N° 87.

Saturday, June 9.

Nimium ne crede colori.

Virg.

T has been the Purpose of feveral of my Speculations to bring People to an unconcerned Behaviour, with relation to their Perfons, whether beautiful or defective. As the Secrets of the Ugly Club were exposed to the Publick, that Men might fee there were fome noble Spirits in the Age, who were not at all displeased with themselves upon Confiderations which they had no Choice in; fo the Difcourfe concerning Idols tended to leffen the Value People put upon themselves from perfonal Advantages and Gifts of Nature. As to the latter Species of Mankind, the Beauties, whether Male or Female; they are generally the most untractable People of all others. You are fo exceffively perplexed with the Particularities in their Behaviour, that, to be at Eafe, one would be apt to wish there were no fuch Creatures. They expect fo great Allowances, and give fo little to others, that they who have to do with them find in the Main, a Man with a better Person than ordinary, and a beautiful Woman, might be very happily changed for fuch to whom Nature has been lefs liberal. The handfome Fellow is ufually fo much a Gentleman, and the fine Woman has fomething fo becoming, that there is no enduring either of them. It has therefore been generally my Choice to mix with chearful ugly Creatures, rather than Gentlemen who are graceful enough to omit or do what they pleafe; or Beauties who have Charms enough to do and fay what would be difobliging in any but themselves

DIFFIDENCE and Prefumption, upon account of our Perfons, are equally Faults; and both arife from the Want of knowing, or rather endeavouring to know, our felves, and for what we ought to be valued or neg lected. But indeed, I did not imagine these little Confiderations and Coquetries could have the ill Confequence

as

as I find they have by the following Letters of my Correfpondents, where it feems Beauty is thrown into the Accompt, in Matters of Sale, to those who receive no Favour from the Charmers.

Mr. SPECTATOR,

June 4.

FTER I have affured you I am in every respect A 'one of the handsomeft young Girls about TownI need be particular in nothing but the Make of my Face, which has the Misfortune to be exactly Oval. This I take to proceed from a Temper that naturally inclines me both to speak and to hear.

WITH this Account you may wonder how I can have the Vanity to offer my felf as a Candidate, which I now do, to a Society, where the SPECTATOR and Hecatiffa have been admitted with fo much Applause. • I don't want to be put in mind how very defective I am in every Thing that is ugly; I am too fenfible of my own Unworthiness in this Particular, and therefore I only propofe my felf as a Foil to the Club.

You fee how honeft I have been to confefs all my Imperfections, which is a great deal to come from a Woman, and what, I hope, you will encourage with the Favour of your Interest.

THERE can be no Objection made on the Side of the matchlefs Hecatiffa, fince it is certain I fhall be in ⚫ no Danger of giving her the leaft Occafion of Jealoufy: And then, a Joint-Stool in the very lowest Place at the Table, is all the Honour that is coveted by

Your most Humble

and Obedient Servant, ROSALINDA.

P. S. I have facrificed my Necklace to put into the Publick Lottery against the Common Enemy. And laft Saturday, about Three a Clock in the Afternoon, I began to Patch indifferently on both Sides of my Face.

Mr.

Mr. SPECTATOR,

UPON

London, June 7, 1711.

PON reading your late Differtation concerning Idols, I cannot but complain to you that there are, in fix or seven Places of this City, Coffee-houses kept by Perfons of that Sifterhood. These Idols fit and receive all Day long the Adoration of the Youth within fuch and fuch Diftricts: I know in particular, Goods are not entered as they ought to be at the Cuftom-house, nor Law-Reports perufed at the Temple; by reafon of one Beauty who detains the young Merchants too long near Change, and another Fair one who keeps the Students at her Houfe when they fhould be at Study. It would be worth your while to fee how the Idolaters alternately offer Incense to their Idols, and what Heart-burnings arife in those who wait for their Turn to receive kind Afpects from thofe little Thrones, <which all the Company, but these Lovers, call the Bars. I faw a Gentleman turn as pale as Ashes, because an Idol turned the Sugar in a Tea-Difh for his Rival, and carelefly called the Boy to ferve him, with a Sirrah! Why don't you give the Gentleman the Box to please himfelf? Certain it is, that a very hopeful young Man was taken with Leads in his Pockets below Bridge, where ⚫he intended to drown himself, because his Idol would wash the Dish in which he had but just drank Tea, before she would let him ufe it.

