imagination; I reflected, I had no right over the poor Franciscan, but to deny him; and that the punishment of that was enough to the disappointed, without the addition of unkind language-I confider'd his grey hairs—his courteous figure feem'd to re-enter, and gently ask me what injury he had done me ?——————and why I could use them thus ?I would have given twenty livres for an advocate— I have behaved very ill, faid I within myself; but I have only just fet out upon my travels, and shall learn better manners as I get along.

THE DESOBLIGEANT.

CALAIS.

WHEN a man is difcontented within himself, it has

one advantage however, that it puts him into an excellent frame of mind for making a bargain. Now, there being no travelling through France and Italy without a chaife—and nature generally prompting us to the thing we are fitteft for, I walk'd out into the coach-yard, to buy or hire fomething of that kind to my purpose: an old Defobligeant in the farthest corner of the court, hit my fancy at firft fight: fo I instantly got into it, and finding it in tolerable harmony with my feelings, I ordered the waiter to call Monfieur Deffein the mafter of the hotel-but Monfieur Deffein being gone to vefpers, and not caring to face the Francifcan, whom I faw on the oppofite fide of the court, in conference with a lady juft

A chaife fo called in France, Tom its holding but one perfon.

arrived at the inn-I drew the taffeta curtain betwixt us, and being determined to write my journey, I took out my pen and ink, and wrote the preface to it in the Defobligeant.

PREFACE.

IN THE DESOBLIGEANT.

Ir must have been obferved by many a peripatetic philofopher, That Nature has fet up, by her own unqueftionable authority, certain boundaries and fences to circumfcribe the difcontent of man: she has effected her purpose in the quieteft and eafieft manner, by laying him under almost infuperable obligations to work out his ease, and to fuftain his fufferings at home. It is there only that she has provided him with the most suitable objects to partake of his happiness, and bear a part of that burden, which, in all countries and ages, has ever been too heavy for one pair of fhoulders. 'Tis true, we are endued with an imperfect power of spreading our happiness fometimes beyond her limits, but 'tis so ordered, that from the want of languages, connections, and dependencies, and from the difference in education, cuftoms and habits, we lie under fo many impediments in communicating our sensations out of our own fphere, as often amount to a total impoffibility.

It will always follow from hence, that the balance of fentimental commerce is always against the expatriated adventurer; he must buy what he has little occafion for, at their own price-his converfation

will feldom be taken in exchange for theirs, without a large discount-and this, by the by, eternally driving him into the hands of more equitable brokers for fuch converfation as he can find, it requires no great spirit of divination to guess at his party.

This brings me to my point; and naturally leads me (if the fee faw of this Defobligeant will but let me get on) into the efficient as well as the final causes of travelling

Your idle people, that leave their native country, and go abroad, for some reason or reasons, which may be derived from one of these general causesInfirmity of body,

Imbecility of the mind, or
Inevitable neceffity.

The two firft include all those who travel by land or by water, labouring with pride, curiosity, vanity, or fpleen, fubdivided and combined in infinitum.

The third clafs includes the whole army of peregrine martyrs; more especially thofe travellers who fet out upon their travels with the benefit of the Clergy, either as delinquents travelling under the direction of governors, recommended by the magistrate

or young gentlemen tranfported by the cruelty of parents and guardians, and travelling under the direction of governors recommended by Oxford, Aberdeen, and Glasgow.

There is a fourth clafs, but their number is fo small that they would not deserve a distinction, was it not neceffary in a work of this nature to obferve the greatest precifion and nicety, to avoid a confufion of character. And these men I speak of, are

fuch as cross the feas, and fojourn in a land of ftrangers, with a view of faving money for various reasons, and upon various pretences: but as they might also fave themselves and others a great deal of unneceffary trouble, by faving their money at home--and as their reasons for travelling are the least complex of any other fpecies of emigrants, I fhall diftinguish these gentlemen by the name of

Simple Travellers.

Thus, the whole circle of travellers may be reduced to the following heads:

Idle Travellers,
Inquifitive Travellers,
Lying Travellers,

Proud Travellers,

Vain Travellers,

Splenetic Travellers.

Then follow the Travellers of Neceffity:

The delinquent and felonious Traveller,
The unfortunate and innocent Traveller,
The fimple Traveller,

And last of all (if you please)

The Sentimental Traveller,

(meaning thereby myself) who have travell'd, and of which I am now fitting down to give an accountas much out of Neceffity and the befoin de voyager, as any one in the class.

I am well aware, at the fame time, as both my travels and obfervations will be altogether of a different caft from any of my forerunners; that I might have infifted upon a whole niche entirely to myfelf-but I should break in upon the confines of

the Vain Traveller, in wishing to draw attention towards me, till I have fome better grounds for it than the mere Novelty of my Vehicle.

It is fufficient for my reader, if he has been a traveller himself, that with ftudy and reflection hereupon, he may be able to determine his own place and rank in the catalogue-it will be one step towards knowing himself; as it is great odds, but he retains fome tincture and refemblance of what he imbibed or carried out to the present hour.

The man who first transplanted the grape of Burgundy to the Cape of Good Hope (obferve he was a Dutchman), never dreamt of drinking the fame wine at the Cape, that the fame grape produced upon the French mountains-he was too phlegmatic for that -but undoubtedly he expected to drink fome fort of vinous liquor; but whether good, bad or indifferent -he knew enough of this world, to know that it did not depend upon his choice, but that what is generally called chance was to decide his fuccefs: however, he hoped for the best; and in these hopes, by an intemperate confidence in the fortitude of his head, and the depth of his difcretion, Mynheer might poffibly overfet both in his new vineyard; and by difcovering his nakedness, become a laughing stock to his people.

Even fo it fares with the poor Traveller, failing and pofting through the politer kingdoms of the globe, in pursuit of knowledge and improvements.

Knowledge and improvements are to be got by failing and pofting for that purpose; but whether ufeful knowledge and real improvements is all a lot