No. 330.

will but consider and pity my Case, I will pray for your Wednes Prosperity as long as I live,

day,

March 19,

London, Mar.

Your humble Servant,

James Discipulus.'

Thursday, March 20,

-Stolidam praebet tibi vellere barbam-Pers.

W Westminster Abbey, I observed that he stood

HEN I was last with my Friend Sir ROGER, in

longer than ordinary before the Bust of a venerable old Man, I was at a Loss to guess the Reason of it, when after some Time he pointed to the Figure, and asked me if I did not think that our Forefathers looked much wiser in their Beards than we do without them. For my Part, says he, when I am walking in my Gallery in the Country, and see my Ancestors, who many of them died before they were of my Age, I cannot for bear regarding them as so many old Patriarchs, and at the same Time looking upon my self as an idle smockfaced young Fellow, I love to see your Abrahams, your Isaacs, and your Jacobs, as we have them in old Pieces of Tapistry, with Beards below their Girdles, that cover Half the Hangings. The Knight added, if I would recommend Beards in one of my Papers, and endeavour to restore human Faces to their ancient Dignity, that upon a Month's Warning he would undertake to lead up the Fashion himself in a Pair of Whiskers,

I smiled at my Friend's Fancy; but after we parted, could not forbear reflecting on the Metamorphoses our Faces have undergone in this Particular,

The Beard, conformable to the Notion of my Friend Sir ROGER, was for many Ages looked upon as the Type of Wisdom. Lucían more than once rallies the Philoso phers of his Time who endeavoured to rival one another in Beard; and represents a learned Man who stood for a Professorship in Philosophy, as unqualified for it by the Shortness of his Beard.

Elian, in his Account of Zoilus, the pretended Crítick, who wrote against Homer and Plato, and thought him

self

1712.

self wiser than all who had gone before him, tells us that No. 331 this_Zoilus had a very long Beard that hung down upon Thursday, his Breast, but no Hair upon his Head, which he always March 20, kept close shaved; regarding, it seems, the Hairs of his Head as so many Suckers, which if they had been suffered to grow, might have drawn away the Nourishment from his Chin, and by that Means have starved his Beard.

I have read somewhere that one of the Popes refused to accept an Edition of a Saint's Works, which were pre sented to him, because the Saint, in his Effigies before the Book, was drawn without a Beard.

We see by these Instances what Homage the World has formerly paid to Beards; and that a Barber was not then allowed to make those Depredations on the Faces of the Learned, which have been permitted him of later Years,

Accordingly several wise Nations have been so ex treamly jealous of the least Ruffle offered to their Beards, that they seem to have fix'd the Point of Honour prin cipally in that Part The Spaniards were wonderfully tender in this Particular. Don Quevedo, in his third Vision on the last Judgment, has carried the Humour very far, when he tells us that one of his vain-glorious Countrymen, after having received Sentence, was taken into Custody by a Couple of Evil Spirits; but that his Guides happening to disorder his Mustachoes, they were forced to recompose them with a Pair of Curling Irons before they could get him to file off.

If we look into the History of our own Nation, we shall find that the Beard flourished in the Saxon Heptarchy, but was very much discouraged under the Nor man Line. It shot out, however, from Time to Time in several Reigns under different Shapes. The last Effort it made seems to have been in Queen Mary's Days, as the curious Reader may find, if he pleases to peruse the Figures of Cardinal Poole and Bishop Gardiner, tho' at the same Time, I think, it may be questioned, if Zeal against Popery has not induced our Protestant Painters to extend the Beards of these two Persecutors beyond their natural Dimensions, in order to make them appear the more terrible,

No. 331,

I find but few Beards worth taking Notice of in the Thursday, Reign of King James the First. W March 20,

da 1712.

M

17

During the Civil Wars there appeared one, which makes too great a Figure in Story to be passed over in Silence; I mean that of the redoubted Hudibras, an Account of which Butler has transmitted to Posterity in the following Lines;

His tawny Beard was th' equal Grace,
Both of his Wisdom, and his Face,
In Cut and Dye so like a Tyle,
A sudden View it would beguile.
The upper Part thereof was Whey,
The nether Orange mixt with Grey,

The Whisker continued for some Time among us after the Expiration of Beards; but this is a Subject which I shall not here enter upon, having discussed it at large in a distinct Treatise, which I keep by me in Manuscript, upon the Mustachoe.

