olution. As to friends,
preferring my own judgment to theirs, I did not care much; but an
expression of anxiety, implying a doubt of the soundness of my own
judgment, coming, perhaps, twenty times a day from her whose care they
were as well as mine, was not a matter to smile at, and very great
trouble it did give me. My answer at last was, as to the boys, I want
them to be _like me_; and as to the girls, In whose hands can they be so
safe as in _yours_? Therefore my resolution is taken: _go to school they
shall not_.

300. Nothing is much more annoying than the _intermeddling of friends_,
in a case like this. The wife appeals _to them_, and '_good breeding_,'
that is to say, _nonsense_, is sure to put them on _her side_. Then,
they, particularly the _women_, when describing the _surprising
progress_ made by their _own sons_ at school, used, if one of mine were
present, to turn to him, and ask, to what school _he went_, and what
_he_ was _learning_? I leave any one to judge of _his_ opinion of her;
and whether _he_ would like her the better for that! 'Bless me, so tall,
and _not learned_ any thing _yet_!' 'Oh yes, he has,' I used to say, 'he
has learned to ride, and hunt, and shoot, and fish, and look after
cattle and sheep, and to work in the garden, and to feed his dogs, and
to go from village to village in the dark.' This was the way I used to
manage with troublesome customers of this sort. And how glad the
children used to be, when they got clear of such criticising people! And
how grateful they felt to me for the _protection_ which they saw that I
gave them against that state of restraint, of which other people's boys
complained! Go whither they might, they found no place so pleasant as
home, and no soul that came near them affording them so many means of
gratification as they received from me.

301. In this happy state we lived, until the year 1810, when the
government laid its merciless fangs upon me, dragged me from these
delights, and _crammed me into a jail amongst felons_; of which I shall
have to speak more fully, when, in the last Number, I come to speak of
the duties of THE CITIZEN. This added to the difficulties of my task of
_teaching_; for now I was snatched away from the _only_ scene in which
it could, as I thought, properly be executed. But even these
difficulties were got over. The blow was, to be sure, a terrible one;
and, oh God! how was it felt by these poor children! It was in the month
of July