Obrázky stránek
PDF
ePub

tertainment, and by that means at leaft divert the minds of my female readers from greater trifles. At the fame time, as I would fain give fome finishing touches to thofe which are already the most beautiful pieces in human nature, I fhall endeavour to point out all thofe imperfections that are the blemishes, as well as thofe virtues which are the embellishments, of the fex. In the mean while I hope thefe my gentle readers, who have fo much time on their hands, will not grudge throwing away a quarter of an hour in a day on this paper, since they may do it without any hindrance to bufinefs.

I know, feveral of my friends and wellwifhers are in great pain for me, left I should not be able to keep up the fpirit of a paper which I oblige myfelf to furnith every day; but to make them eafy in this particular, I will promife them faithfully to give it over as foon as I grow dull. This I know will be matter of great raillery to the final wits, who will frequently put me in mind of my promife, define me to keep my word, aifure me that it is high time to give over, with many other little pleafantries of the like nature, which men of a little finart genius cannot for bear throwing out againt their best friends, when they have fuch a handle given them of being witty. But let them remember that I do hereby enter my caveat against this piece of raillery.

No. XI. TUESDAY, MARCH 13.

Dat veniam corvis, vexat cenfura columbas.

Juv.

A

The doves are cenfar'd, while the crows are fpared.

RIETTA is vifited by all perfons of both fexes who have any pretence to wit and gallantry. She is in that time of life which is neither affected with the follies of youth or infirmities of age; and her conver◄ fation is fo mixed with gaiety and prudence, that the is agreeable both to the young and old. Her behavi

our

our is very frank, without being in the leaft blameable; and as the is out of the track of any amorous or ambitious purfuits of her own, her vifitants entertain her with accounts of themfelves very freely, whether they concern their paffions or their interefts. I made her a vifit this afternoon, having been formerly introduced to the honour of her acquaintance by my friend Will Honeycomb, who has prevailed upon her to admit me fometimes into her affembly as a civil inoffenfive man. I found her accompanied with one perfon only, a common-place talker, who, upon my entrance, arofe, and after a very flight civility fat down again; then turning to Arietta, purfued his difcourfe, which I found was upon the old topic of conftancy in love. He went on with great facility in repeating what he talks every day of his life; and with the ornaments of infignificant laughs and geftures, enforced his arguments by quotations out of plays and fongs, which allude to the perjuries of the fair, and the general levity of women. thought he ftrove to fhine more than ordinary in his talkative way, that he might infult my filence, and diftinguish himself before a woman of Arietta's tafte and understanding. She had often an inclination to interrupt him, but could find no opportunity, till the larum ceased of itfelf; which it did not till he had repeated and murdered the celebrated story of the Ephefian Matron.

Me

Arietta feemed to regard this piece of raillery as an outrage done to her fex; as indeed I have always obferved that women, whether out of a nicer regard to their honour, or what other reason I cannot tell, are more fenfibly touched with thofe general afperfions which are caft upon their fex, than men are by what is faid of theirs.

When fhe had a little recovered herfelf from the ferious anger the was in, the replied in the following man

ner:

Sir, When I confider how perfectly new all you have faid on this fubject is, and that the story you have given us is not quite two thoufand years old, I cannot but think it a piece of prefumption to difpute with you; but your quotations put me in mind of the fable of the

Lion and the Man. The man walking with that noble animal, fhewed him, in the oftentation of human fuperiority, a fign of a man killing a lion. Upon which the lion faid very juftly, "We lions are none of us "painters, elfe we could fhew a hundred men killed by "lions, for one lion killed by a man." You men are writers, and can reprefent us women as unbecoming as you pleafe in your works, while we are unable to return the injury. You have twice or thrice obferved in your discourse, that hypocrify is the very foundation of our education; and that an ability to diflemble cur affections is a profeffed part of our breeding. Thefe, and fuch other reflections, are fprinkled up and down the writings of all ages, by authors who leave behind them memorials of their relentment against the fcorns of particular women, in invectives against the whole fex. Such a writer, I doubt not, was the celebrated Petronius, who invented the pleasant aggravations of the frailty of the Ephefian Lady; but when we confider this queftion between the fexes, which has been either a point of dispute or raillery ever fince there were men and women, let us take facts from plain people, and from fuch as have not either ambition or capacity to embellifh their narrations with any beauties of imagination. I was the other day amufing myfelf with Ligon's account of Barbadoes; and in anfwer to your well-wrought tale, I will give you (as it dwells upon my memory) out of that honeft traveller, in his fifty-fifth page, the hiftory of Inkle and Yarico.

