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of these good offices, she would sometimes play with his hair, and delight in the oppofition of its colour to that of her fingers; then open his bofom, then laugh at him for covering it. She was, it feems, a perfon of diftinction, for the every day came to him in a different drefs, of the most beautiful shells, bugles, and bredes. She likewife brought him a great many fpoils, which her other lovers had presented to her, fo that his cave was richly adorned with all the spotted skins of beafts, and most party-coloured feathers of fowls, which that world afforded. To make his confinement more tolerable, she would carry him in the dusk of the evening, or by the favour of the moon-light, to unfrequented groves and folitudes, and shew him where to lie down in fafety, and fleep amidst the falls of waters, and melody of nightingales. Her part was to watch and hold him awake in her arms, for fear of her countrymen, and awake him on occafions to confult his fafety. In this manner did the lovers pass away their time, till they had learned a language of their own, in which the voyager communicated to his mistress, how happy he should be to have her in his own country, where she should be clothed in fuch filks as his waistcoat was made of, and be carried in houses drawn by horfes, without being exposed to wind and weather. All this he promised her the enjoyment of, without fuch fears and alarms as they were tormented with. In this tender correfpondence these lovers lived for feveral months, when Yarico, instructed by her lover, discovered a vefssel on the coast, to which the made fignals; and in the night, with the utmost joy and fatisfaction, accompanied him to a ship's crew of his countrymen, bound for Barbadoes. When a vessel from the main arrives in that ifland, it feems the planters come down to the shore, where there is an immediate market of the Indians and other flaves, as with us of horfes and oxen.

To be short, Mr. Thomas Inkle, now coming into English territories, began ferioufly to reflect upon his loss of time, and to weigh with himself how many days interest of his money he had loft during his stay with Yarico. This thought made the young man very pensive, and careful what account he should be able to give his friends

friends of his voyage. Upon which confideration, the prudent and frugal young man fold Yarico to a Barbadian merchant; notwithstanding the poor girl, to com-miferate her condition, told him that she was with child by him; but he only made use of that information, to rife in his demands upon the purchaser.

I was fo touch'd with this story (which I think should be always a counterpart to the Ephefian ian matron) that I left the room with tears in my eyes; which a woman of Arietta's good sense did, I am fure, take for greater applaufe, than any compliments I could make her.

R

N° 12 Wednesday, March 14.

Veteres avias tibi de pulmone revellós

PERS. Sat. v. 92

I root th old woman from my trembling heart.

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T my coming to London, it was some time before I could fettle myself in a house to my liking. I was forced to quit my first lodgings, by reason of an officious landlady, that would be asking me every morning how I had flept. I then fell into an honest family, and lived very happily for above a week; when my landlord, who was a jolly good-natured man, took it into his head that I wanted company, and therefore would frequently come into my chamber to keep me from being alone. This I bore for two or three days; but telling me one day that he was afraid I was inelancholy, I thought it was high time for ine to be gone, and accordingly took new lodgings that very night. About a week after, I found my jolly landlord, who, as I faid before, was an honest hearty man, had put me into an advertisement of the Daily Courant, in the following words: "Whereas a melancholy man left his lodg" ings on Thursday last in the afternoon, and was afterwards

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"wards feen going towards Islington; if any one can

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give notice of him to R. B. fishmonger in the Strand, "be shall be very well rewarded for his pains." As I am the best man in the world to keep my own counsel, and my landlord the fishmonger not knowing my name, this accident of my life was never difcovered to this very day.

I am now fettled with a widow-woman, who has a great many children, and complies with my humour in every thing. I do not remember that we have exchanged a word together these five years; my coffee comes into my chamber every morning without afking for it; if I want fire, I point to my chimney, if water to my bason; upon which my landlady nods, as much as to fay she takes my meaning, and immediately obeys my fignals. She has likewife modeled her family fo well, that when her little boy offers to pull me by the coat, or prattle in my face, his eldest sister immediately calls him off, and bids him not disturb the gentleman. At my first entring into the family, I was troubled with the civility of their rifing up to me every time I came into the room; but iny landlady observing that upon these occafions I always cried pish, and went out again, has forbidden any fuch ceremony to be used in the house; so that at present I walk into the kitchen or parlour without being taken notice of, or giving any interruption to the bufiness or difcourse of the family. The maid will ask her mistress (tho' I am by) whether the gentleman is ready to go to dinner, as the mistress (who is indeed an excellent housewife) scolds at the fervants as heartily before my face as behind my back. In short, I move up and down the house, and enter into all companies with the fame liberty as a cat, or any other domestic animal, and aim as little suspected of telling any thing that I hear or fee.

