disguise. Think of me as you will; for from this moment I am all your own.'
And flinging her arms around my neck she pressed her open mouth to mine with such enduring fervency that I was, for a time, completely deprived of breath; and gently forcing myself from her embrace affected to treat the whole affair as one of commonplace compliment, so frequently adopted by females of a certain class; and as I believe few men are less prone to vanity than myself, I attributed her present conduct to the influence of the potent liquor we had been imbibing; I therefore laughingly thanked her for her good opinion of me, and glancing at the clock observed that as it was growing somewhat late; she must, therefore, excuse me for the present as I had to dress for the evening's concert; to which she answered, 'No, no, indeed, we part not so; I have made up my mind that you shall at least take tea with me; a coach will in a few moments convey us to my residence and we can then adjourn to the concert together.'
I now began to feel my situation anything but pleasant. I had promised to escort both Bessy and Emma to the very place where my beautiful plague now promised to accompany me; I therefore stammered out an excuse- that I was sorry I could not have the pleasure of her company upon that occasion as I had no power to introduce anyone without a ticket, all of which had been previously disposed of. Judge of my consternation when I found that for this contingency she had previously provided, as she exclaimed, producing a ticket from her bosom. 'I saw the programme this morning, and not expecting the pleasure of meeting you purchased a ticket there and then; I would not miss the hearing of that charming serenade for ten times the amount.'
What was to be done? I could never willingly give pain or disappointment to a female; how could I do so now- to one so lovely, and who thought so highly of me as she had professed to do. But then again, how to dispose of Bessy and her companion, who were doubtless even at that moment in momentary expectation of my arrival.
But as something must be done, and that quickly, 'Well, my dear,' said I, 'I will just step to my lodgings which are close at hand, make a slight alteration in my dress, and return to you here.'
But this, to my increased mortification, she would by no means listen to; she was determined to accompany me. In vain I told her that my landlady was a most particular person, and that I dared not think of taking a female there and subjecting her to insult. At length it was agreed that she should wait for me at the end of the street, from whence she could command a view of my door. 'But mind,' she cried as I left her (glancing at her watch), 'only five minutes; if you stay an instant longer I shall knock at the door and inquire for you.'
This was a pretty fix, for I felt perfectly satisfied that my lady would be as good as her word and I must extricate myself in the best way I could.
I therefore hastened home, sought my expecting Bessy, and expressed my regret at having to deny myself the pleasure of accompanying her to the concert that evening, urging as an excuse that I had found it impossible to obtain a copy of one of the songs in the programme, for which purpose I had been to almost every music seller in London, but in vain; that as a last resource I was then going to the extreme end of the town, from whence I could not possibly return home previous to the performance, but begged that she would not allow this trifling disappointment to interfere with her arrangements for the evening, as I should expect to have the happiness of meeting her and Mrs. S. on my arrival.
She accepted my apology, and without entering my own apartment I left the house, but just in time to prevent the threatened call of my new acquaintance, whom I met coming down the street with the intention, as she afterwards told me, of knocking at my door. With a significant glance, which she appeared to understand, I crossed the road while she continued to follow me, but on the opposite side of the way. Having gained the main road she overtook me, and hailing a coach from the first stand we were in a short time set down at the cosy lodgings of my fair importunate, in W- Row, Islington.
Here, then, behold me seated at an amply furnished tea table; the refreshing beverage was quickly prepared by her own fair hands and the conversation that passed during the meal was such as the most prudent of her sex might have listened to without the slightest impropriety.
But still I was ill at ease, for although far from insensible to the beauty of the charming girl who was exerting her every faculty to give me pleasure, my thoughts were faithful to my Bessy still and I was racking my brain for some excuse by which I might escape the honour of my present companion's society, for this evening at least. I began by expressing my dislike of the promised entertainment-the place in which it was held-and the purpose for which it was got up; I even assured her that if she would give up all thoughts of attending this sadly conducted affair that I would call upon her on the following Tuesday for the purpose of escorting her to one infinitely superior in every respect; but vain was all my reasoning. She was determined to go-her mind was made up-and nothing human should, or could, prevent her.
