of chairs immediately facing the platform, and to be near him added several inches to my stature and importance, at least in my own estimation.  Then, too, there was always the awesome and fascinating possibility that one of these honourable personages might fall audibly asleep, or slip from his chair in a moment of relaxation.  Such events had been known to occur.  In fact, my father’s habit of settling down until his neck rested upon the low chair back, made the slipping accident a perpetual possibility in his case.

“Then, when the meeting was called to order, and the minutes read with many h-hems and clearings of the throat, and the various motions put to vote with the mumbled ’All-in-favour-of-the-motion-will-ple
ase-signify-by-saying-Ay!  Contrary-minded-no-the-motion-is-accepted!’ that some one would only say ‘No’ was our perpetual wish, and we even once meditated doing it ourselves, but could not decide which should take the risk.

“Another one of our amusements was to give odd names to the dignitaries who presided.  One with lurching gait, erectile whiskers, and blinking eyes we called ‘The Owl’; while another, a handsome old man of the ‘Signer’ type, pink-cheeked, deep eyed, with a fine aquiline nose, we named ‘The Eagle.’”

“Oh, I know whom you mean, exactly!” cried Martin, throwing back his head and laughing as heartily as Bradford might; “and ‘The Owl’ was supposed to have intentions of perpetuating his name by leaving the society money enough for a new building, but he didn’t.  But then, he doubtless inherited his thrift from the worthy ancestors of the ilk of those men who utilized trousers for a land measure.  Do you also remember the discussions that followed the reading of paper or lecture?  Sometimes quite heated ones too, if the remarks had ventured to even graze the historical bunions that afflicted the feet of many old families.”

“No, I think we were too anxious to have the meeting declared adjourned to heed such things.  How we stretched ourselves; the physical oppression that had been settling for an hour or two lifting suddenly as we got on our feet and felt that we might speak in our natural voices.

“Then father would say, ’You may go upstairs and examine the curiosities before joining us in the basement,’ and we would go up timidly and inspect the Egyptian mummy.  I wonder how he felt last year when there was a reception in the hall and a band broke the long stillness with ’The Gay Tomtit.’  Was ever such chocolate or such sandwiches served in equally sepulchral surroundings as in the long room below stairs.  I remember wondering if the early Christians ever lunched in the catacombs, and how they felt; and I should not have been surprised if Lazarus himself had appeared in one of the archways trailing his graveclothes after him, so strong was the spell of the mummy upon us.

“It seems really very odd that you were one of those polite young men who used sometimes to pass the plates of sandwiches to us where we stayed hidden in a corner so that the parental eye need not see how many we consumed.”