No More Learning

When Mrs. Sydney had perused the
lines,she wrote on the back with a pencil;
"Perish the love that deadens young desire!
Pursue, poor imp, th' imaginary charm,
Indulge gay Hope, and Fancy's pleasing fire:
Fancy and Hope too soon shall of themselves expire. ''
Mrs. Sydney herself sometimes in-
dulged in the wanderings of the muse,
and would not check this early testimony
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? SJtEtCHES OF YOUTft. 1? 1
of a talent which to her had been a source
of amusement* occasionally had dissipated
the cloud of sorrow, beguiled time of
some of his weary moments, and even
stolen from disappointment the sting
that might have rankled in her bosom.
The encouragement given in the pen-
cilled lines, from one of her favourite
poets (Beattie) delighted and gratified
Rose; and she eagerly sought her mo-
ther to express her thanks. "You shall
not, my love," said Mrs. Sydney, " be
tried by the laws of poetry, but by those
of affection; therefore do not fear sub-
mitting your verse, * with all its imper-
fections on its head,' to those who will
kindly correct, and not rigidly condemn.
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? 172
ROSE AND EMILY; OR,
CHAP. XII.
Emily had now attained her sixteenth
year; and as Mrs. Sydney surveyed her
fine graceful figure, and her intelli-
gent countenance; as she marked the
maturing virtues of her mind, the excel-
lence of her understanding, and the con-
ciliating dignity of her manner, shethought
how the heart of the father would exult in
his child, and with what pride and delight
she should restore her to him ; but he still
mentioned the time of his return as un-
fixed, though he hoped not very distant.
In the same letter he expressed a wish
that Mrs. Sydney would consent to leave
her home for a few weeks, in order to
shew Emily some of the wonders and
beauties of Derbyshire, many of which
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? SKEfclItfS 0F tOtTH. '178
were only a few miles distant from their
residence; and first recommended Mat-
lock, both for scenery and vicinity.
To our sequestered family, this little
excursion was so novel, that it excited a
mixture of interest, pleasure, and appre-
hension. So many years had elapsed
since Mrs. Sydney had been there; so
many changes had happened since that
time, that even she had her terrors, from
the journey, short as it was; but more
from the mingled and crowded mass of
society which she must encounter at such.
a place; but it was the wish of Mr.
Blandford, and she held herself bound to
fulfil it. She was also in too responsible
a situation to yield to her own feelings;
and, by one of those efforts of reason and
self-command, which she had taught her-
self to acquire and practise, she appeared
to think of it as a plan of great pleasure,
and endeavoured to laugh away the fear-
ful anticipations of her daughters and
Emily, to whom the prospect of so public
a place seemed fraught with alarms ; yet
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? 114 ROSE AND EMIiiY; OR,
. novelty had its attraction, and the plan
? was determined upon. Isabel som etimes
timidly wished to remain athome; even the
wild-hearted Rose, much as her fancy had
long. dwelt on Matlock, and much as she
then thought she should laugh at the many
funny-looking people she should see there,
shrunk at the idea that she also would be
seen, and might also be laughed at.
Emily, though she was happy with Mrs.
Sydney, and in the retirement of the par-
sonage, was pleased at the idea of seeing
a new place $ while Phoebe thought only,
;that she should still be with the friends
most dear to her*
It would have created a smile in the
face of the gravest philosopher to see
the preparations of Rose (now fourteen)
for this important journey, this intro-
duction into society. Fox several days
she and Phoebe were almost entirely shut
up in a small apartment, which had been
originally, a play-room, and was now a
general receptacle for things not in use*
At length Mrs, Sydney requested to be
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. 175
admitted into the room, to be informed
of the subject of their conferences, and
the cause of their concealment. "Don't
laugh mamma," said Rose with a blush,
"we are only trying to make a few things
to wear at Matlock, that we may not be
laughed at. " . Rose's request was un-
availing: Mrs. Sydney's astonishment
was quickly succeeded by a fit of laugh-
ter, which so disconcerted poor Rose,
that she hid her face in one of the very
tasty bonnets she and Phoebe had been
manufacturing. "How could you, my
dear girl," said her mother, "imagine
that such a thing as this could be worn?
