Attempt > Volume 1 and Select writings

106
THE ATTEMPT
confusion, and, too late, he repents of his rashness. Pitying his inevitable discomfiture,
his career is suddenly interrupted by the kindly intervention of some Titan in church
matters, his young brethren vouchsafing his maiden speech a decent burial. On the
other hand, how often are we enchained by the calm good sense and logical acumen of
some learned speaker, thoroughly acquainted with his subject, yet open to debate, and
ready to receive the opinions of others! With what respect is he listened to! how his
admirers hang upon his every word, whilst even his opponents cannot refuse their
meed of praise ! How wonderful is the power of one strong mind over others ! as a
great wheel in a piece of mechanism sets all the rest in motion, the powerful intellect
involuntarily influences those .around, producing perfect harmony in the sphere in
which it works.
But our reverend friends are not so entirely wedded to business as utterly to forget
recreation. Beleased from their duties, they are often light-hearted and joyous as
children—perhaps not quite so infantile as to be “ pleased with a rattle, tickled with a
straw,” but still ready for any amount of “ jest and youthful jollity.” Croquet is in
great request, our clerical brethren reckoning this a permissible pastime, where the
field is open to all adventurers, and conquests may be achieved by hardy knights.
That arm, so often raised in a burst of stormy eloquence, is now uplifted to scatter the
balls of its unfortunate adversaries; and that voice, calm and gentle in another sphere,
now resounds over the field in shouts of victory. What looks of self-satisfaction are
visible in the eyes of those who are accustomed to teach humility, on achieving a
successful stroke! and oh, could ye believe it 1 whisper it not in the courts of the
Assembly, have we not detected the sly shove, the hidden wiles, supposed to further
the rival interests'? Sometimes these games are prolonged to so late an hour that the
players have barely time to prepare for their ministerial dinners, and yet they must
be ready at the appointed time to enter the drawing-room with spotless bands and hair
unruffled, however discomposed their feelings may be by the chances and changes of
Fortune’s wheel. These dinners are by no means melancholy affairs; joke and
repartee fly across the table, and
“ Many a shaft at random sent,
Meets mark the archer little meant.”
Though out of the order of succession, the Moderator’s breakfasts are great attractions,
and are adorned by a galaxy of youth and beauty. On commencing the repast, the
table groans with every delicacy that can tempt the eye and palate; on concluding,
the nakedness of the land is clearly visible. The wife and daughters of the Moderator