FRAGMENT. 271 



replied : ^* My wife has had a long fit of illnefs, and 

 " I myfelf have been confiderably out of order.'* 

 '' Oh ! my poor good man,'* replied the lad, 

 ** you are not comfortable here : come, come ; I 

 " will find you a place within doors.** 



In fa6t, he exerted himfelf fo zealoufly, that he 

 procured us an apartment above flairs, where, not- 

 withftanding the crowd, he contrived to accom- 

 modate us with chairs, a table, and fome bread 

 and wine. While he was fhcwing us the way, I 

 faid to John-James : *' This young man fcems to 

 ** be very familiar with you ; furely he does not 

 *' know who you are ?" " Oh ! yes,'* replied he, 

 •^^ we have been acquainted thefe feveral years. My 

 ** wife and I ufed frequently to come hither, in 

 *' fine weather, to eat a cutlet of an evening.** 



The appellation of ^' good man," fo frankly 

 beftowed on him by the tavern-boy, who had, un- 

 doubtedly, long miftaken John- James for fome 

 honeft mechanic ; the joy which he exprefled at 

 feeing him again, and the zeal with which he 

 ferved him, conveyed to me, completely, an idea 

 of the good -nature which the fublime Author of 

 Emilius difplayed in his moft trivial anions. 



So far from feeking to fhine in the eyes of any 

 one whatever, he himfelf acknowledged, with a 



fentiment 



