leaving Mrs Bull no time to reply. No ftone was left unturned to fright John from his compofition: fometimes they spread reports at coffee-houfes *, that John and lis wife were run mad; that they intended to give up house, and make over all their eftate to Lewis Baboon; that John had been often heard talking to himself, and feen in the streets without fhoes or stockings; that he did nothing from morning till night but beat his fervants, after having been the beft mafter alive: as for his wife, fhe was a mere natural. Sometimes John's houfe was befet with a whole regiment of attorney's clerks, bailiff's, and bailiff's followers, and other fmall retainers of the law, who threw ftones at his windows, and dirt at himself, as he went along the street. When John complained of want of ready money to carry on his fuit, they advised him to pawn his plate and jewels, and that Mrs. Bull fhould fell her linen and wearing-cloaths.

CHAP. XIII.

Mrs. Bull's vindication of the indifpenfable duty of cuc. koldom, incumbent upon wives, in cafe of the tyranny, infidelity and infufficiency of husbands: being a full aufwer to the doctor's fermon against adultery †.

OHN found daily fresh proofs of the infidelity and bad defigns of his deceafed wife; amongst other things, one day looking over his cabinet, he found the following paper.

T is evident that matrimony is founded upon an origi

Inal contract, whereby the wife makes over the right The has by the law of nature to the concubitus vagus, in favour of the hufband; by which he acquires the property of all her pofterity. But then the obligation is mu tual: and where the contract is broken on one fide, it

*And it was faid, that the nation would at last be facrificed to the ambition of France.

The tories reprefentation of the fpeeches at Sacheverel's trial.

ceases

ceafes to bind on the other. Where there is a right, there must be a power to maintain it, and to punish the offend ing party. This power I affirm to be that original right, or rather that indispensable duty of cuckoldom, lodged in all wives in the cafes above mentioned. No wire is bound by any law, to which herfelf has not confented : all economical government is lodged originally in the hufband and wife, the executive part being in the hufband; both have their privileges fecured to them by law and reafon: but will any man infer from the hufband's being invefted with the executive power, that the wife is deprived of her share, and that which is the principal brauch of it, the original right of cuckoldom? And that fhe has no remedy left, but preces et lachryma, or an ap peal to a fupreme court of judicature? No les frivolous are the arguments that are drawn from the ge neral appellations and terms of a husband and wife. A hufband denotes feveral different forts of magiftracy, ac. cording to the ufages and cuftoms of different climates and Countries. In fome eastern nations it fignifies a tyrant, with the abfolute power of life and death: in Turkey it denotes an arbitrary governor, with power of perpe tual imprisonment: in Italy it gives the hufband the power of poifon and padlocks: in the countries of England, France, and Holland, it has a quite different meaning, implying a free and equal government, fecuring to the wife, in certain cafes, the liberty of cuckoldom, and the property of pin-money, and feparate maintenance. So that the arguments drawn from the terms of hufband and wife are fallacious, and by no means fit to fupport a tyrannical doctrine, as that of abfolute unlimited chastity, and conjugal fidelity.

The general exhortations to chastity in wives are meant only for rules in ordinary cafes, but they naturally fuppofe three conditions of ability, juftice, and fidelity in the hufband fuch an unlimited, unconditioned fidelity in the wife could never be fupposed by reasonable men; it feems a reflection upon the ch-ch, to charge her with doctrines that countenance oppreflion.

This doctrine of the original right of cuckoldom is congruous to the law of nature, which is fuperior to all human laws; and for that I dare appeal to all wives: it

is much to the honour of our English wives, that they bave never given up that fundamental point; and that, though in former ages they were muffled up in darkness and fuperftition, yet that notion feemed engraven on their minds, and the impreffion fo ftrong, that nothing. could impair it.

To affert the illegality of cuckoldom upon any pretence whatsoever, were to caft odious colours upon the married ftate, to blacken the neceffary means of perpetu ating femilies: fuch laws can never be fuppofed to have been defigned to defeat the very end of matrimony, the propagation of mankind. I call them neceffary means; for in many cales what other means are left? Su a doctrine wounds the honour of families; unletes the titles to kingdoms, honours, and eftages; for if the actionsfrom which fuch fettlements fpring, were illegal, all that is built upon them mult he fo too but the laft is abfurd, therefore the first muk be fo likewife. What is the caufe that Europe groans at prefent under the heavy load of a cruel and expenfive war, but the tyrannical custom of a certain nation, and the fcrupulous nicety of a filly Queen*, is not exerciling this indifpenfable duty of cuckoldom, whereby the kingdom might have had an heir, and a controverted fucceffion might have been avoided? Thefe are the effects of the narrow maxims of your clergy,. That one must not do evil, that good may come of it.

