Mrs Merton, in the mean time, who was sitting at the upper end of the room amidst the other ladies, had seen the fray, and been informed that it was owing to Harry's throwing a glass of lemonade in Master Mash's face. This gave Mrs Compton an opportunity of indulging herself again in long invectives against Harry, his breeding, family, and manners. "She never," she said, "had liked the boy, and now he had justified all her forebodings upon the subject. Such a little vulgar wretch could never have been witness to anything but scenes of riot and ill-manners; and now he was brawling and fighting in a gentleman's house, just as he would do at one of the public houses to which he was used to go with his father." While she was in the midst of this eloquent harangue Mr Merton came up, and gave a more unprejudiced narrative of the affair. He acquitted Harry of all blame, and said that it was impossible, even for the mildest temper in the world, to act otherwise upon such unmerited provocation. This account seemed wonderfully to turn the scale in Harry's favour; though Miss Simmons was no great favourite with the young ladies, yet the spirit and gallantry which he had discovered in her cause began to act very forcibly on their minds. One of the young ladies observed, "that if Master Harry was better dressed he would certainly be a very pretty boy;" another said, "she had always thought he had a look above his station;" and a third remarked "that, considering he had never learned to dance, he had by no means a vulgar look." This untoward accident having thus been amicably settled, the diversions of the evening went forward. But Harry, who had now lost all taste for genteel company, took the first opportunity of retiring to bed, where he soon fell asleep, and forgot both the mortification and bruises he had received. In the mean time the little company below found means to entertain themselves till past midnight, and then retired to their chambers. The next morning they rose later than usual; and, as several of the young gentlemen, who had been invited to the preceding evening's diversion, were not to return till after dinner, they agreed to take a walk into the country. Harry went with them as usual, though Master Mash, by his misrepresentations, had prejudiced Tommy and all the rest against him. But Harry, who was conscious of his own innocence, and began to feel the pride of injured friendship, disdained to give an explanation of his behaviour, since his friend was not sufficiently interested about the matter to demand one.