He shunned me, as a thief would a constable at the head of a hue-and-cry.  As I entered one room, he went into another, looking with conscious guilt, yet confidently humming a tune.  At last I fixed him, bidding Rachel tell Polly be wanted to send a message by her to her lady.  By which I doubted not he was desirous to know what she had owned, in order to govern himself accordingly.

His back was towards me; and I said—­

“Mr. H., here I am myself, to take your commands.”

He gave a caper half a yard high—­“Madam, I wanted—­I wanted to speak to—­I would have spoken with—­”

“You wanted to send Polly to me, perhaps, Mr. H., to ask if I would take a little walk with you in the garden.”

“Very true, Madam!—­Very true indeed!—­You have guessed the matter.  I thought it was pity, this fine day, as every body was taking airing—­”

“Well then.  Sir, please to lead the way, and I’ll attend you.”

“Yet I fancy, Madam, the wind is a little too high for you.—­Won’t you catch cold?”—­“No, never fear, Mr. H., I am not afraid of a little air.”

“I will attend you presently, Madam:  you’ll be in the great gravel walk, or on the terrace.—­I’ll wait upon you in an instant.”

I had the courage to take hold of his arm, as if I had like to have slipt.—­For, thought I, thou shalt not see the girl till I have talked to thee a little, if thou dost then.—­“Excuse me, Mr. H.—­I hope I have not hurt my foot—­I must lean upon you.”

“Will you be pleased, Madam, to have a chair?  I fear you have sprained your foot.—­Shall I help you to a chair?”

“No, no, Sir, I shall walk it off, if I hold by you.”

So he had no excuse to leave me, and we proceeded into the garden.  But never did any thing look so like a foolish fellow, as his aunt calls him.  He looked, if possible, half a dozen ways at once, hemm’d, coughed, turned his head behind him every now and then, started half a dozen silly subjects, in hopes to hinder me from speaking.

I appeared, I believe, under some concern how to begin with him; for he would have it I was not very well, and begged he might step in one minute to desire Mrs. Jervis to attend me.

So I resolved to begin with him; lest I should lose the opportunity, seeing my eel so very slippery.  And placing myself on a seat, asked him to sit down.  He declined, and would wait upon me presently, he said, and seemed to be going.  So I began—­“It is easy for me, Mr. H., to penetrate into the reason why you are so willing to leave me:  but ’tis for your own sake, that I desire you to hear me, that no mischief may ensue among friends and relations, on an occasion to which you are no stranger.”

“O, Madam, what can you mean?  Surely, Madam, you don’t think amiss of a little innocent liberty, or so!”

“Mr. H.,” replied I, “I want not any evidence of your inhospitable designs upon a poor unwary young creature, whom your birth and quality have found it too easy a task to influence.”