Encouraged by Mrs. Calcraft's fuccefs, I began to think of my annuity, which had not been paid for a long time. I accordingly fent to have Mr. Wedderburne's opinion; when I was informed it must be at my own expence. To this I confented; but not being able to offer the usual fee with the cafe, and the person I depended on not being willing to advance it, the affair lay dormant, at the time I imagined I had the first advice in the kingdom.

A week paffed after I had given the Jew my notes, without my hearing any thing from him; when upon fending to the young Gentleman who had recommended him, I was informed that my little Ifaac was gone off; and I heard no further tidings, either of him or my notes, till they were prefented for payment.

There is nothing, I am told, calls louder for the interference of the Legislature, than the frequent frauds of fome of the prefent race of advertising money-lenders, to whom the appellation of Swindlers has been juftly given. Those who are unfortunately neceffitated to apply to them, allured by the fpecious promises held forth in their advertisements, doubt not of receiving from them a ready affiftance; instead of which they generally find themselves more deeply involved, if not irretriev

ably

ably ruined. If once you deliver into their handsany notes or bills, it is a hundred to one if ever you receive any value for them; or, if you do, it is but a proportionably fmall part. And as these are ufually paid away to tradefmen who can fwear they have given a valuable confideration for them, your plea of not having received any yourfelf, is of no avail. Nor have you any redress from contefting the payment of your notes. All the confolation you receive in a court of justice is, that you should not have been fo filly as to pay attention to the delufive advertisements. Many, very many, I have been informed, have liftened to the fpecious pretexts of these infatiable harpies, fome of whom live in eafe and diffipation upon the spoils of the unfortunate.

Mr. Davy's executors, who had revived the fuit relative to my annuity, now appeared to be in earneft; and as Mr Calcraft's executors feemed to wish to keep the estate in law, in order to retain the management of a property, that from its immense value muft undoubtedly be productive of fome benefit, they determined to conteft it with them. The latter had even the folly or madnefs to fend to me, to defire I would join in the bill against myself, and those who had advanced me

4

the

the money upon it. This you may be affured I refused to do. On the contrary, notwithstanding my natural averfion to all pecuniary business, I determined to prosecute the affair against them with vigour.

The only thing that retarded my design, was the want of money to carry it into execution; for what I received from the gentleman who had hired my house, was devoted to pay the rent of it. I however refolved to wait on Mr. Wedderburne, now Lord Loughborough, to enquire what opinion he had given upon the fuit, and what was neceffary to be done further in the profecution of it. Lord Huntingdon, whom I had formerly the honour of knowing, was just returned from making the tour of Europe with his nephews. As every person who ever heard of that Nobleman, must allow him to be one of the brightest ornaments of nobility, his liberality of fentiment adding graces to his other eminent virtues, I was encouraged to folicit his affiftance upon this emergency; I therefore wrote to him, and acquainted him with my purpose.

His Lordship immediately called upon me, and with that elegance which attends all his actions, prefented me with a rouleau, greatly exceeding what I then thought I had occafion for.

He

He at the fame time requested, that if in future I should be preffed, I would make him my banker. A woman is never fo highly flattered, as when fhe is thought worthy the notice of diftinguished characters; which my Lord Huntingdon is in an eminent degree. And a promise he then made me, to bestow upon me fome of his leisure hours, I efteemed more valuable than even the neceffary and valuable prefent he had given me. I muft not omit to inform you, that in order to apologize for a few minutes delay before he waited upon me, his Lordship dispatched a relation, who afterwards attended him during his vifit, to acquaint me with it. This information will perhaps appear to you to be needlefs, but you will find that it is not fo. It is abfolutely neceffary to introduce this gentleman here, in order that you might be acquainted with him at a future period.

I had scarcely time to congratulate myself upon the real fatisfaction I felt from this event, when I was informed, that the cause I had been advised to enter into with Mr. Gordon, relative to the expences of my mother's funeral, which undoubtedly the adminiftrator ought to have paid, w given against me; and, if not immediately fettica, I fhould be fued to execution. In addition to this, as misfortunes feldom come alone, I was ferved at the

the fame moment with copies of writs for the notes I had put into Cohan's hands. And, to crown all, a draft drawn upon me from my fon Harry, who was abroad, was presented to me for payment.

Such an interruption to the pleafing reflec· tions I was indulging, threw once more a gloom over my mind, which put it out of my power to wait upon Mr. Wedderburne as I had intended; I therefore wrote a line to Mr. Woodward, requesting that he would do it for me. That gentleman being abroad when my note came, he was obliged to postpone going till the next day; by which time the term being ended, he was not able to meet with him. By fuch a train of untoward incidents, was my cafe prevented from coming to the knowledge of that great lawyer, And thus by intervening circum-.. ftances, which counteract the best intentions, are the most important defigns often times fruftrated..

The demand for the expences of my mother's funeral being fo very urgent, and amounting, through the additional law-charges, to near double the original bill, I thought my personal fafety required that it should be first discharged. I accordingly appropriated the money for which I was

VOL. V.

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