'forced to bid the coachman drive on. We were no ⚫fooner come to my lodgings, but all his wife's relations came to enquire after him; and Mrs. Freeman's mother writ a note, wherein fhe thought never to have feen this day, and fo forth. In a word, Sir, I am afraid we are upon a thing we have not talents for; and I can obferve already, my friend look upon me rather as a man who knows a weakness of him that he is afhamed of, than one who has refcued him from flavery. Mr. Spectator, I am but a young fellow, and if Mr. Freeman fubmits, I 'fhall be looked upon as an incendiary, and never get a wife as long as I breathe. He has indeed fent word ⚫ home he shall lie at Hampstead to-night; but I believe fear of the firft onfet after this rupture has too great a place in this refolution. Mrs. Freeman has a very pretty fifter, fuppofe I delivered him up, and articled with the mother for her for bringing him home. If he has not courage to ftand it, you are a great cafuift, is it fuch an ill thing to bring myfelf off, as well as I can? What makes me doubt my man, is, that I finds he thinks it reafonable to expoftulate at least with her; and Capt. Sentry will tell you, if you let your orders be difputed, you are no longer a commander. I with you could advife me how to get clear of this bufinefs handfomely. T • Your's, Tom Meggot,' Thursday, N° 217 Thursday, November 8. I Tunc fæmina fimplex Et pariter toto repetitur clamor ab antro. Juv. Sat. 6. ver. 326. Then, unreftrain'd by rules of decency, Shall entertain my reader to-day with fome letters from my correfpondents. The firft of them is the defcription of a club, whether real or imaginary, I cannot determine; but am apt to fancy, that the writer of it, whoever fhe is, has formed a kind of nocturnal orgie out of her own fancy: whether this be fo or not, her letter may conduce to the amendment of that kind of perfons who are reprefented in it, and whofe characters are frequent enough in the world. Mr. Spectator, IN N fome of your papers you were pleased to give the public a very diverting account of feveral clubs and nocturnal affemblies; but I am a member of a fociety which has wholly efcaped your notice, I mean a club of She-romps. We take each a hackneycoach, and meet once a week in a large upper chamber, which we hire by the year for that purpofe; our landlord and his family, who are quiet people, conftantly contriving to be abroad on our club-night. We are no fooner come together, than we throw off all that modefty and reservednefs with which our fex are obliged to difguife themselves in public places. I am not able to exprefs the pleasure we enjoy from ten at night until four in the morning, in being as rude as you men can be for your lives. As our play runs high, the room is immediately filled with broken fans, torn petticoats, lappets, or head-dreffes, flounces, furbelows, garters, and working aprons. I had forgot to tell you at first, that befides the coaches we come come in ourselves, there is one which ftands always empty to carry off our dead men, for fo we call all thofe fragments and tatters with which the room is ftrewed, and which we pack up together in bundles and put in· to the aforefaid coach: it is no fmall diverfion for us to meet the next night at fome member's chamber, ⚫ where every one is to pick out what belonged to her from this confufed bundle of filks, ftuffs, laces, and ⚫ ribbons. I have hitherto given you an account of our diversion on ordinary club-nights; but muft acquaint you further, that once a month we demolish a prude, that is, we get fome queer formal creature in among us, and unrig her in an inftant. Our laft month's prude was fo arm'd and fortified in whalebone and buckram, that we had much ado to come at her; but you would have died with laughing to have feen how the fober aukward thing looked when fhe was forced out of her intrenchments. In fhort, Sir, it is impoffible to give you a true notion of our fport, unless you would come one night amongst us; and though it be directly against the rules of our fociety to admit a male vifitant, we repofe fo much confidence in your filence and taciturnity, that it was agreed by the whole club, at our laft meeting, to give you entrance for one night as a spectator. I am your humble fervant, Kitty Termagant. P. S.We shall demolish a prude next Thursday.' Though I thank Kitty for her kind offer, I do not at prefent find in myself any inclination to venture my person with her and her romping companions. I fhould regard myself as a fecond Clodius, intruding on the myfterious rites of the Bona Dea, and fhould apprehend being de·molished as much as the prude. The following letter comes from a gentleman, whose taste I find is much too delicate to endure the leaft advance towards romping. I may perhaps hereafter improve upon the hint he has given me, and make it the fubject of a whole Spectator; in the mean time take it as it follows in his own words. < Mr. • Mr. Spectator, IT T is my misfortune to be in love with a young creature who is daily committing faults, which though they give me the utmoft uneafinefs, I know not how to reprove her for, or even acquaint her with. 'She is pretty, dreffes well, is rich, and good-humour'd; ' but either wholly neglects, or has no notion of that which polite people have agreed to diftinguish by the name of Delicacy. After our return from a walk the other day, she threw herself into an elbow-chair, and 'profeffed before a large company, that "fhe was all 66. over in a fweat." She told me this afternoon" that "her ftomach aked ;" and was complaining yesterday at ⚫ dinner of fomething that "fuck in her teeth." I treated her with a basket of fruit last fummer, which she eat fo very greedily, as almoft made me refolve never to fee her more. In fhort, Sir, I begin to tremble whenever 'I fee her about to speak or move. As fhe does not want fenfe, if she takes these hints I am happy; if not, I am more than afraid, that these things which fhock me even in the behaviour of a mistress, will appear infup⚫ portable in that of of a wife. I am, Sir, your's, &c.' My next letter comes from a correfpondent whom I cannot but very much value upon the account which she gives of herself. • Mr. Spectator, Am happily arrived at a ftate of tranquillity, which few people envy, I mean that of an old maid; therefore being wholly unconcerned in all that medley ⚫ of follies which our fex is apt to contract from their filly fondness of yours, I read your railleries on us without provocation. I can fay with Hamlet, Man delights not me, "Nor woman neither". Therefore, dear Sir, as you never fpare your own fex, do not be afraid of reproving what is ridiculous in ours, ⚫ and you will oblige at least one woman, who is • Your humble fervant, Sufanna Frof" • Mr. • Mr. Spectator, I am wife to a clergyman, and cannot help thinking that in your tenth or tithe character of womankind you meant myself, therefore I have no quarrel against you for the other nine characters. Your humble fervant, X · A. B.' N° 218 Friday, November 9. Quid de quoque viro, & cui dicas, fæpe caveto. Have a care Hor. Ep. 18. lib. 1. ver. 68. Of whom you talk, to whom, and what, and where. POOLY. I Happened the other day, as my way is, to stroll into a little coffee-houfe beyond Aldgate; and as I fat there, two or three very plain fenfible men were talking of the Spectator. One faid, that he had that morning drawn the great benefit-ticket; another wifhed he had; but a third fhaked his head and faid, it was pity that the writer of that paper was fuch a fort of man, that it was no great matter whether he had it or no. He is, it feems, faid the good man, the most extravagant creature in the world; has run through vaft fums, and yet been in continual want; a man, for all he talks fo well of œconomy, unfit for any of the offices of life by reafon of his profufenefs. It would be an unhappy thing to be his wife, his child, or his friend; and yet he talks as well of thofe duties of life as any one. Much reflexion has brought me to fo eafy a contempt. for every thing which is falfe, that this heavy accufation gave me no manner of uneafinefs; but at the fame time. it threw me into deep thought upon the fubject of fame in general; and I could not but pity fuch as were fo weak, as to value what the common people fay out of their own |