f honour in view, in
the declaration I made her; but, as it has been said of a certain orator
in the House of Commons, who more than once, in a long speech, convinced
himself as he went along, and concluded against the side he set out
intending to favour, so I in earnest pressed without reserve for
matrimony in the progress of my harangue, which state I little thought of
urging upon her with so much strength and explicitness.

[He then values himself upon the delay that his proposal of taking and
furnishing a house must occasion.

He wavers in his resolutions whether to act honourable or not by a merit
so exalted.

He values himself upon his own delicacy, in expressing his indignation
against her friends, for supposing what he pretends his heart rises
against them for presuming to suppose.]

But have I not reason, says he, to be angry with her for not praising me
for this my delicacy, when she is so ready to call me to account for the
least failure in punctilio?--However, I believe I can excuse her too,
upon this generous consideration, [for generous I am sure it is, because
it is against myself,] that her mind being the essence of delicacy, the
least want of it shocks her; while the meeting with what is so very
extraordinary to me, is too familiar to her to obtain her notice, as an
extraordinary.

[He glories in the story of the house, and of the young widow possessor
of it, Mrs. Fretchville he calls her; and leaves it doubtful to Mr.
Belford, whether it be a real or a fictitious story.

He mentions his different proposals in relation to the ceremony, which he
so earnestly pressed for; and owns his artful intention in avoiding to
name the day.]

And now, says he, I hope soon to have an opportunity to begin my
operations; since all is halcyon and security.

It is impossible to describe the dear creature's sweet and silent
confusion, when I touched upon the matrimonial topics.

She may doubt. She may fear. The wise in all important cases will
doubt, and will fear, till they are sure. But her apparent willingness
to think well of a spirit so inventive, and so machinating, is a happy
prognostic for me. O these reasoning ladies!--How I love these reasoning
ladies!--'Tis all over with them, when once love has crept into their
hearts: for then will they employ all their reasoning powers to excuse
rather than to blame the conduct of the doubted lover, let appearances
against him be e