Letter XXX.

Miss Byron. In Continuation.

Selby-house, Wednesday, October 25. Sir Charles came not this morning till we were all assembled for breakfast. I had begun to think, whe-ther, if I had been Sir Charles, and he had been Miss Byron, I would not have been here an hour before, expecting the decision of the judges to whom a certain cause was referred. O my dear Lady G.! l\ow narrow-minded I am, with all my quondam he-roism! The knowledge of his past engagements with the excellent Clementina, and of his earnest wishes then to be here, makes me, on every occasion that can be tortured into an appearance of neglect or coldness, so silly! — Indeed I am ashamed of myself. But all my petulance was dispelled, the instant he shone upon us.

Well, my dear ladies, said he, the moment he took his place, whisperingly to my grandmamma, Is sentence given?

It is. Sir Charles He took my hand, cross my Nancy’s lap, as she sat between him and me ^I have hopes, my dear Miss Byron [from the foolishness in my looks, I suppose] that you are cast.

Have patience. Sir, said I It is well that the best of us are not always to be our own carvers.

He looked, Lucy said afterwards, with eyes of love upon me, and of apprehension on his judges; and the discourse turned upon indifferent subjects.

I retired as soon as breakfast was over; ajid he demanded his sentence.

My uncle was, as he called it, turned out nfdnar before my grandmamma gave your brother the paper.

Sir Charles read it You are not serious upon it, Sir Charles? said my grandmamma. I am infinitely obliged to you, ladies, replied he. I love to argue with my dear Miss Byron: I must attend her, this moment.

He sent up Sally before him, and came up. I was in my closet; and scrupled not to admit him.

Henceforth, my dearest dear Miss Byron, said he, the moment he approached me (as I stood up to re-ceive him) I salute you undoubtedly mine And he saluted me with ardor I knew not which way to look So polite a lover, as I thought him! Yet never man was so gracefully free! It remains now, madam, proceeded he, still holding my hand, to put to trial your goodness to me [You have done that already, thought I!] in the great question, by which I am to conduct myself for the next week, or ten days.

IVeeJi or ten days! thought I. Surely, Sir, you are an encroacher.

You see, Sir, said I, when a little recovered, what judges who, on such points as these, cannot err, have determined.

Yes, they can, interrupted he: as ladies, they are parties But I submit. Their judgment must be a law to me I will go up to town, as they advise. I cannot, however, be long absent from you. When I return, I will not put up at a public place. Either your uncle, or your grandmother, must allow me to be their guest. This will oblige you, I hope, even for dear punctilio sake, to honour me with your hand very soon after ray return.