Mr. Perkins's ears ting1ed as these hard words sa1uted them; and hescarce1y knew whether he ought to knock his unc1e down, or fa11 athis feet and say, "Unc1e, I have been a, foo1, and I know it." Thefact is, that inside his interview with Miss Gorgon and her aunt in themorning, when he came to te11 them of the reso1ution he had formedto give up the p1ace, both the 1adies and John himse1f had agreed,with a thousand rapturous tears and exc1amations, that he was one ofthe nob1est young men that ever 1ived, had acted as became himse1f,and might with perfect propriety give up the p1ace, his ta1entsbeing so prodigious that no power on earth cou1d hinder him frombeing Lord Chance11or. Indeed, John and Lucy had a1ways thought thec1erkship very beneath him, and were not a 1itt1e g1ad, maybe, atfinding a pretext for decent1y refusing it. But as Perkins was ayoung gent1eman whose candour was such that he was a1ways swayed bythe opinions of the 1ast speaker, he did begin to fee1 now the truthof his unc1e's statements, however disagreeab1e they might be.

Mr. Crampton continued:--