Where did you get the pattern? " "O
mamma," replied Rose, "Sophy Vin-
cent lent Phoebe a book which hex
cousin in London had sent her; and
the newspapers, you know, often give
us an account of fashions, so that we
cannot be very much mistaken. " The
book was one which contained colour-
ed drawings of the most outr6 fashion-
able costume: and one of the bonnets
i4
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? \16 ROSE AKI> EMI3LY y OR,
there represented, Rose had very success-
fully imitated. "But where did you get
the materials? " "I found them mamma
amongst some old things you had formerly
given me, and so I thought I would
make them useful. " "Ah my dear Rose,"
said Mrs. Sydney, seriously, "it is not
usefulness, but ornament you aimed at;
but, were I to indulge you in these ri-
diculous preparations, in this vanity of
dress, instead of not being laughed at,
which you assign as a motive for your
ingenuity, I should see my child the
object of general derision. This bonnet
certainly resembles that which you have
selected as your model; but would you
wear velvet in July? " "I had no mus-
lin or sarsnet mamma, and I thought the
shape was the principal thing. " "You
see, my dear girl, how ridiculous those
persons render themselves, . who, from
vanity and ignorance, attempt to follow
fashions of which they can only judge by
description. --Put aside these fripperies
Rose," smiling and kissing her, "and
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. 177
believe me, you will not be laughed at
in your simple white frock and straw bon-
net, though you may fail to excite notice. "
Rose, in the deepest confusion, lis-
tened to her mother: the smile and kiss
which concluded the remonstrance, as-
sured her of forgiveness, and partly
restored her to herself: the sweetness and
cheerfulness of her temper soon triumph-
ed over this little mortification of her
vanity; she quickly removed every ves-
tige offashion; desired Phoebe to return
the book, which had misled her into folly,
to Sophy Vincent, and in future read,
without wishing to copy, the elegant
newspaper details of fashion.
Previous to their departure from the
parsonage, was Mrs. Sydney's birth-day;
among the little testimonies of congratu-
lation which were offered, Rose presented
her with the following lines: addressed
<< TO MY MOTUER,. QN H? R fyJll&DAY:'
Muse of affection I aid my lay,
My thoughts direct, my verse inspire,
And on a mother's natal day, .
Attune to sweetest sounds my. lyre,
13;
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? ROSE AND EMILY; OR,
Dear parent stem from which I sprung,.
My shelter in life's earliest hour;
Upon whose arms I fondly hung;
O! foster still thy trembling flower. .
And may the dews of Heaven descend, .
In blessings on thy honour'd head;
No tempest rude thy. branches rend,
On earth's cold lap no leaf be shed.
See, hand in hand, a duteous train .
Advance, their filial rites to pay,
Own the mild influence of thy reign.
And bless thy kind, parental sway.
Hallow'd by love, a wreath they bring,
Pure offering at affection's shrine;
Each tender bud that woos the spring.
Shall round thy flexile. form entwine.
The spotless lily first appears.
Rejoicing in our vale to dwell;
And as it shines through April tears,
I see a type of Isabel.
A wild rose in the garden fair,
Budded on May's delightful morn:
O! that for thy dew sake it were
The blameless rose without a thorn I ?
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. 179
A bright exotic next t view,
The cherish'd stranger of our bowers;
Whose glowing tints, and blushing hue ? >>
Proclaim, the Emily of flowers.
And shall our Phoebe be forgot,
The humble daisy of our plain 1' '. '. .
She, happy in her lowly lot,
For ever blooms in Flora's train. i
Like her great grandsire of the sun,
Whose eye pursues the orb of day;
So faithfully her course is run,
As friendship's smile directs her way.
Arid when this wreath entwin'd by love,
Shall fade beneath the solar blaze; >
Each bud shall bloom in realms above, .
An Amaranth that ne'er decays.
