Mordaunt. Sketches of life, characters, and manners, in various countries; including the Memoirs of a French lady of quality. By the author of Zeluco & Edward

MORDAUNT.

SKETCHES

OF

LIFE, CHARACTERS, AND MANNERS,

IN

VARIOUS COUNTRIES ;

MEMOIRS

OF

A FRENCH LADY OF QUALITY.

BY THE

AUTHOR OF ZELUCO X EDWARD.

69G3 ?

VOL. 1L

Ficta voluptatis causa sint proxima veris.

HOR.

LONDON :

PRINTED FOR G. G. AND J. ROBINSON, PATERNOSTER -ROW

BY s. HAMILTON, FALCOX-COURT, FLEET-sno:£T-

— ^B»—

1800.

PR

y.

CONTENTS

OF

THE SECOND VOLUME

MEMOIRS OF A FRENCH LADY OF QUALITY.

PACE

.LETTER XXXV. Maternal Agkc&m 1 45

XXXVI. Self-Charity • 155

XXXVII. Advice 164-

XXXVIII. Soothing 169

XXXIX. The Art of Pleasing 176

XL, Candour 179

XLI. Marriage from Compassion 190

XLII. A Protectress 199

XLIII. Lady Mango •• - • • 203

XLIV. Worldly Wisdom 216

XLV. Widow Demure 226

XLVI. Fawning 244

XLVII. Delicacy 24-9

XLVIII. Truth's Simplicity 233

XLIX. The Polite Apothecary and Rude

Preacher 274

L. Spite 281

LI. A Profound Remark on the Prorerbs of

Solomon 286

LII. Unfashionable Conduct of a Lady of Qua-
lity 290

LIII. Gaiety 296

LIV. Affection • • • 308

LV. Offensive Insinuations 312

PACE

LETTER LVI. A* Italian Lady .................. 305

LVII. Rage — A wicked Suggestion ........ 337

LVIII. Mistaken Kindness .............. 348

LIX. Sound Judgment •• ......... . ...... 354

LX. Shrewdness ...... ...... ............ 353

LXI. Flattery • • . ....................... 368-

LXII. The Beggar ........ . .......... • • • 37 1

LXIII. Different f^iews of the Same Object • • 382
LXIV. Adventure at a Cottage ....-....-....• 38S

LXV. Habit— Lord Cardon ....... ....... 399*

MORDAUNT*

The STORY of Madame la MARQUISE de ',

as narrated by herself to Miss CLIFFORD;

JV1 Y father was a man of birth and of con-
fiderable fortune* moft of which he had fpent
in the fervice before he married my mother ;
but he then enjoyed court favour, a, govern-
ment, and other lucrative offices. I lie was
forty years of age, and me only- twenty. Hep
fortune was more ample than his had ever
been ; yet he had fo liberal and magnificent
a turn of mind, that, when he died> my mo-
ther's fortune, of which he could draw only
the rents, was all he left as a provifion for his
family.

Three years before his death I had been
boarded in a convent, contrary to the inclina-

VOL. II. £

2 MORDAUNT.

tion of my mother, who would rather-that I
had been educated at home under her own
eye : but my father gave frequent entertain-
ments, was proud of my mother's accom-
plimments,and feared that her attention to my
education would often prevent her from ap-
pearing in thofe affemblies, of which he con-
fidered her as the greateft ornament. My
mother yielded with regret a point which flic
thought very material.

The convent in which I was boarded, and
where I remained three years, had a high re-
putation. Thofe nuns, to which the educa-
tion of the boarders is peculiarly intruded,
execute the tafk, for the moft part, in a con-
fcientious manner, and to the beft of their-
undemanding. The impreffion they make
on the young mind very often remains through
life. This impreffion has an oppofite effect,
according to the character of thofe on which
it is made. Some it renders fuperftitious ;
others, foon after they are introduced into fo-
ciety, on hearing fome of the notions and

MORDAUNT. S

practices they learned at the convent turned
into ridicule, are apt to become irreligious. On
me the impreffion was of the firft kind \ for,
at the time I was removed from the convent,
I had a great inclination to become a nun.

[Here I could not help interrupting the
marchionefs with a fudden exclamation—

" Good heaven ! to become a nun/'

" Yes, my dear," refumed {he, fmiling :
" and if at that age you had lived as long in
the fame fociety, for fome of the nuns were ex-
tremely amiable as well as pious, I make no
doubt but you would have had the fame in-
clination."]

Secluded from the ordinary occupations of
life, it is not furprifmg that they mould place
almoft the whole of goodnefs in the perform-
ance of religious ceremonies and devout con-
templations. Some particular ceremonies may

even be amufing to the fancy of a child; and
/

at any rate was, I thought, an eafy purchafe for
that eternal happinefs to be fecured by per-
forming them, and which I was intruded

B 2

4? M.ORDAUNT.

would be endangered by living more at large*
in the world.

: An incident of a peculiar nature, however,
induced my mother to infill with my father that
I mould be removed from the convent fooner
than Ihe had agreed to : after which the compa-
ny and coaverfation of my mother gradually
diminished my prejudice in favour of the
convent, and I loft all delire to be a nun : but
while me endeavoured to efface every trace of
childiih fuperftition.from my mind, me- took
equal pains to imprint fentiments of rational
piety in their ftead. She defcribed fuperfti-
tion to me as a weaknefs, which me thought,,
However, had not fo pernicious an effect on.
the female character as infidelity; me told me
that the moft profligate women me had ever
known .were ihofe who were, or affected to
b«, iniidols i fupea-fthioa,.- therefore, me con-
tfemne.dylbat impiety filled her with horror.

again interrupted the .marchionefs's nar-
rative, faying> " that> if me had no. objection,.
Ihadfome curioiity to kaow what the inci-

MORDAUNT

•dent was which determined htr -mother to re-
move her from the con vent Tdoner. than ilie

i

had before agreed to :" but thinking that me
^efitated a little, I immediately. added,'-" that
ii it was of a fecrqt nature, or if, for .any other
realbn, me had the fmalleir. fcruple. to com-
municate it, I begged fhe would forgive me,
and proceed.0

" Secret nature — no—it is rather of a ridi-
culous nature," anfwered the marchionefs- :
•'* but, fuch as it is, fmce you wifb to know
it, you fhall be indulged."]

You can hardly form a notion, my dear
Mifs Clifford, (continued the marchionefs,) of
the ftrange incongruous ideas that may be
united in the brain of young perforis by .cer-
tain imprefTions, and by the ambiguity of
words. In the convent in which 1 was, a
young relation of mine was alfo a boarder—-
about fifteen years of age, of a lively imagi-
nation, and confidered as a little* faint, on ac-
count of the animation of her geftures in per-
forming the ufual ceremonies of devotion,

B 3

6 MORDAUNT.

and the fervour of her expreffions, when fhe
fpoke on religious fubjeds.

Sermons were occafionally preached in the
chapel adjoining to the convent. A tall,
handfome ecclefiaftic, of a majeftic appear-
ance, preached an eloquent fermon on the
love we owe to God. This fermon, and the
preacher, feemed to make a deep imprellion
on die -young lady: me was more thoughtful
than ufual, and fometimes feemed quite loft
in meditation. She told me one day, that
though me had always loved God, me was
now fenfible that fhe never had, in the degree
that fhe ought, until me heard the comely
ecclefiaftic's fermon. She- owned, that her
former love approached to coldnefs, when
compared with what fhe now felt ; that for-
merly fhe feldom had thought of him, ex-
cept when fhe was at her prayers, and fome-
times not even then j but now he entirely
occupied her thoughts by day and night.

This young lady's mother had been for
a confiderable time in a diflant province of

MORDAUNT. 7

France. The daughter had always men-
tioned her to me in the moft affectionate
terms, regretting the caufes which kept her
fo long abfent, and looking forward to her
return as a fource of happinefs.

My mother called one day at the convent,
and informed the young lady, that her mo-
ther, finding that me would be detained
ftill a confiderable time in the country, and
being impatient to fee her, was to fend a
perfon to Paris, to accompany the young
lady to the province ; — that me might there-
fore prepare for her departure within a few
days.

So far from manifefling any appearance of
joy, as my mother expected, the young lady
feemed rather afflicted at the news.

" What ! are you not happy at the
thoughts of returning fo foon to Langue-
doc ?" faid my mother.

" No," replied fhe ; " I would rather re-
main where I am."

" Are you not impatient to fee your mo-
B 4

% -MORDAUNT,

ther ?— I thought you had been exceedingly
fond of your mother."

" So I am very fond of her-— exceedingly
fond of her, that is certain : but do not irria-.
gine that I love her as I love God, for I do
love him. Gracious Heaven I" cried me,
clafping her hands and turning up her eyes,
"how I do love him !" M$v

My mother, on farther inquiry, having
difcovered the date and occafion of this vio-r
. lent paffion, thought proper to remove me
-from the convent that very evening, and' to,
fend the young lady to her parents, at Lan-
guedoc, a few days after.

-Though my mother was folicitous to lower
•that fpeeies of exultation on certain fubjects,
which my fancy had acquired in the nun-
nery, yet fhe was fenfible that every attempt
of that fort was to be managed with deli-
cacy ; for, as /he afterwards informed me,
£he had heard a girl of twelve years of age,
who after the death of her parents had been
'boarded in a convent, tell her guardian, a

MORDAUNT, 9

of piety and literature, on his explaining
fome religious article differently from the
fenfe in which fhe underftood it, ** that in all
rpoints which concerned her falvation fhe
would adhere to her own opinion -, in other
matters, of lefs importance, me would en-
deavour to mow due deference to his." .

If my mother had abruptly oppofed cer-
tain notions which I carried with me from
:the convent, and have iince renounced, I am
:by no means certain that I mould not have
made fome fuch anfwer as that of this felf-
Sufficient girl ; and if my opinion had been
violently attacked, my prejudice in its favour
would probably have increafed by mere dint
pf defending it.

[Having again apologifed to the marchio-
nefs for -my .interruption, and thanked her
for her complaifance, {he proceeded in her
narrative.]

The ftyle in. which my mother lived, after
the death of my father, might have been
called retired, when compared with what it

JO MORDAUNT.

had t>een before : yet fhe flill cultivated a fe-
led: circle of acquaintance. As fhe was paf-
fionately fond of mufic, (he went fometimes
to the opera, and attended private concerts
Aill oftener : fhe alfo carried me with her,
on a few occafions, to what is properly called
the Theatre Frangaife. During my father's
life-time fhe attended the court affiduoufly ;
after his death fhe very feldom went, unlefs
on public occafions; though fhe continued
to fee the princefs Elizabeth as often as that
virtuous princefs, who had a great efteem for
my mother, fignified a defire that fhe fhould
go to Verfailles.

As I was an only child, and heirefs to my
mother's fortune, it will not furprife you that
I had lovers. Several gentlemen afked her per-
miffion to pay me their addreffes : none of
them interefted me ; and fhe put an end to
their fuits, one after another, without ex-
prefling either approbation or difapprobation
of my indifference. She wifhed to obferve
how I was myfelf inclined, without interfer-

MORDAUNT. 11

ing before it was necefTary. At laft, a man
of higher name, and more illuftrioufly con-
netted than any who had addrefied me hi-
therto, declared his paffion for me : he was
handfome, genteel in his perfon, and related
to a young lady for whom I had conceived a
friendfhip. Though I heard his declaration
with more fatisfadtion than I had liftened to
any language of the fame kind before, yet I
Jeemed to treat it as common-place compli-
ment ; and when he was about to enforce it
with new proteftations, he was interrupted
by fome company that joined us.

I do not know why I did not inform my
mother of this ; perhaps I thought it more
becoming that he fhould fpeak to her in the
firft place j perhaps I was a little afraid me
might not approve : the truth is, I did not
mention it when I had an opportunity ; and
the omiffion did not proceed from forgetful-
nefs.

When he repeated his former declaration
to me, I anfwered, " that I never liftened

12 MORDAUNT.

to language bf that nature from 'any man
• without the approbation of my mother."

He foon found an opportunity of explain-
ing himfelf to her. She was better ac-
quainted with this perfon's character than I
was, and did not at all approve of his pro-
poial. She faid to him, however, "that
much WQuld depend on myfelf, and that fhe
would talk to me on the fubjecV'

Having conftrued what j, laft faid to him
jas an acquiefcence, lie told my mother that
he had already obtained my confent, and now
only needed hers.

At this my mother exprefTed furprife, and
repeated, that me would fpeak with me.

The only time J ever faw any thing like
referve, in my dear mother's behaviour to-
wards me, or any exprefiion but that of fond-*
nefs in her eyes, when direded to me, was
when I firil met her after her interview with
this man, who I mall call by the name of
Count -, not wifhing to diftinguiih him more
particularly, out of regard to his family,

MORDAUNT. IIS

I had been out in the carriage with a lady,
his relation, when he had called on my mo-
ther. We returned together to dinner.

Other company came after dinner ; fo that
me had no opportunity of fpeaking with me'
till all had withdrawn.

The alteration in my mother's manner af-
fe&ed me fo much, that the lady faid — *
" What can be the matter with you, my
dear ; you were all cheerfulnefs while w&
we're abroad, and now you feem quite for-
sowful!" I anfwered — " I was not very
well;" .but begged fhe would take no notice
of it, left it fliould make my mother uneafy.

As foon as the company were gone, my
mother withdrew to her own apartment. I
followed t .my bed-chamber was adjoining to
hers. She difmifTed her maid as well ' as
mine, who attended to undrefs us, faying flic
would ring when me needed them.
, Buriling into tears as foon as they \7ere
gone — " Ah ! my dear mother, I fear yoi>
are diipleafed with me."

14 MORDAtTNT.

" Indeed, Adelaide," faid (he, " lam."

" Though convinced, from your beha-
viour, that I have done fomething wrong, yet
1 am unconfcious what 'it is."

" Do you pretend not to be fenfible," re-
fumed {he, " that I have reafon to be of-
fended ?"

** I pretend nothing," replied I ; " I be-
lieve I limit have acted improperly, but I am
not fenfible in what ; pray inform me, that I
may undo it directly."

" Can you perceive no impropriety in af-
fcnting to the addreifes of the Count, with-
out confulting me ?"

" I aflented to nothing. On the contrary,
I told him, " That I could liften to no man's
addrefles without your approbation."

" Even that was a kind of implication,"
faid flie, " that you would be pleafed with
his addrefTes if I mould approve."

" Was it not alfa an implication, my dear-
eft madam, that I fhould never more lifbn to
them if you Ihould not approve ?"

MORDAUNT. 15

" He might not fee that fo clearly," me
replied.

" He mall find it, however," faid I.

" The Count told me that he had obtained
your confent," continued my mother.

" In that he told a falfehood," faid I;
" for my anfwer was what I have already
mentioned, and nothing elfe."

" You muft be fenfible," refumed my
mother, '* that your happinefs, my dear, is
the object neareft my heart."

" I am fully perfuaded of it,*' I anfwered.

" Do you really wilh, then, that I fhould
confent to your being the wife of this man?"

*' I mall never wiili that you mould con-
fent to what you do not approve."

" The birth of the Count, his fplendid
connexions, his external appearance, per-
haps, may have influenced you a little in his
favour."

« If ever thofe circum fiances had any in-
fluence with me in his favour, they now
weigh againft him."

36 MORDAUNT*

" How fo ?"

" Becaufe," replied I, " as it is evident you
do not approve of him, I am convinced that
you have fome objection which outweighs all
thofe advantages."

" Indeed, my dear, I have," faid me with
fervour ; " and my objection is, that I have
the ftrongeft reafon for thinking that he has?
a wicked heart. Heaven forbid, that alt
the rank, that all the riches, or any thing
elfe which this world can beitow, mould
ever prevail on me to ally my child with
tice !"

She afterwards told me, that fhe was in-
formed of the real character of the Comity
partly from thofe who had known him from
his childhood, and partly from certain adven-*
turcs of his, which me had accidentally come to
the knowledge of, though unknown to the
public, and of which he himfelf was ignorant
that me was acquainted. She allured me that
he was devoid of principle, haughty, over-
bearing, and addicted to mean company, from

ItfORDAUNTV 17

a love of that adulation which fuch only can
beftow.

Of the haughtinefs of the Count I had a
pretty ftrong proof the following day, when
he called and found me alone.

I fignifie'd' to him» in the moft polite terms
I could,' that I declined the propofal he had
done me the honour to make. ',».

«' What !" laid he, " your mother difap-
p roves of me, -then ?" .w\Kcn ' ;U*d

" I have not mentioned my mother, fir,"
fakl I; " but I have informed you of my^
own fentiments.^ Jiiifitr,-

" I plainly perceive^" faid he, frowning,
" that this comes from your mother."

" Yet," replied I, piqued at his infolent
manner, "" I cannot fee any thing wonderful
or unnatural in fuppoiing it to come entirely
from myfelf."

My mother entered the room at this mo-
ment

" I under ftood," faid he, " madam, that

VOL. II. C

18 MORDAUNT.

the propofal I made to you* would depend oft
your daughter's own decifion/'

" I am happy to find," faidfhe, " that my
daughter and I think in the fame way."

" You will permit me, madam," laid he,
*.? to have fome fmall doubt on that head."

'* Pray, fir, on what is your doubt
founded?"

" On this, madam 3 that it is more pro-
bable that I may not hit the fancy of an old
Woman than of a young one.'*

Having pronounced this infolent fpeech,

he withdrew, with an air of arrogance.

This behaviour bears more refemblance-to
the mariners of the rudeft people of Europe4,
than to what might be expected from a man
of rank, in a country diftinguimed for por-
litenefs, before all traces of politenefs, a*
well as of humanity, were banimed from the
nation. I have heard it remarked, however,
by fome who have had opportunities of com-
paring the characters of the various nations
of Europe, that themgh Frenchmen were more

MOR DAUNT. 19

polite than their neighbours by art, yet they
were lefs fo by nature* owing to an im-
petuofity of temperament, which, on the
fhadow of provocation, makes them forget
reftraints of every kind, and hurries into im-
prudcncies and difficulties, from which even
fubmiflion and adulation cannot extricate
them. The Count furnimed an example of
this. A few days after his infolence to my
mother, he wrote her a penitential letter, ac-
knowledging the impertinence of his be-
haviour, begging her pardon in the humblefl
manner, and expreffing his hopes that me
would allow him to renew his addrefles, and
to endeavour to efface the bad impreffion
which his foolim and infolent conduct muil
have made on me.

He alfo prevailed on fome of his relations
to plead his caufe with my mother; and
though he had every reafon to believe that,
after what had pafied, all would be without
fuccefs, yet, when he found that we perfe-
vered in the fentiments already exprefled, he

c *

'2O MO R DAUNT.

ftormed and raged as if it had,been a fre-fh in-
jury.

i Soon after this, monlieur le marquis deM

was introduced into the fociety my mother
moft frequented. I had many opportunities of
meeting and converfmg with him. He was
endowed with every thing which could ren-
der him attractive to woman, except fortune t
that was precifelv what I laid the leaft flrefs
upon. It is not furpriiing, therefore, that he
made ^a flrong impreffion on my heart; and
it v is with the utmoft fatisfaction that I per-
ceived, in fpite of the pains he took to con-
ceal it, that I had ' made v the lame on his. Orr
his part, however, he had no fufpicion of my.
partiality for him,.'.': As I am certain, tliat in
other matters monfieur de M — •- — rhas more
penetration .than I can 'boaft,. I conclude .that,
in this, particular buiinefs of love,- women
are generally:'quicker-iighted than men. What
confirms me in tliis opinion is, that my mo-
ther difcovered not only his pailion for me>
but alfo, -my partiality for him, long before

he had an}7 idea of it himfelf. In confe-
quence of this obfervation, without relying
on the favourable notion {he had of him, me
.made minute inquiry, from thofe who had
been acquainted with him from his infancy,
concerning his difpofition, temper, particular
habits, and propensities ; and, having re-
ceived fatisfactory information on thofe points,
{he fuddenly faid to me, one forenoon, when I
was in a kind of reverie — <f Pray, Adelaide,
what do you think of moniieur de M — — ?"

As monfieur de M was the very man

I was thinking of, the abruptnefs of this
queftion made me ftart, and afterwards bluih,
as if I had been detected in a crime ; for I
knew that he Was a younger brother, and had
little or no fortune ; and.I was by no means
convinced that my Ljcd.cr would put as lit-
tle ftrefs on that article as I did. Indeed I
- had been fo much accuifomed to' hear rnyfslf
vfpoken of as an heirefs, and entitled to marry
a man of fortune as well as birth, that I laid
my account with being univerfelly cenfured,

c-3

22 MORDAUKT.

if I ever mould difpofe of my hand other-
wife.

Seeing my furprife and confufion at the
queftion, my mother refumed — " I mould
not have thought that you would have been
at any lofs to have anfwered my queftion, be-
caufe every body thinks favourably of mon-
fieur de M — — -, and none more fo than my-
felf. I ihould be furprifed, indeed, my dear,
to find you of a different opinion.*'

In the confufion into which my mother's
queftion had thrown me, 1 did not perceive
the playful humour {he was in j and I was
fimple enough to begin to affure her, with
earneftnefs, that I had no reafon to think
more unfavourably of the gentleman than {he
and the reft of the world did."

" Well, rry dear," laid my mother, fmiU
ing, <• I am glad to find that you are not fin-»
gular in this inilance : but have you any rea-»
fon to believe that he thinks very favourably
of you?"

Though I had not the leail doubt on the

MORDAUNT. 2S

TubjecT:, this question embarraffed me almofl
as much as the former. I anfwered, after
hefitation, " that he never had made any
declaration of that nature to me."

" That is not exactly an anfwer to my
queftion," rejoined my mother ; " however,
I mall take it for granted that you have ob-
fcrved, as clearly as I have done, that al-
though he has made no declaration in words,
yet he entertains the fentiments of efleem and
love for you/'

I did not know what to make of my mo-
ther's difcourfe : my heart fluttered, and
my mind was bewildered between hope and
fear.

" But you know," refumed me, " that

monfieur de M is a younger brother,

that he has no fortune."

This obfervation came like a piece of ice
to my breaft. I was filent.

" Do not you know, my dear, that mon-

fieur de M has no fortune ?" repeated me.

c 4

24- MO'RPAUNi.

" But you feem to think," replied I, af-
fuming courage, <c that he has every other
good quality.*'.

" They wdu!d not he fufficient to fcreen you
from a thoufand mortifications and diftreffes ;
unlefs," added my mother, feeing me turn
pale, te unlefs you had that neceffary article,
in which alone he is deficient j but, as you
are fufficiently provided in that, if you have
as high an opinion of him as I have, you
{hall have my confent to liften to his addreffes,
and to give him the anfwer your heart dic-
tates.''

tn/:j threw myfelf into my mother's arm's with
all 'the rapture of filial fondnefs and grati-

[Here I coujd not -help interrupting the
marchionefs with the exclamation? — *' What

«f

^ delightful woman has your mother been !"]

" Ah ! Mifs Clifford, ihe was an angel,"

cried me — " My guardian angel, afTuredly.—

But, heavenly powers ! where was hers, when.

MORDAUNT. 25

t-~— p O let me not think on that dreadful
fcene !"

The marchionefs continued fhedding tears,
and unable to proceed for a considerable time.
I did not interrupt her. She at length dried
her eyes, faying, " Why do I lament the fate
of one in heaven ?" And, after another paufe,
during which fhe feemed loft in reflection,
fhe exclaimed, " O what mifery has my poor
country endured ! France is a real purgatory.
What many of the inhabitants have fuffered
in this wflrld will be confidered, I hope, as
expiatory in the next." Then, fixing me,
me added — " But the Engliih do not believe
in purgatory ?"

ft Some of them do,'' I anfwered, "others
do not."

" Why do they not all believe it ?" re fumed
fhe. Me I am -furprifed, my dear Mifs Clif-
ford, that you do not. — What reafon have you
for doubting it ?"

" Nay, my dear madam," replied I : " it

26 MORDAUNT.

rather falls on you to declare what reafon you
have for believing it."

€t What reafon ! — what reafon ! You can-
not imagine," refumed fhe, " that I am deep
read in controverfyj but I think it a fufficient
reafon for my believing the doctrine of pur-
gatory, that the vaft majority of the moft fe-
rious and refpectable people whom I have
known fince my infancy, and with whom I
have converfed in the courfe of my life, be-
lieve it."

" Is that a good reafon ?" faid I.

" Upon my word I think fo, for an igno-
rant perfon like me/' replied me.

<* Why then are you furprifed that I do
not believe the doctrine of purgatory, my dear
marchionefs ?"

" How do you mean? I do not underfbind
you," faid me.

" I declare,*' refumed I, " that I am not
more deeply read in controverfy than you;

but that the vaft majority of the moft ferious

'

MORDAtJNT. 27

and refpeftable people whom I have known
fince my infancy, and with whom I have
converfed, do not believe the doctrine of pur-
gatory."

" Well," replied me, foiling, " I per-
ceive you think that you have brought the
foundation of our faiths to a level -, but you
forget that our church, which afferts the doc-
trine in queftion, is by far the moft ancient."

" Forgive me, I do not forget that," faid
I : " but I alfo remember to have heard cer-
tain members of our church obferve, that to
cjfert is one thing, and to prove is another."

" Does your church," rejoined the mar-
chionefs, " affert nothing but what it proves ?"

I was relieved from anfwering this queftion
by the maid entering with tea : and, after me
withdrew, the marchionefs, inftead of repeat-
ing it, obferved, " that we had been led, me
did not know how, into a very fingular dif-
cuffion for two women."

" We have at lead difcovered," refumed I,
4* the origin of moft people's religious belief,

23

as well as our own ; that, however different
or oppofite they may be, they proceed
from the fame caufe, and therefore ought not
to be a fource of hatred or perfecution."

The marchionefs agreed very readily to the
inference; but infifted, that " though the
foundation was generally laid in the fame
manner, yet the ground on which fome reli-
gions flood, and the materials of which they
were compofed, might be more folid and
more genuine than thofe of others -, and that
which had ilood the longeil, in fpite of a
thoufand florms and tempefts, was, in her
opinion, the moil fecure."

To this I made no anfwer j but I begged
the marchionefs to refume her narrative, which
{he did in the following terms.]

Soon after the fcene between my mother
and me, which I have already described, mon^

iieur de M • paid his addrefles, and the

ceremony of our marriage followed at no

great diflance of time.

. The happinefs which we enjoyed, during

the fhort period in which we lived together,
I imagine, has been feldom equalled, and ne-
ver furpaffed, in this world. One fource of
enjoyment to us both was to be witnefles to
the fatisfa&ion of my mother, who, delighted
with the manner in which me faw us live to-
gether, thanked Heaven every day, that, in
her daughter's marriage, me had paid more
attention to the character than the fortune of
her huftand. — '< Ah ! my Adelaide,3' would
(he fometimes fay, on contemplating the mu-
tual efleem zind affection, that exifted between
us, '* what a; poor compenfation would any
quantity '.of additional wealth be to you for
having miffed the felicity you now enjoy !"

The . happy period 1 fpeak of was imme-
diately previous- to the revolution,' Moniieur
de M-4 — .is a man of benevolence, a lover of
juftice>.:Un4 one who feels a ftrong fentiment
of indignation at every act. of oppreilion. He
was fenfible of certain abufes in government;
and often regretted the fuiFerings of the poor,
particularly the peafantry, who were more

3O MORDAUNT,

expofed than others to oppreffion, and whole
comforts, when they tafte them, depended, in
his opinion, more on the generofity of their
lords than on the protection of the laws.
Notwithstanding the rank to which he was
born, and that his expectations in life had been
founded on court-favour, he iaw the begin-
nings of the re volution, with fatisfadtion, from
the hopes that fuch reformation would be
adopted as would equally tend to the fafety of
the monarchy and the happinefs of the peo-
ple. He foon, however, began to be alarmed
at the violence of fome of the popular lead-
ers, and was every day more mocked at their
proceedings. In the progrefs of events, many
of his friends, and fome of his relations, emi-
grated : they wrote, urging him to the fame
meafure. It was even ftated, that his not
joining thofe of his countrymen, who were
aflembling at Coblentz, would be conitrued
into difloyalty or timidity.

He fpoke to me on the fubjecl:. For my
part, I had never thought on politics or go-

MORDAUNT. 31

verriment in my life; they were topics I
abhorred at that particular time more than
ever, becaufe of the everlafting difcuflions I
had for fome time heard, in all companies,
upon them. When iny hufband approved of
the revolution I adopted his fentiments, be-
caufe they were his, being fully perfuaded
that he was a better judge than I. When he
changed his opinion I changed mine, for the
fame reafon I had before adopted it. Subfe-
quent events have well confirmed m& in my
new way of thinking.

Seeing the king and the royal family aban-
doned by the greater part of the nobility, who
had fled from France, and willing to believe-
that fomething might be ftill done, within the
kingdom, in fupport of the monarchy, my
hufband was unwilling to emigrate. He re-
ceived many reproaching letters from his re-
lations on that account. As if the lofs of
rank and fortune, with the neceffity of feek-
ing refuge and protection from ftrangers, was
not calamity enough to the emigrants from

32 MORDAUETV

my unhappy country, they augment the bit-
ttrnefs of their own condition by reciprocal
animofities. The declared enemies of the
emigrants have not treated the whole clafs
with lefs candor than the different defcrip- .
tions of them have done each other.

Unable any longer to reM the felicitations
of fame of his friends, my hufband determined,
to withdraw from France, and join the army>
under the command of the prince of Conde.
I had obferved him for fome days uncom-:
monly thoughtful ; but as I knew that . he
concealed nothing from me that he did not
think improper tp be communicated, though
I was extremely uneafy on account of "his
prefent referve, I abftained from, all inquiries,
and betrayed no fymptom of curiofity to know
what he feemed inclined to keep me igno-
rant of.

He at lail faid to me one day, after a pretty
long iilence, and after feveral fighs which he
endeavoured .in vain to fupprefs — " When
you married a foldier, my dear Adelaide, you

MOHDAUNT. 33

no doubt laid your account with occafional
reparation, when the voice of honour, or the
duties of his profeffion, called him from you."

I took hold of his hand, but was unable to
fpeak.

He then proceeded to acquaint me with
the refolution he had formed ; that it was in
confequence of the advice of his friends, and
of very ferious reflection on his own part, that
in fighting, under the banners of the prince
of Conde, in the prefent caufe, he thought
he was ferving not only his king, but his
country.

I will not attempt to defcribe what pafled
from this time until his departure: I mufl
only inform you that my mother was in ill
health at that period ; fo that it would have
been cruel in me to have feparated myfelf
from her had it been my inclination.

It is alfo neceffary that I mould inform you
that the Count was a relation of the archbifhop
of Sens ; that, during the agitations in France,
for fome time before the revolution actually

VOL. II. D

34

began, and particularly while the archbifhop
was prime-minifter, the Count was one of the
moft furious againrt any kind of conceffion on
the part of government, or the leaft redfefs of
any of the grievances complained of: at that
time he expected power and eminent fitua-»
tions, from a confirmation of the old fyftem,
with all its abufes. He declared that nothing
ought to be granted to the canaille -, and he
confidered nine-tenths of the nation as c a-
nallle.

After the archbimop was obliged to quit
the helm, the Count began to change his lan-
guage. This alteration was more and more
remarkable in the progrefs of the revolution,
until at laft the change was fo complete, that
thofe whom he had formerly ftigmatiled as
canaille he now diftinguifhed by the title ofpeu-
ple fouverain. He altered his drefs as well as his
language, and afTumed in both the ftyle of the
fans-culottes ; became a declaimer in the Ja-
cobihe fociety, and cultivated the acquaint-
ance of one Collot d'Herbois, who, from a

MORDAUNT. 35

defpicable comedian * now affected the tone
of a difinterefted patriot, and has fince render-
ed his obfcure name infamous by crimes of
the deeper! die. By this fellow the Count
was introduced to the good graces of Robe-
fpierre.

Though every kind of profligacy might be
expected in a character fuch as I have repfe-
fented the Count's, yet you, my dear Mifs
Clifford, who, are of a country where, as I
have been told, nothing of the fame nature
ever takes place, muft be furprifed at fuch
barefaced apofracy in politics. Though an
efiential change of circumftances certainly will
juftify an alteration of conduct, yet, in his va-
riations, if a man always veers to the party iri
power, his real motive will be clearly feen ;
and, in England, fuch a man would be de-
fpifed, however elevated the fituation in which
he might be placed. It was not fo at this
time in France : to fuch a height had this
fpecies of profligacy attained, that no incon-
liftency of this nature was thought difgrace-

D 2

°%6 MORDAUNT.

ful ; and fome of the meaneffc of mankind
were praifed and applauded, while in power,
without any regard to the bafenefs by which
they attained it.

The Count had formerly maintained that
the po\ver of the crown was too fmall, and
ought ta be enlarged -f yet, when he faw it
attenuated to a mere fhadow, and unable to
fupport its own dignity, or reward its defend-
ers, he joined the ruffian crew who wifhed
to annihilate it altogether. There is no doubt
of his having been privy to the arrangements
made for the attack on the Tuileries on the
I Oth of Auguft 17 9 Q y and there is great rea-
fon to believe that he was not ignorant of
what was intended at the beginning of Sep-
tember following.

A fhort time previous to that execrable pe-
riod, a bufmefs of importance rendered it ne-
cefTary for my mother to go to Havre. Her
eftate is at no great diftance from that town.
As a lady of her acquaintance and her ileward
were to accompany her, and as me intended to

MORDAUNT. 37

flay only a few weeks, {he pofitively infifted
on my remaining with an intimate friend of
hers, a mod amiable woman, the countefs of

B , who invited me to refide with her at

Autieul, a village near Paris, until her re-
turn.

At Havre my mother heard the firft detail
of tranfa&ions, the horror of which it was not
in the power of rumour to exaggerate. She
was of uncommon fenfibility, and fubject to
nervous complaints ; me was feized with re-
peated fits of a convulfive nature ; even when
me had recovered from thefe, her mind con-
tinued unufually agitated. Hearing of an
Englifh vefTel about to fail, without acquaint-
ing any other perfon, attended by her maid
only, (he took her paflage; and the countefs

of B -knew nothing of her departure till

fhe received a letter from the maid, dated
Portfmouth. My mother herfelf was unable
to write. She was for fome time attended by
a phyiician there. An Englim nobleman, of
tile higheft rank, whofe country refidence is

P 3

33 MORDAUNT,

at no great diftance from Portfmouth, and
who had been acquainted with her at Paris,
hearing of the condition (he was in, came to
that place, and carried hr to his own houfe,
where, all ppffible care being taken of her, me
entirely recovered. In the mean time the
mod uhjuft decrees were propofed in the fu-
rious convention againft emigrants. My mo-
ther's friends, particularly the princefs of P '

and the countefs of B— , wrote preffing

letters for her to return before a certain day,
otherwife, by a fevere decree which had now
pafied, her eftate would be forfeited — She
refolved to return accordingly : but being
again taken ill at Portfmouth, me was con-
fined to her bed a confiderable time, and the
day fixed for the return of the emigrants
elapfed before me arrived in France.

When it was firft proppfed in the conven-
tion that my mother's name mould be erafed
from the lift of emigrants, a violent outcry
was raifed againft it by that party called the
Mountain : no explanation was liftened to ; it

MORDAVNT. 59

was reprobated as an attempt of lhameful
partiality to a perfon of quality, which none
but ariftocrats and royalifts could make.

Pains, however, were taken privately to
explain the circumftances of the cafe to cer-
tain leading men of the Gironde party -, one
of whom renewed the propofal, when the
convention were in a lefs malignant humour.
He began by faying, that " he wifhed to
make a motion, which, if it was not carried,
would materially injure many worthy patriots
and virtuous fans-culottes, who were in fimi-
lar or lefs favourable circumflances than thole
of the perfon in whofe behalf he was about
to implore the juftice of the convention; for
he knew that they were no refpecters of per-
fons in the diftribution of juftice; but, in
conformity to the motto of egalite, which
they had adopted, would ufe the fame weight
and meafure to all defcriptions of people."

After a few circuitous flourishes of this
kind, before he difcovered his object, he re-
capitulated the circumftances of my mother's

D 4

40 MGRDAUNT.

cafe, and did not name her until the whole
affembly was convinced that me had been
prevented by illnefs alone from arriving in
France before the day appointed, by the de-
cree, for the return of thofe French who
happened to be out of their native country.
There was a loud cry in favour of what was
demanded : no member of the Mountain ven-
tured to oppofe ; and it was as unanimoufly
decreed to erafe her name from the lift of
emigrants, as it had, a few days before, been
decreed- to infert it.

My mother remained in pofTefiion of her
eflate.

Though I hated the republican principles
of the Girondifls, yet I never put them on a
footing with the fanguinary faction denomi-
nated the Mountain. Ever after this period
my mother felt a ftrong fenfe of obligation to
certain leaders of the ^former party : among
thofe attached to which were fome men of
great eloquence and very confiderable talents,
and two of the rnoft extraordinary women

MORDAUNT. 11

that France has produced fince the days of
Joan d'Arc.

In the moft dreadful fituations, furrounded
by all that could appal or deprefs the human
mind, ancient or modern annals exhibit no-
thing furpafling the firmnefs and heroic eleva-
tion pf foul with which madame Roland and
the aftonifhing Charlotte Corde met death.

The united energy of Robefpierre and
Danton had overturned the party of the Gi-
ronde ; and thofe two traitors were at the
head of the atrocious gang who domineered
over my unhappy country. Each wiflied to
be the fupreme ruler ; which neither could
be, without the death of the other ; of courie,
each meditated the deilruclion of his affociate.
Their reciprocal enmity became more and
more apparent -, and men began to arrange
themfelves under thofe two chiefs, in expec-
tation of the conteil which foon after took
place.

Camille Defmoulins, whofe name you mufr,
have heard, as one of the eariiefl promoters

42 MQRDAUNT.

pf the commotions in Paris, was an acquaint-
ance of the Count. Defmoulins was alib a
writer in favour of the revolution : a vein of
pleafantry runs through his works, which
might have been agreeable on any other fub-
ject ; but all kind of jocularity appears hi-
deous, amidrl fcenes of atrocity and murder.
The Count had been confined above a month,
pn account of ill health, to a villa belonging
to him in the neighbourhood of Paris.

Defmoulins vifited him oftener than ufual,
becaufe he was then in low fpirits, and de-
prived of other entertainment, Defmoulins
was particularly attached, at this time, to
the faction of Pan ton. He convinced the
Count that Robefpierre had difgufted the moft
powerful friends of the republic ; that he was
lofing his popularity daily 3 that he would be
removed foonj and that Danton would be all-
powerful.

With fuch impreffions, the Count became
extremely vexed that he mould be confidered
as the partifan of a man fo near his fall ; and

MORDAUNT. 4(T

equally anxious to declare himfelf the friend
of one rifmg to fupreme power, he wifhed to
have the merit of declaring for the latter be-
fore that event mould take place ; for which
purpofe he wrote the following epiftle, which
he intended to give to Defmoulins at his next
yiiit, that he might deliver it to Dantpn.

" CITIZEN DANTON,
" I HAVE for fome time viewed, with the
utmoft concern, the dangers to which the re-
public is expofed, by the execrable conduct
of a madman. I know no perfon fo able to
fecure to the nation all the advantages ex-
pected from the revolution as he who planned
the victory on the glorious 1 Oth of Auguft,
and the decifive tranfaclions in the beginning
of September following. Your patriotifm,
and the energy of your character, fix the
hopes of all enlightened Frenchmen on you :
from you they expect a termination of the
prefent diforders, and of the power of a fu-
rious tyrant. The fooner you adopt meafures

44 MORDAUNT.

for thofe purpofes the better ; for, while that
monfter lives, neither your own life, nor that
of any of your friends, can be fafe : — I beg
you will count me among the moft fincere.
of that .honourable clafs. I am infinitely
concerned that ill health renders it impomble
for me to give you thefe afTurances by word
of mouth, and aflifbing perfonally in whatever
you may think proper to undertake. In the
mean while depend on all my influence, and

believe me to be your devoted friend, &c."

« »»

The Count expected Camille Defrnoulins
the morning after he had written the above ;
his old intimate, Collot d'Herbois, called that
very evening ; he had been abfent from Pa-
ris on fome of his horrid expeditions. See-
ing a letter on the table in the Count's hand,
addreffed to Danton, he ftarted.

" What is the matter?" faid the Count.
• " Do you ccrrefpond with that man ?" fai$
d'Herbois.

MORDAUNT. 45

" It is the nrft letter I ever wrote to him,"
replied the Count.

Collot d'Herbois then told him, that he
began his correfpondence at rather an un-
lucky time ; and hinted, that if the letter
was not of very great importance, he had
bed delay fending it, be-caufe he might
foon have reafon to wifh that he were not
known to have any particular connection
with Danton.

The Count owned that the letter was of
the utmoft importance ; and, to convince
him, broke up the cover and read the con-
tents.

D'Herbois then afTured him, " that he had
been drawn into an error, which might have
had fatal confequences to him ; and that Ro-
befpierre was furer of maintaining his power
now than ever."

On which the Count obferved, " that, in
fuch flippery times, the moft cautious people
were at a lofs to know with what party, or
what man, to fix themfelves ; that, for his

46 WORD AUNT.

own part, he had always had as much refpecl;
for Robefpierre as for Danton ; and that, aft-
er what he had juft heard, he could not help
having a great deal more : that the letter he
had intended for Danton would do for Robef-
pierre— that he would not need to change a
iingle fentence, but merely put it under &
new cover, with a new addrefs ; and he beg-
ged of his friend to deliver it the very next
day : only it would be firft of all necefiary t6
erafe the name Danton at the top, and.fub-
ftitute that of Robefpierre."

Collot d'Herbois objected to the erafure,
faying, '* it would have an aukward appear-
ance if obferved, and might create fufpicion :"
he therefore prevailed on the Count to write
the letter anew, and to addrefs it to Citizen
Maximilian Robefpierre ^ and not fimply to Citi-
zen Robefpierre. " Great men," added Collot
d'Herbois, " are fubject to weakneiTes as well
as little men 3 and Robefpierre himfelf, though
entirely free from many of the weaknefles of
humanity, certainly does feel fomething flat-

JViORDAUNT". 4^

tering to his ear, and which he thinks fuit-
able to his character, in the name Maximi-
lian > and therefore likes to have it always
precede his iirname Robefpierre, which I be-
lieve he intends, at a proper time, to drop
altogether.''

" Will not that have an ariftoeratic ap-
pearance ?" faid the Count.

" Why, perhaps it may,'1 replied Colloe
d'Herbois, with a grin, for his ftern features
did not admit a fmile ; " perhaps it may have:
that appearance ; for nothing is fo like aft
ariftocrat, as a democrat, when he comes into
power ; as nothing is liker a democrat than
an ariftocrat thrown out of power : but this
is only external appearance ; the heart is al-
ways the fame. For example, my dear
Count, you are precifely.the fame man you
were when your relation, the archbifhop of
Sens, was prime-miniiter."

