ΤΟ THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THOMAS EARL OF WHARTON. MY LORD, THE author of the Spectator having prefixed before each of his volumes the name of some great person to whom he has particular obligations, lays his claim to your lordship's patronage upon the same account. I must confess, my lord, had not I already received great instances of your favour, I should have been afraid of submitting a work of this nature to your perusal. You are so thoroughly acquainted with the characters of men, and all the parts of human life, that it is impossible for the least misrepresentation of them to escape your notice. It is your lordship's particular distinction that you are master of the whole compass of business, and have signalized yourself in all the different scenes of it. We admire some for the dignity, others for the popularity, of their behaviour; some for their clearness of judgment; others for their happiness of expression; some for the laying of schemes, and others for the putting of them in execution: it is your lordship only who enjoys these several talents united, and that too in as great perfection as others possess them singly. 419977 Your enemies acknowledge this great extent in your lordship's character, at the same time that they use their utmost industry and invention to derogate from it. But it is for your honour that those who are now your enemies were always so. You have acted in so much consistency with yourself, and promoted the interests of your country in so uniform a manner, that even those who would misrepresent your generous designs for the public good, can not but approve the steadiness and intrepidity with which you pursue them. It is a most sensible pleasure to me that I have this opportunity of professing myself one of your great admirers, and in a very particular manner, My lord, Your lordship's Most obliged, And most obedient, THE SPECTATOR. THE SPECTATOR. No. 320. FRIDAY, MARCH. 7, 1712. By Steele. From the Letter-box. -Non pronuba Juno, Non Hymenæus adest, non illi Gratia lecto: OVID. Met. 1. 6. v. 428. Nor Hymen nor the graces here preside, MR. SPECTATOR, CROXAL. 'You have given many hints in your papers to the disadvantage of persons of your own sex, who lay plots upon women. Among other hard words, you have published the term male-coquettes, and been very severe upon such as give themselves the liberty of a little dalliance of heart, and playing fast and loose between love and indifference, till perhaps an easy young girl is reduced to sighs, dreams and tears, and languishes away her life for a careless coxcomb, who looks astonished, and wonders at such an effect from what in him was all but common civility. Thus you have treated the men who are irresolute in marriage; but if you design to be impartial, pray be so honest as to print the information I now give you, of a certain set of women who never coquette for the matter, but with a high hand marry whom they please to whom they please. As for my part, I should not have concerned myself with them, but that I understand I am pitched upon by them, to be married, against my will, to one I never saw in my life. It has been my misfortune, sir, very innocently to rejoice in a plentiful fortune, of which I am master, to bespeak a fine chariot, to give directions for two or three handsome snuff-boxes, and as many suits of fine clothes; but before any of these were ready, I heard reports of my being to be married to two or three different young women. Upon my taking notice of it to a young gentleman, who is often in my company, he told me smiling, I was in the Inquisition. You may believe I was not a little startled at what he meant, and more so when he asked me if I had bespoke any thing of late that was fine. I told him several: upon which he produced a description of my person from the tradesmen whom I had employed, and told me that they had certainly informed against me. Mr. Spectator, whatever the world may think of me, I am more coxcomb than fool, and I grew very inquisitive upon this head, not a little pleased with the novelty. My friend told me there were a certain set of women of fashion, whereof the number of six made a committee, who sat thrice a-week, under the title of the Inquisition on maids and bachelors. It seems whenever there comes such an unthinking gay thing as myself to town, he must want all manner of necessaries, or be put into the Inquisition by the first tradesman he employs. They have constant intelligence with cane-shops, perfumers, toymen, coach-makers, and china-houses. From these several places these undertakers for marriages have as constant and regular correspondence as the funeral-men have with vintners and apothecaries. All bachelors are under their immediate inspection; and my friend produced to me a report given in to their board, wherein an old uncle of mine, who came to town with me, and myself, were inserted, and we stood thus: the uncle smoky, rotten, poor, the nephew raw, but no fool, sound at present, very rich. My information did not end here, but my friend's advices are so good, that he could show me a copy of the letter sent to the young lady who is to have me; which I enclose to you. 'MADAM, This is to let you know, that you are to be married to a beau that comes out on Thursday, six in the evening. Be at the park. You can not but know a virgin fop; they have a mind to look saucy, but are out of countenance. The board has denied him to several good families. I wish you joy. 'CORINNA.' What makes my correspondent's case the more deplorable is, that, as I find by the report from my censor of marriages, the friend he speaks of is employed by the Inquisition to take him in; as the phrase is. After all that is told him, he has information only of one woman that is laid for him, and that the wrong one; for the lady-commissioners have devoted him to another than the person against whom they have employed their agent his friend to alarm him. The plot is laid so well about this young gentleman, that he has no friend to retire to, no place to appear in, or |