THE HYPOCHONDRIAC.

135

was partly bald; the forehead beautiful, broad,and elevated; the eyes small and shaded; thecheek bones rather high; the nose straight andprojecting, and the mouth large and compressed.The forehead was, indeed, the finest I had everseen ; and although he could not be called good-looking, yet his countenance bore the impressionof superior intellect, great gentleness, and ananxious desire to please. When he had finishedhis inquiries and written his prescription, he po-litely addressed himself to me;—spoke of thenews of the town; inquired if I had read the lastEdinburgh Review, made many just and criticalremarks upon its merits, and those of its rival,the Quarterly; and entering a little into the cha-racters of some of the leading members of bothparties in Parliament, displayed powers for con-versation truly enviable. As he rose to takehis leave, he again pressed his patient's hand be-tween both of his hands; promised to see him inthe evening, and left the room with the same lightspringy step, with which he had entered it.

" Ah! my dear Dick!" said Tom, looking after