ing gentleman has ventured to retain many others?-We know what reply will be made to this charge. Had the gentleman expunged the whole, he knew it would not anfwer his avaricious views. Without a little smart, the piece would have been too infipid for the Bucks of the Town, who would have banished it from the ftage, unlefs the vacancies could have been fupplied with fomething more important than the dull genius of the Editor ever hit upon. In another part of the advertisement we are informed, that "without fuch a reformation our English comedies must be reduced to a very small number." This infinuates that the greater part of our English comedies are immoral. The falfity of this affertion is too notorious to be controverted. But, admitting this to be the cafe, why don't this gentleman give encouragement to the dramatic writers of this age? it is not impoffible, nor even improbable, but in this age of learning, men of genius might be induced to write good plays, could they be affured of meeting with proper encouragement.-But this will not answer the vain and avaricious views of the acting manager at this theatre; who cannot be content with being acknowledged the best actor in the kingdom, but he must acquire fame as an author alfo.-This, in part, is the cafe, but not wholly. If he can bring as much money to the theatre by altering an old play, as a new one will produce, thofe who know the reigning paffion of this gentleman, cannot be furprised at his conduct.-Well has this wonderful genius verified what a poet lately said: "Stage-managers by art grow great, And aim at power, and at ftare; Build country-feats and palaces, And treat the public as they please: To av'rice prone, and pride in view, They manage, act, and fcribble too." What has been faid above will account for the deplorable ftate of the English theatre; which has been on the decline for the last ten years. It will explain the mystery so often spoken of, why we have no good new plays. The reafon why fo many new plays as are offered yearly to the managers,

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are rejected, is not then because they are unfit for reprefentation, but, be caufe the profits of authors would infringe on the prefent emoluments of the managers. This grievance calls aloud for redrefs; but, as it is rather foreign to our prefent purpose, we fhall take it further into confideration in a future number, and difmifs it at this time, with an obfervation of an ingenious writer, who, fays, that "Any manager of a theatre ought to be deprived of his patent, which he holds in truft for the crown, and public, who dares fo to abuse their confidence, as to reject a good performance, when offered to the theatre, for the entertainment of the public." But to return to the Country Girl.

When the piece was first revived, in the year 1766, the manager was confcious that he had expofed himself to the cenfure of the judicious, and, therefore, endeavoured to apologize for himself, by affuring the public that the defire of fhowing Mifs Reynolds to advantage was the firft motive for attempting an alteration of Wycherley's Country Wife.-This Mifs Reynolds, was a raw, inexperienced girl, destitute of every qualification effential to the forming a good actress.-But the ftale artifice of a new title to the play, and a new actress to perform the principal character, was thought a fufficient allurement to bring a few good houses, at a fmall expence; as the manager undertook to alter the play, and Mifs was to have but a small salary till he could gain the favour of the public, through this important stroke of friendship from the manager. The play, however, met with no very great fuccefs, notwithstanding the many artful attempts to force it on the town; and, the young lady never rofe to any importance.

We are told, that "near half the play is new written."

The original play, we confefs, is greatly altered; for when the Editor expunges fome of the obfcene parts, he has alfo ftripped it of a great part of that luxuriancy of wit, with which it abounded. Some of the original characters are endeavoured to be dif

guifed under new names, but are fo plundered

LI 2

plundered of their original merit, as fcarcely to be known. Mrs. Pinch-wife is unmarried, and only under the guardianship of Pinchwife, once her hufband, by the name of Peggy; but, we venture to declare, that the is robbed of a great part of that fimplicity which rendered her fo refpectable in the original. Some of the characters are rejected, but none of thofe retained heightened in the leaft. In fhort, as it now ftands, many of the scenes are infufferably tedious and infipid, and the whole apparently confused and infignificant. What praife it might receive in its original ftate from the wits of the laft age, we know not, but, in its altered ftate, we cannot wish to fee it often nor can we, as its moral is ftill very vague, and its tendency ftill vicious, recommend the perufal of it.

It is well fupported in the reprefen tation, take the whole in the gros without examining too minutely into particulars. Mrs. Abington's perform ance in the character of the Country Girl, was truly fpirited and characteriftic, and it is but juft to observe, that in this part fhe ftands far before any competitor. Mrs. Abington is a favourite actress, and the merits the applause the conftantly receives, and this, no doubt, induced the managers to exhibit her in boy's cloaths, for the amusement of the youth in this great metropolis in the Christmas holidays. If the Bucks admire her in petticoats, what will they do when they fee her in breeches? why adore her to be fure, as we do thee, thou miracle of policy and cunning!

T is a very judicious faying of lord Bacon, and indeed most of his fayings are fo, that Proverbs ere the wifdom of the common people; but, at the fame time, we find them very far from being ufelefs, even to the more judicious part of mankind, as appears by the collections and commentaries made upon them by fome of the most learned and intelligent perfons in all nations.

