THE LITTLE NATIONS
But the matter is as follows: On the 4th of August, the day of the service at St. Paul's, Dr. Duthoit was walking up and down and about that pleasant garden on the slopes of the Wye. Just above the water his gardener had prepared, under direction and instruction, a plot of ground in a very special manner. I do not gather the precise purpose of the operation; but it seems that the soil had been made very fine and level over a superficies of about ten yards. To this place the Prebendary walked slowly and reflectively, wishing to assure himself that his orders had been exactly carried out. The plot had been perfectly level the night before, but Dr. Duthoit wanted to be more than sure about it. But to his extreme annoyance, when he turned by the fig-tree, he saw that the plot was very far from even. He is an old man, but his sight is good, and at a distance
105
