erfully on your noble salmon. Mr. Allen
could not come, and I sent him a piece, and a great tail is still
left."

"April 26th, 1784.

"Mrs. Davenant called to pay me a guinea, but I gave two for you.
Whatever reasons you have for frugality, it is not worth while to
save a guinea a year by withdrawing it from a public charity."

"Whilst I am writing, the post has brought me your kind letter. Do
not think with dejection of your own condition: a little patience
will probably give you health: it will certainly give you riches, and
all the accommodations that riches can procure."

Up to this time she had put an almost killing restraint on her
inclinations, and had acted according to Johnson's advice in
everything but the final abandonment of Piozzi; yet Boswell reports
him as saying, May 16th: "Sir, she has done everything wrong since
Thrale's bridle was off her neck."

The next extracts are from "Thraliana":

"_Bath, Nov. 30th, 1783._--Sophia will live and do well; I have saved
my daughter, perhaps obtained a friend. They are weary of seeing me
suffer so, and the eldest beg'd me yesterday not to sacrifice my life
to her convenience. She now saw my love of Piozzi was incurable, she
said. Absence had no effect on it, and my health was going so fast
she found that I should soon be useless either to her or him. It was
the hand of God and irresistible, she added, and begged me not to
endure any longer such unnecessary misery.

"So now we may be happy if we will, and now I trust _some_ [_(sic)
query "no?_"] other cross accident will start up to torment us; I
wrote my lover word that he might come and fetch me, but the Alps are
covered with snow, and if his prudence is not greater than his
affection--my life will yet be lost, for it depends on his safety.
Should he come at my call, and meet with any misfortune on the road
... death, with accumulated agonies, would end me. May Heaven avert
such insupportable distress!"

"_Dec._ 1783.--My dearest Piozzi's Miss Chanon is in distress. I will
send her 10_l_. Perhaps he loved her; perhaps she loved _him_;
perhaps both; yet I have and will have confidence in his honour. I
will not suffer love or jealousy to narrow a heart devoted to _him_.
He would assist her if he were in England, and _she_ shall not suffer
for his absence, tho' I _do_. She and her father have reported many
things to my prejudice; she will be ashamed of herself when she sees
me forgive and assist her. O Lord,