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I am, Sir, a Perfon paft being Amorous, and do not give this Information out of Envy or Jealoufie, but I ⚫ am a real Sufferer by it. Thefe Lovers take any thing for Tea and Coffee; I faw one Yesterday furfeit to make his Court; and all his Rivals, at the fame time, loud in the Commendation of Liquors that went against every Body in the Room that was not in Love, While these young Fellows refign their Stomachs with their Hearts, and drink at the Idol in this manner, we who come to do Bufinefs, or talk Politicks, are utterly poifoned: They have alfo Drams for thofe who are more enamoured than ordinary; and it is very common for fuch as are too low in • Conftitution to ogle the Idol upon the Strength of Tea, to flufter themfelves with warmer Li

: quors.

quors: Thus all Pretenders advance, as fast as they can, to a Feaver or a Diabetes. I must reapeat to you, that I do not look with an evil Eye upon the Profit of the Idols, or the Diverfions of the Lovers; what I hope from this Remenftrance, is only that we plain People may not be ferved as if we were Idolaters; • but that from the time of Publishing this in your Paper, the Idols would mix Ratsbane only for their Admirers, and take more Care of us who don't love them. I am,

R

SIR, Yours,

T. T.

N° 88.

Monday, June 11.

Quid Domini facient, audent cum talia Fures?

Mr. SPECTATOR,

Virg.

May 30, 1711.

Have no fmall Value for your Endeavours to lay before the World what may escape their Obfervation, and yet highly conduces to their Service. You have, I think, fucceeded very well on many Subjects; and feem to have been converfant in very different Scenes of Life. But in the Confiderations of Mankind, as a SPECTATOR, you should not ' omit Circumstances which relate to the inferior Part of the World, any more than those which concern the greater. There is one thing in particular which I wonder you have not touched upon, and that is the general Corruption of Manners in the Servants of "Great-Britain. I am a Man that have travelled and feen many Nations, but have for feven Years laft paft refided conftantly in London, or within twenty Miles of it: In this Time I have contracted a numerous Acquaintance among the best Sort of People, and ⚫ have hardly found one of them happy in their Servants. This is Matter of great Aftonishment to Foreigners, and all fuch as have vifited foreign Countries; efpecially fince we cannot but obferve, That VOL. II,

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there

there is no Part of the World where Servants have thofe Privileges and Advantages as in England: They have no where elfe fuch plentiful Diet, large Wages, or indulgent Liberty: There is no Place wherein they labour lefs, and yet where they are fo little refpectful, more wafteful, more negligent, or where To this I they fo frequently change their Masters. attribute, in a great measure, the frequent Robberies and Loffes which we fuffer on the high Road and in our own Houses. That indeed which gives me the prefent Thought of this kind, is, that a careless Groom of mine has spoiled me the prettieft Pad in the World ' with only riding him ten Miles; and I affure you, if I were to make a Regifter of all the Horfes I have <known thus abufed by Negligence of Servants, the Number would mount a Regiment. I wish you ⚫ would give us your Obfervations, that we may know how to treat these Rogues, or that we Mafters may enter into Measures to reform them. Pray give us a Speculation in general about Servants, and you make

• me

Yours,

Philo-Britannicus.

P. S. PRAY do not omit the Mention of Grooms in particular.

THIS honeft Gentleman, who is fo defirous that I fhould write a Satyr upon. Grooms, has a great deal of Reafon for his Refentment; and I know no Evil which. touches all Mankind fo much as this of the Behaviour of Servants.

THE Complaint of this Letter runs wholly upon Men-Servants; and I can attribute the Licentioufnefs which has at prefent prevailed among them, to nothing but what an hundred before me have afcribed it to, The Cuftom of giving Board-Wages: This one Inftance of falfe Oeconomy is fufficient to debauch the whole Nation of Servants, and makes them as it were but for fome Part of their. Time in that Quality. They are either attending in Places where they meet and run into Clubs, or else, if they wait at. Taverns, they eat

after