whom, tho' otherwise a person not without fome abilities and for an antient of a tolerable genius, I have difcovered many grofs errors, which are not to be forgiven his very afhes, if by chance any of them are left. For whereas we are affured, he defigned his work for a compleat body of all knowledge, human, divine, political, and mechanic *; it is manifeft, he hath wholly neglected fome, and been very imperfect in the reft. For, first of all, as eminent a cabalist as his disciples would reprefent him, his account of the opus magnum is extremely poor and deficient; he feems to have read but very fuperficially either Sendi-vogus, Behmen, or Anthropofophia Theomagica t. He is alfo quite miflaken about the Sphæra Pyroplafica, a neglect not to be atoned for ;) and, if the reader will admit fo fevere a cenfure, vix crederem auctorem hunc unquam audiviffe ignis vocem. His failings are not lefs prominent in feveral parts of the mechanics. For, having read his writings with the utmoft application ufual among modern wits, I could never yet difcover the leaft direction about the ftructure of that ufeful inftrument, a fave-all. For want of which, if the moderns had not lent their affiftance, we might yet have wandered in the dark. But I have still behind, a fault far more notorious to tax this author with; I mean his grofs ignorance in the common laws of this realm, and in the doctrine as well as difcipline of the church of England: a defect indeed, for which both he and all the. antients ftand moft justly cenfured by my worthy and ingenious friend Mr. W-tt-n, batchelor of divinity, in his incomparable treatife of antient and modern learning; [Homerus omnes res humanas poematis complexus eft. Xenoph. in conviv. A treatife written about fifty years ago by a Welsh gentleman of Cambridge. His name, as I remember, was Vaughan, as appears by the answer to it, writ by the learned Dr. Henry More. It is a piece of the most unintelligible fuftian that perhaps was ever published in any language. Mr. W-tt-n, (to whom our author never gives any quarter,) in his comparison of antient and modern learning, numbers divinity, law, &c. among thofe parts of knowledge wherein we excel the antients. a book never to be fufficiently valued, whether we confider the happy turns and flowings of the author's wit, the great usefulness of his fublime difcoveries upon the fubject of flies and Spittle, or the laborious eloquence of his ftyle. And I cannot forbear doing that author the juftice of my public acknowledgments, for the great helps and liftings I had out of his incomparable piece, while I was penning this treatise. BUT, befides these omiffions in Homer, already mentioned, the curious reader will also observe several defects in that author's writings, for which he is not altogether fo accountable. For whereas every branch of knowledge has received fuch wonderful acquirements fince his age, efpecially within these laft three years, or thereabouts; it is almost impoffible, he could be so very perfect in modern discoveries, as his advocates pretend. We freely acknowledge him to be the inventor of the compass, of gun-powder, and the circulation of the blood. But I challenge any of his admirers, to fhew me in all his writings a compleat account of the Spleen. Does he not also leave us wholly to feek in the art of political wagering? what can be more defective and unfatisfactory than his long differtation upon tea? and as to his method of falivation without mercury, fo much celebrated of late, it is, to my own knowledge and experience, a thing very little to be relied on. It was to fupply fuch momentous defects, that I have been prevailed on, after long folicitation, to take pen in hand; and I dare venture to promife, the judicious reader shall find nothing neglected here, that can be of ufe upon any emergency of life. I am confident to have in、 cluded and exhaufted all that human imagination can rife or fall to. Particularly, I recommend to the perufal of the learned, certain difcoveries that are wholly untouched by others; whereof I fhall only mention among a great many more, My new help of fmatterers; or, "The art of being deep-learned, and fhallow read;— A curious invention about mouse-traps ;-An universal "rule of reafon; or, Every man his own carver;" together with a moft ufeful engine for catching of orts. 166 All All which the judicious reader will find largely treated on in the several parts of this discourse. I hold myfelf obliged to give as much light as is poffible, into the beauties and excellencies of what I am writing; because it is become the fashion and humour moft applauded among the first authors of this polite and learned age, when they would correct the ill nature of critical, or inform the ignorance of courteous readers. Befides, there have been feveral famous pieces lately published, both in verfe and profe, wherein, if the writers had not been pleafed, out of their great humanity and affection to the public, to give us a nice detail of the fublime and the admirable they contain, it is a thoufand to one, whether we should ever have difcovered one grain of either. For my own particular, I cannot deny, that whatever I have faid upon this occafion, had been more proper in a preface, and more agreeable to the mode, which usually directs it there. But