Without making any reply to this ironical
compliment, the Count finished the new
edition of the letter, as Collot d'Herbois had

48 M OR DAUNT.

dire&ed : he then (lepped for two minutes
into another room, and at his return looked
for the original letter, that he might burn it.
This his friend informed him he had already
done during his abfence ; afTuring him, at the
fame time, that he would deliver the new one
to Robefpierre the next morning.

All the circumftances of this important in-
terview between thofe two loving friends,
with many others refpecting the Count, I
learned afterwards from a perfon from whom
he concealed nothing : for though many trans-
actions of this man's life were of a nature to
require fecrecy, yet he was incapable of it.
To him it was like an abfolute neceflary of
life to have fome man or woman into whofe
cars he might pour whatever was dangerous
to utter in public, and painful for him to re-
tain.

Soon after this the prediction of Ccllot
d'Herbois was verified -, the furious Dantort
was enfnared, imprifoned, and put to death,
by the man whofe life he had faved, when he

MORDAUNT. 49

«

was accufed, and about to be profecuted by
the Gironde.

Robefpierre, from this period, was all-
powerful : the dreadful ufe he made of his
power all the world knows. My mother and
I lived in great privacy, hardly ever going
out of the' houfe, and receiving few or no
company. Melancholy and dejected through
the day, our fhort {lumbers interrupted in the
night by the found of the drum and alarm-
bell j afraid to afk the news in the morning,
left we mould hear of the arreftment of fome
friend or relation, and mocked with the ac-
counts we daily received of frefh vidims
of cruelty, me determined, at length, to
withdraw from Paris, and endeavour to
find tranquillity in a diitant province of
France.

She applied for paffports with this inten-
tion: every thing was prepared for our jour-
ney. The paffports were poftponed, on I
do not remember what preten.ce. We were
at laft affured that they would be delivered

VOL. II. E

SO MORtJAITNf.

the following morning, and on that afTurarice
went to bed in more compofure of mind than
tlfuaL

About two hours before our common houf
of fifing, we were alarmed -by a loud knock-
ing at the gate of the hotel. Two muni-
cipal officers were admitted, and a party of
national guards remained in the court.

As foon as my mother was dreffed, and
could go into the room in which the two of-
ficers waited, one of them prefented an order
for feiiing her papers, and carrying her to
one of thofe houfes of confinement, of which
there were many at that time in Paris, and
all over France,

The number of my mother's friends and ac-
quaintance who were in this fituation had fug-
gefted precaution, and prevented her from be-
ing entirely unprepared for this cruel incident :
me had nothing to dread, therefore, with re-
gard to the examination of her papers. The
officer informed her, that me was ordered
into confinement only as a perfon fufpected ;

MORDAUNT. 51

that the order did not extend to me. This in-
telligence adted on her as a cordial : it evi-
dently raifed her fpirits, and removed great part
of her alarm. The daily executions, and other
Shocking occurrences, had produced an extra-
ordinary change on my mother's constitution:
it had familiarifed her with the idea of death,
and greatly diminished that nervous fenfibi-
lity to which me had formerly been fubject.
Her own perfonal danger affected her little ;
but, whatever threatened me, flill gave her
alarm.

I begged of the officer that I might be my
mother's companion in prifon : the man at
firft objected.

I funk on my knees, feifed his hand, and
intreated that I might not be feparated from
my mother.

She was hurt at this ; and faid, with the
tone of indignation—" Rife, my daughter ;
though we are unfortunate, let us not be
abjecV'

I repeated my requeft to the officer, the

52 MORDAUNT.

tears ftreaming, from my eyes. The man
was moved; and at lail faid — " That if it
was alfo my mother's defire, he would take
it upon him to indulge us."

Without paying attention to what my mo-
ther had faid, I preiTed the man's hand to my
lips with a heart overflowing with grati-
tude.

Notwithflanding her having at firft deter-
mined otherwife, feeing the flate of my mind,
me joined in the requeft, and we were con-
ducted to the place deftined for our confine-
ment.

[I will not hurt your fenfibility, my dear
mifs Clifford, by a defcription of this houfe
of forrow, or of any of the many affecting
fcenes I witneffed there ; but I will give you
fome account of a kind of examination which
took place about three months after my mo-
ther was confined, becaufe it proves how
completely me was cured of her conflitu*
tional timidity, by a continued contemplation
of certain objects, the leaft glance of which

MORDAVNT. 53

would formerly have thrown her into con-
vulfions.]

We were at breakfaft, one morning, when
my mother was fummoned to appear before
three commiffioners, who had arrived at the
place of our confinement, authorifed to exa-
mine the prifoners, and report to a com-
mittee.

I became pale, and was ready to faint.—
" What is there alarming in this, my dear ?"
faid my mother ; " it is what we have long
expe&ed, and even wifhed. What I had
moft to fear was, left the circumftances of
my cafe would never have been examined
into."

At my earned requeft, I was permitted to
accompany my mother. We were condudted
into a large room, where the three com-
miflioners fat at the head of a table. I was a
good deal furprifed when I recognifed, in one
of them, the perfon who had taught me to
dance. This tended to. diminish my terror ;

E 3

54- MORDAtTNT.

for, although I had heard that the man had
become a furious patriot, and knew that he
was much of a coxcomb, yet I alfo knew
that he had a very benevolent heart.

He that was the chief of this commiffion,
with lefs levity, had all the abfurdity of the
dancing-mafter, and was the complete dupe
of the hypocrify and of the falfehoods at this
time propagated by Robefpierre.

The man began the examination by ex-
preffing concern at the caufe of my mother's
confinement.

She thanked him, adding, " that fhe was
concerned at the effecl:, but that {he had not
yet been informed of the caufe."

" I thought you had been told, citizen,'*
replied he, " that you were under fufpicion
of being a fufpedled perfon,"

" I was fo, citizen" replied me ; " but I
never have been to!4 what I am under thg
fufpicion of being fufpeded of."

« To be fufpe&ed is fufHcient," faid he >

MORDAUNT." 55

" and all who are in that predicament are un-
der confinement as much as you \ fo you have
no reafon to complain."

" I mould have been glad to hear that I
was the only innocent perfon in France in
this fituation," replied my mother j " fo that
what you have told me can be no alleviation
of my fufferings."

" Your confinement will not be of long
duration," faid the dancing-mafter.

" I indulged that hope when I was fir ft
arrefled," me replied ; " but I now have
been detained here three months, without
any crime having been alleged againft me."

" You were erafed from the lift of emi^
grants by the Girondifts," faid the corn.r
miflioner.

" I could not have been erafed by any
other," replied me, " as they were the per-*
fons in power at that time."

" Your connexion with that faction,
however, creates fufpicion againft you."

*' I had no connection with them; nor
E 4

56 MORDAUNT.

did I ever fee any of them until I was fum-
moned to appear before one of their com-
mittees.5'

" I know that to be exa&ly fo," faid the
dancing-mafter ; «« and I have good reafon for
believing that me had a fincere hatred againft
Briflbt, Genfonnet, Kerfaint, and the other
members of that committee, previous to the
time they ftruck her from the lift of emi-
grants ; but you very well know, brother,
that it is difficult to retain hatred againft
thofe who do you a good office, even al^
though they mould be bad men."

ft I know no fuch thing, brother," replied
the chief commiflioner — " No aft of kind-
nefs to myfelf or friends would prevent me
from abhorring thofe who performed a&s of
public mifchief.'1

" I can aflure you," refumed my mother,
'* that no perfon could more iincerely abhor
the public mifchief performed by the Girond-
iAs than I did."

Your having been erafed by them, how-

K

MORDAUNT. 57

ever, was unlucky, and will be of no fervice
to you now," faid the chief commiffioner.

" It ought at leaft to do me no harm,"
faid me.

" The Girondifts were all traitors, " re-
fumed the commiffioner.

" I am forry for it," faid my mother.

" What ! forry for the Girondifts."

" I am forry they were traitors."

" You have reafon, citizen," faid the firft
commiffioner; " for it is a very dangerous
thing, citizen, to have had traitors for your
friends."

" It ought not ; fince it is clear that I had
no mare in their treafon."

f( Do you not know that thofe traitors, the
Girondifts, intended to reftore monarchy ?"

" No," replied fhe •> "I really do not
know it. "

'« No !" exclaimed he—" Why all France
knows it."

" Since that was their intention," rejoined

58 MORDAUNT.

my mother, " dethroning the king feems to
have been a round-about way of going to their
objea."

" They were forced into that meafure,"
laid he, " and can claim little merit from it."

" Very little, indeed," added my mother.

" But their defign was afterwards apparent,
by the various attempts they made to fave the
tyrant."

" Tyrant !" exclaimed my mother, throw^
ing her eyes upwards.

" Yes," re-echoed the.commiffioner, " a
bloody tyrant ! who gave politive orders to
the Swifs to flaughter the innocent citizens
on the 10th of Auguft."

" The fame Girondifls, " continued he,
" were equally difpofed to have faved the life
of the queen, who was of a more bloody and
tyrannical difpofition, if poilible, than Capet
himfelf."

" They were both very bloody-minded
tyrants, that is clear," rejoined the other corn^

MORDAUNT. 59

miffioner, who had not before fpoken, £hak-
ing his head and looking to his brother.

" And the princefs Elizabeth!" exclaimed
my mother — " fhe was alfo a bloody-minded
tyrant— Was me not?"

The commiffioner flared.

f( Or, what was her crime ?" refumed my
mother, with an animation of look approach-
ing to wildnefs.

The commiffioner looked firft at one, then
at the other, of his brethren.

He who had fpoken lafl faid that *' Eliza-
beth was certainly fufpected of being an
enemy to the revolution."

" She certainly was," added the chief com-
miffioner." And then looking to the danc-
ing mafter, he added — " Did not you tell
me, brother, that one who attended in the
Temple informed you that he had overheard
her praying very fervently, and that her
prayers were anti-revolutionary ?"

*' Jt was you that faid they were anti-
revolutionary," replied the dancing-mailer.—

(JO MORDAUNT.

" I only told you that the man had faid (he
was overheard praying for the reformation of
the king's enemies."

The two commiflioners looked at each
other without fpeaking.

The perfon who fat at the bottom of the
table, and acted as clerk, had formerly been
a prieft, and had diftinguimed himfelf as a
cafuift : he now opened his mouth for the firft
time, and faid, with a folemn tone, " By re~
formation me meant dejlruttion"

" Ay, me certainly meant definition,"
rejoined the firft commiffioner.

" And if the prayer mould ever be grant-
ed," refumed the clerk, " it is more likely to
be according to the meaning than the expre£»
fion of the petition."

" Moft afiuredly," faid the chief com-
mimoner.

" And you will be pleafed to obferve,"
added the clerk, " that fuch prayers being
granted, according to the meaning of the pe-
titioner, involves the deftruclion of the repub-^

MORDAUtfT. 61

lie: its beft defenders would, according to
her prayer, be cut off like the great Marat ;
for, by the king's enemies, (he muft have un-
doubtedly meant Robefpierre, and many other
patriots, all per-feclly known to him to whom
the prayers were addreffed."

" Moft affuredly," repeated the commif-
lioner.

" It follows, therefore, as a neceflary con*
fequence, that the princefs Elizabeth's prayers
were anti-revolutionary," continued the ca-
fuift, " and might have been the caufe of
overfetting the revolution : and to overfet the
revolution.1 by dint of prayers is juft as trea-
fonable as by any other means : for, when
the revolution is overfet, where is the differ-
ente ?"

" None ! none !" exclaimed the commif-
fioner.

" That being the cafe," faid the clerJc,
*' it is clear that the princefs Elizabeth was
a bloody-minded tyrant, and merited death."

" Ah ! the monfter," faid my mother.

62 MORDAUNT*

The dancing-matter was the only one of
the,commiflioners who heard this expreffion,
which was almoft drowned by a profound
figh, and by my mother's burfting into tears
as me uttered it.

This man understood fome of her anfwers
better than his brethren, and had been uneafy
during the examination, left me mould fay
fomething that would increafe the danger of
her Situation : to prevent which he rofe, fay-
ing " that the prifoner feemed indifpofed, and
that he imagined no other queftions needed
be put to her." The other commiffioners
acquiefced. My mother and I withdrew.
When we were alone me gave vent to the in-
dignation me had with difficulty fuppreffed
during the examination.

My mother became folicitous left the con-
ftant confinement mould affecl: my health :
and as my unwillingnefs to leave her hinder-
ed me from availing myfelf of the permiflion
I had of going abroad fo often as I might, me
contrived to give me little commi(lions,which

MORDAtTNT. 63

required to be executed at a confiderable di-
ftance, that I might derive benefit from the
frefh air and the exercife. One day me found
a pretext for fending me as far as the village
bf Pafly, with a meffage to a lady who lived
in the houfe which your countryman, the
celebrated Dr. Franklin, had formerly inha*
bited.

During my abfence, the Count, for the firft
time fince her confinement, called on my
mother. He affefted great concern, and ex-
prefled the moft ardent wifh to have it in his
power to ferve her ; hinted that her greateft
danger proceeded from an idea that me had
been intimately conne&ed with, and favoured
by, the Gironde party j that he had been
ufing all his influence with the committee of
Public Safety to prevent the effect of that
idea ; and that he was not without hopes of
fucceeding. She heard him with coldnefs,
and exprefled her thanks with referve, becaufe
me was ill able to diflemble, and ftrongly fu-
fpefted his profeffions of good-will.

64 MQRDAUNf.

He then faid, " that, independent of heif
connection with an odious faction, another
circumftance prejudiced her caufe ilill more
in the minds of the men at prefent in powers
and, he was very forry to add, might, if not
removed, endanger her life ; and that was her
daughter's being the wife, not only of an
emigrant, but of one who ferved under the
prince of Conde."

" It feems quite unnecefTary to remind me
of thofe circumffonces," faid my mother,
'* fince they cannot be altered.

" If I were not perfuaded that your influ-
ence could alter them," refumed he, " my
tendernefs for you would have prevented my
mentioning them." He then proceeded to
inform her, " that it was, by the laws of the
republic, abfolutely impomblc for my hufband
ever to return to France without the imme-
diate lofs of his life ; and that it was equally
impofllble for me to leave France without
forfeiting the fucceffion to her eftate : that
thofe two impoffibilities rendered a divorce

MORDAUNT. 65

highly expedient ; that divorces had been at
no preceding period ib eafily obtained as at
prefent ; and," added he, " to give you
the moft convincing proof, not only of my
being able to obtain your acquittal and free-
dom, but alfo of the fincerity of my friend-
fhip to you, notwithftanding my being fenfi-*
ble that it was by your influence alone that
what I am going to propofe failed formerly,
yet I now declare, that I am ftill willing to
unite my family with yours by efpoufmg your
daughter, as foon as a divorce can be procur-
ed from her prefent hufband."

" And you expeft," faid my mother, her
eyes flaming with indignation, " you expedt
that I (hall influence my daughter to agree to
fuch an execrable plan ?"
- " If you do not prefer remaining in pri-
fon, and the forfeiture of your fortune,'*
anfwered he.

" Know, wretch," replied {he, " that I
would prefer the guillotine !"

VOL. ji. F

C# MORDAtfST.

" Perhaps you may in that be indulged*
tnadam," replied he, and ruflied out of the
toom.

After this my mother defpaired of obtain-
ing her liberty, and did all me could to per-
fuade me to leave her to her fate. " They
Are determined, my dear child,'* faid me,
N*' to murder me, on fome pretext or other $
perhaps, without troubling themfelves about a
pretext, they will take my life, that my
eftate may be confifcated. You cannot pre-
vent their cruelty ; but it will be a great
confolation to me to know that you are beyond
their power ; I beg, therefore, that you will
adopt the plan I have formed for your efcape
out of this land of horror. If, contrary to my
expectation, my life mould be fpared, I will
find means of informing you, and we will
meet when it can be done without danger :
but it is a very great aggravation of my mi-
fery to know that you remain in the pbwer
of fuch barbarians."

MORftAUNTi $7

Thefe, and other arguments to the fame
purpofe, though often urged, did not prevail.
I fhould have confidered it as facrilegious,
and that it would put me on a footing with
the barbarians me execrated, to abandon my
mother in fuch circumftances.

The name of the dancing- matter who had
afted as commiffioner was Vilotte. In his
youth he had been diflinguimed for expert-
nefs in the practical .part of his profeflion :
being now fomewhat advanced in life, he va-
lued himfelf moft on the theoretical, in which
alone, he faid, true genius coniifted. He had
invented feveral ballets that were much ad-
mired. Had he confined his genius to his
own profeflion it would have been better for
him : but, a little after the commencement of
Dur miferable revolution, he turned it to poli-
tics. He faid " that fortune had committed
zfaux-pas in making him a dancing-mafter;
and hoped, as many others did, t^at the revo-
lution would raife him to the fituation he
thought he deferved." He had formerly had

? 2

68 MORDAUNT.

the higheft refpecl: for counts, marquifes, and
dukes, by whofe protection he had acquired a
comfortable independence : he now began to
think that the greater part of them were de-
void of talents, and unfit for the offices they
held ; and, what was ftill a greater miflake,
he believed that he himfelf pofTefled the capa-
city in which they were deficient. He be-
came an admirer of that canting enthufiafl
Robefpierre -, he attended clubs, ftudied po-
litical pamphlets, and declaimed againfl the
abufes of government, at the meetings of his
fe&ion.

Moft of Vilotte's old protectors laughed at
his extravagances. My mother, who had
known inftances of his benevolence, was fcx
vexed at the thought of a well-difpofed man
rendering himfelf ridiculous, that me fent for
him, told him what me had heard, and gave
him fome good advice. Previous to this,
Vilotte, who always fpoke of my mother as
the perfon who had firft introduced him into
genteel bufmefs, and as his principal benefac-

MORDAUNTV 69-

tor,-t>ften called at our hotel. But, after this
piece of advice, we faw no more of him,
until we were fummoned before him in the
quality of a commiffioner.

It then appeared, that though my mother
had given him credit for a little more undef-
ftanding than he pQlTefTed, me had a juft opi-
nion of his difpofition. All the political mad-
nefs of his head did not fupprefs the worth of
his heart. In the calamitous flate we now
were, he had many opportunities of proving
the fincerity with which he had been attached
to our family, and how defirous he was of
being of fervice to us.

He found various pretexts of vifiting the
houfe of our confinement. The (ivowed ob-
je<5t of his vifits regarded fome other bufinefs ;
but he never left the houfe without feeing my
mother or me. By him we were afcertained
of what we had always fufpedled, that my
mother's arreil proceeded from the Count,
though he took pains to make it be believed
that it originated elfewhere. But in general

7O MOR DAUNT.

the news Vilotte brought to us was of a con-
folatory nature. He affiduouily endeavoured
to raife my mother's fpirits, by hopes of be-
ing in a fhort time fet at liberty -3 and he ne-
glecled nothing that was in his power to make
good the hopes he raifed. He informed my
mother that (he had lefs reafon than ever to
dread the Count's malice, becaufe the chan-
nel of his intereft with Robefpierre wat
through Collot d'Herbois, who was at that
time abfent from Paris.

This friend of the Count was one of the
moft infamous of that infamous band who
domineered at this time in France, and ren-
dered that country odious through Europe.
The rich and flou riming town of Lyons has
particular reafon to execrate this Collot d'Her-
bois, and his fellow commiffioner Couthon.
I have feen both thefe mifcreants. No two-
men could be more unlike in perfon and
countenance, none more congenial in rancour
and cruelty.

The former had the look of mild ingenuity.

MORDAUNT. 71

The found of his voice was plaintive. He
had loft the ufe of one half of his body by a
paralytic ftroke. From the expreffion of his
countenance, from the modulation of his voice,
from that fympathy with affliction which
people in high profperity and vigorous health .
are too often devoid of, and which fellow-
fufferers are fuppofed to have in an eminent
degree, Couthon was the man, among ten
thoufand, to whom a perfon under the pref-
fure of misfortunes would have applied for re-
lief: the moft robuft favage that ever was
habituated to flau§iiter, the moil callous in-
quifitor that ever queftioned men under the
agonies of torture, was not more blood- thirfly
and more unrelenting than Couthon,

There was nothing that could miflead the
judgment in the outward appearance of Collot
d'Herbois — all his deceit lay in his heart. His
countenance was frightful. Children fliut
their eyes, and fcreamed at the fight of this
man. His head fuilained a frightful exube~

O A

ranee of buihy hair, black as tar, and ftifT as

? 4

72 MORDAUNT.

the briflles of a hog j his complexion was "
cadavarous ; his features haggard ; his eyes
fanguine : he looked very much like a villain
and murderer; and he was a much greater
villain and murderer than he looked like.

It is wonderful that one mould have ever
thought of being an actor who difgraced the
profeffion by his looks, by his character, and
by his want of talent. It has been faid, that
Jiis rancour againft the citizens of Lyons ori-
ginated from their having had the good tafte
to hifs him as often as he appeared on their
ilage. Be that as it may, the barbarities ex-
crciied on the inhabitants of that devoted
city by Couthon and Collot d'Herbois are un-
paralleled in the records of tyranny : their
thirft of carnage rendered them impatient of
the flownefs of guillotines ; they projected
mines of gunpowder to blow up prifoners by
whole houfefuls -, they pointed cannon, load-
ed with grape-mot, to tear in pieces multi-
tudes of — — .

[I afk pardcn, my dear Mifs Clifford, I per-

MORDAUNT. 73

ceive that I diftrefs you. Familiarifed as I
have been to fcenes of oppreflion and cruelty,
I forget that I am fpeaking to an Englifh
woman j an inhabitant of that happy country
where no fuch fcenes exilt, where the power
of the crown is limited by the conftitution,
where law alone is fupreme, and, with a
commanding voice, tells the monarch as well
as the people, Thus far jhalt thou go, and no
farther. Such is the account that my hufband
has often ^ ^n me of Great-Britain. I am
pleafed to believe that it is juft ; and, from
fentiments of general benevolence, as well as
in gratitude for the generous reception which
fo many of my unfortunate countrymen have
met with in this iiland, I do moft fincerely
wifh it may long continue.

I have been led ailray by the mention of
thofe two monfters. They had returned from
their bloody expedition a confiderable time
before my mother's examination ; and at that
particular time Collot d'Herbois had again
left Paris.

741 MORDAUNT.

I now return to my narrative.]

Our friend Vilotte was a native of Arras, a
great admirer of Robefpiere as a patriot and
orator, and proud of him as a townfman.
R©befpierre's patriotifm and eloquence were
well fuited for impofing on that depth of un-
derftanding which poor Vilotte poffefled.
Robefpierre mowed fome attention to him in
return for his admiration \ and on this I reliH
for my mother's freedom, and I laboured to
infpire her with the fame hope. You will be,
perhaps, furprifed at this, considering the fri-
volous character of Vilotte ; but you cannot
conceive, my dear, from what a very unpro-
mifing foil fprigs of hope will moot up in the
breafts of the unhappy : befides, Vilotte was
not now a frivolous character in our eyes ; he
had mown attachment when our other friends
had fhrunk away ; and this attachment re-
niained unloofehed by the fpirit of party,
which raged fo univerfally, which is often lo
fatal to friendship, and from which VilottQ
himfelf was far from being free.

MORDAUNT. 75

This worthy creature's hopes became ftronger
every day, of which he did not fail to inform
my mother : at laft (lie was convinced that
me was to be fet at liberty within four or five
days at fartheft. She wrote to feveral of her
friends and relations, that they might expert
to fee her in her own hotel very foon.

While we were in this ftate of mind, Vi-
lotte called one morning at the houfe of our
confinement. My mother and I were fitting
together — I heard the found of his foot as he
advanced through the paffage. In that dif-
mal abode we were accuftomed to few founds
but thofe of forrow : it was no wonder, then,
that I could with certainty diilinguifh one
which had always been the forerunner of
comfort. — " Oh ! my dear mother," faid I,
fpringing from my feat, " here comes Vilotte !
he brings the order for your- freedom." —
(t Let us receive it with thankfulnefs and mo-
deration, my child, if he does," faid me.

When Vilotte entered, he had a kind of
{mile on his countenance -, but it did not

76 MORDAUNT.

feem natural : the good creature flrove to
maintain a cheerful look while he informed
us, that " he was certain that my mother would
obtain her liberty very foon, though not fo
foon as he had expected ; that Robefpierre
had been indifpofed, which had occafioned
delay ; that he was fo much occupied, fince
his recovery, that it was difficult to obtain
accefs to him;" but Vilotte added, '* that
he had received a meiTage from him, import-
ing that my mother would be fet at liberty in
a fhort time, • though the precife day was
not yet fixed."

In fpite of all thefe palliatives, this was a
fevere difappointmfent to both my mother
and me : Vilotte perceived it in our counte-
nances ; for neither of us fpoke. He re*.
peated every thing which he thought would
afford us comfort ; faying, " we might rely
on the alTurance Robefpiefre had fent him ;
that Robefpierre was too great a patriot not
to be fincere ; that none but courtiers were
infmcere : he was therefore convinced that

MORDAUNT. 77

Tie mould have the happinefs of bringing us
good news at his next vifit."

My mother faid — " That what gave her
mod uneafinefs was, that no particular time
had been ever fixed ; that if me were allured
of obtaining her freedom on a certain day, it
.would be a great comfort, though the day
were diftant."

Vilotte anfvvered — :" That though he was
determined not to return until the day of her
freedom was decided on, ftill he was con-.-
vinced he mould wait on her foon."

Thofe who have longed, with impatient ex-
pectation, for fome event on which they ima-
gine their happinefs depends j who have been
convinced that the expected event will not be
prolonged beyond a particular day, and when
that day arrived have been difappointed, will
have fome idea of our anguifli : but unlefs
they have been (hut up for months in a prifon,
and pined from morning to night for frelh air,
free exereife, the verdure of the fields, and the
faces of fricncfc, ' they will not have a full

78 MOftbAtJKT.

notion of what we felt on this occafion. 1
really thought nothing could be more vexa-
tious : yet I affected to bear it cheerily, that
it might fit the more lightly on the mind of
my mother. I plainly perceived that me af-
fumed the fame behaviour, and for a fimilar
reafon : in thefe mutual attempts, perhaps,
neither deceived the other ; yet our efforts to
-feem more cheerful than we were enabled
us to fupport the difappointment better than
we mould otherwife have done.

Five or fix days after this, Vilotte paid us
another vifit : we were fitting together, and
heard him approaching as before. My mo^
ther and I looked at each other the moment
we diftinguimed his tread $ but neither of us
fpoke. I heard her figh as he was entering,
the room. Neither of us turned our eyes on
Jiim for a few feconds ; but when we did, hitf
face feemed gay, his fmiles were uncon-
ftrained. He announced, with an air of com-
plete conviction, that he was now certain
that my mother's freedom was determined

MORDAUKT. 79

On : his friend had feen Robefpierre ; and the
order for that purpofe would be given in due
form, on a particular day, which he named,
and which was at the diftance of three
Weeks.

In this interval, a friend of my father, who
had borrowed from him a confiderable fum
of money, found means to let my mother4
know, that he would immediately pay a cer-
tain portion of the debt into the hands of any
perfon whom (he mould authorife to receive
it. This perfon lived at the diftance of above
three hundred miles from Paris, which at
this dreadful period he was unwilling to en-
ter. My mother had much occafion for the
money, and thought nobody fo fit to receive
it as myfelf.

An eld iervant of my father, of the name
of St. Jean, who had been eflabiifhed in a
ihop by his afliflance, and was one of the na-
tional guards, was engaged to conduct my
maid and me on this expedition. As foon as
the necetfary palTports were obtained, the

#6 MORDAUNT.

majd and I fet out in a poft-chaife, and the

man attended on horfeback. My . father's

i

friend received me with the greateft kind-
riefs, and paid me the money. By a flight
indifpofition, I was under the neceflity of re-
maining feveral days at his houfe longer than
I intended. As foon as I was able, I returned
in the fame manner I had fet out. During
the whole of this journey, my thoughts were
engrofled with anticipations of the happinefa
I mould enjoy on the day of my dear mother's
enlargement. My greateft vexation, in my
late indiipofition, proceeded from the fear
of not being able to reach Paris before it
mould take place^ I now rejoiced in the ex-
pectation of arriving there on that very
morning.

Not choofing to drive through Paris/ on
my arrival, I quitted the pofl-chaife at the
barrier, intending to walk to the houfe of th©
man who had accompanied me, whofe wife
had formerly been my maid. Our way was
through the Place of Louis XV. A great

MORDAUNT. 81

crowd was aflembled ; and we were informed,
that it was to fee the execution of fome per-
fons condemned by the bloody tribunal then
fitting. I turned with precipitation ; and, by
a circuit, avoided a place which was almoft
the daily fcene of fuch affecting fpeclacles.

In my way to the houfe above mentioned,
I called at a mop to purchafe fome confec-
tions which I knew my mother was fond of.
While I fat in the inner room, till the things
I ordered were ready, two perfons entered
the mop : one of them faid, " that madame de
— — had died with the utmoft ferenity."

I did not perfectly hear the name the man
pronounced ; but, indiftinct as it Was, it
darted inftantaneous terror to my heart. He
proceeded to fay, " that he had come directly
from the Place of the Revolution, and that
he had feen her guillotined."

" Who did you fay ?" alked the woman
of the mop.

He anfwered, with an audible and diflinct

VOL. II. G

82

voice, " I already told you, madame de >•• ,
the widow of governor de — ."

At the mention of my father's name, my
maid, who was prefent, uttered a ihriek*
and I loft all recollection.

The following day, when I began to re-
cover from that ftate of ftupefaction into*
which the dreadful news had thrown me, I
found myfelf in b^l, in the houfe of a widow
who lived near the confectioner, in whofe
mop I had been firil taken ill.

I had caufe to regret the infenfibility from
which I awoke to a full fenfe of my mifery.

The ftate I continued in, for fome time
after the return of myxecollection,. \ wfli not
attempt to defcribe.

When I was able to Men to a detail of the
circumftances which preceded the dreadful
event, I was told, " That only a few days be-
fore my arrival at Paris, and when my mo-
ther flill relied on repeated aflurances of her
being to be fet at liberty oa the day appoint-

MORDAUNT. 83

ed> a frefli accufation had been made againft
.. her, of her having emigrated to England
in June 1792 ; that file had not returned to
France on or previous to the day fixed by
the decree of the convention ; that me had
been, on falfe pretexts, ftruck out of the lift
of emigrants, by a committee of federalifts
and traitors ; and, finally, that fhe corre-
fponded with, and had fent money to, her
fon-in-law, who actually ferved in the army
of Conde.

<c On this accufation me had been hurried
before the revolutionary tribunal ; had under-
gone the form of a trial, where thofe circum-
flances were fworn to ; had been infulted, in
grofs terms, by the wretch who prefided
over that court of alTaifins ; and afterwards
dragged to the fcaffold, where (he had fuf-
fered with the refignation of a faint, with
another lady of rank, who was executed at
the fame time, by a miftake in the name,
which thofe murderers would not take the
G 2

84 MORDAUNT.

trouble to inveftigate, though a different vic-
tim was intended."

[Why mould I afflict your fympathifing
breaft, my dear young lady, with an enu-
meration of my forrows ?— •

I muft not omit to inform you, however,
that I received an anonymous letter foon aft-
er ; the purport of which was, to acquaint
me, that the Count was my mother's fecret
accufer, and that it was by his influence fhe
had been put to death. I am well aware
that letters of this kind are generally the ofF-
fpring of cowardice, in conj unction with ma-
lice : it would have made no imprefllon on
my mind, therefore, if I had not had reafon
to fufpect the fame from other fources of in-
telligence.]

Several weeks after this dreadful event, I
was told, one morning, that a gentleman
vviihed to fee me. As he announced himfelf
an old friend of my family, you may con-
ceive how very much I was furprifed when

MORDAUNT. 85

the Count entered the room. I could not
help fcreaming as foon as I faw him.

He begged that I would be compofed, af-
furing me of his fympathy.

I cried, " that I wimed for none of his fym-
pathy— that I could have no fympathy with
him."

He declared, in the moft foothing tone,
" that he was ready to render me every fervicc
in his power ;" adding, " that it was in his
power, he hoped, to be of moft effential fer-
vice to me."

" Can you reftore my mother?" ex-
claimed I.

He ftarted, became pale, and remained for
fome moments filent : then, recovering him-
felf, he faid — " That he mofl lincerely la-
mented the fate of my mother ; that he, as-
well as her other friends, had entertained
hopes that fhe was to be fet at liberty, at the
very time that the fad event took place : —
that (he had enemies unknown to him."

" They are not unknown to me," cried I -t
G 3

86 MORDAUNT.

and I was going to utter all that rage and dc«
fpair prompted, when the miftrefs of the
houfe entered the room. The Count rofe j
and having recommended me, in very af-
fectionate terms, to her care, he with-;
drew.

La Brune was the name of the woman into
whofe houfe I had been carried, from the

4B

mop where I was firft taken ill. Her huf?
band had received obligations from my fa-
ther, for which me had retained fentiments
of gratitude ; and, after her hufband's death,
me let lodgings. She had behaved with all
tendernefs- to me, from the moment I hac}
entered her houfe.

When the Count was gone, me informed
me, that he had been accidentally paffing
when I was carried from the confectioner's
to her houfe ; that he had frequently called,
during my illnefs, to inquire how I was, and
had recommended that all ppffible care fhould
be taken of me.

" The monfter I1' exclaimed I ; "it was

MORDAUNT. 87

owing to him that my mother was ac-
cufed."

The woman was mocked at hearing this,
and expreffed the utmoft indignation at fuch
perfidy ; but, on inquiring into my reafons
for believing it, me endeavoured to mow me
that they did not by any means amount to
certainty.

On various occafions, afterwards, this wo-
man took pains to perfuade me that there
was little probability of the Count's having
been guilty of the wickednefs I fufpected
him of. One day, in particular, after de-
ploring the helplefs fituation in which I was,
me repeated the defire he had expreffed of
ferving me ; and concluded, that for thofe,
and various other reafons, I ought to receive
his future vifits with more complaifance.

" I expert no more of his vifits," faid I ;
" but, in cafe of his calling again, I beg you
may fhut the door againft him."

Madame' la Brune told me, " that me durft
not venture to provoke a man of the Count's
G 4

88 MORDAUNT.

influence ; that if me did, it would no longer
be in her power to ferve me, which fhe had the
moft fincere defire to do. She begged I would
reflect on rny forlorn fituation : that I was
not free from danger, not only on account of
my being the wife of an emigrant, but of one
who was in arms againft the republic. She
reprefented how very much I flood in need
of that protection, without which every body
was in danger of being carried before the
revolutionary tribunal. " Innocence, my dear
lady," added me, " is not always a fecu-
rity."

" No/' anfwered I ; " nothing but guilt
is; and for that reafon I defire no fecurity."

On my uttering this, which I did with
cmphafis, I was furprifed to fee madame la
Brune change colour, and burft into tears.

The Count was introduced at that very
jnftant,

Madame la Brune rofe ; and, as me went
out of the room, looked at me in a very
$ffe<Jting manner.

MORDAUNT. 8D

- I had already been moved by her tears : I
conceived this look to be a requeft that I
fhould not provoke him, left it mould bring
her to trouble : this reflection prevented me
from withdrawing with her. I remained in
the room, with the determination of behav-
ing to him with calmnefs and civility.

He renewed his offers of fervice and ex-
preffions of concern. I bowed, without an-
fwering. He introduced fome general and
indifferent fubjecl: of converfation — I joined
in it with conftrained calmnefs. He at laft
took his leave, with a repetition of his hopes
to be able to ferve me.

At one time, I had fome fufpicion that
madame la Brune afted in concert with the
Count ; that perhaps I had been carried to
her houfe by his direction . In this I did her
injuftice : me knew nothing of him, pre-
vious to his inquiries about me. She. was
afterwards informed, that he was a friend of
Coilot d'Herbois, and had influence with
Robefpierre. The woman was of a com-

9O MORDAUNT.

paffionate difpofkion, and had the moft fin-
cere defire of being ufeful to me. She thought
the Count's protection was powerful, and
was concerned at feeing me rejed: it : me
thought the dangers of the times juftified
certain means of procuring fafety, which
were not juflifiable at other periods. She
herfelf had a prote&or, in a man who was a
member of the military committee, and
highly confidered by Robefpierre. Unable
to make great facrirkes for virtue, (he re~
fpe&ed thofe who could, and was extremely
fufceptible of remorfe. This was the fource of
her blufties at an.expreflion of mine above
mentioned.

In ibme converfations I afterwards had
with this woman, I became fully convinced
of her good-will towards me : this was alfo
confirmed by the whole of her behaviour.

She fpoke with gratitude of my father,
with tendernefi of my mother, and with
horror of fome who had the government at
prefent in France ; but begged that 1 would,

MORDAUNT. 91

in appearance at leaft, moderate my diflikc
of the Count, until I mould find myfelf
more out of his power.

I had long before been abandoned by all
thofe who, without any fentiment of friend-*
mip, had been in the habit of calling them-
felves my friends. After the death of my
mother, the terror of being fufpected kept
many from me who had a real affection for
me, and would willingly have fubjected thern-
felves to confiderable inconveniences, but not
to danger, on my account.

[This, my dear young lady, is the utmoft
we need expect from the generality of thofe
who are called friends ; though, amidft the .
multitude of crimes that the revolution has
given birth, inftances of virtue, heroifm, and
exalted friendmip, nave appeared, which do
honour to my country and to human nature.]

The Count continued his viljts : they be-
came more frequent : his profeffions of
friendmip were more and more warm. When

J>2 MORDAUNT.

he feemed inclined, however, to make any
particular declaration, I always eluded the
fubjed:. He could not conceive that any
thing could prevent me, in my prefent fitua-
tion, from embracing an offer of marriage
from him, except fome religious fcruple.
He fufpecled that I might think a divorce,
however legal, could not diffolve the obliga-
tion of marriage, which is a facrament.

I might have had fuch fcruples, even al-
though I had loved the Count ; but, in truth,
I difliked the man to that degree, that the
idea of being his wife filled me with as much
horror as that of being his miflrefs could
poflibly do.

The Count was fully perfuaded, however,
that all my hefitation (for he thought me he-
fitating) proceeded from my doubts of the
efficacy of the divorce, in giving me a right
to marry a fecond hulband during the life of
my firft.

To remove thofe doubts from my

MORDAUNT. 95

he fell on a fingular expedient, which it will
be requilite to develope a little circumftan-
tially.

The Count was acquainted with a mon-
fieur and madame Cochon, whofe hiftory is
fomewhat curious : — Mr. Cochon's parents
were in opulent circumftances : they intended
him for the military profeffion ; and did all
in their power, by giving him a fuitable edu-
cation, to render him fit for it. They never
had any doubt of its being agreeable to his
own inclination ; for he had, from his early
youth, affected the military drefs, even in the
fierceft ftyle. But there were two circum-
iiances, in the life of a foldier, to both of
which young Cochon had an utter averfion ;
namely, danger and fatigue. When his pa-
rents told him, therefore, that it was time for
him to choofe a profeflion, to their furprife,
he informed them he preferred the eccle-
fiaftical.

Though furprifed, his relations were not
very averfe to his choice ; for fome of them

94 MORDAUNT*

had fuch influence as might foori procure
him church-preferment. In due time, there-
fore, he became a priefL
> This took place a little before the com-
mencement of the revolution ; but he found,
foon after, that the profeflion he had adopted,
for no reafon but to enjoy eafe and avoid dan-
ger, expofed him to perfecution, and more
danger than he had fhrunk from.

His regret for this miftake was exceffive :
lie thought the beft way of repairing it was,
to renounce the priefthood -, which he did
accordingly ; giving, for his reafon, that his
confcience would no longer permit him to
affift in carrying on a farce, contrived, from
the beginning, to delude and cheat the peo-
ple. And to prove that he was in earneft,
and that he might ingratiate himfelf ftill
more with the promoters of the new opi-
nions, he determined to marry. The perfon
he felected for this honour was a rich wi-
dow : her maiden name was Soupire. She
had, from her youth, been of a ftudious dif-

MORDAUNT. 95

position ; and, by the time me had arrived at
her twentieth year, (lie was very deep- read
in romances, particularly thofe of a refined
fentimental nature. The lady herfelf was
exquifitely fentimental -t continually fighing
for fomething. or other. The tear offenftbility^
to ufe a favourite expreffion of her own, was
continually trembling in her eye.

Her own perfonal diftrefTes, me thanked
heaven, me was able to fupport as became a
Chriftianj but {he acknowledged, that the
misfortunes of her friends me could not en-
dure with equal firmnefs and refignation.

With regard to the poor, me lamented
that her own narrow circumftances did not
permit her to bellow on them much pecu-
niary relief; but me was bountiful in good
wifhes, and in the allotment which me
thought ought to be made for them by the
rich. She often avowed, that the pleafure
of giving was far more exquifite than that of
receiving.

Nothing furprifed her fo much, as that the

96 MO&DAUNT.

great, who indulge in other luxuries, mould
have fo little tafte for that moil exq^ifite of
all luxuries, relieving the wants of others.

A young man of fome fortune, and of a
benevolent difpofition, who had been a little
attracted by this lady's looks, which were en-
gaging, was fo charmed with her fentiments,
that he propofed marriage to her. This pro-
pofal was fo very convenient to her, that me
waved that timid reluctance, and all thofe de-
licate fcruples, which it was in this lady's
character to have difplayed, had me not been
afraid that the lover might have changed his
mind during the exhibition.

The young man, in whofe favour me had
thus overcome her delicacy, was intimately
connected in friendship with fome of the
leaders of the Gironde party. They were ar-
reiled a mort time after his marriage. When
the violence againft them came to its height,
he was advifed to withdraw from Paris,
and keep himfelf concealed. He followed this
advice, and afterwards efcaped to Germany;

MOftDAUNT. 97

from whence he wrote preffing letters to his
wife, begging that me would join him as foon
as me could. She was taking meafures for
that purpofe -, for ihe did not know what elfe
to do ; and had often declared, that to be ab-
fent from the hufband ihe loved was worfe
than death. The night before {he was to have
fet out, a wealthy citizen of Paris, and the
friend of Robefpierre, made love to her.—
Though me acknowledged that me was proud
of the good opinion of fo diftinguimed a pa-
triot, yet me alfo expatiated on her virtue, and
the duty me owed her hufband, notwith-
{landing his political errors. The patriotic
citizen reprefented that her virtue needed be
no obftacle to his happinefs, becaufe he could,
with the greateft eafe, procure for her a di-
vorce from her hufband, who was an emi-
grant, and already dead in law. This ar-
gument was enforced by an offer of an ample
jointure, and a confidcrable fum of ready mo-
ney, at her own difpofal.

