ot only suffered but sought by all the best company,
and indeed are the most conversable, reasonable people in the place. She
is an excellent housewife, and particularly remarkable for keeping her
pretty house as neat as any in Holland. She appears no longer in public,
being past fifty, and passes her time chiefly at home with her work,
receiving few visitants. This Signora Diana, about ten years since, saw,
at a monastery, a girl about eight years old, who came thither to beg
alms for her mother. Her beauty, though covered with rags, was very
observable, and gave great compassion to the charitable lady, who
thought it meritorious to rescue such a modest sweetness as appeared in
her face from the ruin to which her wretched circumstances exposed her.
She asked her some questions, to which she answered with a natural
civility that seemed surprising; and finding the head of her family (her
brother) to be a cobbler, who could hardly live by that trade, and her
mother too old to work for her maintenance, she bid the child follow her
home; and sending for her parent, proposed to her to breed the little
Octavia for her servant. This was joyfully accepted, the old woman
dismissed with a piece of money, and the girl remained with the Signora
Diana, who bought her decent clothes, and took pleasure in teaching her
whatever she was capable of learning. She learned to read, write, and
cast accounts, with uncommon facility; and had such a genius for work,
that she excelled her mistress in embroidery, point, and every operation
of the needle. She grew perfectly skilled in confectionary, had a good
insight into cookery, and was a great proficient in distillery. To these
accomplishments she was so handy, well bred, humble and modest, that not
only her master and mistress, but everybody that frequented the house,
took notice of her. She lived thus near nine years, never going out but
to church. However, beauty is as difficult to conceal as light; hers
began to make a great noise. Signora Diana told me she observed an
unusual concourse of pedling women that came on pretext to sell
penn'orths of lace, china, etc., and several young gentlemen, very well
powdered, that were perpetually walking before her door, and looking up
at the windows. These prognostics alarmed her prudence, and she listened
very willingly to some honourable proposals that were made by many
honest, thriving tradesmen. She communicated them to Octavia, and told
her, that t