were but little disposed to submit themselves to my hands; and, in
the attempt, I found myself so completely covered with feathers, that
which of the three descriptions of birds aforesaid I most resembled, it
would have been difficult to determine. The fisherman, seeing my
situation, was proceeding to add to the stock of feathers which he had
collected in a great bag, by plucking those from my person, when, wishing
to save him any further trouble, I hurried back to Hellgate."
We cannot accompany Sir Heedless any further; but must conclude with a
few piquancies from the _Vocabulary of the Language of the Great World_,
which is as necessary to the enjoyment of fashionable life, as is a
glossary to an elementary scientific treatise:--
_At Home._--Making your house as unlike home as possible, by turning
every thing topsy-turvy, removing your furniture, and squeezing as many
people into your rooms as can be compressed together.
_Not at Home._--Sitting in your own room, engaged in reading a new novel,
writing notes, or other important business.
_Affection._--A painful sensation, such as gout, rheumatism, cramp,
head-ache, &c.
_Mourning._--An outward covering of black, put on by the relatives of any
deceased person of consequence, or by persons succeeding to a large
fortune, as an emblem of their grief upon so melancholy an event.
_Morning._--The time corresponding to that between our noon and sun-set.
_Evening._--The time between our sun-set and sun-rise.
_Night._---The time between our sun-rise and noon.
_Domestic._--An epithet applied to cats, dogs, and other tame animals,
keeping at home.
_Reflection._--The person viewed in a looking-glass.
_Tenderness._--A property belonging to meat long kept.
_An Undress._--A thick covering of garments.
_A Treasure._--A lady's maid, skilful in the mysteries of building up
heads, and pulling down characters; ingenious in the construction of
caps, capes, and scandal, and judicious in the application of paint and
flattery; also, a footman, who knows, at a single glance, what visiters
to admit to the presence of his mistress, and whom to refuse.
_Immortality_.--An imaginary privilege of living for ever, conferred upon
heroes, poets, and patriots.
_Taste_.--The art of discerning the precise shades of difference
constituting a bad or well dressed man, woman, or dinner.
_Tact_.--The art of wheedling a rich old relation, winning an heiress, or
dismissing duns wi
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