Dear Coufin,

HIS Office, which has had its Share in the impartial Justice of your cenfures, demands at present your Vindication of their Rights and Privileges. There are cer tain Hours when our young Heralds are exercis'd in the Faculties of making Proclamation, and other Vociferations, which of Right belong to us only to utter: But at the fame Hours, Stentor in St. Paul's Church, in Spight of the Coaches, Carts, London-Cries, and all other Sounds between us, exalts his Throat to fo high a Key, that the most noify of our Orders is utterly unheard. If you please to obferve upon this, you will ever oblige, &c.

THERE have been communicated to me fome other Confequences from the fame Caufe; as, the Overturning of Coaches by fudden Starts of the Horfes as they pafs'd that Way, Women pregnant frighten'd, and Heirs to Families loft: which are publick Difafters, though arifing from a good Intention: But it is hoped, after this Admonition, that Stentor will avoid an A&t of fo great Supererogation, as finging without a Voice.

BUT I am diverted from profecuting Stentor's Reformation, by an Account, That the two faithful Lo vers, Lifander and Coriana, are dead; for no longer ago than the firft of the last Month, they fwore eternal Fidelity to each other, and to Love till Death, Ever fince that Time, Lifander has been twice a-day at the Chocolate-house, vifits in every Circle, is miffing four Hours in four and twenty, and will give no Account of himself. These are undoubted Proofs of the Depar ture of a Lover; and confequently Coriana is alfo dead as a Mistress. I have written to Stentor to give this Couple three Calls at the Church-door, which they muft hear if they are within the Bills of Mortality; and if they do not answer at that Time, they are from that Moment added to the Number of my Defunct.

Paule

White's Chocolate-house, August 15.

WHILE others are bufied in Relations which

concern the Interefts of Princes, the Peace of Nations, and the Revolutions of Empire, I think (tho' thefe are very great Subjects) my Theme of Difcourfe is fometimes to be of Matters of a yet higher Confidetion. The flow Steps of Providence and Nature, and ftrange Events which are brought about in an Inftant, are what, as they come within our View and Obfervation, shall be given to the Publick. Such Things are not accompanied with Show and Noife, and therefore feldom draw the Eyes of the unattentive Part of Mankind; but are very proper at once to exercise our Humanity, please our Imaginations, and improve our Judgments. It may not therefore be unufeful to relate many Circumftances, which were obfervable upon a late Cure done upon a young Gentleman who was born blind, and on the 29th of June laft received his Sight at the Age of twenty Years, by the Operation of an Occulift. This happened no farther off than Newington, and the Work was prepared for in the following:

Manner.

THE Operator, Mr. Grant, having obferved the Eyes of his Patient, and convinced his Friends and Res lations, among others the Reverend Mr. Cafwell, Minifter of the Place, that it was highly probable he fhould remove the Obftacle which prevented the Ufe of his Sight; all his Acquaintance, who had any Regard for the young Man, or Curiofity to be prefent when one of full Age and Understanding received a new Senfe, affembled themfelves on this Occafion. Mr. Cafwell

When he had

being a Gentleman particularly curious, defired the whole Company, in cafe the Blindness should be cured, to keep Silence, and let the Patient make his own Obfervations, without the Direction of any Thing he had received by his other Senfes, or the Advantage of difcovering his Friends by their Voices. Among feveral others, the Mother, Brethren, Sifters, and a young Gentlewoman for whom he had a Paffion, were prefent. The Work was performed with great Skill and Dexterity. When the Patient first received the Dawn of Light, there appeared fuch an Ecftacy in his Action, that he feemed ready to fwoon away in the Surprize of Joy and Wonder. The Surgeon ftood before him with his Inftruments in his Hand. The young Man obferved him from Head to Foot; after which he furvey'd himself as carefully, and feem'd to compare him to himself; and obferving both their Hands, feem'd to think they were exactly alike, except the Inftruments, which he took for Parts of his Hands. continued in this Amazement fome Time, his Mother could not longer bear the Agitations of fo many Paffions as throng'd upon her, but fell upon his Neck, crying out, My Son! My Son! The Youth knew her Voice, and could fpeak no more than, Oh me! Are you my Mother? and fainted. The whole Room, you will eafily conceive, were very affectionately employed in recovering him; but above all, the young Gentlewoman who loved him, and whom he loved, friek'd in the loudest Manner. That Voice feem'd to have a fudden Effect upon him as he recovered, and he fnewed a double Curiofity in obferving her as the fpoke and called to him; till at last he broke out, What has been done to me? Whither am I carried? Is all this about me, the Thing I have heard fo often of? Is this the Light? Is this Seeing? Were you always thus happy, when you faid, you were glad to fee each other? Where is Tom, who used to lead me? But I could now, methinks, go any where without him. He offered to move, but feem'd afraid of every Thing around him. When they faw his Difficulty, they told him, till he became better acquainted with his new Being, he must let the Servant ftill lead him. The Boy was call'd for, and prefented

