Chapter 4

There are Mothers, or Grandmothers, in all Families of affluent Fortune, who, tho' they may have none of Lady _Davers_'s _Insolence_, will be apt to feel one of her _Fears_,---that the Example of a Gentleman so amiable as Mr. B--- may be follow'd, by the _Jackies, their Sons_, with too blind and unreflecting a Readiness. Nor does the Answer of that Gentleman to his Sister's Reproach come quite up to the Point they will rest on. For, tho' indeed it is true, all the World wou'd acquit the best Gentleman in it, if he married _such_ a Waiting-maid as _Pamela_, yet, there is an ill-discerning Partiality, in Passion, that will overthrow all the Force of that Argument: because _every belov'd Maid will be PAMELA_, in a Judgment obscur'd by her Influence.

And, since the Ground of this Fear will _seem_ solid, I don't know how to be easy, till it is shewn (nor ought it to be left to the Author's Modesty) that they who consider his Design in that Light will be found but short-sighted Observers.

Request it of him then to suffer it to be told them, that not a limited, but general, Excitement to Virtue was the first and great End to his Story: And that this Excitement must have been deficient, and very imperfectly offer'd, if he had not look'd quite _as low as he cou'd_ for his Example: because if there had been any Degree or Condition, more remote from the Prospect than that which he had chosen to work on, that Degree might have seem'd out of Reach of the Hope, which it was his generous Purpose to encourage.---And, so, he was under an evident _Necessity_ to find such a Jewel in a _Cottage_: and expos'd, too, as she was, to the severest Distresses of Fortune, with Parents unable to support their own Lives, but from the daily hard Product of _Labour_.

Nor wou'd it have been sufficient to have plac'd her thus _low_ and _distressful_, if he had not also suppos'd her a _Servant_: and that too in some elegant Family; for if she had always remain'd a Fellow-cottager with her Father, it must have carried an Air of Romantick Improbability to account for her polite Education.

If she had _wanted_ those Improvements, which she found means to acquire in her _Service_, it wou'd have been very unlikely, that she shou'd have succeeded so well; and had destroy'd _one_ great _Use_ of the Story, to have allow'd such uncommon Felicity to the Effect of mere _personal Beauty_.---And it had not been _judicious_ to have represented her as educated in a superior Condition of Life with the proper Accomplishments, before she became reduc'd by Misfortunes, and so not a Servant, but rather an Orphan under hopeless Distresses---because Opportunities which had made it no Wonder how she came to be so winningly qualified, wou'd have lessen'd her Merit in being so. And besides, where had then been the purpos'd Excitement of Persons in PAMELA's Condition of Life, by an Emulation of her Sweetness, Humility, Modesty, Patience, and Industry, to attain some faint Hope of arriving, in time, within View of _her_ Happiness?----And what a delightful Reformation shou'd we see, in all Families, where the Vanity of their _Maids_ took no Turn toward Ambition to _please_, but by such innocent Measures, as PAMELA's!

As it is clear, then, the Author was under a Necessity to suppose her a _Servant_, he is not to be accountable for mistaken Impressions, which the Charms he has given her may happen to make, on wrong Heads, or weak Hearts, tho' in Favour of Maids the Reverse of her Likeness.

What is it then (they may say) that the Lowness, and Distance of _Pamela's_ Condition from the Gentleman's who married her, proposes to teach the _Gay World_, and the _Fortunate_?---_It is this_---By Comparison with that infinite Remoteness of her Condition from the Reward which her Virtue procur'd her, one great _Proof_ is deriv'd, (which is Part of the _Moral_ of PAMELA) that Advantages from _Birth_, and Distinction of _Fortune_, have no Power at all, when consider'd against those from _Behaviour_, and Temper of _Mind_: because where the _Last_ are _not added_, all the _First_ will be boasted in vain. Whereas she who possesses the Last finds _no Want_ of the First, in her Influence.

