"Just as you please, Mr Thomas, everyone has their fancy, you know: you like to kill the game--I, to see it fly." "You like to eat too, I thinks ," said he; " I'm zure you and zisters , and t'other wimen , ate up a eark among ye , the second day of shooting, and never left me any thing but what was mashed with shot."

"Pray, sister," said Mr. Thomas, "what do you call that there step of your Captain's-- any thing but dancing, I hope." "I call that there step, the Scot's step, Sir" said she, smiling at his ignorance.

" Bin , mother," answered the youth, " why , I've bin to church, and I've bin about being married; I've brought you a good sightly daughter-in-law that's no fine leady ; but she's ne'er the worse for that-- what say , mother? nay , don't look so cross; shall I bring her in?"-- "No; get out yourself, you graceless wretch," said his mother, at length recovering the faculty of speech, "and never let me see your face again." Mr. Peterson coldly inquired if he spoke seriously, and, being answered in the affirmative, mounted his horse and rode off without proffering another word. " Zo , a pretty wedding-day I'm like to have of it," said the bridegroom; " I'll e'en go and keep it at the plough-- zo , good folks, when you choose to zee my wife you may zee me, that's all ." He went out the way he entered.

" Why then , mother," said he, "you must know, in the first and foremost place, that our new landlord is come ;-- "is that your news indeed?" said his sister, "who knows but that-- " stop a bit miss," continued he, "or I'll not tell a word more: so as soon as I know'd it , for the bells were set a ringing , and I goes to John Sexton to know what it was about; so says he , 'tis because the squire's come; so with that I goes home to wife , to tell she to get me a clean shirt, and to scratch out my hair a bit, and then I sets off to the great house to see the squire, and to give him joy of his brother's death, and to speak about neighbour Wilkin's little bargain, which I should like to have as well as another: zo as zoon as I comed , I zaw some strange people about, and I axed for the squire, zo they told me as how as he was gone out ; but they were main civil, and axed me to have some beer; zo with that just as I was taking a drink, who should come in but feyther and Grove, and Figgins and Bennett, and ever so many more: zo we all zet down to drink, and bye-and-bye in comes a footman, and desires us to walk in, and zo with that in we walks , and who should be there in the great parlour, along with the squire, as great as could be, but Harriet's Mr. Ewer! zo he stared, and we stared; and Figgins goes up to the squire, and zo says he , your honour's welcome to Southlands, we are your tenants come to give you joy; -- zo with that the squire, as we thought him, drew back, and zo says he , you are mistaken, Sir, you are to address yourselves to that gentleman: that is Mr. Ewer, Mr. Allenden's half brother, and heir to his estate--he is your landlord and not I."

A little before supper, when we were all assembled in the parlour, as usual, arrived Mr. Thomas. " So you be comed home wenches ? well , did you get any body to dance with you?"-- "To be sure they did," answered his mother; "they danced with their own natoral neighbours, as they ought to do." --"They did, did em ," said he. "Oh! that was forced meat , I'll be sworn; What , was there no red coats to be had? ha, they quite turned you off , hey girls? Did'nt em know you went on purpose after em ; or that might be the reason why-- we none of us like forward misses."

She is pretty, very genteely drest, and altogether of so elegant an appearance, that I was astonished beyond expression.--When, to Mrs. Peterson's question after the health of some acquaintance, she answered, literally thus-- " I does not know, indeed ; I hasn't zeed her this fortnight." Accustomed as I am to hear my poor mother tongue clipped and frittered, I confess to you, my dear Edward, such an answer, from so smart a lady, almost overcame my gravity: however, I might have laughed without offence; for Harriet was the only one present who would have suffered the cause: such is the negligence of grammatical propriety connived at here

We were rising to take leave, when who should arrive but Harriet's beau, the elegant Mr. Deacon?--She attempted to slip by, but he seized her hand: " Stop a bit, Miss, why we hasn't zeed one another this ere so long," said he, as he pulled her back; and forcibly seating her, drew a chair close to her side. Mrs. Peterson, of her own accord, followed his example; and we all resumed our places. " Now that's right, Madam Peterson," said the youth, " that's as it should be; if you had gone away just as I comed in, 'twould have looked as thof I froughted you like ; and I hopes I beent so ugly as all that comes to, neither. " Mrs Peterson assured him he was a desperate good-looking gentleman; and that it always did her good to see him. " Hark , what your aunt says, Miss," said the swain, " and she's a main good judge, I assure you." Harriet was constrained to smile; but her countenance quickly fell, when she understood that he was to be of the hunting party. " I'll take care of you myself, Miss," said he; "leave Grove and Miss Summers. I have a mare that would make the prettiest woman's nag in the county; but I keeps her for my wife when I marries : Do you know who she's to be, Miss?" said he, addressing her in a loud whisper. "Your wife will be a happy woman, Deacon, said Mr. Grove. -- " Ay , and a pretty one too-- won't she, Miss?" answered Mr. D. still addressing Harriet.

" Well , Miss Harriet," said he, "how do you do after your dance? I assures you I feels a little stiff myself; (then, in a half whisper,) but if it had been ten times worse, I could not have holped coming to see you, after your uncle and aunt's snubbing you so before all the company, as if you could help being a little vaporish, as all young women are;

"Why, as you did not dance," said Miss Peterson, "it did not much signify, to be sure , or else I should have been very angry with you; but you married men are always so lazy." "Lack a-daisy--ah," said Mrs. Peterson, "they say as how you should be married; well , I never should have thought it: But what makes you live here all alone, so unkind like , as if you belonged to nobody; when, all the while, you have got a wife?"

A little before supper, when we were all assembled in the parlour, as usual, arrived Mr. Thomas. " So you be comed home wenches ? well , did you get any body to dance with you?"-- "To be sure they did," answered his mother; "they danced with their own natoral neighbours, as they ought to do." --"They did, did em ," said he. "Oh! that was forced meat , I'll be sworn; What , was there no red coats to be had? ha, they quite turned you off , hey girls? Did'nt em know you went on purpose after em ; or that might be the reason why-- we none of us like forward misses."

" Ah , madam!" said Mrs. Hall, interrupting my fine harangue, " but I never wished to be great; all I desire is, to be about as rich as you or Madam Peterson here, to do as I pleased , and not work more than I cared for ,"-- "And you, perhaps would then be more unhappy than at present; you probably do not know that it requires a mind well cultivated, or a happy natural disposition, to know how to dispose of a great deal of leisure, pleasantly, if not always profitably. You see we are glad to take up your trade to amuse ourselves." " O yes, madam! but you do no more than you like; if you was obliged to slave all day, and every day, and glad too to slave so, or want bread."

I wept while Mrs. Larimer spoke thus; she pressed my hand. O! honey , my dear, (she has a little Irish accent, excessively agreeable,) may your tears never flow but for others.

"Why, yes," said Mr. Bennet, "'tis sartinly the best day's work a man can do; but what surprises me is, that folk says, his comed back as molloncholy again as he went."