The Genius of the MAGAZINE prefenting it to Minerva and Britannia, who recommend the Work to the Perufal of the Fair Sex. WE To our CORRESPONDENTS. E fhould be ungrateful, indeed, to our Correfpondents if we did not acknowledge the increafe as well as importance of their late communications. Within a very few months we have been enabled to prefent our readers with above one hundred Original Papers, Effays, and Letters, on a variety of amufing and inftructing fubjects. Few we believe of our cotemporaries, and certainly none of our rivals, can honeftly make a fimilar affertion. Our Profe Collection for next month will afford a proof that our funds are ftill increasing. In this month's and in our Supplement we have been enabled to pay off many old scores to our Poetical Correspondents. The following, however, remain yet to be promised for next month. Curfus Glacialis-a Poem. Rural Felicity-a Paftoral Ballad. Acroftic on Mifs Mary Drake. A young Lady's Poem on Winter, communicated by Juvenis. Two Acrostics by Sinceritas and G. Martin-with many others which we are defired by the writers not to acknowledge previous to infertion. The following we are forry must be rejected: Lines addrefled to Mr. C, by M. C. B. Lines on feeing Girls ftrew Flowers before their Majefties at Mount Edgcumbe. Verfes infcribed to Mifs Ch, by a Conftant Reader, we must also reject; and, as he has thought proper to accompany his poetry with a threat, in cafe of its not appearing, we fall fubmit a part of them to our Readers. "Its you I love and none else I declare To fay that my name is S. E. I've no more to write fo farewel my love I vow and protest by the powers above I'll have you if you will have me." Our readers will fee from this fpecimen that it is impoffible to clafs fuch verfes with good or even tolerable poetry-and we have no room for what is very bad... ADDRESS TO THE PUBLIC. AT T the expiration of fo long a period from the commencement of our labours, we cannot but acknowledge that the encouragement we have met with is fuch as confirms our best opinions of the public taste, and affords us no inconfiderable proof that we have not laboured in vain. It was our early opinion that a work dedicated to the use of the Fair Sex would foon attract their attention; and while we were pleased to find that it had this effect, we derived no lefs fatisfaction from the idea that they would affift us in rendering the LADY'S MAGAZINE, what without their contributions, we despaired of, a REPOSITORY for the first ATTEMPTS as well as the MORE MATURE EXERTIONS of the FEMALE PEN. In these hopes, and in this expectation we have not been difappointed. To the genius and tafte of our female correfpondents we owe much, and are proud to own the obligation. THE prevailing taste for improvement in female education, and the happy effects of that education, have enabled us to extend our plan beyond its original intention. The days are paffed when Men Writers were afraid left they should be too learned for the comprehenfion of female readers, when they were compelled to mould their writings into childish forms, and when the prefumption of literary pride led many to believe that learning and geRius, taste and study were incompatible with the duties of (4) female life, fuperior to their understanding, and pernicious to the morals of the fex. The days are past, when learning in a woman was accounted miraculous, when fervile employments were the only duty they were capable of, and the ornament of the perfon the only pride they could boaft.-If in the outfet of our plan we anticipated this happy revolution in female inftruction, we are happy to add that we have profited by it; that fome of the best embellishments to thefe volumes have been the work of female pens, and fome of our greatest improvements the refult of their fuggeftions. THE objects of our Morality, however, do not yet cease to call loudly for our exertions. The age of folly is not paft, nor has public licentioufnefs yielded to the many checks it has received. In most respects, it is the colour and not the substance of vice which is changed-and folly, depreffed in one quarter, is ready to ftart up in another, with the fascination of novelty to attract, and the power of fashion to preserve that attraction. It fhall, therefore, ftill be our affiduous endeavour to give to virtue those ornaments which vice wears with fo much fuccefs, and to take from vice all that can allure and deceive, all that can bewitch and deftroy. In this attempt we are confident that we may appeal to the fense of our female readers, and be determined by their judgment—and that while we continue to furnish a pleafing variety of MORALITY, AMUSEMENT and LITERATURE, we may hope for the tronage which first established and has hitherto fupported this Magazine. pa AVING in the course of my correfpondents, I muft