thin. They confist only of a fole, without upper-leather or quarters. Before there paffes over, tranfverfely, a bow of linen, of a finger's breadth from the point of the fhoe to this bow, goes a thin round band, which, running within the great toe, ferves to keep the hoe fixed to the foot. The hoe, being without quarters, flides, during walking, like a flipper. Travellers have three bands of twifted ftraw, by which they faften the fhoe to the foot and leg, to prevent its falling off. Some carry feveral pairs of fhoes with them when they undertake a journey. Shoes may, moreover, be bought, at a cheap rate, in every city and village. When it rains, and when the roads are miry, thefe ftraw-fhoes abforb the moisture, and keep the feet wet. On the roads you may every where fee worn-out fhoes thrown afide by travellers; particularly at the brooks, where they can wash their feet when they change fhoes. In rainy and dirty weather, lumps of wood, excavated in the middle, with a bow and a band for the toe, are used instead of shoes; fo that they can walk without foiling their feet. Some have the common ftraw-fhoes faftened on fuch pieces of wood, three inches high. The Japanese never enter their houfes with fhoes, but put them off in the entrance, or on a near the entrance. This precaution is taken for the fake of their neat carpets. During the time the Dutch refide in Japan, as they have fometimes occafion to pay the natives vifits in their houfes, and as they have their own apartment at the factory covered with the fame fort of carpets, they do not wear European fhoes, but have, in their ftead, red, green, or black flippers, which can easily be put off at entering in. They, however, wear ftockings, with fhoes of cotton, faftened by buckles. Thefe fhoes are made in Japan, and may be washed whenever they become dirty. The way of dreffing the hair is not lefs peculiar to this people, and lefs univerfally prevalent among them, than the ufe of their long gowns. The men fhave the head from the forehead to the neck; and the hair remaining on the temples, and in the nape, is well befmeared with oil, turned upwards, and then tied with a white paper thread, which is wrapped round feveral times. The ends of the hair beyond the head, are cut croffways, about a finger's length being left. This part, after being pafted together with oil, is bent in fuch a manner, that the point is brought to the crown of the head, in which fituation it is fixed, by paffing the fame thread round it once. Great attention is paid to this head-drefs; and the hair is fhaved every other day, that the fprouting points may not disfigure the bald part. Priefts and phyficians, with interpreters, that are not arrived at maturity, make the only ex ception ception to this rule. Priefts and phyficians fhave the whole head, by which they are diftinguished from all other ranks ; and interpreters retain all their hair till the beard begins to appear. Women, except fuch as happen to be separated from their husbands, fhave no part of their head. Such a perfon I had occafion to fee at Jeddo. She was wandering about the country, and, with her bald head, looked particularly ill. Other women turn their hair upwards with oil and vifcid fub! ftances, fometimes quite close to the head, and at others spread out at the fides in the form of wings. The unmarried are frequently distinguished by these wings. Before the knot is placed a broad comb, which, among the lower fort, is of japanned wood; but, among the higher, of tortoife-fhell. Some wear flowers in their hair; but vanity has not yet led them to load their ears with ornaments. The head is never covered with hat or bonnet in winter or in fummer, except when they are on a journey; and then they ufe a conical hat, made of a fort of grafs, and fixed with a ribband. I have seen fuch a hat worn by fishermen. Some travelling women, who are met with on the roads, have a bonnet like a fhaving-bafon inverted, on the head, which is made of cloth, in which gold is interwoven. On other occafions, their naked heads are preferved, both from rain and the fun, by umbrellas. Travellers, moreover, have a fort of riding-coat, made of thick paper oiled. They are worn by the upper fervants of princes, and the fuite of other travellers. I and my fellow-travellers, during our journey to court, were obliged to provide fuch for our attendants, when we paffed through the place where they are made. A Japanese always has his arms painted on one or more of his garments, especially on the long and fhort gowns, on the fleeves, or between the fhoulders; fo that nobody can steal; which otherwise might eafily happen in a country where the clothes are fo much alike in stuff, shape, and size. The houses are, in general, of wood and plafter, whitewafhed on the outfide, fo as perfectly to refemble a house built of ftone. The beams are all perpendicular and horizontal; none go in an oblique direction, as elsewhere is ufual in houses conftructed of fuch materials. Between the pieces of wood, which are square, and but thin, bamboos are interwoven. which are afterwards plaftered with a mixture of clay, fand, and chalk. Thus the walls are not very thick, but, when whitewashed, they make a tolerably good appearance. There are no partition-walls within the house; it is fupported by upright pieces, which, at the ceiling, and at the floor, have crosspieces paffing between them, with grooves, which afterwa ds ferve for parting the rooms. The whole house, at first, makes but but a single room, which can be parted into several, by fliding boards in the grooves of the cross-pieces. They ufe, for this purpose, thin boards varnished over and covered with thick opake and painted paper. The ceiling is made of boards jointed clofe together; but the floor, which is always elevated above the ground, confifts of loofe planks. The roof confifts of tiles, made in a peculiar manner, very thick and heavy. The meaner houfes are covered with flabs, upon which an heap of ftones is laid to fix them down. The houfes commonly confift of two ftories, of which the upper is feldom inhabited; it is very low, and ferves for lumber-room. The houses of the rich and great are larger, and make a greater fhew than those of others; but they are not above two stories, or at moft twenty feet in height. [To be continued. ] MONTHLY CATALOGUE. [ For MARCH, 1786. ] MISCELLANEOUS. ART. 17. The Novelties of a Year and a Day, in a Series of Pi&tarefque Letters, on the Characters, Manners, and Cuftoms of the Spanish, French, and English Nations; interfperfed with Real Anecdotes. By Figaro. London, printed for the Author, at the Logographic Prefs. 