The patriotic citizen prevailed ; and, after

VOL. II. H

93 MORDAUNT.

the divorce had been obtained, and the
contract of marriage drawn out, fealed, and
figned, in due form, he became the lady's
lawful hufband.

He did not furvive his happinefs long ; the
man died in confequence of excefs at an en-
tertainment given by Robefpierre's brother to
a felect party of his friends. The Count's ac-
quaintance, citizen Cochon, had ingratiated
himfelf fo much with all that party, by abjur-
ing the priefthood and ridiculing Chriftianity,
that he had been invited to this entertainment.
He faw the man carried fpeechlefs from the
feail, and conceived great hopes of his death -t
for, having before been flruck with the figure
of his wife, and informed of her circumftances,
he thought an alliance with her would anfwer

all his views.

»

Some fhort time after the death of the huf-
band, therefore, moniieur Cochon paid a vifit
to the afflicted widow. He told her, " that,
as he had loft one of his moll valued friends>
he came to mingle his tears with hers, which,

MORDAUNT. 99

perhaps, would afford fome degree of confola-«
tion to both." She exprelfed no averfion to the
experiment^ and they met pretty frequently, to
mingle their tears accordingly. She acknow>
ledged to him that this ceremony afforded
fome alleviation to her forrow, particularly as,
though monfieur Cochon was a much ftouter
man, yet (he found a confiderable refemblance
in his features to thofe of her deceafed huf-
band. On that hint, monfieur Cochon fpoke,
and declared his paffion with fuch a warmth
of eloquence as might have melted a harder
heart than this lady's feems to have been.

All thofe particulars I learned from madame
la Brune, who was a relation of mademoifelle
Soupire, had kept up a certain degree of inti-
macy with her through all her variations, and
underftood her character perfectly.

In the account I have given of this woman,
(continued the marchionefs) , I have ufed, as
often as I could recollect them, the very
phrafes of madame la Brune, who never fpoke

H 2

10O WORD AUNT.

of her coufm without turning her affedlatidrt
into ridicule.

\ The Count had been acquainted with ma-*
dame Cochon when me was mademoifelle
Soupire. At one time he was thought to be
rather fond of her. Difgufted by her affected
airs of fenfibility, he had abftained from vi-
fiting her. He had known her a warm and
voluble friend of the Gironde party, while it
was in power. He had known her its bitter
enemy, and the mofl eloquent of Robelpierre's
admirers, when the Gironde party was over-
fet : he was fully convinced that me was
equally prepared to be the advocate and ad-
mirer of whoever mould overturn the govern-
ment of Robefpierrer and bring him to the
guillotine. With whatever indulgence or par-
tiality the Count might view this difpofition
in himfelf (for it was precifely his own)> yet
it appeared to him hideous in another ; and
he had the mofl confummate contempt for
madarne Cochon. He imagined, however^

MORDAUNT, 101

that me was a likely perfon to remove all my
icrtiples with refpecl to my fueing for a di-
vorce and marrying again — " As this lady, who
pafTed for a woman of refined delicacy, had fo
far yielded to the voice of reafon and prudence
as to fue for a divorce from the man me had
married from love, and had afterwards taken a
fecond hufband, during the life of the firft,
notwithstanding her love for him, and then a
third, who had been a priefl, in the middle of
her mourning for the death of the fecond,
what hefitation could remain .with me after
fo bright and finking an example ?"

The Count, therefore, cultivated the ac-
quaintance of monfieur Cochon more than
ever ; renewed his attentions to his lady, who
had always retained a certain degree of regard
for him, and on whom he foon prevailed to
promote his views with all her power. She
vifited her relation madame la Brune very
^ffiduoufly, and took much pains to be pn ar*
intimate footing with me.

I was not long in perceiving her aim and
H 3

102 MORDAUNT.

fufpe&ing her motive. It was not in my*
power to avoid feeing this woman j but I
concealed my fufpicions of her. I allowed
her, with little interruption, to expatiate on the
good qualities of the Count ; his intimate
connection and great influence with the men
in power j and on my good fortune, in hav-
ing fo valuable a friend. She drew his por-
trait in the moft mining colours, and varnifh-
ed it with all her art, to render it ftill more
agreeable. This had a different effeft from
what me intended j the varnifh corroded the
artificial tints, and left the likenefs aH its na-f
tural difgufling appearance of corruption.

She was deceived by my filence and paffive
attention : me informed the Count that the
moment for being liflened to by me with fa^
vour was arrived.

At his next vifit he found madame laBrune
\vith me. She feifed a pretext for leaving us ;
he began the old fubjecl: of his ardent defire
pf ferving me — his extreme forrow for my
Jielplefs fitua^ion, On my faiptly thanking

MORDAUNT. 103

him, he faid, " that endeavours were making
for reftoring to me my eftate, and threw
out fbme infinuations of his own influence
with thofe on whom that meafure depended ;
that the greatefl obilacle was my being con-
tfdered as the wife of an emigrant ; that he,
however, had a prior claim, having declared
his paffion before my hufband paid his court
to me. He hinted the great facility which
there was with refpeft to divorces ; and that,
though he found it difficult to obtain the re*
iteration of an eftate to a perfon who was
eonfidered merely as his friend, yet he was
perfuaded it would not be refufed to his
-wife."

I froze at the word. I am convinced I be-
came pale. How he conftrued my appearance
I know not ; but he dropped on one knee,
feifed my hand, and renewed his requelt in
direct terms. At his touch I fhuddered — All
caution forfook me — I drew my hand haflily
from him, with an exclamation of averfion.
He ftarted up with fury, and, in a me-
H 4

104- MORDAUNT.

nacing voice, admoniihed me not to provoke
him too far.

" The worft you can do," faid I, " wretch,
cannot furpafs your perfidy to my mother."

He left the room quite furious.

Madame la Brune entered. — She had over-.

/

heard all that paiTed.^-^She lamented the dan-
ger I was in, and, blamed my rafhnefs.

« To fcreen myfelf from danger," faid I,
** would you have me plunge into guilt ancl

infamy ?"

\

She burft into tears, and remained filerit.

J was forry for the uneafinefs I gave this
good-natured woman, and faid every thing I
could think of that could be foothing to her.

Vilotte, the dancing-mailer, called on me
a few days after this fcene. He feemed greatly
fgitated. He informed me, "that he had juft
learned that an accufation was to be brought
againft me ; that he underflood. it originated
in the Count. He advifed me to deftroy any
letters I might have from my hufband, or any
paper whatever, that would ftrengthen fufpi-

MORDAUNT. t05

cion of my correfponding with emigrants." — >
He added, " that I was to be arrefted the fol-
lowing day, and confined in a houfe belong-
ing to a creature of the Count, where I would
be entirely in his power."

This laft circumftance terrified me more
than all the reft. I propofed leaving my
lodgings dire&ly, and trying to find refuge and
concealment in the houfe of a poor woman,
whole diftreffes I had occaficnally relieved,
and with whom I was not known to be ac-
quainted,

Vilotte approved of this ; but defired me
to delay till the dufk of the evening, when he
would himfelf conducl me ; and, in the mean
while, begged that I would take the precau-
tion he had mentioned.

When I informed madame la Brune of this,
fhe mowed the ftrongeft marks of forrow,
and, afterwards, of indignation ; me poured
forth execrations againfr. the Count : at laft,
after a minute's paufe, me faid, " Perhaps I
pay ftill be able to fave you from the power

1O6 MORDAUNT.

of this villain.** She ordered a coach to be
called, afTured me that ihe would return in a
(hort time, and hurried into it without farther
explanation.

I had no paper that could be thought dan-
gerous, but feveral that I did not wiih thofe
wretches to perufe : thefe I immediately threw
Into the fire, and then employed myfelf in
packing up what necefTaries could be con-
veniently carried to the houfe where I in-
tended to go,

Madame la Brune returned two hours be-
fore the time when I expe&ed Vilotte. — I
heard her finging a gay air as me came up
ftairs. She knew the ilate of anxiety in
which I was, and wifhed to announce to
me, as foon as poflible, that there was no*
thing alarming in the news me brought. As .
me opened the door of my room — " You
have nothing to fear, my dear madam," cried
ihe ;. " you may remain here in perfed fe-r
curity."

She then informed ine, that " ihe had been

MORDAUNT. 107

with her friend and protestor of the mi-
litary committee ; had related to him my
fiory, which he was in part previoufly ac-
quainted with, and had fully convinced him
©f the Count's intention to gratify private
malice and revenge, under the pretext of
public zeal; that while me was enforcing
this with all the warmth which her regard
for me prompted, a fervant had entered,
and informed him that Collot d'Herbois
waited in another room ; that her friend had
directly withdrawn, defiring her to wait his
return ; that, when he did return, he had
affured her that he had taken effectual mea-
fures for my fafety, deliring her to inform me
that I was in no danger of being arrefled, and
had nothing to dread from the enmity of the
Count."

When Vilotte arrived, I informed him of
thefe circumstances, at which he exprefied
great fatisfadtion, faying, " that though he
had not the honour of knowing the deputy in

108 MORDAUNT.

queflion, he was well acquainted with his
high reputation ; and that the affurances he
fcad given madame la Brune were completely
to be relied upon. "

I remained, accordingly, at her houfe, un-
diflurbed by fear of being arrefled, or by
any more vifits from the Count.

I afterwards came to the knowledge of
the means by which my fecurity was ob-
tained.

The Count had cultivated an intimacy with
St. Jufte, a member of the convention, and a
great favourite of Robefpierre. He was a
young man of great intrepidity and conlider-
able talents. After having faid that he was 3.
favourite of Robefpierre, it is unneceflary to
add that this St. Jufte was a moil confum-
mate villain.

He had recommended citizen R — - (for
that was the name the Count had aflumed) in
fo particular a manner, that he alfo was confi-
dered, at this time, as a kind of favourite of

MORDAtTNT. 100

Robefpierre. The Count was fo vain of this
honour, that he neglected his old friend,
C011ot d'Herbois,; and a coldnefs had taken
place between them. The latter was piqued
at the Count's neglect ; and lie harbour-
ed befides fome degree of jealoufy, on account
of his growing favour with the dictator. This
was the ftate of Collot d'Herbois' mind when
he called on madame la Brune's friend, as -has
been mentioned. The latter was acquainted
with the Count's ancient intimacy with Cot-
lot d'Herbois, but knew nothing of the new
coldnefs. D'Herbois' bufinefs was to requeft
a fituation for a relation of his, who was an
engineer. Immediately after granting this
requeil, madame la Brune's friend told the
other that the Count had conceived ill-will
againft an unfortunate woman, in whom he
was interefted, had a plan for having her ar-
reited and confined, on pretences that were
^wnfoanded, and begged, asr'he himfelf was un-
acquainted with the Count, that d'Herbois

110 MORDAUNt.

would prevail on him to drop all thoughts of
that nature.

*e You may depend upon it," faid d'Her-
bois, " that it mail be done — I'll go to him
immediately."

" You are fure of perfuading him ? for I
am a good deal interefted in the bufinefs/' re*
fumed the other*

" Abfolutely fure," replied d'Herbois.

He immediately waited on the Count, told
him he was forry to underfland that he had
intentions of accufing me, and defired he
would give up all thoughts of it, and leave
me in tranquillity.

The Count exprefled furprife at his inter-
ference, faid there was great ground for the
accufation, and refufed to comply with his
requeft.

Collot d'Herbois faid, with an air of me-
nace, " I would advife you not to pum that
matter any farther."

The Count, with heat, told him " that he

SlO&DAUNf. Ill

would mention it to Robefpierre himfelf that
very day : adding, " How will you anfwer
to him for interfering in favour of a perfon
under fuch a load of fufpicion as that lady is ?"

" How will you anfwer to him," replied
d'Herbois, " for the letter you wrote to Dan-
ton a little before his arrefl and execution ?"

" That letter was burnt," replied the
Count.

" When I told you fo," rejoined Collot
d'Herbois, with an ironical grin, " I did not
recolledt that I had, from mere abfence of 'mind \
flipped it into my pocket inftead of the fire :
I was furprifed, therefore, to find it among my
papers this morning."

The face of the Count, red-hot with rage
the inftant before, became cold and pale at
this annunciation -, he perceived that his life
was in the power of a man he had neglected
and braved, and with whofe vindictive tem-
per he was well acquainted. This reflection,
after he had ftood a moment motionlefs, be-
gan to £hake his whole frame ; when he at-

112 MORDAUNT.

tempted to fpeak, his teeth chattered in fitch
a manner that he could not articulate a
fyllable,

After having for fome time enjoyed his
terror, " I fee," faid Collot d'Herbois, « that
you are a little difcompofed at this intelli-
gence j you may reft allured, however, that
your friend Robefpierre mall not fee your
kjud epLftle to bis friend Danton, until I
hear that the lady in queftion is arrefted, of
that you make fome attempt to difhirb her."

When the Count had recovered himfelf, he
aflured d'Herbois " that he might have ob-*
tained what he required of him by a fingle
word ; but that he had been impelled to af-
fe& reludlance merely by the abrupt and pe-
remptory manner in which the requeft had
been made ; that he muft be fenfible that
there was no man on earth for whom he had
fo great an efteern ; that, as for the lady, me
might rely on never being difturbed by him 5
that very probably the reports he had heard
of her correfponding with emigrants were

MORDAUNT. 113

falfe ; and that, if fo, he would be very
happy to do her all the fervice in his power ;
and that Collot d'Herbois might rely on his
conducing himfelf in that bufmefs, as in
every thing elfe, conformably to the friend-
fliip he had long felt for him."

D'Herbois anfwered with declarations of
friendship equally firicere ; but, in the fpirit
of his original profeffion, as a buffoon, he
could not refrain from embracing the Count
a little too much a la pant alone 9 which con-
vinced the Count that the other intended the
reverfe of what he faid : that' idea engrofTed
his thoughts, — the guillotine was conftantly
before his eyes -, and, as Robefpierre was
the perfon from whofe immediate man-
date he dreaded death, he thought of no-
thing, from that moment, but how to over-
turn his power ; and, having difcovered that
fome other of Robefpierre's old friends,
wretches who had been his accomplices in
fo many murders, were, from a fufpicion
of his intention to murder them alfo,
VOL. ii. \

114 MORDAUNT.

now his enemies, the Count joined in their
plots.

Their confpifaey was hurried into execu*
tion by the intemperance of Robefpierre him-
felf. This man had fo long fported with the
lives of his countrymen, without meeting with
refinance, that he loft all prudence or fenfe
of danger ; and, after having been obeyed im-
plicitly in the murder of many thoufands of
innocent people, he loft his own life by threat-
ening that of a few execrable villains.

While the conteft continued, the Count
kept aloof. As foon as it was known that
Robefpierre, Couthon, St. Jufte, and Hen-
riot, were maflacred, he appeared in the front
rank of the vidlors, and was among the very
loudeft declaimers againft the cruelties of Robe-
fpierre, whom he now reprefented as the great-
eft monfter that ever the earth had produced.
Barrere and Collot d'Herbois attempted to play
the fame game, but with lefs fuccefs. Tallien
unmafked the firft ; and the Count was inde-
fatigable in his endeavours to fend the fecond

MORDAUNT. 115

to the fcafFold. This man, however, who
had deferved the wheel in a thoufand in-
fiances, efcaped with banifhmcnt.

A few days after Robefpierre had been
dragged expiring to the fcaffold, amidft the
execrations of a multitude who worfhipped
him two days before, I received a vilit from
madame Cochon. In the days of Roland and
the Girondifts, this woman had always fpoken
of Robefpierre as a madman : after their de-
ftrudion me acknowledged that me had mif-
taken his character, for (he then faw that
he was a moft difinterefted patriot, and the
only man in France who had fufficient ener-
gy for conducting the republic though the
rocks, quickfands, and hurricanes of the re-
volution. Madame Cochon thought herfelf
wonderfully eloquent, and dealt much in hack-
neyed metaphor. At this vifit I found that
ihe had refumed her original opinion of Robe-
fpierre, with the addition of his being the
moft mifchievous and cruel of madmen. With
a view to acquire favour with thofe who had

I 2

116 MORDAUST.

deftroyed him, and gain importance, me gave
•out that thej following memorandum was in-
fcribed in his pocket-book -.—Madame Cocbon,
jiee Soupire. Guillotine. IB »*?
•tff^When fhe repeated this affertion to me, in
khe prefence of madame la Brune, who was
convinced of its falfehood, the latter could
hot help faying—'* It is a great pity that the
pocket-book, which does you fo much ho-
nour, could never be found. 'Vtrw

" Ah !" cried madame Cochon, a little too
fiasftifyf ^ he burnt it before his execution."

" It is wonderful, then," replied madame
•fo Brune, " how you came to know that fuch
a memorandum had ever been in it."

w It is by no means wonderful," faid the
incorrigible hypocrite, " ilnce Providence has
ordained, that plans of murder, as well as
murder itfelf, are often brought to light in
a miraculous manner ; and I do aflure you>
my friend, that I was doomed to death by
that monfter Robefpierre !" She faid this in
a doleful voice, and feemed ready to cry.

MORDAUNT. 117

*' Let not the tear of fenjibility tremble in
your eye," rejoined madame la Brune : " but
recoiled that it was the monfter himfelf, and
not you, that was guillotined. — Do not cry,
my dear madam, your head is ftill upon your
moulders/'

I have obferved, my dear Mifs Clifford,
(continued the marchionefs, ) that vain pec*-
pie are exceedingly blind to the ridicule they
excite. This woman was a very great hypo-
crite y me had all the defire poffible to de-
ceive, but her vanity put it out of her pow-
er. It was obvious that madame la Brune
fneered at her : yet me continued to flou-
rifh about her fenfibility a confiderable time
before me touched on the real buiinefs for
which me had come : at laft, however, me
fpoke about the Count. — t( She was exceed-
ingly forry that any mifunderftanding had
taken place between him and me : to her
knowledge he had the moft imcere refped:
and friendship for me j wiihed to be of ufe to
me ; and then expatiated on . the need that

i 3

118 MORDAUNT*

every one, particularly a young woman in my
fituation, had of protection ;" and finifhed by
faying *< that the Count was intimately con*
nected with thofe who had overturned Robe-
fpierre ; that he had been acquainted with all
their plans, and was likely to continue in truft
and favour with them : and, even on the
fuppofition that they, like others, mould be
turned out of power (me added), that he pof-
fefled fuch addrefs, and fuch an accommodate
ing verfatility of conduct, that fhe knew no
man who flood a fairer chance of acquiring the
favour of their fucceflbrs, however oppofite
their fyftem might be to the meafures he now
fupported ; that the friendship and protection
of fuch a man was of great advantage at any
time, but particularly at the prefent moment."
Having urged thofe confiderations at fome
length, me took her leave, in the hopes, no
doubt, that they would have the effect fhe in-
tended. She affured me, as me was going,
that me would have the pleafure of waiting
on me again very foon.

MORDAUNT. 119

I afterwards was informed, on better au-
thority than madame Cochon's, that the
Count really was in confiderable credit with
thofe in power, but that madame la Brune's
friend was under confinement. On this, my
dread of being perfecuted by the malice, or,
what I dreaded ftill more, by the love of the
Count, returned in full force.

I began, therefore, to arrange matters for
changing my lodging ; but I concealed my
purpofe from madame la Brune, not from any
want of confidence in her, but that £he might
be enabled to declare, with truth, that fhe
knew not of my going, nor where I was.

Madame la Brune fufpe&ed my intention,
and complained of me for harbouring it. I
acknowledged my having refumed my for-
mer plan of concealing myfelf with the old
woman, and that I had not mentioned it to
her, on purpofe to fave her from being fu-
fpeded by the Count of _gny previous know-
ledge of my leaving her houfe ,- for I knew
that /he had given him reafon to expeft that

14

120 MORDAUNT.

(he would inform him, in cafe I mould ever
think of taking that ftep.

She faid, <* that me was convinced of
the prudence of my immediately trying to
conceal myfelf ; but fhe queftioned my being
able to remain long fo at the old woman's,
where I mould alfo be miferably accommo-
dated. She therefore advifed me to leave
Paris." She owned, " that the Count had ex-
acled of her that me ihould give him notice
in cafe I thought of quitting her houfe ; but
that he had no right to make fuch an exac-
tion ; that he could not have made it for any
honeft purpofe ; and therefore fhe would pay
no regard to it. As for the Count's fufpe<ft-
ing me of afllfting you to efcape," faid fhe,
" that he will do at any rate ; for villains are
always fufpicious: but, thank heaven!" added
{he, f< they are to be deceived as well as other
people ; and I have no fcruple in deceiving
them •, being perfuaded, that an over- deli-
cacy in that point gives them an advantage
over honefl people which they have no right

MORDAUNT. 121

to. After you are gone, therefore, I fhall
have circumftances arranged, and a ftory pre-
pared, that will tend to remove his fufpi-
cions of me more effectually than if I had
really known nothing of the matter> and
been unprepared to deceive him, as he de-
ferves to be."

I did not think madame la Brune's reafon-
ing unexceptionable, more than her conduct
in other refpects -, for it was impoffible not to
fee that me was the miftrefs of the deputy with
whom me had fo much influence. What fur-
prifed me was, to find that, notwithstanding this
latitude of reafoning and behaviour, fhe was
fcrupuloufly obfervant of certain religious ce-
remonies, of far lefs importance ; an inftance
of which I will mention, becaufe it is a
ftrong proof of the inconfiftency of fentiment
on religious fubjects, even in characters by
no means devoid of fagacity in other mat-
ters.

One evening that I patted with her alone,
after a good deal of converfation, in which

122 MORDAUNT.

me exprefled a full belief in all the dcxftrines of*
tlie church, I could not help faying, " With
fo firm a belief in all thofe things, how can
you maintain the conduit you do in a certain
point ?" She anfwered, with the moil per-
fect ndivett, and feemingly unconfcious of
faying any thing fingular — " Becaufe, to
believe cofts me nothing ; but to change my
conduit, in the article you allude to, would
coft me a great deal."

The whole of her conduct towards me,
however, was uniformly generous and friend-
ly; and appeared the more fo, beeaufe, at
the very time that me was expoiing herfelf
to danger, and taking fo much trouble on
my account, fhe was under great concern and
dread for the fafety of her own protector.

I determined to follow her advice in leav^
ing Paris ; and, after much reflection, could
think of no place where I could be more fe-
cure than in the houfe of that perfon who
had pa.id up the debt due to my father. The
dorneftic who had formerly attended me cm

MORDAUNT.

the journey was at this time with one of the
armies. I fent, therefore, for my never-fail-
ing friend Vilotte ; informed him of my pur-
pofe; and he readily agreed to accompany
my maid and me to the place of our deftina-
tion. By his means we procured pafTports,
under falfe names, and accomplimed the jour-
ney happily, though not without a variety of
dangers and rifks, which I mall omit to enu-
merate. I was received in the kindeft man-
ner by my friend and his family. After
having remained unmolefted with them a
coniiderable time, I received a letter from
madame la Brune, in which me informed me,
" that madame Cochon had called two days
after my departure ; had been furprifed and
irritated, on hearing that I had abruptly left
the houfe without giving her notice ; that
the Count himfelf had called the day after ;
that he had raged like a fury ; accufed her of
being acceflary to. my efcape, and had abufed
her in very grofs terms ; that this had fur-
nifhed her with a pretext for refufing to an-

124 MORDAUNT.

fwer any of his queftions, by fome of which
j(he would have been very much embarrafled :
that he had afterwards tried coaxing and
bribing, to prevail on her to acquaint him
with the place of my concealment : that me
had not altogether feemed deaf to thefe ar^
guments ; but, after having convinced him
that me had known nothing of my going
away, and had with all diligence been en-
deavouring to difcover where I was, me had
given him a cue for rinding me out, — which
Cue," added me, " will direft bis refearches far
enough from the place you are in."

About a fortnight after this, I received a
fecond letter from madame la Brune, to ac-
quaint me, that me had jull learnt, from the
Count himfelf, " that he had heard of my
former journey •> had fome fufpicion where I
actually was, and propofed to fend certain
agents to difcover whether his fufpicions
were well founded : that me, on her part,
had done every thing me could to turn him
from his purpofe j but, as me was ngt cer~

MORDAUNT. 125

tain of Having fucceeded, me gave me this
notice^ that I might be on my guard."

This alarmed me fo much, that I flept out
of my friend's houfe the night on which I got
the letter. By the very next poft I received
another, in which madame la Brune informed
me, " that me had waited on the Count the
day after their laft conversation, and had told
him, that, in confequence of having written
to a friend at Line,, to give her information
of the arrival of any perfon at that town who
anfwered to the defcription me had given of
me, me had received an account of fuch a
perfon having juft arrived there : that, on
this information, the Count, as me wifhed,
had immediately fet out for Lifle." Madame
la Brune added — " On his arrival there, he
will be told, that the perfon he is in fearch
of had gone to St. Omer's fome hours before
his arrival : he will of courfe proceed to St.
Omer's; and, when he gets there, he will
find that nobody knows w^at is become of
the fugitive." She concludes, " that me

126 MORDAtWT.

gives me this information j that I may have time
to make the arrangements necefiary for remov-
ing entirely from my prefent place of conceal-
ment, and finding another, where I could re-
main in fecurity j for fhe was perfuaded, that
as foon as the Count mould return to Paris,
he would refume his former fufpicion, and fet
out for the place where I then was."
jfn In confequence of this information, I re-
folved to go to Geneva. By the means of
the excellent man with whom I had lodged,
I performed this journey, and was received,
with my maid, into the houfe of a watch-
maker, with whom my friend had long dealt,
and to whom he had been of material fervice
in the way of his buiinefs. His family con-
fifted of his wife and two young children.

With this family I lived in the moft pri-
vate manner : they were worthy people. As
I was pleafed with their converfation, and
was provided with whatever books I re-
quired, I feldom wimed to go abroad ; but
my kind landlady, being afraid that too much

MORDAtfNT. 127

confinement would injure my health, pre-
vailed on me fometimes to take a walk with
her. As we crofled the Plain-palais one
day together, I faw, at fome little diftance,
two men in French uniforms, one of whom
ftruck me as having a refemblance to a fel-
low whom I remembered to have feen at-
tending the Count. I turned back imme-
diately, begging my companion to attend me
home as faft as poffible. Being near the
gate -which opens to Plain-palais, we foon
entered the town, and hurried home with all
expedition. I informed my landlord and his
wife of the caufe of my alarm : they en-
deavoured to encourage me with the hope
that I had not been noticed by this fel-
low, or that he might not be the perfon I
took him for : thofe hopes were diminimed
that fame evening ; when my landlord was
informed, that a French foldier had been in-
quiring, at the mop oppolite to his houfe,
" Who the lady was who lived with him ?•—
How long (he had been at Geneva ? — When

12S MORDAUNT.

me intended to leave it ?— and other parti-*

culars."

This account terrified me exceedingly, be-
caufe of the dread and fubjedion in which
the inhabitants of the once free and happy
city of Geneva were held by the tyranny of
France. When I demanded of my landlord,
5* Whether I could depend on the magiftrates
for protection, in cafe any attempt were made
againft my liberty, through the influence of
France," he faid — " It would he beft not
to riik it."

This man, though in other refpedls a man
of fenfe and worth, had been a favourer of
our revolution. He thought the French re-
public would, from fympathy, fupport the
independence of Geneva. I knew his fen-*
timents ; and therefore repeated, with fur-
prife — '• Rifle it ! Does the independence
of Geneva run any rifk from the republic of
France ? Can it countenance any attempt
againft general or individual liberty ?"

He fhook his head, and made an anfwer

MORDAUNT. 129

flattering, my dear mifs Clifford, to your
country. — " I am now convinced," faid he,
" that power in republics, as well as in mon-
archies, has always a tendency to .be op-
preilive; and that liberty, as well in mon-
archies as in republics, has a tendency to be
turbulent : power and liberty, therefore, are
feldom on good terms in either. I do not
recollect any inftance of their being com-
bined, and limited fo as to produce the ge-
neral happinefs of the people, in any re-
public, nor in any monarchy, except that of
Great-Britain, ilnce the revolution in that
*country in the year 1GSS."

He then told me, " that he had a friend,
advanced in life, who had been fo difgufted
with the difTenfions and tumults of which
Geneva had been the icene fince our revolu-
tion, that he had taken a fmall houfe, in a
very retired and romantic fgot near the vil-
lage of Clufe, where he lived with his fifter,
a lady who had long before been difguiled
with mankind in general j not, indeed, on

VOL. II. K

130 , MORDAUNT,

Account of a revolution in the ftate, but in
the affedtions of one man, who had proved
faithlefs to her :" adding, " that they hardly
ever faw or correfponded with any perfon,
except when he himfelf paid them a vffi't, or
had occafion to write to the brother/' To
this perfon's houfe my landlord offered to
conduct me, affuring me of a welcome. I
agreed to the propofal with eagernefs. We
fet out the following day j an4, at my arrival,
I received from this gentleman and his lifter
the welcome I had been promifed.

Before I left Geneva, I had written to my

»

hufband, who was fHll with the prince of
Conde, expreffing my delire of pafling to
Germany, as foon as I could know where he
wifhed me to refide ; and defiling him to ad-
drefs to me, under cover, to my landlord at
Geneva, who would deliver his letters, or
tranfmit them to me, wherever I might be.

While I waited with impatience for an an-
fwer to this letter, I received one from ma-
dame la Brune, in which (he informed me,

MORDAUNT. . 131

4t that before the Count returned from his ex-
pedition to Lifle and St. Omer's, fhe had pre-
pared a very plaufible ftory to amufe him, and
remove any fufpicion which might, naturally
enough, have arifen in his mind, of her hav-
ing intentionally deceived him ; that, though
fhe had never feen a man fo vexed as he was at
his difappointment, and at the thoughts of
having for ever loft me, me had appeared to
be as vexed as him ; that fhe was not quite
certain, however, of having entirely re-
moved his fufpicions ; that his paffion for me
was as violent as ever ; that he talked much
of the happy lituation in which it was in his
power, as well as inclination, to place me ;
that he would forget all the trouble I had given
him, and enable me to live in opulence, un-
controlled, and entirely according to my own
taile." Madame la Brune obferved, " that
his infilling fo much on thefe topics looked
a little as if he ftill fufpected that fhe knew
where I was, and would inform me of all he

faid."

K 2

132 JMORDAUNT.

[This woman you muft perceive, my dear,
is exceedingly mrewd and cunning ; but,
though I muft ever think on her with grati-
tude, and mould be happy to render, her
any proper fervice, I mould like her better
if me had lefs cunning, and more true wif-
dom : cunning is very apt to grow into
knavery, whereas wifdom tends to make* peo-
ple honeft.]

The moil interefting part of her epiftle
was the poftfcript, which acquainted me
with her having juft learnt that the Count
had left Paris, and that he was gone to
Chambery, where a certain perfon who had
been long looked on as a creature of his

a$ed as a commiflloner.

%

This intelligence alarmed me fo much, that
I immediately fent a peafant with a letter to
try friend the watchmaker at Geneva, beg-
ging -his advice, and informing him that I
hud heard this commiffioner fpoken of as a
man devoid of principle, and devoted to the
Count ; fo that, if he fhould by apy accident

MORDAUNT. 133

difcover where I was, I might, by the au-
thority of the former, be arrefted on the
flighted pretext, and fall into the power of
the latter.

The worthy Genevois faw my danger in
the fame light I did myfelf, and he was as
eager to relieve me from it as if he had been
my father. His anfwer was, " that the fafefl
place, in his opinion, that I could retire to was
Vevay ; that he would write to a trufty per-
fon of his acquaintance, who lived there, to
be ready to receive and accommodate me im-
mediately on my arrival $" and he defired me
to meet him early in the morning of the day,
after receiving his letter, at a certain village,
from whence he would conduct me to the Lake
of Geneva, where a boat would be ready to
carry my maid and me acrofs to Vevay.

It afterwards appeared, however, that all
my fufpicions, from the time I had feen the
fellow in the Plain-palais, had been well
founded : he was one of the ruffians whom
the Count maintained, and always had at his
K 3

134-' MORDAUNT.

Command. This fellow had been fent by the
Count from Chambery to Geneva, for the ex-
prefs purpofe of getting fome accounts con-
cerning me : he had remarked my fuddenly
turning from "him, and haftening within the
gate ; and had afterwards made inquiries, which
confirmed him in the notion that I was the
perfon he was in fearch of. He had given this
information to the Count, who had diredly
come to Geneva, in the hopes of carrying me
off by fome means or other from that city, on
his arrival there •> and, finding that I had left
it, he had taken pains to difcdver where I had
gone/ in which he fucceeded •> and, finally,
had applied to the commiffioner, who, fub-
fervient to all his views, had given an order
for arrefting me, on the pretext of my carry-
ing on a correfpondence with the enemies of
France.

After every thing was arranged for our
departure, according to the directions of my
friend the Genevois, while I was converfing
after fupper with my worthy hod and his

MORDAUNT, 135

filler, in the expectation of fetting out
next morning, a fervant, entering the room
abruptly, told us, " that the houfe was fur-
rounded by a party of French foldiers." You
may conceive what a thunder-ilroke this was
to me. My landlord, whofe natural fleadi-
nefs of temper was fortified by the ftudy and
practice of philofophy, feeing the ftate in
which I was> faid, " Fifty to one it is a mif-
take, founded on falfe information j they hap-
pen daily." — " The perfon who commands
the party is placing fentinels around the
houfe ; he feems a civil man," faid the fer-
vant to his matter, " and he defired me to
tell you, fir, that you need not be alarmed,
for he has orders not to injure you in the
leaft."

" I am glad that the party is under com-
mand," replied our landlord aloud : " in that

cafe, as we are all innocent, none of us need
4^

be alarmed."

•

As the officer was entering, I turned my
back to the door, from the dread that he
K 4

136 MORDAUNT.

might be accompanied by the Count. Ad-
darling my landlord, he faid, " I am forry,
fir, that my duty obliges me to difturb you
in the leaft ; but my orders reach not you ;
they only regard a lady who lives in your
houfe."

I cannot defcribe how I was affected,
when, ftruck with the voice of this officer,
I turned fuddenly, and recognifed the very
perfon who had accompanied me on my jour-
ney from, and return to, Paris, when I went
for the money.

He feemed as much aftonifhed as I was.
" Good Heaven !" faid I, " St. Jean, zrzyou
come to arreft me ?"

" To arreft you!" exclaimed he, with the
accent of horror, fhaking his head. He then
paufed, looked around, mut the d©or, and
repeated, " Arreft you I my dear madam,
never, never, never."

" Who then are you come to arreft ?" faid I.

" My dear lady," replied he, " let me reco-
ver my fenfes/'" a^nd, after looking firft my

MORDAUNT. 137

landlord, and then his fitter, ftedfaftly in the
face, he faid to me — "Am I fafe to fpeak?"

** I will anfwer for this gentleman and lady
as for mylelf, St. Jean," faid I.

" Will you?" replied the good fellow;
" then I will fpeak freely. — In cafe you
fhould efcape from this, do you know
of any place in which you could be con-
cealed ?"

" I was preparing to fet out for fuch a
place when you arrived," faid L

*' Would, to Heaven I had fallen and broken
my leg when I was haflening hither," faid he.

•*' I believe you had beft inform this good
man of the whole of your fcheme," faid our
landlord, addreffing me.

I did fo direclly.

St. Jean liftened with attention ; and when
lihad finimed, — " It will do," faid he, rifing
with an air of fatisfaftion. He then defired
to be excufed, faying he had ibme difpo-
fitions to make ; but would return in a fhort
time.

MORDAUNT.

<e Are you absolutely certain of this
fidelity?" faid the fifter, as foon as he left the*
room.

*' As much as of any man alive/' faid L

" That may be/' faid the lifter with a
profound figh ; " but no man alive is to be
trufted."

I recollected what the Genevois had told
me, that this lady had in her youth been de-
ceived by a man 5 and I had perceived that a
long courfe of intervening years had not pluckt
the rooted forrow from her breaft.

*' Do you not perceive, my dear fifter," faid
our landlord, " that the time for diftruft is paft;
we are in the man's power j the leaft appear-
ance of diftruft now would only irritate/'

St. Jean returned. We were furprifed to
fee him accompanied by the footman and the
two maids, the only fervants belonging to
the houfe. We were alarmed when he de-
fired that they (hould be fhut up in a room,
, and the key delivered to him.

MORDAUNT. 139

i

This extraordinary requefl was Immediate-
ly complied with, After which, St. Jean,
(hutting the door, addreffed us as follows, in
a low voice.

" You have acquainted me with the plan
formed for the marchionefs's efcape previous
to my unlucky arrival. I will now inform you
of the meafures I mall take for its being ftill
carried into execution. The orders I have
received are general, and fimply to arreft a
lady living with this gentleman : — little did
I imagine that this lady, the daughter of my
benefactor, was the perfon. I will run any
rifk to fecure her efcape from the danger with
which fhe is threatened ; but I hope it may
1>e effected without much. J have informed
the party under my command, that the lady
we were in fearch of is in this houfe ; that it
would be fooliih to think of moving her un-
til the morning. I have placed fentinels be-
fore and behind the houfe. At one o'clock
precifely there will be a foldier at the back-
door, whom I believe I might truft ; but it

24O MORDAUNT.

is unnecefTary, for I fliall myfelf walk around
the houfe at that hour, on the pretence of ob-
ferving whether the fentinels do their duty.
I fhall then bring the man at the back-door
to the front of the houfe, and there amufe
him and his companion with repeated and
minute orders, until the marchionefs and her
maid {hall have full time to withdraw by the
back-door, and to get at a diftance from the
hoiffe, fo as to arrive at the place where the
perfon you mentioned attends to accompany
them acrofs the Lake. On the morning,*'
continued St. Jean, " I fhall be under the
necefluy of conducting this lady," pointing
to our landlord's fitter, "to a fmall town
between this and Chambery, where the per-
fon who brought me the commiflioner's or-
4ers waits my arrival. He will no doubt be
out of humour when he fees the miftake ; but
he muft impute it to the want of precifion in
the orders he gave me, and he muft of courfe
releafe the lady directly. "

MORDAUNT. 141

The fifter did not feem very fond of this
part of St. Jean's plan ; but when the brother
declared his intention to accompany her, ob-
ferving, at the fame time, that it would af-
ford her fatisfadtion the reft of her life to re-
flecl;, that, by a fmall piece of inconvenience,
(he had been the means of faving a perfon (he
efteemed from very great diftrefs, perhaps
from death, me agreed.

I could not help expreffing a fear, hgw-
ever, left St. Jean fhould be fufpected of
having cormived at my efcape ; " for, after
all," faid I, "'the foldiers who are here will
declare that there were tivo ladies."

" The foldiers, my dear madam," faid St.
Jean, " can declare no fuch matter ; they did
not know that there was fo much as one lady
here until I informed them, after I went laft
out of this room. That they may not be made
acquainted that there are two is the reafon of
my having ufed the precaution of locking up
the only perfons who can give them that in-
formation."

142 MORDAUNT.

We all admired the prudence and addre s
of St. Jean. After fome consultation, it was
thought expedient to liberate the man-fer-
vant, whofe filence and discretion his mailer
declared he could rely on; and who was
highly ufeful, at the appointed hour, in con-
ducting my maid and me to the place, where
we found the punctual Genevois in waiting.
This worthy man had arranged every thing
to my wifh ; and he never quitted us, until
he had feen us eftablimed fafely at Vevay.

I foon after had the pleafure of hearing
from him, that our hoft and his lifter had
both been fet at liberty a fhort time after the
party had conducted them to the town from
, whence they fet out; that St. Jean had
mowed that he had adhered literally to his
orders, and that no blame was attached to
him. But I was informed, at the fame time,
of what gave me much inquietude, though I
had all along fufpedted it in part, that the

Count was in Savoy ; that the order for ar-
f. '

retting me originated in him ; that he re-

MORDAUNT. 143

snained convinced that the information he
had received was true j but that he had been
perfuaded by St. Jean, that I mufl have left
the houfe before his arrival with the party ;
that St. Jean had been ordered to Italy ; and
that the Count continued his refearches for
me with redoubled afliduity.

All this intelligence my friend the Gene-
vois had received from St. Jean, before he
fet out on his march. " I mould have directly
left Vevay, had I not expected every day to
hear from my hufband, or had I known
where I could be in more fafety,

A fhort time after this I was again on the
point of falling into the power of my perfe-t
cutor. From that fupreme mifery I was faved
by the generous interpofition and intrepidity
of one who, for reafons with which I am
unacquainted, wimes not to be mentioned.
When I mail know that thofe reafons no
longer exift, I fhall acquaint you with the
particulars.

The behaviour of all the Englifh with

144 MORDAUlfT.

whom I have had any communication, fince
my arrival here, confirms the opinion I have
long entertained of your nation : and one ac-
quaintance in particular, which I have made
in London, I mail ever conlider, my dear mifs
Clifford, as one of the molt happy incidents
of my life.

MORDAUNT.

LETTER XXXV.

The COUNTESS DOWAGER of DEANPORT to
JAMES GRINDILL, Efq.

DEAR SIR, Lon3on.

1 ALWAYS thought Mordaunt of a generous >
difpofition ; but as he is, at the fame time,

both a younger brother and a man of famion,

-

I never could have imagined that he would
have been either able or willing to have ad-
vanced fuch a fum as would enable you to
clear off your debts, and leave Munich in a
creditable manner. Men of pleafure feldom
have cam fufficient to anfwer their own pur-
pofes ; and I hardly ever knevv any of them,
except mere novices, at their firft arTecfting that
character, who were willing to accommodate
a friend with money* whatever his urgency
might be. But Mordaunt of late has, I un-
derftand, been more a foldier than a man of
pleafnre.

I am happy it was in my power to
VOL. ii. • L

146

remove the chief obftacles that exifted in this
country to your return.

Your old friend, Brumton, flood out more
obftinately than any of your creditors. He
had heard that your relation in Wales was in an
ill flate of health ; and was convinced that, by
his death, you would be very foon in a condi-
tion to pay him the whole debt. Varnim, my
attorney, is a precious fellow : he found
means to perfuade Brumton that your relation
was out of danger, and that it was a very
doubtful matter who would be his heir when
he died; on which that affectionate old friend,
lofing the hope of receiving his whole debt,
came, into the fame terms as your other cre-
ditors.

When he mall hear, however, that the
Welchman has not only relapfed, but alfo
that he is attended by a phyfician of your re-
commending, he will coniider you as in pof-
feffion of the eftate, and curfe the hour on
which he agreed to the compofition.

As I had been for fome time extremely

MORDAUNT. 147

impatient for your arrival in London, you may
imagine what a difappointment it was to me
when I understood that, immediately on land-
ing, you were under the neceffity of fetting
out for Wales. I am fenfible, however, of
the propriety of that meafure, and (ball now
acquaint you with the circumftances that
made me peculiarly defirous of feeing you in
town.