to

to him. Mr. Cafwell ask'd him, What fort of Thing he took Tom to be before he had feen him. He answered, He believ'd there was not fo much of him as of himfelt; but he fancied him the fame Sort of Creature. The Noife of this fudden Change made all the Neighbourhood throng to the Place where he was. As he faw the Crowd thickening, he defired Mr. Cafwell to tell him how many there were in all to be feen. The Gentleman, fmiling, anfwer'd him, That it would be very proper for him to return to his late Condition, and fuffer his Eyes to be covered, till they had received Strength; for he might remember well enough, that by Degrees he had from little and little come to the Strength he had at prefent in his Ability of Walking and Moving; and that it was the fame Thing with his Eyes, which, he said, would lofe the Power of continuing to him that wonderful Transport he was now in, except he would be contented to lay afide theUse of them, till they were strong enough to bear the Light without fo much Feeling, as he knew he underwent at present. With much Reluctance he was prevailed upon to have his Eyes bound, in which Condition they kept him in a a dark Room, till it was proper to let the Organ receive its Objects without farther Precaution. During the Time of this Darkness, he bewail'd himself in the most diftreffed Manner, and accufed all his Friends, complaining, that fome Incantation had been wrought upon him, and fome Magick used to deceive him into an Opinion, that he had enjoy'd what they called Sight. He added, That the Impreffions then let in upon his Soul would certainly distract him, if he were not fo at that present. At another Time he would ftrive to name the Perfons, he had feen among the Crowd after he was couched, and would pretend to speak (in perplexed Terms of his own making) of what he in that fhort Time obferved. But on the 6th Inftant it was thought fit to unbind his Head, and the young Woman whom he loved was inftructed to open his Eyes accordingly, as well to indear her felf to him by fuch a Circumftance, as to moderate his Ecftafies by the Perfwafion of a Voice, which had fo much Power over him as hers ever had.

When

T

When this beloved young Woman began to take off the Blinding of his Eyes, the talk'd to him as follows. Mr. WILLIAM, I am now taking the Binding off, though when I confider what I am doing, I trem ble with the Apprehenfion, that (though I have from my very Childhood loved you, dark as you were, and though you had conceived fo ftrong a Love for me, yet) you will find there is fuch a Thing as Beauty, which may enfnare you into a Thousand Paffions of which you are now innocent, and take you from me for ever. But before I put my felf to that Hazard, ⚫ tell me in what Manner that Love you always profef= fed to me entered into your Heart, for its ufual Admiffion is at the Eyes.

་

THE young Man answered, Dear Lidia, If I am to lofe my Sight, the foft Pantings which I have always felt when I heard your Voice; If I am no more todistinguish theStep of her I love when she approach es me, but to change that sweet and frequent Pleasure for fuch an Amazement as I knew the little Time I lately faw; Or if I am to have any Thing befides, which may take from me the Senfe I have of what appeared most pleasing to me at that Time, (which Apparition it feems was you) pull out thefe Eyes, be fore they lead me to be ungrateful to you, or undo my felf. I wish'd for them but to fee you; pull them out, if they are to make me forget you.

LIDIA was extremely fatisfied with thefe Affurances; and pleafed her felf with playing with his Perplexities. In all his Talk to her, he fhewed but very faint Idea's of any Thing which had not been received at the Ear; and clofed his Proteftation to her, by saying, That if he were to fee Valentina and Barcelona, whom he fuppofed the most esteemed of all Women, by the Quarrel there was about them, he would never like any but Lidia,

St. James's Coffee-house, August 15.

WE have repeated Advices of the entire Defeat of Swedish Army near Pultowa on the 27th of June, O. S. And Letters from Berlin give the following Account of the Remains of the Swedish Army fince the Battle: Prince Menzikoff being order'd to pursue the

Victory