ~ Well, sir, every man to his trade," said the corn 308 HOME AS FOUND. modore, who just then pulled in a fine pickerel, which was th- third he had taken, while his companion reioiced in no more than a few fruitless bites. -" You Pre more expert in ropes than in lines, it would seem. I shall not deny your experience and knowledge; bfit in the way of fishing, you will at least allow that the sea is no great school. I dare say, now,;:i you were to hook the I sogdollager,' we should have you Jumping into the lake to get rid of him. Quite prob.ably, sir, you never before heard of that celebrated fish?" Not f,;lihstanding the many excellent qualities of Ca:'piain Truck, he had a weakness that is rather peculiar to a class of men, who, having seen so much of this earth, are unwilling to admit they have not seen it all. The little brush in which he was now engaged with the commodore, he conceived due to his own dignity, and his motive was duly to impress his companion with his superiority, which being fairly admitted, he would have been ready enough to acknowledge that the other understood pike-fishing mucL better than himself. But it was quite too early in the discussion to make any such avowal, and the supercilious remark of the commodore's putting him on his mettle, he was ready to affirm that he had eaten' sogdollagers' for breakfast, a month at a time, had it been necessary. "Pooh! pooh! man," returned the captain, with an air of cool indifference, " you do not surely fancy that you have any thing in a lake like this, that is not to be found in the ocean! If you were to see a whale's flukes thrashing your puddle, every cruiser among you would run for a port; and as for'sogdollagers,' we think little of them in salt-water; the flying-fish, or even the dry dolphin, being much the best eating." "Sir," said the commodore, with some heat, and a great deal of emphasis, 1" there is but on.e' sogdollauer' in the world, and he is in this lake. No man has ever HOME AS FOUND. 306 seen him, but my predecessor, the'Admiral,' and myself." "Bah!" ejaculated the captain, "they are as plenty as soft clams, in the Mediterranean, and the Egyptians use them as a pan-fish. In the East, they catch them to bait -with, for hallibut, and other middling sized creatures, that are particular about their.diet. It is a good fish, I own, as is seen in this very circumstance." " Sir," repeated the commodore, flourishing his hand, and waxing warm with earnestness, "there is but one' sogdollager' in the universe, and that is in Lake Otsego. A'sogdollager' is a salmon trout, and not a species; a sort of.father to all the salmon trout in this part of the world; a scaly patriarch." ( I make no doubt your' sogdollager' is scaly enough; but what is the use in wasting words about such a trifle? A whale is the only fish fit to occupy a gen. tleman's thoughts. As long as I have been at sea, I have never witnessed the taking of more than three whales." This allusion happily preserved the..peace; for, if there were any thing in the world for which the commodore entertained a profound, but obscure reverence, it was for a whale. He even thought better of a man for having actually seen one, gambolling in the freedom of the ocean; and his mind became suddenly oppressed by the glory of a mariner, who had passed his life among such gigantic animals. Shoving back his cap, the old man gazed steadily at the captain a minute, and all his displeasure about the' sogdollagers' vanished, though, in his inmost mind, he set down all that the other had told him on that particular subject, as so many parts of a regular' fish story.' "( aptain Truck," he said, with solemnity, "I ac-e knowledge myself to be but an ignorant and inexpe. rienced man, one who has passed.his life on this lake, which, broad and beautiful as it is, must seem a pond in the eyes of a seaman like yourself, who have passed. your days on the A'lantic -" 310 iHOME AS FOUND.'"Atiantic!" interrupted the captaii contemnptuously, "I should have but a poor opinion uf myself, had 1 seen nothing but the Atlantic! Indeed, I never can believe I am at sea at all, on the Atlantic, the passages between New-York and Portsmouth being little more than so much canalling along a tow-path. If you wish to say any thing about oceans, talk of the Pacific, or of the Great South Sea, where a man may run a month with' a fair wind, and hardly go from island to island. Indeed, that is an ocean in which there is a manufactory of islands, for they turn them off in lots to supply the market, and of a size to suit customers." "A. manufactory of islands!" repeated the commodore, who began to entertain an awe of his companion, that he never expected to feel for any buman being on Lake Otsego; "are you certain, sir, there is no mistake in this'" "None in the least; not only islands, but whole Archipelagos are made annually, by the sea insects in that quarter of the world; but, then, you are not to form your notions of an insect in such an ocean, by the insects you see in such a bit of water as this." "As big as our pickerel, or salmon trout, I dare say?" returned the commodore, in the simplicity of his heart, for by this time his local and exclusive conceit was thoroughly humbled, and he was almost ready to believe any thing. "I say nothing of their size, for it is to their numbers and industry that I principally allude now. A solitary shark, I dare say, would set your whole Lake iD commotion?" I think we'might manage.a shark, sir. I once saw -ne of those animals, and I do really believe the sog. dollager would outweigh him. I do think we might manage a shark, sir." 6'Ay, you mean an in-shore, high-latitude fellow HO1ME AS FOUNV. 311 But what would you say to a shark as long as one of those pines on the mountain?" "Such a monster would take in a man, whole?" "A man! He would take in a platoon, Indian file I dare say one of those pines, now, may be thirty or forty feet high!" A gleam of intelligence and of exultation shot across the weather-beaten face of the old fisherman, for he detected a weak spot in the other's knowledge. The worthy Captain, with that species of exclusiveness which accompanies excellence in any one thing, was quite ignorant of most matters that pertain to the land. That there should be a tree, so far inland, that was larger than his main-yard, he did not think probable, although that yard itself was made of part of a tree; and, in the laudable intention of duly impressing his companion with the superiority of a real seaman over a mere fresh-water navigator, he had inadvertently laid bare a weak spot in his estimate of heights and distances, that the Commodore seized upon, with some such avidity as the pike seizes the hook. This accidental mistake alone saved the latter from an abject submission, for the cool superiority of the Captain had so far deprived him of his conceit, that he was almost ready to acknowledge himself no better than a dog, when he caught a glimpse of light through this opening. " There is not a pine, that can be called of age, on all the mountain, which is not more than a hundred feet high, and.many are nearer two," he cried in exultation, flourishing his hand. " The sea may have its big monsters, Captain, but our hills have their big trees. Did you ever see a shark of half that length?" Now, Captain Truck was a man of truth, although so much given to occasional humorous violations of ts laws, and, withal, a little disposed to dwell upon the narvels of the great deep, in the spirit of exaggeration, and he could not, in conscience9 affirm any thing so ex 312 HOME AS FOUND. travagant as this. JHe was accordingly obliged to admit his mistake, and from this moment, the conversation was carried on with a greater regard to equality. They talked, as they fished, of politics, religion, philosophy, human nature, the useful ai'ts, abolition, and most other subjects that would be likely to interest a couple of Americans who had nothing to do but to twitch, from time to time, at two lines dangling in the water. Although few people possess less of the art of conversation than our own countrymen, no other nation takes as wide a range in its discussions. He is but a very indifferent American that does not know, or thinks he knows, a little of every thing, and neither of our worthies was in the least backward in supporting the claims of the national character in this respect. This general discussion completely restored amity between the parties; for, to confess the truth, our old friend the Captain was a little rebuked about the affair of the tree. The only peculiarity worthy of notice, that occurred in the course of their various digressions, was the fact, that the commodore insensibly began to style his companion " General;" the courtesy of the country in his eyes, appearing to require that a man who hao seen so much more than himself, should, at least, enjoy a title equal to his own in rank, and that of Admiral being proscribed by the sensitiveness of republican principles. After fishing a few hours, the old laker pulled the skiff up to the Point so often mentioned, where he lighted a fire on the grass, and prepared a dinner. When every thing was ready, the two seated themselves, and began to enjoy the fruits of their labours in a way that will. be understood by all sportsmen. "I have never thought of asking you, general," said the commodore, as ne began to masticate a perch, " whether you are an aristocrat or a democrat. We have had the government pretty much upside-down, too, this morning, but this question has escaped me."; HOME AS FOUND. 313 "As we are here by ourselves under these venerable oaks, and talking like two old messmates," returned the general, "I shall just own the truth, and make no bones of it. I have been captain of my own ship so long, that I have a most thorough contempt for all equality. it is a vice that I deprecate, and, whatever may be the laws of this country, I am of opinion, that equality is no where borne out by the Law of Nations; which, after all, commodore, is the only true law for a gentlenman to live under." "That is the law of the strongest, if I understand the matter, general." "Only reduced to rules. The Law of Nations, to own the truth to you, is full of categories, and this will give an enterprising man an opportunity to make use of his knowledge. Would you believe, commodore. that there are countries, in which they lay taxes on tobacco?" "Taxes on tobacco! Sir, I never heard of such an act of oppression under the forms of law! What has tobacco done, that any one should think of taxing it?" "I believe, commodore, that its greatest offence is being so general a favourite. Taxation, I have found, differs from most other things, generally attacking that which men most prize." "' This is quite new to me, general; a tax on tobacco The law-makers in those countries cannot chew. drink to your good health, sir, and to many happy returns of such banquets as this." Here the commodore raised a large silver punchbowl, which Pierre had furnished, to his lips, and fastening his eyes on the boughs of a knarled oak, he looked like a man who was taking an observation, for near a minute. All this time, the captain regarded him with a sympathetic pleasure, and when the bowl was free, he imitated the example, levelling his own eye at a cloud, that seemed floating at an angle of forty-five degrees above him, expressly for that purpose 27 814 HOME AS FOUND. "There is a lazy cloud!" exclaimed the general, as he let go his hold to catch breath; "I have been watching it some time, and it has not moved an inch." "Tobacco!" repeated the commodore, drawing a long breath, as if he was just recovering the play of his lungs, " I should as soon think of laying a tax on punchb The country that pursues such a policy must, sooner or later, meet with a downfall. I never knew good come of persecution." "6I find you are a sensible man, commodore, and regret I did not make your acquaintance earlier in life. Have you yet made up your mind on the subject of religious faith?" " Why, my dear general, not to be nibbling like a sucker with a sore mouth, with a person of your liberality, I shall give you a plain history of my adventures, in the way of experiences, that you may judge for yourself. I was born an Episcopalian, if one can say so, but was converted to Presbyterianism at twenty. I stuck to this denomination about five years, when 1 thought I would try the Baptists, having got to be fond of the water, by this time. At thirty-two I fished a while with the Methodists; since which conversion, I have chosen to worship God pretty much by myself. out here on the lake." " Do you consider it any harm, to hook a fish of a Sunday?" "No more than it is to eat a fish of a Sunday. I go altogether by faith, in my religion, general, for they talked so much to me of the uselessness of works, that I've got to be very unparticular as to what I do. Your people who have been converted four or five times, are like so many pickerel, which strike at every hook." "This is very much my case. Now, on the rimwerDf course you know where the river is?" " Certain," said the commodore; " it is at the foot of the lalke." " My dear commodore, when we say' the river,' HOME AS FOUND. 315i we aiways mean the Connecticut; and I am surprised a man of your sagacity should require to be told this. There are people on the river who contend that a ship should heave-to of a Sunday. They -did talk of getting up an Anti-Sunday-Sailing-Society, but the shipmasters were too many for them, since they threatened to start a society to put down the growing of inyens, (the captain would sometimes use this pronunciation) except of week-days. Well, I started in life, on the plat. form tack, in the way of religion, and I believe I shall stand on the same course till orders come to' cast anchor,' as you call it. With you, I hold out for faith, as the one thing needful. Pray, my good friend, what are your real sentiments concerning Old Hickory.' Tough, sir;-Tough as a day in February on this lake. All fins, and gills, and bones." "That is the justest character I have yet heard of the old gentleman; and then it says so much in a few words; no category about it. I hope the' punch is to your liking?" On this hint the old fisherman raised the bowl a second time to his lips, and renewed the agreeable duty of letting its contents flow down his throat, in a pleasant stream. This time, he took aim at a gull that was sailing over his head, only relinquishing the draught as the bird settled into the water. The' general' was more particular; for selecting a stationary object, in the top of an oak, that grew on the mountain near him, he studied it with an admirable abstruseness of attention, until the last drop was drained. As sccn as this startling fact was mentioned, however, both the convives set about repairing the accident, by squee:ing lemons, sweetening water, and mixing liquors, secundem artem. At the same time, each lighted a cigar, and the conversation, for some time, was carried on between their teeth. i "We have been so frank with each other to-day, my excellent comm(i,uore," said Captain Truck, " that did 316 HOME AS FOUND. [ know your true sentiments concerning Temperance Societies, I should look on your inmost soul as a part of myself. By these free communications men get really to know each other." "If liquor is not made to be drunk, for what is it made? Any one may see that this lake was made for skiffs and fishing; it has a length, breadth, and depth suited to such purposes. Now, here is liquor distilled, bottled, and corked, and I ask if all does not show that it was made to be drunk. 1 dare say your temperance men are ingenious, but let them answer that if they can." I wish, from my heart, my dear sir, we had known each other fifty years since. That would have brought you acquainted with salt-water, and left nothing to be desired in your character. We think alike, I believe, in every thing but on the virtues of freshwater. If these temperance people had their way, we should all be turned into so many Turks, who never taste wine, and yet marry a dozen wives." "One of the great merits of fresh-water, general, is what I call its mixable quality." " There would be an end to Saturday nights, too, which are the seamen's tea-parties." "' I question if many of them fish in the rain, from sunrise to sunset." " Or, stand their watches in wet pee-jackets, from sunset to sunrise. Splicing the main brace at such times, is the very quintessence of human enjoyments." "If liquors were not made to be drunk," put in the commodore, logically, "I would again ask for what are they made? Let the temperance men get over that difficulty if they can." "Commodore, I wish you twenty more good hearty years of fishing in this lake, which grows, each instant, more beautiful in my eyes, as I confess does the whole earth; and to show vou that I say no more than I think, I will clench it withl a draught." HOME XS FOUND. 