In one of your letters from the continent
there is a hint which mows that you had
fome idea of my having a fcheme to promote
a marriage between my fon and Mifs Moyfton.
I do not give you credit for a vaft deal of pe-
netration on that account. You muft natu-
rally have imagined that I could have no other
defign the moment you heard that I cultivat-
ed an acquaintance with her and her aunt.
On what other account could I have fubmit-
ted to the penance of vifiting and being vi-
fited by fuch women ? You can have no no-
tion of their vulgarity.

Knowing that they were engaged with 'a
L a

148

party to go to the play, I feized the opportunity""
of fending them an invitation to my box at
the opera the fame night, The niece had the
good fenfe and good mariners to remain with*
her party -, but the hideous aunt aftually
broke her engagement, and came to my box.
I was under the neceffity of fitting next her
the whole night, in the view of a crowded
. audience. You have feen the woman, and-
know the Gothic ftyle in which fhe drefles.
I declare that Azor was the leaft frightful
monfter of the two. You who ' know my
averfion to be feeh in public with any one of
an unfafhionable appearance, and have been
witnefs to my flirinking from my own rela-
tions and old companions for no other reaforv
may have an idea of what I fuffered from the
oftentatious familiarity of this woman >. for
me continued fmiling, and nodding, and
whifpering to me, during the whole perform-
ance. The truth is, that while me feemed to-
be delighted with her fituation, and eager to-
catch the eyes of the fpedtators, I was in*

WORD AUNT, 149

agonies ; yet I endeavoured to fupport my
fpirits with the thought, that, through my
fufferings, my fon might obtain for his wife
the greateft heirefs in England. Little do
children ccnfider what a tender and affedion-
ate mother is capable of enduring for the laft>
ing good of her offspring !

While I perfevered in my attentions to
thefe two women, I often fpoke to them of
my fon, who at this time was vifking his
Deflate in Ireland : I defcribed him, you may
believe, in the moil flattering colours, taking
particular care to fuit my defcription to what
J conceived to be the tafte of the niece. One
day, being alone with the aunt, I determined
to open my views to her ; but while in pre-
paration for what I. intended, I was enlarging
on my ion's fine qualities, the old lady anti-
cipated my purpofe, exclaiming — " What a
charming match would fuch an accomplifh-
cd young nobleman make for my niece !"

I received the hint gracioufly, but with
becoming dignity. «•" -My fmcere fr-iendihip

L 3

150 MORDAITKT.

for her, the high opinion I had formed of her
, amiable niece's character, were great induce-
ments, and would remove many obftacles."
As I had not the aflurance to pay the leaft

compliment to the young lady's beauty, I

t

thought it necefTary to dwell the more on her
good fenfe, her charming humour, and amia-
ble manners, though I Strongly fufpect that
her understanding, temper, and beauty, are
much on a level. The aunt affured me that
I had a juft notion of her niece's character 5
that me had a great deal more wit than me
was willing to difplay, and a tafte for magni-*
ficence, which would render her an ornament
to the nobility.

In a Short time we came to an understanding
on the fubject, for which I, had brought about;
the meeting; and the buiinefs was fettled, as
jfar as depended on the aunt and me.

I foon difcovered that the niece was as im-
patient to be a countefs as the aunt was to be
more intimately connected with me.

When my fon arrived from Ireland, I made

MORDAUNT. 151

frequent mention of Mifs Moyfton in his pre-
fence. This naturally turned the difcourfe on
her fortune ; and I took care that fome per-
ibn in the company was fure to make the ob-
fervation — that me was the greatefl heirefs in
the ifland. I was in hopes that this would
have excited a defire in my fon to be intro-
duced to the youpg lady ; but I difcovered
that his mind was at that time engrofled with
the thoughts of purchafing a mare which had
ftruck his fancy, and he could attend to no-
thing elfe. As foon as I underflood that he
had fucceeded in obtaining the mare, I again
introduced the fubjecl: of Mifs Moyfton, and
gave him a pretty circumftantial detail of her
fortune, having previoufly informed myfelf of
the various forms in which her immenfe pro-
perty is fecured. I concluded the narrative
with the phrafe appropriated for women about
to be married, ' that me had every qualifica-
tion requilite for rendering the marriage fta,te

152 MORDAUNT.

" She is very Lundfome, of courfe," faid
be.

I anfwered, " that I was fure that great
beauty could not be reckoned among thofc
requifites by a man of his difcernment, as he
muft be acquainted with fo many inftances of
its having a contrary effecV'

To this obfervation he deemed to aflent, by
the habitual bow which he gives for an an-
fwer when he has no other ready.

I prevailed on him to accompany me to the
aunt's liGuie, where he was prefented to both
ladies : but I blamed myfelf, as foon as Mifs
Mpyilon made her appearance, for not having
delayed the prefentation until the evening 3
becaufe me certainly is one of thofe young
ladies who mow to greateft advantage by can-
dle-light.

I mud do my fon the juftice to confefs,
that, though the fmile which he had prepar-
ed for Mifs Moyfton was converted into fome-
what of a flare when the young lady appeared^

MORDAUNT. 153

yet he foon recovered from his furprize, and,
o:: the whole, conducted himfelf fully as well,
durin6 thib firft vifit, as I had expected.

AJ i»c G' . linued the fame behaviour when
he met them at my houfe, and fometimes
vifited them at their own, I flattered myfelf
that every thing was in good train for the ac-
compufliment of my wiflies. But fome-
thing like backwardnefs, on the part of
my fon, has appeared iince ; of which I will
give you an account in my next ; for I
am now obliged to drefs for lady Faro's af-
fembly, from which I would not, on any ao*
count, be abfent this particular night, as I
have had a foreboding, ever fince I rofe this
morning, that I fhall be a very confjderable
winner.

You will laugh at my foreboding, and im-
pute it to fuperftition ; though 1 really never
am fuperflitious, unlefs when I am in an ill
flate of health. My foreboding, at prelent,
is founded on what you have often told me is
the only juft bafis for betting, namely, caku-

MORDAUNT.

la f ion. I have been a conftant lofer thefe
four laft nights ; and, as it is at leaft ten to
one againft any perfon lofing five nights run-
ning, it is clearly the fame odds in favour of
my winning to-night.

Adieu !

E. DEANPORT.

MOUDAUNT. 155

LETTER XXXVI.

The Countefs of DEANPORT to the Same.

London.

1 AM forry to begin by informing you, that,
in fpite of the odds againft loling five nights
running, I loft again laft night. There is
fomething unnatural in this 5 it looks like en-
chantment. You may fay what you pleafe,
but I am convinced there is a great deal in
feats. I am determined to be more attentive
to this point in future.

I mentioned in my laft that fome degree
of hefitation refpecting the object I am fo
much fet on had appeared on the part of
my fon. He abftained of a fudden from vi-
fiting Mifs Moyfton ; and when flic came to
vifit me was generally engaged elfewhere.
When I fpoke to him of the impropriety and
imprudence of this conduct, he pretended that
}t was entirely accidental ; that he really had

WOK DAUNT.

been engroiled with bufiaefs of importance
of late. I afked, " what bufinefs could pof-
•fibly be of fo much importance to him as that
of fecuring his domeftic happinefs for ever,
by uniting himfelf to Mifs Moyfton /' add-
ing, " that after a very careful inquiry re-
fpedting the fortunes of all the heireffes in
England, J could allure him that me was the
belt wife he eoukf get by fifty thoufand
pounds at leaft."

He replied, " that the abatement which

a

ought to be made on account of her looks,
and othert articles, would reduce her fortune
to a level with that of fome other heireiies."
In .reply to this, .*-' I defired him to recoi-
led; of how very little importance the beauty
of a wife was to a hufband -3 and cited fpmc
of his own acquaintance, who, having been
touched with the looks of girls without for-
tune, had made what are called love-mar-
riages ; and who, in the fpace of a few
months, were as completely indifferent about
their wives' beauty as any man could be who

MORDACTST.

had married a woman of fortune without any
regard to her looks." To this he made no
anfwer \ though, from his countenance, I
thought my remark made fome impreffion
on him. -^-Whether it proceeds from indo-
lence or vacancy (for I need not attempt
to conceal from you that lord Deanport has
not a great variety of ideas), he feldem en-
gages in an argument ; and often, when he is-
entirely of a different opinion from thofe who
endeavour to perfuade him to any meafurey
he fays nothing againft it : fo that many have1
imagined they had brought him round t&
their way of thinking, becaufe he remained
filent, which he did merely to avoid the fa-
tigue of reafoning.

On the prefent occafion, however^ I
thought him a little aftedled by what I faid ;
and, with a view to gain him entirely, I
added, " That unqueilionably his fortune
was very confiderable j that his Englim e-
ftate, in particular, had been greatly im-
proved by the pains I, had beftowed on it

158 MORDAtTNT.

during his minority ; but that he ftill owed a
great fum : that, by a marriage with Mifs
Moyfton he would be freed at once from
that burden, be in poffeffion of a large fum
of ready money, and a vaft additional for-
tune in land, which, by an acceffion of in-
fluence with adminiftration, would enable
him to provide for his friends and depen-
dants at no expenfe to himfelf." I alfo
hinted, " that the additional thoufand pounds
which he had added to my jointure, before
fo ihamefully fmall, would no longer be
felt; but that he would even be able to
double it, and ft ill have more than twice
as much to fpend as he could afford at pre-
fent."

You have had but too many proofs that lord
Deanport knows nothing of true generofity :
what I have heard you remark, my d^ar iir,
is certainly juft, that he takes after the con-
tracted character of his father. I hardly ever
knew him perform one generous action from
the genuine movement of jiis own heart :

MORDAUNT.

every thing of that nature he ever did was
prompted by me, or fome other peribn j even
the addition that he made to my jointure was
obtained by the repeated fuggeftions of thole
whom I employed for that purpofe ; and he
granted it at laft more to relieve himfelf
from importunity than from any inclination
to oblige.

After throwing put the hint above men-
tioned, I told my fon, " that I had heard
(which I really have) that lord Sordid, foil

of — — had of late paid particular

attention to Mifs Moyfton."

This roufed him more than any thing I
had hitherto fuggefted. " Do you imagine,"
laid he, with a tone of contempt, " that I
have reafon to dread lord Sordid as a rival?"

I told him, " that he certainly had not,
provided he paid nearly the fame attention
to the lady which that lord did."

" Lefs attention will do," faid he, and left
me with an air of great felf-fufficiency.

160 MORDAtltf T.

His want of due attention to the lady i§
my only fear ; for, in point of perfon and
countenance, my fon lias much .the advantage
of lord Sordid, as indeed he has of moft young
men of fafhion. I do not recoiled: one who,
in thofe articles, can be thought his fuperior,
except Mordaunt j and he derives his fuperi-
ority more from that graceful franknefs and
captivating eafe of manner, which all the
others attempt, but none have caught, than
to the exclufive beauty of his face and figure.
My fon, on the contrary, to -a fupercilious
addrefs joins a repulfive look ; thefe, with
his natural indolence, being oppofed to lord
Sordid's fawning affiduity, alarmed me fb
much, that I took pains to imprefs both
Mifs Moyfton and her aunt with an unfa-
vourable idea of lord Sordid. I reprefented
him as the Have (of avarice, and commented
at large on that pafiion as the rnofl deb?.iing
for himfelf, and the moft tormenting to a
wife, that a huiband could have. " It i$

M OR DAUNT. 161

more teazing to a wife," added I, " than even
jealoufy ; for that may be lulled, or the effects
of it eluded, by a woman of addrefs ; but all
the cunning of Hermes, and all the foporific
power of his pipe, are not fufficient to divert
the attention, or ihut the watchful eyes, of
a mifer."

Here the aunt obferved, " that though (he
was not acquainted with Hermes, yet me was
fully convinced that nothing could be more
mortifying to a woman of fpirit than to have
a mifer for her hufband."

This poor woman, I underfland, was not
a little controlled* in her expenfes during the
life of her hufband ; which made her enter
very feelingly into my abufe of lord Sordid :
indeed I could hardly exaggerate, it is almofl
impoffible to reprefent him as more a mifer
than he is. Additional fortune would not
prevail on him to augment his expenfe in a
(ingle article ; it would, in reality, inftead of
increafing his enjoyment, render him

VOL. II, M

miferable, by increafing his dread of lofing it*
The lofs of fifty pounds gives more pain to
a mifer than the gain of a thoufand affords
pleafure.

Yet, though all the world plainly fees that
avarice is this noble lord's predominant paf-
fion, he himfelf is fo little fenfible of it,
that he is as ready to condemn in others
the immoderate love of money as either
you or I.

Indeed, I have often had occafion to ob-
ferve, that the blindnefs of mankind to their
own perfonal failings is truly aftoniming.

As I fee many advantages from my fon's
marriage with Mifs Moyfton, I am impa-
tient to have it concluded before he becomes
fufficiently acquainted with her to take fo
ftrong a difguft as would be quite -infur-
mountable. I therefore beg, my dear fir,
that you will write to him on this intereft-
ing fubjedt : you always had a great deal
of influence with him. State the advan-

MORDAUNT. 163

tages of the match in the ftrongeft point
of view, and banter him on the weaknefs
of permitting any reluctance he may feel
rcfpecting the young lady's perfon to weigh
at all in his mind againft an object of fo much
greater importance.

I remain, very truly, yours,

E. DEANPORT.

M 2

MORDAUNT.

.

-*#** ;
ifa«gif|tt<;.. LETT£R xxxvrr.

COUNTESS O/"DEANPORT to the Same.

1 WILL tell you, frankly, that you have dif-
appointed my expectations, in your letter to*
my fbn. I fee the reafon of it : you had &
favour to afk. You know my fon's averlion
to be importuned, particularly on a fubjedfe
which you think is difagreeable j aad there--
fore you almoft entirely elude the topic I re-
commended to you, left your infifting on that
might indifpofe him from granting the other z
but you muft be blind indeed, if you are not
fenfible that,. In promoting my fon's marriage
with mifs Moyfton, you greatly promote your
own interefl. When he (hall be in pof~
feflion of her forcuner and the extensive in-
fluence attending it, you know enough of the*
unconquerable indolence of his character not

MORDAUNT. 165

to be certain that all this influence would
naturally fall into other hands. Into whofc
hands do you think it would fall ? and for
whom would that perfon ufc it ?

The very firft effect of it would be, to re-
compenfe you for your late disappointment,
by placing you in parliament. I am fenfible
that a feat would be highly convenient for
you at prefent : indeed, it is the only protec-
tion which feveral very worthy gentlemen of
my acquaintance have againft the infolence
of tradefmen.

But, over and above that fecurity, I am
perfuaded, that when you are in parliament,
and known to have influence with my fon,
your next application to the minifter will not
be followed by the fame cold neglect that
your laft was.

Your not being a fpeaker does not account
for it : very few of his adherents are of ufc
to him in debate ; and, were it not for the
immenfe power of his own eloquence, and
the ingenuity ef two or three others, his

M3

166 MORDAUNT.

meafures would often remain undefended. Yet
fo much wealth has been accumulated by fomc
of the pooreft of his retainers, and fuch rank
obtained by fome of the loweft, that it might
be imagined a revolution had taken place in
this country as well as in France. It is ge-
nerally allowed, however, that the minifter
himfelf remains, in point of rank and for-
tune, nearly wheie he was before he came
into power.

Since I have been led into a fubjecl: fo dif-
ferent from the ufual topics of our corre-
fpondence, I will indulge myfelf in a few
thoughts, which are fuggefted by the occa-
fion. I have often wondered that, with the
ambition you pofTefs, you have never cul-
tivated a talent for public-fpeaking ; lince
nothing is fo likely to raife a .man to fuch
elevated fituations, in this country, as that
fingle faculty. You muft be feniible, that it
is next to impoffible for any man, however
otherwife accomplished, to hold the place of
prime -minifter without it; whereas, if he

MORDAUNT. 167

pofleffes that in a very eminent degree, every
other requisite is taken for granted.

I am perfuaded that it is not yet too late for
one of your natural quicknefs and ingenuity :
during the refidence you are at prefent obliged
to make in the country, you could not em-
ploy the time better than in compofing
fpeeches, and pronouncing them before a
mirror -y by which you will acquire becom-
ing gefticulation, and accuflom yourfelf to
retain a feries of arguments and illuftrations
in your memory. You will do well to pre-
pare harangues for both fides j becaufe there
is no knowing which party may be upper-
moft by the time you mall obtain your feat.
And, after you have chofen your fide, and
mown under whofe banner you mean to fight,
though it will be expected that you mould
make fome kind of declaration regarding your
future conduct, it will be worth your while
to make yourfelf matter of as many equivocal
phrafes as tfre Englifti language admits, and

M 4

163 MORDAUNT.

to ufe general expreffions ;- that in cafe of
your finding it for your intereft to adopt op.
pofite meafurcs, you may have Uttle diffi-
culty in explaining away the obvious fenfc
of your former declarations.

From a neglect of this neceflary precau*
tion, feveral perfons of my acquaintance, in
other re (peels of difKnguimed prudence, have
found themfelves in a very awkward fitua-
tion.

I have been carried infenfibly from my fub-*
je£t -, and now, when I intended to refume,
I am interrupted :~^it is the aunt herfelf :
ihe is in the drawing-room. She never vi-
fited me before without being accompanied
with her niece. I muft finifli here, or mifs,
the poft. I fhall write again to-morrow, PO
write to my fon till you receive my

i
next.

Adieu \

%. D.

P. S. ^)nly write a fhort linej to tell me
how old Phillips is.

LETTER XXXVIII.

The Same to the Same.

London.

A HE vifit, by which my letter of yefterday
was interrupted, adds to my former folici^
tude that you mould write in the inoft im-
preffive terms to my fon. I hope you arc
fufficiently convinced that the plan I am fo
anxious for, befides gratifying me, will great^
ly conduce to your own intereii as well at
as that of lord Deanport.

I will now inform you of the caufe of th*
aunt's vifit. I no fooner entered the room
than I perceived fomething had difturhed the
unmeaning fimper that was wont to dwell
among her round and rofy features. She told
me, after a good deal of embarrafTment and
awkward circumlocution, <f that fhe was ex-
tremely forry to be obliged to fpeak on fuch
a fubjecl; 5 but that it was impoffible not to

170 MORDAT7NT.

be hurt at the coldnefs of lord Deanport's
behaviour towards her niece, which had ap-
peared fo very evident at an affembly the pre-
ceding evening; that it muft have ftruck
every body ; for his lordfhip had hardly fpoken
to her during the whole evening, though
{he had kept herfelf difengaged from caflmo,
the game fhe moft delights in, on purpofe tOx
converfe with him."

I affured her, " that, if I could have any
idea of indifference for her niece on the part
of my fon, it would give me the moft fenfi-
ble uneafinefs, becaufe I was certain he ne-
ver could meet with another young lady of
equal worth $ that I knew he was of the fame
way of thinking $ but that he was of an inat-
tentive turn of mind, and often had an air of
indifference to the people he loved moft j that,
in mart, it was mere habit."

She obferved, a little fulkily, " that it was;
a very bad habit."

I acknowledged it -, but added, in extenua-

MORDAUNT. 171

1

tion, " that it was a habit which people of
high rank were apt to contract without in-
tention. You muft have obferved, my dear
madam," faid I, " how peculiarly we arc
liable to be abfent and inattentive : I am
convinced it muft have occurred to yourfelf
fometimes to have fallen into a kind of reve-
rie, during which you hardly knew your inti-
mate friends or acquaintance."

Flattered with the clafs I had placed her
in, her features relaxed fomewhat of their
fullennefs, and me faid, " that, admitting
there was juftice in what I urged, frill it
feemed ftrange that a man fliould behave
with more coldnefs to the woman he loved
{ban to others."

Endeavouring to remove the force of this
obfervation, I began to hint at the effect of
very refpe&ful love, which fometimes pro-
duced a timidity and an appearance of cold-
nefs.— She interrupted me with impatience
indignation, faying " that me had heard

172 MORDAUNT.

of exceffive love and refpecl: having been
urged as an apology for the greateft infult a
woman could receive ; but that, in her opi-
nion, men who were pofTefled of that kind of
refpect had no bufmefs to marry."

I was alarmed at the air of contempt with
which me pronounced this, and haftened to
remove the unfavourable impreffions that I
had accidentally given.

" My dear madam," faid I, " did you
never hear of men who, after being very warm
lovers during the whole of their courtfhip,
proved very cold hufbands ?"

She anfwered, in a very feeling accent,
9*. : that {he not only had heard of fuch falfe
deceivers, but had known fome of them."

" Well j and no doubt you mufl alfo have
known or heard of men who, after having
been very cold and inattentive lovers, became
mofl warm and affectionate hufbands."

After a paufe, fhe declared me never had.

" This furprifes me," refumed I. " But

AfORDAUNT. 173

I can aflure you that lord Deanport will
be as ftrong a proof of the fad as a thou-
fand inftances ; becaufe he has, from his
infancy, had a kind of carelefs, negligent
manner, to thofe he loves beft. I myfelf,
for example, have often experienced it, though,
at bottom, he is the moft afFeclionate and moil
dutiful of fons j and to people, on the other
hand, for whom he has no real regard, and
never wifhes to fee in private, he is always
very attentive in public. But you rmift re-
member that it is in mere external behaviour,
and in trifling matters, that he difplays this
attention ; for, in effentials, he has no connec-
tion with them : and therefore, my dear ma-
dam," concluded I, " you may rely upon it,
that, in the fame degree that my fon is ne-
gligent in matters of mere etiquette, he will
be amduous in things of importance j and
though you may think Mm rather a carelefs
lover, your niece will find him an affectionate
and dutiful hufband -, for I know that it is
both in his power and nature to be fo."

174 MORbAUNI'.

This feemed to fatisfy her; and we parted
as good friends as ever. I have fpoken to my
fon on the fubject; but he is fo very indolent,
and fo very apt to fail, in every refolution he
makes, and every engagement he comes un-
der, if he has not either fome internal ftimu-
lant to excite him, or fome external monitor
to advife him, that I earneflly beg you will
put the importance of this whole bufmefs, in
as flrorlg a point of view as you can, in your
very next letter to him ; for, in fpite of all
my infinuations againft lord Sordid, if he and
his relations continue their attentions to the
niece, and my fon perfeveres in his negleft of
her, there is reafon to dread the event*

Yours, as ufual,

E. DEAN PORT.

I expected you would rally me on my
notion, that fortune at play often depends on
feats. You are fo polite as to tell me that this

MORDAUNT. 175

is one of the few points in which I betray fe-
minine weaknefs ; but all the mafculine rea-
foning in the world will not prevent me from
believing what I have often feen confirmed
by experience, though I cannot account
for it.

•

' • < *

? i ttn '
i JUlJ

MORDAtTNf.

LETTER XXX IX.

Sams to the Same*.

Londan,

1 HOPE you have got the fhort note I fent
you immediately after your laft to lord
Deanport was received. I had only time
tor inform you how infinitely I was fatisfied
with it : it was indeed a mailer-piece. If
you could acquire the fame art and energy
in public-fpeaking, and took care at the fame
time to ply that art and energy on the right
fide, there is no fituation to which you would
not have well-founded pretenfions.

Your letter had the happiefl effect. How
could it fail? You touched every organ of fen-
fibility in his frame — you ftruclt every chord
which could roufe his natural languor, and
vibrate emotion to his heart : his interefl,
vanity, ambition, jealoufy, were addrefied
in their turn.

The pi<flure you drew of the triumph

MORDAUNT. 177

of lord Sordid, and the magnificence he
would be enabled to difplay on his marriage
with mifs Moyfton, determined my fon to
thwart him, by an immediate renewal of his
own afiiduities. He came and informed me
of his determination. I cautioned him to do
this in a manner confident with the account
I had lately given of him, which I knew
had been faithfully repeated to the niece.

The aunt and niece were equally delighted
with the whole of his behaviour. They now
thought that the careleiTnefs which had mock-
ed them before, and which they believed they
ftill perceived in his addrefs, was on the
whole graceful. The young lady's delight was
increafed by the fplendor of our liveries, and
the tafte of my fon-'s drefs on the birth- day.
His renown as a minuet- dancer you are no
Granger to. It would be difficult to decide
whether mifs Moyflon was moft pleafed with
the charms of his face, of his embroidery, or
of his dancing ; but (lie feemed quite in rap-
tures with the united effecl of the three. As

VOL. II. N

ITS MORDAUNT.

he is now a little familiarifed to the coarfe-
nefs of her features and, the vulgarity of her
manners, the impreffion they at firft made
on him begins to diminim, while that de-
rived from a contemplation of her wealth finks
deeper every day. I have good hopes that
the whole bufmefs will be happily terminated
within a very fhort time. I regret much that
you cannot quit your poft, were it but for a
few days. ; I mould like to have a little con-
verfation with you before I fpeak to the aunt
on the fubjeft of fettlements. On this in-
terefting fubjedt I am not fond of writing.

E. DEANPORT.

MORDAUNT. 179

LETTER XL.

The Same to the Same.

Londorj,

1 AM fenfible of the wifdom of what you
fuggeft, in your laft, refpeding the fettle-
ments. UnqueiKonably, the more of the ready
money mifs Moyfton mall keep at her own
difpofal, after marriage, the better will it be
for herfe.lf, and the more convenient for me.
I am convinced, with you, that I mall find
it eafier to deal with her than with my fon
on certain points.

It is long lince you made it clear to me,
from the indolence, the everlafting ennui,
and the total want of refources in his own
mind, that he muft always be under the ma-
nagement of another, moft probably of one
woman after another. It is evident, how-/
ever, that mifs Moyfton will never be of the
number : me wants that degree of beauty, »
N Q

ISO MORDAUNT.

and of compliance to his favourite taftes,
without which every other accomplimment
and virtue a woman can poflefs would be
unfupportable to him. I am fufficiently
aware, that it will be difficult for me long to
retain that portion of influence with him that
would be agreeable to myfelf, or ufeful to
my friends : on which account I was the
more impatient to have the ceremony over as
foon as poflible ; being pretty fure, that, at
the prefent moment, certain arrangements,
highly expedient for me, would be complied
with, and rendered irrevocable ; whereas,
from the experience I have already had of
my fon's difpofition, he might, at a future
period, be lefs obliging.

When every circumftance feemed con-
ducive to the fpeedy fulfilment of my wifhes,
a new and unexpected incident gave me in-
quietude, and was the caufe of my postponing
writing to you for fo long a time.

I had hopes that it might prove an ill-
founded alarm, and I wiflied to fpare you-

MOR DAUNT. 18 J

an uneafmefs you could not remove ; but, as
you exprefs as much pain on account of my
long illence as you will fufTer from knowing
the caufe of it, I muft inform you, that lord
Deanport is captivated with a new face, to
fuch a degree, that he again relaxes in his at-
tentions to mifs Moyfton. It muit be ad-
jnitted, indeed, that if great beauty in a wife
could impart as lafting and folid happinefs to
a hufband as great fortune, my fon would act
wifely in preferring this interloper ; for {hie
furpafles mifs Moyfton as much -in the al-
lurements of face and perfon as the latter
does her in thofe of fortune. But he has al-
ready given proofs, which I need not men-
tion to you, that mere beauty never could fix
him above a month ; whereas his attach-
ment to money feems to increafe with his
years : andbefides, putting beauty entirely out
of the .queftion on the one part, and fortune
on the other, mifs Moyfton would be a much
more commodious wife for -my fon than this
new charmer. The former, poor creature,

N 3

182 MORDAUNT.

as foon as fhe finds herfelf entirely negle&ed
by her hufbandj a's mofl afTuredly (he will be,
if Deanport proves to bd her man, will di-
rectly fall to pouting, crying, and upbraiding,
until, finding them of no efFecl:, me will, lfet
laft, fink into tamenefs and fubmifiion, and
become a Have for life, with the title of
countefs : whereas, from what I have al-
ready feen of the other, I ftrongly fufpecl: that
ihe is infinitely more likely to govern his
lordfhip than to be governed by him.
•1 The name of the damfel in queftien is
'Clifford : me is daughter of Northumberland
Clifford, whom you muft remember. He
lived fome time abroad after the death of his
%ife : he took this girl with him, and, I un-
derftand, returned about two years ago, and
Toon after died. He was cried up by fome
people as a man of llrong fenfe, and even
what they call genius. I was a little ao-
quainted with him before his marriage.; but
I could not bear his wife, and fo I dropped
both. The girl refides at prefwit with Mr.

MORPAUNT. 183

Darnley, who is married to her aunt. What
does not tend to remove any prejudice I may
have againft this mifs, is her being a favou-
rite of that ftately prop of ftale virginity,
lady Diana Franklin, who, of all thofe whom
I hate, is the perfon I hate the moft. This is
placing her ladyfhip at the head of a pretty
numerous band.

When I perceived that lord Deanport was
more than ufually attentive to Mifs Clifford,
I thought it requifite to inform myfelf a little of
her temper and difpofition, and with that view
drew her into converfationtwo or three times>
at the afTemblies where I occafionally met her :
but obferving that MifsMoyfton could not bear
to fee me fpeak to her, I faw it would not be fafe
to continue fo long as to enable me to form
a judgment of her character, though I could
not help being {truck with her manner, which,
it muft be conferled, is at once eafy and dig-
nified, and as cruelly contrafhed with poor
Mifs Moyfton's vulgar and conftrained addrefs

N 4-

184 MORDAUNT.

as the fweet countenance of the one is with
the four afpect of the other.

Knowing that Mrs. Demure, the rich,
handfome widow, vifited Mrs. Darnley, Mifs
Clifford's aunt, and having obferved that flie
made greatly up to the young lady, I thought
I might learn fomething of her character and
difpofition from the widow : I therefore
called on her, in the hope of obtaining the
information I wifhed. On my mentioning
Mifs Clifford, ihe inftantly fet off on a full
canter of panegyric — " Oh ! me was the moff
delightful, moil amiable, befUnatured young
woman ihe had ever known," with many
acccmplimrnents which me was enumerating j
when I flopped her in the middle of her ca-
reer, by obferving, " that no -woman in Lon-
don feemed to be fo much the object of ad-
miration as her friend." She changed colour
at this remark ; and, after drawing her breath
a little longer than ufual, faid— " Mifs Clif-
ford, unquestionably, is very much admired."

MORDAUNT. 185

" Nay," faid I, " I only mean by the men ;
for I know that the women in general prefer
others."

" And pray," faid Mrs. Demure, " whe-
ther does your ladyfhip think men or women
the bell judges?"

** The women, without doubt," anfwer-
ed I. '

" I am completely of your lady/hip's opi-
nion," faid {he.

" I mean," refumed I, " that women are
infinitely the bed judges of every thing that
is truly worthy of admiration, of every qua-
lity that a woman of a well-formed mind can
be folicitous about ; in (hort, of every thing
except mere external beauty : of that, to be
fure, my dear madam, the men are the beii
judges j and they, with one voice, give it in
favour of your beloved friend, Mifs Clifford."

" I did not know," faid me, with a face
which had fuddenly changed from pale to
crimfon, " that thev were To unanimous."

186 M6RDAUNT.

" O yes !" cried I, (for I love to torment
envious people) — " O yes, my dear, quite
unanimous, as to face and fhape. — I heard,"

continued I,." the duke of , and you

know that nobody iludies female beauty more
minutely than his grace — Well, I heard him
declare, that nothing had appeared equal in
beauty to Mifs Clifford fince the reign of the
Gunnings."

" The duke," faid me, checking a iigh
and forcing a fmile, " is an admirer of the
beauties of the laft age, or of foreign .coun-
tries.—It is fufficient for Mifs Clifford to have
lived fome years in Italy and France to obtain
his admiration."

I faid " I was ignorant that his grace gave
fo great a preference to foreigners."

" Did you not know," faid me, " that he
is in love with the whole French emigration ?
did you not, know that thefe French women
are attempting to give the ton in London as
much as they ever did at Paris ? and as for

MORDAUKT. 187

my friend, Mifs Clifford, me has more the
air of an emigrant than of an English wo-
man."

I owned I had not obferved it ; but me
afierted that it was moft apparent ; adding,
" that me not only had acquired the air, but
likewife the fentiments and manners, of the
French ladies, which," continued me, " are
far more^m- and eajy than thofe of our coun-
trywomen, and, probably, more to" the tafle of
the men, whom your ladyfhip thinks the beft
judges of beauty."

I was pleafed to hear an infinuation of this
nature? becaufe lord Deanport, with that
equity which diftinguifhes your fex, while he
allows himfelf the utmoft latitude, is wonder-
fully rigid in his notions refpeding the con-
duel: of women. His delicacy in that point is
carried to a height that you could hardly have
conceived in a man who has fo very little in
his behaviour towards them.

With all the inclination in the world to
believe Mrs. Demure's infinuations juft, I con-

188 MORDAUNT.

fefs I have fome doubts on that head :
becaufe I know the widow to be as malicious
as a monkey, and as envious as an old maid j
and, in the fecond place, becaufe I recoiled: a
very judicious obfervation of yours, when.

Mils -, then in the bioom of her beauty,

was given as the author of a certain report to
rny difadvantage — ' The infmuatizm of one hand*
fome -woman,' you faid, ' again/} another ofju-*
parlor beauty, are never to be believed*

I will, however, make inquiries concerning
mademoifelle Clifford, from thofe whofe tef-
timony is more to be depended on than Mrs.
Dernure's. She is too handfome not to have
been expofed to many attacks, and particu-
larly to thofe of fcandal -, yet, unlefs it be the
hints above mentioned, I have heard nothing
to her, difadvantage. I plainly perceive that
both the aunt and niece are alarmed j and, I
fear, with too much reafon. How provoking,
after all the trouble I have taken, if this
though tlefs young man mould throw himfelf
away at lail ! I am much at a lofs how to

MORDAUtfT. 189

proceed, and heartily wifh you could come
to town, were it but for a week, I have
things to confult you on which I cannot trull
on paper. You will come, I am fure, if you
poffibly can.

E. DEANPORT.

19O MORDAUNT.

;

LETTER XLI.

.{foil-

Ol ' *! r, 7 P j7 o

Frc/» /#* caw* /<? the Same.

fdf]

1 CANNOT help obferving, my good fir, that
your letters have been wonderfully laconic
of late : your laft was in the mercantile flyle,
precifely confined to the needful. In your
prefent confinement you muft have much
time on your hands: pray correct in your
next letter the fault of which I complain.

I am flill uneafy on account of this Mifs
Clifford ; it is evident that my fon becomes
every day more attached to her : what will
furprize you, however, me feems to be in-
different about him. This, in all probabi-
lity, proceeds from affectation : if fo, mifs
is a little out in her politics ; me would have
fucceeded better with lord Deanport by af-
fecting to be in love with him. This ftrata-
gerh would fail indeed with a woman fo very

MORDAUNT. 19 i

plaih in her appearance as Mifs Moyfton, or
any other who did not, to a certain degree,
pleafe his fancy $ but I am convinced, from
what I have obferved in his difpo.fition, that
a woman who pleafed him, though ever fo
little at firft, and who would infallibly lofe
him by apparent indifference, might gradu-
ally draw him on to matrimony merely by af-
fecting an irrefiftable paflion for him. You
could hardly have an idea how many women
of my acquaintance have obtained very com-
fortable marriages, by making men, who would
not otherwife have ever thought of them, be-
lieve that they fecretly languimed for them.
A large mare of vanity, with a moderate por-
tion of good nature, difpofes a man. to fall
into this fnare. You lords of the creation
have in general- a far greater proportion of

the firft than of the fecond : yet I know a

j

remarkable inftance in which there appeared
an equal {hare of both. A man of fortune, a
relation of my huiband, arrived at the age of
fifty without the fmalleft inclination to many.

192 MORDAUNT.'

He had been long acquainted with a maiden
lady, about ten years younger than himfelf,
with a confiderable fortune, but with a dif-
agreeable countenance, and a difpofition re-
fembling her face. The man thought no
more of propofing marriage to her than to
the Dutch pug (lie always had in her lap.

By the failure of a houfe in the city ihe
loft three- fourths of her fortune. A female
acquaintance of hers happened to lament this
misfortune to my hufband's relation -, adding,
as an aggravation, that, as (he had now loft all
her money, her old friends would no longer
admit her into their loo-parties, and the poor
woman would not know what to do with her^
felf : fhe concluded by affuring him that this
unfortunate lady had long harboured a fecret
fondnefs for him.

My huiband's relation made propofals of

'
marriage to the lady, and of courfe married

her next day.

My hufoand was greatly aftonifhed, and a
little provoked, at this ftep of his relation.

" Did you marry her for her fortune?"
faid my lord, ironically, to the hufbarid.

" Certainly not," anfwered he.

k< Was it for the fake of her beauty?''
added my lord.

" No \ I cannot fay it was," replied the

other.

" Did you marry her for the fake of her

fweet temper ?"

" Not in the leaft," anfwered the other.

" In the devil's name, for whofe fake did
you marry fuch a woman ?" exclaimed my lord I

" I married her for God's fake/' anfwered
the hufband, with refignatiori.

My fon, it is true^ is in little danger of
acting from the fame motive ; but he is af-
furedly fond of mifs Clifford 3 and Were Hie
to {how a partiality for him, I ihould trem-
ble for the cortfequehce.

I underftand that me rides uncommorily
well • that; in the north, me ufed fometimes
to hunt. It is furprifing that fuch excurjfion^
have not given fife to fome flories that
would be worth communicating to my fon i

VOL. ii. 0

194 MORDAUNT.

perhaps fome fuch may exift, though con-
fined to Northumberland; if fo, I am in a
fair way of hearing of them. I have learnt
that a certain Mr. Prodtor had for many years
the management of Clifford's eftate, and

lived in great intimacy with his family. The

•
man, however, I am told, is rather on ill

terms with young Clifford, and of courfe
will not be difpofed to conceal any thing he
knows to the difadvantage of the family.
This man is in opulent circumftances, a wi-
dower, about the age of fifty, and has the
reputation of being a very prudent man. You
will probably fufpect the truth of the lail
article, when I inform you that he lately
made a propofal of marriage to a blooming
lafs of twenty-two. You muft remember
Peggy Almond, the handfome girl you have
feen with me in Yorkfliire. As me has lit-
tle or no fortune, her aunt, and other rela-
tions, were all eager for her accepting fo' ad-
vantageous an offer ; and, the girl herfelf
having more love for his fortune than aver-
fion againfr, his perfon, the match would have

MORDAUNT. 195,

taken place, had I not interfered. I cer-
tainly was of more ufe to Mr. Proctor, on
this occafion, than all his prudence 5 for I
perfuaded the girl to decline the offer ; re-
prefenting him as a morofe, vulgar old man,
who would coop her up in a gloomy houfe
in Northumberland, and prevent her from
ever feeing London, or fafhionable life, any
more. My reafon was, that if the man had
really been fo mad as to marry her, I mould
have loft her company, which I find rather
an amufing refource when I go to the feat in
Yorkfhire. I, underftanding that he is foon
to be at York, when of courfe he will vifit
the aunt, with whom Peggy lives, I have
written to her to draw from him all the infor-
mation me can refpedting the Clifford family,
and particularly the private hiflory of made-
moifelle. That me may do this with the
more zeal, I have given her reafon to hope
that I may fend for her foon to the capital.
You cannot have an idea of the power of
this bribe on the mind of a girl deep-read in

o 2

i9& MORDAUNT.

plays and novels, who is conflrained to live in
the country, and is intoxicated with admiration
of the amufements of the town. If Mr;
Proctor had Offered to carry her, for two or
three months every feafon, to London, me
would have accepted his hand, in fpite of all
I eould have faid or done. Indeed, it was
by alluring her that I would take her thither
with me laft feafon that I prevailed on her
to reject his fuit; which I no fooner knew
me had done, than I wrote a moft affectionate
epiftle, in which I ftated to her an infur-
mountable reafon for leaving her behind; and
poor Peggy was obliged to return to her
aunt at York, difappointed of a hufband j
and, what me felt as feverely, difappointed
of a journey to London.-

Though this girl is a real refource to me
in the country, I have not the leafl need of
her in town, and have therefore always found
pretexts for leaving her behind. On the
prefent occafion, however, I thought it ex-
pedient to throw out the old lure to her,

MORDAUNT. 197

whiqh, whether I may find it convenient to
verify her expectations or not, will render
her happy in the mean time ; for I am con-
vinced (he thinks and dreams of nothing
but London ever fince (he received my laft
letter.

You fhall know, in good time, the effect
of her inquiries concerning mifs Clifford. In
the mean time I endeavour, by every means
in my power, to keep mifs Moyfton and her
aunt in good-humour : the latter is the mod
troublefome of the two. She infifts on mak-
ing me acquainted with her mofl intimate
friends and relations, all of whom me cha-
radterifes as the befl kind of people in the
world, and perfectly genteel; and all of whom
I find of the moft difgufting vulgarity. The
unconfcionable woman infifted on my ac-
companying her to lady Mango's route, to
which I had previoufly determined not to go,
having already found it a fervice, not only of
great fatigue, but alfo of fome danger.

o 3

198 MORDAUNT.

But, you will fay, " Who is lady Man-
go ?"

That is a queflion which requires an an-
fwer at fome length. — If I find leifure, you
fhall have it ; for this woman's hiftory is fin-
gular enough.

E. DEAN?ORT,

MORDAUNT.

LETTER XLII.

The Countefs of DEANPORT to Mifs ALMOND,

YORK.
MY DEAR PEGGY. London.

JL o u were witnefs to the pain I felt on our
reparation : — the fame cruel circumftances
which prevented me from bringing you with
me to town have alfo prevented my anfwer-
ing any of the kind letters I have received
from you fince my arrival. You cannot
imagine how I have been worried with bu-
finefs ; but it is now almoft over, and I am
in fome hopes that I may {till have it in my
power to fend for you before the end of the
feafon. I hope your aunt, to whom I beg
you will prefent my affectionate compli-
ments, will be prevailed on to part with
you. We mall return together to York-
fhire -y and, after you are tired with the
amufements of the town, I anticipate the
rural felicity we (hall enjoy at Willow-Bank,
o 4

'200 MORE All NT.

In one of your letters you inform me,
that it is univerially believed in Yorkfhire
that lord Deanport is immediately to be mar-
ried to Mifs Moyfton ; and in your laft you
fay that you have juft heard of his having
fallen in love with Mifs Clifford of Northum-
berland j which, it was thought, would break
the intended match. You have too much good
fenfe, my dear, to believe all the idle ftories
that are circulated ; and I hope you have a
better opinion of my fon's underftanding, than
to imagine that he would act contrary to rea-
fon and propriety. Mifs Moyfton is a virtu-
ous young lady, worthy of the hand of the
i^rft nobleman of this kingdom. As for the
Mifs Clifford you mention, I know little or
riothing about her -, but I will own to you, as
a friend, that you have excited my curiofity
to know fomewhat of that damfel. They
tell me me has been a good deal abroad, and
has much the appearance of a French woman.
I mould like to know on what account me
went abroad fo unexpectedly, what rumours

HOR DAUNT. 201

were excited in the country on that head,
and how me fpent her time in Northumber-
land after her return : I hear me ufed to hunt
a good deal. Of thefe and other particulars
concerning her, you may procure me a cir-
cumflantial account from your old friend Mr.
Proctor, who lived on an intimate footing
with Mils Clifford's father, and had the ma-
nagement of his affairs when he was abroad.
I approved of your refufing Mr. Proctor, not-
withftanding his fuppofed wealth ; becaufe he
is a retired kind of man, and lives not in that
fphere of life in which you are formed for
mining. I am glad, however, to hear that
he ftill continues the victim of your eyes ;
becaufe he may have it in his power to be
ufeful to you in various ways.

