Politicians will find nothing in this little work that will gratify their malevolence, nor has my pen been employed to paragon the wisdom of the present ministry.—In short, state affairs is not the subject of the following pages; neither have I drawn upon myself the enmity of so large and respectable a body as the clergy, by invading the rich province of religion. But not to detain my readers any longer, nor awaken their entertainment by anticipating their expectations, I now refer them to the performance itself, if they should not be prejudiced against it, by deeming what they have here read as _blossoms of weeds_. [Illustration] THE ADVENTURES OF A BLACK COAT. A Sable coat, whose venerable rents confest a life of business, and a length of years, long had hung sole tenant of a wardrobe; till a gay white coat with care was ushered in, and laid at decent length: when lo! with mortal voice, and sounds articulate, Sable was thus heard to address the stranger: “Thy presence, spark, warns me of my approaching dissolution; but when I cast a retrospect over my former life, and behold thy native purity and unblemished form, I cannot but pity the many and various misfortunes thou art, in all probability heir to.”—To whom, White, “And when I behold thy queer shape and rustic aspect, I cannot but return thy pity, and offer up my prayers against longevity.”—Sable replied, “Boy, know that the depredations of time, and the unseemly appearance of industry, are not proper subjects of ridicule: were it possible thou couldst foresee the train of misfortunes, which in the course of thy existence, and revolutions of thy fortune, thou will be subject to, that gay and happy mien would be changed to a gloomy and melancholy aspect.” Here White bowed humility, craved the sages pardon, and supplicated his advice in the conduct of his life. Sable, finding it a coat of manners, and pleased with the deference paid to his importance, thus answered, “To give advice is easy, but to profit by it is difficult; I will therefore (if thou hast patience to listen) rehearse to thee the vicissitudes of my fortune, from my first formation to this time, so that thou may’st profit by my misfortunes, and learn to bear thy lot, (whate’re it may be) with patience and resignation; and believe me thou wilt have occasion for philosophy.” White politely expressing his desire to be informed of the sage’s life, he thus proceeded: When I contemplate the scenes I have experienced, and meditate on the vile schemes I have been obliged to countenance in those whose sole merit and reputation on arose from my close attachment to them, my very threads blush at the indignity. Here Sable was heard to sigh most piteously, and White, ’tis thought, laughed in his sleeve. After a pause of some minutes—Sable thus opened the relation of his adventures.