in the wet and cold at this late he noticed of that kind; but no fahour." Iu the morning, when the ftranger came to return thanks to his hofpitable benefactor, and take his leave, Mr. Hartley thus addreffed him: tisfactory evidence of actual defraud could easily be procured. It chanced, however, that one day, while Mr. Thorold was' fitting in a room which was only feparated by a thin partition from another in which Mr. Grime was with his brother, who lived there likewife as butler, he heard high words pafs between them; the latter' calling the other fcoundrel and thief, adding, " You You refufe to advance me a little money; fo, as I have you in my power, take care!-take care!" "My friend, you feem fcarcely to know where you are going: from the little converfation I have had with you, I have formed, and I make no doubt with reafon, a good opinion of your honefty and under-know I can prove it, you rafcal. ftanding; a perfon fuch as you may be of fervice to me. I fhall not be fo abfurd as to affign you any laborious employment; and I flatter myfeif I fall be above treating a man of your years with the haughty fuperiority too often manifefted by mafters. If you pleafe, you fhall, at any rate, remain here till we fee how we can agree, or till you meet with fome fituation more agree-which you fool away in every extraable." vagance? What would you have? Who would have been fo generous to you as I have been?" "Advance you money! (returned the other) I am always advancing you money.-Don't you owe every thing you have in the world to me? Did not I get you your place; and do I not find you in twice as much money as your wages amou to, The aged man accepted this offer with equal pleafure and gratitude. Mr. Hartley employed him in dif-` Generous, indeed!-Don't we ferent eafy fervices; but, principal- know the fource of your generofity? ly, as he found him particularly-Am not I in poffeffion of the paexpert in accounts (a complete know-pers that detect all your roguery? ledge of which he had acquired, by Don't I carry your halter in my having at one time of his life amufed pocket, you dog?" himfelf with ftudying the mathematics) in examining the accounts of Mr. Grime; in which he detected fo many errors, either cafual or wil ful, that Mr. Hartley was much confirmed in all his fufpicions of his dishonesty. Mr. Thorold (for fo Mr. Hartley had ordered he fhould be ftyled in the family) exerted himself with the utmost industry, and moft grateful zeal, in the fervice of his generous benefactor and mafter. He foon discovered enough to convince him that many of the demands of Mr. Grime on the eftate were of a very fufpicious nature, and that even his prefent statements were not of the clearest kind. He faithfully intimated to Mr. Hartley every thing "Come, come; (faid the fteward) here's money for you. What do you put yourfelf in fuch a paffion for " "I put myfelf in no pation (faid the other); only I can't bear to fee you fo curfed niggardly." Here the dialogue ended; and Mr. Thorold was now convinced there had been fome foul play on the part of Mr. Grime, and that proofs of it exifted, too, could they but be found, Mr. Thorold, now, both from his natural love of juftice, and in gratitude to his benefactor, exerted himfelf, by every means he could devife, to detect the artifice and difhonefty of Mr. Grime. He watched both him and his brother incefiantly: but he could learn no more, nor contrive any expedient by which he could could throw any farther light on, might be no time to concert any plan of defence. this dark transaction. He made known to Mr. Hartley, however, what he had overheard, who judged it more prudent to wait for further evidence, and not to proceed on this, which was certainly infufficient, and the difclofure of which could antwer no purpofe, but to put the parties effectually on their guard against any further discovery. Accident, however, at length, in concurrence with the vigilance of Mr. Thorold, produced the defired detection. The butler, one day, having left his apartment haftily, Mr. Thorold entered it,-and perceiving a pocket-book lying on the table, proceeded to examine it, and, to his great fatisfaction, found two letters addressed to Mr. Grime, in the hand writing of Mr. Hartley's father, which fhowed fufficiently the nature of fome of the fteward's difhoneft artifices, and, what was of moft confequence, afforded proof that one of the mortgages, and that to the moft confiderable amount, was an abfolute forgery. There were but two qualities wanting to Mr. Grime, to render him a finifhed and successful knave; he poffeffed neither courage nor prefence of mind: for no fooner did he find that the letters, which held him fo much in awe, were in the poffeffion of Mr. Hartley, than without confidering how fat fueh evidence might be of weight against him, or attempting any kind of defence) he fell on his knees before his mafter, in the most abject manner, and confeffed not only the forgery, but a variety of peculations and extortions of which he had been guil ty, offering all the property he had unjustly accumulated, to fave his life. Mr. Hartley, having caufed him to make the fame confeffion in the prefence of feveral respectable witnelfes, told him, that he would attempt nothing against his life, whatever power the law might have given him over it; nor would he require more of him than to restore what he had confessed he had unjustly