occafionally deviate from my family and perfonal labours, to introduce fome of theirs. The following appears to me de- AS you seem poffeffed of a very fenfible woman for a wife, and ap- pear yourself to be one of those com- municative kind of people who are neither averse to talk, nor flow to hear, will you permit me to relate certain of my family-affairs, for the amusement, if not the benefit of I am a tradefman in a tolerable good line of business, as we fay, and though I cannot boaft of opulence, and have very little ambition in my compofition yet I poffefs as much of the former as is fully fufficient for my wants; and of the latter, juft as much as prompts me to industry to preferve my stock. My wife, with all refpect be it mentioned, is fully as industrious in her way as myself, fervants in a voice and tone which convince me that he has my interest at heart, as well as the expansion of her lungs. We live, in fhort, very happily; keep a decent plain table, and my houfe is none of those where want of any neceffary appears. Our bufinefs lately has been on the in- creafe-and our affairs very profper- ous-every thing to our with-and fomething at the year's end to lay don't know how it is, that my wife Toaft and butter, in a morning, or 4. faft table; because Mrs. Simeon (for | finished fooner than the year 1793 that is her name) has found out that we confume a matter of half a But, fir, it is not "in eats and crown in butter weekly,"-and by drinks" only that this fpirit of rehaving no toast and butter in the formation has committed its ravages. mornings, fhe has calculated that one If I ring my bell for coals, fhe runs fhilling of that may be faved, which, up to my room with a "La! Mr. The adds, amounts to £2:12:0 per Simeon, how could you think of annum.-Befides the has fome how coals? Let me ftir the fire for you:" difcovered that butter is not whole- and then, the covers what little fire fome, and that people are much bet- is left with a heap of duft and'ashes ter without it.-As to our tea, be from under the grate; however, fides being abridged in the article of this does not much anfwer her purfugar (two pounds of which we ufed pofe, for I am determined to have in a week) the water bears fuch a coals, if I fteal them, a thing not heavy proportion, that, to ufe a fa- uncommon with me, fince the "kept vourite phrafe of her's, it is no bet- a book"-I mentioned the other day ter than "water got damaged."- that I fhould foon have occafion for As to the bread, I have no com- fome new flockings-upon which plaint to make; it lafts pretty my whole cargo were ordered out for long, indeed, but beides the tefli- infpection; and fuch darning and mony of the Book to the expence of botching work fet on foot, that I bread per week, my wife affures me am almost aflamed to take a long that bread is very unwholefome, un-walk least my exercise unrip the new lefs it be kept fome time and I am stitches. certain, if this be true, we have the mott wholefome bread in the world. Heaven preferve our teeth! Before this abominable book came into our houfe, Mrs. Simeon ufed now and then to accompany me to a play, although feldom, and as befitting our station. But the now pofitively objects to any thing of the kind; for adds the "there is no column in the a deal of money that way withour being able to keep an account. No, no, Mr. Simeon, a penny faved is a penny got; and what do we get by plays? Three hillings for you and as much for me make fix fhillings, befides coach-hire: why, hufband, it would keep the house for a week!"-And fo, indeed, it is likely to do, if we go on as we are doing. At dinner, this vile Book has made frange alterations. Porter, being a heady liquor, is difcharged; and our ale is too new to be ufed-imallbeer in fmall quantities is fubflitut-book for plays, and one might fpend ed-and, if I request a pint of Truman by way of luxury, my wife is fure to filence me with" O my dear! confider, I keep a book now." In meat, her economy has done wonders. The beef that enters on Sunday rarely takes it leave till Thursday and we laft week had a piece of veal, that came fo often to the table that I verily believe it would have come on calling, without giving the fervant the trouble of fetching it. As to fuppers, they are entirely ftruck off the lift,-A cheese as big as a millstone, but not quite fo faft, was lately purchaled, and from the quantity we are allow ed (which, to do her juftice, is more than we have inclination to eat) I am of opinion this checíe will not be Such, fir, are some of the confequences of keeping this Vile BookWhat would you advife me to do? Mr. Matix-you are a fenfible man, and have got a notable wife, but I will be fworn fhe keeps no pinching books to ftarve her family-Some people fay, Mr. Simeon why do you allow all this? Why do not you fpend what money you pleafe?" |