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N° 570.

Wednesday, July 21.

Nugæque canora.

Hor.

T

HERE is fcarce a Man living who is not actuated by Ambition. When this Principle meets with an honest Mind and great Abilities, it

does infinite Service to the World; on the contrary, when a Man only thinks of distinguishing himself, without being thus qualified for it, he becomes a very pernicious or a very ridiculous Creature. I fhall here confine my felf to that petty kind of Ambition, by which fome Men grow eminent for odd Accomplishments and trivial Performances. How many are there whose whole Reputation depends upon a Pun or a Quibble? You may often fee an Artist in the Streets gain à Circle of Admirers, by carrying a long Pole upon his Chin or Forehead in a perpendicular Posture. Ambition has taught fome to write with their Feet, and others to walk upon

their Hands. Some tumble into Fame, others grow immortal by throwing themselves through a Hoop.

Cætera de genere boc adeo funt multa, loquacem Delaffare valent Fabium

I am led into this Train of Thought by an Adventure I lately met with.

I was the other Day at a Tavern, where the Mafter of the House accommodating us himself with every thing we wanted, I accidentally fell into a Difcourfe with him; and talking of a certain great Man, who fhall be namelefs, he told me, That he had fometimes the Honour to treat him with a Whistle; (adding by the way of Parenthesis) For you must know, Gentlemen, that I whistle the best of any Man in Europe. This naturally put me upon defiring him to give us a Sample of his Art; upon which he called for a Cafe-Knife, and applying the Edge of it to his Mouth, converted it into a mufical Inftrument, and entertained me with an Italian Solo.

Upon laying down the Knife, he took up a Pair of clean Tobacco Pipes; and after having flid the fmall End of them over the Table in a moft melodious Trill, he fetched a Tune out of them, whistling

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whistling to them at the fame time in Confort. In fhort, the Tobacco-Pipes became Mufical Pipes in the Hands of our Virtuofo; who confeffed to me ingenuously, he had broke fuch quantities of them, that he had almost broke himfelf, before he had brought this Piece of Mufick to any tolerable Perfection. I then told him I would bring a Company of Friends to dine with him the next Week, as an Encouragement to his Ingenuity; upon which he thanked me, faying, That he would provide himself with a new Frying-Pan against that Day: I replied, That it was no matter, Roaft and Boiled would ferve our Turn. He fmiled at my Simplicity, and told me, That it was his Defign to give us a Tune upon it. As I was furprized at fuch a Promife, he fent for an old Frying-Pan, and grating it upon the Board, whistled to it in fuch a melodious manner, that you could fcarce diftinguish it from a Base-Viol. He then took his Seat with us at the Table, and hearing my Friend that was with me humm over a Tune to himself, he told him if he would fing out he would accompany his Voice with a Tobacco-pipe. As my Friend has an

agreeable

agreeable Bafe, he chofe rather to fing to the Frying-Pan; and indeed between them they made up a most extraordinary Confort. Finding our Landlord fo great a Proficient in Kitchen-Mufick, I asked him if he was Mafter of the Tongs and Key. He told me that he had laid it down fome Years fince, as a little unfashionable; but that if I pleased he would give me a Leffon upon the Gridiron. He then informed me that he had added two Bars to the Gridiron, in order to give it a greater Compass of Sound; and I perceived was as well pleafed with the Invention, as Sappho could have been upon adding two Strings to the Lute. To be fhort, I found that his whole Kitchen was furnished with mufical Inftruments; and could not but look upon this Artift as a kind of Burlesque Mufician.

HE afterwards of his own Accord fell into the Imitation of feveral Singing Birds. My Friend and I toasted our Miftreffes to the Nightingale, when all of a fudden we were furprized with the Mufick of the Thrufh. He next proceeded to the Sky-Lark, mounting up by a proper Scale of Notes, and afterwards falling to the Ground with a G 3 very

very eafy and regular Defcent. He then contracted his Whistle to the Voice of feveral Birds of the smallest Size. As he is a Man of a larger Bulk and higher Stature than ordinary, you would fancy him a Giant when you look'd upon him, and a Tom-Tit when you fhut your Eyes. I must not omit acquainting my Reader, that this accomplished Perfon was formerly the Master of a Toyfhop near Temple-Bar; and that the famous Charles Mathers was bred up under him. I am told that the Misfortunes which he has met with in the World, are chiefly owing to his great Application to his Mufick: and therefore cannot but recommend him to my Readers as one who deferves their Favour, and may afford them great Diverfion over a Bottle of Wine, which he fells at the Queen's Arms, near the End of the little Piazza in Covent-Garden.

Friday,