The happiest fellow I ever knew, was of the number of those good-natured creatures that are said to do no harm to anybody but themselves.  Whenever he fell into any misery, he called it “seeing life,” If his head was broken by a chairman, or his pocket picked by a sharper, he comforted himself by imitating the Hibernian dialect of the one, or the more fashionable cant of the other.  Nothing came amiss to him.  His inattention to money matters had concerned his father to such a degree that all intercession of friends was fruitless.  The old gentleman was on his deathbed.  The whole family (and Dick among the number) gathered around him.

“I leave my second son, Andrew,” said the expiring miser, “my whole estate, and desire him to be frugal.”  Andrew, in a sorrowful tone (as is usual on such occasions), prayed heaven to prolong his life and health to enjoy it himself.  “I recommend Simon, my third son, to the care of his elder brother, and leave him, besides, four thousand pounds.”  “Ah, father!” cried Simon (in great affliction, to be sure), “may heaven give you life and health to enjoy it yourself!” At last, turning to poor Dick:  “As for you, you have always been a sad dog; you’ll never come to good; you’ll never be rich; I leave you a shilling to buy a halter.”  “Ah, father!” cries Dick, without any emotion, “may heaven give you life and health to enjoy it yourself!”

Notes.—­Cardinal de Retz, Jean Francois Paul de Gondi (b. 1614, d. 1679), was leader of the revolt against Jules Mazarin (b. 1602, d. 1661), the prime minister of France during the minority of Louis xiv.  This led to a war which lasted four or five years.  After peace had been concluded, and Louis xiv. established on the throne, Mazarin was reinstated in power, and Cardinal de Retz was imprisoned.

Flanders, formerly part of the Netherlands, is now included in Belgium, Holland and France.

LV.  THE FORTUNE TELLER. (218)

Henry Mackenzie, 1745-1831, was born in Edinburgh, educated at the university there, and died in the same city.  He was an attorney by profession, and was the associate of many famous literary men residing at that time in Edinburgh.  His fame as a writer rests chiefly on two novels, “The Man of Feeling” and “The Man of the World;” both were published before the author was forty years old. ###

Harley sat down on a large stone by the wayside, to take a pebble from his shoe, when he saw, at some distance, a beggar approaching him.  He had on a loose sort of coat, mended with different-colored rags, among which the blue and russet were predominant.  He had a short, knotty stick in his hand, and on the top of it was stuck a ram’s horn; he wore no shoes, and his stockings had entirely lost that part of them which would have covered his feet and ankles; in his face, however, was the plump appearance of good humor; he walked a good, round pace, and a crook-legged dog trotted at his heels.