Equal, at least, in importance to the sword, was the cane, 'the nice conduct' of which was part of a gentleman's education--and, if swords were plentifully lost or stolen, how many more despairing owners mourned their canes? There were useful, as well as ornamental canes. If the Strong Cane support thy walking Hand, Chairmen no longer shall the Wall command; Ev'n sturdy Car-men shall thy Nod obey, And rattling Coaches stop to make thee Way: This shall direct thy Cautious Tread aright, Though not one glaring Lamp enliven Night. Let Beaus their Canes with Amber tipt produce, Be theirs for empty Show, but thine for use.[210] [Footnote 210: _Trivia_, book 1.] The majority of those lost were hardly worth advertising for; but we will pick out a few, as specimens of what the better sort were like: 'A fine Cane with a Gold Head, engraved with a Cypher and Crown on the top of it.[210] 'A Cane with an Aggot head.' 'A small cane with an Amber head and a Black Silk Ribbond in it, a Princes Metal Hoop, and a Silver Ferril at the bottom.' 'A Cane with a Silver Head and a Black Ribbon in it, the top of it Amber, crack'd in two or three places, part of the Head to turn round, and in it a Perspective Glass.' 'A Cane with a croched Head, a Silver Ferrel and a Silver ring.' 'A Cane with a Silver Head, with the Figure of the Tower of Babel upon it, done in Chaced Work.' 'A Cane with a Silver Head and Scent Box, and a Ferril of Silver at the Bottom.' His snuff-box, too, was an object of his solicitude, though, as the habit of taking snuff had but just come into vogue, there were no collections of them, and no beau had ever dreamed of criticising a box as did Lord Petersham, as 'a nice Summer box.' So many of them have come down to us that they need no description, and I may merely say that those of the middle classes were chiefly of silver, or tortoise-shell, or mother-of-pearl; sometimes of 'Aggat'--or with a 'Moco Stone' in the lid. A beau would sometimes either have a looking-glass, or the portrait of a lady inside the lid. We have seen how proud the beau was of his watch, which he wore in a fob, or pocket, in his breeches. A seal or two, generally of small value, and a watch key, were attached to it by a ribbon; chains, either of gold, silver, or steel, being sparingly used. The seals, of course, were then necessary, as, there being no gummed envelopes, every letter had to be properly sealed, either by wax or wafer. Tompion was the great watch-maker, and he lived at the Three Crowns, at the corner of Water Lane in Fleet Street, where he was afterwards succeeded by George Graham. The value of Tompion's watches may be gathered from the fact that from seven to ten guineas were generally offered for their recovery when lost, or from eighteen to twenty-five guineas of our money.