when we were absolutely in his reach, and when he, as we thought, was in ours. But such a man cannot, ought not to be, engrossed by one family. Bless me, Lucy! when he comes into public life, (for has not his country a superior claim to him beyond every private one?) what moment can he have at liberty? Let me enumerate some of his present engagements that we know of.

The Danby family must have some farther portion of his time.

The executorship in the disposal of the 30007. in charity, in France as well as in England, will take up a good deal more.

My Lord W- may be said to be under his tutelage, as to the future happiness of his life. Miss Jervois's affairs, and the care he has for her person, engage much of his attention.

He is his own steward.

He is making alterations at Grandison-Hall; and has a large genteel neighbourhood there, who long to have him reside among them; and he himself is fond of that seat.

His estate in Ireland is in a prosperous way, from the works he set on foot there, when he was on the spot; and he talks, as Dr Bartlett has hinted to us, of making another visit to it. His sister's match with Lord G is one of his cares.

He has services to perform for his friend Beauchamp, with his father and mother-in-law, for the facilitating his coming over.

The apprehended visit of Olivia gives him disturbance.

And the Bologna family in its various branches, and more especially Signor Jeronymo's dangerous state of health, and Signora Clementina's disordered mind-O Lucy!-What leisure has this man to be in love!-Yet how can I say so, when he is in love already? And with Clementina. And don't you think, when he goes to France on the executorship account, he will make a visit to Bologna ?-Ah, my dear! to be sure he will.

After he has left England, therefore, which I suppose he will quickly do, and when I am in Northamptonshire, what opportunities will your Harriet have to see him, except she can obtain, as a favour, the power of obliging his Emily, in her request to be with her? Then, Lucy, he may, on his return to England, once a-year, or so, on his visiting his ward, see, and thank for her care and love of his Emily, his half estranged Harriet! Perhaps Lady Clementina Grandison will be with him! God restore her! Surely I shall be capable, if she be Lady Grandison, of rejoicing in her recovery!

Fie upon it!-Why this involuntary tear? You would see it by the large blot it has made, if I did not mention it.

Excellent man!-Dr Bartlett has just been telling me of a morning visit he received, before he went out of town, from the two sons of Mrs Oldham.

One of them is about seven years old; the other about five; very fine children. He embraced them, the Doctor says, with as much tenderness as if they were children of his own mother. He inquired into their inclinations, behaviour, and diversions; and engaged equally their love and reverence.

He told them, that, if they were good, he would love them; and said, he had a dear friend, whom he reverenced as his father, a man with white curling locks, he told the children, that they might know him at first sight, who would now and then, as he happened to be in town, make inquiries after their good behaviour, and reward them, as they give him cause. Accordingly he had desired Dr Bartlett to give them occasionally his countenance; as also to let their mother know, that he should be glad of a visit from her, and her three children, on his return to town.

The Doctor had been to see her when he came to me. He found all three with her. The two younger, impressed by the venerable description Sir Charles had given of him, of their own accord, the younger, by the elder's example, fell down on their knees before him, and begged his blessing.

Mr Oldham is about eighteen years of age; a well-inclined, well-educated youth. He was full of acknowledgments of the favour done him in this invitation.

The grateful mother could not contain herself. Blessings without number she invoked on her benefactor, for his goodness in taking such kind notice of her two sons, as he had done; and said, he had been, ever since his gracious behaviour to her in Essex, the first and last in her prayers to Heaven. But the invitation to herself, she declared, was too great an honour for her to accept of: she should not be able to stand in his presence. Alas! sir, said she, can the severest, truest penitence recal the guilty past?

The Doctor said, that Sir Charles Grandison ever made it a rule with him to raise the dejected and humble spirit. Your birth and education, madam, entitle you to a place in the first company and where there are two lights in which the behaviour of any person may be set, though there has been unhappiness, he always remembers the most favourable, and forgets the other. I would advise you, madam, (as he has invited you,) by all means to come. He speaks with pleasure of your humility and good sense.

