Sweet excellence! Did I ever hope to meet in woman with fuch an enlargement of heart!Clementina only, of all the women I ever knew, can be fet in comparison with you: And had fhe been granted to me, the union of minds between us from difference of religion, could not have been fo perfect as yours and mine must be.

Greatly gratified as I was by the compliment, I was forry, methought, that it was made me at the expence of my fex. His words, "Did I ever hope to meet in woman with fuch an enlargement of heart!" piqued me a little. Are. not women as capable as men, thought I, of enlargeed fentiments?

The leave he took of me was extremely tender. I endeavoured to check my fenfibility. He departed with the bleffings of the whole family, as well as mine. I was forced to go up to my clofet: I came not down till near dinner time; I could not; and yet my uncle accompanied my coufin James to Northampton: So that I had no apprehenfions of his raillery. One wants trials fometimes, I believe, to make onè fupport one's felf with fome degree of outward fortitude at leaft. Had my uncle been at home, I should not have dared to have given fo much way to my concern: But foothing and indulgence, fometimes, I believe, add to our imbecility of mind, instead of ftrengthening our reafon.

My uncle made it near eleven at night before he returned with my coufin James. Not one of the company, at his quitting it, feemed inclinable to move. He praised the elegance of the enter tainment, and the ease and chearfulness, even to vivacity, of Sir Charles. How could he be fo lively!-How many ways have men to divert themselves, when any thing arduous attacks them! While we poor women!-But your town di

verfions

verfions Your Ranelaghs, Vauxhalls bid fair to divert fuch of us as can carry ourfelves out of ourselves!-Yet are we likely to pay dear for the privilege; fince we thereby render our fex cheap in the eyes of men, harden our fronts, and are in danger of lofing that modefty, at leaft of outward behaviour, which is the characteristic of women!

Saturday Morning.

He is gone: Gone indeed! Went early this morning. Every mouth was laft night, it feems, full of his praifes: The men admire him as much as the women. I am glad of it, methinks; fince that is an indirect confeffion, that there are few among them like him. Not fo much fuperiority over our fex therefore, in the other, in general, with their enlarged hearts. Have not we a Clementina, a Mrs Shirley, and a long de?————— I praife not you, my dear Lady L. and Lady G. to your faces; fo I leave the &c. untranflated.

We do fo look upon one another here! Are fo unfatisfied with ourfelves! We are not half fo good company as we were before Sir Charles came among us. How can that be? But my grandmamma has left us too!-that's one thing!

She

is retired to Shirley-manor, to mortify, after fo rich a regale: Thofe were her words.

I hope your brother will write to us. Should 1 not have afked him? To be fure he will; except his next letters from Italy fhould be-But, no doubt, he will write to us. Mr Greville vows to my uncle, he will not come near me. He can lefs and lefs, he fays, bear to think of my marrying; though he does what he can to comfort himfelf with reflecting on the extraordinary merit of the man, who alone, he fays, can deferve me. wishes the day was over; and the d-l's in him, he adds, if the irrevocableness of the event does

N 2

He

not

not cure him. Mr Fenwick had yesterday his fi nal answer from Lucy; and he is to fet out on Monday for Carlifle. He declares, that he will not return without a wife: So, thank Heaven, his heart is whole, notwithstanding his double difappointment.

BUT my heart is fet on hearing how the excellent Clementina takes the news of your brother's actual addrefs, and probability of fucceeding. I fhould not think it at all surprising, if, urged as the is to marry a man indifferent to her (the lord of her heart unmarried), the should retract—O my Charlotte! What a variety of strange, ftrange, what fhall I call them? would refult from fuch a retraction and renewal of claim! I never thought myfelf fuperftitious; but the happiness before me is fo fuch beyond my merit, that I can hardly flatter myfelf, at times, that it will take place.

WHAT think you, my dear, made me write fo apprehenfively?-My aunt had juft fhewn me a letter fhe had written to you-defiring you—to exercife for us your fancy, your judgment. I have no affectation on this fubject-I long ago gave affectation, to the winds- -But fo hafty!So undoubting !-Are there not many poffibilities, and fome probabilities, againft us?-Something prefumptuous !-Lord blefs me, my dear, fhould any thing happen-Jewels bought, and already prefented-Apparel-How would all thefe preparations aggravate! My aunt fays, he shall be obliged: Lucy, Nancy, Miffes Holles join with her. They long to be exercifing their fancies upon the patterns which they fuppofe your ladyfhip and Lady L. will fend down. My uncle hurries my aunt. So as fomething is going forward, he fays, he fhall be eafy. There is no refifting fo ftrong a tide : So let them take their courfe. They are all in

hafte,

hafte, my dear, to be confidered as relations of your family, and to regard all yours as kindred of ours. Happy, happy the band that fhall tie both families together!

HARRIET BYRON.

LETTER XV.

Sir CHARLES GRANDISON, To Mifs BYRON.

YOU

London, Monday Night, Oct. 30..

OUR humanity, my dear and ever dear Mifs Byron, was fo much engaged by the melancholy letter of Sir Hargrave to Dr Bartlett, which I communicated to you, and by the diftrefs of my Beauchamp, on the defperate ftate of his father's health, that I know you will be pleafed to hear that I have been enabled to give fome confolation to both.

Sir Harry, who is in town, wanted to open his mind to me with regard to fome affairs which made him extremely uneafy; and which, he faid, he could not reveal to any body elfe. He fhewed fome reluctance to entrust the fecrets to my bosom. There fhall they ever reft. He has found himself eafier fince. He rejoiced to me on the good understanding fubfifting, and likely to fubfift, between his lady and fon. He defired me to excufe him for joining me with them, without afking my leave, in the trufts created by his will: And on this occafion, fending for his lady, he put her hand in mine, and recommended her and her inte refts, as thofe of the moft obliging of wives, to my

care.

I found Sir Hargrave at his houfe in Cavendifh-fquare. He is exceffively low-fpirited. De Bartlett vifited him at Windfor several times. The

Do&or prevailed on him to retain a worthy clergyman as his chaplain.

The poor man afked after you, madam. He had heard, he faid, that I was foon likely to be the happiest of men: Was it fo? He wept at my answer; lamented the wretched hand, as he called it, that he had made of it, bleffed as he was with fuch profperous circumftances, in the prime of youth; and wifhed he had his days to come over again, and his company to chufe. Unhappy man! he was willing to remove from himself the load which lay upon him. No doubt but this was the recourfe of his companions, likewife, in extremity. He bleffed my dearest Mifs Byron, when I told him the pitied him. He called himself by harsh, and even fhocking names, for having been capable of offending fo much goodness.

What fubjects are these to entertain my angel with!-But though we fhould not feek, yet we ought not perhaps to fhun them, when they naturally, as I may fay, offer themfelves to our knowledge.

But another fubject calls for the attention of my deareft, lovelieft of women: A fubject that will lay a ftill ftronger claim to it than either of the folemn ones I have touched upon. I inclofe the letter which contains it. You will be fo good as to read it in English to fuch of our friends as read not Italian.

This letter was left to Mrs Beaumont to dispatch to me; whence its unwifhed-for delay: For fhe detained it, to fend with it an equally obliging one of her own. The contents of this welcome letter, my dearest Mifs Byron, will render it unneceflary to wait for an answer to my laft to Signor Jeronyma; in which I acquaint him with my actual addrefs, and the hopes I prefume to flatter myfelf with. I humbly hope you will think fo.