"What bufinefs have you with the lady?' Upon which Jones, who now perfectly remembered the voice, features, and indeed coat, of the gentleman, cried out:- Ha, my good friend! give me your hand; I hope there is no ill blood remaining between us, upon a small mistake which happened fo long ago.'

Upon my foul, Sir,' faid Fitzpatrick, I don't 'know your name, nor your face.' 'Indeed, Sir,' faid Jones, neither have I the pleasure of knowing your name, but your face I very well remember to ' have seen before at Upton, where a foolish quarrel ⚫ happened between us, which, if it is not made up yet, we will now make up over a bottle.'

At Upton!' cried the other. Ha! upon my foul, I believe your name is Jones.' 'Indeed,' anfwered he, 'it is.'- 'O, upon my foul,' cries Fitzpatrick, you are the very man I wanted to meet.Upon my foul I will drink a bottle with you prefently; but first I will give you a great knock over the pate. There is for you, you rafcal. Upon my foul, if you do not give me fatisfaction for that blow, I will give you another.' And then drawing his sword put himself in a posture of defence, which was the only science he understood.

Jones was a little staggered by the blow, which came fomewhat unexpectedly; but presently recovering himself he also drew, and though he understood nothing of fencing, preft on fo boldly upon Fitzpatrick, that he beat down his guard, and fheathed one half of his fword in the body of the said gentleman, who had no fooner received it, than he

stept

ftept backwards, dropt the point of his fword, and leaning upon it, cried: "I have fatisfaction enough: I am a dead man.'

'I hope not,' cries Jones, but whatever be the confequence, you must be fenfible you have drawn it upon yourself.' At this inftant a number of fellows rufhed in and feized Jones, who told them, he fhould make no refiftance, and begged fome of them at least would take care of the wounded gentleman.

Ay, cries one of the fellows, "the wounded gentleman will be taken care enough of; for I fuppofe he hath not many hours to live. As for you, Sir, you have a month at least good yet.' 'D-n me, Jack,' faid another, he hath prevented his 6 voyage; he's bound to another port now;' and many other fuch jefts was our poor Jones made the fubject of, by these fellows, who were indeed the gang employed by lord Fellamar, and had dogged him into the house of Mrs. Fitzpatrick, waiting for him at the corner of the street when this unfortunate accident happened.

The officer who commanded this gang very wifely concluded, that his business was now to deliver his prifoner into the hands of the civil magiftrate. He ordered him therefore to be carried to a public house, where having fent for a conftable, he delivered him to his cuftody,

The conftable feeing Mr. Jones very well dreft, and hearing that the accident had happened in a duel, treated his prifoner with great civility, and, at his request, dispatched a meffenger to enquire after the wounded gentleman, who was now at a tavern under

the

the furgeon's hands. The report brought back was, that the wound was certainly mortal, and there were no hopes of life. Upon which the conftable informed. Jones, that he must go before a juftice. He anfwered: wherever you please: I am indifferent as to what happens to me; for though I am convinced I am not guilty of murder in the eye of the law, yet the weight of blood I find intolerable upon my

'mind.'

Jones was now conducted before the justice, where the furgeon who dreffed Mr. Fitzpatrick appeared, and depofed, that he believed the wound to be mortal; upon which the prifoner was committed to the Gate-house. It was very late at night, fo that Jones would not fend for Partridge till the next morning; and as he never shut his eyes till feven, fo it was near twelve before the poor fellow, who was greatly frightened at not hearing from his mafter fo long, received a meffage which almoft deprived him of his being, when he heard it.

He went to the Gate-houfe with trembling knees and a beating heart, and was no fooner arrived in the prefence of Jones, than he lamented the misfortune that had befallen him, with many tears, looking all the while frequently about him in great terror; for as the news now arrived that Mr. Fitzpatrick was dead, the poor fellow apprehended every minute that his ghoft would enter the room. At last he delivered him a letter, which he had like to have forgot, and which came from Sophia by the hands of Black George.

Jones prefently dispatched every one out of the room, and having eagerly broke open the letter, read as follows:

1

'You

'You owe the hearing from me again to an acci'dent which I own furprizes me. My aunt hath juft now fhewn me a letter from you to lady Bellafton, ' which contains a propofal of marriage. I am convinced it is your own hand; and what more furprizes me is, that it is dated at the very time when you would have me imagine you was under fuch concern on my account. I leave you to comment. on this fact. All I defire is, that your name may never more be mentioned to

'S.W.'

Of the present fituation of Mr. Jones's mind, and of the pangs with which he was now tormented, we cannot give the reader a better idea, than by faying, his mifery was fuch, that even Thwackum would almost have pitied him. But bad as it is, we shall at prefent leave him in it, as his good genius (if he really had any) feems to have done. And here we put

an end to the fixteenth book of our history.

THE

3

THE

HISTORY

OF A

FOUNDLING.

BOOK XVII.

Containing three days.

CHAP. I.

Containing a portion of introductory writing.

W

HEN a comic writer hath made his principal characters as happy as he can; or when a tragic writer hath brought them to the highest pitch of human mifery, they both conclude their business to be done, and that their work is come to a period.

Had we been of the tragic complexion, the reader must now allow we were very nearly arrived at this period, fince it would be difficult for the devil, or any of his reprefentatives on earth, to have contrived much greater torments for poor Jones, than those in which we left him in the last chapter; and as for Sophia, a good-natured woman would hardly wifh

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