As foon as I had finished this my glafs, and adjusted it to the above-mentioned fcale of religion; that I might make proper experiments with it, I carried it under my cloke to feveral Coffee-houses, and other places of refort about this great city. At Saint James's Coffee-house the liquor ftood at Moderation; but at Will's, to my great furprize, it fubfided to the very loweft mark on the glass. At the Grecian is mounted but just one point higher; at the Rainbow it ftill afcended two degrees; Child's fetched it up to Zeal, and other adjacent Coffeehoufes, to Wrath.

It fell in the lower half of the glafs as I went further into the city, until at length it fettled at Moderation, where it continued all the time I ftaid about the Exchange, as also while I paffed by the Bank. And here I cannot but take notice, that through the whole course of my remarks, I never obferved my glass to rife at the fame time that the flocks did.

To complete the experiment, I prevailed upon a friend of mine, who works under me in the Occult Sciences, to make a progrefs with my glass through the whole island of Great-Britain; and after his return, to prefent me with a register of his obfervations. I gueffed beforehand at the temper of feveral places he paffed through, by the characters they have had time out of mind. Thus that facetious Divine, Doctor Fuller, fpeaking of the town of Banbury near a hundred years ago, tells us, it was a place famous for Cakes and Zeal, which I find by my glass is true to this day as to the latter part of this defcription; though I must confefs, it is not in the fame reputation for cakes that it was in the time of that learned Author; and thus of other places. In fhort, I have now by me digefted in an alphabetical order, all the counties, corporations, and boroughs in Great-Britain, with their refpe&tive tempers, as they ftand related to my Thermometer. But this I fhall keep to myself, because I would by no means do any thing that may feem to influence any enfuing elections.

The point of doctrine, which I would propagate by this my invention, is the fame which was long ago advanced by that able teacher Horace, out of whom I have taken my text for this difcourfe: We should be careful VOL. IV.

G

not

not to over-fhoot ourselves in the pursuits even of virtue. Whether Zeal or Moderation be the point we aim at, let us keep fire out of the one, and frost out of the other. But alas! the world is too wife to want fuch a precaution. The terms High-church and Low-church, commonly used, do not fo much denote a principle, as they diftinguifh a party. They are like words of battle, that have nothing to do with their original fignification; but are only given out to keep a body of men together, and to let them know friends from enemies.

as

I must confefs, I have confidered, with fome little attention, the influence which the opinions of these great national fects have upon their practice; and do look upon it as one of the unaccountable things of our times, that multitudes of honeft Gentlemen, who entirely agree in their lives, fhould take it in their heads to differ in their religion.

N° 221. Thursday, September 7, 1710.

-Sicut meus eft mos

Nefcio quid meditas nugarum, & totus in illis.

HOR. Sat. 9.

lib. 1. ver. 1.

FRANCIS.

Mufing, as wont, on this and that,

Such trifles, as I know not what.

From my own Apartment, September 6.

SI was this morning going out of my house, a

A little boy in a black coat delivered me the follow

ing Letter. Upon asking who he was, he told me, that he belonged to my Lady Gimcrack. I did not at first recolle & thename; but upon enquiry, I found it to be the widow of Sir Nicholas, whofe legacy I lately gave fome account of to the world. The Letter ran thus:

Mr.

Hope you will not be furprized to receive a Letter

"I have lately loft a very whimfical hufband, who, I "find by one of your last week's Papers, was not alto"gether a stranger to you. When I married this Gen"tleman, he had a very handsome eftate; but upon "buying a fet of microfcopes, he was chofen a Fellow' " of the Royal Society from which time I do not re"member ever to have heard him fpeak as other people' "did, or talk in a manner that any of his family could "understand him. Heiufed, however, to pafs away "his time very innocently in conversation with feveral "members of that learned body; for which reason, I

never advised him against their company for feveral "years, until at laft I found his brain quite turned with "their difcourfes. The firft fymptom which he dif"covered of his being a Virtuofo, as you call him, poor man! was about fifteen years ago; when he gave me pofitive orders to turn off an old weeding-woman, "that had been employed in the family for feveral years. "He told me, at the fame time, that there was no fuch

