1752. Account of the new Tragedy of EUGENIA. Act IV. At the opening Orphifa and Eugenia appear, the former endeavouring to comfort the latter, and then Dorimond joins them, who fufpecting that the letter was forged, had fent for Mercour to juftify himself. Mercour then enters, and gives him the letter to read. Being thus convinced, he finds fault with his havipg A concealed it fo long, which the other endeavours to excufe by faying, it was his affection for him made him conceal it, and that for the fame reafon he had propofed to marry Eugenia. But Dorimond ftill fufpecting that he had done this to force her to a loathed, detefted marriage, infifts upon further proof, whereupon Mercour gives him another letter B from his deceafed wife, which Dorimond first defires Orphifa to read, but immediately alters his mind, and propofes to burn the letter without reading it. Upon this Eugenia infifts upon its being read, and Orphisa reading the letter from the deceased directed to Eugenia, it was in these words: It is not without pity that I reveal this fecret to you. But I am approaching the moments of truth. Your mother's diftreffes made it not difficult to bribe thofe about ber; to convey you from her at your birth, and to tell her you were dead. All the recompence then, in my power, was to make her your governess, and now to restore you to ber, C D Orphifa then owns her having been a mother, but that upon the birth, as foon as she was able to look up, they told her, the child was dead, and would not allow Her to look upon it, for fear of disturbing her; on which Dorimond fainting, is carried off, and Mercour, after fome infulting taunts, retires. Orphifa then de- E clares an inward prefage, that her child fhould ftill be happy, and that her hufband was of a noble line of ancestors, but had facrificed his fortune to his honour; after which Clerval enters, and Eugenia, at her mother's defire, going off, Clerval declares his paffion to be still the fame, and tho' not yet informed who F was her mother, he defires Orphifa's confent to marry her. Marry Eugenia, Sir, fays Orphifa? To which the other anfwers, Yes, marry her. The chofen of my heart, my fenfe, my judgment, Some favourite mistress, or ambitious minifter, 53 Rolls down thro' many a fool, thro' many a villain, To its now proud poffeffors? Upon this Orphifa acquaints him with her being the real mother of Eugenia ; but at the fame time tells him, that they were both refolved to retire to a convent. AQ V. This laft act opens with Mercour's afking Clerval, why his uncle would not fee him, on which Clerval advifes him not to meet his uncle during his firft difpleafure: This advice Mercour takes as a fign of falfhood in his brother, and then beginning to talk flightingly of Eugenia, they are like to quarrel, which Clerval avoids by leaving him, and Dorimond entering, Mercour endeavours to juftify himself; but Dorimond having now heard of all his villainy from Æmilia, tells him, that he was gone to a convent, and that he would abandon him to defpair and poverty, on which Mercour owns, and at the fame time exults in his villanies; and upon his exit, Clerval, Orphifa and Eugenia enter, the two laft to take their leave of Dorimond, but inftead of allowing it, he declares, that he adopts Eugenia as his daughter and only child; whereupon Clerval declares to him his love for Eugenia, and he confents to their marriage, upon Orphifa's giving her confent, but she refufes, because of the father's being ftill alive, and the could not violate a father's right to give away his child. Whilft they are upon this fubject, Delville's voice is heard behind the fcenes, faying, Come, direct me, guide me to her, The fweet fupport, and hope of my misfortunes. At which Orphifa ftarts, and cries, Ye powers, what voice was there! and upon feeing him, the faints into his arms; but presently recovering, directs Eugenia to pay the duty that a father claims, which gives Delville new joy; and after acknowledging his obligations to Clerval, to whom he owed his friends, his country, and his fovereign's favour, and these more heart-felt blessings, love and nature; he fays, Come, my Eugenia, you fhall pay him for me, After which they feverally declare their joy, and Delville concludes the play thus: G Praife is the facred attribute of heaven. 'Tis ours alone, with bumble, grateful hearts The 54 PROLOGUE and EPILOGUE to EUGENIA. The PROLOGUE. Written and fpoken by Mr. GARRICK. T ◄0 damn, or not—that is the question now, If fuch good folks, thefe wits of graver fort, B you ? Should we fo often fee your well-known faces? Now for the author-His poetick brat That we deny, but plead an imitation; nation. His mufe, tho' much too grave to dress or dance, bold; Do you, like other Sportsmen then, take beed, The EPILOGUE. Feb. fball maul it: In France 'twas comedy; but here 'tis tragick! Ours is all fentiment, blank verfe and virtue, Give us the lightning's blaze, the thunder's roll! party form'd, no partial friendship tried. Tho love of praife bis inmoft foul inflame, All feign'd, or forc'd applaufe, be dares