She had hardly said this, when she started, and a blush overspread her sweet face, on hearing, as I also did, a sort of lumbering noise upon the stairs, as if a large trunk were bringing up between two people:  and, looking upon me with an eye of concern, Blunderers! said she, they have brought in something two hours before the time.—­Don’t be surprised, Sir —­it is all to save you trouble.

Before I could speak, in came Mrs. Smith:  O Madam, said she, what have you done?—­Mrs. Lovick, entering, made the same exclamation.  Lord have mercy upon me, Madam! cried I, what have you done?—­For she, stepping at the same instant to the door, the women told me it was a coffin.—­O Lovelace! that thou hadst been there at that moment!—­Thou, the causer of all these shocking scenes!  Surely thou couldst not have been less affected than I, who have no guilt, as to her, to answer for.

With an intrepidity of a piece with the preparation, having directed them to carry it to her bed-chamber, she returned to us:  they were not to have brought it in till after dark, said she—­Pray, excuse me, Mr. Belford:  and don’t you, Mrs. Lovick, be concerned:  nor you, Mrs. Smith.—­Why should you?  There is nothing more in it than the unusualness of the thing.  Why may we not be as reasonably shocked at going to church where are the monuments of our ancestors, with whose dust we even hope our dust shall be one day mingled, as to be moved at such a sight as this?

We all remaining silent, the women having their aprons at their eyes, Why this concern for nothing at all? said she.  If I am to be blamed for any thing, it is for showing too much solicitude, as it may be thought, for this earthly part.  I love to do every thing for myself that I can do.  I ever did.  Every other material point is so far done, and taken care of, that I have had leisure for things of lesser moment.  Minutenesses may be observed, where greater articles are not neglected for them.  I might have had this to order, perhaps, when less fit to order it.  I have no mother, no sister, no Mrs. Norton, no Miss Howe, near me.  Some of you must have seen this in a few days, if not now; perhaps have had the friendly trouble of directing it.  And what is the difference of a few days to you, when I am gratified rather than discomposed by it?  I shall not die the sooner for such a preparation.  Should not every body that has any thing to bequeath make their will?  And who, that makes a will, should be afraid of a coffin?—­My dear friends, [to the women] I have considered these things; do not, with such an object before you as you have had in me for weeks, give me reason to think you have not.

How reasonable was all this!—­It showed, indeed, that she herself had well considered it.  But yet we could not help being shocked at the thoughts of the coffin thus brought in; the lovely person before our eyes who is, in all likelihood, so soon to fill it.