the duke, I reckon, as is always the cafe in fuch places, you have fome one or other that bears the bell, as we say, among you; that is, who outshines all the reft, in accomplishments, and accordingly is held in fuperior esteem, and has a visible precedency of character; pray, who is the perfon that holds this rank, in that illuftrious body you belong to the doctor answered, that was a point he could not pretend to determine. No! faid the duke, that is furprifing, feeing you have one man in your learned community, of fo confpicuous a figure, that it is almoft impoffible he should escape any one's obferva. tion. Pray, good Sir, what think you of Dr. Ifaac Barrow? I have heard of such a one, answered the doctor. This fuppofed flight upon his hero, put the duke out of all patience; and he let fly fuch a volley of ill language at the offender, as fufficiently teftified his refentment. Why, you contemptible loggerhead, faid he, dare you prefume to fay you are of Cambridge, and know fo little, or fpeak fo flightingly, of the glory of it? you affume the enfigns of the priestly order, and are unacquainted with the brightest ornament of it! I took you for an afs, when first I faw you; and now I find by experience my judgment was not deceived. After thefe, and some other like courtly expreffions, the duke hafted from the amazed doctor to the king, whom he immediately accofted with, pray Sir, who was it that preached before your majesty this morning the king replied, you should ask my lord chamberlain. You know, it is whoever he appoints, and I never trouble myself about it. But pray what makes you enquire? why, faid he, I never faw a parfon look fo like a fool in my life. I found him fauntering in the anti-chamber, as I came hither, and I have been roafting him moft devilishly. How fo? faid the king. How fo! faid the duke, it was impoffible to forbear, nay, had it not been in respect to his cloth, I believe I should have thrashed him. The ideot's whole mien was fo unpolite, that I was fure he had never

before breathed the air of a court; I afked him therefore whence he came ? he faid, from Cambridge; the very name of Alma Mater infpired me with fome regard for him, and I began to converse with him as a reasonable creature; I took it for granted he could not be a ftranger to the ftate of the place, and knew who were of greatest note in it; but I found the wall of his college was not more ignorant. When I asked him, who were the most adinired and applauded of the fociety? it was a mat ter, forfooth, he could not pretend to judge of; and when I tried him farther, by naming to him the honour of our age, as well as of the university, Dr. Barrow, what do you think the wretch muttered? why, truly, that he had heard of fuch a one. I could no longer bear his ftupidity; and I have given him fuch a lecture, as will not easily flip his memory. The king could hardly refrain from laughing at this recital; he faw the fcrape the duke had brought himfelf into; and now very gravely asked him, if he had heard any of the fermon, the preacher of which he had been so liberally abufing? no, said the duke, I just popped my head into the chapel, and faw the boor in the roftrum, which was a fufficient antidote to any farther curiofity. You were very unfortunate, faid the king; if you had given a little attention, you would have been charmed with the difcourfe as I was; and it would have prevented an adventure, which will caufe a good deal of merri.. ment, but at your coft, I affure you; for that infignificant animal, as you reputed him, whom you have been mawling fo unmercifully, is no other, I protest to you, than the identical Dr. Ifaac Barrow. The duke was thunderstruck; he asked the king, was he in earnest? his majefty fwore it to him. Away his grace ran, and happily found the doctor where he had left him. He made a very low bow, feized his hand, and told him, he was a penitent come to implore his forgiveness of a fault, that would be unpardonable, were it not a fin of ignorance, and strangely owing to the cri

minal's

minal's profound veneration of the of fended. Dr. Barrow was too fenfible of the extraordinary compliment which the duke had inadvertently paid him, tho' delivered in the garb of an infult, not to say an outrage; but which was plainly the effect of his grace's high efti,mation of his merit, and impetuous concern for the dignity of his character; and therefore thought himself not only bound to grant the duke immediately a plenary pardon, but to profefs a moft grateful fenfe of the honour (inftead of an affront) which his grace had conferred upon him; while the duke, on the other hand, vowed an attachment to the doctor's intereft, that nothing but the too early death of that confummate genius afterwards diffolved.

I

From the COURT MAGAZINE.

Pernicious Confequences of Gaming.

T is fomewhere recorded, that Cobilon the Lacedemonian being fent to Corinth, with a commiffion to conclude a treaty of friendship and alli. ance, when he faw the captains and fenators of that city playing at dicé, returned home without doing any thing, faying, that he would not fo much fully the glory of the Spartans, as that it fhould be faid they had made a league with gamefters. Hence it fhould feem, this honeft heathen took every man addicted to gaming for a fool or a knave, and therefore refolved to have no deal ings with fuch, as neither character could be depended on.

The pernicioufnefs of gaming was fo well understood by the grand impoftor, Mahomet, that he thought it neceffary to prohibit it exprefly in the alcoran, not as a thing in itfelf naturally evil, but only morally fo, as it is a step to the greatest vices: for whilst we captivate ourselves to chance, we lofe our authority over our paffions, being excited to immoderate defire, exceffive hope, joy and grief; we stand or fall at the uncertain caft of the dice, or the VOL. III.

turning up of a card; we are slaves to the feeblest wishes, which, if they fucceed not, we grow furious, profligate and impious; banifhing all prudence, temperance and justice, we become impudent, and fit for the blackest crimes. Hence the cheats, the quarrels, the oaths and blafphemies among the men and among the women, the neglect of household affairs, the unlimited freedoms, the indecent paffion; and lastly, the known inlet to all lewdness, when after an ill run, the fair one must answer the defects of the purfe; the rule on fuch oceafions holding true in play, as it does in law, "Quod non habet in crumena, luat in corpore." If Chriftians have not humility enough to conform to the rule of life laid down in holy writ, let them at least have pride enough to be fhamed out of this detestable vice, '; the example of Pagans and Mahome

tans.

