blood-fhedding, who in their trade of war butcher thoufands, not only of their fellow-profeffors, but often of women and children, without remorse; even thefe, I fay, in times of peace, when drums and trumpets are laid afide, often lay afide all their ferocity, and become very gentle members of civil society. In the fame manner an attorney may feel all the miferies and diftreffes of his fellow-creatures, provided he happens not to be concerned against them.

Jones, as the reader knows, was yet unacquainted with the very black colours in which he had been reprefented to Mr. Allworthy; and, as to other matters, he did not fhew them in the most disadvantageous light; for, though he was unwilling to caft any blame on his former friend and patron, yet he was not very defirous of heaping too much upon himself. Dowling therefore observed, and not without reason, that very ill offices must have been done him by fomebody: For certainly,' cries he, the fquire would never have difinherited you only for a few faults, which any young gentleman might have committed. Indeed, I cannot fay properly difinherited; for to be fure, by law you cannot claim as heir. That's certain that nobody need go to counsel for. Yet, when a gentleman had in a manner adopted you thus as his own fon you might reasonably have expected some very confiderable part, if • not the whole; nay, if you had expected the whole, • I fhould not have blamed you; for certainly all men are for getting as much as they can, and they are not to be blamed on that account.'

Indeed you wrong me,' faid Jones, I fhould have been contented with very little: I never had any view upon Mr Allworthy's fortune; nay, I believe. I may truly fay, I never, once confidered • what he could or might give me. This I folemnly declare, if he had done a prejudice to his nephew ← in my favour, I would have undone it again I had • rather enjoy my own mind than the fortune of another man. What is the poor pride arising from a magnificent houfe, a numerous equipage, a fplendid ⚫ table, and from all the other advantages or appear:

ances

6

.

⚫ances of fortune, compared to the warm, folid content, the fwelling fatisfaction, the thrilling tranfports, ⚫ and the exulting triumphs, which a good mind enjoys in the contemplation of a generous, virtuous, noble, benevolent action? I envy not Blifil in the prospect of his wealth; nor fhall I envy him in the poffeffion of it. I would not think myself a rascal half an hour, to exchange fituations. I believe, indeed, Mr. Blifil fufpected me of the views you men tion; and I fuppofe these fufpicions, as they arofe ⚫ from the bafenefs of his own heart, fo they occafioned • his bafenefs to me.. But, I thank heaven, I know, • I feel, I feel my innocence, my friend; and I would not part with that feeling for the world. For as long as I know I have never done, nor even defigned an injury to any being whatever,

Pone me pigris ubi nulla campis

Arbor aftiva recreatur aura,

Quod latus mundi nebulæ, malufque
Jupiter urget.

Pone, fub curru nimium propinqui
Solis in terra dominibus negata;
Dulce ridentem Lalagen amabo,
Dulce loquentem *.

He then filled a bumper of wine, and drank it off to the health of his dear Lalage; and, filling Dowling's glafs likewife up to the brim, infifted on his pledging him. Why then here's Mifs Lalage's health, with all my heart,' cries Dowling. I have heard her

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*Place me where never fummer breeze

Unbinds the glebe, or warms the trees;
Where ever lowering clouds appear,
And angry Jove deforms th' inclement year.

Place me beneath the burning ray,
Where rolls the rapid car of day;

Love and the nymph fhall charm my toils,

The nymph who fweetly speaks, and fweetly smiles.

Mr. FRANCIS.

• toasted

toafted often, I proteft, though I never faw her; but they fay fhe's extremely handfome.'

Though the Latin was not the only part of this fpeech which Dowling did not perfectly understand; yet there was fomewhat in it, that made a very strong impreffion upon him. And though he endeavoured by winking, nodding, fneering, and grinning, to hide the impreffion from Jones, (for we are as often afhamed of thinking right as of thinking wrong), it is certain he fecretly approved as much of his fentiments as he understood, and really felt a very strong impulfe of compaffion for him. But we may poffibly take fome other opportunity of commenting upon this, especially if we should happen to meet Mr. Dowling any more in the courfe of our hiftory. At prefent we are obliged. to take our leave of that gentleman a little abruptly, in imitation of Mr. Jones, who was no fooner informed by Partridge that his horfes were ready, than he depofited his reckoning, wifhed his companion a good night, mounted, and fet forward towards Coventry, though the night was dark, and it just then began to rain very hard.

