ZINE.

A QUESTION.
SIR,

one of enter.
your

fet her up in a milliner fhop, her fa- To the EDITOR of the LADY'S MAGĄther gave 4 fcore pound with her for 5 yeares, her time is out, and the is not fixteen, as prity a black gentlewoman as ever you faw a little women well bapd and as fine a complextion for red and white as ever I faw and I e not dout but yt yr ldp will be of the fame oppinen, fhe defires to goe dowen about a mounth hence except I can provid for her which I cannot at prefent, her father was a minifter had 2 bandered a year by his benefitts, and my fifter had 2 hundered a yeare

A faining mifcellany is to give an opportunity for the ingenious to dif play their talents, I am induced to mention a circumftance to you, which happened a few nights ago, in a comPany where I was prefent.

The company confitted of a mixture of both fexes, and the conver

jeynter for her life by her first huf-fation accidentally turned on the naband foe there is 4 children left difli- ture of diftrefs, and the subjects tude, for if your lofp. think fit to make an apoyentmen where I fhall connected with it, fuch as charity, wait on you with my neece by a line Jympathy, &c. The forrows of the or 2 I stay for the anfwer, for I have opulent, the poor, the deferted, and the difeafed were fuccefively alluded no place fitted up fince I left my to in our friendly debate, and a genbous fitt to entertane yr bonnor, I tleman prefent propofed, as a further tould her yt the fhoud goe with me to fubject for converfation, to deterJe a gentleman yt was a very good mine, what that diftrefs is, which friend of mine foe I defire you to causes the greatest degree of fympathy in take no notice of my letter by reafon causes the greatest degree of fympathy in he ignorant of the ways of the torven, a feeling mind? my lord I difire if you meet us to come a lone for upon my word and bonnor you are the first yt ever mentioned her to foe I remaine yr Idfp moft humble fervant to command

I

Rachell Purfball.

Various opinions were given; and we protracted our debate fo long, that although it was holiday feafon, we never once thought of cards, or any amufement ufual at that period of the year. Some were for one kind of distress, and fome for another, which they had accidentally been witness to. But, as we could not

I beg you to burn it when you then agree on the fubject, we refolved

red it."

to communicate the question to you, that we might profit by the opinions and the talk of troubling you with of your numerous correfpondents, this letter devolved upon me.

I prefume that the question, as it is ftated above, in Italics, will be fufficiently intelligible to your readers.

We fee around us in the world various degrees of pain, forrow, diftrefs and mifery, and we are more affected by fome of them than by others. The question, therefore, is to determine, what kind of diftrefs it is which calls forth our greatest sympathy and commiferation. It is a fubject

F

34

fubject which, I am certain, if your correfpondents will apply their minds to it, may afford them fome knowledge of themselves, and, perhaps tend to intereft many in certain dif

treffes, which, from want of reflec-good of fociety, than by following the precarious guidance of a reafon, tion, they have paffed lightly over. too frequently corrupted and viti. ated, and at the best incapable of difpelling, on a fudden, the obfcurity in which the question of right and wrong is neceffarily involved. The down-hill path of error is flippery, and whither it may precipitate us to, in a mement, is not to be known. But thou fhalt not entangle me in the perplexed labyrinth of argument and fophifiry:. learn wisdom from the fate of Abudah.

I am, fir, youïs,

A Conftant Reader.

A BUD A H;

A TALE.

