A No. XII. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14. -Veteres avias tibi de pulmone revello. PERS. I root th' old woman from my trembling heart. T my coming to London, it was fome time before I could fettle myfelf in a houfe to my liking. I was forced to quit my first lodgings, by reafon of an officious landlady, that would be afking me every morning how I had flept. I then fell into an honeft family, and lived very happily for above a week; when my landlord, who was a jolly good-natured man, took it into his head that I wanted company, and therefore would frequently come into my chamber to keep me from being alone. This I bore for two or three day>; but telling me one day that he was afraid I was me. lancholy, I thought it was high time for me to be gone, and accordingly took new lodgings that very night. About a week after, I found my jolly landlord, who, as I faid before, was an honeft hearty man, had put me into an advertisement of the Daily Courant, in the following words: "Whereas a melancholy man left his lodgings on Thurfday laft in the afternoon, and was "afterwards feen going towards Ilington; if any one can give notice of him to R. B. fithmonger in the "Strand, he fhall be very well rewarded for his pains." As I am the best man in the world to keep my own counfel, and my landlord the fishmonger not knowing my name, this accident of my life was never difcovered to this very day. 66 66 I am now fettled with a widow-woman, who has a great many children, and complies with my humour in every thing. I do not remember that we have exchanged a word together thefe five years; my coffee comes into my chamber every morning without afking for it; if I want fire, point to my chimney; if water, to my bafon; upon which my landlady nods; as much as to fay the takes my meaning, and immediately obeys my fignals. fignals. She has likewife nodelled her family fo well, that when her little boy offers to pull me by the coat, or prattle in my face, his eldeft fifter immediately calls him off, and bids him not difturb the gentleman. At my first entring into the family, I was troubled with the civility of their rifing up to me every time I came into the room; but my landlady, obferving that upon thefe occafions I always cried pith, and went out again, has forbidden any fuch ceremony to be ufed in the house; fo that at prefent I walk into the kitchen or parlour without being taken notice of, or giving any interruption to the bufinefs or difcourfe of the family. The maid will ak her miftrefs (though I am by) whether the gentleman is ready to go to dinner, as the miftrefs (who is indeed an excellent houfewife) fcolds at the fervants as heartily before my face as behind my back. In fhort, I move up and down the houfe, and enter into all companies with the fame liberty as a cat, or any other domeftic animal, and am as little fufpected of telling any thing that I hear or fee. I remember, laft winter there were feveral young girls of the neighbourhood fitting about the fire with my landlady's daughters, and telling ftories of fpirits and apparitions. Upon my opening the door, the young women broke off their difcourfe; but my landlady's daughter telling them that it was nobody but the gentleman (for that is the name which I go by in the neighbourhood, as well as in the family) they went on without minding mc. I feated myfelf by the candle that flood on a table at one end of the room; and pretending to read a book that I took out of my pocket, heard feveral dreadful ftories of ghofts as pale as afhes that had ftood at the fect of a bed, or walked over a church-yard by moonlight; and of others that had been conjured into the Red Sea for difturbing people's reft, and drawing their curtains at midnight; with many other old womens fables of the like nature. As one ipirit raised another, I obferved that at the end of every ftory the whole company clofed their ranks, and crowded about the fire. I took notice in particular of a little boy, who was fo attentive F to every ftory, that I am miftaken if he ventures to go to bed by himfelf this twelve-month. Indeed they talked fo long, that the imaginations of the whole affembly were manifeftly crazed; and, I am fure, will be the worfe for it as long as they live. I heard one of the girls, that had looked upon me over her thoulder, asking the company how long I had been in the room, and whether I did not look paler than I used to do. This put me under fome apprehenfions that I fhould be forced to explain myfelf if I did not retire; for which reafon I took the candle in my hand, and went up into my chamber, not without wondering at this unaccountable weakness in reafonable creatures, that they fhould love to aftonish and