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Pl.5.

Vol.I.

Pa 15

A. Bell Sculp

fometimes on the will.

Martin laid the firft

hand; at one twitch brought off a large handful of points; and, with a fecond pull, ftripped away ten dozen yards of fringe. But when he had gone thus far, he demurred a while. He knew very well, there yet remained a great deal more to be done. However, the first heat being over, his violence began to cool, and he refolved to proceed more moderately in the reft of the work; having already very narrowly escaped a swinging rent in pulling off the points, which, being tagged with filver, (as we have obferved before), the judicious workman had with much fagacity double fown, to preferve them from falling. Refolving therefore to rid his coat of a huge quantity of gold lace, he picked up the stitches with much caution, and diligently gleaned out all the loofe threads as he went; which proved to be a work of time. Then he fell about the embroidered Indian figures of men, women, and children; againft which, as you have heard in its due place, their father's teftament was extremely exact and fevere: Thefe, with much dexterity and application, were, after a while, quite eradicated, or utterly defaced. For the reft, where he obferved the embroidery to be worked fo clofe, as not to be got away without damaging the cloth, or where it ferved to hide or ftrengthen any flaw in the body of the coat, contracted by the perpetual tampering of workmen upon it; he concluded, the wifeft courfe was, to let it remain; refolvDd 2

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ing in no cafe whatsoever, that the fubftance of the stuff should fuffer injury; which he thought the best method for ferving the true intent and meaning of his father's will. And this is the nearest account I have been able to collect of Martin's proceedings upon this great revolution *.

But his brother Jack †, whofe adventures will be fo extraordinary as to furnish a great part in the

*The criticisms of the Martinifts (whom we may fuppofe the members of the church of England) were, it is to be hoped, more candid than thofe contained in the following note: For Martin is treated with a much lefs degree of sarcasm than the other two brothers.--The church of England can scarce be angry at such a favourable account of Luther; especially as we have fince reformed from Luther himself; and, fo far as our judgments can teach us, have restored our habits still nearer to the original fashion, which they bore at the perfection of the teftament. Orrery.

In the character of Jack, a set of people were alarmed, who are easily offended, and who can scarce bear the chearfulness of a fmile. In their dictionary, wit is only another name for wickednefs; and the purer or more excellent the wit, the greater and more impious the abomination. However wide, therefore, the difference of Peter and Jack might have been in fashioning their coats, the two brothers moft fincerely agreed in their hatred of an adverfary fo powerful as this anonymous author. They spared no unmannerly reflections upon his character. They had recourfe to every kind of abuse that could reach him. And fometimes it was the work of Swift and his companions: Sometimes not a fyllable of it was his work; it was the work of one of his uncle's fons, a clergyman; and sometimes it was the work of a perfon who was to be nameless. Each of thefe malicious conjectures reigned in its turn: And it will be found, that bold affertions, however falfe, almost conftantly meet with fuccefs; a kind of triumph that would appear one of the fevereft inftitutes of fate, if time and truth did not foon obliterate all marks of the victory. Orrery.

the remainder of this difcourfe, entered upon the matter with other thoughts, and a quite different fpirit. For the memory of Lord Peter's injuries. produced a degree of hatred and spite, which had a much greater fhare of inciting him, than any regards after his father's commands; fince these appeared at beft only fecondary and fubfervient to the other. However, for this medley of humour he made a fhift to find a very plaufible name, honouring it with the title of zeal; which is perhaps the most fignificant word that hath been ever yet produced in any language; as, I think, I have fully proved in my excellent analytical difcourse upon that fubject; wherein I have deduced a hiftori-theo-phifi-logical account of zeal,. fhewing how it firft proceeded from a notion into a word, and from thence, in a hot summer, ripened into a tangible fubftance. This work, containing three large volumes in folio, I defign very fhortly to publish by the modern way of fubfcription; not doubting but the nobility and gentry of the land will give me all poffible encouragement, having had already such a taste of what I am able to perform.

I record, therefore, that brother Jack, brimfull. of this miraculous compound, reflecting with indignation upon Peter's tyranny, and farther provoked by the defpondency of Martin, prefaced his refolutions to this purpofe. What, faid he, a rogue that locked up his-drink, turned away our wives, cheated us of our fortunes, palmed his damned

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