gentle fenfation, to fight it upon its own ground. When I had got to the end of the third act, the Count de B**** entered, with my passport in his hand. Mon. le Duc de C****, faid the Count, is as good a prophet, I dare fay, as he is a fiatesman Un homme qui rit, said the Duke, ne fera jamais dangereux. Had it been for any one but the King's jefter, added the Count, I could not have got it these two hours.Pardonnez-moi, Monf. le Comte, faid II am not the King's jefter.—But you are Yorick?-Yes - Et vous plaifantez? — I anfwered, Indeed I did jeft-but was not paid for it-It was entirely at my own expense. - - fince We have no jefter at court, Monf. le Comte, faid I; the laft we had was in the licentious reign of Charles II. which time, our manners have been so gradually refining, that our court at prefent is fo full of patriots, who wish for nothing but the honours and wealth of their country · and our ladies are all fo chafte, so spotless, so good, fo devout there is nothing for a jefter to make a jeft of Voilà an perfiflage! cried the Count. THE PASSPORT. VERSAILLES. As the Palfport was directed to all and com lieutenant-governors, governors, mandants of cities, generals of armies, jufticiaries, and all officers of juftice, to let Mr. Yorick, the King's jester, and his baggage, travel quietly along-I own the triumph of obtaining the Passport was not a little tarnished by the figure I cut in it. But there is nothing unmixed in this world; and fome of the graveft of our divines have carried it fo far as to affirm, that enjoyment itself was attended even with a figh-and that the greatest they knew of, terminated, in a general way. in little better than a convulfion. I remember the grave and learned Bevoriskius, in his Commentary upon the Generations from Adam, very naturally breaks off in the middle of a note, to give Vol. II. Q an account to the world of a couple of Sparrows upon the out-edge of his window, which had incommoded him all the time he wrote, and at last had entirely taken him off from his genealogy. It is ftrange! writes Bevoriskius : but the facts are certain, for I have had the curiofity to mark them down one by one with my pen-but the cock-fparrow, during the little time that I could have finished the other half of this note, has actually interrupted me with the reiteration of his careffes three-and-twenty times and a half. How merciful, adds Bevoriskius, is Heaven to his creatures! Ill-fated Yorick! that the graveft of thy brethren should be able to write that to the world, which stains thy face with crimfon, to copy even in thy ftudy. But this is nothing to my travels-So I twice -twice beg pardon for it. CHARACTER. VERSAILLES, AND how do you find the French? faid the Count de B***, after he had given me the Passport. The reader may suppose, that, after so obliging a proof of courtely, I could not be at a loss to say something handsome to the inquiry. -Mais paffe, pour cela-Speak frankly, said he; do you find all the urbanity in the French, which the world gives us the honour of? I had found every thing, I faid, which confirmed it—Vraiment. faid the Count,-les François font polisTo an excels, replied I. The Count took notice of the word excefs; and would have it I meant more than I faid. I defended myself a long time, as well as I could, againft it-he infifted I had a reserve, and that I would fpeak my opinion frankly. I believe, Monf. le Comte, faid I, that man has a certain compass, as well as Q & an inftrument; and that the focial and other calls have occafion by turns for every key in him; so that if you begin a note too high or too low, there must be a want, either in the upper or under part, to fill up the fyftem of harmony. - The Count de B*** did not understand mu. fick, so desired me to explain it some other way. A polifhed nation, my dear Count, faid I, makes every one its debtor; and befides, urbanity itself, like the fair sex, has so many charms, it goes against the heart to say it can do ill; and yet, I believe, there is but a certain line of perfection, that man, take him all together, is empowered to arrive at if he gets beyond, he rather exchanges qualities, than gets them. I must not presume to say, how far this has affected the French in the subject we are speaking of-but, should it ever be the case of the English, in the progress of their refinements, to arrive at the fame polish which diftinguishes the French, if we did not lofe the politesse de coeur, which inclines men more to humane actions, than courteous ones-we fhould at leaft lofe that diftinct variety |