makes a mickle; A penny faved is a penny got, Penny wife and pound fooli, It is need that makes the old wife trot, would be very ufeful to the world, and if you treated them with knowledge would be useful to yourfelf, for it would make demands for your paper among thofe who have no notion of it at prefent. But of thefe matters more hereafter. If you did this, as you excel many writers of the prefent age for politenefs, fo you would, outgo the author of the true razor-ftrops for ufe.

I fall conclude this difcourfe with an explanation of a proverb, which by vulgar error is taken and ufed when a man is reduced to an extremity, whereas the propriety of the maxim is to use it T when you would fay, there is plenty; but you must make fuch a choice, as not to hurt another who is to come after

and obferving that the fcholars rid hard, his manner was to keep a large flable of borfes, with boots, bridles, and whips, to furnish the gentlemen at once without, going from college to college to borrow, as they have done fince the death of this worthy man: I say, Mr, Hobfon kept a ftable of forty good cattle, always ready and fit for travelling; but when a man came for a horfe, he was led into the ftable, where there was great choice, but he obliged him to take the horse which stood next to the ftable-door; fo that every customer was alike well ferved according to his chance, and every horfe ridden with the fame juftice: from whence it became a proverb, when what ought to be your elec tion was forced upon you, to fay-' Hobfon's choice.' This memorable man ftands drawn in fresco at an inn, which he ufed in Bifhopfgate Street, with ap hundred pound bag under his arm, with this infçription upon the faid bag:

The fruitful mother of a hundred more.

Whatever tradefman will try the experiment, and begin the day after you publish this my difcourfe to treat his customers all alike, and all reasonably and honestly, I will infure him the fame fuccefs. I am, Sir, your loving friend, T HEZEKIAH THRIFT

SI SAPIS,

TER. EUN. ACT. 1. Sc. I.

I Was the other day driving in a hack

through Gerrard Street, when my ve was immediately catched with the prettiest object imaginable, the face of a very fair girl, between thirteen and fourteen, fixed at the chin to a painted fah, and made part of the landskip. It feemed admirably done, and upon throwing myfelf eagerly out of the coach to look at it, it laughed and flung from the window. This amiable figure dwelt upon me; and I was confidering the vanity of the girl, and her pleafant coquetry in acting a picture until the was

taken notice of, and raifing the admiration of the beholders. This little circumftance made me run into reflection upon the force of beauty, and the wonderful influence the female fex has upon the other part of the fpecies. Our hearts are feized with their inchantments, and there are few of us, but brutal men, who by that hardnefs lofe the chief pleasure in them, can refift their infinuations, though never fo much against our own interests and opinion. It is common with women to destroy the good effects a man's following his own way and inelination

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clination might have upon his honour and fortune, by interpofing their power over him in matters wherein they cannot influence him, but to his lofs and difparagement. I do not know therefore a task fo difficult in human life, as to be proof against the importunities of a woman a man loves. There is certainly no armour againft, tears, fullen looks, or at beft constrained familiarities, in her whom you ufually meet with tranfport and alacrity. Sir Walter Raleigh was quoted in a letter (of a very ingenious correfpondent of mine) on this fubject. That author, who had lived in courts and camps, travelled through many countries, and feen many men under feveral climates, and of as various complexions, fpeaks of our impotence to refit the wiles of women in very fevere terms. His words are as follow:

What means did the devil find out, or what inftruments did his own fubtlety prefent him, as fitteft and apteft to work his mifchief by? even the unquiet vanity of the woman; fo as by Adam's hearkening to the voice of his wife, contrary to the exprefs commandment of the living God, mankind by that her incantation became the fubject of labour, forrow and death; the woman being given to man for a ⚫ comforter and companion, but not for a counfellor. It is alfo to be noted by whom the woman was tempted; even by the most ugly and unworthy of all beafts, into whom the devil entered ⚫ and perfuaded. Secondly, what was

the motive of her difobedience? even a defire to know what was moft unfitting her knowledge; an affection which has ever fince remained in all the pofterity of her fex. Thirdly, what was it that moved the man to yield to her perfuafions? even the fame caufe which hath moved all men fince to the like confent, namely, an unwillingnets • to grieve her or make her fad, left the fhould pine, and be overcome with forrow. But if Adam in the itate of perfection, and Solomon the fon of David, God's chofen fervant, and himfelf a man endued with the greateft wisdom, did both of them difobey their Creator by the perfuafion and for the love they bare to a woman, it is not ⚫fo wonderful as lamentable, that other men in fucceeding ages have been alhured to fo many inconvenient and

