LETTER XXIII.* Read this over first as fast as you can, and then reade all the rest, and then read this over once more, and you will better unstande all by doeing soe. MY DEAREST Brother, The storye that I must now make you aquiantted with does nearly conserne us both. For my part, I am sure the happynes of my life depends on it; therfore I beseech you reade it, and marke it with your best atension. And I vow to you by all things holy, I will not wright the least worde in this relassion which shall be the least untruth; and I hope, being I have bounde my selfe soe stricktly by vow, you will not now doubt it. Therfore to begin, I must first put you in mind that all the letters I receaved from you when you wer at London afore your goe * The following letter is one of the greatest curiosities,. in the epistolary style, that I have ever met with. ing into Spaine wer full of nothinge more then prayses of Mrs Thimelbye, and soe infinitly did. you exstolle her in them, that I had no desire more then that I might be happy in her esteeme; and the more because my love was so infinit to you, and I saw that you soe much wish❜t I wer soe. For you did desire me many times in most sweet wordes, that I would wright often to her to make my selfe happy in her acquiantance, assuring me I could not more oblige you then to honer her; and you toulde me you knew I would not repente my paynes in striving to get in to her esteeme. I would find her soe raer a creture, full of unmached worth, that I would bless the time that first brought the thought in to your minde of wrighting to me of her, and soe I have indeed a thousand times. For never creture was more fortunat then I in gaining afection from her. For I beleeve I am blest with the most perfectest and constant lover as ever women was blest with. Oh, if you would know the storye of our afection, you must come hether and reade volwmes of it, afore you can be able to understand halfe the dearnes of our love. I keepe them aporpes for your sight, and no creture breathing but my selfe ever saw them or knowes of them elce. You will say, I am certaine, when you peruse them, that ther was never any more passionat afectionat lovers then she and I, and that you never knew two cretures more truely and deadly in love with one another than we are. And I will now lett you see as many pasages how we came to be such lovers as I have time to declare. First then you must know to obay you, and being indeed truely taken with the prayses you writt of her, I presently, haveing a great ambision to get into the favore of one soe worthy, sought by all the wayes I could possible devies to be better knowne to her then yet I was, which truely I had no great difficulty in, nor was not longe in compassing. For after I had made knowne to her by letters how infinitly I honerd her, and how I had dun soe sence I first saw her here, she writt me the sweetest ansars, that from that very howre I confesse I have bin most deadly in love with her as ever lover was; and so much she did increase my admirassion of her by many of these letters, that I could never sence thinke any one worth the honering but she, though I have receaved infinit complementle favores from many others, as I can lett you see when wee meete. But soe short I thinke all the world is of her, that if you knew her as I doe, you would say that never such a creture as she blest this earth afore this many ages. Believe it, she is so far above my expression, that you canot conceave halfe her worth by it. Therfore doe not thinke the passionatnes of my afection makes me speake more of her then truth; for asure your selfe, in praysing her I canot doe it; and I will be most carfull of the reallity of all I wright in this relassion, therfore for God-sake be not fearfull to beleive all I wright. For lett me be misserable ever if I deale the least falce with you in what I declare. Therfore to goe on with my storye, you must know that many letters haveing past betwine us of onely complementle frendship, it was my happy fortune to meete her by chance with Sir John and my Lady Thimelbye at Tixall, they staying ther onely diner and some two howres after, I haveing no more time then this to possess the company of her whome I honer'd more then all the world; and such was our misserye that we could not have that time to converse more then by silent expressions, for none but ourselves knew all, or any thing of that which have past betwixt us, and therfore she durst not take noittes of me, but as one she honerd being her choyces sister; and soe she sate betwixt us all the time, and she was fayne to answere to the entertanement my sister gave her of complements, which she seemed to take little delight in but that by obligassion she was compell'd to ansure them, which she did indeed expressing most sweet grattitude. But as she thus discoursed to her as she sate betwine us, she would sometimes give a looke to me as if bechence her eye had so wander'd, and then she would steale the prittiest wordes to me, that you would have bin taken exstreamely if you had seene and her'd her. (Oh) she would softely say (That I might speake my thoughts to you,) and then againe, (Oh what worlds would I give I might possess you but one halfe howre to my selfe! how unfortunat am I to meete you here with your sister; if I have any privett conference with you she will take it ill, and perhaps thinke I am inconstant, and that I honer you more than she, and it may be she beleeves she has as much obliged me)-(She will not leave us) —(Oh what shall I doe, my soule, is full, and I would fayne have you know some of my misseryes. I shall not be blest with such an oper |