317 Captain Truck now biought his right eye to bear on,he new moon, which happened to be at a convenient neight, closed the left one, and continued in that attitude until the commodore began seriously to think he was to get nothing besides, the lemon-seeds for his share. This apprehension, however, could only arise fronm ignorance of his companion's' character, than whom a juster man, according to the notions of shipmasters, did not live; and had one measured the punch that was left in the bowl when this draught was ended, he would have found that precisely one half of it was still untouched, to a thimblefull. Tfie commodore now had his turn; and before he got through, the bottom of the vessel was as much uppermost as the butt of a club bed firelock. When the honest fisherman took- breath after this exploit, and lowered his cup from the vault of heaven to the surface of the earth, he caught a view of a boat crossing the lake, coming from the Silent Pine, to that Point on which they were enjoying so many agreeable hallucinations on the subject of temperance. "Yonder is the party from the Wigwam," he said, 6' and they will be just in time to become converts to our opinions, if they have any doubts on the subjects we have discussed. Shall we give up the ground to them, by taking to the skiff, or do you feel disposed to face the women?" "Under ordinary circumstances, commodore, I should prefer your society to all the petticoats in the State, but-there are two ladies in that party, either of whom I would marry, any day, at a minute's warning." " Sir," said the commodore with a tone of warning,' "we, who have lived bachelors so long, and are wedded to the water, ought never to speak lightly on sc grave a subject." "Nor do 1. Two women, one of whom is twent y, and the other seventy-and hang me if I know which I prefer." 27 * 318 HOME AS FOUND. "You would soonest be rid of the last, my dear general, and my advice is to take her." " Old as she is, sir, a king would have to plead hard to get her consent. We will make them some punch, that they may see we v.cre mindful of them in their absence." To work these worthies now went in earnest, in order to anticipate the arrival of the party, and as the different compounds were in the course of mingling, the conversation did not -flag. By this time both the salt-water and the fresh-water sailor were in that condition when men are apt to think aloud, and the commodore had lost all his awe of his companion. " My dear sir," said the former, " I am a thousand times sorry you came from that river, for, to tell you my mind without any concealment, my only objection to you is that you are not of the middle states. I admit the good qualities of the Yankees, in a general way, and yet they are the very worst neighbours that a man can have." " This is a new character of them, commodore, as they generally pass for the best, in their own eyes. 1 should like to hear you explain your meaning." "I call him a bad neighbour who never remains long enough in a place to love any thing but himself. Now, sir, I have a feeling for every pebble on the shore of this lake, a sympathy with every wave," —here the commodore began to twirl his hand about, with the fingers standing apart, like so many spikes in a chevaux-de:frise-'6 and each hour, as I row across it, I find I like it better; and yet, sir, would you believe me, I often go away of a morning to pass the day on the water, and, on returning home at night, find half the houses filled with new faces." "What becomes of the old ones?" demanded Cap. tain Truclk; for this, it struck him, was getting the better of him with his own weapons. "Do you mean that the pe ople come and go like the tides?" Ho9M AS FOUND. 319 "E6 xactly so, sir; just as it used' to be witn the herrings in the Otsego, before the. Susquehannah was damnmed, and is still, with the swallows." "Well, well,, my good friend, take consolation.'You'll meet all the faces you ever saw here, one day, in heaven." "Never; not a man of them will stay there, if there be such a thing as moving. Depend on it, sir," added the commodore, in the simplicity of his heart, 1" heaven is no place. for a Yankee, if he can get farther west, by hook or by crook. They are all too uneasy for any steady occupation. -You, who are a navigator, must know something concerning the stars; is there such a thing as another world, that lies west of this?"'" That can hardly be, commodore, since the points of the compass only refer to objects on this earth. You know, I suppose, that a man starting from this spot, and travelling due west, would arrive, in time, at this very point, coming in from the east; so that what is west to us,' in the heavens, on this side of the world, is east to those on the other." " This I confess I did not know, general. I have understood that what is good in one man's eyes, wil, be bad in another's; but never before have I heard that what is west to one man, lies east to another. I am afraid, general, that there is a little of the sogdollager bait in this?" "Not enough, sir, to catch the merest fresh-water gudgeon that swims. No, no; there is neither east nor west off' the earth, nor any up and down; and so rwe Yankees must try and content ourselves with heaven. Now, commodore, hand me the bowl, and we will get it ready down to the shore, and offer the ladies our homage. And so you have become a laker in your religion, my dear commodore," continued the general, between his teeth, while he smoked and squeezed a lemon at the same time, " and do your worshipping o.i the water?" 320 HOME AS FOUAV:. "' Iltogether of late, and more especially since my dream." "Dream! My dear sir, I should:hink you altogether too innocent a man to dream.'"," The best of us have our fa lings, general. I do sometimes dream, I own, as well as the greatest sinner of them all." "And of what did you dream-the sogdollager?" "I dreamt of death." "Of slipping the cable!" cried the general, looking up suddenly. "Well, what was the drift?" "Why, sir, having no wings, I went down below, and soon found myself in the presence of the old gentleman himself." " That was pleasant-had he a tail? I have always been curious to know whether he really has a tail or not." "I saw none, sir, but then we stood face to face, like gentlemen, and I cannot describe what I did not see." " Was he glad to see you, commodore?" "Why, sir; he was civilly spoken, but his occupa. tion prevented many compliments." "Occupation!" "Certainly, sir; he was cutting out shoes, for his imps to travel about in, in order to stir up mischief." "And did he set you to work?-This is a sort of State-Prison affair, after all!" " No sir, he was too much of a gentleman to set me at making shoes as soon as I arrived. He first inquired what part of the country I was from, and when I told him, he was curious to know what most of the people were about in our neighbourhood." "6 Yor told him, of course, commodore?" c" Certainly, sir, I told him their chief occupation was quarrelling about religion; making saints of them selves, and sinners of their neighbours.' Hollo!' says the Devil, calling out to one of his imps,'boy, run and catch my horse-I- must be off, and lJave a finger in HOME AS FOUND. 321 that pie. What denominations have you in that quarter, commodore?' So I told him, general, that we had Baptists, and Quakers, and Universalists, and Episcopalians, and Presbyterians, old-lights, new-lights, and blue-lights; and Methodists.'Stop,' said the Devil,'that's enough; you imp, be nimble with that horse.-Let me see, commodore, what part of the country did you say you came from?' I told him the name more. distinctly this time " The very spot?" "Town and county." "And what did the Devil say to that?" "He called out to the imp, again —' Hollo, you boy, never mind that horse; these people will all be here before I can get there.'" Here the commodore and the general began to laugh, until the arches of the forest rang with their merriment. Three times they stopped, and as often did they return to their glee, until, the punch being ready, each took a fresh draught, in order to ascertain if it were fit to be offered to the ladies. CHAPTER XX. O0 Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" RoMEO AND JULIET. THE usual effect of punch is to cause people to see double; but, on this occasion, the mistake was the other way, for two boats had touched the strand, instead of the one announced by the commodore, and they brought with them the whole party from the Wigwam, Steadfast and Aristabflus included. A domestic or two had also been brought to prepare the customary repast. Captain Truck was as good as his word, as resDccts 322 HOME AS FOUND the punch, and the beverage was offered to each of the ladies in form, as soon as her feet had touched the green sward which covers that beautiful.spot. Ars. Hawker declined drinking, in a way to delight the gallant seaman; for so completely had she got the better of all his habits and prejudices, that every thing she did seemed right and gracious in his eyes. The party soon separated into groups, or pairs, some being seated on the margin of the limpid w.ater, enjoying the light cool airs, by which it was fanned, others lay off in the boats fishing, while the remainder plunged into the woods, that, in their native wildness, bounded the little spot of verdure, which, canopied by old oaks, formed the arena so lately in controversy. In this manner, an hour or two soon slipped away, when a sumnmons was given for all to assemble around the viands The repast was laid on the grass, notwithstanding Aristabulus more than hinted that the public, his beloved public, usually saw fit to introduce rude tables for that purpose. The Messrs. Effinghams, however, were not to be taught by a mere bird of passage, how a rustic fete so peculiarly their own, ought to be conducted, and the attendants -were directed to spread the dishes on the turf Around this spot, rustic seats were improvises, and the business of restauration proceeded. Of all there assembled, the Parisian feelings of Mademoiselle Viefville were the most excited; for to her, the scene was one of pure delights, with the noble panorama of forest-clad mountains, the mirror-like lake, the overshadowing oaks, and the tangled brakes of the adjoining woods. "iMais, vraimnent ceci surpasse les Tuileries, mreme dans leur propre genre!" she exclaimed, with energy.' On passerait volontiers par les dangers du desert pour y paruenir." Those who understood her, smiled at this characteristic remark, and most felt disposed to join in the enthusiasm. Still, the manner in which their conm HOME AS FOUNDI 32-3 panions expressed the happiness they felt, appeared tame and unsatisfactory to Mr. Bragg and MIr. Dodge, these two persons being accustomed to see the young of the two sexes indulge in broader exhibitions of merry-making than those in which it comported with the tastes and habits of the present party to indulge. In vain Mrs. Hawker, in her quiet dignified way, enjoyed the ready wit and masculine thoughts of Mrs. Bloomfield, appearing to renew her youth; or, Eve, with her sweet simplicity, and highly cultivated mind and improved tastes, seemed like a highly-polished mirror, to throw back the flashes of thought and memory, that so constantly gleamed before both; it was all lost on these thoroughly matter-of-fact utilitarians. Mr. Effinghamn, all courtesy and mild refine. ment, was seldom happier; and John Effingham was never more pleasant, for he had laid aside the severity of his character, to appear, what he ought always to have been, a man in whom intelligence and quickness of thought could be made to seem secondary to the gentler qualities. The young men were not behind their companions, either, each, in his particular way, appearing to advantage, gay, regulated, and full of a humour that was rendered so much the more agreeable, by drawing its images from a knowledge of the world, that was tempered by observation and pi actice. Poor Grace, alone, was the only one of the whole party, always excepting Aristabulus and Steadfast, who, for those fleeting but gay hours, was not thuroughly happy. For the first time in her life, she felt her own deficiencies, that ready and available knowledge, so exquisitely feminine in its nature and exhibition, which escaped Mrs. Bloomfield and Eve, as it might be from its own excess; which the former possessed almost. intuitively, a gift of Heaven, and which the latter enjoyed, not only from the same source, biit as a just consequence of her long and steady self 324 HOME AS FOUND. denial, application, and a proper appreciation of her duty to herself, was denied one who, in ill-judged compliance with the customs of a society that has no other apparent aim than the love of display, had precluded herself from enjoyments that none but the intellectual can feel. Still Grace was beautiful and attractive; and though she wondered where her cousin, in general so simple and unpretending, had acquired all those stores of thought, that, in the abandon and freedom of* such a fete. escaped her in rich profufsion, embellished with ready allusions and a brilliant though chastened wit, her generous and affectionate heart could permit her to wonder without envying. She perceived, for the first time, on this occasion, that if Eve were indeed a Hajji, it was not a Hajji of a comnmon school; and, while her modesty and self-abasemnent led her bitterly to regret the hours irretrievably wasted in the frivolous levities so common to those of her sex with whomn she had been most accustomed to mingle, her sincere regret did not lessen her admiration for one she began tenderly to love. As-for Messrs. Dodge and Bragg, they both determined, in their own minds, that this was much the most stupid entertainment they had ever seen on that spot, for it was entirely destitute of loud laughing, noisy merriment, coarse witticisms, and practical jokes. To them it appeared the height of arrogance, for any particular set of persons to presume to come to a spot, rendered sacred by the public suffrage in its favour, in order to indulge in.these outlandish dog-inthe-mangerisms. Towards the close of this gay repast, and when the party were about to yield their places to the attendcnts, who were ready to re-ship the utensils, John Effingham observed"6I trust, Mrs. Hawker, you have been- duly warned of the catastrophe-character of this point, on -which woman is said never to have been wooed in vain HOME AS FOUND. 325 Here are Captain Truck and myself, ready at any moment to use these carving knives, faute des Bowties, in order to show our desperate devotion; and I deem it no more than prudent in you, not to smile again this day, lest the cross-eyed readings of jealousy should impute a wrong motive." "I-ad the injunction been against laughing, sir, I might have resisted, but smiles are far too feeble to express one's approbation, on such a day as this; you may, therefore, trust to my discretion. Is it then true, however, that Hymen haunts these shades?" " A bachelor's history of the progress of love, may be, like the education of his children, distrusted; but so sayeth tradition; and I never put my foot in the place, without making fresh vows of constancy to myself After this announcement of the danger, dare you a'ccept an arm, for I perceive signs that life cannot be entirely wasted in these pleasures, great as they may prove." The whole party arose, and separating naturally, they strolled in groups or pairs again, along the pebbly strand, or beneath the trees, while the attendants made the preparations to depart. Accident, as tmuch as design, left Sir George and Grace alone, for neither perceived the circumstance until they had both passed a little rise in the formation of the ground, and were beyond the view of their companions. The baronet was the first to perceive how much he had been favoured by fortune, and his feelings were touched by the air of gentle melancholy, that shaded the usually bright and brilliant countenance of the beautiful girl. "I should have thrice enjoyed this pleasant day," he said, with an interest in his manner, that caused the heart of Grace to beat quicker, " had I not seen that to you it has been less productive of satisfaction, than tt most of those around you. I fear you maynot be as well, as usual?" "In health, never better, though not in spirits, per haps." 28 326 HOME AS FOUND. "I could wish I had a right to inquire why you. who have so few causes in" general to be out of spirits, should have chosen a moment so little in accordance with the common feeling." "I have chosen no moment; the moment has chosen me, I fear. Not until this day, Sir George Ternplemore, have I ever been truly sensible of my great inferiority to my cousin, Eve." "An inferiority that no one but yourself would ob serve or mention.' " No, I am neither vain enough, nor ignorant enough, to be the dupe of this flattery," returned Grace, shaking her hands and head, while she forced a smile; for even the delusions those we love pour into our ears, are not without their charms. "When I first met my cousin. after her return, my own imperfections rendered me blind to her superiority; but she herself has gradually taught me to respect her mind, her womanly character,. her tact, her delicacy, principles, breeding, every thing that can make a woman estimable, or worthy to be loved! Oh! how have I wasted in childish amusements, and frivolous vanities, the precious moments of that girlhood which can never be recalled, and left myself scarcely worthy to be an associate of Eve Effinuham!" The first feelings of Grace had so far gotten the control, that she scarce knew what she said, or to whom she was speaking; she even wrung her hands, in the momentary bitterness of her regrets, and in a way to arouse all the sympathy of a lover. "No one but yourself would say this, Miss Van Cortlandt, and least of all your admirable cousin." "She is, indeed, my admirable cousin! But what are awe, in comparison with such a woman. Simple and unaffected as a child, with the intelligence of a scholar; with all the graces of a woman, she has the learning and mind of a man. Mistress of so many languages-" HOME AS FOUND. 