it at length reached Amelia's ears. She said she was very much obliged to me: since I could have so much compassion for her as to be rude to a lady on her account.

About a month after the accident, when Amelia began to see company in a mask, I had the honour to drink tea with her. We were alone together, and I begged her to indulge my curiosity by showing me her face. She answered in a most obliging manner, "Perhaps, Mr. Booth, you will as little know me when my mask is off, as when it is on;" and at the same time unmasked. -The surgeon's skill was the least I had considered. A thousand tender ideas rushed all at once on my mind. I was unable to contain myself, and eagerly kissing her hand, I cried,-Upon my soul, madam, you never appeared to me so lovely as at this instant. Nothing more remarkable passed at this visit; but I sincerely believe we were neither of us hereafter indifferent to each other.

Many months, however, passed after this, before I ever thought seriously of making her my wife. Not that I wanted sufficient love for Amelia. Indeed it arose from the vast affection I bore her. I considered my own as a desperate fortune, hers as entirely dependent on her mother, who was a woman, you know, of violent passions, and very unlikely to consent to a match so highly contrary to the interest of her daughter. The more I loved Amelia, the more firinly I resolved within myself, never to propose love to her seriously. Such a dupe was my understanding to my heart; and so foolishly did I imagine I could be master of a flame, to which I was every day adding fuel.

O, Miss Matthews! we have heard of men entirely masters of their passions, and of hearts which can carry this fire in them, and conceal it at their pleasure. Perhaps there may be such; but if there are, those hearts may be compared, I believe, to damps, in which it is more difficult to keep fire alive than to prevent its blazing: in mine, it was placed in the midst of combustible matter.

⚫ After several visits, in which looks and sighs had been interchanged on both sides, but without the least mention of passion in private, one day the discourse between us, when alone, happened to turn on love; I say happened, for I protest it was not designed on my side, and I am as firmly convinced not on hers. I was now no longer master of myself; I declared myself the most wretched of all martyrs to this tender passion; that I had long concealed it from its object. At length, after mentioning many particulars, suppressing, however, those which must have necessarily brought it home to Amelia, I concluded with begging her to be the confidante of my amour, and to give me her advice on that occasion.

'Amelia, (O, I shall never forget the dear perturbation!) appeared all confusion at this instant. She trembled, turned pale, and discovered how well she understood me, by a thousand more symptoms than I could take notice of, in a state of mind so very little different from her own. At last, with faltering accents, she said, I had made a very ill choice of a counsellor, in a matter in which she was so ignorant.—Adding, at last, I believe, Mr. Booth, you gentlemen want very little advice in these affairs, which you all understand better than we do.

'I will relate no more of our conversation at present; indeed, I am afraid I tire you with too many particulars.'

'Ono!' answered she; 'I should be glad to hear every step of an amour which had so tender a beginning. Tell me every thing you said or did, if you can remember it.' He then proceeded, and so will we in the next chapter.

CHAPTER II.

Mr. Booth continues his story. In this chapter there are some passages that may serve as a kind of touchstone, by which the young lady may examine the heart of her lover. I would advise, therefore, that every lover be obliged to read it over in the presence of his mistress, and that she carefully watch his emotions while he is reading.

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'I was under the utmost concern,' cries Booth, when I retired from my visit, and had reflected coolly on what I had said. I now saw plainly that I had made downright love to Amelia; and I feared, such was my vanity, that I had already gone too far, and been too successful. Feared! do I say, could I fear what I hoped? how shall I describe the anxiety of my mind!'

You need give yourself no great pain,' cried Miss Matthews, to describe what I can so easily guess. To be honest with you, Mr. Booth, I do not agree with your lady's opinion, that the men have a superior understanding in the matters of love. Men are often blind to the passions of women: but every woman is as quick-sighted as a hawk on these occasions: nor is there one article in the whole science which is not understood by all our sex.'

'However, madam,' said Mr. Booth, 'I now undertook to deceive Amelia. I abstained three days from seeing her; to say the truth, I endeavoured to work myself up to a resolution of leaving her forever; but when I could not so far subdue my passion

-But why do I talk nonsense, of subduing passion? I should say, when no other passion could surmount my love. I returned to visit her, and now I attempted the strangest project which ever entered the silly head of a lover. This was to persuade Amelia that I was really in love in another place, and

tears at the same time overflowing all her lovely cheeks. I was endeavouring to reply, when I was interrupted by what soon put an end to the scene.

Matthews, 'you took a most preposterous method to cure yourself?'

'Alas, madam,' answered he,' you cannot see it in a more absurd light than I do; but those know little of real love or grief, who do not know how much we deceive ourselves when we pretend to aim at the cure of either. It is with these, as it is with some distempers of the body, nothing is, in the least, agreeable to us but what serves to heighten the disease.

At the period then above-mentioned, Mrs. Harris burst from the closet where she had hid herself, and surprised her daughter, reclining on my bosom, in all that tender sorrow I have just described. I will not attempt to paint the rage of the mother, or the daughter's confusion, or my own. Here are very fine doings, indeed, cries Mrs. Harris; You have made a noble use, Amelia, of my indulgence, and the trust I reposed in you.-As for you, Mr. Booth, I will not accuse you; you have used my child, as I ought to have expected; I may thank myself for what hath happened; with much more of the same kind, before she would suffer me to speak; but at last, I obtained a hearing, and offered to excuse my poor Amelia, who was ready to sink into the earth under the oppression of grief, by taking as much blame as I could on myself. Mrs. Harris answered, No, sir, I must say you are innocent in comparison of her; nay, I have heard you use dissuasive arguments; and I promise you they are of weight. I have, I thank Heaven, one dutiful child, and I shall henceforth think her my only one. -She then forced the poor, trembling, fainting Amelia out of the room; which when she had done, she began very coolly to reason with me on the folly, as well as iniquity, which I had been guilty of; and repeated to me almost every word I had before urged to her daughter. In fine, she at last obtained of me a promise, that I would soon go to my regiment, and submit to any misery, rather than that of being the ruin of Amelia.

