forerunner, look only
at the small things beneath their eyes, and ignore the course of the
world at large.'

'But Roman freedom and Roman manners were going to the dogs when
Horace wrote.'

'But Christ was about to be born, and men were already being made fit
by wider intelligence for Christ's teaching. And as for freedom, has
not freedom grown, almost every year, from that to this?'

'In Rome they were worshipping just such men as this Melmotte. Do you
remember the man who sat upon the seats of the knights and scoured the
Via Sacra with his toga, though he had been scourged from pillar to
post for his villainies? I always think of that man when I hear
Melmotte's name mentioned. Hoc, hoc tribuno militum! Is this the man
to be Conservative member for Westminster?'

'Do you know of the scourges, as a fact?'

'I think I know that they are deserved.'

'That is hardly doing to others as you would be done by. If the man is
what you say, he will surely be found out at last, and the day of his
punishment will come. Your friend in the ode probably had a bad time
of it, in spite of his farms and his horses. The world perhaps is
managed more justly than you think, Mr Carbury.'

'My Lord, I believe you're a Radical at heart,' said Roger, as he took
his leave.

'Very likely,--very likely. Only don't say so to the Prime Minister,
or I shall never get any of the better things which may be going.'

The Bishop was not hopelessly in love with a young lady, and was
therefore less inclined to take a melancholy view of things in general
than Roger Carbury. To Roger everything seemed to be out of joint. He
had that morning received a letter from Lady Carbury, reminding him of
the promise of a loan, should a time come to her of great need. It had
come very quickly. Roger Carbury did not in the least begrudge the
hundred pounds which he had already sent to his cousin; but he did
begrudge any furtherance afforded to the iniquitous schemes of Sir
Felix. He felt all but sure that the foolish mother had given her son
money for his abortive attempt, and that therefore this appeal had
been made to him. He alluded to no such fear in his letter. He simply
enclosed the cheque, and expressed a hope that the amount might
suffice for the present emergency. But he was disheartened and
disgusted by all the circumstances of the Carbury family. There was
Paul Montague, bringing a woman such as Mrs Hurtle down to Lowestoft,
declaring his purpose o