catholicity of good-nature. It is the mark of a modest man to accept his friendly circle ready-made from the hands of opportunity; and that was the lawyer’s way. His friends were those of his own blood or those whom he had known the longest; his affections, like ivy, were the growth of time, they implied no aptness in the object. Hence, no doubt, the bond that united him to Mr. Richard Enfield, his distant kinsman, the well-known man about town. It was a nut to crack for many, what these two could see in each other, or what subject they could find in common. It was reported by those who encountered them in their Sunday walks, that they said nothing, looked singularly dull, and would hail with obvious relief the appearance of a friend. For all that, the two men put the greatest store by these excursions, counted them the chief jewel of each week, and not only set aside occasions of pleasure, but even resisted the calls of business, that they might enjoy them uninterrupted.
Aconteció en uno de estos paseos que su camino los condujo por una calle secundaria en un animado barrio de Londres. La calle era pequeña y lo que se llama tranquila, pero tenía un comercio próspero los días de semana. Los habitantes a todos les iba bien, al parecer, y todos esperaban con emulación hacerlo aún mejor, y destinaban el excedente de sus ganancias a la coquetería; de modo que los escaparates de las tiendas se alineaban a lo largo de aquella vía con un aire de invitación, como filas de dependientas sonrientes. Incluso el domingo, cuando velaba sus encantos más floridos y yacía comparativamente vacía de transeúntes, la calle brillaba en contraste con su barrio deslucido, como un fuego en un bosque; y con sus