dreamed she was delivered of a
tennis-ball, which the devil (who, to her great surprise, acted the part
of a midwife) struck so forcibly with a racket that it disappeared in
an instant; and she was for some time inconsolable for the lost of
her offspring; when, all on a sudden, she beheld it return with equal
violence, and enter the earth, beneath her feet, whence immediately
sprang up a goodly tree covered with blossoms, the scent of which
operated so strongly on her nerves that she awoke. The attentive sage,
after some deliberation, assured my parents, that their firstborn
would be a great traveller; that he would undergo many dangers and
difficulties, and at last return to his native land, where he would
flourish in happiness and reputation. How truly this was foretold will
appear in the sequel. It was not long before some officious person
informed my grandfather of certain familiarities that passed between his
son and housekeeper which alarmed him so much that, a few days after, he
told my father it was high time for him to think of settling; and that
he had provided a match for him, to which he could in justice have no
objections. My father, finding it would be impossible to conceal his
situation much longer, frankly owned what he had done; and excused
himself for not having asked the consent of his father, by saying, he
knew it would have been to no Purpose; and that, had his inclination
been known, my grandfather might have taken such measures as would have
effectually put the gratification of it out of his power: he added, that
no exceptions could be taken to his wife's virtue, birth, beauty,
and good sense, and as for fortune, it was beneath his care. The old
gentleman, who kept all his passions, except one, in excellent order,
heard him to an end with great temper, and then calmly asked, how he
proposed to maintain himself and spouse? He replied, he could be in no
danger of wanting while his father's tenderness remained, which he and
his wife should always cultivate with the utmost veneration; and he
was persuaded his allowance would be suitable to the dignity and
circumstances of his family, and to the provision already made for his
brothers and sisters, who were happily settled under his protection.
"Your brothers and sisters," said my grandfather, "did not think it
beneath them to consult me in an affair of such importance as matrimony;
neither, I suppose, would you have omitted that piece of duty, had you
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