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It is either Dr. South, I think, in very handsome terms of that

or fomebody else, who tells us, that there is as wide a difference betwixt the jovial delights of an honeft fellow over the bottle, and the greasy enjoyments of a glutton at his venifon, as between the folemn taciturnity of an Archimides over a problem, and the stillness of a fow at her wash trough.

For mine own part, I never could boaft the reputation of being

the ableft hand at a bottle. For lack of perfonal service, therefore, I hold myself bound, as in our militia enrolments, to find a substitute, if I mean to cut any confiderable figure. Mine shall not be nameless long; and I affure you he was a deadly good sponge; a more steady, perhaps, can hardly be found in the wide phalanx of Bacchus, whether for a time, constant muster, or tafk-work. The great Hercules himfelf was not more invincible in his way; for my hero, to do him justice, is not reported to have been at any time intoxicated. The fame of his enviable abilities affembled of course many a focial athletic bibber, your two-and-threebottle men of the club he honoured, to engage with him; and of these, as being of ampler puissance, he difmissed the majority in due time, with the glory, living or dead, of having been drunk down by him. Secum bibiffe was the merited trophy of their limited warfare. The hero himself was well-bottomed, and generally remained master, having feldom left any one of the room behind him, unless it were under the table, or under the turf.

Whilft young, and ere he had found out a better employment for his time and talents, it is faid that he applied himself pretty much to books, as many other learned profeffors have done in modern times. Of what fort we are not clearly told; but he was not, that we can find, bred at either of our univerfities. In the course of his reading, however, he must have met with several eminent writers who speak

bibical perfection in which he proved peculiarly proficient for a number of years.

"Horace," savs one of these writers, "in various parts of his works, and particularly those he wrote in the prime of life and vigour of his fancy, recommends, by the most brilliant language, this generous and most manly exercife. In one place he tells us, as a great misfortune, that we shall have no wine in the next world; in another page, he counfels his friend Planeus to foothe all his cares in this life with it. He advises us in one elegant ode to drink, because it is hot weather; in another, because it is cold; and in a third, he affures us, that, if we are wife, we shall do nothing but drink; together with numberless inftances of a fimilar and very lively turn. Nay, even in the fobriety of his matchless Epiftles, he promises immortality to his brother bards, upon no other condition, absolutely, than that of drinking. He gravely informs them, that their common father the great Ennius never put stile to tablet but when he was tipfey; and that even Homer hath shewn us how little averfe he was to wine. This, indeed, is afferted to be fo true, that the fole reafon alledged for his being long and often fober is, that at times he could come at no drink upon earth, to largely was it monopolized by his celestial inachinery of Olympus. We all know that, befides his facrifices and his "armistices, which were but mere drinking-matches, and fo early as at the clofe of his first Iliad, he makes all his gods, and goddesses too, so mellow, that they are forced to go to-bed, as their fafeft afylum, at funfet: the very

time when fober people now-a-days only begin their Bacchunctia; notwithstanding which unfashionable. hour, it seems they had taken fuch a dose of nectar, that it held them all night found atleep; all but Jupiter himself only excepted, whose head is fuppofed to be stronger than the rest of his club."

Such a head appears to have been that also of my hero, whose history Mr. Urban shall now have; not a poetical fiction, but plain matter of fact, just as it was lately given me be a friend, who took it from an infcription at the Bull inn

Dear

:

known, if you can dedicate a corner, you will highly oblige both the publick, and your humble fervant and admirer,

near Bishofgate. Whether the fake: to which, now indeed little portrait of fo celebrated a character is still hung up there in the club room, I am not qualified to say. This record of him however shall, if you pleate, perpetuate his name, and mark his atchievement in unfading colours.

"Digmem laude virum, Musa vetat mori!" The Spartans very piously exhibited drunken flaves before their children, to deter them from being foakers. I with your readers to confult, as in a looking glass, the exorbitancy of others. wet or dry; and to fet and adjust their own conduct by the wholesome examples, good or bad, of all men.

continued

"Mr. Vanhorn, a Hamborough merchant, not long fince of Broadfreet, London, was used to frequent the Bull inn, Bishopsgate-ftreet. He to do fd, and prefided at a daily meeting there, for three and twenty years fucceffively. Every day of that time (two only excepted, when called off to attend family funerals), he red port wine, and began a fifth. In the faid term of three and twenty years, he drank," says my informant, thir ty-five thousand fix hundred and eighty eight bottles, being fifty nine pipes of red port."

drank in the above house four bottles of

I prefume that this capital Bibo was a Dutchman too; a worthy descendant of Thevenot's lift. We find in your vol. XXX. p. 203, the memorial of one Gerard Vanhorn, glass bottle-maker, a bankrupt; and from his apt profession I muft conclude his confanguinity to our worthy hero, the bottle emptier. Yours, &c.

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ANTI-BONOSUS.

Mr. URBAN, Sheffield, July 14. T is not without fincere pleasure that I hear of a new edition of the joint labours of Meffrs. Gray and Mafon being foon likely to itfue from a

EDMUND C. MASON.

