MR. SPONGE'S SPORTING TOUR. 211 



And now behold Mr. Puffington, fat, fair, and rather more than 

 forty — Puffington, no longer the light limber lad who patronised 

 us in Bond-street, but Puffington a plump, portly sort of personage, 

 filling his smart clothes uncommonly full. Men no louger hailing 

 him heartily from bay windows, or greeting him cheerily in short but 

 familiar terms, but bowing ceremoniously as they passed with their 

 wives, or perhaps turning down streets or into shops to avoid him. 

 "What is the last rose of summer to do under such circumstances ? 

 What, indeed, but retire into the country ? A man may shine there 

 long after he is voted a bore in town, provided none of his old friends 

 are there to proclaim him. Country people are tolerant of twaddle, 

 and slow of finding things out for themselves. Puff now turned 

 his attention to the country, or rather to the advertisements of 

 estates for sale, and immortal George Eobins soon fitted him with 

 one of his earthly paradises ; a mansion replete with every modern 

 elegance, luxury, and convenience, situated in the heart of the 

 most lovely scenery in the world, with eight hundred acres of land 

 of the finest quality, capable of growing forty bushels of wheat 

 after turnips. In addition to the estate there was a lordship or 

 reputed lordship to shoot over, a river to fish in, a pack of fox- 

 hounds to hunt with, and the advertisements gave a sly hint as to 

 the possibility of the property influencing the representation of the 

 neighbouring borough of Swillingford, if not of returning the 

 member itself. 



This was Hanby House, and though the description undoubtedly 

 partook of George's usual high-flown coideur-cle-rose style, the 

 manor being only a manor provided the owner sacrificed his 

 interest in Swillingford by driving off its poachers, and the river 

 being only a river when the tiny Swill was swollen into one, still 

 Hanby House was a very nice attractive sort of place, and seen in 

 the rich foliage of its summer dress, with all its roses and flower- 

 ing shrubs in full blow, the description was not so wide of the 

 mark as Robins's descriptions usually were. Puff bought it, and 

 became what he called " a man of p-r-o-r-perty." To be sure, after 

 he got possession he found that it was only an acre here and there 

 that would grow forty bushels of wheat after turnips, and that 

 there was a good deal more to do at the house than he expected, 

 the furniture of the late occupants having hidden many defects, 

 added to which they had walked off with almost everything they 

 could wrench down, under the name of fixtures ; indeed, there was 

 not a peg to hang up his hat when he entered. This, however, 

 was nothing, and Puff very soon made it into one of the most 

 perfect bachelor residences that ever was seen. Not but that it 

 was a family house, with good nurseries and offices of every 

 description ; but Puff used to take a sort of wicked pleasure in 

 telling the ladies who came trooping over with their daughters, 