CHAP. XI.

The difafters which befel Jones on his departure for Coventry; with the fage remarks of Partridge.

N

O road can be plainer than that from the place where they now were to Coventry; and, tho' neither Jones nor Partridge, nor the guide, had ever travelled it before, it would have been almost impos fible to have miffed their way, had it not been for the two reafons mentioned in the conclufion of the last chapter.

These two circumstances, however, happening both unfortunately to intervene, our travellers deviated into a much less frequented track; and, after riding full fix miles, instead of arriving at the ftately fpires of Coventry, they found themselves ftill in a very dirty lane, where they faw no fymptoms of approaching the fuburbs of a large city.

Jones

Jones now declared that they muft certainly have loft their way; but this the guide infifted upon was impoffible; a word which, in common converfation, is often used to fignify not only improbable, but often what is really very likely, and fometimes what hath certainly happened; an hyperbolical violence, like that which is fo frequently offered to the words infinite and' eternal; by the former of which it is ufual to exprefs a distance of half a yard, and by the latter, a duration of five minutes. And thus it is as ufual to affert the impoffibility of lofing what is already actually loft. This was, in fact, the cafe at prefent; for, notwithftanding all the confident affertions of the lad to the contrary, it is certain they were no more in the right road to Coventry, than the fraudulent, griping, cruel, canting mifer is in the right road to heaven.

It is not perhaps eafy for a reader, who hath never been in thofe circumflances, to imagine the horror with which darkness, rain, and wind, fill perfons who have lost their way in the night; and who, confequently, have not the pleafant profpect of warm fires, dry cloaths, and other refreshments, to fupport their minds in struggling with the inclemencies of the weather. A very imperfect idea of this horror will, however, ferve fufficiently to account for the conceits, which now filled the head of Partridge, and which we fhall presently be obliged to open.

Jones grew more and more pofitive that they were out of their road; and the boy himself at laft acknowledged, he believed they were not in the right road to Coventry; though he affirmed, at the fame time, it was impoffible they fhould have mift the way. But Partridge was of a different opinion. He faid, When they first fet out, he imagined fome mischief or other would happen.. Did you not observe, Sir,' faid he to Jones, that old woman who stood at the door just as you was taking horfe? I wish you had given her a small matter with all my heart; for 'fhe faid then you might repent it; and at that very inftant it began to rain, and the wind hath conti'nued rifing ever fince. Whatever fome people may think, I am very certain it is in the power of

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witches

witches to raise the wind whenever they pleafe. I have feen it happen very often in my time; and, if ever I faw a witch in all my life, that old woman was certainly one. I thought fo to myself at that very time; and, if I had had any halfpence in my ' pocket, I would have given her fome; for to be fure it is always good to be charitable to those fort of people, for fear what may happen; and many a perion hath loft his cattle by faving a halfpenny' Jones, though he was horridly vexed at the delay which this miitake was likely to occafion in his jour ney, could not help fmiling at the fuperftition of his friend, whom an accident now greatly confirmed in his opinion. This was a tumble from his horse; by which, however, he received no other injury than what the dirt conferred on his cloaths.

Partridge had no fooner recovered his legs, than he appealed to his fall, as conclufive evidence of all he had afferted; but Jones, fiading he was unhurt, anfwered with a fimile, This witch of yours, Partridge, is a mot ungrateful jade, and doth not, I find, diftinguifh her friends from others in her refentment. If the old lady had been angry with me ⚫ for neglecting her, I don't fee why the fhould tumble you from your horfe, after all the respect you have expreffed for her.

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'It is ill jefting,' cries Partridge, with people who have power to do thefe things, for they are often very malicious. I remember a farrier, who provoked one of them, by afking her when the time the had bargained with the devil for would be out; and, within three months from that very day, one of his best cows was drowned. Nor was fhe fatisfied with that; for a little time afterwards he lost a bar• rel of best drink; for the old witch pulled out the fpigot, and let it run all over the cellar, the very firft evening he had tapped it, to make merry with fome of his neighbours. In fhort, nothing ever thrived with him afterwards; for fhe worried the poor man so, that he took to drinking; and, in a year or two his ftock was feized, and he and his family are now come to the parish.'

The