or unknowingly, I cannot
say."

"I think," said I, "that Douglas Jerrold's celebrated bon mot about
Australia must be put down to the same source. He said, if you
remember, speaking of the prolific nature of the soil of the new
continent, `Tickle her with a hoe, and she will laugh with a harvest;'
and in the Psalms we have the verse, `The valleys also shall stand so
thick with corn, that they shall laugh and sing.'"

"It is debatable," said the vicar, "whether we should ascribe these
striking resemblances to unconscious plagiarism or to similarity of
thought."

"We will have to agree with Solomon," said I, "that there is nothing new
under the sun!"

"True enough, Frank," said the vicar. "From the explorations at Nineveh
and at Pompeii, we have already learnt that the ancients well knew of
what we in our pride long ascribed to modern inquiry and research."

Miss Pimpernell here calling upon her brother and Monsieur Parole for
some more of their concerted music, they sat down to a sonata of
Beethoven. The remainder of us broke up into little coteries; Min and I
having a long quiet talk, under cover of the deep tones of the vicar's
violoncello, in a corner by the piano, where we entrenched ourselves for
some time undisturbed.

What did we say?

I'm sure I can't tell you. Probably we talked about the weather and the
crops; the prospects of the coming season; the expected new tenor at the
opera, who was said to rival Orpheus and put Mario into the shade; or,
peradventure, we discussed political economy, grumbling over the high
price of meat and the general expenses of housekeeping! But, please put
yourself in our place, and you will be able, I have no doubt, to imagine
all we could possibly have found to chat about, much better, probably,
than I can describe it. I will merely say for your guidance, without
entering into details, that it was happiness, rapture to me, to be only
beside her--will that enlighten you at all?

Later on, came supper.

After that we had some part-singing of good old glees, like "The Chough
and Crow," "Here in cool Grot," and the ever-beautiful "Dawn of Day."
We then separated, after the pleasantest of evenings, when it was close
on midnight:--Miss Pimpernell's party had been emphatically a social
success.

Of course I walked home with Min. I had been so much with her of late,
that I somehow or other began to look upon her as my own property; and
was jealous of the interference o