In _that_ Light alone let the Ladies of _Rank_ look at PAMELA.---Such an alarming Reflection as that will, at the same time that it raises the Hope and Ambition of the _Humble_, correct and mortify the Disdain of the _Proud_. For it will compel them to observe, and acknowledge, that 'tis the Turn of their _Mind_, not the Claims of their _Quality_, by which (and which only) Womens Charms can be lasting: And that, while the _haughty Expectations_, inseparable from an elevated Rank, serve but to multiply its Complaints and Afflictions, the Condescensions of _accomplish'd Humility_, attracting Pity, Affection, and Reverence, secure an hourly Increase of Felicity.---So that the _moral Meaning_ of PAMELA's Good-fortune, far from tempting young Gentlemen to marry _such_ Maids as are found in their Families, is, by teaching Maids to _deserve to be Mistresses_, to stir up Mistresses _to support their Distinction_.

[_del._ 4th]

{_We shall only add, That it was intended to prefix two neat _Frontispieces_ to this Edition, (and to present them to the Purchasers of the first) and one was actually finished for that Purpose; but there not being Time for the other, from the Demand for the new Impression; and the Engraving Part of that which was done (tho' no Expence was spared) having fallen very short of the Spirit of the Passages they were intended to represent, the Proprietors were advised to lay them aside. And were the rather induced to do so, from the following Observation of a most ingenious Gentleman, in a Letter to the Editor._ "I am so jealous, _says he,_ in Behalf of our _inward_ Idea of PAMELA's _Person_, that I dread _any_ figur'd Pretence to Resemblance. For it will be pity to look at an _Air_, and imagine it _Hers_, that does not carry some such elegant Perfection of Amiableness, as will be sure to find place in the _Fancy_."}

VERSES, sent to the Bookseller, for the Unknown Author [_del._ 8th] {of the beautiful new Piece call'd} _PAMELA_.

Blest be thy pow'rful Pen, whoe'er thou art, Thou skill'd, great _Moulder_ of the master'd Heart! Where hast thou lain conceal'd!---or why thought fit, At this dire Period, to _unveil_ thy Wit? O! late befriended Isle! had this broad Blaze, With earlier Beamings, bless'd our _Fathers_ Days, The Pilot Radiance, pointing out the Source, Whence public Health derives its [5th: "moral"] {vital} Course, Each timely Draught some healing Power had shown, Ere gen'ral _Gangrene_ blacken'd, to the _Bone_. But, fest'ring now, beyond all Sense of Pain, 'Tis hopeless: and the Helper's Hand is _vain_. Sweet _Pamela_! forever-blooming Maid! Thou dear, unliving, yet immortal, Shade! Why are thy Virtues scatter'd to the Wind? Why are thy Beauties flash'd upon the Blind? What, tho' thy flutt'ring Sex might learn, from thee, That _Merit_ forms a Rank, above _Degree_? That Pride, too conscious, falls, from ev'ry _Claim_, While humble Sweetness climbs, beyond its _Aim_? What, tho' Religion, smiling from thy Eyes, Shews her _plain_ Power, and charms without _Disguise_? What, tho' thy warmly-pleasing moral Scheme Gives livelier Rapture, than the Loose can _dream_? What, tho' thou build'st, by thy persuasive Life, Maid, Child, Friend, Mistress, Mother, Neighbour, Wife? Tho' Taste like thine each Void of Time, can fill, Unsunk by Spleen, unquicken'd by Quadrille! What, tho' 'tis thine to bless the lengthen'd Hour! Give _Permanence_ to Joy, and _Use_ to Pow'r? Lend late-felt Blushes to the _Vain_ and _Smart_? And squeeze cramp'd Pity from the _Miser_'s Heart? What, tho' 'tis thine to hush the Marriage Breeze, Teach Liberty to _tire_, and Chains to _please_? Thine tho', from Stiffness to divest Restraint, And, to the Charmer, reconcile the _Saint_? Tho' Smiles and Tears obey thy moving Skill, And Passion's ruffled Empire waits thy Will? Tho' thine the fansy'd Fields of flow'ry Wit, Thine, Art's whole Pow'r, in Nature's Language writ! Thine, to convey strong Thought, with modest Ease, And, copying _Converse_, teach its _Style_ to please? Tho' thine each Virtue, that a _God_ cou'd lend? Thine, ev'ry Help, that ev'ry Heart, can mend? 'Tis Thine _in vain_!----Thou wak'st a _dying_ Land; And lift'st _departed Hope_, with fruitless Hand: Death has NO CURE. Thou hast _mis-tim'd_ thy Aim; _Rome_ had her GOTHS: and all, beyond, was _Shame_.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

