Them, and both, and they!—­How it goes against me to include this angel of a creature, and any man on earth but myself, in one world!

Capt.  Who can forbear being affected?—­But, Madam, you can be no other man’s.

Cl.  Nor would I be.  But he is so sunk with me!—­To fire the house!—­An artifice so vile!—­contrived for the worst of purposes!—­Would you have a daughter of your’s—­But what would I say?—­Yet you see that I have nobody in whom I can confide!—­Mr. Lovelace is a vindictive man!—­He could not love the creature whom he could insult as he has insulted me!

She paused.  And then resuming—­in short, I never, never can forgive him, nor he me.—­Do you think, Sir, I never would have gone so far as I have gone, if I had intended ever to draw with him in one yoke?—­I left behind me such a letter—­

You know, Madam, he has acknowledged the justice of your resentment—­

O Sir, he can acknowledge, and he can retract, fifty times a day—­but do not think I am trifling with myself and you, and want to be persuaded to forgive him, and to be his.  There is not a creature of my sex, who would have been more explicit, and more frank, than I would have been, from the moment I intended to be his, had I a heart like my own to deal with.  I was always above reserve, Sir, I will presume to say, where I had no cause of doubt.  Mr. Lovelace’s conduct has made me appear, perhaps, over-nice, when my heart wanted to be encouraged and assured! and when, if it had been so, my whole behaviour would have been governed by it.

She stopt; her handkerchief at her eyes.

I inquired after the minutest part of her behaviour, as well as after her words.  I love, thou knowest, to trace human nature, and more particularly female nature, through its most secret recesses.

The pitiful fellow was lost in silent admiration of her.  And thus the noble creature proceeded.

It is the fate in unequal unions, that tolerable creatures, through them, frequently incur censure, when more happily yoked they might be entitled to praise.  And shall I not shun a union with a man, that might lead into errors a creature who flatters herself that she is blest with an inclination to be good; and who wishes to make every one happy with whom she has any connection, even to her very servants?

She paused, taking a turn about the room—­the fellow, devil fetch him, a mummy all the time:—­Then proceeded.

Formerly, indeed, I hoped to be an humble mean of reforming him.  But, when I have no such hope, is it right [you are a serious man, Sir] to make a venture that shall endanger my own morals?

Still silent was the varlet.  If my advocate had nothing to say for me, what hope of carrying my cause?

And now, Sir, what is the result of all?—­It is this—­that you will endeavour, if you have that influence over him which a man of your sense and experience ought to have, to prevail upon him, and that for his own sake, as well as for mine, to leave me free, to pursue my own destiny.  And of this you may assure him, that I will never be any other man’s.