pieces by the violence of tempefts; fome are thrown down, and intercept the course of the torrents, appearing as if they had been brought down by the fury of the waters; others look as if fhattered and blafted by the force of lightning; the buildings are fome in ruins, others half confumed by fire, and fome miferable huts, difperfed in the mountains, ferve at once to indicate the existence and wretchednefs of the inhabitants. Thefe fcenes are generally fucceded by pleafing ones. The Chinefe artifts, knowing how powerfully contraft operates on the mind, conftantly practife fudden tranfitions, and a striking oppofition of forms, colours, and fhades. Thus they conduct you from limited profpects to extenfive views; from objects of horror to fcenes of delight; from lakes and rivers to plains, hills, and woods; to dark and gloomy colours they oppofe fuch as are brilliant, and to complicated forms fimple ones; diftributing, by a judicious arrangement, the different maffes of light and fhade, in fuch a manner as to render the compofition at once diftinct in its parts, and striking in the whole.

Where the ground is extenfive, and a multiplicity of fcenes are to be introduced, they generally adapt each to one fingle point of view: but where it is limited, and affords no room for va riety, they endeavour to remedy this defect, by difpofing the objects fo, that being viewed from different points, they produce different reprefentations; and fometimes, by an artful difpofition, fuch as have no resemblance to each other.

In their large gardens they contrive different fcenes for morning, noon, and evening; erecting, at the proper points of view, buildings adapted to the recreations of each particular time of the day: and in their small ones (where, as has been obferved, one arrangement produces many reprefentations) they difpofe in the fame manner, at the feveral points of view, buildings, which, from their use, point out the time of

day for enjoying the scene in its perfection.

As the climate of China is exceeding hot, they employ a great deal of water in their gardens. In the small ones, if the fituation admits, they frequently lay almoft the whole ground under water; leaving only fome islands and rocks: and in their large ones they introduce extenfive lakes, rivers and canals. The banks of their lakes and rivers are variegated in imitation of nature; being fometimes hare and gravelly, fometimes covered with woods quite to the water's edge. In fome places flat, and adorned with flowers and fhrubs; in others fteep, rocky, and forming caverns, into which part of the waters difcharge themselves with noife' and violence. Sometimes you fee meadows covered with cattle, or rice grounds that run out into the lakes, leaving between them paffages for vef fels; and fometimes groves, into which enter, in different parts, creeks and rivulets, fufficiently deep to admit boats; their banks being planted with trees, whofe fpreading branches, in fome places, form arbours, under which the boats pafs. Thefe generally conduct to fome very interefting object; fuch as a magnificent building, places on the top of a mountain cut into terraffes; a cafine fituated in the midft of a lake; a cascade, a grotto cut into variety of apartments, an artificial rock, and many other fuch inventions.

ir

Their rivers are feldom ftraight, but ferpentine, and brought into many regular points; fometimes they are narrow, noify, and rapid, at other times deep, broad, and flow. Both in their rivers and lakes are feen reeds, with other aquatic plants and flowers, particularly the lyen hoa, of which they are very fond. They frequently erect mills, and othet hydraulic machines, the motions of which enliven the fcene: they have alfo a great number of veffels of different forms and fizes. In their lakes they interfperfe iflands, fome of them barren, and furrounded with rocks

and

and fhoals; others enriched with every thing that art and nature can furnish most perfect. They likewife form artificial rocks; and in compofitions of this kind the Chinese furpafs all other nations. The making them is a diftinct profeffion; and there are at Canton, and probably in most other cities of China, numbers of artificers conftantly employed in this bufinefs. The ftone they are made of comes from the Southern coaits of China. It is of a bluish caft, and worn into irregular forms by the action of the waves. The Chinese are exceeding nice in the choice of this stone, infomuch that I have feen feveral tael given for a bit no bigger than a man's fist, when it happened to be of a beautiful form and lively colour. But these select pieces they use in landfcapes for their apartments; in gardens they employ a coarfer fort, which they join with a bluifh cement, and form rocks of a confiderable fize, I have feen fome of these exquifitely fine, and fuch as difcovered an uncommon elegance of taste in the contriver. When they are large they make in them caves and grottos, with openings, thro' which you difcover diftant profpects. They cover them in different places, with trees, shrubs, briars, and mofs; placing on their tops little temples, or other buildings, to which you afcend by rugged and irregular fteps cut in the rock. When there is a fufficient fupply of water, and proper ground, the Chinefe never fail to form cafcades in their gardens. They avoid all regularity in thefe works, obferving nature according to her operations in that mountainous country. The waters burst out from among the caverns and windings of the rocks. In fome places a large and impetuous cataract appears; in others are seen many leffer falls. Sometimes the view of the cafcade is intercepted by trees, whofe leaves and branches only leave room to discover the waters, in fome places, as they fall down the fides of the mountains. They frequently throw rough wooden bridg

