foregoing one, and indeed it does "I am glad you do not find it fo."

not require an answer.

To the MATRON. Madam,

"Not at all," faid the antiquated dame, repeating her words with additional vivacity;

"but I am a

The devil you

young woman.
are," faid I to myfelf, looking earn-
eftly at the lady who had brought
me," you have deceived me, my
dear madam-did you not promife
to bring me to an old woman."-
"I am deceived myfelf," replied
fhe; I really thought Mrs Dou-
blefide had been what the confeffes
herfelf to be, quite an old woman.
I am forry at your dilappointment,
fir."-I then took leave of this dou-
ble-dealer, who blew hot and cold.
in the fame breath, and who, from
her drefs-I had no other way of
judging-feemed to be actually the
very being I was in queft of; and,
indeed, by what other rule can we
form a judgment?--All the fex
now-from fifteen to fifty and up-
wards, (I fhould rather fay down-
cards) appear in their white mullin
frocks, with broad fafhes, with their
hair curled over their for heads, and
hanging down behind to the bottom
of their backs and all without caps.
Now the lady to whom I was intro-
duced made a more motherly, ma-
tronly appearance; fomething not
unlike an autiquated nurfe in former
times; but, as the affured me with
her own mouth that the was young,
I was obliged to give credit to her
fpirited declarations. I own, how-
ever, that I am now fo puzzled and
perplexed by appearances, that I
fhould be particularly happy to at-
tend the unrigging of an old woman
of the prefent age, as the only way
of being completely fatisfied with
regard to her fenility. Yet, I believe,
as fuch a procedure might be ac-

READING fome time fince in one of our monthly productions, a letter in which complaints were made of the great difficulty of finding an old woman, I felt myfelf exactly in the fame predicament with the writer of it, and began to with exceed ingly that I could meet with fo great a rarity for an old lady in this age is rarity indeed. I have made the moft diligent fearch among my female friends and acquaintance, a numerous corps, and am intimately acquainted with feveral grand-mothers and great grand-mothers, yet I have not hitherto met with any female who comes up to my idea of a venerable old woman. It is true, I have been told of numbers of old women, and have been prefented to many who have called themfelves fo; but, upon a close examination, a critical review of the old and the young, among the fair-fex, I have found both fo entirely made up, that I can fcarcely diftinguifh one from the other. In this ftate of doubt and uncertainty, I applied to a lady with whom I am upon the most friendly footing, and begged her to affift me in my enquiries after so great a curiofity. She finil d, and told me that my fearch would foon be at an end, as the knew an elderly lady, with whom he had converted on this very subject, who informed her, that he gave her leave to mention her name, being very ready to come forth and thew herfelf the perfon the really was, to any body who defired to fee a true natural old avo-companied with difcoveries not very man: accordingly, a few days ago, my friend took me with her to her houfe. After the first introduction was over, my companion happened to fay it was very cold. "Cold," replied her friend- not at all.".

agreeable, I mufl give it up; for the moment I certainly ought to apologize to you, madam, for this impertinent epile; but, as I have been a conftant reader of your periodical papers, I think I may ven

ture

ture to fay, that you are yourfelf the very perfon I am in fearch of: as you have declared yourself to be fo. Be fo good, therefore, as to fet my heart at reft, by not only confeffing fincerely that you are really an old woman, but by giving me ocular demonftration. I will, with the greatest pleasure, wait on you at any time, and in any place you will do me the honour to name: an interview with the Matron being, of all things, moft carneftly defired by

her

Very obedient humble fervant,
CHRISTOPHER CURIOUS.

The writer of this letter may expect an answer to this next month: I must finish this with another, just received from a new correfpondent, who is alfo in a preffing way, but who muft alfo wait-(with patience I hope) til my next packet is dif patched to the prefs.

To the MATRON.

