doubt of it, said La Fleur he flew.

In a very little time the poor fellow came back quite out of breath, with deeper marks of disappointment in his looks, than could arise from the fimple irreparability of the fragment-Jufie Ciel! in less than two minutes that the poor fellow had taken his laft tender farewel of herhis faithless mistress had given his gage d'amour to one of the Count's footmenthe footman to a young femftress — and the femftress to a fiddler, with my fragment at the end of it . Our misfortunes were involved together-I gave a figh and La Fleur echoed it back again to my

ear

How perfidious! cried La Fleur

How unlucky! said I.

-I fhould not have been mortified, Monfieur, quoth La Fleur, if she had loft it — Nor I, La Fleur, faid I, had I found it.

Whether I did or no, will be seen here

after.

THE ACT OF CHARITY.

PARIS.

THE man who either disdains or fears to walk up a dark entry, may be an excellent good man, and fit for an hundred things; but he will not do to make a good fentimental traveller. I count little of the many things I see pass at broad noon-day, in large and open streets. Nature is shy, and hates to act before fpectators but in fuch an unobserved corner, you sometimes fee a fingle short scene of hers, worth all the fentiments of a dozen French plays compounded together and yet they are abfolutely fine; and whenever I have a more brilliant affair upon my hands than common, as they fuit a preacher juft as well as a hero, I generally make my fermon out of them and for the text

"Cappadocia, Pontus and Afia, Phrygia "and Pamphilia❞— is as good as any one in the Bible.

There is a long dark passage issuing out from the opera comique into a narrow

ftreet; it is trod by a few who humbly wait for a fiacre *), or wish to get off quietly o' foot when the opera is done. At the end of it, towards the theatre, it is lighted by a small candle, the light of which is almost loft before you get halfway down, but near the door :—it is more for ornament than ufe you see it as a fixed ftar of the leaft magnitude; it burnsbut does little good to the world, that we know of.

In returning along this passage, I discern. ed, as I approached within five or fix paces of the door, two ladies ftanding arm in arm, with their backs against the wall, waiting, as I imagined, for a fiacre

as they were next the door, I thought they had a prior right; fo edged myself up within a yard or little more of them, and quietly took my ftand-I was in black, and scarce feen.

The lady next me was a tall lean figure of a woman, of about thirty-fix; the other of the fame fize and make, of about forty; there was no mark of wife or widow in

*) Hackney-coach.

any one part of either of them - they feemed to be two upright vestal fifters, unfapped by caresses, unbroke in upon by tender falutations: I could have wished to have made them happy their happiness was destined, that night, to come from another quarter.

A low voice, with a good turn of expreffion, and sweet cadence at the end of it, begged for a twelve-fous piece betwixt them, for the love of Heaven. I thought it fingular, that a beggar fhould fix the quota of an alms- and that the fum fhould be twelve times as much as what is usually given in the dark. They both feemed aftonished at it as much as myself. -Twelve fous! said one-A twelve-fous piece! faid the other-and made no reply.

The poor man said, He knew not how to afk lefs of ladies of their rank; and bowed down his head to the ground.

Poo! faid they-we have no money. The beggar remained filent for a mo“ ment or two, and renewed his fupplica

tion.

Do not, my fair young ladies, said he, ftop your good ears againßt me - Upon

my word, honeft man! faid the younger, we have no change. Then God blefs you, faid the poor man, and multiply those joys which you can give to others without change! - I observed the elder fifter put her hand into her pocket -I will fee, faid fhe, if I have a fous. A fous! give twelve, said the fupplicant; Nature has been bountiful to you, be bountiful to a poor man.

I would, friend, with all my heart, faid the younger, if I had it.

My fair charitable! said he, addressing himself to the elder-What is it but your goodness and humanity which makes your bright eyes fo fweet, that they outshine the morning even in this dark passage? and what was it which made the Marquis de Santerre and his brother say so much of you both, as they juft passed by?

The two ladies feemed much affected; and impulfively at the fame time they both put their hands into their pockets, and each took out a twelve-fous piece.

The contest betwixt them and the poor fupplicant was no more it was continued betwixt themselves, which of the twe