Globe about five hundred Years after I had done with the World, and even them, who perhaps for want of a better, made a Football of my Scull. For thefe, I fay, I grieved much; when examining the Papers which I told you before, were found between the Bed and the Wall in the Room where poor Snip died, nibbled away, I fuppofe by Mice. There was a Scene of Contemplation.-I am forry, (faid I,) extremely forry.At what, faid my Lady.-See here, faid I, the Labours of a prolific Brain loft for ever.-The Picture of your own, faid fhe.-I replied, not fo; for mine have been printed, and these never were.-They are loft for ever.-Oh! that the Works of an ingenious Brain fhould perish in fo ignoble a Manner. What a Plague (said I) is not Bread, Cheese, Flour, Oatmeal, &c. fufficient for the Mice, but they must deftroy the Works of Genius: what the Deuce did Wit ever do against thofe curfed Freebooters.-Why, faid fhe, did not the wit of Man contrive a Moufetrap?—I was pleafed with the Remark ;-I was difpleafed with the Repartee;-fo betwixt both, I neither bleffed her nor curfed her. I took a fresh Line. -I will tell you what my Love, faid I:-it was obferved in one of the Effays of the Ingenius Dr. Goldsmith. "That "there is nothing magnanimous in bearing Misfortunes with "Fortitude, when the whole World is looking on: Men in "fuch Circumstances will act bravely, even from Motives of "Vanity; but he who in the Vale of Obfcurity, can brave "Adverfity; who without Friends to encourage, Acquaintance "to pity, or even without Hope to alleviate his Misfortunes, "can behave with Tranquillity and Indifference, is truly great "whether Peasant or Courtier, he deferves Admiration, and "fhould be held up for our Imitation and Respect. While "the flighteft Inconveniencies of the Great are magnified into "Calamities;-While Tragedy mouths out their Sufferings "in all the Strains of Eloquence, the Miferics of the Poor 66 are intirely disregarded; and yet fome of the lower Ranks of "People undergo more real Hardships in one Day, than those of a more exalted Station fuffer in their whole Lives, without murmuring or regret, without paffionately declaiming "against Providence, or calling their Fellows to be Gazers "on their Fortitude."

When I had quoted the Paffage before mentioned, I examined my own Premiffes.-There I found an empty Cupboard, a Barrel ftanding upon one of its Ends; and a very clean Spot, where once itood a little Coal Heap-I never once dreamt of complaining to the World in Heroicks about fuch Trifles as thofe; but went as cool as a Cucumber to the Can• dle box ¡—that was empty too. What do you want, fays my

dear

dear Lady. To go to bed, faid I.-That you may do, fays fhe, as foon as you pleafe.--God for ever bless you my dear, faid I, and thank you, for your Liberty, Madam: but, I want to write a while. That you may do too, replied the, if you can do it by Moonlight; for you wafted the laft Bit we had, with writing your laft Night's Nonfenfe.-Being a very meek Man (a Virtue which I fuppofe I inherit from my Father, for my Mother had as much Spirit in her as other Women)I faid to myself;-I with my good Mafters, the Company of Stationers, would be fo good as to augment my Salary, for writing thefe Poor Robins by Farthing Candles plays the Devil with weak Eyes.-All this I endured without either calling Heaven, Earth, or even Hell to Witness my Misfortunes. Dr. Goldfmith, faid I to myfelf, you are right.-There are Multitudes of Noble Souls in the World, whom the World knows nothing of; and of whom, indeed, the World is not worthy. Witnefs the Curate of (I cannot just now name the Place) who ferved but three Livings for the amazing Sum of forty Pounds a Year; although he had only a Wife and fix Children to maintain out of it :-The Rector, his Master, who lived upon his own Eftate, and to be fure allowed him generously, confidering that all the three did not amount to much more than four Hundred and Fifty, wrote him a Letter, wishing him to exercife his Genius to the uttermoft Stretch, and make him an excellent Sermon against all Kinds of Smuggling; as he was to preach it at an Affize before a learned Judge, in a Maritime County.-Did he call Heaven and Earth to Witnefs his unhappy Fate ;-No.-Ile fat him down coolly and a learned Difcourfe against robbing the King of Dues, by the Light of a Candle of his own making.

For my Part, I muft needs fay, that I find more Delight in picking up every Scrap of Intelligence I can find in the History of Solomon Snip and his Partner Peggy, than in reading the tragical History of the greateft Heroes of Antiquity, who wading to Empire through Rivers of Blood, deftroyed one Half the World, that they might enflave the other: Befides thefe are Scenes, in which I, nor Millions befides me, can ever act; therefore, how good fo ever the Moral may be, it is loft to us, because we never can practice the Leffon; but the humble Scenes exhibited in the Cottage of the Peasant strike home to every Breaft. That through the Croffes, and Difappointments attendant upon the fluctuating Scenes of this tranfitory Life, tormenting Thoughts and dreadful Apprenhenfions should pain the Head, is an Affair common to the Children of Mortality; but, when Poverty uncovers the Back, and

~Famine

Famine with his Bony Fingers pinches the Belly of the unhappy Mortal, difregarded by the Rich and unnoticed by all; -I fay, to fee this Man travel through the thorny Vale of Indigence without Defpondency; is a Sight which the Gods might look upon with Applaufe; To fee Genius in spite of Poverty emerging to Light; and Fancy dreffing up new and Shining though vifionary, Scenes, amidit the darkeft Shades of Adverfity, is the moft certain Indication of the wonderful Powers vefted in the Human Soul.

