However, out they went, under this wise conduct; but, before they went out, old Grisle, his whelps, and his lap-dogs (for I call them his, because, as I told you but now, they were most of his own getting) thought it convenient, for their better security, to muzzle all the mastiffs, and tie them fast in a strong line of passive obedience and non-resistance; and, as soon as that was effectually done, then out they went all together.

And, all the way they went, old Grisle, his whelps, and his lap. dogs, did frisk, and skip, and leap, and bounce, and yelp, being all over-joyed, that they should see some sport anon (for most of them had never seen a bear before in their lives) and oh! how they whip. ped the bear about, and swinged him off, all the way, in their own fancies!

Says old, proud, impotent, self-conceited, empty Grisle: Gentle men whelps, and gentlemen lap-dogs, courage! here is confusion to the bear. Huzza! shew yourselves to be but what you are, viz. 'true whelps, and right lap-dogs, and I desire no more: for, by your 'assistance, I have power enough to beat all the bears in France. I have been a whelp and a lap-dog myself in my time, as well as the best of you all: And, to my certain knowledge, an English whelp, or lap-dog, is able to grapple with a French bear at any time; wherefore, we need no scouts to go before, to bring us notice of the bear's approach; for, as soon as he comes within hearing of your terrible yelping, he will be glad to retire fast enough of his own accord, I warrant you: Therefore, courage my beloved whelps and lap-dogs! here's confusion once more to the bear!-huzza! yelp! yelp! yelp!'

But old Grisle had scarce ended these words, nor was the yelping quite ceased, when lo! all on a sudden, the unexpected roaring of the bear quite surprised, dashed, astonished, and stunned the whole pack of mongrels; which made old Grisle shrink in his tail between his legs, and hang down his head (and if it had been hung up, not a halfpenny damage) and made all the whelps and lap-dogs begin to whine and whimper about him, and fawn upon him, with wagging tails, clapped in behind, lank ears before, couchant heads, and tears in their eyes. But, on the other side, it made the brave mastiffs prick up their ears, and drew rage and foam from their mouths, and fire from their very eyes, to be at the bear. Bless me! what a difference there is, between right true-bred mastiffs, and whiffling curs!

(For you must know, the great bear was, by an unexpected hurri. cane, driven to a bay, fresh-water bay, or else he had seized, and hugged old Grisle, and all his whelps and lap-dogs, just as the devil hugs a witch, before they had been aware of it, and was there confined in Lob's pound, and tied as fast, as a bear to a stake; which made him suck his paws, and fret in his grease, and roar after that hideous manner.)

However, old Grisle was forced, by the rage and importunity of the mastiffs, to go and shew them the bear: And, to give the devil his due, he did shew them the bear, and that was all: For, when he plainly perceived, that the French were really there with their bears,

green curs, in such an unreasonable line, a line of five or six leagues distance, at least, from the bear, the grand enemy of mankind, and from their duty of attacking him.

Therefore, to be thus unjustly restrained in spight of their courage, nay, in spight of their teeth, by a company of whifflers, made the mastiffs rave, and grow almost stark-staring mad, for want of sleep and rest; but especially for want of fighting; for fighting is their meat and drink. A true tarpaulin fights only to eat, and eats only to fight again. And there were enough with them to eat up the bear; and sharpers enough in every thing else, but fighting; and more by a great many (though not by a good many) than those that devoured the great Spanish bear in 1588.

Whereupon the lioness, hearing the loud-mouthed voice of her mastiffs, both English and Dutch, speaking the same thing, and, which is strange, the same language, and both countries agreeing in the same verdict, viz. That the mastiffs were abused, curbed, and muzzled by a parcel of mongrels; therefore she roused up her royal wrath, and sent positive orders to the curs, either to permit the mastiffs to fight, or else to come presently themselves to her den in the Tower.

This royal eccho startled the spaniel, the whelps, and the lapdogs worse, if possible, than the roaring of the bear had done before: For now, being almost nine days old in their iniquity, the whelps began to see, that there was another settled power, besides the bears.

Thus old Grisle, his whelps, and his lap-dogs, being reduced to a great streight, for fear of the lioness on one side, and of the bear on the other; and, yet, being willing to curry favour with both sides, and to keep to the convocation-rules of non-resistance of the settled power of the lioness, and of passive-obedience to the fixed power of the bear: Therefore, they craftily and cunningly resolved (as if they had been so many schoolmen, or doctors of metaphysical notions and distinctions) that they would sacredly, or, rather cur. sedly, observe a strict neutrality on both sides.

