Well, I know—or, I could-an if I would Or, if I lift to speak-or, there be, an if there might, &c.

Here he generally ftops; and leaves it to his hearers to draw proper inferences from thefe piece-ineal premifes. With due encouragement, however, he may be prevailed on to flip the padlock from his lips, and immediately overwhelms you with a torrent of fecret hiftory, which rushes forth with more violence for having been fo long confined.

Poor Meanwell, though he never fails to tranfgrefs, is rather to be pitied than condemned, Ta truft him with a Secret, is to fpoil his appetite, to break his reft, and to deprive him for a time of every earthly enjoyment. Like a man who travels with his whole fortune in his pocket, he is terrified if you approach him, and immediately fufpects that you come with a felonious intent to rob him of his charge. If he ventures abroad, it is to walk in fome unfrequented place, where he is leaft in danger of At home, he shuts himself up from his family, paces to and fro in his chamber, and has no relief but from muttering over to himself what he longs to publish to the world; and would gladly fubmit to the office of town-cryer, for the liberty of proclaiming it in the market place. At length, however, weary of his burthen, and refolved to bear it no longer, he configns it to the

an attack.

ΤΑ

cuftoly of the first friend he meets, and returns to his wife with a chearful afpect, and wonderfully altered for the better.

Careless is perhaps equally undesigning, though not equally exculable. Entruft him with an affair of the utmost importance, on the concealment of which your fortune and happiness depend: he hears with a kind of half attention, you whistles a favourite air, and accompanies it with the drumming of his fingers upon the table. As foon as your narration is ended, or perhaps in the middle of it, he asks your opinion of his fword-knot, damns his taylor for having dreffed him in a fnuff coloured coat, inttead of a pompadour, and leaves you in hafte to attend an auction; where, as if he meant to difpofe of his intelligence to the beit bidder, he divulges it, with a voice as loud as the auctioneer's: and when you tax him with having played you falie, he is heartily forry for it, but never knew that it was to be a Secret.

To thefe I might add the character of the open and unreferved, who thinks it a breach of friendship to conceal any thing from his intimates; and the im pertinent, who having by dint of ohfervation made himself master of your Secret, imagines he may lawfully publifh the knowledge it cott him so much labour to obtain, and confiders that privilege as the reward due to his induitry. But I fhall leave thefe, with many other characters which my reader ́s own experience may fuggeft to him, and conclude with preferibing, as a host remedy for this evil-That no man may betray the counfel of his friend, let every man keep his own.

N° CXX, THURSDAY, MAY 13, 1756.

JUDICIUM SUBTILE VIDENDIS ARTIBUS..

A SUBTLE FANCY, AND A JUDGMENT CHASTE,
FROM THE NICE MIXTURE OF A GENUINE TASTE.

ASTE is at prefent the darling idol of the polite world, and the world of letters; and, indeed, feems to be confidered as the quinteffence of almost all the arts and fciences. The fine ladies and gentlemen dress with Tafte; the architects, whether Gothic or Chi,

Hoa.

few can fay what it really is, or what the word itfelf fignifies. Should I attempt to define it in the ftile of a Connoilleur, I must run over the names of all the famous poets, painters, and fculptors, ancient and modern; and after having pompously harangued on the excellencies of Apelles, Phidias, Praxiteles, Angelo, Rubens, Pouffin, and Dominichino, with a word or two on all tafieful compofitions, fuch as thofe of Homer, Virgil, Taffo, Dante, and Ariotto, I fhould leave the reader in wonder of my profound erudition, and as little informed as before. But as deep learning, though more flaming and pompous, is perhaps not always fo uteful as common fenfe, I fhall endeavour to get at the true meaning of the word Tate, by confidering what it ufually imports in familiar writings and ordinary converfation.

