am • but fuch stuff, when alone in conversation with a Gentleman. I beg then I may hear no more of this; and as I • fure you can talk upon many more rational subjects, request your favour, to give me your opinion on fome articles in this Hebrew Bible you fee lying open on the table in this room. My father, Sir, among other things he has taken great pains to inftruct me in, for feveral years that I have • lived with him in a kind of folitary ftate, fince the death of my mother, whom I loft when I was very young, has taught ⚫ me to read and understand this infpired Hebrew book; and says, we must afcribe primavity and facred prerogatives to this language. For my part, I have fome doubts as to this matter, which I dare not mention to my father. Here follows a learned converfation, on the subject proposed by this extraordinary young Lady; which is fucceeded by a very copious defcription of Mifs Noel's wonderful grotto; in which the Author's fancy, notwithstanding his ample profeffions of conftant attachment to matter of fact, appears to have met with moft lavish indulgence: but for this we refer to his performance, at large. 2 The portrait of Mr. Noel, the father of this amazing paragon, comes next. Tho' this Gentleman was upwards of eighty, yet years had not deprived him of reafon and fpirits. He was lively and fenfible, and ftill a moft agreeable companion. He talked of Greece and Rome, as if he had lived there befores the Era of Chriftianity. The court of Auguftus he was fo far from being a ftranger to, that he defcribed the principal perfons in it; their actions, their pleafures, and their caprices, as if he had been their contempo⚫rary. We talked of all these great characters. We went into the gallery of Verres. We looked over the ancient ⚫ theatres. Several of the moft beautiful paffages in the Roman poets this fine old man repeated, and made very pleafant, but moral, remarks upon them. In this manner did the old Gentleman and I pafs the time, till the clock ftruck five, when Mifs Noel came into the parlour again, and her father faid he must retire, to take his. evening nap, and would fee me at fupper; for with him I muft ftay that night. Harriot, make tea for the Gentleman. I am your fervant, Sir; and he withdrew. To Harriot then, my life and my blifs, I turned, and over a pot of tea was as happy, I am fure, as ever with his Statira fat the Conqueror of the world. I began to relate, once more, the ftory of a paffion, that was to form one day, I hoped, my fole felicity in this world; and with yows and proteftations affirmed, affirmed, that I loved from my foul. But in vain was all this warmth. Mifs Noel fat as unmoved as Erycina on a < monument,' and infifted on his changing the converfation to fome other, more rational, and more ufeful, fubject: to which Mr. Buncle was obliged to submit. "Another learned dialogite now took place, betwixt this uncommon couple. The fubject was, the miracle at Babel; and here the Hutchinfonians come in for a good thwacking, en paffant. Towards the clofe of this fecond Hebrew Conver fation, Mr. Buncle convinced the young Lady, (who, it feems as much furpaffed him, both in erudition and eloquence, as fhe did all others, of her own fex, in beauty) that he was not a mere Platonic. My amazement was fo great, and my paffion had rifen fo high for fuch uncommon female intelligence, that I could not help fnatching this beauty to my arms, and without thinking of what I did, impreffed on her balmy mouth half a dozen kiffes. This was wrong, and gave very great offence: but fhe was too good to be implacable; and on my begging her pardon, and protesting it was not a wilful rudeness, but the magic of her glorious eyes, and the bright powers of her mind, that had tranfported me befide myfelf, The was reconciled.' And now a Song, like a brisk epilogue at the close of a solemn play, fucceeds, and is accompanied with the mufic of Mr. Buncle's German-flute. Mr. Noel coming in at this juncture, demonftrates his good humour and strong pre-poffeffion in favour of the happy ftranger, by a hearty propofal for his continuing there a month. Come, Sir, continued this fine old Gentleman, let us hear another piece of your mufic. Mr. Buncle complies, and we have the following poem, which, it is to be fuppofed, was his own compofition, as well as the other, juft mentioned. Y SON G*. E lofty mountains, whofe eternal fnows, All nature's beauties fealt my ravish'd eyes: 10. Here, when Aurora with her chearful beam And rofy blushes marks approaching day; This Song is entitled the Sopron, Oft now provid 59tOft do I walk along the purling fream,now It Here daily dancing on the flow'ry ground The chearful fhepherds join their flute and voice; Alone the turtle tunes her plaintive ftrain. IV. Here the green turf invites my wearied head On Nature's lap, to undisturb'd repose: 5 Here gently laid to rest-each care is fled ; Peace and content my happy eye-lids close. V. Here free from all the tempefts of the Great," From Envy's rage fecure, and Fortune's pow'rd box VI. Here far from all the bufy world's alarms, Break my repofe, or interrupt my pleafure. The world's a trifle far beneath my view. Jag or siddłog This fong delighted the old Gentleman to a great degree. He told me, he was charmed with it, not only for the fine mufic I made of it, but the morality of it, and liked me fo * much, that I was most heartily welcome to make his solitary retreat my home, as often and as long as I pleased. And, indeed, I did fo, and continued to behave in such a manner, that in two months time, I gained fo entirely his affections, and