Dear Madam,

I beg your immediate advice upon

propriety, I fubmit to your opinion
in this cafe, which I hope to receive
as foon as poffible; as I am abso-
lutely as much infulted by one sex,
as I am flattered by the other. If
my female companions are neither
envious nor jealous of me, I fhall
think there is fomething wrong about
me; but if they are-and the men
tell me they certainly are-I shall
not mind what they fay about my
drefs or behaviour, though there is
nothing more difagreeable than to
be perpetually teazed and tormented.
I am, dear Madam,
in great hafte,

[Embellished with a beautiful Exgraving.]

mortifying difappointments, and

OURED by a numerous train of

totally out of humour with the world, in which he had met with many falfe friends, and had been thrown into very diftreffing fituations by the ingratitude of thofe whom he had liberally fupported when they flood in need of his affiance, Simplicius grew, at laft, fo heartily fick of fociety, that he determined to remove himfelf from the "wicked ways of men, ," and spend the remainder of his life in fequeftered scenes; scenes

a very ferious and important fubject to me. I am reckoned handfome, yet have no peace becaufe my female friends are always finding fault with my drefs, and pulling me to pieces in every public place; they exciaim against my manner of putting on my little round leaver, and fay that I wear it monstrously unbecoming: they tell me that my handkerchief is frightfully open before, &c. Now I declare that I do not know how to believe all this, as all the male fex to a man fay quite the contrary.-in which he might enjoy his own For my own part, I think there can reflections without any interruption, be no occafion to hide my hair, In confequence of this determinwhich falls in the largest curls over ation, he, without taking leave of my face; I, therefore, ftick my hat any living creature among his exon quite behind them: and then, as tenfive aequaintance, retired, in the to my handkerchief, why, as my neck true fpirit of mifanthropy, to a fpot is very white, I do not fee the neceffity the moft folitary to be found in any of its being covered up to my chin; part of the kingdom, and there, fe however, being willing to act with cluded from focial life, gave himself

The Mifanthrope reconciled to the World. A Tale. 599 up to the indulgence of his melan- fportfman's phrafe, at a fault, and

choly recollections, without confidering that, though he had fufficient reafon to blame the behaviour of fame of his friends, he had others of whofe condut he could not with propriety complain: but he was too much under the power of difcontent to think correctly of difcriminatien,. and, therefore, plunged himfelf into folitude with a fixed refolution never to return to the scenes in which his purfe had been often employed to make ungrateful mortals happy, and in which his peace had been often deftroyed by the malevolence of those who envied him for being in a fituation which enabled him to make them fo.

Simplicius retired from the world, but he could not gain what he withed for in retirement, tranquillity, and an exemption from the cares of it. The remembrance of paft hours only ferved to render the prefent ones more painful. In vain did he, adopting the manners of an hermit, wander through the wood which was near his folitary dwelling, or fitting down with a book in his hand, endeavour to read away his difquietudes. Difgufted as he was with mankind, he still hankered after the world, and was, indeed, from the violent operation of fome unruly paffions, the most unfit man to enjoy the folid fatisfactions refulting from a contented mind: a mind thoroughly at cafe, calm, and undisturbed.

As Simplicius had carried his retiring defign into execution with the greateft fecrecy, his friends knew nothing of his movements: they were, of courfe, not a little furprifed one day, on going to his houfe, to find it fhut up; and could not, by the minutest enquiries they made, procure from the fervant who was left to take care of it, the leaft information with regard to the owner's motions. With fuch fecrecy and difpatch had he conducted his manoeuvres, that they were all, in the

wearied themfelves with conjectures to no purpofe, concerning the place to which he had pofted with so much precipitation, without giving them the remoteft hint with refpect to his intentions. They were puzzled, indeed, with refpect to the place which he had chofen for his retreat, but they were not perplexed about the motives which prompted him to retirement, having heard him, frequently, in the bitter moments of mental infelicity, utter very fevere expreffions against focial life, and bestow much more praife on feclufion from the world than it certainly deferved..

But, to leave his conjecturing friends, and to return to himthough he was by no means happy in his folitary ftate, he perfevered in his defertion from fociety, ftimulated by falfe reafoning, by which he was convinced that he fhould be miferable if he renewed his focial connections.

For fome time he lived in a gloomy, difcontented condition, and not being naturally of a reading turn, found retirement rather a burthen than a bleffing; a burthen it will ever be to thofe who can draw no amufement from their own minds; a bleffing it can only be to thofe who are able to derive pleafure from the approbation of their own hearts. Simplicius had not a bad heart, but he had paffions which he could not regulate in fuch a manner as to prevent them from disturbing his peace: he was not deficient, indeed, in understanding, but he was not poffeffed of thofe intellectual ftores by which a man is enabled to make the most fequestered spots productive of mental entertainment.

While he was reading, one morning, in the wood to which he often directed his fteps, he was roused from a reverie, into which a parti cular paffage had thrown him by a ruftling noife among the trees next him. On looking up, he was not a

little