s he saluted the rest
of the company in a very gallant manner, "a young baronet of a very
large estate; the greatest part of which has lately come to him by the
death of relatives, all very rich." Let me give you a sketch of him, my
Lucy.

Sir Hargrave Pollexfen is handsome and genteel; pretty tall, about
twenty-eight or thirty. He has remarkably bold eyes, rather approaching
to what we would call goggling, and he gives himself airs with them, as
if he wished to have them thought rakish; perhaps as a recommendation,
in his opinion, to the ladies. With all his foibles he is said to be a
man of enterprise and courage, and young women, it seems, must take care
how they laugh with him, for he makes ungenerous constructions to the
disadvantage of a woman whom he can bring to seem pleased with his
jests.

The taste of the present age seems to be dress; no wonder, therefore,
that such a man as Sir Hargrave aims to excel in it. What can be
misbestowed by a man on his person who values it more than his mind? But
what a length I have run!

_III.--Miss Byron: In Continuation_

We found at home, waiting for Mr. Reeves's return, Sir John Allestree, a
worthy, sensible man, of plain and unaffected manners, upwards of fifty.

Mr. Reeves mentioning to him our past entertainment and company, Sir
John gave us such an account of Sir Hargrave as let me know that he is a
very dangerous and enterprising man. He says that, laughing and light as
he is in company, he is malicious, ill-natured, and designing, and
sticks at nothing to carry a point on which he has once set his heart.
He has ruined, Sir John says, three young creatures already, under vows
of marriage.

Could you have thought, my Lucy, that this laughing, fine-dressing man,
could have been a man of malice, and of resentment, a cruel man, yet Sir
John told two very bad stories of him.

But I had no need of these stories to determine me against receiving his
addresses. What I saw of him was sufficient.

_IV.--Miss Byron: In Continuation_

_Wednesday, February 8._ Sir Hargrave came before six o'clock. He was
richly dressed. He asked for my cousin Reeves, I was in my chamber,
writing.

He excused himself for coming so early on the score of his impatience.

Shall I give you, from my cousins, an account of the conversation before
I went down? You know Mrs. Reeves is a nice observer.

He had had, he told my cousins, a most uneasy time of it, ever since he
saw me. He