** advife you to urge

the affair no more to him, "leave it to his own honour and affection; of both "of which you cannot have the leaft doubt. Thefe will operate with infinitely more power than any

66

arguments of yours can do, when he is left at "leisure to reflect on the propriety of fuch a ftep." Nearly in these words did my fecond father give me his advice; and as I knew his judgment in such con-cerns to be far fuperior to my own, I refolved im.. plicitly to follow the directions he had given me. accordingly returned home much more at ease than I was before. And when Mr. Metham and I met, I took care, whatever uneafinefs lurked in my heart, that it fhould not be vifible to him.

But the confolation Mr. Quin had afforded me was but tranfitory.-Though, agreeable to his advice, I concealed my wifhes, I could not totally fupprefs them. I was confcious that my character received a flain from the nature of my connection with Mr. Metham, which neither the reflection that it originated from the fincereft and moft difinterefted affection; that it was not entered into without the fullest expectation of a more honourable union taking place; and that it had been continued with an unblemished purity of conduct; were fufficiently palliative to expunge. It is true that in the eye of heaven, fuch a connection, when conducted with

this

this propriety, may not need the repetition of the nuptial ceremony. In fuch a cafe the deluded fairone might fay, with Eloifa, "Curfe on all laws but "thofe which love has made !"-But to preserve the due regulation of the degrees of confanguinity; an indisputable fucceffion of property; a respect to the. rules of fociety; and to ferve as a refraint to the roving difpofition of the libertine; it is necessary that an odium fhould be annexed to any other than a legal connection.

My benefit this feafon turned out very lucrative. As I was now in a circle with fome of the first people of distinction, befides those who had hitherto been my patroneffes, I was honoured with the patronage of the Effex family; the Lady Capels were as partial to me as the Lady Keppels; particularly Lady Mary. The piece I had was, "Tancred and Sigifinunda; in which I fucceeded much beyond my hopes, as Mrs. Cibber was the original Sigifmunda, and most capitally great in the performance of that character; fo that I acquired, in addition to the emoluments, an increafe of fame.

66

A most ridiculous event happened at one of the benefits at our theatre this feafon; which I fhall relate merely for the fingularity of it. There was a performer in the company who was retained in it by the acting manager, more from the flattery which

he

he from time to time bestowed upon him, than through any merit he had as an actor. This perfon, whose name was Sowden, was by trade a horse milliner. He had, however, obtained fo much influence. over Mr. Garrick, that he prevailed upon that gentleman to play for his benefit; which was a favour he usually granted only to the first performers. He had the “ Orphan” for his night, in which Mr. Garrick played Chamont, Mr. Sowden, Polydore, and myfelf, Monimia. In the fourth act, whilft in the most pathetic part of it, I was informing Chamont of all my distress, I heard a voice uttering somewhat aloud; but what it was I could not diftinguish, from being fo fufceptibly interested in my part. Whilft Chamont was replying to me, as I was then more at liberty to attend, I heard the fame voice articulate the words, " Rumps and burrs! rumps and burrs!" Rofcius, who was the most tenacious man alive of a due obfervance of theatrical order and regularity, imagining the noise came from behind the scenes, exclaimed in a quick manner, What is that?" He was at the fame time fo disconcerted by the incident, that lofing entirely the powers of recollection, he repeated different paffages out of different plays, till I was as much bewildered as himself, and totally unprepared to give a connected answer. We had, therefore, nothing else to do, than to put an end to

66

Our

our embarrassment by bringing the scene to an abrupt

conclufion.

It seems the exclamation proceeded from the balcony, where one of the lower ranks of city ladies, an admirer of Mr. Sowden's theatrical talents, had placed herself (as a benefit levels all diftinction) in honour of him. During the preceding scene, which, though interefting, was not much to her mind, fhe had indulged herfelf with a nap. In this fhort nap fhe was conveyed in idea back to her flall upon London-Bridge, and the duties of her bufinefs, which she left but on fuch particular occafions, being uppermost on her mind, fhe was crying her rumps and burrs, as if fhe had been standing at her own door.. As foon, however, as her favourite actor appeared, fhe awoke. But I was fo much disconcerted by the good woman's fleeping flight, that though I should have continued on during the whole fcene, I foon left Mr. Polydore to fubftitute what he pleased for the entertainment of his polite audience, and to fpeak his defcriptive conclufion alone.

Methinks I hear you laugh at the foregoing ridiculous scene-I affure you I did, and that moft heartily, when it happened; that is, as foon as I had recovered from the confufion into which it had thrown the immortal Rofcius and myself.

G. A. B..

LET

LETTER XLIV.

Oct. 9, 17

AT the conclufion of this winter, I loft my much valued friend Mifs Conway. Having over-heated herself at a ball, fhe indifcreetly drank lemonade, which occafioned her dying in a few hours in the moft excruciating pains. As I have already observed, this best and most delicate of women expired in my arms. And I was happy in being present to footh, by every tender endearment, the bitterness of death.

I received about this time, alfo, a very warm invitation from Mifs St. Leger, to pafs the enfuing fummer with her in the South of France. Her uncle, Lord Doneraile, fhe informed me, was dead, and had left her the whole of his fortune, exclusive of his lady's jointure. To which, fhe added, that fhe was married to Major Burton, but fill enjoyed fuch a bad flate of health, as to be unable to return to England.

I was obliged, by a fimilar affliction, not only to decline this lady's invitation, but to poftpone my conqueft of Louis the Fifteenth, and to fuffer that monarch to enjoy his liberty a little longer. My indifpofition was productive of a laffitude, which prevented my forming parties, as I ufed to do, or from carrying into execution any favourite project.