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was bound to Petersburgh-" Petersburgh-Peterf burgh (faid he)-I don't care if I go along with you." He forthwith ftruck a bargain with the captain, bought a couple of fhirts of the mate, and was fafe conveyed to the court of Mufcovy, from whence he travelled by land to receive his baggage at Leghorn. He is now more likely than ever to execute a whim of the fame nature; and I will hold any wager, that, as he cannot be fuppofed to live much longer, according to the course of nature, his exit will be as odd as his life has been extravagant *.

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BUT, to return from one humourist to anotherYou must know I have received benefit, both from the chalybeate and the sea, and would have used them longer, had not a most ridiculous adventure, by making me the town-talk, obliged me to leave the place; for I can't bear the thoughts of affording a spectacle to the multitude.-Yesterday morning, at fix o'clock, I went down to the bathing-place, attended by my fervant Clinker, who waited on the beach as ufual. The wind blowing from the north, and the weather being hazy, the water proved fo chill, that, when I rofe from my first plunge, I could not help fobbing and bawling out, from the effects of the cold. Clinker, who heard my cry, and faw me indiftinctly a good way without the guide, buffeting the waves, took it for granted I was drowning, and rushing into the fea, clothes and all, overturned the guide, in his hurry to fave his mafter. I had swam out a few strokes, when, hearing a noife, I turned about,

This gentleman croffed the fea to France, vifited and conferred with M. de Voltaire at Fernay, resumed his old circuit at Genoa, and died in 1767, at the house of Vanini in Florence. Being taken with a fuppreffion of urine, he resolved, in imitation of Pomponius Atticus, to take himself off by abstinence; and this refolution he executed like an ancient Roman. He faw company to the last, cracked his jokes, conversed freely, and entertained his guests with music. On the third day of his faft, he found himself entirely freed of his complaint; but refused taking fußtenance. He faid, the most disagreeable part of the voyage was paft, and he should be a curfed fool indeed to put about fhip, when he was juft entering the harbour. In these fentiments he persisted, without any marks of affectation, and thus finished his course with such ease and ferenity, as would have done honour to the firmest Stoic of antiquity.

and faw Clinker, already up to his neck, advancing towards me, with all the wildness of terror in his aspect. Afraid he would get out of his depth, I made hafte to meet him, when, all of a fudden, he seized me by one ear, and dragged me bellowing with pain upon the dry beach, to the astonishment of all the people, men, women, and children, there affembled.

I WAS fo exafperated by the pain of my ear, and the difgrace of being exposed in such an attitude, that, in the first tranfport, I ftruck him down; then, running back into the fea, took fhelter in the machine where my cloaths had been depofited. I foon recollected myself so far, as to do justice to the poor fellow, who, in great fimplicity of heart, had acted from motives of fidelity and affection.-Opening the door of the machine, which was immediately drawn on fhore, I faw him ftanding by the wheel, dropping like a water-work, and trembling from head to foot; partly from cold, and partly from the dread of having offended his master.I made my acknowledgments for the blow he had received, affured him I was not angry, and infifted upon his going home immediately, to fhift his cloaths; a command which he could hardly find in his heart to execute, fo well difpofed was he to furnish the mob with farther entertainment at my expence. Clinker's intention was laudable, without all doubt, but, nevertheless, I am a fufferer by his fimplicity-I have had a burning heat, and a strange buzzing noise in that ear, ever fince it was fo roughly treated; and I cannot walk the street without being pointed at, as the monster that was haled naked afhore upon the beach.-Well, I affirm that folly is often more provoking than knavery, ay and more mifchievous too; and whether a man had not better chuse a fenfible rogue, than an honeft fimpleton, for his fervant, is no matter of doubt with

Yours,

Scarborough, July 4.

MATT. BRAMBLE.

To Sir WATKIN PHILLIPS, Bart. of Jefus College,

DEAR WAT,

Oxon.

E made a precipitate retreat from Scarborough,

Wowing to the exceffive delicacy of our fquire,

who cannot bear the thoughts of being prætereuntium digito monflratus.

ONE morning, while he was bathing in the fea, his man Clinker took it in his head that his mafter was in danger of drowning; and,' in this conceit, plunging into the water, he lugged him out naked on the beach, and almost pulled off his ear in the operation. You may guefs how this achievement was relished by Mr Bramble, who is impatient, irafcible, and has the moft extravagant ideas of decency and decorum in the economy of his own perfon.-In the firft ebullition of his choler, he knocked Clinker down with his fift; but he afterwards made him amends for this outrage, and, in order to avoid the further notice of the people, among whom this incident had made him remarkable, he resolved to leave Scarborough next day.

