TO J. D. ESQ., M. P.
I cannot promise you any more Irish history. I fear my Hiberniana is closed, and a volume of more dangerous, more delightful tendency, draws towards its bewitching subject every truant thought. To him who is deep in the Philosophia Amatoria, every other science is cold and vapid.
The oral legend of the Prince, and the historic lore of the priest, all go for nothing! I shake my head, look very wise, and appear to listen, while my eyes are riveted on Glorvina—who, not unconscious of the ardent gaze, sweeps with a feathery touch the chords of her harp, or plies her fairy wheel with double vigilence. Meantime, however, I am making a rapid progress in the Irish language, and well I may; for besides that I now listen to the language of Ossian with the same respect a Hindoo would to the Sanscrit of the Bramins, the Prince, the priest, and even Glorvina, contribute their exertions to my progress. The other evening, as we circled round the evening fire in the great hall, the Prince would put my improvements to the test, and taking down a grammar, he insisted upon my conjugating a verb. The verb he chose was, “to love”—? “Glorvina,” said he, seeing me hesitate, “go through the verb.”
Glorvina had it at her fingers’ ends; and in her eyes swam a thousand delicious comments on the text she was expounding.
The Prince, who is as unsuspicious as an infant, would have us repeat it together, that I might catch the pronunciation from her lip!
“I love,” faintly articulated Glorvina.
“I love,” I more faintly repeated.
This was not enough—the Prince would have us repeat the plural twice over: and again and again we murmured together—“we love!”
Heavens and earth! had you at that moment seen the preceptress and the pupil!The attention of the simple Prince was riveted on Valancy’s grammar: he grew peevish at what he called our stupidity, and said we knew nothing of the verb to love, while in fact we were running through all its moods and tenses with our eyes and looks.
Good God! to how many delicious sensations is the soul alive, for which there is no possible mode of expression..