Lord Spoonbill did not look the less surprised at this last speech than he had at what he had heard and seen before. Erpingham, who was amused at the bewilderment of his noble friend, went on to add to the poor man’s perplexity by indulging himself with a long and unconnected rhapsody of paradoxical prate, which sometimes sounded to his lordship’s ear like the wisdom of an oracle, and sometimes like the ravings of a madman. But there was nothing in Erpingham’s manner of speaking that was expressive of wildness. His tone was gentle and his utterance calm, and his appearance collected; and he shewed every symptom of self-possession, except that his notions were so strange. While Lord Spoonbill was listening in silent wonderment to this strange talk, there was announced, very much to his lordship’s relief, a new visitor; no less a personage than Zephaniah Pringle. And now the mystery began to be in part unfolded, and Lord Spoonbill soon discerned by the direction which the conversation took between Erpingham and the critic, that if his friend’s understanding had not been impaired by the use of laudanum, his taste had been corrupted by his literary acquaintance with Zephaniah Pringle. This gentleman has been already introduced to our readers, and it is superfluous to say more in this place touching the critic’s peculiarities, than that his ambition for distinction and notoriety was very powerful; but as his actual ability was not equal to his ambitious desires, and as he despaired of attaining distinction by excellence, he sought to gain notoriety by eccentricities. Therefore he sought out paradoxical modes of expressing common-place thoughts, and as in some of his expressions he was intelligible, he was considered to be ingenious in all. So it came to pass that his society was sought by those who would never have noticed him for the sake of what his mind contained, had it not been that he used a most singular and curious mode of giving utterance to the contents of his mind and the results of his meditation. Mr Erpingham, who from weariness of spirit and from a satiety of sensual luxury, was glad of everything that excited him, felt himself mightily amused with Zephaniah’s paradoxes. And these two gentlemen often amused themselves with most ingenious discussions on all discussable subjects. Erpingham had by nature powers of discernment, and understanding reasonably good, but he had by his own moral indolence suffered those powers to lie dormant, and that understanding to remain uncultivated. When by this neglect he had become nervous, fanciful, and depressed, he was amused with any fooleries that presented themselves, and so he was much entertained by Zephaniah Pringle.