An ANECDOTE of their prefent MAJESTIES.

SOME years fince, the King became enamoured with the

beauties of Windfor-Caftle, and had it repaired and refitted, in preference to Kew, his former country-refidence. During his firft excurfion there, he took a morning-ride with the Queen in a phaton, accompanied by a coach, containing fome of the maids of honour, and two or three fervants on horfeback. Curiofity to fee the country, joined to a pleasant morning, induced him to drive to the diftance of fixteen or feventeen miles; a distance more obfervable, as his morningrides feldom exceeded feven or eight miles. He had just entered a large heath, containing an extensive plain : having occafion to alight from his carriage, he looked about, for fome time, to fecure a retreat from the view of his retinue, till at length he efpied, at the other fide of the plain, a small cottage furrounded with a little fhrubbery. He foon arrived at the door of the cottage, and throwing the reins to the Queen, afked for some water to drink, and passed through the house.

The Queen, feeing a poor woman approach the door, and a parcel of children around her, asked whether those were her children? She answering in the affirmative: the Queen replied, "Why you have got a fine parcel: how many are they? "Ah, madam, (faid the woman, with a figh) if I could but take care of them, I have thirteen." "Thirteen!" faid the Queen, with a fympathetic pleasure, being just her own number, "And what is your oldeft ?" "A fon, madam." "How old is he?" "Fifteen, madamı," "And are they living?" "Yes, madam, they are all living now, but God only knows how long, for I fear we must all perish together." The Queen inquired into the cause of her despair. She informed her that her husband now lay very ill; that they had with the utmost difficulty fupported their family for many years upon one shilling, and one fhilling and fixpence per day, VOL. XV,

4 H

which

which he and his eldeft fon had earned from the lord of the manor, merely by day labour, together with a little spinning fhe had now and then procured, and executed with difficulty, and a few vegetables. "But now," continued fhe, "my refources are ended; my husband has been ill these fix weeks, and in a most suffering condition for want of a phyfician, and even the neceffaries of life: and all of us have subsisted ever fince on the fixpence a day which my eldeft fon has earned, till we can fubfift no longer."

By this time the King returned, and their fuite had overtaken them. The Queen then obferved to the King, "My dear, this woman has had thirteen children, and they are all living: the eldest is a fon, and he is fifteen years old; and they have raised them all upon one fhilling and one fhilling and fixpence per day; and now her husband is very ill." "Is that your hufband," faid his Majefty, addreffing himself to the woman of the houfe," who lies on the bed? What ails him? how long has he been fo?" "A flow fever, Sir, faid the woman, but I have no doubt he might have recovered ere this, if he could have had a phyfician and comfortable diet, but now I fear we muft all perish together." His Majefty, moved with compaffion, pulled out his purfe, and handed her a few guineas ; the Queen followed his example, and bade her not be dif couraged, but keep a good heart; fhe hoped her husband would recover, and they would fee better days. The poor woman almoft overcome with joy and gratitude, could only anfwer," God bless you, Madam! God bless you, Sir!" Here words choaked utterance. The Queen again repeating her

good wifhes, they rode away.

The maids of honour then beckoning the woman to the coach-fide, afked if the knew thofe characters fhe had been converfing with? She anfwered with energy, "No; but God fent them, or we muft all have ftarved to death." On this they forbore to acquaint her, but each presenting her a guinea, the retired, exulting in her deliverance.

As

As they returned, the Queen difpatched one of the fervants to a neighbouring village, to purchase tea, fugar, barley, and comfortable neceffaries, with all fpeed, for the fick man and on her return to Windfor, fhe related the story herself, adding that he felt a peculiar attracting fympathy to that woman and family; that she would make it her business to have a physician fent immediately, and would intereft herself in their welfare.

