THE WORLD. N° 53. THURSDAY, JANUARY 3, 1754. THERE are very few employments which require a greater degree of care and circumspection than that of conducting a public paper. Double meanings are so much the delight of all conversations, that people seldom choose to take things in their obvious sense; but are putting words and sentences 'to the torture, to force confessions from them which their authors never meant, or if they had, would have deserved a whipping for. For this reason I take all the pains I can to be understood but one way. And indeed, were I to publish nothing in these papers, but what I write myself, I should be very little apprehensive of double constructions. But, it seems, I have not been sufficiently guarded against the subtilties of my correspondents. Amanda's letter in my last paper has been discovered to be a manifest design to remove the lace-trade from Ludgate-hill to Duke's-court. Some people make no conscience of declaring that I am the author of it myself, and that I received a considerable bribe for writing it. Others are of opinion that it is the production of a very pretty journeywoman in Duke's-court, who is entering into part nership with her mistress in the lace-trade, and has taken this method to bring custom to the shop. But whoever is the writer of this letter, or whatever was the design of it, all people are agreed that the effect. is certain it being very observable that the virtuous women have been seen, for this week past, to crowd to the lace-shops in Duke's-court, and that scarcely half a dozen of them have appeared upon Ludgatehill since they were apprised by this paper that such a person as Amanda was known to be housed there. From at least half a dozen letters which I have received upon this occasion, I shall only publish the two following: SIR, To MR. FITZ-ADAM. I beg to be informed if the letter signed Amanda in your last paper be reality or invention. If reality, please to tell me at which of the lace-shops the creature lives, that I may avoid the odious sight of her, and not be obliged to buy my laces of a milliner, or to murder my horses by driving them upon every trifling occasion to the other end of the town. I am, Sir, your humble servant, Cheapside, Dec. 29th, 1753.' MR. FITZ-ADAM, I beg that you will do me the justice to inform the public that I have not had a lying-in in my house, since I was brought to bed of my fourteenth child, which is five years ago next Lady-day; and that the young woman who has assisted me in the lace-trade for these last three months, is not called Amanda, but Lucretia. I am, your very humble servant, WINNEFRED BOBBIN.' • Ludgate-Hill, Dec. 50th, 1753.' I wish with all my heart, that it was as easy for me to make amends for what has happened, as it is to vindicate myself from any interested design in the publication of Amanda's letter. It was sent to Mr. Dodsley's by the penny-post, written in a very pretty Italian hand, and will be shewn to as many of the curious as are desirous of seeing it. I will not deny that I ought to have cancelled this letter; as I might reasonably have supposed that no lady who entertained a proper regard for her virtue, would be seen at a lace-shop upon Ludgate-hill, while there was a bare possibility of her being served by Amanda. Indeed, to confess the truth, I have always been of opinion, that every young creature, who has been once convicted of making a slip, should be compelled to take upon her the occupation of street-walking all her life after. It is a maxim among the people called Quakers (and a very laudable one it is) not to suffer a convicted and open knave to be one of their body. They have a particular ceremony, by which they expel him their community: and though he may continue to profess the opinions of Quakerism, they look upon him to be no member of their church, and no otherwise a brother, than as every man is descended from one common father. I make no doubt but that the Quakers have copied this piece of policy from the ladies: but as most copies are observed to fall short of the spirit of their originals, this industrious, prudent, and opulent set of people will, I hope, excuse me, if I prefer a first and finished design to an imperfect imitation of it. The Quakers have never, that I know of, excommunicated a member for one single failure; nor upon frequent repetitions of it, have they so driven him from the commerce of mankind, as to make him des |