327 "6But you, too), speak several, my dear Miss Van,ortlandt." " Yes," said Grace, bitterly, "'I speak them, as the parrot repeats words that he does not understand. But Eve Effingham has used these languages as means, and she does not tell you merely what such a phrase or idiom signifies, but what the greatest writers have thought and written." " No one has a more profound respect for your cousin than myself, Miss Van Cortlandt, but justice to you requires that I should say her great superiority over yourself has escaped me."'"This may be true, Sir George Templemore, and for a long time it escaped me too. I have only learned to prize her as she ought to be prized by an intimate acquaintance; hour by.hour, as it might be. But even you must have observed how quick and intuitively my cousin and Mrs. Bloomfield have understood each other to-day; how much extensive reading, and what pol. ished tastes they have both shown, and all so truly feminine! Mrs. Bloomnfield is a remarkable woman, but she loves these exhibitions, for she knows she excels in them. Not so with Eve Effingham, who, while she so thoroughly enjoys every thing intellectual, is content, always, to seem so simple. Now, it happens, that the conversation turned once to-day on a subject that my cousin, no later than y.esterday, fully explained to me, at my own earnest request; and I observed that, while she joined so naturally with Mrs. Bloomfield in adding to our pleasure, she kept back half what she knew, lest she might seem to surpass her friend. Nono-no -there is not such another woman as Eve Effingham in this world!" " So keen a perception of excellence in others, denotes an equal excellence in yourself." "' I know my own great inferiority now, and no kindless of yours, Sir George Templemore, can ever Iper suade me into a better opinion of myself. Eve l has 325 HOME AS FOUND. travelled, seen much in Europe that does not exist here, and, instead of passing her youth in girlish trifling, has treated the minutes as if they were all precious, as she well knew them to be." "If Europe, then, does indeed possess these advantages, why not yourself visit it, dearest Miss Van Cortlandt?" " I- a Hajji!"' cried Grace with childish pleasure, though her colour heightened, and, foe a moment, Eve and her superiority was forgotten. Certainly Sir George Tempilemore did not come out on the lake that day with any expectation of' offering his baronetcy, his fair estate, with his hand, to this artless, half-educated, provincial, but beautiful girl. For a long time he had been debating with himself the propriety of such a step, and it isfprobable that, at ~ome later period, he would have sought an occasion, had not one now so opportunely offered, notwithstanding all his doubts and reasonings with himself. If the " woman who hesitates is lost," it is equally true that the man who pretends to set up his reason alone against beauty, is certain to find that sense is less powerful than the senses. Had Grace Van Cortlandt been more sophisticated, less natural, her beauty might have failed to make this conquest; but the baronet found a charm in her naivete, that was singularly wvinning to the feel-' ings of a man of the world. Eve had first attracted him by the same quality; the early education of American females being less constrained and artificial than that of the English; but in Eve he found a mental training and acquisitions that left the quality less conspicuous, perhaps, than in her scarcely less beautiful cousin; though, had Eve met his admiration with any thing like sympathy, her power over him would not have been easily weakened. As it was, Grace had been gradually winding herself around his affections, and he now poured out his love, in a language that her unpractised and already favourably disposed feelings had HOME AS FOUND. 329 no means of withstanding. A very few minutes twere allowed to them, before the summons to the boat; but when this summons came, Grace rejoined the party, elevated in her own good opinion, as happy as a eloudless future could make, her and without another thought of the immeasurable superiority of her cousin, By a singular coincidence, while the baronet and Grace were thus engaged on one part of the shore, Eve was the subject of a similar proffer of connecting herself for life, on another. She had left the circle, attended by Paul, her father, and Aristabulus; but no sooner had they reached the margin of the water, than the two former were called away by Captain Truck, to settle some controverted point between the latter and the commodore. By this unlooked-for desertion, Eve found herself alone with Mr. Bragg. That was a funny and comprehensive remark Mr. John made about the' Point,' Miss Eve," Aristabulus commenced, as soon as he found himself in possession of the ground. "I should like to know if it be really true that no woman was ever unsuccessfully wooed beneath these oaks? If such be the case, we gentlemen ought to be cautious how we come here." Here Aristabulus simpered, and looked, if possible, more amiable than ever; though the quiet composure and womanly dignity of Eve, who respected herself too much, and too well knew what was due to her sex, even to enter into, or, so far as it depended on her wvill, to permit any of that common-place and vulgar trifling about love and matrimony, which formed a never-failing theme between the youthful of the two sexes, in TM1. Bragg's particular circle, sensibly curbed his ambitious hopes. Still he thought he had made too good an opening, not to pursue the subject. "Mr. John Effingham sometimes indulges in plea. flantries," Eve answered, " that would lead one astrav who might attempt to ro0llow." "love is a jack-o'-lantern," rejoined Aristabulus 28* 330 HOME AS FOUND. sentimentally. "That I admit; and it is no wonder so many get swamped in following his lights. Have you ever felt the tender passion, Miss Eve'?" Now, Aristabulus had heard this question put at the soiree of Mrs. Houston, more than once, and he believed himself to be in the most polite road for a regular declaration. An ordinary woman, who felt herself offended by this question, would, most probably, have stepped back, and, raising her form to its utmost elevation, answered by an emphatic 1"sir!" Not so with Eve. She felt the distance between Mr. Bragg and herself to be so great, that by no probable means could he even offend her by any assumption of equality. This distance was the result of opinions, habits, and education, rather than of condition, however; for, though Eve Effingham could become the wife of a gentleman only, she was entirely superior to those prejudices of the world that depend on purely factitious causes. Instead of discovering suirprise, indignation, or dramatic dignity, therefore, at this extraordinary question, she barely permitted a smile to curl her handsome mouth; and this so slightly, as to escape her companion's eye. "'I believe we are to be favoured with as smooth water, in returning to the svillage, as we had in the morning, while comning to this place," she simply said. " You row sometimes, I think, Mr. Bragg?" 6Ah! Miss Eve, such another opportunity may never occur again, fo.r you foreign ladies are so difficult of access! Let me, then, seize this happy moment, here, beneath the hymeneal oaks, to offer you this faithful hand and this willing heart. Of fortune you will have enough for bofh, and I say nothing about the miserable dross. Reflect, Miss Eve, how happy we might be, protecting and soothing the old age of your father, and in going down the hill of life in comn. pany; or, as the song says,'and hand in hand we,'1 go, and sleep the'gither at the foot, John Anderson, my Joe."' HOME AS FOUND. 331 6 You draw very agreeable pictures, Mr Blago, and with the touches cf a master!" H towever agreeable you find them, Miiss Eve, tl)ey fall infinitely short of the truth. The tie of wedlock, besides being the most sacred, is also the dearest; and happy, indeed, are they who enter into the solemn engagement with such cheerful prospects as ourselves. Our ages are perfectly suitable, our disposition entirely consonant, our habits so similar as to obviate all unpleasant changes, and our fortunes pre. cisely what they ought to be to render a marriage happy, with confidence on one side, and gratitude on the other. As to the day, Miss Eve, I could wish to leave you altogether the mistress of that, and shall not be urgent." Eve had often heard John Effingham comment on the cool impudence of a particular portion of the American population, with great amusement to herself; but never did she expect to be the subject of ah attack like this in her own person. By way of rendering the scene perfect, Aristabulus had taken out his penknife, cut a twig from a bush, and he now rendered himself doubly interesting by commencing the favourite occupation of whittling. A cooler picture of passion could not well have been drawn. "You are bashfully silent, Miss Eve! I make all due allowances for natural timidity, and shall say no more at present-though, as silence universally'gives consent "' " If you please, sir," interrupted Eve, with a slight motionf of her parasol, that implied a check. 6"I pre ume our habits and opinions, notwithstanding yo0 seem to think them so consonant with each other, i.re sufficiently different to cause you not to see the impropriety of one, who is situated like yourself, abusing the confidence of a parent, by making such a proposal to a daughter without her father's knowledge: and, on that point,.I shall say not.;ing. But as you 332 fHOME AS FOUND. Lave done me the honour of making me a very unequivocal offer of your hand, I wish that the answer may be as distinct as the proposal. I decline the advantage and happiness of becoming your wife, sir s" ",Time flies, Miss Eve!" "Time does fly, Mr. Bragg; and, if you remain much longer in the employment of Mr. Eflingham, you may lose an opportunity of advancing your fortunes at the west, whither I understand it has long been your intention to emigrate " "I will readily relinquish all my hopes at the west, for your sake." "No, sir, I cannot be a party to such a sacrifice. I will not say forget me, but forget your hopes here, and renew those you have so unrefiectingly abandoned beyond the Mississippi. I shall not represent this conversation to Mr. Effingham in a manner to create any unnecessary prejudices against you; and while I thank you, as every woman should, for an offe- that must infer some portion, at least, of your good opinion, you will permit me again to wish you all lawful success in your western enterprises." Eve gave Mr. Bragg no farther opportunity to renew his suit; for, she curtsied and left him, as she ceased speaking. Mr. Dodge, who had been a distant observer of the interview, now hastened to join his friend, curious to know the result, for it had been privately arranged between these modest youths, that each should try his fortune in turn, with the heiress, did she not accept the first proposal. To the chagrin of Steadfast, and probably to the reader's surprise, Aristabulus informed his friend that Eve's manner an.i language had been full of encouragement. "She thanked me for the offer, Mr. Dodge," he said, 1" and her wishes for my future prosperity at the west, were warm and repeated. Eve Effingham is, indeed, a charming creature!" "' At the west! Perhaps she meant differently froma HOME AS FOUND. 833 what you imagine. I know her well; the girl is full of art." "Art, sir! she spoke as plainly as woman could speak, and I repeat that I feel considerably encouraged. It is something, to have had so plain a conversation with Eve Effingham." Mr. Dodge swallowed his discontent, and the whole party soon embarked, to return to the village; the commodore and general taking a boat by themselves, in order to bring their discussions on human affairs in general, to a suitable close. That night, Sir George Templemore, asked an interview with Mr. Effingham, when the latter was alone in his library. " I sincerely hope this request is not the forerunner of a departure," said the host kindly, as the young man entered, " in which case I shall regard you as one unmindful *of the hopes he has raised. You stand pledged by implication, if not in words, to pass another month with us." " So far from entertaining an intention so faithless, my dear sir, I am fearful that you may think I trespass too far on your hospitality." He then communicated his wish to be allowed to make Grace Van Cortlandt his wife. Mr. Effingham heard him with a smile, that showed he was not altogether unprepared for such a demand, and his eye glistened as he squeezed the other's hand. "' Take her with all my heart, Sir George," he said, "but remember you are transferring a tender plant into a strange soil. There are not many of your countrymen to whom I would confide such a trust, for I know the risk they run who make ill-assorted unions —-," "Ill-assorted unions, Mr. Effingham!" "Yours will not be one, in the ordinary acceptation of the term, I know; for in years, birth and fortune, you and my dear niece are as much on an equality as can be desired: but it is too often an ill-assorted urion for 334 HOME AS FOUND. an. American woman to become an English wife. So much depends on the man, that with one in whom 1 have less confidence than I have in you, I might justly hesitate. I shall take a guardian's privilege, though Grace be her own mistress, and give you one solemn piece of advice-always respect the country of the woman you have thought worthy to bear your name." "I hope always to respect every thing that is hers; but, why this particular caution?-Miss Van Cortlandt is almost English in her heart." " An affectionate wife will take her bias in such matters, generally from her husband. Your country will be her country, your God her God. Still, Sir George Templemore, a woman of spirit and sentiment can never wholly forget the land of her birth. You love us not in England, and one who settles there will often have occasion to hear gibes and sneers on the land from which she came-" "Good God, Mr. Effingham, you do not thlrnk I shall take my wife into society where " "Bear with a proser's doubts, Templemo-e. You will do all that is well-intentioned and proper, I dare say, in the usual acceptation of the words; blt I wish you to do more; that which is wise. Grace has now a sincere reverence and respect for England, feelings that in many particulars are sustained by the facts. and will be permanent; but, in some things, observation, as it usually happens with the young and sanguine, will expose the mistakes into which she has been led by enthusiasm and the imagination. As she knows other countries better, she will come to regard her own with more.favourable and discriminating eyes, losing her sensitiveness on account of peculiarities she now esteems, and taking new views of things. Perhaps you will think me selfish, but I shall add, also, that if you wish to cure your wife of any homesickness, the surest mode will be to bring her back to her native land." HOME AS FOUND. 335,"Nay, my dear sir," said Sir George, laughing, "this is very much like acknowledging its blemishes." " I am aware it has that appearance, and yet the fact is otherwise. The cure is as certain with the Englishman as with the American; and with the German as with either. It depends on a general law which causes us all to over-estimate by-gone plea.. sures and distant scenes, and to undervalue those of the present moment. You know I have always maintained there is no real philosopher short of fifty, nor any taste worth possessing that is a dozen years old." Here Mr. Effingham rang the bell, and desired Pierre to request Miss Van Cortlandt to join him in the library. Grace entered blushing and shy, but wltl a countenance beaming with inward peace. HI-e uncle regarded her a moment intently, and a tear glistened in his eye, again, as he tenderly kissed her burning cheek. 