things for me, may it please your Majesty; and when my enemies undertake to say bad things for me, which they often do, I then should be happy if it might not please your Majesty." The Queen, I am told, could not help laughing; and the conversation took the turn originally intended.

The letters were sealed, and sent off under cover to the Duke of Newcastle, from whose office they had been forwarded.

During dinner, my dear wife and myself had a great deal of deep conversation about locating the German families, and also respecting establishments for the clergyman and for the doctor: in all which Mr. Goldsmith took great delight; and, to enable him the better to comprehend the subject, I laid a map of the islands before him in the afternoon-to which he referred frequently during our discussion. I took this opportunity of telling him I had engaged a medical man; who, with his wife, were to go out immediately in my uncle's brig: but that I proposed taking the clergyman with myself; so that there would be plenty of time to find a suitable person. "And now," said I, "to-morrow I must occupy myself in writing long letters, ordering arrangements to be made for the reception of all the strangers; and I humbly implore the direction of God, to enable me to do it well."-"I like that spirit," said the old gentleman: "depend upon it, Edward," continued he, "that is the fountain of all your honours, and your happiness."

Next morning I set to work upon my letters, which I wrote very much at length;-one to my brother, one to Captain Drake, and one to Mr.

Green, at Jamaica; in which I endeavoured to embrace every point that the intended movements might require. I requested my brother to entertain Doctor Gordon in his house, until one could be got ready for him; and, as the doctor was sent out by James's own particular desire, I thought he of course would not hesitate to give him this hospitality. I directed four acres of ground to be cleared for him, between Allwood's lots and the spring on Edward's Island; and a house to be built for him there, on the original plan of our mansion at the Fort. I called it the Fort; for I hoped, by the time he got my letter, the guns sent from Woolwich would be mounted. I desired Mr. Green to provide frame-work and shingles for two houses, and whatever else Captain Drake might require, on my account. I entrusted Drake with the Germans, when they might arrive; desiring them to be located along the west side of St. George's Island, upon the best land, divided into suitable lots; and to provide them with a four-oared boat; and to bring a supply of yams, and Indian corn, and molasses, with him from Jamaica, for their use, when he came to convey them to the islands. I now wrote to my uncle, to send out by Taylor ten barrels of Irish beef, and as many of pork, together with forty bags of bread, on my account: and my letters being finished, I sealed them and sent them off, under cover to my uncle, with others from the family, for James and his wife, congratulatory, no doubt, on the birth of their son and heir and this being accomplished, I was glad to give a truce for a while to business.

CHAP. VIII.

THE present week was to be full of the sacred season's festivities, with great doings amongst the gentry. The little boys and girls of the neighbourhood were already going about in the evenings, singing their Christmas carols at the doors of the village. Saturday would be Christmas-day, and all hearts were joyous in its anticipation. At different times I had conferred with Eliza's father, on some mode of helping the poor of our native place; but as yet we had not come to any precise determination: it was, however, agreed, that the present season would afford a fit occasion of demonstrating my kindly feelings towards them. Accordingly, he made a list of the poor cottagers and others; for whom bread, and bacon, and beer, were now amply provided by my order, and served out to them by the beadle: a trifle in money, also, was added to the boon, by the hand of their worthy curate. Our young damsels kept the parsonage in a bustle, making mince-pie meat and plum puddings: my sisters were to keep Christmas at the parsonage; and a couple of old gentlemen farmers, friends of the family, were invited to the dinner.

When the day arrived, the church looked quite a garden, dressed in its holly; and we were happy to see again that well-remembered commemoration

of the Nativity. On our return, the yule log was
on, and the table laid: a hearty dinner was soon
served up; and great justice quickly done to the
roast beef, and plum pudding, and mince pies. In
the evening, Rosalie favoured us with some pretty
French and English songs, accompanied by her
guitar; and my dear Eliza sung; and the merriment
went round. Then came St. George and his train,
desiring admittance: they were dressed in the
most grotesque manner.
One boy was St. George,
another was his horse, another the dragon; then
came his 'squire, and a doctor, and so forth. St.
George mounted his horse, and attacked the dragon
nobly; but the beast wounded him, and unhorsed.
him; on which the doctor takes the elixir from his
pocket, saying-

"Here, take the spirit of elecampane;
Rise up, St. George, and fight again."

the

In a moment he is restored he mounts dragon falls, and is dragged off in triumph. The valiant knight, with Membrino's helmet (the barber's basin of the village, borrowed for the occasion), quickly returned to us for our favours; into which some sixpences were thrown, besides halfpence, as a reward for the performance. After supper, we drank punch, and our young gentlewomen played at snap-dragon. This dragon vomited fire fiercely; but the ladies held him as cheap as St. George had done, when encountering him in another shape; nevertheless, they were obliged to have recourse to some latent charm in their own tongue, — applied, by licking their fingers, after every snatch at the

raisins; for they were lodged in the fiery jaws of the blue burning dragon. Thus finished the festivities of our Christmas-day at Awbury; happy in seeing every one around us happy.

Sunday followed; a holy day rather than a holiday but both days were holy: the first commemorative of His coming, to win for us that Rest of which the second is the type on earth, and into which He on that day entered, to prepare a place for those who love him.

On the following morning, my good father-inlaw and myself had some conversation on a subject mentioned by Mr. Giles, one of the old gentlemen that dined with us on Christmas-day. He had said, that Colonel Tomlinson's estate was to be sold by auction at Gloucester, some time next month, to pay off a gambling debt he had got into at Bath. I stated to Mr. Goldsmith, that I was anxious to invest some of my money in land; for the funds, at present, did not give more than three per cent.; and I felt confident we must soon have a Spanish war, and that then they would fall low enough. In consequence, we set an enquiry on foot, and found the rumour to be true; for in a few days handbills were sent about, announcing the day of sale, at the Booth-hall in Gloucester. We lost no time in visiting the property, which lay about seven miles from Awbury; and I took our two farmer friends with us, to explore it, which investigation occupied us nearly three days, and then they made up their minds as to what it was worth. The land, generally speaking, was found to be good; but the

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