every night to keep the fires in, and watch the house for fear of mischief.

This scorbutic illness increased pretty much upon them, but was greatly relieved at last by his accidental reading one day of people being cured of the scurvy at our islands Antigua or Nevis, by eating green lemons, after a long becalmed voyage from Guinea. Upon this he remembered that he had a quantity of lime juice and lemon juice in the house, which he gave plentifully about to the family, as often as they would drink it, and in about a week or ten days' time they found themselves sensibly bettered by the taking it.

The streets were now a melancholy sight to look into, the pavement was overgrown with grass; it was not one time in twenty that they looked through the glass (for they never opened any casement) that they could see anybody going along, or so much as a door open; as for the shops, they were all shut close, except that the apothecaries' and chandlers' shops kept a door open for the letting people come for what they wanted; not a coach or a cart to be seen, except now and then a coach carrying a sick body to the pest-house; and every night, three or four times a night, the deadcart, with the bellman crying, "Bring out your dead."

The poor man was now so impatient for want of his porter that he could not content himself without opening his wooden window two or three times after this to talk with the watchman, who continued posted at the door of the house that was shut up, and to inform himself how things went; but at last he looked

for him and found he was gone too, which was a great loss to him, and he was the more troubled, because he intended to have given him some money.

But one day as he was looking through the glass, he spied the man standing on the other side of the street, and looking up towards his house; upon which he ran immediately to his wooden window, and opened it, though not forgetting to make the usual smoke with gunpowder for his preservation. When he had opened the door, the poor watchman told him he was glad to see him still alive, and that he had come twice before in hopes to see him, but was afraid he had not been well; that he came to tell him that he was dismissed from the house he was set to watch, most of the poor people being dead; and that if he pleased to accept it, he would sit at his door in the daytime, as his two porters had done.

He was glad of his offer, for he had not been easy for some time with being without; so he answered him, that he was glad to see him again, that he might give him something for what he had done for him in telling him how things were; so he threw the poor man two crowns, for which he was very thankful; after which he accepted his offer, and he took his post at the door as the others had done before; but he would not let him go to the post-house at all, or to any other place, only to give him intelligence of things as he heard them among his neighbours.

He had not been at the door many days but he called to his master and told him that he was glad to give him the good news that the infection abated, and that the weekly bill was now decreased 1837 in

one week, which had of a sudden given a great deal of joy among the people; that the burials in Cripplegate parish were sunk to within 200, though in Stepney parish they were still as high as ever, being between 800 and 900.

He failed not to run to his wife and family with this good news, but was fain to moderate it too, for that his sons began to be impatient to go abroad, which, however, he was resolved not to suffer. This was about the last week in September.

The next week his new porter gave him notice that the plague continued to abate, that the bill of mortality was again decreased between 600 and 700 more, though they were yet at a frightful height, being 5725 in a week, of all diseases.

However, it was a comfortable thing to think that the violence of the distemper began to assuage; and more especially that it abated in the part of the city, for in this last bill the burials in Cripplegate parish of all distempers came to but 196, which was but very few compared to 886 a week, which had died there a few weeks before. So that the plague was as much ceased to them as it would have been to the whole city, if there had not died above 1000 or 1200 per week.

His sons would fain have had him now, like Noah, have sent out a dove, that is, to have let them have gone out of doors to have seen how things were, and how the city looked; and they urged him the more, because they began to hear a noise of people in the streets passing to and fro, and that pretty often ; but he kept his guard, and would not let any one

stir out on any terms, or on any pretence whatso

ever.

The next week but two, which was the third in October, there was another decrease of 1849 in one bill; and now his porter knocked at his door (they did not open either door or wicket, but spoke to him), and he told them he desired to speak to his master, to tell him some good news. The master of the family soon appeared at his usual wooden window, with one of his sons, and one of his daughters. The watchman told him that now he hoped he could assure him that the visitation was really going off; that there had died 1849 less the last week than the week before, and that the Lord Mayor had ordered the carts to cease going about, except twice a week in several parts of the city, and in others but once each night; and that there had died but eighty-eight in Cripplegate parish that week of all diseases; that indeed it continued very high in Stepney, and especially in Southwark, but that in the city it was extremely abated.

He let down to the poor man, for his good news, a pint bottle of good sack, and a small basket with provisions for him and his family. And now they turned their two days of fasting, which they had constantly kept in the family every week, into one day of fasting and one day of thanksgiving, when on the sudden, to the great surprise of the whole family, the master himself, who was the life and spring of all the rest, and of all the management, which, under God, had so evidently preserved them, I say, the master himself was taken very sick.

It is not for me at this distance to describe the terrible consternation they were all in. Not only the whole family, but the master himself, concluded he was struck with the plague. And through apprehension lest he should be the means to give it to any of his children, he would oblige them to have him carried out to the pest-house. His wife and all the children declared against it, and protested to him, every one of them, that they would rather have the distemper with him, and leave the consequence to God's mercy.

With these importunities he was prevailed with, but ordered a bed to be made immediately in one of the upper rooms mentioned before, and went presently to bed, taking such things as were prescribed publicly by the College of Physicians, to be given at any one's being first taken with the plague, which was to provoke sweat. Upon taking these things, he fell into a violent sweat immediately, and continued so all night. Any one may suppose the family had but little sleep that night, being in the utmost concern for so careful and so kind a father, as also very anxious to know whether their father had the distemper or no.

No more can I represent lively enough the joy there was in the house, when the next day they found their father had sweated very violently, fallen into a good sleep after it, and was so much refreshed and so well as to satisfy them all that his distemper was not at all infectious, but that it rather proceeded from the great weight and pressure of his cares, which had been too heavy for his spirits, and