him; for, to be plain, with my circumstances I was in no
condition now to say No; I had no reason now to run any more
such hazards.
But while these thoughts ran round in my head, which was the
work but of a few moments, I observed my landlord took him
aside and whispered to him, though not very softly neither, for
so much I overheard: ‘Sir, if you shall have occasion—-‘ the
rest I could not hear, but it seems it was to this purpose: ‘Sir,
if you shall have occasion for a minister, I have a friend a little
way off that will serve you, and be as private as you please.’
My gentleman answered loud enough for me to hear, ‘Very
well, I believe I shall.’
I was no sooner come back to the inn but he fell upon me with
irresistible words, that since he had had the good fortune to
meet me, and everything concurred, it would be hastening his
felicity if I would put an end to the matter just there. ‘What
do you mean?’ says I, colouring a little. ‘What, in an inn, and
upon the road! Bless us all,’ said I, as if I had been surprised,
‘how can you talk so?’ ‘Oh, I can talk so very well,’ says he,
‘I came a-purpose to talk so, and I’ll show you that I did’; and
with that he pulls out a great bundle of papers. ‘You fright me,’
said I; ‘what are all these?’ ‘Don’t be frighted, my dear,’ said
he, and kissed me. This was the first time that he had been so
free to call me ‘my dear’; then he repeated it, ‘Don’t be frighted;
you shall see what it is all’; then he laid them all abroad. There
was first the deed or sentence of divorce from his wife, and
the full evidence of her playing the whore; then there were the
certificates of the minister and churchwardens of the parish
where she lived, proving that she was buried, and intimating
the manner of her death; the copy of the coroner’s warrant for
a jury to sit upon her, and the verdict of the jury, who brought
it in Non compos mentis. All this was indeed to the purpose,
and to give me satisfaction, though, by the way, I was not so
scrupulous, had he known all, but that I might have taken him
without it. However, I looked them all over as well as I could,
and told him that this was all very clear indeed, but that he
need not have given himself the trouble to have brought them
out with him, for it was time enough. Well, he said, it might
be time enough for me, but notime but the present time was
time enough for him.
There were other papers rolled up, and I asked him what they
were. ‘Why, ay,’ says he, ‘that’s the question I wanted to have
you ask me’; so he unrolls them and takes out a little shagreen
case, and gives me out of it a very fine diamond ring. I could
not refuse it, if I had a mind to do so, for he put it upon my
finger; so I made him a curtsy and accepted it. Then he takes
out another ring: ‘And this,’ says he, ‘is for another occasion,’
so he puts that in his pocket. ‘Well, but let me see it, though,’
says I, and smiled; ‘I guess what it is; I think you are mad.’
‘I should have been mad if I had done less,’ says he, and still
he did not show me, and I had a great mind to see it; so I says,
‘Well, but let me see it.’ ‘Hold,’ says he, ‘first look here’;
then he took up the roll again and read it, and behold! it was
a licence for us to be married. ‘Why,’ says I, ‘are you distracted?
Why, you were fully satisfied that I would comply and yield
at first word, or resolved to take no denial.’ ‘The last is
certainly the case,’ said he. ‘But you may be mistaken,’ said I.
‘No, no,’ says he, ‘how can you think so? I must not be denied,