What a horrible difcordance! Is it fit, my countrymen, that while the Mufes are inftructing milliners and tailors, you fhould mix with their fineft performances all the rudeness of the peasants of the Danube? But your error proceeds only from ignorance; and, thanks to Heaven, it will foon be removed. Young perfons, in an antique fashion like you, fhould not fcratch except with the end of the finger, without incurring the imputation of barbarifm; and, in obeying this precept, to which Cafar and Pompey fubmitted, you will, in time, give a proof of atticifm and erudition.

I expect that you will perfect yourfelves in this exercife. The difplay of the arm, the whiteness of the hand, the luftre of a ring, are elements worthy of your combinations. Why, then, fhould not the finger fporting on your hands have fufficient genius and expreflion to fhew us, by the variety of its movements, whether you are throwing out a declaration of love, or are receiving information concerning the Tiers Confolidés ?

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CRABTREE'S COMPLAINT,

MR. EDITOR,

[From the Oracle.]

HAVE the misfortune to be what our ancestors called a paffionate fellow; but in this elegant age my foible is foftened down to the epithet irritable. In short, Sir, if any of of my domeftics are caught stealing my property, and brought before me, I am devilish apt to knock them down, and afterwards difmifs them, inftead of fending them to gaol to undergo the rigour of the law, as your well-bred and humane fine gentlemen commonly do. In common occurrences, however, I am by no means fo ferocious as the man-tiger that broke loofe from his keepers in our town a few nights ago, and made fuch a havoc among the people.

Το

To make a long ftory fhort, I was lately put into a terrible paffion by the wickednefs of my daughter Prifcilla, whom I fent to town about fix months ago, to make herself mistress of what are called accomplishments. Her aunt, Lady Frizzlewig, of Berkeley Square, invited me to vifit her in town, and I came up from my feat in Warwickshire laft Saturday. Her Ladyfhip and my girl both expreffed great pleasure on feeing me fo hale and hearty. Though naturally a little crabbed, 1 do not recollect fwearing once during the evening, we were all in fuch a good humour about the peace. After tea I retired to my lodgings in Piccadilly, precifely at ten minutes after ten o'clock, and I fince find that my regularity has been imitated to a minute by General Laurifton.

Next morning I waited on the ladies, in order to accompany them to church; but, to my furprise, I found my daughter reading a Romance, called The Monk. That's a good girl," faid I, as I entered the room; 66 you were always fond of your book, Pris." Yes, Sir," replied the. (I thought the looked a little confufed, as the clofed the book.) "Don't let me interrupt you, child," faid I. "You

I

know I like to fee you devout; but furely they pay very little respect to prayer-books in London, when they put them into fuch indifferent binding?" Saying this, I took the book out of her hand, and, looking over the title, I could fcarcely believe my eyes. gazed alternately on my daughter and the abominable volume, nor could I forbear venting my paffion in a manner that brought the tears into her eyes. In her affliction, however, the was able to fob out "that the did not think it a fin to read a pretty flory written by a Member of Parliament."-" A member of the H-ĺt fire C-b!" exclaimed I; "never let me fee fuch books in your hand again on Sunday or any other day, or by" The entrance of my fifter Frizzlewig pre

vented me from venting my paffion in an oath, so that it remained in my breaft like a volcano, ftruggling to get vent. Her Ladyship inquired the caufe of my daughter's apparent grief; and, when informed, the laughed heartily. Seeing me look fomewhat grave, and knowing my temper, the endeavoured to footh me by faying, "Never mind, brother; I fhall introduce you to our little card-party this evening, and you fhall hear fome excellent vocal and inftrumental mufie after breakfast."" I have no objection," replied I, "to hearing the chorifters and the organ in your parish church; but none of your card-playing for me." "At church!" cried the; "furely you don't think us fo barbarously unfashionable as to go to church! No, my dear Sir! it is a fnug mufical entertainment of our own, where you fhall hear The 'Soldier tir'd of War's Alarms' fung almost as well as by Mrs. Billington herself."

