Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His SisterBehn, Aphra
General
Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister
Behn, Aphra
Epistolary fiction, English
altered, while the Prince bore himself like a person who had the
misfortune justly to lie beneath the exclamations of a disobliged
multitude, as they at least imagined and bore all, as if their fears
had been true, without so much as offering at his justification, to
confirm His Majesty’s good opinion of him: he added to his pardon, a
present of twenty thousand crowns, half of it being paid the next day
after his coming to Court. And in short, my lord, His Majesty grew so
fond of the Prince, he could not endure to suffer him out of his
presence, and was never satisfied with seeing him: he carried him the
next day to the public _theatre_ with him, to shew the world he was
reconciled. But by this time he had all confirmed, and grew impatient
to declare himself to his friends, whom he would not have remain long
in their ill opinion of him. It happened the third day of his coming
to Court, (in returning some of those visits he had received from all
the great persons) he went to wait upon the Duchess of ---- a lady,
who had ever had a tender respect for the Prince: in the time of this
visit, a young lady of quality happened to come in; one whom your
lordship knows, a great wit, and much esteemed at Court, _Mademoiselle
Mariana_: by this lady he found himself welcomed to Court, with all
the demonstrations of joy; as also by the old Duchess, who had divers
times heretofore persuaded the Prince to leave the _Huguenots_, and
return to the King and Court: she used to tell him he was a handsome
youth, and she loved his mother well; that he danced finely, and she
had rather see him in a ball at Court, than in rebellion in the field;
and often to this purpose her love would rally him; and now shewed no
less concern of joy for his reconciliation; and looking on him as a
true convert, fell a railing, with all the malice and wit she could
invent, at those public-spirited knaves who had seduced him. She
railed on, and cursed those politics which had betrayed him to almost
ruin itself.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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