nagement of Bow-Street officers, who attend at the doors to regulate any confusion or disorder that may arise.". "How strange, and how new," said Fanny, "to me!". "I dined in a large party of gentlemen," continued Pneumanee, "at a lady's house, where I am always secure of an affectionate welcome; her husband is an excellent man, and you are sure to meet at his table good company and good taste. As I entered the room, I heard a gentleman, in a whisper not meant to be heard, ask, who I was? Some country Miss,' was replied, 'by her neck being covered so well with lace.'-'I have a high idea of the delicacy of her mind,' was rejoined; for he never could understand what pretensions young ladies could have to proper feelings of decorum, who could violate it so egregiously in their appearance." Here Fanny begged to know what was the fashion alluded to, and heard with great surprise, that ladies of all ages were seen in public without the protection of lace to guard them from the rude eye and sarcastic remarks. that would make a young lady, bred up with care in the country, quite shudder to think of. "I sat by one of those gentlemen at dinner, who, having settled in himself that I was fresh from the country, and, as the London world are pleased to think, of course extremely simple, he was very frequent and liberal of his encomiums upon my person, and seemed much to wonder that I was not elated with his opinions. I sat eating my dinner with marked indifference, with only a returning smile to the lady of the house, who was much amused by the gentleman's assiduity. Provoked at last with my inattention, he swore, in a whisper, that he believed I

was the most insensible beauty upon earth; and he was thinking, if I was not handsome, what I should be.

And if your Lordship will allow me the same privilege, I will endeavour to discover what you would be if you were not a Lord.' He drew up with a sort of start, as if it was impossible that the character of a gentleman was not very prominent in his appearance. Indeed it really was, and I smiled as if I knew it to be so; he recollected himself with great ease, and said, He must ever have been one of my greatest admirers—' And I must always have been insensible to the distinction. You see, my Lord, the respect I pay to your penetration; you thought me insensible, and I have done myself the justice, and you the credit, to confirm your judgment.'Strange indeed, he replied, to convince him so indelibly that he had no judgment at all.-With such trifling chat, and various subjects of conversation, kept up with great vivacity and spirit by gentlemen of the party, the dinner hours passed away. The drawing-room soon began to fill; the ladies all dressed in the fashionable extreme. I lamented that so many young and lovely women should expose themselves to such sarcastic remarks, and am greatly at a loss to guess how their mothers can be indifferent to the public opinion, which has been so strongly and repeatedly pressed upon their view.

"The conversation now became rather a tumult of Foices supported in some parts of the room with wit and vivacity, in others a mere catalogue of fashions, parties and beaux-some gentlemen had danced divinely at the ball last night, others had most angelic eye-brows innumerable matches were about to take place, and those

who were accurate in the names of the parties had infinite advantage over their acquaintance. Many young ladies appeared sullen and disconcerted, and went to the glass again and again to new-adjust a curl that had failed in its effect to please, and still farther to hold up a head that had shrunk down, for warmth and shelter, to clothes now got too high for fashionable exposure. The gentlemen who had not too many engagements for the remainder of the evening, returned to the drawing-room; the gloom disappeared, a universal smile prevailed, and the ladies seemed quite rejoiced at the change so visible in every part of the room. I drew a pretty shy girl by me on a sofa, who seemed in considerable alarm; she was surprised at the confused uproar of voices, at the ease and freedom of the ladies' manners-told me it was her first appearance in London, and she was really afraid every body in the room would find it out, she felt so unlike all the young ladies she saw, who seemed to know and talk to every body: she begged me not to laugh at her, but she was quite ashamed to see the ladies so undressed. She was astonished to see a young lady play and sing in so large a party without embarrassment, and declared she should exquisitely suffer if such a proposal was made to her. How enviable, she said, was such selfpossession! I assured her that all she had said had raised her in my esteem; that with the self-possession she seemed so much to over-value, ladies lost much of the sweet modest air that in youth was so captivating; the frequent display of their persons in crowded assemblies, and the ease and affability of Town manners so gained, was but a wretched substitute for it."-" I like that

young lady very much," said Fanny; "but pray go on, my dear Pneumanee; for I am quite in the party, and shall be very sorry when it breaks up."

"At this moment Lord C. came up with a gay air, and said he would forgive all my cruelties at dinner, if I would make room for him upon the sofa. My little protégée was starting up to give him her place; but her aunt was at the card table, and I would by no means part with her. A sad preliminary of peace,' he said: but drawing a chair near us, and being an adept in the art of quizzing, he let no person in the room escape his remarks. Some of the company were too fat to please his taste, others too thin, many too old, many more too ugly; some had the crime of being married, others the guilt of being single; and as the latter part of the community are the most helpless and most unprotected, they are ever the grand objects over whom half-witted and halfbred men exultingly triumph."

This was quite new to Fanny; she could not conceive what in a single life could be contemptible: this Pneumanee must tell her another time, for she would not interrupt her now for any thing. "A general murmur of 'how affable and how witty!' from the ladies round him, could not escape his Lordship's ear. I entertain every body but you,' he said, leaning forward; and you are the only person I wish to amuse. If I was quite perfect' - What then,' he said- Then I should be too generous to triumph in the imperfections of others.'- You shall not be perfect,' he exclaimed; ' we will take you as you are' Then as I am, my Lord, I can have no right to laugh; for I have imperfections of my own.'—"I am

too much of an Englishman,' he said, 'not to feel the full force of your remark, and I will own that if all women were like you, we should be driven to other subjects for merriment.' If ladies were accustomed to hear good sense from the gentlemen, they would rejoice to get information and anecdote from so pleasing a source, and cease to be frivolous and vain.'-' From what happy valley,' said his Lordship, are you emerged?''Not from Abyssinia, my Lord; nor have I had the high advantages of an Imlac to guide me; but I hope it is not necessary to go out of Great Britain, to find a general indulgence for the imperfections of others, while we must be so conscious of the innumerable sources of our own.' -You must be already tired," said Pneumanee, “ of a visit so dull in the detail; it would be endless to mention the nothingness that passes in such an evening. I took my little friend under my arm; and walking through the rooms, told her many anecdotes of people who were little aware of the intimacy of my acquaintance, and I did not immediately recollect that she would feel still less fit for London, than she did before, if ladies knew so much about each other as I did." Fanny was delighted with all she heard, and was confident she enjoyed it better than if she had been present, while Charles thought his Lordship could not be a very well-bred man to laugh at any body that was present.

It was now Saturday evening, and the children all tripped away to fetch the work they had done for the poor in the preceding week. Fanny brought two frocks she had made; the gay-hearted Lucy had made caps, which she proudly displayed, and valued her first-made