Dinner being ended, and the company retired into the garden, Mr. Weltern, who was thoroughly convinced of the certainty of what his fifter had told him, took Mr. Allworthy afide, and very bluntly propofed a match between Sophia and young Mr. Blifil.

Mr. Allworthy was not one of those men, whofe hearts flutter at any unexpected and fudden tidings of worldly profit. His mind was, indeed, tempered with that philofophy which becomes a man and a chriftian. He affected no abfolute fuperiority to all pleafure and pain, to all joy and grief; but was not at the fame time to be difcompofed and ruffled by every accidental blaft; by every smile or frown of fortune. He received, therefore, Mr. Weftern's propofal without any- vilible emotion, or without any alteration of countenance. He faid, the alliance was fuch as he fincerely wished, then launched forth into a very juft encomium on the young lady's merit; acknowledged the offer to be advantageous in point of fortune; and after thanking Mr. Weitern for the good opinion he had profeffed of his nephew, concluded, that if the young people liked each other, he should be very defrous to complete the affair.

Weftern was a little disappointed at Mr. Allworthy's anfwer; which was not fo warm as he expected. He treated the doubt whether the young people might like. one another with great contempt; faying, That parents were the belt judges of proper matches for their children; that, for his part, he fhould infifl on the moft refigned obedience from his daughter; and if any young fellow could refufe fuch a bedfellow, he was his humble fervant, and hoped there was no 'harm done.'

Allworthy endeavoured to foften this refentment by. many eulogiums on Sophia; declaring, he had no doubt but that Mr. Blifil would very gladly receive the offer; but all was ineffectual, he could obtain no other anfwer from the 'fquire but I fay no moreI humbly hope there's no harm done-that's all.' Which words he repeated at least a hundred times before, they parted.

Allworthy

Allworthy was too well acquainted with his neigh bour to be offended at this behaviour; and though he was fo averfe to the rigour which fome parents exercife on their children in the article of marriage, that he had refolved never to force his nephew's inclina tions, he was nevertheless much pleafed with the profpect of this union for the whole country refounded the praises of Sophia, and he had himself greatly ad mired the uncommon endowments of both her mind and perfon. To which, I believe, we may add, the confideration of her vaft fortune, which, though he was too fober to be intoxicated with it, he was too. fenfible to defpife.

And here, in defiance of all the barking critics in the world, I must and will introduce a digreffion concerning true wifdom, of which Mr. Allworthy was in reality as great a pattern as he was of goodness.

The wildom then, notwithstanding all that Mr. Hogarth's poor poet may have writ againft riches, and in fpite of all which any rich, well-fed divine may have preached again pleasure, confifts not in the contempt of either of these. A man may have as much wifdom in the poffeffion of an affluent fortune, as any beggar in the streets; or may enjoy a handfome wife or a hearty friend, and still remain as wife as any four popish reclufe, who buries all his focial faculties, and flarves his belly while he well lathes his back.

To fay truth, the wifeft man is the likelieft to poffefs all worldly bleffings in an eminent degree; for as that moderation which wisdom prefcribes is the furelt way to useful wealth: fo can it alone qualify us

to tafle many pleafures. The wife man gratifies every appetite and every paffion, while the fool facrifices all the reft to pall and fatiate one.

It may be objected, that very wife men have been notoriously avaricious. I anfwer, Not wife in that inftance. It may likewife be faid, That the wifeft men have been, in their youth immoderately fond of pleasure. I anfwer, They were not wife then.

Wifdem, in fhort, whofe leffons have been reprefented as fo hard to learn by thofe who never were at her fchool, only teaches us to extend a fimple maxim univerfally

univerfally known and followed even in the loweft life, a little farther than that life carries it. And this is not to buy at too dear a price.

Now, whoever takes this maxim abroad with him into the grand market of the world, and conftantly applies it to honours, to riches, to pleasures, and to every other commodity which that market affords, is I will venture to affirm, a wife man; and must be so acknowledged in the worldly fenfe of the word: for he makes the beft of bargains; fince in reality he purchafes every thing at the price only of a little trouble, and carries home all the good things I have mentioned, while he keeps his health, his innocence, and his reputation, the common prices which are paid for them by others, entire and to himself.

