He was, however, so regardful as not to attempt the renewal of those
extremities which had thrown me, just before, into such violent
agitations; but, now secure of possession, contented himself with
bringing me to temper by degrees, and waiting at the hand of time
for those fruits of generosity and courtship, which he since often
reproached himself with having gathered much too green, when, yielding
to the inability to resist him, and overborne by desires, he had wreaked
his passion on a mere lifeless, spiritless body, dead to all purpose of
joy, since taking none, it ought to be supposed incapable of giving any.
This is, however, certain; my heart never thoroughly forgave him the
manner in which I had fallen to him, although, in point of interest,
I had fallen to him, I had reason to be pleased that he found, in my
person, wherewithal to keep him from leaving me as easily as he had had
me.

The evening was, in the mean time, so far advanced, that the maid came
in to lay the cloth for supper, when I understood, with joy, that my
landlady, whose sight was present poison to me, was not to be with us.

Presently a neat and elegant supper was introduced, and a bottle of
Burgundy, with the other necessaries, were set on a dumb-waiter.

The maid quitting the room, the gentleman insisted, with a tender
warmth, that I should sit up in the elbow chair by the fire, and see him
eat, if I could not be prevailed on to eat myself. I obeyed with a heart
full or affliction, at the comparison it made between those delicious
tete-a-tetes with my very dear youth, and this forced situation, this
new awkward scene, imposed and obtruded on me a cruel necessity.

At supper, after a great many arguments used to comfort and reconcile
me to my fate, he told me that his name was H..., brother to the Earl
of L.... and that having, by the suggestions of my landlady, been led
to see me, he had found me perfectly to his taste, and given her
a commission to procure me at any rate, and that at length he had
succeeded, as much to his satisfaction as he passionately wished it
might be to mine adding, withal, some flattering assurances, that I
should have no cause to repent my knowledge of him.

I had now got down at least half a partridge, and three or four glasses
of wine, which he compelled me to drink by way of restoring nature, but
whether there was any thing extraordinary put into the wine, or whether
there wanted no more to revive the natur