I was afraid, for thy sake, to let her know how very earnest I had been:  but assured her that I had been her zealous friend; and that my motives were founded upon a merit, that, I believed, was never equaled:  that, however indefensible Mr. Lovelace was, he had always done justice to her virtue:  that to a full conviction of her untainted honour it was owing that he so earnestly desired to call so inestimable a jewel his—­and was proceeding, when she again cut me short—­

Enough, and too much, of this subject, Sir!—­If he will never more let me behold his face, that is all I have now to ask of him.—­Indeed, indeed, clasping her hands, I never will, if I can, by any means not criminally desperate, avoid it.

What could I say for thee?—­There was no room, however, at that time, to touch this string again, for fear of bringing upon myself a prohibition, not only of the subject, but of ever attending her again.

I gave some distant intimations of money-matters.  I should have told thee, when I read to her that passage, where thou biddest me force what sums upon her I can get her to take—­she repeated, No, no, no, no! several times with great quickness; and I durst no more than just intimate it again—­and that so darkly, as left her room to seem not to understand me.

Indeed I know not the person, man or woman, I should be so much afraid of disobliging, or incurring a censure from, as from her.  She has so much true dignity in her manner, without pride or arrogance, (which, in those who have either, one is tempted to mortify,) such a piercing eye, yet softened so sweetly with rays of benignity, that she commands all one’s reverence.

Methinks I have a kind of holy love for this angel of a woman; and it is matter of astonishment to me, that thou couldst converse with her a quarter of an hour together, and hold thy devilish purposes.

Guarded as she was by piety, prudence, virtue, dignity, family, fortune, and a purity of heart that never woman before her boasted, what a real devil must he be (yet I doubt I shall make thee proud!) who could resolve to break through so many fences!

For my own part, I am more and more sensible that I ought not to have contented myself with representing against, and expostulating with thee upon, thy base intentions:  and indeed I had it in my head, more than once, to try to do something for her.  But, wretch that I was!  I was with-held by notions of false honour, as she justly reproached me, because of thy own voluntary communications to me of thy purposes:  and then, as she was brought into such a cursed house, and was so watched by thyself, as well as by thy infernal agents, I thought (knowing my man!) that I should only accelerate the intended mischiefs.—­Moreover, finding thee so much over-awed by her virtue, that thou hadst not, at thy first carrying her thither, the courage to attempt her; and that she had, more than once, without knowing thy base views, obliged thee to abandon them, and to resolve to do her justice, and thyself honour; I hardly doubted, that her merit would be triumphant at last.