“Come, come, Mrs. Cholmondeley, I won’t have her overpowered here!”

I love Sir Joshua much for this, But Mrs. Cholmondeley, turning to him, said, with quickness and vehemence:—­

“Why, I a’n’t going to kill her! don’t be afraid, I sha’n’t compliment her!-I can’t, indeed!”

Then, taking my hand, she led me through them all, to another part of the room, where again she examined my phiz, and viewed and reviewed my whole person.

“Now,” said she, “do tell me; is it true?”

“What, ma’am?—­I don’t-I don’t know what—­”

“Pho! what,-why you know what:  in short, can you read? and can you write?”

“No, ma’am!”

“I thought so,” cried she I have suspected it was a trick, some time, and now I am sure of it.  You are too young by half!-it can’t be!”

I laughed, and would have got away, but she would not let me.

“No,” cried she, “one thing you must, at least, tell me;—­are you very conceited?  Come, answer me,” continued she.  “You won’t?  Mrs. Burney, Dr. Burney,—­come here,—­tell me if she is not very conceited?—­if she is not eat up with conceit by this time?”

They were both pleased to answer “Not half enough.”

“Well,” exclaimed she, “that is the most wonderful part of all!  Why, that is yet more extraordinary than writing the book.”

I then got away from her, and again looked over Miss Palmer’s cards :  but she was after me in a minute,

117

“Pray, Miss Burney,” cried she, aloud, “do you know any thing of this game?”

“No, ma’am.”

“No?” repeated she, “ma foi, that’s pity!"(79)

This raised such a laugh, I was forced to move on; yet everybody seemed to be afraid to laugh, too, and studying to be delicate, as if they had been cautioned; which, I have since found, was really the case, and by Sir Joshua himself.

Again, however, she was at my side.

“What game do you like, Miss Burney?” cried she.

“I play at none, ma’am.”

“No?  Pardie, I wonder at that!  Did you ever know such a toad?”

Again I moved on, and got behind Mr. W. Burke, who, turning round to me, said,—­

“This is not very politic in us, Miss Burney, to play at cards, and have you listen to our follies.”

There’s for you!  I am to pass for a censoress now.

Mrs. Cholmondeley hunted me quite round the card-table, from chair to chair, repeating various speeches of Madame Duval; and when, at last, I got behind a sofa, out of her reach, she called out aloud, " Polly, Polly ! only think! miss has danced with a lord

Some time after, contriving to again get near me, she began flirting her fan, and exclaiming, “Well, miss, I have had a beau, I assure you! ay, and a very pretty beau too, though I don’t know if his lodgings were so prettily furnished, and everything, as Mr. Smith’s."(80)