thofe on my Left, Tories: And that those who had placed themselves in the Middle-Boxes were a Neutral Party, whofe Faces had not yet declared themselves. These laft, however, as I afterwards found, diminished daily, and took their Party with one Side or the other; infomuch that I obferved in feveral of them, the Patches, which were before difperfed equally, are now all gone over to the Whig or Tory Side of the Face. The Cenforious fay, That the Men whofe Hearts are aimed at, are very often the Occafions that one Part of the Face is thus difhonoured, and lies under a Kind of Disgrace, while the other is fo much fet off and adorned by the Owner; and that the Patches turn to the Right or to the Left, according to the Principles of the Man. who is moft in favour. But whatever may be the Motives of a few fantastical Coquets, who do not Patch for the publick Good so much as for their own private Advantage, it is certain, that there are feveral Women of Honour who Patch out of Principle, and with an Eye to the Intereft of their Country. Nay, I am informed that fome of them adhere fo ftedfastly to their Party, and are fo far from facrificing their Zeal for the Publick to their Paffion for any particular Perfon, that in a late Draught of Marriage-Articles a Lady has ftipulated with her Husband, That, whatever his Opinions are, the fhall be at Liberty to Patch on which Side the pleases.

I must here take notice, that Rofalinda, a famous Whig Partizan, has moft unfortunately a very beautiful Mole on the Tory Part of her Forehead; which being very confpicuous, has occafioned many Mistakes, and given an Handle to her Enemies to mifreprefent her Face, as tho' it had revolted from the Whig Intereft. But, whatever this natural Patch may seem to infinuate, it is well known that her Notions of Government are fill the fame. This unlucky Mole, however, has mif-led feveral Coxcombs; u like the Hanging out of falfe Colours, made fome of nem converfe with Rofalinda in what they thought the Spirit of her Party, when on a fudden fhe has given them Au unexpected Fire, that has funk them all at once. If Rofalinda is unfortunate in her Mole, Nigranilla is as unhappy in a Pimple, which forces her, against her Inclinations, to Patch on the Whig Side,

I am told that many virtuous Matrons, who formerly have been taught to believe that this artificial Spotting of the Face was unlawful, are now reconciled by a Zeal for their Caufe, to what they could not be prompted by a Concern for their Beauty. This way of declaring War upon one another, 'puts me in mind of what is reported of the Tygrefs, that feveral Spots rife in her Skin when The is angry; or as Mr. Cowley has imitated the Verfes that ftand as the Motto of this Paper,

-She fwells with angry Pride,

And calls forth all her Spots on ev'ry Side.

WHEN I was in the Theatre the Time above-mentioned, I had the Curiofity to count the Patches on both Sides, and found the Tory Patches to be about Twenty ftronger than the Whig; but to make Amends for this fmall Inequality, I the next Morning found the whole Puppet-fhew filled with Faces fpotted after the Whiggish Manner. Whether or no the Ladies had retreated hither in order to rally their Forces I cannot tell; but the next Night they came in fo great a Body to the Opera, that they out-numbered the Enemy.

THIS Account of Party-Patches will, I am afraid, ap pear improbable to thofe who live at a Distance from the fashionable World; but as it is a Diftinction of a very fingular Nature, and what perhaps may never meet with a Parallel, I think I fhould not have difcharged the Office of a faithful SPECTATOR, had I not recorded it.

I have, in former Papers, endeavoured to expofe this Party-Rage in Women, as it only ferves to aggravate the Hatred and Animofities that reign among Men, and in a great Measure deprives the Fair Sex of thofe peculiar Charms with which Nature has endowed them.

WHEN the Romans and Sabines were at War, and just upon the Point of giving Battel, the Women who were allied to both of them, interpofed with fo many Tears and Intreaties, that they prevented the mutual Slaughter which threatned both Parties, and united them together in a firm and lafting Peace.

I would recommend this noble Example to our Bri Ladies, at a Time when their Country is torn with ic many unnatural Divifions, that if they continue, it will

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N°81 be a Misfortune to be born in it. The Greeks thought it fo improper for Women to intereft themselves in Competitions and Contentions, that for this Reafon, among others, they forbad them, under Pain of Death, to be prefent at the Olympick Games, notwithstanding these were the publick Diverfions of all Greece.