"I

Irritated, as they call it, beyond expreffion, I commanded my daughter to prepare to leave the manfion of diffipation, and an hour afterwards took her in my coach to my lodgings. She is now pretty well convinced of the folly and impiety of fuch vain amusements on a day peculiarly devoted to religion, and we shall fet out to-morrow morning for my family manfion, where there fhall be neither card-playing nor crotchettos and squeakettos, except in the hog-ftye, on Sunday. I am, Mr. Editor, &c.

SAMUEL CRABTREE.

THE SUNDAY AMUSEMENTS OF THE WORLD OF FASHION VINDICATED.

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MR. EDITOR,

[From the fame.]

LATELY read a letter in your paper, figned by Mr. CRABTREE, and from his morofe difpofition it is evident that he is not mifnamed. This fufty country

Squire,

Squire, forfooth, muft drag his elegant daughter from the pleafing qualifications of polifhed fociety, because he found her reading a novel on Sunday. Had he been a Quaker or a Methodist, that would have been fome extenuation of his aufterity; but, profeffing himself a member of the eftablished church, I am amazed at his illiberality.

Would he have young ladies to be constantly moping over a Prayer-book, like a criminal preparing for execution? Or does he imagine that their memory is fo defective as not to have the whole Liturgy by rote? Let me tell him, that in this philofophizing age I could find him feveral fashionable ladies who are poffeffed of more erudition than the rector of his parith, and are not only verfed in French and Italian, but can play on the harpsichord, the tambourine, and cymbals, and dance with the agility of the Graces, as I witness almost every Sunday evening. Sweet creatures! why fhould they fuffer their accomplishments to remain inert, like gold locked up in the iron cheft of the mifer?

Ay, but your furly correfpondent may reply, "Let them dance and fing fix days and nights in the week, and reft on the feventh." I own there is fome rationality in the obfervation; but as water, in continual agitation in a running ftream, is infinitely. more pure and tranfparent than the fame element in a ftagnant pool, our ladies are apprehenfive that a temporary fufpenfion of their amufements might not only deprefs their animal fpirits, but confequently injure their beauty; an event which would be more calamitous to their imagination than any other penalty.

Befides, as we are now on terms of amity with the French nation, we muft endeavour to ape them in the elegance and variety of our amufements; nay, we muft excel them, if poffible, in every fpecies of diffipation, however abfurd or immoral.

Even your friend Crabtree will own the neceffity of this, as I find he is a patriot. Let him only confider what a pitiful figure we fhould make in the eyes of our numerous French vifitors, who, on their arrival in London, instead of finding us joyous, fhould difcover us at prayers, preparing to go to church, or any other of thofe puritanical appearances of fanctity, which rendered our forefathers fo proverbially religious in the time of Oliver Cromwell. Would not a French philofopher of the new School laugh at our piety, and recommend gaiety as a fubftitute for religion? Would he not be one of the first in company to chant fome favourite bravura, or lead his partner through the mazes of the dance, as innocent and refined Sunday evening amusements?

Cards have long been prefcribed in the gay world as an infallible remedy for the fpleen; and what phyfician would hesitate to adminifter his medicine on Sunday?

It is well known that cards were invented as a kind of anodyne, to mitigate the ennui of an idiot King of France; and the fame amufement has fince kept innumerable idiots in play, and prevented them from committing greater mifchief, by confining them to one fpot.

Perhaps no recreation could be better adapted to exercise both the mind and body. The continual ebbs and flows of the animal fpirits, kept in agitation from the fucceffive emotions of hope, fear, anxiety, and avarice; the enthufiafm excited by competition, and a defire to win; and the exalted joy or fecret forrow that awaits the event, over which chance prefides, must be wonderfully conducive to the increase of goodwill and benevolence among the competitors. A ftill more fpirited fpecies of gambling may be found in the die. Let our young ladies only recollect what an interesting and modeft figure they recently cut in the

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