poverty; his son is daily growing poorer, with the appearance of wealth.

"It is impossible to enumerate the pranks which the sudden acquisition of riches, joined to this desire of figure-making, sets people a-playing. There is nothing so absurd or extravagant, which riches, in the hands of a weak man, will not tempt him to commit; from the mere

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idea of enjoying his money in the way exhibition. Nay, this will happen to persons of whose sense and discretion the world had formerly a high opinion, even where that opinion was a just one; for wealth often makes fools where it does not find them." My friend happening to cast his eye towards me at that moment, discovered a smile on my countenance: "You are thinking now," said he," that you and I could endure being left twenty or thirty thousand pounds, notwithstanding the truth of my observation." "It would spoil your lecture," I replied;

"but you may go on in the mean time.” He took the pinch of snuff which my remark had stopped in its progress towards his nose, and went on.

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"From this motive of figure-making," continued he, turning to the ladies of the company," Beauty puts on her airs, and wit labours for a bon mot, till the first becomes ugly, and the latter tiresome. You may have frequently observed Betsy Ogle in a company of her ordinary acquaintance, look charmingly, because she did not care how she looked, till the pearance of a gentleman, with a fine coat or a title, has set her a-tossing her head, rolling her eyes, biting her lips, twisting her neck, and bringing her whole figure to bear upon him, till the expression of her countenance became perfect folly, and her attitudes downright distortion. In the same way our friend Ned Glib, (who has more wit than any man I know, could he but learn the economy of it,)

when some happy strokes of humour have given him credit with himself and the company, will set out full tilt, mimicking, caricaturing, punning, and story-telling, till every body present wishes him dumb, and looks grave in proportion as he laughs.

"That wit and beauty should be desirous of making a figure, is not to be wondered at, admiration being the very province they contend for. That folly and ugliness should thrust themselves forward to public notice, might be matter of surprise, did we not recollect that their owners most probably think themselves witty and handsome. In these, indeed, as in many other instances, it unfortunately happens, that people are strangely bent upon making a figure in those very departments, where they have least chance of succeeding.

"But there is a species of animal, several of whom must have fallen under the

notice of every body present, which it is difficult to class, either among the witty

or the foolish, the clever or the dull, the wise or the mad, who, of all others, have the greatest propensity to figure-making. Nature seems to have made them up in haste, and to have put the different ingredients, above referred to, into their composition at random. They are more common in such a place as this, than in a more extensive sphere; like some vermin, that breed in ponds and rivulets, which a larger stream or lake would destroy. Our circle is just large enough to give their talents room, and small enough to be affected by their exertion. Here, therefore, there is never wanting a junto of them of both sexes, who are liked or hated, admired or despised, who make people laugh, or set them asleep, according to the fashion of the time, or the humour of their audience, and who have always the satisfaction of talking themselves, and

of being talked of by others. With us, indeed, a very moderate degree of genius is sufficient for this purpose; in small societies, folks are set agape by small circumstances. I have known a lady here contrive to make a figure for half the winter, on the strength of a plume of feathers, or the trimming of a petticoat; and a gentleman make shift to be thought a fine fellow, only by outdoing every body else in the thickness of his queue, or the height of his foretop.

"But people will not only make themselves fools; I have known instances of their becoming knaves, or, at least, boasting of their being so, from this desire of figure-making. You shall hear a fellow, who has once got the character of being a sharp man, tell things of himself, for which, if they had been true, he deserved to be hanged, merely because his line of figure-making lies in trick and chicane; hence too, proceed all those histories of