terrify one another. Were I a father, I should take a particular care to preferve my children from thefe little horrors of imagination which they are apt to contract when they are young, and are not able to shake off when they are in years. I have known a foldier that has entered a breach, affrighted at his own fhadow, and look pale upon a little fcratching at his door, who the day before had marched up against a battery of cannon. There are inftances of perfons who have been terrified, even to diftra&tion, at the figure of a tree or the fhaking of a bullruth. The truth of it is, I look upon a found imagination as the greatcft bleffing of life; next to a clear judgment and a good confcience. In the mean time, fince there are very few whofe minds are not more or lefs fubject to thefe dreadful thoughts and apprehenfions, we ought to arm ourselves againft them by the dictates of reafon and religion; "to pull the old woman "out of our hearts" (as Perfius expreffes it in the motto of my paper) and extinguish that impertinent notions which we imbibed at a time that we were not able to judge of their abfurdity. Or if we believe, as many wife and good men have done, that there are fuch phantoms and apparitions as those I have been speaking of, let us endeavour to establish to ourfelves an intereft in Him who holds the reins of the whole creation in his hand, and moderates them after fuch a manner, that it is im poffible poffible for one being to break loofe upon another without his knowledge and permiffion. For my own part, I am apt to join in opinion with thofe who believe that all the regions of nature swarm with fpirits; and that we have multitudes of fpectators on all our actions, when we think curfelves moft alone; but, instead of terrifying myfelf with fuch a notion, I am wonderfully pleafed to think that I am always engaged with fuch an innumerable fociety, in fearching out the wonders of the creation, and joining in the fame confort of praife and adoration. Milton has finely defcribed this mixed communion of men and fpirits in Paradife; and had doubtlefs his eve upon a verfe in old Hefiod, which is almost word for word in the fame with his third line in the following paf Lage: -Nor think, though men were none, That Heav'n would want fpectators, God want praife! While they keep watch, or nightly rounding walk, No. XIII. THURSDAY, MARCH 15. Dic mihi, fi fias tu leo, qualis eris? Were you a lion, how would you behave? C. MART. THERE is nothing that of late years has afforded matter of greater amufement to the town than Sig F.2 nior nior Nicolini's combat with a Lion in the Hav-market, which has been very often exhibited, to the general fatisfaction of most of the nobility and gentry in the kingdom of Great Britain. Upon the first rumour of this intended combat, it was confidently affirmed, and is ftill believed by many in both galleries, that there would be a tame lion feat from the Tower every opera-night, in order to be killed by Hydafpes. This report, though altogether groundlefs, fo univerfally prevailed in the upper regions of the play-houfe, that fome of the most refined politicians in thofe parts of the audience gave it our in whiffer, that the lion was a coufin-german of the tiger who made his appearance in King William's days, and that the ftage would be fupplied with lions at the public expence, during the whole feffion. Many likewife were the conjectures of the treatment which this lion was to meet with from the hands of Signior Nicolini fome fuppofed that he was to fubdue hun in recitativo, as Orpheus ufed to ferve the wild beats in his time, and afterwards to knock him on the head; fome fancied that the lion would not pretend to lay his paws upon the hero, by reafon of the received opinion, that a lion will not hurt a virgin: feveral, who pretended to have feen the opera in Italy, had informed their friends that the lion was to act a part in High Dutch, and roar twice or thrice to a thorough-bass before he fell at the feet of Hydafpes. To clear up a mat er that was fo variously reported, I have made it my business to examine whether this pretended lion is really the favage he appears to be, or only a counterfeit. But before I communicate my discoveries, I must acquaint the reader, that upon iny walking behind the fcenes laft winter, as I was thinking of fomething elfe, I accidentally jostled against a monftrous animal that extremely ftartled me, and, upon my nearer furvey of it, appeared to be a lion rampant. The lion, feeing me very much furprifed, told me, in a gentle voice, that I might come by him if I pleased; "for," fays he, ❝ do not intend to hurt any body." I thanked him very kindly, and paffed by him; and in a little time after faw I |