TRIVIA:
OR, THE
ART of WALKING
THE
Streets of London.

By Mr. GAY.

Quo te Moeri pedes? An, quo via ducit, in Urbem?Quo te Mœri pedes? An, quo via ducit, in Urbem: Virgil, “Ninth Eclogue,” l. 1. “Ho Moeris! whither on thy way so fast? This leads to Town.”—trans. John Dryden, Miscellany Poems, (London: Chapman, 1688). Moeris is a farmer, walking into town from the country.

Virg.

LONDON:

Printed for Bernard Lintott, at the Cross-Keys between the Temple Gates in Fleetstreet.

ADVERTISEMENT.

THE World, I believe, will take so little Notice of me, that I need not take much of it. The Criticks may see by this Poem, that I walk on Foot, which probably may save me from their Envy. I should be sorry to raise that Passion in Men whom I am so much obliged to, since they allowed me an Honour hitherto only shown to better Writers: That of denying me to be the Author of my own Works. I am sensible this must be done in pure Generosity; because whoever writ them, provided they did not themselves, they are still in the same Condition.

Gentlemen, If there by any thing in this Poem, good enough to displease you, and if it be any Advantage to you to ascribe it to some Person of greater Merit; I shall acquaint you for your Comfort, that among ma-

A 2

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many ny other Obligations, I owe several Hints of it to Dr. Swift. And if you will so far continue your Favour as to write against it, I beg you to oblige me in accepting the following Motto.

---Non tu, in Triviis, Indocte, solebas Stidenti, miserum, stipulâ, disperdere Carmen?Stidenti, miserum, stipulâ, disperdere Carmen: “Dunce at the best; in Streets but scarce allow’d / To tickle, on thy Straw, the stupid Crowd.”—Virgil, “The Third Pastoral,” ll. 36–7, The Works of Virgil: Containing his Pastorals, Georgics and Æneis. Translated into English verse; by Mr. Dryden (London: Tonson, 1697).

ERRATA.

PAGE 35. Line 8. instead of around the Square, read along the Square. Page 38. Line 14. instead of Clouds roll on, read Clouds move on. Page 50. Line 9. instead of tinsilled Slaves, read tinsell’d Slaves.

TRIVIA

TRIVIA.

BOOK I

Of the Implements for walking the Streets, and
Signs of the Weather.

THROUGH Winter Streets to steer your Course aright, How to walk clean by Day, and safe by Night, How jostling Crouds, with Prudence, to decline, When to assert the Wall,assert the Wall: to remain close to the wall of the building, which was the cleanest and safest place to walk. and when resign, I sing: Thou,  Trivia,Trivia: the poet invokes Trivia (the Roman name for the three-headed or three-bodied Greek goddess Hecate) as his Muse. The Romans identified Trivia with Diana, worshipped where three roads meet. Trivia is also a Latin word meaning “public streets.” The plural, trivium, means crossroads, the junction where three streets meet.  aid my Song, Thro’ spacious Streets conduct thy Bard along;

            By thee transported, I securely stray
            Where winding Alleys lead the doubtful Way,
            The silent Court, and op’ning Square explore,
            And long perplexing Lanes untrod before.
            To pave thy Realm, and smooth the broken Ways,
            Earth from her Womb a flintyflinty: stony. tribute pays:
            For thee, the sturdy PaviorPavior: one who lays paving. thumps the
              Ground,
            Whilst ev’ry Stroke his lab’ring Lungs resound;
            For thee, the ScavingerScavinger: one who cleans the streets by scraping or sweeping and removing the refuse.
              bids KennelsKennels: gutters. glide
            Within their Bounds, and Heaps of Dirt subside.
            My youthful Bosom burns with Thirst of Fame,
            From the great Theme to build a glorious Name,
            To tread in Paths to ancient Bards unknown,
            And bind my Temples with a Civic crown;Civic Crown: Williams notes that the corona civica, a crown of oak leaves, was given by the Romans for saving a citizen's life in battle and that Gay implies in jest he himself should be crowned for saving London's citizens from its dangerous streets.
            But more, my country’s Love demands the Lays,
            My Country’s be the Profit, mine the Praise.
          
        

When

            
              When the Black YouthBlack Youth: covered in shoe black. at chosen Stands rejoice,
            And clean your Shoes resounds from ev’ry Voice;
            When late their mirymiry: muddy. sides Stage-Coaches show,
            And their stiff Horses thro’ the Town move slow;
            When all the
              Mall
              
              in leafy Ruin lies,
            
              And Damsels first renew their Oyster Cries:Oyster Cries: the cries of street vendors selling oysters.
              Of Shoes.
              Then let the prudent Walker Shoes provide, 
              Not of the Spanish or
                
                  Morocco
                
                Hide;
              The wooden Heel may raise the Dancer’s Bound,
              And with the ’scallop’d Top’scallop’d Top: a scalloped border on the top of the shoe. his Step be crown’d;
              Let firm well-hammer’d Soles protect thy Feet
              Thro’ freezing Snows, and Rains, and soaking Sleet.
              Should the big LasteLaste: a mould of the foot used to shape boots or shoes.
                extend the Shoe too wide,
              Each Stone will wrench th’ unwary Step aside:
              The sudden Turn may stretch the swelling Vein,
              Thy cracking Joint unhinge, or ancle sprain;
          

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And

And when too short the modish Shoes are worn, You’ll judge the Seasons by your shooting Corn.