thing in Nature as a weed, and that it was his defign "to let his garden produce what it pleafed; fo that you "may be fure, it makes a very pleasant fhow as it now "lies. About the fame time he took a humour to ram"ble up and down the country, and would often bring "home with him his pockets full of mofs and pebbles. "This, you may be fure, gave me a heavy heart; "though at the fame time I must needs fay, he had the "character of a very honeft man, notwithstanding he "was reckoned a little weak, until he began to fell his "eftate, and buy thofe ftrange baubles that you have "taken notice of. Upon Midfummer day laft, as he

was walking with me in the fields, he faw a very odd. "coloured butterfly just before us. I obferved that he "immediately changed colour, like a man that is fur"prized with a piece of good luck and telling me, "that it was what he had looked for above thefe twelve years, he threw off his coat, and followed it. I loft

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fight of them both in lefs than a quarter of an hour; "but my husband continued the chace over hedge and "ditch until about funfet; at which time, as I was af"terwards told, he caught the butterfly as fhe rested "herself upon a cabbage, near five miles from the place "where he first put her up. He was here lifted from "the ground by fome paffengers in a very fainting con"dition, and brought home to me about midnight. "His violent exercife threw him into a fever, which

grew upon him by degrees, and at laft carried him "off. In one of the intervals of his diftemper he called "to me; and after having excufed himself for running "out his eftate, he told me, that he had always been more industrious to improve his mind than his fortune; "and that his family must rather value themselves upon "his memory as he was a wife man, than a rich one. "He then told me, that it was a cuftom among the Ro 86 mans for a man to give his flaves their liberty, when "he lay upon his death-bed. I could not imagine what "this meant, until after having a little compofed him"felf, he ordered me to bring him a flea which he had kept for feveral months in a chain, with a defign, as " he said, to give it its manumiffion. This was done accordingly. He then made the Will, which I have "fince feen printed in your Works word for word.

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Only I must take notice, that you have omitted the codicil, in which he left a large Concha Veneris, as it is "there called, to a Member of the Royal Society, who 86 was often with him in his fickness, and affifted him in "his Will. And now, Sir, I come to the chief bufinefs "of my Letter, which is to defire your friendship and "affiftance in the difpofal of thofe many rarieties and "curiofities, which lie upon my hands. If you know any one that has an occafion for a parcel of dried fpiders, I will fell them a pennyworth. I could like "wife let any one have a bargain of cockle-fhells. I "would alfo defire your advice, whether I had best fell

my beetles in a lump, or by retail. The Gentleman' "above-mentioned, who was my husband's friend; "would have me make an auction of all his goods, and' " is now drawing up a catalogue of every particular for "that purpose, with the two following words in great "Letters

"Letters over the head of them, Auctio Gimcrackiana. But upon talking with him, I begin to fufpect he is as mad as poor Sir Nicholas was. Your advice in all thefe particulars will be a great piece of charity to,

Sir,

Your most humble fervant,

Elizabeth Gimcrack.

I fhall answer the foregoing Letter, and give the widow my best advice, as foon as I can find out chapmen for the wares fhe has to put off. In the mean time, I fhall give my reader the fight of a Letter, which I have received from another female correfpondent by the fame post.

"

I

Good Mr. BICKERSTAFF,

Am convinced by a late Paper of yours, that a paffionate woman, who among the common people goes under the name of a Scold, is one of the most infupportable creatures in the world. But alas! Sir. "what can we do? I have made a thousand vows and

refolutions every morning, to guard myself against "this frailty; but have generally broken them before "dinner, and could never in my life hold out until the "fecond courfe was fet upon the table. What most trou

66

bles me is, that my husband is as patient and good"natured as your own Worship, or any man living, can be. Pray give me fome directions, for I would "obferve the ftricteft and fevereft rules you can think "of to cure myself of this diftemper, which is apt to "fall into my tongue every moment. I am,

Sir,

Your moft humble fervant, &c.

In answer to this most unfortunate Lady, I muft acquaint her, That there is now in town an ingenious Phyfician of my acquaintance, who undertakes to cure all the vices and defects of the mind by inward medicines