_Stra._ Come here, come here first, I have an errand for you. Hire that carriage in the village; drive to the town hard by; you may be back by sun-set. I shall give you a letter to a widow who lives there. With her you will find two children. They are mine. _Fra._ [_Astonished._] Your children, sir! _Stra._ Take them, and bring them hither. _Fra._ Your children, sir! _Stra._ Yes, mine! Is it so very inconceivable? _Fra._ That I should have been three years in your service, and never have heard them mentioned, is somewhat strange. _Stra._ Pshaw! _Fra._ You have been married then? _Stra._ Go, and prepare for our journey. _Fra._ That I can do in five minutes. [_Going._ _Stra._ I shall come and write the letter directly. _Fra._ Very well, sir. [_Exit._ _Stra._ Yes, I'll take them with me. I'll accustom myself to the sight of them. The innocents! they shall not be poisoned by the refinements of society. Rather let them hunt their daily sustenance upon some desert island with their bow and arrow; or creep, like torpid Hottentots, into a corner, and stare at each other. Better to do nothing than to do evil. Fool that I was, to be prevailed upon once more to exhibit myself among these apes! What a ridiculous figure shall I be! and in the capacity of a suitor too! Pshaw! he cannot be serious! 'Tis but a friendly artifice to draw me from my solitude. Why did I promise him? Yes, my sufferings have been many; and, to oblige a friend, why should I hesitate to add another painful hour to the wretched calendar of my life! I'll go. I'll go. [_Exit._ SCENE II. _The Antichamber._ _Enter CHARLOTTE._ _Char._ No, indeed, my lady! If you chuse to bury yourself in the country, I shall take my leave. I am not calculated for a country life. And, to sum up all, when I think of this Mrs. Haller-- _Enter SOLOMON._ _Sol._ [_Overhearing her last words._] What of Mrs. Haller, my sweet Miss? _Char._ Why, Mr. Solomon, who is Mrs. Haller? You know every thing; you hear every thing. _Sol._ I have received no letters from any part of Europe on the subject, Miss. _Char._ But who is to blame? The Count and Countess. She dines with them; and at this very moment is drinking tea with them. Is this proper? _Sol._ By no means. _Char._ Shouldn't a Count and a Countess, in all their actions, show a certain degree of pride and pomposity? _Sol._ To be sure! To be sure they should! _Char._ No, I won't submit to it. I'll tell her ladyship, when I dress her to-morrow, that either Mrs. Haller or I must quit the house. _Sol._ [_Seeing the BARON._] St! _Enter BARON._ _Bar._ Didn't I hear Mrs. Haller's name here? _Sol._ [_Confused._] Why--yes--we--we-- _Bar._ Charlotte, tell my sister I wish to see her as soon as the tea-table is removed. _Char._ [_Aside to SOLOMON._] Either she or I go, that I'm determined.