added he, " if you please, Mr Melfort, as the "fignal is given, we may clear the decks, and "form the line of battle."

The Captain's joke was applauded with a loud laugh; during which honest Umphraville, whose face is no hypocrite, cast to my fide of the table a look of difpleasure and contempt, which I was at no loss to interpret. Meantime the fervants removed one half of the table, that we might fit sociably, as Mr Mel. fort termed it, round the other which was immediately furnished with a fet of fresh glaffes, and cleared of every incumbrance that might retard the circulation of the bottle.

Our friends who had been fo filent during the prefence of the ladies, now began to take their revenge, and enlarge their share of the conversation in proportion to the number of bumpers they swallowed: they vied with each other in the number of their stories and their jokes; al of which seemed to be equally relished, and not the less so, that they now became fomewhat loose and licentious.

Mr Melville had at first endeavoured, tho' in a very easy and polite manner, to give fomewhat of a genteeler turn to the converfa

tion; but his endeavours, though fupported

VOL. III.

by a good deal of wit and vivacity, could not long withstand the general disposition of the company. He now found himself as little able to relish their merriment as Mr Umphraville, next whom he was seated; and they had begun to enter into conversation of a very different kind, when Umphraville received a flap on the shoulder from one of the company, who at the same time reminded him that he was hunted.

My friend was at first startled with a familiarity to which he was little accustomed; having recovered his compofure, however, he thanked the gentleman, though with an air rather formal and referved, for his attention, and drank off his bumper. But having, it seems, left a little more than was proper in the bottom of his glass, he was faluted with a call of "No heeltops!" from another corner of the table. This enigmatical advice being explained to him, he complied with it also, faying, however, with his natural firmness of tone and manner, "That it was his rule to " fill and drink his glass when and how he "pleased; and that, as he had already gone " greater lengths than usual, Mr Melfort muft " excuse him if he did not depart from it."

I saw that Mr Umphraville was now heartily tired of the company, and was not forry when, a little after this incident, both he and Mr Melville withdrew. Having remained long enough to witness some jocular remarks to which this gave occafion, I followed them to the drawing-room, where I found they were much more agreeably employed in drinking coffee with Mrs Melfort, while one of her daughters obliged my old friend, by playing fome Scots airs upon the harpficord, which the other accompanied with a voice equally fweet and expreffive.

The converfation which succeeded was fupported, in an easy agreeable manner, by Mr Melville and the ladies, with that mixture of ferious remark which made it not unpleasing to Mr Umphraville; nor lid he suffer in their opinion by the part he occafionally took in it. The filent approbation of his countenance, during the performance of the young ladies, and the observations which it gave him an opportunity of making on the character of our native mufic, had already made the old gentleman a favourite; nor were the rest of the company difpleased with the turn of his fentiments, when he complained, that the drawing

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ing-rooms where, in his younger days, the ladies and gentlemen were accustomed to the company of each other, were now almost totally deferted; and that, as far as he could observe, amidst the boasted refinement of modern manners, the gentlemen paid less attention to the ladies, both in public places and in private society, than they had done fifty years ago.

After some time passed in this manner, the noise of laughter and of vociferation on the stairs announced the approach of Mr Melfort and his company. The physician, and one of the lawyers, were indeed the only members of it who had chofen to attend him to the drawing-room; both of whom were prodigioufly flustered; and yet, to my astonishment, they contrived to put a decent face upon it, and fell into fewer improprieties than could have been expected. A drawing-room, however, was not their element; and, after swallowing a little coffee, they withdrew, leaving honest Melfort fast asleep in a corner of the fettee.

Mr Umphraville and I took our leave. We were scarce out of the house when he exclaim

ed,

"O rus! quando ego te afpiciam ?"

And, after a little pause, "Good God!" faid he, "Charles, can such scenes be com"mon at poor Melfort's? To what a degree " must he have lost all respect for himself, " and all taste for true happiness, who, for " such society as we have this day witnessed, "can forego the agreeable conversation of his " own family, or who can allow the elegance " of their amusements to be disturbed by the "intrusion of his loose and riotous compa"nions?"

I reprefented to my friend, that he saw the matter in too strong a light. I observed, that the excess, on this occafion, had probably been greater than usual; Mr Melfort was nowife fingular in the manner of entertaining his friends; that, in this country, the general opinion justified the observation of the poet, "Fecundi calices quem non fecere difertum;" that wine was supposed necessary to remove the natural referve of our manner, and give a proper degree of ease and spirit to our conversation. As to the appearance of Melfort and his friends in the drawing-room, I obferved, that a little habit made the occafional intrufion

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