upon the audience whether they will actually drive those poor merry creatures from the stage, or sit at a play as gloomy as at the tabernacle. It is not easy to recover an art when once lost; and it will be but a just punishment, that when, by our being too fastidious, we have banished humour from the stage, we should ourselves be deprived of the art of laughing.

A REGISTER OF SCOTCH MARRIAGES.

To the Editor of the Westminster Magazine.2 SIR-As I see you are fond of gallantry, and seem willing to set young people together as soon as you can, I cannot help lending my assistance to your endeavours, as I am greatly concerned in the attempt. You must know, Sir, that I am landlady of one of the most noted inns on the road to Scotland, and have seldom less than eight or ten couples a-week, who go down rapturous lovers, and return man and wife.

If there be in this world an agreeable situation, it must be that in which a young couple find themselves when just let loose from confinement, and whirling off to the land of promise. When the post-chaise is driving off, and the

1 Dennis accused Addison of poisoning the town with false criticism, previous to the appearance of his tragedy of 'Cato,' that the public might be prepared to give it a favourable reception. A malicious critic might think himself entitled to bring a similar charge against Goldsmith, as he wrote this essay, which contains such severe strictures on the senti mental comedy which was at that time very popular, immediately before the appearance of his own comedy, 'She Stoops to Conquer, a production which, with all its merits, may be said to encroach a little too much on the province of farce. It must be admitted, however, that his strictures on the fashionable comedy of the day are just; though he unduly limits the province of true comedy when he says that "low life and middle life are entirely its objects."-B. This essay appeared in January, 1773, and Goldsmith's She Stoops to Conquer' was produced at Covent Garden Theatre on the following 15th March. For the rela tion of the essay to the comedy, see also the dedication of the latter to Dr. Johnson, vol. ii. p. 216.-ED.

2 Another essay of that magazine, Feb., 1773.-Ed.

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blinds are drawn up, sure nothing can equal it! And yet, I do not know how, what with the fears of being pursued, or the wishes for greater happiness, not one of my customers but seems gloomy and out of temper. The gentlemen are all sullen, and the ladies discontented.

But if it be so going down, how is it with them coming back? Having been for a fortnight together, they are then mighty good company to be sure. It is then the young lady's indiscretion stares her in the face; and the gentleman himself finds that much is to be done before the money comes in.

For my own part, Sir, I was married in the usual way; all my friends were at the wedding; I was conducted with great ceremony from the table to the bed; and I do not find that it any ways diminished my happiness with my husband, while, poor man! he continued with me. For my part, I am entirely for doing things in the old family way; I hate your new-fashioned manners, and never loved an outlandish marriage in my life.

As I have had numbers call at my house, you may be sure I was not idle in enquiring who they were, and how they did in the world after they left me. I cannot say that I ever heard much good come of them: and of a history of twenty-five that I noted down in my ledger, I do not know a single couple that would not have been full as happy if they had gone the plain way to work, and asked the consent of their parents. To convince you of it, I will mention the names of a few, and refer the rest to some fitter opportunity.

Imprimis, Miss Jenny Hastings went down to Scotland with a tailor, who, to be sure, for a tailor, was a very agreeable sort of a man. But I do not know how, he did not take proper measure of the young lady's disposition: they quarrelled at my house on their return; so she left him for a cornet of dragoons, and he went back to his shopboard.

Miss Rachel Runfort went off with a grenadier. They spent all their money going down; so that he carried her down in a post-chaise, and coming back, she helped to carry his knapsack.

Miss Racket went down with her lover in their own

phaeton; but upon their return, being very fond of driving, she would be every now and then for holding the whip. This bred a dispute; and before they were a fortnight together, she felt that he could exercise the whip on somebody else besides the horses.

Miss Meekly, though all compliance to the will of her lover, could never reconcile him to the change of his situation. It seems, he married her supposing she had a large fortune; but being deceived in their expectations, they parted: and they now keep separate garrets in Rosemary Lane.1

The next couple of whom I have any account, actually lived together in great harmony and uncloying kindness for no less than a month; but the lady, who was a little in years, having parted with her fortune to her dearest life, he left her to make love to that better part of her which he valued more.

