compelled to live on
less than even workhouse allowance for fear of the gout--and then that
silly Lord Muddeford, who's fretting himself to death because ministers
wouldn't make him an earl--Mrs Bundy, with her two thousand a-year,
making herself miserable because the Grandisons, and my Lord and Lady
Muddeford, and one or two others of the grand folks, every one of whom
she dislikes, won't visit her. Then the squire at Mortland is troubled
with a son that no gentleman will be seen speaking to; and the rich
rector of"----Job nodded his head, but didn't say where--"has a
tipsy-getting wife--and poor Squire Taylor's wife stark mad--Mr Gribbs
also, with his fine unencumbered property, has two idiot children, and
another deaf and dumb, and the other--the only sane child he has, is
little better than a fool. Then the Hoblers are rendered miserable by
the disobedience and misconduct of their worthless children; and the
Dobsons are making themselves wretched because they've no such creatures
to trouble themselves about. The only man of property I can name in the
whole country round who seems free from care, is our fox-hunting squire
at Abbot's Beacon, who really does enter into the life of the sport, has
plenty of money to carry it on with, and has besides one of the nicest
places I think I ever saw."

"But then," interposed Job's better half, "his wife, every body says,
doesn't care a fig for him."

"Then a fig for all his happiness," said Job; "I wouldn't change places
with him for ten thousand times ten thousand his wealth and possessions,
and a dukedom thrown into the bargain;" and Job told the truth too, and
kissed his wife by way of confirmation; for he couldn't help it for the
very life of him, Job couldn't.

"And then only to consider," said Mrs Job Vivian, as she smilingly
adjusted her hair--and very nice hair she had, and kept it very nicely
too, though her goodman had just then tumbled it pretty
considerably--"only think what two lovely children we have; every one
who sees them is struck with their remarkable beauty." This was
perfectly true, by the way, notwithstanding the observation proceeded
from a mother's lips.

"And so good, too, my dear Jessie," continued Job; "I wonder," he
proudly said, "if any father in the land, besides myself, can truly
boast of children who have had the use of their tongues so long, and who
yet, amidst all their chattering and prattling, have never told a
falsehood--so that, amidst