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absolutely insisted that when once all pretensions of honour andvirtue were given up in any one instance, that there was no precedentfor resorting to them upon a second occasion. In short, poorConscience had certainly been defeated in the argument, had not Fearstept in to her assistance, and very strenuously urged that the realdistinction between the two actions, did not lie in the differentdegrees of honour but of safety: for that the secreting the L500 was amatter of very little hazard; whereas the detaining the sixteenguineas was liable to the utmost danger of discovery.By this friendly aid of Fear, Conscience obtained a compleat victoryin the mind of Black George, and, after making him a few complimentson his honesty, forced him to deliver the money to Jones.Chapter xiv.A short chapter, containing a short dialogue between Squire Westernand his sister.Mrs Western had been engaged abroad all that day. The squire met herat her return home; and when she enquired after Sophia, he acquaintedher that he had secured her safe enough. "She is locked up inchamber," cries he, "and Honour keeps the key." As his looks were fullof prodigious wisdom and sagacity when he gave his sister thisinformation, it is probable he expected much applause from her forwhat he had done; but how was he disappointed when, with a mostdisdainful aspect, she cried, "Sure, brother, you are the weakest ofall men. Why will you not confide in me for the management of myniece? Why will you interpose? You have now undone all that I havebeen spending my breath in order to bring about. While I have beenendeavouring to fill her mind with maxims of prudence, you have beenprovoking her to reject them. English women, brother, I thank heaven,are no slaves. We are not to be locked up like the Spanish and Italianwives. We have as good a right to liberty as yourselves. We are to beconvinced by reason and persuasion only, and not governed by force. Ihave seen the world, brother, and know what arguments to make use of;and if your folly had not prevented me, should have prevailed with herto form her conduct by those rules of prudence and discretion which Iformerly taught her." "To be sure," said the squire, "I am always inthe wrong." "Brother," answered the lady, "you are not in the wrong,unless when you meddle with matters beyond your knowledge. You mustagree that I have seen most of the world; and happy had it been for myniece if she had not been taken from under my care. It is by living athome with you that she hath learnt romantic notions of love andnonsense." "You don't imagine, I hope," cries the squire, "that I havetaught her any such things." "Your ignorance, brother," returned she,"as the great Milton says, almost subdues my patience."[*] "D--nMilton!" answered the squire: "if he had the impudence to say so to myface, I'd lend him a douse, thof he was never so great a man.Patience! An you come to that, sister, I have more occasion ofpatience, to be used like an overgrown schoolboy, as I am by you. Doyou think no one hath any understanding, unless he hath been about atcourt. Pox! the world is come to a fine pass indeed, if we are allfools, except a parcel of round-heads and Hanover rats. Pox! I hopethe times are a coming when we shall make fools of them, and every manshall enjoy his own. That's all, sister; and every man shall enjoy hisown. I hope to zee it, sister, before the Hanover rats have eat up all