Page:Tales of humour and romance translated by Holcroft.djvu/12

 iv PREFACE.

" Well Dick," said he, as he approached my chair; " still in the land of the living, — no hopes for your youn- ger brother."

" Not on the present occasion," said I y rising as if to show my recovered strength.

As I stood before him

u Heu quantum mutatus ab ill© Hector e !"

I observed his eye glance over my wasted limbs, and thought it glistened with a tear, as it surveyed the

" Lean and slippered pantaloon"

into which a few weeks sickness had transformed the once athletic form of his quondam schoolfellow.

"Courage!" said he, looking up, "the danger is now past, — you have got a new lease of life, and God grant it be a long one. But what are those papers?" pointing to a number of Manuscripts which lay scattered over the table, " always scribbling, Dick, — posthumous fame no doubt, — a drop of ink, you know, falling upon a thought makes one immortal."

" Well, what can an invalid do better? I verily be- lieve I owe more to these papers for my restoration to health than to all Dr. B.'s prescriptions, or even my Aunt Margery's cordials. — They are some translations I have been making from your favourite language, the German."

" Translations from the German ! feless me, all the

EWorld now-a-days draws upon this intellectual bank,

but though the run has been very great, there is yet