Ladies chambers, he will tumble beds, and towse your Ladies dress up unto the height, to the hazard of a Bed-staff thrown at his head, or rap o’re the fingers with a Busk, and that is all; only is this he is far worse than the Buffoon, since they study to delight, this only to offend; they to make merry, but this onely to make you mad, whence wo be t’ ye of he discovers and imperfection or fault in you, for he never findes a breach but he makes a hole of it; nor a hole but he tugs at it so long till he tear it quite; giving you for reason of his incivility, because (forsooth) it troubled you, which would make any civil man cease troubling you.  So he wears his wit as Bravo’s do their swords, to mischief and offend others, not as Gentlemen to defend themselves:  and tis crime in him, what is ornament in others; he being onely a wit at that, at which a good wit is a fool.  Especially he triumphs over your modest men; and when he meets with a simple body, passes for a wit, but a wit indeed makes a simplician of him; so goes he persecuting others till some one or other at last (as chollerick as he is abusive) cudgel him for his pains; when he goes grumbling away in a mighty choler, saying, They understand not jest, when indeed tis rather he.

* * * * *

THE ADVENTURER.

VOLUME THE FOURTH.

  _—­Tentanda via est; qua me quoque possim
  Tollere humo, victorque viram volitare per ora._ VIRG.

  On vent’rous wing in quest of praise I go,
  And leave the gazing multitude below.

A NEW EDITION, ILLUSTRATED WITH FRONTISPIECES.

LONDON:  PRINTED FOR SILVESTER DOIG, ROYAL EXCHANGE, EDINBURGH.

1793.

* * * * *

No.  CXXVII.  Tuesday, January 22. 1754.

_—­Veteres ita miratur, laudatque!—­_
HOR. 
The wits of old he praises and admires.

“It is very remarkable,” says Addison, “that notwithstanding we fall short at present of the ancients in poetry, painting, oratory, history, architecture, and all the noble arts and sciences which depend more upon genius than experience; we exceed them as much in doggerel, humour, burlesque, and all the trivial arts of ridicule.”  As this fine observation stands at present only in the form of a general assertion, it deserves, I think, to be examined by a deduction of particulars, and confirmed by an allegation of examples, which may furnish an agreeable entertainment to those who have ability and inclination to remark the revolutions of human wit.