neglected and forlorn, excited a fenfation of difappointment, to which a franger does not immediately reconcile himself. But the citizens of Glafgow, as I was going to tell you, fhew little difpofition, at prefent, to many of thole focial indulgencies, to which most populous towns, whether rich or poor, are generally but too much inclined. They can fcarcely keep open their play- houfe during the courfe of one month in a year; and their dancing affemblies are on foot only in the winter season.

The better ranks of women appear little in the streets; indeed fcarcely any where lefs, being laudably engaged at home in the education of their children and the economy of their families; while their husbands are employed in their fabrics and counting-houses on the means of eftablifhing the next generation folidly, or at eafe in the world. They, whofe greater affluence enables them to fubititute deputies in the more laborious provinces of their vocation, are properly occupied in the higher offices of the magiftracy, the police of the town, or the chambers of commerce and manufactures. One would almost conceive Glasgow to be unacquainted even with the name of idleness. The dreaming ofcitancy of a fet of beings, continually in quet of fomething to do, because they can never refolve to be actually doing, fo common in most towns among thofe at their eafe, is unknown here. Every man, and every woman have each their objects of purfuit; and they muft, at leaft, be negatively happy, who have not leifure to be miferable. A difh of tea; a party of converfation; a quiet game at cards, without the poignancy of high play, are the ordinary amufements of an afternoon's vifit at Glafgow. The men are not averfe to prolonging converfation after dinner over a bowl of fmall punch; the favourite beverage of their more focial hours. But the pleasure, moft regularly induiged, is their daily call at the tontine coffee-room. Here every

man meets his friends, or his acquaintance; here he learns whatever is new or interefting at home or abroad, in politics, commerce, and often in literature. His mind recovers, or acquires here tone and clafticity; and each returns to his family or his bufinefs with new ideas to apply, to exercife, or contemplate, according to his pursuits, or his humour. Here then is centered the principal amufement of the place, while the only luxury indulged at Glafgow, is the pation tor elegant building. Will this city ever be better, or more innoce tly amufed, or indulge in a luxury at once more fplendid and creditable? The manners of fociety, however, can never long be stationary at their moit rational point. The fucceeding generation will find many idle means of fpending, what the prudence, and induftry of the prefent, have been treasuring up. And as every thing wrong, has commonly a defender in him, who pradifes it, the good fenfe of the prefent day, will yield in time to a kind of fophitry, which will ingenioufly reprefent the worfe ftate as the better. Hence the progrelive corruption of moral principles, and the beginning of decfenfion in focial happiness.

A remoter race will be rened into fomething, worse. mechanical improvements will multiply the ufelefs and imaginary conveniencies of life, religious habits will lofe ground: while the former frengthen man's confidence in himfelf, they weaken his dependance on the Providence of God. Riches will increafe with the extenfion of commerce: vanity, vice, and idle luxuries will make proportionable progress. Morality and religion will become too auftere for good company: external decency, however, will, for fome time, preferve their femblance, till a yet remoter poterity, under the pretence of farther melioration, will fee no neceffity for even the appearance of any principles, religious or moral. This will be called a tate of the moft

perfect

Cities, ftates, and kingdoms, have their infancy, their childhood, their youth, their maturity, their old age, their decrepitude, their death, like the individuals of mankind; but communities have the advantage of springing again, like the phoenix, from their own athes. The civil death of a neighbouring kingdom, the deftruc tion, which we have en of all the bett principles of fociety, will, under providence, produce a renewed order of things: the grand leading principles of focial and civil happinets will all return, under fome variation, perhaps fome new modification of the ancient forms, and a renovation of its former glory and splendour will flowly rife into existence; although, after the lapfe, we will hope, of many fuc

perfet liberty; the most refined philofophy. The multitude will foon understand in it a right to govern themfelves according to their will and caprice, Ike the philofophers above them. Preachers will arife from a mong the lower order, who will bring the fashionable philofophy down to the level of their ideas. Nothing is fooner learnt, than that every man may do as he pleafes. Grown, in their own fancies, now as wife as thofe, whom they lately thought wifer, and who once, indeed, poffeffed the most real fuperiority, they will foon proceed to take the management of their country into their own hands, as being the ftrongest party; will infill next on the equality of all conditions; overthrow all orders and distinctions; destroy property; difceeding generations, many future ages, folve all the ties of fociety; murder and maffacre each other; become barbarians and favages; and living in this ftate, till the mifery and horror of it becomes quite intolerable, they will, at length, humbly listen to the voice of reafon, which in a few individuals will have remained fafe and entire amid the wreck of every focial good; they will be taught to fee the neceffity of perfonal fecurity, peace and order, to maintain but the lowest degree of human happinefs, and will difcover, at length, that thefe can only be procured by religion, morals, public law, a delegated force, and the reprefentative wifdom of communities, brought into the narrow compafs of aflemblies and councils, under the rule of one, or of few, to fimplify the execution of the common force and wisdom; nor is it probable that mankind will ever difcover any thing better or wifer; perhaps I might fay, any other poffible means to give trength, confiftence, and duration to governments, than the old inftitutions, religious and moral, privileged orders in fociety; diftinétions of merit, rank, and office; inequalities of rich and poor, which have more or lefs fubfifted, hitherto, in every government in the world.

but to fall again by the natural progrefs and viciffitude of human things, into corruption, decay, and ruin. in this rotation revolves the fate of all the kingdoms, empires, and ftates of the univerfe. The principal difference between them, is in the flower, or more rapid, the more or less uriform motion of the wheel, which feldom ccafes, however, abfolutely to move on, and the motion of which is, perhaps, never retrograde.