William Andrews Clark Memorial Library: University of California

THE AUGUSTAN REPRINT SOCIETY

_General Editors_

R. C. BOYS University of Michigan

RALPH COHEN University of California, Los Angeles

VINTON A. DEARING University of California, Los Angeles

LAWRENCE CLARK POWELL Wm. Andrews Clark Memorial Library

_Corresponding Secretary_: Mrs. EDNA C. DAVIS, Wm. Andrews Clark Memorial Library

The Society exists to make available inexpensive reprints (usually facsimile reproductions) of rare seventeenth and eighteenth century works. The editorial policy of the Society remains unchanged. As in the past, the editors welcome suggestions concerning publications. All income of the Society is devoted to defraying cost of publication and mailing.

All correspondence concerning subscriptions in the United States and Canada should be addressed to the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, 2205 West Adams Boulevard, Los Angeles 18, California. Correspondence concerning editorial matters may be addressed to any of the general editors. The membership fee is $3.00 a year for subscribers in the United States and Canada and 15/- for subscribers in Great Britain and Europe. British and European subscribers should address B. H. Blackwell, Broad Street, Oxford, England.

Publications for the eighth year [1953-1954]

[The notation [*] means that the title was apparently never published. The Sarbiewski volume is currently in preparation for Project Gutenberg. The song collection was published with the title "...Songbooks".]

(At least six items, most of them from the following list, will be reprinted.)

JOHN BAILLIE: _An Essay on the Sublime_ (1747). Introduction by Samuel H. Monk.

Contemporaries of the _Tatler_ and _Spectator_. Introduction by Richmond P. Bond.

_John Dart and George Ogle on Chaucer._ Introduction by William L. Alderson. [*]

JOHN T. DESAGULIERS: _The Newtonian System of the World the Best Model of Government_ (1728). Introduction by Marjorie H. Nicolson. [*]

_Sale Catalogue of Mrs. Piozzi's Effects_ (1816). Introduction by John Butt. [*]

M. C. SARBIEWSKI: _The Odes of Casimire_ (1646). Introduction by Maren-Sofie Roestvig.

_Selections from Seventeenth-Century Songs._ Introduction by Jennifer W. Angel.

_A Sermon Preached at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul_ (1745). [Probably by Samuel Johnson]. Introduction by James L. Clifford. [*]

Publications for the first seven years (with the exception of Nos. 1-6, which are out of print) are available at the rate of $3.00 a year. Prices for individual numbers may be obtained by writing to the Society.

THE AUGUSTAN REPRINT SOCIETY _WILLIAM ANDREWS CLARK MEMORIAL LIBRARY_ 2205 West Adams Boulevard, Los Angeles 18, California

Make check or money order payable to THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA.

PUBLICATIONS OF THE AUGUSTAN REPRINT SOCIETY

[Where available, Project Gutenberg e-text numbers are shown in brackets.]

FIRST YEAR (1946-1947)

Numbers 1-6 out of print.

[Titles: 1. Richard Blackmore's _Essay upon Wit_ (1716), and Addison's _Freeholder_ No. 45 (1716). [13484] 2. Anon., _Essay on Wit_ (1748), together with Characters by Flecknoe, and Joseph Warton's _Adventurer_ Nos. 127 and 133. [14973] 3. Anon., _Letter to A. H. Esq.; concerning the Stage_ (1698), and Richard Willis' _Occasional Paper_ No. IX (1698). [14047] 4. Samuel Cobb's _Of Poetry_ and _Discourse on Criticism_ (1707). [14528] 5. Samuel Wesley's _Epistle to a Friend Concerning Poetry_ (1700) and _Essay on Heroic Poetry_ (1693). [16506] 6. Anon., _Representation of the Impiety and Immorality of the Stage_ (1704) and anon., _Some Thoughts Concerning the Stage_ (1704). [15656] ]

SECOND YEAR (1947-1948)

