e consequences of my faults and
my inconsiderate conduct; in short, I could no longer continue in this
depressing condition, as I had no time to lose in complaints. I must
announce myself at Nuremberg so many days before Petri Pauli. Now I
wrote two letters, one to the mother, and inclosed in it another to the
daughter, wherein I revealed my views, but at the same time distinctly
showed my present position, and appealed to their own knowledge and
judgment of my principles, and confided myself to them. It was
impossible for me by word of mouth to express so carefully and clearly
all the necessary details.

"This letter I took with me when I went to supper, and placed it in the
mother's prayer-book, which always lay by her place, so that the letter
must, without fail, come into her hands this same evening. I did not
otherwise allow anything to be perceived, but went away somewhat
earlier than I had hitherto done, that there might be more time left
for the discovery, and for their deliberation.

"In the letter I begged of the mother, if she found what I proposed was
decidedly objectionable, that she would not lay the letters before her
daughter, but would send them both back to me, and then would kindly
ascribe my too great confidence to her indulgence. In proportion as my
life had been hitherto solitary, the deeper was the impression made in
my soul by my anxious and uncertain wishes; my spirit now began to
raise itself more earnestly to God in a deep and entire submission,
that I might more and more be weaned from the trivial occurrences of
life and their results, by looking to eternity. I found an increase of
tranquillity, and a contented submission to all the dispensations of
Providence, which I had long so vainly endeavoured to create in myself.

"Three days passed, during which we met as inmates of the same house,
as though nothing had passed between us which required an answer, and I
was persuaded that it was a kind way of sparing my feelings, that my
proposal was to be buried in silence, as they wished to relieve me from
an unpleasant explanation. As usual, I was always too desponding. The
following Sunday--it was the 10th of June, 1751--as I was leaving the
table after dinner, the _Frau Doctorin_ asked me to drink a cup of
coffee with her that afternoon. Still she kept her countenance so
completely, that I could not promise myself much advantage from this
invitation. The next two hours I spent promenading in the