WE fet out accordingly over the moors, by the way of Whitby, and began our journey betimes, in hopes of reaching Stockton that night; but in this hope we were disappointed-In the afternoon, croffing a deep gutter, made by a torrent, the coach was fo hard ftrained, that one of the irons which connect the frame fnapt, and the leather fling on the fame fide cracked in the middle. The fhock was fo great, that my fifter Liddy ftruck her head against Mrs Tabitha's nofe with fuch violence that the blood flowed; and, Win. Jenkins was darted through a small window in that part of the carriage next the horfes, where fhe ftuck like a bawd in the pillory, till fhe was released by the hand of Mr Bramble. We were eight miles diftant from any place where we could be fupplied with chaifes, and it was impoffible to proceed with the coach, until the damage fhould be repaired-In this dilemma, we difcovered a blacksmith's

forge on the edge of a fmall common, about half a mile from the fcene of our difafter, and thither the poftilions made shift to draw the carriage flowly, while the company walked afoot; but we found the blackfmith had been dead fome days; and his wife, who had been lately delivered, was deprived of her fenfes, under the care of a nurfe hired by the parifh. We were exceedingly mortified at this disappointment, which, however, was furmounted by the help of Humphry Clinker, who is a furprising compound of genius and fimplicity. Finding the tools of the defunct, together with fome coals in the finithy, hé unfcrewed the damaged iron in a twinkling, and, kindling a fire, united the broken pieces with equal dexterity and dispatch. While he was at work upon this operation, the poor woman in the straw, ftruck with the well-known found of the hammer and anvil, ftarted up, and, notwithstanding all the nurse's efforts, came running into the fmithy, where, throwing her arms about Clinker's neck, "Ah, Jacob! (cried fhe), how could you leave me in fuch a condition."

As

THIS incident was too pathetic to occafion mirthit brought tears into the eyes of all prefent. The poor widow was put to bed again; and we did not leave the village without doing fomething for her benefit-Even Tabitha's charity was awakened on this occafion. for the tender-hearted Humphry Clinker, he hammered the iron and wept at the fame time--But his ingenuity was not confined to his own province of farrier and blackfinith-it was neceffary to join the leather fling, which had been broke; and this fervice he likewife performed, by means of a broken awl, which he newpointed and ground, a little hemp which he spun into lingles, and a few tacks which he made for the purpose. Upon the whole, we were in a condition to proceed in little more than one hour; but even this delay obliged us to pass the night at Gisborough. Next day we croffed the Tees at Stockton, which is a neat agreeable town; and there we refolved to dine, with purpose to lie at Durham.

WHOM fhould we meet in the yard, when we alighted, but Martin the adventurer? Having handed out the ladies, and conducted them into an apartment, where VOL. VI. Da

he paid his compliments to Mrs Tabby, with his usual addrefs, he begged leave to fpeak to my uncle in another room; and there, in some confufion, he made an apology for having taken the liberty to trouble him with a letter at Stevenage. He expreffed his hope, that Mr Bramble had beftowed fome confideration on his unhappy cafe, and repeated his defire of being taken into his fervice.

My uncle, calling me into the room, told him, that we were both very well inclined to rescue him from a way of life that was equally dangerous and dishonourable; and that he fhould have no fcruple in trusting to his gratitude and fidelity, if he had any employment for him, which he thought would fuit his qualifications and his circumstances; but that all the departments he had mentioned in his letter were filled up by perfons of whofe conduct he had no reason to complain; of confequence he could not, without injuftice, deprive any one of them of his bread-Nevertheless, he declared himself ready to affift him in any feasible project, either with his purfe or credit.

MARTIN feemed deeply touched at this declaration -The tear started in his eye, while he said in a faltering accent-Worthy Sir-your generofity oppreffes me-I never dreamed of troubling you for any pecuniary affiftance-Indeed I have no occafion-I have been fo lucky at billiards and betting at different places, at Buxton, Harrowgate, Scarborough, and Newcastle races, that my stock in ready money amounts to three hundred pounds, which I would willingly employ in profecuting fome honest scheme of life; but my friend Juftice Buzzard has fet fo many fprings for my life, that I am under the neceffity of either retiring immediately to a remote part of the country, where I can enjoy the protection of fome generous patron, or of quitting the kingdom altogether-It is upon this alternative that I now beg leave to ask your advice-I have had information of all your route, fince I had the honour to see you at Stevenage; and, fuppofing you would come this way from Scarborough, I came hither last night from Darlington to pay you my refpects."

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