Every dirty passion, and bad propensity in my nature, took the alarm, as I stated the propofition-It will oblige you to have a third horse, said AVARICE, which will put twenty livres out of your pocket-You know not who she is, faid CAUTION- or what scrapes the affair may draw you into, whisper'd COWARDICE Depend upon it, Yorick! faid DISCRETION', 'twill be said you went off with a mistress, and came by assignation to Calais for that purpose : 1 -You can never after, cried HYPOCRISY aloud, shew your face in the world-or rife, quoth MEANNESS, in the church-or be any thing in it, faid PRIDE, but a loufy prebendary. : 1 But 'tis a civil thing, faid I and as I generally act, from the first impulfe, and therefore seldom listen to these cabals, which ferve no purpose, that I know of, but to encompass the heart with adamant-I turn'd instantly about to the lady -But she had glided off unperceived, as the cause was pleading, and had made ten or a dozen paces down the street, by the time I had made the determination; so I set off after her with a long ftride, to make her the proposal with the best address I was master of; but observing she walk'd with her cheek half refting upon the palm of her hand-with the flow, short-measur'd step of thoughtfulness, and with her eyes, as she went step by step, fix'd upon the ground, it struck me, she was trying the same cause herself. God help her! faid I, she has : has fome mother-in-law, or tartufish aunt, or nonfenfical old woman, to confult upon the occafion, as well as myself: so not caring to interrupt the processe, and deeming it more gallant to take her at difcretion than by surprize, I faced about, and took a short turn or two before the door of the Remise, whilst she walk'd mufing on one fide, Having, on first fight of the lady, fettled the affair in my fancy, "that she was of the better order of beings"-and then laid it down as a second axiom, as indisputable as the first, That she was a widow, and wore a character of diftress-I went no further; I got ground enough for the situation which pleased me-and had she remained close beside my elbow till midnight, I should have held true to my system, and confidered her only under that general idea. She had scarce got twenty paces diftant from me, ere something within me called out for a more particular inquiryit brought on the idea of a further separation--I might poffibly never fee her more-the heart is for saving what it can; and I wanted the traces thro' which my wishes might find their way to her, in cafe I should never rejoin her myself: in a word, I wish'd to know her name -her family's her condition; and as € I knew the place to which she was going, I wanted to know from whence she came; but there was no coming at all this intelligence: a hundred little delicacies stood in the way. I form'd a score different plans-There was no such thing as a man's afking her directlythe thing was impoffible. ८ A little French debonaire captain, who came dancing down the street, shewed me, it was the easiest thing in the world; for popping in betwixt us, just as the lady was returning back to the door of |