            Of Coats.
              Nor should it prove thy less important Care,
            To chuse a proper Coat for Winter’s Wear.
            Now in thy Trunk thy DoilyDoily: woolen fabric worn in the summer.
              Habit fold,
            The silken Druggetsilken Drugget: fabric made of silk and wool. ill can
              fence the Cold;
            The Frieze’s spongy NapFrieze’s spongy Nap: the nap (raised threads lying in the same direction) on a type of
                coarse woolen cloth.
              is soak’d with Rain,
            And show’rs soon drench the Camlet’sCamlet: camblet, a mixture of silk and camel hair; Johnson (1755) notes it is “now made
                with wool and silk.”
              cockled Grain.Grain: grainy texture.
            True Witney Broad-cloathWitney Broad-cloath: a high quality cloth of woven wool, produced at Witney in
                Oxfordshire.
              with its Shag unshorn,
            Unpierc’d is in the lasting Tempest worn:
            Be this the Horse-man’s Fence;Fence: defense. for who would
              wear
            Amid the Town the Spoils of
              
                Russia’s bear?Amid the town the spoils of Russia’s bear: in imitation of Virgil’s
                Georgics: “Where skins of beasts the rude barbarians wear, / The spoils of foxes, and
                the furry bear” (Dryden, Georgics III.589). “Spoils” refers to the skin
                or hide stripped from an animal.
            Within the Roquelaure’sRoquelaure: a man’s cloak reaching to the knee.
              Clasp thy Hands are pent,
            Hands, that stretch’d forth invading Harms prevent.
            Let the loop’d Bavaroyloop’d Bavaroy: a type of cloak or overcoat, embellished with an ornamental double or fringe. the fopfop: “a man fond of show, dress, and flutter” (Johnson).
              embrace,
            Or his deep Cloak be spatter’d o’er with Lace.
          

That

            That Garment best the Winter’s Rage defends,
            
              Whose shapeles Form in ample Plaits depends;
              *A Joseph, a Wrap-Ras-cal, &c.
            
            By *various names in various Counties known,

            Yet held in all the true SurtoutSurtout: an overcoat. alone:
            Be thine of KerseyKersey: coarse woven cloth, usually ribbed. firm, though small the
              Cost,
            Then brave unwet the Rain, unchill’d the Frost.
          

            
              Of Canes.
              If the strong Cane support thy walking Hand,

            ChairmenChairmen: men employed to carry a sedan chair. no longer shall the Wall command;
            Ev’n sturdy Car-men shall thy Nod obey,
            And rattling Coaches stop to make thee Way:
            This shall direct thy cautious Tread aright,
            Though not one glaring Lamp enliven Night.
            Let Beaus their Canes with Amber tipt produce,
            Be theirs for empty Show, but thine for Use.
            In gilded Chariots while they loll at Ease,
            And lazily insure a Life’s Disease;a Life’s Disease afflictions associated with being sedentary.
          

B 3

While

            While softer Chairs the tawdry Load convey
            To
              Court, to
                White’s, Assemblies, or the Play;
            Rosy-complexion’d Health thy Steps attends,
            And Exercise thy lasting Youth defends.
            Imprudent Men Heav’n’s choicest Gifts profane.
            Thus some beneath their Arm support the Cane;
            The dirty Point oft checks the careless Pace,
            And miry Spots thy clean Cravat disgrace:
            O! may I never such Misfortune meet,
            May no such vicious Walkers croud the Street,
            May Providence o’er-shade me with her Wings,
            While the bold Muse experienc’d Dangers sings.
          

            Not that I wander from my native Home,
            And tempting Perils foreign Cities roam.
            Let
              Paris
              
              be the theme of
              
                Gallia’sGallia: ancient Gaul (used humorously), that is, France.
              Muse,
            Where Slav’ry treads the StreetsSlav’ry treads the Streets: Williams notes that Gay contrasts the freedom of England under
                George I with the servitude of France under Louis XV.
              in wooden Shoes;
          

Nor

            Nor do I rove in
              
                Belgia’sBelgia: the Netherlands. frozen Clime,
            And teach the clumsy Boor to skate in Rhyme;
            Where, if the warmer Clouds in Rain descend,
            No miry Ways industrious Steps offend,
            The rushing Flood from sloping Pavements pours,
            And blackens the Canals with dirty Show’rs.
            Let others
              Naples smoother Streets rehearse,
            And with proud Roman Structures grace their Verse,
            Where frequent Murders wake the Night with Groans,
            And blood in purple Torrents dies the Stones;
            Nor shall the Muse through narrow
              Venice
              
              stray,
            Where Gondola’s their painted Oars display.
            O happy Streets to rumbling Wheels unknown,
            No Carts, no Coaches, shake the floating Town!
            Thus was of old,
              
