ung ladies as
the other priest, which was, perhaps, owing to his not being so
good-looking; but I am sure he had more influence with the governor,
owing, doubtless, to his bearing him company in drinking mixed liquors,
which the other priest did not do.

'He was a strange fellow, that same new acquaintance of ours, and unlike
all the priests I saw in that country, and I saw plenty of various
nations; they were always upon their guard, and had their features and
voice modulated; but this man was subject to fits of absence, during
which he would frequently mutter to himself, then, though he was
perfectly civil to everybody, as far as words went, I observed that he
entertained a thorough contempt for most people, especially for those
whom he was making dupes. I have observed him whilst drinking with our
governor, when the old man's head was turned, look at him with an air
which seemed to say, "What a thundering old fool you are"; and at our
young ladies, when their backs were turned, with a glance which said
distinctly enough, "You precious pair of ninnyhammers"; and then his
laugh--he had two kinds of laughs--one which you could hear, and another
which you could only see. I have seen him laugh at our governor and the
young ladies, when their heads were turned away, but I heard no sound.
My mother had a sandy cat, which sometimes used to open its mouth wide
with a mew which nobody could hear, and the silent laugh of that
red-haired priest used to put me wonderfully in mind of the silent mew of
my mother's sandy-red cat. And then the other laugh, which you could
hear; what a strange laugh that was, never loud, yes, I have heard it
tolerably loud. He once passed near me, after having taken leave of a
silly English fellow--a limping parson of the name of Platitude, who,
they said, was thinking of turning Papist, and was much in his company; I
was standing behind the pillar of a piazza, and as he passed he was
laughing heartily. O he was a strange fellow, that same red-haired
acquaintance of ours!

'After we had been at Rome about six weeks our old friend the priest of
Naples arrived, but without his subordinate, for whose services he now
perhaps thought that he had no occasion. I believe he found matters in
our family wearing almost as favourable an aspect as he could desire:
with what he had previously taught them and shown them at Naples and
elsewhere, and with what the red-haired confederate had taught them and
sho