The next pair consisted of an Irish fortune-hunter, and one of the prettiest modestest ladies that ever my eyes beheld. As he was a well-looking gentleman, all drest in lace, and as she seemed very fond of him, I thought they were blest for life. Yet I was quickly mistaken. The lady was no better than a common woman of the town, and he was no better than a sharper; so they agreed upon a mutual divorce. He now dresses at the York Ball, and she is in keeping by the member for our borough in Parliament.

In this manner we see that all those marriages, in which there is interest on one side, and disobedience on the other, are not likely to promise a long harvest of delights. If our fortune-hunting gentlemen would but speak out, the young lady, instead of a lover, would often find a sneaking rogue, that only wanted the lady's purse, and not her heart. For my own part, I never saw any thing but design and falsehood in every one of them; and my blood has boiled in my veins, when I saw a young fellow of twenty kneeling at the feet of a twenty thousand pounder, professing his passion, while he was taking aim at her money. I do not

1 Goldsmith very frequently borrows from his own writings. Several of the incidents recorded here are introduced in the Landlady's speech in the Good-Natured Man.'-B. See act v., p. 199, vol. ii.-ED.

deny but there may be love in a Scotch marriage, but it is generally all on one side.

Of all the sincere admirers I ever knew, a man of my acquaintance, who, however, did not run away with his mistress to Scotland, was the most so. An old exciseman of our town, who, as you may guess, was not very rich, had a daughter who, as you shall see, was not very handsome. It was the opinion of every body that this young woman would not soon be married, as she wanted two main articles, beauty and fortune. But for all this, a very well-looking man, that happened to be travelling those parts, came and asked the exciseman for his daughter in marriage. The exciseman, willing to deal openly by him, asked if he had seen the girl; "for," says he, 66 she is humpbacked."-"Very well," cried, the stranger, "that will do for me."- "Aye," says the exciseman, "but my daughter is as brown as a berry."-"So much the better," cried the stranger; "such skins wear well." "But she is bandy-legg'd," says the exciseman.-" No matter," cries the other; "her petticoats will hide that defect.". But then she is very poor, and wants an eye."- "Your description delights me," cries the stranger: "I have been looking out for one of her make; for I keep an exhibition of wild beasts, and intend to show her off for a Chimpanzee."

ON THE DIGNITY OF HUMAN NATURE.

[An essay so titled is the next (No. XXIV.) in Percy's edition, but as this is merely a reprint of Letter CXV. of the Citizen of the World' (On the Danger of having too high an Opinion of Human Nature'), we omit it here.-ED.]

APPENDIX TO THIS EDITION OF THE

ESSAYS.

ON THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE 'BELLES LETTRES'

SERIES.

(See pp. 311, 323, et sq.)

....

SIR James Prior's opinion in favour of Goldsmith's authorship is thus given (Life of Goldsmith,' v. i. p. 345) :—“ Among these [the pieces which Goldsmith did not gather into his collection of Essays' of 1765 and 1766 respectively] were several classical criticisms, the style of which admits of no mistake, and were further known to be his by Bishop Percy and Malone." And, again (ib. p. 351):-" He commenced in that work [the British Magazine] a series of papers on the Belles Lettres,' embracing a considerable portion of classical criticism . . . . Fourteen papers altogether were given, each forming about three pages of the Magazine, printed in double columns, and the attention was either drawn to them, or the proprietors were willing to do so, by a passage in the preface to the volume for 1762, where it is stated, as if much consideration were due to the subject, or the writer, that besides four articles continued uninterruptedly through the work, they have added a fifth on the subject of the Belles Lettres, which we flatter ourselves will meet with peculiar approbation.'

6

Mr. Peter Cunningham's opinion against Goldsmith's authorship (given at p. 323) is of course weighty; but, save for one consideration, Bishop Percy's contrary opinion, as testified by his publication of this series of essays for the first time with Goldsmith's works, might be taken as being at least equally weighty. The one circumstance is that the inclusion of these essays in the 1801 edition of Goldsmith's works may really not have been the Bishop's act, but rather that merely of the persons he employed as editors. It is known that Percy disapproved of much that was both done and left undone with regard to the edition of Goldsmith which was put forth under his auspices, and for which he has since been very generally held accountable. If the inclusion of these essays was one of the blunders of his editors and publishers of which the Bishop has made such complaint (see his Letters in Nichols'' Literary Illustrations,' vi., p. 583, &c.), the importance of their appearance in Goldsmith's works as due to the act of the author's friend and literary executor is of course much diminished.