Pope, who hated the great comedienne in his petty, spiteful way, has immortalised the intimacy of mistress and handmaiden in these lines: "'Odious! in woolen?
'twould a saint provoke!' Were the last words that poor Narcissa spoke.
'No, let a charming Chintz and Brussels lace Wrap my cold limbs and shade my lifeless face; One would not sure be frightful when one's dead, And, Betty, give this cheek a little red.'"[A] [Footnote A: Pope's Moral Essays.] These ante-mortem directions had no further reality than the imagination of the poet; but it is easy to believe that the woman who had set the fashions for the town these many years would have enough of the feminine instinct left, though Death waited without, to plan a becoming funeral garb.

Woollen, forsooth! It was a beastly law which required that all the dead should be buried in that material, and Nance shuddered when she thought of it.[A] [Footnote A: The dead were then buried in woolen, which was rendered compulsory by the Acts 30 Car.II.c.3 and 36 ejusdem c.i.The first act was entitled "an Act for the lessening the importation of linnen from beyond the seas, and the encouragement of the woolen and paper manufactures of the kingdome." It prescribed that the curate of every parish, shall keep a register to be provided at the charge of the parish, wherein to enter all burials and affidavits of persons being buried in woolen; the affidavit to be taken by any justice of the peace, mayor, or such like chief officer in the parish where the body was interred....

It imposed a fine of five pounds for every infringement, one half to go to the informer, and the other half to the poor of the parish.

This Act was only repealed by 54 Geo.

III.
c.