D difclaim, [fame. Your candour-no-Your judgment be bis. The Westminster Journal has bad four long Letters on the Danger and Prevention of ROBBERIES, from the last of which we fball give the following Extract, E Westminster Journal, Feb. 22. CCORDING to Maitland, there A are within the city and fuburbs of London 5099 ftreets; 95,968 houses; 725,903 inhabitants; 143 parishes; 307 church-wardens; 242 overfeers of the poor; 420 conftables; 227 headboroughs; 134 beadles; and 1318 watchmen: But Salmon computes the houses to be 122,950; and the number of inhabitants to be 1,134,500 If so, each of these 1318 watchmen, upon an average, are to take care of 93 houfes, and 860 inhabitants : But, fuppofing the number of these watchmen were doubled, there would then be 2636, who would coft, at 1od. a night each, 1041. 16s. every night, which is G 38,2521. annually; fo that each houfe, F one with another, would pay 31. 68. a year for the maintenance of fuch a watch: And furely, the number of housekeepers incapable of contributing towards this expence, may be fufficiently affifted by 1752. The Watch deficient, and Scheme for regulating it. 55 their neighbours of greater circumstance: Or it might not be an imprudent scheme for every lodger to be rated at fo much a head during their continuance in their lodgings; by which means, as every man receives the benefit of a watch, so every man would contribute to the expence. Here then lies the principal defect in our provifions for difcouraging robberies: The watchmen are too few for the number of thieves and villains that infeft the ftreets: They are not properly armed: Nor are they conveniently fituated, efpecially in Westminster, which calls aloud for regulation; and therefore, it may not be unfeasonable to furnish a hint towards of raining a proper rate for maintaining the watch: But the city of London and its liberties, as alfo the parishes of St. James, St. George Hanover-Square, St. Martin in the Fields, St. Paul CoventGarden, St. Margaret, St. John the Evangelift, and St. Anne, in Westminster, and A likewife of Chrift-Church, Spittle-Fields, are properly authorized in every thing regarding their watchmen, as to placing, arming, encreafing, and paying them. accomplishing fo good and neceffary a B work, by reprefenting how other cities are watched, and what may be proper to be done for the fecurity of our own metropolis. In Hamburgh, which is a large populous city of Germany, no inhabitant is permitted to walk the streets after dark, without carrying a candle and lanthorn: By which means, if any disorder is committed, the offender is immediately difcovered; or if any person is found without a light, he is taken up on fufpicion of fome illegal design, and carried before a magiftrate. C In the city of Dublin the watch are fo properly posted, that it would be extremely difficult to commit any villainous D practices without an immediate detection: For there is a watchman placed at the end of every street, and in the corner of almost every lane; fo that, upon the leaft alarm, the ftreets are blockaded, and if the offender fhould efcape one watchman, he must inevitably fall into the hands of another: Befides, thefe E watchmen are not only robust fellows, but are alfo fecurely armed, having a long pole, fomewhat like an halberd, with a hook to catch any fugitive, a fpear to ftab if closely engaged, and a bill to cut down if under a neceffity of fighting. F As for the watch of Westminster, they are neither numerous enough, nor fufficiently armed, to fupprefs thofe defperate gangs of villains that are continually infefting the streets. In the extenfive parish of St. Clement's, a parifh which pays 4000l. annually to the fupport of its poor, there appears to be only two beadles, and 28 watchmen, which are not half sufficient for the fecurity of the inhabitants, and the fafe-guard of paffengers: The G inhabitants of this parish, and of all the others within the bills of mortality, except fuch as have lately obtained a parliamentary affiftance, are ftill under the Batute of Winchester, and are incapable Many pernicious confequences are continually occafioned by the negligence of the inhabitants of fuch parishes, which have procured no late parliamentary direction for regulating the watch. From near Temple-Bar to the New-Church in the Strand, I am informed, there are, only a watchmen, which would require 6 or 8, because this fpot is more peftered with villains than any other in the parish; fcarce a night paffing but two or three robberies are committed here; and they have even the impudence to ftop coaches, knock down the coachmen, and rob the fare. From the New-Church in the Strand down to below the New-Exchange, every paffenger is in great danger at any unfeafonable hour in the night; and it is about ten to one if any watchman will come to his affiftance: For the watchmen of Somerfet-House fide fay, they dare not go out of the liberty; and thofe on Katherine-Street fide fay, they dare not go into the liberty: So that, by this nice piece of cafuiftry, a man may be robbed on one fide