shall send thee this before I shall finish that. By the
enclosed thou wilt see, that neither of the correspondents deserve mercy
from me: and I am resolved to make the ending with one the beginning with
the other.

If thou sayest that the provocations I have given to one of them will
justify her freedoms; I answer, so they will, to any other person but
myself. But he that is capable of giving those provocations, and has the
power to punish those who abuse him for giving them, will show his
resentment; and the more remorselessly, perhaps, as he has deserved the
freedoms.

If thou sayest, it is, however, wrong to do so; I reply, that it is
nevertheless human nature:--And wouldst thou not have me to be a man,
Jack?

Here read the letter, if thou wilt. But thou art not my friend, if thou
offerest to plead for either of the saucy creatures, after thou hast read
it.

TO MRS. HARRIOT LUCAS,

AT MRS. MOORE'S, AT HAMPSTEAD.
JUNE 10.

After the discoveries I had made of the villanous machinations of the
most abandoned of men, particularized in my long letter of Wednesday*
last, you will believe, my dearest friend, that my surprise upon perusing
your's of Thursday evening from Hampstead** was not so great as my
indignation. Had the villain attempted to fire a city instead of a
house, I should not have wondered at it. All that I am amazed at is,
that he (whose boast, as I am told, it is, that no woman shall keep him
out of her bed-chamber, when he has made a resolution to be in it) did
not discover his foot before. And it is as strange to me, that, having
got you at such a shocking advantage, and in such a horrid house, you
could, at the time, escape dishonour, and afterwards get from such a set
of infernals.

* See Vol. V. Letter XX.
** Ibid. See Letter XXI.

I gave you, in my long letter of Wednesday and Thursday last, reasons why
you ought to mistrust that specious Tomlinson. That man, my dear, must
be a solemn villain. May lightning from Heaven blast the wretch, who has
set him and the rest of his REMORSELESS GANG at work, to endeavour to
destroy the most consummate virtue!--Heaven be praised! you have escaped
from all their snares, and now are out of danger.--So I will not trouble
you at present with the particulars I have further collected relating to
this abominable imposture.

For the same reason, I forbear to communicate to you some new stories of
the abhorred wretch himself which have come to