ANECDOTE -Mr. Gray, after having proceeded to the degree of A. B. at Cambridge, was fuppofed to have contracted an affection for Miss D-me; at the fame time time that Mr. M. was faid to have felt the tender paffion for Miss C-t-y, afterwards Mrs. H-g-m. On Mr. M's commending the fuperiority of his mistress, Mr. Gray penned the following lines, a very masterly imitation of Martial: "Fulvia formosa est multis-mihi candida, longa

Recta est, hoc ego: sic fingula confiteor: Totum illad, formosa, nego: nam nulla venustas

Cælia formofu eft; quæ cùm pulcherrima

Nulla in tam magno corpore mica salis

tota eft,

Omnibus una omnes furripuit Veneres."

which afterwards Mr. West, on his return from the grand tour, thus elegantly, though perhaps somewhat inaccurately, tranflated; Φύλβα καλή πόλλοις· μοι μακρὴ, ἀργυ

φὴ, ὀρθὴ·

Τετ' ἐγώ· ὣς φάσκω σαλάγε ταῦτα καθ' ἓν.

Οὐ τοδ ̓ ὁλὸν φάσκω, καλή· ἐ κομψόν ἐνισὶ,

Οὐ τετῷ γε κότει τῷ μεγαλω 'ςὶν ἀλὸς Κοῖλα καλὴ δ ̓ ἐςὶν γ ̓. ἀργεννοίαΐ ὰ γε

μαλ ̓ ὅσα, Κύπριδας ἐκ πάσων πᾶσας ὑφηρπάσαλο.

Mr. URBAN,

A

LTHOUGH "

July 12.
A Well-

wisher to the Poor" (p. 405) appears to be one of those inge nious persons who are ever upon the look-out for circumftances whereon to found plausible procertain Northern jects that may convey money into press. In the mean time, permit their own pockets, yet the obferme, fir, through the medium of vations he has made on the aggra your most valuable Publication, vated melancholy fituation of the to offer you a paper lately found in poor during illness are perfectly the poffeffion of my late most just. I agree with him, that re highly-honoured relative and name- ceptacles for the fick poor are in

Tome

fome parishes greatly wanting, both to receive perfons ill of infectious diforders from the cottages, and alfo from the workhouses. In fome parishes such receptacles are already provided under the denomination of peft-houses; fome of which are erected in open plains, and others near the workhouses of the parishes to which they belong. These peft-houses are kept in a conftant ftate of readiness to receive fick persons by some of the fteadieft of the parish-paupers, who are placed in them for that purpose, and the patients removed to them are provided with all neceffaries at the expence of the parishes to which they belong, and are at tended by apothecaries, who receive annual ftipends from the overseers for adminiftering advice and medicines to the poor. This is the method of management respecting the fick poor in many parishes, and ought to be the method in all; for none better can be devifed. Your correfpondent propofcs that there should be a little hofpital every village; but one hofpital in a parith is more likely to be properly attended and inspected than several, and every thing respecting food, washing, and other particulars of domeftic economy can be conducted with more convenience and less expence in one house than in feveral; and the expenditure be also smaller for buildings, repairs, furniture, and garden. These are not times to invent and create new establishments. Let us fee that the old ones do not go to decay, but that all the hospitals, infirmaries, pest-houses, and almshouses, be liberally fupported and closely fuperintended; and that masters and miftreiles of workhouses, and parith doctors and nurses, do their duty. If the overseers watch them, and juftices watch the overfeers, the evils obferved by your correfpondent can no where exift in England, as our wife laws have provided against them. It only remains, that pest-houses be erected,

to

and parish doctors be appointed, in those parishes wherein there are not any at present.

Your exceeding fenfible correspondent Atticus, p. 216, has made the fame remarks on the dispensa tion of charity as "A Southern Faunist" has done in his autumnal chronicle for the year 1792. Gent. Mag. vol. LXII. p. 1176. I fhould be forry that there should be any limitation of charity, but certainly there ought to be judgement ufed in the diftribution of it, for otherwise it evidently promotes vice and idleness. The best method of bestowing charity is to find employment for the poor, and pay them liberally according to the quantity of their labour and their inclination to exert themselves; but liberal pay is what people are apt to grudge them, especially farmers and matter workmen, notwithstanding both forts of masters get fo much by their men's labour. A. M.

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Mr. URBAN,

A

July 20.

CADEMICUS, who has thrown the firft flone at Horace compared with the Greeks, p. 509, is not himself without error, which demands the correction of fome friendly hand. Sir George Baker, whom he calls a knight, is a baroner; and Galer, whom he diguifies with the title of father of medicine, is only the fon of Hippocrates, between whom and Galen 600 years; but perhaps there is forme excuse for the fecond mistake, as Galen generally precedes Hippocrates on the boards of the apothecaries. EPIDUSIS. P. 435, for immeasurable, v. innumerable. Mr.

are

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Moser Soulh

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