woman of no
social standing and much older than himself.

His parents were at their wits' end. It was hopeless to treat him as a
rational being. His wife was induced to accept a pension to leave him,
and he himself was put in charge of a keeper. Several times he had to be
kept in close confinement. He was, however, by no means devoid of
brains, and in the autumn of 1741 he had sufficiently recovered to be
entered as a student at the University of Leyden. His allowance was L300
a year, which he found so insufficient for the indulgence of his tastes
that he was soon considerably in debt.

In Lady Mary's correspondence there are many letters to her husband
about their son.

"Genoa, Aug. 15, 1741.

"I am sorry to trouble you on so disagreeable a subject as our son, but
I received a letter from him last post, in which he solicits your
dissolving his marriage, as if it was wholly in your power, and the
reason he gives for it, is so that he may marry more to your
satisfaction. It is very vexatious (though no more than I expected) that
time has no effect, and that it is impossible to convince him of his
true situation. He enclosed this letter in one to Mr. Birtles, and tells
me that he does not doubt that debt of L200 is paid. You may imagine
this silly proceeding occasioned me a dun from Mr. Birtles. I told him
the person that wrote the letter, was, to my knowledge, not worth a
groat, which was all I thought proper to say on the subject."

"Lyons, April 23, 1742.

"I am very glad you have been prevailed on to let our son take a
commission: if you had prevented it, he would have always said, and
perhaps thought, and persuaded other people, you had hindered his
rising in the world; though I am fully persuaded that he can never make
a tolerable figure in any station of life. When he was at Morins, on his
first leaving France, I then tried to prevail with him to serve the
Emperor as volunteer; and represented to him that a handsome behaviour
one campaign might go a great way in retrieving his character; and
offered to use my interest with you (which I said I did not doubt would
succeed) to furnish him with a handsome equipage. He then answered, he
supposed I wished him killed out of the way. I am afraid his pretended
reformation is not very sincere. I wish time may prove me in the wrong.
I here enclose the last letter I received from him; I answered it the
following post in these words:

"'I am very glad you resolve