ave scarce the power to deny
him anything he would ask. However, I told him thus, with an air of
tenderness too, that he had done so much for me that I thought I ought
to deny him nothing; only I hoped and depended upon him that he would
not take the advantage of the infinite obligations I was under to him,
to desire anything of me the yielding to which would lay me lower in his
esteem than I desired to be; that as I took him to be a man of honour,
so I knew he could not like me better for doing anything that was below
a woman of honesty and good manners to do.

He told me that he had done all this for me, without so much as telling
me what kindness or real affection he had for me, that I might not be
under any necessity of yielding to him in anything for want of bread;
and he would no more oppress my gratitude now than he would my necessity
before, nor ask anything, supposing he would stop his favours or
withdraw his kindness, if he was denied; it was true, he said, he might
tell me more freely his mind now than before, seeing I had let him see
that I accepted his assistance, and saw that he was sincere in his
design of serving me; that he had gone thus far to show me that he was
kind to me, but that now he would tell me that he loved me, and yet
would demonstrate that his love was both honourable, and that what he
should desire was what he might honestly ask and I might honestly grant.

I answered that, within those two limitations, I was sure I ought to
deny him nothing, and I should think myself not ungrateful only, but
very unjust, if I should; so he said no more, but I observed he kissed
me more, and took me in his arms in a kind of familiar way, more than
usual, and which once or twice put me in mind of my maid Amy's words;
and yet, I must acknowledge, I was so overcome with his goodness to me
in those many kind things he had done that I not only was easy at what
he did and made no resistance, but was inclined to do the like, whatever
he had offered to do. But he went no farther than what I have said, nor
did he offer so much as to sit down on the bedside with me, but took his
leave, said he loved me tenderly, and would convince me of it by such
demonstrations as should be to my satisfaction. I told him I had a great
deal of reason to believe him, that he was full master of the whole
house and of me, as far as was within the bounds we had spoken of, which
I believe he would not break, and asked him if he would no