"years, and when they come home, they have "hid a little weerifh lean face under a broad "French hat, kept a terrible coil with the duft "in the ftreet in their long cloaks of grey paper, "and fpoken English ftrangely. Nought elfe "have they profited by their travel, but to "diftinguifh the true Bourdeaux grape, and "know a cup of neat Gafcoigne wine from "wine of Orleans; yea and peradventure this "alfo, to esteem of the p-x as a pimple, to (C wear a velvet patch on their face, and walk 66 melancholy with their arms folded. "From Spain what bringeth our traveller? "A fcull-crowned hat of the fashion of an old "deep porringer; a diminutive alderman's ruff "with fhort ftrings, like the droppings of a "man's nofe; a clofe-bellied doublet coming "down with a peake behind as far as the crup per, and cut off before by the breast-bone like "a partlet or neckercher; a wide pair of gafCC coynes, which ungathered would make a cou"ple of women's riding-kirtles; huge hangers, "that have half a cow-hide in them; a rapier "that is lineally defcended from half a dozen "dukes at the leaft: Let his cloak be as long or as short as you will; if long, it is faced "with Turkey grogeran ravelled; if short, it "hath a cape like a calf's tongue, and is not fo "deep "deep in his whole length, nor fo much cloth "in it I will justify as only the standing cape of cc a Dutchman's cloak. I have not yet touched "all, for he hath in either fhoe as much taffaty "for his tyings, as would ferve for an ancient; "which ferveth him (if you would have the xc mystery of it) of the own accord for a fhoerag. If you talk with him, he makes a difh"cloth of his own country in comparison of Spain; but if you urge him particularly where"in it exceeds, he can give no inftance, but in Spain they have better bread than any we "have; when (poor hungry flaves!) they may "crumble it into water well enough and make "misons with it, for they have not a good mor"fel of meat, except it be falt pilchers, to eat "with it, all the year long; and, which is more, "they are poor beggars, and lie in foul ftraw ແ every night. 1 "Italy, the paradife of the earth, and the epi"cure's heaven, how doth it form our young "mafter? It makes him to kifs his hand like an ape, cringe his neck like a starveling, and play "at Hey-pass-repafs-come-aloft, when he falutes a inan: From thence he brings the art of athe"ifm, the art of epicurizing, the art of whoring, "the art of poisoning, the art of fodomitry: "The only probable good thing they have to "keep "keep us from utterly condemning it, is, that "it maketh a man an excellent courtier, a curi"ous carpet-knight; which is by interpretation ແ a fine close lecher, a glorious hypocrite: It is "now a privy note amongst the better fort of "men, when they would fet a fingular mark or "brand on a notorious villain, to say he hath "been in Italy." I hope I need not observe that these descriptions are not here quoted for the truth they contain, but for the curiofity of them. Thomas Nashe was the bittereft fatirift and controverfalift of the age he lived in. N° LXVI. WAS fome nights ago much entertained with an excellent reprefentation of Mr. Congreve's comedy of The Double Dealer. When I reflected upon the youth of the author and the merit of the play, I acknowledged the truth of what the late Dr. Samuel Johnfon fays in his life of this poet, that amongst all the efforts of early genius, which literary history records, I doubt whether any one can be produced that mare fur I palles paffes the common limits of nature than the plays of Congreve. The author of this comedy in his dedication informs us, that he defigned the moral firft, and to that moral invented the fable; and does not know that he has borrowed one hint of it any where.-I made the plot, fays he, as strong as I could; because it was fingle; and I made it fingle because I would avoid confufion, and was refolved to preferve the three unities of the drama. As it is impoffible not to give full credit to this affertion, I muft confider the resemblance which many circumftances in The Double Dealer bear to those in a comedy of Beaumont and Fletcher, intitled Cupid's Revenge, as a cafual coincidence; and I think the learned biographer above quoted had good reason to pronounce of Congrève, that he is an original writer, who borrowed neither the models of his plot, nor the manner of his dialogue. Mellafont, the nephew and heir of Lord Touchwood, being engaged to Cynthia, daughter of Sir Paul Pliant, the traverfing this match forms the object of the plot, on which this comedy of The Double Dealer is conftructed; the intrigue confifts in the various artifices employed by Lady Touchwood and her agents for that purpose. That That the object is (as the author himself ftates it to be) fingly this, will appear upon confidering, that, although the ruin of Mellafont's fortune is for a time effected by these contrivances, that are employed for traverfing his marriage, yet it is rather a measure of neceffity and felf-defence in Lady Touchwood, than of original defign; it fprings from the artifice of incident, and belongs more properly to the intrigue, than to the object of the plot. The making or obftructing marriages is the common hinge, on which most comic fables are contrived to turn, but in this match of Mellafont's, which the author has taken for the ground-work of his plot, I muft obferve that it would have been better to have given more interest to an event, which he has made the main object of the play: He has taken little pains to recommend the parties to his fpectators, or to paint their mutual attachment with any warmth of colouring. Who will feel any concern whether Mellafont marries Cynthia or not, if they themselves appear indifferent on the occafion, and upon the eve of their nuptials converfe in the following ftrain? Mel. |