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a Soul as noble, and as fufceptible of high thoughts, as they whom he reprefents: I hall therefore lay by my Drama for fome time, and turn my thoughts to cares and griefs, fomewhat below that of heroes, but no lefs moving. A misfortune, proper for me to take notice of, has too lately happened: The difconfolate Maria has three days kept her chamber for the lofs of the beauteous Fidelia, her lap-dog. Lebia herself did not shed more tears for her fparrow. What makes her the more concerned, is, that we know not whether Fidelia was killed or ftolen; but fhe was feen in the parlour-window when the Train-bands went by, and never fince. Whoever gives notice of her, dead or alive, fhall be rewarded with a kifs of her Lady.

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From my own Apartment, July 29.

HIS day I obliged Pacolet to entertain me with matters which regarded perfons of his own character and occupation. We chofe to take our walk on Tower-bill; and as we were coming from thence in order to ftroll as far as Garraway's, I obferved two men, who had but just landed, coming from the water-fide. I thought there was fomething uncommon in their mien and afpect; but though they seemed by their visage to. be related, yet was there a warmeh in their manner, as if they differed very much in their fentiments of the subject on which they were talking. One of them feemed to have a natural confidence, mixed with an ingenuous freedom in his gesture, his dress very plain, but very graceful

graceful and becoming: The other, in the midst of an over-bearing carriage, betrayed, by frequent looking round him, a fufpicion that he was not enough regarded by thofe he met, or that he feared they would make fome attack upon him. This perfon was much taller than his companion, and added to that height the advantage of a feather in his hat, and heels to his fhoes fo monftrously high, that he had three or four times fallen down, had he not been fupported by his friend. They made a full stop as they came within a few yards of the place where we ftood. The plain Gentleman bowed to Pacolet; the other looked upon him with fome difpleafure: Upon which I asked him, who they both were? When he thus informed me of their perfons and circumftances.

You may remember, Ifaac, that I have often told you, there are Beings of a fuperior rank to mankind; who frequently vifit the habitations of men, in order to call them from fome wrong pursuits in which they are actually engaged, or divert them from methods which will lead them into errors for the future. He that will carefully reflect upon the occurrences of his life, will find he has been fometimes extricated out of difficulties, and receiv ed favours where he could never have expected fuch benefits; as well as met with cross events from fome unfeen hand, which has difappointed his beft laid defigns. Such accidents arrive from the interventions of aerial Beings, as they are benevolent or hurtful to the nature of man, and attend his fteps in the tracks of ambition, of bufinefs, and of pleafure. Before I ever appeared to you in the manner I do now, I have frequently followed you in your evening-walks, and have often, by throwing fome accident in your way, as the paffing by of a funeral, or the appearance of forme other folemn object, given your imagination a new turn, and changed a night you have deftined to mirth and jollity, into an exercise of ftudy and contemplation. I was the old foldier who met you laft fummer in Chelsea fields, and pretended that T had broken my wooden leg, and could not get home; but I fnapped it fhort off, on purpofe that you might fall into the reflections you did on that fubject, and take me into your Hack. If you remember, you made yourself

very merry on that fracture, and afked me whether I thought I fhould next winter feel colp in the toes of that leg as is ufually obferved, that those who lofe limbs are fenfible of pains in the extreme parts, even after thofe limbs are cut off. However, my keeping you then in the ftory of the battle of the Boyne prevented an affignation, which would have led you into more disasters than I then related.

To be fhort: Those two perfons you see yonder are fuch as I am; they are not real men, but are mere fhades and figures; one is named Alethes, the other Verifimilis. Their office is to be the guardians and reprefentatives of Confcience and Honour. They are now going to visit the feveral parts of the town, to see how their interefts in the world decay or flourish, and to purge themselves from the many falfe imputations they daily meet with in You obferved the commerce and converfation of men. What he is Verifimilis frowned when he firft faw me. provoked at, is, that I told him one day, though he ftrutted and dreffed with fo much oftentation, if he kept himself within his own bounds, he was but a lacquey, and wore only that Gentleman's livery whom he is now with. This frets him to the heart; for you must know, he has pretended a long time to fet up for himself, and gets among a croud of the more unthinking part of mankind, who take him for a person of the firft Quality; though his introduction into the world was wholly owing to his prefent companion.

