 away any more of your Time in reading
what you can neither taste nor comprehend. To treat of the Effects of Love to
you, must be as absurd as to discourse on Colours to a Man born blind; since
possibly your Idea of Love may be as absurd as that which we are told such blind
Man once entertained of the Colour Scarlet: that Colour seemed to him to be very
much like the Sound of a Trumpet; and Love probably may, in your Opinion, very
greatly resemble a Dish of Soup, or a Sir-loin of Roast-beef.
 

                                   Chapter II

 The Character of Mrs. Western. Her great Learning and Knowledge of the World,
and an Instance of the deep Penetration which she derived from those Advantages.
 
The Reader hath seen Mr. Western, his Sister and Daughter, with young Jones, and
the Parson, going together to Mr. Western's House, where the greater Part of the
Company spent the Evening with much Joy and Festivity. Sophia was indeed the
only grave Person: For as to Jones, though Love had now gotten entire Possession
of his Heart, yet the pleasing Reflection on Mr. Allworthy's Recovery, and the
Presence of his Mistress, joined to some tender Looks which she now and then
could not refrain from giving him, so elevated our Heroe, that he joined the
Mirth of the other three, who were perhaps as good-humoured People as any in the
World.
    Sophia retained the same Gravity of Countenance the next Morning at
Breakfast; whence she retired likewise earlier than usual, leaving her Father
and Aunt together. The Squire took no Notice of this Change in his Daughter's
Disposition. To say the Truth, though he was somewhat of a Politician, and had
been twice a Candidate in the Country Interest at an Election, he was a Man of
no great Observation. His Sister was a Lady of a different Turn. She had lived
about the Court, and had seen the World. Hence she had acquired all that
Knowledge which the said World usually communicates; and was a perfect Mistress
of Manners, Customs, Ceremonies, and Fashions; nor did her Erudition stop here.
She had considerably improved her Mind by Study; she had not only read all the
modern Plays, Operas, Oratorios, Poems and Romances; in all which she was a
Critic; but had gone thro' Rapin's History of England, Eachard's Roman History,
and many French Memoires pour servir a l'Histoire; to these she had added most
of the political Pamphlets and Journals, published within the last twenty Years.
