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Accedat Suavitas quadam oportet Sermonum, atque Morum, haudquaquam mediocre Condimentum Amicitia : Triftitia autem, in omni re Severitas abfit. Habet illa quidem Gravitatem, fed Amicitia remiffior effe debet, liberior, & dulcior, & ad omnem Comitatem Facilitatemque proclivior.

N° 112.

Tuesday, Decemb. 27. 1709.

Sheer-Lane, December 26..

Tull.

A SI was looking over my Letters this Morning, I chanced to caft my Eye upon the following one, which came to my Hands about two Months ago from an old Friend of mine, who, as I have fince learned, was the Perfon that writ the agreeable Epiftle inferted in my Paper of the Third of the laft Month. It is of the fame Turn with the other, and may be looked upon as a Specimen of Right Country-Letters..

SIR,

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HIS fets out to you from my Summer-Houfe upon the Terras, where I am enjoying a few Hours Sun-fhine, the fcanty fweet Remains of a fine Autumn. The Year is almost at the loweft; fo that in all Appearance, the rest of my Letters between this and Spring will be dated from my Parlour-Fire, where the little fond Prattle of a Wife and Children will (o often break in upon the Connexion of my Thoughts, that you'il eafily difcover it in my Style. If this Winter fhould prove as fevere as the laft, I can tell fore-hand, that I am likely to be a very miferable Man, through the perverfe Temper of my eldest Boy. When the Froft was in its Extremity, you must know, that most of the Black-Birds, Robins and Finches of the Parish (whofe Mufick had entertained me in the Summer) took Refuge under my Roof. Upon this, my Care was, to rife every Morning before Day to fet open my Windows for the Reception of the Cold and the Hungry, whom at the fame Time I relieved

you

with a very plentiful Alms, by firewing Corn and Seeds upon the Floors and Shelves. But Dicky, without any Regard to the Laws of Hofpitality, confidered the Cafements as fo many Traps, and ufed every Bird as a Prifoner at Dif cretion. Never did Tyrant exercife more various Cruelties: Some of the poor Creatures he chafed to Death about the Room, others he drove into the Jaws of a Blood-thirsty Cat; and even in his greatest Acts of Mercy, either clipped the Wings, or finged the Tails, of his innocent Captives. You'll laugh, when I tell you 1 fympathized with every Bird in its Misfortunes but I believe you'll think me in the Right for bewailing the Child's unlucky Humour. On the other Hand, I am extremely pleafed, to fee his younger Brother carry an univerfal Benevolence towards every Thing that has Life. When he was between Four and Five Years old, I caught him weeping over a beautiful Butterfly, which he chanced to kill as he was playing with it; and I am informed, that this Morning he has given his Brother Three-Half-pente (which was his whole Eftate) to spare the Life of a Tom-Tit. Thefe are at prefent the Matters of greateft Moment within my Obfervation, and I know are too trifling to be communicated to any but fo wife Man as your felf, andi from one who has the Happiness to be

Your moft Faithful,

And moft Obedient Servant. THE beft Critick that ever wrote, speaking of fome Paffages in Homer which appear extravagant or frivolous, lays indeed, that they are Dreams; but the Dreamsof Jupiter. My Friend's Letter appears to me in the fame Light. One fees him in an idle Hour; but at the fame Time in the idle Hour of a wife Man. A great Mind has fomething in it too fevere and forbidding, that is not capable of giving it felf fuch little Relaxations, and of condefcending to thefe agreeable Ways of Trifling. Tully, when he celebrates the Friendship of Scipio and Lelius, who were the greatest as well as the politeft Men of their Age, reprefents it as a beautiful Paffage in their Retirement, that they ufed to gather up Shells on the Sea-fhore, and amufe themfelves with the Variety of Shape and Colour, which they met with in thofe little unregarded Works of Nature. The great Agefilaus could be a Companion to his own Children,

and

and was furprized by the Ambaffadors of Sparta as he was riding among them upon an Hobby-Horse. Auguftus indeed had no Play-Fellows of his own begetting but is faid to have paffed many of his Hours with little Moorish Boys at a Game of Marbles, not unlike our modern Taw. There is (methinks) a Pleasure in seeing great Men thus fall into the Rank of Mankind, and entertain themselves with Diverfions and Amusements that are agreeable to the very weakest of the Species. I muft frankly confefs, that it is to me a Beauty in Cato's Character, that he would drink a chearful Bottle with his Friend; and I cannot but own, that I have seen with: great Delight one of the most celebrated Authors of the Taft Age feeding the Ducks in St. James's Park. By Inftances of this Nature, the Heroes, the Statefmen, the Phi lofophers, become as it were familiar with us, and grow the more amiable, the less they endeavour to appear awful. A Man who always Acts in the Severity of Wif dom, or the Haughtiness of Quality, feems to move in a perfonated Part: It looks too constrained and theatrical for a Man to be always in that Character which dif tinguishes him from others. Befides that, the Slacke ning and Unbending our Minds on fome Occafions, makes them exert themfelves with greater Vigour and Alacrity, when they return to their proper and natural State.

