t had happened as the fictions of a
dream! In the meantime my uncle knocked at the door, and bade me turn
out, for I had had a long spell. I rose accordingly, and sent Miss
Williams to her mistress, myself receiving the congratulation of Captain
Bowling, who rallied me in his sea phrase with great success. In less
than an hour, Don Rodrigo led my wife into breakfast, where she received
the compliments of the company on her looks, which, they said, if
possible, were improved by matrimony. As her delicate ears were offended
with none of those indecent ambiguities which are too often spoken on
such occasions, she behaved with dignity, unaffected modesty, and ease;
and, as a testimony of my affection and esteem, I presented her, in
presence of them all, with a deed, by which I settled the whole fortune
I was possessed of on her and her heirs for ever. She accepted it with
a glance of most tender acknowledgment, observed, that she could not be
surprised at anything of this kind I should do, and desired my father to
take the trouble of keeping it, saying, "Next to my own Mr. Random, you
are the person in whom I ought to have the greatest confidence." Charmed
with her prudent and ingenuous manner of proceeding, he took the paper,
and assured her that it should not lose its value while in his custody.

As we had not many visits to give and receive, the little time we stayed
in town was spent in going to public diversions, where I have the vanity
to think Narcissa was seldom eclipsed. One night, in particular, we sent
our footman to keep one of the stage boxes, which we no sooner entered,
than we perceived in the opposite box the squire and his lady, who
seemed not a little surprised at seeing us. I was pleased at this
opportunity of confronting them; the more, because Melinda was robbed
of all her admirers by my wife, who happened that night to outshine her
sister both in beauty and dress. She was piqued at Narcissa's victory,
tossed her head a thousand different ways, flirted her fan, looked at
us with disdain, then whispered to her husband, and broke out into
an affected giggle; but all her arts proved ineffectual, either to
discompose Mrs. Random, or to conceal her own mortification, which at
length forced her away long before the play was done. The news of our
marriage being spread, with many circumstances to our disadvantage, by
the industry of this malignant creature, a certain set of persons fond
of scandal began to inqui