N° 96.

Wednesday, July 1.

Gundli adfint, meritaque expectent præmia palme.

Virg. Æn. 5. v. 70,

Let all be prefent at the games prepar'd;

And joyful victors wait the juft reward. Dryden.

T

Here is no maxim in politics more indisputable,

than that a nation should have many honours in referve for thofe who do national fervices. This raifes emulation, cherishes public merit, and infpires every one with an ambition which promotes the good of his country. The less expensive thefe honours are to the public, the more ftill do they turn to its advantage.

The Romans abounded with these little honorary rewards, that without conferring wealth or riches, gave only place and diftinction to the perfon who received them. An oaken garland to be worn on festivals and public ceremonies, was the glorious recompence of one who had covered a citizen in battle. A foldier would not only venture his life for a mural crown, but think the most hazardous enterprife fufficiently repaid by fo noble a donation.

But among all honorary rewards, which are neither dangerous nor detrimental to the donor, I remember, none fo remarkable as the titles which are bestowed by the Emperor of China. These are never given to any fubject, fays Monfieur Le Conte, ull the fubject is dead. If he has pleafed the Emperor to the laft, he is called in all public memorials by the title which the Emperor confers on him after his death, and his children take their ranks accordingly. This keeps the ambitious subject in a perpetual dependence, making him always vigilant and active, and in every thing conformable to the will of his fovereign.

But

There are no honorary rewards among us, which are more esteemed by the person who receives them, and are cheaper to the prince, than the giving of medals. there is fomething in the modern manner of celebrating a great action in medals, which makes fuch a reward VOL. II.

F

much less valuable than it was among the Romans. There is generally but one coin ftamped upon the occafion, which is made a prefent to the perfon who is celebrated on it. By this means his whole fame is in his own cuftody. The applaufe that is bestowed upon him, is too much limited and confined. He is in poffeffion of an honour which the world perhaps knows Dothing of. He may be a great man in his own family; his wife and children may fee the monument of an exploit, which the public in a little time is a stranger to. The Romans took a quite different method in this particular. Their medals were their current money. When' an action deferved to be recorded in coin, it was ftamped perhaps upon an hundred thousand pieces of money, like our fhillings, or halfpence, which were iffued out of the mint, and became current. This method published every noble action to advantage, and in a fhort space of time fpread through the whole Roman empire. The Romans were fo careful to preserve the memory of great events upon their coins, that when any particular piece of money grew very scarce, it was often recoined by a fucceeding emperor, many years after the death of the emperor to whose honour it was first struck.

A friend of mine drew up a project of this kind during the late miniftry; which would then have been put in execution, had it not been too bufy a time for thoughts of that nature. As this project has been very much talked of by the gentleman above mentioned, to men of the greateft genius, as well as quality; I am informed there is now a defign on foot for executing the propofal which was then made, and that we fhall have several farthings and halfpence, charged on the reverse with ma« ny of the glorious particulars of her Majefty's reign. This is one of thole parts of peace which may very well deferve to be cultivated, and which may be of great ufe to pofterity.

As I have in my poffeffion the copy of the paper above mentioned, which was delivered to the late Lord treafurer, I fhall here give the public a fight of it. For I do not queftion, but that the curious part of my readers will very well pleased to fee fo much matter, and fo ma

be

ny useful hints upon this fubject, laid together in fo clear and concife a manner.

ΤΗ

HE English have not been fo careful as other polite nations, to preferve the memory of their great actions and events on medals. Their fubje&s are few, their mottos and devices mean, and the coins themselves not numerous enough to spread among the people, or defcend to pofterity.

The French have outdone us in these particulars, and, by the establishment of a fociety for the invention of proper inferiptions and defigns, have the whole hiftory of their prefent king in a regular feries of medals.

They have failed, as well as the English, in coining fo fmall a number of each kind, and thofe of fuch coftly medals, that each fpecies may be loft in a few ages, and is at prefent no where to be met with but in the Acabinets of the curious.

The ancient Romans took the only effectual method to difperfe and preferve their medals, by making them

their current money.

Every thing glorious or ufeful, as well in peace as in war, gave occafion to a different coin. Not only an ex‹ pedition, victory, or triumph, but the exercife of a fo. lemn devotion, the remiffion of a duty or tax, a new temple, fea port, or highway, were tranfmitted to pofterity after this manner.