The affertors of this indefealible right, and jus divi num of matrimony, do all in their hearts favour gallants, and the pretenders to married women; for, if the true legal foundation of the married state be once fapped, and instead thereof tyrannical maxims-introduced, what must: follow but elopements, inftead of fecret and peaceable cuckoldom?

From all that has been faid, one may clearly perceive the abfurdity of the doctrine of this feditious, difcontented, hot-headed, ungifted, unedifying preacher, afferting, That the grand fecurity of the matrimonial flate, and the pillar upon which it fiands, is founded upon the wife's belief of an abfolute unconditional fidelity to the husband's

*The Queen of Charles II. of Spain, upon whofe death without iffuc the war broke out.

bed :

bed: by which bold affertion he strikes at the root, digs the foundation, and removes the bafis, upon which the happiness of a married ftate is built. As for his perfonal reflections, I would gladly know who are those wanton wives he speaks of; who are thofe ladies of high ftations, that he fo boldly traduces in his fermon ? It is pretty plain, who these afperfions are aimed at, for which he deferves the pillory or fomething worle.

In confirmation of this doctrine of the indifpenfable duty of cuckoldom, I could bring the example of the wisest wives in all ages, who by thefe means have preferved their hufbinds families from ruin and oblivion by want of po fterity: but what has been faid, is a fufficient ground for punishing, this pragmatical parfon.

CHA P. XIV,

The two great parties of wives, the Devoto's and the

T

Hitts*.

HE doctrine of unlimited chastity and fidelity in wives was univerfally efpoufed by all hufbands; who went about the country, and made the wives fign papers, fignifying their utter deteftation and abhorrence of Mrs Bull's wicked doctrine of the indifpenfable duty of cuckoldom. Some yielded, others refused to part with their native liberty; which gave rise to two great parties amongst the wives, the Devoto's and the Hitts. Though it nuit be owned, the diftinction was more nominal than real; for the Devoto's would abuse freedoms sometimes; and those who were diftinguished by the name of Hitts, were often very honeft. At the fame time there came out an ingenious treatise with the title of good advice to husbands; in which they are counselled not to trust too much to their wives owning the doctrine of unlimited conjugal fidelity, and fo to neglect family-duty, and a due watchfulness over the manners of their wives; that the greatest fecurity to hufbands was a vigorous conftitution,

Those who were for and against the doctrine of non refistance.

good ufage of their wives, and keeping them from temptation; many husbands having been fufferers by their trufting too much to general profeflions, as was exemplified in the cafe of a foolish and negligent hufband, who trufting to the efficacy of this principle, was undone by. his wife's elopement from him.

CHA P. XV.

An account of the conference between Mrs Bull and Don Diego.

HE lawyers, as their laft effort to put off the com. pofition, fent Don Diego to John *. Don Diego. was a very worthy gentleman, a friend to John,. his mo, ther, and prefent wife;, and therefore, fuppofed to have fome influence over her: he had been ill ufed himself by John's lawyers, but, becaufe of fome animofity, to Sir. Roger t, was against the compofition : the conference between him and Mrs Bull was word for word as follows..

Don Diego. Is it poffible, coufin Bull, that you can forget the honourable maxims of the family you are come of, and break your word with three of the honest bestmeaning perfons in the world, Elquire South, Erog, and. Hocus, that have facrificed their interefts to yours? It is bafe to take advantage of their fimplicity and credulity,

and leave them in the lurch at laft.

Mrs Bull. Lam fore they have left my family in a bad. condition; we have hardly money to go to the market ;. and no body will take our words for a fix pence. A very fine fpark this Efquire South! My husband took him in, a

*

Amongst other obstacles to the treaty, was the oppofition of the Earl of Nottingham, a tory, nobleman, who had great influence in the houfe of commons.

The caufe of his auimofity, from which this conduct isfuppofed to proceed, was Mr. Harley's being chofen to fucceed hia as principal fecretary of flate, when he was removed from that office in the year 1704,

He expoftulated against the peace with great warmth in the houfe, when the Queen was prefent incog