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REMARKS on the State of the AIR, VEGETATION, &c. September 1796.

5. B LACK clufter grapes begin to change their colour.-17. A thick foggy morning foon changed to a cloudlefs but hazy sky, and became the hottest day of the present year; the thermometer at half past two was 78, half a degree more than the greatest heat of Auguft. -20. Horfe chestnuts begin to flip their hulls.-This month is no otherwise remarkable, than for having a few days in the middle of it unufually warm, and one of them the hottest in the year, as noticed above.

Rain 1 inch 69 hundredths.

I

OBSERVATIONS on the DISEASES in September 1796.

Go

OUT ftill continued frequent and fevere, attacking those who had been occafionally fubject to it, with fymptoms fimilar to thofe taken notice of in the last month. Scarlet fever ftill prevailed, with very little variation: in one inftance a milliary eruption took place, on the fourth day after its appearance, covering for the most part the hands, feet, and breaft; the fever ran very high, and the inflammation in the throat was confiderable, terminating in large and thick floughs, which left deep ulceration that were flow in healing. Complaints of the bowels were not fo frequent as ufual at this feafon, and were likewife more fimple; a gentle laxative in general removing them altogether. Meafles were very frequent in fome parts of the town, though by no means generally prevailing. Smallpox and hooping cough very com mon, but the former lefs violent than in the last month.

THE EXCELLENT WIFE.

[From EDWARD. Various Views of Human Nature, taken from Life and Manners, chiefly in England;' by Dr. Moore.]

We shall not Attempt to give an Idea of the Fable of this Novel, which contains, as may be expected from the Title, a great Variety of Characters, drawn with great Regard-to Nature and Truth. That of Mrs. Barnet appears in the fol lowing Selection, as well as in many other Parts of the Work, to exhibit the Picture of a very excellent Wife, whofe Method of managing a selfish, obftinate, and almost intractable Hufband, conveys a very inftructive Leffon to every married Woman.

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As Mrs. Barnet returned from town, the poft-chaife broke down in the middle of the road-a stage coach came up at the inftant that Mrs. Barnet and her maid had got fafely out of the poft-chaife; the coachman knew Mrs. Barnet, and his courfe being directly through a village contiguous to her hufband's house, he stopped, and offered to fet her down at her own door.

Mrs. Barnet perceiving that it would take a confiderable time before the chaife could be mended, agreed to the coachman's propofal, and defired her maid to put a fmall bundle into the coach.

Lard, madam,' cried the maid, as foon as the had peeped into the coach, here is a frightful old woman and a beggarly looking boy-you cannot poffibly go in here.'

As for the old woman and the boy,' faid the coachman, although they are fitting within, they are no more than outfidé paffengers-for as ill luck would have it, I chanced to have none within; fo when the rain came on, I took pity on the boy, and defired him to take helter in the coach, which he refused, unless the old woman was allowed to go in alfo ;-fo as the boy, you fee, is a very pretty boy, I could not bear that he fhould be expofed to the rain, and fo I was obliged to let in both; but now, to be fure, if her ladyfhip infifts on it, they must both go on the outfide, which will be no great hardship, for it begins to grow fair.'

Fair or foul, they must get out directly,' faid the maid; do you imagine that my miftrefs will fit with fuch creatures as thefe, more particularly in fuch a dirty machine ?

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Hark you, young woman,' faid - the coachman, you may fay of the old woman and the boy what you pleafe, they do not belong to me; but as for the coach, it is my coach, and I would have you to know, bears as good a reputation as any on the road, perhaps a better than your own; fo I would not advise you for to go for to flurify the character of thofe who are faying nothing against yours: -But as for you, my dear, you must come out,' continued he, taking the boy by the arm, fince this here gentlewoman infifts upon it.'

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By no means, faid Mrs. Barnet; let the child remain, and the woman allo; there is room for us all.'

So faying, the ftepped into the coach; the maid followed, and the and coachman drove on.

This arrangement was highly difagreeable to the maid, who feemed greatly mortified at being feated near a woman fo meanly dreffed.

Mrs. Barnet, on the other hand, was pleased with the opportunity of accommodating the poor woman and boy-for this lady was of a benevolent difpofition, and although she was likewife moft uncommonly free from vanity, yet if all the maid's stock had been divided between them, the mistress and maid together would have made a couple of very vain women.

Mrs. Barnet was in rather low fpirits, owing to her being feparated now, for the first time in her life, from her daughter-the old woman, on the contrary, being delighted with her fituation in the coach, was in high fpirits, and much disposed to share them with all the company.

She made repeated attempts to draw Mrs. Barnet into converfation, but without fuccefs; for although from a civility of difpofition which never forfook her, fhe answered with affability all the woman's queftions, fhe always relapfed into penfive filence.

The old woman was surprised as well as difappointed at this he never in the course of her life had met with fo filent a woman, and thinking it next to impoffible that the fhould ftumble upon two on the fame day, in the fame coach, of the fame difpofition, fhe ventured to addrefs the maid, in fpite of her repulfive looks, faying,

Pray, miftrefs, as the fun begins to break out, do you not think it will turn out a good day?'

In this attempt to lead the maid into converfation, fhe was ftill more unfuccefsful than fhe had been with the miftrefs; for although the former did not partake of the latter's dejection of fpirits, and had no kind of averfion in general to talking, yet she deemed a perfon dreffed as this poor woman was, far beneath her answering

therefore furveying the woman's ruffet gown with contempt, and at the fame time brufhing the duft from the fleeves of her own, which was of filk, with an elevated nofe and projected under lip,

fhe turned her difdainful eyes to the other fide, without making the poor woman any answer.

