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down to give an account-as much out of Necefity, and the befoin de Voyager, as any one in the clais.

I am well aware, at the fame time, as both my travels and obfervations will be altogether of a different caft from any of my fore-runners; that I might have infifted upon a whole nitch entirely to myfelf-but I fhould break in upon the confines of the Vain Traveller, in withing to draw attention towards me, till I have fome better grounds for it, than the mere Novelty of my vehicle

It is fufficient for my reader, if he has been a traveller himself, that with study and reflection hereupon he may be able to determine his own place and rank in the catalogue--it will be one step towards knowing himself; as it is great odds but he retains fome tincture and refemblance of what he imbibed or carried out, to the prefent hour.

The man who firft tranfplanted the grape of Burgundy to the Cape of Good Hope (oblerve he was a Dutchman) never dreamt of drinking the fame wine at the Cape, that the fame grape produced upon the French mountains-he was too phleg matic for that—but undoubtedly he expected to drink fome fort of vinous liquor; but whether good, bad, or indifferent-he knew enough of this world to know, that it did not depend upon his choice, but that which is generally called chance was to de-` cide his fuccefs: however, he hoped for the best; and in thefe hopes, by an intemperate confidence in the fortitude of his head, and the depth of his difcretion, Mynbeer might poffibly overfet both in his new vineyard; and by discovering his nakednefs, become a laughing-ftock to his people.

Even fo it fares with the poor Traveller, failing and posting through the politer kingdoms of the globe in pursuit of knowledge and improvements. Knowledge

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Knowledge and improvements are to be got by failing and pofting for that purpose; but whether ufeful knowledge and real improvements, is all a lottery and even where the adventurer is fuccessful, the acquired ftock must be used with caution and fobriety to turn to any profit--but as the chances run prodigioufly the other way, both as to the acquifi. tion and application, I am of opinion, That a man would act as wifely, if he could prevail upon himfelf to live contented without foreign knowledge or foreign improvements, especially if he lives in a country that has no abfolute want of either--and indeed, much grief of heart has it oft and many a time coft me, when I have obferved how many a foul flep the inquifitive traveller has measured to fee fights and look into difcoveries; all which, as Sancho Pança faid to Don Quixote, they might have feen dry-fhod at home It is an age fo full of light, that there is fcarce a country or corner of Europe. whofe beams are not croffed and interchanged with others Knowledge in most of its branches, and in moft affairs, is like mufic in an Italian fireet, whereof thofe may partake who pay nothing-But there is no nation under heaven-and God is my record, (before whofe tribunal I must one day come and give an account of this work)--that I do not speak it vauntingly-But there is no nation under heaven abounding with more variety of learningwhere the fciences may be more fitly woo'd, or more furely won than here-where art is encouraged, and will fo foon rife high-where Nature (take her altogether) has fo little to anfwer for-and, to clofe all, where there is more wit and variety of character to feed the mind with- Where then, my dear countrymen, are you going

-We are only looking at this chaife, faid they Your moft obedient fervant, faid I, fkipping out of it, and pulling off my hat-We were wondering, faid one of them, who, I found, was an in

quifitive

quifitive traveller-what could occafion its motion. 'Twas the agitation, faid I coolly, of writing a preface I never heard, faid the other, who was a fimple traveller, of a preface wrote in a. Def obligeant.It would have been better, faid 1, in

a Vis a Vis.

-As an English man does not travel to fee En-glish men, I retired to my room..

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CALAI S.

Perceived that fomething darken'd the paffige. more than myself, as I ftepp'd along it to my room; it was effectually Monf. Deffein, the Mafter of the hôtel, who had just returned from vefpers, and, with his hat under his arm, was most complaifantly following me, to put me in mind of my wants. I had wrote my felf pretty well out of conceit with the Defobligeant; and Monf. Deffein fpeaking of it, with a thrug, as if it would no way fuit me, it immediately ftruck my fancy that it belong'd to fome innocent traveller, who, on his return home, had left it to Monf. Deffein's honour to make the most of. Four months had elapfed fince it had finifh'd its career of Europe in the corner of Monf. Deiffein's coach-yard; and having fallied out from thence but a vampt-up bufinefs at the first, though it had been twice taken to pieces on Mount Sennis, it had not profited much by its adventures but by none fo little as the ftanding fo many months unpitied in the corner of Monf. Deffein's coach-yard. Much indeed was not to be faid for it but fomething might-and when a few words will rescue mifery out of her diftrels, I hate the man who can be a churl of them.

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-Now was 1 the mafter of this hôtel, faid I, laying the point of my fore-finger on Monf. Deffein's breaft, I would inevitably make a point of getting rid of this unfortunate Defobligeant-it ftands fwinging reproaches at you every time you pafs by it

Mon Dieu! faid Monf. Deffein--I have no intereft-Except the intereft, faid I, which men of a certain turn of mind take, Monf. Deffein, in their own fenfations-I'm perfuaded, to a man who feels for others as well as for himself, every rainy night, diguise it as you will, must caft a damp upon your fpirits-You fuffer, Monf. Deffein, as much as the machine

I have always obferved when there is as much four as fweet in a compliment, that an Englishman is eternally at a lofs within himself, whether to take it, or let it alone: a Frenchman never is; Monf. Deffein made me a bow.

C'eft bien vrai, faid he-But in this cafe I fhould only exchange one difquietude for another, and with lofs figure to yourself, my dear Sir, that in giving you a chaife which would fall to pieces before you would go half way to Paris-figure to yourself how much I fhould fuffer, in giving an ill impreffion of myself to a man of honour, and lying at the mercy, as I must do, d'un homme d' eSprit.

The dofe was made up exactly after my own prefcription; fo I could not help taking it-and returning Monf. Deffein his bow, without more cafuiftry, we walked together towards his Remife, to take a view of his magazine of chaises.

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must needs be a hoftile kind of a world, when the buyer (if it be but of a forry pott-chaife) cannot go forth with the feller thereof into the ftreet to terminate the difference betwixt them, but he inftantly falls into the fame frame of mind, and views his conventionist with the fame fort of eye, as if he was going along with him to Hydepark corner to fight a duel. For my own part, being but a poor, fwordfman, and no way a match for Monfur Deffein, I felt the rotation of all the movements within me, to which the fituation is incident

looked at Monfieur Deffein through and throughey'd him as he walked along in profile then, en face-thought he look'd like a Jew-then a Turk d liked his wig-curfed him by my gods-with- ed him at the devil

-And is all this to be lighted up in the heart for a beggarly account of three or four louis-d'ors, which is the moit I can be over-reached in ?Bale paffion! faid I, turning myfelf about as a man naturally does upon a fudden reverfe of fentiment bafe, ungentle paffion! thy hand is against every. man, and every man's hand against thee-Heaven forbid faid the, raifing her hand up to her fore head, for I had turned full in front upon the lady, whom I had feen in conference with the monk. fhe had followed us unperceived-Heaven, forbid indeed! faid 1, offering her my own-fhe had a black pair of filk gloves open only at the thumb and two fore fingers, fo accepted it without referve --and I led her up to the door of the Remile.

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Monfieur..

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