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CHAPTER XIII.

"All is not empty whose low sound

Reverbs no hollowness."

KING LEAR.

THE

HE excuse, which Mordaunt had made for his abrupt departure from Deane Hall, was not, in truth, totally devoid of foundation; for he had really received an invitatation to join a party of college friends, on a tour to the Lakes; though such a cause would not alone have been sufficient to tear him from a scene, in which all his hopes and wishes were centred. Notwithstanding his being an enthusiastic admirer of the beauties of nature, and moreover a proficient in drawing, all the charms of the wild country he then visited were insufficient long to rivet his attention; and with an agitated mind and aching heart, he returned early in September to Oxford, of which he meant to take his final leave at the end of the following term. No profession had yet been determined on for him, for his uncle, Lord Osselstone, whose title he was one day to inherit, had never, in the least degree interfered on the subject of his education; and the habit of procrastination, which was one of the principal failings of Sir Henry Seymour's character, had hitherto prevented his making the important choice. Thus the period of Mr. Mordaunt's minority had expired, before his guardian could be prevailed on to come to any final determination; and Augustus now deferred his own decision till the period, which would speedily arrive, of his quitting the University of Oxford.

The indolence of disposition, which had rendered Sir Henry Seymour's judgment inert, had not exVOL. I.

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tended its torpid influence to his feelings; and a considerable degree of resentment was produced in his mind by the indifference, indeed total alienation of all regard, which seemed to mark Lord Osselstone's conduct to his nephew. Once, and once only, be fore his going to Oxford, had Augustus met his uncle. For, when Mr. Temple was deputed by Sir Henry, to conduct Mordaunt on his first entering college, they had, on their way, passed through London for the express purpose of paying their respects to his Lordship. But his reception of them had been so cold, so ostentatiously polite, that Mordaunt felt by no means anxious to improve the acquaintance: and yet it might have been supposed, that opportunity of cultivating the friendship of Lord Osselstone would have been rather sought for than declined by his nephew. For all the Earl's estates, which were considerable, were in his own power; and it was the general opinion of those who professed to know him best, that he intended to make a Mr. Davis his heir, who was a distant relation, and had been for many years as unremitting in his attentions to Lord Osselstone, as Mordaunt had been the reverse. Not that Augustus was unaware of the consequence such a disposition of this property might prove to him; for all he inherited from his father was a few thousand pounds, the little that remained of a younger brother's portion, after a life spent and finally sacrificed to the excess of dissipation. But perhaps this conviction on both sides served to make the barrier between them stronger. Lord Osselstone seemed prepared to think, that any attention his nephew could pay him must proceed from interested motives; and Mordaunt was fearful of showing even the little natural affection, that remained in his breast towards him, lest it might be construed into dissimulation.

One of Lord Osselstone's estates was situated within a few miles of Oxford, where he generally spent

a few months every summer; for he was an upright and considerate landlord, and usually made it a point to visit all his estates in the course of the year, for the purpose of inquiring into the actual state of his tenantry-not that he was ever known to lower a rent or remit a debt; no entreaty, no representation, could ever persuade him either to break an agreement himself, or to suffer it to be broken by another. And if ever he found

his rights invaded, or even disputed, there was no extremity or expense he declined in the defence or prosecution of them. He had often heard, unmoved, a tale that might have pierced a heart of stone; and seen, with relentless eyes, the

poor man's

one ewe lamb" sold to pay the arrears of rent. But it not unfrequently happened, that the ironhearted creditor was himself the purchaser of the stock at a price much beyond its value; and the tenant, if deserving, would probably find his Lord's steward inclined, the next year, to let him have his seed-wheat, not gratis, but nearly so.

One peculiarity in the Earl's character was an extraordinary disposition to disbelieve even the most natural expressions of gratitude, and to doubt any testimony whatever of affection to himself. No way was so sure of losing any claim on his favour, as to make the least allusion to his former kindness; and one of the few domestics, that had at any time remained long in his service, was an old gray-headed valet, who had attended him faithfully from his youth; and had scarcely ever been known to agree with him in opinion, or hesitate in expressing, in the strongest terms, his disapprobation. Yet even Lord Chesterfield could not better understand the perfection of politeness than did Lord Osselstone, or make it more his constant practice in his intercourse with the world in general. However his real sentiments might differ from those of his associates, he always took care to soften down so well the sharp

angles of dissent, that no cutting point was left to wound the feelings of others; while his own remained impervious to every eye. All acknowledged he was a just man, and every body felt he was a proud one; but however dignified his manners were to his equals, to his inferiors his pride was silvered over with an affability, that, whilst it made it still more conspicuous, served almost to purchase its forgiveness.

was

To those who reflected on the various qualities of his mind, the picture it presented seemed to be composed of a variety and contrast of colours rarely to be met with, but all so highly varnished, that their very brightness confounded. It semed a mass of contradiction, by some extraneous power compressed into an indefinable whole. His virtues and his vices trod so closely on each other, that it was difficult to draw the line of separation between them, and both appeared to owe their origin either to the temporary error, or general superiority of his judgment; all his actions seemed to proceed only from his head-his heart was never called into play. It difficult to decide whether the finer feelings were really extinct in his breast; or whether, dreading the power passion might usurp, he never for one moment permitted it to assume the reins. In his general establishment he was magnificent;-in the detail of its arrangements almost parsimonious. His charity was ostentatious rather than benign; for, though his name graced every list of public contribution, he never came forward in his own person as the poor man's benefactor. None who experienced the urbanity of Lord Osselstone's manners could believe him to be his own individual enemy; and yet no person could repose in the calm confidence, that Lord Osselstone was his friend. It was evident, that, had he not been a courtier, he would have been a misanthropist.

In conversation he was generally reserved; but, if

circumstances called upon him for exertion, his abilities seemed to rise with the occasion, and his variety of information, his elegance of language, and even the occasional playfulness of his imagination, made him one of the most agreeable of companions. In all Lord Osselstone did, in all Lord Osselstone said, in all he looked, there might be discovered an intensity of thought; which, far from being confined to the surface, seemed to increase in profundity the deeper it was examined. His character, like his manner, was not to be deciphered by vulgar eyes. He was generally serious-never dull; and at times his wit was even sportive. Yet Lord Osselstone, when most gay, could scarcely be deemed cheerful. At the moments of his greatest exhilaration, when an admiring audience hung upon his words, or a more favoured few caught the sparks of animation from the meteor that flashed before them, deriving all their temporary brilliancy from the electric fire of his talents; even at those moments, Lord Osselstone seemed scarcely happy;—the brightness of the emanation was for them; -the dark body remained his own; and few had skill or inclination to penetrate the dense medium that seemed still to surround and obscure his soul.

The first year that Mordaunt had been at college, Lord Osselstone had made no advance towards cultivating the acquaintance that had so inauspiciously commenced; for, except a very slight salutation in an accidental meeting in the street, Augustus had received no mark whatever even of recognizance. And perhaps this inattention was rendered still more mortifying, as whenever Lord Osselstone was in the neighbourhood of Oxford, he generally received a great deal of company at his house; and several of the young men there, whose connexions were amongst his Lordship's associates in London, procured introductions to him, and frequently partook of the elegant hospitality, that always graced his table. Nay, many members of the very college Augustus was in,

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