Sentence:  To these ladies a man often recommends himself while he is commending another woman; and, while he is expressing ardour and generous sentiments for his mistress, they are considering what a charming lover this man would make to them, who can feel all this tenderness for an inferior degree of merit. Of this, strange as it may seem, I have seen many instances besides Mrs Fitzpatrick, to whom all this really happened, and who now began to feel a <WSD>somewhat</WSD> for Mr Jones, the symptoms of which she much sooner understood than poor Sophia had formerly done. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  More or less; a certain quantity or degree; a part, more or less; something.