6 SIR I Am a very great Scholar, wear a fair Whig, and have an immenfe Number of Books curioufly bound ' and gilt. I excell in a fingularity of Diction and Manners, and vifit Perfons of the firft Quality. In fine, I have by me a great quantity of Cockle-fhells; which, however, does not defend me from the Infults of ano⚫ther Learned Man, who neglects in a moft infupportable manner; for I have it from Perfons of undoubted Veracity, that he prefumed once to pafs by my Door without waiting upon me; whether this be confiftent with the Refpect which we Learned Men ought to have for each other, I leave to your Judgment, and am, SIR, Your Affectionate Friend, 6 Friend NESTOR, Philautus. Oxford, June 18 1712 I Had always a great Value for thee and white fo to fe But I mult tell thee, that to t Pole as th fo common eft to keep a though on frangay affecte Jounce, let me common enough older to graz priver, yet s me wiler Verly to me thou rec Company, and with a politive Su ciency, incident to old Age, to follow too much bu · own Inventions. Thou dependeft too much liken upon thy Correfpondence here, and art apt to take Peo ple's Words without Confideration. But my felent Bu finefs with thee, is to expoftulate with thee about a la Paper occafion'd, as thou fay't, by Jack Liaud's Infor mation, (my very good Friend) that we are to a Publick Act. 6 NOW, Ifay, in that Paper there is nothing contendce for which any Man of Common-Senfe will deny All that is there faid, is, that no Man or Woman's Repu a tion ought to be blafted, i. e. no Body ought to have an ill Character who does not defurve it. Very true; but here's this falfe Confequence infinuated, that therefore no Body ought to hear of their Faults; or in other • Words, let any Body do as much as he pleafes, he ་ ་ ought not to be told on't. Art thou a Patriot, Mr. Ironfide, and wilt thou affirm, that Arbitrary Proceedings and Oppreffion ought to be concealed or juftified? Art "-thou a Gentleman, and wouldft thou have base, fordid, Vignoble Tricks conniv'd at or tolerated? Art thou a Scholar, and wouldft thou have Learning and Goodmanners difcouraged? Wouldft thou have Cringing, Servility, parafitical Shuffling, Fawning, and dishonest Complyances made the Road to Succefs? Art thou a Chriftian, and wouldst thou have all Villanies within the Law practis'd with Impunity? Should they not be ⚫ told on't 'Tis certain, there are many things which, though there are no Laws against them, yet ought not 'to be done, and in fuch Cafes there is no Argument fo likely to hinder their being done, as the Fear of Publick Shame for doing them. The two great Reasons against an Act are always, the faving of Mony, and hiding of Toguery. ་ ་ ere many things are omitted which will be in the Spec Terræfilius. ND now, dear old IRON, I am glad to hear that at ele Years thou haft Gallantry enough left to have Thoughts of fetting up for a Knight-Errant, a Tamer of Monsters, and a Defender of Diftreft Damfels. ADIEU, old Fellow, and let me give thee this Adce at parting: E'en get thy felf Cafe-harden'd; for ho' the very best Steel may fnap, yet old Iron, you now, will ruf. Be Juft, and Publish thi Mr. IRONGIDE, Umbra. Oxford, Sat. 27, 1713. THIS Day arrived the Vanguard of the Theatrical Army. Your Friend, Mr. George Powell, commanded the Artillery both Celeftial and Terreftrial. The Magazines of Snow, Lightning and Thunder are fafely laid up. We have had no Difafter on the way, but that of breaking Cupid's Bow by a Jolt of the Waggon; but they tell us they make them very well in Oxford. We all went in a Body, and were fhown your Chambers in Lincoln College. The Terrafilius expects you f down, D. 3 4 ⚫ down, and we of the Theatre design to bring you into Town with all our Guards. Thofe of Alexander the Great, Julius Cafar, and the faithful Retinue of Cato, fhall meet you at Shotover. The Ghoft of Hamlett, and the Statue which Supped with Don John, both say, that tho' is be Noon Day they will attend your Entry. Every body expects you with great Impatience. We shall be in very good Order when all are come down: We have fent to Town for a Brick Wall which we forgot, the Sea is to come by Water. Your most humble Servant, and faithful Correfpondent, The Prompter. N° 96. Wednesday, July 1. Cunéti adfint, meritaque; expectent pramia palma. TH Virg HERE is no Maxim in Politicks more indifputable than that a Nation fhould have many Honours in referve for those who do National Services. This raifes Emulation, cherishes Publick Merit, and infpires every one with an Ambition which promotes the Good of his Country. The lefs expenfive thefe Honours are to the Publick, the more ftill do they turn to