fuperlative, one or the other of which serve for every unexpected throw of the dice in life. Le Diable! which is the first, and positive degree, is generally used upon ordinary emotions of the mind, where small things only fall out contrary to your expectations fuch as the throwing once doublets La Fleur's being kick'd off his horse, and fo forth cuckoldom, for the same reason, is alLe Diable! ways But in cases where the cast has fomething provoking in it, as in that of the bidet's running away after, and leaving La Fleur aground in jack-boots'tis the second degree, 'Tis then Pefte! And for the third - But here my heart is wrung with pity and fellow-feeling, when I reflect what miseries must have been their lot, and how bitterly so refined a people must have smarted, to have forced them upon the ufe of it, Grant me, O ye powers which touch the tongue with eloquence in distress! - whatever is my caft, Grant Grant me but decent words to exclaim in, and I will give my nature way. But as these were not to be had in France, I resolved to take every evil just as it befell me without any exclamation at all. La Fleur, who had made no fuch covenant with himself, followed the bidet with his eyes till it was got out of fight and then, you may imagine, if you please, with what word he closed the whole affair. As there was no hunting down a frighten'd horse: in jack-boots, there remained no alternative but taking La Fleur either behind the chaise, or into it. I preferred the latter, and in half an hour we got to the post-house at Nampont. NAM -- NAMPONT. THE DEAD ASS. And this, said he, putting the remains of a crust into his wallet and this, should have been thy portion, faid he, hadst thou been alive to have shared it with me. I thought by the accent, it had been an apostrophe to his child; but 'twas to his ass, and to the very ass we had seen dead in the road, which had occafioned La Fleur's misadventure. The man seemed to lament it much; and it instantly brought into my mind Sancho's lamentation for his, but he did it with more true touches of nature. The mourner was sitting upon a stone bench at the door, with the ass's pannel and its bridle on one side, which he took up from time to time then laid them down look'd at them and shook He then took his crust of bread out of his wallet again, as if to eat it; held it fome time in his hand then laid it upon the bit of his afs's bridle his head. looked wistfully at the little arrangement he had made- and then gave a figh. The fimplicity of his grief drew numbers about him, and La Fleur amongit the rest, whilft the horfes were getting ready; as I continued fitting in the post-chaise, I could fee and hear over their heads. were - He said he had come last from Spain, where he had been from the furthest borders of Franconia; and had got fo far on his return home, when his ass died, Every one seem'd defirous to know what business could have taken so old and poor a man so far a journey from his own home. It had pleased heaven, he said, to bless him with three fons, the finest lads in all Germany; but having in one week loft two of the eldest of them by the small - pox, and the youngest falling ill of the same distemper, he was afraid of being bereft of them all; and made a vow, if Heaven would not take him from him also, he would go in gratitude to St. Iago in Spain. When the murner got thus far on his story, he stopp'd to pay nature her tribute and wept bitterly. He said, Heaven had accepted the conditions; and that he had fet out from his cottage with this poor creature, who had been a patient partner of his jour ney - that it had eat the fame bread with him all the way, and was unto him as a friend. Every body who stood about, heard the poor fel low with concern La Fleur offered him. money. The mourner said, he did not want it the value of the afs The it was not but the lofs of him. ass, he laid, he was afsured loved him - and upon this told them a long story of a mischance upon their passage over the Pyrenean mountains which had separated them from each_other three days; during which time the ass had fought him as much as he had fought the ass, and that they had neither scarce eat or drank till they met. Thou hast one conifort, friend, said I, at least in the loss of thy poor beast; I'm sure thou haft been a merciful master to him. Alas! faid the mourner, I thought so, when he was alive - but now that he is dead I think otherwife. I fear the weight of myself and my afflictions together have been too much for him - they have shortened the poor creature's days, and I fear I have them to answer for. Shame on the world! said I to myself- Did we love each other, as this poor foul but loved his ass 'twould be fomething NAM |