in his extravagance, and makes only a fresh black button upon his iron-gray fuit for any potentate of finall territories: he indeed adds his crape hatband for a prince whofe exploits he has admired in the Gazette. But whatever compliments may be made on thefe occafions, the true mourners are the mercers, filkmen, lacemen, and milliners. A prince of a merciful and roval difpofition would reflect with great anxiety upon the profpect of his death, if he confidered what numbers would be reduced to mifery by that accident only; he would think it of moment enough to direct, that in the notification of his departure, the honour done to him might be restrained to thofe of the houfhold of the prince to whom it fhould be fignified. He would think a general mourning to be in a lefs degree the fame ceremony which is practifed in barbarous nations, of killing their flaves to attend the obfequies of their kings.

6

I had been wonderfully at a lofs for many months together, to guefs at the character of a man who came now and then to our coffee-houfe; he ever ended a news-paper with this reflection, Well, I fee all the foreign princes are in good health.' If you afked, Pray Sir, what fays the Poftman from Vienna? he anfwered, Make us thankful, the German princes " are all well. What does he fay from Barcelona ? He does not speak but that the country agrees very well with the new queen.' After very much inquiry, I found this man of univerfal loyalty was a wholefale dealer in filks and ribbons; his way is, it feems, if he hires a weaver, or workman, to have it inferted in his articles, That all this fhall be well and truly performed, provided no foreign potentate fhall depart this life within the time above-mentioned.' It happens in all public mournings, that the many trades which depend upon our habits, are during that folly either pinched with prefent want, or terrified with the apparent approach of it. All the atonement which men can make for wanton expences, which is a fort of infulting the fcarcity under which others labour,

labour, is, that the fuperfluities of the wealthy give fupplies to the neceffities of the poor; but instead of any other good arifing from the affectation of being in courtly habits of mourning, all order feems to be deftroyed by it; and the true honour, which one court does to another on that occafion, lofes its force and efficacy. When a foreign minifter beholds the court of a nation, which flourishes in riches and plenty, lay afide, upon the lofs of his mafter, all marks of fplendor and magnificence, though the head of fuch a joyful people, he will conceive a greater idea of the honour done his mafter, than when he fees the generality of the people in the fame habit. When one is afraid to afk the wife of a tradefman whom she has loft of her family; and after fome preparation endeavours to know whom the mourns for; how ridiculous is it to hear her explain herself, that we have loft one of the house of Auftria? Princes are elevated fo highly above the reft of mankind, that it is a prefumptuous diftinction to take a part in honours done to their memories, except we have authority for it, by being related in a particular manner to the court which pays that veneration to their friendship, and feems to exprefs on fuch an occafion the fenfe of the uncertainty of human life in general, by affuming the habit of forrow, though in the full poffeffion of triumph and royalty.

No.. LXV. TUESDAY, MAY 15.

-Demetri teque Tigelli

Difcipulorum inter jubeo plorare cathedras.

Demetrius and Tigellius, know your place;

Go hence, and whine among the school boy race.

R.

HOR.

AFTER having at large explained what wit is, and defcribed the falfe appearances of it, all that labour feems but an ufelefs inquiry, without fome time

be

The

be fpent in confidering the application of it. feat of wit, when one fpeaks as a man of the town and the world, is the play-houfe; I fhall therefore fill this paper with reflections upon the ufe of it in that place. The application of wit in the theatre has as ftrong an effect upon the manners of our gentlemen, as the taste of it has upon the writings of our authors. It may, perhaps, look like a very prefumptuous work, though not foreign from the duty of a Spectator, to tax the writings of fuch as have long had the general applaufe of a nation; but I fhall al ways make reafon, truth, and nature, the measures of praife and dispraise; if those are for me, the generality of opinion is of no confequence against me; if they are against me, the general opinion cannot long fupport me.

Without further preface, I am going to look into fome of our most applauded plays, and fee whether they deferve the figure they at prefent bear in the imaginations of men, or not.

In reflecting upon thefe works, I fhall chiefly dwell upon that for which each refpective play is moft celebrated. The prefent paper fhall be employed upon Sir Fopling Flutter. The received character of this play is, that it is the pattern of genteel comedy. Dorimant and Harriot are the characters of greateft confequence: and if thefe are low and mean, the reputation of the play is very unjuft.

