room where he was informed she was, and after some little discourse, which he thought was becoming enough from a person of his condition to one of her’s, began to treat her with freedoms which she could not help resisting with more fierceness than he had been accustomed to from women of a much higher rank; but as he had no great notion of virtue, especially among people of her sphere, he mistook all she said or did for artifice; and imagining she enhanced the merit of the gift only to enhance the recompence, he told her he would make her a handsome settlement, and offered, as an earnest of his future gratitude, a purse of money.  The generous maid fired with a noble disdain at a proposal, which she looked on only as an additional insult, struck down the purse with the utmost indignation and cried, she was not of the number of those who thought gold an equivalent for infamy; and that mean as she appeared, not all his wealth should bribe her to a dishonourable action.  At first he endeavoured to laugh her out of such idle notions as he called them, and was so far from being rebuffed at any thing she said, that he began to kiss and toy with her more freely than before, telling her he would bring her into a better humour; but he was wholly deceived in his expectations, if he had any of the nature he pretended, for she became so irritated at being treated in this manner, that she called out to the servants to come to her assistance, and protected she would not stay an hour longer in the house if she could not be secured from such impertinencies; on which he said she was a silly romantic fool, and flung out of the room.

Mrs. C——­ge hearing there had been some bustle, came up soon after and found Louisa in tears:  she immediately complained, of mr.  B——­n’s behaviour to her, and said, tho’ she acknowledged herself under many obligations to her for the favours she had conferred on her, she could not think of remaining in a place where, tho’ she could not say her virtue had any severe trials, because she had a natural detestation to crimes of the kind that gentleman and some others had mentioned, yet her person was liable to be affronted.  The milliner, who was surprized to hear her talk in this manner, but who understood her trade perfectly well, answered, that he was the best conditioned civil gentleman in the world;—­that she did not know how it happened;—­that she was certain indeed he loved her; and that it was in his power to make her a very happy woman if she were inclined to accept his offers;—­but she would perswade her to nothing.

These kind of discourses created a kind of abhorrence in Louisa, as they plainly shewed her, what before she had some reason to believe, that she was in the house of one who would think nothing a crime that she found it her own interest to promote.  However, she thought it would be imprudent to break too abruptly with her, and contented herself for the present with encasing her promise that neither mr.  B——­n, nor any other person should for the future give her the least interruption of the like sort.