your Neighbour's Property, and as it were buried quick from all Remembrance? Dreadful Thought! which can be equalled by none but thofe of the remorfelefs Creditor, who under the Sanction of Laws, too much abused, shall daily, hourly, become the Torturer of some unhappy honeft Family, whofe Misfortunes only have rendered them infolvent: Yet fuch there are, who, in our Church Service, every Day ftill repeat, Forgive us our Debts, as we forgive our Debtors. Blafphemous Impiety! execrable Murderers! wifely has the Legiflature, from Time to Time, relieved, at certain Periods, the fuffering guiltlefs Creature from these merciless Bonds! In the Fleet, I found Perfons of all Ranks, all Profeffions, and almoft all Religions, and there can be no Lofs of agreeable Companions for Men of every Tafte. Some have taken Shelter here to fave the Fortunes for themselves or their Heirs, which ought to be given up to the ruined Creditors; numberless Families fuffering by fuch Villainies: Others have been caught, and fixed here, after a Train of fuccefsful Rogueries, bringing in the Spoils of Hundreds; but the greateft Number are thofe unhappy Ones I hinted at before, whose Cafe is greatly, fincerely to be pitied. The honeft Man here droops and pines, Defpair and Death are feen in his Face, and he deplores his Misfortunes! The others lose, in a Round of Drinking, Riot, and Debauchery, all Senfe of Shame and all Compunction for their Crimes, and make their Prison a veritable Hell, to thofe about them, more ferious, more composed. Juft Heaven! when will the blissful Time arrive, that Man, thy Subftitute below, fhall cease to tear and rend his Fellow-creature! fhall cease to be defigning, cruel, bafe, and act in every Thing confiftent with his Nature and his Make! Lions their Fellow-lions ne'er devour, and Tigers love their Kind! Each Savage, prouling thro' the howling Defert, with fiery Eyes and baneful Glare, in Search of needful Prey, still spares his Likeness, wars not on his Brother! but Man, ungrateful for the every Bleffing thou haft on him bestowed, with ruthless Ravages deforms his Soul, and triumphs in his Neighbour's Wretchednefs; nor feels the pitying Thought, nor fheds the melting Tear, for other's Woes! When Dinner time arrived, Sir William accofted me upon the Bare, acquainting me, there was a very good Ordinary in the Cellar, at which himfelf, with fome other very fociable Gentlemen, ufually dined, and hoped, that I would let them have the Pleasure of my Company to Dinner. I, for my Part, had neither Thought of Eating or Drinking yet, and was taken up in many melancholy Reflections upon my forlorn Estate, and the Unhappiness and the Succeffion of Misfortunes that feemed feemed to attend me, at every Step in Life; but this Invitation awaked me from my Reverie, and made me perceive the Calls of Nature were ftrongly ftruggling within me, and I attended him to a Room in the Cellar, where our Meal was elegant and cheap, and the Company really deserved Encomium; fave that Wit had here unbounded Licence, and fhook off all the Restraints of Modesty and Decency. However, I was not difpofed to be very Cynical, and promifed to dine there ever Day, so long as the fame good Company frequented it. CHA P. XXXVIII. Gets another Apartment. - Meets Speculift. -Becomes extravagant.-Lofes Money at Fives.-Is quarrelled with at the DragonClub.-Fights his Antagonist upon the Bare, and beats him.—Is in great Distress.—Makes away with his Cloaths by Degrees. NEX EXT Morning, the Chamberlain, eager to handle the Half Piece I had offered him, helped me to an airy and commodious Room fronting the Bare, where I gave a little Treat to Sir William, the Doctor, and two or three other Members of the Ordinary. I was going up to it in the Afternoon, when I met, at the End of the VOL. II. D Gallery, Gallery, Speculift, full-butt, who made a Stand, and burst out into an immoderate Fit of Laughter, crying out, Mr. Thompson, whoever thought of feeing you at College! Come, my Friend, let us facrifice all our old Animofities; and, fince Fortune has put us into the fame Situation, let's live as fociably as we can, and endeavour to do one another all the little Services that are requifite in this Place. I was not Proof against the good Humour with which he uttered this, and gave him my Hand; for I thought it in vain to stand out, as every Minute would fling us in one another's Way, and I was ever an Enemy to an implacable Temper; tho' I filently refolved in myself to keep as great a Distance as I well could, and to converfe with him in the moft cautious Manner. So I went with him to his Room, which was on the fame Floor, after he had vifited mine, which I found to be one of the best in the House, and fuperbly furnished. Here I drank a Dram with him, and parted. I foon found I had got into a Set of Company that made it impoffible for me to live frugally, and, tho' our Eating daily was fo reasonable, yet the Want of fome. thing else to employ Time, and the vivacious Mirth of the Table, generally kept us over the Bottle or Bowl till pretty late, and I foon got an Habit of going to the Clubs that were held almost in every Part of the Prifon, where I feldom came off for lefs: than Half. a Crown at a Sitting, and fometimes 3 fometimes not for double the Money. I engaged alfo at Fives, very frequently, which fleeced me of a good deal of Money, having generally my Mafters in the Game to deal with; fo that my fmall Stock in lefs than fix Weeks Time was pretty much exhausted, and I began to fear it would not laft me fo long as was needful; which gave me the bittereft Pangs, as I faw daily Inftances of the exceffive Misery of Poverty in this Prifon, where Money, and Money only, engages Refpect, and the Services and Civilities of your Fellow-prifoners. I admitted of no Vifits, but Brifk's, whom I made promife not to let his Mafter know where I was till he came to Town; and, as to my Father and Mr. Diaper, I wrote to them as ufual, so that they had no Sufpicion of what had happened. T was here in a conftant Round of Company and Diverfions of one Sort or another, which I eagerly pursued, fearing the Return of my Griefs and melancholy Defpondency, if I indulged in the leaft my Reflections on my deareft Louifa, who ftill was uppermoft, when I did not ufe Art to ftifle" my Remembrances of her. Things were in this Situation, when one Evening, at the Dragon-Club in the Cellar, I had a Difpute with Captain Bully, late an Officer in a marching Regiment, who attacked me very uncivilly, for having faid, that Swearing in common Conversation was a very ungentleman-like Behaviour. The Captain was |