The Doctor told me, that Sir Charles had made inquiries after the marriage of Major O'Hara with Mrs Jervois, and had satisfied himself that they were actually man and wife. Methinks I am glad, for Miss Jervois's sake, that her mother has changed her name. They lived not happily together since their last enterprize: for the man, who had long been a sufferer from poverty, was in fear of losing one half, at least, of his wife's annuity, by what passed on that

occasion; and accused her of putting him upon the misbehaviour he was guilty of; which had brought upon him, he said, the resentments of a man admired by all the world.

The attorney, who visited Sir Charles from these people, at their request, waited on him again, in their names, with hopes that they should not suffer in their annuity, and expressing their concern for having offended him.

Mrs O'Hara also requested it as a favour to see her daughter.

Sir Charles commissioned the attorney, who is a man of repute, to tell them, that if Mrs O'Hara would come to St James's Square next Wednesday, about five o'clock, Miss Jervois should be introduced to her; and she should be welcome to bring with her her husband, and Captain Salmonet, that they might be convinced he bore no ill-will to either of them.

Adieu, till by and by. Miss Grandison is come, in one of her usual hurries, to oblige me to be present at the visit to be made her this afternoon, by the Earl of G, and Lady Gertrude, his sister, a maiden lady, advanced in years, who is exceedingly fond of her nephew, and intends to make him heir of her large for

Such an archness in every motion! Such a turn of the eye to me on my Lord G———ʼs assiduities! Such a fear in him of her correcting glance! Such a half-timid, half-free parade, when he had done anything that he intended to be obliging, and now and then an aiming at raillery, as if he were not very much afraid of her, and dared to speak his mind even to her! On her part, on those occasions, such an air, as if she had a learner before her; and was ready to rap his knuckles, had nobody been present to mediate for him; that though I could not but love her for her very archness, yet, in my mind, I could, for their sakes, but more for her own, have severely chidden her.

She is a charming woman; and everything she says and does becomes her. But I am so much afraid of what may be the case, when the lover is changed into the husband, that I wish to myself now and then, when I see her so lively, that she would remember that there was once such a man as Captain Anderson. But she makes it a rule, she says, to remember nothing that will vex her.

Is not my memory (said she once) given me for my benefit, and shall I make it my torment? No, Harriet, I will leave that to be done by you wise ones, and see what good you will get by it.

Why this, Charlotte, replied I, the wise ones may have a chance to get by it-They will, very probably, by remembering past mistakes, avoid many inconveniencies into which forgetfulness will run you lively ones.

Well, well, returned she, we are not all of us born to equal honour. Some of us are to be set up for warnings, some for examples: and the first are generally of greater use to the world than the other.

Now, Charlotte, said I, do you destroy the force of your own argument. Can the person who is singled out for the warning, be near so happy as she that is set up for the example?

You are right, as far as I know, Harriet; but I obey the present impulse, and try to find an excuse afterwards for what that puts me upon; and all the difference is this, as to the reward, I have a joy; you a comfort; but comfort is a poor word; and I can't bear it.

So Biddy, in "The Tender Husband," would have said, Charlotte. But, poor as the word is with you and her, give me comfort rather than joy, if they must be separated. But I see not but that a woman of my Charlotte's happy turn may have both.

She tapped my cheek-Take that, Harriet, for making a Biddy of me. I believe, if you have not joy, you have comfort in your severity.

My heart as well as my cheek glowed at the praises the Earl and the Lady both joined in (with a fervour that was creditable to their own hearts) of Sir Charles Grandison, while they told us what this man, and that woman, of quality or consideration, said of him. Who would not be good? What is life without reputation? Do we not wish to be remembered with honour after death? And what a share of it has this excellent man in this life!-May nothing, for the honour-sake of human nature, to which he is so great an ornament, ever happen to tarnish it!

They were extremely obliging to me. I could not but be pleased at standing well in their opinion; but, believe me, my dear, I did not enjoy their praises of me, as I did those they gave him. Indeed, I had the presumption, from the approbation given to what they said of him by my own heart, to imagine myself a sharer in them, though not in his merits. Oh, Lucy! ought there not to have been a relation between us, since what I have said, from what I found in myself on hearing him praised, is a demonstration of a regard for him superior to the love of self?