I hear he is foon to be at York ; and will
no doubt be frequently at your aunt's during
his flay. You will then find opportunities
of getting the information I want.

I dare fay that you will manage the bufi-
nefs with your ufual addrefs, and without

202 MORDAUNT.

letting it be known that I am the perfon for
whom you make the inquiries. You mall
know at meeting on what account I am de-
firous of having this information ; for which
I am the more impatient, becaufe the fooner
it comes the fooner will it be in my power
to fend for you.

I remain yours affectionately,

E. D,

MORDAUNT. 203

LETTER XLIII.

The Countefs of DEANPORT to JAMES
GRINDILL, Efy.

London.

]L<ADY Faro was feized with a violent indi-
geftion, after fupping very heartily on capon
fluffed with truffles. This terrified her to
fuch a degree, that fhe has changed the night
of her affembly from Sunday to Monday. She
is IliU very ill, but I fmcerely hope fhe will re-
cover ; for it would be very hard were fhe to
make her efcape before I had one other chance
for the money fhe won from me laft week.

Meanwhile, as none of my acquaintance
who have card parties on Sunday are as yet
come to town, I mall employ this evening
in endeavouring to amufe myfelf and you with
the hiftory I promifed. Lady Mango is the
offspring of a refpedtable grocer in the city,
who, having a variety of daughters, thought

it a prudent fpeculation to fend the hand-
ibmefr, and moil troublefome of them, on a
matrimonial venture tp Bengal; where fhe
had the good luck to hit the fancy. of Mr.
Mango, juit after he had made an immenfe
fortune by fomc very advantageous contracts.
He paid affiduous court to the girl, made her
iplendid offers, and was in hopes of bringing
the intrigue to a happy conclufion without
marriage; but, profiting by the experience fhe
had had previous to her leaving London, me
rejected all terms in which that ceremony was
not an article. After a hard ftruggle between
his prudence and his paffion, the latter ob-
tained the victory, and Mr. Mango was mar-
ried to Mifs Figgs.

He was one of thofe men who put a great
importance on whatever contributes, even in
the fmalleft degree, to their own eafe; and little
or none to what conduces, even in the greateft
degree, to the eafe of others. This difpofi-
tion is by no means very uncommon ; but
Mr. Mango poffefled it in rather a greater

SIORDAUNT. 205

degree than uiual. In him, however, this
did not proceed from any pofitive cruelty of
temper ; but merely from an indolence of
mind, which prevented him from ever think-
ing of any body's fenfations but his own. In
the Eaft Indies, where men of his fortune
travel in palanquins, have (laves to fan the
flies from them while they repofe, and are
furrounded by the moft obfequious depen-
dants, this kind of indulgence of felf, and
forgetfulnefs of others, may be carried greater
lengths without a check than in England.
Mr. Mango was obliged to his wife for in-
ftruding him, that another perfon in his own
family, befides himfelf, had a will of their
own ; and that it would tend to his tranquil-
lity to follow that peribn's will inftead of his
own. This me accomplimed without the af-
fiftance of genius ; and without any talent
whatever, except obftinacy ; for in all other
refpe&s me was a weak woman. She made
it a rule to inlift, with unremitting perfever-
ance, on every meafure {he propofed, until it

20G MORDAUNt.

was adopted : and, by adhering to this fimple
rule, all her. meafures were fooner or later
adopted ; for, what point will not a man give
up, rather than hear an eternal harping on the
fame firing ?

After Mrs, Mango had obtained the great
object of her voyage to the Eaft Indies, her
next was to prevail on her hufband to return
to England; where the fplendor in which me
propofed to live was more flattering to her
imagination than the luxuries at her com-
mand where me was. Mr. Mango informed
her, " that the fituation of his affairs required
that his family mould remain another year in
the Eafl Indies ;" and me informed him,
" that it would be better for him and his
family to return that very feafon to Eng-
land." She repeated this every day, and
every hour of the day, for a month : after
which the whole family embarked.

On their paffage home, the wife was ob-
ferved to be in good fpirits, even when the
weather was bad ; whereas the hufband

MORDAUNT. 207

complained of ficknefs, even when the wea-
ther was good : and a little before they ar-
rived at Portfmouth, he acknowledged to one
of the paffengers, that his laft contrast was
the moft unfortunate one he had ever made.

He had hardly any acquaintance in London ;
and he was not much flattered by that of his
wife's relations. Mr. and Mrs. Mango were,
therefore, feldom together -, and he appeared
rather low-fpirited for fome time after their
arrival : yet, when me afked him how he
liked London, he had the politenefs to an-
fwer, " that, on the whole, he preferred it to
living aboard a fhip."

By habit, London became lefs difagreeable
to him ; and as he faw little of his wife, and
had formed fome new acquaintance whofe
fociety amufed him, he began to get the bet-
ter of his deje&ion, when his fpoufe opened
on him a new fource of vexation, which lafl-
ed all his life.

Mr. Mango's Chriftian-name vvas Jeremiah.

208 MORDAUNf.

When a boy at fchool, his comrades, for fome
whimfical reafon, when they wifhed to teaze
him, ufed to call him Sir 'Jeremiah. Nothing
provoked him fo much ; and he held in utter
abhorrence the appellation ever after. He
never figned Jeremiah, but always J. Mango.
His correfpondents were inflrudted to addrefs
their letters to him in the fame manner. If
he received one with Jeremiah at full length;
it put him out of humour the whole day.

Moft unfortunately for this gentleman, the
hu(band of one of his wife's acquaintance was
knighted; and his fpoufe, of courfe, infteadof
Mrs. Lotion, was called lady Lotion. This
was a great mortification to Mrs. Mango,
who .confide' red herfelf as the fuperior of this
acquaintance, becaufe her hufband was richer^
and becaufe, as fhe afferted, me was fprung
from a more ancient and honourable family of
grocers than the other.

Mr. Mango having come home one day in
a gayer humour than ufual to dinner, — after a

MORDAUNT. 2O9

little preface, his fpoufe faid, " that his friends
were fufprifed that he did not apply to be
created a knight."

The poor man turned pale in an inftant,
and burft into a cold fweat : he well knew
the eonfequence of having that dignity con-
ferred on him would be to have the detefted
name of Sir Jeremiah founded in his ears for
the reft of his life. He had often thanked his
ftars that this idea had never entered his wife's
head, and had once cautioned one of his friends
never to mention, in her prefence, the name of
a relation of his, who made a continual difplay
of a foreign badge upon his breaft, and had
Sir pronounced before his name. The fame
friend told me, that Mr. Mango, in the ful-
nefs of his heart, on this afFeding fubject, had
expreffed himfelf, with fome variation, in the
words of Othello :

— ' " " It has pleafed hearen
To try me with affli&ion,
To deep me in marriage to the very lips,
To give to captivity me and myutmoft hope*;
VOL. II.

210 MORDAUKT.

Yet ftill I find, in fome place of my foul,
A drop of comfort. — I am not yet
A fixed figure for the time of fcorn
To point his flow untnoving finger at "-

" For," continued he, in a lefs emphatic
tone, " though I hear frequently of wives
teazing their hufbands to apply to be made
knights, yet that curfed fantafy has never oc-
curred to mine -, and I hope Co flip quietly out
of the world without being branded with the

horrid appellation of Sir Jeremiah."

. . . , ^ ,

Such being Mr. Mango s fentiments, it is

eafy to imagine how much he muft have been
ihocked at what his wife faid. He made no
immediate reply, having fome faint hope that
it was a tranfient idea which me might never
refume. But when Mrs. Mango repeated
what £he riad faid, he meekly reprefented to
her the horror he felt at the thought of hav-
ing the odious name of Sir Jeremiah continu-
ally refounded in his ears, and earneftly beg-
ged that me would not infift on a meafure

MORDAUNT. 211

tyhich would fubject him to fuch a mortifica-
tion.

To this Mrs. Mango replied, " that he
was to blame in disliking the name of Jere-
miah ; that, though not a royal name, like
thofe of David, and Solomon, and Rehoboam,
and others, yet it was a fcripture-name as
much as any of them, and the name of a great
prophet ; that, although the French, revolu-
tion had decreafed the number of kings, and
increafed that of prophets, yet a great prophet
was as great a rarity as a great king, and in a
mort time, perhaps, would be a greater ; that
the appellation of Sir Jeremiah, therefore,
was at leaft as refpe&able as that of Sir any
thing elfe. She alfo reprefented that every
alderman, contractor, apothecary, phylician,
and broker in London, who had fcraped to-
gether one half of his fortune, applied to be
created a baronet or knight j that the differ-
ence was nothing to her j and, as he had no
children, was as little to him; but that it was

P 2

212 MOHDAVNT*

indifpenfably neceffary that he fJiould be the
one or the other."

Mr. Mango was too well acquainted with
the perfevering temper of his wife to have
any hope, after this declaration, of prevailing
on her to renounce her whim. He well knew
that the fame reprefentation, in more acrimo-
nious terms, would be made to him at break-
faft, dinner, and fupper, as well as in bed>
until the point was carried : he therefore
thought it bell to conteft the matter no
longer ; but, making a virtue of necefiity, ap-
plied to a friend who had fome fmall in-
tereft at court, and he was foon after created
a knight, and was, to his forrow, denominat-
ed Sir Jeremiah 5 and his wife, to her great fa-
tisfadtion, became lady Mango.

After this, me gave entertainments more
unmercifully than ever : me invited all the
Weft as well as the Eaft Indies to her
routs and aflemblies, at which me glitters

with gold and jewels, like the queen of Sheba

.

MORDAUNTj

at Bartholomew-fair, and never fails to gather
fuch a crowd, that her company are as well
fqueezed as at any affembly or rout within
the bills of mortality. I was prefent at one
in very hot weather, when feveral women
fainted ; and a corpulent lady, dreffed in black
with a mafs of white plumage on her head,
happening to enter at the inftant, Mr. Tra-
vers, who flood by me, faid, " Thank hea-
ven ! here comes a hearfe to carry off the
dead bodies.'*

But poor Mr. Mango did not long furvive
the name of Sir Jeremiah : it gave a knell to
his heart, and a kind of hectic fufFufed his
cheek as often as he heard it pronounced. He
.dwindled and died at no diftant date after .he
received the honour of knighthood.

Though his fate was evident feveral weeks
before it took place, Mrs. Mango wrould ne->
ver admit that he was in any danger, nor
ever altered her own way of living. She told
her company, that he delighted in feeing
every body merry around him, i but, when

P 3

214 MORDAtTNT.

{he was told tKat her hufband was a&ually
"dead, me made as great a difplay of furprize
and forrow as if, in the midft of perfect
health, he had dropped down in an apo-
plexy.

Her forrow, however, became real, when
his laft will was examined. She knew that
he had made one will, by which me was left
a large fum ; but me did not know that he
tiad afterwards made another, cancelling the
firft, and leaving the whole of his fortune
among his relations ; fo that me has nothing

.but the jointure granted by her contract of

•
marriage. ffot, however, is fufficiently

ample to enable her to indulge her only
paffion, by giving frequent entertainments, in
all of which me is fure to appear as ridi-
culous, though not fo magnificently drefled,
as in the days of her hufband. The Moy-
ftons allure me that I am a very great favou-
rite of lady Mango.— I cultivate her partly as
a fubject of laughter, but chiefly becaufe me
is admired by the Moyflons. The outlines

MQRDAUNT. 215

of the foregoing portrait I had from the aunt.
The colouring you will, at firft fight, perceive
to be that of

Your humble fervant,

E. DEANPORT-

p 4

MORDAUNT.

LETTER XLIV.

JAMES GRINDILL, Efy. to the COUNTESS of
DEANPORT.

Phillipshall.

JN o THING could be. more deftrudive of all
your lady (hip's projects, with regard to lord
Deanport, than his attachment to mifs Clif-
ford. I faw her firft as I pafled through
*> Laufanne, where me then refided with her
father. She was even then univerfally ad-
mired, not only on account of her beauty,
but alfo for the acutenefs of her underftand-
ing. I was afterwards informed, that a yourig
Englishman, of immenfe fortune, had fallen
in love with her, propofed marriage, and
offered fettlements, which few peers could,
with lefs inconvenience, have made good.
Her refufal of this gentleman was the more
furprifing, becaufe he was of a character
which women in general wifh molt, to find
inv a hufband ; handfome, liberal, and of fo

MORDAUNT. 217

pliant a temper, that (he could not have
failed to have had the entire difpofal of him
and his fortune. What do you think was
the girl's objection ? She difcovered, that,
notwithftanding- his having had an univerfity*
education, he had not the leaft tafte for read-
ing j of courfe, was rather ignorant ; and, in
her opinion, forfooth, greatly beneath the in-
tellectual ftandard which me thought indif-
penfable ; and me viewed him with a kind of
companion, bordering on contempt. The
mod furprifmg part of the ftory is, that the
father, inftead of combating the childifh and
romantic notions of his daughter, rather en-
couraged them. Thus this man of ftrong
fenfe and genius loft an opportunity of mar-
rying his daughter ad van tageoufly ; which a
man of common fenfe, without a particle of
genius, would have feized.

This very fingular prejudice of the girl in
favour of pedants, I prefume, did not laft
long ; for in France and Italy me was diftin-
guifhed for the graces and accompliminents

218 MORDA'UNT.

peculiar to her fex •> feemed to know the full
value of even her external charms, and to have
the fame tafte with other beauties, for admi-
ration on their account.

There can be no doubt of her having fe-
verely repented the egregious folly of her
conduct at Laufanne, which indeed nothing
but youth and inexperience could render at
all excufable. The more fenfibly {he feels
for her error, the more anxious will me be
to repair it, when a fimilar opportunity oc-
curs.

As for her airs of indifference refpecting
lord Deanport, they proceed, I am -convinced,
from coquetry, and are intended to fan his
flame up to the marrying point ; for, though
naturally of a lively temper, yet I underfland
that fhe is of a very different character from
her brother, who is one of the moft ram,
headflrong young fellows alive, everlaflingly
in one fcrape or another.

But, though fhe may deferve the cha-
ra&er of being far more circumfpect than

MORDAUNT. 219

him, it is by no means improbable that,
during her refidence abroad, or lince her re-
turn, me may have been fufficiently un-
guarded in her conduct to leave room for
conftructions which would have a flrong ef-
fect on the fufpicious mind of lord Deanport :
but this muft be managed with great de-
licacy j any attempt to prejudice him againft
her, without being fuccefsful, would rivet
him more to her than ever. Nobody knows,
better than your ladymip, how eafy it is for
a woman to convince her lover of her inno-
cence, and to turn his rage againft her ac-
cufers. Whatever accounts you may re-
ceive from mifs Almond, therefore, I dare
fay you will be cautious refpecting the man-
ner and terms in which they are communi-
cated to your fon.

Your ladyfhip may think the idea whim-
fical -, but I cannot help being of opinion, that
your fon might be cured of his partiality for
this lady by infinuations of a different na-
ture. You muft have obferved, that he ne-

220 MOR DAUNT.

ver could endure the company of perfons gf
diftinguimed genius ; and, though nobody
can be more fond of the reputation of wit, or
more ready to difplay every fpark of thai
kind that occurs to his imagination, yet he
hates the fame difpofition in thofe who are
more fuccefsful than himfelf. He can bear
no rival near tbe throne : he fhuns all com-
panies in which he is not coafidered as fu-*>
preme, not only in rank, but repartee. He
finds little difficulty with refpect to die firft ;
but, when he adheres rigorouOy to the laft
article, his fociety is confined to admiring
dependants, lifteners, and others, whom your
ladyfhip ufed to exprefs uneafinefs at feeing
him connected with. This prejudice againft
the fociety of men of talents or genius he
has in a ftill ftronger degree againft women
of the fame defcription. He cannot bear the
company of a female who has the leaft pre-
tenfion of that kind : and I am very much
miftaken, if all the paflion he feels for mifs
Clifford could maintain its ground againfl the

MORBAUNT. 221

diflike he has to women of diflinguimcd wit
and underftanding, which he cannot always
fupprefs, even to his neareft relations. I am
not abfolutely convinced that you yourfelf
are, on all occafions, an exception.

In my humble opinion, therefore, you
have a better chance of breaking his connec-
tion with mifs Clifford by reprefenting her
to him as a woman of fpirit, highly accom-
plifhed and intelligent, than by insinuations
to the prejudice of her character in any re-
fpect ; beiides, her whole conduct and con-
verfation will tend to confirm your reprefen-
tations refpecling the firft, and to deftroy the
credit of die fecond.

I underffond, indeed, that though mifs
Clifford really pofieiTes a good deal of wit,
(he is not fo apt to exhibit it in mixed com-
pany' as moil people of wit are : it may be
neceffary, therefore, to engage fome of your
female acquaintance to provoke her, in the
prefence of his lordmip, by an attack on

222 MORDAUNT.

fome of her abfent friends ; this will certainly
throw her off her guard, and {he will de-
fend them with a fpirit which will £how her
in her true colours : or>T if you ihould not
have an opportunity for this, it would an-
fwer the fame purpofe to invent a few
ton-mots (an eafy tafk for your ladymip),
and have them repeated to your fon as the
happy effufions of mifs Clifford's wit.

I have heard of the Mr. Proctor you men^
tion : he is a weak man. He rejected very
tempting offers for his intereft at an election,
though he had no other connection with the
candidate he fupported than his having been
the friend of Clifford, the father : this feems
next to idiotifm; for Mr. Clifford was, at
that time, dead.

However his love to mifs Almond, and
hatred to young Clifford, may prompt him
to difclofe circumflances, refpecting his fitter,
which may promote your ladyfhip's fcheme,
I muft repeat, that you cannot be too cau-

4
_

MORDAUNT.

tious of avoiding any inlinuations againfl the
young lady, whofe falfehood is likely to be
difcovered to your fon.

I am extremely concerned that I cannot
leave this place at prefent. Befides his bo-
dily difeafe, my poor coufm is in fo very
weak a ftate of mind, that he could be fwayed
to any thing by thofe around him ; and I
can truft none of them. I do not believe
that any deed he could execute, in his pre-
fent ftate, would be valid in law ; but I am
not certain that it would not ; and ftill lefs
what he might be induced to do if I were
abfent : I am refolved, therefore, not to quit
my port till all is over. There is no know-
ing how long he may linger, for the doctors
cannot perfuade him to take any of their pre-
fcriptions.

I hope lord Deanport is fully fenflble of
the obligations he lies under to your ladyfhip
for the great attention you have always paid
to his intereft, and that he will mow his
gratitude in the moil fubitantial manner as
foon as his marriage with mifs Moyfton is

MORDAUNT.

concluded ; but I do believe that, or fome
other event of the fame nature, muil pre-
vioufly take place. He may, I imagine, be
prevailed on to part with what he feels fu-
perfluous ; but I queftion greatly whether
any fenfe of obligation will make him yield
to another what he thinks in the fmalleft
degree necefTary to himfelf.

I admire the portrait prodigioufly that your
ladyfhip was fo obliging as to fend me, efpe-
dally the colouring, which, in my opinion,
is exquifite. It is long fmce I knew that
you were a very ingenious artift, but I was
unacquainted with your chief excellence be-
fore. There is one other ufe, however,
which you might make of lady Mango and
her Eaft-India friends, befideo that of turning
them into ridicule : they generally play deep,
and forne of them very inattentively. I dare
fwear your ladyfhip would win from mofl of
them, in whatever feat you were placed.
I remain your ladylhip's moft obedient
and faithful fervant,

J. GRINDILL.

MORDAUNT; 225

P. S. Your ladyfhip is fo admirable a
painter, that I mould be highly obliged for
a fketch of the fair widow Demure, from
your pencil. You feem to think me better
acquainted with her than I am.

isa .

nwi v

LETTER XLV.
-EADY BEAUFORT /<> JAMES GRINDILL, Eft**-

.

London.

A WILL not be fo uncandid as to difpute the
Validity of your reafons for remaining fixed
to your poft. I mould never forgive myfelf,
if, in confequence of your yielding to my
folicitation, your coulin were influenced by
thofe around him to make fettlements pre-
judicial to your intereil. Whilft I regret
your abfence, therefore, I cannot help ap.-
proving of your perfeverance.

You mall have the fketch you defire, of
the widow Demure : — though fhe tries to
conceal fome of her ftrongeft features, I
think I have caught them all.

I beg you to take notice of my goodnefs,
in complying with your requeit, at the very
inftant when you refufe mine.

Mrs* Demure's father had a large eftate in

MORDAUNT. 227

one of our Welt-India iflands : her mother
was a native of that country. When they
quitted it, to eftablifh themfelves in Eng-
land, their family coniifted of two fons and a
daughter; fo that, although the father was
rich, this daughter had but a moderate por-»
tion.

The Chriftian-names of Mary, Ann, Eli-
zabeth, &c. which it was anciently the cuf-
tom in this ifland for parents to beftow upon
their daughters, began, fbme years ago, to
be changed for Maria, Anna, Eliza. Thofe,
with other royal, imperial, and poetical
names, came afterwards fo much in fafhion,
that Carolinas, Charlottas, Auguftas, Julias*
and Sophias, are now to be found in every
alley of London ; and particularly, as I have
been told, in the environs of Covent-garden
and Drury-lane. This being the cafe, it was
not furprifmg that the mode was tranfported
to our Weft-India iflands.

The name of Mrs. Demure's father was
Bkck ; and the Chriftian name of her grand-

228 MORDAUNT.

mother, from whom he looked for a legacy,
Grizzel. The old lady expected that the
child mould be named after her -, and both
the parents agreed that it would be dangerous
to difoblige her : they told her, however,
that they wimed to add two other very de-
lightful names j and the old lady had the
eomplaifance to fay—*' That me had no ob-
jection to their giving their daughter as many
names as they pleafed, provided hers was one
of them." They had already prepared the
two names which they thought beft calcu-
lated to correct the vilifying impreffion of
Grizzel. Mrs. Demure's maiden-name, there-
fore, was Angelina Celeflina Grizzel Black.

She was only nine years old when me came
to England. At twelve or thirteen, when
Engliih females are generally confidered as
children, Angelina CelefUna had much the
appearance of a woman* She was already
beautiful. The advance of time promifed
perfection to the riling beauties of .her per-
fon, and opened frefh charms in her counte-

MORDAUNT. 229

nance. The efFecT: of time, on the charms
of the mother, was direcHy the reverfe.-—
She did not perceive this in her looking-
glafs ; but me became fenfible of it in a
manner ftill more mortifying, by an evident
diminution in the attentions of the men,
which began to turn from herfelf to her
daughter; and the beauties of the one feemed
to bloom in proportion as thofe of the other
withered. The mother, at laft, confidered
her daughter in the light of a thief, who
ftole from her thofe goods on which me put
the higheft value; and me felt an averiion
from her accordingly.

With all the ftrefs which fome people put
on what they call natural affection, this does
not feem to me at all extraordinary j for
what is more natural than to hate thofe
whom we fee enjoying what we have loft. I
have heard the mother condemned, on that
account, by men who had an abhorrence to
the fight of their own nearefl relations, for

o ^

MORDAUNT.

no other reafon than becaufe- they were heirs-
to their eftates : as if it were not more pro-
voking to fee another enjoying what yott-
have been deprived of, during your life, than
merely to know that he is to poffefs it after
your death. And I {hall leave it to any
beautiful woman to judge, whether it would
not both mortify and provoke her more,
to fee her beauty, than to fee her eftate,
transferred to another. Yet men are afto-
nimed that Mrs.. Demure's mother mould
have a prejudice againfl her own daughter !
It mufl be confefled, Mr. Grindill, that of al]
the inconfiftent animals on earth, men afe
the moft fo. Your whole fex is a compoii-
tion of vanity, caprice, and contradiction, I
will not deny, however, that there are ex-
ceptions.

But to return to the hiftory of mifs An-
gelina Celeftina Grizzel Black.

Her father was an extravagant, thought-
lefs man, but extremely indulgent to his

WORD AUNT. 2BI

daughter. The mother had never loved her
hulband, and now difliked him more than
ever, on account of that indulgence : me be-
came daily more peevifh and morofe to her
hufband, and treated her daughter with aug^
menting feverity. Young Angelina's difpo-
iition did not improve by the example of that
mutual deteftation which exifted between her
father and mother. She coaxed and laughed
at the one, dreaded and hated the other, and
tried to deceive both. The extravagance of
the fons ruined the father's affairs, and
brought him to his grave. Narrow crrcum-^
fiances increafed the malignant tempers of
the mother and daughter, who now lived in
a (late of moil acrimonious difcord with each
other. The former was fometimes overheard
pouring reproaches of a lingular nature upon
her daughter. Some people imputed thefe
entirety to the intemperance of the woman ;
but it is not likely that a mother would ac-
cufe a daughter without foundation. The

232 MORDAUNT,

young lady, no doubt, heard of the rumours
which thofe accufations gave rife to, for me
became at once wonderfully circumfpeft, hy-
pocritical, and prudifh.

Having feen the diftrefs which the ruinous
ftate of her father's affairs had thrown his fa-
mily into, (he grew fo fond of money (a.
difpofition £he had never before manifefted),
that, in her opinion, life was not worth hold-
ing without a great deal of it. To fecure fo
effential an article, therefore, and to be re-
lieved from the vexations of her mother, {he
accepted the hand of Mr, Demure, a man
extremely rich, and extremely infirm, of the
fame character and tjie fame age with her fa-
ther, and of an appearance more difagree-
able than men ufually are at any age. He
was generally confined one half of the year
with the gout. She difplayed a great 4eal of
care and fympathy about this poor man,
nurfed him in his confinement, warmed his
flannels, fmoothed his pillow •, an4 ma.de

MORDAUNT. 23S

believe, at laft, that me really had fome af-
fe&ion for him. — What is fo extravagant and
inconfiftent, that handfome women, aflifled
by men's vanity and felf-love, cannot make
them believe ?

Some of thofe who were witnefles to her
behaviour were fo impofed on by the tender
and fympathifing manner in which fhe per-
formed thofe difgufting offices, that they
adopted the opinion of her hulband : as if
it were not infinitely more likely, that a
young woman mould acl: the part of a hypo-
crite, which is fo natural, and which the
prejudices of men has rendered fo neceffary to
young women, than that (he mould have an
affection for an infirm man.

Befides, Mrs. Demure, from particular
circumftances, had been even more habitu-
ated to diffimulation than young women ufu-
ally are. She had been under the neceflity
of concealing her feelings from an earlier
date than common. She had ferved a

2 15 4- MORDAUNT.

long apprenticeship to hypocrify and
tion.

After me took the intrepid flep of marry-
ing fuch a man as Mr. Demure, it was in-
cumbent on her to overcome her difguft,
however ilrong it might be, and feem to
love him : it was equally incumbent on her
to perfevere till his death : had me relaxed in
her carerles, he might have ferved her as Sir
Jeremiah Mango did his lady.

Still fome people were aftonUhed that
•even thofe confiderations could prevail on a
woman, fo formed for pleafure, to fubmit to
fo long a deprivation ; for the man held out
a full half year after her marriage ; which,
no doubt, was a longer period than me had
calculated on.

But this difficulty is removed, by fup-
pofing that me fubmitted to no fuch thing ;
which is my fixed opinion.

On the death of her hufband, Mrs. De-
mure had too much fagacity to over-acl: the

.

MORDAUNT. 235

part of the forrowful widow in the ridiculous
manner lady Mango had done. She knew
very well that every perfon of common
fenfe was perfuaded that (he internally re-
joiced at the event ; me therefore exhibited
no greater figns of affliction than decency re-
quired. It is true that fhe continued her
weeds longer than was abfolutely neceflary ;
but that was becaufe fhe had been told that
Mr. Mordaunt had faid ihe never had looked
fo beautiful and interefting as in them.

Her partiality for him was difcovered, or
ftrongly fufpected : though me had de-
ceived her hufband, fhe could not conceal it
from her fharp-fighted rivals. She hoped,
however, to overcome his well-known aver-
fion to marriage ; but he gave no hint of any
change of fentiment in that article. She
tried what coldnefs would do ; and affected a
referve, of which me had never before made
him fenfible : he bore this with equanimity,
and turned his attentions to other women : — *
this fhe could not endure; and therefore

236 MORDAUNT.

drew him back, by a difplay of all ber for-
mer partiality. About this juncture, as I am
fully perfuaded, he was indulged in the ftrong~
eft pofftble proofs of her kindnefs. At no very
diftant period after this, however, a complete
rupture feems to have taken place between
them. Some imputed this to Mordaunt's
ufual inconftancy j others thought it was, in
a great meafure, owing to an occurrence
which made fome noife at that time.

Mrs. Demure had a negro-maid, of the
name of Phillis, who, from her childhood,
had been attached to her perfon, and had al-
ways given every proof of affection to hef
miftrefs. The girl once forgot to execute
fome order which her miftrefs had iflued:
the neglect was of no importance ; but it
was difcovered when the lady happened to be
in a very ill humour. She threatened to have
the girl punifhed with all the feverity that
is ufed in the Weft-India iflands. The girl
hinted, that the law of England ftood in the
way of fuch an outrage. Mrs. Demure bc«

MORDAUNT. £37

came inftantly fenfible, that what the girl
infmuated was true. She faid nothing more
on the fubjed ; and appeared to have for-
gotten the affair, and to be reconciled to her
maid.

About two months after, however, Phil-
lis was decoyed on-board a {hip juft ready to
fail for the Weft Indies, with directions that
fhe fhould be delivered to the manager of her
brother's eftate, who was inftructed to turn
her among the field-negroes.

So far from being fenfible that (he had be-
haved cruelly, Mrs. Demure boafted of this,
as an ingenious and proper manner of punifh-
ing the faucinefs of a flave.

People's opinions were divided on the fub-
jeft. The Weft- India merchants, and thofe
concerned in the flave-trade, who certainly
ought to be the beft judges, thought that
Mrs. Demure ferved Phillis right: others
were of a different way of thinking. Every
body allows that Phillis is a fweet- tempered,
obliging girl ; but, after all, (he was a flave ;

MORDAUNT.

and if Haves are treated with what they call
humanity, how are we to have fugar ?

People ought to allow themfelves to reflect
ferioufly on confequences before they decide
in matters of this kind.

I have been afTured, however, that Mr.
Mordaunt was fhocked when he heard of this
tranfaction ; for, though he is by no means a
weak man in other refpects, he is exceeding-
ly compaffionate, and rather romantic in his
ideas. Whether this was the chief caufe of
his breach with Mrs. Demure cannot be af-
certained : but what gives fome weight tQ
that notion is, that he wrote to a friend in,
the Weft Indies to purchafe Phillis as foon as
poflible, and fend her back to England by the
firft opportunity ; which was done accord-
ingly. The girl is now free and happy, in
f he family of Mr. Mordaunt's friend, colonel
Sommers.

When Mrs. Demure came to the know-
ledge of this, it redoubled the wrath me had
already conceived againft Mr. Mordaunt. Her

MQRDAUNT. 239

ufual caution and difTimulation are apt to for-
fake her at the bare mention of his name; the;
leaft allufion to their ever having been friends
difturbs her. I fometimes touch on the ten-
der part on purpofe; and me winces immedi-
ately. At my infUgation, lady Blunt has
prelTed upon it more roughly, which never
fails to fet her a fretting, to the fatisfadioa
of all who know her. This tends" to confirm
all that is whifpered ; but, as I am folicitous
to have fuch confirmation of this as would
iatisfy others, I have frequently endeavoured
to draw it from Mcrdaunt. I never expected
that I could bring him to a direct avowal j
but I had fome hopes that he would deny it,
as is ufual enough with certain fine gentle-
men, in fuch manner as would leave no
doubt of its truth. In this, however, I was
difappointed. I tried to tempt him by in*
forming him of a ftrong inftance of Mrs.
Demure's malice againft himfelf. Even this
had no effect ; and, if I had nothing to form
a judgment from but the words and beha*

240 MORDAtWT.

viour of Mr. Mordaunt, I mould be under
the neceffity of concluding that my fufpi-
cions are groundlefs.

I underftand that it is a principle of his,
that no inftance of rage or malice on the part
of a woman can juftify a man for betraying
the confidence me once placed in him. I
believe Mrs. Demure knows this, which,
emboldens her to ufe the freedom me does
with his character.

I will now acquaint you with the parti-
cular reafon I have for hating this woman.
After me had loft all hope of fubduing Mor-
daunt's averfion to marriage, me turned her
eyes on Lord Deanport. I was a little fur-
prifed at the very obfequious manner in
which, of a fudden, me paid her court to me,
till I difcovered that my fon was as obfequi-
oufly paying his court to her : the one ex-
plained the other. I was ferioufly alarmed,
though this occurred before I thought of
Mifs Moyfton. I knew Mrs. Demure to be
a moft deceitful, intriguing, ambitious, and

MORDAUNT. 241

interefled woman, a character which, above
all others, I abhor. I was convinced that,
from the moment me mould become his wife,
I mould have no influence over him ; that
he would be loft to me as much as if he were
in his grave. Belides> what renders the idea
of fuch a marriage prepofterous, independent
of every other circumftance, is her being fo
much older than my fon ; though me had
the impudence to affert that they were nearly
of the fame age : as if it were poflible that
any body could believe that I am as much
older than her as I muft admit myfelf to be
older than lord Deanport. You cannot be
furprifed that I determined to break his con-
nection with a woman capable of fuch a grofs
calumny.

I do not aflert that his paffion for Mrs*
Demure was as violent as that which he felt
for Mifs Clifford ; but flill I found that I had
undertaken a difficult tafk. It is eafter to pre-
judice men againft plain-looking women, of
the very bell character, than to alienate them

VOL. ii. R

'242 MORDAUNT.

from beautiful women whofc characters arc
equivocal, or even pofi lively bad. The ftory
of the negro girl, which had frozen the paf-
fion of Mr. Mordaunt, had little or no effect
on lord Deanport.

After various attempts to difentangle him
from the fnares of Mrs. Demure, I at laft hit

*I ViXSl IO JjB^j

on a device which fucceeded.

1 fr!3£rOflJ ' 4?A ~f>

It was not Mrs. Demure's difpofition, nor
any thing refpecting her mind, that bewitch-
ed my fon : though it would have been eafy,
it would have been fuperfluous, to have at-
tacked her moral qualities. Her beauty, and
the high idea he had of her perfonal charms,
were the only fpells by which £he bound him
to her. My aim, therefore, was to weaken
or difTolve thefe ; for which purpofe I had it
diftantly infinuated to my fon, that, in fpite
of her apparent health, me was tainted with,
a certain hereditary diftemper, for which I
knew he had the greatefl horror. I adopted
this expedient with the lefs fcruple, bgcaufe,
for any thing I know to the contrary, the in-

MORDAUtff. 24-5

finuatibn may be true : — be that as it may,
it entirely cured my fon of his love.

From this fketch you will form a pretty
juft idea of my fweet friend Mrs. Demure.
You may obferve the influence of a little
flattery ; the praife you beftowed on my por-
trait of lady Mango tempted me to this lafi:
talk, though I really have more important
bufmefs on my hands.

I expedt to hear from Mifs Almond every
hour. In the expectation of feeing you foon
in London, in confequence of the Welfh-
man's fetting out on a longer journey,

I remain yours,

E. DEANPORT.

R 2

244- MORDAUNT,

LETTER XL VI.

Mifs ALMOND to the COTJNT£SS of DEAS*ORT.

York.

J\.s the favour and protection with which
your ladyfhip honours me form the chief hap-
pinefs of my life, the frem proof of your
confidence, which appears in your hft letter,-
affords me heart-felt pleafure.

Your ladyfhip does me no more than juf-
tice in thinking that I would not readily be-
lieve your fon would adl: with fo much im-
propriety as to forfake a young lady of fuch
fniuing virtues as mifs Moyfton poffefles, for
one who has, perhaps, little elfe but perfonal
charms to boaft of.

It would be aftonifhing, indeed^if a noble-
man, fo accomplifhed, and, permit me to fay,,
though I know you hate flattery, but this is
not flattery, one who owes his beft accom-
plifhments to the beft of mothers — I fay it

MORDAUNT. 254

would be aftonifhing if he fhould aft unlike a
man of quality in the important point of
marriage. He ought to remember that he has
to fupport the dignity of his anceftors ; for
he is not like the new-made lords, who, they
fay, have hardly any anceftors at all : whereas
every body knows that few men in England,
or even Wales, have more anceftors than his
lordfhip.

My lord Deanport has made the tour of
Europe, and feen a great deal of the world ,
but, by making only the tour of Yorkmire,
he might have learned to make a good bar-
gain, and have difcovered that nothing fup-
ports the dignity of an ancient family fo much
as money. — I once faw mifs Moyfton at the
play-houfe in York, when Othello was adled.
To be fure that young lady's countenance
cannot be called exceedingly beautiful y but I
hope his lordfhip will view her vifage in her
vaft fortune, juft asDefdemona fays me view-
ed the black vifage of her lover in his mind.

J have delivered yourladymip's affectionate
R 3

246 J&IORDAUNT.

compliments to my aunt, who deflres me to
return the fame to you ; and I am fure me
underfbands politenefs too well to refufe your
requeft, that I mould wait on you this feafoa
in London, where I can enjoy as much rural
felicity as in the country ; fo that your lady-
fliip will not need to leave it for Willow-Ban^
fooner than is quite convenient. Indeed, I

muft confefs that my aunt could part with

j f •

me now more eafily than at any other time,
becaufe .me has jufr. began a very long ro-
mance, and likewife expects a vifit from her

,.'---' * - M

fifter-inrlaw, who will flay with her at leaft

•J

three weeks ; and, over and above, me has
juft received a prefent, which never fails tq
comfort her when fhe is nervous or in low
fpirits.

As for Mr. Prodtor, whofe proposals yqur
ladyfhip took fo much pains to prevail on me
to refufe, on account of his age and being
morofe, and living in Northumberland, 1 own
I have fuffered a good deal of ill-humour
from my relations on that account. They

MORDAUNT. 247

are continually telling me of young women
like myfelf, who, notwithftanding their being
married to men older than Mr. Pro&or, are
the mothers of feveral children ; that, fo far
from being morofe, he is a cheerful, good-
natured man, with whom I could do what I
pleafed, and might eafily perfuade to livs
a good part of the year in London. I am
determined, however, never to repent having
followed your lady/hip's counfel, though he
mould never renew the fame propofal, which
furprifes me a little that he never has ; but I
am fully convinced that your ladyfhip will
never allow me to be a lofer by having fol-
lowed your advice.

My aunt informed me yefterday that me un-
derftood that Mr. Proctor's journey to York was
delayed; and therefore I mall not have an op-
portunity of fpeaking to him on the fubjecl: your
ladyfhip mentions : but, that I may mow my
obedience to your commands, and do all in
my power to procure you the information
you require, I wrote to him directly, and

R 4

24$ MORDAUNT.

have no doubt of his anfwering my letter
ipeedily.

Had it not been to oblige your ladymip, I
mould have fcrupled to have written to any
man that is not a near relation, and far lefs to
him, particularly as he has never repeated his
propofal, which feveral of my relations think,
in politenefs, he ought to do ; becaufe a lover
that takes the firft refufal, they fay, is no
lover at all. But as for that, he may do as he
pleafes ; for I am quite certain, as I faid be-
fore, that your ladymip is too generous to
allow me to be a lofer by following your ad-
vice, being all from one who is, arid ever
will be,

Your lady/hip's

V

Moft faithful, moft obedient, and
moft obliged, humble fervant,

MARGARET ALMOND.

MORDAUNT. 249

LETTER XLVII.

Mfs ALMOND to DANIEL PROCTOR, Efq,
SIR, York.

JVlv aunt defires me to return you thanks
for the potted fhrimps you were fo good as
to fend, as well as for the fix bottles of
cherry-brandy that came by the fame coach.

I am obliged to you for the favourable
opinion you ftill retain of me, as exprefled in
your letter to* my aunt. I can afTure you
that my declining your propofal did not pro-
ceed from any objection to your perfbn, or
even to your age ; for, I mult confefs, I net
ver was an approver of thofc giddy women
who have a tafte for hufbands that are too
young.

My hefitation refpecling your propofal of
marriage arofe entirely from a kind of deli*
pacy, which, as I am fometimes nervous,
produces a dread of matrimony, that I can-

550 MORDAUNT.

not, all at once, overcome. From the friend-
(hip you Hill expreis for me, I dare fay it
will afford you pleafure to know that I have
lefs of this nervous complaint fmce I took
fteel-pills, by the advice of young Dr. Iron-
fides, who has great fkill in women's com-
plaints : he is the Ton of your acquaintance,
the old doctor, who has left off practice. But,
to prove to you that you poiTefs a great deal
of my confidence and efteem, J will inform
' you, that a perfon of high rank in the State
has applied to me for as many circumftances
as I can collect refpecting the family of the
late Mr. CJiiFord of Northumberland, againfl
fome of whom, particularly the daughter,
it is eafy to perceive that my friend has re-
ceived unfavourable impreffions. As you
were long acquainted with that whole family,
and, I have heard, have been ungratefully ufed
by them, I thought you the propereft perfon
I could apply to for fuch an account of
her as will be agreeable to my friend, whom
I have it much at heart to oblige.

MORDAUNT. 251

Mifs Clifford is faid to have fomething the
appearance and air of a French woman ; but
that may be her misfortune more than her
fault ; for, no doubt, me would rather look
like an Englifh woman, if me could; though,
it muffc be owned, the French drefs the
neateft.

It is alfo faid, that in Northumberland {he
ufed to go a-hunting with men, and that
her father carried her abroad very fuddenly,
which occafioned various rumours through
the country. I hope you will be able, foon,
to fend a fatisfactory anfwer, as to the above
particulars, to,

Sir,

Your moft obedient fervant,

M. ALMOND.

P. S. We hear you intend to live, for the
future, one half of the year, at leaft, in Lon-
don ; which gives great pleafure to my aunt,
and many of your friends at York, becaufe
they will have the pleafure of feeing you as

252 MORDAUNT*

you go and return.- — It is alfo reported, that
mifs Proftor is juft going to be married, and,
therefore, to leave your houfe for that of her
hufband. This muft give great fatisfa&ion to
her as well as her hufband -y for I hear fhe is
very pretty. So I give you joy, with all my
heart, and hope you will let me know if the
report be truef

v

JKORDAUNf; 253

LETTER XLVIII.

