brought up had thrown a gloom upon his temper, which fome regarded as an habitual prudence, and from fuch confiderations he had every day repeated offers of friendship. Those who had money, were ready to offer him their affiftance that way; and they who had daughters, frequently, in the warmth of affection, advifed him to marry. Jack, however, was in good circumftances; he wanted neither money, friends, nor a wife, and therefore modeftly declined their propofals.

Some errors in the management of his affairs, and feveral loffes in trade, foon brought Jack to a different way of thinking; and he at laft thought it his best way to let his friends know that their offers were at length acceptable. His firft addrefs was therefore to a fcrivener, who had formerly made him frequent offers of money and friendship, at a time when, perhaps, he knew thofe offers would have been refused.

Jack, therefore, thought he might use his old friend without any ceremony, and as a man confident of not being refused, requested the use of an hundred guineas for a few days, as he just then had an occafion for money. "And pray, Mr. Spin

66

dle, replied the fcrivener, do you want all this "money?" "Want it, Sir, says the other," if "I did not want it, I fhould not have afked it." I "am forry for that," fays the friend; "for those "who want money when they come to borrow, will "want money when they fhould come to pay. To

66

fay the truth, Mr. Spindle, money is money now"a-days. I believe it is all funk in the bottom of "the fea, for my part; and he that has got a little, ❝is a fool if he does not keep what he has got."

Not quite difconcerted by this refufal, our adventurer was refolved to apply to another, whom he knew to be the very best friend he had in the world. The gentleman whom he now addressed, received

N 3

his

his propofal with all the affability that could be ex

pected from generous friendship. Let me fee, you

want an hundred guineas, and pray, dear Jack, "would not fifty anfwer." If you have but fifty to fpare "Sir, I must be contented. "Fifty to fpare! I do not "fay that, for I believe I have but twenty about "me." Then I must borrow the other thirty from fome "other friend. "And pray, replied the friend, would "it not be the best way to borrow the whole money " from that other friend, and then one note will ferve "for all, you know? Lord, Mr. Spindle, make no "ceremoney with me at any time; you know I'm your "friend, when you chufe a bit of dinner or fo."You, Tom, fee the gentleman down. You "wont forget to dine with us now and then. Your very humble fervant."

Diftreffed, but not difcouraged at this treatment, he was at laft refolved to find that affiftance from love, which he could not have from friendship. Mifs Jenny Dismal had a fortune in her own hands, and The had already made all the advances that her fex's modefty would permit. He made his propofal therefore with confidence, but foon perceived, "No bankrupt ever found the fair one kind." Mifs Jenny and Mafter Billy Galloon were lately fallen deeply in love with each other, and the whole neighbourhood thought it would foon be a match.

Every day now began to ftrip Jack of his former finery; his cloaths flew piece by piece to the pawnbroker's; and he seemed at length equipped in the genuine mourning of antiquity. But ftill he thought himself secure from ftarving, the numberless invitations he had received to dine, even after his loffes, were yet unanswered; he was therefore now refolved to accept of a dinner because he wanted one; and in this manner he actually lived among his friends a whole week without being openly affronted. The

laft

laft place I faw poor Jack was at the Rev. Dr. Gofling's. He had, as he fancied, juft nicked the time, for he came in as the cloth was laying. He took a chair without being defired, and talked for fome time without being attended to. He affured the company, that nothing procured fo good an appetite as a walk to White Conduit-house, where he had been that morning. He looked at the table-cloth, and praised the figure of the damaík, talked of a feast where he had been the day before, but that the venifon was overdone. All this, however, procured the poor creature no invitation, and he was not yet fufficiently hardened to ftay without being afked; wherefore, finding the gentleman of the house infenfible to all his fetches, he thought proper, at laft, to retire, and mend his appetite by a walk in the Park.

You then, O ye beggars of my acquaintance, whether in rags or lace; whether in Kent-ftreet or the Mall; whether at Smyrna or St. Giles's; might I advise you as a friend, never feem in want of the favour which you folicit. Apply to every paffion but pity, for redress. You may may find relief from vanity, from felf intereft, or from avarice, but feldom from compaffion. The very eloquence of a poor man is difgufting; and that mouth which is opened even for flattery, is feldom expected to close without a petition.

If then you would ward off the gripe of Poverty, pretend to be a ftranger to her, and the will at leaft ufe you with ceremony. Hear not my advice, but that of Offellus. If you be caught dining upon a halfpenny porrenger of peafe foup and potatoes, praife the wholefomenefs of your frugal repaft. You may obferve, that Dr. Cheyne has prescribed pease broth for the gravel; hint that you are not one of those who are always making a god of your belly. If you are obliged to wear a flimfy ftuff in the midst of win

ter, be the firft to remark that ftuffs are very much worn at Paris. If there be found fome irreparable defects in any part of your equipage, which cannot be concealed by all the arts of fitting cross-legged, coaxing, or derning, fay, that neither you nor Sampfon Gideon were ever very fond of drefs. Or if you be a philofopher, hint that Plato or Seneca are the tailors you choose to employ; affure the company that man ought to be content with a bare covering, fince what now is fo much the pride of fome, was formerly our fhame. Horace will give you a Latin fentence fit for the occafion,

Toga defendere frigus,
Quamvis craffa, queat,

In fhort, however caught, do not give up, but afcribe to the frugality of your difpofition what others might be apt to attribute to the narrowness of your circumftances, and appear rather to be a mifer than a beggar. To be poor, and to feem poor, is a certain method never to rife. Pride in the great is hateful, in the wife it is ridiculous; beggarly pride is the only fort of vanity I can excufe.

THE HISTORY OF HYPASIA.

MAN, when fecluded from fociety, is not a more folitary being than the woman who leaves the duties of her own fex to invade the privileges of ours. She feems, in fuch circumftances, like one in ba-. nifhment; the appears like a neutral being between the fexes; and though the may have the admiration of both, the finds true happiness from neither.

Of all the ladies of antiquity, I have read of none who was ever more juftly celebrated than the beauti

ful

ful Hypafia, the daughter of Leon the philofopher. This moft accomplished of women was born at Alexandria, in the reign of Theodofius the younger. Nature was never more lavifh of its gifts than it had been to her, endued as fhe was with the moft exalted understanding, and the happieft turn to fcience. Education completed what Nature had begun, and made her the prodigy not only of her age, but the glory of her fex.

From her father fhe learned geometry and aftronomy; fhe collected from the converfation and fchools of the other philofophers, for which Alexandria was at that time famous, the principles of the reft of the sciences.

What cannot be conquered by natural penetration and a paffion for ftudy? The boundless knowledge, which at that period of time was required to form the character of a philofopher, no way difcouraged her; the delivered herself up to the study of Ariftotle and Plato, and foon not one in all Alexandria understood fo perfectly as the all the difficulties of thefe two philofophers.

But not their fyftems alone, but thofe of every other feet were quite familiar to her; and to this knowledge the added that of polite learning, and the art of oratory. All the learning which it was poffible for the human mind to contain, being joined to a moft enchanting eloquence, rendered this lady the wonder not only of the populace, who eafily admire, but of philofophers themselves, who are feldom fond of admiration.

The city of Alexandria was every day crowded with ftrangers, who came from all parts of Greece and Afia to fee and hear her. As for the charms of her perfon, they might not probably have been mentioned, did the not join to a beauty the most striking a virtue that might reprefs the most assuming ;

and