t the vestry-clerk, will make the
tax-gatherer call for his money till he won't call any longer, and then
he sends it: finds fault with the sermon every Sunday, says that the
organist ought to be ashamed of himself, offers to back himself for any
amount to sing the psalms better than all the children put together, male
and female; and, in short, conducts himself in the most turbulent and
uproarious manner. The worst of it is, that having a high regard for the
old lady, he wants to make her a convert to his views, and therefore
walks into her little parlour with his newspaper in his hand, and talks
violent politics by the hour. He is a charitable, open-hearted old
fellow at bottom, after all; so, although he puts the old lady a little
out occasionally, they agree very well in the main, and she laughs as
much at each feat of his handiwork when it is all over, as anybody else.

CHAPTER III--THE FOUR SISTERS

The row of houses in which the old lady and her troublesome neighbour
reside, comprises, beyond all doubt, a greater number of characters
within its circumscribed limits, than all the rest of the parish put
together. As we cannot, consistently with our present plan, however,
extend the number of our parochial sketches beyond six, it will be better
perhaps, to select the most peculiar, and to introduce them at once
without further preface.

The four Miss Willises, then, settled in our parish thirteen years ago.
It is a melancholy reflection that the old adage, 'time and tide wait for
no man,' applies with equal force to the fairer portion of the creation;
and willingly would we conceal the fact, that even thirteen years ago the
Miss Willises were far from juvenile. Our duty as faithful parochial
chroniclers, however, is paramount to every other consideration, and we
are bound to state, that thirteen years since, the authorities in
matrimonial cases, considered the youngest Miss Willis in a very
precarious state, while the eldest sister was positively given over, as
being far beyond all human hope. Well, the Miss Willises took a lease of
the house; it was fresh painted and papered from top to bottom: the paint
inside was all wainscoted, the marble all cleaned, the old grates taken
down, and register-stoves, you could see to dress by, put up; four trees
were planted in the back garden, several small baskets of gravel
sprinkled over the front one, vans of elegant furniture arrived, spring
blinds were fitted to