HUY. 223 



but good-natured gentleman, and who, if guilty of some few 

 excesses of temper, owing to strong natural excitement, or 

 an extra bottle, was the very soul of kindness, charity, and 

 liberality; but shall content myself with a few. He possessed 

 a perfect museum of antiquities and curiosities, amongst which 

 were dresses and costumes of various kinds, and generally 

 arrayed himself in one or other of those, much to the 

 astonishment and amusement of the villagers. He was also 

 fond of displaying his liberal principles and politics, and had 

 gone so far as to establish a freemason's lodge, which was 

 styled, L'Etoile des Ardennes. This gave great umbrage to 

 the bigoted priesthood of that neighbourhood, who, under 

 their indefatigable chief, the Bishop of. Liege, laboured hard 

 to siippress all such opinions, and who went so far in their 

 denunciations as to assure the simple peasantry that my 



friend A was merely the " old gentleman" in disguise, 



and that if they would examine him well, they would see the 

 cloven feet peeping out. 



An old friend of A 's resided in the village, who was 



dying fast from an unconquerable propensity to an indul- 

 gence in spirituous liquors, and was entirely supported by 

 his kindness and benevolence. After a short absence, on 

 visiting this poor victim to a fatal passion, he found him 

 evidently approaching his end, and surrounded by several 

 priests, who were endeavouring to make him retract his own 

 religion and turn Catholic in his last moments. It was the 

 work of a very few minutes with him to serve a summary 

 ejectment upon these intruders, and upon the decease of 

 poor S e, which occurred a short time afterwards, per- 

 formed himself the Protestant rites of burial over the 

 body, which was most respectfully attended by many of the 

 villagers. 



Amongst several curious animals of the equine species in 

 his stables, was a mule, the very personification of every 



