ing, and been refined into delicacy of fentiment, from the daughters of the Eaft, whofe education is only formed to improve the perfon, and make them more tempting objects of proftitution! Adieu.

LETTER LIX.

FROM THE SAME.

WHEN fufficiently refreshed after the fatigues of our precipitate flight, my curiofity, which had been reftrained by the appearance of immediate danger, now began to revive: I longed to know by what distressful accidents my fair fugitive became a captive, and could not avoid teftifying a furprize how fo much beauty could be involved in the calamities from whence the had been fo lately rescued.

Talk not of perfonal charms, cried the with emotion, fince to them I owe every misfortune: look round on the numberless beauties of the country where we are; and fee how Nature has poured its charms upon every face, and yet by this profufion Heaven would feem to fhew how little it regards fuch a bleffing, fince the gift is lavished upon a nation of prostitutes.

I perceive you defire to know my story, and your curiofity is not fo great as my impatience to gratify it: I find a pleasure in telling paft misfortunes to any, but when my deliverer is pleafed with the relation, my pleasure is prompted by duty.

I * was born in a country far to the West, where the men are braver, and the women more fair than those of Circaffia; where the valour of the hero is guided by wisdom, and where delicacy of fentiment points the fhafts of female beauty. I was the only daughter of an officer in the army, the child of his age, and as he used fondly to exprefs it, the only chain that bound him to the world, or made his life pleafing. His ftation procured him an acquaintance with men of greater rank and of fortune than himfelf, and his regard for me induced him to bring me into every family where he was acquainted. Thus I was early taught all the elegancies and fashionable foibles of fuch as the world calls polite, and though without fortune myfelf, was taught to defpife those who lived as if they were poor.

My intercourfe with the great, and my affectation of grandeur procured me many lovers; but want of fortune deterred them all from any other views than thofe of paffing the prefent moment agreeably, or of meditating my future ruin. In every company I found myfelf addreffed in a warmer ftrain of paffion, than other ladies who were fuperior in point of rank and beauty; and this I imputed to an excess of respect, which in reality proceeded from very different motives.

Among the number of fuch as paid me their addreffes, was a gentleman, a friend of my father, rather in the decline of life, with nothing remarkable either in his perfon or addrefs to recommend him. His age which was about forty, his fortune which was moderate, and barely fufficient to support him, ferved to throw me off my guard, fo that I confidered him as the only fincere admirer I had.

* This story bears a ftriking fimilitude to the real history of Mifs Sd who accompanied Lady W--e, in her retreat near Florence, and which the editor had from her own mouth.

Defigning

Defigning lovers in the decline of life are ever moft dangerous. Skilled in all the weakneffes of the fex, they feize each favourable opportunity, and by having lefs paffion than youthful admirers, have lefs real refpect, and therefore lefs timidity. This infidious wretch used a thousand arts to fucceed in his bafe defigns, all which I faw, but imputed to different views, because I thought it abfurd to believe the real motives.

As he continued to frequent my father's, the friendship between them became every day greater; and at laft from the intimacy with which he was received, I was taught to look upon him as a guardian and a friend. Though I never loved, yet I efteemed him; and this was enough to make me with for a union, for which he feemed defirous, but to which he feigned feveral delays; while in the mean time, from a falfe report of our being married, every other admirer forfook me.

I was at last however awakened from the delufion, by an account of his being just married to another young lady with a confiderable fortune.. This was no great mortification to me, as I had always regarded him merely from prudential motives; but it had a very different effect upon my father, who, rash and paffionate by Nature, and befides ftimulated by a mistaken notion of military honour, upbraided his friend in fuch terms, that a challenge was foon given and accepted.

It was about midnight when I was awakened by a meffage from my father, who defired to fee me that moment. I rofe with fome furprize, and following the meffenger, attended only by another servant, came to a field not far from the house, where I found him, the affertor of my honour, my only friend and fupporter, the tutor and companion of my youth, lying on one fide covered over with

blood,

blood, and juft expiring. No tears streamed down my cheeks, nor figh efcaped from my breaft, at an object of fuch terror. I fat down, and fupported his aged head in my lap, gazed upon the ghaftly vifage with an agony more poignant even than defpairing madnefs. The fervants were gone for more affiftance. In this gloomy ftillness of the night no founds were heard but his agonizing refpirations; no object was prefented but his wounds, which still continued to ftream. With filent anguifh I hung over his dear face, and with my hands ftrove to stop the blood as it flowed from his wounds; he seemed at first infenfible, but at laft turning his dying eyes upon me, "My dear, dear child, cried he, dear, though you have forgotten your own honour and ftained mine, I will yet forgive you; by abandoning virtue you have undone me and yourself, yet take my forgiveness with the fame compaffion I wish Heaven may pity me." He expired. All my fucceeding happiness fled with him. Reflecting that I was the caufe of his death whom only I loved upon earth; accused of betraying the honour of his family with his lateft breath; confcious of my own innocence, yet without even a poffibility of vindicating it; without fortune or friends to relieve or pity me; abandoned to infamy and the wide cenfuring world, I called out upon the dead body that lay ftretched before me, and in the agony of my heart afked why he could have left me thus! Why, my dear, my only pappa, why could you ruin me thus and yourself for ever! O pity, and return, fince there is none but you to comfort me.

I foon found that I had real caufe for forrow; that I was to expect no compaffion from. my own fex, nor affiftance from the other; and that reputation was much more useful in our commerce with mankind than really to deferve it. Wherever I

came, I perceived myfelf received either with contempt or deteftation; or whenever I was civilly treated, it was from the moft bafe and ungenerous motives.

Thus driven from the fociety of the virtuous, I was at laft, in order to difpel the anxieties of infupportable folitude, obliged to take up with the company of those whofe characters were blafted like my own; but who perhaps deferved their infamy. Among this number was a lady of the firft diftinction, whofe character the public thought proper to brand even with greater infamy than mine. A fimilitude of diftrefs foon united us; I knew that general reproach had made her miferable; and I had learned to regard mifery as an excufe for guilt. Though this lady had not virtue enough to avoid reproach, yet he had too much delicate fenfibility not to feel it. She therefore propofed our leaving the country where we were born, and going to live in Italy, where our characters and misfortunes would be unknown. With this I eagerly complied, and we foon found ourselves in one of the most charming retreats in the most beautiful province of that inchanting country.

Had my companion chofen this as a retreat for injured virtue, an harbour where we might look with tranquillity on the distant angry world, I should have been happy; but very different was her defign; fhe had pitched upon this fituation only to enjoy thofe pleasures in private, which she had not fufficient effrontery to fatisfy in a more open manner. A nearer acquaintance foon fhewed me the vicious part of her character; her mind as well as her body feemed formed only for pleafure; fhe was fentimental only as it ferved to protract the immediate enjoyment. Formed for fociety alone, fhe Ipoke infinitely better than fhe wrote, and wrote infinitely