love, and hopes for fuccefs more from the powder on the outfide of his head, than the fentiments within. Yet when I confider what fort of a creature the fine lady is, to whom he is fuppofed to pay his addreffes, it is not ftrange to find him thus equipped in order to please. She is herself every whit as fond of powder, and tails, and hog's lard, as he: to speak my fecret fentiments, moft reverend Fum, the ladies here are horribly ugly; I can hardly endure the fight of them; they no way refemble the beauties of China the Europeans have a quite different idea of beauty from us; when I reflect on the fmall-footed perfections of an Eastern beauty, how is it poffible I should have eyes for a woman whofe feet are ten inches long. I fhall never forget the beauties of my native city of Nanfew. How very broad their faces! how very fhort their nofes! how very little their eyes! how very thin their lips! how very black their teeth! the fnow on the tops of Bao is not fairer than their cheeks and their eye-brows are small as the line by the pencil of Quamfi. Here a lady with fuch perfections would be frightful; Dutch and Chinese beauties indeed have fome resemblance, but English women are entirely different; red cheeks, big eyes, and teeth of a moft odious whitenefs, are not only feen here, but wished for; and then they have fuch mafculine feet, as actually ferve fome for walking! Yet uncivil as Nature has been, they feem refolved to outdo her in unkindness; they use white powder, blue powder, and black powder, for their hair, and a red powder for the face on fome parti cular occafions. They like to have the face of various colours, as among the Tartars of Koreki, frequently fticking on, with ipittle, little black patches on every part of it, except on the tip of the nose, which I have never feen feen with a patch. You'll have a better idea of their manner of placing thefe fpots, when I have finished a map of an English face patched up to the fashion, which fhall thortly be fent to encrease your curious collection of paintings, medals, and monsters. But what furprizes more than all the reft is what I have just now been credibly informed by one of this country. "Moft ladies here," fays he, "have two faces; one face to fleep in, and another to fhew in company; the firft is generally reserved for the hufband and family at home; the other put on to please ftrangers abroad: the family face is often indifferent enough, but the out-door one looks fomething better; this is always made at the toilet, where the lookingglafs and toad-eater fit in council, and fettle the complexion of the day." I can't ascertain the truth of this remark; however, it is actually certain, that they wear more cloaths within doors than without; and I have seen a lady, who feemed to fhudder at a breeze in her own apartment, appear half naked in the streets. Farewell. THE English feem as filent as the Japanese, yet vainer than the inhabitants of Siam. Upon my arrival I attributed that reserve to modefty, which I now find has its origin in pride. Condefcend to addrefs them firft, and you are fure of their acquaintance; ftoop to flattery, and you conciliate their friendship and efteem. They bear hunger, cold, fatigue, and all the miferies of life without fhrinking; danger only calls forth their fortitude; they even exult in calamity; but contempt is what they cannot bear, An Englishman fears contempt more than death; he often flies to death as a refuge from its preffure; and dies when he fancies the world has ceased to efteem him. Pride seems the fource not only of their national vices, but of their national virtues alfo. An Englifhman is taught to love his king as his friend, but to acknowledge no other mafter than the laws which himfelf has contributed to enact. He defpifes thofe nations, who, that one may be free, are all content to be flaves; who firft lift a tyrant into terror, and then thrink under his power as if delegated from heaven. Liberty is echoed in all their affemblies ; and thousands might be found ready to offer up their lives for the found, though perhaps not one of all the number understands its meaning. The loweft mechanic however looks upon it as his duty to be a watchful guardian of his country's freedom, and often ufes a language that might feem haughty, even in the mouth of the great emperor who traces his ancestry to the moon. A few days ago, paffing by one of their prifons, I could not avoid ftopping, in order to listen to a dialogue, which I thought might afford me fome entertainment. The converfation was carried on between a debtor through the grate of his prifon, a porter, who had stopped to reft his burthen, and a foldier at the window. The fubject was upon a threatened invafion from France, and each feemed extremely anxious to réfcue his country from the impending danger. "For my part," cries the prifoner, "the greatest of my apprehenfions is for our freedom; if the French fhould conquer, what would become of English liberty. My dear friends, liberty is the the Englishman's prerogative; we must preferve that at the expence of our lives; of that the French fhall never deprive us; it is not to be expected that men who are faves themfelves would preferve our freedom should they happen to conquer. Ay, flaves, cries the porter, they are all flaves, fit only to carry burthens, every one of them. Before I would ftoop to flavery, may this be my poifon (and he held the goblet in his hand), may this be my poifon-but I would fooner lift for a foldier." The foldier, taking the goblet from his friend, with much awe fervently cried out, It is not so much our liberties as our religion that would fuffer by fuck a change; ay, our religion, my lads. May, the Devil fink me into flames (fuch was the folemnity of his adjuration), if the French fhould come over, but our religion would be utterly undone. So faying, instead of a libation, he applied the goblet to his lips, and confirmed his fentiments with a ceremony of the moft perfevering devotion. In short, every man here pretends to be a politician; even the fair fex are fometimes found to mix the severity of national altercation with the blandishments of love, and often become conquerors by more weapons of deftruction than their eyes. This univerfal paffion for politics is gratified by Daily Gazettes, as with us at China. But as in ours the emperor endeavours to inftruct his people, in theirs the people endeavour to inftruct the adminiftration. You must not, however, imagine, that they who compile these papers have any actual knowledge of the politics, or the government of a ftate; they only collect their materials from the oracle of fome coffee-houfe; which oracle has himfelf gathered them the night before from a beau at a gaming-table, who has pillaged his knowledge from a great man's porter, who has had his information from the great man's gentleman, who has invented 2 the the whole ftory for his own amusement the night preceding. The English in general feem fonder of gaining the efteem than the love of thofe they converse with: this gives a formality to their amusements; their gayeft converfations have fomething too wife for innocent relaxation; though in company you are feldom difgufted with the abfurdity of a fool, you are feldom lifted into rapture by thofe ftrokes of vivacity which give inftant, though not permanent pleasure. What they want, however, in gaiety, they make up in politenefs. You smile at hearing me praise the English for their politenefs; you who have heard very different accounts from the miffionaries at Pekin, who have seen such a different behaviour in their merchants and feamen at home. But I muft ftill repeat it, the English feem more polite than any of their neighbours; their great art in this refpect lies in endeavouring, while they oblige, to leffen the force of the favour. Other countries are fond of obliging a stranger; but feem defirous that he should be fenfible of the obligation. The Englifh confer their kindness with an appearance of indifference, and give away benefits with an air as if they despised them. Walking a few days ago between an English and a Frenchman into the fuburbs of the city, we were overtaken by a heavy fhower of rain. I was unprepared; but they had each large coats, which defended them from what feemed to be a perfect inundation. The Englishman feeing me fhrink from the weather, accofted me thus: "Pha, man, what doft Shrink at? here, take this coat; I don't want it ; I find it no way useful to me; I had as lief be without it." The Frenchman began to fhew his politenefs My dear Friend," cries he, why wont you oblige me by making ufe of my coat; you fee how in turn. 66 66 well |