seen. His face and mouth could assume a good-natured expression, and
smile; but his eye was still the same--it never smiled, but remained
cold, hard, dry, and inscrutable. If it had any expression at all,
it was an unhappy one. Such were the impressions created by his
appearance, when the observer was unobserved by him; for he had
the art of concealing the worst traits of his character in an
extraordinary degree, and when he suspected that the curious
hieroglyphics which Nature had stamped on his visage were too
closely scanned, he knew well how to divert the investigator's
attention to some other object.

He was a humorist, besides, in his way, because he found that jokes
and fun admirably served his turn. They helped to throw people off
their guard, and to conceal his hang-dog look.

He had a hard head, as well as hard heart, and could stand any
quantity of drink. His drinking, however, like everything else about
him, had a motive; and, instead of trying to appear sober, like
other drunkards, he rather wished to appear a little elevated. In
addition to his other acquirements, Q--- was a most accomplished
gambler. In short, no virtuous man, who employs every passing moment
of his short life in doing good to his fellow-creatures, could be
more devoted and energetic in his endeavours to serve God and
mankind, than Q--- was in his endeavours to ease them of their spare
cash.

He possessed a great deal of that free-and-easy address and tact
which distinguish the Canadians; and, in addition to the current
coin of vulgar flattery which is found so useful in all countries,
his quick eye could discover the high-minded gentleman by a kind of