, at least not in London.

At length a new scene opened. There was in the house where I lodged a
north-country woman that went for a gentlewoman, and nothing was more
frequent in her discourse than her account of the cheapness of
provisions, and the easy way of living in her country; how plentiful
and how cheap everything was, what good company they kept, and the
like; till at last I told her she almost tempted me to go and live in
her country; for I that was a widow, though I had sufficient to live
on, yet had no way of increasing it; and that I found I could not live
here under #100 a year, unless I kept no company, no servant, made no
appearance, and buried myself in privacy, as if I was obliged to it by
necessity.

I should have observed, that she was always made to believe, as
everybody else was, that I was a great fortune, or at least that I had
three or four thousand pounds, if not more, and all in my own hands;
and she was mighty sweet upon me when she thought me inclined in the
least to go into her country. She said she had a sister lived near
Liverpool, that her brother was a considerable gentleman there, and had
a great estate also in Ireland; that she would go down there in about
two months, and if I would give her my company thither, I should be as
welcome as herself for a month or more as I pleased, till I should see
how I liked the country; and if I thought fit to live there, she would
undertake they would take care, though they did not entertain lodgers
themselves, they would recommend me to some agreeable family, where I
should be placed to my content.

If this woman had known my real circumstances, she would never have
laid so many snares, and taken so many weary steps to catch a poor
desolate creature that was good for little when it was caught; and
indeed I, whose case was almost desperate, and thought I could not be
much worse, was not very anxious about what might befall me, provided
they did me no personal injury; so I suffered myself, though not
without a great deal of invitation and great professions of sincere
friendship and real kindness--I say, I suffered myself to be prevailed
upon to go with her, and accordingly I packed up my baggage, and put
myself in a posture for a journey, though I did not absolutely know
whither I was to go.

And now I found myself in great distress; what little I had in the
world was all in money, except as before, a little plate, some linen,
and my clothes; a