Old or sickly women are best suited for the purpose, and their fortunes will help you for a year or two at least, if only a thousand or two pounds.

Lastly, make up a purse" laugh at the flats, and finish on the Continent." "Very animated description indeed," cried Dashall, "and salutary advice, truly." "Too good to be lost," continued Merrywell.
"And yet rather too frequently acted on, it is to be feared." "Probably so--" "But mark me, this is fancy's sketch," and may perhaps appear a little too highly coloured; but if you remain with me, we will clip deeper into the reality of the subject by a little information from the official personage himself, who holds dominion over these premises; and we may perhaps also find some agreeable and intelligent company in his house." This proposition being agreed to, and directions given accordingly by Merrywell to prepare dinner, our party gave loose to opinions of life, observations on men and mariners, exactly as they presented themselves to the imagination of each speaker, and Merrywell evidently proved himself a close observer of character.
"Places like this," said he, "are generally inhabited by the profligate of fashion, the ingenious artist, or the plodding mechanic.

The first is one who cares not who suffers, so he obtains a discharge from his incumberances: having figured away for some time in the labyrinths of folly and extravagance, till finding the needful run taper, he yields to John Doe and Richard Roe as a matter of course, passes through his degrees in the study of the laws by retiring to the Fleet or King's Bench, and returns to the world with a clean face, and an increased stock of information to continue his career.

The second are men who have heads to contrive and hands to execute improvements in scientific pursuits, probably exhausting their time, their health, and their property, in the completion of their projects, but who are impeded in their progress, and compelled to finish their intentions in durance vile, by the rapacity of their creditors.

And the last are persons subjected to all the casualties of trade and the arts of the former, and unable to meet the peremptory demands of ~378~~ those they are indebted to; but they seldom inhabit these places long, unless they can pay well for their accommodations.