6"God bless you, love," he said —"'tis a fearful change for your sex, and yet you all enter into it radiant with hope, and noble in your confidence. Take her, Templemore," giving her hand to the baronet, "and deal kindly by her. You will not desert us entirely I trust I shall see you both once more in the Wigwam before I die." "Uncle-uncle —" burst from Grace, as, drowned in tears, she threw herself into Mr. Effingham's arms; "I am an ungrateful girl, thus to abandon all my natural friends. I have acted wrong-9" "Wrong, dearest Miss Van Cortlandt!" "Selfishly, then, Sir George Templemore," the simple-hearted girl ingenuously added, scarcely knowing how much her words implied-" Perhaps this matter night be reconsidered." "I am afraid little would be gained by that, my love," returned the smiling uncle, wiping his eyes at the same instant. "The second thoughts of ladies usually confirm the first, in such matters. God bless 336 HOME AS FOUND. yOU, Grace;-Templemore, may Heaven have you, too, in its holy keeping, Remember what I have said, and to-morrow we will converse further on the subject. Does Eve know of this, my niece?" The colour went and came rapidly in Grace's cheek, and she looked to the floor, abashed. "We ought then to send for her," resumed Mr. Effingham, again reaching towards the bell. "Uncle —" and Grace hurriedly interposed, in time to save the string from being pulled. "Could I keep such an important secret from my dearest cousin!" "I find that I am the last in the secret, as is generally the case with old fellows, and I believe I am ever now de trop." Mr. Effingham kissed Grace again affectionately, and, although she strenuously endeavoured to detain him, he left the room. " We must follow," said Grace. hastily wiping her eyes, and rubbing the traces of tears from her cheeks -" Excuse me, Sir George Templemore; will you open-" He did, though it was not the door, but his arms. Grace seemed like one that was rendered giddy by standing on a precipice, but when she fell, the young baronet was at hand to receive her. Instead of quitting the library that instant, the bell had announced the appearance of the supper-tray, before she remembered that she had so earnestly intended to do so. HOME AS FOUND. 337 CHAPTER XXI. " This day, no man thinks He has business at his house." KING HENRY VIII. TIIE warm weather, which was always a little behind that of the lower counties, had now set in among the mountains, and the season had advanced into the first week in July. 1" Independence Day," as the fourth of that month is termed by the Americans, arrived; and the wits of Templeton were taxed, as usual, in order that the festival might be celebrated with the customary intellectual and moral treat. The morning commenced with a parade of the two or three uniformed companies of the vicinity, much gingerbread and spruce-beer were consumed in the streets, no light potations of whiskey were swallowed in the groceries, and a great variety of drinks, some of which bore very ambitious names, shared the same fate in the taverns. Mademoiselle Viefville had been told that this was the great American fete; the festival of the nation; and she appeared that morning in gay ribands, and with her bright, animated face, covered with smiles for the occasion. To her surprise, however, no one seemed to respond to her feelings; and as the party rose from the breakfast-table, she took an opportunity to ask an explanation of Eve, in a little' aside.' " Est-ce que je me suis trompre, ma chere?" demanded the lively Frenchwoman. "Is not this la cel6bration de votre indipendance?" "You are not mistaken, my dear Mademoiselle Viefville, and great preparations are made to do it honour. I Understand there is to be a military parade, an oration, a dinner, and fire-works." 29 338 HOME AS FOUND. 6" Monsieur votre pre ——? " Monsieur mon pere is not much given to rejoicings, and he takes this annual joy, much as a valetudinarian takes his morning draught." "' Et Monsieur Jean Effingham -?"' Is always a philosopher; you are to expect no alln tics from him." "J ais ces jeunes gens, Monsieur Bragg, jonsieutr Dodge, et Mdonsieur Powuis, meme!" "Se rj.ouissent en.menricains. I presume you are aware that Mr. Powis has declared himself to be an American?" Mademoiselle Viefville looked towards the streets, along which divers tall, sombre-looking coundtrymen, with faces more lugubrious than those of the mutes of a funeral, were sauntering, with a desperate air of enjoyment; and she shrugged her shoulders, as she muttered to herself, 1" que ces./mericains sont droles!" At a later hour, however, Eve surprised her father, and indeed most of the Americans of the party, by proposing that the ladies should walk out into the street, and witness the fAte. "My child, this is a strange proposition to come from a young lady of twenty," said her father. "Why strange, dear sir? —We always mingled in.he village f6tes in Europe." "Certainement," cried the delighted Mademoiselle Viefville; 1" c'est de rigueur, meme." " And it is de rigueur, here, Mademoiselle, for young ladies to keep out of them," put in John Effingham. " I should be very sorry to see either of you three ladies in the streets of Templeton to-day." "Why so, cousin Jack? Have we any thing to fear from the rudeness of our countrymen? I have always understood, on the contrary, that in. no other part of the world is woman so uniformly treated with respect and kindness, as in this very republic of ours; and yet, by all these ominous faces, I perceive that it will HOME AS FOUND. 339 not do for her to trust herself in the streets of a village on a festa."." You are not altogether wrong, in what you now say, Miss Effingham, nor are you wholly right. Woman, as a whole, is well treated in America; and vet it will not do for a lady to mingle in scenes like these, as ladies may and do mingle with them in Europe." "I have heard this difference accounted for," said Paul Powis,'"by the fact that women have no legal rank in this country. In those nations where the station of a lady is protected by legal ordinances, it is said she may descend with impunity; but, in this, where all are equal before the law, so many misunderstand the real merits of their position, that she is obliged to keep aloof from any collisions with those who might be disposed to mistake their own claims." " But I wish for no collisions, no associations, -Mr. Powis, but simply to pass through the streets, with my cousin and Mademoiselle Viefville, to enjoy the sight of the rustic sports, as one would do in France, or Italy, or even in republican Switzerland, if you insist on a republican example." " Rustic sports!" repeated Afistabulus with a frightened look-" the people will not bear to hear their sports called rustic, Miss Effingham." " Surely, sir,"-Eve never spoke to Mr. Bragg, now, without using a repelling politeness'surely, sir, the people of these mountains will hardly pretend that their sports are those of a capital." "I merely mean, ma'am, that the term would be monstrously unpopular; nor do I see why the sports in a city"-Aristabulus was much too peculiar in his notions, to call any place that had a mayor and alder. men a town,-" should not be just as rustic as those of a village. The contrary supposition violates the principle of equality." " And do you decide against us, dear sir?" Eve added looking at Mr. Effirgham. 340 HOME AS FOUND. "Without stopping to examine causes, my child. I shall say that I think you had better all remain at home." V" oila, MJademoiselle Viefville, une fete.mericalne!" A shrug of the shoulders was the significant reply. " Nay, my. daughter, you are not entirely excluded from the festivities; all gallantry has not quite deserted th- hland.": A young lady shall walk alone with a young gentleman-shall ride alone with him-shall drive out alone with him-shall not move wuithout him, dans le monde, mais, she shall not walk in the crowd, to look at une fete avec son pare!" exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville, in her imperfect English. "Je dtsespere vraiment, to understand some habitudes.Jmericaines!" " Well, Mademoiselle, that you'may not think us altogether barbarians, you shall, at least, have the benefit of the oration." " You may well call it the oration, Ned; for, I believe one, or, certainly one skeleton, has served some thousand orators annually, any time these sixty years." "Of this skeleton, then, the ladies shall have the benefit. The procession is about to form, I hear; and by getting ready immediately, we shall be just in time to obtain good seats." Mademoiselle Viefville was delighted; for, after try ing the theatres, the churches, sundry balls, the opera, and all the admirable gaieties of New-York, she had reluctantly come to the conclusion that America was a very good country pour s'ennuyer, and for very little else; but here was the promise of a novelty. The ladies completed their preparations, and, accordingly, attended by all the gentlemen, made their appearance in the assembly, at the appointed hour. The orator, who, as usual, was a lawyer, was already in possession of the pulpit, for one of the village churches had been selected as the scene of the ceremonies. He was a young man, who had recently been HOME AS FOUND. 341 called to the bar, it being as much in rule for the legal tyro to take off the wire-edge of his wit in a Fourth of Julv oration, as it was formerly for a Mousquetaire to prove his spirit in a duel. The academy which, formerly, was a servant of all work to the public, being equally used for education, balls, preaching, town. meetings, and caucuses, had shared the fate of most American edifices in wood, having lived its hour and been burned; and the collection of people, whom we have formerly had occasion to describe, appeared to have also vanished from the earth, for nothing could be less alike in exterior, at least, than those who had assembled under the ministry of Mr. Grant, and their successors, who were now collected to listen to the wisdom of Mr. Writ. Such a thing as a coat of two generations was no longer to be seen; the latest fashion, or what was thought to be the latest fashion, being as rigidly respected by the young farmer, or the young mechanic, as by the more admitted bucks, the law student, and the village shop-boy. All the red cloaks had long since been laid aside to give place to imitation merino shawls, or, in cases of unusual moderation and sobriety, to mantles of silk. As Eve glanced her eye around her, she perceived Tuscan hats, bonnets of gay colours and flowers, and dresses of French chintzes, where fifty years ago would have been seen even men's woollen hats, and homely English calicoes, It is true that the change among the men was not quite as striking, for their attire admits of less variety; but the black stock had superseded the check handkerchief and the bandanna; gloves had taken the places of uliLtens; and the coarse and clownish shoe of cow-hide" was supplanted by the calf-skin boot. "Where are your peasants, your rustics, your milk and dairy maids-thlepeople, in short "-whispered Sir Georgre Templemore to Mrs. Bloomfield, as they took heir seats; " or is this occasion thought to be too intellectual for them, and the present assembly com posed only of the elite?" 29 " 342 HOME AS FOUND. 6" These are tile people, and a pretty fair sample, too, of their appearance and deportment. Most of these men are what you in England would call operatives, and the women are their wives, daughters, and sisters." The baronet said nothing at the moment, but he sat looking around him with a curious eye for some time, when he again addressed his companion. "I see the truth of what you say, as regards the men, for a critical eye can discover the proofs of their occupations; but, surely, you must be mistaken as respects your own sex; there is too much delicacy of form and feature for the class you mean."' "Nevertheless, I have said naught but tiruth." "But look at the hands and the feet, dear Mrs. Bloom. field. Those are French gloves, too, or I am mistaken." "I will not positively affirm that the French gloves actually belong to the dairy-maids, though I have known even this prodigy; but, rely on it, you see here the proper female counterparts of the men, and singularly delicate and pretty Jfemales are they, for persons of their class. This is what you call democratic fcoarseness and vulgarity, Miss Effingham tells me, in England." Sir George smiled, but, as what it is the fashion of the country to call' the exercises,' just then began, he made no other answer. These exercises commenced with instrumental music, certainly the weakest side of American civilization. That of the occasion of which wve write, had three essential faults, all of which are sufficiently gene ral to be termed characteristic, in a national point of view. In the first place, the instruments themselves were bad; in the next place, they were assorted without any regard to harmony; and, in the last place, their owners did not know how to use them. As in certain American cities —the word is well applied here — she is esteemed the greatest belle who can contrive HOME AS FOUND. 343 to utter her nursery sentiments in the loudest voice, so in Templeton, was he considered the ablest musician who could give the greatest kclat to a false note. In a word, clamour was the one thing needful, and as regards time, that great regulator of all harmonies, Paul Powis whispered to the captain that the air they had just been listening to, resembled what the sailors call a' round robin;' or a particular mode of signing complaints practised by seamen, in which the nicest observer cannot tell which is the beginning, or which the end. It required all the Parisian breeding of Mademoi. selle Viefville to preserve her gravity during this overture, though she kept her bright animated, Frenchlooking eyes, roaming over the assembly, with an air of delight that, as Mr. Bragg would say, made her very popular. No one else'in the party from the Wigwam, Captain Truck excepted, dared look up, but each kept his or her eyes riveted on-the floor, as if in silent enjoyment of the harmonies. As for the honest old seaman, there was as much melody in the howling of a gale to his unsophisticated ears, as in any thing else, and he saw no difference between this feat of the Templeton band and the sighings of old Boreas; and, to say the truth, our nautical critic was not so much out of the wvy. Of the oration it is scarcely necessary to say much, for if human nature is the same in all ages, and under all circumstances, so is a fourth of July oration. There were the usual allusions to Greece and Rome, between the republics of which and that of this country there exists some such affinity as is to be found between a horse-chestnut and a chestnut-horse; or that of mere words: and a long catalogue of national glories that might very well have sufficed for all the republics, both of antiquity and of our own time. But when the orator came to speak of the American character, and par ticularly of the intelligence of the nation, he was most 344 HOME AS FOUND. felicitous, and maae the largest investments in popu-.arity. According to his account of the matter, no other people possessed a tithe of the knowledge, or a hundredth part of the honesty and virtue of the very community he was addressing; and after labouring foi ten minutes to convince his hearers that they already knew every thing, he wasted several more in trying to persuade them to undertake further acquisitions of the same nature. "How much better all this might be made," said Paul Powis, as the party returned towards the Wigwaln, when the'exercises' were ended, "by substituting a little plain instruction on the real nature and obligations of the institutions, for so much unmeaning rhapsody. Nothing has struck me with more surprise and pain, than to find how far, or it might be better to say, how high, ignorance reaches on such subjects, and how few men, in a country where all depends on the institutions, have clear notions concerning their own ccn-ition." "Certainly this is not the opinion we usually entertain of ourselves," observed John Eflingham. " And yet it ought to be. I am far from underrating the ordinary information of the country, which, as an average information, is superior to that of almost every other people; nor am I one of those who, according to the popular European notion, fancy the Americans less gifted than common in intellect; there can be but one truth in any thing, however, and it falls to the lot of very few, any where, to master it. The Americans, moreover, are a people of facts and practices, paying but little attention to principles, and giving themselves the very minimum of time for investigations that lie beyond the reach of the common mind; and it follows that they know little of taat which does not present itself in their every-day transactions. As regards the practice of the institutions, it is regulated here, as elsewhere, by party, and party is never an honest or a disinterested expounder." HOME AS FOUND. 