If my Friend Sir ROGER'S Project, of introducing Beards, should take Effect, I fear the Luxury of the present Age would make it a very expensive Fashion, There is no Question but the Beaux would soon provide themselves with false ones of the lightest Colours, and the most immoderate Lengths. A fair Beard, of the Tapistry-Size Sir ROGER seems to approve, could__not come under twenty Guineas. The famous Golden Beard of Esculapius would hardly be more valuable, than one made in the Extravagance of the Fashion,

Besides, we are not certain that the Ladies would not come into the Mode, when they take the Air on Horse back. They already appear in Hats and Feathers, Coats and Perriwigs; and I see no Reason why we may not suppose that they would have their riding Beards on the same Occasion,

I may give the Moral of this Discourse in another Paper.

X

No. 332.
[STEELE,]

Naribus horum hominum—

'Dear Short Face,

N your Speculation of Wednesday last, you have given us some Account of that worthy Society of Brutes the Mohocks; wherein you have particularly specified the ingenious Performances of the Lion-Tippers, the Dancing Masters, and the Tumblers: But as you acknowledge you had not then a perfect History of the whole Club, you might very easily omit one of the most notable Species of it, the Sweaters, which may be reckon'd a Sort of Dancing-Masters too. It is, it seems, the Custom for Half a Dozen, or more, of these well-disposed Savages, as soon as they have inclosed the Person upon whom they design the Favour of a Sweat, to whip out their Swords, and holding them parallel to the Horizon, they describe a Sort of Magick Circle round about him with the Points. As soon as this Piece of Conjuration is perform'd, and the patient without Doubt already beginning to wax warm, to forward the Operation, that Member of the Circle towards whom he is so rude as to turn his Back first, runs his Sword directly into that Part of the Patient wherein School-boys are punished; and, as it is very natural to imagine this will soon make him tack about to some other Point, every Gentleman does himself the same Justice as often as he receives the Affront. After this Jigg has gone two or three Times round, and the Patient is thought to have sweat sufficiently, he is very handsomly rubb'd down by some Attendants, who carry with them Instruments for that Purpose, and so dis charged. This Relation I had from a Friend of mine, who has lately been under this Discipline. He tells me he had the Honour to dance before the Emperor himself, not without the Applause and Acclamations both of his Imperial Majesty and the whole Ring; though, I dare say, neither I nor any of his Acquaintance ever dreamt he wou'd have merited any Reputation by his Activity,

I can assure you, Mr. SPEC, I was very near be ing qualified to have given you a faithful and painful Account of this walking Bagnio, if I may so call it, my

self

No. 332, Friday, March 21,

1712,

No. 332,
Friday,
March 21,

712.

self: For going the other Night along Fleet-street, and having, out of Curiosity, just enter'd into Discourse with a wandering Female who was travelling the same Way, a Couple of Fellows advanced towards us, drew their Swords, and cry'd out to each other, A Sweat! a Sweat! Whereupon, suspecting they were some of the Ring leaders of the Bagnio, I also drew my Sword, and demanded a Parley; but finding none would be granted me, and perceiving others behind them filing off with great Diligence to take me in Flank, I began to sweat for Fear of being forced to it; but very luckily betaking my self to a Pair of Heels, which I had good Reason to believe wou'd do me Justice, I instantly got Possession of a very snug Corner in a neighbouring Alley that lay in my Rear; which Post I maintained for above Half an Hour with great Firmness and Resolution, tho' not letting this Success so far overcome me, as to make me unmindful of the Circumspection that was necessary to be observed upon my advancing again towards the Street; by which Prudence and good Management I made a handsome and orderly Retreat, having suffer'd no other Damage in this Action than the Loss of my Baggage, and the Dislocation of one of my Shoe-heels, which last I am just now inform'd is in a fair way of Recovery, These Sweaters, by what I can learn from my Friend, and by as near a View as I was able to take of them my self, seem to me to have at present but a rude Kind of Discipline amongst them, It is probable, if you wou'd take a little Pains with them, they might be brought into better Order. But I'll leave this to your own Discretion; and will only add, that if you think it worth while to insert this by Way of Caution to those who have a Mind to preserve their Skins whole from this Sort of Cupping, and tell them at the same Time the Hazard of treating with Night-walkers, you will perhaps oblige others, as well as Your very humble Servant,

Jack Lightfoot.

P. S. My Friend will have me acquaint you, That though he would not willingly detract from the Merit of that extraordinary Strokes-man Mr. Sprightly, yet