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worthy defired her to come in, faying, he had finished his bufinefs. Upon which Mr Dowling withdrew, and Mrs Miller introduced Mr Nightingale the younger,, to return thanks for the great kindness done him by Allworthy; but he had fcarce patience to let the young gentleman finish his fpeech before he interrupted him, faying, O Sir, Mr Nightingale brings great news about poor Mr Jones; he hath been to fee the wounded gentleman, who is out of all danger of death, and what is more, declares he fell upon poor Mr Jones himself, and beat him. I am fure, Sir, you would not have Mr Jones be a coward. If I was a man myself, I am fure if any man was to ftrike me, I fhould draw my fword. Do pray, my dear, tell Mr Allworthy, tell him all yourfelf Nightingale then confirmed what Mrs Miller had faid, and concluded with many handfome things of Jones, who was, he faid, one of the beft-natured fellows in the world, and not in the leaft inclined to be quarrelfome. Here Nightingale was going to ceafe, when Mrs Miller agair begged him to relate all the many dutiful expreflions he had heard him make ufe of towards Mr Allworthy. To fay the utmoft good of Mr Allworthy,' cries Nightingale, is doing no more than strict juftice, and can have no merit in it; but indeed I muft fay, no man can be more fenfible of the obligations he hath to fo good a man than is poor Jones. Indeed, Sir, I am convinced the weight of your difpleafure is the heaviest burden he lies under. He hath often lamented it to me, and hath as often pro• tefted in the moft folemn manner he hath never been intentionally guilty of any offence towards you; nay, he hath fworn he would rather die a thoufand deaths than he would have his confcience upbraid him with one difrefpectful, ungrateful, or undutiful thought to•wards you. But I afk pardon, Sir, I am afraid I fume to intermeddle too far in fo tender a point." You have spoke no more than what a Chriftian ought,* cries Mrs Miller. Indeed, Mr Nightingale,' anfwered Allworthy, I applaud your generons friendship, and I wish he may merit it of you, I confefs I am glad to

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hear the report you bring from this unfortunate gentleman; and if that matter fhould turn out to be as you

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reprefent it, (and indeed I doubt nothing of what you fay), I may, perhaps in time, be brought to think better than lately I have of this young man: for this good gentlewoman here, nay, all who know me, can witness • that I loved him as dearly as if he had been my own fon. • Indeed I have confidered him as a child fent by fortune C to my care. I ftill remember the innocent, the helpless ⚫ fituation in which I found him. I feel the tender preffure of his little hands at this moment.- He was my dar

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As the answer which Mrs Miller made, may lead us into fresh matters, we will here ftop to account for the visible alteration in Mr Allworthy's mind, and the abatement of his anger to Jones. Revolutions of this kind, it is true, do frequently occur in hiftories and dramatic writers, for no other reason than because the history or play draws to a conclufion, and are juftified by authority of authors; yet though we infift upon as much authority as any author whatever, we shall use this power very fparingly, and never but when we are driven to it by neceffity, which we do not at prefent forefee will happen this work.

This alteration, then, in the mind of Mr Allworthy, was occafioned by a letter he had just received from Mr Square, and which we shall give the reader in the beginning of the next chapter.

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I

CHA P. IV.

Containing two letters in very different ftyles.

My worthy friend.

Informed you in my laft, that I was forbidden the ufe of the waters, as they were found by experience rather to increafe than leffen the fymptoms of my diftemper. I muft now acquaint you with a piece of news,' which I believe will afflict my friends more than it hath afflicted me. Dr Harrington and Dr Brewster have informed me, that there is no hopes of my reco• very.'

I have fomewhere read, that the great ufe of philo.

fophy is to learn to die. I will not therefore fo fat difgrace mine, as to fhew any furprise at receiving a leffon which I must be thought to have fo long ftudied. Yet, to say the truth, one page of the gofpel teaches this leffon better than all the volumes of ancient or modern philofophers. The affurance it gives us of another life is a much stronger fupport to a good mind, than all the confolations that are drawn from the neceffity of nature, the emptiness or fatiety of our enjoyments here, or any other topic of thofe declamations < which are fometimes capable of arming our minds with a ftubborn patience in bearing the thoughts of death; but never of raifing them to a real contempt of it, and much less of making us think it is a real good. 1 would not here be understood to throw the horrid cenfure of atheism, or even the abfolute denial of immortality, on all who are called philofophers. Many of that fect, as well ancient as modern, have, from the light of reason, discovered fome hopes of a future ftate; but in reality, that light was fo faint and glimmering, and the hopes were fo uncertain and precarious, that it may be justly doubted on which fide their belief turned. Plato himself concludes his Phædon with declaring, that his beft arguments amount only to raise a probability; and Cicero himself feems rather to profefs an incli'nation to believe, than any actual belief in the doctrines of immortality. As to myself, to be very fincere with you, I never was much in earnest in this faith, till I was in earnest a Chriftian.