acquired; which would still leave him in poffeffion of property fufficient for a decent fubfiftence. Thefe letters had been found by the butler, Mr. Grimes's bro. ther, who perceiving their importance, had threatened the fteward The deeds for this reftitution with a difcovery of his villany, were fpeedily drawn out and figned; unless he would engage that he and Mr. Hartley faw himself in poffhould receive one half of his il-feffion of nearly the whole of his gotten gains; which the other was father's eftate, clear of any incumcompelled to confent to; befides brance. which, he was continually drawing on him for ready money to fupport the profligate extravagancies to which he was addicted;and it was in confequence of one of thefe demands, that the altercation took place which Mr. Thorold had overheard. For Mr. Thorold, to whofe grateful vigilance he was indebted for this happy change in the ftate of his affairs, he provided generoufly; building a houfe for him near his own, and fettling on him a fum hạificient to fupply all his wantsy nor did the good old man ever relax in In poffeffion of thefe documents, his gratitude and zeal for the ferr-Mr. Thorold haftened to Mr. Hart- of Mr. Hartley, whole charter ori ley, who immediately refolved to generofity had rendered 109 199 I fend for the fteward, before his bro-days happy, at the lame min but ther fhould mifs the letters and in- they proved their own tears (SEL) form the other of his lofs,-that there bensractor.: ORIGIN of "The gry MARE's being the better HORSE." A every man who is mafter of his family himself, and an egg only where the wife governs, you will find your eggs gone before your horfes; I hope you will then think your own cafe not uncommon, but will be contented to go home, and look upon your own wife as no Gentleman, of a certain county in England having married a young lady of confiderable fortune, and with many other charms, yet finding, in a very fort time, that fhe was of a high domi-worfe than her neighbours. If, on neering fpirit, and always contend ing to be mistress of him and his family, he was refolved to part with her. Accordingly, he went to her father, and told him, he found his daughter of fuch a temper, and was fo heartily tired of her, that if he would take her home again, he would return every penny of her fortune. The old gentleman having inquired into the caufe of his complaint, asked him, "why he should be more difquieted at it than any other married man, fince it was the common cafe with them all, and confequently no more than he ought to have expected when he entered into the married ftate ?" The young gentleman defired to be excufed, if he faid he was fo far from giving his affent to this affertion, that he thought himself more unhappy than any other man, as his wife had a fpirit no way to be quelled; and as moft certainly no man, who had a fenfe of right and wrong, could ever submit to be governed by his wife." "Son, (faid the old man) -you are but little acquainted with the world, if you do not know that all women govern their husbands, though not all, indeed, by the fame method: however, to end all difputes between us, I will put what I have faid on this proof, if you are willing to try it: I have five horfes in my ftable; you shall harness these to a cart, in which I fhall put a basket containing one hundred eggs; and if, in paffing through the county, and making a ftrict inquiry into the truthor falsehood of my affertion, and leaving a horfe at the houfe of 6 the other hand, your horfes are gone first, I will take my daughter home again, and you fhall keep her fortune." This propofal was too advantageous to be rejected; our young married man, therefore, fet out with great eagerness to get rid, as he thought, of his horfes and his wife. At the first house he came to, he heard a woman, with a fhrill and angry voice, call to her husband to go to the door. Here he left an egg, you may be fure, without making any further inquiry; at the next he met with fomething of the fame kind; and at every houfe, in fhort, until his eggs were almoft gone, when he arrived at the feat of a gentleman of family and figure in the county; he knocked at the door, and inquiring for the mafter of the houfe, was told by a fervant that his mafter was not yet ftirring, but, if he pleafed to walk in, his lady was in the parlour. The lady, with great complaifance, defired him to feat himfelf, and faid, "if his bufinefs was very urgent, fhe would wake her husband to let him know it, but had much rather not disturb him." " him."Why, really, madam (faid he) my bufinefs is only to ask a queltion, which you can refolve as well as your husband, if you will be ingenuous with me: you will, doubtlefs, think it odd; and it may be deemed impolite for any one, much more a stranger, to afk fuch a queftion; but as a very confiderable wąger depends upon it, and it may be fome advantage to yourself to declare the truth to me, I hope these confiderations will plead my ex cufe. cufe. It is, madam, to defire to be, informed, whether you govern your husband, or he rules over you?" Indeed, fir, (replied the lady) this queftion is fomewhat odd: but, as I think no one ought to be afhamed of doing their duty, I fhall make no fcruple to fay, that I have been always proud to obey my husband in all things; but, if a woman's own word is to be fufpected in fuch a eafe, let him anfwer for me: for here he comes. The