*for I fee at leaft fifty miles before me, and no houfe in all the way.' You fee, indeed, a very fair profpect,' fays Jones, which receives great ad'ditional beauty from the extreme luftre of the " moon. However, I will keep the left-hand track, as that feems to lead directly to thofe hills, which · we were informed lie not far from Worcester. And here, if you are inclined to quit me, you may, and return back again; but, for my part, I am resolved to go forward.'

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It is unkind in you, Sir,' fays Partridge, fufpect me of any fuch intention. What I have advised hath been as much on your account as on my own; but fince you are determined to go on, I am as much determined to follow. I præ, fe

quar te.'

They now travelled fome miles without fpeaking to each other, during which fufpence of difcourfe Jones often fighed, and Benjamin groaned as bitterly, though from a very different reafon. At length Jones made a full stop, and turning about, cries, Who knows, Partridge, but the lovelieft creature in the univerfe may have her eyes now fixed on that very " moon which I behold at this inftant?' · Very likely, Sir,' anfwered Partridge, and if my eyes were fixed on a good furloin of roast beef, the devil might take the moon and her horns into the bargain.' Did ever Tramontane make fuch an anfwer?' cries Jones. Prithee, Partridge, waft thou ever fufceptible of love in thy life, or hath time worn away all the traces of it from thy memory? Alack-a-day,' cries Partridge, well

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would it have been for me if I had never known

what love was. Infanda Regina jubes renovare Dolorem. I am fure I have tafted all the tenderness and fublimities, and bitterneffes of the paffion.' Was your mistress unkind then?' fays Jones. Very unkind indeed, Sir,' anfwered Partridge? for the married me, and made one of the most confounded wives in the world. However, heaven be praised, the's gone; and if I believed fhe was in the moon, according to the book I once read, which

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teaches that to be the receptacle of departed fpirits, "I would never look at it for fear of feeing her: but I wish, Sir, that the noon was a looking glass for your fake, and that Mifs Sophia Western was now placed before it.' My dear Partridge,' cries Jones, what a thought was there! A thought which I am certain could never have entered into any mind but that of a lover. O Partridge, could I hope once again to fee that face; but, alas! all thofe golden dreams are vanifhed for ever, and my only refuge from future mifery is to forget the object of all my former happinefs,' And do you really defpair of ever feeing Mifs Weftern again? anfwered Partridge: If you will follow my advice, "I will engage you fhall not only fee her, but have her in your arms' Ha! do not awaken a thought of that nature,' cries Jones.. I have ftruggled fufficiently to conquer all fuch withes already.' "Nay,' anfwered Partridge, if you do not wifh to have your mistress in your arms, you are a most extraordinary lover indeed.' Well, well,' fays Jones, let us avoid this fubject; but pray what is your advice?" To give it you in the military phrase then,' fays Partridge, as we are foldiers; To the right about.' Let us return the way we we may yet reach Gloucefter to night; though late; whereas if we proceed, we are likely, ' for ought I fee, to ramble about for ever without coming either to houfe or home.' I have already told you my refolution is to go on,' answered Jones; but I would have you to go back. I am obliged to you for your company hither; and I beg you to accept a guinea as afmall inftance of my gratitude. Nay it would be cruel in me to fuffer you to go any farther; for, to deal plainly with. you, my chief end and defire is a glorious death in the fervice of my king and country.' • As for your money,' replied Partridge, I beg, Sir, you " will put it up I will receive none of you at this time; for at prefent I am, I believe, the richer man of the two And as your resolution is to go on, fo mine is to follow you if you do, Nay, now " my.