its Advantage. THE Romans abounded with these little Honorary Rewards, that without conferring Wealth or Riches, gave only Place and Diftinction to the Perfon who received them. An Oaken Garland to be worn on Festivals and Pubhick Ceremonies, was the glorious Recompence of one who had covered a Citizen in Battle. A Soldier would not only venture his Life for a Mural Crown, but think the most hazardous Enterprize fufficiently repaid by fo noble a Donation. BUT among all Honorary Rewards which are neither dangerous nor detrimental to the Donor, I remember none none fo remarkable as the Titles which are bestowed by the Emperor of China. These are never given to any Subject, fays Monfieur le Conte, 'till the Subject is dead." If he has pleafed his Emperor to the laft, he is called in all Publick Memorials by the Title which the Emperor confers on him after his Death, and his Children take their Rank accordingly. This keeps the Ambitious Subject in a perpetual Dependance, making him always Vigilant and Active, and in every thing conformable to the Will of his Sovereign. THERE are no Honorary Rewards among us, which are more efteemed by the Perfon who receives them, and are cheaper to the Prince, than the giving of Medals. But there is fomething in the Modern Manner of celebrating a great Action in Medals, which makes fuch a Reward much less valuable than it was among the Romans. There is generally but one Coin ftampt upon the Occafion, which is made a Prefent to the Perfon who is celebrated on it: By this means his whole Fame is in his own Cuftody. The Applaufe that is bestowed upon him is too much li mited and confined. He is in Poffeffion of an Honour which the World perhaps knows nothing of. He may he a great Man in his own Family; His Wife and Children may fee the Monument of an Exploit, which the Publick in a little time is a Stranger to. The Romans took a quite different Method in this Particular. Their Medals were their Current Mony. When an Action deserved to be recorded on a Coin, it was ftampt perhaps upon an hundred thousand Pieces of Money like our Shillings, or Half-pence, which were iffued out of the Mint, and became Current. This Method published every noble Ation to Advantage, and in a short space of Time spread through the whole Roman Empire. The Romans were fo careful to preferve the Memory of great Events upon their Coins, that when any particular Piece of Mony grew very scarce, it was often Re-coined by a fucceeding Emperor, many Years after the Death of the Emperor to whofe Honour it was firft ftruck. A Friend of mine drew up a Project of this kind during the late Ministry, which would then have been put in execution, had it not been too bufie a time for Thoughts of that Nature. As this Project has been very much talked of by the Gentleman above-mentioned to Men of the greatest Genius, as well as Quality, I am informed there is now a Defign on foot for executing the Propofal which was then made, and that we shall have feveral Farthings and Half-pence charged on the Reverse with many of the glorious Particulars of her Majefty's Reign. This is one of thofe Arts of Peace which may very well deferve to be cultivated, and which may be of great use to Pofterity. AS I have in my Poff ffion the Copy of the Paper above-mentioned, which was delivered to the late Lord Treasurer, I fhall here give the Publick a fight of it. For I do not queftion, but that the curicus Part of my Readers will be very well pleafed to fee fo much Matter, and fo many useful Hints upon this Subject, laid together in fo clear and concife a manner. 16 THE THE English have not been fo careful as other polite Nations to preferve the Memory of their great Actiens and Events on Medals. Their Subjects are few, their Motto's and Devices mean, and the Coins themselves not numerous enough to spread among the People, or defcend to Pofterity.. THE French have outdone us in these Particulars, and, by the Establishment of a Society for the Invention of proper Infcriptions and Defigns, have the whole Hiftory of their prefent King in a regular Series of Medals. THEY have failed, as well as the English, in coining fo small a Number of each Kind, and thofe of fuch coftly Metals, that each Species may be loft in a few Ages, and is at prefent no where to be met with but in the Cabinets of the Curious. THE ancient Romans took the only effectual Method to difperfe and preferve their Medals, by making them their current Mony. EVERY thing glorious or useful, as well in Peace as War, gave Occafion to a different Coin. Not only an Expedition, Victory, or Triumph, but the Exercise of a folemn Devotion, the Remiffion of a Duty or Tax, a new |