s, he suddenly divined the situation, on seeing the row of
servants sitting in a thievish corner of the hall. He took his seat with
the air of a man driving to the guillotine, and I do not think I ever
saw any one so much upset as he was for the remainder of his stay. Of
course it may be said that a sense of humour should have saved a man
from such a collapse of moral force, but a sense of humour requires to
be very strong to save a man from the sense of having made a conspicuous
fool of himself.

I would add one more small reminiscence, of an event from which I can
hardly say with honesty that I have yet quite recovered, although it
took place nearly thirty years ago. I went, as a schoolboy, with my
parents, to stay at a very big country house, the kind of place to which
I was little used, where the advent of a stately footman to take away
my clothes in the morning used to fill me with misery. The first evening
there was a big dinner-party. I found myself sitting next my delightful
and kindly hostess, my father being on the other side of her. All went
well till dessert, when an amiable, long-haired spaniel came to my side
to beg of me. I had nothing but grapes on my plate, and purely out
of compliment I offered him one. He at once took it in his mouth,
and hurried to a fine white fur rug in front of the hearth, where he
indulged in some unaccountable convulsions, rolling himself about and
growling in an ecstasy of delight. My host, an irascible man, looked
round, and then said: "Who the devil has given that dog a grape?" He
added to my father, by way of explanation, "The fact is that if he can
get hold of a grape, he rolls it on that rug, and it is no end of a
nuisance to get the stain out." I sat crimson with guilt, and was just
about to falter out a confession, when my hostess looked up, and, seeing
what had happened, said, "It was me, Frank--I forgot for the moment what
I was doing." My gratitude for this angelic intervention was so great
that I had not even the gallantry to own up, and could only repay my
protectress with an intense and lasting devotion. I have no doubt that
she explained matters afterwards to our host; and I contrived to murmur
my thanks later in the evening. But the shock had been a terrible one,
and taught me not only wisdom, but the Christian duty of intervening, if
I could, to save the shy from their sins and sufferings.

"Taught by the Power that pities me,
I learn to pity them