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I have sometimes thought, that these objects of mirth, however strangely and unnaturally they became so, might yet be made subservient to good purposes among the great; among kings, ministers, and all who govern and bear influence with men. In the first place I would propose, that the term of fool be discarded, and that of jester only retained. Fool implies a person deficient in understanding; but natural deficiences and imperfections must never be made objects of mirth. Again, these fools in reality have not been such natural fools, as some have imagined on the contrary, if they were not the wisest persons at court, which yet might sometimes admit a doubt, they have often been wiser, and known better what they were doing, than many who have laughed at them. The appellation of fools therefore is improperly applied to such.

Let me now set forth, what ideas I would include under the term jester; by whom, then, I do not mean a person, who is merely to raise a laugh, by doing absurd and ridiculous things: none of our kings have been so poorly attended, but who have abounded with servants qualified for this. By a jester, I mean one, who should mix utile dulci, the useful with the pleasant; who should instruct, at the same time that he diverts; and, if the freedom may be allowed me, who should make the king wise as well as merry.

For this purpose I would have him endowed with strong original powers, cultivated with letters, and thoroughly practised in the ways of men. Nor should his letters consist in a simple knowledge of languages, or in critical and philological matters; for these of themselves, though they excite admiration among the ignorant, yet leave the understanding as poor as they find it; but I would have them to consist of history, philosophy, and other branches of science and literature, which tend to

says he, "you are come; I was afraid I should have been alone." Menagiana. By his address in pleasing some, and in awing others, he made them all tributaries; and amassed so much money, that M. de Marigni said, "Of all the fools who had followed Monsieur the prince, Angeli was the only one who had made his fortune." Ibid. Boileau's starved poet complains, that Angeli in preferment outstripped all competitors, of what merit soever:

Et l'Esprit le plus beau, l'auteur le plus poli,
N'y parviendra jamais au sort de l'Angeli.

SAT. 1.

make men knowing in human nature and human life. Thus accomplished, a jester may not only be diverting, according to the original institution of his place, but useful also and iustructing in a very superlative degree.

By profession, he is a manufacturer and dealer in apophthegms, proverbs, aphorisms, maxims, and bons mots of every kind: all which are not only highly calculated for wit and amusement, but (in the opinion of the wisest men) the most efficacious means of conveying knowledge. Seneca says, that "even rude and uncultivated minds are struck, as it were, with these short but weighty sentences, which anticipate all reasoning, by flashing truths upon them at once;" and he relates, that Agrippa, the minister of Augustus Cæsar, used to own himself much indebted to that of Sallust, concordia parcæ res crescunt. discordia maximæ dilabuntur* : a pithy sentence indeed, and which the good people of old England would, at all times, do well to ponder. Plutarch drew up and digested a collection of apophthegms for Trajan, and Erasmus did the same for a German prince; in the dedication to whom, after observing how finely fitted these close and pointed sentences are for instruction, he adds, that they are "singularly accommodated to the situation and exigencies of a prince, who has not time to read Plato, Aristotle, and other voluminous writers upon government, laws, manners, &c."

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Now with such instruments as these managed judici ously and with address, a jester may produce surprising effects: nay, Bayle has not scrupled to say, that a sentence, taken from Livy or Tacitus, is capable of saving a nation, and perhaps has saved more than onet." It is very well known, that war, peace, and other important national events, have often originated in secret from very minute and (as would be thought) inadequate causes; while the reasons, publicly given out, have been merely ostensible. But a jester, such a one as I mean, is or may be often within the cabinet. He may therefore instruct his master, as I have said; but he may do more: he may also in some measure regulate and direct his passions, and greatly influence his political conduct,

* Epist. 94.

+ Project for a Dictionary.

while his apparent object shall be only to divert him. There was a jester among the household of Charles I. who was brought before the council, and with much solemnity discarded from court, for pointing his raillery at archbishop Laud; but many knowing ones have thought. that, if the king had discarded the archbishop instead of the jester, his affairs might have ended better than they did.

Dioclesian, a Roman emperor, made the difficulty of reigning well to consist chiefly in the difficulty of arriving at the real knowledge of affairs. "Four or five courtiers," said he, "form themselves into a cabal, and unite in their councils to deceive the emperor. They say what will please their master; who, being shut up in his palace, is a stranger to the truth, and forced to know only what they think fit to tell him*." Now the jester will be sure to prevent or dissipate all this darkness and obscurity he will be a perpetual intelligencer to his master: he will daily and hourly laugh him into true ideas of persons and things, and lead him gradually to see them as they aret. Thus royalty will be guarded against many evils: it will not be misled by either flattery or abuse; but taught to lay the due stress, and no more, upon whatever shall be said for or against itself. These and innumerable other benefits will be obtained, and all in the way of mirth and pleasantry.

