This pretty Childishness of Behaviour is one of the
most refined Parts of Coquetry, and is not to be attained
in Perfection, by Ladies that do not Travel for their
Improvement. A natural and unconstrained Behaviour
has something in it so agreeable, that it is no Wonder
to see People endeavouring after it. But at the
same time, it is so very hard to hit, when it is not
Born with us, that People often make themselves Ridiculous
in attempting it.
A very ingenious French Author [4] tells us,
that the Ladies of the Court of France, in
his Time, thought it Ill-breeding, and a kind of Female
Pedantry, to pronounce an hard Word right; for which
Reason they took frequent occasion to use hard Words,
that they might shew a Politeness in murdering them.
He further adds, that a Lady of some Quality at Court,
having accidentally made use of an hard Word in a
proper Place, and pronounced it right, the whole Assembly
was out of Countenance for her.
I must however be so just to own, that there are many
Ladies who have Travelled several Thousand of Miles
without being the worse for it, and have brought Home
with them all the Modesty, Discretion and good Sense
that they went abroad with. As on the contrary,
there are great Numbers of Travelled Ladies,
[who] [5] have lived all their Days within the Smoke
of London. I have known a Woman that never
was out of the Parish of St. James’s,
[betray] [6] as many Foreign Fopperies in her Carriage,
as she could have Gleaned up in half the Countries
of Europe.
[Footnote 1: At this date the news would just
have reached England of the death of the Emperor Joseph
and accession of Archduke Charles to the German crown.
The Archduke’s claim to the crown of Spain had
been supported as that of a younger brother of the
House of Austria, in whose person the two crowns of
Germany and Spain were not likely to be united.
When, therefore, Charles became head of the German
empire, the war of the Spanish succession changed
its aspect altogether, and the English looked for
peace. That of 1711 was, in fact, Marlborough’s
last campaign; peace negotiations were at the same
time going on between France and England, and preliminaries
were signed in London in October of this year, 1711.
England was accused of betraying the allied cause;
but the changed political conditions led to her withdrawal
from it, and her withdrawal compelled the assent of
the allies to the general peace made by the Treaty
of Utrecht, which, after tedious negotiations, was
not signed until the 11th of April, 1713, the continuous
issue of the Spectator having ended, with Vol.
VII., in December, 1712.]
[Footnote 2: The custom was copied from the French
Precieuses, at a time when courir les ruelles
(to take the run of the bedsides) was a Parisian phrase
for fashionable morning calls upon the ladies.
The ruelle is the little path between the bedside
and the wall.]