es from one rock to another over the fteepeit part of the cataract; and often intercept its paffage by trees and heaps of ftones, that feem to have been brought down by the violence of the torrent.

In their plantations they vary the forms and colours of their trees; mixing fuch as have large and spreading branches with thofe of pyramidal figures, and dark greens with brighter, interfperfing among them fuch as produce flowers, of which they have fome that flourish a great part of the year. The weeping willow is one of their favourite trees, and always among those that border their lakes and rivers, being fo planted as to have its branches hanging over the water. They likewife introduce trunks of decayed trees, fometimes erect, and at other times lying on the ground, being very nice about their forms, and the colour of the bark and mofs on them.

Various are the artifices they employ to furprize. Sometimes they lead you thro' dark caverns, and gloomy paffages, at the iffue of which you are, on a sudden, ftruck with the view of a delicious landfcape, enriched with every thing that luxuriant nature affords moft beautiful. At other times you are conducted thro' avenues and walks, that gradually diminish and grow rugged, till the paffage is at length entirely intercepted, and rendered impracticable, by buthes, briars, and ftones; when unexpectedly a rich and extenfive profpect opens to view, fo much the more pleafing, as it was lefs looked for.

Another of their artifices is to hide fome part of a compofition by trees, or other intermediate objects. This naturally excites the curiofity of the fpectator to take a nearer view; when he is furprized by fome unexpected fcene, or fome reprefentation totally oppofite to the thing he looked for. The termination of their lakes they always hide, leaving room for the imagination to work; and the fame rule

they

An Infiance of GRATITUDE.

SIR

IR William Fitzwilliams the elder, being a merchant taylor, and fervant fome time to cardinal Wolfey, was chofen Alderman of Broadstreet ward in London, 1506. Going afterwards to dwell at Milan in Northamptonshire, on the fall of the cardinal,his former mafter, he gave him kind entertainment at his houfe in the country; for which, being called before the king, and demanded how he durft entertain fo great an enemy to the ftate? his anfwer was," that he had not contemp. tuously, or wilfully done it, but only because he had been his mafter, and partly the means of his greatest fortunes." The king was fo well pleafed with his anfwer, that faying himfelf had few fuch fervants he immediately knighted him, and afterwards made him one of his privy-council.

Mr William Marvel's Surprifing

I

Journey.

Supped three nights ago with my friend William Marvel. His affairs obliged him lately to take a jour ney into Devon-fhire, from which he has juft returned. He knows me to be a very patient hearer, and was glad of it my company, as gave him an opportunity of difburdening himself by a minute relation of the cafualities ofhis expedition.

William is not one of thofe who go out and return with nothing to tell. He has a stroy of his travels, which will ftrike a home-bred citizen with horror, and has in ten-days fuffered fo often the extremes of terror and joy, that he is in doubt,whether he fhall ever again expofe either his body or mind. to fuch danger and fatigue.

When he left London the morning was bright and a fair day was promifed. But William is born to ftruggle with difficulties. That happened to him; which has fometimes, perhaps, happened to others. Before he had

gone more than teu miles it began to rain, what courfe was he to take? his foul difdained to return back. He did what the king of Ruffia might have done, he flapped his hat, buttoned up his cape, and went forward, fortifying his mind by the ftoical confolation, that whatever evil is violent will be fhort.

His conftancy was not long tried; at the distance of about half a mile he faw an Inn, which he entered wet and weary, and found civil treatment and proper refreshment. After a refpite of about two hours he looked abroad,and feeing the sky clear, called for his horfe and paffed the firft ftage without any other memorable accident.

