fo.-Dieu m'en guarde! faid the girl.-With reason, faid I-for if it is a good one, 'tis pity it fhould be ftolen: 'tis a little treasure to thee, and gives a better air to your face, than if it was drefs'd out with pearls.

The young girl liftened with a fubmiffive attention, holding her fattin purfe by its ribband in her hand all the time-'Tis a very 11 one, faid I, taking hold of the bottom of it-fhe held it towards me-and there is very little in it, my dear, faid I; but be but as good as thou art handsome, and heaven will fill it: I had a parcel of crowns in my hand to pay for Shakespear; and as fhe had let go the purse entirely, I put a fingle one in; and tying up the ribband in a bow-knot, returned it to her.

The young girl made me more a humble courtely than a low one 'twas one of those quiet, thankful finkings where the spirit bows itfelf down the body does no more than tell it. I never gave a girl a crown in my life which gave me half the pleasure.

My

My advice, my dear, would not have been worth a pin to you, faid I, if I had not given this along with it: but now, when you see the crown, you'll remember it-fo don't, my dear, lay it out in ribbands.

!

Upon my word, Sir, faid the girl, earnestly, I am incapable-in faying which, as is ufual in little bargains of honour, fhe gave me her hand-En verité, Monfieur, je mettrai cet argent à part, faid fhe.

When a virtuous convention is made betwixt man and woman, it fanctifies their most private walks: so notwithstanding it was dusky, yet, as both our roads lay the fame way, we made no fcruple of walking along the Quai de Conti together.

She made me a fecond courtesy in fetting off, and before we got twenty yards from the door, as if fhe had not done enough before, she made a fort of a little ftop to tell me again -fhe thank'd me..

It was a final tribute, I told her, which I could not avoid paying to virtue, and would

nat

not be mistaken in the perfon I had been rendering it to for the world-but I fee innocence, my dear, in your face-and foul befal the man who ever lays a fare in its way!

The girl feem'd affected fome way or other with what I faid-she gave a low figh-I found I was not impowered to enquire at all after it -fo faid nothing more till I got to the corner of the Rue de Nevers, where we were to part.

-But is this the way, my dear, faid I, to the hôtel de Modene? fhe told me it was-or, that I might go by the Rue de Guineygaude, which was the next turn.-Then I'll go, my dear, by the Rue de Guineygaude, faid I, for two reafons; first I shall please myself, and next I shall give you the protection of my company as far on your way as I can. The girl was fenfible I was civil-and faid, fhe wifh'd the hôtel de Modene was in the Rue de St. Pierre-You live there? faid I.-She told me she was fille de chambre to Madame R-,-Good God! faid I, 'tis the very lady for whom I have brought a letter from Amiens-The girl told me that Madame

Madame R, fhe believed, expected a flranger with a letter, and was impatient to fee him-fo I defired the girl to present my com pliments to Madane R, and say I would certainly wait upon her in the morning.

We flood fill at the corner of the Rue dé Nevers whilft this pafs'd-We then stopp'd a moment whilst she disposed of her Egarements du Coeur &c. more commodiously than carrying them in her hand-they, were two volumes; fo I held the fecond for her whilft she put the first into her pocket; and then she held her pocket, and I put in the other after it.

'Tis fweet to feel by what fine-spun threads our affections are drawn together.

We fet off a-fresh, and as fhe took her third ftep, the girl put her hand within my arm-I was juft bidding her-but she did it of herself with that undeliberating fimplicity, which fhew'd it was out of her head that she had never feen me before. For my own part, felt the conviction of confanguinity fo ftrongly,

that

I

that I could not help turning half round to look in her face, and fee if I could trace out any thing in it of a family likeness-Tut! faid I, are we not all relations?

When we arrived at the turning up of the Rue de Guineygaude, I ftopp'd to bid her adieu for good and all: the girl would thank me again for my company and kindness-She bid me adieu twice-I repeated it as often; and fo cordial was the parting between us, that had it happen'd any where elfe, I'm not fure but I fhould have figned it with a kiss of charity, as warm and holy as an apostle.

But in Paris, as none kifs each other, but. the men- I did, what amounted to the fame thing.-

I bid God blefs her.

THE PASSPORT.

PARIS.

WHEN I got home to my hôtel, La Fleur

told me I had been enquired after by the Lieu

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