ime, more than moral, a religious man, and, at last, join in the
duties which he had the goodness to countenance.

For this reason I began with mere _indispensables_. I crowded not
his gates with objects of charity: I visited them at their homes,
and relieved them; distinguishing the worthy indigent (made so
by unavoidable accidents and casualties) from the wilfully, or
perversely, or sottishly such, by _greater_ marks of my favour.

I confined my morning and evening devotions to my own private closet,
lest I should give offence and discouragement to so gay a temper, so
unaccustomed (poor gentleman!) to acts of devotion and piety; whilst
I met his household together, only on mornings and evenings of the
Sabbath-day, to prepare them for their public duties in the one,
and in hopes to confirm them in what they had heard at church in the
other; leaving them to their own reflections for the rest of the week;
after I had suggested a method I wished them to follow, and in which
they constantly obliged me.

This good order had its desired effect, and our Sabbath-day assemblies
were held with so little parade, that we were hardly any of us missed.
All, in short, was done with cheerful ease and composure: and every
one of us was better disposed to our domestic duties: I, to attend the
good pleasure of my best friend; and they, that of us both.

Thus we went on very happily, my neighbourly visits of charity, taking
up no more time than common airings, and passing many of them for
such; my private duties being only between my FIRST, my HEAVENLY
BENEFACTOR, and myself, and my family ones personally confined to the
day separated for these best of services, and Mr. B. pleased with my
manner beheld the good effects, and countenanced me by his praises and
his endearments, as acting discreetly, as not falling into enthusiasm,
and (as he used to say) as not aiming at being _righteous overmuch_.

But still I wanted, and waited for, with humble patience, and made it
part of my constant prayers, that the divine Grace would at last touch
his heart, and make him _more_ than a countenancer, _more_ than an
applauder of my duties; that he might for his own dear sake, become a
partaker in them. "And then," thought I, "when we can, hand in hand,
heart in heart, one spirit as well as one flesh, join in the same
closet, in the same prayers and thanksgiving, what a happy creature
shall I be."

I say, _closet_: for I durst not aspire so high, as