riage of Pfyché, and term'd by the Latins, digitis micare.

Julius Pollux defcribes the Omilla or Chuckfarthing: tho' fome will have our modern Chuck-farthing to be nearer the Aphetinda of the "Ancients. He alfo mentions the Bafilinda, or "King Iam; and Myinda, or Hoopers-Hide.

"But the Chytrindra described by the same Au"thor is certainly not our Hot-cockle; for that was by pinching and not by ftriking; tho' there are good authors who affirm the Rathapygifmus to "be yet nearer the modern Hot-cockles. My fon Martin may use either of them indifferently, they being equally antique.

"Building of Houfes, and Riding upon Sticks "have been used by children in all ages, Ædificare cafas, equitare in arundine longa. Yet I much "doubt whether the Riding upon Sticks did not "come into ufe after the age of the Centaurs.

There is one Play which fhews the gravity of "ancient Education, called the Acinetinda, in "which children contended who could longest ftand ftill. This we have suffered to perish entirely; and, if I might be allowed to guess, it was certainly firft loft among the French.

"I will permit my Son to play at Apodidaf "cinda, which can be no other than our Pufs in a Corner.

"Julius Pollux in his ninth book speaks of the "Melolonthe or the Kite; but I queftion whether

"the Kite of Antiquity was the fame with ours: "And though the Opruloxomía or Quail-fighting is "what is most taken notice of, they had doubt"lefs Cock-matches alfo, as is evident from certain "ancient Gems and Relievo's.

"In a word, let my fon Martin difport himself "at any Game truly Antique, except one, which "was invented by a people among the Thracians, "who hung up one of their Companions in a

Rope, and gave him a Knife to cut himself "down; which if he failed in, he was fuffered "to hang till he was dead; and this was only rec"koned a fort of joke. I am utterly against this, "as barbarous and cruel.

"I cannot conclude, without taking notice of "the beauty of the Greek names, whofe Etymolo

gies acquaint us with the nature of the sports; "and how infinitely, both in fenfe and found, they "excel our barbarous names of Plays."

Notwithstanding the foregoing Injunctions of Dr. Cornelius, he yet condefcended to allow the Child the use of fome few modern Play-things, fuch as might prove of any benefit to his mind, by inftilling an early notion of the sciences. For example, he found that Marbles taught him Percuffion and the Laws of Motion; Nut-crackers the ufe of the Leaver; Swinging on the ends of a Board, the Balance; Bottle-fcrews, the Vice; Whirligigs the Axis and Peritrochia; Bird-cages, the Pully; and Tops the Centifrugal motion.

Others of his sports were farther carried to improve his tender foul even in Virtue and Morality. We shall only inftance one of the most useful and inftructive, Bob-cherry, which teaches at once two noble Virtues, Patience and Conftancy; the first in adhering to the purfuit of one end, the latter in bearing a difappointment.

Befides all these, he taught him as a diverfion, an odd and fecret manner of Stealing, according to the Custom of the Lacedæmonians; wherein he fucceeded fo well, that he practifed it to the day of his death.

Of the Gymnafticks, in what Exercises Martinus was educated; fomething concerning Mufick, and what fort of a Man his Uncle was.

NO

OR was Cornelius lefs careful in adhering to the rules of the pureft Antiquity, in relation to the Exercifes of his Son. He was stript, powder'd, and anointed, but not conftantly bath'd, which occafioned many heavy complaints of the Laundress about dirtying his linen. When he played at Quoits, he was allowed his Breeches and Stockings; because the Difcoboli (as Cornelius

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well knew) were naked to the middle only. The Mother often contended for modern Sports, and common Customs, but this was his conftant reply, "Let a Daughter be the care of her Mother, "but the Education of a Son fhould be the delight " of his Father."

It was about this time, he heard, to his exceeding content, that the Harpaftus of the Ancients was yet in use in Cornwall, and known there by the name of Hurling. He was fenfible the common Foot-ball was a very imperfect imitation of that exercise; and thought it neceffary to fend Martin into the Weft, to be initiated in that truly ancient and manly part of the Gymnafticks. The poor boy was fo unfortunate as to return with a broken leg. This Cornelius looked upon but as a flight ailment, and promifed his Mother he would instantly cure it: He flit a green Reed, and caft the Knife upward, then tying the two parts of the Reed to the disjointed place, pronounced these words, Daries, daries, aftataries, diffunapiter; buat, banat, buat, ifta, pista fifta, domi abo, damnauftra. But finding, to his no small astonishment, that this had no effect, in five days he condescended to have it set by a modern Surgeon.

Mrs. Scriblerus, to prevent him from expofing her fon to the like dangerous Exercises for the fu

Plin. Hift. Nat. lib. xvii. in fine. Carmen contra luxata membra, cujus verba inferere non equidem ferio aufim, quanquam a Catene prodita. Vid. Caton. de re ruft. c. 160. P.

ture, proposed to fend for a Dancing-Mafter, and to have him taught the Minuet and Rigadoon.

Dancing (quoth Cornelius) I much approve, "for Socrates faid the best Dancers were the best "Warriors; but not thofe fpecies of Dancing << which you mention: They are certainly Corruptions of the Comic and Satyric Dance, which were utterly difliked by the founder Ancients. "Martin shall learn the Tragic Dance only, and "I will fend all over Europe, till I find an Anti

quary able to instruct him in the Saltatio Pyr"rbica. "Scaliger, from whom my Son is lineally "descended, boasts to have performed this war"like Dance in the prefence of the Emperor, to "the great admiration of all Germany. What "would he fay, could he look down and fee one "of his pofterity fo ignorant, as not to know the "leaft ftep of that noble kind of Saltation ?"

The poor Lady was at last enur'd to bear all these things with a laudable patience, till one day her husband was feized with a new thought. He had met with a saying, that "Spleen, Garter, and "Girdle are the three impediments to the Curfus." Therefore Pliny (lib. xi. cap. 37.) fays, that such as excel in that exercise have their Spleen cauterized, My fon (quoth Cornelius) runs but hea

Salig. Poetic. 1. i. c. 9. Hanc faltationem Pyrrhicam, nës fæpe et diu, juffu Bonifacii patrui, coram Divo Maximiliano, non fine ftupore totius Germania, repræfentavimus. Quo tempore vox illa Imperatoris, Hic fuer aut thoracem pro pelle aut pro cunis babuit. P.