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my prefence appears abfolutely neceffary to take care of you, fince your intentions are so desperate; for I promise you my views are much more pradent; as you are refolved to fall in battle if you can, fo I am refolved as firmly to come to no hurt, • if I can help it. And indeed I have the comfort to think there will be but little danger; for a popish prieft told me the other day, the business would 'foon be over, and he believed without a battle.' A popish prieft,' cries Jones, I have heard is not always to be believed when he speaks in behalf of his religion.' Yes, but fo far,' anfwered the from fpeaking in behalf of his religion, he affured me, the catholicks did not expect to be any gainers by the change; for that Prince Charles was as good a proteftant as any in England; and that nothing but regard to right made him and the reft of the popish party to be Jacobites.' 1 believe him to be as much a protestant as I believe he hath any right,' fays Jones, and I make no doubt of our fuccefs, but not without a battle. So that I am not fo fanguine as your friend the popifh priest." Nay, to be fure, Sir,' anfwered Partridge, 'all the prophecies I have ever read, fpeak of a great deal of blood to be fpilt in the quarrel, and the miller with three thumbs, who is now alive, is to hold the horfes of three kings, up to his knees in blood. Lord have mercy upon us all, and fend better times!' With what ftuff and nonfenfe haft thou filled thy head,' anfwered Jones? This too, I fuppofe, comes from the popish priest. Monsters and prodigies are the proper arguments to fupport monftrous and abfurd doctrines, The caufe of King George is the cause of liberty and true religion. In other words, it is the caufe of common fenfe, my boy, and I warrant you will fucceed, though Briareus himself was to rife again with his hundred thumbs, and to turn millèr.' Partridge made no reply to this. He was indeed caft into the utmoft confufion by this declaration of Jones. For to inform the reader of a fecret, which we had no proper opportunity of revealing before, Partridge

was

was in truth a Jacobite, and had concluded that Jones was of the fame party, and was now proceeding to join the rebels. An opinion which was not without foundation. For the tall long-fided damne, mentioned by Hudibras; that many-eyed, many tongued, many-mouthed, many-eared monfter of Virgil, had related the story of the quarrel between Jones and the officer, with her ufual regard to truth. She had indeed changed the name of Sophia into that of the pretender, and had reported, that drinking his health was the caufe for which Jones was knocked down. This Partridge had heard, and moft firmly believed. 'Tis no wonder, therefore, that he had thence entertained the above-mentioned opinion of Jones; and which he had almost discovered to him before he found out his own mistake. And at this the reader will be the lefs inclined to wonder, if he pleafes to recollect the doubtful phrafe in which Jones first communicated his refolution to Mr. Partridge; and, indeed, had the words been lefs ambiguous, Partridge might very well have conftrued them as he did; being perfuaded, as he was, that the whole nation were of the fame inclination in their hearts: nor did it stagger him that Jones had travelled in the company of foldiers; for he had the fame opinion of the army which he had of the rest of the people.

But however well affected he might be to James or Charles, he was ftill much more attached to Little Benjamin than to either; for which reafon he no fooner discovered the principles of his fellow traveller, than he thought proper to conceal, and outwardly to give up his own to the man on whom he depended for the making his fortune, fince he by no means believed the affairs of Jones to be fo defperate as they really were with Mr. Allworthy; for as he had kept a conftant correspondence with fome of his neighbours fince he left that country, he had heard much, indeed more than was true, of the great affection Mr. Allworthy bore this young man, who, as Partridge had been inftructed, was to be that gentleman's heir, and whom, as we have faid, he did not in the leaft doubt to be his fon, n

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He imagined, therefore, that whatever quarrel was between them, it would be certainly made up at the return of Mr. Jones; an event from which he promised great advantages, if he could take this opportunity of ingratiating himself with that young gentleman; and, if he could by any means be inftrumental in procuring his return, he doubted not, as we have before faid but it would as highly advance. him in the favour of Mr Allworthy.

We have already obferved. that he was a very good-1 natured fellow, and he hath himself declared the violent attachment he had to the perfon and character of Jones; but poffibly the views which I have just before mentioned. might likewife have fome little fhare in prompting him to undertake this expedition, at leaft in urging him to continue it, after he haddiscovered, that his master and himself, like fome prudent fathers and fons, though they travelled together in great friendship, had embraced oppofite parties. I am led into this conjecture, by having remarked. that though love, friendfhip, efleem, and fuch like, have very powerful operations in the human mind; intereft, however, is an ingredient feldom omitted by wife men, when they would work others to their own purpofes. This is indeed a most excellent medicine, and, like Ward's pill, flies at once to the particular part of the body on which you defire to operate, whether it be the tongue, the hand, or any other member, where it fcarce ever fails of.. immediately producing the defired effect.

CHAP. X.

In which our travellers meet with a very extraordinary adventure.

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UST as Jones and his friend came to the end of their dialogue in the preceding chapter, they arrived at the bottom of a very steep hill. Here Jones ftopt fhort and directing his eyes upwards, ftood for a while filent. At length he called to his companion, and faid, Partridge, I wish I was at the top of this

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