IN

SPANISH GENEROSITY,

a

very

hot 'N the year 1746, when England was engaged in war with Spain, Captain Edwards, of the Elizabeth, of London, coming through the Gulph from Jamaica, richly laden, met with a most violent form, in which the ship fprung a leak, that obliged them, for the faving of their lives, to run into the Spanish Port of the Havannah. The Captain went on shore, and directly waiting on the Governor, told him the occafion of his putting in, adding that he furrendered the fhip as a prize, as well as himfelf and crew prifoners of war, only requesting good quarter." No, Sir," (replied the Governor) if we had taken you in fair fea, or approaching our Coast with hostile intentions, your fhip would then be a lawful prize, and your people prifoners; but when diftreffed by the hand of Providence you come to our Port for the fafety of your lives, we being men, though enemies, are bound by the laws of humanity to afford relief to the diftreffed who afk it of us. We cannot, even againft our foes, take advantage of an act of God. You have leave therefore, to unload your fhip, if that be neceffary to ftop the leak.

may

You

refit her here, and traffic so far, befides, as fhall be needful to pay the charges. When repaired, you may then depart. I will give you a pass to be in force till you are beyond Bermuda. If after that, you are taken, then you will be a 4 H 2

LAWFUL

LAWFUL PRIZE; whereas now, as you are only a firanger, you have a stranger's right to fafety and protection." Here was generous bravery, indeed! The ship departed accordingly, and arrived, without any other accident, in the port of London.

On INTERNAL RELIGION.

[By the late Mr. Fletcher.]

Extracted from a Letter wrote to his Brother in Switzerland. Tranflated from the French, by the Rev. Mr. Gilpin.

N. B. Mr. Fletcher wrote this Letter in the twenty-fixth year of his age, at which time he refided in England.

at once.

SPEAK from experience. I have been fucceffively deluded by all thofe defires, which I here fo fincerely reprobate; and fometimes I have been the fport of them all This will appear incredible, except to those who have discovered, that the heart of unregenerate man is nothing more than a chaos of obfcurity, and a mass of contradictions. If you have any acquaintance with yourself, you will readily fubfcribe to this defcription of the human heart: and if you are without this acquaintance, then rest affured, my dear brother, that whatever your purfuit may be, you are as far from true happiness as the most wretched of men, The meteor you

are following still flies before you; frequently it disappears, and never fhews itself but to allure you to the brink of fome unlooked for precipice. Every unconverted man must neceffarily come under one or other of the following defcriptionsHe is either a voluptuary, a worldly minded perfon, or a pharifaical philofopher; or, perhaps, like myself, he may be all of these at the fame time: and what is ftill more extraordinary, he may be fo, not only without believing, but even without once fufpecting it. Indeed, nothing is more common among men, than an entire blindness to their own real characters.

How

How long have I placed my happiness in mere chimeras! How often have I grounded my vain hopes upon imaginary foundations! I have been conftantly employed in framing defigns for my own felicity; but my disappointments have been as frequent and various as my projects. In the midst of my idle reveries, how often have I said to myself, "Drag thy weary feet but to the fummit of yonder eminence, a fituation beyond which the world has nothing to prefent more adequate to thy wishes, and there thou fhalt fit down in a flate of repose." On my arrival, however, at the spot proposed, a sad discovery has taken place-The whole fcene has appeared more barren than the valley I had quitted; and the point of happiness, which I lately imagined it poffible to have touched with my finger, has presented itself at a greater diftance than ever."

"If hitherto, my dear brother, you have beguiled yourself with profpects of the fame vifionary nature, never expect to be more fuccefsful in your future purfuits. One labour will only fucceed another, making way for continual discontent and chagrin. Open your heart, and there you will discover the fource of that painful inquietude, to which, by your own confeffion, you have been long a prey. Examine its fecret receffes, and you will discover there fufficient proofs of the following truths-The heart is deceitful above all things, and defperately wicked. All have finned and come fhort of the glory of God. The thoughts of man's heart are only evil, and that continually. The natural man understandeth_not the things of the fpirit of God. On the discovery of these, and other important truths, you will be convinced that man is an apoftate being, compofed of a fenfual rebellious body, and a foul immerfed in pride, felf-love, and ignorance: nay more, you will perceive it a physical impoffibility, that man fhould ever become truly happy, till he is caft, as it were, into a new mould, and created a second time. For my own part, when I firft began to know myself, I saw, I felt that man is an undefineable animal, partly of an infernal nature.

This