345 "Are you, then, more than in the common dilemma," asked Sir George, "'or worse off than your neighbours?" "We are worse off than our neighbours for the simple reason that it is the intention of the merican system, which has been deliberately framed, and which is moreover the result of a bargain, to carry out its' theory in practice; whereas, in countries where the institutions are the results of time and accidents, improvement is only obtained by innovations. Party invariably- assails and weakens power. When powoer iS-[he'. ossession of a-few, the' man.gain by party; but whebn power is the legal right of the many, the fews gain by party. Now, as party has no ally as strong as ignorance and prejudice, a right understanding of the principles of a government is of far more importance in a popular government, than in any other. In place' of the eternal eulogies on facts, that one hears on all public occasions in this country, I would substitute some plain and clear expositions of principles; or, indeed, I might say, of facts as they are connected with principles." "JMais, la musique, JMonsieur;" interrupted Mademoiselle Viefville, in a way so droll as to raise a general smile, "qu'en pensez-vous?" "' That it is music, my dear Mademoiselle, in neither fact nor principle."' "' It only proves that a people can be free, Mademoiselle," observed Mrs. Bloomfield, "and enjoy fourth of July orations, without having very correct notions of harmony or time. But do our rejoicings end here, Miss Effingham?" "Not at all-there is still something in reserve for the day, and all who honour it. I am told the evening, which promises to be sufficiently sombre, is to terminate with a fete that is peculiar to Tempietc'n, and which is called' The Fun of Fire.'" 1" It is an ominous name, and ought to be a brilliant ceremony." 346 HOME AS FOUND. As this was uttered, the whole party entered the Wigwam. "The Fun of Fire" took place, as a matter of course, at a later hour. When night had set in, every body appeared in the main street of the village, a part of' which, from its width and form, was particularly adapted to the sports of the evening. The females were mostly at the windows, or on such elevated stands as favoured their view, and the party from the Wigwam occupied a large balcony that topped the piazza of one of the principal inns of the place.,The sports of the night commenced with rockets, of which a few, that did as much credit to the climate as to the state of the pyrotechnics of the village, were thrown up, as soon as the darkness had become sufficiently dense to lend them brilliancy. Then followed wheels, crackers and serpents, all of the most primitive kind, if, indeed, there be any thing primitive in such amusements. The "Fun of Fire" was to close the rejoicings, and it was certainly worth all the other sports of that day, united, the gingerbread and spruce beer included. A blazing ball cast from a shop-door, was the signal for the commencement of the Fun. It was merely a ball of rope-yarn, or of some other similar material, saturated with turpentine, and it burned with a bright, fierce flame until consumed. As the first of these fiery meteors sailed into the street, a common shout from the boys, apprentices, and young men, proclaimed that the fun was at hand. It was followed by several more, and in a few minutes the entire area was gleaming with glancing light. The whole of the amusement consisted in tossing the fire-balls with boldness, and in avoiding them with dexterity, something like competition soon entering into the business of the scene. The effect was singularly beautiful. Groups of darl HOKE AS FOUND. 317 objects became suddenly illuminated, and here a portiom, of the throng might be seen beneath a brightness like that produced by a bonfire, While all the back-ground of persons and faces were gliding about in a darkness that almost swallowed up a human figure. Suddenly all this would be changed; the brightness would pass away, and a ball alighting in a spot that had seemed abandoned to gloom, it would be found peopled with merry countenances, and active forms. The constant changes from brightness to deep darkness, with all the varying gleams of light and shadow, made the beauty of the scene, which soon extorted admiration from all in the balcony.' "6Mais, c'est charmant!" exclaimed Mademoiselle Viefville, who was enchanted at discovering something like gaiety and pleasure among the " tristes A~nmericains," and who had never even suspected them of being capable of so much apparent enjoyment. s" These are the prettiest village sports I have ever witnessed," said Eve, " though a little dangerous, one would think. There is something refreshing, as the magazine writers term it, to find one of these miniature towns of ours condescending to be gay and happy in a village fashion. If I were to bring my strongest objection to American country life, it would be its am.. bitio'us desire to ape the towns, converting the ease and abafndonr of a village, into the formality and stiff ness that render children in the clothes of grown people so absurdly ludicrous." ",What!" exclaimed John Effingham; "do you fancy it possible to reduce a free-man so low, as to deprive him of his stilts! No, no, young lady; you are now in a country where if you have two rows of flounces on your frock, your maid will make it a point to have three, by way of maintaining the equilibrium. This is the noble ambition of liberty." "Annette's foible is a love of flounces, cousin Jack, and you have drawn that image from your eye, instead 348 HwOME AS FOUND. of your imrnginationo It is a French, as well as an American ambition, if, ambition it be." "Let it be drawn whence it may, it! is true. }Have you not l;emarked, Sir George Termplemore, that the Americans will not even bear the ascendency of a capital? Formerly, Philadelphia, then the largest town in the country, was the political capital; but it was too much for any one community to enjoy the united consideration that belongs to extent and politics; and so the honest public went to work to make a capital, that should have nothing else in its favour, but the naked fact that it was the seat of government, and I think it will be generally allowed, that they have succeeded to admiration. I fancy Mr. Dodge will admit that it would be quite intolerable, that country should not be town, and town country." " This is a land of equal rights, Mr. John Effingham, and I confess that I see no claims that New-York possesses, which does not equally belong to Templeton.'" "' Do you hold, sir," inquired Captain Truck, " that a ship is a brig, and a brig a ship." "The case is different; Templeton is a town, is it not, Mr. John Effingham?" ". town, Mr. Dodge, but not town. The difference is essential." " I do not see it, sir. Now, Newv-York, to mn notion is not a town, but a city." "' Ah! This is the critical acumen of the editor! But vou should be indulgent, Mr. Dodge, to us laymen, who pick up our phrases by merely wandering about the world; or in the nursery perhaps, while you, of the favoured few, by living in the condensation of a province, obtain a precision and accuracy to which we can lay no claim." The darkness prevented the editor of the Active In.quirer from detecting the general smile, and he remnained in happy ignorance of the feeling that produced it. To say the truth, not the. smallest of the besetting HOME AS FOUND. 349 vices of Mr. Dodge had their foundation in a provin. cial education, and in provincial notions; the invariable tendency of both being to persuade their subject that he is always right, while all opposed to him in opinion are wrong. That well-known line of Pope, in which the poet asks, " what can we reason, but fi -m what wAe know'!" contains the principle of half our foibles and faults, and perhaps explains fully that proportion of those of Mr. Dodge, to say nothing of those of no small number of his countrymen. There are limits t6the knowledge, and tastes, and habits of every man, and, as each is regulated by -the opportunities of the individual, it. follows of necessity, that no one can have a standard much above his own experience..That an isolated and remote people should be a provincial people, or, in other words, a people of narrow and peculiar practices and opinions, is as unavoidable as that study should make a scholar; though in the case of America, the great motive for surprise is to be found in the fact that causes so verWy obvious should produce so little eftect. When compared with the bulk of other nations, the Americans, though so remote and insulated, are scarcely provincial, for it is only when the highest standard of this nation is compared with the highest standard of other nations, that we detect the great deficiency that actually exists. That a moral foundation so broad should uphold a moral supersiructure so narrow, is owing to the circumstance that the popular sentiment rules, and as every thing is referred to a body of judges that, in the nature of things, must be of very limited and superficial attainments, it cannot be a matter of wonder to the reflecting, that the,lecision shares in the qualities of the tribunal. In America, the gross mistake has been made of supposing, that, because the mass rules in a political sense,:t has a right to be listened to and obeyed in all other matters, a practical deduction that can only lead, under tile most favourable exercise of power, to a very hunm30 350 HOIE AS FOUND. ble mediocrity. It is to be hoped, that time, and a greater concentration of taste, liberality, and knowledge than can well distinguish a young and scattered population, will repair this evil, and that our children will reap the harvest of the broad fields of intelligence that have been sowed by ourselves. In the mean tiine, the present generation must endure that which cannot easily be cured; and, among its other evils, it will have to submit to a great deal of very questionable information, not a few false principles, and an unpleasant degree of intolerant and narrow bigotry, that are propagated by. such apostles of liberty and learning as Steadfast Dodge, Esquire. We have written in vain, if it now be necessary to point out a multitude of things in which that professed instructor and Mentor of the public, the editor of the Active Inquirer, had made a false estimate of himself, as well as of his fellow-creatures. That such a man should be ignorant, is to be expected, as he had never been instructed; that he was self-sufficient'was owing to his ignorance, which oftener induces vanity than modesty; that he was intolerant and bigoted, follows as a legitimate effect of his provincial and contracted habits; that he was a hypocrite, came from his homage of the people; and that one thus constituted, should be permitted, periodically, to pour out his vapidity, folly, malice, envy, and ignorance, on his fellow-. creatures, in the columns of a newspaper, was owing to a state of society in which the truth of the wholesome adage " that what is every man's business is nobody's business," is exemplified not only daily, but hourly, in a hundred other interests of equal magnitule, as well as to a capital mistake, that leads the community to fancy that whatever is done in their name, is done for their good. As the " Fun of Fire" had, by this time, exhibited most of its beauties, the party belonging to the Wigwam left the balcony, and, the evening proving mil(L HOME AS FOUND. 351 they walked into the grounds of the building, whellre they naturally broke into groups, conversing on the incidents of the day, or of such other matters as came uppermost. Occasionally, gleams of light were thrown across them from a fire-ball; or a rocket's starry train was still seen drawn in the air, resembling the wake of a ship at night, as it wades through the ocean CHAPTER XXII. Gentle Octavia, Let your best love draw to that point, which seela But to preserve it. ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA. WE shall not say it was an accident that brought Paul and Eve side by side, and a little separated from the others; for a secret sympathy had certainly exercised its influence over both, and probably contributed as much as any thing else towards bringing about the circumstance. Although the Wigwam stood in the centre of the village, its grounds covered several acres, and were intersected with winding walks, and ornamented with shrubbery, in the well-known English style, improvements also of John Effingham; for, while the climate and forests of America ofier so many inducernents to encourage landscape gardening, it is the branch of art that, of all the other ornamental arts, is perhaps the least known in this country. It is true, time had not yet brought the labours of the projector to ~erfection, in this instance; but enough had been done'o afford very extensive, varied, and pleasing walks. The grounds were broken, and John Effingham had turned the irregularities to good account, by planting and leading paths among them, to the great amuse ment of the lookers-on, however, who, like true disci. 35~2 HOME. AS FOUND. pies of the Manhattanese economy, had already begun to calculate the cost of what they termed grading the lawns, it being with them as much a matter of course to bring pleasure grounds down to a mathematical surface, as to bring a rail-road route down to the proper level. Through these paths, and among the irregularities, groves, and shrubberies, just mentioned, the party began to stroll; one group taking a direction eastward, another south, and a third westward, in a way soon to break them up into five or six different divisions. These several portions of the company ere long got to move in opposite directions, by taking the various paths, and -while they frequently met, they did not often re-unite. As has been already intimated, Eve and Paul were alone, for the first time in their lives, under circumstances that admitted of an uninterrupted confidential conversation. Instead of profiting immediately, however, by this unusual occurrence, as many of our readers may anticipate, the young man continued the discourse, in which the whole party had been engaged when they entered the gate that communicated with the street. " I know not whether you felt the same embarrassment as myself, to-day, Miss Effingharn," he said, "when the orator was dilating on the glories of the republic, and on the high honours that accompany the American name. Certainly, though a pretty extensive traveller, I have never yet been able to discover that it is any advantage abroad to be one of the' fourteen millions of freemen."' " Are we to attribute the mystery that so long hung over your birth-place, to this fact," Eve asked, a little pointedly. "6 If I have made any seeming mystery, as to the Dlace of my birth, it has been involuntary on my part, Miss Effingharn, so far as you, at least, have been concerned. I may not have thought,nysel' aulthorized HOME AS FOUND. 3853 to introduce my c wn history into our little discussions, but I am not conscious of aiming at any unusual concealments. At Vienna, and in Switzerland, wee mel as travellers; and now that you appear disposed to accuse me of concealment, I may retort, and say that, neither you nor your father ever expressly stated in my presence that you were Americans." "Was that necessary, Mr. Powis?" "Perhaps not; and I am wrong to draw a comparison between my own insignificance, and the dclat that attended you and your movements." T;Nay," interrupted Eve, U"do not misconceive me. My father felt an interest in you, quite naturally, after what had occurred on the lake of Lucerne, and I believe he was desirous of making you out a countryman,-a pleasure that he has at length received." "To own the truth, I was never quite certain, until my last visit to England, on which side of the Atlantic I was actually born, and to this uncertainty, perhaps, may be attributed some of that cosmopolitism to which I made so many high pretensions in our late passage." "' Not know where you were born!" exclaimed Eve, with an involuntary haste, that she immediately repented. "This, no doubt, sounds odd to you, Maiss Effingham, who have always been the pride and solace of a most affectionate father, but it has never been my good fortune to know either parent. Mv mother, who was the sister of Ducie's mother, died -at my birth, and the loss of ny father even preceded hers. I may be said to have been born an orphan." Eve, for the first time in her life, had taken his arm, and the young man felt the gentle pressure of her little hand, as she permitted this expression of symaathy to escape her, at a imoment she found so intensely interesting to herself. "It was, indeed, a misfortunes, Mr. Powis, and I fIear 30 e 354 HOME AS FOUND. you were put into the navy through the want of those who would feet a natural concern in vour welfare." "The navy was my own choice; partly, I think, itnrm a certain love of adventure, and quite' as much, perhaps, with a wish to settle the question of my birthplace, practically at least, by enlisting in the service of the one that I first knew, and certainly best loved." "' But of that birth-place, I understand there is now no doubt?" said Eve, with more interest than she Mwas nerself conscious of betraying.'"None whatever; I am a native of Philadelphia; that point was conclusively settled in my late visit to my aunt, Lady Dunluce, who was present at my birth." "Is Lady Dunluce also an American?" "She is;. never having quitted the country until after ner marriage to Colonel Ducie. She was a younger sister of my mother's, and, notwithstanding some jeafousies and a little coldness that I trust have now disappeared, I am of opinion she loved her; though one can hardly answer for the durability of the family ties in a country where the instituticns and habits are as artificial as in England." " Do you think there is less family affection, then, in England than in America?" "I will not exactly say as much, though I ami of opinion that neither country is remarkable in that way. In England, among the higher classes, it is impossible that the feelings should not be weakened by so many adverse interests. When a brother fnows that nothing stands between himself and rank and wealth, but the claims of one who was born a twelvemonth earlier than himself, he gets to feel more like a rival than a kinsman, and the temptation to envy or dislike, or even hatred, sometimes becomes stronger than the duty to (c ve." And yet the English, themselves, say that the ser-. vices rendered by the elder to the younger brother, and the gratitude of the younger to the elder, are so many additional ties." HOME, AS FOUND. 