He found Miss Bradwardine presiding over the tea and coffee, the
table loaded with warm bread, both of flour, oatmeal, and barley-meal,
in the shape of leaves, cakes, biscuits, and other varieties, together
with eggs, reindeer ham, mutton and beef, ditto, smoked salmon,
marmalade, and all other delicacies which induced even Johnson himself
to extol the luxury of a Scotch breakfast above that of all other
countries. A mess of oatmeal porridge, flanked by a silver jug, which
held an equal mixture of cream and butter-milk, was placed for the
Baron's share of this repast; but Rose observed he had walked out
early in the morning, after giving orders that his guest should not be
disturbed.
Waverley sat down almost in silence, and with an air of absence and
abstraction, which could not give Miss Bradwardine a favourable opinion
of his talents for conversation. He answered at random one or two
observations which she ventured to make upon ordinary topics; so that
feeling herself almost repulsed in her efforts at entertaining him, and
secretly wondering that a scarlet coat should cover no better breeding,
she left him to his mental amusement of cursing Dr.
Pages:
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128