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me,

'tis my cabin. Your cabin! d-n me? I have brought my hogs to a fair market. I • suppose, indeed, you, you think it your cabin, and your fhip, by your commanding in it; but I will command in it d-n me! I will fhew the world I am the commander, and no body but I! Did you think I fold you the command of my fhip for that pitiful thirty pounds? I wish I had not feen you nor your thirty • pounds aboard of her.' He then repeated the words thirty pounds often, with great disdain, and with a contempt which, I own, the fum did not feem to deferve in my eye, either in itself, or on the prefent occafion; being, indeed, paid for the freight of weight of human flesh, which is above fifty per cent. dearer than the freight of any other luggage, whilft in reality it takes up lefs room, in fact no room at all.

In truth, the fum was paid for nothing more, than for a liberty to fix perfons (two of them fervants) to ftay on board a fhip while fhe fails from one port to another, every fhilling of which comes clear into the Captain's pocket. Ignorant people may perhaps imagine, efpecially when they are told that the captain is obliged to fuf-" tain them, that their diet, at leaft, is worth fomething; which may probably be now and then fo far the cafe, as to deduct a tenth part from the neat profits on this account; but it was otherwife at prefent: for when I had contracted with the captain at a price which I by no means thought moderate, I had fome content in thinking I fhould have no more to pay for my voy. age; but I was whifpered that it was expected the paffengers fhould find themselves in feveral

things; fuch as tea, wine, and fuch-like; and particularly that gentlemen fhould ftowe of the latter a much larger quantity than they could ufe, in order to leave the remainder as a prefent to the captain, at the end of the voyage; and it was expected, likewife, that gentlemen'fhould put aboard fome fresh ftores; and the more of fuch things were put aboard, the welcomer they' would be to the captain.

I was prevailed with by these hints, to follow the advice propofed; and accordingly, befides tea, and a large hamper of wine, with feveral hams and tongues, I caused a number of live chicken and sheep to be conveyed aboard; in truth, treble the quantity of provifion which would have fupported the perfons I took with me, had the voyage continued three weeks, as it was fuppofed, with a bare poffibility, it might.

Indeed, it continued much longer; but, as this was occafioned by our being wind bound in our own ports, it was by no means of any ill confequence to the captain, as the additional fores of fish, fresh meat, butter, bread, &c. which I conftantly laid in, greatly exceeded the confumption, and went fome way in maintaining the fhip's crew. It is true, I was not obliged to do this; but it feemed to be expected; for the captain did not think himself obliged to do it; and, I can truly fay, I foon ceafed to expect it of him. He had, I confefs, on board, a number of fowls and ducks fufficient for a Weft-India voyage all of them, as he often faid, Very fine birds, and of the largest breed.' This, I believe, was really the fact; and, I can add, that they were all arrived at the full per

fection of their fize. Nor was there, I am convinced, any want of provifions of a more fubftantial kind; fuch as dried beef, pork, and fish; fo that the captain feemed ready to perform his contract, and amply to provide for his paffengers. What I did, then, was not from neceflity, but, perhaps, from a lefs excufable motive, and was, by no means, chargeable to the account of the captain.

But let the motive have been what it would, the confequence was fill the fame; and this was fuch, that I am firmly perfuaded the whole pitiful thirty pound came pure and neat into the captain's pocket, and not only fo, but attended with the value of ten pound more in fundries, into the bargain. I must confefs myself therefore at a lofs how the epithet pitiful came to be annexed to the above fum: for not being a piti¬ ful price for what it was given, I cannot conceive it to be pitiful in itfelf; nor do I believe it is fo thought by the greateft men in the kingdoin; none of whom would fcruple to fearch for it in the dirtieft kennel, where they had only a reasonable hope of fuccefs.

How, therefore, tuch a fum, fhould acquire the idea of pitiful, in the eyes of the master of a fhip, feems not eafy to be accounted for; fince it ap pears more likely to produce in him ideas of a different kind. Some men, perhaps, are no more fincere in the contempt for it which they exprefs, than others in their contempt of money in general; and I am the rather inclined to this perfuafion, as I have feldom heard of either, who have refufed or refunded this their defpifed object. Befides, it is fometimes impoffible to Selieve these profeffions, as every action of the

Who can be

#man's life is a contradiction to it. lieve a tradefman, who fays he would not tell his name for the profit he gets by the felling fuch a parcel of goods, when he hath told a thousand #lies in order to get it?

Pitiful, indeed, is often applied to an object, 籮 not abfolutely, but comparatively with our expectations, or with a greater object: In which fenfe, it is not eafy to fet any bounds to the use: of the word. Thus, a handful of halfpence daily appear pitiful to a porter, and a handful of filver to a drawer. The latter, I am convinced, at a polite tavern, will not tell his name (for he will not give you any answer) under the price of gold.. And, in this fenfe, thirty pound may be accounted pitiful by the loweft mechanic.

One difficulty only feems to occur, and that is this: How comes it that, if the profits of the meanest arts are fo confiderable, the profeffors of them are not richer than we generally fee them? One anfwer to this fhall fuffice. Men do not become rich by what they get, but by what they keep. He who is worth no more than his annual wages or falary, fpends the whole; he will be always a beggar, let his income be what it will; and fo will be his family when he dies.. This we fee daily to be the cafe of ecclefiaftics, who, during their lives, are extremely well pro vided for, only becaufe they defire to maintain the honour of the cloth by living like gentlemen,, which would, perhaps, be better maintained by living unlike them.

But, to return from fo long a digreffion, to which the ufe of fo improper an epithet gave occafion, and to which the novelty of the fubject.

allured, I will make the reader amends by concifely telling him, that the captain poured forth fuch a torrent of abuse, that I very haftily, and very foolishly, refolved to quit the fhip. I gave immediate orders to fummons a hoy to carry me that evening to Dartmouth, without confidering any confequence. Thofe orders I gave in no very low voice; fo that thofe above itairs might poffibly conceive there was more than one maner in the cabin. "In the fame tone I likewife threatened the captain with that which, he afterwards faid, he feared more than any rock or quick fand. Nor can we wonder at this, when we are told he had been twice obliged to bring to, and caft anchor there before, and had neither time escaped without the lofs of almost his whole cargo.

The most diftant found of law thus frightened a man, who had often, I am convinced, heard numbers of cannon roar round him with intrepidity. Nor did he fooner fee the hoy approaching the vedel, than he did run down again into the cabin; and, his rage being perfectly fubfided, he tumbled on his knees, and a little too abjectly implored for mercy.

I did not fuffer a brave man," and an old man, to remain a moment in this pofture; but I im mediately forgave him.

And here, that I may not be thought the fly trumpeter of my own praifes, I do utterly dif claim all praife on the occafion. Neither did the greatnefs of my mind dictate, nor the force of my Chriflianity exact, this forgiveness. To *fpeak truth, I forgave him from a motive which would make men much more forgiving, if they were much wifer than they are; because it was convenient for me fo to do.

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