Mr. PROCTOR to Mifs ALMOND.
Miss ALMOND. Morpeth,

1 AM glad that the mrirhps and brandy ar-
rived fafe. The laft time I had the pleafure
of dining with you, I remember your having
praifed a difh of the former, which made
me order fome to be potted for you. And,
as your worthy aunt complained of a pain in
her ftomach, which obliged her to take a glafs-
of cherry- brandy before fhe could venture to
tafte the port after dinner, I prefumed to fend
a few bottles for her particular ufe. This ex-
plains the reafon of my choofing thefe two ar-
ticles, which otherwife might feem unfuitable
prefents to ladies.

As to the requefts conveyed in your letter,
now lying on the deik before me, I allure you
that you cannot be more earneft to oblige any
perfon, however high in point of rank, or of

254 MORDAtWT.

whatever importance in the State, than I am
to fulfil your defire ; for which reafon, that
I may fulfil it in the circumftantial manner
you require, I mail poftpone all other bufi-
nefs until I mail have finimed this letter,
which I forefee will be pretty long. I be-
gin this tafk the more willingly, becaufe it
will remove the prejudices of your corre-
fpondent againft a worthy family ; and few
can be more worthy than that of my late
honoured friend Mr. Clifford, with the ex-
ceptions however that /hall be hereafter ex-
cepted.

To avoid prolixity, without farther preface,
for brevity's fake, I muft acquaint you that
Mr. Clifford was a gentleman of a refpectable
family and good eftate in Northumberland.

Soon after he returned from his travels he
marsied lady Horatia Fitzherbert, a young
woman of quality, with a very moderate
fortune ; but, were I to enumerate all the
good qualities of this admirable lady, my let-
ter would extend to a very great length indeed ;

MORDAUNT* 255

and therefore, for brevity's fake, as a worthy
old friend of mine ufed to fay, and I faid before,
I {hall only allure you that the was univerfally
acknowledged to be the moil accomplimed
woman in all Northumberland, which is the
largeft county in England except Yorkfhire.
For the fpace of ten years after their mar-
riage, Mr. Clifford and lady Horatia fpent a
few months every year in London, and the
reft in the country. At the end of that pe-
riod, their family coniifted of a fon of nine
years of age, and a daughter of fix, for whofe
education Mr. Clifford and his lady refolved
to live entirely at London ; a refolution
which occafioned much forrow in the neigh-
bourhood they quitted. I was then entrufted
with the management of Mr. Clifford's affairs,
and had always opportunities of feeing him
when I went to London ; which was as fel-
dom as I could, becaufe I greatly prefer Mor-
peth } not from any foolifh partiality to my
native city, or becaufe there are not agree-
able fociety to be met with in London, but

256 MORDAUNT.

merely on account of the other being on the
whole the pleafantefl place of the two.

Mr. Clifford's fon was put to Weftminfter-
ichool : the daughter received the inilrudtion
that was thought neceflary unddr the eye of
her mother ; and the progrefs me made in
various accomplimments, in the fpace of two
years, are laid to be wonderful. At that pe-
riod lady Horatia died. This affected her
huiband fo much, that, leaving his fon at
Weftminfler-fchool, he retired with his
daughter to his houfe in Northumberland,
and never entirely recovered his fpirits after-*
wards. So far from refuming that ftyle of
hofpitality in which he had lived formerly*
and for which his family had long been di-^
ftinguimed in the county, he now entertain-*
ed only a very few friends, and thofe but
feldom.

It has been faid, that men who are pa£-

»

fionately fond of hunting have no great relilh
for books ; but Mr. Clifford had a very great
reiifh for both: from which you will obferve,-

MORDAUrfT. 257

my dear young lady, that there is no rule
without an exception. But it muft be ac-
knowledged, that, for a coniiderable time
after the death of his lady, Mr. Clifford eti^
tirely left off hunting, and fpent moft of his
time in his library ; and his chie^pleafure
was to obferve the improvement of his daugh-
ter's underftanding, who, young as fhe then
was^ fpent feveral hours every day in reading
to her father, and in converling with him on
what fhe had read : by which means fhe ac-
quired atafte for fome parts of literature that
are feldom cultivated by women. Now, it
is generally faid, that this renders women pe-
dantic and difputatious in company : but
here again I muft repeat, that there is no rule
without an exception j for Mifs Horatia Clif-
ford is extremely modeft and unprefuming in
company, which is what cannot bs faid of
fome very ignorant ladies of my acquaintance.
Among other accomplishments, mifs Clif-
ford was at great pains to acquire that of play-
ing on the harp, an inftrument of which her

VOL. II. S

258 MORDAUNT*

father was exceedingly fond, and which me
accompanied with her voice, which was won-
derfully fweet. She generally chofe plaintive
and mournful airs. In this, I confefs, I think
fhe judged wrong, as merry tunes would have
been m<»e likely to cheer up his heart; where-
as moil of thofe me played and fung to him
were fo very fad, that they would have made
the moft cheerfully-difpofed people melan-
choly. This was the more furpriiing, becaufe
the young lady is naturally of a cheerful tem-
per, with a great deal of vivacity ; but I fu-
fpefl that me preferred mournful airs not fo
much from her own tafte as to humour her
father's melancholy.

I remember once, that when fhe was in the
middle of one of thofe forrowful tunes, the
very tears burft from my eyes before I knew
wrhere I was. I never was fo much amamed
in my life, and I endeavoured to conceal it
. as much as I could ; but whether mifs Clif-
ford perceived it or not I am uncertain ; for
it is fo contrary to the difpofition of that

MORDAVNT. 259

i

young lady to hurt any perfon, or to put
them in the leaft out of countenance, that,
I am fure, ihe would have feemed not to
have obferved this inftance of my weajoiefs,
even although it had ftruck her.

A little before his fon left Weflminfter-
fchool for the univerlity, Mr. Clifford put
him under the particular care of one of his
friends, and then fet out with his daugh-
ter for Switzerland. This did not happen
fuddenly, as has been reprefented to you,
nor yet unexpectedly ; for he talked of it a
full year before they went. I remember of
no conjectures or rumours upon the occalion,
unlefs the forrow of all who knew them,
and the lamentations of the poor, are thought
fuch.

After pafling two years in Switzerland,
and making the tour of all the cantons, Mr.
Clifford proceeded with his daughter to Italy;
where, I believe, they ftaid nine months, and
returned through France to England about
the time that young Mr. Clifford left the

s 2

260 MORDAUNT.

univerfity, and foon aftec. went on his travels
to France and other foreign countries. You
fay it is reported that Mifs Clifford looks very
like a French woman $ as for my own part,
.1 can neither confirm nor refute this report,
having never had any perfonal experience of
French women. Indeed I never faw any,
knowing them to be fuch, except one who
danced on the tight-rope at Sadlers- Wells
when I was lafl in London. She was, to be
fure, remarkably nimble; but as for her tafte in
drefs (begging pardon for differing in opinion
from you), I muft confefs I did not much ad-
mire it. I therefore think you are much in
the right in chociing to look like an Englifli
woman : as for my own part, I cannot con-
ceive any human creature more beautiful than
mifs Clifford was after fhe returned to Eng-
land.— You will pleafe to remember, my
dear mifs Almond, that the prefent company
are always excepted.

I ought to have mentioned before, that the
fedentary manner of life which Mr. Clifford

MO R DAUNT.

adopted, immediately after the death of his

•

lady, had fo much affected his health, that
he was directed to ride fevcral hours every
day; and, as he could not bear to be de-
prived of the company of his daughter, fhc
generally accompanied him : by which means
fhe became an expert and fearlefs rider; which,
when her father perceived, he refumed what
had formerly been his favourite diverlion, and
his daughter fometimes accompanied him when
he went out with the hounds. This I do fup-
pofe is the only foundation for the report that
has reached your ears of her going a- hunting
with men, and which I fufpect to have
been propagated by evil-difpofed perfons ;
for how can we otherwife account for the
plural men being adopted inftead of the fingu-
lar man, and the omitting to mention that
the man was her father ?

I cannot help remarking, my dear mifs,
that you make no inquiry concerning the pe-
cuniary circumllances in which Mr. Clifford
left his family. This I fufpect to be an omif-

s 3

262 MORDAUNT.

iion on your part, which I will now fupply,
to prevent your being put to the trouble of
writing another letter for information on that
effential article. Mr. Clifford was poflefTed
of a landed eftate of near three thoufand
pounds a year, and of a confiderable fum in
the public funds. Twenty thoufand pounds
of which was intended for his daughter's
portion, and all the reft of his fortune for
his fon.

I am forry to add that the fon behaved very
imprudently (for he is the exception alluded
to at the beginning of this letter) . Notwith-
ftanding the generous allowance he had from
his father, this thoughtlefs young man con-
tradled much debt before he had been full two
years abroad.

Mr. Clifford defired him to give in a lift
of all his debts, which were immediately
paid. This exhaufted all that Mr. Clifford
had in the funds, except the twenty thou-,
fand pounds which he had by will deftined
for his daughter's portion, and which he had

MORDAUNT. 26S

determined mould not be affefted by the fon's
extravagance.

This young man from his childhood had
given ijgns of a head-ftrong impetuous dif-
pofition, and he was naturally endowed with
uncommon Strength and agility of body. The
firit often engaged him in quarrels with his
companions at Weftminfter-fchool ; and the
fecond obtained him the victory very fre-
quently, when, in ftrift juftice, he deferved to
have been beaten. And perhaps this was the
origin, or laid the foundation, of that proud
and haughty temper which he has fince ma-

nifefted in various inftances, which I could

\

recapitulate if it were neceflary. But hypo-
crify and deceit formed no part of this young
man's character ; therefore, his having got a
phyfician to write a falfe ftatement of his
health to his father, and his having pretended
that the air of Naples was requifite for a dif-
order in his breaft, when he really was paff-
ing the carnival at Venice, furprifed every
body : but it was afterwards known that

s 4

264- MORDAUNT.

thofe devices were the fuggeftions of a cer-
tain lady, who mall be namelefs, who was at
Venice at that time, and whom I havp heard
called a woman of eafy virtue, in my opinion
by a mifnomer ; for 1 itrongly fufpect that,
notwithstanding her rank, me was in reality
a woman of no virtue at all. It alfb appear-
ed that he had given a falfe ftatement of his
debts, for he actually owed five thoufand
pounds about a year after all was fuppofed to
have been cleared.

Mr. Clifford was mocked at his fon's ex-
travagance, and frill more at this deceit ; and,
on account of thofe and other instances of
his fon's ill-conduct, 'he threatened to difin-
lierit him, and leave his whole fortune to his
daughter, with the exception of a -moderate
annuity, to be placed in the hands of trufiees,
for the young man's ufe. This would have

taken place, had it not been for the repeated

i
felicitations of mifs Clifford ; by which fhe

prevailed on hei" father to pay all the debts,
by taking up a mortgage of five thoufand

MORDAUNT. 265

pounds, part of what had been fecured for
her own patrimony. Without the knowledge
of his daughter, however, he made a new
will, and burdened his eftate with this five
thoufand pounds, as a debt due to her at his
death.

The ill-conduct of his fon greatly affected
not only the fpirits, but alfo the health of
Mr. Clifford, which declined viiibly, in fpite
pf the medical (kill of thofe who attended
him. Mifs Clifford, being greatly alarmed,
propofed that he mould go to London, and
put himfelf under the care of the moil cele-
brated phyficians there. The practitioners
in the North thought this improper, becaufe
of the fatigue of the journey, which, they
faid, would be attended with great danger :
and they alfo hinted, that he would receive no
benefit from the prefcriptions of the London
doctors. Mr. ClirTord himfelf was averfe to
the journey ; but, perceiving that it would
afford fatisfadtion to his daughter, he refolved
to fet out. I accompanied them to the me-

266 . WORD AUNT.

tropolis. — So far from being the worfe for the
journey, he grew evidently better all the time
we were on the road. But though the north-
ern practitioners were miftaken in thinking
that the journey would do barm, they were
right in their other prognoftic, that the pre-
icriptkms of the London phyficians would do
no good. Indeed it is a very fingular circum-
fiance, in this cafe, that the patient mould
have mended as foori as he was taken from
the care of the doctors in the .country, and
that he mould have grown worfe foon after he
was put under the care of thofe of the town.
This feems altogether unaccountable. — Mr.
Clifford died about a month after his arrival
in London. One of thofe practitioners who
attended him in Northumberland has fince
alTured me that he would infallibly have re-
covered if hfe had remained in the country
under his care. I concealed this very care-
fully from Mifs Clifford, as it would have
augmented her grief, which was already ex-
ceffive, I was at one time apprehenfive that

MORDAUNT. 267

It would have thrown her into the fame com-
plaint of which her father died.

I really believe me was faved from this by
the friendly and affedlionate behaviour of lady
Diana Franklin, a woman of extraordinary
good fenfe, who was the only perfon mifs
Clifford could bear to converfe with for a
confiderable time after her father's death.
Lady Diana had been the intimate companion
of her mother, had always lived in great
friendfhip with her father, and loved the
young lady herfelf with the affection of a
mother.

She has a very pleafant houfe, within
twenty miles of London, to which me carried
mifs Clifford, and where they remained for
feveral months without feeing any company,
except mifs Juliet Fortefcue, an intimate friend
and fchool-companion of mifs Clifford. This
young lady was a very confiderable heirefs ; and
ihe has fince beftowed her hand and fortune
more wifely than many heireffes do, being
now the wife of colonel Sommers, a brave

268 MORDAUNT.

officer, with whom me lives moft happily at
jhereftate in the bifhopric of Durham.

Lady Diana Franklin is not only a woman
of extraordinary good fenfe, which I told you
before ; but, which I did not tell you before,
fhe is alfo of a very cheerful and fociable dif-
pofition, notwithstanding that me is an old
maid : for, as I have already remarked more
than once, there is no rule without an excep-
tion.

As fhe ftill is a very agreeable-looking
woman, and was very handfome in her youth,
it feems furpriimg that fhe has remained un-
married ; yet I have known other women of
that defcription who never had an offer of
marriage in their life : but lady Diana had a
very ample patrimony befides ; and I confefs
I never knew a woman of this defcription
who had not a great many.

Though your inquiries are confined to the
Clifford family, yet, as J have mentioned this
worthy lady, L will add another circumftance
concerning her, which, I dare fay, you will

MORDAUNT.

think interefting, notwithftanding that it oc-
curred many years ago. At the age of twenty-
two,* lady Diana was actually betrothed to a
young man of rank and of very great expec-
tation ; he was feized with a fever, of which
he died on the very day that had been fixed
for their marriage.

One of your tender difpofition, my dear
mifs Almond, will naturally fympathife with
a woman, though a flranger, on fo fevere a
misfortune. It is faid that, in the violence
of her affliction, me determined never to
marry. This is not fo extraordinary as that
{he mould have adhered to her refolution,
notwithftanding her having been often foli-
cited to depart from it. She did not, how-
ever, remain very long in abfolute retirement,
but returned to the fociety of thofe whofe
friendfhip me had formerly cultivated ; for,
as lady Horatia once told me, " though her
friend lady Diana's heart was, by this cruel
event, for ever fhut againft love, it was flill
open to.friendfhip." — She lived, accordingly,

27O MORDAtTNT.

Ill the mofl intimate friendship with lady Ho-
ratia and Mr. Clifford until their death ; after
which, all the tender attachment me had for
the parents was devolved on the daughter ;
and her parental folicitude to prevent the
young lady from becoming a prey to conti-
nued forrow was crowned with fuccefs. She
was gradually brought to bear company, and
to join in converfation. I do not take upon
me to afTert, however, that time did not aflift
the endeavours pf lady Diana in alleviating
the forrow of mifs Clifford ; for time is a
great deftroyer of grief, as well as of other
things, as I inyfelf experienced fince the death
of my wife-.

What may feem to you very fingular is,
that, although this young lady is generally
cheerful, and fometimes in very high fpirits,
yet me can feldom refrain from tears, and
always is feized with a fit of melancholy, when
the name of her father is mentioned. There
are people who infmuate that this proceeds
from affedation, becaufe me is able to re-

MORDAUNT.

fume her natural gaiety foon after ; but thole
people certainly miftake her character, which
is above affectation : and I fhould think they
alfo miftake human-nature in general j for is
not the life of man a tragi-comedy ? At leafi
it is ftill fo in England -, though I am told,
indeed, that in France it has been of late a
continued tragedy.

Young Mr. Clifford returned to England
when he heard of his father's death ; at which,
from what I have hinted already, perhaps you
may imagine he would feel little concern:
but in that you would do him wrong; for
though this young man had been inconfider-
ate and headftrong enough to difoblige and
vex his father when alive, he was not har-
dened enough not to feel forrow and remorfe,
therefore, after his death.

Though his forrow was fharp, however, it

, was not lafting : the company he imprudently

kept effaced it too foon, and he returned to

foreign countries, where he now is. It is to

272 MORDAUfJf.

«

be hoped that he will reform, for he is
young.

Having now, with as little prolixity as the
nature of the cafe would admit, anfwcrcd
your inquiries in a manner which, I make no
doubt, will be fatisfaclory both to yourfelf
and your noble correfpondcnt, I mall, for
brevity's fake, 'onty add, that I am glad that
you have experienced fo much benefit from
young Dr. Ironfide's pills. As for my own
part, I have had an oppofite experience, be-
ing now convinced that my own fbate of
health is not fo vigorous as 1 thought it,
though as much fo as moft men of my age.

Of this, however, you may always rely,
that you will find me difpofed to render every
fervice in my power, not only to my old
acquaintance your aunt, but alfo to yourfelf.
I beg you will make my affectionate re-
fpefts to her. I hope the rednefs in her
nofe, with a tendency to purple, for v/hich
{he was taking the infufion of white poppy

MORDAUNTi 278

flowers, has the defired effect. My anxiety
for my old friend induced me to take the opi-
nion of a very experienced practitioner of
this place ; and he aflured me, that, if it did
no good, it could do nd harm ; which is more
than can be faid for fome medicines much
vaunted*

I (hall now, for brevity's fake, fmifh this
long epiftle ; being,

My dear young lady>
With due efteem,

Your well-wifher, and moft obedient
humble fervant,

DANIEL PROCTOR.

P. S. There is tio foundation for the report
ef my intending to remove from my own
quiet habitation near Morpeth to fuch a tu-
multuous town as London; and there is as lit-
tle for the report of my daughter's marriage.
It will be time enough for her to think of a
hufband when me comes to be a little nearer
your age, which, if I am to judge by looks,
(he ftill wants two, or perhaps three, years of,

VOL. II, T

274 MORDA-UNT.

LETTER XLIX.
Mifs ALMOND to DANIEL PROCTOR, -Efq.

SIR, York.

1 AM forry you have given yourfelf the trou-
ble of writing fo very long a letter ; all I
wiflied any information about might have
been mentioned in a few lines : but I fuppofe
you were fond of an opportunity of enlarging
upon the wonderful qualities of this fame
mifs Clifford,, whom you feem to be in love
with, though fuch a thing is fcarcely cre-
dible to thole who know of the- declarations
you made when you were lail at York. I
cannot conceive what you faw in my lookb that
could lead you into fo grois a miftake with
reipect to my age : but though 1 mufl confefs
that I am much younger than you think, I
hope I mould have more ienfe,,atany age, than
to play old mournful tunes upon a harp to my
father -when he was in .affliction, which could

MORDAUNT. 275

only ferve to increafe his grief; and far lefs
could I return immediately to gaiety after
fhedding tears, which you fay mifs Clifford .
did, as if her father's death had been a tragi-
comedy.

I am glad to hear that you are inclined to
believe that Eu^lifh women are the hand-
fomefl in this world (indeed the curate of
Willow-Bank once told me that there was no
reaibn to doubt of their being the fame in the
next), which makes your partiality for this
mifs Clifford the more furprifing, becaufe
me feems, even from your own account, more
like a foreigner than an Englifli woman.

As I hinted, in my letter to you, that the
perfon for whom I was defirous of getting an
account of the Clifford family had reajbn t6
be prejudiced againfl them, and was a perfon
of quality, I could not imagine that you
would have fent a long letter of the nature of
your laft ; for you muft have obferved that
people of quality never liften to long letters ;
indeed they cannot bear to be informed of any

T 2

276 MORDAUNT.

thing, long or Ihort, that is not agreeable to
their wifhes.

I firft remarked this at the houfe of a fine
London lady, a near relation of lord Dean-
port, who was allowed to die quietly, be-
caufe, to have infinuated that me was in
danger, or to have propofed a drug that
was difagreeable to her tafte, would have

alarmed and difturbed her. Two of the

.

chamber-maids recovered from the fame dif-

*

eafe, by taking the bark, and being Wittered -t

<ks

for the apothecary, who was all fmiles and
fimpers when he fpoke to the poor dying
lady, and never gave her any thing but pa-
latable draughts, told them, with a grave
countenance, and in plain words, that no-
thing but blifters, and large dofes of bark,
could fave them.

I have remarked, alfo, that the curate at
Willow-Bank, who in winter preaches to the
country-people about preparing for death,
never touches on that fubject in fummer,
when my lady is pr,efent, becaufe nothing is

MORDAUNT. 277

fo offeniive to her ladymip as reminding her
of death, except it be mentioning hell, which
fhe fays her nerves cannot bear.

Indeed I was witnefs myfelf to ths truth of
this ; for her ladymip once carried me, for a
frolic, to hear a methodift-preacher : unluck-
ily, the man preached about the rich man and
Lazarus, which terrified her to fuch a de-
gree, that me was carried out in violent hy-
flerics : and though, formerly, fhe made it a
rule to go to church once every feafon, to
fhow a good example to the ignorant vulgar,
yet, after that accident, fhe never ventured
to hear any preacher whatever, except the
curate of Willow-Bank, on whofe difcretion
ihe can rely, becaufe his only hope of pre-
ferment is in her ladymip. And I once heard
my lady herfelf fay, " that, notwithstanding
his being only a country-curate, he might
be a London bifhop, for knowledge of the
world."

Now, perhaps, you will fay, like Juba in
the play of Cato— " If knowledge of the
T 3

273 MfiRDAUNT.

world makes man a villain, may Juba ever
remain in ignorance." — But, although fuch
fentiments do very well in tragedies, tjiey
are not to be acted upon in real life : befides,
Juba being only a black, is not a very fit
example for whites, efpecially Chriftians,

J own I fee no villainy in having a know*
ledge of this world, and making the moil of
it while we are in it, though it may be pro-
per to acl: otfrerwife in the next ; for, as I
have heard you yourfelf obferve — " When
we are at Rome, we muft do as Rome
does."

You fee, Sir, I do not forget the reflec-
tions I have heard you make, having always
had a very high opinion of your fenfe an 4
judgment j which made me fo fond of your
company when I faw you laft at York, and
makes me regret that we have never feen you
fince : but I fuppofe you can think of no-
body, now, but mifs Clifford ; though I own
that fhe, nor no other woman, can be more
Concerned than I any to hear that you are in

MORPA.UNT.

a weaker flate of health than when we faw
you here. My aunt thinks that your being
of that opinion proceeds entirely from low
fpirits, owing to too much folitude ; and
that, if you faw more fociety, whether it were
in London or York, or even at your own
houfe near Morpeth, you would be more
healthful and happier. Though your daugh-
ter is, I am told, a very beautiful young la-
dy, and alfo very fenfible, yet perhaps fome
cheerful companion would render both your
lives more agreeable ; but of that you are the
beft judge — My aunt defires me to return
you her thanks for the attention you had to
her, in confulting the doctor on her com-
plaint.

The infufion of the flowers of white pop-
pies has had no great effect as yet ; but me
is refolved to continue, becaufe, (lie fay;, it
iiands to reafon that thofe flowers mould do
good, on account of their whitenefs : but I
fear their colour is coniiderably altered be--
fore they come to her nofe.

T 4

280 MORDAUNT.

With my kindeft compliments to mifs
Proftor, though unknown but by charader,

I am, Sir,

Your moft obedient and
obliged fervant,

MARGARET ALMOND.

I |hall be very glad to hear from you when
you have leifure : but you need not give

».

yourfelf the trouble of faying any thing far-
ther of the Clifford family, becaufe the noble-
man who applied to me has now received all

the information me wanted.

i. i • •

-

MORDAtfNT.

.

LETTER L.

flfifs ALMOND to the COUNTESS of DEANPORT.

MY LADY, York.

JL HAD the honour of informing your lady-
fhip, in my laft letter, that I had, without
delaying a lingle moment, written to Mr.
Pro&or. It was natural for your ladyihip to
think that his refentment againft young Mr.
Clifford would have enraged him againft the
whole family, and inclined him to divulge
every thing he knew or fofpected to their
difad vantage : but he is an odd kind of a par-
ticular man, who knows no more of the
world, particularly the genteel, than a child.
Though he ferved an apprenticeship to an
attorney, he has the charafter never to have
taken the advantage of any body -> which
makes it fo unaccountable how he is in fuch
good circumftances. He feems to have no
refentment; or elfe the favours he received

282

from Clifford, the father, makes him forget
the injuries of the fon, and renders him un-
willing to fay any thing againft him, and ftill
lefs his fitter : yet, in fpite of all his pains to
fet her off to advantage in his letter to me, it
is eafy to fee that the character you have re-
ceived of her is pretty exact. There is. no
doubt that me both looks and acts like a
French woman ; and you know how fome of
them act. Mr. Proctor acknowledges that
ihe lived feveral years abroad among foreign-
ers and emigrants, and underflands all their
languages •, and, I dare fay, is a member of
the Blue- flocking- club of learned women*
whom your ladymip hates, though ihe may
wear white blockings above her blue.

Mr. Proctor alfo owns, that mifs Clifford
was addicted to go a-hunting with men in
the day-time, and playing on the harp to
them at night. What me did befides he does
not mention.

He pretends to be ignorant of the reafon of
her father's taking her abroad fo fuddenly,

MORDAUNT. 283

and does not divulge the nature of the ru-
mours that were fpread over the neighbour-
hood on that occafion.

But he acknowledges that mifs Clifford
lives in intimacy with lady Diana Franklin,
which mud be the fame with her that your
ladyship hates fo much, and who I take to
be one of the moft cenforious old maids liv-
ing -y both on that account, and from what I
heard counfellor Banter fay, at the laft York
affizes, in a large company of ladies, at a
tea-drinking, (among whom was a Londoner,
on her return from Scotland, where ihe had
fled from her parents to be married to a
very genteel officer of dragoons — I believe
he was quarter-mafter), — fo, fomebody faying
fomething to the praife of lady Diana, the
new-married lady obferved that fhe was an
old maid, and of courfe very cenforious.
" Very cenforious, indeed, madam," replied
the counfellor ; " her whole life and conduct
is a libel on many of her own fex !"

This was thought, by fome of the com-

284 MORDAUNT.

pany, too fevere 5. but, after what I have
heard your ladyfhip fay of her, is, I am con-
vinced, no more than me deferves.

This is all the intelligence I could procure
from Mr. Proctor, which I hope your lady-
fiiip will think fatisfadtory, as it may he de-
pended on. But I am certain, that if I was
in London, I could procure flill more -y and
therefore I have informed my aunt, that me
would probably receive a letter from your
ladyfhip, defiling that I might fet out very
fbon. For my own part, I mould not be in
the lead afraid of going in the mail-coach, as
it goes fo quick ; and my heavy trunk might
come afterwards in the waggon.— In the
hope of having the honour of another letter
from your ladymip foon,

lam,

Your lady (hip's moft obedient, faithful,
and obliged humble fervant,

MARGARET ALMOND.

MORDAUNf. 28.3

P. S. I have taken particular care that
your ladyihip cannot be fufpefted of having
let me on thofe inquiries, for I wrote to
Mr. Proctor that they were not for a lady,
but for a noble-man.

26S

MORDAtWf.

LETTER LI.

The Conntefs 6f DEANPORT to JAMES
GRINDILL, Efq.

London.

1 HAVE had no need to avail myfelf of your
precautions againft communicating Peggy Al-
mond's difcoveriefc refpecting mifs Clifford too
abruptly to my ion. She difcovered nothing
but what was either of fo innocent, or fo ge-
neral, a nature, that no ufe could be made of
it. I have therefore abftained from all infi-
nuations againft what is called — her virtue.
But, in confequence of your obfervations
refpedting my fon's prejudice againft clever
women, or women of fuperior underftand-
ing, which I know to be well founded, I
once thought of culling a few witticifms
from Joe Miller, and repeating them to
lord Deanport as repartees of mifs Clifford;
but recollecting that his lordfhip'was better
acquainted with that book than with moil

MORDAUNT. 287

others, I judged it would be fafer to draw from
a fountain into which he never dipped ; and,
after having fpoken of mifs Clifford as a lady
of uncommon erudition and fagacity, I actually
repeated two of the proverbs of Solomon as
obfervations of hers. This had not the effect
I expected ; he faw nothing alarmingly faga-
cious in either, and faid, " If mifs Clifford
can make no wifer obfervations than thofe,
me runs no rifle of being drowned for a
witch."

Difappointed in- this; I remarked " that I
had heard me was a young woman of rather
an imperious temper ; that I was not fuffi-
ciently acquainted with her to decide, but I
owned that me had, on fome oecaiions, a great
deal of fire in her looks."

To this he coolly replied, " That fhe had
certainly an animated countenance, and he
believed (he was a young lady of fpirit."

I was fo provoked by this anfwer, that I
rejoined, with warmth, " If fpirit be what
you admire in her, (he will mow you enough

288 MORDAUNT,

of it— I am told me is a complete termagant
How fhe may accommodate herfelf to her
lovers I know not -, but I am aflured that her
obftinate temper broke her father's heart." fa

To this he made no reply ; but, after a
few minutes of mufing, introduced another
fubject, and in a fhort time left me.

I hope what I threw out was the caufe of
his mufing. I mail take care to furnifti him

with more feeds of reflection of the fame kincf;

i

and I have a notion that the lady herfelf will
alfo fupply him with fome*

I have obferved, with pleafure, that fhd
does not behave with that degree of atten-
tion to him that would, I believe, fecure her
conqueft. I am happy that her fupreme ad-
vifer, lady Diana Franklin, is abfent ; becaufe,
were fhe in London, fhe would ad vife the young
lady to adopt a plan of conduct that would be
more likely to fucceed. Where do you think
her ladymip is ? —You never can devife,
therefore I'll tell you. — But I am interrupt-
ed, and muft poftpone the information*

MORDAUNT. 289

This coufin of yours drags on a mofl un-
reafonable length. How can the man have
the confcience to live fo long ? What are his
phyficians about ? Thofe countiy doctors
have not half the difpatch of their brethren
in the capital.

Yours,

E. DEANPORT.

VOL. II. U

200 MORDAUNT.

LETTER LII.

Ihe Same to the Same.

London,

1 WAS interrupted when I was juft about to
inform you where lady Diana Franklin (to the
great grief of the blue -{locking tribe, thofe
admirers of madame de Sevigne and her aflb-
ciates, who attempt to fubftitute converfation
to cards) is at prefent — Why, in Devonfhire.
Devonfhire at this feafon of the year ! And
whom do you think fhe has gone to vifit in
Devonfhire ? Some grateful young officer^
you will guefs, promoted by her interefr, and
whofe regiment is quartered in that county.
You may have hit on the real motive of her

I Sj » '._ ;

journey for ought I know — but the avowed
one is to fee Mrs. Denham. Perhaps you
have forgot Mrs. Denham, for fhe has not
been heard of thefe feveral years j, but you
muft remember the fprightly Charlotte Brigh-

MORDAUNT. 291

ton, whom you have fo often feen at my af-
femblies, when her beauty and vivacity drew
half the young fellows in town after her.

I believe you were at Spa when the cata-
ftrophe of Charlotte's romance took place,
and therefore may never have heard it. After
rejecting two offers of marriage, both highly
advantageous.; one by a Mr. — Mr. — I cannot
recollect the man's name — an aukward-looking
creature.- — He has been made a peer fince — I
cannot recoiled: his title neither — no matter.
The other propofal was from a perfon whofe
fortune gave him a claim to the fame honour.
He offered immenfe fettlements — to no pur-
pofe — the giddy girl refufed them both.

What made her folly the more to be la-
mented, and mufl have filled her with re-
morfe for refufing the latter, is, that the man
died about nine months after. Some people
attempt to excufe her, by aflerting that me
was in love with Tom DenharrI when thofe
two men paid her their addreflcs. I leave

U 2

292 MORDAUNT.

you to determine the weight of fuch an
apology.

She afterwards married Tom, who was, to
be fure, one of the beft-natured, gay, thought-
lefs young fellows in the world, but with a very
moderate fortune -, one half of which was mort-
gageji before Charlotte was acquainted with
him ; the remainder, with all his wife's patri-
mony, he fpent, it mufl be confefled, entirely
like a gentleman, and in the beft company.
When it was fpent, however, he and his wife
feemed, for fome time, as deflitute of friends
as if they had kept the worft.

An old companion of his, who had fome
intereft with the minifter, procured him at
laft a fituation in the Eaft Indies. It was ex-
pedted he would have opportunities of pil-
laging a competency for his poor wife and
children. But though few people could fpend
a fortune with a better grace than Tom, it is
doubtful whether he had any talents for ac-
quiring one : the experiment, however, was

MORDAUNT. 293

not fairly made j for he died, poor fellow, foon
after his arrival in India, fo that he had not
time to do that juftice to his family that was
expelled, however well-difpofed he might
have been.

His widow, with two children, lived fome
time in London after the accounts of his
death arrived. Hitherto I had vifited her oc-
cafionally j but rumours were circulated to
her prejudice: as me had always been rather n>
attentive to appearances, they gained ftrength,
I have been allured, without foundation : but
as I had not leifure to afcertain the truth, I
thought it prudent to leave off vifiting her.
Others followed my example; and fhe would,
moft probably, have been forfaken by all her
female acquaintance, had not the virgin Diana
arrived precifely at that time from abroad.
Though fhe had feen lefs of Mrs. Denham,
after her marriage, than any of her former
companions — for the rapid rate at which her
hufband and fhe drove through life ill-fuited
the flow and folemn ftep of a Veftal— - yet, on
u 3

294 MORDAUNT.

finding Charlotte likely to be abandoned by
others, {he clung to her through Iheer vanity,
and that crofihefs which prompts her in what
me calls effentiah, to brave the opinion of
the world. She pretended that ihe had in-
veiligated the fcandalous reports; and not
only to have found them falfe, but alfo that-
Mrs. Denham, having derived prudence from
her misfortunes, had conducted herfelf in a
moil exemplary manner, devoting her whole,
attention to the education of her children: on
which ihe was viiited and received as before
by a few of her old acquaintance ; but her
circumilances kept the greater part from her
as completely as if all that had been faid of
her was true. Unable, however, to maintain
her family in London, ihe retired with her
children to Devonihire, and has hardly ever
been thought of iince, till lady Diana, hear-*
ing that (he was in a declining ftate of health,
fet out lately to viiit her ; and there I hope
ihe will remain; for I underftand ihe has
more influence with mifs Clifford than any

MORDAUNT. 295

body elfe, and, if fhe were in London, would
afTuredly engage her protege to adopt a con-
duct more likely than that fhe follows at pre-
fent to fecure the heart of my fon. To tell
you the truth, I rely more on the marked
coldnefs and indifference which the girl fhows
for him than on all I have hitherto been able
to contrive for the purpofe of giving him a
thorough diflike to her.

In the mean time, you cannot figure how
I am harafled by the murmurs of the aunt
on account of Deanport's coldnefs to mifs
Moyfton -, for fhe is more enraged than the
young lady herfelf. I am alfo vexed by the
new proofs I daily receive of his growing
paflion for mifs Clifford. — Would to heaven
you were here ! I never flood in need of
your fage counfels fo much.

E. DEANPORT.

u 4

296 MORDAUNT.

LETTER LIII.
Mifs HORATIA CLIFFORD to Mrs. SOMMERS.

London.

Y ou are ferioufly hurt, then, my dear, be-
caufe I have never faid a word of lord Dean-
port's attentions to me, of which, it feems,
fome more communicative correfpondent has
favoured you with fo many particulars. You
confider it as an inftance of unkind referve to
a friend, whofe confidence in me has been
unbounded. I dare fwear you fufpe&ed, that
in this feafon, fo fertile in peerages, I was
endeavouring, while the fun fhone, to fecure,
for my own ufe, part of the harveft ; and
that, having fucceeded, I meant to be fud-
denly announced to you as countefs of Dean-
port, to dazzle your eyes with the brilliancy
of my coronet, and mortify your heart with
the idea of an old companion raifed to a
fituation fo far above you.

-

MORDAUNT. 297

Ah ! Juliet, how could you fufpeft me of
fuch malice ? Had I been capable of it, I
fhould have deferved all that your friend mifs
fuffered, by being made a duchefs.

Now, in anfwer to your accufation,

" I will a round unvarniflied tale deliver,
Of what referve, deceit, or mighty plot
(For fuch proceedings I am charged withal),
J have been guilty.'' .

I

The firft time I ever faw lord Deanport
was at the duchefs of — — 's afTembly. I
was fitting between my aunt and Mrs. De-
mure, when her grace prefented him to me :
he remained with us till we left the room.
As he was an acquaintance of Mrs. Demure,
I placed this piece of attention to her ac-
count. I afterwards met him at other afTem-
blies : he fometimes came into my aunt's
box at the opera. I faw nothing particular in
this, nor did I perceive any thing remarkable
in his lordmip's addrefs, except an affectation
to whifper, which I difcouraged by a look
of furprife, and by always anfwering aloud.
Mori people, who are uncommonly hand-

298 MORDAITNT.

£>me and genteel, are thought conceited ;
fometimes, no doubt, unjuftly : but there
certainly i$ nothing in lord Deanport's man-
ner-that tends to remove fuch a fufpicion.

There is fomewhat of conftraint that
could not have been expeded in a man of
his rank who has travelled ; this is accom-
panied with a {lately kind of obfequioufnefs,
' a protecting bow, often repeated, which

o

feems to proceed from pride, and that fpe-
cies of pride that fprings from high birth,,
without the confcioufnefs of any other fupe-
riority : for, when a perfon is alib corifcious
of being fuperior, or even equal to the com-
pany in other refpedts, it generally produces
more eafe, and le& referve.
jfHis lordfhip, however, cultivated an ac-
quaintance with Mr. Darnley and my aunt :
I faw him of courfe. His vifits becoming
more affiduous, me one day told me, with an
air of great fatisfaftion, that I had certainly
made a conqueft of the young peer. I was
by no means fo much convinced of this as me
feemed to be 3 and it would not have afforded

MORDAUNT. 299

me ib much fatisfaclion if I had. I confen I
did not think it worth while to mention tuis
notion of my aunt in my letters to you; but
pray, my dear, if they are not already burnt,
will you take the trouble to look over them
again, and fee if, trifling as they are, they
do -not treat of fubjeds of juft as much im-
portance ?

Yet, fince you {how a partiality for this,
I will give you a little more of it. I could
not help remarking, that the noble lord's
mother, the countefs of Deanport, to whom,
I believe, I was hardly known till very lately,
feemed to view me with an evil eye : this I
mould have borne without complaining. I
knew that people are fometimes offended
without reafon : I alfo knew that people of
rank are as fubjecl: to this weaknefs as the
loweft vulgar ; but I did not know that they
could manifeft it in the fame manner : — lady
Deanport made this clear to me. — My uncle's
relation, Mrs. Courtney, had carried me to
lady A— — 's afiembly. Towards the end of

50O MORDAUNT.

the night, after me had ordered up the car*
riage, fhe recollected fomething (he wifhed
to mention to her ladyfhip, and went, for
that purpofe, into another room, leaving me
feated oppofite to mifs Moyfton, the great
heirefs, and her aunt. In that inftant, lady
Deanport came, and feated herfelf between
them ; then, fixing her eyes on me, fhe
whifpered them in a very fignificant manner.
They turned their eyes alfo upon me, titter-
ing, and fometimes laughing aloud. The
company had left the fide of the room in
which I fat, fo that I was in a very aukward
iituation, the eyes of every body being di-
rected towards me, by the rudenefs of thefe
three women. Had they addrefled any dif-
courfe to me, perhaps I might have made
fome retort ; but I could neither object to
their laughing, nor their looking at me. Old
general Randal, who was playing at whift,
obferving my diflrefs, laid down his cards,
came to me, faid he believed Mrs. Courtney
waited for me', and led me into another

MORDAUNT. 301

room, where me was talking with the du-
chefs of D— — . " Your young friend was
impatient to fee you, madam," faid he, to
Mrs. Ccurtney : then, addreffing the duchefs,
he added — " Your grace has been accuftomed
to find great beauty an objeft of envy : had
you been in the next room, you would have
feen it, fon the firft time, the objecT: of laugh-
ter."—-This behaviour of the general is more
in the ftyle of the old than the new court.
But you will allow, that what applied to her
grace was more than mere compliment ; par*-
ticularly when, on the duchefs's accofting
me, with her ufual condefcenfion, he added —
'* No one ever experienced a happier transition
from malice to benevolence than the lady
your grace takes by the hand."

I was at a lofs to find out in what I had
offended thofe women, particularly the Moy-
flons, with whom I am not acquainted.

Mrs. Demure (1 believe you are acquainted
with that lady) called on my aunt the fol-
lowing day. My aunt being abroad, ihe

302 MORDAUNT.

ftayed great part of the forenoon with me*
She is at once confidered as the friend of lady
Deanport and of the Moyftons. I hinted to
her what had happened at the affembly. She
fmiled, and faid — " 1 could eafily give you
the key to that cabinet of feerets, my dear,
if it were proper."

" If it is not proper, I beg not to be en-
trufted with it," I replied.

