"
"Yes, dear; I see," said Miss Sheppard, blushing terribly.
We all blushed.
"You naughty girl," said mamma; "hold your tongue, or I'll send you
to the kitchen."
"But mamma, you know its quite true," said Sissy. "Didn't I show you
de black man just now, Miss Sheppard, when he was going to de lake?
I said dere's de blackfellow, and he's got papa's lowsers on, didn't
I now?"
The times seemed prosperous with us, but it was only a deceptive
gleam of sunshine before the coming storm of adversity. I built an
addition to my dwelling; and when it was completed I employed a
paperhanger from London named Taylor, to beautify the old rooms. He
was of a talkative disposition; when he had nobody else to listen he
talked to himself, and when he was tired of that he began singing.
The weather was hot, and the heat, together with his talking and
singing, made him thirsty; so one day he complained to me that his
work was very dry. I saw at once an opportunity of obtaining an
independent and reliable judgment on the quality of my wine; so I
went for a bottle, drew the cork, and offered him a tumblerful,
telling him it was wine which I had made from my own grapes. As
Taylor was a native of London, the greatest city in the world, he
must have had a wide experience in many things, was certain to know
the difference between good and bad liquor, and I was anxious to
obtain a favourable verdict on my Australian product.
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