practice
of his profession, to form so low an estimate of human nature. He
considered confidence in this case to be synonymous with prudence, and
at anyrate resolved to take upon himself the entire responsibility of
complying with the wishes of the Americans. He accordingly drew up the
necessary document, got it signed by as many as participated in his
views, and sent it across the Atlantic, without the slightest doubt or
hesitation. There had been something in the rough, blunt honesty of Mr
B----'s letter that inspired in the man of law the utmost reliance on
his faith, though during the interval which elapsed between the
transmission of the deed and the reception of an answer from the
States, several of his friends exhibited a disposition to make
themselves merry at the expense of his chivalry. But when we consider
all the particulars of the case, we can hardly fail to perceive that
he ran no risk whatever; for even if the debt had not legally lapsed,
the people who had retained it in their memory through three
generations--who had from father to son practised strict economy in
order to relieve themselves from the burden--who had, with much
difficulty and some expense, sought out the heirs of their creditor in
a distant country, could scarcely be suspected of any inclination to
finish off with a fraud at last.

Still, if there was honour on one side, there was enlarged confidence
on the other; and in the course of a few months, the American mail
brought to London the famous L.600 due since before the War of
Independence. The business now was to divide and distribute it. Of
course, each of the creditors was loud in expressions of admiration of
the honour of the B. family, whose representative, while forwarding
the money, asked with much simplicity to have a few old English
newspapers sent out to him by way of acknowledgment. For his own part,
however, he experienced a strong desire to behold some of the persons
to whom he had thus paid a debt of the last century; and he gave a
warm and pressing invitation to any of them, to come out and stay as
long as they thought proper at his house in Charleston. Had the
invitation been accepted, we cannot doubt that Brother Jonathan would
have acted as hospitably in the character of host as he behaved
honourably in that of debtor. It would have been a pleasure, we might
indeed say a distinction, to live under the same roof with such a man,
whose very name carries us back to the p