the way, while the watchman is telling him from the other that he cannot come to his affiftance. It is heartily to be wifhed, that every conftable would make the watchmen per. form their duty, and not permit them, under a pretence of warming themselves for a minute, to continue roafting themfelves, or tippling, for an hour together. It is neceffary not only to augment the number of watchmen, but also to employ none but able-bodied men, and to provide them fome proper weapon of defence, instead of an unferviceable club. It is alfo proper to station the watch at the openings of freets and paffages, in fuch regular diftances, as the nature of the fituation will admit. And it is likewife requifite, that every watchman fhould be furnished with a horn, or fome other wind instrument, which he fhould found upon any emergency, whereby feveral other watchmen would be apprized of any diforder, and readily affemble to prevent it. If this affair fhould be taken into confideration, and the neceffary alterations made, it would be productive of many happy 56 A Defcription of MONMOUTHSHIRE. Feb. happy confequences to the publick. But I proceed to mention one other circumftance, which tends, in a great measure, to the encouragement of robbers. This is the manner of punishment inflicted upon these offenders, which does not appear, at this time of day, to be at all adequate to the original, intention of A the law: For the frequency of our Tyburn executions, and that contempt of death among our obdurate malefactors, prevent the terror which every legislature intends to excite by the feverity of the law. He therefore proposes a diftinction to be made according to the nature of the crime; the murderers and hardened villains only to fuffer death, and the other criminals to be firicily confined to hard labour, &c. A DESCRIPTION of MONMOUTH- MONM B ONMOUTHSHIRE is bounded on the east with the river Wye, which feparates it from Gloucestershire, on the fouth by the river Severn, on the C weft by Brecknockshire, and the river Rumney, which parts it from Glamorganfhire, and on the north by the river Munnow, which divides it from Herefordfhire. Its length from north to fouth is about 24 miles, its breadth from east to weit about 19, and its circumference about So miles. It is bleffed with a healthy and ; temperate air, and tho' very hilly and D F 1. Monmouth, the capital of the county, 100 computed, and 127 measured miles N. W. from London. It is pleafant- G ly and commodioufly fituate between the rivers Wye and Munnow, over each of which it has a bridge. 'Tis a fair, large, well-built, and populous town, has a Stately church, and had formerly a strong I castle, now in ruins, where Henry V. conqueror of France, was born, from thence called Henry of Monmouth. The town is govern'd by a mayor, two bailiffs, 15 common-council men, a town clerk and other inferior officers and it has a confiderable market on Saturdays for corn and other provifions. It formerly gave title of duke to James Fitz-roy, afterwards upon his marriage furnamed Scot, eldest natural fon of king Charles II. beheaded by James II. for taking arms and claiming the crown; and now gives title of earl to the family of Mordaunt, who are alfo earls of Peterborough. The cake of Beaufort has a noble feat near this town, called Troy. 2. Abergavenny, 12 miles W. of Monmouth. It takes its name from the river Gavenny, which falls below it into the Ufke. 'Tis a handsome town, well built, encompaffed with a wall, has a strong caftle, drives a great trade in flannel, and has a market on Tuesdays. It gives title of lord to a branch of the great and antient family of Nevill, who is the first baron of England. 3. Pontypool, 7 miles S. of Abergavenny, a fmall town, with a market on' Saturday, and noted for its iron mills. 4. Caerleon, 6 miles S. of Pontypool, on the river Ufke, over which it has a large wooden bridge, tho' the houses are generally built of stone. It was a flourishing city in the time of the Romans, where one of their legions was quartered, and in the time of the Britons a fort of univerfity, having a college for 200 ftudents in aftronomy, &c. and a bishop's fee, afterwards removed to St. David's. The town is pretty large, and it has a market on Thursday. 5. Newport, about 2 miles S. W. of Caerleon, alfo a pretty large town on the Ufke, over which it has a ftone bridge. It has a good haven of its own name, which occafions many vessels to come here, whereby a confiderable trade is carried on. It has a plentiful market on Saturday. 6. Ufke, 5 miles N. E. of Pontypool, fituate on the river of the fame name, over which it has a bridge: It is a large, well-built town of ftone houfes, having two good markets weekly, viz. on Monday and Friday. 7. Chepstow, 9 miles S. of Monmouth,* near the mouth of the Wye, over which it has a good bridge. "Tis a large, wellbuilt and well-inhabited town, was formerly fortified and defended by a large, ftrong castle, and is ftill one of the best towns in the county. It has a harbour for fhips, and a very confiderable mar ket on Saturdays. JOUR |