He Wore
On His Hat A Broad Strip Of Tarnished Lace, And Had Decorated His
Waistcoat With Several Perpendicular Rows Of Pearl Buttons.
"You have made your room very fine here," said the doctor.
"Yes," said he, smiling and evidently delighted, "but, my dear sir, all is
vanity - all is vanity, sir, and vexation of spirit. There is but one thing
that we ought to strive for, and that is the kingdom of heaven."
As there was no disputing this proposition, we passed on to another cell,
at the door of which stood a tall, erect personage, who was busy with a
pot of paint and a brush, inscribing the pannels with mottoes and scraps
of verse. The walls of his room were covered with poetry and pithy
sentences. Some of the latter appeared to be of his own composition, and,
were not badly turned; their purport generally was this: that birth is but
a trivial accident, and that virtue and talent are the only true nobility.
This man was found wandering about in Chiswick, full of a plan for
educating the Prince of Wales in a manner to enable him to fill the throne
with credit and usefulness. As his name could not be learned, the
appellation of "Chiswick" was given him, which he had himself adopted,
styling himself Mr. "Chiswick" in his mottoes, but always taking care to
put the name between inverted commas.
As we proceeded, a man rose from his seat, and laying both hands on a
table before him, so as to display his fingers, ornamented with rings made
of black ribbon, in which glass buttons were set for jewels, addressed Dr.
Conolly with great respect, formally setting forth that he was in great
want of a new coat for Sundays, the one he had on being positively unfit
to appear in, and that a better had been promised him. The doctor stopped,
inquired into the case, and the poor fellow was gratified by the assurance
that the promised coat should be speedily forthcoming.
In his progress through the wards Dr. Conolly listened with great patience
to the various complaints of the inmates. One of them came up and told us
that he did not think the methods of the institution judicious. "The
patients," said he, "are many of them growing worse. One in particular,
who has been here for several weeks, I can see is growing worse every
day." Dr. Conolly asked the name of this patient - "I can not tell," said
the man, "but I can bring him to you." "Bring him then," said the doctor;
and after a moment's absence he returned, leading up one of the healthiest
and quietest looking men in the ward. "He looks better to be sure," said
the man, "but he is really worse." A burst of laughter from the patients
who stood by followed this saying, and one of them looking at me
knowingly, touched his forehead to intimate that the objector was not
exactly in his senses.
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