November 24.—
I gave you a copy of
Lady V—'s letter, while the subject was
warm at my heart, and before I shewed it
to any one; but my mother and my brother
have now both seen it. My mother
(just as I expected) without any great
emotions of surprize, only exclaimed
against their wickedness; but said, she
could not help rejoicing in it, as I,
she hoped, would derive happiness from
their accumulated crimes. Sir George
read the letter twice over before he uttered
a word; and then said, It was strange;
upon his soul, most unaccountable; and
that either Faulkland was run mad, or
that woman had bewitched him. When
he was with me, said he, at Sidney Castle,
he did not so much as mention her. I
asked him, whether he was acquainted
with Mr. Arnold (for I had written him
word of your marriage, when he was
abroad)? He told me he had seen both
you and him two or three times at lord
V—'s; but that, as he did not wish to
renew his acquaintance with you, he had
never visited your husband. I presume
he was not then a stranger to his conection
with Mrs. Gerrarde; at least to the
conjectures of the neighbourhood upon
it: but as it was then but a matter of opinion,
and he knew not of the difference between
you and your husband, 'tis probable
he did not choose to disgust me more
against my brother-in-law, by hinting at
this circumstance. He expressed great
acknowlegements to my mother, when I
told him of the notice she had taken of
Miss Burchell; though, he said, he found
(from my account of your marriage) that
she had deferred her conference with that
young lady, till it was too late for her
testimony to be of any service to him.
As I knew nothing of what had passed
between my mother and Miss Burchell, I
could give him no satisfaction on that subject;
and the recollection of past transactions
being equally disagreeable to us
both, I avoided ever mentioning them
after our first conversation; nor do I remember
that Mrs. Gerrarde's name occurred
once.
My mother now began to exult over
Sir George, and took advantage of the
surprize and consternation that lady V—'s
letter had thrown him into. This is your
boasted friend, said she; the man whose
honour and
generosity were not to be questioned,
and whose
utmost crime was a
youthful folly that he was surprized into
with a silly girl. I am pleased, however,
that
this has proved I was not so grosly
mistaken in believing him a loose man.
Mrs. Gerrarde is the fittest mate for him,
and I am glad they are gone together.
Sir George was too much mortified at
the flagrant misconduct of his friend to
attempt excusing him: he contented himself
with repeating, It was the strangest
thing he ever knew in his life.
My mother then told him Mr. Arnold
was come to town; and that, as things
had taken such a turn, she hoped herself
to be able to bring him to the use of his
judgment; and therefore thought it would
not be at all necessary for my brother to
interfere. Sir George said, With all his
heart; if her ladyship should be able to
patch up a reconciliation that would save
his sister's credit, and she could be so
extremely
pliant as to think of living with
such a husband again, he should not give
himself any farther trouble about the matter;
but, in
his opinion, the affair wore a
much odder aspect than it did before. I
find Mr. Faulkland's behaviour sticks
with him, and has a little cooled his zeal
towards him.
