ell well; and he thought there was no harm
in telling him of it. If people will go among dung, they must expect to
smell of it. "And yet," said Sir John, "if this man were not to manure
his land with dung, his crops would fail him, he would be unable to pay
me his rent; and you yourself would perhaps be obliged to follow a dung
cart." The two boys saw displeasure in their papa's countenance, and
therefore did not presume to say any thing more.

Early on a morning, shortly after, the good farmer came to Sir John
Denham's door, and sent up his compliments, kindly inviting him to make
a little excursion to his farm. Sir John could not resist the friendly
invitation, as a refusal might perhaps have made the honest farmer
uneasy. Robert and Arthur begged very hard to go along with them,
promising to behave more civilly in future; and Sophia begging for them
likewise, Sir John at last consented. They then mounted the four-wheeled
chaise with joyful countenances, and, as the farmer had a pair of good
horses, they were there in a short time.

On their arrival, Mrs. Harris, the farmer's wife, came to the door to
receive them, helped the young gentlefolks out of the chaise, and kissed
them. All their little family, dressed in their best clothes, came out
to compliment their visitors. Sir John would have stopped a moment to
talk with the little ones, and caress them; but Mrs. Harris pressed him
to go in, lest the coffee should grow cold, it being already poured
out; it was placed on a table, covered with a napkin as white as snow.

Indeed, the coffee-pot was not silver, nor the cups china, yet every
thing was in the neatest order. Robert and Arthur, however, looked slily
at each other, and would have burst out into a laugh, had not their
father been present. Mrs. Harris, who was a sensible woman, guessed by
their looks what they thought, and therefore made an apology for the
humble style in which her table was set out, which she owned could not
be equal to what they met with at their own homes; but hoped they would
not be dissatisfied with her homely fare. The cakes she produced were
excellent, for she spared no pains in making them.

As soon as breakfast was over, the farmer asked Sir John to look at his
orchard and grounds; and Mrs. Harris took all the pains she could to
make the walk pleasing to the children. She showed them all her flocks,
which covered the fields, and gave them the prettiest lambs to play
with. She then co