CHAPTER LXVI. 'My curse upon thy venom'd stang, That shoots my tortur'd gums alang, And thro' my lugs gies mony a twang, Wi' gnawing vengeance; Tearing my nerves wi' bitter pang, BURNS. The intensely cold winter had passed away; and, spite of the unwonted severity of the season, what with double windows, immense fires, sledging and long walks, amid the beautiful winter scenery of the place, it had passed happily. Miss Tibby reconciled herself to the stoves, which at first she abominated; she soon found any kind of warmth preferable to a degree of cold, of which in England we can form no idea. With her room heated to excess, her knitting, her abuse of Switzerland, and her sweet reminiscences of Scotland and Donald o' the brae, she contrived to get through the long winter months. The old bear a monotonous life better than the young; bodily comfort supplies the place of mental excitement; and, when warm, and provided with her knitting, and a listener, Miss Tibby would sit complacently enough, declaring that the hills and the pine forests were "jist naething at a'," to what they were in Scotland; and, as for the distant Alps, "they were na worth the fuss made about them, but were jist ghosts o' mountains, compared to those o' her ain dear land, and na fit to hold a candle to them." Poor Grunter, who had professed an intention of devoting himself during his retreat to writing a work, which was to be a sort of sequel to his " History of Philosophy, and Philosophy of History," had become in this cold region a martyr to an inexorable yet con temptible foe to genius and philosophy — the tooth-ache. Poor fellow! his philosophy was not proof against the attacks of such an enemy. When most severely tried, there was no peace in the house; he stamped, he roared, he yelled. In vain the gentle Ellen exhausted her ingenuity to devise new remedies; in vain he tried brandy, and laudanum, and creosote, and oil of cloves, and put burning poultices inside his mouth, and applied scalding fomentations outside, and wrapped his face and head in flannel. It seemed only like nursing the viper which stung him. He was in a frenzy. Sometimes the pain was dull and gnawing; again it was as if some small fiend inserted a red hot dart into his jaw. On one occasion a doctor was sent for, who advised extraction; but Grunter would not submit, and, in his agony, he was so much like an insane elephant, that the poor doctor did not feel at ease till he was out of the sound of the philosopher's yells. No one dared approach him but Ellen. Miss Tibby declared "the auld fule was demented;" and even Mr. Lindsay preferred keeping out of his way. Ellen came to implore him to submit to the extraction of the tooth; he was lying on the floor, his huge body heaving with pain, like a Leviathan in whom the murderous harpoon had been plunged. His large head was bound in flannels; his lips were swollen and burnt with all the hot remedies he had applied; large tears were rolling down his inflamed cheeks. He was a living satire on his own history of philosophy. "Mr. Grunter," said Ellen, gently, "I am come to entreat you to let a stop be put to this torture, which you have endured now two days and two nights." "I have, indeed, endured a martyrdom, Miss Ellen, a martyrdom few could have endured." "You have had no rest for two days and. two nights," (she did not add, nor suffered any one else to have any, though so it was). "Take courage, dear Mr. Grunter. Have the tooth drawn!" "Drawn! oh, no, oh, no!" and Grunter rocked himself backwards and forwards with his hand to his cheek. 66 Do, dear Mr. Grunter. It will only require a moment's courage; and you have written so much on fortitude...." "of that "Miss Ellen," groaned Grunter, fortitude I am now a great example;" and then, suddenly the pain increasing, he started to his feet, prancing about the room, tearing and stamping like a frantic bull; wildly tossing his arms to and fro, (even his habitual vanity forgotten in his now unbearable torture) so much so, that he did not remember that he was exhibiting before a young lady in an old scanty flannel gown, and his wigless head bound in the same unbecoming material. After several yells, which made Ellen almost |