From this moderation, likewife, he learns two other leffons, which complete his character. First, never to be intoxicated when he hath made the belt bargain, nor dejected when the market is empty, or when its commodities are too dear for his purchase.

But I must remember on what fubject I am writing, and not trefpafs too far on the patience of a good natured critic. Here therefore I put an end to the chapter.

CHA P. IV.

Containing fundry curious matters.

As foon as Mr. Allworthy returned home, he took S Mr. Blifil apart, and after fome preface, communicated to him the propofal which had been made by Mr. Weitern, and, at the fame time, informed him how agreeable this match would be to himself.

The charms of Sophia had not made the leaft impreffion on Blifil; not that his heart was pre-engaged; neither was he totally infenble of beauty, or had any averfion to women; but his appetites were, by nature fo moderate, that he was able, by philofophy or by fudy, or by fome other method, eafily to fubdue them; and as to that paffion which we have treated of

in the first chapter of this book, he had not the leaft tincture of it in his whole compofition.

But though he was fo entirely free from that mixed paffion, of which we there treated, and of which the virtues and beauty of Sophia formed fo notable an object; yet was he altogether as well furnished with some other paffions, that promifed themselves very full gra tification to the young lady's fortune. Such were avarice and ambition, which divided the dominion of his mind between them. He had more than once con fidered the poffeffion of this fortune as a very defirable thing, and had entertained fome diftant views concerning it but his own youth and that of the young lady, and indeed principally a reflection that Mr. Weftern might marry again, and have more children, had retrained him from too hafty or eager a purfuit.

:

This laft and moft material objection was now in great meature removed, as the propofal came from Mr. Western himself. Blifil, therefore, after a very fhort hefitation, anfwered Mr. Allworthy, that matrimony was a fubject on which he had not yet thought: but that he was fo fenfible of his friendly and fatherly care, that he should in all things fubmit himself to his pleasure.

Allworthy was naturally a man of fpirit, and his prefent gravity arofe from true wifdoin and philofophy, not from any original phlegm in his difpofition: for he had poffeffed much fire in his youth, and had married a beautiful woman for love. He was not, therefore, greatly pleafed with this cold anfwer of his nephew; nor could he help launching forth into the praifes of Sophia, and expreffing fome wonder that the heart of a young man could be impregnable to the force of fuch charms, unlefs it was guarded by fome prior affection.

Blifil affured him he had no fuch guard; and then proceeded to difcourfe fo wifely and religiously on love and marriage, that he would have ftopt the mouth of a parent much lefs devoutly inclined than was his unIn the end, the good man was fatisfied, that his nephew, far from having any objections to Sophia, had that efteem for her, which in sober and virtuous

cle.

minds is the fure foundation of friendship and love. And as he doubted not but the lover would, in a little time, become altogether as agreeable to his miftrefs, he forefaw great happinefs arifing to all parties by fo proper and defirable an union. With Mr. Blifil's confent, therefore, he wrote the next morning to Mr. Weftern, acquainting him that his nephew had very thankfully and gladly received the propofal, and would be ready to wait on the young lady, whenever fhe fhould be pleafed to accept his vilit.

Western was much pleased with this letter, and immediately returned an answer; in which, without having mentioned a word to his daughter, he appointed that very afternoon for opening the feene of courtship.

As foon as he had dispatched this meffenger, he went in queft of his fifier, whom he found reading and expounding the Gazette to parfon Supple. To this expofition he was obliged to attend near a quarter of an hour, though with great violence to his natural impetuofity, before he was fuffered to fpeak. At length however, he found an opportunity of acquainting the łady, that he had bufinefs of great confequence to impart to her; to which the answered, Brother, I am entirely at your fervice. Things look fo well in the North that I was never in a better humour.’

The parfon then withdrawing, Western acquainted her with all which had paffed, and defired her to communicate the affair to Sophia, which he readily and chearfully undertook; tho' perhaps her brother was a little obliged to that agreeable northern afpect which had fo delighted her, that he heard no comment on his proceedings; for they were certainly fomewhat i too hafty and violent.

CHA P. V.

In which is related what paffed between Sophia and her

aunt..

SOPHIA IA was in her chamber reading, when her aunt came in. The moment the faw Mrs. Wef. tern, fhe fhut the book with fo much eagerness, that