partial diftribution of fame great men of the prefent age.

among

the

I cannot forbear entertaining myself very often with the idea of fuch an imaginary hiftorian defcribing the reign of Anne the First, and introducing it with a preface to his reader, that he is now of entering upon the mott fhining part the English ftory. The great rivals in fame will be then diftinguished according to their refpective merits, and shine in their proper points of light. Such an one,' fays the hiftorian, though varioufly reprefented by the writers of his own age, appears to have been a man of more than ordinary abilities, great application, and uncommon integrity: nor was fuch an one, though of an oppofite party and interest, inferior to him in any of thefe refpects.' The feveral antagonists who now endeavour to depreciate one another, and are celebrated or traduced by different parties, will then have the fame body of admirers, and appear illuftrious in the opinion of the whole British nation. The deferving man, who can now recommend himself to the esteem of but half his countrymen, will then receive the approbations and applaufes of a whole age.

Among the feveral perfons that flourifh in this glorious reign, there is no question but fuch a future hiftorian, as the perfon of whom I am fpeaking, will make mention of the men of genius and learning, who have now any figure in the British nation. For my own part, I often flatter myfelf with the honourable mention which will then be made of ine; and have drawn up a paragraph in my own imagination, that I fancy will not be altogether unlike what will be found in fome page or other of this imaginary hiftorian.

of a widow-woman, and was a great húmourist in all parts of his life. This is all we can affirm with any certainty of his perfon and character. 'As for his fpeculations, notwithstand'ing the feveral obfolete words and obfcure phrafes of the age in which he lived, we still understand enough of them to fee the diverfions and characters of the English nation in his time: not but that we are to make allow· ance for the mirth and humour of the author, who has doubtlefs ftrained many representations of things beyond the truth. For if we interpret his words in their literal meaning, we muft fuppofe that women of the first quality used to pafs away whole mornings at a puppet-fhow: that they attefted their principles by their patches: that an audience would fit out an evening to hear a dramatical performance written in a language which they 'did not understand: that chairs and flower-pots were introduced as actors upon the British ftage: that a promifcuous affembly of men and women were allowed to meet at midnight in mafques within the verge of the court: with many improbabilities of the like nature. We must therefore, in these and the like cafes, fuppofe that these remote hints and allufions aimed at fome certain follies which were then in vogue, and which at present we have not any notion of. We may guefs by feveral paffages in the Speculations, that there were writers who ⚫ endeavoured to detract from the works of this author; but as nothing of this nature is come down to us, we can. not guefs at any objections that could be made to his paper. If we confider his file with that indulgence which we muft fhew to old English writers, or if we look into the variety of his fubjects, with thofe several critical differtations, moral reflections,

PHEDR. FAB. XIV. L. 3.

Do not know whether to call the following letter a fatire upon coquettes, or a representation of their feveral fantaftical accomplishments, or what other title to give it; but as it is I fhall communicate it to the public. It will fufficiently explain it's own intentions, that I fhall give it my reader at length, without either preface or poftfcript.

MR. SPECTATOR,

WOMEN are armed with fans as men with fwords, and fometimes do more execution with them. To the end therefore that ladies may be entire miftreffes of the weapons which they bear, I have erected an academy for the training up of young women in the 'exercife of the fan,' according to the moft fashionable airs and motions that are now practised at court. The ladies who carry' fans under me are drawn up twice a day in my great hall, where they are inftructed in the use of their arms, and exercised by the following words of command:

Handle your fans,
Unfurl your fans,
Difcharge your fans,
Ground your fans,
Recover your fans,
Flutter your fans.

By the right obfervation of these few
plain words of command, a woman of
a tolerable genius, who will apply her-
felf diligently to her exercife for the
fpace of but one half-y
-year, shall be able
to give her fan all the graces that can
poffibly enter into that little modifh
machine.

But to the end that my readers may form to themselves a right notion of this exercise, I beg leave to explain it to them in all it's parts. When my female regiment is drawn up in array, with every one her weapon in her hand, upon my giving the word to handle their fans, each of them shakes her fan at me with a smile, then gives her right hand woman a tap upon the fhoulder, then preffes her lips with the extremity

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Upon my giving the word to difcharge their fans,' they give one gene. ral crack that may be heard at a confiderable distance when the wind fits fair. This is one of the most difficult parts of the exercife, but I have feveral ladies with me, who at their firft entrance could not give a pop loud enough to be heard at the further end of a room, who can now discharge a fan' in fuch a manner, that it fhall make a report like a pocket-piftol. I have likewife taken care, in order to hinder young women from letting off their fans in wrong places or unfuitable occafions, to fhew upon what fubject the crack of a fan may come in properly: I have likewife invented a fan with which a girl of sixteen, by the help of a little wind which is inclofed about one of the largeft sticks, can make as loud a crack as a woman of fifty with an ordinary fan.

When the fans are thus difcharged,' the word of command in courfe is to

ground their fans. This teaches a lady to quit her fan gracefully when she throws it afide in order to take up a pack of cards, adjust a curl of hair, replace a falling pin, or apply herself to any other matter of importance. This part of the exercife, as it only confitts

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in

an example. With what command of himfelf does he lay before us, in the language and temper of his profeffion, a fault, which by the least liberty and warmth of expreffion would be the moit lively wit and fatire! But his heart was better difpofed, and the good man chaftifed the great wit in fuch a maaner,« that he was able to speak as follows.

