out you fign a Gift of your whole Eftate to her after your Deceafe. To the Performance of this alfo the Duke was a Witnefs. When these two Acts were executed, the Duke turned to the Lady, and told her, it now remains for me to put you in quiet Poffeffion of what your Husband has fo bountifully bestow'd on you; and order'd the immediate Execution of Rhynfault.

N° 492 Wednesday, September 24.

Quicquid eft boni moris Levitate extinguitur.

T

Seneca:

Levity of Behaviour is the bane of all that is good

and virtuous.

Tunbridge, September 18.

Dear Mr. SPECTATOR,

I

AM a young Woman of eighteen Years of Age, and I do affure you, a Maid of unfpotted Reputation, founded upon a very careful Carriage in all my Looks, Words and 'Actions. At the fame time I must own to you,

that it is with much Constraint to Flesh and

'Blood that my Behaviour is so strictly irreproachable; for I am naturally addicted to Mirth, to Gaiety, to a free Air, to Motion and Gadding. Now what gives me a great

deal

' deal of Anxiety, and is fome Difcouragement in the Pursuit of Virtue, is, that the young Women who run into greater Freedoms with the Men are more taken notice ' of than I am. The Men are fuch unthinking Sots, that they do not prefer her who ⚫ restrains all her Paffions and Affections, and keeps much within the Bounds of what is lawful, to her who goes to the utmost Verge ' of Innocence, and parlies at the very Brink ' of Vice, whether the shall be a Wife or a • Mistress. But I must appeal to your Specta'torial Wisdom, who, I find, have paffed very 'much of your Time in the Study of Woman, whether this is not a moft unreafonable Proceeding. I have read fomewhere, that Hobbes of Malmesbury afferts, that continent Perfons have more of what they contain, than those who give a loose to their • Defires. According to this Rule, let there be equal Age, equal Wit, and equal Good'humour, in the Woman of Prudence, and 'her of Liberty; what Stores has he to ex'pect, who takes the former? What Refufe muft he be contented with, who 'chooses the latter? Well, but I fat down to write to you to vent my Indignation against feveral pert Creatures who are addreffed to ⚫ and courted in this Place, while poor I, and two or three like me, are wholly unregarded.

• EVERY

• EVERY one of these affect gaining the • Hearts of your Sex: This is generally attempted by a particular manner of carrying 'themselves with Familiarity. Glycera has a dancing Walk, and keeps Time in her ordinary Gate. Chloe, her Sifter, who is un< willing to interrupt her Conquefts, comes into 'the Room before her with a familiar Run. Dulciffa takes Advantage of the Approach of the Winter, and has introduc'd a very pretty Shiver; clofing up her Shoulders, and fhrinking as the moves. All that are ' in this Mode carry their Fans between 'both Hands before them. Dulciffa herself, who is Author of this Air, adds the pretty Run to it; and has alfo, when he is in very good Humour, a taking Familiarity ' in throwing herself into the lowest Seat in 'the Room, and letting her hoop'd Petticoats 'fall with a lucky Decency about her. I know 'fhe practises this way of fitting down in her Chamber; and indeed fhe does it as well as you may have seen an Actress fall down dead in a Tragedy. Not the leaft Indecency in her Pofture. If you have obferv'd what pretty Carcafes are carry'd off at the end of a Verfe at the Theatre, it will give you a No⚫tion how Dulciffa plumps into a Chair. Here's a little Country Girl that's very cunning, that makes her use of being young and unbred, and outdoes the Infnarers, who are almost ' twice her Age. The Air that she takes is to

come

⚫ come into Company after a Walk, and is very fuccessfully out of Breath upon occafion. 'Her Mother is in the Secret, and calls her Romp, and then looks round to fee what young Men ftare at her.

IT would take up more than can come into one of your Papers, to enumerate all the particular Airs of the younger Company in this Place. But I cannot omit Dulceorella, whofe manner is the most indolent imaginable, but 'ftill as watchful of Conqueft as the bufieft Virgin among us. She has a peculiar Art of ftaring at a young Fellow, till fhe fees fhe has got him, and inflam'd him by fo much Obfervation. When the fees fhe has him, and he begins to tofs his Head upon it, fhe is immediately fhort-fighted, and labours to • observe what he is at a distance with her Eyes half fhut. Thus the Captive, that thought her first ftruck, is to make very near Approaches, or be wholly difregarded. This Artifice has done more Execution than all the ogling of the rest of the Women here, with the utmost Variety of half Glances, at'tentive Heedlefneffes, childifh Inadvertencies, haughty Contempts, or artificial Oversights. After I have faid thus much of Ladies among us who fight thus regularly, I am to complain to you of a Set of familiar Romps, who have broken thro' all common Rules, and have thought of a very effectual way of hewing more Charms than all of us. Thefe,

'Mr.

'Mr. SPECTATOR, are the Swingers. You are to know these carelefs pretty Creatures are

<

very Innocents again; and it is to be no matter 'what they do, for 'tis all harmless Freedom. They get on Ropes, as you must have seen 'the Children, and are fwung by their Men Vifitants. The Jeft is, that Mr. Such-a-one, < can name the Colour of Mrs. Such-a-one's 'Stockings; and fhe tells him, he is a lying Thief, fo he is, and full of Roguery; and 'fhe'll lay a Wager, and her Sister shall tell the Truth if he fays right, and he can't tell 'what Colour her Garters are of. In this Diverfion there are very many pretty Shrieks, not so much for fear of falling, as that their • Petticoats should untye: For there is a great care had to avoid Improprieties; and the 'Lover who fwings the Lady, is to tye her • Clothes very clofe with his Hatband, before 'fhe admits him to throw up her Heels.

'NOW, Mr. SPECTATOR, except you can note these Wantonneffes in their Beginnings, and bring us fober Girls into Obfervation, there is no help for it, we must swim ⚫ with the Tide; the Coquettes are too powerful a Party for us. To look into the Merit ' of a regular and well-behav'd Woman, is a flow thing. A loose trivial Song gains the Affections, when a wife Homily is not at• tended to. There is no other way but to make war upon them, or we must go over to them. As for my part, I will shew all VOL. VII. I

6 the