MONTRI UL. I AM apt to be taken with all kinds of people at first fight; but never more fo, than when a poor devil comes to offer his fervice to fo poor a devil as myself; and as I know this weakness, I always fuffer my judgment to draw back fomething on that very accountand this more or lefs, according to the mood I am in, and the cafe-and I may add the gender too, of the person I am to govern, When La Fleur enter'd the room, after every discount I could make for my foul, the genuine look and air of the fellow determined the matter at once once in his favour; fo I hired him firft -and then began to inquire what he could do: But I fhall find out his talents, quoth I, as I want them—besides, a Frenchman can do every thing. -Now poor La Fleur could do nothing in the world but beat a drum, and play a march or two upon the fife. I was determined to make his talents do; and can't fay my weakness was ever fo infulted by my wifdom, as in the attempt. La Fleur had fet out early in life, as gallantly as moft Frenchmen do, with Jerving for a few years; at the end of which, having fatisfied the fentiment, and found moreover, That the honour of beating a drum was likely to be its own reward, as it open'd no further track of glory to him-he retired à fes terres, terres, and lived comme il plaifoit à Dicu-that is to fay, upon nothing. -And fo, quoth Wisdome, you have hired a drummer to attend you in this tour of your's thro' France and Italy! Pfah! faid I, and do not one half of our gentry go with a hum-drum compagnon de Voyage the fame round, and have the piper and the devil and all to pay befides? When man can extricate himself with an equivoque in fuch an unequal match→ he is not ill off-But you can do fome. thing elfe, La Fleur? faid I-O qu'oui! -he could make fpatterdafhes, and play a little upon the fiddle- Bravo! faid Wifdome-Why, I play a bafs myself, faid Iwe fhall do very well. You can fhave, and drefs a wig a little, La Fleur? He had all the difpofitions in the world-It is enough for heaven! faid I, interrupting him--and ought to be enough enough for me-So fupper coming in, and having a frifky English, fpaniel on one fide of my chair, and a French valet, with as much hilarity in his countenance as ever nature-painted in one, on the other I was fatisfied to my heart's content with my empire; and if monarchs knew what they would be at, they might be as fatisfied as I was. F MONTRI UL. As La Fleur went the whole tour of France and Italy with me, and will be often upon the ftage, I muft intereft the reader a little further in his behalf, by faying, that I had never lefs reason to repent of the impulfes which generally do determine me, than in regard to this fellow he was a faithful, affectionate, fimple foul as ever trudged after the heels of a philofopher; and notwithstanding his talents of drum-beating and fpatterdash-making, which, tho' very good in themselves, happen'd to be of no great fervice to me, yet was I hourly recompenfed by the feftivity of his temper-it fupplied all defects-I had a conftant refource in his looks in all difficulties and diftrefles of my own—I was going |