The day at length arrived for their
excursion to Matlock. Two post chaises
from the neighbouring market town, in
one of which Mrs. Sydney, Emily, and
Isabel were seated 5 ;and in:the otheri .
Rose and Phoebe, who had the care of
theiri packages, conveyed them to the
place of their destination, where apart- .
ments had previously been engaged. --
I6
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? 180 ROSE AND EMILY; OR,
Rose visited her flowers, looked at her
bird, and caressed her cat, before she
jumped into the chaise. After a few.
miles, which marked the boundary of her
walks, every thing was new to her; many
parts of the road possessed peculiar
beauty and interest; but when arrived
at Matlock, she felt as if transported into*
another region. ; the woods seemed to
have sprung up in a moment fronr the
barren moor which. surrounded them &
the hills raised; the rocks hewn, the river
flowing, a? ; if. by the magic wand of an .
enchanter, so suddenly, so unexpectedly
do they present themselves to the view.
Passing by a small cottage within a.
short distance. from . Matlock, their atten-
tion was excited by the singular appear-
ance of a. woman who was. repairing a^
wall, and placing the heavy stones upon.
each other with allthe apparent ease and.
strength of a man. . .
On arriving at the hotel, the rocks, the
woods, the river, in their boldest and most
striking point of view, burst upon their
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. 181
astonished sight. Isabel surveyed all with
the eye, and the truest feelings of a pain-
ter, and thought with what pleasure she
should sketch its varied scenery. The
ash and oak, trees indigenous to the soil,
mingled their branches together; pro-
ducing, from the lightness of the one,
and the richness of the other, an effect
perfectly harmonious. Emily gazed with
surprise and delight, upon a scene at once
so grand, so new; while Rose thought with
extacy upon climbing the hills, running
among the woods, and gathering the fruits
and flowers which they spontaneously
produce.
The curiosity of the company was in-
stantly awakened by observing this party
Qf females, without one male attendant;
and various were the conjecture*formed,
as to who. they were, and whence they
came.
Finding themselves the objects of
general. examination, and as it was near
the hour of dinner^ they retired to their
chambers to make some alterations in
their dress,
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? 182 ROSE AND EMILY J OR,
On entering the dining-room, they
found the principal table entirely filled,
and they were greatly relieved from the
embarrassment of mixing in such a mul-
titude, by being conducted to a side-table* .
where a small party were previously
seated. The noise and confusion of a
public dinner like this, so distracted their ?
attention, that, though Mrs. Sydney en-
deavoured to set them the example of.
eating, she almost entirely failed; and, . .
as soon as the cloth was removed, they ?
were glad to rise; and fled, like affrighted;
birds, from this scene of social disorder. .
"Now," said Rose, " we can hear our- .
selves speak, but in that Babel hum, I
could neither hear nor understand. "--
** Did you see any thing I" enquired:
Emily. "Yes, I saw many very odd looking
people, and some so funnily dressed! Did
you observe that young lady in a riding
habit who sat opposite me? What a flut-
ter of feathers she had in her beaver hat 1"
Mrs. Sydney smiled at this comment upon
dress, and glanced her eye on Rose, whose
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? SKETCHES OF TOUTH. ISS
cheek was immediately crimsoned with
the blush of conscience* "We will cross
the river," said Mrs. Sydney, " and go to
the opposite wood. "
On arriving there^ their first sensation
of pleasure was to find themselves sepa-
rated from society in which they had felt
neither interest nor amusement, and to
be once more all the world to each other-
They climbed to a seat, whence they
could observe the motley crowd at a dis-
tance, happy to reflect that they were
divided from it by the "amber wave of
the Derwent," which flowed beneath
them. After resting themselves for a
little time, they advanced further up the
hill; and, on its top, came to a little
gate, which . an old lame man, who said
he had lost his leg by a fall in one of the
{ mines, opened, and offered them, at the
same time* some pieces of ore. . They
understood it^ as it was, a kind of com-
mercial charity; and, taking some, paid
him his price. He conducted them to
another part of the hill, which opened on
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? 18* IIOSE AND EMILY; OB,
a more extensive view, but did not pos*
sess any peculiar degree of beauty or in-
terest. The man, who acted as a guide
to direct the company down an opposite
part of the hill to that by which they had
ascended, turned, and pointed out to Mrs.
