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paragraph alluded to in the next paper. And that he would, if I chofe it, go then with me to his house.

Eager to extricate the poor man from the dilemma into which his ignorance had thrown him, I gladly accepted the friendly offer, and we proceeded immediately to the office of this prime minifter of fame, who received us with all the ftatelinefs which an idea of the confequence of fituation never fails to infpire. The gentleman took upon himfelf to open the bufinefs; which he did, by faying, " that he had brought with him a ftranger, of high rank, who confidered himself aggrieved by a paragraph, which had been that morning inferted in his paper; and then pointing it out, he told him, that I would expect to fee a contradiction of that part of it, which related to the British governor of India, for whom I entertained fentiments of the moft profound respect." The conductor fhrugged up his fhoulders, and faid, "the paragraph had been paid for."-"That is to fay, the contradiction of it must be paid for likewife," returned the gentleman." I dare fay, the Rajah will have no objection." Obferving the aftonishment that was painted in my countenance, he told me, that nothing was more commonly practised. Yes"; added the

news writer," the gentleman muft certainly allow, that when a falfehood has been paid for, it is not reasonable to expect, that it can be contradicted for nothing!It would be quite difhoncurable!" "What!" cried I, with an emotion no longer to be fuppreffed," and is it then in the power of a piece of gold, to procure circulation to whatever untruths the bafe malignity of envy or of hatred may choose to dictate are these the articles of intelligence, diffused at fuch vaft expence, over this Chriftian kingdom? Ah! ye fimple people whom diftance has happily preferved in ignorance of the ways of news writers, how little do ye know the real value of what ye fo liberally pay for!"

So much was I difgufted, that if my own character alone had been concerned, I would rather have fubmitted to the evil, than to the remedy.-As it was, I threw down the guinea and departed, with rather lefs reverence for the authenticity of newfpaper intelligence, than I had entertained at my entrance.

The difagreeable confequences of this affair, have not ftopped here; I can no longer ftir abroad, without attracting the gaze of obfervation.-Places of public entertainment are filled by the bare ex

pedation of beholding me; all thofe of refort, ia the out-fkirts of the town, have advertised me, as part of their bill of fare; and I am this evening difappointed of the pleasure I expected, at a new fpecies of amusement, called a Maf querade, from feeing in the newspaper, that my intention is known to the public. In fine, I can no longer find happiness in this metropolis, and would with pleasure at this moment re-embark on the bofom of that ocean, whofe diftant waves now beat against the happy fhores of India. Some weeks muft elapfe, before fuch an opportu nity can be found. I fhall, therefore, in the interim, avail myfelf of the polite and friendly invitation of Lady Grey, and the family of the Ardents, to go into the counary.

If I can prevail upon the philofopher to accompany me, I fhall indeed be happy. And let not Maandaara, too much exult over the difappointment of his friend, when I confefs to him, that experience has now convinced me, that, though the novelty of manuers and opinions may produce amufement, and the variety of human characters afford fome degree of inftruction, it is the Society of the friend we efteem, that can alone folace and fatisfy the heart!

When I vainly flattered myfelf, with obtaining the company of Severan, I had entirely forgot his experiments. He has now engaged in them with renewed ardour; and fo deeply is he interested in their fuccefs, that no motive, lefs powerful than the poffibility of relieving a fellow creature in diftrefs, would be fufficient to make him quit his laboratory. The morning after that in which we had vifited the building allotted to the reception of the unfortunate people, whom thefe good Chriftians have fo pioufly devoted to Eemen, I paid a vifit to the worthy family who had been refcued from the punishment of poverty, and after having done what was in my power to preferve them from being found guilty of a like crime in future, directed them to return to Severan, the fum he had fo generoufly advanced.

But though I am thus deprived of his company for the prefent, he promises to join me, as foon as his fcientific engagements will admit. And in the mean time, he tells me, I may expect amufement (I wonder he did not rather fay inftruction) from the characters I fhall meet at Sir Caprice Ardent's. This man of many minds, has left his temples

*The Prince of Hell.

and his turrets, his pillars and pillaflers, his arcades and his colonades, to be fiuifhed by the next lover of architecture, who may chance to fpring up in the family; and has retired into the country, to enjoy, without interruption, the calm pleafures of philofophy. The philofophy which at prefent engroffes the foul of the Baronet, is, however, of a dif ferent fpecies from that which engages the capacious mind of Doctor Severan. It is a philofophy which difdains the flow procefs of experiment, and chiefly glories in contradi&ing common fenfe. Its main object is, to fhew that the things which are, are not, and the things which are not, are and this is called Metaphyfics.

As I understand the matter, the art of thefe metaphyfical champions lies in puzzling each other, and the best puzzler carries off the prize.

While thefe Chriftian-born philofophers pique themfelves in turning from light, to walk in the darkness of their own vain imaginations, may the words. that are written in the "Ocean of Wif dom," never escape from our

brance!

remem

"Though one fhould be intimately << acquainted with the whole circle of Sci"ences, and mafter of the principles, on

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