blazed in the
chimney, and looked the only cheerful thing in the room.

During our first solemn silence, which, you may remember, was only
broken by my repeated requests that you would make a smaller, and
still smaller circle, till I saw the fire-place fairly inclosed
round, the idea came into my mind, which has since been a source
of amusement to you in the recollection, and to myself in
particular has been of essential benefit, as it enabled me to form
a just estimate of the dispositions of you my young pupils, and
assisted me to adapt my plan of future instructions to each
individual temper.

An introduction to a point we wish to carry, we always feel to be
an aukward affair, and generally execute it in an aukward manner;
so I believe I did then: for when I imparted this idea to you, I
think I prefaced it rather too formally for such young auditors,
for I began with telling you, that I had read in old authors,
that it was not unfrequent in former times, when strangers were
assembled together, as we might be, for them to amuse themselves
with telling stories, either of their own lives, or the adventures
of others. "Will you allow me, ladies," I continued, "to persuade
you to amuse yourselves in this way? you will not then look so
unsociably upon each other: for we find that these strangers of
whom we read, were as well acquainted before the conclusion of
the first story, as if they had known each other many years. Let
me prevail upon you to relate some little anecdotes of your own
lives. Fictitious tales we can read in books, and [they] were
therefore better adapted to conversation in those times when books
of amusement were more scarce than they are at present."

After many objections of not knowing what to say, or how to begin,
which I overcame by assuring you how easy it would be, for that
every person is naturally eloquent when they are the hero or
heroine of their own tale, the _Who should begin_ was next in
question.

I proposed to draw lots, which formed a little amusement of
itself. Miss Manners, who till then had been the saddest of the
sad, began to brighten up, and said it was just like drawing king
and queen, and began to tell us where she passed last twelfth day;
but as her narration must have interfered with the more important
business of the lottery