company as an invitation to ask the time of the day, but nobody appeared to heed his overture; and his defire to be talking fo far overcame his refentment, that he let us know of his own accord that it was past five, and that in two hours we should be at breakfaft. His condefcenfion was thrown away; we continued all obdurate; the ladies held up their heads; I amufed myself with watching their behaviour; and of the other two, on efeemed to employ himself in counting the trees as we drove by them, the other drew his hat over his eyes and counterfeited a flumber. The man of benevolence, to fhew that he was not depreffed by our neglect, hummed a tune and beat time upon his snuffbox. Thus univerfally displeased with one another, and not much delighted with ourselves, we came at last to the little inn appointed for our repaft; and all began at once to recompenfe themselves for the constraint of filence, by innumerable questions and orders to the people that attended us. At laft, what every one had called for was got, or declared impossible to be got at that time, and we were perfuaded to fit round the fame table; when the gentleman in the red furtout looked again upon his watch, told us that we had half an hour to spare, but he was forry to fee fo little merriment among us; that all fellow-travellers were for the time upon the level, and that it was his way to make himself one of the company. "I remember," says he, "it was on "just such a morning as this, that I and my Lord Mum"ble and the Duke of Tenterden were out upon a ram"ble: we called at a little house as it might be this; "and my landlady, I warránt you, not fufpecting to whom E 3 "whom he was talking, was fo jocular and facetious, "and made so many merry answers to our queflions, "that we were all ready to burst with laughter. At "laft the good woman happening to overhear me "whisper the duke and call him by his title, was fo "furprised and confounded, that we could scarcely "get a word from her; and the duke never met me from that day to this, but he talks of the little "house, and quarrels with me for terrifying the land46. lady." He had scarcely time to congratulate himfelf on the veneration which this narrative must have procured him from the company, when one of the ladies having reached out for a plate on a diftant part of the table, began to remark "the inconveniences of travelling, and "the difficulty which they who never fat at home "without a great number of attendants found in per 66 forming for themselves fuch offices as the road re"quired; but that people of quality often travelled in "disguise, and might be generally known from the "vulgar by their condefcenfion to poor inn-keepers, and the allowance which they made for any defect "in their entertainment; that for her part, while the peo"ple were civil and meant well, it was never her cuf"tom to find fault, for one was not to expect upon a "journey all that one enjoyed at one's own house.” A general emulation feemed now to be excited. One of the men, who had hitherto faid nothing, called for the laft news-paper; and having perused it a while with deep penfivenefs, "It is impoffible," fays he, " for any man to guefs how to act with regard to the "ftocks: laft week it was the general opinion that "they would fall; and I fold out twenty thousand "pounds "pounds in order to a purchase: they have now risen "unexpectedly; and I make no doubt, but at my re-. "turn to London I fhall risk thirty thousand pounds "among them again." A young man, who had hitherto diftinguished himfelf only by the vivacity of his looks, and a frequent diverfion of his eyes from one object to another, upon this clofed his fnuff-box, and told us, that " he had a "hundred times talked with the chancellor and the "judges on the subject of the stocks; that for his part " he did not pretend to be well acquainted with the "principles on which they were established, but had "always heard them reckoned pernicious to trade, uncer"tain in their produce, and unfolid in their foundation; "and that he had been advifed by three judges, his "most intimate friends, never to venture his money "in the funds, but to put it out upon land. fecurity, "till he could light upon an estate in his own coun"try." It might be expected, that upon these glimpses of latent dignity, we should all have began to look round us with veneration; and have behaved like the princes of romance, when the inchantment that disguises them is diffolved, and they discover the dignity of each other: yet it happened that none of these hints made much impreffion on the company; every one was apparently fufpected of endeavouring to impofe falfe appearances upon the reft; all continued their haughtinefs in hopes to enforce their claims; and all grew every hour more fullen, because they found their reprefentations of themselves without effect. Thus we travelled on four days with malevolence perpetually increafing, and without any endeavour but to outvie each other in fupercilioufnefs and neglect E 4 and * and when any two of us could separate ourselves for a moment, we vented our indignation at the faucinefs of the reft. At length the journey was at an end; and time and chance, that strip off all disguises, have discovered, that the intimate of lords and dukes is a nobleman's butler, who has furnished a shop with the money he has faved; the man who deals fo largely in the funds, is a clerk of a broker in 'Change-alley; the lady who fo carefully concealed her quality, keeps a cook-shop behind the Exchange; and the young man, who is fo happy in the friendship of the judges, engroffes and tranfcribes for bread in a garret of the Temple. Of one of the women only I could make no disadvantageous detection, because fhe had affumed no character, but accommodated herself to the scene before her, without any struggle for dif tinction or fuperiority. I could not forbear to reflect on the folly of practif. ing a fraud, which, as the event fhewed, had been already practifed too often to fucceed, and by the fuccefs of which no advantage could have been obtained; of affuming a character, which was to end with the day; and of claiming upon falfe pretences, honours which must perish with the breath that paid them. But, Mr. Adventurer, let not those who laugh at me and my companions, think this folly confined to a ftage coach. Every man in the journey of life takes -the fame advantage of the ignorance of his fellow-travellers, disguises himself in counterfeited merit, and hears those praises with complacency which his confcience reproaches him for accepting. Every man deceives himself, while he thinks he is deceiving others; and forgets that the time is at hand when every illufion fhall fhall ceafe, when fictitious excellence fhall be torn a 6 way, and All must be fhewn to All in their real e The youth, who hopes th' Olympic prize to gain, FRANCIS. Ir is obferved by Bacon, that "reading makes a full man, conversation a ready man, and writing an ex"act man." As Bacon attained to degrees of knowledge fcarcely ever reached by any other man, the directions. which he gives for study have certainly a juft claim. to our regard; E 5 |