But Ennui finds entrance into every scene, when the gloss of novelty is over; and the fiend began to seize upon Mr. Touchwood just when he had got all matters to his mind in the Cleikum Inn--had instructed Dame Dods in the mysteries of curry and mullegatawny--drilled the chambermaid into the habit of making his bed at the angle recommended by Sir John Sinclair--and made some progress in instructing the humpbacked postilion in the Arabian mode of grooming. Pamphlets and newspapers, sent from London and from Edinburgh by loads, proved inadequate to rout this invader of Mr. Touchwood's comfort; and, at last, he bethought himself of company. The natural resource would have been the Well--but the traveller had a holy shivering of awe, which crossed him at the very recollection of Lady Penelope, who had worked him rather hard during his former brief residence; and although Lady Binks's beauty might have charmed an Asiatic, by the plump graces of its contour, our senior was past the thoughts of a Sultana and a haram. At length a bright idea crossed his mind, and he suddenly demanded of Mrs. Dods, who was pouring out his tea for breakfast, into a large cup of a very particular species of china, of which he had presented her with a service on condition of her rendering him this personal good office,--"Pray, Mrs. Dods, what sort of a man is your minister?" "He's just a man like other men, Maister Touchwood," replied Meg; "what sort of a man should he be?" "A man like other men?--ay--that is to say, he has the usual complement of legs and arms, eyes and ears--But is he a sensible man?" "No muckle o' that, sir," answered Dame Dods; "for if he was drinking this very tea that ye gat doun from London wi' the mail, he wad mistake it for common bohea." "Then he has not all his organs--wants a nose, or the use of one at least," said Mr. Touchwood; "the tea is right gunpowder--a perfect nosegay." "Aweel, that may be," said the landlady; "but I have gi'en the minister a dram frae my ain best bottle of real Coniac brandy, and may I never stir frae the bit, if he didna commend my whisky when he set down the glass! There is no ane o' them in the Presbytery but himsell--ay, or in the Synod either--but wad hae kend whisky frae brandy." "But what _sort_ of man is he?--Has he learning?" demanded Touchwood. "Learning?--eneugh o' that," answered Meg; "just dung donnart wi' learning--lets a' things about the Manse gang whilk gate they will, sae they dinna plague him upon the score. An awfu' thing it is to see sic an ill-red-up house!--If I had the twa tawpies that sorn upon the honest man ae week under my drilling, I think I wad show them how to sort a lodging!" "Does he preach well?" asked the guest. "Oh, weel eneugh, weel eneugh--sometimes he will fling in a lang word or a bit of learning that our farmers and bannet lairds canna sae weel follow--But what of that, as I am aye telling them?--them that pay stipend get aye the mair for their siller."