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the country, in not being able to keep pace with the fashion: But there is another misfortune which we are fubject to, and is no lefs grievous than the former, which has hitherto efcaped your obfervation: I mean, the having things palmed upon us for London fashions, which were never once heard of there.

A Lady of this place had fome time fince a box ' of the neweft ribbons fent down by the coach : Whether it was her own malicious invention, or the wantonnefs of a London milliner, I am not able to inform you; but among the reft, there was one cherry-coloured ribbon, confifting of about half a dozen yards, made up in the figure of a finall head-drefs. The aforefaid Lady had the affurance to affirm amidst a circle of female inquifitors, who were prefent at the opening of the box, that this was the newest fashion worn at court. Accordingly the next Sanday we had feveral females, who came to church with their heads dreffed wholly in ribbons, and looked like fo many victims ready to be facrificed. This is ⚫ftill a reigning mode among us. At the fame 'time we have a fet of gentlemen who take the liberty to appear in all publick places without any buttons to their coats, which they fupply with feveral little filver hafps, though our fresheft advices from London make no mention of any 'fuch fashion; and we are fomething thy of affording matter to the button-makers for a fecond petition.

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What I would humbly propofe to the publick is, that there may be a fociety erected in London, to confift of the moft ikilful perfons of both fexes, for the Inspection of modes and fashions; and that hereafter no perfon or perfons fhall prefume to appear fingularly habited in any part of the country, without a teftimonial from the aforefaid fociety, that their dress is answerable to the mode at • London.

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London. By this means, Sir, we fhall know a ⚫ little whereabout we are.

X

If you could bring this matter to bear, you would very much oblige great numbers of your country friends, and among the reft,

Your very humble fervant,

JACK MODISH.'

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NO 176. FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21.

Parvula, pumilio, xagitar μía, tata merum fal. LUCR. 1. iv. ver. 1155.

A little, pretty, witty, charming fhe!

THE

HERE are in the following letter matters, which I, a bachelor, cannot be fuppofed to be acquainted with; therefore fhall not pretend to explain upon it until father confideration, but leave the author of the epiftle to exprefs his condition his

own way.

• Mr. SPECTATOR,

I Do not deny but you appear in many of our papers to understand human life pretty well ; but there are very many things which you cannot poffibly have a true notion of, in a single life; these are fuch as refpect the married state; other"wife I cannot account for your having overlooked

a very good fort of people, which are commonly 'called in fcorn the Hen-peckt. You are to un'derstand that I am one of thofe innocent mortals who fuffer derifion under the word, for being governed by the best of wives. It would be worth · your confideration to enter into that nature of affection itself, and tell us, according to your philofophy, why it is that our Dears fhould do what they will with us, fhall be froward, ill-natured, affuming, fometimes whine, at others

• rail,

rail, then fwoon away, then come tolife, have the ufe of fpeech to the greatest fluency imaginable, and then fink away again, and all becaufe they fear we do not love them enough; that is, the poor things love us fo heartily, that they cannot think it poffible we should be able to love them in so great a degree, which makes them take on fo. I fay, Sir, a true good natured man,, whom rakes ' and libertines call Hen-peckt, fhall fall into all thefe different moods with his dear life, and at the fame time fee they are wholly put on; and yet not be hard-hearted enough to tell the deargood creature that he is an hypocrite.

This fort of good men is very frequent in the populous and wealthy city of London, and is the true Hen-peckt man; the kind creature cannot • break through his kindncffes fo far as to come to an explanation with the tender foul, and there'fore goes on to comfort her when nothing ails her, to appease her when he is not angry, to give her his cafh when he knows fhe does not want it; rather than be uneafy for a whole month, which is computed by hard-hearted men the space of time which a froward woman takes to come to herfelf, if you have courage to stand out.

and

There are indeed feveral other fpecies of the Hen-peckt, and in my opinion they are certainly the beft fubjects the Queen has; and for that • reason I take it to be your duty to keep us above contempt.

'I do not know whether I make myself understood in the reprefentation of an hen-peckt life, but I fhall take leave to give you an account of myfelf, and my own fpoufe. You are to know that I am reckoned no fool, have on feveral occafions been tried whether I will take ill-ufage,. and the event has been to my advantage; and yet there is not fuch a flave in Turkey as I am to my Dear. She has a good fhare of wit, and is what:

' you

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I per

you call a very pretty agreeable woman. fectly dote on her, and my affection to her gives me all the anxieties imaginable but that of jealoufy. My being thus confident of her, I take, as much as I can judge of my heart, to be the reafon that whatever fhe does, though it be never 'fo much against my inclination, there is ftill left fomething in her manner that is amiable. She ⚫ will fometimes look at me with an affumed grandeur, and pretend to refent that I have not had refpect enough for her opinion in fuch an instance in company. I cannot but smile at the pretty ani ger fhe is in, and then the pretends the is used like a child. In a word, our great debate is, 'which has the fuperiority in point of underftanding. She is eternally forming an argument of debate; to which I very indolently anfwer, Thou art mighty pretty. To this fhe anfwers, All the world but you think I have as much fense as yourself. I repeat to her, Indeed you are pretty. Upon this there is no patience; fhe will throw down any thing about her, stamp and pull off her head-clothes. Fy, my dear, fay I; how can a woman of your fenfe fall into fuch an intemperate rage? This is an argument which never fails. Indeed, my dear, fays fhe, you make me mad fometimes, fo you do, with the filly way you have of treating me like a pretty idiot. Well, what have I gut by putting her into good-humour? Nothing, but that I muft convince her of my good opinion by my practice; and then I am to give her poffeffion of my little ready-money, and, for a day and a half following, diflike all the diflikes, and extol every thing the approves. I am fo exquifitely fond of this darling, that I feldom fee any of my friends, am uneafy in all companies until I fee her again; and when I come home fhe is in the dumps, becaufe, the fays, fhe is fure I came fo foon only because I think her ' handfome.

handfome. I dare not upon this occafion laugh; ⚫ but though I am one of the warmest churchmen in the kingdom, I am forced to rail at the times, becaufe fhe is a violent whig. Upon this we talk politicks fo long, that she is convinced I kifs her for her wisdom. It is a common practice with me to afk her some question concerning the conftitution, which the answers me in general out of Harrington's Oceana: Then I commend her ftrange memory, and her arm is immediately locked in mine. While I keep her in this temper the plays before me, fometimes dancing in the • midst of the room, fometimes striking an air at her fpinnet, varying her posture and her charms ◄ in fuch a manner that I am in continual pleasure: She will play the fool, if I allow her to be wife 'but if the fufpects I like her for her trifling, fhe immediately grows grave.

;

These are the toils in which I am taken, and I " carry off my fervitude as well as moft men ; but my application to you is in behalf of the Hen'peckt in general, and I defire a differtation from you in defence of us. You have, as I am informed, very good authorities in our favour, and hope you will not omit the mention of the renowned Socrates, and his philofophick refignation to his wife Xantippe. This would be a very good office to the world in general, for the Henpeckt are powerful in their quality and numbers, not only in cities but in courts; in the latter they are ever the moft obfequious, in the former the moft wealthy of all men. When you have confidered wedlock thoroughly, you ought to enter into the fuburbs of matrimony, and give us an account of the thraldom of kind keepers, and irrefolute lovers; the keepers who cannot quit their fair ones, though they fee their approaching ruin; the lovers who dare not marry, though they know they never fhall be happy without the

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