As this innocent Way of paffing a leisure Hour is not only confiftent with a great Character, but very graceful in it, fo there are two Sorts of People to whom I would moft earneftly recommend it. The first are those who are uneafy out of Want of Thought; the Second,. are thofe who are fo out of a Turbulence of Spirit. The firft are the Impertinent, and the fecond the dangerous Part of Mankind...

Ir grieves me to the very Heart, when I fee feveralTM young Gentlemen, defeended of honeft Parents, run up and down hurrying from one End of the Town to the other, calling in at every Place of Refort, without being able to fix a Quarter of an Hour in any, and in a particular Hafte without knowing for what. It would (methinks) be fome Confolation, if I could perfwade! thefe precipitate youngGentlemen to compose thisReft

lefnefs

lefness of Mind, and apply themfelves to any Amufement, how trivial foever, that might give themEmploy-ment, and keep them out of Harm's Way. They cannot imagine how great a Relief it would be to them, if they could grow fedate enough to play for two or threeHours at a Game of Pufh-pin. But thefe bufy, idle Animals, are only their own Tormenters: The Turbulent and Dangerous are for embroiling Councils, ftirring up Seditions, and fubverting Conftitutions, out of a meer Reftlefnefs of Temper, and an Infenfibility of all the Pleasures of Life that are calm and innocent. It is impoffible for a Man to be fo much employed in any Scene of Action, as to have great and good Affairs enough to fill up his whole Time; there will ftill® be Charms and empty Spaces, in which a working Mind will employ it felf to its own Prejudice, or that of others, unless it can be at Eafe in the Exercife of fuch Actions as are in themfelves indifferent. How often have I wished for the Good of the Nation, That feveral famous Politicians could take any Pleafure in feeding Ducks. I look upon an able Statesman out of Búfinefs, like a huge Whale, that will endeavour to overturn the Ship, unless he has an empty Cask to play with.

BUT to return to my good Friend and Correfpondent, I am afraid we fhall both be laughed at, when I. confefs, that we have often gone out into the Field to look upon a Bird's Neft; and have more than once taken an Evening's Walk together on purpofe to fee the Sun fet. I fall conclude with my Antwer to his foregoing Letter::

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Dear S IR,

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THANK you for your obliging Letter, and your Kindness to the Diftreffed, who will, doubttlefs, exprefs their Gratitude to you themselves the next Spring. As for Dick the Tyrant, I muft defire you will put a stop to his Proceedings; and at the 'fame Time take Care, that his little Brother be no Lofer by his Mercy to the Tom-Tit. For my own Party I am excluded all Converfation with Animals that defight only in a Country-Life, and am therefore forced to entertain my felt as well as I can, with my lit

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tle Dog and Cat. They both of them fit by my Fire every Night, expecting my coming Home with Impatience; and at my Entrance, never fail of running up to me, and bidding me welcome, each of them in 6 his proper Language. As they have been bred up together from their Infancy, and feen no other Company, they have learned each other's Manners, fo that the Dog often gives himfelf the Airs of a Cat, and thre "Cat, in feveral of her Motions and Gestures, affects the Behaviour of the little Dog. When they are at Play, I often make one with them; and fometimes please my felt with confidering, how much Reason and Inftinct are capable of delighting each other. Thus, you fee, I have communicated to you the material Occurrences in my Family, with the fame Freedom that you ufe to me; as I am with the fame Sincerity and Affection,

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Your most Faithful

Humble Servant,

Ifaac Bickerstaff.

菠菠菠菠雞

Ecce iterum Crifpinus! Juv.

N'113.

Thursday, Dec. 29. 1709.

Hay-Market, December 23.

HEREAS the Gentleman that behaved him

W felf in a very difobedient and obftinate Man

ner at his late Trial in Sheer-Lane, on the 20th Inftant, and was carried off dead upon the taking away of his Snuff-Box, remains ftill unburied, the Company of Upholders not knowing otherwife how they should be paid, have taken his Goods in Execution to defray the Charge of his Funeral. His faid Effects are to be expofed to Sale by Auction, at their Office in the HayMarket, on the 4th of January next, and are as follows:

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