be but a flender provifion made for my dear girls. Your papa has the notion rivetted in him, which is common to men of antient families, that daughters are but incumbrances, and that the fon is to be every thing. He loves his girls: He loves you dearly: But he has often declared, that, were he to have entire all the fortune that defcended to him from his father, he would not give to his daughters, marry whom they would, more than 5,000l. a-piece. Your brother loves you: He loves me. It will be in his power, fhould he furvive your father, to be a friend to you.-Love your brother.

To my brother afterwards she said something; I believe, recommending his fifters to him; for we coming in, boy as he was in years, but man in behaviour and understanding, he took each of our hands-You remember it, Charlotte [both fifters wept]; and kneeling down, and putting them in my mother's held-out dying hands, and bowing his face upon all three-All, madam-All, my deareft, best of mammas, that you have injoined

He could fay no more; and our arms were wet with his tears. Enough, enough, my fon; I diftrefs you!-And she kiffed her own arm- -Thefe are precious tears-You embalm me, my fon, with your tears-O how precious the balm!-And the lifted up her head to kiss his cheek, and to repeat her bleffings to the darling of her heart.

Who could refrain tears, my Lucy, on the representation of fuch a scene?-Mifs Jervois and I wept, as if we had been prefent on the folemn occafion.

But, my Charlotte, give Mifs Byron fome brief account of the parting scene between my father and mother. She is affected as a fifter fhould beTears, when time has matured a pungent grief into a fweet melancholy, are not hurtful: They are as the dew of the morning to the green herbage.

I cannot

I cannot, faid Mifs Grandifon Lady L.

De Dou,

Lady L. proceeded My father had long kept his chamber from the unhappy adventure, which coft him and us all fo dear. My mother, till fhe was forced to take to her bed, was conftantly his attendant: And then was grieved he could not attend him ftill. Jiw

At laft, the moment, happy to her, long dreaded by us, the releasing moment, approached. One laft long farewel fhe wished to take of the man, who had been ever dear to her, and who had coft her fo dear. He was told of her defire to be lifts ed to his bed-fide in her bed; for one of his wounds (too foon skinned over) was broken out, and he was confined to his bed. He ordered himfelf to be carried in a great chair to hers. But then followed fuch à fcene

All we three children were in the room, kneeling by the bed-fide-praying-weeping-O how ineffectually Not even hope remaining-Beft be loved of my foul! in faultering accents, faid my mother, her head raised by pillows, fo as that the fat upright Forgive the defire of my heart: once more to fee you! They would not bring me to you!-O how I diftrefs you! For my father fobbed; every feature of his face feemed fwelled almost to burfting, and working as if in mortal agonies.→→→ Charlotte, relieve me!

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The sweet lady's eyes were drowned in tears I I cannot, faid Mifs Grandifon; her handkerchief fpread over her face..

Mifs Emily fobbed. She held her hand before her eyes: Her tears trickled through her fingers. I was affected beyond measure Yet befought her to proceed.-She went on.

I have endeavoured, faid my mother, in broken fentences It was my wifh It was my pride-indeed my chiefeft pride to be a good wife!

O my

O my dear !You have been-My father could not say what.

Forgive my imperfections, Sir!

O my dearest life! You had no imperfections: I, I, was all imper-He could not fpeak out the word for his tears.

Blefs your children in my fight: God hitherto has bleffed them! God will continue to bless them, if they continue to deferve their father's bleffing. Dear Sir Thomas, as you love them, blefs them in my fight. I doubt not your goodness to them But the bleffing of a dying mother, joined with that of a furviving father muft have efficacy?

My father looked earnestly to us all-He could not speak.

My brother, following my mother's dying eye, which was caft upon my father, arofe from his knees, and approaching my father's chair, caft himself at his feet. My father threw his arms about his neck-God blefs-God blefs n my fon, faid he-And make him a better man than his father. My mother, demanding the cheek of her beloved son, faid, God bless my dearest child, and make you an honour to your father's family, and your mother's memory!

We girls followed my brother's example.

God bless my daughters!—God bless you, fweet loves, faid my father; first kiffing one, then the other, as we kneeled.-God make you as good women as your mother: Then, then, will you deferve to be happy.

God bless you, my dear girls, God bless you both, faid my mother, kiffing each, as you are dutiful to your father, and as you love one anotherI hope I have given you no bad example.

My father began to accufe himself. My brother, with the piety of the patriarch's two beft fons, retired, that he might not hear his father's confefHons. We followed him to the farther end of the

room.

room. The manly youth fat down between us, and held a hand of each between his: His noble heart was penetrated: He two or three times lifted the hand of each to his lips. But he could only once speak, his heart feeming ready to burst; and that was, as I remember, O my fifters !— Comfort yourselves!-But who can fay comfort? -Thefe tears are equally our duty and our relief.

In a

My mother retained to the laft that generofity of mind which had ever diftinguished her. She would not permit my father to proceed with his felf-accufation: Let us look forward, my deareft, my only love, faid she. I have a blessed hope before me: I pity, as well as pray for, furvivors : You are a man of fenfe, Sir, and of enlarged fentiments: God direct you according to them, and comfort you! All my fear was (and that more particularly for fome of the laft paft months) that I fhould have been the mournful survivor. very few moments all my sufferings will be over; and God give you, when you come to this unavoidable period of all human vanity, the fame happy profpects that are now opening to me! O Sir, believe me, all worldly joys are now nothing; lefs than nothing: Even my love of you, and of the dear pledges of our mutual love, with-holds not now my wifhes after a happier state. There may we meet, and never be feparated?-Forgive me only, my beloved husband, if I have ever made you for one hour unhappy or uneafy-Forgive the petulancies of my love!

Who can bear this goodness? faid my father: I have not deferved

Dear Sir, no more-Were you not the husband of my choice?-And now your grief affects meLeave me, Sir. You bring me back again to earth -God preserve you, watch over you, heal you, fupport you. Your hand, Sir Thomas Grandifon, the name that ever was fo pleasant in my ears!

Your

Your hand, Sir! Your heart was my treasure: I have now, and only now, a better treasure, a diviner love in view. Adieu, and in this world for ever adieu, my husband, my friend, my Grandi, fon!

She turned her head from him, funk upon her pillow, and fainted; and fo faw not, had not the grief to fee, the ftronger heart of my father overcome; for he fainted away, and was carried out in his chair by the fervants who brought him in. He was in a frong convulfion fit, between his not half-cured wounds and his grief; and recovered not till all was over with my bleffed mother.

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After my father was carried out, fhe came to herself. Her chaplain was once more admitted. The fatal moment approached. She was afked, if she would fee her children again? No, the faid; but bid her laft bleffing be repeated to them, and her charge, of loving one another, in the words of our Saviour, as he had loved us: And when the chaplain came to read a text which she had imperfectly pointed to, but fo as to be underftood, the repeated, in faultering accents, but with more strength of voice than fhe had had for an hour before, I have fought a good fight; I have finifhed my course; I have kept the faith-There is laid up for me a crown of righteoufness: And then her voice failing, the gave figns of fatisfaction, in the hope of being intitled to that crown; and expired in an ejaculation that her ebbing life could not fupport.

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O my Lucy! may my latter end, and the latter end of all I love, be like hers! The two ladies were in fpeechlefs tears, fo was Mifs Jervois, fo was I, for fome minutes. And for an hour or two, all the joys of life were as nothing to me. Even the

regard I had entertained for the excellent fon of a lady fo excellent, my protector, my deliverer, had, for fome hours, fubfided, and was as nothing to

me,