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wicked practices by the perfuafion their wives, or other beloved darlings, who cover over and fhadow many ma licious purposes with a counterfeit paffion of difiimulate forrow and unquietnefs.'

The motions of the minds of lovers are no where fo well defcribed, as in the works of fkilful writers for the stage. The fcene between Fulvia and Curius, in the fecond act of Johnfen's Catiline, is an excellent picture of the power of a lady over her gallant. The wench plays with his affection; and as a man of all places in the world wishes to make a good figure with his mistrefs, upon her upbraiding him with want of fpirit, he alludes to enterprifes which he cannot reveal but with the hazard of his life. When he is worked thus far, with a little flattery of her opinion of his gallantry, and defire to know more of it out of her overflowing fondness to him, he brags to her until his life is in her difpofal.

When a man is thus liable to be vanquifhed by the charms of her he loves, the fafeft way is to determine what is proper to be done, but to avoid all expoftulation with her before he executes what he has refolved. Women are ever too hard for us upon a treaty, and one muft confider how fenfelefs a thing it is to argue with one whofe looks and geftures are more prevalent with you, than your reafons and arguments can be with her. It is a moft miferable slavery to fubmit to what you difapprove, and give up a truth for no other reason, but that you had not fortitude to fupport you in afferting it. A man has enough to do to conquer his own unreafonable wishes and defires; but he does that in vain, if he has thofe of another to graify. Let his pride be in his wife and family; let him give them all the conveniencies of life in fuch a manner as if he were proud of them; but let it be his own innocent pride, and not their exorbitant defires, which are indulged by him. In this cafe all the little arts imaginable are used to foften a man's heart, and rife his paffion above his understanding. But in all conceflions of this kind, a man fhould confider whether the prefent he makes flows from his own love, or the importunity of his beloved: if from the latter, he is her flave; if from the-former, her friend. We laugh it off, and do not weigh this fubjection to women

poffibly attain, to refift the grief of her who charms us; but let the heart ake: be the anguish never fo quick and painful, it is what must be fuffered and paffed through, if you think to live like a gentleman, or be confcious to yourself that you are a man of honefty. The old argument, that you do not love me if you deny me this,' which first was ufed to obtain a trifle, by habitual fuccefs will oblige the unhappy man who gives way to it, to refign the cause even of his country and his honour.

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DEAR SPEC, INDING that my laft letter took, I do intend to continue my epiftolary correfpondence with thee, on thofe dear confounded creatures, women. Thou knoweft, all the little learning I am matter of is upon that fubject; I never looked in a book, but for their fakes. I have lately met with two pure ftories for a Spectator, which I am fure will pleafe mightily, if they pafs through thy hands. The firft of them I found by chance in an English book, called Herodotus, that lay in my friend Dapperwit's window, as I vifited him one morning. It luckily opened in the place where I met with the following account. He tells us that it was the manner among the Perfians to have feveral fairs in the kingdom, at which all the young unmarried women were annually expofed to fale. The men who wanted wives came hither to provide themselves: every woman was given to the highest bidder, and the money which the fetched laid afide for the public ufe, to be employed as thou fhalt hear by and by. By this means the richest people had the choice of the market, and culled out all the most extraordinary beauties. As foon as the fair was thus picked, the refufe was to be diftributed among the poor, and among thofe who could not go to the price of a beauty. Several of thefe married the agreeables, without paying a farthing for them, unless fome

T

body chanced to think it worth his while to bid for them, in which cafe the bett bidder was always the purchafer. But now you must know, Spec, it happened in Perfia, as it does in our own country, that there were as many ugly women as beauties or agreeables; fo that by confequence, after the magiftrates had put off a great many, there were ftill a great many that stuck upon their hands. In order therefore to clear the market, the money which the beauties had fold for, was difpofed of among the ugly; fo that a poor man, who could not afford to have a beauty for his wife, was forced to take up with a fortune; the greatest portion being always given to the most deformed. To this the author adds, that every poor man was forced to live kindly with his wife, or in cafe he repented of his bargain, to return her portion with her to the next public fale.