Sydney before she quitted this spot,
"Phoebe's cottage. " "And who is
Phoebe? " enquired Mrs. Sydney. "A
lass of our place, madam; a sort of a lad
as one may say; for she rides horses to
water, and breaks them in jr and does
any kind of man's work. She is a good
lass after all, but rather queerish or so,
and yonds her cottage/' "A Joan of
Arc, mamma," whispered Rose; "I wish
we may see her. " Mrs. Sydney then re^
collected the woman whom they had seen
mending a stone walljust before they en-
tered Matlock, and from the situation of
the houses conjectured it was. the same.
Their guide led them to ,. a seat, which
commanded an unobstructed view of the
hotel, and. the company disposed in diffe-
rent parties; some walking 01 riding,
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. " 135
and others crossing, or sa:&:. ? " down the
river beneath them. The. old man en-
quired if they would like a song; and
Mrs. Sydney, unwilling to refuse what
might give him pleasure, rather than.
from the hope of deriving any herself
consented to have a specimen of his vocal
talents. After asking whether she would
like him to sing loud, low, or moderate,
and choice being made of the latter, he
began the fall of fair Rosamond in a voice
to which that of a stentor would have
been a whisper, and the sound of thun-
der a gentle lullaby. After listening for
half an hour to this " songof other times/'
and finding much remained to make the
narrative complete, Mrs. Sydney declared
herself satisfied, and declined troubling
him for any more, concluding with some
remark upon the strength of his voice.
"J31ess your heart," he answered, " this
is nothing to? what I could do, if you had
not asked for it soft; why I can make
them hear from this spot all over Mat-
lock; and gentlemen and ladies often
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? 186 HOSE AND EMILT; OR,
go to that hotel yonder, and bid me stand
kere and sing to them. " ** No wonder,"
said Rose, " I hope the next time you
sing, we shall be there too. " Mrs. Syd-
ney smiled, and the party began to de-
scend the hill, whose circuitous windings
sometimes made them doubtful whether
they were in the right path, as the old
man did not attend them any further.
They had staid beyond the hour of tea;
and, not being inclined to return into the
house, again crossed the water, and walk-
ed over the village, examining the diffe-
rent articles of spar and petrifactionss
which were displayed in every window
to attract the eye and the purse. Our
little party joined the supper table, and
heard there were preparations making
that evening for a ball; but fatigued with
novelty, and seeing no one whom they
knew, they retired to rest at a very early
hour.
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? 8KETCHKS OF YOUTH.
CHAP. XIIL
The next morning they were in the break-
fast room before many of the company
'were assembled,and thus hoped to escape
observation and scrutiny. A clergyman,
? whose appearance denoted the gentle-
man, and whose spectacles, in the
opinion of Rose, proclaimed him the
scholar, addressed them with the compli-
ments of the morning. Mrs. Sydney re.
plied with that unaffected geod-breeding
which always characterised her manners^
and the stranger, whose breakfast tray
was next to her's, seemed desirous of con-
tinuing the conversation. He observed
that their cream jug was soon exhausted,
and he presented them with his own ; his
slice of butter was also transported to
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? 188 ROSE AND EMILT J OR,
their plate; and by these polite, easy,
and kind attentions soon dissipated the
reserve that hung upon the younger ones.
He told them he had been several weeks
at Matlock, and was sorry that the cus-
toms of the table, which placed the long-
est residents of the house at the upper
part, and those who had latest arrived at
the lower, prevented his shewing them
those attentions at dinner which he was
desirous of doing; but added, " My
sister, whom I expect to-day with her
niece, will be near you, and I shall ap-
point her to be my deputy: she is so fre-
quently here, that the servants are all at-
tentive to her; and she is so accustomed
to the manners of the place, that she finds
herself quite at home, and often renders
those who are strangers more comfortable
than they otherwise would be in such a
mixed society; where each person re-
gards the other with a kind of cautious
scrutiny, that embarrasses the timid, and
repels even the social. " .
