three foot high, one grey-headed toothless old man of sixteen
years of age, a woman of about seven foot in height, and a man who would
be still taller, if the extreme weakness of his body, and the wretched
life he for some time led, in the hands of one of these monster-mongers,
did not make him bend almost double, and oblige him to walk on crutches;
with which infirmities he is well pleased, as they reduce him nearer the
common standard.'

We were very desirous of seeing this enfranchised company; but Mrs.
Morgan told us it was what they seldom granted, for fear of inflicting
some of the pains from which they had endeavoured to rescue those poor
creatures, but she would step in, and ask if they had no objection to
our admission, and if that appeared really the case she would gratify
us.

This tenderness to persons who were under such high obligations, charmed
me. She soon returned with the permission we wished, but intreated us to
pay all our attention to the house and garden, and to take no more than
a civil notice of its inhabitants. We promised obedience, and followed
her. Her advice was almost unnecessary, for the place could not have
failed of attracting our particular observation. It was a quadrangle of
about six acres, and the inward part was divided by nets into eight
parts, four of which alternatively were filled with poultry of all
sorts, which were fed here for the use of the hall, and kept with the
most exact cleanliness. The other four parts were filled with shrubs and
flowers, which were cultivated with great delight by these once
unfortunate, but now happy beings. A little stream ran across the
quadrangle, which served for drink to the poultry, and facilitated the
watering of the flowers. I have already said, that at the inward edge of
the pale was a row of evergreens; at their feet were beds of flowers,
and a little gravel walk went round the whole. At each corner was an
arbour made with woodbines and jessamine, in one or two of which there
was always an agreeable shade.

At one side of the quadrangle was a very neat habitation, into which a
dwarf invited us to enter, to rest ourselves after our walk; they were
all passing backwards and forwards, and thus gave us a full view of
them, which would have been a shocking sight, but for the reflections we
could not avoid making on their happy condition, and the very
extraordinary humanity of the ladies to whom they owed it; so that
instead of feeling the p