hands. Some tumble into fame, others grow immortal by throwing themfelves through a hoop. Cetera de genere hoc adeo funt multa, loquacem HOR. Sat. i. lib. i. ver. 13. With thoufands more of this ambitious race HORNECK. I am led into this train of thought by an adventure I lately met with. I was the other day at a tavern, where the mafter of the houfe accommodating us himself with every thing we wanted, I accidentally fell into difcourfe with him; and talking of a certain great man, who fhall be nameless, he told me that he had fometimes the honour to treat him with a whistle; (adding by the way of parenthesis) for you must know, gentlemen, that I whistle the best of any man in Europe. This naturally put me upon defiring him to give us a fample of his art; upon which he called for a cafe knife, and applying the edge of it to his mouth, converted it into a mufical inftrument, and entertained me with an Italian folo. Upon laying down his knife, he took up a pair of clean tobacco-pipes; and after having flid the fmall end of them over the table in a moft melodious trill, he fetched a tune out of them, whistling to them at the fame time in confort. In fhort, the tobaccopipes became musical pipes in the hands of our vir tuofo, who confeffed to me ingenioufly, he had broke fuch quantities of them, that he had almoft broke himself, before he had brought this piece of mufic to any tolerable perfection: I then told him I would bring a company of friends to dine with him next week, as an encouragement to his ingenuity; upon which he thanked me, faying, that he would provide himself with a new fryingpan against that day. I replied, that it was no matter, matter; roast and boiled would ferve our turn. He smiled at my fimplicity, and told me, that it was his defign to give us a tune upon it. As I was furprifed at fuch a promife, he sent for an old frying-pan, and grating it upon the board, whistled to it in fuch a melodious manner, that you could fcarce diftinguish it from a bafs-viol. He then took his feat with us at the table, and hearing my friend that was with me hum over a tune to himfelf, he told him, if he would fing out, he would accompany his voice with a tobacco-pipe. As my friend had an agreeable bass, he chofe rather to fing to the frying-pan; and indeed between them they made up a moft extraordinary confort. Finding our landlord fo great a proficient in kitchenmufic, I asked him if he was mafter of the tongs and key. He told me that he had laid it down fome years fince, as a little unfashionable; but that if I pleafed he would give me a leffon upon the gridiron. He then informed me that he had added two bars to the gridiron, in order to give it a greater compafs of found; and, I perceived, was as well pleafed with the invention, as Sappho could have been upon adding two ftrings to the lute. To be fhort, I found that his whole kitchen was fur nifhed with musical instruments; and could not but look upon this artift as a kind of burlesque musician. 3 He afterwards of his own accord fell into the imitation of feveral finging-birds. My friend and Itofted our miftreffes to the Nightingale, when all of a fudden we were furprised with the mufic of the Thrufh. He next proceeded to the Sky Lark, mounting up by a proper fcale of notes, and afterwards falling to the ground with a very regular and eafy defcent. He then contracted his whistle to the voice of several birds of the smallest size. As he is a man of a larger bulk and higher ftature than · ordinary, you would fancy him a Giant when you F 35 looked looked upon him, and a Tom-Tit when you fhut your eyes. I must not omit acquainting my reader, that this accomplished perfon was formerly the master of a toyshop near Temple-Bar; and that the famous Charles Mathers was bred up under him. I am told that the misfortunes which he has met with in the world, are chiefly owing to his great application to his mufic; and therefore cannot but recommend him to my readers as one who deferves their favour, and may afford them great diverfion over a bottle of wine, which he fells at the Queen's arms, near the end of the little piazza in Covent Garden. ********* No 571. FRIDAY, JULY 23. -Cœlum quid quærimus ultra? What feek we beyond Heav'n? Luc. As the work I have engaged in will not only confift of papers of humour and learning, but of feveral effays moral and divine, I fhall publish the following one, which is founded on a former SPECTATOR, and fent me by a particular friend, not queftioning but it will please such of my readers, as think it no difparagement to their understandings to give way fometimes to a serious thought. SIR, IN your paper of Friday, the 9th inftant, you had occafion to confider the ubiquity of the Godhead, and at the fame time, to fhew, that as he is present to every thing, he cannot but be attentive to every thing, and privy to all the modes and parts of its exiftence: Or, in other words, that his omnifcience and omniprefence are coexiftent, and run together through the whole infinitude of space. This confideration might furnish us with many incentives to devotion, and motives to morality; but as this fubject has been handled by feveral excellent writers, I fhall confider it in a light wherein I have not feen it placed by others. First, How difconfolate is the condition of an intellectual being, who is thus present with his Maker, but at the fame time receives no extraordinary benefit or advantage from this his presence! Secondly, How deplorable is the condition of an intellectual being who feels no other effects from this his prefence, but fuch as proceed from Divine wrath and indignation ! Thirdly, How happy is the condition of that intellectual being who is fenfible of his Maker's prefence from the fecret effects of his mercy and loving kindness! First, How difconfolate is the condition of an intellectual being, who is thus prefent with his maker, but at the fame time receives no extraordinary benefit or advantage from this his prefence! Every particle of matter is actuated by this almighty being which paffes through it. The heavens and the earth, the stars, and planets, move and gravitate by virtue of this great principle within them. All the dead parts of nature are invigorated by the prefence of their Creator, and made capable of exerting their respective qualities. The feveral inftincts, in the brute creation, do likewise operate and work towards the feveral ends which are agreable to them by this divine energy. Man only, who does not cooperate with his Holy Spirit, and is unattentive to his prefence, receives none of thofe advantages from it which are perfective of his nature, and neceffary to his well-being. The divinity is with him and in in him, and every where about him, but of no advantage to him. It is the fame thing to a man without religion, as if there were no God in the world. It is indeed impoffible for an infinite being to remove himfelf This himself from any of his creatures; but though he cannot withdraw his effence from us, which would argue an imperfection in him, he can withdraw from us all the joys and confolations of it. His prefence may perhaps be neceffary to fupport us in our existence; but he may leave this our existence to itself, with regard to its happiness or mifery. For, in this fenfe, he may caft us away from hisprefence, and take his Holy Spirit from us. fingle confideration one would think fufficient to make us open our hearts to all those infufions of joy and gladnefs which are fo near at hand, and ready to be poured in upon us; especially when we confider, Secondly, The deplorable condition of an intellectual being who feels no other effects from his Maker's prefence, but fuch as proceed from divine wrath and indignation. We may affure ourfelves, that the great author. of nature will not always be as one who is indifferent to any of his creatures. Thofe who will not feel him in his love, will be fure at length to feel: him in his displeasure. And how dreadful is the condition of that creature, who is only fenfible of the being of his Creator by what he fuffers from. him! He is as effentially prefent in hell as in heaven; but the inhabitants of thofe accurfed pla-ces behold him only in his wrath, and fhrink within the flames to conceal themfelves from him. It is not in the power of imagination to conceive the fearful effects of Omnipotence incenfed. But I fhall only confider the wretchedness of an intellectual being, who, in this life, lies under the difpleasure of him, that at all times and in all places is intimately united with him. He is able to difquiet the foul, and vex it in all its faculties He can hinder any of the greatest comforts of life from refreshing us, and give an edge to every one of its flighteft calamities. Who then can bear the thought of being an outeaft from his prefence, that: |