“The young person has resigned the neighbourhood.  I had an interview with the fair Papist myself, and also with the man Blaize.  They were both sensible, though one swore and the other sighed.  She is pretty.  I hope she does not paint.  I can affirm that her legs are strong, for she walks to Bellingham twice a week to take her Scarlet bath, when, having confessed and been made clean by the Romish unction, she walks back the brisker, of which my Protestant muscular systems is yet aware.  It was on the road to Bellingham I engaged her.  She is well in the matter of hair.  Madam Godiva might challenge her, it would be a fair match.  Has it never struck you that Woman is nearer the vegetable than Man?—­Mr. Blaize intends her for his son a junction that every lover of fairy mythology must desire to see consummated.  Young Tom is heir to all the agremens of the Beast.  The maids of Lobourne say (I hear) that he is a very Proculus among them.  Possibly the envious men say it for the maids.  Beauty does not speak bad grammar—­and altogether she is better out of the way.”

The other letter was from Lady Blandish, a lady’s letter, and said: 

“I have fulfilled your commission to the best of my ability, and heartily sad it has made me.  She is indeed very much above her station—­pity that it is so!  She is almost beautiful—­quite beautiful at times, and not in any way what you have been led to fancy.  The poor child had no story to tell.  I have again seen her, and talked with her for an hour as kindly as I could.  I could gather nothing more than we know.  It is just a woman’s history as it invariably commences.  Richard is the god of her idolatry.  She will renounce him, and sacrifice herself for his sake.  Are we so bad?  She asked me what she was to do.  She would do whatever was imposed upon her—­all but pretend to love another, and that she never would, and, I believe, never will.  You know I am sentimental, and I confess we dropped a few tears together.  Her uncle has sent her for the Winter to the institution where it appears she was educated, and where they are very fond of her and want to keep her, which it would be a good thing if they were to do.  The man is a good sort of man.  She was entrusted to him by her father, and he never interferes with her religion, and is very scrupulous about all that pertains to it, though, as he says, he is a Christian himself.  In the Spring (but the poor child does not know this) she is to come back, and be married to his lout of a son.  I am determined to prevent that.  May I not reckon on your promise to aid me?  When you see her, I am sure you will.  It would be sacrilege to look on and permit such a thing.  You know, they are cousins.  She asked me, where in the world there was one like Richard?  What could I answer?  They were your own words, and spoken with a depth of conviction!  I hope he is really calm.  I shudder to think of him when he comes, and discovers what I have been doing.