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Upon the whole then, agreeably to my idea of a jester, many might be glad to see this personage re-established at court, and a proper stipend assigned to his offices. If he produce the effects I have specified, well

* Vopiscus in Aureliano.

This was what the famous Carvalho so much dreaded from the lively and witty Count d' Obidos: Il craignoit, says the historian, que ses bons mots ne fissent à la fin quelque impression sur l' esprit du Monarque, & ne parvinssent peut-être à lui ouvrir les yeux. Memoires de Carvalho, Marquis de Pombal. Tom. II. p. 35.

Yet a certain writer seems to think this in no wise necessary: "the last jester we had at court," says he, "was in the licentious reign of Charles II. Since that time our manners have been so gra dually refining, that our court at present is full of patriots, who wish for nothing but the honours and wealth of their country; and our ladies are all so chaste, so spotless, so good, so devout, that there is nothing for a jester to make a jest of" Yorick's Sentimental Journey.

and good: and, let the worst happen that can, it will be only adding one more to those many places and pensions, which, being of no great use or ornament to the kingdom, must unavoidably create disaffection and complaint; unless we could suppose the English of the same humour with the subjects of a duke of Savoy, who being asked "how they could bear their heavy" taxations?" replied, We are not so much offended with the duke for what he takes from us, as thankful to him for what he leaves us*.

THE CHANGE IN THE CABINET.

DO not start, Mr. CONDUCTOR, I allude to the change in the Political Cabinet; for in your's no alteration seems necessary, and I hope your administration will prove as lasting as its commencement is favourable. What is to become of us? All parties have been tried, and all have been found wanting. Since the French revolution, we have had a Pitt and Grenville Cabinet-A Pitt, Grenville and Burke Cabinet-An Addington Cabinet -A Pitt Cabinet again-Then the Pitts and the Addingtons, without the house of Temple, and the followers of Burke; and last the Grenvillites; the Foxites; the Addingtonians; and the Burkites; the Tories, the New WHIGS, the Old WHIGS-the Doctors and the Alarmists; all the parties and all the talents' in the Country jumbled together. Now "ALL THE TALENTS" are suddenly sent adrift, and the nation is to be governed by a thing of shreds and patches, which was all the illustrious Pitt could bequeath to his country, except the inemory of his great abilities, and spotless integrity. I tremble for the result.

On reading an account of the changes in the Cabinet in the year 1770, I lately met with the following particulars relative to the sudden death of Mr. YoRKE, which as they have every appearance of authenticity, and present a specimen of the importunities, intrigues and fa◄ mily dissentions which have attended the party strug gles for power in this country, I have transcribed for your use, should you think proper to insert them.

The Premier [the Duke of Grafton] had for some time been importuning Mr. Yorke to accept the seals, which he,

* Lord Herbert's Life, p. 110. 1770. 4to,

fired with the principles of his noble family, had, with a spirit becoming his character, often disdainfully refused. But as no one was thought more adequate to the purposes of ministerial intrigues, no step was left unturned to bring him over. What could not be brought to bear with him, was effected through his wife; the Premier applied to her; she, the true sister of arbitrary measures, swelled with the thought of being the lady of almost the first subject in the kingdom, and anxious to have a peerage for her own son, as well as her son-in-law, (for that was to be the price of his accepting them,) took him in the soft hours of dalliance, the mollia tempora fandi, and turned him to her purpose. She went immediately to the Duke of Grafton, made him acquainted with it, and told him she was convinced if his Majesty would send for him, and ask it as a favour, he would no longer withstand. The thing was done, and he was sent for and closetted; the favour was asked, and the seals accepted.

On his return home, he called on his friend the Marquis of Rockingham, with whom he found Mr. Burke, and one or two of his old associates, who seemed pleased with the unexpected visit, but when he said " I have accepted the seals," it struck them with astonishment. They could not believe what they heard; but when they found it was too true, his friend, the Marquis, could hold no longer, and instantly addressed him thus; "Mr. Yorke, for I still hope to call you so, I once looked upon you as an honest man, inflexible to any mean thing, and as one who had no ambition but that of being instrumental to the_good of society. Now I despise you. As Mr. Yorke, I was always happy to see you; as Chancellor never put your feet within my doors again." This spirited address was echoed by the whole company, and the Chancellor retired in disgrace. The Marquis immediately flew to Lord Hardwicke, the Chancellor's brother, told him the story, and urged him to go and insist on his immediate resignation, (for Mr. Yorke had great expectations from his brother;) Lord Hardwicke lost no time, but went to his house, and began with, "brother, what's this I hear? they tell me you have accepted the scals?"-" I have." "Have? and are you not ashamed to own it? you have turned your back on those friends that have been the making of our family. What could induce you! honour? a place refused is

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