Adieu, my Lucy. I know I have all your prayers. Adieu, my dear.

LETTER CXVII.

MISS BYRON.

[In continuation.]

Saturday, April 1. DR BARTLETT is one of the kindest as well as best of men. I believe he loves me as if I were his own child; but good men must be affectionate men. He received but this morning a letter from Sir Charles, and hastened to communicate some of its contents to me, though I could pretend to no other motive but curiosity, for wishing to be acquainted with the proceedings of his patron.

Sir Charles dined, as he had intended, with Sir Hargrave and his friends. He complains, in his letter, of a riotous day; yet I think, adds he, it has led me into some useful reflections. It is not, indeed, agreeable to be the spectator of riot; but how easy to shun being a partaker in it! How easy to avoid the too freely circling glass, if a man is known to have established a rule to himself, from which he will not depart ; and if it be not refused sullenly, but mirth and good humour the more studiously kept up by the person; who would else, indeed, be looked upon as a spy on unguarded folly! I heartily pitied a young man, who, I dare say, has a good heart, but, from false shame, durst not assert the freedom to which every Englishman would claim a right, in almost every other instance! He had once put by the glass, and excused himself on account of his health; but on being laughed at for a sober dog, as they phrased it, and asked, if his spouse had not lectured him before he came out, he gave way to the wretched raillery; nor could I interfere at such a noisy moment with effect; they had laughed him out of his caution before I could be heard; and I left him there, at nine o'clock, trying with Bagenhall which should drink the deepest.

I wish, my good Dr Bartlett, you would throw together some serious considerations on this subject. You could touch it delicately; and such a discourse would not be unuseful to some few of our neighbours even at Grandison-Hall. What is it not, that, in this single article, men sacrifice to false shame and false glory! Reason, health, fortune, personal elegance, the peace and order of their families; and all the comfort and honour of their after years. How peevish, how wretched, is the decline of a man worn out with intemperance! In a cool hour, resolutions might be formed, that should stand the attack of a boisterous jest.

I obtained leave from Dr Bartlett to transcribe this part of the letter. I thought my uncle would be pleased with it.

It was near ten at night before Sir Charles got to Lord W-'s, though but three miles from Sir Hargrave's. My lord rejoiced to see him; and, after first compliments, asked him, if he had thought of what he had undertaken for him. Sir Charles told him, that he was the more desirous of seeing him in his way to the Hall, because he wanted to know if his lordship held his mind as to marriage. He assured him he did, and would sign and seal to whatever he should stipulate for him.

I wished for a copy of this part of Sir Charles's letter, for the sake of my aunt, whose delicacy would, I thought, be charmed with it. He has been so good as to say, he would transcribe it for me. I will enclose it, Lucy; and you will read it here:

I CANNOT, my lord, said Sir Charles, engage that the lady will comply with the proposal I shall take the liberty to make to her mother and her. She is not more than three or four and thirty; she is handsome; she has a fine understanding; she is brought up an economist; she is a woman of good family; she has not, however, though born to happier prospects, a fortune worthy of your lordship's acceptance. Whatever that is, you will, perhaps, choose to give it to her family.

With all my heart and soul, nephew. But do you say, she is handsome? Do you say, she is of family? And has she so many good qualities ?-Ah, nephew! she won't have me, I doubt.-And is she not too young, Sir Charles, to think of such a poor decrepit soul as I am?

All I can say to this, my lord, is, that the proposals on your part must be the more gene rous.

I will leave all those matters to you, kins

man.

This, my lord, I will take upon me to answer for, that she is a woman of principle; she will not give your lordship her hand, if she thinks she cannot make you a wife worthy of your utmost kindness; and now, my lord, I will tell you who she is, that you may make what other inquiries you think proper.

And then I named her to him, and gave him pretty near the account of the family, and the circumstances and affairs of it, that I shall by and by give you; though you are not quite a stranger to the unhappy case.

My lord was in raptures: He knew something, he said, of the lady's father, and enough of the family, by hearsay, to confirm all I had said of them; and besought me to do my utmost to bring the affair to a speedy conclusion.