355 "It would be contrary to all the known laws of feeling, and all experience, if this were so. Tile younger applies to the elder for aid in preference to a stranger, because he thinks he has a claim; and what man who fancies he has a claimn, is disposed to believe justice is fully done him; or who that is required to discharge a duty, imagines'he has not done more than could be properly asked?" I fear your opinion of men is none of the best, Mr. Powis!" " There may be exceptions, but such I believe to be the common fate of humanity. The moment a duty is created, a disposition to think it easily discharged follows; and of all sentiments, that of a continued and exacting gratitude is the most oppressive. I fear more brothers are aided, throught4amily pride, than through natural affection." "What, then, loosens the tie among ourselves, where no law of primogeniture exists?" " That which loosens every thing. A love of change that has grown up with the migratory habits of the people; and which, perhaps, is, in some measure, fostered by the institutions. Here is Mr. Bragg to confirm what I say, and we may hear his sentiments on this subject." As Aristabulus, with whom walked Mr. Dodge, just at that moment came out of the shrubbery, and took the same direction with themselves, Powis put the question, as one addresses an acquaintance in a room. "Rotation in feelings, sir," returhed Mr. Bragg, " is human nature, as rotation in office is natural justice. Some of our people are of opinion that it might be useful could the whole of society be maTde periodically to changeplaces, in order that every one might know iow his neighbour lives." 64 You are, then, an Agrarian, Mr. Bragg?" "As far from it as possible; nor do I believe you will find such an animal in this county. W here 356 HOME AS FOUND. property is concerned, we are a people that never let go, as long as we can hold on, sir; but, beyond this. we like lively changes. Now, Miss Efihngham, every body thinks frequent changes of religious instructors in particular, necessary. There can be no vital piety without keeping the flame alive with excitement." 6" I confess, sir, that my own reasoning would lead to a directly contrary conclusion, and that there can be no vital piety, as you term it, with excitement." Mr. Bragg looked at Mr. Dodge, and Mr. Dodge looked at Mr. Bragg. Then each shrugged his shoulders, and the former continued the discourse. " That may be the case in France, Miss Effingham," he said, "but, in America, we look to excitement as the great purifier. We should as soon expect the air in the bottom of a well to-be elastic, as that the moral atmosphere shall be clear and salutary, without the breezes of excitement. For my part, Mr. Dodge, I think no man should be a judge, in the same court, more than ten years at a time, and a piiest gets to be rather common-place and flat after five. There are men that may hold out a little longer, I acknowledge; but to keep real, vital, soul-saving regeneration stirring, a change should take place as often as once in five years, in a parish; that is my opinion, at least." "But, sir," rejoined Eve, " as the laws of religion are immutable, the modes by which it is known universal, and the promises, mediation, and obligations are every where the same, I do not see what you propose to gain by so many changes." "Why, Miss Effingham, we change the dishes at table, and no family of my acquaintance, more than this of your honourable father's; and I am surprised to find you opposed to the systemn." "Our religion, sir," answered Eve, gravely, "is a duty, and rests on revelation and obedience; while oui diet may, very innocently, be a matter of mere taste, sr even of caprice, if you will." HOME AS FOUND. 351' Well, I confess I see no great difference, the main object in this life being to stir people up, and- to go ahead. I presume you know, Miss Eve, that many people think that we ought to change our own parson, if we expect a blessing on the congregation." "I should sooner expect a curse would follow an act of so much heartlessness, sir. Our clergyman has been with us since his entrance into the duties of his holy office; and it will be difficult to suppose that the Divine favour would follow the commission of so selfish and capricious a step, with a motive no better than the desire for novelty." " You quite mistake the object, Miss Eve, which is to stir the people up; a hopeless thing, I fear, so long as they always sit under the same preaching." "6 I have been taught to believe that piety is increased, Mr. Bragg, by the aid of the Holy Spirit's sustaining and supporting us in outr good desires; and I cannot persuade myself that the Deity finds it necessary to save a soul, by the means of any of those human agencies by which men sack towns, turn an election, or incite a mob. I hear that extraordinary scenes are witnessed in this country, in some of the other sects; but I trust never to see the day, when the apostolic, reverend, and sober church, in which I have been nurtured, shall attempt to advance the workings of that Divine power, by a profane, human hurrah." All this was Greek to Messrs. Dodge and Bragg, who, in furthering their objects, were so accustomed to 1" stirring people up," that they had quite forgotten that the more a man was in 1" an excitement," the less he had to do with reason. The exaggerated religious sects, which first peopled America, have had a strong influence in transmitting to their posterity false notions on such subjects; for while the old world is accustomed to see Christianity used as an ally of government, and pervertecl fromn its one great end to be the instrument of ambition, c.upidity, and selfishness, the new wvorld HOME AS FOUND. nas been fated to witness the reaction of such abuses, and ton run into nearly as many errors in the opposite extreme. The two persons just mentioned, had been educated in the provincial school of religious notions, that is so much in favour, in a portion of this country; and they were striking examples of the truth of the adage, that " what is bred in the bone will be seen in the flesh," for their common character, common in this particular at least, was a queer mixture 6f the most narrow superstitions and prejudices, that existed under the garb of religious training, and of unjustifiable frauds, meannesses, and even vices. Mr. Bragg was a better man than Mr. Dodge, for he had more selfreliance, and was more manly; but, on the score of religion, he had the same contradictory excesses, and there was a common point, in the way of vulgar vice, towards which each tended, simply for the want of breeding and tastes, as infallibly as the needle points to the pole. Cards were often introduced in Mr. Effingham's drawing-room, and there was one apartment expressly devoted to a billiard-table; and many was the secret fling, and biting gibe, that these pious devotees passed between themselves, on the subject of so flagrant an instance of immorality, in a family of so high moral pretensions; the two worthies not unfrequently concluding their comments by repairing to some secret room in a tavern, where, after carefully locking the door, and drawing the curtains, they would order brandy, and pass a refreshing hour in endeavouring to relieve each other of the labour of carrying their odd sixpences, by means of little shoemaker's loo. On the present occasion, however, the earnestness of Eve produced a pacifying effect on their consciences, for, as our heroine never raised her sweet voice above the tones of a gentlewoman, its very mildness and soft. ness gave force to her expressions. Had JohnEffingham uttered the sentiments to which they had just listened noin EAS Four. 359 it is probable Mr. Bragg would have attempted an an. swer; but, under the circumstances, he preferred making his bow, and diverging into the first path that offered, followed by his companion. Eve and Paul continued their circuit of the grounds, as if no interruption had taken place. "This disposition to change is getting to be universal in the country," remarked the latter, as soon as Aristabulus and his friend had left them, " and I consider it one of the worst signs of the times; more especially since it has become so common to connect it with what it is the fashion to call excitement." "To return to the subject which these gentlemen interrupted," said Eve, 6" that of the family ties; I have always heard England quoted as one of the strongest instances of a nation in which this tie is slight, beyond its aristocratical influence; and I should be sorry to suppose that' we are following in the footsteps of our good-mother, in this-respect at least." " Has Mademoiselle Viefville never made any remark on this subject?" "Mademoiselle Viefville, though observant, is discreet.- That she believes the standard of the affections as high in this as in her own country, I do not think; for, like most Europeans, she believes the Americans to be a passionless people, who are more bound up in the interests of gain, than in any other of the concerns of life." "' She does not know us!" said Paul so earnestly as to cause Eve to start at the deep energy with which he spoke. " The passions lie as deep, and run in currents as strong here, as in any other part of the world, though, there not being as many factitious causes to dam them, they less seldom break through the bounds of propriety." For near a minute the two paced the walk in silence, and Eve began to wish that some one of the party would again join them, that a conversation which she 360 HOME AS FOUND. felt was getting to be awkward, might be interrupted But no one crossed their path again, and without rudeness, or affectation, she saw no means of effecting her object. Paul was too much occupied with his own feelings to observe his companion's embarrassment, and, after the short pause mentioned, he naturally pursued the subject, though in a less emphatic manner than before. " It was an old, and a favourite theory, with the Europeans," he said, with a sort of bitter irony, " that all the animals of this hemisphere have less gifted natures than those of the other; nor is it a theory of which they are yet entirely rid. The Indian was supposed to be passionless,.because he had self-command; and what in the European would be thought exhibiting the feelings of a noble nature, in him has been represented as ferocity and revenge. Miss Effingham, you and I have seen Europe, have stood in the presence of its wisest, its noblest and its best; and what have they to boast beyond the immediate results of their factitious and laboured political systems, that is denied to the American-or rather would be denied to the Ameri. can, had the latter the manliness and mental indepen. dence, to be equal to his fortunes?"," Which, you think he is not." " How can a people be even independent that imports its thoughts, as it does its wares,-that has not the spirit to invent even its own prejudices?" "Something should be allowed to habit, and to the influence-of time. England, herself, probably has inberited some of her false notions, from the Saxons and Normans." "That is not only possible, but probable; but England, in thinking of Russia, France, Turkey, or Egypt, when induced to think wrong, yields to an English, and not to an American interest. Her errors are at least requited, in a degree, by serving her own ends, whereas ours are made, too often, to oppose our most HOME AS FOUND. 36i obvious interests. We are never independent unless when stimulated by some strong and pressing moneyed concern, and not often then beyond the plainest of its effects. — Here is one, apparently, who does not belong to our party." Paul interrupted himself, in consequence of their meeting a stranger in the walk, who moved with the indecision of one uncertain whether to advance or to recede. Rockets frequently fell into the grounds, and there had been one or two inroads of boys, which had been tolerated on account of the occasion; but this intruder was a man in the decline of life, of the condition of a warm tradesman seemingly, and he clearly had no connection with sky-rockets. as his eyes were turned inquiringly on the persons of those who passed him, from time to time, none of whom had he stopped, however, until he now placed himself before Paul and Eve, in a way to denote a desire to speak. " The young people are making a merry night of it," he said, keeping a hand in each coat-pocket, while he unceremoniously occupied the centre of the narrow walk, as if determined to compel a parley. Although sufficiently acquainted with the unceremonious habits of the people of the country to feel no surprise at this intrusion, Paul was vexed at having his tete a tete with Eve so rudely broken; and he an swered with more of the hauteur of the quarter-deck than he might otherwise have done, by saying coldly"Perhaps, sir, it is your wish to see Mr. Effingham -or-" hesitating an instant, as he scanned the stranger's appearance-" some of his people. The first will soon pass this spot, and you will find most of the latter on the; lawn, watching the rockets." The man regarded Paul a moment, and then he re moved his hat respectfully. i" Please, sir, can you inform me if a gentleman called Captain Truck-one that sails the packets be tween New-.York and England, is staying at the Wigwarn at present." _' I 362 HOME AS FOUND. Paul told him that the captain was walking with Mr. Effingham, and that the next pair that approached would be they. The stranger fell back, keeping his hat respectfully in his hand, and the two passed. "That man has been an English servant, but has been a little spoiled by the reaction of an excessive liberty to do as he pleases. The " please, sir," and the attitude can hardly be mistaken, while the nonchalac ce of his manner " a nous aborder" sufficiently betrays the second edition of his education." " I am curious to know what this person can want with our excellent captain —it can scarcely be one of the Montauk's crew!" " I will answer for it, that the fellow has not enough seamanship about' him to whip a rope," said Paul, laughing; " for if there be two temporal pursuits that have less affinity than any two others, they are those of the pantry and the tar-bucket. I think it will be seen that this man has been an English servant, and he has probably been a passenger on board some ship commanded by our honest old friend." Eve and Paul now turned, and they met Mr. Effingham and the captain just as the two latter reached the spot where the stranger still stood. "' This is Captain Truck, the gentleman for whom you inquired," said Paul. The stranger looked hard at the captain, and the captain looked hard at the stranger, the obscurity rendering a pretty close scrutiny necessary, to enable either to distinguish features. The examination seemed to be mutually unsatisfactory, for each retired a little, like a man who had not found a face that he knew. "There must be two Captain Trucks, then, in the trade," said the stranger; "s this is not the gentleman r used to know." "I think you are as right in the latter part of youi remark, f!iend, au you are wrong in the first," returned HOME AS FOUND. 