AS our English Women excel thofe of all Nations in Beauty, they fhould endeavour to outfhine them in all other Accomplishments proper to the Sex, and to diftinguish themselves as tender Mothers and faithful Wives, Father than as furious Partizans. Female Vertues are of a Domestick Turn, The Family is the proper Province for private Women to fhine in. If they must be fhewing their Zeal for the Publick, let it not be against those who are perhaps of the fame Family, or at leaft of the fame Religion or Nation, but against those who are the open, profeffed, undoubted Enemies of their Faith, Liberty, and Country. When the Romans were preffed with a Foreign Enemy, the Ladies voluntarily contributed all their Rings and Jewels to affift the Government under a publick Exigence, which appeared fo laudable an Action in the Eyes of their Countrymen, that from thenceforth it was permitted by a Law to pronounce publick Orations at the Funeral of a Woman in Praise of the deceafed Perfon, which till that Time was peculiar to Men. Would our English Ladies, instead of sticking on a Patch against thofe of their own Country, fhew themselves fo truly Publick-fpirited as to facrifice every one her Necklace against the Common Enemy, what Decrees ought not to be made in favour of them?

SINCE I am recollecting upon this Subject fuch Paffages as occur to my Mernory out of ancient Authors, I cannot omit a Sentence in the celebrated Funeral Oration of Pericles, which he made in Honour of those brave Athenians that were flain in a Fight with the Lacedemonians. After having addreffed himself to the feveral Ranks and Orders of his Countrymen, and fhewn them how they should behave themselves in the Publick Caufe, he turns to the Female Part of his Audience; And as for you (fays he) I fhall advise you in very few Words: Afpire only to thofe Vertues that are peculiar to your Sex; follow your natural Modefty, and think it your

⚫ greatest

greatest Commendation not to be talked of one way or other.

G

N° 82% Monday, June 4.

P

Caput domina venale fub hasta.

Juv.

ASSING under Ludgate the other Day, I heard a Voice bawling for Charity, which I thought I had fomewhere heard before. Coming near to the Grate, the Prisoner called me by my Name, and desired I would throw fomething into the Box: I was out of Countenance for him, and did as he bid me, by putting in Half-a-Crown. I went away reflecting upon the ftrange Conftitution of fome Men, and how meanly they behave themselves in all Sorts of Conditions. The Perfon who begged of me is now, as I take it, Fifty: I was well acquainted with him till about the Age of Twentyfive; at which Time a good Eftate fell to him by the Death of a Relation. Upon coming to this unexpected good Fortune, he ran into all the Extravagances imaginable; was frequently in drunken Difputes, broke Drawers Heads, talked and fwore loud, was unmannerly to thofe above him, and infolent to those below him, I could not but remark, that it was the fame Bafenefs of Spirit which worked in his Behaviour in both Fortunes: The fame little Mind was infolent in Riches, and fhameless in Poverty. This Accident made me mufe upon the Circumftance of being in Debt in general, and folve in my Mind what Tempers were most apt to fall into this Error of Life, as well as the Misfortune it must needs be to languifh under fuch Preffures. As for my self, my natural Averfion to that Sort of Conversation which makes a Figure with the Generality of Mankind, exempts me from any Temptations to Expence; and all my Bufinefs lies within a very narrow Compafs, which is only to give an honeft Man who takes care of my Estate, proper Vouchers for his quarterly Payments to me, and obferve what Linnen my Laundrefs brings and takes away with'

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her once a Week: My Steward brings his Receipt ready for my Signing; and I have a pretty Implement with the refpective Names of Shirts, Cravats, Handker chiefs and Stockings, with proper Numbers to know how to reckon with my Laundrefs. This being almoft all the Bufinefs I have in the World for the Care of my own Affairs, I am at full Leifure to obferve upon what others do, with relation to their Equipage and Oeconomy.

WHEN I walk the Street, and obferve the Hurry about me in this Town,

Where with like Hafte, tho' different Ways, they run;
Some to undo, and fome to be undone;

I fay, when I behold this vaft Variety of Perfons and Humours, with the Pains they both take for the Accomplishment of the Ends mentioned in the above Verses of Denham, I cannot much wonder at the Endeavour afterGain; but am extreamly aftonished that Men can be fo infenfible of the Danger of running into Debt. One would think it impoffible a Man who is given to contract Debts fhould know, that his Creditor has from that Moment in which he tranfgreffes Payment, fo much as that Demand comes to in his Debtor's Honour, Liberty and Fortune. One would think he did not know, that his Creditor can the worst Thing imaginable of him, to wit, That be is juft, without Defamation; and can feize his Perfon, without being guilty of an Affault. Yet fuch is the loofe and abandoned Turn of fome Mens Minds, that they can live under these conftant Apprehenfions, and ftill go on to encrease the Caufe of them. Can there be a more low and fervile Condition, than to be afhamed, or afraid, to fee any one Man breathing? Yet he that is much in Debt, is in that Condition with relation to twenty different People. There are indeed Circumftances wherein Men of honeft Natures may become liable to Debts, by fome unadvised Behaviour in any great Point of their Life, or mortgaging a Man's Honefty as a Security for that of another, and the like; but thefe Inftances are fo particular and circumftantiated, that they cannot come within general Confiderations:

For