The Last Chronicle of Barset
Page 86
"He is a man whose conversation is not pleasing to me," Mr. Crawleysaid to his wife that night.
"Do not judge of him too quickly, Josiah," his wife said. "Thereis so much of good in him! He is kind, and generous, and I thinkaffectionate."
"But he is of the earth, earthy. When you and the other ladies hadretired, the conversation at first fell on the habits and valueof--foxes. I have been informed that in these parts the fox isgreatly prized, as without a fox to run before the dogs, thatscampering over the country which is called hunting, and whichdelights by the quickness and perhaps by the peril of the exercise,is not relished by the riders. Of the wisdom or taste hereindisplayed by the hunters of the day I say nothing. But it seemed tome that in talking of foxes Dr. Grantly was master of his subject.Thence the topic glided to the duties of a bishop and to questionsof preaching, as to which Dr. Grantly was not slow in offering hisopinion. But I thought that I would rather have heard him talk aboutthe foxes for a week together." She said nothing more to him, knowingwell how useless it was to attempt to turn him by any argument.To her thinking the kindness of the archdeacon to them personallydemanded some indulgence in the expression, and even in theformation, of an opinion, respecting his clerical peculiarities.
On the next day, however, Mr. Crawley, having been summoned by thearchdeacon into the library for a little private conversation, foundthat he got on better with him. How the archdeacon conquered him mayperhaps be best described by a further narration of what Mr. Crawleysaid to his wife. "I told him that in regard to money matters, as hecalled them, I had nothing to say. I only trusted that his son wasaware that my daughter had no money, and never would have any. 'Mydear Crawley,' the archdeacon said,--for of late there seems to havegrown up in the world a habit of greater familiarity than that whichI think did prevail when last I moved much among men;--'my dearCrawley, I have enough for both.' 'I would we stood on more equalgrounds,' I said. Then as he answered me, he rose from his chair. 'Westand,' said he, 'on the only perfect level on which such men canmeet each other. We are both gentlemen.' 'Sir,' I said, rising also,'from the bottom of my heart I agree with you. I could not havespoken such words; but coming from you who are rich to me who ampoor, they are honourable to the one and comfortable to the other.'"
"And after that?"
"He took down from the shelves a volume of sermons which his fatherpublished many years ago, and presented it to me. I have it now undermy arm. It hath the old bishop's manuscript notes, which I will studycarefully." And thus the archdeacon had hit his bird on both wings.