devotees are seldom wholly free from, made her very desirous of
retaining her always in the convent:--she was therefore continually
preaching up to her the uncertainty of those felicities which are to be
found in the world, and magnifying that happy serenity which a total
renunciation from it afforded;--nay, sometimes went so far, as to
insinuate there was scarce a possibility for any one encumbered with the
cares, and surrounded with the temptations of a public life, to have
those dispositions which are requisite to enjoy the blessings of
futurity.--Ah my dear daughter, would she say frequently to her, how
much should I rejoice to find in you a desire to forgo all the
transitory fleeting pleasures of the world, and devote yourself entirely
to heaven!--what raptures would not your innocent soul partake, when
wholly devoid of all thought of sensual objects! you would be, even
while on earth, a companion for angels and blessed spirits, and borne on
the wings of heavenly contemplation, have your dwelling above, and be
worshipped as a saint below.

All the old nuns, and some of the young ones, assisted their abbess in
endeavouring to prevail on Louisa to take the veil; but all that they
said made no impression on her mind, not but she had more real piety
than perhaps some of those who made so great a shew of it, but she was
of a different way of thinking; and tho' she knew the world had its
temptation, having experienced them in a very great degree, yet she
was-convinced within herself, that a person of virtuous principles might
be no less innocent out of a cloyster than in one.--She saw also among
this sisterhood a great deal of envy to each other, and perceived early
that the flaming zeal professed among them was in some hypocrisy, and
enthusiasm in others; so that had she had no prepossession in favour of
du Plessis, or any engagement with him, the life of a nun was what she
never should have made choice of.