What Happened to Sophia During Her Confinement
- The squire insists that his daughter have regular meals, even though she is having trouble eating them.
- So at dinner, Black George brings up some food: a pullet, which is a young female chicken.
- Squire Western unlocks the door.
- Sophia starts chatting with Black George.
- He particularly recommends that she eat the eggs that he's stuffed inside the pullet.
- Sophia cuts open the chicken and finds a letter in its belly.
- It's not a scientific miracle, so calm down, biologists: it's Tom's letter to Sophia, brought to Black George by Partridge that morning.
- The letter says:
- Tom is horrified to hear that Sophia is being forced into marriage.
- Tom curses himself as the cause of all of her troubles.
- He asks if he can help her out? (Specifically, he offers: "[his] advice, [his] presence, [his] absence, [his] death, or [his] tortures" (16.3.10)—whichever she would like.)
- If Sophia wants to come to him, he will certainly welcome her, no matter how poor they will be.
- But if she decides to make up with her father and abandon Tom, he's 100% fine with that as well.
- Whatever Sophia wants, Tom wants!
- Sophia has no pen or paper to answer the letter.
- But that evening, she hears a loud noise: it's a fight between two people.
- Specifically, it's a fight between Squire Western and Mrs. Western.