I will take for granted, that a fine gentleman fhould be honeft in his actions, and refined in his language. Inftead of this, our hero in this piece is a direct knave in his defigns, and a clown in his language. Bellair is his admirer and friend; in return for which, because he is forfooth a greater wit than his faid friend, he thinks it reafonable to perfuade him to marry a young lady, whole virtue, he thinks, will last no longer than till he is a wife, and then he cannot but fall to his share, as he is an irresistible fine gentleman. The falfhood to Mrs. Loveit, and the barbarity of triumphing over her anguish for lofing him, is an

A a

other

other inftance of his honefty,' as well as his good-nature. As to his fine language; he calls the orangewoman, who it feems is inclined to grow fat, "An "over-grown jade, with a flasket of guts before her;" and falutes her with a pretty phrafe of, "How now, double-tripe?" Upon the mention of a country gentlewoman, whom he knows nothing of, no one can imagine why, he "will lay his life the is fome awk"ward ill-fashioned country toad, who, not having "above four dozen of hairs on her head, has adorned "her baldnefs with a large white fruz, that the may "look sparkifhly in the fore-front of the king's box at an old play.' Unnatural mixture of fenfelefs common-place!

As to the generofity of his temper, he tells his poor footman, "If he did not wait better-" he would turn him away, in the infolent phrafe of, "I'll uncafe you.

Now for Mrs. Harriot; fhe laughs at obedience to an absent mother, whofe tenderness Bufy defcribes to be very exquifite, for" that she is fo pleafed with finding Harriot again, that he cannot chide her for being out of the way.' This witty daughter, and fine lady, has fo little refpect for this good woman, that fhe ridicules her air in taking leave, and cries, “ In "what ftruggle is my poor mother yonder? See, see "her head tottering, her eyes staring, and her under"lip trembling." But all this is atoned for, because

fhe has more wit than is ufual in her fex, and as "much malice, though the is as wild as you would with "her, and has a demurenefs in her looks that makes

it fo furprifing!" Then to recommend her as a fit fpoufe for his hero, the poet makes her fpeak her fense of marriage very ingenioufly; "I think," fays the, "I might be brought to endure him, and that is all a "reasonable woman fhould expect in an husband." It is, methinks, unnatural that we are not made to underftand how fhe that was bred under a filly pious old mother, that would never truft her out of her fight, came to be fo polite.

It cannot be denied, but that the negligence of every thing, which engages the attention of the fober and valuable part of mankind, appears very well drawn in this piece; but it is denied, that it is neceffary to the character of a fine gentleman, that he should in that manner trample upon all order and decency. As for the character of Dorimant, it is more of a coxcomb than that of Fopling. He fays of one of his companions, that a good correfpondence between them is their mutual intereft. Speaking of that friend, he declares, their being much together" makes the women think the better of his underftanding, and judge more favourably of my repu"tation. It makes him pafs upon fome for a man of very good sense, and me upon others for a very civil "perfon."

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This whole celebrated piece is a perfect contradiction to good manners, good fenfe, and common honesty; and as there is nothing in it but what is built upon the ruin of virtue and innocence, according to the notion of merit in this comedy, I take the fhoe-maker to be, in reality, the fine gentleman of the play; for it feems he is an Atheist, if we may depend upon his character as given by the orange-woman, who is herself far from being the loweft in the play. She fays of a fine man, who is Dorimant's companion, there is not fuch an

66

other heathen in the town, except the fhoe-maker." His pretenfion to be the hero of the Drama appears ftill more in his own defcription of his way of living with his lady. "There is," fays he, “ never a man in town lives more like a gentleman with his wife than "I do; I never mind her motions; fhe never inquires "into mine. We fpeak to one another civilly, hate one another heartily; and becaufe it is vulgar to lie and foak together, we have each of us our feveral fettle-bed." That of foaking together is as good as if Dorimant had spoken it himself; and, I think, fince he puts human nature in as ugly a form as the circumftance will bear, and is a ftaunch unbeliever, he is very much wronged in having no part of the good fortune beftowed in the last act.