trouble the waters in Italy, that he might fish the better, casting the net not out of St. Peter's, but out of Borgia's bark-And therefore upon the first grain of incense that was sacrificed upon the altar of peace at Bulloigne, Perkin was smoaked away-This was the end of this little cockatrice of a king, that was able to destroy those that did not espy him first-It was observed, that the great tempest which drove Philip into England blew down the Golden Eagle from the spire of St, Paul's; and in the fall, it fell upon a sign of the Black Eagle, which was in St. Paul's church-yard, in the place where the school-house now standeth, and battered it, and broke it down: which was a strange stooping of a hawk upon a fowl.-The king began to find where his shoe did wring him-in whose bosom or budget most of Perkins's secrets were laid up.-One might know afar off where the owl was by the flight of birds-Bold men, and careless of fame, and that took toll of their master's grist-Empson and Dudley would have cut another chop out of him-Peter Hialas, some call him Elias; surely he was the forerunner of, &c.Lionel bishop of Concordia was sent as nuncio, &c. but, notwithstanding he had a good ominous name to have made a peace, nothing followedTaxing him for a great taxer of his people, not by proclamations, but by court-fames, which commonly print better than printed proclamationsSir Edward Poynings was enforced to make a wild chace upon the Wild Irish-In sparing of blood by the bleeding of so much treasure-And although his own case had both steel and parchment more than the other; that is to say, a conquest in the field, and an act of parliament-That Pope knowing that King Henry the Sixth was reputed in the VOL. XVI. N world abroad but for a simple man, was afraid it would but diminish the estimation of that kind of honour, if there were not a distance kept between innocents and saints.' Not to trouble my reader with any more instances of the like nature, I must observe that the whole work is ill-conducted, and the story of Perkin Warbeck (which should have been only like an episode in a poem) is spun out to near a third part of the book. The character of Henry the Seventh, at the end, is rather an abstract of his history than a character. It is tedious, and diversified with so many particulars as confound the resemblance, and make it almost impossible for the reader to form any distinct idea of the person. It is not thus the antients drew their characters; but in a few just and bold strokes gave you the distinguishing features of the mind (if I may be allowed the metaphor) in so distinct a manner, and in so strong a light, that you grew intimate with your man immediately, and knew him from a hundred. After all, it must be considered in favour of my lord Verulam, that he lived in an age wherein chaste and correct writing was not in fashion, and when pedantry was the mode even at court; so that it is no wonder if the prevalent humour of the times bore down his genius, though superior in force perhaps to any of our countrymen, that have either gone before or succeeded him. N° 26. FRIDAY, APRIL 10, 1713. Non ego illam mibi dotem esse puto, quæ dos dicitur, PLAUT. A woman's true dowry, in my opinion, is not that which is usually so called; but virtue, modesty, and restrained desires. AN healthy old fellow, that is not a fool, is the happiest creature living. It is at that time of life only, men enjoy their faculties with pleasure and satisfaction. It is then we have nothing to manage, as the phrase is; we speak the downright truth, and whether the rest of the world will give us the privilege or not, we have so little to ask of them, that we can take it. I shall be very free with the women from this one consideration; and, having nothing to desire of them, shall treat them as they stand in nature, and as they are adorned with virtue, and not as they are pleased to form and disguise themselves. A set of fops, from one generation to another, has made such a pother with 'Bright eyes, the fair sex, the charms, the air,' and something so incapable to be expressed but with a sigh, that the creatures have utterly gone out of their very being, and there are no women in all the world. If they are not nymphs, shepherdesses, graces, or goddesses, they are to a woman all of them the ladies.' Get to a christening at any alley in the town, and at the meanest artificer's, and the word is, 'Well, who takes care of the ladies?' I have taken notice that ever since the word Forsooth was banished for Madam, the word Woman has been discarded for Lady. And as there is now never a woman in England, I hope I may talk of women without offence to the ladies. What puts me in this present disposition to tell them their own, is, that in the holy week I very civilly desired all delinquents in point of chastity to make some atonement for their freedoms, by bestowing a charity upon the miserable wretches who languish in the Lock hospital. But I hear of very little done in that matter; and I am informed, they are pleased, instead of taking notice of my precaution, to call me an ill-bred old fellow, and say I do not understand the world. It is not, it seems, within the rules of good-breeding to tax the vices of people of quality, and the Commandments were made for the vulgar. I am indeed informed of some oblations sent into the house, but they are all come from the servants of criminals of condition. A poor chamber-maid has sent in ten shillings out of her hush-money, to expiate her guilt of being in her mistress's secret; but says she dare not ask her ladyship for any thing, for she is not to suppose that she is locked up with a young gentleman, in the absence of her husband, three hours together, for any harm; but as my lady is a person of great sense, the girl does not know but that they were reading some good book together; but because she fears it may be otherwise, she has sent her ten shillings for the guilt of concealing it. We have a thimble from a country girl that owns she has had dreams of a fine gentleman who comes to their house, who gave her half a crown, and bid her have a care of the men in this town; but she thinks he does not mean what he says, and sends the thimble, because she does not hate him as she ought. The ten shillings, this thimble, and an occamy spoon from some poor sinner, are all the atonement which is made for the body of sin in London and Westminster. I have computed that there is one in every three hundred who is not chaste; and if that be a modest computation, how great a number are those who make no account of my admonition! It might be expected one or two of the two hundred and ninety-nine honest, might out of mere charity and compassion to iniquity, as it is a misfortune, have done something upon so good a time as that wherein they were solicited. But major Crabtree, a sour pot companion of mine, says, the two hundred ninety and nine are one way or other as little virtuous as the three hundredth unchaste woman-I would say lady. It is certain, that we are infested with a parcel of jilflirts, who are not capable of being mothers of brave men, for the infant partakes of the temper and disposition of its mother. We see the unaccountable effects which sudden frights and longings have upon the offspring; and it is not to be doubted, but the ordinary way of thinking of the mother has its influence upon what she bears about her nine months. Thus from the want of care in this particular of choosing wives, you see men after much care, labour, and study, surprized with prodigious starts of ill-nature and passion, that can be accounted for no otherwise but from hence, that it grew upon them in embrio, and the man was determined surly, peevish, froward, sullen, or outrageous, before he saw the light. The last time I was in a public place I fell in love by proxy for Sir Harry Lizard. The young woman happens to be of quality. Her father was a gentleman of as noble a disposition, as any I ever met with. The widow her mother, under whose |