I remember last winter there were several young girls of the neighbourhood fitting about the fire with my landlady's daughters, and telling stories of spirits and apparitions. Upon my opening the door, the young women broke off their difcourse, but my landlady's daughters telling them that it was nobody but the gentleman (for that is the name which I go by in the neighbourhood, bourhood, as well as in the family) they went on without minding me. I feated myself by the candle that stood on a table at one end of the room; and pretending to read a book that I took out of my pocket, heard several dreadful stories of ghosts as pale as ashes that had stood at the feet of a bed, or walked over a church-yard by moon-light; and of others that had been conjured into the Red-Sea, for disturbing people's rest, and drawing their curtains at midnight; with many other old womens fables of the like nature. As one fpirit raised another, I observed that at the end of every story the whole company closed their ranks, and crouded about the fire. I took notice in particular of a little boy, who was so attentive to every story, that I am mistaken if he ventures to go to bed by himself this twelve-month. Indeed they talked fo long, that the imaginations of the whole assembly were manifestly crazed, and, I am fure, will be the worse for it as long as they live. I heard one of the girls, that had looked upon me over her shoulder, asking the company how long I had been in the room, and whether I did not look paler than I used to do. This put me under fome apprehenfions that I should be forced to explain myself it I did not retire; for which realon I took the candle in my hand, and went up into my chamber, not without wondering at this unaccountable weakness in reasonable creatures, that they should love to aftonish and terrify one another. Were I a father, I should take a particular care to preferve my children from these little horrors of imagina. tion, which they are apt to contract when they are young, and are not able to shake off when they are in years. I have known a foldier that has entered a breach, affrighted at his own fhadow, and look pale upon a little fcratching at his door, who the day before had marched up against a battery of cannon. There are instances of perfons, who have been terrified even to distraction, at the figure of a tree, or the shaking of a bullrush. The truth of it is, I look upon a found imagination as the greatest bleffing of life, next to a clear judgment and a good confcience. In the mean time, fince there are very few whose minds are not more or less subject to thefe dreadful thoughts and apprehenfions

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fions, we ought to arm ourselves against them by the dictates of reafon and religion, to pull the old wo

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man out of our hearts" (as Perfius exprefsses it in the motto of my paper) and extinguish those impertinent notions which we imbibed at a time that we were not able to judge of their abfurdity. Or if we believe, as many wife and good men have done, that there are such phantoms and apparitions as those I have been speaking of, let us endeavour to establish to our felves an interest in Him who holds the reins of the whole creation in his hand, and moderates them after fuch a manner, that it is impossible for one being to break loofe upon another without his knowledge and permiffion.

For my own part, I am apt to join in opinion with those who believe that all the regions of nature fwarm with fpirits; and that we have multitudes of spectators on all our actions, when we think ourselves most alone; but, inflead of terrifying myself with such a notion, 1 ain wonderfully pleased to think that I am always engaged with fuch an innumerable fociety, in searching out the wonders of the creation, and joining in the fame confort of praise and adoration.

Milton has finely described this mixed communion of men and spirits in paradife; and had doubtless his eye upon a verse in old Hefiod, which is almost word for word the fame with his third line in the following passage.

- Nor think, though men were none, That Heav'n would want spectators, God want praise: Millions of spiritual creatures walk the earth Unfeen, both when we wake and when we fleep: All these with ceaseless praise his works behold Both day and night. How often from the steep Of echoing hill or thicket have we heard

Celestial voices to the midnight air,

Sole, or refponfive each to other's note,
Singing their great Creator? oft in bands
While they keep watch, or nightly rounding walk,

With heav'nly touch of instrumental founds,

In full harmonic number join'd, their fongs

Divide the night and lift our thoughts to heav'n.

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