ation and change, as will
conduce to that perfect system of government which you delight to
portray."

"You speak of an almost-forgotten dream," said Adrian, his countenance
slightly clouding as he spoke; "the visions of my boyhood have long since
faded in the light of reality; I know now that I am not a man fitted to
govern nations; sufficient for me, if I keep in wholesome rule the little
kingdom of my own mortality.

"But do not you see, Lionel, the drift of our noble friend; a drift,
perhaps, unknown to himself, but apparent to me. Lord Raymond was never
born to be a drone in the hive, and to find content in our pastoral life.
He thinks, that he ought to be satisfied; he imagines, that his present
situation precludes the possibility of aggrandisement; he does not
therefore, even in his own heart, plan change for himself. But do you not
see, that, under the idea of exalting me, he is chalking out a new path for
himself; a path of action from which he has long wandered?

"Let us assist him. He, the noble, the warlike, the great in every quality
that can adorn the mind and person of man; he is fitted to be the Protector
of England. If I--that is, if we propose him, he will assuredly be
elected, and will find, in the functions of that high office, scope for the
towering powers of his mind. Even Perdita will rejoice. Perdita, in whom
ambition was a covered fire until she married Raymond, which event was for
a time the fulfilment of her hopes; Perdita will rejoice in the glory and
advancement of her lord--and, coyly and prettily, not be discontented
with her share. In the mean time, we, the wise of the land, will return to
our Castle, and, Cincinnatus-like, take to our usual labours, until our
friend shall require our presence and assistance here."

The more Adrian reasoned upon this scheme, the more feasible it appeared.
His own determination never to enter into public life was insurmountable,
and the delicacy of his health was a sufficient argument against it. The
next step was to induce Raymond to confess his secret wishes for dignity
and fame. He entered while we were speaking. The way in which Adrian had
received his project for setting him up as a candidate for the
Protectorship, and his replies, had already awakened in his mind, the view
of the subject which we were now discussing. His countenance and manner
betrayed irresolution and anxiety; but the anxiety arose from a fear that
we should not prosecute, or not