As Rumbold was riding along the road, he met a country girl with a milkpail on her head, with whose beauty and symmetry of shape he was greatly taken. Having entered into conversation, Rumbold alighted, and, excusing himself for the freedom, sat beside her while she milked her cows. Pleased with each other’s company, they made an assignation the same evening: our adventurer was to come to her father’s house at a late hour, and, pretending to have lost his road, solicit a night’s lodging. The plan was accordingly followed out: but they were disappointed in each other’s society that evening, for some one of the family kept astir all night. Determined, however, not to leave his fair convert, he pretended in the morning to be taken dangerously ill, and the good farmer rode off immediately for medical assistance. All the power of surgery, however, could not discover his ailment. The farmer kindly insisted upon his remaining where he was until he should recover, to which he, with great professions of gratitude, assented. Completely overpowered by such generosity, Rumbold wished to make some apparent return; and, borrowing a name, told him he was a bachelor of property in a certain county; that he had hitherto remained secure against the attacks of beauty, but that he now was vanquished by the attractions of his daughter, and hoped, if the girl had no objection, that a proposal of marriage would not be unacceptable to the family. The farmer, in his turn, overcome by such a mark of condescension, expressed himself highly gratified by the proposal; and, upon communicating it to the family, all were agreeable, and none more so than the girl. The idea of adding gentility to the fortune which the farmer intended for his daughter, quite elated him, and made him extremely anxious to gain the favor of the suitor. Rumbold followed out the design, and his endearments with the daughter were thus more frequent than he expected. His principal design was to sift the girl as to the quantity of money her father had in the house, and where it lay; but he was chagrined when informed that there were only a few pounds; for that, a few days before they met, her father had made a great purchase, which took all his ready money. Seeing, now, that there was no chance of gleaning the father’s harvest, he resolved to leave the family, and, accordingly, one evening took his march incognito, leaving the girl a present of twenty pieces of gold, inclosed in a copy of verses.