ce of his affability, in which he himself was
concerned. Then, by an abrupt transition, he would repeat some repartee
of Lady T--, and mention a certain bon mot of the Earl of C--, which was
uttered in his hearing.

Abundance of young men in this manner make free with the names, though
they have never had access to the persons of the nobility; but this was
not the case with Peregrine, who, in consideration of his appearance and
supposed fortune, together with the advantage of his introduction, was,
by this time, freely admitted to the tables of the great.

In his return with Emilia from the opera, though he still maintained
the most scrupulous decorum in his behaviour, he plied her with the most
passionate expressions of love, squeezed her hand with great fervency,
protested that his whole soul was engrossed by her idea, and that he
could not exist independent of her favour. Pleased as she was with his
warm and pathetic addresses, together with the respectful manner of his
making love, she yet had prudence and resolution sufficient to contain
her tenderness, which was ready to run over; being fortified against
his arts, by reflecting, that, if his aim was honourable, it was now his
business to declare it. On this consideration, she refused to make any
serious reply to his earnest expostulations, but affected to receive
them as the undetermined effusions of gallantry and good breeding.

This fictitious gaiety and good-humour, though it baffled his hope
of extorting from her an acknowledgment of which he might have taken
immediate advantage, nevertheless encouraged him to observe, as the
chariot passed along the Strand, that the night was far advanced; that
supper would certainly be over before they could reach her uncle's
house; and to propose that he should wait upon her to some place, where
they might be accommodated with a slight refreshment. She was offended
at the freedom of this proposal, which, however, she treated as a joke,
thanking him for his courteous offer, and assuring him, that when she
should be disposed for a tavern treat, he alone would have the honour of
bestowing it.

Her kinsman being engaged with company abroad, and her aunt retired to
rest, he had the good fortune to enjoy a tete-a-tete with her during
a whole hour, which he employed with such consummate skill, that her
caution was almost overcome. He not only assailed her with the artillery
of sighs, vows, prayers, and tears, but even pawned hi