a score of people in a month if all zealous had been publicly urged to join an association for the purpose of singing a hymn or two occasionally and hearing some indifferent speeches made and ultimately of parliament not to pass an act for the laws against catholic priests the penalty of perpetual imprisonment against those who educated children in that persuasion and the of all members of the church to inherit real property in the united kingdom by right of purchase or descent � matters so far removed from the business and of the mass might perhaps have called together a hundred people but when vague got abroad that in this association a secret power was against the for and mighty purposes when the air was filled with whispers of a among the powers to and england establish an in london and turn the pens of market into and when terrors and which no man were perpetually both in and out of parliament by one who did not understand himself and which had lain quietly in their graves for centuries were raised again to haunt the ignorant and when all this was done as it were in the dark and secret invitations to join the great association in defence of religion life and liberty were dropped in the public ways thrust under the house doors tossed in at windows and pressed into the hands of those who trod the streets by night when they glared from every wall and shone on every post and pillar so that stocks and stones appeared with the common fear urging all men to join together in resistance of they knew not what they knew not why � then the spread indeed and the body still increasing every day grew forty thousand strong so said at least in this month of march lord george the association s president whether it was the fact or otherwise few men knew or cared to ascertain it had never made any public demonstration had scarcely ever been heard of save through him had never been seen and was supposed by many to be the mere creature of his disordered brain he was accustomed to talk largely about numbers of men � as it was inferred by certain arising out of the same subject which had occurred in scotland in the previous year was looked upon as a cracked member of the lower house who attacked all parties and sided with none and was very regarded it was known that there was discontent abroad � there always is he had been accustomed to address the people by speech and upon other questions nothing had come in england of his past exertions and nothing was apprehended from his present just as he has come upon the reader he had come from time to time upon the public and been forgotten in a day as suddenly as he appears in these pages after a blank of five long years did and his proceedings begin to force themselves about this period upon the notice of thousands of people who had mingled in active life during the interval and who without being deaf or blind to passing events had scarcely ever thought of him before my lord said in his ear as he drew the curtains of his bed my lord who s that what is it the clock has struck nine returned the secretary with meekly folded hands you have slept well i hope you have slept well if my prayers are heard you are re indeed to say the truth i have slept so soundly said lord george rubbing his eyes and looking round the room that i don t remember quite � what place is this my lord cried with a smile oh returned his superior yes you re not a jew then a jew exclaimed the pious secretary i dreamed that we were jews you and i � both of us � jews with long heaven forbid my lord we might as well be i suppose we might returned the other very quickly eh you really think so surely i do the secretary cried with looks of great surprise he muttered yes that seems reasonable i hope my lord � the secretary began hope he echoed interrupting him why do you say you hope there s no harm in thinking of such things not in dreams returned the secretary in dreams no nor waking either � called and chosen and faithful said taking up lord george s watch which lay upon a chair and seeming to read the inscription on the seal it was the slightest action possible not on his notice and the result of a moment s absence of mind not worth remark but as the words were uttered lord george who had been going on stopped short and was silent quite unconscious of this change iu his the secretary stepped a apart under pretence of pulling up the window blind and returning when the other had had time tp recover said t the holy cause goes bravely on my lord i was not idle even last night i dropped two of the before i went to bed and both are gone this morning nobody in the house has mentioned the circumstance of finding them though i have been down stairs full half an hour one or two will be their first fruit i and who say how many more with heaven s blessing on your inspired exertions it was a famous device in the beginning replied lord george an excellent device and did good service in scotland it was quite worthy of you you remind me not to be a when the is with destruction and may be trodden down by feet let the horses be in half an hour we must be up and doing he said this with a heightened colour and in a tone of such enthusiasm that the secretary deemed au needless 