e was so earnest,
sincere, and truthful. Gladly would Robert have listened through the
evening, but he reflected that such a man must have many letters to
write, and he must not trespass upon his time.

"I am glad to have made your acquaintance, Mr. Walden; you must always
come and see me when you are in town. I am sure you will do what you
can to stir up the young men of Rumford to resist the aggressions of
the king and his ministers. That there are lively times before us I do
not doubt, but we shall maintain our liberties, cost what it may," he
said, accompanying them to the door and bidding them good-by.

"I am invited to a garden tea-party to-morrow afternoon," said
Berinthia, as they walked home. "Isn't it curious that while Mr. Adams
wants us girls to leave off drinking tea for the sake of a great
principle, I want you for my escort to the tea-party. It will be a
grand affair and you will have a chance to see the best people of the
town."

"I am at your service, and will do the best I can," Robert replied.

V.

A GARDEN TEA-PARTY.

The king's commissioner of imposts, Theodore Newville, had authority
to collect for the crown three shillings per ton on all vessels of not
more than two hundred tons burden, and four shillings per ton on
vessels of larger dimensions. He also had authority to reserve the
tallest, straightest, and largest pine-trees growing in the forests
for the use of the royal navy. When the king's arrow was blazed upon a
tree,[24] no man, not even the owner of the soil, could fell it to the
ground. Every year, and at times as often as every six months, a ship
arrived upon the New England coast for masts and spars.

[Footnote 24: The arrow was the sign of royal authority and
ownership.]

Mr. Newville was provided with an office in the Custom House, but his
home was on the sunny slope of Beacon Hill, a commodious mansion, with
spacious rooms and ample hall. The fluted pilasters with Corinthians
capitals, the modillions along the cornice, the semicircular balcony,
were fitting adornments. The surrounding lawn was smoothly shaven. In
the orchard were apples, pears, and melocotoons;[25] in the garden,
roses, pinks, primroses, daffodils, bachelor's-buttons, and asters of
every hue. The morning sun streaming into the dining-room illumined
the richly cut decanters upon the shelves of the buffet. Very
attractive, suggestive of ease, comfort, and culture, was the library,
with its books and