The greatelt variety of devices are on their coppermoney; which have most of the defigns that are to be met with on the gold and filver, and feveral peculiar to that metal only. By this means they were difperfed into the remoteft corners of the empire, came into the poffeffion of the poor as well as rich, and were in no danger of perishing in the hands of thofe that might have melted down coins of a more valuable metal.

Add to all this, that the defigns were invented by men of genius, and executed by a decree of the fenate. It is therefore proposed,

I. That the English farthings and halfpence be recoined upon the union of the two nations.

II. That they bear devices and infcriptions alluding to all the most remarkable parts of her Majefty's reign.

III. That there be a fociety established for the finding out of proper fubjects, infcriptions, and devices. IV. That no fubject, infcription, or device, be ftamped without the approbation of this fociety; hor, if it be thought proper, without the authority of privy council.

By this means medals that are at prefent only a dead treasure, or mere curiofities, will be of use in the ordinary commerce of life; and at the fame time, perpetuate the glories of her Majefty's reign, reward the labours of her greatest fubjects, keep alive in the people a gratitude for public fervices, and excite the emulation of pofterity. To thefe generous purpofes nothing can fo much contribute as medals of this kind, which are of undoubted authority, of neceffary ufe and obfervation, not perishable by time, nor confined to any certain place; properties not to be found in books, ftatues, pictures, buildings, or any other monuments of illuftrious actions,

ΝΟ 97.

Thursday, July 2.

Furor eft poft omnia perdere ngulum.

Juv. Sat. 8. v.97.

Tis mad to lavish what their rapine left. Stepney.

SIR,

Was left a thoufand pounds by an uncle; and being

I was, to thy thinking very likely to get a rich wi

dow, I laid afide all thoughts of making my fortune any other way; and without lofs of time made my applica tion to one who had buried her husband about a week before. By the help of fome of her the-friends, who were my relations, I got into her company, when the would fee no man besides myself, and her lawyer, who is a little, rivelled, fpindle thanked gentleman, and married to boot; fo that I had no reason to fear him. Upon my first feeing her, the faid in converfation within my hearing, that the thought a pale complexion the most agreeable either in man or woman. Now, you muk * know, Sir, my face is as white as chalk. This gave me fome encouragement; fo that to mend the matter,* I

bought a fine flaxen long wig, that coft me thirty guineas, and found an opportunity of seeing her in it the next day. She then let drop fome expreffions about an agate fnuff-box. I immediately took the hint, and bought one, being unwilling to omit any thing that might make me defireable in her eyes. I was betrayed after the fame manner into a brocade waftecoat, a fword. knot, a pair of filver fringed gloves, and a diamond ring. But whether out of fickleness, or a defign upon me, I can't tell; but I found by her difcourfe, that what she liked one day the disliked another: so that in fix months Space I was forced to equip myself above a dozen times. As I told you before, I took her hints at a distance; for I could never find an opportunity of talking with her directly to the point. All this time, however, I was allowed the utmost familiarities with her lap dog, and have played with it above an hour together, without receiving the leaft reprimand; and had many other marks of favour fhewn to me, which I thought amounted to a promife. If the chanced to drop her fan, the received it from my hands with great civility. If he wanted as By thing, I reached it for her. I have filled her teapot above an hundred times, and have afterwards received a difh of it from her own hands. Now, Sir, do you judge, if, after fuch encouragements, fhe was not obliged to marry me. I forgot to tell you, that I kept a chair by the week, on purpose to carry me thither and back again. Not to trouble you with a long letter, in the space of about a twelvemonth I have run out of my whole thousand pound upon her, having laid out the laft fifty in a new fuit of cloaths, in which I was refolved to receive her final anfwer; which amounted to this, that she was engaged to another; that he never dreamed I had any fuch thing in my head as marriage; and that the thought I had frequented her houle only because I loved to be in company with my relations. This you know, Sir, is using a man like a fool; and fo I told her but the work of it is, that I have spent my fortune to no purpose. All therefore that I defire of you, is, to tell me, whether, upon exhibiting the feveral particulars which I have here related to you, I may