Finding that I preflcd her no farther—-
"-Come," refumed fhe, " I believe I may
fafely truft you. My friend, lady Deanport,
is one of the moft prudent women on the face
of the earth, and one of the moft attentive of
mothers. She naturally wifhes her fon to ob-
tain a great fortune by marriage, becaufe fhe
conliders his intereft to be alfo hers, and 'has
been ufing all her add re fs to promote one be-
tween her fon and mifs Moyfton: but the
young lady and her aunt having taken of-
fence at the attention her fon ihows you, her
ladyihip is alarmed, left it ihould prove an
obftacle to a fcheme her heart is greatly fet

MORDAtTNT. $03

on ; on which account (he is irritated, and
difpofed to mortify you. This is certainly
beneath a woman of her rank ; indeed of
even a plebeian, of any degree of elevation of
foul. But the beft of people have their
weakneffes j and, I muft confefs, my friend
is not entirely exempt from them." She aft-
erwards repeated fome very fpiteful things
that me had heard lady Deanport fay of me ;
begging me, at the fame time, not to mind
them. She then added fome expreffions,
equally malicious, which me had heard her
Utter, concerning lady Diana. This, I do
aflure you, provoked me more than the
other ; and I refolved to vex the malicious
woman in the only way in my power —
" You ought not, my dear mifs Clifford,"
laid Mrs. Demure, " to be provoked at my
friend, lady Deanport : it is not from ill-will
againft you, or lady Diana, that me fpeaks
fo ; it is merely becaufe me fears that you
will feduce the heart of her fon from mifs

304 MORDAUNT.

Moyfton : me cannot bear the lofs of all that
great fortune. She experts, if her fon were
in pofTeffion of it, that fhe herfelf would be
much more eafy in her own circumftances.
My friend is fond of money — very fond of
money : it is her greateft fault : — fhe has it in
common with many worthy people. She is
alfo exceedingly fond of play ; and, though
in other refpecls a fhrewd fenfible woman,
fuperftitious to child ifhnefs on that fubject.
Indeed, the whims that very acute people
are influenced by, in gaming, are hardly cre-
dible. I mufl do my friend the juftice to
fay, however, that me is not in the leaft fu-
perftitious in religious matters, except when
me is in ill health. Her enemies accufe her
of being avaricious, and extremely fond of
money -, but that is, in a great meafure, ow-
ing to her often lofing at play. I am per-
fuaded, that if me were always to win, fhe
would be more generous : but what can a
woman do who frequently lofes more than

MORDAUNT. 305

X

ilie can pay ? Her fon cannot always fupply
her, which makes her fo fet on his marriage
with mifs Moyfton."

This eloquent and friendly harangue had
no effect in turning me, from the refolution I
had formed; and which I found an oppor-
tunity of putting in practice, very foon after,
at the duchefs'a, where lord Deanport ac-
cofted me, in the prefence of his mother
and her two accomplices. I liltened to the
douceurs he ' whifpered in my ear with an
air of far more complaifance than I had ever
before mown. They endeavoured to conceal
their vexation by writhings and conftramed
fmiles, — fuch as a perfon on the rack, if he
thought himfelf obliged to fmile, might ex-
hibit. I hope I was more fuccefsful in my
fmiles -, though, I confefs, they were forced
alfo ; but I was determined to look as pleafed
as poffible.

After I • had teazed the three ladies fuf-
ticiently, I told my aunt that I felt myfelf a

VOL. IT. x

306 MORDAtJNT:

little indifpofed ; which was really the cafe i
for you have no idea how fatiguing it is to
be continually conftraining one's features in-
to a fimper when they have all the inclina-
tion in the world to be indulged in a yawn.
My aunt withdrew immediately.- My lord
attended us to the carriage -f and, as he
was leading me paft her ladyfhip and the
heirefs, I could not help enjoying the rage
that was apparent on the countenance of the
one, and the mortification in that of the
ether.

The marchionefs is flill at Richmond.
Her friends will not part with her. I drove
there yefterday, in the intention to wheedle
her from them : but what chance has an
Englim woman to get the better of the
French in the art of wheedling ? They pre-
vailed on her to ftay, in fpite of all my fkill.
She promifes, however, to come to London -
after her return from Bath, where the lady
'ifttends to carry her.

MORDAUNT. 3P7

Lady Diana is in good health xand fpirits.
Poor Mrs. Denham, me informs me, is fome-
what better.

Adieu ! my fweet friend. Do not forget
to prefent my love-— I mean my refpedls, to

your huiband,

H. CLIFFORD.

308 MORDAUNT,

LETTER LIV.

. SOMMERS to Mijs H. CLIFFORD.

Afhwood,

1 SHOULD be ferioufly difpleafed, indeed, my
dear Horatia,' if you could fufpect that fee-
ing a coronet on your head would raife the
leaft particle of envy in my heart. Have I
not been fenfible of your fuperiority, in almoft
every accomplimment, without any fentiment
but that of increaling affection ? The woman
who, having fome pretenfions to beauty, per-
ceives that another is considered in every com-
pany as handfomer than herfelf, and yet retains
the warmeft friendship for that other, is af-
furedly incapable of repining at any other fpe-
cies of fuperiority me may have. I can never
love you better," my dear, than I do at pre-
fent, when you are only a plain fpinfter : but
you may rely upon it I mould not love you
bfs though you were jaifed to the rank of

MORDAUNT. 309

duchefs to-morrow. I wim you to be my
equal, my dear, in nothing but in happinefs ;
and th.it, becaufe I believe no woman can be
happier than I am.

I am much obliged to you for your " round
unvarnimed tale," which has amufed me very
much ; and, in return, I will give you a piece
of advice. People do not remain long in debt
when they can pay their creditors in this man-
ner. Befides, I am entitled to give you ad-
vice : — am I not a full year older than you ?
and am I not a married woman? Liften, there-
fore, to the voice of a matron ; for " Wifdom
dwelleth with Age."

I would not have you put implicit faith in
the information you received from Mrs. De-
mure. Can you put confidence in a perfon
who, calling herfelf lady Deanport's friend,
fpoke of her in the ftyle me did ^

. Her ladymip rnay love money too well ;
but I have heard that Mrs. Demure is hypo-
critical and revengeful, which are worfe faults.
She once mowed a difpofhion to form an in-

x 3

310 MORDAUNT.

timacy with me ; but my hufband gave me
a hint not to encourage it. I believe he
knows more of her hiftory than he choofes
to communicate. I mall never afk him a
qiieftion on that, or any other fubjec~t he is
difpofed to avoid.

But I wifh, my dear Horatia, that you
would forego the refolution of tormenting
lady Deanport. What was reprefented to
you was probably exaggerated, perhaps en-
tirely without foundation -> and, at any rate,
declaring yourfelf her enemy will make her
more actively yours, and juftifies her in fome
degree for being fo, and can do no good. Be-
fides, my dear, I cannot approve of the means
you have ufed to vex her. In my humble opi-
nion, you ought to be open with the young
lord. Since you are determined not to have
him, you ought to tell him fo at once. No
woman can be more decifive than you when
you pleafe. A young woman may be for-
given for not faying aye to the man me loves,
when he firft propofes marriage to her 3 b.ut

MORPAUNT. 311

there is no excufe for not faying no, in the
moft unequivocal manner, to him me is de-
termined to reject, mould he make the fame
propofal. On reflection, I am certain you
will be of my opinion, and will aft ac-
cordingly.

My hufband fends you his refpeftful love.

J remain, dear Horatia,

ever moil affectionately yours,

JULIET SOMMERS,

x4

312 MORDAUNT.

LETTER LV.

Mifs HORATIA CLIFFORD to Mrs. SOMMERS.

London.

W ITHOUT waiting for an anfwer to a let-
ter I wrote to you two days fince, as my aunt
is engaged for the evening, I will endeavour
to amufe*you, my dear, with a curious con-
verfation, which I overheard laft night at
Mrs. Courtney's.

She generally keeps one room entirely clear
of card- tables, where they who decline play-
ing may converfe, without difturbing or be-
ing difturbed by the players.

When my aunt's party was made up, I
went into that room with lady Blunt, a young
lady, her niece, whom me wifhed to make
me acquainted with. — Mrs, Demure foon
after feated herfelf by me, with two other
ladies; and feveral gentlemen flood around us.

MORDAUNT. 313

Your hufband's friend, Mr. Mordaunt, was

mentioned..

' " I understand," faid fir George Topley,

" that he .is at his brother's ia Hampfhire,

. \

and expected in town foon."

" When he comes, George," faid lady
Blunt, " you will do well to retire to the
country."

" Why fo ?" the baronet alked.

" Becaufe," replied (he, " copies appear
to di fad vantage when placed near the ori-
ginal."

This remark raifed a laugh, in which its
rudenefs would have prevented me from
joining, had not the baronet himfelf laughed
• as much as any body, without making any
other reply, except faying — " All the world
knows that your ladyflrip is a wit ;" and then
laughed more heartily than before.

" There is no great wit, George," rejoin-
ed lady Blunt, " in remarking what is ob-
vious to all the town : but, in my opinion,
you had better choofe another model 3 for

3H- MORDAUNT.

there are people, and good judges too, who
think M*. Mordaunt inimitable." As fhe
pronounced this, me fixed Mrs. Demure, who
affected to take no notice, till lady Blunt
added — " Do not you think fo, madam ?
You know the gentleman."

• " Know him!" faid Mrs. Demure, with
affected indifference, but evident emotion-—
" a man who is every- where muft be, jn fome
degree, known to every-body ; but I know
very little of the man, and only as a common
acquaintance."

'* Nay, now, my dear madam, I own you
furprife me," faid lady Blunt -y (( for I could
have fworn that any woman who knew him
at all would have thought him rather an un-
common acquaintance."

" I do not understand what your ladymip
means by an uncommon acquaintance," rejoin-
ed Mrs. Demure, a little fharply.

" I mean," faid lady Blunt, " an acquaint-
ance with one of the moft accomplimed men
in England."

MORDAUNT. 315

Mr. Clement, the clergyman, thinking the
dialogue was in danger of becoming too warm,
and with the fole view, as I am convinced, to
prevent that, and give it a pleafanter turn,
faid — " Your ladymip needed not have con-
fined yourfelf to England; you might have
added Scotland, and even the town of Berwick-
upon-ffweed" Then obferving a Mr. Mac-
donald, who had rifen from one of the card-
tables, and joined our circle, he added — tf I
hope the addition might have been made
without offence to any of the company."

" As you feem to dired: this to me, fir,"
faid the Scot, " I muft inform you that I am
neither apt to take offence where it is not in-
tended, nor to pafs it over when it is."

" In the prefent cafe," replied Mr. Cle-
ment, " you muft be fenfible that none coujd
be intended."

" Without accurately examining what
fould be," refumed the other, " 1 am willing
to take it for granted thatTione was intended •,
and J am the more difpofed fo to do on account

S16 MORDAUNT.

of your being a clergyman ; for I honour the
profeffion, chiefly, indeed, becaufe my own
father belonged to it."

" You are extremely obliging, fir," faid
Mr. Clement, bowing.

" It is always my intention to be obliging,
fir/' replied MacdonaTd*. — ," But to return to
the original afiertidn made by her ladyfhip ;
namely, ' that Mr. Mordaunt was one of the
moil accomplifhed men in England,' to which
you faid that fhe might have added Scotland,
(as for Berwick- upon-Tweed I leave it out
of the argument, as a-neutral), — I muft ob-
Terve that the afiertion might be juil (imply
as her ladymip made it, without its being
equally fo conjoined to your appendage."

The precife manner in which this was pro-
nounced, as well as the terms, feemed to put

'

all the company jn a gay humour.- — Mr. Cle-
ment replied, with a fmile, *' that it po'ffibly
might be fo."

" I only fpeak of poffibility, fir. To fay
the thing is probable, though that may be

MORDAUNT. 317

my own private opinion, would not be civil
in this company :, but I muft add, that I have
heard the gentleman in queftion fpoken of by
the gallant colonel Sommers, under whom I
ferved, in fuch terms as convince me that he
is a very accomplished, as well as a very brave
man.1'

" I have heard Mr. Mordaunt accufed of
being a very romantic character," faid lady
Blunt's niece.

Her ladylhip has this young lady much
with her to prevent her from being witnefs to
the difcord that exiils between her father and
mother. — She is, I am told, a great reader of
romances, particularly the ancient.

" Mr. Mordaunt being of a romantic cha-
racter, iny dear, will appear no heinous accu-
fation in your eyes/' anfwered the aunt: —
" .Like the heroes of romance, he is always
in love ; and, like them too, he never mar-
ries : but he has not the lead refemblance to
the preux Chevaliers in conftancy — he is ra-

518 MORDAUNTi

ther addicted to change, to the great afHie-*
tion of fome diftreffed damfels."

As me faid this, fhe glanced at Mrs. De-
mure, who feemed again a little difconcerted.
"But the heroes of romance," refumed
the young lady, " do marry at the end."

'* Yes, my dear ,"faid lady Blunt, " as you
juflly obferve, at the end ; for> when the man
marries, he is no longer a hero, and his mif-
trefs flill lefs a heroine ; they become plam
hufband and wife* juft like your papa and
mamma."

" Gracious me !" exclaimed the young lady,
fpreading her hands, and cafting up her eyes.

" Though Mordaunt's romance is not like-
ly to come to fo humiliating a conclufion,"
refumed lady Blunt, " it was very near being
cut mort in Italy, when he.ferved in the Au-
ftrian armies oppofed to Buonaparte, where, I
am told, he expofed himfelf to many dangers."
" He had no more bufinefs to join the
Auftrians," faid fir George Topley, '* than

MORDATJNT.

the knights you were talking of had to go to
the Holy-Land."

" There is, furely, a difference between
the cafes," reiumed Mr. Macdonald : " for
though volunteering in the Auftrian army is,
perhaps, one of thofe things in which you
would not like to imitate Mr. Mordaunt ;
yet, as he happened to be in Italy at a time
when the French were carrying every thing
before them, he might naturally think that, in
joining our allies againft them, he was ferving
his country : not but I am of opinion that he
would have judged better in coming home,
and engaging in the militia, or in fome vo-
lunteer corps, as you, fir, no doubt, did."

" Indeed I did not," faid fir George ; be-
caufe, in fpite of all the vapouring of the
French about invading England, I was con-
vinced they would never attempt it, and ful-
ly perfuaded of their being all funk or taken
by our fleets if they did."

" What might have had fome effedt alfo,

320 MORDAUNT.

my dear fir George, in preventing your ad-
opting the meafures the gentleman men-
,tions, " added lady Blunt, " was your be-
ing very deeply engaged in jfeveral horfe-
races in different and diilant parts of the
country."

With the fame good-natured intention that
had before induced him to interpofe, Mr.
Clement faid — " From all I have heard of
Mr. Mordaunt, he is, certainly, a very gallant
man -y but, perhaps, like the preux chevaliers
that have been mentioned, he is ibmetimes
fond of danger for danger's fake."

" I humbly beg your- pardon for differing
from a gentleman of your cloth," refumed
Mr. Macdonald. — " I muft fay I take Mr.
Mordaunt to have too much good fenfe to
love danger merely for danger's fake. But I
can conceive, that when a great degree of in-
trepidity is united to an ardent defire of di-
fMndlion, that a man may be fond of prefent-
ing himfelf to hazardous fituations, which he

MORDAUNT. 321

might, without dishonour, have avoided j and
this forms the difference between an officer
who barely does his duty, that he may avoid
reproach, and another who is actuated by
. zeal for the fervice, and an ardent paflion
for honefl and well-merited fame. Mr. Mor-
daunt having gone a volunteer into the Au-
flrian fervice, on motives which would have
weighed with few, thought it would be un-
becoming the character of an Englishman
to keep aloof from danger, and therefore
offered himfelf, on a variety of perilous oc-
cafions, in confequence of which he drew
the admiration of the army, and obtain-
ed the praifes of the general. But, pre-
vious to this, he was advantageoufly known
to many Auflrian officers of diftinction, by a
very fingular adventure he had at Vienna
with an Italian lady, who followed him from
Rome to that capital."

Lady Blunt expreffed a defire to know all
the circumftances of this adventure -, but Mr,
VOL. ir. y

322 MORDAUNT.

Macdonald faid, " that he had heard it men-
tioned only in general terms by colonel Som-
mers, who had declared that his friend had
difplayed great intrepidity and prefence of
mind on the occafion, without communicating
the particulars."

" Perhaps, " faid lady Blunt, " Mrs.
Demure can favour us with the particu-
lars ?"

" I do not conceive," replied that lady,
with a look of refentment, " how your la-
dyfhip comes to imagine that I mould be
acquainted with the gentleman's adven-
tures."

" I merely thought it poflible, my dear
madam," faid lady Blunt ; " and had not the
leaft idea that my fuppofition could have of-
fended you."

" Offended me!" replied Mrs. Demure,
forcing a fmile : — " your ladyfhip never
was more miftaken in your life, if you ima-
gine that the fuppofition offends me — though

MORDAUNT. 323

I muft acknowledge itfiirprifes me a good
deal."

" There are people," rejoined lady Blunt,
*' who are very much offended when they are
furprifed."

Mrs. Courtney joined us at that inftant, and
prefTed lady Blunt to a card-party, which put
an end to the altercation. But I have fome
curiofity to know the circumftances of the
adventure to which Mr. Macdonald alluded —
Your hufband undoubtedly knows the whole.
He muft be a Singular kind of man, this friend
of the colonel. — Pray, my dear, invite your
hufband to tell you the particulars ; and at
your convenience tranfmit them to me — the
fooner the better. What a long and circum-
ftantial epiftle this is ! — I hope your next will
be in the fame ftyle.

Lady Diana informs me that poor Mrs.
Denham is fUll in too feeble a ftatc of health
to be left. Her eldeft fon has obtained a
commiffion in the army through her influ-

Y 2

324 MORDAUNT.

ence. The young man is to join his regi-
ment diredly. The marchionefs has fet out
for Bath.

Farewell !

H. CLIFFORD,

I hope the Vienna adventure will be the
fubje(5l of your next.

MORDAUNT, 32*.

LETTER LrVI.

Mrs. SOMMERS to Mlfs HORATIA CLIFFORD.
MY DEAR HORATIA. Aihwood.

W HEN I received your laft letter, my huf-
band was going to a county-meeting, and not
to return till the following day. I fpoke to
him on the fubjecl: you deiired. He imme-
diately took from his bureau a paper, which
he faid was a narrative of that affair. I had
previoufly been informed that he was at
Rome when Mr. Mordaunt firjft formed an
acquaintance with the Italian lady in quef-
tion. That gentleman was then only about
twenty years of age. His graceful appear-
ance and addrefs produced the fame effeft
in Italy that they had previoufly done in
France and Germany. He was very much
diftinguifhed by the ladies. This one in par-
ticular ufed all her art, and me was miftrefs
,of a great deal, to captivate him. She fuc-

Y 3

326 MO'RDAUNT.

ceeded in fu-ch a degree as to alarm all his
friends, particularly my hufband, who was
his greatefl intimr.te. She was graced with
a title, was of a majeftic perfon, and beauti-
ful. 1 have heard, however, that, on certain
occalions> fomething a little too mafciiline ap-
peared m the expreffive features of her coun-
tenance. She poffeffed many accomplimmentsr
and all the powers of fedudtion. Though me
affected to he paffionately enamoured of Mr.
Mordaunt, yet me maintained a referve of
behaviour with him, which it was pretty
generally believed me had not always pre-
ferved with other men. She was involved
in debt, was five years older than Mr. Mor-
daunt. Her aim was to entice him into mar-
riage. She would have gained her point, had
not my hufband, who is alfo older by two
years than his friend, at the rifk of mortally
offending him, prevented. He fucceeded in
opening Mr. Mordaunt's eyes with regard to
the character of the woman, and in convinc-
ing him of the folly of marrying a woman,

MORDAUNT. 327

who had nothing but beauty, and a few
fhowy accomplimments, to recommend her.
Bat, even after my hufband was convinced of
all this, he flill dreaded the lady's powers in
cafe of an interview. He prevailed on his
friend to leave Rome without informing her
of his intention. The two friends pafTed
with rapidity to Venice j from whence, after
a fhort flay, they proceeded to Vienna, where
they intended to fpend the fummer.

But my hufband at that time having only the
rank of captain in the army, and hearing that
there were fome new levies to be made, and
a chance of actual fervice, returned fuddenly
to England, leaving Mr. Mprdaunt at Vienna.

This much of the flory, my dear Horatia,
I knew before; the written narrative delivered
to me by my hufband begins at this period.

On giving it to me, he faid, "Having heard

indiflinftly of this affair, I wrote to Mordaunt

for the particulars ; but whether it proceeded

from a diilike to what fo many people are

y 4

328 MORDAUNT.

fond of, namely, being the hero of his owrt
tale, or from a natural impatience of temper,
which hurried him into new fcenes where hfe
expected new enjoyment, and deprived him
of both leifure and inclination to writing, I
never received any thing but a few general
exprefiions in his letters to me on the fubject.
The narrative I now' give you," my hufband
continued, " was fent to me by a friend of
Mordaunt's and mine, who remained with
him at Vienna after I left it, and had been
informed of all the particulars. This adven-
ture, with fome others he has fince met with,
have given my friend an unlucky prejudice
againit marriage. Had he been as fortu-
nate as I have been in female acquaintance,"
added the colonel, " he would at this moment
be convinced that matrimony is the happiefl
ofallftates."

s

There, my dear Horatia, is a gallant huf-
band for you ! As foon as he left me I began,
to copy the narrative, as follows :

MORDAUNT. 329

[As the Comteflina was perfuaded that cap-
tain Sommers had always oppofed her views
on his friend, and that it was through his
influence that Mr. Mordaunt had quitted
Rome fo abruptly, me no fooner heard of
the captain's having returned to England,
than fhe determined on a journey to Vienna,
in the view of regaining the hold fhe for-
merly had on the affections of Mr. Mordaunt.
To this me combined a plan of intimida-
tion, in cafe the other mould fail in accom-
pliihing her end.

With thefe views me made the journey
from Rome to Vienna, accompanied by a
tall, fierce-looking, Neapolitan officer, whom
me called, her brother.

Mr. Mordaunt was more furprifed than
diipleafed when he heard of her arrival.

Though he was fully convinced that her
oftentatious tendernefs was all art and dif-
Emulation, and, of courfe, he was in a great
meadire cured of the affection and enthu-
admiration he had at one time enter-

33O MORDAUNT,

tained, me ftiil interested him to a confider-
able degree.

When they met, after complaining, with '
a pathetic accent, of his abrupt departure
from Rome, ilie faid, " that a few days after
he difappeared her brother had arrived from
Sicily: his fcheme being to proceed to Ger-
many, on purpofe to improve in his profef-
fion by viewing the difcipline of the German
armies, he had perfuaded her to accompany
him as far as Vienna, where me intended to
remain while he (houid vifit the Auflrian and
Pruffian garrifons ; and, on his return to Vi-
enna, her brother and fhe propofed to go back
to Rome together,"

The brother thanked Mr, Mordaunt, in the
politeft terms, for the attentions which, he
underftood, he had paid to his fifter at Rome j
expreffed a high admiration of the Englifh
nation, and great fatisfaction in the thought
of his filler having fo accomplished a cavalier
to accompany her to the public places while
me remained at Vienna.''

MORDAUNT.

Mr. Mordaunt was not without fufpicion.
that there was fome fecret defign under all
this -, but, as he found pleafure in the lady's
company, and was fufficiently determined
againft her principal object, he continued to
vifit them.

The lady appeared as alluring, and rather
more complying than ever. One evening,
which Mr. Mordaunt pafTed with the brother
and fifter, me let fall, as if accidentally, that
her brother was to affifl at a review of fome
regiments of Hungarian cavalry that was to
take place the following morning. " Very
true," faid the brother : " and I hope you will
accompany me," added he, addreffing Mor-
daunt ; " but it will be rather too early for
my filter."

Mr. Mordaunt was juft going to agree to
the propofal, when he felt his foot gently
prefled ' by that of the lady. So ftrong a
hint could not be mifunderflood : he faid,
" that he recolleded a buflnefs which would

332 AIORDAUNT.

put it out of his power to be at the re-
view."

The next day he vifited the lady. — They
were furprifed by the brother, and another fe-
rocious-looking fellow in an officer's uniform.

The lady fhrieked, and then exhibited a
fainting-fit pretty naturally.

The ftranger in the uniform faid, with
feeming emotion — " Alas ! fignor, your fif-
ter is dead."

The Neapolitan's countenance, which be-
fore expreffed rage, now affurned the ap-
pearance of defpair. Mordaunt, collecting
his prefence of mind, was attentive to all
their movements. *

The lady, flowly opening her eyes, looked
around with an air of amazement, as if fhe
had forgot what had pafled. — " Where am
I?" exclaimed fhe, in a folemn tragic voice.
'* Good heavens ! my deareft brother, is it
you!" continued me, with an affeded look,
of wildnefs.

MORDAUNT. 333

This being over-a&ed, convinced Mr.
Mordaunt of what he had fufpected from the
beginning.

(c Yes, wretched woman ! it is your bro-
ther," exclaimed the Neapolitan ; " in what
a fituation have I found you ! Have you dif-
graced your noble family ? have you fullied the
purity of your illuftrious blood?" Then, ob-
ferving a fmile on Mr. Mordaunt's countenance,
he added, with a furious look, " What ! does
your undoer fmile at the ruin he has produced!"

Mordaunt burft into laughter,.

This kindled the Neapolitan's rage more
fiercely. After a flourim of oaths, he ex-
patiated on the crime of feducing a woman.

Mr. Mordaunt coolly faid — " Seduction
is certainly a crime, whether the feduced be
man or woman."

The Neapolitan, raifihg his voice, de-
clared— " that his fitter's honour could not
be repaired otherwife than by marriage."

Mordaunt replied — f that he had no ob-

334 MORDAUNT.

jedion to her repairing it that way, or any
other, that would anfwer the end."

" It is well, fignor," faid the Neapolitan,
in a gentle tone, being deceived by what
Mordaunt had faid. «' I could not doubt of
your acting like a man of honour."

" You fhall have lefs reafon to doubt it
now than ever," refumed Mordaunt. " You
fhall find that I am neither to be deceived
by an infamous confpiracy, nor bullied by a
couple of bravos."

The Neapolitan looked at his companion,
who feemed confounded at the refolute be-
haviour and words of Mordaunt.

Perceiving the Neapolitan to put his hand
to the hilt of his fword, Mordaunt, who, at

X

the firft alarm, had fprung from the couch
and feized his own fword, which he held
undrawn in his hand, addreffed the two men
in thefe words : — " If you intend afTaffina-
tion, you may perhaps fucceed ; but not be-
fore I fhall have had the fatisfaclion of killing

MORDAUNT. 335

the firft of you who makes the attempt ; and
I am convinced that my friends have intereft
enough to get the other broken on the
wheel."

Having faid this, he moved to the door,
and withdrew, without interruption, from
the Italians, who were overawed and con-
founded to fuch a degree, that they remained
filent and motionlefs for fome minutes after
he had left the room. The woman was the
firft that recovered the ufe of her tongue,
which me employed, until me was out of
breath, in vain execrations, and in abufe of
her two companions, as poltroons, particularly
the ftranger in the uniform. This man was
a 'Dalmatian, whom they had picked up at
Venice, and who^n they dropped at the fame
city on their return to Rome.

I afterwards met this very Dalmatian at
Venice $ and, without much difficulty, pre-
vailed on him to tell me all he knew of the
ftory ; without which, I mould not have

336 MORDAUKT.

been acquainted with fome of the particulars
above enumerated.]

After copying this long paper, you will not
expect that I mould add much from myfelf :
I cannot help, however, exprefilng a wiih,
my dear, that you may follow the coun-
fel I gave at the end of my laft. — Adieu ! my
deareft Horatia : believe me ever yours,

JULIET SOMM.ERS,

MORDAtJMTk 337

LETTER LVII.

The Countefs of DEANPORT to JAMES
GRINDILL, Efq.

London.

1 AM more provoked at this girl Clifford than
ever. She behaved in the mofl infolent man-
ner poffible at an aflembly, fince the lad time
I wrote. I fat by mifs Moyfton and her aunt :
— my fon entered,— I endeavoured to catch his
eye, and draw him to them ; but the moment
he faw mifs Clifford, regardlefs of my beckon-
ing, he made up to her. As I had reafon to
think me was not very much pleafed with me
at that time, I had fome hopes that, from fpite
againft me, me would have behaved coldly at
leaft to him j but, on the contrary, me receiv-
ed his affiduities with the moft flattering com-
placency : me feemed to attend to none of
the young fellows who furrounded her but
him. She certainly perceived me make figns

VOL. II. Z

338 MORUAUST.

to him to approach us. As often as he
ed ready to comply, me addrefled herfelf with
fuch fmiling earneftnefs to him that he could
not quit her. She evidently enjoyed the gri-
maces of the aunt, the mortified looks of mifs
Moyfton, and the rage which, I fear, was
but too apparent in my countenance. You
•cannot conceive with what a triumphant air
me pail us, as he led her to her carriage. If
I ever forgive her the look me threw on me,
I hope me will immediately after marry my
fon, and govern him as me pleafes for life.

It is ^lear that me has'confulted her oracle ;,
and the entire change of her conduct towards
Deanport is in confequence of the refponfe of
the Great Diana. From" the hatred which I
bear to that goddefs I cannot doubt of hers
to me ; for it is not likely that an old maid
mould have more good nature than other wo-
men. I confider the Veftal, therefore, as the
firft mover of the late infulty and fhali a&
accordingly

:rt- :\r'^f-ttt.

MORDAUKT. 339

It is in vain to attempt to turn my Ton from
his prefent purfuit, efpecially as long as the
object of it encourages the chace ; but it is
not impoffible to give it a termination very
different from what the damfel herfelf, or her
chafte inftructrefs, dreams of. In the mean
time, I mail endeavour to cajole the Moyftons,
and keep them in as good humour as I can.

The very day after Mifs Clifford had en-
joyed her triumph, though my breafl was ftill
glowing with refentment, I met Deanport at
breakfaft with a gay countenance.

I wifhed to put him in good humour, which,
by the way, is no eafy tafk, particularly at
breakfaft. I don't know whether you have
obferved it ; but people who are naturally
ill-humoured (how it more at breakfafl th<m
at any other time. Befides, he knew I had
fome reafon to be difpleafed with him ; cf
courfe he looked rather fulky at me. I took
no notice of that, and proceeded to converfe
in the moil eafy and cheerful ftylc on indif-
ferent fubjeds. When I faw that the gloom

Zo
•*!

340 MORDAUNT.

_

on his countenance was difperfed, — " Apro-
pos !" faid I, " you go on triumphantly in
your afrair with that girl."

He flared, and afked, " What girl ?"
" Why, the Clifford," anfwered I. " Every
body remarks that you have already turned her
head, and may do with her what you pleafe."

" Lord I" faid he, his eyes fparklins: with

, J

vanity, " what idle conjectures people make !

Mifs Clifford behaves to me only with com-

j

inon politenefs."

" Nay, Deanport," faid I, "I have no
defign to penetrate into what you, as a man
of honour, ought to keep iecret -y nor do I
vvi(]i to be your confidant in fuch affairs. I
have no particular affection, it is true, for the
girl, yet I am forry to fee attentions paid to
her which lead to her ruin -, though, accord-
ing to the nnjuft notions of the world of gal-
lantry, they may add to your reputation. I

wi'ih you no freih laurels at fuch expenfe."

j .., r

" I do not believe,;i -faid he, " that any
77 *

thins: of that nature is fufpeded."
°. *

" What elfe, my dear Deanport," faid I,
*' can be fufpedted ? Nobody thinks fo mean-
ly of you as to fufpect you have any ferious
views on fuch a girl ; and you are blamed for
perfevering in your attentions to her, becaufe
it may prevent fome man, more fuitable to her
rank, from paying his addrefTes to her. You
are accufed of acting the part of the boys in
the fable of the frogs : what was fport to the
former was death to the latter. The more
reafon there is, therefore, from the levity of
this girl's character, and your reputation as a
man of gallantry, to imagine that you may
carry your point with her, I am the more fo-
licitous that you mould give up the purfuit.
You may depend upon it, my dear Deanport,
that fuch an inftance of felf-denial would af-
"ford you more folid and permanent comfort
than your fuccefs can poffibly do. But, if
thefe reflections mould fail in 'deciding you
entirely to abandon your defigns on this gir!,
I hope a proper regard for your own interelt
will induce you to fufpend them at leafl.

z 3

S42 MORDAUNT.

Your attentions to mifs Clifford alarm mifs
Moyflon ; and, if continued, may provoke
her to that degree, that me may throw her-
felf into the arms of lord Sordid, or fome
other j for, depend upon it, me may choofe
a hufband from the whole unmarried peers of
the realm. It will afford you endiefs re-
morfe, mould a tranfient phantafy, which
will be over in a few months, preclude you
from the means of gratifying every wiih of
your heart during your whole life."

It was evident, from the attention he
paid to this harangue, that fome part made
a ftrong impreffion. He hinted, " that I
was in an error with refpect to mifs Clif-
ford; that, notwithstanding her natural vi-
vacity, he knew no woman whofe con-
verfation and manner gave lefs encourage-
ment to any attempt of the' nature I had al-
luded to."

With a fmile, expreffive of companion and
contempt, I faid " I was extremely happy
that he was of that way of Chinking, becaufe

MOR DAUNT. 3.43

it would prevent him from making any fuch
attempt, and of courfe from ever feeling the
remorfe which would ultimately attend his
being undeceived." — To this he made no an-
fwer, and we feparated.

If he was ever fo filly as to have matri-
mony in his head, I am pretty certain that I
have fhaken his purpofe. He will now, at
leaft, make an eflay to carry his point on
ealier terms. I confefs I have no very fan-
guine hopes of his fuccefs. The girl feems
to have firmnefs as well as pride, and a com-
fortable degree of refpeft for herfelf : all
thefe are againfl my fon. If me had lefs
fenfe and fpirit, I mould have better hopes ;
however, there is no knowing what may
happen : any woman may be caught napping.
But if, from her own pride, and the admoni-
tions of the chafte Diana, me mould be on
her guard, in that cafe, depend upon it, the
young lady will give herfelf high airs of in-
dignation : her purity, no doubt, will be
z 4

344 MORDAUNT.

wonderfully offended ; and me may chance to
fay or do fome thing that will wound his lord-
fhip's vanity : and I mould not .be furprifed, if,
in his wrath againft mifs Clifford, he made
propofals of marriage to mifs Moyflon. — You
fmile at the folly of a man propofing marriage
to a woman about whom he is indifferent, on
purpofe to vex the woman he loves. Abfurd
as it feems, I have known more than one of
the wife lords of the creation commit this
very folly. And as my fon's conduct is as
often regulated by caprice as that of any of
his brethren, why mould I think him fecure
from the fame folly ?

But, fhould it happen otherwife in the
prefent inftance, mould he bear the rebuff
\yith patience, flill it will occafion a tempo-
rary breach, that will require time, and the
art of the chafte Diana, to repair.

But do . you know, that, after having put;
this attempt into his head, I am by no means
flear that I ought to wiih him fuccefs (andf

MORDAUNT. 345

to my knowledge, he has been fuccefsful
\vith women higher born than this Clifford) ?
For, though it would gratify my hatred
againft her prefent directrefs, as well as that I
feel againft the infolent gipfy herfelf, to fee
her my fon's miftrefs, me might even then
retain too great afcendency over him. In
fhort, I am not abfolutely certain that (he
might not perfuade him, after all, to make
her his wife. — What fay you ?

I heartily wifh that this coufm of yours

would conclude the bufinefs one way or

the other. I fympathife with you very iln-

cerely. I know what horrible conftraint it

t is to attend $ dying relation^ from whom one

has expectations, during a tedious illnefs > — to

'

be obliged to wear the moil melancholy

afpec~t, to fpeak in a fympathifing accent, to
raife his head, to fmooth his pillow — Ah !
how difgufting ! I went through the whole
naufeous procefs in the very flower of my
youth, in the laft illnefs of my grandfather j

346 MORDAUNT.

and, after all, the ungrateful dotard leTt bis
whole fortune to my brother, who never
handed him a cup of water- gruel !

Farewell !

S. DEANPORT.

P. S. I had almoft forgot to inform you,
that your old acquaintance, Mr. Townly, is
a good deal with my fon at prefent. Townly
has long lived a painful life, to maintain the
reputation of a man of pleafure -, and though
now unfit for. the pradice, he is thought to
be profoundly fkilled in the theory of gal-
lantry. As my fon has been accuftomed,
from his childhood, to confider him in that
view, and at the top of fafhion, what he
fuggefts would have great weight with his
Jordmip. I do not choofe to commit myfelf
fo far as to give any hint to Townly, but
you may.

Send me your notions, at large, on all I
have written.

MORDAUNT. 347

On reflection, I have refolved on a corn-*
plete alteration in my behaviour to mifs Clif-
ford. I intend to make up to her with every
appearance of efteem ; as much, if I am able
to affume it, as I feel of real refentment.— -
Do not you think this proper ? It will faci-
litate the views of my fon, put the nymph,
off her guard, and difpofe her tg receive his
advances with more indulgence.

348 MORDAUNT.

•

LETTER LVIII.
Mrs. DARNLEY to Lady DIANA FRANKLIN.

London.

1 CANNOT deny myfelf the pleafure of in-
forming your ladyfhip that young lord Dean-
port has of late fhown fo much attention
to my niece Horatia, that 1 am convinced
he means to make her a propofal of mar-
riage.

Independent of his rank and fortune, he is
handfome, extremely polite, and was pretty

4k

generally allowed to have danced the fecond
heft minuet at the laft birth-day ball. He
never fpeaks in parliament, not being of a
talkative difpofition : befides, I am told that
all fpeaking there is confidered now as fuper-
fluous. His lordfhip has no great tafte for
politics — partly, I believe, becaufe it has of
late been the prevailing tafte of the vulgar.

MORDAUNT.

There is a report that he is fpeedily to be ap-
pointed to an important office ; but whe-
ther in the cabinet or houfehold is not cer-
tain.

Your ladyihip muft be fenfible of the many
advantages of fuch a match to the dear girl in
whofe welfare I know you take fo fincere an
intereft \ but you will be furprifed and con-
cerned to hear, that, with all her underftand-
ing, (lie herfelf feems to be lefs moved by
thofe advantages than her beft friends could
wifh \ though of late, indeed, me behaves
with more refped; to the young nobleman
than (he did at firfl : but in a private conver-
fation I had with ber laft night, me betrayed
fo great a difregard of his endowments, and
a blindnefs to the other advantages of fuch a
connection, as diftrefTes me extremely. Your
ladyfhip knows that Horatia refufed a man of
ftill greater fortune than his lordmip when me
was abroad with her father. He was only a
commoner, indeed, though rich enough to

35O MORDAUNT.

have made three peers. But it was not on ac-
count of his not being a peer that me refufed
him. I have reafon to believe it was merely
becaufe me thought rather meanly of his un-
derftanding ; though, in other points, an ex??
ceeding refpectable man.

As my dear brother never blamed his daugh*
ter for this, I mall not take on me to condemn
her : but this I muft fay, that if feveral wo-
men of my acquaintance, who are very com-
fortably married, had pofTeiled a particle of
the fame fcruple, they would never have been
united to their prefent hufbands. So Horatia
ought not to allow a prejudice of this nature

to have too much weight.

i
As your ladyfhip has more influence with

her than any body, I thought it right to ac-
quaint you with what I conceive to be lord
Deanport's intention, that you may prevent
her from falling into an error iimilar to the
former, if the former was an error $ becaufe
it, would be more inexcufable now, when fhe

.3 OJ -'

MORDAUNT. 351

is of a riper age, and ought to have acquired
more wifdom.

I have not fpoken on this fubject to my
hulband, becaufe I cannot fay that lord Dean-
port has directly made a propofal of marriage
to my niece ; but I have a thoufand reafons
for believing that it is her fault, and not his.
Thofe reafons I am not fond of Hating cir-
cumftantially to my hufband, becaufe men in
general do not fully comprehend fuch mat-
ters,, and no man in particular lefs than Mr.
Darnley, though, in mod other things, he has
a very clear judgment.

I am convinced, from your ladyfhip's ac-
knowledged good fenfe, and from the friend-
fhip you have always mown my niece, that
you will not delay to warn her againft the
folly and danger of keeping a perfon of lord
Deanport's rank long in fufpenfe, particularly
as I have reafon to believe that his mother
wifhes him to court the rich mifs Moyilon,
who, in conjunction with her ladyfhip, is
doing all in her power to eagage his affec-

552 MORDAUNT.

tions. — The countefs, I know, is reckoned
a proud and defigning woman; and, notwith-
ftanding her polite behaviour in your pre-
fence, I dare fay you are not ignorant of her
real fentiments refpecting you. But, when
Horatia is married, fhe will certainly have
more influence with her hulband than the
countefs can be fuppofed to have ; and me
will then, no doubt, be proud to live on a
good footing with your lady {hip.

I am extremely glad to hear that Mrs.
Denham is better. — I beg you will prefent
my befl compliments to her.

L remain,

Your ladyihip's
mofl obedient humble fervant,

E. DARNLEY.

Do you not think that Horatia would be
uling your ladyihip and her other friends very

MORDAUNT. 553

ill, if £hc were to give lord Deanport, or any
other man who may pay his addrefles to her,
a refufal, without informing them, and tak-
ing their advice. If that is your ladyfhip's
opinion, I dare .fay you will think it right to
exprefs it in your letter to her.

VOL. II. 2 A

354 MORDAUNT.

LETTER LIX.

Lady DIANA FRANKLIN to Mifs DARNLEY,
MY DEAE MADAM.

As the perfon you mention has not hitherto
made any propofal to our young friend, it
would be improper for me to write or fpeak
to her on the fubjecl:. Indeed, I mould take
no notice of it to her, though I were here-
after to be informed that he had actually made
propofals, unlefs me herfelf afked my opinion

or advice. From what I know of the cha-

~flu ,63'

racier and difpofition of your niece, I am

perfuaded that me will not give her hand to
any man, without informing Mr. Darnley and
you, and endeavouring to obtain your appro-
bation. This, I think, ought to fatisfy all
her relations and friends ; efpecially, as me
really never has given any proof of caprice,
or want of difcernment, in her likings or

c&flikings. As for the gentleman to whom

o . o

MORDAUNT. 355

you allude, whom {he refufed to marry when
me was only feventeen, the debafmg taftes
which he has fmce difplayed, and the wretch-
ed figure he makes in life, mould prevent
cither herfelf or her friends from regretting
her rejection of him. AfTuredly, my dear
madam, you have not been informed of his
prefent ftyle of life : and you have too much
penetration not to have obferved that the moft
affluent fortune would be no compenfation to
a woman of Horatia's turn of mind, for hav-
ing a ridiculous, an ignorant, or even a well-
meaning weak man, to her hufband, She
never will marry, I am fully perfuaded, un-
til me is afked by a man whom me highly
efleems, independent of his fortune, his rank,
and his difpolition. She muft have a man of
underflanding for her hufband.

You hint that I have reafon to complain
of lady Deanport's fentiment of me. While
me refrains from injurious actions I mall re-
main indifferent about her fentiments.

If ever Horatia mould confult me DJI the

556 MORDAUNT.

the fubjecT: of your letter, you may reft fa^
tisfied that my advice mall be given without
any confideration of that lady's prejudice a-
gainft me.

Mrs. Denham Is better, but not fo well as
to allow me to think of leaving her. She has
fupported a fevere and tedious illnefs with re-*
fignation and fortitude ; and has given proofs
of a moil amiable,— and, what is more, of a
Chriftian, difpofition. She will have reafon
to fay, " it is good for me that I have been
affiiaed."