12mo 3s fewed. Sold by J. Murray. T HE author, knowing that Figaro is a favourite, both here and in France, has endeavoured to profit by his celebrity. The work is a mere sketch, of which the touch, in fome parts, is not amifs had the canvas been properly filled up, it would have acquired more intereft and importance. Some of the leading traits in the characters, manners, and cuftoms of the French and English nations, are marked with fufficient force and correctnefs; of the Spanish, little or nothing is faid. The work, flight as it is, will afford information to fome, and entertainment to many. ART. 18. The Gamefters; a Novel. By the Authores of Burton Wood, and Jofeph. 12mo. 3 vols. 7s. 6d. fewed. Baldwin, 1786. This novel has more to recommend it, than most publications of the kind, which every day make their appearance. The characters are well fupported, and fufficiently various; the story well told, and the language above mediocrity. While it poffeffes the merit of placing, in the the most ftriking light, the fatal confequences of gaming, and illicit amour, there is not a thought or expreffion in the whole, that can bring a blush into the cheek of modefty, or taint the youthful imagination. But the performance is not without its blemishes ; fomething like what is called ftage trick in the drama, not feldom makes its appearance; the ftory is fometimes not fufficiently probable; and the boundless culpability of Mr. Wilmot often tempts us to defpife him, though he is reprefented in other refpects as a fenfible man. It is, however, a confiderable acquifition to the circulating libraries; and we heartily wish, that these repofitories of idle occupation were filled with works of equal innocence and refpectability. ART. 19. The Patriad: An Heroic Poem, in Three Books. 4to. 2s. 6d. Debrett, 1786. The defign of this performance is to ridicule the patriots, whether English or Irifh, who oppofed Mr. Pitt's twenty propofitions. The propofitions, in the opinion of our author, included a commercial fyftem, full of the wifeft policy, and the moft enlightened beneficience. The moral of his performance is included in one couplet. • Patriots I hate you, great and small, One HONEST MAN is worth you all.' The file of the performance is intended to be Hudibraftic, and the two first books are employed in what our author calls an invocation. A number of mufes are fuppofed to pass in review ; and one of them is at length felected, by whofe means we are kindly informed, that our author writes in the spirit of Ariftophanes, Plautus, Terence, Horace, Juvenal, Martial, Ariofto, Boccace, Rabelais, Le Fontaine, Moilere, Boileau, La Motte, Scarron, Shakespeare, Butler, Prior, Buckingham, Swift, Arbuthnot, Gay, Congreve, Garrick, Thornton, Coleman, Foot, Churchill, Sterne, and Peter Pindar. Having thus stated our author's modeft pretenfions, we will present our readers with one example of his execution. That mufe, who feems fo won'drous coy, Who teacheth ladies how to write Or who, as now the mode in France is, For comedies, write ftage-romances, So full of Venus and of Cupid, So fentimental and fo ftupid! Now take your leave, and court fey lowly: My compliments to Mrs. Cowley. I may be rude; but, on my life, I had much rather have a wife Could Could make a pudding or a pye Than write a play good reafon why; The character of the Patriad may be given in two words. The author has a few glimmerings of humour, but a full fhunshine of illiterateness and ignorance. His great skill lies in understanding, according to the prescription of Horace, the quid valeant humani. Had he pretended to write with thought and deliberation, he would have been intolerable, but he luckily enters into the ftile of a man already half feas over with fun and ftrong beer. ART. 20. An Authentic Account of Forgeries and Frauds of various kinds, commited by that most Confummate Adept in Deception, Charles Price, otherwife Patch, many years a Lottery Office Keeper, in London and Weftminster; who, to avoid a shameful and ingnominious Death, deftroyed himself in Tothill-Fields Bridewell, on the 24th of January, 1786. Published principally to gratify the Curiofity of the People, concerning a Man, who bad baffled every Mode of Detection fet on Foot by the Directors the Bank of England, and the Magiftrates of Bow-fireet, for upwards of five Years. With which is given, as a Frontispiece, an exact Reprefentation of his Perfon, in the Difguile which he wore when he negociated his firft Parcel of Counterfeit Bank Notes, in the Year 1780, and likewife bis Portrait in his ufual Dress. Small 8vo, Kearsley. 1786. Thefe memoirs of villany, although written in a very vulgar manner, and without that perfpicuity and clearness, which are fometimes to be found in the most vulgar narratives, fufficiently illuftrate the truth of the maxim, that honefty is the best policy: and furnish no uninterefting comment on the famous verfes of the pfalmift, on the excellence of moral wisdom, "I have more understanding than all my teachers; for thy teftimonies are my meditation: I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts." Had this unhappy man but known the peace of them that reverence the laws of God, this conviction would have availed him more than all his penetration, ENG. REV. VOL. VI. March, 1786. P fagacity, |