WHEN the calif Moawiyah held the fceptre of Egypt, there arofe in Cairo a profeffor of falfe knowledge, and teacher of paradox, The name of this fophift was Murad. One day, as he was difcourfing in his fchool, on his favourite topic, the nature of right and wrong, and obferving the difference between them, the arts of false reafoning, invalidating, by his fubtlety, the force of all pofitive inftitutions, and conftituting the reafon of every one, the fupreme judge of the rule of life, without confider ing how often it may be tainted by prejudice, or render d partial by

becomes a crine? Far better wer it to teach them, that happiness i more certainly to be found by inplicitly obeying the laws and rules which have been inflituted for the

In the midst of a fertile plain, through which the father of rivers pours the waters of abundance, ftands a village, the inhabitants of which, unacquainted with the glare of cities and of the fimple and innocent life which nature dictates. Among thefe, Abudab received the highest refpect and excited the warmest efteem from all to whom he was known, for his artlefs integrity and goodnefs of heart. His blamelefs character and irre

palion, the venerable Imaun Nou-proachable conduct held forth a raddin paffed by, and entering the model to the imitation of all around hall of difputation, liftened to the fpe- him, and he was beloved by the old cious gloffes with, which he amufed and admired by the young. his fcholars; and, when he had concluded, thus addreffed him.

O thou! who, by frivolous arts and noxious cunning, endeavoureft to darken truths, the most beneficialto

Eie the fun had yet gilt the fummits of the mountains, or the Tong of the early birds proclaimed the new-born day, Abudah fer out on a journey; but, when the glorious lu

throw down the boundaries by which
they are confined in the paths of
happiness, and direct them to follow
guides, which may lead them to un-
certainty and vexation? Why dif-
cufs forminutely the effential differ-
ence of errors, and why fet before
their undiftinguishing judgments
the fame action in various lights, ac-
cording to which, as thou fayeft, it
fometimes is innocent, and fometimes

the multitude, why fhouldest thouminary had advanced high in the
concave of heaven, and thot his di-
rect beams on his head, he grew
faint and thirty; and as he paffed on
his way, finding a pleasant arbour,
turned in to reft him in the flade. It
chanced, that in the arbour flood a
veffel of that pernicious extract of the
grape, which the prophet has, for
wife reafons, forbidden to be taffed
by the faithful. His thirft ftrongly
tempted him to break the law; and

reafoning

to whom this mischief was principally to be imputed, called aloud for help, with piercing heks, and being inflantly furrounded by her attendants, declared that the ruffian, who stood before them, after, in vain, attempting to violate her honour had murdered her lord, who flew to her refcue. Abudal, hocked at her falfhood, and perceiving his deftruc tion inevitable, in an agony of defpair, feized the poinard, with which he had been attacked, and firft stabbed her and then himself.

Thus did the man, who, till that moment had been an example of every virtue, by once fuffering himself to deviate from the laws he had been taught to honour, within the fpace of an hour, commit adultery, murder, and suicide.

reafoning with himfelf,with fophiftry,
fimilar to thine; O Murad, if, faid
he, I should break this politive com-
mind, what evil confequences can
refult, where none are witneffes?
even intoxication itself can produce
no ill effects in this fequestered place.
Encouraged by this reflection, he
proceeded to taste the inviting liquor,
and took, cup after cup, till it pro-
duced its ufual powerful effects. And
now, finding his ftrength renewed
and his fpirits unufually elevated,
he proceeded on his journey, and
foon after arrived at a delightful gar-
den, the door of which flood open.
Scarcely knowing what he did, from
the influence of the wine, he enter-
ed, and paffed through feveral walks
fhaded with fpreading trees and or-
namented with the fairest flowers,
till he came to a fuperb fummer-
houfe, in which reclined a beauteous
female, attired with every decoration
that might allure and captivate; who,
gazing on the ruddy complexion and

cluffering locks of the youthful ftran-glorious rays of the riding fun.
ger, and being herself devoted to
wanton dalliance, ufed all the arts of
love, to which he was no ftranger,
to excite his paffion, and make him

A CARD.

