boured with indefatigable induftry to increase thefe acquifitions: I enlarged my stock of healths; made great progress in finging, joking, and ftory telling; fwore well; could make a company of ftaunch topers drunk; always collected the reckoning, and was the laft man that departed. My face began to be covered with red pimples, and my eyes to be weak; I became daily more negligent of my drefs, and more blunt in my manner; I profeffed myself-a foe to starters and milkfops, declared that there was no enjoyment equal to that of a bottle and a friend, and foon gained the appellation of an HONEST FELLOW.

By this diftinction I was animated to attempt yet greater excellence; I learned feveral feats of mimickry of the under players, could take off known characters, tell a ftaring ftory, and humbug with fo much skill as fometimes to take in a knowing one. I was fo fuccefsful in the practice of these arts, to which, indeed, I applied myself with unwearied diligence and affiduity, that I kept my company roaring with applaufe, till their voices funk by degrees, and they were no longer able to laugh, because they were no longer able either to hear or to fee. I had now afcended another fcale in the climax; and was acknowledged by all who knew me, to be a JOYOUS SPIRIT.

AFTER

AFTER all these topics of merriment were exhausted, and I had repeated my tricks, my ftories, my jokes, and my songs, till they grew infipid, I became mischievous; and was continually devifing and executing FROLICS, to the unspeakable delight of my companions, and the injury of others. For many of them I was profecuted, and frequently obliged to pay large damages: but I bore all these loffes with an air of jovial indifference, I pushed on in my career, I was more defperate in proportion as I had lefs to lofe; and being deterred from no mifchief by the dread of its confequences, I was faid to run at all, and complimented with the name of Buck.

My cftate was at length mortgaged for more than it was worth; my creditors were importunate; I became negligent of myfelf and of others; I made a desperate effort at the gaming table, and loft the laft fum that I could raife; my eftate was seized by the mortgagee; I learned to pack cards and to cog a die; became a bully to whores; paffed my nights in a brothel, the ftreet, or the watch-houfe; was utterly infenfible of fhame, and lived upon the town as a beaft of prey in a foreft. Thus I reached the fummit of modern glory, and had just acquired the diftinction of a BLOOD, when I was arrefted for an old debt of three hundred pounds, and thrown into the King's Bench prifon.

THESE

THESE characters, Sir, though they are diftinct, yet do not all differ, otherwife than as fhades of the fame colour. And though they are ftages of a regular progreffion, yet the whole progrefs is not made by every individual: fome are fo foon initiated in the myfteries of the town, that they are never publickly known in their GREENHORN ftate; others fix long in their JEMMYHOOD, others are JESSAMIES at fourfcore, and fome ftagnate in each of the higher ftages for life. But I request that they may never hereafter be confounded either by you or your correfpondents. Of the BLOOD, your brother Adventurer, Mr. WILDGOOSE, though he affumes the character, does not seem to have a just and precife idea as diftinct from the BUCK, in which clafs he fhould be placed, and will probably die; for he feems determined to shoot himfelf, juft at the time when his circumftances will enable him to affume the higher diftinction.

BUT the retrospect upon life, which this letter has made neceffary, covers me with confufion, and aggravates defpair. I cannot but reflect, that among all these characters, I have never affumed that of a MAN. Man is a REASONABLE BEING, which he ceafes to be, who difguifes his body with ridiculous fopperies, or degrades his mind by deteftable brutality. Thefe thoughts would have been of great use to me, if

they

they had occurred feven years ago, If they are of use to you, I hope you will fend me a small gratuity for my labour, to alleviate the mifery of hunger and nakednefs: but, dear Sir, let your bounty be fpeedy, left I perish before it arrives.

I am your humble fervant,

Common fide, King's Bench,

O&. 18, 1753.

NOMENTANUS.

TUESDAY, October 23, 1753.

NUMB. 101.

-Eft ubi peccat.

I

SIR,

Yet fometimes he mistakes.

To the ADVENTURER.

HOR.

few

F we confider the high rank which MILTON has defervedly obtained among our English claffics, we cannot wonder at the multitude of commentaries and criticifms of which he has been the subject. ・・・ To thefe I have added fome mifcellaneous remarks; and if you should at firft be inclined to reject them as trifling, you may, perhaps, determine to admit them, when you reflect that they are new.

THE defcription of EDEN in the fourth book of the PARADISE LOST, and the battle of the

angels

:

angels in the fixth, are usually selected as the moft ftriking examples of a florid and vigorous imagination but it requires much greater ftrength of mind to form an affemblage of natural objects, and range them with propriety and beauty, than to bring together the greatest variety of the most splendid images, without any regard to their use or congruity; as in painting, he who, by the force of his imagination, can delineate a landscape, is deemed a greater master than he, who, by heaping rocks of coral upon teffelated pavements, can only make abfurdity fplendid, and difpofe gaudy colours fo as best to fet off each other.

"SAPPHIRE fountains that rolling over "orient PEARL run NECTAR, roses without "thorns, trees that bear fruit of VEGETABLE "GOLD, and that weep odorous gums and "balms," are eafily feigned; but having no relative beauty as pictures of nature, nor any abfolute excellence as derived from truth, they can only please thofe, who, when they read, exercife no faculty but fancy, and admire because they do not think.

IF I fhall not be thought to digrefs wholly from my fubject, I would illuftrate this remark, by comparing two paffages, written by MILTON and FLETCHER, on nearly the fame fubject. The fpirit in COMUS thus pays his addrefs of thanks to the water-nymph Sabrina :

May