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him fpeak in character, afcribes to him a fpeech full of thofe fables and allegories which old men take delight in relating, and which are very proper for inftruction. The Gods, fays he, fuffer themselves to be prevailed upon by intreaties. When mortals have offended them by their transgreffions, they appease them by vows. and facrifices. You must know, Achilles, that Prayers are the daughters of Jupiter. They are crippled by frequent kneeling, bave their faces full of cares and wrinkles, and their eyes always caft towards heaven. They conftant attendants on the goddess Ate, and march behind ber. This goddess walks forward with a bold and haughty air, and being very light of foot, runs through the whole earth, grieving and afflicting the fons of men. She gets the fart of Prayers, who always follow her, in order to heal thoje persons whom she wounds. He ob bonours thefe daughters of Jupiter, when they draw near to him, receives great benefits from them; but as for bine who rejects them, they intreat their father to give his orders to the goddess Ate, to punish him for his hardness of beart. This noble allegory needs but little explanation; for whether the goddels Ate fignifies injury, as fome have explained it; or guilt in general, as others; or divine juftice, as I am the more apt to think, the interpretation is obvious enough.

I fhall produce another heathen fable relating to prayers, which is of a more diverting kind. One would think by fome paffages in it, that it was compofed by Lucian, or at least by fome author who has endeavour'd to imitate his way of writing; but as differtations of this nature are more curious than useful, I fhall give my reader the fable, without any further enquiries after the author.

Menippus the philofopher was a fecond time taken up into heaven by Jupiter, when for his entertainment he lifted up a trap door that was placed by his footftool. At its rifing, there iffued through it fuch a din of cries as aftonished the philofopher. Upon his afking what they meant, Jupiter told him they were the prayers that were fent up to him from the earth. Menippus, amidst the confufion of voices, which was fo great, that nothing less than the ear of Jove could diftinguish them, beard the words,

words, riches, honour, and long life repeated to feveral different tones and languages. When the first bub. bub of founds was over, the trap door being left open, the voices came up more feparate and diftinct. The first prayer was a very odd one, it came from Athens, and defred Jupiter to increase the wisdom and the beard of bis humble fupplicant. Menippus knew it by the voice to be the prayer of his friend Licander the philofopher. This was fucceeded by the petition of one who had juft laden a fhip, and promifed Jupiter, if he took care of it, and returned it home again full of riches, he would make him an offering of a filver cup. Jupiter thanked him for nothing; and bending down his ear more attentively than ordinary, beard a voice complaining to bim of the cruelty of an Ephefian widow, and begging him to breed compaffion in her heart. This, Says Jupiter, is a very honest fellow. I have received a great deal of incenfe from him; I will not be fo cruel to him as not to hear his prayers. He was then interrupted with a whole volley of vows, which were made for the health of a tyrannical prince by his fubjects who pray'd for him in his prefence. Menippus was Jurprised, after having liftned to prayers offered up with so much ardour and devotion, to hear low whispers from the Jame affembly expoftulating with Jove for Suffering fuck a tyrant to live, and asking him how his thunder could lie idle? Jupiter was fo offended at thefe prevaricating rafcals, that be took down the first vows, and puffed away the laft. The philofopher Seeing a great cloud mounting upwards, and making its way directly to the trapdoor, inquir'd of Jupiter what it meant. This, Jays Jupiter, is the Smoke of a whole hecatomb that is offered me by the general of an army, who is very importunate with me to let him cut off an hundred thousand men that are drawn up in array against him: What does the impudent wretch think 1 fee in him, to believe that I will make a facrifice of fo many mortals as good as himself, and all this to his glory, forfooth? But hark, fays Jupiter, there is a voice I never heard but in time of danger: 'tis a rogue that is fhipwreck'd in the Ionian jea: I fav'd him on a plank but three days ago, upon his promise to mend VOL. V.