Sir Thomas Mansfield was a very good man, and much respected in his neighbourhood. He was once possessed of a large estate; but his father left him involved in a law-suit, to support his title to more than one half of it.

After it had been depending several years, it

was at last, to the deep regret of all who knew him, by the chicanery of the lawyers of the opposite side, and the remissness of his own, carried against him; and his expenses having been very great in supporting for years his possession, he found himself reduced, from an estate of near three thousand pounds a-year, to little more than five hundred. He had six children; four sons, and two daughters. His eldest son died of grief in two months after the loss of the cause. The second, now the eldest, is a melancholy The third is a cornet of horse. The fourth is unprovided for; but all three are men of worthy minds, and deserve better fortune.

man.

The daughters are remarkable for their piety, patience, good economy, and prudence. They are the most dutiful of children, and most affectionate of sisters. They were for three years the support of their father's spirits, and have always been the consolation of their mother. They lost their father about four years ago; and it is even edifying to observe, how elegantly they support the family reputation in their fine old mansion-house, by the prudent management of their little income; for the mother leaves every household care to them; and they make it a rule to conclude the year with discharging every demand that can be made upon them, and to commence the new year absolutely clear of the world, and with some cash in hand; yet were brought up in affluence, and to the expectation of handsome fortunes; for, besides that they could have no thought of losing their cause, they had very great and reasonable prospects from Mr Calvert, an uncle by their mother's side; who was rich in money, and had, besides, an estate in land of 1500l. a-year. He always declared, that for the sake of his sister's children, he would continue a single man; and kept his word till he was upwards of seventy; when, being very infirm in health, and defective even to dotage in his understanding, Bolton, his steward, who had always stood in the way of his inclination to have his eldest niece for his companion and manager, at last contrived to get him married to a young creature under twenty, one of the servants in the house; who brought him a child at seven months; and was with child again at the old man's death, which happened in eighteen months after his marriage; and then a will was provided, in which he gave all he had to his wife and her children born, and to be born, within a year after his demise. This steward and woman now live together as man and wife.

A worthy clergyman, who hoped it might be in my power to procure them redress, either in the one case or in the other, gave me the above particulars; and, upon inquiry, finding everything to be as represented, I made myself acquainted with the widow lady and her sons; and it was impossible to see them at their own

Being fully authorized by my lord, I took leave of him over-night, and set out early in the morning, directly for Mansfield-House. I arrived there soon after their breakfast was over, and was received by Lady Mansfield, her sons, (who happened to be all at home,) and her two daughters, with politeness.

After some general conversation, I took Lady Mansfield aside; and making an apology for my freedom, asked her, if Miss Mansfield were, to her knowledge, engaged in her affections?

She answered, she was sure she was not: Ah, sir! said she, a man of your observation must know, that the daughters of a decayed family of some note in the world, do not easily get husbands. Men of great fortunes look higher; men of small must look out for wives to enlarge them; and men of genteel businesses are afraid of young women better born than portioned. Everybody knows not that my girls can bend to their condition; and they must be contented to live single all their lives; and so they will choose to do, rather than not marry creditably, and with some prospect.

I then opened my mind fully to her. She was agreeably surprised: But who, sir, said she, would expect such a proposal from the next heir to Lord W-?

I made known to her how much in earnest I was in this proposal, as well for my lord's sake, as for the young lady's. I will take care, madam, said I, that Miss Mansfield, if she will consent to make Lord W happy, shall have very handsome settlements, and such an allowance of pin-money, as shall enable her to gratify every moderate, every reasonable wish of her heart.

Was it possible, she asked, for such an affair to be brought about? Would my lord―There she stopt.

I said, I would be answerable for him; and desired her to break the matter to her daughter directly.

I left Lady Mansfield, and joined the brothers, who were with their two sisters; and soon after Miss Mansfield was sent for by her mother.

After they had been a little while together, my Lady Mansfield sent to speak with me. They were both silent when I came in. The mother was at a loss what to say; the daughter was still in greater confusion.

I addressed myself to the mother. You have, I perceive, madam, acquainted Miss Mansfield with the proposal I made to you. I am fully