It is fuppofed by Locke, and other clofe reafoners, that words are intended as figns of our ideas: but daily experience will convince us that words are often used to exprefs no ideas at all. Thus many perfons, who talk perpetually of Tafte, throw it out as a mere expletive, without any meaning annexed, to it. Bardolph, when demanded the meining of the word accommodated, widely explains it by laying that Accommodated, Sir,is-a-a -a-accom*modated, Sir, is as if one fhould faya-accommodated:" and if, in like manner, you ask one of these people, What is Tate? they will tell you that Tafte is a kind of a fort of a-a-a-; in fhort, Tafte is Tafte.' Thefe talkers must be confidered as abfolute blanks in converfation, fince it is impoffible to learn the explanation of a term from them, as they affix no determinate meaning to any expreffion.

Among men of fenfe, whofe words carry meaning in their found, Tafte is commonly used in one of these two fignifications. First, when they give any perion the appellation of a Min of Tafte, they would intimate that he has a turn for the polite arts, as well as the leffer elegancies of life; and that from his natural bent to thofe ftudies, and his acquired knowledge in them, he is capable of diftinguishing what is good or bad in any thing of that kind fubmitted to his judgment. The meaning at other times implied by a Man of Tate is, that he is not only fo far an adept in

thofe matters, as to be able to judge of them accurately, but is alfo poffelled of the faculty of executing them gracefully. Thefe two fignifications will perhaps be more cafily conceived, and clearly illuftrated, when applied to our Sensual Tafte. The Man of Tafte, according to the firft, may be confidered as a Ron Vivant, who is fond of the dishes before him, and diftinguishes nicely what is favoury and delicious, or flat and infipid, in the ingredients of each: according to the fecond, he may be regarded as the Cook, who from knowing what things will mix well together, and diftinguishing by a nice Taste when he has arrived at that happy mixture, is able to compofe fuch exquifite dishes.

Both thele fignifications of the word will be found agreeable to the following definition of it, which I have fomewhere feen, and is the only juft defcription of the term that I ever remember to have met with: Tate confifts in nice harmony between the Fancy and the Judgment. The molt chatifed Judgment, without Genius, can never conftitute a Man of Tafte; and the most luxuriant Imagination, unregulated by Judg ment, will only carry us into wild and extravagant deviations from it. To mix oil, vinegar, butter, milk, eggs, &c. incoherently together, would make an Olio not to be relished by any palate; and the man who has no goût for delicacies himfelf, will never compofe a good difh, though he thould ever to itrictly adhere to the rules of La Chapelle, Hannah Glaffe, and Martha Bradley. I confine myfelf at prefent chiefly to that fignification of the word, which implies the capacity of exerting our own faculties in the feveral branches of Tafte, becaufe that always includes the other.

Having thus fettled what Tafle is, it may not be unentertaining to examine modern Tatte by these rules: and perhaps it will appear that, on the one hand, it's moft pleafing flights and ravishing elegancies are extravagant and abfurd; and that, on the other hand, thofe who affect a correct Tatte in all their undertakings, proceed mechanically, without genius. The first fpecies of Taite, which gives a loose to the imagination, indulges itfelf in caprice, and is perpetually triking new ftrokes, is the chief regulator of the fashion. In drefs, it has put hunting-poles into the hands of our gentlemen, and erected coaches and

windmills

N° CXXI. THURSDAY, MAY 20, 1756.

OFFICIOUS COUPLERS WANTONLY ENGAGE
VIRTUE WITH VICE, BRISK YOUTH WITH FROZEN AGE:
BEHOLD THEM GROAN BENEATH THE IRON YOKE,
HAIL THE DEAR MISCHIEF, AND ENJOY THE JOKE.