3 the captain.' Know you, I do not, and yet there arc no more twc Captain Trucks in the English trade, thaan there are two Miss Eve Effingharns, or two Mrs. Hawkers in the universe. I am John Truck, and no other man of that name ever sailed a ship between NewYork and England, in my day, at least." " Did you ever command the Dawn, sir?" " The Dawn! That I did; and the Regulus, and the Manhattan, and the Wilful Girl, and the Deborah-Angelina, and the Sukey and Katy, which, my dear young lady, I may say, was my first love. She was only a fore-and-after, carrying no standing topsail, even, and we named her after two of the river girls, who were flyers, in their way; at least, I thought so then; though a man by sailing a packet comes to alter his notions about men and things, or, for that matter, about women and things, too. I got into a category, in that schooner, that I never expect to see equalled; for I was driven ashore to windward in her, which is gibberish to you, my dear young lady, but which Mr. Powis will very well understand, though he may not be able to explain it." 4"I certainly know what you mean," said Paul,;" though I confess I am in a category, as well as the schooner, so far as knowing how it could have happened." 6" The Sukey and Katy ran away with me, that's the upshot of it. Since that time I have never consented to command a vessel that was called after two of our river young women, for I do believe that one of them is as much as a common mariner can manage. You see, Mr. Effingham, we were running along a weather-shore, as close in as we could get, to be in the eddy, when a squall struck her a-beam, and she luffed right on to the beach. No helping it. Helm hard up, peak down, head sheets to windward, and main sheet flying, bhut it was all too late; away she went plump ashore to windward. But for that accident, I think I might have married." 'n64 HOME AS FOUND. "And what connexion could you find between mnal trirnony and this accident,:captain?" demanded the laughing Eve. "There was an admonition in it, my dear young'ady, that I thought was not to be disregarded. I tried the Wilful Girl next, and she was thrown on her beam-ends with me; after which I renounced all female names, and took to the Egyptian." "The Egyptian!" "Certainly, Regulus, who was a great snake-killer, they tell me, in that part of the world. But' I never saw my way quite clear as bachelor, until I got the Dawn. Did you know that ship, friend?" "I believe, sir, I made two passages in her while you commanded her." " Nothing more likely; we carried lots of your countrymen, though mostly forward of the gangways. I commanded the Dawn more than twenty years ago." " It is all of that time since I crossed with you, sir; you may remember that we fell in with a wreck, ten days after we sailed, and took off her crew and two passengers. Three or four of the latter had died with their sufferings, and several of the people." " All this seems but as yesterday! The wreck was a Charleston ship, that had started a butt." " Yes, sir-yes, sir-that is just it-she had started, but could not get in. That is just what they said at the time. I am David, sir-I should think you cannot have forgotten David." The honest captain was very willing to gratify the other's harmless self-importance, though, to tell the truth, he' retained no more personal knowledge of the David of the Dawn, than he had of David, King of the Jews. "Oh, David!" he cried, cordially-" are you David? Well, I did not expect to see you again in this world, though I never doubted where we should be, hereafter I hope you are very well, David; what sorl of wea HOME AS FOUND. 365 ther have you rmade of it since we parted? If I recollect aright, you worked your passage;-never at sea before." " I beg your pardon, sir;:I never was at sea before the first time, it is true; but I did not belong to the crew. I was a passenger." "I remember, now, you were in the steerage," returned the captain, who saw daylight ahead. "Not at all, sir, but in the cabin." "Cabin I" echoed the captain, who perceived none of the requisites of a cabin-passenger in the other"'Oh! I understand, in the pantry?" " Exactly so, sir. You may remember my masterhe had the left-hand state-room to himself, and I slept next to the scuttle-butt. You recollect master, sir?" "Out of doubt, and a very good fellow he was. I hope you live with him still?" "Lord bless you, sir, he is dead!" "Oh! I recollect hearing of it, at the time. Well, David. I hope if ever we cross again, we shall be ship-mates once more. We were beginners, then, but we have ships worth living in, now.-Good night." " Do you remember Dowse, sir, that we got from the wreck?" continued the other, unwilling to give up his gossip so soon. " He was a dark man, that had had the small-pox badly. I think, sir, you will recoilect him, for he was a hard man in other particulars, besides his countenance." "4 Somewhat flinty about the soul; I remember the man well; and so, David, good night; you will come and see me, if you are ever in town. Good night, David." David was now compelled to leave the place, for Captain Truck, who perceived that the whole party was getting together again, in consequence of the halt, felt the propriety of dismissing his visiter, of whom, his master, and Dowse, he retained just as much recollec{ion as one retains of a common stage-coach com. panion after twenty years. The appearance of Mr. 31 * 366 HOME AS FOUND. Howel, who just at that moment approached them, aided the manceuvre, and, in a few minutes the different groups were again in motion, though some slight changes had taken place in the distribution of the par. ties. CHAPTER XXIII. -'How silver sweet sound lovers' tongues at night, Like softest music to attending ears!" ROMEO AND JULIET. "A POOR matter, this of the fire-works," said Mr. Howel, who, with an old bachelor's want of tact, had joined Eve and Paul in their walk. "The English would laugh at them famously, I dare say. Have you heard Sir George allude to them at all, Miss Eve'!" " It would be great: affectation for an Englishman to deride the fire-works of any dry climate," said Eve laughing; " and I dare say, if Sir George Templemore has been silent on the subject, it is because he is conscious he knows little about it." " Well, that is odd! I should think England the very first country in the world for. fire-works. I hear, Miss Eve, that, on the whole, the baronet is rather pleased with us; and I must say that he is getting to be very popular in Templeton." " Nothing is easier than for an Englishman to become popular in America," observed Paul, 1" especially if his condition in life be above that of the vulgar. He has only to declare himself pleased with America; or, to be sincerely hated, to declare himself displeased." " And in what does America differ from any other'country, in this respect'?" asked Eve, quickly. "6Not much, certainly; love induces love, and dis HOME AS FOUND. 367 like, dislike.' Tnere is nothing new in all this; but the people of other countries, having more confidence in themselves, do not so sensitively inquire what others think of them. I believe this contains the whole diffe[rence." " But Sir George does rather like us?" inquired Mr. lHowel, with interest. " He lilkes some of us particularly well," returned Eve. " Do you not know that my cousin Grace is to become Mrs.-I beg her pardon-Lady Templemore, very shortly?" " Good God!-Is that possible-Lady Templemore! -Lady Grace Templemore!" "' Not Lady Grace Templemore, but Grace, Lady Templernore, and graceful Lady Templemore in the bargain." "And this honour, my dear Miss Eve, they tell me you refused!" "They tell you wrong then, sir," answered the young lady, a little startled with the suddenness and brusquerie of the remark, and yet prompt to do justice to all concerned. "Sir George Templemore never did me the honour to propose to me, or for me, and consequently he could not be refused." "' It is very extraordinary!-I hear you were actually acquainted in Europe?" "We were, Mr. Howel, actually acquainted in Europe, but I knew hundreds-of persons in Europe, who have never dreamed of asking me to marry them." " This is very strange —quite unlooked for —to marry ilMiss Van Cortlandt! Is Mr. John Effingham in the grounds?" Eve made no answer, but Paul hurriedly observed"You will find him in the next walk, I think, by returning a short distance, and taking the first path to the left." Mr. Howel did as told, and was soon out of sight. That is a most earnest believer in English superi 368 HOME AS FOUND. ority, and, one may say, by his strong desire to give vou an English husband, MIiss Effingham, in English merit." 1" It is the weak spot in the character of a very ho nest man. They tell me such instances were much more frequent in this country thirty years since, than they are to-day." I' I can easily believe it, for I think I remember some characters of the sort, myself. I have heard those who are older than I am, draw a distinction like this between the state of' feeling that prevailed forty years ago, and that which prevails to-day; they say that, formerly, England absolutely and despotically thought for America, in all but those cases in which the interests of the two nations conflicted; and I have even' heard competent judges affirm, that so powerful was the influence of habit, and so successful the schemes of the political managers of the mother country, that even many of those who fought for the independence of America, actually'doubted of the propriety of their acts, as Luther is known to have had fits of despondency concerning the justness of the reformation he was producing; while, latterly, the leaning towards England is less the result of a simple mental dependence,though of that there still remains a disgraceful amount -than of calculation, and a desire in a certain class to defeat the dominion of the mass, and to establish that of a few in its stead." " It would, indeed, be a strange consummation of the history of this country, to find it becoming monarchical!" 6 There are a few monarchists no doubt springing up in the country, though almost entirely in a class that only knows the world through the imagination and by means of books; but the disposition, in our time, is to aristocracy, and not to monarchy. Most men that get to be rich, discover that they are no happier for their possessions; perhaps every man who has not been HOlAE AS FOUND. 369 trained and prepared to use his means properly, is in this category, as our friend the captain would call it, and then they begin to long for some other untried advantages. The example of the rest of the world is before our own wealthy, and, faute d'imagination, they imitate because they cannot invent. Exclusive pblitical power is also a great ally in the accumulation of money, and a port"on have the sagacity to see it; though I suspect more pine for.the vanities of the exelusive classes, than for the substance. Your sex, Miss Effingham, as a whole, is not above this latter weakness, as I think you must have observed in your intercourse with those you met abroad." "I met with some instances of weakness, in this way," said Eve, with reserve, and with the pride of a woman, "though not more, I think, than among tho men; and seldom, in either case, among those whom we are accustomed to consider people of condition at home. The self-respect and the habits of the latter, generally preserved them from betraying this feebleness of character, if indeed they felt it." "; The Americans abroad may be divided into two great classes; those- who go for improvement in the sciences or the arts, and those who go for mere amusement. As a whole, the former have struck me as being singularly respectable, equally removed from an apish servility and a swaggering pretension of su. periority; while, I fear, a majority of the latter have a disagreeable direction towards the vanities." "I will not affirm the contrary," said Eve, "for frivolity and pleasure are only too closely associated in ordinary minds. The number of those who prize the elegancies of life, for their intrinsic value, is every where small, I should think; and I question if Europe is much better off than ourselves, in this respect." "This may be true, and yet one can only regret that, in (a case where so much depends on example, the tone of out people was not more assimnilated 370 HOME AS FOTUND. to their facts. I do not know whether you were strue.I with the same peculiarity, but, whenever I felt in the mood to hear high monarchical and aristocratical doctrines blindly promulgated, I used to go to the nearest American Legation." "I have heard this fact commented on," Eve answered, "and even by foreigners, and I confess it has always struck me as singular. Why should the agent of a republic make a parade of his anti-republican sentiments?" 1" That there are exceptions, I will allow; but, after the experience of many years, I honestly think that such is the rule. I might distrust my own opinion, or my own knowledge; but others, with opportunities equal to my own, have come to the same conclusion. I have just received a letter from Europe, complaining that an American Envoy Extraordinary, who would as soon think of denouncing himself, as utter the same sentiments openly at home, has given an opinion against the utility of the vote by ballot; and this, too, under circumstances that might naturally be thought to produce a practical effect." "' Tant pis. To me all this is inexplicable!" "It has its solution, Miss Effingham, like any other problem. In ordinary times, extraordinary men seldom become prominent, power passing into the hands of clever managers. Now, the very vanity, and the petty desires, that betray themselves in glittering uniforms, puerile affectations, and feeble imitations of other systems, probably induce more than half of those who fill the foreign missions to apply for them, and it is no more than we ought to expect that the real disposition should betray itself, when there was no longer any necessity for hypocrisy." "But I should think this necessity for hypocrisy would never cease! Can it be possible that a people, as mnuch attached to their institutions as the great HOME AS FOUND. 371 mass of the American nation is known to be, will tole rate such a base abandonment of all they cherish!" "How are they to know any thing about it? It is a startling fact, that there is a man at this instant, who has not a single claim to such a confidence, either in the way of mind, principles, manners, or attainments, filling a public trust abroad, who, on all occasions except those which he thinks will come directly before the American people, not only proclaims himself opposed to the great principles of the institutions but who, in a recent controversy with a foreign na tion, actually took sides against his own country, informing that of the opposing nation, that the adtministration at home would not be supported by the legislative part of the government!" "And why is not this publicly exposed?" " Cui bono! The presses that have no direct interest in the matter, would treat the affair with indifference or levity, while a few would mystify the truth. It is quite impossible for any man in a private station to make the truth available in any country, in a matter of public interest; and those in public stations seldom or never attempt it, unless they see a direct party end to be obtained. This is the reason that we see so much infidelity to the principles of the institutions, among the public agents abroad, for they very well know that no one will be able to expose them. In addition to this motive, there is so strong a desire in that portion of the community which is considered the highest, to effect a radical change in these very institutions, that infidelity to them, in their eyes, would be a merit, rather than an offence." "Surely, surely, other nations are not treated in this cavalier manner!" 6"Certainly not. The foreign agent of a prince, who should whisper a syllable against his master, would be recalled with disgrace; but the servant of the people ts differently situated, since there are so mrany to be 372 HOME AS FOUND. persuaded of his guilt. I could always get along wit'i all the attacks that the Europeans are so fond of making on the American system, but those which they quoted fiom the mouths of our own diplomatic agents." "Why do not our travellers expose this'?" "Most of them see too little to know any thing of it. They dine at a diplomatic table, see a star or two, fancy themselves obliged, and puff elegancies that have no existence, except in their own brains. Some think with the unfaithful, and see no harm in the infidelity. Others calculate the injury to themselves, and no small portion would fancy it a greater proof of patriotism to turn a sentence in favour of the comparative'energies' and' superior intelligence' of their own people, than to point out this or any other disgraceful fact, did they even possess the opportunities to discover it. Though no one thinks more highly of these qualities in the Americans, considered in connexion with practical things, than myself, no one probably gives them less credit for their ability to distinguish between appearances and reality, in matters of principle." s" It is probable that were we nearer to the rest of the world, these abuses would not exist, for it is cer tain they are not so openly practised at home. I anr glad, however, to find that, even while you felt some uncertainty concerning your own birth-place, you took so much interest in us, as to identify yourself in feeling, at least, with the nation." 