nation in the South Seas, where, finding
the estate he was sent to recover, dwindled to a trifle, by the loss of
two ships in which the bulk of his uncle's fortune lay, he was come
away with the small remainder, and might, perhaps, according to the best
advice, in a few months return to England, from whence he had, at the
time of this my inquiry, been absent two years and seven months. A
little eternity in love!

You cannot conceive with what joy I embraced the hopes thus given me
of seeing the delight of my heart again. But, as the term of months was
assigned it, in order to divert and amuse my impatience for his return,
after settling my affairs with much ease and security, I set out on a
journey for Lancashire, with an equipage suitable to my fortune, and
with a design purely to revisit my place of nativity, for which I could
not help retaining a great tenderness; and might naturally not be sorry
to shew myself there, to the advantage I was now in pass to do, after
the report Esther Davis had spread of my being spirited away to the
plantations; for on no other supposition could she account for the
suppression of myself to her, since her leaving me so abruptly at the
inn. Another favourite intention I had, to look out for my relations,
though I had none but distant ones, and prove a benefactress to them.
Then Mrs. Cole's place of retirement lying in my way, was not amongst
the least of the pleasures I had proposed to myself in this expedition.

I had taken nobody with me but a discreet decent woman, to figure it as
my companion, besides my servants; and was scarce got into an inn, about
twenty miles from London, where I was to sup and pass the night, when
such a storm of wind and rain come on, as made me congratulate myself on
having got under shelter before it began.

This had continued a good half an hour, when bethinking me of some
directions to be given to the coachman, I sent for him, not caring that
his shoes should soil the very clean parlour, in which the cloth was
laid, I stept into the hall kitchen, where he was, and where, whilst I
was talking to him, I slantingly observed two horsemen driven in by the
weather, and both wringing wet; one of whom was asking if they could not
be assisted with a change, while their clothes were dried. But, heavens!
who can express what I felt at the sound of a voice, ever present to my
heart, and that it now rebounded at! or when pointing my eyes towards
the person it came f