A night of clouds blots out the golden day,
Full in their eyes the writhen lightnings play :
Nor flept the wind; the wind new horror forms,
Clouds dafh on clouds before th' outragious ftorms;
Vhile tearing up the fands, in drifts they rife,
And half the defarts mount th' encumber'd skies:
At once the tempeft bellows, lightnings fly,
The thunders roar, and clouds involve the sky..

It was a dreadful evening upon a heath, and fo much as a bush was not to be met with for fhelter: but at last we came to the thatched habitation of a publican, and I thought it a very comfortable place: We had bread and bacon, and good ale for fupper, and in our circumstances, it seemed a delicious meal.

The Author is informed of an old acquaintance of his, who lived not far from the inn he arrived

§. 3. This man informed me, that about a mile from his habitation, in the middle of the wood, there dwelt an old phyfician, one Dr. Fitzgibbons, an Irish gentleman, who had one very pretty daughter, a fenfible woman, to whom

at.

he

many a well-fought day; but as they purfued the enemy one afternoon through a foreft, in riding hard, a bough knocked off the wooden warrior's head; yet ftill he galloped on after flying foes, to the amazement of the enemy, who faw a hero purfuing without a head. Claude applies this image to popery.

he was able to give a good fortune, if a man to both their liking appeared; but as no fuch one had as yet come in their way, my landlord advised me to try the adventure, and he would furnish me with an excufe for going to the Doctor's house. This fet me a thinking: Dr. Fitzgibbons, an Irish gentleman, I faid: I know the man. I faved his fon's life, in Ireland, when he was upon the brink of deftruction, and the old gentleman was not only then as thankful as it was poffible for a man to be, in return for the good I had done him, at the hazard of my own life; but affured me, a thousand times over, that if ever it was in his power to return my kindness, he would be my friend to the utmost of his ability. He must ever remember, with the greatest gratitude, the benefit I had fo generously conferred on him and his. All this came full into my mind, and I determined to vifit the old gentleman in the morning.

§. 4. Next day, as I had refolved, I went to pay my respects to Dr. Fitzgibbons, who remembered me perfectly well, was most heartily glad to fee me, and received me in the most affectionate manner. He immediately began to repeat his obligations to me, for the deliverance I had given his fon, VOL. IV.

K

and

and that if it was in his power to be of fervice to me in England, he would leave nothing undone that was poffible for him to do, to befriend me. (19) He told me, that darling fon of his, whofe life I had faved, was an eminent phyfician at the court of Ruffia, where he lived in the greatest opulence and reputation: and as he owed his exiftence as fuch to me, his father could never be grateful enough in return. Can I any way ferve you, Sir? Have you been fortunate or unfortunate, fince your living in England? Are you married or unmarried? I have a daughter by a fecond wife, and if you are not yet engaged, will give her to you, with a good fortune, and in two years time, if you will ftudy physic here, under my direction, will enable you 'to begin to practice, and get money as I

have 2013

(19) The cafe was this. As I was returning one fummer's evening from Tallow-Hills, where I had been to fee a young lady, (mentioned in the beginning of my firft volume,) I faw in a deep glen before me two men engaged; a black of an enormous fize, who fought with one of thofe large broad fwords which they call in Ireland, Andrew Ferraro; and a little thin man with a drawn rapier. The white man I perceived was no match for the black, and must have perished very foon, as he had received feveral wounds, if I had not haftened up to his relief, I knew him to be my acquaintance, young Fitzgibbons, my neigh

bour

have done in this country. I have so true a fenfe of that generous act you did to fave my fon, that I will with pleasure do any thing in my power that can contribute to your happiness.

To this I replied, by thanking the doctor for his friendly offers, and letting him know, that fince my coming to England feveral years ago, which was occafioned by a difference between my father and me; I had met with several turns of fortune, good

;

bour in the fame fquare of the college that I lived in and immediately drawing an excellent Spanish tuck I always wore, took the Moor to myself, Fitzgibbons not being able to ftand any longer; and a glorious battle enfued. As I was a mafter at the small sword in those days, I had the advantage of the black by my weapon, (as the broad fword is but a poor defence against a rapier,) and gave him three wounds for every flight one I received: But at last he cut me quite through the left collar-bone, and in return, I was in his vast body a moment after. This dropt the robber, who had been a trumpeter to a regiment of horfe; and Fitzgibbons and I were brought, by fome people paffing that way, to his father's houfe at Dolfins-barn, a village about a mile from the spot where th's affair happened. A furgeon was fent for, and we recovered in a few weeks time; but my collar bone was much more troublefome to me, than the wounds Fitzgibbons had were to him, though he loft much more blood. This was the ground of the obligation the doctor mentioned in his converfation with me.

and bad, and was at prefent but in a very middling way; having only a little fpot among the mountains of Richmondshire, with a cottage and garden on it, and three or four beafts, which I found by accident without an owner, as I travelled through that uninhabited land; and a small farm of fifty acres with fome ftock, on the bor ders of Cumberland, which I got by a deceased wife. This, with about fifty guineas in my purse, was my all at present; and I was going up to London, to try if I could meet with any thing fortunate in that place; but that, fince he was pleased to make me fuch generous offers, I would ftop, study phyfic as he proposed, and accept the great honour he did me in offering me his daughter for a wife. I told him likewise very fairly and honestly, that I had been rich by three or four marriages fince my being in this country; but that I was unfortunately taken in at a gamingtable, by the means of two Irifh gentlemen he knew very well, and there loft all; which vext me the more, as I really do not love play-that as to my father, I had little to expect from him, though he had a great eftate, as our difference was about religion; (which kind of difputes always have the cruelleft tendency ;) and the wife you know he married, a low cunning wo

man,