William confidered that labour must be relieved by pleasure, and that the ftrength which great undertakings required, muft be maintained by copious nutriment; he therefore ordered himfelf an elegant fupper, drank two bottles of claret, and paffed the beginning of the night in found fleep; but waking before light, was forewarned of the troubles of the next day, by a fhower beating against his windows with fuch violence as to threaten the deffolution of nature. When he arose he found what he expected, the country was under water. He joined himfelf, however, to a company that was travelling the fame way, and came fafely to the place of dinner, tho' every step of his horfe dafhed the mud into the air.

In the afternoon,having loft his company, he fet forward alone, and passed many collections of water of which it is impoffible to guefs the depth, which he now cannot review without fome cenfure of his own rashness; but what a man undertakes he must perform, and Marvel hates a coward at his head.

Few that lie warm in their beds, think what others undergo, who have perhaps been as tenderly educated, and have as acute fenfations as themselves. My friend was now to lodge the second night almoft fifty mlies from home, in a house which he had never seen before, among people to whom he was

totally

totally a franger; not knowing whether the next man he should meet would prove good or bad; but seeing an Inn of a good appearance, he rode refolutely into the yard, and knowing that refpect is often paid in proportion as it is claimed, delivered his injunction to the hoftler with spirit, and entering the house, called vigorously about him. On the third day up-rose the fun and Mr. Marvel, his troubles and his dangers were now fuch as he wishes no other man ever to encounter. The ways were lefs frequented, and the country more thinly inhabited, he rode many a lonely hour thro' mire and water, and met not a fingle foul for two miles together with whom he could exchange a word. He cannot deny that looking round upon the dreary region, and feeing nothing but black fields, and naked trees, hills obfcured with fogs, and flats covered with inundations, he did for fometime fuffer melancholy to prevail upon him, and wifhed himself again fafe at home. One com· fort he had, which was to confider that none of his friends were in the fame diftrefs; for whom if they had been with him, he should have fuffered more than for himself; he could not forbear fometimes to confider how happy the idler is fettled in an eafier condition, who, furrounded like him with terrors, could have done nothing but lie down and die.

Amidft thefe reflections he came to a town, and found a dinner which difpofed him to more chearful fentiments, but the joys of life are short, and its miferies are long. He mounted and travelled fifteen miles more through

dirt and defolation.

At laft the fun fet and all the horrors of darkness came upon him,he then repented the weak indulgence by which he had gratified himfelf at noon with too long an interval of reft. Yet he went forward along a path which he could no longer fee, fometimes rafhing fuddenly into water, and fometimes

incumbered with stiff clay, ignorant whether he was going, and uncertain whether the next step might not be his last.

In this difmal gloom of nocturnal peregrination, his horfe, unexpectedly ftood ftill. Marvel had heard many relations of the inftinct of horses, and was in doubt what danger might be at hand; fometimes he fancied that he was on the bank of a river, till and deep, and fometimes that a dead body lay across the track. He fat ftill a while to recollect his thoughts, and as he was about to alight and explore the darknefs, out stepped a man with a lanthorn and opened the turnpike. He hired a guide to the town, arrived in fafety, and slept in quiet.

The reft of his journey was nothing but danger, he climbed and defcended precipieces, on which vulgar mortals tremble to look! he paffed marthes like the Serbonian-bog,whère armies whole have funk; he forded rivers where the current roared like the egre of the fevern; or ventured himself on bridges that trembled under him, from which he looked down on the foaming whirlpools, or dreadful abyffes; he wandered over houseless heaths, amidst all the rage of the elements, and the fnow driving in his face, and the tempeft howling in his ears,

Such are the colours in which Marvel paints his adventures, He has accustomed himself to founding words, and hyperbolical images, till he has loft the power of true defcription. In a road through which the heaviest carriages pafs without difficulty, and the poft-boy every day and night goes and returns; he meets with hardships like thofe which are endured in Siberian deferts, and miffes nothing of romantic danger, but a giant, and a dragon. When his dreadful ftory is told in. proper terms, it is only that the way was dirty in winter, and that he experienced the common viciffitudes of rain and funshine.