I here think fit to lay hold on that great and honourable privilege of being the laft writer; I claim an abfolute authority in right, as the fresheft modern, which gives me a defpotic power over all authors before me. In the ftrength of which title, I do utterly disapprove and declare against that pernicious cuftom, of making the preface a bill of fare to the book. For I have always looked upon it as a high point of indifcretion in monstermongers, and other retalers of strange fights, to hang out a fair large picture over the door, drawn after the life, with a most eloquent defcription underneath. This hath faved me many a threepence; for my curiofity was fully fatisfied, and I never offered to go in, tho' often invited by the urging and attending orator, with his last moving and ftanding piece of rhetoric, "Sir, upon my word, "we are juft going to begin." Such is exactly the fate, at this time, of Prefaces, Epifles, Advertisements, Introductions, Prolegomena's, Apparatus's, To the Readers. This expedient was admirable at firft. Our great Dryden has long carried it as far as it would go, and with incredible fuccefs. He hath often faid to me in confidence, that the world would have never fufpected him to be fo great a poet, if he had not affured them fo frequently in his prefaces, that that it was impoffible they could either doubt or forget it. Perhaps it may be fo: however, I much fear, his inftructions have edified out of their place, and taught men to grow wifer in certain points, where he never intended they fhould: for it is lamentable to behold with what a lazy fcorn many of the yawning readers in our age do now a-days twirl over forty or fifty pages of Preface and Dedication, (which is the ufual modern flint.) as if it were fo much Latin. Tho' it must be also allowed, on the other hand, that a very confiderable number is known to proceed Critics and Wits, by reading nothing elfe. Into which two factions, I think, all prefent readers may juftly be divided. Now, for myself, I profefs to be of the former fort: and therefore having the modern inclination to expatiate upon the beauty of my own productions, and display the bright parts of my dif, courfe, I thought beft to do it in the body of the work; where, as it now lies, it makes a very confiderable addition to the bulk of the volume; 66 a circumstance by "no means to be neglected by a skilful writer." HAVING thus paid my due deference and acknowledgement to an established custom of our newest authors, by a long digreffion unfought for, and an univerfal cenfure unprovoked; by forcing into the light, with much pains and dexterity, my own excellencies, and other mens defaults, with great juftice to myself, and candour to them; I now happily refume my fubject, to the infinite fatisfaction, both of the reader and the author. SECT. VI. - A TAL E of a TỤ B. WE left Lord Peter in open rupture with his two and refigned to the wide world, with little or nothing to truft to. Which are circumftances that render them proper fubjects for the charity of a writer's pen to work on; fcenes of mifery ever affording the fairest harvest for great great adventures. And in this the world may perceive the difference between the integrity of a generous author, and that of a common friend. The latter is obferved to adhere close in profperity, but, on the decline of fortune, to drop fuddenly off: whereas the generous author, juft on the contrary, finds his hero on the dunghill, from thence by gradual steps raises him to a throne, and then immediately withdraws, expecting not fo much as thanks for his pains. In imitation of which example, I have placed Lord Peter in a noble house, given him a title to wear, and money to fpend. There I fhall leave him for fome time; returning, where common charity directs me, to the affiftance of his two brothers, at their lowest ebb. However, I fhall by no means forget my character of an hiftorian, to follow the truth, ftep by step, whatever happens, or wherever it may lead me. THE two exiles fo nearly united in fortune and intereft, took a lodging together; where, at their first leifure, they began to reflect on the numberless misfortunes and vexations of their life paft; and could not tell, on the fudden, to what failure in their conduct they ought to impute them; when, after some recollection, they called to mind the copy of their father's will, which they had fo happily recovered. This was immediately produced, and a firm resolution taken between them, to alter whatever was already amifs, and reduce all their future measures to the ftricteft obedience prescribed therein. The main body of the will (as the reader cannot eafily have forgot) confifted in certain admirable rules about the wearing of their coats in the perufal whereof, the two brothers at every period, duly comparing the doctrine with the practice, there was never feen a wider difference between two things; horrible, downright tranfgreffions of every point. Upon which they both refolved, without farther delay, to fall immediately upon reducing the whole exactly after their father's model. BUT here it is good to ftop the hafty reader, ever impatient to fee the end of an adventure, before we writers can duly prepare him for it. I am to record, that these two brothers began to be diftinguished at this time, |