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conceiving that I had need of bodily exercife, to which I had been accuftomed in America, where the printers work alternately as compofitors and at the prefs. I drank nothing but water. The other workmen, to the number of about fifty, were great. drinkers of beer. I carried occafionally a large form of letters in each hind, up and down ftairs, while the reft employed both hands to carry one. They were furprised to fee, by this and many other examples, that the American Aquatic, as they used to call me, was ftronger than thofe who drank porter. The beer boy had fufficient employment during the whole day in ferving that houfe alone. My fellow-preffman drank every day a pint of beer before breakfast, a pint with bread and cheese for breakfast, one between breakfast and dinner, one at dinner, one again about fix o'clock in the afternoon, and another after he had finished his day's work. This cuftom appeared to me abominable; but he had need, he said, of all this beer, in order to acquire ftrength to work.

I endeavoured to convince him that bodily ftrength furnished by the beer, could only be in proportion to the folid part of the barley diffolved in the water of which the beer was compofed; that there was a larger portion of flour in a penny loaf, and that confequently if he eat this loaf, and drank a pint of water with it, he would derive more ftrength from it than from a pint of beer. This reafoning, however, did not prevent him from drinking his accuftomed quantity of beer, and paying every Saturday night a fcore of four or five fhillings a week for this curfed beverage; an expence from which I was wholly exempt. Thus

do thefe poor devils continue all their lives in a ftate of voluntary wretchednefs and poverty.

At the end of a few weeks, Watts having occafion for me above fiairs as a compofitor, I quitted the prefs. The compofitors demanded of me garnish-money afresh. This I confidered as an impofition, having already paid below. The mafter was of the fame opinion, and defired me not to comply. I thus remained too or three weeks out of the fraternity I was confequently looked upon as excommunicated; and whenever I was abfent, no little trick that malice could fuggeft was left un practifed upon me. I found my letters mixed, my pages tranfpofed, my matter broken, &c. &c. all which was attributed to the spirit that haunted the chapel*, and tormented those who were not regu larly admitted. I was at laft obliged to submit to pay notwithstanding the protection of the mafter; convinced of the folly of not keeping up a good underflanding with those among whom we are deftined to live.

After this I lived in the utmoft harmony with my fellow-labourers, and foon acquired confiderable influence among them. I propofed fome alterations in the laws of the chapel, which I carried without oppofition. My example prevailed with feveral of them to renounce their abominable practice of bread and cheefe with beer; and they procured, like me, from a neighbouring houfe, a good bafon of warm gruel, in which was a fall fice of butter, with toasted bread and nutmeg. This was a much better breakfaft, which did not coft more than a pint of beer, namely, three-halfpence, and

* Printing houfes in general are thus denominated by the workmen; the Spirit they call by the name of Ralph

at the fame time preferved the head clearer. Those who continued to gorge themfelves with beer, often loft their credit with the publican, from neglecting to pay their fcore. They had then recourfe to me, to become fecurity for them; their light, as they used to call it, being out. I attended at the pay-table every Saturday evening, to take up the little fum which I had made myfelf anfwerable for; and which fometimes amounted to nearly thirty fhillings a week.

This circumftance, added to my reputation of being a tolerable good gabber, or, in other words, skilful in the art of burlefque, kept up my importance in the chapel. I had befides recommended myself to the esteem of my mafter by my affiduous application to bufinefs never obferving Saint Monday. My extraordinary quicknefs in compofing always procured me fuch work as was most urgent, and which is commonly beft paid; and thus my time paffed away in a very pleafant manner.

My lodging in Little Britain being too far from the printing-houfe, I took another in duke ftreet, oppofite the Roman Chapel. It was at the back of an Italian warehoufe. The houfe was kept by a widow, who had a daughter, a fervant, and a fhop boy; but the latter fleptoutofthe houfe. After fending to the people with whom I had lodged in Little Britain, to enquire into my charactar, fhe agreed to take me in at the fame price, three-and fixpence a week; contenting herfelf, fhe faid, with fo little, because of the fecurity fhe would derive, as they were all women, from having a man lodge in the house.

She was a woman rather advanced in life, the daughter of a clergyman. She had been educated

a Proteftant; but her husband, whofe memory fe highly revered, had converted her to the Catholic religion. She had lived in habits of intimacy with perfons of diftin&tion; of whom the knew various anecdotes as far back as the time of Charles II. Being fubject to fits of the gout which often confined her to her room, fhe was fometimes difpofed to fee company. Hers was fo amufing to me that I was glad to pafs the evening with her as often as fhe defired it. Our fupper confifted only of half an anchovy a-piece, upon a flice of bread and butter, with half a pint of ale between us. But the en

tertainment was in her converfation.

The early hours I kept, and the little trouble I accafioned in the family, made her loath to part with me; and when I mentioned another lodging I had found, nearer the printing-house, at two fhillings a week, which fell in with my plan of faving, the perfuaded me to give it up, making herfelf an abatement of two fhillings; and thus I continued to lodge with her, during the remainder of my abode in London, at eighteen pence a week.

In the garret of the houfe there lived, in the most. retired manner a lady feventy years of age, of whom I received the following account from my landlady. She was a Roman Catholic. In her early years fhe bad been fent to the continent, and entered a convent with the defign of becoming a nun; but the climate not agreeing with her conftitution, the was obliged to return to England, where, as there was no monafteries, the made a vow to lead a monaftic life, in as rigid a manner as circumflances would permit. She accordingly difpof ed of all her property to be applied to charitable ufcs, referving to herfelf only twelve pounds a

year; and of this fmall pittance fhe gave a part to the poor, living on water-gruel, and never making ufe of fire but to boil it. She had lived in this

garret a great many years, without paying rent to the fucceffive Catholic inhabitants that had kept the house; who indeed confidered her abode with them as a blefling. A prieft came every day to confefs her. I have afked her, faid my landlady, how, living as fhe did, fhe could find fo much employment for a confeffor? To which fhe anfwered, that it was impoflible to avoid vain thoughts. I was once permitted to vifit her. She was cheerful and polite, an 1 her converfation agreeable. Her apartment was neat; but the whole furniture confifted of a mattrafs, a table, on which were a crucifix and a book, a chair, which the gave me to fit on, and over the mantle-piece a picture of St. Veronica difplaying her handkerchief, on which was feen the miraculous impreffion of the face of Chrift, which fhe explained to me with great gravity. Her countenance was pale, but the had never experienced fickness; and I may adduce her as another proof how little is fufficient to maintain life and health.

At the printing-house I contracted an intimacy with a fenfible young man of the name of Wygate, who, as his parents were in good circumstances, had received a better education than is common among printers. He was a tolerable Latin fcholar, fpoke French fluently, and was fond of reading I taught him, as well as a friend of his, to swim, by taking them twice only into the river; after which they flood in need of no farther affistance. We one day made a party to go by water to Chelfea, in order to fee the College, and Don Soltero's VOL. I. G

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