HOUGH Ihall not as yet vouchfafe to let the reader fo far into my fecrets, as to inform him whether I am married or fingle, it may not be amis to acquaint him, that, fuppofing 1 till remain a bachelor, it has not been the fault of my friends or relations. On the contrary, as foon as I was what they

call fettled in the world, they were fo affiduous in looking out a wife for me, that nothing was required on my part but immediately to fall in love with the lady they had pitched upon and could

have complied with theirfeveral choices, I fhould have been married at the fame time to a tall and a thoit a plump and a flender,

a flender, a young and an old woman; one with a great deal of money, and another with none at all: each of whom was severally recommended by their as the propereft perfon in the world for

me.

the accomplishments that can make the marriage ftate happy. Thefe traders difpofe of all forts of rich heirs and, heireffes, baronets, lards, ladies of fafhion, and daughters of country fquires, with as much cocinefs as drovers fell hullocks. They keep compleat regifters of the condition and qualifications of all the marriageable perfons within the kingdom; and it is as common to apply to them for an husband or wife, as to the register offices for a man or maid fervant.

They may, indeed, be confidered as fathers and guardians to the greatest part of your youth of both fexes, fince in marriage they may be mott properly faid to give them away.

I know not how it happens, but it is notorious that most people take a plea fure in making matches; either thinking matrimony a state of blifs, into which they would charitably call all their friends and acquaintance; or perhaps truggling in the toils, they are defrous of drawing others into the net that enfnared them. Many matches have been brought about between two perfons, abfolute ftrangers to each other, through It is fomething comical to confider this kind mediation of friends, who are always ready to take upon then the the various perfons to whom men of this office of an honourable go-between, profeflion are ufeful. We may natuSome have come together, merely from ally fuppofe that a young fellow, who having been talked of by their acquainte has no eftate but what, like 'Tinsel's in ance as likely to make a match: and I the Drummer, is merely personal, would have known a conple, who have met by be glad to come down handfomely after accident at an horse race, or danced to-coniummation with a woman of forgether at an affembly, that in less than a fortnight have been driven into matrimony in their own defence, by having been first paired in private converfations, and afterwards, in the common newspapers.

As we cannot infure happiness to our friends, at the fame time that we help them to hufbands or wives, one would imagine that few would care to run the hazard of bestowing mifery, where they meant a kindness. I know a good natured lady who has officiously brought upon herself the ill-will and the curfes of many of her dearest and most intimate She has friends on this very account. a fifter, for whom the provided a moit excellent husband, who has hewn his affection for her by spending her whole fortune upon his miftreffes: another near relation having, by her means, fnapped up a rich widow, the bridegroom was arrested for her debts within a week after marriage: and it coft her a whole welvemonth to bring two doating lovers of her acquaintance together, who parted beds before the honey-moon was expired.

But if our friends will thus condefcend to be Match-makers from a fpirit of benevolence, and for our own advantage only; there are others who have taken up the profeffion from lefs difinterested motives; who bring beauty and fortune to market, and traffick in all

T

tune; and a fmart girl, who has more charms than wealth, would give round poundage on being taken for better for worfe by a rich heir. Many a tradefman alfo wants a wife to manage his family, while he looks after the shop; and thinks it better to recommend himfelf by this convenient friend, than by means of the Daily Advertifer. There are alfo feveral young people, who are indifferent as to any perfon in particular, and have no paffion for the ftate itself, yet want to be married, because it will deliver them from the restraint. of parents. But the most unnatural, though very common, applications of this fort, are from the rich and the noble; who, having immense estates to beltow on their children, will make use of the meanest inftruments to couple then to others of the fame overgrown

fortune.

I have known many droll accidents happen from the mistakes of these mercenary Match makers; and remember one in particular, which I fhall here fet down for the entertainment of my read

ers.

A careful old gentleman came up from the North on purpofe to marry his fon, and was recommended by one of thefe Couplers to a twenty thousand pounder. He accordingly put on his beft, wig, beft beaver, and gold buttoned coat, and went to pay his refpects to He told her, that the lady's mamma.

he

N° CXXII. THURSDAY, MAY 27, 1756.

MONSTRUM NULLA VIRTUTE REDEMPTUM.

WITHOUT ONE SNEAKING VIRTUE IN THY TRAIN,
O PRECIOUS VILLAIN! SCOUNDREL! ROGUE IN GRAIN!