I remain, my dear madam, with refpe£tfu$

compliments to Mr. Darnley,
i

Your moft obedient,

humble fervant,

DIANA FRANKLIN,

In anfWer to the question in your poftcript,
I think no young woman ought to give her
confent to a propofai of marriage without
cpnfulting her friends. But, if me is deter^

MORDAtJNT. 357

mined to refiife the propofal, (he a&s with
delicacy to the man in concealing it ; becaufe
no man likes to have it known that he has
been rejected* She alfo ads with delicacy to
her own relations ; becaufe, though they mould
think her objections frivolous, (he might feel
them to beinfurmountable.

A $

MORDAUNT.

LETTER LX.

.

JAMES GRINDILL, Efq. to the COUNTESS (/
DEANPORT.

\

•%>uth Wales.

JL ENTER warmly in£o your ladyfhip's refent-
ment againft mifs Clifford.

Your having appeared in good humour'
the morning after the fcene at the affembly
was neceffary for retaining your influence
with lord Deanport, and for giving weight
to the inuendos you threw out. Had you
feemed difpleafecf, or permitted any upbraid-
ing expreffion to fall from you, on account
©f his attachment to mifs Clifford, the effect
would have been to have made him pay his
court to her more afliduoufly than ever.
Your ladyfhip muft have obferved that no*
thing is fo apt to make fome people adhere
to whatever whim they take into their head
than oppofmg it. Argument, however ftrong,

MORDAUNT. 359

inftead of convincing, irritates : and, even
when convinced that the meafure they are
inclined to is pernicious, the pleafure of
croffing the difapprovers, though they may
be their beft friends, overcomes, in the
minds of people of this character, every
confideraflon of decorum, or even of in-
terefl. But why do I mention this to your
ladyfhip, who underftands character fo well ;
and who, I am fure, will never be fo much
off your guard as, from heat or want of tem-
per, to provoke a perfon it is fo much your
intereft to manage ? The motive to which
you imputed all his attentions, and the hints
that they would be fuccefsful, flattered his
vanity without mowing difapprobation of his
tafte, and will> probably, ftimulate him to
what he might not otherwife have had har-
dihood fufficient to undertake. Notwith-
ftanding the cautions in my laft againll any
rough attack on the lady's character, the in-
genious manner in which you conducted it, I
imagine, will anfwer one or the other of the
3 A 4

360 MORDAUNT.

purpofes you propofed. I alfo approve of
your abflaining, on that occafion, from all
praifes of the lady's wit or underftanding, be-
caufe they might have given him a fufpicion
of your having a perfonal malignity againft
the girl, and of having fome private view in
making her peculiarly odious to him. Pane-
gyricks of that infidious nature may be found
expedient on fome future occaiion however -9
and, I am convinced, will not fail of the in-
tended effect. The difcernment with which
you have perceived, and the fagacity with
which you intend to repair the fmall miftake
you committed in mowing refentment againft
mifs Clifford, is rrioft admirable. I have not
the leaft doubt that your former behaviour
has piqued the damfel, and that me has
• given herfelf the airs you mention, merely to
vex you, and in revenge for your preferring
mifs Moyfton. Whether the late change ia
mifs Clifford's behaviour to your fon pro-
ceeds from her being more ftruck than for-
merly with his lordfhip's appearance, or from.

MORDAUNT. 361

refentment or caprice, it is laudable in your
ladyfhip to render the circumftance fubfer-
vient to your own views, which are thofe of
a prudent mother, anxious for the permanent
happinefs of her fon.

Mifs Moyfton and mifs Clifford are as dif-
ferent in character as in appearance ; yet the
difference in one material part of their cha-
racter, very probably, has depended, in a
great meafure, on the difference in their ap-
pearance. A large proportion of prudes are
to be found among-women decidedly ugly;
whereas, in general, the handfome, or, which
forms- a- greater number, thofe who think
themfelves fo, have a tendency to coquetry.
We might expect it would be fo, even
though we had not obferved that the truth of
the remark is confirmed by experience. The
confcioufnefs of beauty naturally infpires gay-
ity, and a defire of exciting admiration by -a
difplay of perfonal charms. The confcicui-
nefs of a total -want of perfonal charms is apt
to infpire difcontent, envy, and cenforicuf-

362 MORDAUNT.

nefs. From this may have fprung that mo-
rofenefs and prudery which is remarked in
mifs Moyfton ; as well as the gaiety, verfa-
tility, and occafional coquetry, of mifs Clif-
ford's behaviour. But, though different in
thofe refpedts, each of thofe ladies is poffeffed
of attractions for a young nobleman like lord
Deanport. What alone is defirable in the
one, unqueflionably, is her fortune, which
cannot be obtained otherwife than by mar-
riage; but what attracts him in the , other
may be enjoyed without that degrading
ceremony. I wifh him fuccefs in both.
But if he is to fail in one of his objects,
it had better be in that to which he is
prompted by a tranlient inclination, than in
the other, which is founded in a paffion for
money ; a paffion of which his lordfhip has
already given indications, and which ge-
nerally flrengthens with age.

Your ladyfhip, with admirable penetra-
tion into the fecret fources of human con-
duct, expreffes a fear that the pride you ob-

MORDAUNT. 363

ferve in mifs Clifford's character will prove a
defence againft his lordfhip's attempts ; but
what I imagine will contribute to the fame
effect, is that fpecies of pride which belongs
to his own character, which is too vifible in
his manner, and hurts the felf-love of others.
There is a certain loftinefs in his addrefs, even
to women, which gives the impreffion that
he is prepoffeffed with the notion that his
notice does them honour. There is reafon to
dread that this will be a bar to his fuccefs
with mifs Clifford, who, with lefs ftatelinefs,
has the prefumption, I fufpect, of being as
proud as his lordfhip. It may, however,
have the effect which your lady (hip alfo fore-
4ees, of making her repulfe him with an ar-
rogance which will convert his love into
hatred. There is no knowing how it may
affect her. No experience of your charming
fex, my dear lady Deanport, can enable one
to decide how any individual woman will act,
on particular emergencies ; as no experience
of ours can make it certain how any indj-

364 MORDAUNT*

vidual man, who is under the influence o£
love, will be affected by the fcorn or caprice
of the woman he loves.

Your ladyfhip juftly remarks, that any
woman may be caught napping; but it is alfo
true, that fome women have a greater difpo-
lition to be drowfy than others : and thofe
who are endowed with that pride, which you
fufpect to belong to the character of mifs
Clifford, are the moft wakeful.

I own I do not much dread a danger, which
you feem to apprehend might be the confe-
quence of his victory ; namely, that, after

being his miftrefs, me might perfuade him
i

to make her his wife, and retain an afcen-
dency over him that would annihilate all
your ladyfhip's influence. I beg leave to re-
mind you of what you have often com-
plained, in your fon's difpofition, that, though
eager to obtain whatever flakes his fancy,
and miferable if "he muTes it, yet, when ob-
tained, and in -his pofleffion, it directly be-
gins to loie its charms, and foon becomes in-

MORDAUNT. 365

fipid. You may reft affured that this verfa-
tility is never more fudden than in the con-
nection of men of that difpofition with wo-
men. Favours are £ud to be the food of
love ; yet, in my opinion, it often dies of that
aliment. But I imagine that, on this occa-
lion, your ladyfhip confounds the conduct of
fuch men in their youth with what is often
their, fate in the decline of life. If at that
period they chance to be bachelors, they are
apt to be the flaves of mercenary miftrefles,
who rule them with a rod of iron. In youth
they are ever in fearch of variety ; in age they
are governed by habit. — I confefs, that if
lord Deanport was verging towards old age,
or if his conftitution was fo broken by ex-
cels, that he had anticipated its imbecillities,
J mould have the fame apprehenfions with,
your ladyfhip, and think it probable that any
woman who could accommodate herfelf to
his caprices, and bear occafional fits of ill-
ufage, would have the management of him,

and finally prevail on him to marry her : but

± j

from a woman of mifs Clifford's character

366 MORDAUNT.

nothing of that kind is to be dreaded, either
in his prefent fbte of health, or in that above
fuppofed ; becaufe, in the firft cafe, {he would
foon lofe all hold of him from his natural
ficklenefs, and, in the fecond, me would
not bear to live with him, even were he to
offer her marriage.

You will obferve, that my beft hopes are
founded on this damfel's giving herfelf fuch
airs as will wound his lordmip's vanity, and
occafion, at leaft, a temporary breach between
them, which your ladyfhip may then render
irreparable.

I have the pleafure to inform you, that ap-
pearances in this quarter of the world arc
more favourable than ever ; and I am in full
hope that this tedious bufinefs is very near a
conclufion : after which, you may depend on
my abridging all ceremonies here, that I may
have the happinefs of waiting on your lady-
fhip as foon as poffible.

I remain,
your faithful and obedient fetvant,

J. GIUNDIU,,

MORDAUNT. 367

P. S. I {hall write to Townly by this

very poft, in the flyle your ladyfhip wilhes : — >

it may be of fervice. He is wonderfully

flattered by being thought an adept in the

fcience of gallantry. He will boaft to my

lord of his own fuccefles -, and perhaps fti-

mulate him to an attempt, which, whatever

way it ends, mufl be favourable to your

views.

3,65 MORJ)AUNT.

LETTER LXI.
JAMES GRINDILL, 2^. /O&OBERTTOWNLY,

You, my dearTownly, have, through life,
iacrificed what is called bufinefe, and every
other objedT:, to the purfuit of pleafure ; and
no man alive is fuppofed to have been more
fuccefsful in the chace. — However ambitious
I may have been to imitate you, I am, at pre-
fent, as you may have learned /rom lord

Deanport, reduced to the neceifity of facri-
>

ficing the pleafure of being with thofe I love
in town to the painful occupation of attend-
ing a dying relation in Wales. -

It is to be hoped that my penance draws
near a clofe, In the mean time, I am going
to write to you confidentially on a fubjecl:, in
which,, from your friendmip to the earl of
Deanport, I am perfuaded, you will feel your-
felf as much interefled as I am.

MORDAITNT.

The relations of that young nobleman, as I
am informed, are extremely uneafy on account
of his attachment to a mifs Clifford of Nor-
thumberland. How, indeed, can they be
otherwife, confidering the number of young
men of rank and fortune who have thrown
themielves away of late on girls who have nei-
ther; in fome inftances, not even beauty ; or, at
leaft, not more than may be purchafed for a few
guineas. The girl, I underflan4> is artful, and
is uiing every means in her power to draw his
lordihip into a marriage : — nothing can be
more equitable, therefore, than to make her
the dupe of her own artifices. And who is fo
able to inftrucl: him how to elude the fnares
laid for him, or to entrap the enfnarer, as
yourfelf? Who can boaft more knowledge of
the world ? Who has applied his talents more
fuccefsfully to that half of it which it is moft
pleafant to ftudy, and moft- difficult to under-
hand ? Though I could not help partaking
of the uneafinefs which the young lord's rela-
tions feel on the prefent occaiion, yet, on my

VOL. ii. 2 B

370 MORDAUNT.

part, it has been a good deal alleviated, fince
I was informed that you were fo much with
his lordfhip of late. I have no doubt of your
having fufficient influence to prevail on him
either to renounce his prefent purfuit altoge^
ther, or to attempt bringing it to an iffue
on ealier terms than thofe deligning perfons
who have drawn him into it expedt.

I hope foon to hear of the goo'd effe&s of
your fage advice -y and remain.

My dear fir,
Your fincere friend and fervant,

J. GRINDJLL,

MORDAUNT. 371

LETTER LXII.
} HORATIA CLIFFORD to Mrs. SOMMERS.

London.

1 HAVE many thanks to return you, my dear-
eft Juliet, for the trouble you took in gratify-
ing my idle curiolity to know the particulars
of Mr. Mordaunt's adventure. Whatever
regards fo intimate a friend of your hufband
muft intereft me in fome degree : but if I
Jiad forefeen that my requell would have fub-
jetted you to the tafk of copying fo long a
narrative, I, perhaps, mould not have made it,
though the circumftances are in themfelves
interefting. What a mocking creature, with
all her beauty, mufl that Italian woman be !
What an horrid idea, to endeavour to terrify a
man into marriage ! But it appears that Mr.
Mordaunt is not a man to be terrified. — Don't
you think there is fomething very ftriking in

that gentleman's chara&er ?
2 B Q

372 MORDAUNT.

With regard to Mrs. Demure, fimilar re-
flections with thofe you fuggeft, on what (he
faid of. lady Deanport, occurred to myfelf ;
and therefore I would have laid little ftrefs on
her tefHmony if it had not been confirmed
by that of others, of whofe candour I had a
better opinion.

I ftrpngly fufpeft that me is fond of de-
traction, and that there is little reality in the
fenfibility which (he is fo fond of profeffing.

I believe I formerly informed you, that I
had remarked that me was apt to betray ill
humour as oftt-n as Mr. Mordaunt's name was
mentioned.— I don't know what tempted me,
this very morning, to afk her if me was much
acquainted with that gentleman. She replied,
with peculiar acrimony of voice and counter-
nance, " that me would be forry to be much
acquainted with fuch a profligate."

Thotigh I had fome inclination to know
on what her opinion was founded, I was dif-
couraged by her manner of receiving the iirft
from putting another queftion. Beiides, I

MORDAUNT. C73

was convinced that, if the gentleman deferv-
ed the character (he gave him, he would not
have been the chofen friend of colonel Som-
mers.

My aunt, however, is delighted with the
refined and noble fentiments of which Mrs.
Demure makes a frequent difplay — though
(he could not help being fomewhat mocked at
what occurred yefterday. Mrs. Demure hap-
pening to call as my aunt and I were ftepping
into the coach to go to Kenfington- gardens,
Ihe went with us. After walking for fome
time, we went into one of thofe covered feats,
or boxes, near the palace. My aunt fpoke
with high efteem of a nobleman lately de-
ceafed. She enumerated many of his good
qualities. —

" What I admired above all, in your friend,"
faid Mrs. Demure, with a very theatrical air,
" was, that

" He had a tear for pity, and a hand ,
Open as day for melting charity."

2 B 3

574 MORDAUNT.

She had no fooner pronounced this, than
a pale emaciated man, who had, perhaps,
heard her, prefented himfelf at the open fide
of the box, and implored her charity.

What made her lofe her temper I cannot
imagine > for nothing in the poor maa's ap-
pearance-and manner was calculated to ex-
cite any fentiment but that of companion.
Mrs. Demure, however, turned on him with
anger, called him an idle intruding vagabond,

and. added, " that me thanked God me knew

*

how to beflow her money better than on lazy
fellows like him !"— The man bowed with a
look of resignation, and, without making any
other reply, withdrew.
hrMrs. Demure then refumed her eulogium
en the deceafed nobleman, which £he con-
cluded by laying, with a plaintive tone of
voice, " me was much afraid that few mert
alive could be compared to him for genuine
benevolence of heart."

My aunt flepped for a minute out of the

MORDAUNT. 375

box.— I afterwards difcovered that it was to
fend her footman with a guinea to the poor
man.

I wifhed to have had fome difcourfe this
morning with my aunt on Mrs. Demure's
conduct on that occafion : me only faid " me
Was perfuaded that her friend had miftaken the
poor man's character," and then changed the
fubject, which is her conftant practice, when
me has nothing advantageous to fay of the
perfon fpoken of.

I wiih, however, my aunt may not be
more miftaken in Mrs; Demure's character
than that lady was in the man's. — What
could be a furer indication of character than
what I have juft related. — At the very inftant,
when me feemed enraptured with fentiments
of benevolence, an occafion prefents itfelf for
putting them in practice : me not only (lirinks
from it, but is enraged at the miferable ob-
ject who furnimed her with the opportunity
ihe appeared to be fo defirous of.

2 B 4

376 MORDAUNT.

For the fake of fome people of my ac-
quaintance, I mould be forry to think that
all whom I have obferved to be fond of ex-
prefiing heroic and difinterefted fentiments
are deiicient in the practice of benevolence j
but I acknowledge that I am a little fufpi-
cious of thofe who are orofufe of fuch de-

A

clarations.

The fears you exprefs in your laft, left my
openly braving the countefs of Deanport
mould expofe me to her vengeance, are wor-
thy of your friendship, and of a piece with
that forgiving mildnefs of difpofition which
I have long admired in you, my fweet friend,
without always being able to imitate it. In
the prefent inftance, however, I have follow-
ed your counfel. 1 have No ; let me

not try to deceive you in the moil trifling
particular — let me not hang out falfe colours
to my friend — let her regard me juft as I am.
If I thought any part of your affedion was
derived from your believing me to be polTerT-
cd of qualities I have not, it would abate in

MORDAUNT. 377

fome degree the pleafure I have in reflecting
on your friendship. I mould fay, It is not me
that Juliet loves and efteems, it is a better
woman. In aflerting a truth, I was on the
point of leading you to believe a falfehood : it
is true that I have done exadly what you ad-
vifed ; but it was not in compliance with
your advice, as I was leading you to believe,
for I had begun to do fo for other reafons,
before I received your letter.

I accompanied my aunt, a few nights fince,
to the ambafTadrefs's. Lady Deanport was
there. You will naturally believe, that all I
wifhed was, that me might take no notice
of me. You cannot conceive my furprifc,
when, after addreffing Mrs. Darnley in the
ufual terms of politenefs, me fpoke to me in
the moft obliging manner. I anfwered her at
firft a little drily ; but me continued with
fuch an eafy air, and in fo affable a ftyle,
that it was impoffible for me to preferve the
coldnefs I had affumed. You know, my dear,
that, however Strong my refentment may be,

373 MORDAtTNT.

it never could refirt the firfl fymptoms of re-»
pentance in the perfon who had raifed it. The
countefs fpoke in fo conciliating a tone, that
I really thought {he was fenfible me had be-
haved to me improperly, and was felicitous
that I mould forget it. She inquired when
I had heard from my friend lady Diana. This
was near rekindling my refentment. It brought
what Mrs. Demure had told me back to my
recollection ; but, before I had time to give
any anfwer, fhe added fo many obliging ex-
prefilons concerning lady Diana, that I be-
gan to think Mrs. Demure's reprefentations
muft have been founded on miftake : my
coldnefs difTolved, and I met her lady/hip's
advances, not only with a conciliating coun-
tenance, but with real good- will. My lord
joined us while we were converting in this
cordial manner. He feemed delighted to
find his mother and me on fuch terms. My
behaviour to him was more frank than it had
ever been ; more fo even than his to me j
for when he attempts to be frank he has the

MOR DAUNT. 579

air of condefcending : befides, it is difficult
to keep up a converfation with him, becaufe
what one is to fay depends upon what was
laft faid -, but he is exceedingly apt to give a
iimper for an anfwer; and then, if one has not
the talent of lady Voluble, whofe difcourfe
admits no commas, colons, nor Hops of any
kind, one muft of courfe be a little at a lofs ;
for far am I from being able to interpret the
meaning of all his limpers or fmiles, if you
pleafe, that I fome times cannot decide whe-
ther the moil expreffive of them mean yes
tor no.

With regard to your advice, ' that I mould
give him an unequivocal anfwer,' you may
depend upon it he /hall have it ; but he muft
firft put the quefHon, which he has never
yet done -, and which, now that my refent-
ment againft lady Deanport is diffipated, I
fincerely hope he never intends to do.

I am better pleafed to be on a good foot-
ing than a bad with lady Deanport ; and I
feel fome fenfe of obligation to her fon for

38O MORDAUNT.

the civilities he fhows to me ; but I do not witfi
to be connected with either by any other link
than that of general acquaintance. What
gives me uneafmefs, and really mortifies me
a good deal, is to perceive that my aunt
Darnley is mightily elated by the attentions
of this noble peer. My aunt, you know, is one
of the moft benevolent of women -, me loves me
with the affedion of a mother : her partiality
to me convinces her that I would make a good
figure as a peerefs ; my partiality to myfelf, you
may fuppofe, inclines me to the fame opinion.
She ardently wifhes that I may marry a peer.
Perhaps I wifh the fame, though not fo ardent-
ly. She would prefer a duke, but would be
for my accepting of an earl, if he ihould make
the offer at prefent, — becaufe delays are dan-
gerous. Unfortunately, not fo much as u
baron has, as yet, had that complaifance ; and
the noble earl, on whom her hopes are now
fixed, is not to my tafte. In cafe he really
has the intention, which I evidently fee me
fuppofes, I mould dread fome difagreeable

MORDAUNT. 381

fcene between my aunt and me on that ac-
count, were it not for my uncle, who, with
equal benevolence, is of a different charac-
ter, and, I am certain, would approve of my
preferring a commoner, with a moderate for-
tune, to a peer with the moft opulent, pro-
vided I efteemed the former moft. I do not
know that you are thoroughly acquainted
with Mr. Darnley, my dear. He is a man
that — But I am interrupted. In "my next I
ihall give you a pretty diftinc~t notion of what
fort of a man my uncle is. Farewell !.

PI. CLIFFORD,

382 MORDAUNT.

LETTER LXIII.
Mtfs HORATIA CLIFFORD to Mrs. SOMMERS.

London.

W HEN I was interrupted, I was going to
tell you, my dear Juliet, that Mr. Darnley
is a man whom few things can much
elate or deprefs — whofe blood and judgment
fire well co-mingled: he has taken Fortune's
buffets and rewards with equal thanks. He
feems to have been formed by Nature for a
Stoic philofopfter. No confideration will
make him deviate from what he thinks the
line of integrity. In other matters he is
yielding to the humours of others, parti-
cularly to thofe of my aunt.

At her felicitation, he lives eight months
every year -in town, and only four at his
eftate in Oxfordshire. He faid nothing could
He more reafonable ; becaufe, though his li-

MORDAUNT. 383

x

brary was in his country-houfe, yet he could
have the ufe of any book he pleafed while
he was at London j whereas, his wife could
not have aflemblies, and operas, and plays,
which were to her what books were to him,
in the fame perfection in the country as in.
London. He had, originally, a very good
eftate -, which he has not diminifhed, nor
ever had a wifh to augment.

He was forty years of age when he married
my aunt, who was about ten years younger.
He once told me-^-" That he had been, in
fome degree, attracted by her beauty, more
by her cheerful and accommodating temper,
and moft of all by 'his friendmip for my fa-
ther and mother. I was more ambitious to
be connected with them," added he, " than
with any duke or duchefs in England. I cer-
tainly love you for your own fake, my dear
Horatia; but, I believe, in my conference,
ftill more for theirs. You will be a good
woman indeed, my dear, if you mould ever
t>e thought equal to your mother."

384 MORDAUNT.

^Though he uttered this with fervour, his
eyes w^re dry : that was not the cafe with
mine. — " I did not mean," refumed he, " to
diftrefs you, but to give you pleafure. Is it
not an honour, and ought it not to afford you
pleafure, to be the offspring of two of the
' worthier!: people in England ? We fee peo-
ple proud of their birth and titles, even when
thofe titles were obtained without merit -, but
you, my dear, have a legitimate claim to the
pride of birth. You mult, however, always
keep in your mind, that if the daughter of
fuch a father and mother as you can boaft has
only an ordinary (hare of merit, me will be
thought to have degenerated/.'

I cannot defcribe how I was affe&ed by
this difcourfe of Mr. Darnley. In fpite of
the fadnefs which the recollection of the lofs
of my parents always occafions, to. hear
them praifed was delightful, — it was the joy of
grief ~ple nf ant like the flower offering, is hen
it foftens the branches cf the oak, and the young
leaf lifts its green head*.

* O-fTian.

MORDAUNT. 385

I Will conclude this rambling letter with
an anecdote at once chara&eriftic of both my
uncle and aunt. She, you know, my dear,
is of a very hofpitable difpofition ; (he loves
to give frequent entertainments, and is pe-
culiarly gratified by having people of rank at
her table. But, though me annually exhaufts
the fum which he, with more regard to her
tafte than his own, moft liberally allows for
houfehold expenfes, yet me endeavours not
to exceed it. A perfon who pofleffed a con-
fiderable annuity from my uncle died lately.
My aunt, willing to add a little more fplen-
dor to their prefent eftablifhment, before me
would make the propofal, obferved to my
uncle, one day at breakfaft, that this annuity
made fuch an augmentation of their income,
as would enable him, without inconveniency,
to increafe their expenfes, unlefs he chofe
rather to lay it up.

" I have no intention to lay it up, my
dear," laid he.

VOL. ii. 2 c

GS6 MOR DAUNT.

" Indeed," replied fhe, « I fhould thinfc
it hardly worth while."

" I am glad you are of my opinion, my
dear ; and £hall now inform you, that I have
deftined one half of that annuity to the main-
tenance and education of the orphan children
of our late curate in the country, and the other
half to that diftant relation of yours who was
ftruck with the pdfy; unlefs/' continued he,
" you have thought of fome more ufeful way
of employing it."

A very deep blufh fpread over my aunt's
countenance : me threw her eyes on the
ground ; and, after a paufe, me faid — " In-
deed, rriy- dear, I can think of no way of
beftowing it that is half fo good : I fhould
now be extremely forry to fee it employed
otherwife. But, alas ! few in the world have
fo much generous reflection and benevolence
as you."

" 'That remark is by much too fevere
on the world, my dear," faid my uncle >

MORDAUNT. 3$7

*f but, as we are of one mind refpedting the
difpofal of the annuity, I (hall go and give
directions accordingly."

You fee, my dear Juliet, that I endeavour
to repay you, in quantity at leaft, for the
narrative you fent me. I fuppofe you will
foon have a vilit from the hero of that tale.
The marchionefs's friends at Richmond will
on no account part with her. I am con-
vinced they will not be able to keep her an
hour, however, after me hears of lady Diana's
arrival in London.

Adieu ! my dearefl Juliet.

H. CLIFFORD.

26 2

>3S MORDAUNT;

LETTER LXIV.
The Honourable JOHN MORDAUNT to Colonel

SOMMERS.
DEAR SOMMERS, Wlnchefter.

JL RAVERS. and I fet out from London far
Hampshire this morning. We were detained
here by fome bufinefs I had with a perfon
whom I found waiting for me at the inn.

Travers is gone to bed. -As I do not find
0

myfelf fo difpofed, I will recount a little in-

J A

cident ,that occurred on the road, and which

1

has never been entirely out of my thoughts

fmce. For aught I know it Is that, and
0

that only, which keeps off all difpofition
to ileep : my account of it will perhaps have
a contrary effect on you.

We rode on horfeback the two firft ports ;
and, as the weather was fine, fometimes de-
viated, on purpofe to have a more command-
ing view of the country.— The real view of

MORDAUNT. 389"

landfcapes is as pleating as rhoft verbal
defcriptions of them are fatiguing.

As we returned to the road, after one of
thefe fhort excurfions, we obferved a poft-
chaifc, with a woman, fomething in the ftyle
of a lady's maid in it, before the door of
a cottage. Juft as we came up, a lady
came out of the cottage, ftepped into the
chaife, the door of which her footman ihut,
mounted his horfe, and defired the ppftillion
to drive on.

I had two views of this lady's face — one

»

as me went from the cottage-door to the
chaife $ the other after fhe was in it, when
me put her head a moment from the window,
looking at Travers and me.

In the courfe of my life I never beheld
fo charming a countenance. Nothing could
equal the lovelinefs of her face, except the
elegance and fymmetry of her perfon. I
never was fo forcibly ftruck with the light-
ning of mere perfonal beauty : but it was not
2 c 3

390 MORDAUNT.

merely perfonal, for, in the two mort views
I had, I could perceive that

"Her eyes {hot fenfe, diftin& and clear
As any mufe's tongue could fpeak *."

*KA.n Phcebi foror ? an Nympharum fanguinis una ?"
faid Travers, as he followed the chaife with
his eyes -, then, turning to a young fellow, in
a failor's drefs, who flood near the door of
the cottage—*' I'll give you a milling, my
lad," laid he, " if you'll tell me who the
lady is who went lafl into the chaife ?"

" I would give half a crown myfelf to
know who (he is," anfwered the failor.

" I honour your generofity as well as your
tafle, my honefl fellow," cried Travers ;
" and you'll oblige me by accepting this
half-guinea, to drink the woman's health you
admire fo much."

*' Thank your honour," replied the failor,
*f All the information I can give you con-
cerning the lady who has juft fet fail is, that
I am fure {he is an Englifh woman."
* Prior.

MORDAUNT. 391

4< How can you be fure even -of that ?'*
faid Travers.

" Becaufe all your foreign women, were
they ever fo handfome, have fomething of an

outlandifh look, which this lady has hot," re-

>>
plied the failor.

<e You have feen a great many foreign wo-
men, perhaps," refumed Travers.

" I have failed round the world," anfwer-
ed he.

" You muft, then, have had great oppor-
tunities. — And, pray, where did you fee
the handfomeft?"

" Why, pleafe your honour, taking them
all in all," rejoined the failor, " 1 do not
know but tl?.e handfomeft women I ever faw,
that is to fay, out of England, was during a
voyage up the Mediterranean, where I chanc-
ed to get a glimpfe of fome Greek girls be-
longing to an old Turk."

" To an old Turk ?" faid Travers.

" Yes, very old, pleafe your honour. One
might have thought he had no more ufe for

2 c 4

392 MORDAUNT.

|b many girls than a dog has for a fide-pocket,
as the faying is. But the fight I had of them
had like to have coil: me very dear."
yfci" Thofe Greek girls came neareft in beauty
to the lady who is juft gone, you think?" faid
Travers.

" No, pleaie your honour— Nell Smith, of
Liverpool, comes neareft in the article of
face, which is all I can fpeak to in refpect of
Nell.1'

" You think, then, that Nell Smith her-
felf is not quite fo handfome as that lady ?"

** I cannot in confcience fay me is," re-
plied the failor ; " though, for my own part,
I would prefer Nell, for old acquaintance
fake."

" There is encouragement to matrimony,"
exclaimed Travers, addreffing me.

" Let us ftep into the cottage," faid I,
difmounting.

Travers did the fame j and having defired
the faiior to deliver his compliments to Nell
Smith, he followed me.

MORDAUNT. 393

We found a woman fuckling an infant, and
two girls, one about eight years old, and the
other about three, coarfely but neatly drefled.

On inquiring of the woman who the lady

was, (he anfwered, with fervour, " The lady

' i

is an angel!'

" This much I knew before. > But I wiih
to know her name, and the family me be-
longs to, " faid I, flipping a guinea into
her hand.

" It is not in my power, fir, to fatisfy you
in any of thofe matters," replied the poor
woman, offering me the guinea back again ;
which having refufed to take, I faid, " It
feems a little particular that you mould not
know the name of a lady who vifits you."

She then informed me " that her hufband
was a labouring man, who worked at a place
about a mile from the cottage ; that, fome
weeks ago, me had occafion to fend her eldeft
daughter to him three hours before the ufual
time of his return home 5 that the youngeft

394 MORDAUNT.

falling a crying to be allowed to accompany
her filter, and the weather being fair, {he had
confented; but when the children arrived at
the place where he ufually was at work, their
father was gone elfewhere, and they were ob-
liged to return. On their way home an unex-
peded rain had fallen ; the children were
drenched to the fkin j and the youngeft not
being able to walk the whole way, the eldeft
carried her till /he was ready to fink with fa*
^tigue. The lady was pafling in her carriage
at that moment : moved with companion at
the light of the children, fhe had Hopped her
carriage, and taken them into it." By the
elder child's direction, the poftillion drove to
the cottage. The mother had not gone in
fearch of them," becaufe me nevei doubted
their having found their father, and being
under his care. The poor woman added,
" that the lady had entered the cottage, feen
the children put to bed with as much care
as if me had been their mother, had given

MORDAUNT. 395

her money to buy them clothes— -Oh!
gentlemen, " continued me, with fervour,
" the lady you are inquiring after is, indeed,
an angel, if ever there was one on earth,
though my huiband will not allow me to
fay fo."

" Why will he not allow you ?"
" He fays there are no angels but thofe
which come from heaven ; and this lady has
never been there as yet."

" Your hufband is a very religious man ?"
" Yes, that he is j but he is a very honeft
man alfo."

" You do not think him the worfe for his
religion, then ?"

" Not a bit — it rather does him good. It
made him contented, even when things were
at the worft with us. The fame crofs acci-
dents which fet others a -curling makes him
fay his prayers. When I told him that the la-
dy's happening to pafs jufl when the children
were on the road was a very lucky accident,

396 MORDAUNT.

he faid " there was no accident -in it; fbrit
was all owing to Providence -y and therefore I
ought to be thankful to God."

" Well, what had you to anfwer to that ?"

I anfwered, '* I was thankful to God, whe-
ther it 'was owing to accident or to Provi-
dence. But, after all, I thought myfelf chiefly
obliged to the lady."

" What is the lady's name ?" faid I.

" I afked that ofteher than once,'' faid the
woman ; " but the fervants had orders not to
tell it : but I difcovered where me lived."

" I am glad of that," replied L— " Where
does ilie live ?"

" I am next to certain, " aniwered the
woman, « that fhe lives in London— for"

" What part of London ?"

*' Nay, that," rejoined fhe,. " I never could
learn.'*

As it was now too late to think of overtak-
ing the chaife, I continued my. inquiries, and
was informed that the lady had promifed to

place the eldeft girl, of whom (he focmed
particularly fond, at a fchool in the neigh-
bourhood, and to continue to affift the family
in other refpefts.

The poor woman, obferving that this in-
formation made me more anxious to know
who the lady was, faid, « I am fure your ho-
nour will not be long in finding her out; for
I have already told you that me lives in Lon-
don: and, from what I have heard, there are
not a great many fuch women there ; and
what there are muft, no doubt, be of the firft-

rate quality."

With this I was obliged to be fatisfied, and
fo took leave of the cottage, which I poflibly
may revifit on my return to London.— Tra-
vers and I had a good deal of converfation on
this incognita as we proceeded on our jour-
ney ; and after I had firiifhed my bufinefs with
the perfon who waited for me here, we re-
fumed the fame after fupper, till he became
drowfy and went to bed. I feized the pen,

398 MORDAUNT.

and have given you this important narra-
tive.

To-morrow we ihall be at my brother's by
his hour of breakfaft.

Adieu !

i MORDAUNT.

MORDAUNTi

LETTER LXV.

Hon. JOHN MORDAUNT to Col SOMMERS.

Rofe- Mount.

HERE! have been thefe three days ; and,
though I have no information to give you on
the main point, I feel myfelf difpofed to write

to you.

Habit is faid to be a fecond nature. I ufed
to think myfelf an exception to that maxim ;
yet my long practice of fcribbling from Ve-
vay has rendered letter-writing a pleafure,
which I formerly confidered as a tafk. In
proof of this effect of habit I could alfo name
fome of our acquaintance who married for
conveniency, without one particle of love,
and, of courfe, began their- conjugal career
in a ftate of indifference towards their yoke-
mate ; but, by the habit of dragging t he fame
weight together, both acquired a kim d of af-
fection for each other, which gradu; illy in-

40O MORDAUKT.

crcafed, and now they are never happy a*
funder.

Thefe obfervations, you will prefume, will
naturally incline me to break my refolution
againft marrying, and liften to my brother's
advice. So perhaps they might, if I could
not name a greater number of couples of our
acquaintance who married for love, and love
alone, grew lick of each other within a few
months, found their. mutual complaint to in-
creafe the more they were together, and ne-
ver were tolerably eafy unlefs they were a-
funder.

What is the meaning of this contrariety ?
Is it .poffible to believe that habit operates fo
fantaflically as to reconcile us only to what
we diflike, and to render us averfe to what
we are fond of ? No, — this idea is too whim-
iical to be juft. Tour experience, my dear
Sommers, and that of your Juliet, will re-
fute it.

Thodfe in the firft predicament, who marry
in fpito of diflike or indifference, are generally

40!

men whofe leading paflion is avarice, who
think domeflie difguft and difquiet do not
overbalance the pleasures which money can
procure ; or phlegmatic indolent women, in-
capable of a lively paffion, who, being fen-
fible of no fuch great difference between one
man and another as a difference of fortune
makes, facrifice the man they prefer in all
other refpedts, if he is deficient in fortune,
to him they contemn ot are entirely indif-
ferent about, if he be well provided in that
article : and it frequently happens, that their
original contempt of their hufband mellows
into indifference; and indifference, by dint
of habit, and by the continued affectation of
love, produces at laft a fpecies of liking bor^
dering on good-will : juft, by way of ex-
ample, as thofe who cannot afford claret take
to port, or perhaps porter ; which, though
unpalatable at firft, becomes lefs and lefs fo
by dint of patience and perfeverance, and at
kit tolerably fuits their tafle.

VOL. II. 2D

402 MORDAUNT.

. Thofe, on the oth?r hand, who, defpifing
mil -other .configurations, marry from love, and
fepar-ate foon after from hatred, may be com
pared to people who are fo fond of claret, that,
without thinking of the price, indulge in ex-
cels which' create 'difguft and remorfe.
:.„ Notwithstanding the experience I have had
^that habit can overcome diflike in the inftance
of letter- writing, and notwithflanding that, in
the foregoing illuftrations, the latter produces
. the moft difmal cataftrophe, I am fo framed,
:±liat if. I ever fhould venture ,on matrimony at
.iail^I am convinced I would choofe to rifk the
•.; of the claret-drinkers.'
That my brother has a particular lady in
•his. eye, "to Avhom hs wiilies me united, I
fufpecl: ; that I do not know the woman, to
whom. I fliould not think it a great misfor-
tune to be fo united, is certain. If I were
pbliged at this moment to make a choice, .1
do not know that I fhould not fix, at all rifks,
on. the lady of. the cottage, mentioned in my

MORDAUNT. 403:.

Lift. Can any thing be a Wronger proof of-
the flight impreffion which all my female ac-
quaintance have made on me ? The truth is,
none of them ever occupy my thoughts ;
whereas, that incognita has feldom been ab-
fent from my mind fmce I law her. I don't
know that I have not before feen women of
equal beauty ; but I am fure I never beheld
fb intelligent a countenance, or one fo pecu-
liarly to my tafte. On my foul, it is fmgu-
lar that me mould engrofs me fo much. I
mall furely forget her within a day or two.
I had but a mere glance of the woman. Were
I to allow the tranlient apparition to teaze me
much longer, I mould deferve, as Benedict
fays, " to have my eyes pickt out, and to
have my perfon hung up for the fign of blind
Cupid."

Lord Cardon arrived here the day after
Travers and I. I believe you are not ac-
quainted with that agreeable old..pe.er. To**
give you fome notion of him, as well as -of.

2D 1J

404 MORDAUNT,

my kinfman governor Flint, fhall be the fub»
ject of this letter.

To an excellent underftanding lord Cardon
joins the mofl cheerful difpofition, and the
happieft talent of pleafing. Some people
think that he has rather more wit and hu-
mour than is confident with the dignity o*
the peerage. Lord Gelid once told me fo,
and lamented it greatly, bccaufe he acknow^
ledged, "that, in fome other refpe&s, lordCar-
don was much of a nobleman."

With all his pleafantry, and air of care-
IdTnefs, few men pay more ferious attention
to the calls of humanity. He often make5
the firfh fubfervient to the purpofes of the
lafl ; and has often drawn thofe, whom com-
panion could not have moved, into acts of be-
jieficence for the joke's fake. He once pre^
yaile4 on lord Gelid, the moft unfeeling of
mankind, to perform an act of charity from,
pure fympathy. Having applied for an of-
fice in his lordlhif's gift, for a perfon whom.

WORD At NT. 405

he reprefented to be in peculiarly h?.:v

cumftantces, and menticr.-.r.

children to maintain,— lord Gelid zoftyQ&fa

(t that it was no hardship for a ^a::

tain his own children,"

Seeing that this ilatement had no efi
lord Cardon tried another, which he thought
might create more Sympathy.

M I arn of your lordflnp's opinion/' replied
he, " that it is no hardship for a man to main-
tain his own children ; but I hope you will
admit that it is a confiderable hardmip for a
man to be obliged to maintain children that
are not his own."

" Not his own • V* exclaimed lord Gelid :
is Whofe children are they then ?"

<f Alas ! my lord," replied lord Cardon,
" what augments the hardmip of this man's
cafe is, that the queilion you put is what
.none but his wife can anfwer. All that the
worthy man himfelf is phyfically certain cf is,
that the children are not his."

There was fomething in this

406 MORDAUNT.

which awakened the feelings of lord Gelid
fo uncommonly, that he granted the favour
demanded.

Since his arrival here, lord Cardon has alfo,
in a manner peculiar to himfelf, prevailed on
my brother to promife to ferve a perfon againft
whom he had been a good deal prejudiced.

You have heard the ftory of Mrs. — .

After that affair was firfl talked of, and when
k was thought that no part of her fortune
would be recovered, many who had called
themfelves her friends, and had profited by
her extravagance, abandoned her entirely,

.

without examining whether (he was fo much
to blame as was faid, or not.

Lord Cardon for fome time feemed to be
her only advocate j and yefterday, at break-
iaft, he endeavoured to intereft my brother
in her cafe, which is foon to be brought
before the Houfe of Peers.

My brother expreifed fome furprife at his
taking fo warm a part in a perfon who had
behaved fo very imprudently,

MORDAUNT. 407

" Had me always behaved with prudence,
my lord," faid lord Cardon, " fhe would not
have flood in need of any body to take her
part. But, I am convinced, that advantage
has been taken of her imprudent conduct, to
give a much worfe reprefentation of her than
me deferves. At all events, my lord, the
imprudence of her conduct has nothing to do
with the juflice of her claim. It is your at-
tention to her cafe only that I folicit your
lordfhip for : from me me has a right to ex-
peel: all the fupport in my power ; I lie un-
der a very important obligation to that lady."

"I cannot conceive," faid my brother,
" how your lordfhip can lie under an im-
portant obligation to fo frivolous a woman !"

" You will be ftill more at a lofs," re-
joined lord Cardon, " when I aflure you that
the obligation under which (he laid me is
increafed, inftead of being diminimed* by
the frivolity of the unfortunate lady's cha-
rafter. In fhort, my lord," continued he,
" though no traces of it remain now, Mrs.
• was, about twenty years ago, a very

40$ MO R DAUNT.

beautiful woman j and at that time I was
(and I fear fome traces of it remain flill) a
very giddy fellow 5 fo much fo, that I ac-
tually made a propofal 'of marriage to the
lady in queftion, which fhe had the good-
nefs to reject. This was an obligation of
fuch importance, as, without being the mod
ungrateful of men, I never can forget."

" Now that I am acquainted with the very
ciTential obligation which your lordmip lies

under to Mrs. , you may rely upon it,"

anfwered my brother, " that I fhall take pains
to underftand her cafe •> and, if I think me has
juftice on her fide, I will join your lordmip in
doing her all the fervice in my power."

I am fumrnoned to dinner; but if it rains
to-morrow as inceflantly as it has done to-day,
I mall give you a little more of lord Cardon.
Farewell !

OF THE SECOND VOLUME.

by S. Hamillcn, Falcon-court, Fleet-ltreet, Louden.

PR cMoore, John.,

3605 Mordaunt

M5M6

v.2

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