What I would recommend to thee on this occafion is, to establish fuch an imaginary fair in Great Britain: thou couldit make it very pleafant, by matching women of quality with coblers and carmen, or deferibing titles and garters leading. off in great ceremony shop-keepers and farmers daughters. Though to tell thee the truth, I am confoundedly afraid that as the love of money prevails in our ifland more than it did in Perfia, we fhould find that fome of our greatest men would choose out the portions, and rival one another for the richest piece of deformity;

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deformity; and that, on the contrary, the toafts and belles would be bought up by extravagant heirs, gamefters, and fpendthrifts. Thou couldst make very pretty reflections upon this occation in honour of the Perfian politics, who took care, by fuch marriages, to beautify the upper part of the species, and to nfake the greateft perfons in the government the most graceful. But this I shall leave to thy judicious pen.

I have another story to tell thee, which I likewife met with in a book. It feems the general of the Tartars, after having laid fiege to a ftrong town in China, and taken it by storm, would fet to fale all the women that were found in it. Accordingly, he put each of them into a fack, and after having thoroughly confidered the value of the woman who was inclosed, marked the price that was demanded for her upon the fack. There were a great confluence of chapmen, that reforted from every part, with a defign to purchase, which they were to do unfight unfeen. The book mentions a merchant in particular, who oblerving one of the facks to be marked pretty high, bargained for it, and carried it off with him to his houfe. As he was refting with it upon a halfway bridge, he was refolved to take a furvey of his purchafe: upon opening the fack, a little old woman popped her head out of it; at which the adventurer was in fo great a rage, that he was going to fhoot her out into the river. The old lady, however, begged him first of all to hear her ftory, by which he learned that the was filter to a great Mandarin, who would infallibly make the fortune of his brother-in-law as foon as he should know to whole lot the fell. Upon which the merchant again tied her up in his fack, and carried her to his houte, where the

proved an excellent wife, and procured him all the riches from her brother that the had promifed him.

I fancy, if I was difpofed to dream a fecond time, I could make a tolerable vifion upon this plan. I would suppose all the unmarried women in London and Westminster brought to market in facks with their respective prices on each fack. The first fack that is fold is marked with five thousand pounds: upon the opening of it, I find it filled with an admirable housewife, of an agreeable countenance. The purchafer, upon hearing her good qualities, pays down her price very chearfully. The fecond I would open, fhould be a five hundred pound fack: the lady in it, to our furprize, has the face and perfon of a toast: as we are wondering how the came to be fet at fo low a price, we hear that the would have been valued at ten thousand pounds, but that the public had made thofe abatements for her being a scold. I would afterwards find fome beautiful, modeft, and difcreet woman, that should be the top of the market: and perhaps difcover half a dozen romps tied up together in the fame fack, at one hundred pounds an head. The prude and the coquette fhould be valued at the fame price, though the first thould go off the better of the two. I fancy thou wouldst like fuch a vifion, had I time to finish it; becaufe, to talk in thy own way, there is a moral in it. Whatever thou mayeft think of it, pr'ythee do not make any of thy queer apologies for this letter, as thou didit for my latt. The women love a gay lively fellow, and are never angry at the railleries of one who is their known admirer. I am always bitter upon them, but well with them. Thine,

HERE is nothing which we reTctive with fo much reluctance as advice. We look upon the man who gives it us as offering an affront to our understanding, and treating us like children or idiots. We consider the in

struction as an implicit cenfure, and the zeal which any one fhews for our good on fuch an occation as a piece of prefumption or impertinence. The oth of it is, the person who pretends to advile, does, in that particular, exercife a fuperiority