Baffled in all her attempts to provoke a conversation, and quite unable to hold her tongue, as a laft recourfe the old woman began to talk with the boy.

His prattle foon disturbed the meditations and attracted the attention of Mrs. Barnet, who at length afked the old woman, what relation the boy was to her.

Pleafed with this opportunity of giving freedom to her tongue, the anfwered with great rapidity, and almoft in one breath, relation to me! All my relations are dead, please your ladyship, except my nephew, the pawn-broker in Shug-lane, who is grown fo rich and fo proud, that he hardly speaks to me; but as for that there boy I never faw him in my life, till this here bleffed day, when I received him from the overfeers of the work-house, to take him to my own house in the country; where I already have fix children all boarded at the rate of poor three fhillings a week, which your lady fhip muft acknowledge is too little in all confcience for my trouble and expence; but the hearts of those who take care of the poor of fome parishes, are as hard as the very church walls.-Now, please your ladyfhip, this poor child, it feems, was lately ill of the affluenza, and cannot be put out to a trade till he grows ftronger, And fo they gave him to me with the other children, for the benefice of country air; which I do affure your ladyship does quite and clean the contrirary of doctors drugs, for it recovers the health of the children, and gives them all a monftrous devouring appetite, as I am fure I finds to my coft-and fo-if fo be

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me he was brought to the work house when he was only a few months old; the parish officers received him from a poor woman, who faid the was not his mother, but his name was Edward Evelin; but who was his mother, is difficult to tell; and ftill more, who was his real father, as your ladyfhip well knows, for they have never been found out; but it ftands to reafon, that he must have had both, for I never heard of any body who had neither father nor mother, except Michael Hifendeck, of whom the parfon of our parish preached laft Sunday; but Michael lived in the bible days, which is different from thefe here times; fo this boy's parents must be perfons unknown; but be who they will, I fufpect that they were no better than they fhould be: in which cafe it is pretty clear that this here boy, faving your ladyship's prefence, is neither more nor less than an unnatural child; for if he had been born in the natural way of marriage, it ftands to reason that his parents would have owned him long ago.'

Mrs. Barnet, affected with the condition of this boy, who began life under fuch unfavourable aufpices, faid, Are you not forry, my dear, to leave home?'

care.'

No,' answered he; I don't

Is there not fomebody at home whom you are forry to leave?' refumed the.

'No,' replied the boy;' I am not forry to leave any body.'

What, not thofe who are good to you?' rejoined she.

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Nobody was ever good to me,' faid the boy.

Mrs. Barnet was touched with the child's anfwers, which ftrongly painted his helpless lot, and the cruel indifference of the world. She thought of her own child now, for the first time, left to the care of ftrangers, and the tear flood in her eye.

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My poor little fellow,' faid fhe, after a fhort pause, was nobody ever good to you?'

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My poor dear little fellow,' exclaimed Mrs. Barnet, that was hard indeed!'

It is very right howfomever, madam, faid the old woman, that children fhould be whipt for crying; if I did not make that a confiant rule at my houfe, there would be nothing but fquawling from morning to nightfor I'll tell you, as how I always ferves them there little chits, whenever they begins to make a noise-I takes them

Here the old woman was interrupted by the ftopping of the coach at the part of the common where he was to get out and walk to her own house.

Mrs. Barnet warmly recommended the boy to her care, putting at the fame time a guinea into her hand, and adding that he would perhaps call upon her fometimes, and would reward her more liberally if the found that the boy was treated with kindnefs.-The old woman having promifed to treat him kindly, led him away, and the coach drove on.

The forlorn condition of this poor

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boy, deftitute of father, mother, lation, or protector, fo ftrongly awakened the humane feelings of Mrs. Barnet, that her thoughts were divided between him and her own child for the remainder of the way; and when the arrived at her own house, after giving her husband a particular account of every thing relative to the eflabishment of his daughter, the began the hiftory of the workhouse boy; but he had not proceeded far, when Mr. Barnet haftily rung the bell to know whether dinner was near ready, faying, that he had eaten little or nothing fince his breakfast, and indeed not a great deal then, owing to the careleffness of the maid, who had not put butter enough upon the toast." Why did you not order her to make fóme with more, my dear?' faid Mrs. Barnet. Because,' replied he, I did not obferve it till I could eat no more; fo that, upon the whole, I made a very uncomfortable breakfast.” I am forry for it,' faid Mrs. Barbut I hope you have had some

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Very little,' replied he; for I was put fo out of humour with the toaft, that I have had little or no appetite until now.'

That is provoking, indeed,' faid Mrs. Barnet, in a fympathifing tone of voice.. But here comes the dinner, and I truft you will now be able to make up for the lofs of your breakfaft.' I wish to God, my dear, the fifh be not overdone,' cried Mr. Barnet, fixing an alarmed look on the dith.

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Pray do not terrify yourfelf,' replied Mrs. Barnet; the fish is done to a moment; and the veal, as well as the beans and bacon, seem admirable-allow me to help you.'

Mrs. Barnet accordingly helped her hufband to every thing the knew he liked, which, he being a man of few words, particularly at meals, accepted in filent complacency. After having amply indemnified himself for the milfortunes of the breakfast, and having attempted, in vain, to fwallow another morfel, he looked with benignity

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