with him for his
disappointments as they praised him for being such a dutiful son. To
be sure, he might be a great lawyer in Dunport as well as anywhere
else; he would not be the first; but a more inspiring life might have
made him more enthusiastic and energetic, and if he could have been
winning his way faster elsewhere, and sending home good accounts of
himself, not to speak of substantial aid, there is no question whether
it would not have given his family greater happiness and done himself
more good. He was not possessed of the stern determination which wins
its way at all hazards, and so was dependent upon his surroundings for
an occasional stimulus.

But Dunport was very grateful to him because he had stayed at home,
and he was altogether the most prominent young man in the town. It is
so easy to be thankful that one's friends are no worse that one
sometimes forgets to remember that they might be better; and it would
have been only natural if he thought of himself more highly than he
ought to think, since he had received a good deal of applause and
admiration. It is true that he had avoided vice more noticeably than
he had pursued virtue; but the senior member of the firm, Mr.
Sergeant, pronounced his young partner to have been a most excellent
student, and not only showed the greatest possible confidence in him,
but was transferring a good deal of the business to him already. Miss
Prince and her old lawyer had one secret which had never been
suspected, and the townspeople thought more than ever of young Mr.
Gerry's ability when it was known that the most distinguished legal
authority of that region had given him a share of a long established
business. George Gerry had been led to think better of himself, though
it had caused him no little wonder when the proposal had been made. It
was possible that Mr. Sergeant feared that there might be some
alliance offered by his rivals in Dunport. To be sure, the younger
firm had been making a good deal of money, but it was less respected
by the leading business men. Mr. Sergeant had even conferred with his
young friend one morning upon the propriety of some new investments;
but Mr. Gerry had never even suspected that they were the price of his
own new dignity and claim upon the public honor. Captain Walter Parish
and Mr. Sergeant had both been aids and advisers of Miss Prince; but
neither had ever known the condition of all her financial affairs, and
she had made the most