The Letters and Works of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Volume 2 |
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Common terms and phrases
acquaintance affectionate mother agreeable amusement Avignon beauty believe blessing Brescia charms confess COUNTESS OF BUTE court daugh daughter DEAR CHILD dear madam DEAREST MADAM desire Duchess Duchess of Marlborough Duchess of Portland Duke Earl endeavour England English eyes favour fear fortune give glad happy hear heard heart Hewet honour hope Horace Walpole humble servant inclination Italy journey Lady Fanny Lady Mary ladyship's letter live London Lord Bute Lord Hervey Lord William Hamilton Louvere M. W. MONTAGU married never night obliged opinion pain pass passion perhaps persuaded pleased pleasure present Prince of Saxony reason received Rome sent Signor sincere SIR JAMES STEUART sorry STEUART suppose surprised talk tell thanks thing thought tion told town truth Turin Venice wish woman WORTLEY write wrote young
Popular passages
Page 162 - The second caution to be given her (and which is most absolutely necessary) is to conceal whatever learning she attains, with as much solicitude as she would hide crookedness or lameness...
Page 237 - Atlanticum impune : me pascunt olivae, 15 me cichorea levesque malvae. frui paratis et valido mihi, Latoe, dones et, precor, Integra cum mente nec turpem senectam degere nec cithara carentem.
Page 163 - ... you for a secretary when your health or affairs make it troublesome to you to write yourself, and custom will make it an agreeable amusement to her. She cannot have too many for that station of life which will probably be her fate. The ultimate end of your education was to make you a good wife (and I have the comfort to hear that you are one) ; hers ought to be to make her happy in a virgin state. I will not say it is happier, but it is undoubtedly safer than any marriage. In a lottery where...
Page 207 - His happy constitution (even when he had, with great pains, half demolished it) made him forget everything when he was before a venison pasty, or over a flask of champagne; and I am persuaded he has known more happy moments than any prince upon earth.
Page 189 - H. Fielding has given a true picture of himself and his first wife, in the characters of Mr. and Mrs. Booth, some compliments to his own figure excepted ; and, I am persuaded, several of the incidents he mentions are real matters of fact.
Page 161 - Britain: thus every woman endeavours to breed her daughter a fine lady, qualifying her for a station in which she will never appear, and at the same time incapacitating her for that retirement, to which she is destined. Learning, if she has a real taste for it, will not only make her contented, but happy in it. No entertainment is so cheap as reading, nor any pleasure so lasting.
Page 162 - ... more important part of a woman's education than it is generally supposed. Many a young damsel has been ruined by a fine copy of verses, which she would have laughed at if she had known it had been stolen from Mr. Waller. I remember, when I was a girl, I saved one of my companions from destruction, who communicated to me an epistle she was quite charmed with. As she had...
Page 222 - Arabian horse, which he could not know how to manage. I am reading an idle tale, not expecting wit or truth in it, and am very glad it is not metaphysics to puzzle my judgment, or history to mislead my opinion : he fortifies his health by exercise; I calm my cares by oblivion. The methods may appear low to busy people ; but, if he improves his strength and I forget my infirmities, we both attain very desirable ends.
Page 412 - Ten of the letters, indeed, are dismal lamentations and frights on a scene of villany of Lady Mary, who, having persuaded one Ruremonde, a Frenchman and her lover, to entrust her with a large sum of money to buy stock for him, frightened him out of England, by persuading him that Mr. Wortley had discovered the intrigue, and would murder him ; and then would have sunk the trust. That not succeeding, and he threatening to print her letters, she endeavoured to make Lord Mar or Lord Stair cut his throat.
Page 161 - Two hours application every morning will bring this about much, sooner than you can imagine, and she will have leisure enough besides to run over the English poetry, which is a more important part of a woman's education than it is generally supposed. Many a young damsel...