It was in fuch State as this that we left poor Snip and Peggy at the Conclufion of our laft Year's Performance; I will now endeavour, from what I can collect from the fhatter'd Remains of my Manufcript, to proceed with the Prologue Snip after having, by the magical Powers of an inimitable Fancy, transformed his old tatter'd Garment into a high and finish'd Scene of a noble and curious Portico, embellished with all the Skill of Architecture, humble advances.-He looks round with Aftonishment at the auguft Affembly-for the fame enchanting Powers of Imagination, which had worked fuch Wonders upon his old Coat, had expanded his little Hut into a noble Theatre-turn'd Peggy into a Princess-the Bitch into a Maid of Honour-her blind Puppies into Cabinet Council Men-and the Mice into Courtiers: who are always creeping round the Throne and nibbling at Preferment.

Struck with the Grandnefs of the apparent Scene, and the high Quality of his fplendid Audience; with Awe he bowed, and fpoke as follows

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,

To raise the Soul by Means of Wood and Wire
To skrew the Fancy up juft one Peg high'r;
In Miniature to fhew the World at large,
As Folks conceive a Ship, who've seen a Barge;

Or by a Halfpenny a Man may know

(Can he count Twenty-four) how Shillings go:
This is the Scope of all our Actor's Play,

A

In hopes their Wooden Aims will not be thrown away.

Now pray, fays Peggy, looking very ferious,

No Gibe or Glance at any Thing mysterious a

But

But be your whole Performance chafte and good,"
Like honest Actors made of Chriftian Wood.
My Liege, fays Snip, let that Idea vanish,
All Ribaldry from this chafte Stage we banish :
Be each Thing done to fuit your Royal Will-
(For Snip thought Peggy was a Princefs ftill.)
He continued his Prologue as follows:

fop whofe Works demand our lasting Praise,
What was he but the Punch of former Days?
He who made Fifhes, Birds, and Beafts to speak,
And even Trees hold Dialogues in Greek.
Yet he (fays History) in outward Shape,
Was but an ill drawn Figure of an Ape;
His Features all diftorted, and the Bunch
Upon his Back, fpeaks him the ancient Punch.
Then marvel not, if on the present Night,
While we endeavour all for your Delight,
You fee around new Rocks and Mountains rife,
While Vallies fink before your wond'ring Eyes;
New Skies where never fcorching Suns appear,
No Tempeft howls, no Thunder rends the Air:
But all around is fmiling and ferene,

Like Cupids waiting on the Cyprian Queen

When a Per

Peggy's Head here began to be rather turn'd. fon has only once tafted the Streams of Parnaffus, 'tis an easy Matter to get intoxicated.-Snip proceeded-He faw Joy fparkle in her Eye-Perfuafion dwelt upon his Tongue.-She was all Attention; he all Eloquence-To make fhort of it, he went on as follows:

Behold a Scene that's wondrous, great, and new,
Behold Elyzium opens to your View !

The Right bedeck'd with Rocks and lofty Mountains,
And Lawns, and flow'ry Vales and Chrystal Fountains;

While,

While, at a Distance, you may dimly scan
The filent Groves which Zephyrs gently fan.
And here the Shades of ancient Heroes bold,
Crown'd with eternal Laurels you behold;
And in yon Thicket fee the verdant Bow'rs,
Where Hefiod and Homer spend their Hours.
Princess! behold you thefe delightful Walks,
"Tis there the great majeftic Virgil stalks.

That Road will lead you to the Shade of Plato,

And in yon fpacious Cave dwells the unconquer'd Cato.

Poor Peggy's Head could bear no more.-Rap'd in the beatific Vifion of Enthufiafm, Peggy now grew as delirious as Snip.All the calm Beauties of Elyfium, as pictured out by the Poets; all the Pageants and Shews of Greece and Rome poffeffed her Mind. The Souls of Plautus and Terence stood in full Appearance before her-She was now more than commonly Royal. She ftarted up in all the Pomp of ragged Majesty, and taking the only Blanket he had from the Bed, wrapp'd it round the two Armed Chair, and fat upon it as a Throne.Happy Pair! How filly it is to with for Soul-unfatisfying Riches, while Ideal Power makes us much happier.-Oh, could this but continue, what Genius would change Places with a Lord? But unhappily as the Princefs was stooping down to reach a Chair without a Back for her Footstool, bump goes her Head against a crazy Table, down fell that; out goes the Candle; the Maid of Honour fell a barking ; the two Cabinet Council fat filent; and the Courtiers in the Cupboard fneak'd away, leaving Peggy and Snip to go to Bed in the Dark.

This fudden and unexpected Misfortune, whatever Effecti might have upon Orator Snip and Princefs Peggy, happened very lucky for me, for my Head was fo entirely taken up with gentle Zephyrs, filent Groves, Silver Streams, and cooling Shades, that I began to fufpect that Charon had ferried me over when I was asleep, and was just about to enquire for my Great Great-Grandfather, the firft Projector of this learned and wonderful Performance, when this Accident happening awaked me from my Reverie, just Time enough to find that while I had bufied my Head with other Peoples Bufinefs I had neglected my own, having arrived at my laft Leaf, and the Seafor