"in the precarious hopes of obtaining me, yet he is fuch a strange creature, that he never once told . me that he could not live without me, or fwore, that if he could not have me he would have no"body. But I have faid enough about him, and "will now go on to the second. "He is what you call a lover indeed :—he fol"lows me wherever I go ;---my fhadow, or the "dial to the fun, is not more constant :-then he "is fure to approve of all I fay and do; and I fre"quently both act and fpeak what my own reason tells me is abfurd, merely to try how he will relifh it---but the poor creature feems to have. "no will but mine; and on my confcience I be"lieve, were I to bid him cut off his right hand, " he would not hesitate to obey me. When I "but smile upon him, he is all ecstasy; and if I "frown, his countenance becomes fo meagre, that you would think he had been fick a week. I "have been two or three times about to give him "his final answer, but was obliged to retract my "words to prevent his running himself through ❝ the body. In fhort, the paffion the man has "for me makes him quite filly; and the greatest "objection I have against marrying him, is, that "his exceffive fondnefs would render us the jett "of our acquaintance. As to the reft, he has a "very good eftate, a perfon agreeable enough, a "fine gilt berlin, and the moit beautiful ftring of "horses, except his majesty's, that ever I faw in my life. "THE third is gay, witty, genteel, handfome. as an angel, and dreffes to a charm:—he is in"timate with all the great world, knows all their "intrigues, and relates them in the moft agreeable "manner :-then he has a delightful voice, a to "lerable "rable fkill in mufic, and has all the new tunes "the moment they come from the compofer.--"In fine, there is no one perfection we women "admire in the fex, that he does not poffefs in an <infinite degree. We never are in the mall, at "the play, opera, affembly, or any public place, "but all eyes are fixed upon him, and then turned "on me, with a kind of malicious leer, for engrof"fing so pretty a fellow to myself. Such a lover, "you will own, might be flattering enough to the "vanity of any woman; and I cannot fay but it highly diverts and pleases me, to obferve the "little artifices fome, even among my own acquaintance, put in practice in hopes of gaining him from me.* .. 64 "BUT yet in spite of all these engaging quali-"ties in him, in fpite of the gratification it gives cc my pride to see myself triumphant over all who "with to be my rivals, my reaion tells me he de"ferves lefs of my affection than either of those "I have been describing; not only because his "eftate is lefs, but because he seems to make too · great a merit of preferring me to the rest of my "fex -he is always telling me of the great offers r daily made to him; of the invitations given "him by one celebrated beauty, and the kind glances he receives from another; and though " he always clofes thefe fpeeches with vowing it is "not in the power of any thing to come in compe“tition with me, yet he feems, on the whole, to "take more pains to convince me how much he "is beloved, than how inuch he loves; and this "makes me conclude him to be what the world "calls a man too full of himself. .. "THIS is as exact a picture as I can give you "of my three lovers, and I do not doubt but you 66 are "are impatient to know which of them it is my heart is moft inclined to favour. I will tell "you then with the utmoft fincerity, that they have all their places, and I am, as it were, di“vided among them. The first has my esteem,"the fecond my pity,---and the third my love:--"but yet I have not fo much efteem for the firft, ૮. as fhould occafion me to defpife either of the "others I fhould make choice of; not fo much pity "for the fecond, as to engage me to allow any "favours prejudicial to whoever fhould be my huf"band; nor fo much love for the laft, as not to be "able to withdraw it, if once I beftow, my perfon 66 on a different object. "As I am intirely at my own difpofal, I would "fain make fuch a choice as fhould be approved "of by the world, and afford the greatest profpect GC of happiness to myself. You being a perfon "who can be no way prejudiced in favour of any pretenders to me, are beft capable of advifing me in fo important an affair, and I fatter my"felf will take the trouble of giving me fuch rea"fons for whatever part you take, as will deter"mine me to be wholly guided by your opinion, " and enable me to put an end to the long fufpence "the above-mentioned gentlemen have languifhed «in, as well as the fluctuating condition of my own mind. r "A SPEEDY and cordial compliance with this request, will lay under the greatest obligation her, who is, THERE is no ftage or rank in life that is not attended with fome portion of difquiet of one kind or other; and I do not doubt but this young lady feels little lefs in the uncertainty which of her lovers it will beft become her to make choice of than the most paffionate of them does in the fears of being rejected. However, if fhe is really as ready to take advice as the FEMALE SPECTATOR is to give it, the beft in our power fhall be done to fet her right. IT must be confeffed fhe is no lefs juft than dif cerning, in dividing the prefent affections of her foul. The firft of her admirers demands all the efteem fhe can beftow. The fecond, if fincere, is indeed a pity-moving character. And the fine perfon and accomplishments of the third, if really fuch as the imagines them to be, may claim fome fhare of inclination. But as all thefe favourable fentiments muft at laft center in one, and efteem,. pity, and admiration blend to compofe a perfect tenderness, it would be well for her to confider that the two last of themselves, without more folid merits to attract the former, can form but a fhortlived and unfubftantial paffion. Love is not deferving to be called love, when not accompanied by friendship, and friendship can only be founded on efteem. He, therefore, who is found worthy of that, has a juft title to the other alfo, if no disparity of age, birth, fortune, or a disagreeable form, forbids the foft impulfe, and forces nature to oppofe reafon. By this, I dare fay, Bellamonte expects I will decree for her first lover, as she acknowledges none of the impediments I have mentioned can be alledged against him; and if her extreme youth will permit her to think with that seriousness the mat- ter ter requires, I am fure fhe has a fufficient fund of good fenfe to know that things are not always what they seem.--A very little obfervation will ferve to inform her, that the most dying lover is frequently far removed from the inoft affectionate husband; and also, that a man who values himself upon his perfonal excellencies, has often been too carelefs of his mental part, to be convinced withi himfelf, that admiration ought only to be the reward of acquired virtues, not of fuch casual perfections as a handsome face, well-turned limbs, or an agreeable voice, which a thoufand accidents may deprive him of, and confequently convert the love he fo much plumes himself upon, into an adequate contempt. If her first-mentioned lover does not on every occafion fall into despair, and threaten to lay violent hands on his own life as the fecond does, it fhews he has lefs of the froth of love, but does not denote he is not more full of the permanent and valuable part; on the contrary, his paffion evaporates not in words, - the spirit remains entire within his breast, and it is fcarce to be doubted will last as long as life. BUT because she feems to have an equal fhare of good-nature as of wit, I would have her be under no apprehenfions that any thing fatal will enfue on her refusing the fecond lover; the deaths threatened by a man of his caft, are as fictitious as the darts and flames of his pretended deity; and we often fee those of them who profecute their aim with the greatest vigour, bear a disappointment. with the most indifference. Much lefs would I have her imagine, that in preferring him to the others, she would be certain of retaining the fame power. |