-Amongst too many other inftances of the great corruption and degeneracy ' of the age wherein we live, the great ' and general want of fincerity in con' verfation is none of the leaft. The

' world is grown so full of diffimulation and compliment, that men's words are hardly any fignification of their thoughts; and if any man measure his words by his heart, and fpeaks as he 'thinks, and do not exprefs more kind'nels to every man, than men ufually

have for any man, he can hardly ⚫efcape the cenfure of want of breeding. 'The old English plainnefs and fincerity, that generous integrity of nature,

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and honesty of disposition, which always argues true greatnefs of mind, and is ufually accompanied with undaunted courage and refolution, is in a great measure loft amongst us: there hath been a long endeavour to tranf⚫form us into foreign manners and fafhions, and to bring us to a fervile imitation of none of the best of our neighbours in fome of the worst of their qualities. The dialect of converfation is now-a-days fo fwelled with vanity and compliment, and fo furfeited, as I may fay, of expreffions ' of kindness and respect, that if a man that lived an age or two ago fhould return into the world again, he would 'really want a dictionary to help him 'to understand his own language, and ⚫ to know the true intrinsic value of the phrafe in fashion, and would hardly ' at firft believe at what a low rate the highest strains and expreffions of kind⚫ nefs imaginable do commonly pass in current payment; and when he should come to understand it, it would be a great while before he could bring himfelf with a good countenance and a good confcience to converse with men upon equal terms, and in their own way.

And in truth it is hard to fay, whe⚫ther it should more provoke our contempt or our pity, to hear what folemn expreffions of respect and kind

nefs will pafs between men, almost upon no occafion; how great honour and efteem they will declare for one whom perhaps they never faw before, and how entirely they are all on the fudden devoted to his fervice and intereft, for no reafon; how infinitely and eternally obliged to him, for no benefit; and how extremely they will 'be concerned for him; yea and afflicted too, for no caufe. I know it is 'faid, in justification of this hollow kind of converfation, that there is no harm, nor real deceit in compliment, but the matter is well enough, fo long as 'we understand one another; "et verba "valent ut nummi-Words are like "money:" and when the current value of them is generally understood, no 'man is cheated by them. This is fomething if fuch words were any thing; but being brought into the account, they are mere cyphers. However, it is still a juft matter of complaint, that fincerity and plainness are out of fashion, and that our language is running into a lie; and that men have almoft quite perverted the 'ufe of fpeech, and made words to fignify nothing; that the greatest part of the converfation of mankind is little elfe but driving a trade of diffimulation; infomuch that it would make a man heartily fick and weary of the world, to fee the little fincerity that is in ufe and practice among men.'

When the vice is placed in this contemptible light, he argues unanswerably against it, in words and thoughts fo natural, that any man who reads them would imagine he himself could have

been the author of them.

If the fhow of any thing be good for any thing, I am fure fincerity is better; for why does any man diffemble, or feem to be that which he is not, but because he thinks it good to have fuch a quality as he pretends to? For to counterfeit and diffemble, is to put on the appearance of fome 'real excellency. Now the best way in the world to feem to be any thing, is really to be what he would seem to be. Befides, that it is many times as 'troublesome to make good the pretence of a good quality, as to have it; and if a man have it not, it is ten to one but he is discovered to want it; and then all his pains and labour to seem to have it, is loft.'

In

T would be a nobler improvement, good-breeding, if nothing were to pafs amongst us for agreeable which was the leaft tranfgreffion against that rule of life called decorum, or a regard to decency. This would command the refpect of mankind, because it carries in it deference to their good opinion, as humility lodged in a worthy mind is always attended with a certain homage, which no haughty foul, with all the arts imaginable, will ever be able to purchase. Tully fays, virtue and decency are fo nearly related, that it is difficult to separate them from each other but in our imagination. As the beauty of the body always accompanies the health of it, fo certainly is decency concomitant to virtue: as beauty of body, with an agreeable carriage, pleases the eye, and that pleasure confifts in that we obferve all the parts with a certain elegance are proportioned to each other; fo does decency of behaviour which appears in our lives obtain the approbation of all with whom we converfe, from the order, confiftency, and moderation of our words and actions. This flows from the reverence we bear towards every good man, and to the world in general; for to be negligent of what any one thinks of you, does not only fhew you arrogant but abandoned. In all these confiderations we are to diftinguish how one virtue differs from another; as it is the part of juftice never to do violence, it is of modefty never to commit offence. In this laft particular lies the whole force of what is called decency; to this pur

DRYDEN.

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pofe that excellent moralift above-men

is more eafily comprehended by an ordinary capacity, than expreffed with all his cloquence. This decency of beha viour is generally tranfgreffed among all orders of men: nay, the very women, though themselves created it as it were for ornament, are often very much miftaken in this ornamental part of life. It would, methinks, be a fhort rule for behaviour, if every young lady in her drefs, words and actions, were only to recommend herself as a fifter, daughter, or wife, and make herself the more esteemed in one of thofe characters. The care of themfelves, with regard to the families in which women are born, is the belt motive for their being courted to come into the alliance of other houses. Nothing can promote this end more than a ftrict prefervation of decency. I should be glad if a certain equestrian order of ladies, fome of whom one meets in an evening at every outlet of the town, would take this fubject into their ferious confideration: in order thereunto the following letter may not be wholly upworthy their perufal.

MR, SPECTATOR,

GOING lately to take the air in one

of the most beautiful evenings this feafon has produced; as I was admiring the ferenity of the sky, the lively colours of the fields, and the variety of the landkip every way around me, my eyes were fuddenly called off from these inanimate objects by a little party of horsemen I faw paffing the road. The greater

part