THE LETTERS O F Mademoiselle Ninon de l'Enclos TO THE Marquis de Sevigné. LETTER XXI. You U would use integrity in love, Marquis! You are far gone truly. I fhall not fhew your letter. You would be made a jeft of. You cannot, you fay, employ the artifice I advised you to. Your candor and refined fentiments A 2 might might have raised your character in ancient days. Love was then confidered as an affair of honour and punctilio. But at prefent, fince the corruption of times has quite changed our notions, it is treated meerly as a sport of vanity or caprice. Your inexperience has left a ftiffness in your moral that will certainly demolish you, if your good fenfe does not fupple you to the manners of the age. One must not now-a-days, keep a window in their breafts. All is grimace: we must take up with complaifance, profeffions and outward fhew: 'tis an univerfal comedy, and the world are much in the right to perform it. Society would foon be at an end, were we mutually to declare our true fentiments of each other, the bad along with the good. The neceffary intercourse of mankind obliged them to lay afide this uncouth fincerity, and to affume a cer tain polished phrafe, and flattering addrefs in the place of it. This habit by degrees, obtained in galantry, and notwithstanding your nice fcruples, you must agree that when the manners of politenefs are not employed to ridicule or deceive, they are to be reckoned among the focial virtues-and the commerce in which 'tis moft neceffary to disguise our fentiments, is galantry. Upon many occafions, a lover gains as much by concealing the greatnefs of his paffion, as he does upon others by feigning it. I know the Countefs, her character: She has more addrefs than you. I dare fay, that the diffembles her affection for you with as much pains as you take to multiply the proofs of yours. I must repeat it again-Be lefs affiduous, and you will be better received. Make her jealous in her turn. Give her fears of lofing A 3 lofing you. I'll warrant then, you'lt foon find her more complying. 'Tis ac leaft, the fureft way of knowing the rank you hold in her affections. A Adieu. LETTER XXII. TEN days filence, Marquis! F really began to be uneafy. The application of my advice then, has been fuccefsful. I wish you joy of it. But I am angry with you for being chagrined because she would not make you a confeffion in form. The I love you it feems, is a precious expreffion with you. During this fortnight you have been endeavouring to penetrate the fentiments of the Countess, and have at length attained them. You have difcovered her regards for you. What should you de. fire more? Would a fimple confeffion give you any further power over her heart? There is fomething impolitic in |