'I now, for many days, endured the greatest torment which the human mind is, I believe, capable of feeling; and I can honestly say, I tried all the means, and applied every argument which I could raise, to cure me of my love. And to make these the more effectual, I spent every night in walking backwards and forwards in the sight of Mrs. Harris's house, where I never failed to find some object or other, which raised some tender idea of my lovely Amelia, and almost drove me to distraction.'.

And don't you think, sir,' said Miss

At the end of a fortnight, when I was

spair, and could contrive no method of conveying a letter to Amelia, how was I surprised when Mrs. Harris's servant brought ine a card, with an invitation from the mother herself, to drink tea that evening at her house!

You will easily believe, madam, that I did not fail so agreeable an appointment; on my arrival, I was introduced into a large company of men and women, Mrs. Harris and my Amelia being part of the company.

"Amelia seemed in my eyes to look more beautiful than ever, and behaved with all the gayety imaginable. The old lady treated me with much civility; but the young lady took little notice of me, and addressed most of her discourse to another gentleman present. Indeed, she now and then gave me a look of no discouraging kind; and 1 observed her colour change more than once, when her eyes met mine; circumstances which, perhaps, ought to have afforded me sufficient comfort, but they could not allay the thousand doubts and fears with which I was alarmed; for my anxious thoughts suggested no less to me than that Amelia had made her peace with her mother at the price of abandoning me for ever, and of giving her ear to some other lover. All my prudence now vanished at once; and I would that instant have gladly run away with Amelia, and have married her, without the least consideration of any consequences.

With such thoughts I had tormented myself for near two hours, till most of the company had taken their leave. This I was myself incapable of doing; nor do I know when I should have put an end to my visit, had not Dr. Harrison taken me away almost by force, telling me, in a whisper, that he had something to say to me of great consequence.-You know the doctor, ma

dam.'

'Very well, sir,' answered Miss Matthews, and one of the best men in the world he is, and an honour to the sacred order to which he belongs.'

You will judge,' replied Booth, by 'the sequel whether I have reason to think him so. He then proceeded as in the next chapter.

CHAPTER IV.

The story of Mr. Booth continued. In this chapter the reader will perceive a glimpse of the character of a very good divine; with some matters of a very lender kind.

'THE doctor conducted me into his study; and then desiring me to sit down, began, as near as I can remember, in these words, or at least to this purpose:

'You cannot imagine, young gentleman, that your love for Miss Emily is any secret in this place; I have known it some time, and have been, I assure you, very much your enemy in this affair.'

I answered, that I was very much obliged to him.'

Why, so you are, replied he; and so, perhaps, you will think yourself when you know all. I went about a fortnight ago, to Mrs. Harris, to acquaint her with my apprehensions on her daughter's account; for though the matter was much talked of, I thought it might possibly not have reached her ears. I will be very plain with you. I advised her to take all possible care of the young lady, and even to send her to some place, where she might be effectually kept out of your reach, while you remained in the town.

And do you think, sir, said I, that this was acting a kind part by me? or do you expect that I should thank you on this occasion?'

"Young man, answered he, I did not intend you any kindness; nor do I desire any of your thanks. My intention was, to preserve a worthy lady from a young fellow of whom I had heard no good character, and whom I imagined to have a design of stealing a human creature for the sake of her fortune.

It was very kind of you, indeed, answered I, to entertain such an opinion of me. Why, sir, replied the doctor, it is the opinion which, I believe, most of you young gentlemen of the order of the rag deserve. I have known some instances, and have heard of more, where such young fellows have committed robbery, under the name of marriage.

'I cannot express, nor would modesty suffer me, if I could, all that now passed. The doctor took me by the hand, and burst forth into the warmest commendations of the sense and generosity which, he was pleased to say, discovered themselves in my speech. You know, madam, his strong and singular way of expressing himself on all occasions, especially when he is affected with any thing. Sir, said he, if I knew half a dozen such instances in the army, the painter should put red liveries upon all the saints in my closet.

From this instant, the doctor told me, he had become my friend and zealous advocate with Mrs. Harris, on whom he at last prevailed, though not without the greatest difficulty, to consent to my marrying Amelia, upon condition that I settled every penny which the mother should lay down; and that she would retain a certain sum in her hands, which she would at any time deposit for my advancement in the army.

'You will, I hope, madam, conceive, that I made no hesitation at these conditions; nor need I mention the joy which I felt on this occasion, or the acknowledgment I paid the doctor, who is, indeed, as you say, one of the best of men.

'The next morning I had permission to visit Amelia, who received me in such a manner, that I now concluded my happiness to be complete.

'Every thing was now agreed on, on all sides, and lawyers employed to prepare the writings, when an unexpected cloud arose suddenly in our serene sky, and all our joys were obscured in a moment.

'When matters were, as I apprehended, drawing near a conclusion, I received an express, that a sister, whom I tenderly loved, was seized with a violent fever, and earnestly desired me to come to her. I immediately obeyed the summons, and, as it was then about two in the morning, without staying even to take leave of Amelia, for whom left a short billet, acquainting her with the reason of my absence.

"The gentleman's house, where my sister then was, stood at fifty miles' distance; and though I used the utmost expedition, the unmerciful distemper had, before my arrival, entirely deprived the poor girl of her senses, as it soon after did of her life.