would grant his
request, he would maintain me very honourably; and made me a thousand
protestations of his sincerity and of his affection to me; and that he
would never abandon me, and as I may say, made a thousand more
preambles than he need to have done.

However, as he pressed me to speak, I told him I had no reason to
question the sincerity of his love to me after so many protestations,
but--and there I stopped, as if I left him to guess the rest. 'But
what, my dear?' says he. 'I guess what you mean: what if you should
be with child? Is not that it? Why, then,' says he, 'I'll take care
of you and provide for you, and the child too; and that you may see I
am not in jest,' says he, 'here's an earnest for you,' and with that he
pulls out a silk purse, with an hundred guineas in it, and gave it me.
'And I'll give you such another,' says he, 'every year till I marry
you.'

My colour came and went, at the sight of the purse and with the fire of
his proposal together, so that I could not say a word, and he easily
perceived it; so putting the purse into my bosom, I made no more
resistance to him, but let him do just what he pleased, and as often as
he pleased; and thus I finished my own destruction at once, for from
this day, being forsaken of my virtue and my modesty, I had nothing of
value left to recommend me, either to God's blessing or man's
assistance.

But things did not end here. I went back to the town, did the business
he publicly directed me to, and was at home before anybody thought me
long. As for my gentleman, he stayed out, as he told me he would, till
late at night, and there was not the least suspicion in the family
either on his account or on mine.

We had, after this, frequent opportunities to repeat our crime
--chiefly by his contrivance--especially at home, when his mother and
the young ladies went abroad a-visiting, which he watched so narrowly
as never to miss; knowing always beforehand when they went out, and
then failed not to catch me all alone, and securely enough; so that we
took our fill of our wicked pleasure for near half a year; and yet,
which was the most to my satisfaction, I was not with child.

But before this half-year was expired, his younger brother, of whom I
have made some mention in the beginning of the story, falls to work
with me; and he, finding me alone in the garden one evening, begins a
story of the same kind to me, made good honest professions of being in
love w