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my refentment. Sir,' cried I, the family which you now condefcend to favour ' with your company, has been bred with <as nice a sense of honour as you. Any

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attempts to injure that, may be at• tended with very dangerous confequences. Honour, Sir, is our only poffeffion at prefent, and of that laft treasure we must ⚫ be particularly careful.'--I was foon forry for the warmth with which I had spoken this, when the young gentleman, grafping my hand, fwore he commended my spirit, though he disapproved my fufpicions. As to your prefent hint,' continued he, I proteft nothing ، was farther from my heart than fuch a thought. No, by all that's tempting, the virtue that will stand a regular fiege

S was never to my taste ; for all my amours · are carried by a coup de main.'

The two ladies, who affected to be ignorant of the rest, seemed highly displeas ed with this laft ftroke of freedom, and began

began a very discreet and serious dialogue upon virtue: in this my wife, the chaplain, and I foon joined; and the 'Squire himself was at laft brought to confefs a fense of forrow for his former exceffes. We talked on the pleasures of temperance, and of the fun-fhine in the mind unpolluted with guilt. I was fo well pleased, that my little ones were kept up beyond the ufual time to be edified by so much good conversation. Mr. Thornhill even went beyond me, and demanded if I had any objection to giving prayers. I joyfully embraced the proposal, and in this manner the night was paffed in a most comfortable way, till at laft the company began to think of returning. The ladies seemed very unwilling to part with my daughters; for whom they had conceived a particular affection, and joined in a requeft to have the pleasure of their company home. The 'Squire feconded the propofal, and my wife added her entreaties:

ties: the girls too looked upon me as if they wished to go. In this perplexity I made two or three excufes, which my daughters as readily removed; fo that at laft I was obliged to give a peremptory refufal for which we had nothing but fullen looks and fhort anfwers the whole day enfuing.

CHAP.

CHAP. X.

The family endeavours to cope with their betters. The miseries of the poor when they attempt to appear above their cir

cumstances.

Now began to find that all my long and painful lectures upon temperance, simplicity and contentment, were entirely difregarded. The diftinctions lately paid us by our betters awaked that pride which I had laid asleep, but not removed. Our windows again, as formerly, were filled with washes for the neck and face. The fun was dreaded as an enemy to the skin without doors, and the fire as a spoiler of the complexion within. My wife observed, that rifing too early would hurt her daughters' eyes, that working after dinner would redden their noses, and fhe convinced me VOL. I. E that

that the hands never looked fo white as when they did nothing. Instead, therefore, of finishing George's fhirts, we now had them new modelling their old gauzes, or flourishing upon catgut. The The poor Mifs Flamboroughs, their former gay companions, were caft off as mean acquaintance, and the whole converfation ran upon high life and high lived company, with pictures, tafte, Shakespeare, and the mufical glaffes.

But we could have borne all this, had not a fortune-telling gypfey came to raise us into perfect fublimity. The tawney fybil no fooner appeared, than my girls came running to me for a fhilling apiece to cross her hand with filver. To fay the truth, I was tired of being always wife, and could not help gratifying their requeft, because I loved to fee them happy. I gave each of them a fhilling; though, for the honour of the family, it must be obferved, that they never went without money themselves, as my wife always generously let them have a guinea each, to keep in their pockets;

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