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his manners, the Scoundrel is not worth a groat, and yet has the impudence to offer me a temple if I will keep him from finking But yonder, Jays he, is a special youth for you, be defires me to take his father, who keeps a great eftate from him, out of the miferies of human life.. The old fellow fhall live till he makes his heart ake, I can teli bim that for his pains. This was followed by the foft voice of a pious lady, defiring Jupiter that she might ap. pear amiable and charming in the fight of her emperor. As the philofopher was reflecting on this extraordinary petition, there blew a gentle wind through the trap-door, aubich be at firft miftook for a gale of Zephyrs, but afterwards found it to be a breeze of fighs: They melt ftrong of flowers and incenfe, and were fucceeded by moft paf. fionate complaints of wounds and torments, fires and arrows, cruelty, despair, and death. Menippus fancied that fuch lamentable cries arofe from fome general execu tion, or from wretches lying under the tortare; but Jupiter old him that they came up to him from the ifle of Pa phos, and that he every day received complaints of the Jame nature from that whimfical tribe of mortals who are called lovers. I am so trifled with, Jays be, by this generation of both fexes, and find it fo impoffible to please them, whether I grant or refuse their petitions, that I fhall order a western wind for the future to intercept them in their paffage, and blow them at random upon the earth. The last petition I heard was from a very aged man of near an hundred years old, begging but for one year more of life, and then promifing to die contented. This is the rareft old fellow! Jays Jupiter. He has made this prayer to me for above twenty years together. When he was but fifty years old, be defired only that he might live to fee bis fon fettled in the world, I granted it. He then begged the fame favour for his daughter, and afterwards that he might fee the education of a grandfon: When all this was brought about, he puts up a petition that he might live to finifh a boufe he was building. In fhort, he is an unreasonable old cur, and never wants an excufe; I will hear no more of him. Upon which he flung down the trapdoor in a paffion, and was refolved to give no more audiences that day.

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Notwithstanding the levity of this fable the moral of it very well deferves our attention, and is the fame with that which has been inculcated by Socrates and Plato, not to mention Juvenal and Perfeus, who have each of them made the finest fatire in their whole works upon this fubject. The vanity of mens wishes, which are the natural prayers of the mind, as well as many of thofe fecret devotions which they offer to the Supreme Being, are fufficiently expofed by it. Among other reafons for fet Forms of Prayer, I have often thought it a very good one, that by this means the folly and extravagance of mens defires may' be kept within due bounds, and not break out in abfurd and ridiculous petitions on fo great and folemn an occafion.

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No 392

Friday, May 30.

Per ambages & ministeria deorüm

Præcipitandus eft liber fpiritus.

By fable's aid ungovern'd fancy foars,

And claims the miniftry of heav'nly pow'rs.

To the SPECTATOR,

Petron.

The transformation of Fidelio into a looking-glass.

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WAS lately at a tea-table, where fome young ladies entertained the company with a relation of a coquette in the neighbourhood, who had ⚫ been discovered practifing before her glafs. To turn • the difcourfe, which from being witty grew to be malicious, the matron of the family took occafion from the fubject, to wish that there were to be found amongst men fuch faithful monitors to drefs the mind by, as we confult to adorn the body. She added, that if a fincere friend were miraculously changed into a looking glafs, fhe fhould not be ashamed to ask its • advice very often. This whimfical thought worked N 2 •fo

fo much upon my fancy the whole evening, that it • produced a very odd dream.

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Methought that as I ftood before my glafs, the image of a youth, of an open ingenuous alpect, appeared in it; and with a small shrill voice fpoke in the following manner.

The looking-glafs, you fee, was heretofore a man, even I the unfortunate Fidelio. I had two brothers, whofe deformity in fhape was made up by the clear• nefs of their understanding: It must be owned how⚫ever, that (as it generally happens) they had each a per• verseness of humour fuitable to their diftortion of body. The eldest, whofe belly funk in monftroufly, was a great coward; and tho' his fplenetick contracted temper made him take fire immediately, he made ob'jects that befet him appear greater than they were. The fecond, whofe breafts fwelled into a bold relievo, ⚫ on the contrary, took great pleasure in leffening every thing, and was perfectly the reverse of his brother. Thele oddneffes pleased company once or twice, but difgufted when often feen; for which reason the young gentlemen were fent from court to ftudy mathematicks at the Univerfity.

I need not acquaint you, that I was very well made, and reckoned a bright polite gentleman I was the • confident and darling of all the fair; and if the old

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and ugly spoke ill of me, all the world knew it was • because I fcorned to flatter them. No Ball, no affembly · attended till I had been confulted. Flavia coloured her hair before me, Celia fhewed me her teeth, • Panthea heaved her bosom, Cleora brandished her diamonds; I have feen Cloe's foot, and tied artificially the garters of Rhodope.

"Tis a general maxim, that those who dote upon themselves, can have no violent affection for another : But on the contrary, I found that the womens paffion for me rofe in proportion to the love they bore to them. felves. This was verify'd in my amour with Narciffa, who was fo conftant to me, that it was pleasantly faid, had I been little enough, he would have hung me at her girdle. The most dangerous rival I had, was a gay empty fellow, who by the ftrength of a long inter

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