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The way to dusky death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking fhadow, a poor player,
That ftruts and frets his hour upon the ftage,
And then is heard no more! It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of found and fury,
Signifying nothing.

BOOK

BOOK II.

NARRATIVE PIECES.

CHA P. I.

THE DERVIS E.

A DERVISE, travelling through Tartary, being arrived

at the town of Balk, went into the king's palace by mistake, as thinking it to be a public inn or caravan fary. Having looked about him for fome time, he entered into a long gallery, where he laid down his wallet, and spread his carpet, in order to repose himself upon it after the manner of the eastern nations. He had not been long in this pof ture, before he was discovered by fome of the guards, who asked him what was his business in that place? The Dervife told them he intended to take up his night's lodging in that caravanfary. The guards let him know, in a very angry manner, that the house he was in was not a caravansary, but the king's palace. It happened that the king himself paffed through the gallery during this debate, and fmiling at the mistake of the Dervise, asked him how he could poffibly be fo dull as not to distinguish a palace from a caravanfary? Sir, fays the Dervife, give me leave to ask your

majesty

majefty a queftion or two. Who were the perfons that lodged in this house when it was firft built? The king replied, His ancestors. And who, fays the Dervife, was the last perfon that lodged here? The king replied, His father. And who is it, fays the Dervife, that lodges here at prefent? The king told him, That it was he himself. And who, fays the Dervise, will be here after you? The king answered, The young prince his fon. • Ah, Sir,' said the Dervise, a house that changes its inhabitants fo often, and receives fuch a perpetual fucceffion of guefts, is not a palace, but a caravanfary.

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SPECTATOR

CHAP. II.

TURKISH

TALE.

WE are told that the Sultan Mahmoud, by his perpe

open

tual wars abroad, and his tyranny at home, had filled his dominions with ruin and defolation, and half unpeopled the Perfian Empire. The vifier to this great Sultan (whether an humorist or an enthufiaft, we are not informed) pretended to have learned of a certain Dervise to understand the language of birds, so that there was not a bird that could his mouth, but the vifier knew what it was he said. As he was one evening with the emperor, in their return from. hunting, they faw a couple of owls upon a tree that grew near an old wall out of a heap of rubbish. I would fain. know, fays the fultan, what thofe two owls are saying to one another; listen to their discourse and give me an account. of it. The vifier approached the tree, pretending to be very attentive to the two owls. Upon his return to the fultan, Sir, fays.he, I have heard part of their converfation ̧

but

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but dare not tell you what it is. The fultan would not be fatisfied with such an answer, but forced him to repeat word for word every thing the owls had faid. You must know then, faid the vifier, that one of these owls has a son, and the other a daughter, between whom they are now upon a treaty of marriage. The father of the fon faid to the father of the daughter, in my hearing, brother, I confent to this marriage, provided you will fettle upon your daughter fifty ruined villages for her portion. To which the father of the daughter replied, instead of fifty I will give her five hundred, if you please. God grant a long life to fultan Mahmoud; whilst he reigns over us, we shall never want ruined villages.

THE ftory fays, the fultan was fo touched with the fable, that he rebuilt the towns and villages which had been deftroyed, and from that time forward confulted the good of his people.

SPECTATOR.

THE

CHA P. III.

AVARICE AND LUXURY.

HERE were two very powerful tyrants engaged in a perpetual war against each other: the name of the first was Luxury, and of the second Avarice. The aim of each of them was no less than univerfal monarchy over the hearts of mankind. Luxury had many generals under him, who did him great fervice, as Pleasure, Mirth, Pomp, and Fashion. Avarice was likewife very strong in his officers, being faithfully ferved by Hunger, Industry, Care, and Watchfulnefs: he had likewife a privy-counsellor who was always at his elbow, and whispering fomething or other in his ear: the name of this privy-counfellor was Poverty. As Avarice con

ducted

ducted himself by the counfels of Poverty, his antagonist was entirely guided by the dictates and advice of Plenty, who was his first counfellor and minifter of ftate, that concerted all his measures for him, and never departed out of his fight. While these two great rivals were thus contending for empire, their conquefts were very various. Luxury got poffeffion of one heart, and Avarice of another. The father of a family would often range himself under the banners of Avarice, and the fon under thofe of Luxury. The Wife an 1 Husband would often declare themselves on the two different parties; nay, the fame perfon would very often fide with one in his youth, and revolt to the other in his old age. Indeed the wife men of the world ftood neuter; but alas, their numbers were not confiderable. At length, when these two potentates had wearied themfelves with waging war upon one another, they agreed upon an interview, at which neither of their counsellors were to be prefent. It is faid that Luxury began the parley, and after having reprefented the endless state of war in which they were engaged, told his enemy, with a franknefs of heart which is natural to him, that he believed they two should be very good friends, were it not for the inftigations of Poverty, that pernicious counsellor, who made an ill ufe of his car, and filled him with groundless apprehenfions and prejudices. To this Avarice replied, that he looked upon Plenty (the first minifter of his antagonist) to be a much more destructive counsellor than Poverty, for that he was perpetually fuggefting pleasures, banishing all the neceffary cautions against want, and confequently undermining those principles on which the government of Avarice was founded. At laft, in order to an accommodation, they agreed upon this preliminary, that each of them should immediately difmifs his privy-coun fellor. When things were thus far adjusted towards a peace,

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