THEIR FIRST ATTEMPT; WITH A DIGRESSION WHICH SOME READERS MAY THINK
IMPERTINENT.
Be this as it will, our lovers, though real voluptuaries, amidst the
first transports of their enjoyment did not neglect the great political
aim of their conjunction. Teresa's bedchamber, to which our hero
constantly repaired at midnight, was the scene of their deliberations,
and there it was determined that the damsel, in order to avoid suspicion,
should feign herself irritated at the indifference of Ferdinand, her
passion for whom was by this time no secret in the family; and that, with
a view to countenance this affectation, he should upon all occasions
treat her with an air of loftiness and disdain.
So screened from all imputation of fraud, she was furnished by him with
artful instructions how to sound the inclinations of her young mistress,
how to recommend his person and qualifications by the sure methods of
contradiction, comparisons, revilings, and reproach; how to watch the
paroxysms of her disposition, inflame her passions, and improve, for his
advantage, those moments of frailty from which no woman is exempted. In
short, this consummate politician taught his agent to poison the young
lady's mind with insidious conversation, tending to inspire her with the
love of guilty pleasure, to debauch her sentiments, and confound her
ideas of dignity and virtue. After all, the task is not difficult to
lead the unpractised heart astray, by dint of those opportunities her
seducer possessed. The seeds of insinuation seasonably sown upon the
warm luxuriant soil of youth, could hardly fail of shooting up into such
intemperate desires as he wanted to produce, especially when cultured and
cherished in her unguarded hours, by that stimulating discourse which
familiarity admits, and the looser passions, ingrafted in every breast,
are apt to relish and excuse.
Fathom had previously reconnoitred the ground, and discovered some marks
of inflammability in Mademoiselle's constitution; her beauty was not such
as to engage her in those gaieties of amusement which could flatter her
vanity and dissipate her ideas; and she was of an age when the little
loves and young desires take possession of the fancy; he therefore
concluded, that she had the more leisure to indulge these enticing images
of pleasure that youth never fails to create, particularly in those who,
like her, were addicted to solitude and study.
Teresa, full fraught with the wily injunctions of her confederate, took
the field, and opened the campaign with such remarkable sourness in her
aspect when Ferdinand appeared, that her young lady could not help taking
notice of her affected chagrin, and asked the reason of such apparent
alteration in her way of thinking. Prepared for this question, the other
replied, in a manner calculated for giving Mademoiselle to understand,
that, whatever impressions Ferdinand might have formerly made on her
heart, they were now altogether effaced by the pride and insolence with
which he had received her advances; and that her breast now glowed with
all the revenge of a slighted lover.
To evince the sincerity of this declaration, she bitterly inveighed
against him, and even affected to depreciate those talents, in which she
knew his chief merit to consist; hoping, by these means, to interest
Mademoiselle's candour in his defence. So far the train succeeded. That
young lady's love for truth was offended at the calumnies that were
vented against Ferdinand in his absence. She chid her woman for the
rancour of her remarks, and undertook to refute the articles of his
dispraise. Teresa supported her own assertions with great obstinacy, and
a dispute ensued, in which her mistress was heated into some extravagant
commendations of our adventurer.
His supposed enemy did not fail to make a report of her success, and to
magnify every advantage they had gained; believing, in good earnest, that
her lady's warmth was the effect of a real passion for the fortunate Mr.
Fathom. But he himself viewed the adventure in a different light, and
rightly imputed the violence of Mademoiselle's behaviour to the
contradiction she had sustained from her maid, or to the fire of her
natural generosity glowing in behalf of innocence traduced.
Nevertheless, he was perfectly well pleased with the nature of the
contest; because, in the course of such debates, he foresaw that he
should become habitually her hero, and that, in time, she would actually
believe those exaggerations of his merit, which she herself had feigned,
for the honour of her own arguments.
This presage, founded upon that principle of self-respect, without which
no individual exists, may certainly be justified by manifold occurrences
in life. We ourselves have known a very pregnant example, which we shall
relate, for the emolument of the reader. A certain needy author having
found means to present a manuscript to one of those sons of fortune who
are dignified with the appellation of patrons, instead of reaping that
applause and advantage with which he had regaled his fancy, had the
mortification to find his performance treated with infinite irreverence
and contempt, and, in high dudgeon and disappointment, appealed to the
judgment of another critic, who, he knew, had no veneration for the
first.
