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confounded, and out of Countenance. Hereupon his Patron, who obferved it, and who really had a Value for him, as was already obferved, bid him have a good Heart, for he would engage he should have her by fome Means or other.

Accordingly many Confultations were held, and many new Stratagems tried, with as little Succefs as before, which made the Nobleman himself not be fo very confident of gaining his Point as he was at first; and, in effect, it is not unlikely, they were very near giving over all Thoughts of accomplishing their Design, and were about to defift from any farther Attempts, when the old Serpent, that implacable Enemy of all Virtue, fuggefted to one of them a Wile, which brought about what all their Arts had before in vain endeavoured, and what they had almoft defpaired of compaffing. But it was at the fame Time fuch a Wile, as not only could not come from any one but him, but as no one who was not himself a Devil incarnate, and quite deftitute of Religion, Confcience, or even common Honefly, could have put in Practice.

This was, to get fome one whom they could truft, to perfonare a Clergyman, and in that Habit to perform the Ceremony of marrying the Colonel to the Gardener's fair Daughter; and as in order effectually to deceive the virtuous Maiden, who was conftantly upon her Guard, and to lull Sufpicion afleep, it was neceffary to get her to repofe fome Confidence in him, which was no eafy Matter, after having been fo often alarmed by his infidious Attacks, and the many Snares he had laid for her, it was concluded that he should renew his Addreffes (from which he had for fome Time defifted) with more Ardour and Affiduity than ever; and that he fhould fpare neither Oaths nor Proteftations to endeavour to perfwade her, that her Virtue had got the better of his lawless Defires, and that they were now changed

changed into an honourable Paffion, whereof he was ready to convince her at any Time, by making her his Wife.

Accordingly this infernal Scheme was immediately put in Execution, and had the wifhed-for Succefs; for the beauteous Virgin, who had no Diflike to the Perfon of the Colonel, though fhe abhorred his wicked Defigns, and who, notwithftanding her Modefty, could not help being pleafed with the Proposal of a Match fo far above her Expectations, no longer appeared deaf to his Sollicirations, but willingly confented to make him Mafter of her Perfon, as foon as the facred Knot was tied.

There now remained but one Difficulty to be got over, which was to perfwade her to agree to a clandeftine Marriage; and this he pretty_eafily accomplished, by having recourfe to two Pretences, which at the Bottom were really true; but which, as he intended to mauage Matters, would effectually ferve his Turn, and leave him at Liberty to deny his Engagement whenever he should grow weary of his new Bargain, and think proper to caft her off. The firft was, that he could not marry her publickly, because he should thereby render himfelf the Laughingstock of the whole Court; the fecond was, that a private Marriage was as valid, and as binding both by the Laws of God and Man, as any one whatever. That the firft of these was true, in fome measure, the poor Damfel was fenfible herself; and as to the other, the found, upon Enquiry, it was Fact likewife; thinking, therefore, fhe fhould ftand greatly in her own Light, and be her own Enemy, if the longer oppofed his Defires, fhe agreed to be married privately, and wait with Patience, till it should become proper or neceffary to divulge it.

Behold

Behold then the harmlefs Virgin, unfufpicious of any Evil intended her, ready to become a Prey to her luftful Seducer; who having provided one of his Affociates, as wicked as himself, to perfonate the Clergyman, whilft another, not much better, reprefented the Clerk; and two others of the fame Stamp affifted as Witneffes, was fo audacioufly impious, to prophane the facred Ordinance of Matrimony, by making it ferve as a Stalking-Horfe to his bafe Defires; repeating that folemn Form with as much Boldness and Unconcern, as if he had only been acting his Part in a Farce.

The Ceremony being over, the deluded and innocent Virgin believing herfelf what the really was both before God and Man, namely, his lawful Wife, confented willingly to his Embraces, now legitimated, as fhe thought, by the Church; and for fome Time, that is, till becoming with Child, fhe preffed him to make their Nuptials public, fhe enjoyed fome Satisfaction, and lived tolerably happy.