From the COURT MAGAZINE. Remarkable Memorandums. By a Young Lady.

Mem.

B

EING now eighteen years of age, and haftening to that period of life, in which I am to prove my gratitude to the best of parents, let me always make it a rule to prefer the gratification of their wishes to the enjoyment of my own.

Mem. A parent is entitled to the first place in every child's esteem, and fhe that can be deficient in a point of duty here, ought juftly to be fuípected of infidelity in the difcharge of every other.

Mem. By all means be strictly attentive in the worship of my Creator, as I can never expect a future blefling without fhewing a becoming gratitude for a past.

Mem. Always to believe a man has the bafeft defigns, who wants me to conccal his addreffes from my father.

Mem. Never to hear the proteftations of any man who has behaved dishonourably to another woman. X X X

Mem.

It happened that a gentleman who lived next door to the midwife had obferved, that although many pregnant women went to be delivered at her houfe, yet very few children were brought out, and his fufpicions of foul play towards the infants increafing daily. He at length confulted with fome of his neighbours, who joined him in requesting a warrant from a magistrate to fearch for fome plate, which they pretended to have loft. In order how ever not to alarm the midwife, they began their fham fearch, at the distance of nine or ten houses from hers.

When they came however to her a bode, the affected the utmost unconcern, defiring the gentlemen not to hurry themfelves, but to proceed in their fearch, with all poffible circumfpection-they did fo-and on their coming to the neceffary houfe, they put down a hook, which they had brought with them on purpofe, which brought up the body of a child newly deftroyed.They continued the fearch, till they had found no less than fixty-two childrensome of whom were in great measure decayed, but many of them appeared to have been deposited in that place within a very few weeks at the most.

The confequence of this was-that the midwife was immediately appre hended, and brought to trial, and condemned on the fulleft evidence, be fides her own confeffion. She was fen. tenced to be executed in the following manner, and the fuffered accordingly on the 28th day of May 1673

"A gibbet was erected, under which a fire was made, and the prifoner being brought to the place of execution, was hung up in a large iron cage, in which were also placed fixteen wild cats, which had been catched in the woods for the purpose.- When the heat of the fire became too great to be endured with patience, the cats flew upon the woman, as the caufe of the intenfe pain they felt--In about fifteen minutes they had pulled out her intrails, though he continued yet alive, and fentible, imploring, as the greateft fa

your,

blood; and finding the had a ring on her finger, he took it off unperceived; the gentlewoman being all this while afleep, he let her lie without disturbing of her, or doing any thing else, than only laying his hand upon her, to diftinguish of what fex fhe was; which he had but just time to do, before the flung off the bedcloaths again, and getting up walked three or four times about the room, as she had done before; and then tanding a while before the door, opened it, and went out, and fhut it after her,

The young gentleman perceiving by this in what manner the room was haunted, rofe up, and locked the door on the infide, and then lay down again, and flept till morning; at which time the master of the house came to him to know how he did, and whether he had feen any thing or not?

He told him there was an apparition appeared to him, but begged the favour of him that he would not urge him to fay any thing further, till the whole family were all together.

The

The gentleman complied with his request, telling him, as long as he was well, he was very well fatisfied. The defire the whole family had to know the iffue of this affair, made them dress with more expedition than usual, so that there was a general affembly of the gentlemen and ladies before eleven

kinfman the master of the house;" Now, Sir, faid he, I can affure you, taking the gentlewoman by the hand, this is the lovely fpirit by which your chamber is haunted." And thereupon repeated what I have already declared.

But I want words to express the confufion the young gentlewoman seemed to be in at this relation, who declared herself perfectly ignorant of all that he faid; but did believe it might be fo, because of the ring, which the perfectly well remembered the had on when the went to bed, and knew not how she lost it,

This relation gave the whole company a great deal of diverfion; and after all, the father declared, that fince his daughter had already gone to bed to his kinfman, it fhould be his fault if he did not next go to bed to his daughter, he being willing to bestow her upon him, and give her a good portion: this generous offer was fo advantageous to the young gentleman, that he could by no means refuse it; and his late bedfellow hearing what her father had said, was easily prevailed upon to accept of him for her husband.

NOR

From the LADY'S MAGAZINE,

Praife of Marriage, and the Conduct of Jome Hufbands cenfured.

S man is a fociable creature, not made for folitude, but conversation, marriage is a noble institution, and a little useful fociety, from whence many advantages arife. The forrows of life are leffened by this divifion, and the comforts of it increafed by communication. Marriage is, or fhould be, the moft perfect state of friendship. Mutual intereft produces mutual assistance. 'Tis owing to this inftitution, that families have been raised and formed. All parentage and proximity proceed from hence; and, in a happy marriage, where both parties behave well in their respective stations, the honey-moon increases to years of blifs, long poffeffion rivets the affection; and nothing,

but