I have been led into this reflection, by an obfervation I lately met with in a letter of a perfon generally esteemed for his knowledge of men and books. "It is, fays he, a truth that admits of no difpute, that Experience is the miftrefs of fools; but it is most true, in this refpect, that none but fools go to this old lady's fchool." At first fight, I did not comprehend this writer's meaning; but, upon reflection, I perceive that this remark is perfectly right; and that one of the cleareft diftinctions between wisdom and folly, is the needing, or not needing, the light of Experience.

The man of true good fenfe is conducted, with refpect to his own actions, by prudence only, and does

not need the affiftance of events to dif tinguifh what is right or wrong, good or evil. But a man of lefs folid abilities follows his humour, his inclination, or paffion, till fome inconveni ency convinces him he is in the wrong, and then he corrects himself.

We have an excellent example` of this kind in the famous story of Crafus king of Lydia, who in the dreadful reverfe of his fortune faved his life by crying out, Solon! Solon! Solon! When he was asked the reason, he faid, That this famous man being at his court in the time of his highest profperity, he had asked him more than once who he thought the happieft man, not doubting that he would have answered himfelf; but finding the fage no courtier in this refpect, he was forced to speak out, and to ask him, Why he was not ftruck with the appearance of his felicity? Upon which Solon told him, That there was no pronouncing any man happy till he was dead. This prudence taught the Greek philofopher, and in time his misfortunes taught it the Lydian prince; that is to fay, he was one of the fools that went to fchool to Experience.

It has been a maxim in the art of war, even fince a great Athenian general laid it down as fuch, that in it there is no room for a fecond mistake, which, in other words amounts to no more than this, That a general ought always to have a better tutor than Experience. A miftake in other arts may be repaired, in war feldom, if ever. In this fenfe, perhaps, as in many others, life is a kind of warfare, in which, if a man make one capital mistake, it is fatal to' him, and he has never after an opportunity of recovering it, There may, indeed, be many inftances produced that feem to contradict this obfervation, but whoever will confider thefe attentively, cannot help feeing that fuch inftances really confirm what has been advanced, for they awaken the mind from a state of fleepinefs and inaction, and put it upon exerting its natural powers, which when once done, that kind of forefight is quickly acquired which prevents our standing in need of Experience.

We may apply this fort of reafoning to feveral useful and beneficial purpofes. In the first place it should teach us, inItead of waiting for, and learning from Experience, to be ashamed of her affiltance, fince it is our own faults that we ever ftand in need of it, and confequently, it is a reflection upon our understandings whenever we correct our felves by it. We may be affured of the matter of fact from the great things that fome young men perform without any help from it at all. Thus, for inftance, Alcibiades among the Athenians, was at the head of the ftate almoft as early, as with us a young man, with tolerable parts, is at the head of Eaton fchool; and his victories made him terrible to all Greece at that time of life, when here he might have been taking his degrees. We may fay almoft the fame thing of Lucullus among the Romans, he came an accomplished general out of his clofet, and knew how to command the veteran officers in the Roman legions in his firft campaign. This evidently fhews not only the excellence of prudence beyond Experience, but that it is alfo a fhort cut, and though a fuperior kind of wifdom, is notwithstanding fooner and more ef

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fectually attained. Some, indeed, may pretend that these were extraordinary Genii, which I deny, and they can never prove; the ftature and the ftrength of men have been in all ages and climates very near alike; and we have reafon to believe the fame of their un'derftandings.

In the next place, the lights that we derive from Experience are very uncertain. A man that relies upon her may be a long time before he meets with her, and proceed a great way in the journey of life hefore he has an opportu nity of learning from her whether he is in the right road or the wrong. By this means he inverts the very nature of things, and muft many times derive his good fortune from untoward accidents, fince without the affiftance of thefe he can learn no leffons of confequence from Experience. Add to this, that he may be in great danger of miftaking thefe lights when he does meet with them; for the inftitutions of Experience, like the refponfes of oracles, are very often capable of double meanings, that is to fay, one man takes them in one fenfe, and another in another; nay, every man is naturally liable to take them in different fenfes, according to the age, temper, and circumftances he may be in when he receives them, and this is the reason that fome improve more, and fome lefs, in this fchool; fo that one would think the miftrefs partial, and that she did not take the fame care of all her scholars.

We may poffibly hear of a very copital objection to all that has been faid, which is, That fome have become very great men by her affiftance folely, and with very little help from books or converfation. The fact I fhall not pretend to deny, but then it admits of two anfwers, the firft is, That this very method of teaching renders it impoffible for fuch as are fo taught to make any great ufe of their knowledge; they must be all their lives long learning, and be precifely fit to come into the world when nature calls them out of it. The fecond anfwer is, That we very often mistake for Experience what are the effects of natural fagacity, which is the most different thing from Experience in the world. It is a kind of in

nate

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nate prudence, a happy difpofition of mind that fcarce flands in need of culture or education, that is, for the ordinary offices of life, but with the affiftance of it is capable of performing prodigious things; in fhort, it is what we commonly call parts, and the reafon that we think fuch as are endowed with them ftand in need of Experience is, because the quickness of their imaginations runs away with them, and therefore they want a curb.

