shirk my duty for any of that."

"Nothing would ever make you shirk your duty, Joshua. And I hope that

you know me too well to suppose that I ever would dream of suggesting

it. But I do want to see you a Canon, and I know that he begins to have

influence in the Church, and therefore the Church is not at all the

place to allude to his private affairs in. And, after all, what do we

know about them? It does seem so low to be led away by gossip."

"Maria," said the Rector, severely sorry, "I must beg you to leave me

to my conscience. I shall not refer to his private affairs. I shall put

leading truths in a general way, and let him make the home application."

"Put the cap on if it fits. Very well: you will injure yourself, and do

no one any good. Lord Nelson won't know it; he is too simple-minded.

But Admiral Darling will never forgive us for insulting him while he is

staying at the Hall."

"Maria! Well, I have long given up all attempts at reasoning with

you. If I see a man walking into a furnace, do I insult him by saying

beware?"

"As I am beyond all reason, Joshua, it is far above me to understand

that. But if you escape insulting him, what you do is far worse, and

quite unlike a gentleman. You heap a whole pile of insults upon your own

brother clergymen."

"I do not at all understand you, Maria: you fly off in such a way from

one thing to another!"

"Not at all. Anybody who is not above paying attention must understand

me. When he is at Merton he goes to church, and his Rector is bound to

look after him. When he is at sea, he has his Chaplain, who preaches

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