ote a few lines from an old poem of Sir Richard
Fanshawe on the subject of one of these proclamations:

Nor let the gentry grudge to go
Into those places whence they grew,
But think them blest they may do so.
Who would pursue
The smoky glories of the town
That may go till his native earth,
And by the shining fire sit down
On his own hearth?

* * * * *

Believe me, ladies, you will find
In that sweet life more solid joys,
More true contentment to the mind,
Than all town toys.

[Illustration: PORCH WITH BOW-WINDOW UNDER, OUTSIDE WARWICK GATES.]

The solemn county balls, to which access was as difficult as it is now to
a court festivity, have dwindled to public affairs with paid
subscriptions, yet even in their changed conditions they are somewhat of
an event in the winter life of a neighborhood. Everybody has the entree
who can command the price of a ticket, though, as a rule, different
classes form coteries and dance among themselves. The country-houses for
ten or twelve miles around contribute their Christmas and New Year guests,
often a large party in two or three carriages. Political popularity is not
lost sight of, and civilities to the wives and daughters of the tradesmen
and voters often secure more support in the next election than strict
principle warrants; but though the men thus mingle with the majority of
the dancers, it is seldom the ladies leave the upper end of the hall,
where the local aristocracy holds a sort of court. In places where there
is a garrison the military are a great reinforcement to the body of
dancers and flirts. The society proper of a county-town is mostly cut up
into a small clique of clerical and professional men, with a few spinsters
of gentle eccentricity and limited means, the sisters and aunts of country
gentlemen, and a larger body of well-to-do tradesmen and their families,
including the ministers of the dissenting chapels and their families. One
of the latter may be possibly a preacher of local renown, and one of the
Anglican clergy will almost invariably be an antiquary of real merit. The
mayor and corporation belong, as a rule, to the larger set, but the
lawyers and doctors hold a neutral position and are welcomed everywhere,
partly for the sake of gossip, partly for their own individual merits.
Warwick has the additional advantage over many kindred places of the near
neighborhood