very unaccountably, and taking such needlessly awry steps, as he has done; embarrassing, as I told him, his own meanings, if they were good?

MR. LOVELACE, TO JOHN BELFORD, ESQ.

May 24. HE devil take this uncle of mine! He has at last sent me a letter, which I cannot show, without exposing the head of our family for a fool. A confounded parcel of pop-guns has he let off upon me.

I have already offered the bill enclosed in it to my beloved; and read to her part of the letter. But she refused the bill: and as I am in cash myself, I shall return it. She seemed very desirous to peruse the whole letter. And when I told her, that were it not for exposing the writer, I would oblige her, she said, it would not be exposing his lordship to show it to her; and that she always preferred the heart to the head. I knew her meaning; but did not thank her for it. All that makes for me in it, I will transcribe for her-Yet hang it, she shall have the letter, and my soul with it, for one consenting kiss.

She has got the letter from me, without the reward. Deuce take me, if I had the courage to propose the condition. A new character this of bashfulness in thy friend. I see, that a truly modest woman may make even a confident man keep his distance.

LORD M. TO ROBERT LOVELACE, ESQ.

Tuesday, May 23.

T is a long lane that has no turning-Do not despise me for my proverbs-You know I was always fond of them; and if you had been so too, it would have been the better for you, let me tell you. I dare swear the fine lady you are so likely to be soon happy with, will be far from despising them; for I am told that

she writes well, and that all her letters are full of sentences. God convert you! for nobody but He and this lady can.

And methinks I could wish to give a word of comfort to the lady, who, doubtless, must be under great fears, how she shall be able to hold in such a wild creature as you have hitherto been. I would hint to her, that, by strong arguments, and gentle words, she may do anything with you; for though you are too apt to be hot, gentle words will cool you, and bring you into the temper that is necessary for your cure.

Pray let her know as that I will present her (not you) either my Lancashire seat, or the Lawn in Hertfordshire; and settle upon her a thousand pounds a-year peny-rents; to show her, that we are not a family to take base advantages and you may have writings drawn, and settle as you will.

I am still very bad with my gout; but will come in a litter, as soon as the day is fixed: it would be the joy of my heart to join your hands. And, let me tell you, if you do not make the best of husbands to so good a young lady, and one who has had so much courage for your sake, I will renounce you; and settle all I can upon her and hers by you, and leave you out of the question.

If anything further may be needful toward promoting your reciprocal felicity, let me know it; and how you order about the day; and all that. The inclosed bill is very much at your service. 'Tis payable at sight, as whatever else you may have occasion for, shall be.

So God bless you both; and make things as convenient to my gout as you can; tho' be it whenever it will, I will hobble to you; for I long to see you; and still more to see my niece; and am (in expectation of that happy opportunity).

Your most affectionate uncle, M.

1

MR. LOVELACE TO JOHN BELFORD, ESQ.

Thursday, May 25. NOTHER agreeable conversation. The day of days the subject. As to fixing a particular one, that

need not be done, my charmer says, till the settlements are completed. As to marrying at my lord's chapel, the ladies of my family present, that would be making a public affair of it; and the dear creature observed with regret, that it seemed to be my lord's intention to make it so.

It could not be imagined, I said, but that his lordship's setting out in a litter and coming to town, as well as his taste for glare, and the joy he would take to see me married at last, and to her dear self, would give it as much the air of a public marriage, as if the ceremony were performed at his own chapel, all the ladies present.

I cannot, said she, endure the thoughts of a public day. It will carry with it an air of insult upon my whole family. And, for my part, if my lord will not take it amiss (and perhaps he will not, as the motion came not from himself, but from you, Mr. Lovelace) I will very willingly dispense with his lordship's presence; the rather, as dress and appearance will then be unnecessary; for I cannot bear to think of decking my person while my parents are in tears.

How excellent this! Yet do not her parents richly deserve to be in tears?

See, Belford, with so charming a niceness, we might have been a long time ago upon the verge of the state, and yet found a great deal to do, before we entered into it.

All obedience, all resignation-no will but hers. I

withdrew, and wrote directly to my lord; and she not disapproving of it, I sent it away. The purport as follows; for I took no copy.

"That I was much obliged to his lordship for his intended goodness to me, on an occasion the most solemn of my life. That the admirable lady, whom he so justly praised, thought his lordship's proposals in her favour too high. That she chose not to make a public appearance, if, without disobliging my friends, she could avoid it, till a reconciliation with her own could be effected. That although she expressed a grateful sense of his lordship's consent to give her to me with his own hand; yet presuming, that the motive to this kind intention was rather to do her honour, than it otherwise would have been his own choice (especially as travelling would be at this time so inconvenient to him) she thought it advisable to save his lordship trouble on this occasion; and hoped he would take as meant her declining the favour."

I conclude with telling him, "That I had offered to present the lady his lordship's bill; but on her declining to accept of it (having myself no present occasion for it) I return it inclosed, with my thanks, &c."

MR. LOVELACE TO JOHN BELFORD, ESQ.

ND now, that my beloved seems secure in my net, for my project upon the vixen Miss Howe, and upon her mother, in which the officious prancer Hickman is to come in for a dash.

But why upon her mother, methinks thou askest, who, unknown to herself, has only acted by thy impulse through thy agent, Joseph Leman, upon the folly of old Tony the uncle ?

No matter for that, she believes she acts upon her own judgment, and deserves to be punished for pretending to judgment when she has none. Every living soul, but

myself, I can tell thee, shall be punished, that treats either cruelly or disrespectfully so adored a lady. What a plague ; is it not enough that she is teazed and tormented in person by me?

I have already broken the matter to our three confederates; as a supposed, not a resolved on, case indeed. And yet they know that with me, in a piece of mischief, execution, with its swiftest feet, is seldom three paces behind projection, which hardly ever limps neither.

The project, in short, is this:-Mrs. Howe has an elder sister in the Isle of Wight, who is lately a widow; and I am well informed that the mother and daughter have engaged, before the latter is married, to pay a visit to this lady, who is rich, and intends Miss for her heiress; and in the interim will make her some valuable presents on her approaching nuptials; which, as Mrs. Howe, who loves money more than anything but herself, told one of my acquaintance, would be worth fetching.

Now, Jack, nothing more need be done than to hire a little trim vessel, which shall sail a pleasuring backward and forward to Portsmouth, Spithead, and the Isle of Wight, for a week or fortnight before we enter upon our parts of the plot. And as Mrs. Howe will be for making the best bargain she can for her passage, the master of the vessel may have orders (as a perquisite allowed him by his owners) to take what she will give; and the master's name, be it what it will, shall be Ganmore on the occasion; for I know a rogue of that name, who is not obliged to be of any country, any more than we.

Well, then, we will imagine them on board, I will be there in disguise. They know not any of ye four, supposing (the scheme so inviting) that thou canst be one.

'Tis plaguy hard if we cannot find or make a storm. Perhaps they will be sea-sick; but whether they be or not, no doubt they will keep their cabin.

Here will be Mrs. Howe, Miss Howe, Mr. Hickman,