150 THE WILD-FLOWERS OF SELBORNE 



my only son, whom I had also seen ye first growth of 

 in his childhood and ye flourishing of to my unspeak- 

 able satisfaction for almost twenty-one years ; and in 

 a short space of time, to my unspeakable grief, by 

 my great Lord's command cut down by death that 

 he might rise again in a better and more flourishing 

 condition ; though I often implored, if it were agree- 

 able to the Divine will, he might be longer continued 

 to me." 



When Mary Rich had so unexpectedly become 

 Countess of Warwick she came to Lees, she tells us, 

 with "a design to glorify God what I could, and to 

 do what good I could to all my neighbours." This 

 noble determination, so faithfully fulfilled, gives the 

 keynote of her life. In addition to her morning's 

 meditation, it was her constant habit to read several 

 times a day in some pious book, of which St. Augus- 

 tine's Confessions, Baxter's Sainfs Rest, and Foxe's 

 Book of Martyrs were among the favourites. She 

 would also, her chaplain tells us, scatter good books 

 in all the common rooms and places of waiting, 

 that those who waited might not lose their time, but 

 have a bait laid to catch them. Household affairs 

 occupied a large share of her attention. Many are the 

 entries in her diary, which show how faithfully those 

 duties were performed. One or two may be quoted : 

 " Having this morning heard of some disorders that 

 were in my house, I set myself to reprove for them, 

 after I had first prayed to God to let me rebuke 

 without passion, and by God's blessing I was enabled 

 to do my duty without any transporting passion." 

 " Spent some time with my servant, Harry Smith, 

 who was ill." A few days after he dies, and the 

 Countess goes to see his widow. Or Joyce Ceeley, 



