own age

what quantity, any particular age or place is able and willing to receive. This I have, of late, made very much my study, with regard to our and country, and the refult of my enquiry is as follows. There are two forts of fubjects for which there is a general demand in Great Britain at this time, viz. 1. Biography, if any thing may be fo called that gives an account of the lives of perfons that never exifted, but in the imagination of the authors. This is, indeed, a moft fruitful fubject, and under the various titles of Hiftories, Lives, Adventures, Memoirs, &c. teaches people how to live after any imaginable plan. 2. The other is the formation of fchemes and projects, to be carried on by fubfcription, for the good of mankind, which never were fo favourably received as at prefent, the abortion or mifmanagement of nine in ten of them not hav ing in the leaft abated the ardor of the publick. If any be of opinion, that new difcoveries in the fcience of morals, for the fupport of infidelity, are as favourably received as any of thefe, fuch must be told, that they are but fuperficial obCc 2 fervers,

tirely avoided the ufe of foreign names, often hard to pronounce, and when pronounced wholly without meaning. Inftead of this, when he had ocafion to mention particular ranks of men, offices, or customs, he chofe to exprefs them by what did moft exactly correfpond with them in our own country. By this means the narrative, difencumbered of definitions or circumlocutions, is rendered quite eafy and intelligible.

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fervers, or under the prejudice of religious enthusiasm. The e difcoveries here pointed

coveries here pointed at, have been of late years fo various, fo contradictory and fo fhort-lived, that they really raise

ve that they really raile very little curiofity. As an inftance of this, the reader is defired to recollect if he can, the most extraordinary thing of the kind that ever was attempted. A great living author, David Hume Efq, not long ago, made health, cleanlinefs, and broad fhoulders capital virtues, and a running fore an ༠༩ unpardonable crime; yet was it but little taken notice of when firft published, and is now almost wholly forgotten.

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Therefore, an author is undoubtedly happy who hath hit upon, or happens to be furnished with a fubject fuited to the taste of the age. This I humbly prefume to be my own cafe. I have had the good fortune, lately to obtain diftinct information of a most extraordinary hiftory, which alfo may perhaps lay a foundation for fome new fcheme, or, at leaft, for mending and cobling thofe which are now cracked and old. The only misfortune that it labours under is, that it is true; for I remember the lofty and fonorous Earl of Shaftesbury, whofe memory I greatly revere, tells us there is much more truth in fiction than in fact. The meaning of this is, that authors of Mar21/1 10

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tafte and genius like himself, employing their fancy in delineating feigned characters, give dinarily a jufter view of nature than tedious relaters of what really happened.

This lofs, however, I truft, will be abundantly made up by the extraordinary and wonderful nature of the paffages I am to relate, which, it is to be hoped, will have the effect of fiction in enlivening the imagination of the writer, and, indeed, very poffibly, may be miftaken for fiction by many readers. The truth is, I hope there is a fingular felicity in my fubject in every respect, If the excellency of hiftory, according to Lord Shaftesbury, lies in its being like fiction, and the excellency of fiction in its being like real facts, according to all other men, the subject in hand muft needs excel, as it partakes of both thefo characters. It will be like truth, because it is true; and it will be like fiction, becaufe the fame train of events, perhaps, never happened in any other place or nation.

To introduce myself to my fubject, and inform the reader how I came by the knowledge of it, he may be pleased to recollect, that in the year 1741, when Commodore (afterwards Lord) Anfon made a voyage round the world, one of the fhips of his fquadron, callad the Wager, was caft away upon a defert ifland in the South Seas. The greatest part of the crew who were faved lengthened the long-boat, and made a long and dangerous voyage through the freights of Magellan, to Brazil. As they were often obliged to fwim a fhore for provifions and water, it happened that, at one time, there were to the number of fourreen of them afhore upon a part of the coaft very

far South, near the mouth of the ftreights. Having stayed all night, unfortunately next morning the wind blew fo hard in fhore, that only fix of the fourteen were able to get aboard, and the veffel was obliged to go away and leave the other eight.

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It is needlefs here to insist upon the various accidents they met with in this perilous fituation : the difficulty of obtaining food, without which they muft very foon have died: the mean and fcanty provifion with which nature will be fuf"tained, when there is no more or better to be had the inventive faculty of man for supplying his wants when reduced to abfolute extremity, and a hundred other things which have been represented in all poffible lights by other writers of adventures. Let it fuffice, therefore, to fay that, in procefs of time, four of them were killed by the inhabitants of the country, and the remaining four taken prifoners. After changing their mafters feveral times, they came at laft into the hands of one who carried them a great way off to the capital of an empire, and the court of a powerful prince. There they lived many years, learned the language, and had occafion to see the manners of the country. Two of them, at laft, acquired fuch a degree of favour, that, in compliance with their earnest request, they were fent to the Portugueze fettlements, and came from thence to Great Britain.

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One of these perfons, who was a man of tole#able education, at well as good fenfe and comprehenfion, coming to live in my neighbourhood, communicated to me what follows of this hiftory. In general he told me the conduct and characters of men, bating fome little differences of fashion and modes of addrefs, which are ever changing in every country, were much like what they are among ourselves. Court favour was precarious and changeable. Intereft and ambition prevailed more in obtaining places of power and profit, than modeft and peaceable merit. Cold and fober men gathered wealth, and crept up, by flow but fure steps, to station and dignity; while the lively fprightly fellows threw away that they had, and foon became contemptible to others and useless to themselves. The knowledge of the world was of very little benefit; for tho' every clafs of men could clearly difcern the errors that adhered to thofe of a different rank, they could fcarcely obferve, and never would imitate their commendable qualities. For example, fays he, a profuse, diseased, needy Lord would fpeak with infinite contempt of the meannefs of foul, and hardness of heart frequently to be found in traders and men of business; but never once thought of following their example in fobriety, application, and regularity in the dif tribution of their time, to which they manifeftly owed all their fuccefs. So that, upon the whole, he concluded that human nature in all ages and

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