In pursuance whereof, old Grisle, in the first place, making his honours, his bows, and his profound congees to the bear; and, then, making his obeisance to the lioness, and, withal, making a shew of praying, but not fighting, for King William and Queen Mary: he hung out the bloody flag, as they use to do at the bear-garden, and proclaimed free liberty for all to fight, that had a mind to it. Fight dog, fight bear, for him, and his.

Whereupon the brave Tyrrell, the undaunted Dorrell, and several other English, and above twenty Dutch mastiffs, all as good as ever run at a bear (and, oh! that the courageous and victorious Shovel had been amongst them!) though they were before almost quite throttled, spent, and strangled by being held back so long from their sport, in such an unreasonable line, yet now took fresh courage, and broke the line, and left the mongrels behind to their due, the line; and ran full speed forwards, and made directly at the bear with open mouths; and stared fire, and gaped smoke, and spoke thunder, and darted thunderbolts, and hurled whirlwinds at the bear; and so

scorched, blighted, blasted, and twisted him; and gave him such rents, such gashes, such breaches, and such shocks, that they made him groan, and reel backwards at their very first onset: And, had they been seconded, as they ought, we should never have been troubled hereafter with any more French-dancing bears again.

And though I will hold ten English crowns to one French crown at any time, upon any of these mastiffs heads, both Dutch and English, against any French cub whatsoever of equal size: and though I have great reason always to lament my own insolvency, in that I am not able ever to pay sufficient expressions of gratitude and thankful. ness to every one of these glorious assailants; and particularly to the Dutch, because I find, they had not so many whelps and lap-dogs amongst them, as we had; no, nor so many jackcalls neither.

Yet, after all, I beseech you, gentlemen, bear with my weak. ness, and pardon the infirmity of my judgment, if it be so, and give me leave to say, That my main bet is more especially reserved for, and fixed upon, the brave Tyrrell: A hundred to one on his head at any time? His name is Wonder, a right English mastiff, and a truebred tarpaulin; who never gave an affront, and never brooked one; who is of such strange humility, goodness, and modesty; and yet, at the same time, of such unparalleled courage, knowledge, and bravery, that, I protest, I have often gazed at the man in raptures of admira tion; and always thought him a great blessing to this nation, if we understood him; that is to say, at which I know all the jackoalls will grin, if we understood how to employ true virtue, true honesty, true valour, true skill, true conduct, and true merit to the best advan tage; and if we understood how to pitch upon a man, that can, by his own private interest and repute amongst all true tarpaulins, man out a whole fleet at any time without a press.

But these, indeed, would be too many blessings wrapped up in one; and the powerful spirit of the ever-blessed Bishop Usher, still surviving in his grandson, would make too good an admiral for so bad an age, as this is.

Neither would I have old envious Grisle, nor any of his malicious whelps, or lap-dogs, think, that Captain Tyrrell is any ways privy to this commendation: No, good man, he would have been the only obstacle against it, if he had known it; for he is neither for praising himself, nor dispraising others.

But yet, I hope, my Lord Grisle, master whelps, and master lap. dogs, you will give me leave to speak the truth concerning your wor ships; who was a spectator and stander-by all the while, as well as you; especially, since you have made me, and all my countrymen, pay so dear for our standing at your special bear-baiting; nay, me. thinks, you might out of modesty, if you had any, give us leave to speak, who are such great losers by you: And more especially, since you have brought things to such a pass, that, if we do not speak now, we must for ever hereafter hold our peace; for you have bid the last bans of matrimony between us and destruction.

Wherefore, since I neither do, nor can, speak evil of the rulers of the people, viz. King William and Queen Mary; of whom, by whom,

green curs, in such an unreasonable line, a line of five or six leagues distance, at least, from the bear, the grand enemy of mankind, and from their duty of attacking him.

Therefore, to be thus unjustly restrained in spight of their cou rage, nay, in spight of their teeth, by a company of whifflers, made the mastiffs rave, and grow almost stark-staring mad, for want of sleep and rest; but especially for want of fighting; for fighting is their meat and drink. A true tarpaulin fights only to eat, and eats only to fight again. And there were enough with them to eat up the bear; and sharpers enough in every thing else, but fighting; and more by a great many (though not by a good many) than those that devoured the great Spanish bear in 1588.

Whereupon the lioness, hearing the loud-mouthed voice of her mastiffs, both English and Dutch, speaking the same thing, and, which is strange, the same language, and both countries agreeing in the same verdict, viz. That the mastiffs were abused, curbed, and muzzled by a parcel of mongrels; therefore she roused up her royal wrath, and sent positive orders to the curs, either to permit the mastiffs to fight, or else to come presently themselves to her den in the Tower.