A proposal so polite and considerate*
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. 1 89
which at once promised countenance and
protection, was gladly acceded to, and
they parted each to pursue the amuse-
ments of the morning.
Previous to dinner, Mr. Falkland
(which was the gentleman's name) intro-
duced his sister to Mrs. Sydney and her
party, and politely consigning them to
her care, took himself the seat of presi-
dent (as it is . termed) at the top of the
table. Mrs. Falkland (for though still
unmarried she had relinquished Miss,
that epithet of " single blessedness,")
possessed an easy cheerfulness of manner,
which soon removed all embarrassment,
from our little party, and the meal passed,
even to theira, pleasantly. Isabel's modest
eye ventured to glance round the table,
though fearful ofparticularlyresting upon
any object, lest she herself should be no-
ticed. Emily remarked a few, whom pecu-
liarity of countenance or manner distin-
guished from the multitude; while Rose,
ever quick to observe as to feel, saw and
commented upon all. Mrs. Falkland was
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? 190 ROSE AND EMILY; OR,
accompanied by her niece, Fanny Bel.
mont, a girl of about sixteen; who, having
frequently been at Matlock with her
aunt, was, to our young friends, a plea-
sant and communicative companion. Af-
ter dinner Mrs. Falkland proposed join-
ing them for an early evening walk, and,
till then, they separated.
Rose, who frequently attached too
much value to personal beauty, com-
menced her comments upon Fanny Bel-
mont; wished her nose did not turn up,
and that her mouth was smaller. "Your
observations upon person, my dear Rose/*
said her mother, "often vex and displease
me. There may be a very intelligent
countenance, one expressive of high in-
tellect, and sweetness of temper, without
a feature, when considered 'separately,
which we can admire. Miss Belmont's
nose, "un petit nez retrousse" " would be
denominated by the French a beauty,
as giving a peculiar archness and pi-
quancy to the expression of the counte-
nance; for my own part I cannot fancy
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? SKETCHES OF YOUTH. 191
any other nose adapted to her face; if
her mouth be wide, as you, my dear
Rose, so very pathetically lament, have
you ever seen finer teeth? a sweeter
dimple when she smiles, or eyes more ex-
pressive? Is not her complexion clear
and animated? And does not the whole
character of her countenance imply good
sense and good nature? Such a girl,
though she may not strike us with admi-
ration, will sooner win our affections than
one whose charms consist merely in pretty
features, without any gr^ce of mind} for
we turn from the insipidity of mere per-
sonal beauty, to refresh ourselves, as it
were, at the fountain of intellect; and
Fanny Belmont will delight us when our
prettier companions will be forgotten. "
Rose felt her mother's reproof, and was
grateful for her admonition; and when
Mr. Falkland, his sister, and niece, join-
ed them for the evening walk, she was
particularly attentive to the latter; her
heart making ample atonement for the
error of her tongue. Mr. Falkland spoke
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? 192 ROSE AND EMILY; OK,
of the road they had travelled the pre-
ceding day, and particularized some of
its fine and characteristic features. Rose,
to whom he had addressed an occasional
remark, was encouraged to add her own.
"I thought," she said, "as we crossed.
the wide moor, that it must resemble the
scene of some of Fingal's battles; that
such was 'the dark brown heath. where
the chiefs of Ossian met; where Fingal
and Swaran fought,' the heroes of other
times. " Observing Mr. Falkland's good
humoured smile^. and his eyes sparkling
through his spectacles, as he fixed them
attentively upon her, she continued-->** I
almost expected to see their spirits flit
before me, and some fair Agandecca,
fall beneath the steel of Starna, * like a
wreath of snow that slides from the rocks
of Ronan. ' The grey stones also seemed
to mark the graves of the heroes, and. I
thought whose fame is in that dark
green tomb ? Four stones with their heads
of moss. stand there, and mark the nar-
row house of death. '" "Delightfully
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