vain, he went so far as to call upon Gaspar, apologising for his
daughter's ignorance and folly in refusing so desirable a proposal,
and expressing a hope that Mendez would not relinquish the pursuit,
but try his fortune again; when he hoped to have brought her to a
better state of mind.

Gaspar received the old man with civility, but answered coldly, that
any further advances on his own part were out of the question,
unless he had reason to believe the young lady was inclined to
retract her refusal; in which case he should be happy to wait upon
her. With this response Venoni returned to make another attack upon
his daughter, whom, however, fortified by her strong attachment to
Ripa, he found quite immovable; and there for several months the
affair seems to have rested, till the old man, urged by the
embarrassment of his circumstances, renewed the persecution,
coupling it with certain calumnies against Giuseppe, founded on the
accidental loss of a sum of money which had been intrusted to him by
a friend, who wanted it conveyed to a neighbouring village, whither
the young man had occasion to go. This loss, which seems to have
arisen out of some youthful imprudence, appears to have occasioned
Ripa a great deal of distress; and he not only did his utmost to
repair it by giving up everything he had, which was indeed very
little, but he also engaged to pay regularly a portion of his weekly
earnings till the whole sum was replaced.

His behaviour, in short, was so satisfactory, that the person to
whom the money had belonged does not seem to have borne him any
ill-will on the subject; but Venoni took advantage of the
circumstance to fling aspersions on the young man's character,
whilst it strengthened his argument against the connection with his