Ipausedaminuteortwo,andasnoonespokeout;IputaquestiontotheCounsellor。
Areyouquitesurethatyouwishtolivetobethreescoreandtwentyyearsold？
\"MostcertainlyIdo。Don\'ttheysaythatTheophrastuslivedtohishundredandseventhyear,anddidn\'thecomplainoftheshortnessoflife？Ateightyamanhashadjustabouttimetogetwarmlysettledinhisnest。Doyousupposehedoesn\'tenjoythequietofthatresting—place？Nomorehaggardresponsibilitytokeephimawakenights,——unlesshepreferstoretainhisholdonofficesanddutiesfromwhichhecanbeexcusedifbechooses。Nomoregoadingambitions,——heknowshehasdonehisbest。Nomorejealousies,ifhewereweakenoughtofeelsuchignoblestirringsinhismoreactiveseason。Anoctogenarianwithagoodrecord,andfreefromannoyingordistressinginfirmities,oughttobethehappiestofmen。
Everybodytreatshimwithdeference。Everybodywantstohelphim。
Heisthewardofthegenerationsthathavegrownupsincehewasinthevigorofmaturity。Yes,letmelivetobefourscoreyears,andthenIwilltellyouwhetherIshouldlikeafewmoreyearsornot。\"