The sporting gentleman would look over him while he painted; would bewilder him with the pedigree of the horse; would have the animal done in the most unpicturesque view; and sternly forbade all introduction of "tone," "light and shade," or purely artistic embellishment of any kind, in any part of the canvas.

In short, the squire wanted a sign-board instead of a picture, and he at last got what he wanted to his heart's content.
One evening, while Valentine--still deeply immersed in the difficulties of depicting the cover-hack--was returning to the Rectory, after a day's work at the Squire's house, his attention was suddenly attracted in the high street of Rubbleford, by a flaming placard pasted up on a dead wall opposite the market-house.
He immediately joined the crowd of rustics congregated round the many-colored and magnificent sheet of paper, and read at the top of it, in huge blue letters:--"JUBBER'S CIRCUS.

THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD." After this came some small print, which nobody lost any time in noticing.

But below the small print appeared a perfect galaxy of fancifully shaped scarlet letters, which fascinated all eyes, and informed the public that the equestrian company included "MISS FLORINDA BEVERLEY, known," (here the letters turned suddenly green) "wherever the English language was known, as The Amazonian Empress of Equitation." This announcement was followed by the names of inferior members of the Company; by a program of the evening's entertainments; by testimonials extracted from the provincial press; by illustrations of gentlemen with lusty calves and spangled drawers, and of ladies with smiling faces, shameless petticoats, and pirouetting legs.

These illustrations, and the particulars which preceded them were carefully digested by all Mr.
Blyth's neighbors; but Mr.Blyth himself passed them over unnoticed.
His eye had been caught by something at the bottom of the placard, which instantly absorbed his whole attention.
In this place the red letters appeared again, and formed the following words and marks of admiration:-- THE MYSTERIOUS FOUNDLING! AGED TEN YEARS!! TOTALLY DEAF AND DUMB!!! Underneath came an explanation of what the red letters referred to, occupying no less than three paragraphs of stumpy small print, every word of which Valentine eagerly devoured.