It was in this place,
surrounded by well-known Greeks, with whom he appeared to be on the
most intimate terms, that Transit pointed out to my notice the eccentric
Vicar of K**, the now invisible author of L****, whose aphorisms and
conduct bear not the slightest affinity to each other--nor was he the
only clerical present; at the head of a jolly party, at an adjoining
table, sat the ruby-faced Parson John A-----e, late proprietor of the
notorious Gothic Hall, in Pall Mall, a man of first rate wit and talent,
but of the lowest and most depraved habits. "The Divine is a character"
said Bob, "who, according to the phraseology of the ring, is 'good at
every thing:' as he came into the world without being duly licensed, so
he thinks himself privileged to pursue the most unlicensed conduct in
his passage through it. As a specimen of his ingenuity in horse-dealing,
I'll give you an anecdote.--It is not long since that the parson invited
a party of bucks to dinner, at his snug little villa on the banks of the
Thames, near Richmond, in Surrey. Previous to the repast, the reverend
~207~~ led his visitors forth to admire the gardens and surrounding
scenery, when just at the moment they had reached the outer gate, a fine
noble-looking horse was driven past in a tilbury by a servant in a
smart livery.
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