4 "There was one moment when I was really afraid that the truth would show I was actually born an Englishman'" " Afraid!" interrupted Eve; " that is a strong word to apply to so great and glorious a people." 6We cannot always account for our prejudices, and perhaps this was one of mine; and, now that I know that to be an Englishman is not the greatest possible inerit. in your eyes, Miss Effingham, it is in no manner lessened." R1OME AS FOUND. 37; "Ill my eyes, Mr. Powis! I do not remmber to have expressed any partiality for, or any prejudice against the English: so far as I can speak of rmy own feelings, I regard the English the same as a.ly other foreign people." "In words you have not certainly; but acts speak louder than words."," You are disposed to be mysterious to-night. What act of mine has declared pro or con in this important affair." " You have at least done what, I fear, few of youe countrywomen would have the moral courage and ->self-denial to do, and especially those who are accustomed to living abroad-refused to be the wife of an English baronet of a good estate and respectable family." 1" Mr. Powis," said Eve, gravely, " this is an injustice to Sir George Templemore, that my sense of right will not permit to go uncontradicted, *as well as an injustice to my sex and me. As I told Mr. Howel, in your presence, that gentleman has never proposed for me, and of course cannot have been refused. Nor can I suppose that any American gentlewoman can deem so paltry a thing as a baronetcy, an inducement to forget her self-respect." "I fully appreciate your generous modesty, Miss Effingham; but you cannot expect that I, to whom Templemore's admiration gave so much uneasiness, not to say pain, am to understand you, as Mr. Howel has probably done, too broadly. Although Sir George may not have positively proposed, his readiness to do so, on the least encouragement, was too obvious to be overlooked by a near observer." Eve was ready to gasp for breath, so completely by surprise was she taken, by the calm, earnest, and yet respectful manner, in which Paul confessed his jealousy. There was a tremor in his voice, too, usually so (:lear and even, that touched her heart, for feeling responds 32 374 HOME AS FOUND. to feeling, as the echo answers sound, when there ex ists a real sympathy between the sexes. She felt the necessity of saying something, and yet they had walked some distance, ere it was in her power to utter a syllable. " I fear my presumption has offended you, Miss Effingham," said Paul, speaking more like a corrected child, than the lion-hearted young man he had proved himself. There was deep homage in the emotion he betrayed, and Eve, although she could barely distinguish his features, was not slow in discovering this proof of the extent of her power over his feelings. "Do not call it presumption," she said; "for, one who has done so much for us all, can surely claim some right to take an interest in those he has so well served. As for Sir George Templemore, you have probably mistaken the feeling created by our common aaventures for one of more importance. He is warmly and sincerely attached to my cousin, Grace Van Cortlandt." " That he is so now, I fully believe; but that a very different magnet first kept him from the Canadas, I am sure.-We treated each other generously, Miss Effingham, and had no concealments, during that long and anxious night, when all expected that the day would dawn on our captivity. Templemore is too manly and honest to deny his former desire to obtain you for a wife, and I think even he would admit that it depended entirely on yourself to be so, or not." "This is an act of self-humiliation that he is not called on to perform," Eve hurriedly replied; " such allusions, now, are worse than useless, and they might pain my cousin, were she to hear them." " I am mistaken in my friend's character, if he leave his betrothed in any doubt, on this subject. Five minutes of perfect frankness now, might obviate years of dirsti ust, hereafter," HOME AS FOU ND.;'7 5 And would you. Mr. Powis, avow a former weakness of this sort, to the woman you had finally selected for your wife?" 6I ought not to quote myself for authority, for oi against such a course, since I have never loved bul one, and her with a passion too single and toor ardent ever to admit of competition.b Miss Eflingham, there would be something worse than affetation-it would be trifling with one who is sacred in my eyes, were I now to refrain from speaking explicitly, although what I am about to say is forced from me by circumstances, rather than voluntary, and is almost uttered without * a definite object. Have I your permission to proceed?' " You can scarcely need a permission, being the master of your own secrets, MIr. Powis." Paul, like all men agitated by strong passion, was inconsistent, and far from just; and Eve felt the truth of this, even while her mind was ingeniously framing excuses for his weaknesses. Still, the impression that she was about to listen to a declaration that possibly ought never to be made, weighed upon her, and caused her to speak with more coldness than she actually felt. As she continued silent, however, the young man saw that it had become indispensably necessary to be exAlicit. "I shall not detain you, Miss Effingham, perhaps vex you," he said, "with the history of those early impressions, which have gradually grown upon me, until they have become interwoven with my very existence. We met, as you know, at Vienna, for the first time. An Austrian of rank, to whom I had become known through some fortunate circumstances, introduced me into the best society of that capital, in which I found you the admiration of all who knew vou. My first feeling was that of exultation, at seeing a young countrywoman-you were then almost a child,'Miss Effinghamn-the greatest attraction of a capital celebrated for the beauty-and grace of its womnen —." 376 IHOME AS FOUND. 64 Your national partialities have made you an unjust judgye towards others, MIr. Powis." Eve interrupted him by saying, though the earnestness and passion with which the young man uttered his feelings, made music to her ears: "what had a young, frightened, half-educated American girl to boast of, when put in competi tion with the finished wcnen of Austria?"' "Her surpassing beauty, her unconscious superiority her attainments, her trembling simplicity and modesty and her meek purity of mind. All these did you pos sess, not only in myn eyes, but in those of others; for these are subjects on which I dwelt too fondly to be mistaken." A rocket passed near them at the moment, and, while both were too much occupied by the discourse to heed the interruption,.its transient light enabled Paul to see the flushed cheeks and tearful eyes of Eve, as the latter were turned on him, in a grateful pleasure, that his ardent praises extorted from her, in despite of all her struggles for self-command. " We will leave to others this comparison, Mr. Powis," she said, " and confine ourselves to less doubtful subjects." " If I am then to speak only of that which is beyond all question, I shall speak chiefly of my long cherished, devoted, unceasing love. I adored you at Vienna, Miss Efflingham, though it was at a distance, as one might worship the sun; for, while your excellent father admitted me to his society, and I even think honoured me with some portion of his esteem, I had but little opportunity'o ascertain the value of the jewel that was contained in so beautiful a casket; but when we met the following summer in Switzerland, I first began trivy to love. Then I learned the justness of thought, the beautiful candour, the perfectly feminine delicacy of your mind; and, although I will not say that these qualities were not enhanced in the eyes of so young a man, by the extreme beauty of their possessor, I will HOME AS FOUND. 377 say that, as weighed against each other, I could a thousand times prefer the former to the latter, unequalled as the latter almost is, even among your own beautiful sex." "This is presenting flattery in its most seductive form, Powis." "Perhaps my incoherent and abrupt manner of explaining myself deserves a rebuke; though nothing can be farther from ray intentions than to seem to flatter or in any manner to exaggerate. I intend merely to give a faithful] history of the state of my feelings, and of the progress of my love." Eve smiled faintly, but very sweetly, as Paul would have thought, had the obscurity permitted more than a dim view of her lovely countenance. "Ought I to listen to such praises, Mr. Powis," she asked; " praises which only contribute to a self-esteem that is too great already?" " No one but yourself would say this; but your ques. tion does, indeed, remind me of the indiscretion that I have fallen into, by losing that command of my feelings, in which I have so long exulted. No man should make a woman the confidant of his attachment, until he is fully prepared to accompany the declaration with an offer of his hand;-and such is not my condition." Eve made no dramatic start, assumed no look of affected surprise, or of wounded dignity; but she turned on her lover, her serene eyes, with an expression of concern so eloquent, and of a wonder so natural, that, could he have seen it, it would probably have overcome every difficulty on the spot, and produced the usual offer, notwithstanding the difficulty that he seemed to think insurmountable. "And yet," he continued, "I have now said so much, involuntarily as it has been, that I feel it not only due to you, but in some measure to myself, to add that the fondest wish of my heart, the end and aim of all my day-dreams, as well as of my most sober thoughts for th-e 32 2 378 HOME AS FOUND. future, centre in the common wish to obtain you for v xw ife." The eye of Eve fell, and the expression of her countenance changed, while a slight but uncontrollable tremor ran through her frame. After a short pause, she summoned all her resolution, and in a voice, the firmness of which surprised even herself, she asked"Powis, to what does all this tend?" "6 Well may you ask that question, Miss Eflingham! You have every right to put it, and the answer, at least, shall add no further cause of self-reproach. Give me, I entreat you, but a minute to collect my thoughts, and I will endeavour to acquit myself of an imperious duty, in a manner more manly and coherent, than I fear has been observed for the last tel4 minutes." They walked a short distance in profound silence, Eve still under the influence of astonishment, in which an uncertain and indefinite dread of, she scarce knew what, began to mingle; and Paul, endeavouring to quiet the tumult that had been so suddenly aroused within him. The latter then spoke: "Circumstances have always deprived me of the happiness of experiencing the tenderness and sympathy of your sex, Miss Effingham, and have thrown me more exclusively among the colder and ruder spirits of my own. My mother died at the time of my birth, thus cutting me off, at once, from one of the dearest of earthly ties. I am not certain that I do not exaggerate the loss in consequence of the privations I have suiffred; but, from the hour when I first learned to feel, I have had a yearning for the tender, patient, endearing, disinterested love of a mother. You, too, suffered a similar loss, at an early period, if I have been correctly informed " A sob —a stifled, but painful sob, escaped Eve; and. inexpressibly shocke4, Paul ceased dwelling on his own sources of sorrow, to attend to those he had so unintentionally disturbed. HOME AS FOUND. 37i' " I have been selfish, dearest Miss Effingham," he exclaimed-" have overtaxed your patience-have annoyed you with griefs and losses that have no inte'rest for you, which can have no interest, with one happy and blessed as yourself." "No, no, no, Powis-you are unjust to both. I, too, lost my mother when a mere child, and never knew her love and tenderness. Proceed; I am calmer, and earnestly intreat you to forget my weakness, and to proceed." Paul did proceed, but this brief interruption in which they had mingled their sorrows for a common misfortune, struck a new chord of feeling, and removed a mountain of reserve and distance, that might otherwise have obstructed their growing confidence. " Cut off in this manner, from my nearest and dearest natural friend," Paul continued, "I was thrown, an infant, into the care of hirelings; and, in this at least, my fortune was still more cruel than your own; for the excellent woman who has been so happy as to have had the charge of your infancy, had nearly the love of a natural mother, however she may have been wanting in the attainments of one of your own condition in life." "6 But we had both of us, our fathers, Mr. Powis. To me, my excellent, high principled, affectionate-nay tender father, has been every thing. Without him, I should. have been truly miserable; and with him, notwithstanding these rebellious tears, tears that I must ascribe to the infection of your own grief, I have been truly blest." "Mr. Effingham deserves this from you, but I never knew my father, you will remember." "I am an unworthy confidant, to have forgotten this so soon. Poor Powis, you were, indeed, un. happy!'" 6* He had parted from my mother before my birth 380 HOME AS FOUND. and either died soon after, or has never deemed hii child of sufficient worth to make him the subject of interest sufficient to excite a single inquiry into his fate."'i Then he never knew that child!" burst from Eve, with a fervour and frankness, that set all reserves, whether of womanly training, or of natural timidity, at defiance. " Miss Effingham! —dearest Miss Effingham-Eve, my own Eve, what am I to infer from this generous warmth! Do not mislead me! I can bear my solitary misery, can brave the sufferings of an isolated existence; but I could not live under the disappointments of such a hope, a hope fairly quickened by a clear expression from your lips."'" You teach me the importance of caution, Powis, and we will now return to your history, and to that confidence of which I shall not again prove a faithless repository. For the present at least, I beg that you will forget all else." "A command so kindly-so encouragingly givendo I offend, dearest Miss Effingham?" Eve, for the second time in her life, placed her own light arm and beautiful hand, through the arm of Paul, discovering a bewitching but modest reliance on his worth and truth, by the very manner in which she did this simple and'every-day act, while she said more cheerfully"You forget the substance of the command, at the v:ery moment you would have me suppose you most disposed to obey it." "Well, then, Miss Effingham, you shall be more implicitly minded. Why my father left my mother sO soon after their union, I never knew. It would seem) that they lived together but a few months, though I have the proud consolation of knowing that my mother was blameless. For years I suffered the misery of doubt on a point that is ever the most tender with man, a distrust of his own mother; but all this has been ha1 pily, blessedly, cleared up, during my late visit to HOME AS FOUND. 3S 1 England. It is true that Lady Dunluce was my mother's sister, and as such might have been lenient to her failings; but a letter from my father, that was written only a month before my mother's death, leaves no doubt not only of her blamelessness as a wife, but bears ample testimony to the sweetness of her disposition. This letter is a precious document for a son to possess, Miss Effingham!" Eve made no answer; but Paul fancied that he felt another gentle pressure of the hand, which, until then, had rested so lightly on his own arm, that he scarcely dared to move the latter, lest he might lose the precious consciousness of its presence. " I have other letters from my father to my mother," the young man continued, "but none that are so cheering to my heart as this. From their general tone, I cannot persuade myself that he ever truly loved her. It is a cruel thing, Miss Effingham, for a man to deceive a woman on a point like that!" " Cruel, indeed," said Eve, firmly. "Death itself were preferable to such a delusion." "I think my father deceived himself as well as my mother; for there is a strange incoherence and a want of distinctness in some of his letters, that caused feelings, keen as mine naturally were on such a subject, to distrust his affection from the first." "Was your mother rich?" Eve asked innocently; for, an heiress herself, her vigilance had early been directed to that great motive of deception and dishonesty. "Not in the least. She had little besides her high lineage, and her beauty. I have her picture, which sufficiently proves the latter; had, I ought rather to say, for it was her miniature, of which I -Aras robbed by the Arabs, as you may remember, and I have not seen it since. In the way of money, my mother had barely the competency of a gentlewoman; nothing nmore." 6)