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advantage of a feather in his hat, and heels to his shoes fo monftrously high, that he had three or four times fallen down, had he not been fupported by his friend. They made a full stop as they came within a few yards of the place where we ftood. The plain gentleman bowed to Pacolet, the other looked upon him with fome difpleasure, upon which I asked him who they both were? When he thus informed me of their perfons and circumstances.

"You may remember, Ifaac, that I have often told you there are beings of a fuperior rank to mankind, who frequently vifit the habitations of men, in order to call them from fome wrong pursuits in which they are actually engaged, or divert them from methods which will lead them into errors for the future. He that will carefully reflect upon the occurrences of his life, will find he has been fometimes extricated out of difficulties, and received favours where he could never have expected fuch benefits, as well as met with cross events from fome unseen hand, which have disappointed his best laid defigns. Such accidents arrive from the interventions of aerial beings, as they are benevolent or hurtful to the nature of man, and attend his steps in the tracks of ambition, of bufinefs, and of pleasure. Before I ever appeared to you in the manner I do now, I have frequently followed you in your evening walks, and have often, by throwing fome accident in your way, as the paffing by of a funeral, or the appearance of fome other folemn object, given your imagination a new turn, and changed a night you have destined to mirth and jollity, into an exercise of study and contemplation. I was the old foldier who met you last summer in Chelsea fields, and pretended that I had broken my wooden leg and could not get home; but I snapped it short off, on purpofe that you might fall into the reflections you did on that fubject, and take me into your hack. If you remember, you made yourself very merry on that fracture, and asked me Whether I thought I should next winter feel cold in the toes of that leg?' as is usually obferved, that those who lose limbs are sensible of pains in the extreme parts, even after those limbs are cut off. However,

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my keeping you then in the ftory of the battle of the Boyne, prevented an affignation which would have led you into more difafters than I then related.

"To be short, these two perfons you fee yonder are fuch as I am; they are not real men, but are mere shades and figures; one is named Alethes, the other Verifimilis. Their office is to be the guardians and representatives of confcience and honour. They are now going to visit the feveral parts of the town to see how their interests in the world decay or flourish, and to purge themselves from the many falfe imputations they daily meet with in the commerce and conversation of men. You obferved Verifimilis frowned when he first saw me. What he is provoked at is, that I told him one day, though he strutted and dreffed with fo much oftentation, if he kept himself within his own bounds, he was but a lacquey, and wore only that gentleman's livery whom he is now with. This frets him to the heart; for you must know he has pretended a long time to fet up for himself, and gets among a crowd of the more unthinking part of mankind, who take him for a perfon of the first quality, though his introduction into the world was wholly owing to his prefent companion."

This encounter was very agreeable to me, and I was refolved to dog them, and defired Pacolet to accompany me. I foon perceived what he told me in the gefture of the perfons, for when they looked at each other in difcourfe, the welldreffed man fuddenly caft down his eyes and discovered that the other had a painful fuperiority over him. After fome further discourse they took leave. The plain gentleman went down towards Thames Street, in order to be prefent, at least, at the oaths taken at the Custom House, and the other made directly for the heart of the city. It is incredible how great a change there immediately appeared in the man of honour when he got rid of his uneafy companion. He adjusted the cock of his hat anew, fettled his fword-knot, and had an appearance that attracted a fudden inclination for him and his interests in all who beheld him. For my part (faid I to Pacolet) I cannot but think you are mistaken in calling this perfon

of the lower quality, for he looks much more like a gentleman than the other. Do not you obferve all eyes are upon him as he advances? How each fex gazes at his ftature, afpect, addrefs, and motion? Pacolet only fmiled and fhook his head, as leaving me to be convinced by my own further obfervation. We kept on our way after him till we came to Exchange Alley, where the plain gentleman again came up to the other; and they stood together after the manner of eminent merchants, as if ready to receive application; but I could obferve no man to talk to either of them. The one was laughed at as a fop, and I heard many whispers against the other as a whimsical fort of a fellow and a great enemy to trade. They croffed Cornhill together and came into the full 'Change, where fome bowed and gave themselves airs in being known to fo fine a man as Verifimilis, who, they faid, had great interest in all princes' courts; and the other was taken notice of by feveral as one they had seen somewhere long before. One more particularly faid, he had formerly been a man of confideration in the world, but was fo unlucky that they who dealt with him, by some strange infatuation or other, had a way of cutting off their own bills, and were prodigiously flow in improving their stock. But as much as I was curious to obferve the reception thefe gentlemen met with upon 'Change, I could not help being interrupted by one that come up towards us, to whom everybody made their compliments. He was of the common height, and in his dress there feemed to be great care to appear no way particular, except in a certain exact and feat manner of behaviour and circumspection. He was wonderfully careful that his fhoes and clothes fhould be without the least speck upon them, and seemed to think that on fuch an accident depended his very life and fortune. There was hardly a man on 'Change who had not a note upon him; and each feemed very well satisfied that their money lay in his hands, without demanding payment. I asked Pacolet what great merchant that was, who was fo univerfally addressed to, yet made too familiar an appearance to command that extraordinary deference? Pacolet anfwered, "This perfon ist

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the demon or genius of credit; his name is Umbra. If you obferve, he follows Alethes and Verifimilis at a distance; and indeed has no foundation for the figure he makes in the world but that he is thought to keep their cafh, though at the fame time none who trust him would truft the others for a groat.' As the company rolled about, the three spectres were jumbled into one place when they were fo, and all thought there was an alliance between them, they immediately drew upon them the business of the whole 'Change. But their affairs foon increased to fuch an unwieldy bulk, that Alethes took his leave and faid he would not engage further than he had an immediate fund to answer. Verifimilis pretended that though he had revenues large enough to go on his own bottom, yet it was below one of his family to condefcend to trade in his own name, therefore he alfo retired." I was extremely troubled to see the glorious mart of London left with no other guardian but him of credit. But Pacolet told me, that traders had nothing to do with the honour or confcience of their correfpondents, provided they fupported a general behaviour in the world which could not hurt their credit or their purses. "For,” said he, "you may in this one tract of building of London and Westminster see the imaginary motives on which the greatest affairs move, as well as in rambling over the face of the earth. For though Alethes is the real governor as well as legislator of mankind, he has very little business but to make up quarrels, and is only a general referee, to whom every man pretends to appeal, but is fatisfied with his determinations no further than they promote his own interest. Hence it is that the foldier and the courtier model their actions according to Verifimilis' manner, and the merchant according to that of Umbra." Among these men, honour and credit are not valuable poffeffions in themselves, or purfued out of a principle of justice, but merely as they are ferviceable to ambition and to commerce. But the world will never be in any manner of order or tranquillity till men are firmly convinced that confcience, honour, and credit are all in one interest, and that without the concurrence of the former the latter are but

impofitions upon ourselves and others. The force thefe delufive words have is not feen in the tranfactions of the bufy world only, but alfo have their tyranny over the fair fex.

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Were men fo enlightened and ftudious of their own good as to act by the dictates of their reafon and reflection, and not the opinion of others, confcience would be the fteady ruler of human life; and the words truth, law, reafon, equity, and religion, would be but fynonymous terms for that only guide which makes us pafs our days in our own favour and approbation.

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