gentleman at that moment entering the room, and, after fome, apologies, being made acquainted with the Eufines, confirmed every word his obedient wife had reported in her own favour; upon which he was invited to choofe which horfe in the team he liked best, and to accept of it as a prefent. A black gelding ftruck the fancy of the gentleman moft; but the lady defired he would choofe the grey mare, which, the thought, would be very fit for her fide-faddle; her but band gave fubftantial reafons why the black horfe would be moft ufeful to them; but madam ftill perfifted in her claim to the grey mare, "What (faid fhe) and will you not take her then? But I fay you fhall; for Lam fure the grey mare is much the better horfe." "Well, my dear, (replied the hufband) if it mult be fo"-" You must take an egg (replied the gentleman carter); and I must take all my horfes back again, and endeavour to live happy with my wife. NUMERICAL COINCIDENCES. THE number nine has always been and is ftill remarked as poffeffing uncommon powers, and producing coincidences in an traordinary degree. Yet there can fcarcely be a greater number of coincidences than were A bankrupt, furrendered him Negro, who had become felf to his creditor, who, according country in fuch cafes, föld him to to the established cuftom of the the Danes. Before the departine of fon of this man came to him on hipthe vellel for the Weft-Indies,' the board. After the tendereft eff fions of fenfibility on both fides, the fon refpectfully reproached the father for not having made ufe of the pow er the law gave him, of felling his children for paying his debts; and demanded, with great earnestness, to be allowed to take his place: but the fon, having refufed to agree to the father, not lefs generous than this exchange, the fon applied to the owner of the flaves, and Bad no difficulty in perfuading him that a ESSAY ESSAY ON DELICACY of SENTI- | number of votaries to diffufe a general tafte for an infenfibility. It perhaps originally meant no more MENT. - HE character of delicacy of than to teach men to govern their pre-affections by the dictates fent, seems to have been unknown but as a natural want of feeling pro to the ancients. It is certainly a duced the fame effects as a rational great refinement on humanity.-regulation of the paffions, it foon Refinements were never attended to paffed among the vulgar for what it in the earlier ages, when the occupa- could lay no claim to, a philofo tions of war, and the wants of un- phical indifference. improved life, left little opportunity, and lefs inclination, for fanciful enjoyments. Dangers and diftrefs require ftrength of mind, and necessarily exclude an attention to thofe delicacies, which, while they please, infallibly enervate. That refpectful attention to wo men, which in modern times is call. ed gallantry, was not to be found amongst the ancients. Women were looked upon as inferior beings, whofe only duty was to contribute to pleafure, and fuperintend domeftic economy. It was not till the days of chivalry that men fhowed the defire of pleafing the fofter fex, which That tenderness which is amiable in a state of perfect civilisation, is defpited as a wraknefs among unpo. lifhed nations. Shocked at the small-feems to allow them a fuperiority. eft circumstances which are difa- This deference to women refines the greeable, it cannot fupport the idea manners, and foftens the temper; of danger and alarm. Likewife, and it is no wonder that the ancients, from exercifing the cruelties which who admitted no women to their are fometimes politically neceflary focial converfations, fhould acquire in a rude state, it starts with horror a roughness of manners incompatifrom the fight, and at the defcrip.ble with delicacy of fentiment. ition of them. It delights in the calm occupations of rural life, and would gladly refign the fpear and the fhield, for the thepherd's crook and the lover's garland. But in an uninformed community, where con-contributed rather to harden than ftant dangers require conftant defence, thofe difpofitions which delight in retirement and eafe will be treated with general contempt; and no temper of mind which is defpifed will be long epidemical. Men who acted, thought, and fpoke like the ancients, were unquestionably furnished by nature with every feeling in great perfection. But their mode of education' mollify their hearts. Politics and war were the fole general objects. Ambition, it is well known, renders all other paffions fubfervient to it!elf: and the youth who had been accuftomed to military difcipline, and The ancient Greeks and Romans had endured the hardships of a camwere the most civilifed people on the paign, though he might yield to the earth. They, however, were unac- allurements of pleafure, would not quainted with that extreme delicacy have time to attend to the refineof fentiment which is become foments of delicacy. But the modern univerfally prevalent in modern times. Perhaps fome reafonable caufes may be affigned. The Stoic philofophy endeavoured to introduce a total apathy and, though it was not embraced in all its rigidity by the vulgar, yet it had a fuficient VOL. XXVII. foldier, in the prefent mode of conducting war, is not compelled to undergo many perfonal hardthips, either in the preparation for his profeffion, or in the exercife of it. Commerce, but little known to many anclent nations, gives the moderns an 32 opper |