Why, ay, replies the companion, we have gone fnacks in the hufband; fo now we'll go fhares in the wife.- -I cou'd not listen any longer-how I got into their room I cannot recollect-but darting myself upon them, down went the table, bottle and glaffes, and in two minutes I laid them both fprawling at my feet; for, as cowardice is moft commonly an attendant upon guilt, thefe were two of the rankeft cowards exifting. -The noife brought in the landlord and fervants, they feized me-the two villains were helped up, and they immediately infifted upon charging me with a constable. One happened to be in the house, I was carried before a juftice, and as foon as I got rid of the conftable, a bailey took me in cuftody-my credit was gone, this broker of mine had taken pains to whisper my affairs about. And the next day, an execution came into my houfe, my poor wife was in a moment left deftitute of every neceffary; that fhock, the ill treatment [To be continued.]' A The Life of a WOMAN of the Town. H! what avails, how once appear`d the fair, In vain the moves her livid lips in pray'r, What man fo mean to recollect the poor? In prisons perish, or on dunghills dye. When by her spoils enrich'd deny her bread. Her houseless head dripping with drizzly showers. While ftreaming fpouts dash on her uncloath'd neck; By famine pin'd; pinch'd by difeafe-bred pain, Contrition's portrait, and rafh beauty's wreck, Palé ftretch'd against th' inhospitable doors; And thank their Gods, that they were newer whores. СНАР. SH СНАР. I. HOULD I begin this my Narrative with a penitential preface, to fupplicate, to implore the compaffion of my readers, according to the common introductory method of thofe no vels which have been wrote concerning us unhappy women, I fhould give the lye to my mind, for I want not the world's pity. When I begged for mercy, 'twas denied me; when I merited compaflion, I met with contempt; and when I de ferved reproach, received adoration. My own fex treated me like an enemy, mankind ufed me as a flave.-At first I fancied myself beloved by them; they prefented, they knelt, they fwore themselves to be my admirers; but before I had commenced kept miftrefs a. year, I difcovered enough of that fex to make me defpife them; and the prin cipal design of this work is, to exhibit mankind as they are, as they behave in their connections with our fex, among that part of it I mean, whom they either find abandoned, or make fo. It is not to indulge a fplenetic fit for former ill treatment that I write.-I am not angry with either fex; as to my own, their vanity is their punishment. As to the other, indeed, I have been ufed ill by them, but circumftances and time gave me opportunities to requite myself. To you, ye men, ye felf fuppofed lords, and prerogative-makers, to you this publication is addreffed; not fo much to make ye know yourfelves, as to make ye remember yourselves; confcious of what most of ye are, moft of ye I must despise-the Abject, the Ideot, the Madman, the Villain, the Sharper, the Sycophant, the Bully, are characters which every MAN perfonates in turn, who is mean enough to attempt at poffellion by deceit. My father was a very reputable tradefman in the city of London; he married a clergyman's daughter, who was remarkably handsome, and had an extreme good education, but not one fingle fhilling of fortune. As fhe had only been brought up to dance, mufic, vifit, and he one of the first in every fathion or diversion, my father, who was the moft indulgent husband living, gave her the fame liberty fhe had before marriage, and as foon as I was old enough, I was allowed to take her for my pattern. I was kept at boarding until 12 years of age, and learnt there, from the converfation of my companions in 2 or 3 months, things which would astonish my readers fhould I relate, perfons who never were within thofe feminaries cannot conceive, that girls juft entering into their teens, could be fuch minute natural philofophers in ideas, at least, as we were. I grew very womanifh, as I was told. and proud of hearing it, as all girls are; and even when I was but just thirteen, took the woman very much upon me, in behaving as I faw ladies behave. My mother ufed to fay, that nothing was fo proper to bring any young perfon forward, as letting them fee the world," ard come early into company. I gave and received vifits, had billet doux sent me, returned anfwers, made parties among young perfons of both fexes about my own age. But to this day, experienced as I have been, and almost by hackney ufe, above or beneath blushing at indelicacies. Yet I cannot help wondering (even now) what then passed amongst us; and I dare avow, that permitting girls and boys from 11 to 13 to be together as play-mates, may be productive of habits or confequences, which are better to be imagined, than expreised. For the probability of this allertion, I appeal to the remembrance of moft of my readers. My conftitution was one of the most fanguine, in high health, and vaft fpirits, praifed for my gure, at 13 years of age fuppofed to be 15, fo much was I grown. I began to be horridly uneafy at the leaft restraint. I wanted to be unbounded in my fatisfactions. ---I would have every momentous with in. ftantly gratified. Nothing but an irrefolution of being incapable where to fix, pre prevented my asking many a fine dreffed fellow to go off with me But thofe withes were on reflection curbed, I grew athamed of myself, and I vowed that I would wait with patience. Then I heard most melancholy and moit difmal accounts, which my father being churchwarden made them be oftner talked of; how wretchedly a poor ftreet-walker died upon a bulk, or was fent to Bridewell half naked to be whipped; and thefe events always concluded with one obfervation, that all whores must come to the fame end. Shocked at these relations, I used to retire often to my chamber and crywow I never would be abandoned, never be a strumpet, and yet in 10 minutes a fudden glow of defire filled my mind, and I was all frantic for pofleffion; especially, when I obferved women whom both my father and mother knew to be prostitutes, yet they ufed to stop at our door in their own equipages; and then to fee the respect paid them, I fuppofed that the terrible ftories were only invented to frighten me, and I was determined to be one, as gay, and as happy, as the most famous woman of pleasure upon the town. CHA P. II. certain formed for a woman of quality; I believed I thould be fo, and immediately determined to bury the thoughts of every irregular scheme. My