er and pastry-cook's business, hitherto unknown in
Grimworth, did not quite suffice to turn the scale in the newcomer's
favour, though the landlady at the Woolpack defended him warmly, said he
seemed to be a very clever young man, and from what she could make out,
came of a very good family; indeed, was most likely a good many people's
betters.

It certainly made a blaze of light and colour, almost as if a rainbow had
suddenly descended into the market-place, when, one fine morning, the
shutters were taken down from the new shop, and the two windows displayed
their decorations. On one side, there were the variegated tints of
collared and marbled meats, set off by bright green leaves, the pale
brown of glazed pies, the rich tones of sauces and bottled fruits
enclosed in their veil of glass--altogether a sight to bring tears into
the eyes of a Dutch painter; and on the other, there was a predominance
of the more delicate hues of pink, and white, and yellow, and buff, in
the abundant lozenges, candies, sweet biscuits and icings, which to the
eyes of a bilious person might easily have been blended into a faery
landscape in Turner's latest style. What a sight to dawn upon the eyes
of Grimworth children! They almost forgot to go to their dinner that
day, their appetites being preoccupied with imaginary sugar-plums; and I
think even Punch, setting up his tabernacle in the market-place, would
not have succeeded in drawing them away from those shop-windows, where
they stood according to gradations of size and strength, the biggest and
strongest being nearest the window, and the little ones in the outermost
rows lifting wide-open eyes and mouths towards the upper tier of jars,
like small birds at meal-time.

The elder inhabitants pished and pshawed a little at the folly of the new
shopkeeper in venturing on such an outlay in goods that would not keep;
to be sure, Christmas was coming, but what housewife in Grimworth would
not think shame to furnish forth her table with articles that were not
home-cooked? No, no. Mr. Edward Freely, as he called himself, was
deceived, if he thought Grimworth money was to flow into his pockets on
such terms.

Edward Freely was the name that shone in gilt letters on a mazarine
ground over the doorplace of the new shop--a generous-sounding name, that
might have belonged to the open-hearted, improvident hero of an old
comedy, who would have delighted in raining sugared almonds, like a new
manna