fo totally the heart of his admirable daughter, that I might have had her in wedlock when I pleased, after the expiration of that current year, which was the young Lady's request, and be fecured of his eftate at his death, befides a large fortune to be immediately paid down; and this, tho' my father should refufe to fettle any thing on me, or Mifs Noel, my wife. This was generous and charming as my heart heart could defire. thought myself the happieft of men. Every week I went to Eden-Park, one time or other, to fee my dear Mifs Noel, and pay my refpects to her worthy father. We were, while I ftayed, a moft happy family, and ⚫ enjoyed fuch fatisfactions as few, I believe, have experienced in this tempeftuous hemifphere. Mr. Noel was paffionately fond of his daughter, and he could not regard me more if I ⚫ had been his own fon. I loved my Harriot with a fondnefs beyond defcription; and that glorious girl had all the esteem I could wifh fhe had for me. Our mutual felicity could rife no higher till we gave our hands, as we had already plighted our hearts. This world is a series of vifionary fcenes, and contains fo little folid, lafting felicity, as I have found it, that I cannot call life more than a deception; and, as Swift fays it, he is the happiest man, who is best deceived. When I thought myself within a fortnight of being married to Mifs Noel, and thereby made as compleatly happy, in every respect, as ⚫ it was poffible for a mortal man to be; the fmall-pox fteps in, and, in feven days time, reduced the finest human frame in the univerfe, to the moft hideous and offensive block. The most amiable of human creatures mortified all over, ⚫ and became a fpectacle the moft hideous and unbearable.This broke her father's heart in a month's time, and the ⚫ paradife I had in view, funk into everlasting night. 6 6 My heart, upon this fad accident, bled and mourned to an extreme degree. All the tender paffions were up in my foul, and with great difficulty could I keep my ruffled spirits in tolerable decorum. I loft what I valued more than my • life-more than repeated millions of worlds, if it had been 'poffible to get them in exchange. This engaged, beloved partner, was an honour to her fex, and an ornament to human kind. She was one of the wifest and most agreeable shof women; and her life quite glorious for piety to God, of compaffion to the neceffitous and miferable, benevolence and good will to all, with every other grace and virtue, Thefe Shined with a bright luftre in her whole deportment, and forendered her beloved, and the delight of all that knew her. 5 Senfe and Genius were in her united; and by ftudy, reflexiIon, and application, the improved the talents, in the happi eft manner. She had acquired a fuperiority in thinking, fpeaking, writing, and acting, and in manners, her beha sviour, her language, her defign, her understanding, were Sinexpreffibly charming. Mifs Noel died in the twenty-fourth fyear of her age, the 20th of December, in the year 1724. This Having thus loft Mifs Noel, and my good old friend, her worthy father, I left the univerfity, and went down to the country, after five years and three months abfence, to fee how things were pofited at home, and pay my refpects to my father; but I found them very little to my liking, and in a fhort time returned to Dublin again. He had lately married, in his old age, a young wife, who was one of the moft artful, false, and infolent of women; and to gratify her to the utmoft of his power, had not only brought her nephew into his house, but was ridiculously fond of him, and lavishly gratified all his defires. Whatever this little brute (the son of a drunken beggar, who had been a journey-man glover) was pleafed, in wantonnels, to call for, and that his years, then fixteen, could require, my father's fortune in an inftant produced; while fcarcely one of my A rational demands could be answered. Money, cloaths, fervants, horfes, dogs, and all things he could fancy, were given him in abundance; and to pleafe the bafeft of women, and the moft cruel ftep-mother that ever the devil inspired to make the son of another woman miferable, I was denied almost every thing. The fine allowance I had at the university was taken from me. Even a horfe to ride out to the neighbouring Gentlemen, was refufed me, tho' my father had three ftables of extraordinary cattle; and, still 'I purchased one, was forced to walk it, where-ever I had a mind to vifit. What is ftill more incredible (if any thing of severity can be fo, when a mother-in-law is fovereign) I was not allowed to keep my horfe even at grafs on the land, tho' five hundred acres of freehold eftate furrounded the manfion, but obliged to graze it at a neighbouring farmer's. Nor was this all the hard meafure I received. Religion had a hand in my mifery. Falle Religion was the fpring of that paternal refentment I fuffered under. and i It was my father's wont to have prayers read every night and morning in his family, and the office was the Litany of the Common-prayer book. This work, oh my coming home, was transferred from my fifter to me; and for about one week I performed to the old Gentleman's fatisfaction, as my voice was good, and my reading diftinct and clear: but this office was far from being grateful to me, as I was become a ftrict Unitarian, by the leffons I had received from my private tutor in college, and my own examinations of the vulgar faith. It went against my confcience to use the tritheiftic form of prayer, and became at laft fo uneafy to me, that I altered the prayers the first Sunday morning, and |