He read the title-page, glanced at the American preface, etc., and
then plunged in promiscuously. "It has less Latin than I expected. Is
it good classical Latin?"

A smile.

"It is law Latin, and most of it would have puzzled Cicero and Virgil,
I fear. Are you a Latin scholar?"

"I'm not a scholar at all. I've been an idler, generally, and have
picked up only a few phrases of Latin. I've a brother, a student with
Giddings & Wade, at Jefferson, who would have told me all I want to
know, but I had a fancy to find it out first hand."

"Exactly;" and the General thought he looked like a youth who would
not take things second-hand. "They are able lawyers, and it is said
Giddings will retire from the bar and run for Congress. It is thought
that Mr. Whittlesey will resign, and make an opening."

Bart thought that the General spoke of this with interest, and he made
another dab at Blackstone. He then wandered off to a small but select
case of miscellaneous books. "Adam Smith!" he said, with animation; "I
never saw that before. How interesting it must be to get back to the
beginning of things. And here is Junius, whom I have only read about!
and Hume! and Irving! and Scott's Novels! Oh dear, oh dear! General,
what a happy man you must be, with all these about you, and these
newspapers, to come and go between you and the outside world."

"Oh! I don't know. I have but few books, compared with real libraries,