They now arrived at Grantham, where they were to breakfast. Our hero was waiting to hand Maria from the coach, when, by some inattention of the waiter, the step gave way, and she would have fallen on the pavement, had not Hamilton caught her so quickly as to prevent every danger to her person, but not without an unavoidable shock to her delicacy, of which the adroitness of our hero rendered the cause of the shortest possible duration, and she herself only conjectured what had happened. Greatly agitated, she tottered into the house, and found herself ready to faint; when sal-volatile for the present prevented her, and she was able to collect her scattered spirits. Her father, who had not attended to the accident, at least in all its circumstances, and knew nothing of her being indisposed, sent to hurry her to breakfast. Nanny, who delivered this message, and who was remarkably loquacious, began, “Miss, you is wanted in the parlour to breakfastes.--Well, I have been two years and a half, come next _Michalmus_, in _sarvice_ here, and of all the men that ever I see, _mallicious_ and souldiers, with the colonels and captains, and sargents and cruperals, and sweet grenadiers, none of them, in my mind, is fit to carry a candle to the charming gentleman that had you in his arms.” Maria looking down at the last observation, Nanny, to encourage her, “Don’t be abashed, ma’am, you need not be ashamed; a more prittear leg I never see in my life, and besides----.” But before this sentence was finished, Maria hurried away, desiring no farther elucidations. Our hero, as she entered the room, with considerate delicacy forbore every inquiry that could allude to the accident, which he knew she must wish to be buried in oblivion. As they proceeded, though he could not so far command himself as to avoid doing homage to her with his eyes, yet he avoided such topics as led to discussions concerning beauty and love. Fortunately the rest of the company were in a great degree disused to such subjects, and the conversation being diversified, Maria, though much less brilliant than usual, took some part in it; and as they got beyond the bounds of Nottinghamshire, they all joined in celebrating the praises of Yorkshire. Having dined at Doncaster, they, about six in the evening, arrived at Ferrybridge. Here our hero had intended to wait for the Glasgow mail, to convey him to Carlisle; but he now changed his mind, and said, that as he had never seen Edinburgh, he would go to York, and take his seat in the Edinburgh mail. The parson now left them, and soon after the lady and another passenger, so that there remained only squire Mortimer, his daughter, and our hero. When they arrived at York about ten, Hamilton took his place in the mail in which the squire and his daughter meant to proceed to Northallerton. Mortimer had strongly solicited our hero to accompany him to his seat, and see his friend John, who was commander in chief in his absence.