Take the whole of this matter together, and the doctrine to be collected from it is this. The mind of man is endowed with fuch faculties by his creator, and thefe open themselves in a manner fo well proportioned to the growth of the body, that with the help of a proper education, and due attention, they both acquire their vigour at the fame time,

just as the law fuppofes that a man bas attained difcretion when he is at age. But all this depends upon prudence, and a perfon's having confidered and compared the nature of caufes and events, of which a man may be in a great measure mafter without feeing them, as appears by people's forming right judgments of what others ought, or ought not to do, whofe circumftances differ widely from their own. It may perhaps be asked, is Experience after all to go for nothing? and is a man never the wifer for the years he lives in the world? I neither affirm the one, nor deny the other; but what I fay is this, that Experience is a very cunning old lady, whofe advice a wife man will be always ready to hear, but will feldom think it worth his while to afk.

March 21, 1691. The King, during the fiege of Mons, came and dined within fight of the lines, took a walk about the place, and was, for fome time, within half mufket-fhot; a horfe-fentinel ftopping him, he was afked, "how! don't you know the King?"- "To be fure I do, but it is not his bufinefs to come fo far," the words were fcarce out of his mouth, when the trooper's horse was killed by a cannon-ball.

The King, in going about the lines, went to the hofpital to fee whether the fick and wounded were well taken care of; whether the broths were good;

whether the furgeons minded their duty. "An attention becoming a king, fays the remarker, and the more indifpenfible as of no expence.

April 5th.

The King ordered gratuitous distributions of meal and grain to the people in Dauphiny, who had fuffered moft while the enemy was in their country: Commiffioners were appointed, that the moft equitable eftimates might be made of their loffes; was this like a tyrant, as fo many books reprefent Lewis ? but I think they who blacken his memory, more to blame, than they who admire him without referve.

The king is fo good and condescending, as not unfrequently to hold two counfels in one day, that his minifters may be allowed fome days of reft and recreation at their country feats.

Mr. le Noftre, fo celebrated for his fkill and tafte in gardening, and Intendant of the royal buildings came to pay a laft vifit to the King in the eigh ty-eighth year of his age; the King ordered a wheel-chair to go round the gardens with him like his own. "Ah!

bear!

The King is always fo courteous and condefcending as to bid all who have the honour of attending him in his airings, to put on their hats. In Spain, all under a grandee go bareheaded in the royal prefence. At Conftantinople every body covers his head with his turban before the Sultan. Monfieur, the King's brother being a ftrict ceremonialift, would by no means allow any one to be covered in his prefence; accordingly the good natured King ufed to fay, with a fmile, "On with your hats, gentlemen, my brother

is not here.

The King having fettled the lift of perfons to be created knights of an order, appeared fomething troubled, and thoughtful, and Madame de Maintenon afking him if any thing aiied him? he anfwered, " my ailment is, that I am thinking how near it will go the heart of those who are overlooked in this promotion.

The great M. Colbert, his premier, has many times declared, that in all the twenty-five years, during which he had the honour of being very near his majefty, he only once heard him fpeak with any acrimony; but never any burst of paffion, or malevolence escape him. Thefe are the paffages which fhould be tranfmitted to pofterity, preferably even to triumphant campaigns, as documents to princes; their words often carry death with them.

They who have no knowledge of Lewis XIV. but from the perfecutions countenanced in his reign, will be furprifed at the many acts of goodness fpecified in this work. It is, however, in general certain, that two very oppofite portraits may be drawn of the fame perfon, and yet both have a great likenels; and equally certain is it, that Lewis XIV. was naturally well tempered, though his paffions and his minifters often drew him into evil. C. Mazarin fpeaking of this prince, ufed to fay" there is in him wherewith to make four kings and one worthy man."

1703.

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The king, who for fome years has left off going to the play, faid the other evening to the Marquis de Gevres, that he had heard of a very licentious farce being acted before the duke and duchefs of Burgundy, and directed him at the fame time to fend for the whole company of players, and acquaint them from him, that if ever they acted any fuch fcandalous pieces again, he would immediately difiifs them.

Very foon after the king of Spain, duke of Anjou, came to Madrid, an infamous adventure, which had just taken air, occafioned a great deal of laughter at court, the king, without joining in the converfation, only faid with a ferious air," are fuch things made matter of laughter here?" One of the ceremonies in Spain, to notify the Queen's pregnancy, is her going in a chair to our lady Datocha, all the grandees following on foot. This image is of wood, and annually on her feftival weeps moft copiously, which draws tears from all the congegration. One day, the preacher obferving a perfon with dry eyes, called to him, "how he could forbear weeping when the holy virgin fhed floods of tears." Ah! reverend father, anfwered he, "I am the perfon who yesterday fixed her in her niche, in doing which I drove three large nails into her backfide, if ever fhe was able to cry, the deuce is in it if the would not have cried then."

At the death of Lully, the celebrated mufician, he was found to have in cash by him 37,000 Lous d'ors and the amount of 20,000 crowns in filver, befides other effects and poffeffions.