THE MAJOR, THE PARSON, AND HUMPHRIES. 307 



I do not know now whether he is ahve or 

 dead. 



Major Symons was an Irish gentleman, and 

 all he wanted was cash ; he was not overdone 

 with that, I think, for he turned off Humphries, 

 who, in addition to being my underkeeper, was 

 groom, footman, coachman, valet, and any- 

 thing else in the house and out of it. I liked 

 the Major very much, he wasn't a bad sort of 

 man, but all he wanted was cash. After I had 

 been with him some little while he asked me 

 to bring my book in, which I was very pleased 

 to do, for I had not seen the colour of his 

 money as yet. Before he came to Chilton 

 House he had written to me, to say that there 

 would be a barge containing his things at 

 Hungerford, and directing me to get them 

 carted up to the house, and employ a car- 

 penter to put up the beds and so forth. This 

 I had done and paid for, and I had also found 

 food for the dogs, and paid Humphries six or 

 seven weeks' pay. Everyone in the village 

 was complaining that they had not seen the 

 colour of the Major's money, but when I took 



