Page:Horrid Mysteries Volume 3.djvu/170

 Night was, fortunately, setting in. The families broke up, and went to their respective homes, probably very little edified by the conclusion of their rural ball and our conduct. Annette and Lucy also were impatient to go home: we offered them our arms, and attended them to their house, amid the pretty audible hisses of those that had staid behind.

There are situations in human life in which we really seem to be controuled by some magic charm, of which the events of that evening were a speaking instance. All these humiliating consequences of our conduct, the cold civility of the old people, the scornful looks of the girls, the wry faces of the young men, and even the reserve and growing coldness of our charmers, were not sufficient to make us sensible of our foolish imprudence. The landlord and his dame, who, some hours before, had received us with so much kindness, and attended us, had also changed their looks very much on our re-