You will perhaps wonder at the latter expreffion; but I affure you it hath not been till very lately that I could with truth call myfelf fo. The pride of philofophy • had intoxicated my reafon, and the fublimeft of all wifdom appeared to me, as it did to the Greeks of old, to be foolishness. God hath however been fo gracious to fhew me my error in time, and to bring me into the way of • truth, before I funk into utter darkness for ever.

I find myself beginning to grow weak, I fhall there•fore haften to the main purpose of this letter.

• When I reflect on the actions of my paft life, I know of nothing which fits heavier upon my confcience, than

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the injustice I have been guilty of to that poor wretch your adopted fon. I have indeed not only connived at the villainy of others, but been myself active in injuftice towards him. Believe me, my dear friend, when I tell you on the word of a dying man, he hath been bafely injured. As to the principal fact, upon the mifreprefentation of which you difcarded him, I folemnly affure you he is innocent. When you lay upon your fuppofed death-bed, he was the only perfon in the house who teftified any real concern; and what happened afterwards arofe from the wildnefs of his joy on your recovery; and, I am forry to say it, from the bafenefs of another perfon (but it is my defire to justify the innocent, and to accufe none). Believe me, my friend, this young man hath the nobleft generofity of heart, the most perfect capacity for friendship, the higheft integrity, and indeed every virtue which can ⚫ ennoble a man. He hath fome faults, but among them is not to be numbered the leaft want of duty or grati tude towards you. On the contrary, I am fatisfied, ' when you difmiffed him from your house, his heart bled for you more than for himself.

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Wordly motives were the wicked and base reasons of my concealing this from you fo long; to reveal it 6 now, I can have no inducement but the defire of ferving the cause of truth, of doing right to the innocent, and of making all the amends in my power for a past of • fence. I hope this declaration therefore will have the effect defired, and will reftore this deferving young man to your favour; the hearing of which, while I am yet alive, will afford the utmost consolation to,

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• SIR,

• Your most obliged,

• Obedient humble fervant, THOMAS SQUARE.

The reader will, after this, fcarce wonder at the revolution fo vifibly appearing in Mr Allworthy, notwithftanding he received from Mr Thwackum, by the fame poft, another letter of a very different kind, which we thall here add, as it may poffibly be the last time we

fhall have occafion to mention the name of that gentle

man.

I

SIR,

Aм not at all furprised at hearing from your worthy nephew a fresh inftance of the villainy of Mr Square the atheist's young pupil. I fhall not wonder at any ⚫ murders he may commit; and I heartily pray that your own blood may not feal up his final commitment to the place of wailing and gnashing of teeth.

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Though you cannot want fufficient calls to repent、 ance for the many unwarrantable weakneffes exemplified in your behaviour to this wretch, fo much to the prejudice of your own lawful family, and of your character; I fay, though thefe may fufficiently be fuppofed to prick and goad your confcience at this feafon; I should yet be wanting to my duty, if I fpared to give you fome admonition in order to bring you to a due fense of your errors. 1 therefore pray you feriously to confider the judgment which is likely to overtake this wicked villain; and let it ferve at leaft as a warning to you, that you may not for the future defpife the advice of one who is fo indefatigable in his prayers for " your welfare

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Had not my hand been with-held from due correc, tion, I had fcourged much of this diabolical spirit out of a boy, of whom from his infancy I difcovered the devil had taken fuch entire poffeffion; but reflections of this kind now come too late.

I am forry you have given away the living of Western fo haftily. I fhould have applied on that occafion earlier, had I thought you would not have acquainted me previous to the difpofition.- Your objection to pluralities is being righteous over-much. If there were any crime in the practice, fo many godly men would not agree to it. If the vicar of Aldergrove fhould die (as we hear he is in a declining way) I hope you will think of me, fince I am certain you must be convinced of my moft fincere attachment to your highest welfare; a welfare to which all worldly confiderations are as trifling as the fmall tithes mentioned in

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