I had provided her a proper match, a sober man and
one of substance; but she, forsooth, would chuse for herself, and away
she is gone with a young fellow not worth a groat. If she had been
dead, as I suppose thy friend is, I should have been happy."- "That
is very strange, sir," said Jones. "Why, would it not be better for
her to be dead, than to be a beggar?" replied the Quaker: "for, as I
told you, the fellow is not worth a groat; and surely she cannot
expect that I shall ever give her a shilling. No, as she hath
married for love, let her live on love if she can; let her carry her
love to market, and see whether any one will change it into silver, or
even into halfpence."- "You know your own concerns best, sir," said
Jones. "It must have been," continued the Quaker, "a long premeditated
scheme to cheat me: for they have known one another from their
infancy; and I always preached to her against love, and told her a
thousand times over it was all folly and wickedness. Nay, the
cunning slut pretended to hearken to me, and to despise all wantonness
of the flesh; and yet at last broke out at a window two pair of
stairs: for I began, indeed, a little to suspect her, and had locked
her up carefully, intending the very next morning to have married
her up to my liking. But she disappointed me within a few hours, and
escaped away to the lover of her own chusing; who lost no time, for
they were married and bedded and all within an hour.
Pages:
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429
430
431