Oliv. Unhappily, fir, I'm but too much the cause of your fufpicions: you fee before you, fir, one that with falfe pretences has ftept into your family to betray it; not your daughter

Croak. Not my daughter!

Oliv. Not your daughter-but a mean deceiver-who -fupport me, I cannot

Honey. Help, fhe's going. Give her air.

Croak. Ay, ay, take the young woman to the air; I would not hurt a hair of her head, whofe ever daughter may bc not fo bad as that neither.

fhe

[Exeunt all but Croaker. Croak. Yes, yes, all's out; I now fee the whole affair.: my fon is either ma: ried, or going to be fo, to this lady, whom he impofed upon me as his fifter. Ay, certainly fo; and yet I don't find it afflicts me fo much as one might think. There's the advantage of fretting away our misfortunes beforehand, we never feel them when they come.

Enter Miss RICHLAND, and SIR WILLIAM.

Sir Wil. But, how do you know, madam, that my nephew intends fetting off from this place?

Mifs Rich. My maid affured me he was coming to this inn, and my own knowledge of his intending to leave the kingdom, fuggefted the reft. But what do I fee, my guardian here before us! Who, my dear fir, could have expected meeting you here? to what accident do we owe this pleasure ?

Croak. To a fool, I believe.

Mifs Rich. But, to what purpofe did you come ?

Croak. To play the fool.

Mifs Rich. But, with whom?

Croak. With greater fools than myself.
Mifs Rich. Explain.

Croak. Why, Mr. Honeywood brought me here, to do nothing, now I am here; and my fon is going to be married to I don't know who, that is here: so now you are as wife as I am.

Mifs Rich. Married! to whom, fir?

Croak. To Olivia; my daughter, as I took her to be; but who the devil fhe is, or whofe daughter fhe is, I know no more than the man in the moon.

Sir Wil. Then, fir, I can inform you; and, tho' a ftranger, yet you fhall find me a friend to your family; it will be enough, at present, to affure you, that both in point of birth and fortune, the young lady is at least your fon's equal. Being left by her father, fir James Woodville

Croak. Sir James Woodville! What, of the weft?

Sir Wil. Being left by him, I fay, to the care of a mercenary wretch, whofe only aim was to fecure her fortune to himself, fhe was fent into France, under pretence of education; and there every art was tried to fix her for life in a convent, contrary to her inclinations. Of this I was informed, upon my arrival at Paris; and, as I had been once her father's friend, I did all in my power to frustrate her guardian's base intentions. I had even meditated to rescue her from his authority, when your fon stept in with more pleafing violence, gave her liberty, and you a daughter.

Croak. But I intend to have a daughter of my own chufing, fir. A young lady, fir, whofe fortune by my intereft with thofe that have intereft, will be double what my fon has a right to expect. Do you know Mr. Lofty, fir?

Sir Will. Yes, fir; and know that you are deceived in him. But ftep this way, and I'll convince you.

[Croaker and Sir William feem to confer.

Honey. Obftinate man, ftill to perfift in his outrage! Infulted by him, despis'd by all, I now begin to grow contemptible, even to myfelf. How have I funk by too great an affiduity to please! How have I overtax'd all my abilities, left the approbation of a fingle fool fhould escape me! But all is now over; I have furvived my reputation, my fortune, my friendships, and nothing remains henceforward for me but folitude and repentance.

Mifs Rich. Is it true, Mr. Honeywood, that you are fetting off, without taking leave of your friends? The report is that you are quitting England. Can it be?

Honey. Yes, madam; and tho' I am fo unhappy as to have fallen under your displeasure, yet, thank Heaven, I leave you to happiness; to one who loves you, and deferves your love; to one who has power to procure you affluence, and generofity to improve your enjoyment of it..

Mifs Rich. And are you fure, fir, that the gentleman you mean is what you defcribe him?

Honey. I have the beft affurances of it, his ferving me, He does indeed deferve the higheft happiness, and that

is in your power to confer. As for me, weak and wavering as I have been, obliged by all, and incapable of ferving any, what happiness can I find but in folitude? What hope but in being forgotten?

Mifs Rich. A thousand! to live among friends that esteem you, whofe happiness it will be to be permitted to oblige you.

Honey. No, madam; my refolution is fix'd. Inferiority among ftrangers is eafy; but among thofe that once were equals, infupportable. Nay, to fhew you how

far

my refolution can go, I can now speak with calmness of my former follies, my vanity, my diffipation, my weaknefs. I will even confefs, that, among the number of my other presumptions, I had the infolence to think of loving you. Yes, madam, while I was pleading the paffion of another, my heart was tortur'd with its own. But it is over, it was unworthy our friendship, and let it be forgotten.

Mifs Rich. You amaze me !

Honey. But you'll forgive it, I know you will; fince the confeffion fhould not have come from me even now, but to convince you of the fincerity of my intention ofnever mentioning it more. [Going. Mifs Rich. Stay, fir, one moment-Ha! he here

Enter LOFTY.

Lofty. Is the coaft clear? None but friends. I have followed you here with a trifling piece of intelligence: but it goes no farther, things are not yet ripe for a dif covery. I have fpirits working at a certain board; your

affair at the treasury will be done in less than a thoufand years. Mum!

Mifs Rich. Sooner, fir, I fhould hope.

Lofty. Why, yes, I believe it may, if it falls into proper hands, that know where to push and where to parry; that know how the land lies-eh, Honeywood..

Mifs Rich. It is fallen into yours.

Lofty. Well, to keep you no longer in fufpence, your thing is done. It is done, I fay-that's all. I have just had affurances from lord Neverout, that the claim has been examined, and found admiffible. Quietus is the word, madam.

Honey. But how! his lordship has been at Newmarket thefe ten days.

Lofty. Indeed! Then Sir Gilbert Goose must have been mot damnably mistaken. I had it of him.

Mifs Rich. He! why Sir Gilbert and his family have been in the country this month.

Lofty. This month! It must certainly be fo-Sir Gilbert's letter did come to me from Newmarket, so that he must have met his lordship there; and fo it came about. I have his letter about me; I'll read it to you. (Taking out a large bundle.) That's from Paoli of Coifica, that from the marquis of Squilachi.-Have you a mind to fee a letter from count Poniatowski, now king of Poland-Honeft Por-Searching) O, fir, what are you here too? I'll tell you what, honeft friend, if you have not abfolutely delivered my letter to Sir William Honeywood, you may return it. The thing will do without him.