7. John Gay's _The Present State of Wit_ (1711); and a section on Wit from _The English Theophrastus_ (1702). [14800]

8. Rapin's _De Carmine Pastorali_, translated by Creech (1684). [14495]

9. T. Hanmer's (?) _Some Remarks on the Tragedy of Hamlet_ (1736). [14899]

10. Corbyn Morris' _Essay towards Fixing the True Standards of Wit, etc._ (1744). [16233]

11. Thomas Purney's _Discourse on the Pastoral_ (1717). [15313]

12. Essays on the Stage, selected, with an Introduction by Joseph Wood Krutch. [16335]

THIRD YEAR (1948-1949)

13. Sir John Falstaff (pseud.), _The Theatre_ (1720). [15999]

14. Edward Moore's _The Gamester_ (1753). [16267]

15. John Oldmixon's _Reflections on Dr. Swift's Letter to Harley_ (1712); and Arthur Mainwaring's _The British Academy_ (1712). [In preparation]

16. Nevil Payne's _Fatal Jealousy_ (1673). [16916]

17. Nicholas Rowe's _Some Account of the Life of Mr. William Shakespeare_ (1709). [16275]

18. "Of Genius," in _The Occasional Paper_, Vol. III, No. 10 (1719); and Aaron Hill's Preface to _The Creation_ (1720). [15870]

FOURTH YEAR (1949-1950)

19. Susanna Centlivre's _The Busie Body_ (1709). [16740]

20. Lewis Theobold's _Preface to The Works of Shakespeare_ (1734). [16346]

21. _Critical Remarks on Sir Charles Grandison, Clarissa, and Pamela_ (1754).

22. Samuel Johnson's _The Vanity of Human Wishes_ (1749) and Two _Rambler_ papers (1750). [13350]

23. John Dryden's _His Majesties Declaration Defended_ (1681). [15074]

24. Pierre Nicole's _An Essay on True and Apparent Beauty in Which from Settled Principles is Rendered the Grounds for Choosing and Rejecting Epigrams_, translated by J. V. Cunningham.

FIFTH YEAR (1950-1951)

25. Thomas Baker's _The Fine Lady's Airs_ (1709). [14467]

26. Charles Macklin's _The Man of the World_ (1792). [14463]

27. Frances Reynolds' _An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Taste, and of the Origin of Our Ideas of Beauty, etc._ (1785). [13485]

28. John Evelyn's _An Apologie for the Royal Party_ (1659); and _A Panegyric to Charles the Second_ (1661). [17833]

29. Daniel Defoe's _A Vindication of the Press_ (1718). [14084]

30. Essays on Taste from John Gilbert Cooper's _Letters Concerning Taste_, 3rd edition (1757), & John Armstrong's _Miscellanies_ (1770). [13464]

SIXTH YEAR (1951-1952)

31. Thomas Gray's _An Elegy Wrote in a Country Church Yard_ (1751); and _The Eton College Manuscript_. [15409]

32. Prefaces to Fiction; Georges de Scudéry's Preface to _Ibrahim_ (1674), etc. [14525]

33. Henry Gally's _A Critical Essay_ on Characteristic-Writings (1725). [16299]

34. Thomas Tyers' A Biographical Sketch of Dr. Samuel Johnson (1785).

35. James Boswell, Andrew Erskine, and George Dempster. _Critical Strictures on the New Tragedy of Elvira, Written by Mr. David Malloch_ (1763). [15857]

36. Joseph Harris's _The City Bride_ (1696). [22974]

SEVENTH YEAR (1952-1953)

37. Thomas Morrison's _A Pindarick Ode on Painting_ (1767). [In preparation]

38. John Phillips' _A Satyr Against Hypocrites_ (1655).

39. Thomas Warton's _A History of English Poetry_.

40. Edward Bysshe's _The Art of English Poetry_ (1708).

41. Bernard Mandeville's "_A Letter to Dion_" (1732).

42. Prefaces to Four Seventeenth-Century Romances.

* * * * * * * * *

Errata (noted by transcriber):

deserves not only Acknowlegdment, but ... [_text unchanged: error for "Acknowledgment"?_] ... for the Unknown Author [_del._ 8th] {of the beautiful new Piece call'd} _PAMELA_ [_text unchanged, but "of" probably belongs outside the hand-drawn brackets_] Maren-Sofie Roestvig [_spelling shown as printed, but correct form is "Røstvig" (o-slash, 28th letter of Norwegian alphabet)_]