This royal eccho startled the spaniel, the whelps, and the lapdogs worse, if possible, than the roaring of the bear had done before: For now, being almost nine days old in their iniquity, the whelps began to see, that there was another settled power, besides the bears.

Thus old Grisle, his whelps, and his lap-dogs, being reduced to a great streight, for fear of the lioness on one side, and of the bear on the other; and, yet, being willing to curry favour with both sides, and to keep to the convocation-rules of non-resistance of the settled power of the lioness, and of passive-obedience to the fixed power of the bear: Therefore, they craftily and cunningly resolved (as if they had been so many schoolmen, or doctors of metaphysical notions and distinctions) that they would sacredly, or, rather cursedly, observe a strict neutrality on both sides.

In pursuance whereof, old Grisle, in the first place, making his honours, his bows, and his profound congees to the bear; and, then, making his obeisance to the lioness, and, withal, making a shew of praying, but not fighting, for King William and Queen Mary: he hung out the bloody flag, as they use to do at the bear-garden, and proclaimed free liberty for all to fight, that had a mind to it. Fight dog, fight bear, for him, and his.

Whereupon the brave Tyrrell, the undaunted Dorrell, and several other English, and above twenty Dutch mastiffs, all as good as ever run at a bear (and, oh! that the courageous and victorious Shovel had been amongst them!) though they were before almost quite throttled, spent, and strangled by being held back so long from their sport, in such an unreasonable line, yet now took fresh courage, and broke the line, and left the mongrels behind to their due, the line; and ran full speed forwards, and made directly at the bear with open mouths; and stared fire, and gaped smoke, and spoke thunder, and darted thunderbolts, and hurled whirlwinds at the bear; and so

scorched, blighted, blasted, and twisted him; and gave him such rents, such gashes, such breaches, and such shocks, that they made him groan, and reel backwards at their very first onset: And, had they been seconded, as they ought, we should never have been trou bled hereafter with any more French-dancing bears again.

And though I will hold ten English crowns to one French crown at any time, upon any of these mastiff's heads, both Dutch and English, against any French cub whatsoever of equal size: and though I have great reason always to lament my own insolvency, in that I am not able ever to pay sufficient expressions of gratitude and thankful. ness to every one of these glorious assailants; and particularly to the Dutch, because I find, they had not so many whelps and lap-dogs amongst them, as we had; no, nor so many jack calls neither.

Yet, after all, I beseech you, gentlemen, bear with my weak. ness, and pardon the infirmity of my judgment, if it be so, and give me leave to say, That my main bet is more especially reserved for, and fixed upon, the brave Tyrrell: A hundred to one on his head at any time? His name is Wonder, a right English mastiff, and a truebred tarpaulin; who never gave an affront, and never brooked one; who is of such strange humility, goodness, and modesty; and yet, at the same time, of such unparalleled courage, knowledge, and bravery, that, I protest, I have often gazed at the man in raptures of admira tion; and always thought him a great blessing to this nation, if we understood him; that is to say, at which I know all the jackoalls will grin, if we understood how to employ true virtue, true honesty, true valour, true skill, true conduct, and true merit to the best advan. tage; and if we understood how to pitch upon a man, that can, by his own private interest and repute amongst all true tarpaulins, man out a whole fleet at any time without a press.

But these, indeed, would be too many blessings wrapped up in one; and the powerful spirit of the ever-blessed Bishop Usher, still sur. viving in his grandson, would make too good an admiral for so bad an age, as this is.

Neither would I have old envious Grisle, nor any of his malicious whelps, or lap-dogs, think, that Captain Tyrrell is any ways privy to this commendation: No, good man, he would have been the only obstacle against it, if he had known it; for he is neither for praising himself, nor dispraising others.

But yet, I hope, my Lord Grisle, master whelps, and master lap. dogs, you will give me leave to speak the truth concerning your wor. ships; who was a spectator and stander.by all the while, as well as you; especially, since you have made me, and all my countrymen, pay so dear for our standing at your special bear-baiting; nay, me thinks, you might out of modesty, if you had any, give us leave to speak, who are such great losers by you: And more especially, since you have brought things to such a pass, that, if we do not speak now, we must for ever hereafter hold our peace; for you have bid the last bans of matrimony between us and destruction.

Wherefore, since I neither do, nor can, speak evil of the rulers of the people, viz. King William and Queen Mary; of whom, by whom,