The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

We came, however, to a gentleman's seat, where was a numerous family, a

large park, extraordinary company indeed, and where she was called

cousin. I told her if she had resolved to bring me into such company

as this, she should have let me have prepared myself, and have

furnished myself with better clothes. The ladies took notice of that,

and told me very genteelly they did not value people in their country

so much by their clothes as they did in London; that their cousin had

fully informed them of my quality, and that I did not want clothes to

set me off; in short, they entertained me, not like what I was, but

like what they thought I had been, namely, a widow lady of a great

fortune.

The first discovery I made here was, that the family were all Roman

Catholics, and the cousin too, whom I called my friend; however, I must

say that nobody in the world could behave better to me, and I had all

the civility shown me that I could have had if I had been of their

opinion. The truth is, I had not so much principle of any kind as to

be nice in point of religion, and I presently learned to speak

favourably of the Romish Church; particularly, I told them I saw little

but the prejudice of education in all the difference that were among

Christians about religion, and if it had so happened that my father had

been a Roman Catholic, I doubted not but I should have been as well

pleased with their religion as my own.

This obliged them in the highest degree, and as I was besieged day and

night with good company and pleasant discourse, so I had two or three

old ladies that lay at me upon the subject of religion too. I was so

complaisant, that though I would not completely engage, yet I made no

scruple to be present at their mass, and to conform to all their

gestures as they showed me the pattern, but I would not come too cheap;

so that I only in the main encouraged them to expect that I would turn

Roman Catholic, if I was instructed in the Catholic doctrine as they

called it, and so the matter rested.

I stayed here about six weeks; and then my conductor led me back to a

country village, about six miles from Liverpool, where her brother (as

she called him) came to visit me in his own chariot, and in a very good

figure, with two footmen in a good livery; and the next thing was to

make love to me. As it had happened to me, one would think I could not

have been cheated, and indeed I thought so myself, having a safe card

at home, which I resolved not to quit unless I could mend myself very

much. However, in all appearance this brother was a match worth my

listening to, and the least his estate was valued at was #1000 a year,

but the sister said it was worth #1500 a year, and lay most of it in

Ireland.