and prudent. In spite of all Mr. Percy's exertions, however, the flames
burst in from the burning trellis through one of the windows of the study,
before the men could tear down the shutters and architraves, as he had
ordered. The fire caught the wood-work, and ran along the book-shelves on
one side of the wall with terrible rapidity, so that the whole room was,
in a few minutes, in a blaze--they were forced to leave it before they had
carried out many of the books. Some old papers remained in the presses,
supposed to be duplicates, and of no consequence. This whole wing of
the house they were obliged to abandon to the flames, but the fire was
stopped in its progress at last, and the principal part of the mansion was
preserved by wet mortar, according to Mr. Percy's judicious order, by the
prompt obedience, and by the unanimity, of all who assisted.

The next morning the family saw the melancholy spectacle of a heap of ruins
in the place of that library which they all loved so much. However, it was
their disposition to make the best of misfortunes; instead of deploring
what they had lost, they rejoiced in having suffered so little and saved so
much. They particularly rejoiced that no lives had been sacrificed;--Mr.
Percy declared, that for his own part, he would willingly undergo much
greater pecuniary loss, to have had the satisfaction of seeing in all his
family so much presence of mind, and so much freedom from selfishness, as
they had shown upon this occasion.

When he said something of this sort before his servants, who were all
assembled, it was observed that one of them, a very old nurse, looked
immediately at Caroline, then lifted up her hands and eyes to heaven, in
silent gratitude. Upon inquiry it appeared, that in the confusion and
terror, when the alarm had first been raised, the nurse had been forgotten,
or it had been taken for granted that she had gone home to her own cottage
the preceding evening.