The World's Greatest Books — Volume 20 — Miscellaneous Literature and Index
General
The World's Greatest Books — Volume 20 — Miscellaneous Literature and Index
Literature -- Collections
Best of all is the old chaplain. Sir Roger was "afraid of being
insulted with Latin and Greek at his own table"; so he got a university
friend to "find him out a clergyman, rather of plain sense than much
learning, of a good aspect, a clear voice, a sociable temper, and, if
possible, a man that understood a little of backgammon." The genial
knight "made him a present of all the good sermons printed in English,
and only begged of him that every Sunday he would pronounce one of
them in the pulpit." Thus, if Sir Roger happened to meet his chaplain
on a Saturday evening, and asked who was to preach to-morrow, he would
perhaps be answered: "The Bishop of St. Asaph in the morning, and
Dr. South in the afternoon." About which arrangement "The Spectator"
boldly observes: "I could heartily wish that more of our country clergy
would follow this example; and, instead of wasting their spirits in
laborious compositions of their own, would endeavour after a handsome
elocution, and all those other talents that are proper to enforce what
has been penned by greater masters. This would not only be more easy to
themselves, but more edifying to the people."
There is no end to the subjects discussed by "The Spectator." They
range from dreams to dress and duelling; from ghosts to gardening and
goats' milk; from wigs to wine and widows; from religion to riches
and riding; from servants to sign-posts and snuff-boxes; from love
to lodgings and lying; from beards to bankruptcy and blank verse; and
hundreds of other interesting themes. Correspondents often wrote to
emphasise this variety, for letters from the outside public were always
welcome. Thus one "Thomas Trusty":
"The variety of your subjects surprises me as much as a box of
pictures did formerly, in which there was only one face, that by
pulling some pieces of isinglass over it was changed into a senator or
a merry-andrew, a polished lady or a nun, a beau or a blackamoor, a
prude or a coquette, a country squire or a conjurer, with many other
different representations very entertaining, though still the same at
the bottom."
But perhaps, on the whole, woman and her little ways have the
predominant attention. Indeed, Addison expressly avowed this object of
engaging the special interests of the sex when he started. He says:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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