CHAP. XII.
Of his adventure in a Wood near Tunbridge, and of his re∣solution to retire into a Monastery.
'TWas now the time of the year when there is a great re∣sort of people of both sexes at Tunbridge, a small village in Kent, famous for the purging Springs that are there found. Thither goes our Knight to make up the number of Skimmerers. Hard by, there stands a Wood, which Sir Samuel made his retiring place to recreat• his melan∣choly thoughts. One evening, as he was musing there, he heard the Voyce of some body uttering the sad Complaints of a vexed Spirit. The Voyce caused him to draw near; and drawing near, he discovered two young Ladies sitting in a fair green Plat, bewailing their misfortunes. Sir Samu∣el moved with compassion, accosts them; and having de∣manded some questions of them, told them, He was a forsa∣ken Lover, as he ghessed them to be, being a Knight of the Order of Fond Love. Whereupon one of the Ladies discovering in his Physiognomie, that the man might ea∣sily be made an Ass; Sir, quoth she, casting her self at his féet, if you be such a one as you pretend, have compassion on a distressed Lady: I have lost my Maiden head, and prove with Child; therefore I desire you to marry me, to take off all reproach that the world may cast either on my Child, or my self. To which Sir Samuel replyed: Ma∣dam, you being a Lady, and I a Knight, I should be no Knight should I not be kind to you a Lady. Then quoth she, Since neer relations ought to be more familiar, let us sit down together on the grass: to which the Knight readily consen∣ted. Then she proceeding: My pretty dear, quoth she, suppose that I being thy wife, should ask thee for ten or twenty pieces to sport away at Cards, would you deny it me? No, as I hope to be saved, answered Sir Samuel: Page [unnumbered] but suppose I should come and give thee a little box on the ear, and say, My Dear, let me see thy pockets, and so take out all thy money, wouldst thou be angry? No indeed law, an∣swered Sir Samuel. With that she gave him a swéet kiss, and putting her hand into his Fob, took out all she could find; neither was she slow to secure it again in her own po∣ckets. Then quoth she, My dear, you have rings on, which are doubtless the Euchantments which cause me and other women to love thee so: preethee let me see 'em: and so without more Complements, she takes them off. Sir Sa∣muel, who had more of courtesie then craft, suffered all this. The Lady now well ballasted, of a suddain starts up, cries out, Theeves, Theeves, and runs away as hard as she could drive: Sir Samuel ran after; but at length finding them too swift, and considering that he had left his Cloak and Hat behind, he defisted from the chase, for fear of loosing all. Sir Samuel all this while thought this had béen only a love∣trick, and expected to hear from them next morning; but the fifth and sixth day passing without any tidings, he conclu∣ded himself puppyft'd, and cursed the day of his birth.