vanity this time faved me from becoming abandoned, and I experience ed the truth of what Archer fays, Pride faves man oft, and woman too, from falling. But, confcious of the warmth of my own constitution, I would not truft myfelf on any private parties of pleafure for the future, least one unlucky moment should put an end to all my fu ture hopes of extreme fplendor. I would not accept of one invitation, unless my mother was of the party; I would not trust myself out of her. fight, nor ever fuffer any gentleman a◄ ny more even to kiss my hand, unless there was a glove on it; these self-denials gave me inexpreffible pain; but what will not a woman, when she has a mind to it, fuffer? Man's refolution is no more to compare to ours for strength, than wafer paper to heart of oak. This my behaviour occafioned me to be praised by every father and inother where I vifited, and my example propofed as a pattern for their daughters. I was extolled as the very emblem of chastity, at the inftant my veins burnt IG with my irregular scheme, I with the fever of voluptuoufnefs.-But But this intention was rendered abortive, by the praifes which iny mother was continually pouring upon me. She affured me, that a young perfon of my accomplishments, and of my appearance, might be very certain, if the would but have a common fhare of prudence and patience, to marry a nobleman. A coronet on my poft chariot, the flambeaux blazing before my chair on a birthnigft the title, the- a thousand and a thousand dreams of grandeur role at once in my mind; I found myself I was is the ances. I, who had not the merit of the leaft virtue, was looked upon as the most virtuous; but fo it is, reputations are too often gained, not by really being, but only by seeming to be. Tortured as I was by appetite, I determined to become a martyr to my defires, rather than forego this fcheme of a quality marriage. Every day I expected the happy moment, when through the fath I fhouid fee the coroneted chariot stop at our door, and the gay ftar breafted peer ftep out, to ask my pa rents confent to lead me to the altar. I went to York with my mother on a vifit to a relations; and during the races, I appeared there the reigning toaft, and my L-behaved to me in to particu particular a manner, addreffed me fo tenderly, so fubmiffive, that I had no doubt but he was the nobleman who was to fulfil my parents predictions. 'But that very perfon, that man of mighty honours, has fince confeffed to me, that the method of addrefs, which he then made ufe of, was with an intent to win me to his lure the fooner, as he found I was ingenuous, and confequently unfufpecting, and that he knew women of fenfe, ipirit and good nature, were fooner to be deceived, under the mask of open friendship, than by any other artifice.-Is not this now the very magnanimity of manhood? While I was thus pleafing myself with my golden dream, word was fent us down into the country, that my father had failed, an execution in the house, himself carried to jail, and we not a bed left to lay on. I cannot defcribe what I felt on the news-my mother went immediately to London, leaving me at our relations confin'd to my bed delirious, occafioned by this fudden change of circumstances; but by the advantage of youth, and a fine conftitution, I recovered in about a week, and must confefs to my fhame, that the diftroffes which my parents must fuffer, were not fo grievous to me, as the reflection of what I muft fuffer in not being able to fhow my face among those of my acquaintance again, of whom I used to take the lead in all parties. I was inconfoleable; especially when I perceived an alteration in the behavi. our of every perfon in the house, were I then was. Before they knew the misfortunes of my family, I was treated like a Queen, my look was a law, and every one feemed, by their eager watching what I wanted, to anticipate even my wishes, by their ready attendance; but now the faces, the behaviour of every one was altered; they paffed by me without courtlying; if I asked any of them to walk out, they were engaged; their heads ached, they were afraid it would rain, they did not chule to go, and began to contradict me in every thing I propofed. In about a week after, I had left my room, just as we had fet down to din-. ner, I was mentioning fome fine par tridges that I faw-when my aunt, with all that matron confequence which prudish gravity can put on, told me, it was not proper for me now to think of fuch high living; that I should suit my ideas to my circumstances, and think, as I had nothing now left, it was time for me to look out for fomething; and that truly I ought to fee for fome fervice, which would be better for me, than be a continual incumbrance on my friends. I dashed down my knife and fork, and rofe almoft choaked from table, went out of the house, into a long elm walk at our back gate, and there walking backwards and forwards, ftrove to give fome vent to my uneasiness. Let whatever would be the confequence, I was refolved never to come into that houfe again-fervice-fervice -yes, I faid, as I talked to myfelf perhaps I may----perhaps I may find fome people though at my service---then my fancy again was in an uproar, I run over the catalogue of my admirers, I was certain, I could not want friends----I was determined. Through all my history the reader will find, that violent passions urged me into every inconvenience I experienced. Let the more common place fcrib blers, who borrow from the frippery of ftale fentiment their memoirs, which they retail to the public; let them in their perfonages blame the villainies of the world, and the deceits, and the cruelties, and the many fo-forths, which have made the characters they would celebrate unhappy. I was miserable, merely by misconduct; vanity and felf-gratification first ruined me; and finding out the power of thofe two Epidemics in others, have fince made my fortune. What is called a proper fpirit of re fentment brought me into numberiels misfortunes; and tho’we may flatter-ourfelves, that revenge is noble, and it's bale not to refent; I who know, if poffible, too much of both sexes, know that Then fhew me, dear friends! Ah! fhew me the ground, The bee that gives honey, gives also a wound, N. B.. I received the above from a friend as a Volentine. -Second ENGLISH Sea Fight. Thappened, that on Saturday fortnight before the feaft of St. John night before the feast of St. John Baptift, 1340, King Edward was at Orewell, where then were forty fhips, or thereabouts, preparing for his paffage Rrr into |