1

fenfible the was willing to gratify C. J. Pist prefents his compli

his ardour. imments to W. Edwy, acknowprudence, by banishing his reafon, ledges his politenefs in allowing him had removed far from him his guar-integrity of fentiment: he cannot dian angel, was foon caught by her help feeling regret that his papers on lure, and funk into her arms; but Mr. Pope's lines, fhould fubject him fcarcely had the tempeft of paffion to the charge of depreciating and infubfided before the lord of the man- fringing the refpect due to the fair fion, who was not fufpected to be fo fex: however he has the pleafyre to near, walking in his garden, had reflect, that he has been acquitted of difcovered Abudah and all that had the charge, by a number of that fex, paffed. Enraged at the intrufion of which flamps the acquittal with the ftranger and the infidelity of his greater impartiality; and the lady,

flave, he drew a poniard, and fud-from the nature of her office, (the Matron) ought to be equal to fuch a decifion.

denly rushed on the intoxicated youth, who, fenfible of his danger, grafped his antagonist, and threw The contest between them had him to the ground with fuch force,long ago ceafed in the part of C. J. that his head ftriking against a stone, P. but for the above charge: unhe expired on the fpot: and while willing therefore to engrois any farAbudah, flood transfixed with amaze-ther part of this mifcellany, on the ment, at the deed he had done; fhe, fubject, which might be ap, ropriated F2

The croud listened to the inftructions, which dropped from the venerable lips of the Imaun, and the fophiftry of Murad was diffipated, as the early vapours are difperfed by the

του

to one more entertaining and agree able; and unambitious of the palm, where his task is that which must be repugnant to the feelings of any perfon of fenfibility, expoling the frailties of others, he shall decline offering any more animadverfions on the fubject but retires from the field of controverfy, confcious of entertaining as profound a refpect for the female character, as his opponent or any other man exifling.

and he was forry to find things
carried fo far, left the blame fhould
be thrown upon him; he, there-
fore, ftrove to foothe her; but the
more fubmiffive he became, the
more compliance the demanded with
every idle with which came into her
head, fo that at last he threw off all
reftraint, and paying no regard
either to her or her family, oppofed
her in every thing, and fhe as po-
fitively thwarted and contradicted
him; his houfe was, therefore, a
perpetual fcene of difcord and con-
fufion. Mrs. Smith foon made her
mother acquainted with the ill-
humour of her husband, declaring,
very freely, at the fame time, that
if Louifa became happy with Mar-
low, the fhould actually die with
envy and despair. This declaration
had all the effect the wished it to
have on the gentle Louifa, who as
freely declared fhe could never be
happy if he was the cause of her
fifter's being miferable. Marlow
in vain told her, that, whether the
bleffed him with her hand or not, he
was certain that Maria was of too
difcontented a temper to be fatis-
fied with any thing.

"That may be," replied Louifa,
"but let not we appear the cause
of her diftrefs."

The CONTRAST.

(Concluded from Vol. XXI. p. 707.)

MA

ARIA, who had not married because he liked the man, foon became exceedingly difcontented with him; he was, indeed, not lefs fo with her, whofe temper he, in a very fhort time, found to be a very bad one; and the certainty of her fifter's going to be happy with Marlow, the man whom fe might have had, and who was, the well knew, of a difpofition to make any reafonable woman fatisfied, drove her almoft to distraction. She became, of courfe, ten times more difagreeable in her manners than fhe naturally was. She found fault with every thing in her houfe, with her fervants, and particularly with her husband, who, not being of the most obliging difpofition, was fill more irritated by her behaviour than a milder man might have been. He foon made replies to her taunting fpeeches, in tones louder than thofe in which fhe delivered them; in confequence of fuch increased animation on bis fide, they were continually quarreling; fo that, at laft, Maria protefted nothing fhould make her live with fuch a monster for ill-humour, adding that he would go home to her mother.

This determination alarmed him,

Mrs. Bowen was filent upon the occafion. She faw plainly that. Maria was in a fituation which required the gentleft treatment, and very much apprehended that her violent fpirits might be attended with the most dangerous confequences; the, therefore, did not oppofe Louifa's defire to retard her marriage; fe, however, endea voured to administer confolation to Marlow, by telling him that fhé was fure her daughter would never break the promife he had given him, and that he was yet young enough.

With thefe confolations he was obliged to be contented, while Louifa fpent a great part of her