Mr. Thomas Inkle, of London, aged twenty years, embarked in the Downs on the good hip called the Achilles, bound for the West Indies, on the 16th of June, 1647, in order to improve his fortune by trade and merchandize. Our adventurer was the third fon of an eminent citizen, who had taken particular care to inftill into his mind an early love of gain, by making him a perfect mafter of numbers, and confequently giving him a quick view of lofs and advantage, and preventing the natural impulfes of his pallions, by prepoffeffion towards his interefts. With a mind thus

turned,

turned, young Inkle had a perfon every way agreeable, a ruddy vigour in his countenance, ftrength in his limbs, with ringlets of fair hair loosely flowing on his fhoulders. It happened, in the courfe of the voyage, that the Achilles, in fome diftrefs, put into a creek on the main of America, in fearch of provifions. The youth, who is the hero of my ftory, among others, went afhore on this occafion. From their firft landing they were obferved by a party of Indians, who hid themfelves in the woods for that purpose. The English unadvisedly marched a great diftance from the fhore into the country, and were intercepted by the natives, who flew the greatest number of them. Our adventurer efcaped, among others, by flying into a foreft. Upon his coming into a remote and pathlefs part of the wood, he threw hinfelf, tired and breathlefs, on a little hillock, when an Indian maid rushed from a thicket behind him. After the first furprife, they appeared mutually agreeable to each other. If the European was highly charmed with the limbs, features, and wild graces of the naked American, the American was no lefs taken with the drefs, complexion, and fhape of an European, covered from head to foot. The Indian grew immediately enamoured of him, and confequently foli. citous for his prefervation. She therefore conveyed him to a cave, where fhe gave him a delicious repaft of fruits, and led him to a ftream to flake his thinft. In the midft of thefe good offices, fhe would fometimes play with his hair, and delight in the oppofition of its colour to that of her fingers; then open his bofom, then laugh at him for covering it. She was, it seems, a perfon of diftinction, for fhe every day came to him in a different drefs, of the most beautiful fhells, bugles, and bredes. She likewife brought him a great many fpoils, which her other lovers had prefented to her; fo that his cave was richly adorned with all the fpotted skins of beafts, and moft party-coloured feathers of fowls, which that world afforded. To make his confinement more tolerable, she would carry him in the dufk of the evening, or by the favour of the moon-light, to unfrequented groves and folitudes, and fhew him where to lie down in fafety, and

eep

fleep amidst the falls of waters, and melody of nightingales. Her part was to watch and hold him awake in her arms, for fear of her countrymen; and awake him on occalions to confult his fafety. In this manner did the lovers pafs away their time, till they had learned a language of their own, in which the voyager communicated to his mistress how happy he should be to have her in his own country, where the thould be clothed in fuch filks as his waistcoat was made of, and be carried in houfes drawn by horses, without being expofed to wind and weather. All this he promised her the enjoyment of, without such fears and alarms as they were tormented with. In this tender correfpondence thefe lovers lived for several months, when Yarico, instructed by her lover, difcovered a veffel on the coast, to which fhe made fignals; and in the night, with the utmost ́ joy and satisfaction, accompanied him to a fhip's crew of his countrymen, bound for Barbadoes. When a veffel from the main arrives in that ifland, it feems the planters come down to the fhore, where there is an immediate mar ket of the Indians and other flaves, as with us of hories and oxen.

To be fhort, Mr. Thomas Inkle, now coming into English territories, began feriously to reflect upon his lofs of time, and to weigh with himfelf how many days interest of his money he had lot during his ftay with Yarico. This thought made the young man very penfive, and careful what account he fhould be able to give his friends of his voyage. Upon which confideration, the prudent and frugal young man fold Yarico to a Barbadian merchant; notwithstanding the poor girl, to commiferate her condition, told him that the was with child by him; but he only made ufe of that information, to rife in his demands upon the purchaser.

I was fo touched with this story (which I think should be always a counterpart to the Ephefian Matron) that I left the room with tears in my eyes; which a woman of Arictta's good fenfe did, I am fure, take for greater applause than any compliments I could make her.

R.

No. XII.

« PředchozíPokračovat »