But when the found he put her off from Day to Day, upon frivolous Pretences, growing cold to her, and even avoiding her Company, though her Pregnancy began to be so visible, as not long to be concealed; when, upon the ftrictest Enquiry, neither Minifter, Clerk, nor Witneffes, were to be heard of; when upon her begging, intreating, and conjuring him to do her Juftice, and not fuffer her to lie under the Imputation of a loose Woman, he first prevaricated, and afterwards pofitively denied his being at all engaged to her; it would be impoffible for Words to exprefs either her Grief or Confternation: Let it fuffice to fay, they were equally exceffive, infomuch that her Complaints would have moved a Heart of Stone, or any one but the Monster, who having firft occafioned, now laughed at her Mifery. In fhort, the poor Crea

ture

ture, finding at laft all her Sollicitations and Expoftulations were equally fruitlefs, and having no Hopes of doing herfelf Right, or vindicating her Character, which fhe was upon the Point of lofing, fell into a fettled Defpair, which foon broke her Heart, and ended a Life whereof the grew weary: Nay, fome have reported, that the even haftened her Death by Poifon.

But it was not long before this wicked Wretch, who now thought himself secure from being ever called to an Account for his Villainy, had Reafon to repent his Cruelty and Breach of Oaths; for her Father, to whom she had revealed the whole Story, and who belonged, as has been before obferved, to the Caftle, found the Means to get it conveyed to the Ears of the Queen, who being equally fhocked and incenfed at his Barbarity and Impiety, not only caufed him to be forbid the Court, but was going to proceed to farther Severities with him, even to the taking away his Commiffion; from which he was not diverted, without Difficulty, by the Nobleman his Patron, whom she did not know to have been any ways concerned in fo black an Affair.

As it was, it proved a perpetual Bar to his Preferment during her Majefty's Reign; which together with his marrying a Wife, with whom he lived very uncomfortably, threw him into a profound Melancholly, bordering upon Lunacy, even to the fancying he faw the poor injured Maiden' continually before him: Infomuch that ftung with perpetual Remorfe, ever vexed with the Clamours of his Spoufe, and utterly neglected by all his former Acquaintance, he lingered out fome Years miferably, and then died unpitied and unlamented. Nor did the Nobleman himself, who was his Advifer, and as it was whispered, the very Perfon who reprefented the Clergyman, efcape intirely un

punished

punished even in this Life, falling for fome Time, before his Decease, under fuch an Imbecillity of Mind, as rendered him utterly incapable of managing his own Affairs, or performing any of the Functions of a reasonable Creature; a State more deplorable, and more shocking to Human Nature, than even Death itself! Let thofe who would not meet with their Fate, avoid fharing in their Crimes.

But if the Breach of Vows, made mutually between two Perfons, and by the Violation of which only one is injured or hurt, be fo heinous in the Sight of Heaven, what muft the Guilt of those be, who by the Breach of folemn Leagues and Treaties, not only injure the Party who repofed a Confidence in them, but at the fame Time, occafion the Slaughter of Thousands of innocent Perfons; thereby at once notoriously violating, not only the Third, but the Sixth Commandment? For which complicated Sins they may well be affured, how great fo ever they may be, the Lord will not hold them guiltlefs: An eminent and remarkable Inftance of this we have in the Histories of Turkey, Hungary, and Poland, which is as follows:

Uladislaus, King of Hungary and Poland, a young Prince of great Bravery, having for fome Time carried on a fuccessful War againft the Turks, thofe formidable Enemies of the Chriftian Name, and having gained confiderable Advantages over them, and totally defeated them in a fet Battle, wherein many Thousands of them were flain, and their General himself taken Prifoner, had at laft fo humbled the haughty Sultan, that he was glad to fue to him for Peace; which was at length concluded between them, upon Terms very advantageous and honourable to the Hungarians, to whom several Provinces were to be restored, and a large Sum of Money paid, greatly to the Dishonour and Damage of the Infidels.

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