• of devotion in their behaviour. There was indeed a man in black, who was mounted above ⚫ the rest, and seemed to utter something with a great deal of vehemence; but as for thofe un⚫derneath him, instead of paying their worship to the deity of the place, they were most of them bowing and courtefying to one another, and a confiderable number of them faft afleep.

The queen of the country appointed two men to attend us, that had enough of our language to make themfelves understood in fome few particulars. But we foon perceived these two were great enemies to one another, and did not always agree in the fame ftory. We could make shift to gather out of one of them, that this ifland was very much infested with a monstrous kind of animals, in the fhape of men, called Whigs; and he often told us, that he hoped we should meet * with none of them in our way, for that if we did, they would be apt to knock us down for being kings.

Our other interpreter used to talk very much of a kind of animal called a Tory, that was as great a monster as the Whig, and would treat us as ill for being foreigners. These two crea<tures it seems, are born with a fecret antipathy ⚫ to one another, and engage when they meet as naturally as the elephant and the rhinoceros*. ⚫ But as we faw none of either of these species,

*Of these two animals the Indian Kings could have no ideas, and therefore feem here to be illuftrating obfcurum per obfcurius, and explaining the monsters spoken of here by animals that were not really in their country. U

VOL. I.

we are apt to think that our guides deceived us with mifreprefentations and fictions, and 'amufed us with an account of such monsters as ' are not really in their country.

These particulars we made a shift to pick out from the difcourfe of our interpreters; which we put together as well as we could, being able to understand but here and there a word of what they faid, and afterwards making up the meaning of it among ourfelves. The men of the country are very cunning and ingenious in handicraft works, but withal fo very idle, that we ' often faw young lufty raw-boned fellows, car• ried < up and down the streets in little covered rooms, by a couple of porters, who are hired ' for that fervice. Their drefs is likewife very barbarous, for they almost strangle themselves about the neck, and bind their bodies with many ligatures, that we are apt to think are the 'occafion of feveral diftempers among them, which our country is entirely free from. Inftead of those beautiful feathers with which we * adorn our heads, they often buy up a monstrous buth of hair, which covers their heads, and 'falls down in a large fleece below the middle of their backs; with which they walk up and down the ftreets, and are as proud of it, as if it was of their own growth.

<

'We were invited to one of their public diI verfions, where we hoped to have feen the great men of their country running down a ftag, or pitching a bar, that we might have difcovered who were the perfons of the greatest • abilities

⚫ abilities among them; but instead of that, they conveyed us into an huge room lighted up with ' abundance of candles, where this lazy people 'fat ftill above three hours to fee several feats of ingenuity performed by others, who it feems 'were paid for it.

'As for the women of the country, not being able to talk with them, we could only 'make our remarks upon them at a distance. They let the hair of their heads grow to a great length; but as the men make a great fhow with heads of hair that are none of their own, the women, who they fay have very fine heads of hair, tie it up in a knot, and cover it from being feen. The women look like angels, and would be more beautiful than the fun, were it not for little black spots that are apt to 'break out in their faces, and fometimes rife in very odd figures. I have obferved that those little blemishes wear off very foon; but when they disappear in one part of the face, they are very apt to break out in another, infomuch 'that I have feen a fpot upon the forehead in ⚫ the afternoon, which was upon the chin in the morning.'

The author then proceeds to fhew the absurdity of breeches and petticoats, with many other curious obfervations, which I fhall referve for another occafion. I cannot however conclude this Paper without taking notice, That amidst these wild remarks there now and then appears fom. thing very reafonable. I cannot likewife forbear obferving, that we are all guilty in fome

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measure of the fame narrow way of thinking which we meet with in this abftract of the Indian journal, when we fancy the customs, dreffes, and manners of other countries are ridiculous and extravagant, if they do not resemble thofe of our own. C*.

*.* At the defire of feveral ladies of quality, and for the entertainment of the Emperor of the Mohocks, and the three Indian kings, being the last time of their public appearance, on Monday next, May 1, for the benefit of Mr. Hemmings, will be performed, at the Great Room in York Buildings, a Confort of Mufic, &c. See TAT. N° 171, Note.

N°

51. Saturday, April 28, 1711.

Torquet ab obfcenis jam nunc fermonibus aurem.

HOR. 1 Ep. ii. 127.

He from the tafte obfcene reclaims our youth.

Mr. SPECTATOR,

Y

POPE.

My fortune, quality, and person are such, as

render me as confpicuous as any young woman in town. It is in my power to enjoy it in all its vanities, but I have, from a very 'careful education, contracted a great averfion to the forward air and fashion wich is practifed in all public places and affemblies. attribute this very much to the style and manner of our plays. I was last night at the

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*It appears from the preceding quotation, that SWIFT believed STEELE to have been the writer of this Paper; for it feems he gave the hint of it to him. Nevertheless it has ADDISON'S fignature in the original publication in folio, and is reprinted by Mr. Tickell in his edition of ADDISON'S Works in 4to.

, Funeral,

Funeral *, where a confident lover in the play, fpeaking of his niftrefs, cries out"Oh that Harriot! to fold thefe arms about the waist of that beauteous, ftruggling, and at last yielding fair!" Such an image as this ought, by no means, to be presented to a chafte and regular audience. I expect your opinion of this fentence, and recommend to your confideration, as a SPECTATOR, the con'duct of the ftage at prefent with relation to 'chastity and modesty.

'I am, SIR,

Your conftant reader and well-wisher."

The complaint of this young lady is so just, that the offence is grofs enough to have difpleafed perfons who cannot pretend to that delicacy and modefty, of which he is mistress. But

there is a great deal to be faid in behalf of an author. If the audience would but confider the difficulty of keeping up a sprightly dialogue for five acts together, they would allow a writer, when he wants wit, and cannot please any otherwife, to help it out with a little fmuttiness. I will answer for the poets, that no one ever writ bawdry for any other reason but dearth of invention. When the author cannot ftrike out of himself any more of that which he has fuperior to those who make up the bulk of his audience, his natural recourfe is to that which he has in common with them; and a defcrip

* A Comedy by Sir R. STEELE, acted at Drury-Lane, 4to. 1702. Act II. Scene 1. See "Le Spect." ou "Le Socrate Moderne," Tome I. Pref. p. iv.

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tion