'Well, then,' I exclaimed, rising from my chair, 'be it so; in an hour I shall meet you there; but you must for that time excuse me, at all events, for,' I added, laughing, 'you were so very hard upon me, and allowed me such a very short time for preparation at home that, in order to prevent any unpleasant altercation, you may perceive that I have not even made the contemplated alteration in my dress requisite for the duties of the evening. I will do so with all possible promptitude and rejoin you at the rooms.'
'And so you still wish to leave me,' she replied, 'but your excuse is a bad one and can easily be rectified. Only place yourself in my hands for a few minutes and I will undertake that even you shall be satisfied with your appearance without taking the unnecessary trouble of going so far.'
And placing her hands upon my shoulders she gently forced me back into the chair I had quitted, patted me playfully upon the cheek, pressed her lips to mine, and left the room.
I must here observe that the effects of the liquor she had taken during the afternoon had entirely disappeared; this was doubtlessly owing, in a great measure, to the strong and truly excellent tea which had followed; at all events she was now as calm and collected as the most fastidious puritan could have desired.
Having re-entered the apartment she proceeded to fold, in the neatest manner, a light-blue satin handkerchief which she fitted upon me in such a form as to give it the appearance of a handsome underwaistcoat, and in the frill of my shirt she placed a magnificent brooch, shaped like a small branch, the leaves of which were formed of emeralds, the fruit by minute diamonds; having completed her task evidently to her own entire satisfaction, she held a toilet glass before me that I might witness the effect of her handiwork, saying as she did so, 'There, my love, were you going to sing before the king himself your dress would not disgrace the royal party. And now, my dear, if you'll endeavour to amuse yourself for a few minutes by looking over my little library,' pointing to a well-filled bookcase, 'I shall then be ready to accompany you.'
I did as she desired; and when she returned to the room I absolutely stared with astonishment at the change she had undergone in so short a time; she was attired in a handsome dress of violet-coloured crepe, over white satin, richly embroidered, with a magnificent border in wreaths of silver vine; the sleeves were looped up with silver cordage, supported by eagles of the same material; a topaz necklace graced her swan-like neck, bracelets of gold encircled her well-turned arms, and her headdress was a wreath of snow-white roses; the effect was truly electrical, for, 'She looked a goddess, and she moved a queen!'
I must confess that as I gazed upon the lovely object before me a feeling of vanity came over me for a moment, sufficiently powerful to banish even the image of Bessy from my heart, and I eagerly saluted the proffered lips and, for the first time, pressed her closely to my enchanted bosom.
Having procured a coach, we proceeded to our destination, which, as we approached, how shall I describe the emotions which agitated me; for the momentary transport over, I had leisure to reflect upon the probable events about to ensue! How could I account to my confiding Bessy for the appearance of my majestic companion- how could I perform my public duties under the influence of her reproachful glance-ere I had time to determine, the coach stopped and, with feelings more resembling those of a condemned criminal on his way to execution than of a man in the act of escorting a charming woman to a pleasure party, I entered the assembly.
One glance satisfied me that my party had not yet arrived, and for a moment I breathed more freely-probably offended at my apparent slight they will not come- and for once in my life I absolutely rejoiced at the absence of Bessy. But my pleasure was of short duration for, in the midst of my first song, I had the mortification of beholding Bessy and Emma conducted to their seats by the obsequious director.
My efforts were rewarded by an unanimous encore, in the loud call for which, to my unspeakable confusion, the excited Delia vied with the most vociferous gentleman present; by this indecorous conduct she became the object of universal observation-every eye was fixed upon her-the female portion of the audience regarded her with astonishment and the gentlemen, while they could not conceal their admiration of her beauty, expressed to each other in audible whispers that they were not greatly at variance in their opinions as to the character of the lovely but incautious girl before them.
