CHAPTER VII.
A CHANGE OF PROSPECTS .-- A NEW INSIGHT INTO THE CHARACTER OF THE HERO .-- A CONFERENCE BETWEEN TWO BROTHERS.
A DAY or two after the conversation recorded in my last chapter, St.
John, to my inexpressible regret, left us for London; however, we had enjoyed several conferences together during his stay, and when we parted it was with a pressing invitation on his side to visit him in London, and a most faithful promise on mine to avail myself of the request.
No sooner was he fairly gone than I went to seek my uncle; I found him reading one of Farquhar's comedies.

Despite my sorrow at interrupting him in so venerable a study, I was too full of my new plot to heed breaking off that in the comedy.

In very few words I made the good knight understand that his descriptions had infected me, and that I was dying to ascertain their truth; in a word, that his hopeful nephew was fully bent on going to town.

My uncle first stared, then swore, then paused, then looked at his leg, drew up his stocking, frowned, whistled, and told me at last to talk to him about it another time.

Now, for my part, I think there are only two classes of people in the world authorized to put one off to "another time,"-- prime ministers and creditors; accordingly, I would not take my uncle's dismissal.