We now quitted the public walks, in which nothing had occurred to interrupt our converfation on the ftate of fociety and manners in Glafgow; f.cm whence you, perhaps, will allow the preceding reflections not unnaturally to have fprung; and fhortly we reentered the town.

The mifcellaneous nature of a tra veller's letter is continually making violent tranfitions neceflary from one fubject to another, of a fpecies totally different. Wonder not then, if from moral reflections, I lead you to the fcene of a market. This fort of object in cities, regulated like Glasgow, by a good police, may be often found worthy of a stranger's infpection. As the markets, at Glasgow, may be reckoned among the ornaments of the place, fome account of one of them,

more peculiarly deftined for the convenience of the new town, may, perhaps, amule you. We were rather furprised to fee a circular building, in form of a theatre, with a handiome glazed rotunda to enlighten it, and beneath that, elegant galleries of mahogany, fuped by columns, running round whole; and all this to afford coy for the thambles of butcher,ch occupy the area below, and tops of green-grocers, made in certain recefles, communicating with the galleries. Water, I understood, is ingenioufly conveyed through the columns, in order to wash the meat-falls, &c. and to keep the whole place clear of offenfive odours. The portals of entrance, into fome of thele theatrical markets, are hand. fomely fculptured, and embellished with architectural ornaments.

I ant cipate your ideas of incongruity between the elegance of thefe icenes, and the ufes to which they are applied.

A humouri? of the herd of Epicurus entertained different notions of this matter, who ia d, that as the bulinefs of butchers and green-grocers is peculiarly adapted to the gratification of taste, he could not fee, why so much of the intellectual kind of it, displayed on the repofitoty of their articles, were out of place. As critics had not difdained to borrow the name of that difcerning fenfe in arts and morals from thofe, whofe vocations were wholly concerned with fenfual tate and appetite, it was fairly to be fuppofed, that there exifted a natural alliance between eating and the fine arts, and that to infilt upon a total feparation argued nothing but fqueamishness and affectation.

Whatever ingenuity you may allow to this way of viewing the fubject, the cafe, I understand, was partly

thus: that fome novel attraction was found requifite, to induce the butchers and green-grocers to relinquish their ancient custom of keeping market in the open streets. And, in fact, all the elegance and convenience of their

new market-houfes, proved at first, icarcely powerful enough to overcome the inveterate prejudices of habit., But another reafon, founded in the good fenfe of the magiftrates, princi-, pally operated in the refinement I am peaking of. This was to contrive an agreeable inducement for the good houfewives of better ranks, to continue their economical and laudable p alice of parchafing, themselves, the provifions of their houshold.

This town, among its other public fiructures, pofieles a fpacious granary, and two hofpitals; one called the merchants, and the other Hutchinfon's; charitable eftablishments, of peculiar benefit, in this populous refort of manufactures and commerce, The exchange, the guard-houfe, and the toll-booth, the latter containing the city prifon, and tribunal of justice, merited more particular notice than our time allowed us to give them. An infcription, on the front of the toll-booth, conveys its feveral ufes and defigns, clofely compreffed in the following diftich:

Hæc domus odit, amat, punit, confervat, honorat,

Nequitiam, pacein, crimina, jura, probos.

After fome paufe of reft, we afcended the high ground, on the north fide of the town, for the gratification of infpecting the aqueduct-bridge; a newly finiflied, and important work. By means of this bridge, and its appendant locks and bafons, Glasgow e joys a communication with the celebrated canal, which joins the Forth and the Clyde. This work forms a new cut, or canal, of fome miles in length, reaching from the great original one, and on fimilar dimensions of width and depth, till it terminates in a fine new bafon near the city, called Port Dundas. This magnificent aqueduct carries the water over two lofty rocks; the rocks themfelves ferving for the abutments of the two extreme piers. The length of the bridge, or aqueduct, is 250 feet; it is feventy feet high; its channel eight

3 G

feet deep, and fifty-four broad; con-, or community. As, however, my ftructed upon four cylindrical arches, letter is fwelling to greater extent each fifty feet in fpan. You will than I defigned, I will give you, as have fome idea of the magnitude of briefly as I can, only an outlinethe undertaking, from the time and fketch of the municipal fyftem of labour found neceffary for its accom- Glafgow; without entering into a deplishment. On an average, 500 men tail of the feveral officers; whofe difwere employed on each half mile, for tinct powers, it would take much time the space of three years. Veffels of precifely to define; and even whose ninety-fix tons, and upward, conveni- titles would be fca:cely intelligible ently pass this noble canal; and we without researches into antiquity, more had the fatisfaction of feeing one of proper for a differtation, than a traconfiderable burden, navigated into veller's letter. port, foon after our arrival at it.