Loss and Gain

s college had left for the Long Vacation. Thus he came across Mr. Vincent, one of the junior tutors, who was kind enough to ask him to di

ith as much heart as he lectured in Aristotle, or crammed in Greek plays. What is stranger still, with all this he was something of a valetudinarian. He had come off from school on a foundation fellowship, and had the reputation both at school and in the University of being a first-rate scholar. He was a strict disciplinarian in his way, had the undergraduates under his thumb, and having some bonhomie in his composition, was regarded by them with mingled feelings of fear and good will. They laughed at him, but carefull

limits, nor boldness enough to hold it in its simplicity; but he was always saying things and unsaying them, balancing his thoughts in impossible attitudes, and guarding his words by unintelligible limitations. As to the men and opinions of the day and place, he would in the main have agreed with them, had he let himself alone; but he was determined to have an intellect of his own, and this put him to great shifts when he would distinguish himself from them. Had he been older than they, he would have talked of "young heads," "hot heads," and the like; but since they were grave and cool men, and outran him by fourteen or fifteen years, he fo

ries, on the table; and in due season the college-servant brought in mutton-cutlets and broiled ham; and every one ate to his heart's, or rather his appetite's, content. It was a more arduous undertaking to provide the running accompa

u need not look at the cup and saucer before you, Mr. Catley; those came from Derbyshire. But you find English crockery everywhere

my family set off a fortnight ago, but I

you, for it is to be an unusually fine season, if the meteorologists of the sister Un

He plucked last week Patch of St. George's, and Patch has taken his oat

, but must not be trusted. Mr. Patch could not have g

two or three mouthfuls of bread and butter, the knive

s guests at length, "that the old

the gas-cure, as they did of the water-cure. The great foreign chemist, Professor Scaramouch, has the credit of the discovery. The effects are astounding, quite astounding; and there are several remarkable coincidences. You know medicines are always unpleasant, and so these gases are always fetid. The Professor cures by stenches, and has brought his science to such perfection that he actually can classify them. There are six elementary stenches, and these spread into a variety of subdivisions? What do you say, Mr. Reding? Distinctive? Yes, there is something very distinctive in smells. But what is most gratifying of all, and is the great coincidence I spoke of, his ultimate resolut

party after him, and all

reen of England

brilliant variety of

omething so soo

t there is plenty of green in Italy, and in winter even

s, "that that mixture of colours takes o

said Tenby, "of Binsey Commo

versity goes down just when Oxford begins to be most beautiful. The walks and meadows a

the Long," said Tenby: "does any one li

n't be denied," he continued, "that many, like Mr. Reding, think it a most pl

it so," said Charles, "but, I suppo

l; but he conceived that he would not consent to it. Vincent added that certainly there

lse, were he reading for his degree, he should like nothing better than to pass the

Mr. Reding, to your c

incent had formally to run his eye over. "Watkins," he said, giving it back to him, "I almo

strike the company as forcibly, for there was a sudden silence, which was succeeded by a shuffling of feet and a leave-taking; as if, though they had secured their ham and mutton at break

let us have a plain beefsteak and a saddle of mutton; no Portugal onions, Watkins,

imself alone with the college authority; who be

but I conceive you had no particular meaning in your praise of Oxford in

was all

en a mark of party, this residence in the Vacation; though, of course, the

was all

young in your career among us. I always feel anxious about young men of talent; th

nothing he had done had given

know that it has. But I have thought some of your remarks and questions at le

ed to recollect what he could have said to give ground to Mr. Vincent's remark. Not being able at the moment to recollect, he went on. "I assure you, sir, I know so littl

m cautioning you against tendencies. You may suddenly

tions in detail, about points which puzzled him. He asked w

elical poverty; they even have a dress of their own, like monks. The Independents represent the rights of the laity; the Wesleyans cherish the devotional principle; the Irvingites, the symbolical and mystical; the High Church party, the principle of obedience; the Liberals are the guardians of reason. No party, then, I conceive, is entirely right or entirely wrong. As to Dr. Brownside, there certainly have been various opinions enter

d judge; and that he wished very much to know whether Vincent could recommend him any book, in which he

safe. Our great divines," and he stood upright, "were models; 'there were giants on the earth in those days,' as King George the Third had once said of them to Dr. Johnson. They had that depth, and power, and gravity, and fulness, and erudition; and they were so racy, always racy, and what might be called English. They had that richness,

Charles; he knew just enough about these writers to feel interested in hearing them talked about, and to him Vincent seemed to be saying a good deal, when in f

indifferent things are perverted to the purposes of party. At this moment the names of some of our great

Charles answered, "are not

ch by drawing attention in this lax day to the old Church-of-England divinity. But it is one thing to agree with these gentlemen; another," laying his hand on

; but perhaps the latter advocated a toleration of opinions in a different sense? Mr. Vincent answered rather shortly, t

ffer. In truth," he continued, "there is that robust, masculine, noble independence in the English mind, which refuses to be tied down to artificial shapes, but is like, I will say, some great and beautiful production of nature,-a tree, which is rich in foliage and

rse to parties, and offended at what he saw of individuals attached to them. Vincent had confirmed him in his resolution to keep aloof from them, and to attend to his duties in the place. He felt pleased to have had this talk with him; but wha