This common consolation, to which all baffled authors have recourse, was
productive of very happy consequences to our bard; for, though the
opinions of both judges concerning the piece were altogether the same,
the latter, either out of compassion to the appellant, or desire of
rendering his rival ridiculous in the eye of taste, undertook to repair
the misfortune, and in this manner executed the plan. In a meeting of
literati, to which both these wits belonged, he who had espoused the
poet's cause, having previously desired another member to bring his
composition on the carpet, no sooner heard it mentioned, than he began to
censure it with flagrant marks of scorn, and, with an ironical air,
looking at its first condemner, observed, that he must be furiously
infected with the rage of patronising, who could take such a deplorable
performance into his protection. The sarcasm took effect.
The person against whom it was levelled, taking umbrage at his
presumption, assumed an aspect of disdain, and replied with great
animosity, that nothing was more easily supported than the character of a
Zoilus, because no production was altogether free from blemishes; and any
man might pronounce against any piece by the lump, without interesting
his own discernment; but to perceive the beauties of a work, it was
requisite to have learning, judgment, and taste; and therefore he did not
wonder that the gentleman had overlooked a great many in the composition
which he so contemptuously decried. A rejoinder succeeded this reply,
and produced a long train of altercation, in which the gentleman, who had
formerly treated the book with such disrespect, now professed himself its
passionate admirer, and held forth in praise of it with great warmth and
elocution.
Not contented with having exhibited this instance of regard, he next
morning sent a message to the owner, importing, that he had but
superficially glanced over the manuscript, and desiring the favour of
perusing it a second time. Being indulged in this request, he
recommended it in terms of rapture to all his friends and dependants,
and, by dint of unwearied solicitation, procured a very ample
subscription for the author.
But, to resume the thread of our story. Teresa's practices were not
confined to simple defamation. Her reproaches were contrived so as to
imply some intelligence in favour of the person she reviled. In
exemplifying his pertness and arrogance, she repeated his witty repartee;
on pretence of blaming his ferocity, she recounted proofs of his spirit
and prowess; and, in explaining the source of his vanity, gave her
mistress to understand, that a certain young lady of fashion was said to
be enamoured of his person. Nor did this well-instructed understrapper
omit those other parts of her cue which the principal judged necessary
for the furtherance of his scheme. Her conversation became less guarded,
and took a freer turn than usual; she seized all opportunities of
introducing little amorous stories, the greatest part of which were
invented for the purposes of warming her passions, and lowering the price
of chastity in her esteem; for she represented all the young lady's
contemporaries in point of age and situation, as so many sensualists,
who, without scruple, indulged themselves in the stolen pleasures of
youth.
Meanwhile, Ferdinand seconded these endeavours with his whole industry
and address. He redoubled, if possible, his deference and respect,
whetting his assiduity to the keenest edge of attention; and, in short,
regulated his dress, conversation, and deportment, according to the
fancy, turn, and prevailing humour of his young mistress. He, moreover,
attempted to profit by her curiosity, which he knew to be truly feminine;
and having culled from the library of his patron certain dangerous books,
calculated to debauch the minds of young people, left them occasionally
upon the table in his apartment, after having directed Teresa to pick
them up, as if by accident, in his absence, and carry them off for the
entertainment of Mademoiselle; nay, this crafty projector found means to
furnish his associate with some mischievous preparations, which were
mingled in her chocolate, tea, or coffee, as provocations to warm her
constitution; yet all these machinations, ingenious as they were, failed,
not only in fulfilling their aim, but even in shaking the foundations of
her virtue or pride, which stood their assaults unmoved, like a strong
tower built upon a rock, impregnable to all the tempestuous blasts of
heaven.
Not but that the conspirators were more than once mistaken in the effects
of their artifices, and disposed to applaud themselves on the progress
they had made. When at any time she expressed a desire to examine those
performances which were laid before her as snares to entrap her chastity,
they attributed that, which was no other than curiosity, to a looseness
of sentiment; and when she discovered no aversion to hear those anecdotes
concerning the frailty of her neighbours, they imputed to abatement of
chastity that satisfaction which was the result of self-congratulation on
her own superior virtue.
So far did the treacherous accomplice of Fathom presume upon these
misconstructions, that she at length divested her tongue of all
restraint, and behaved in such a manner, that the young lady, confounded
and incensed at her indecency and impudence, rebuked her with great
severity, and commanded her to reform her discourse, on pain of being
dismissed with disgrace from her service.