The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 31: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

12 REYNOLDS’ WORKS bassy in the United States, and seas would therefore soon roll between himself and his beloved. So hurried were the preliminaries for his departure, and so closely was he watched by his sire, that he had no opportunity of obeying the dic- tates of his heart, and flying to Oxford to bid Eliza a last farewell. But he renewed all his pledges of devoted affection, reminded her of the exchange of rings, and conjured her to sustain her spirits for his sake. Captain Lacey, to whom these letters were shown by his daughter, — who never in her life kept anything secret from her father, — was more than ever convinced of the infatuated madness of his own conduct in suffering the young couple to linger on in their dream of bliss while himself hoped that it would be ultimately realized. He saw that his daughter’s happiness was altogether at stake, and painful though it were for him to take such a step, it was nevertheless his duty to make her aware of his sentiments. Better for her now to envisage at once the uncertainty of her heart’s hope ever being fulfilled, than for her to continue cherishing that hope with the prospect of having it blighted in the end. He there- fore gently and gradually, and with ill-subdued emotions, represented to her that Bertram Vivian had evidently to commence the upward toil of life, that years might elapse ere he would be sufficiently independent to come and claim an almost portionless young lady as his bride, that in the meanwhile the ardour of his passion might cool, new faces might inspire new sentiments, and even if another affection might not beguile him from his first love, prudential reasons might induce him to form some brilliant matrimonial alliance. Eliza listened with mingled grief and astonishment to her father’s observations, and enthusiastically did she express her conviction — uttered, however, amidst torrents of tears — that Bertram would remain faithful. Captain Lacey had nerved his fortitude to the accomplishment of a certain duty, and he was resolved not to do it by halves. He there- fore went on to say that Eliza, if she were prudent, would do well to prepare herself for any eventual disappointment, and that painful though it were for him to issue a harsh injunction, he felt the absolute necessity of forbidding all correspondence between herself and Bertram, adding that he himself would write the young gentleman a letter to explain his views on the subject. Gomicdbooks (Elo)