t of a horse and cart, in acknowledgment of his long and
faithful services; for, says he, I have saved many horses by Tom's
care and attention, and I could well afford to do the same by every
servant who did the same by me; and should be a richer man at the
end of every year by the same generosity, provided I could meet with
just and faithful servants who deserve the same rewards. Tom was
soon settled in his new farm, and in less than a year had got every
thing neat and decent about him. Farmer Hodges's long experience and
friendly advice, joined to his own industry and hard labor, soon
brought the farm to great perfection. The regularity, sobriety,
peaceableness, and piety of his daily life, his constant attendance
at church twice every Sunday, and his decent and devout behavior
when there, soon recommended him to the notice of Dr. Shepherd, who
was still living, a pattern of zeal, activity, and benevolence to
all parish priests. The Doctor soon began to hold up Tom, or, as we
must now more properly term him, Mr. Thomas White, to the imitation
of the whole parish, and the frequent and condescending conversation
of this worthy clergyman contributed no less than his preaching to
the improvement of his new parishioner in piety.

Farmer White soon found out that a dairy could not well be carried
on without a mistress, and began to think seriously of marrying; he
prayed to God to direct him in so important a business. He knew that
a tawdry, vain, dressy girl was not likely to make good cheese and
butter, and that a worldly, ungodly woman would make a sad wife and
mistress of a family. He soon heard of a young woman of excellent
character, who had been bred up by the vicar's lady, and still lived
in the family as upper maid. She was prudent, sober, industrious,
and religious. Her neat, modest, and plain appearance at church (for
she was seldom seen any where else out of her master's family), was
an example to all persons in her station, and never failed to
recommend her to strangers, even before they had an opportunity of
knowing the goodness of her character. It was her character,
however, which recommended her to Farmer White. He knew that _favor
is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman that feareth the Lord,
she shall be praised_: ay, and not only praised, but chosen too,
says Farmer White, as he took down his hat from the nail on which it
hung, in order to go and wait on Dr. Shepherd, to break his mind,
and ask his