This encounter was very agreeable to me, and I was refolved to dog them, and defired. Pacolet to accompany me. I foon perceived what he told me in the gefture of the perfons; for when they looked at each other in difcourfe, the well-dreffed man fuddenly cast down his eyes, and difcovered that the other had a painful fuperiority over him. After fome further difcourfe, they took leave. The plain Gentleman went down towards Thames-ftreet, in order to be prefent, at least, at the oaths taken at the Cuftom-houfe; and the other made directly for the heart of the city. It is incredible how great a change there immediately appeared in the man of honour when he got rid of his uneafy companion: He adjusted the cock of his hat a-new, fettled his fword-knot; and had an

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287 appearance that attracted a fudden inclination for him and his interefts in all who beheld him. For my part, faid I to Pacolet, I cannot but think you are mistaken in calling this perfon, of the lower Quality; for he looks much more like a Gentleman than the other.

Do not you obferve all eyes are upon him, as he advances? how each Sex gazes at his ftature, aspect, address, and motion? Pacolet only smiled, and shaked his head; as leaving me to be convinced by my own further obfervation. We kept on our way after him until we came to Exchangealley, where the plain Gentleman again came up to the other; and they stood together after the manner of eminent merchants, as if ready to receive application; but I could obferve no man talk to either of them. The one was laughed at as a fop; and I heard many whispers against the other, as a whimsical fort of a fellow, and a great enemy to trade. They croffed Cornbill together, and came into the full Exchange, where fome bowed, and gave themselves airs in being known to fo fine a man as Verifimilis, who, they faid, had great intereft in all Princes Courts; and the other was taken notice of by feveral, as one they had feen fomewhere long before. One more particularly faid, he had formerly been a man of confideration in the world; but was fo unlucky, that they who dealt with him, by fome ftrange infatuation or other, had a way of cutting off their own bills, and were prodigiously flow in improving their stock. But as much as I was curious to obferve the reception thefe Gentlemen met with upon the Exchange, I could not help being interrupted by one that came up towards us, to whom every body made their compliments. He was of the common height, and in his drefs there feemed to be great care to appear no way particular, except in a certain exact and feat manner of behaviour and circumfpection. He was wonderfully careful that his shoes and clothes fhould be without the least speck upon them; and feemed to think, that on fuch an accident depended his very life and fortune. There was hardly a man on the Exchange who had not a note upon him; and each feemed very well fatisfied that their money lay in his hands, without demanding payment. I asked Pacolet, what great merchant that was, who was fo univerfally

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addreffed to, yet made too familiar an appearance to command that extraordinary deference? Pacolet answered, this person is the Dæmon or Genius of Credit; his name is Ümbra. If you obferve, he follows Alethes and Verifimilis at a diftance; and indeed has no foundation for the figure he makes in the world, but that he is thought to keep their cash; though, at the fame time, none who trufts him would truft the others for a groat. As the company rolled about, the three spectres were jumbled into one place: When they were fo, and all thought there was an alliance between them, they immediately drew upon them the bufinefs of the whole Exchange. But their affairs foon increased to fuch an unwieldy bulk, that Alethes took his leave, and faid, he would not engage further than he had immediate fund to answer. Verifimilis pretended, that though he had revenues large enough to go on his own bottom, yet it was below one of his family to condescend to trade in his own name; therefore he alfo retired. I was extremely troubled to fee the glorious mart of London left with no other guardian but him of Credit. But Pacolet told me, that traders had nothing to do with the Honour or Confcience of their correfpondents, provided they fupported a general behaviour in the world, which could not hurt their credit or their purfes: For, faid he, you may, in this one tract of building of London and Westminster, fee the imaginary motives on which the greatest affairs move, as well as in rambling over the face of the earth. For though Alethes is the real governor, as well as legislator of mankind, he has very little bufinefs but to make up quarrels; and is only a general referree, to whom every man pretends to appeal, but is fatisfied with his determinations no further than they promote his own intereft. Hence it is, that the foldier and the courtier model their actions according to Verifimilis's manner, and the merchant according to that of Umbra. Among these men, Honour and Credit are not valuable poffeffions in themfelves, or purfued out of a principle of juftice; but merely as they are ferviceable to ambition and to commerce. But the world will never be in any manner of order or tranquillity, until men are firmly convinced, that Confcience, Honour, and Credit, are all in one

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