aukwardly in the difguifes I have affumed; "That, therefore, I can no more in juftice, than by inclination, think of any other man: And own to her, that her ladyship has, however, engaged my • refpectful love, even to reverence, by her goodnefs to me in the vifit fhe honoured me with; ⚫ and that, for her fake, had I seen nothing objec⚫ table in Lord D. upon an interview, and further acquaintance, I could have given ear to this proposal, preferable to any other that had yet been made me, were my heart as free, as it was when • fhe made her first propofal." And yet I own to you, my venerable friends, that I always think of Mr Orme with grateful pity, for his humble, for his modeft perfeverance. What would I give to fee Mr Orme married to fome very worthy woman, with whom he could be happy!

Finally, befpeak for me her ladyship's favour and friendship; but not to be renewed till my Lord is married-And may his nuptials be as happy as wished to be by a mother fo worthy! But tell her, at the same time, that I would not, for twelve times my lord's 12,000l. a-year, give my hand to him, or to any man, while another had a place in my heart; however unlikely it is, that I may be called by the name of the man I prefer.

But tell Lady D. all this in confidence, in the ftrictest confidence, among more general reafons regarding the delicacy of our fex, for fear the family I am with, who now love, fhould hate, and, what would be ftill worfe, defpife your Harriet, for her prefumption! I think I could not bear that!-Don't mind this great blot-Forgive it-It would fall-My pen found it, before I faw it.

As to myfelf; whatever be my lot, I will endeavour to reap confolation from these and other 'paffages in the two precious letters before me:

If you love, be not ashamed to own it to uspomen The man is Sir Charles Grandifon."

My affection is laudable: The object of it is a man not mean in understanding, not profligate in morals, nor fordid in degree. All my

friends are in love with him as well as I."

"My love is a love of the purest kind."

"And I ought to acquiefce, because Sir Charles, compared to us, is as the public to the private. • Private confiderations therefore fhould be as nothing to me.'

Noble inftructions! my deareft two mamma's! to which I will endeavour to give their full weight.

And now let me take it a little unkindly, that you call me your orphan girl! You two, and my honoured uncle, have fupplied all wanting rela tions to me: My father then, my grandmamma, and my other mamma, continue to pray for, and to blefs, not your orphan, but your real daughter, in all love and reverence,

HARRIET BYRON-SHIRLEY-SELBY.

LETTER XI.

Mifs HARRIET BYRON, To Mifs LUCY SELBY.

Colnebrook, Tuesday, March 7.

ERE I am, dear Lucy, returned to this hap

:

tions from the first time I entered it! How did my heart flutter, when one of Sir Charles's fervants, who attended us on horseback, pointed out to us, at the command of the ladies, the very spot where the two chariots met, and the conteft began! The recollection pained me: Yet do I not owe to

that

that terrifying incident the friendship I am admitted into with fo amiable a family?.

Mifs Grandifon, ever obliging, has indulged me in my choice of having a room to myfelf. I fhall have the more leifure for writing to you, my dear friends.

Both fhe and Lady L. are very urgent with me to fhew them fome of the letters in our correfpondence; and Mifs Grandifon fays, if that will encourage me to oblige them, they will fhew me fome of their brother's-Who would not be temp. ted by fuch an exchange? I am more than halfafraid-But furely, in fuch a heap of stuff as I have written, there is fomething that I can read to them. Shall I be permitted, do you think, to have my letters returned me for this purpose? The remarks of these ladies on what I fhall think fit to fhew them, will be of great ufe in helping to settle my judgment. I know I have thrown out many things at random; and, being a young creature, and not paffed the age of fancy, have, in all those fentiments which are not borrowed, been very fuperficial. How can it be otherwise!

The converfation in the coach turned upon their own family (for I put in my claim to Mifs Grandifon's former promise on that head); from which I gathered the following particulars:

Sir Thomas Grandifon was one of the handfomeft men of his time: He had a great notion of magnificence in living; and went deep into all the fafhionable diverfions, except gaming with cards and dice; though he ran into one as expensive, but which he called a nobler vice; valuing himfelf upon his breed of race-horses and hunters, and upon his kennel; in both which articles he was extravagant to profufion.

His father, Sir Charles, was as frugal as Sir Thomas was profufe. He was a purchaser all his life; and left his fon, befides an estate of 6,000 1.

a-year

a-year in England, and near 2000l. a-year in Ireland, rich in money.

His excellent lady was of a noble family; fister to Lord W. She was, as you have already been told, the most excellent of women. I was delighted to fee her two daughters bear teftimony to her goodness, and to their own worth, by their tears. It was impoffible, in the character of fo good a woman, not to think of my own mamma; and I could not help, on the remembrance, joining my tears with theirs.

Mifs Jervois alfo wept, not only from tenderneis of nature, and sympathy, but, as fhe owned, from regret, that the had not the fame reason to rejoice in a living mother, as we had to remember affec tionately the departed.

What I have written, and fhall farther write, to the disadvantage of Sir Thomas Grandifon, I gathered from what was dropt by one lady, and by the other, at different times; for it was beautiful to obferve with what hesitation and reluctance they mentioned any of his failings, with what pleasure his good qualities; heightening the one, and extenuating the other. O my Lucy, how would their hearts have overflowed in his praises, had they had fuch a faultlefs father, and excellent man, as was my father! Sweet is the remembrance of good parents to good children!

Lady Grandifon brought a great fortune to Sir Thomas. He hal a fine poetical vein, which he was fond of cultivating. Though his fortune was fo ample, it was his perfon, and his verfes, that won the lady from feveral competitors. He had not, however, her judgment. He was a poet; and I have heard my grandfather fay, that to be a poet requires a heated imagination, which often runs away with the judgment.

This lady took the consent of all her friends in her choice; but there seemed a hint to drop from Lady L. that they confented, because it was her VOL. II. choice;

M

choice; for Sir Thomas, from the day he entered upon his eftate, fet out in a way that every-body concluded would diminifh it.

He made, however, a kind husband, as it is called. His good fenfe and his politeness, and the pride he took to be thought one of the best-bred men in England, fecured her complaifant treatment. But Lady Grandifon had qualities that deferved one of the best and tendereft of men. Her eye and her. ear had certainly mifled her. I believe a woman, who chufes a man whom every body admires, if the man be not good, must expect that he will have calls and inclinations that will make him think the character of a domeftic man beneath him.

She endeavoured at setting out to engage hiscompanionableness-fhall I call it? She was fond of her husband. He had reafon to be, and was, proud of his wife: But when he had fhewed her everywhere, and the begun to find herself in circumftances which ought to domefticate a wife of a much gayer turn than Lady Grandifon pretended to have, he gave way to his predominant bias; and after a while, leaving the whole family-care to her, for her excellence in every branch of which he was continually praifing her (he did her that justice); he was but little at home in the fummer; and, in the winter, was generally engaged four months in the diverfions of this great town; and was the common patron of all the performers, whether at plays, o

peras, or concerts.

At first fetting out in this way, he was folicitous to carry his lady with him to town. She always chearfully accepted of his invitation, when fhe faw he was urgent with her to go. She would not give a pretence for fo gay a man to throw off that regard to appearances, which pride made him willing to keep up. But afterwards his inclinations growing fainter and fainter, and finding that her prefence lengthened the time of his ftay in town, and

added