                Britannia’s cityBritannia’s city: Britannia is the Roman goddess who represents Britain or England; her city is London. bless’d,
            E’er Pride and Luxury her Sons possess’d:
            Coaches and Chariots yet unfashion’d lay,
            Nor late invented Chairs perplex’d the Way:
          

B 4

Then

            Then the proud Lady trip’d along 
              the Town,
            And tuck’d up Petticoats secur’d her Gown,
            Her rosie Cheek with distant Visits glow’d,
            And Exercise unartful Charms bestow’d;
            But since in braided Gold her Foot is bound,
            And a long trailing ManteauManteau: a loose gown or cloak worn by women. sweeps the Ground,
            Her Shoe disdains the Street; the lazy Fair,
            With narrow Step affects a limping Air.
            Now gaudy Pride corrupts the lavish Age,
            And the Streets flame with glaring Equipage;
            The tricking GamesterGamester: Johnson has “One who is vitiously addicted to play” (gambling).
              insolently rides,
            With Loves and Graces on his Chariots sides;
            In sawcy state the griping Brokergriping Broker: grasping jobber, one who trades stocks on the market for a commission; another risky form of gambling. sits,
            And laughs at Honesty, and trudging Wits.
            For you, O honest Men these useful Lays
            The Muse prepares; I seek no other Praise.
          

When

            
              Of the Weather.
              When Sleep is first disturb’d by Morning Cries;
            

            From sure Prognosticks learn to know the Skies,
            Lest you of Rheums and Coughs at Night complain;
            Surpriz’d in dreary Fogs or driving Rain.
            When suffocating Mists obscure the Morn,
            Let thy worst Wig, long us’d to Storms, be worn;
            This knows the powder’d Footman, and, with Care,
            Beneath his flapping Hat secures his Hair.
            Be thou, for ev’ry Season, justly drest,
            Nor brave the piercing Frost with open Breast;
            And when the bursting Clouds a Deluge pour,
            Let thy Surtout defend the drenching Show’r,
          

Signs of cold Weather. The changing Weather certain Signscertain Signs: see Dryden’s Georgics, Book 1, ll. 483–. “And that by certain signs we may presage / Of Heats and Rains, and Wind’s impetuous rage, ... The Clouds are crush’d, a glut of gather’d Rain / The hollow Ditches fills, and floats the Plain, / And Sailors furl their dropping Sheets amain. / Wet weather seldom hurts the most unwise, / So plain the Signs, such Prophets are the Skies ...” reveal. E’ev Winter sheds her Snow, or Frosts congeal, You’ll see the Coals in brighter Flame aspire, And Sulphur tinge with blue the rising Fire:

Your

            Your tender Shins the scorching Heat decline,
            And at the DearthDearth: lack. of Coals the Poor repine;repine: grumble; are discontented.
            Before her Kitchin Hearth the nodding Dame
            In Flannel MantleMantle: “a kind of cloak or garment thrown over the rest of the dress” (Johnson). wrapt, enjoys the Flame;
            Hov’ring, upon her feeble Knees she bends,
            And all around the grateful Warmth ascends.
          

            Signs of fair Weather.
              Nor do less certain Signs the Town advise, Of milder Weather and serener Skies.
            The Ladies, gayly dress’d, the Mall
                adorn
            With various Dyes, and paint the sunny Morn;
            The wanton Fawns with frisking Pleasure range,
            And chirping Sparrows greet the welcome Change;
            Not that their Minds with greater Skill are fraught,
            Endu’dEndu’d: invested with intellectual powers (Johnson). by Instinct, or by Reason taught,
            The Seasons operate on every Breast;’Tis hence that Fawns are brisk, and Ladies drest.
          

When

            When on his BoxBox: the seat on which the driver, here coachman, of a horse-drawn coach sits, elevated at the
                front of the carriage. the nodding Coachman snores,
            And dreams of fancy’d Fares;fancy’d Fares: delusive imagination of large sums of money/or lengthy travel paid to the
                coachman for his services.
              when Tavern Doors
            The ChairmenChairmen: presidents or heads of an assembly/congregation. This can also mean those whose humble
                trade it is to carry a chair, notably through the streets of London.
              idly croud;Croud: crowd. then ne’er refuse
            
            To trust thy busy Steps in thinner Shoes.
          

            Signs of rainy Weather.
              Good Huswives all the Winter’s Rage despise,
            
             But when the swinging Signs your Ears offend 
            With creaking Noise, then rainy Floods impend;
            Soon shall the Kennels swell with rapid Streams,
            And rush in muddy Torrents to the
              Thames.
            
            The Bookseller, whose Shop’s an open Square,
            Foresees the Tempest, and with early Care
            Of Learning strips the Rails;Rails: bars of wood or metal fixed in a horizontal position for hanging things on, here books
                and other printed material.
              the rowing Crew
            To tempt a Fare, cloath all their TiltsTilts: awnings or covers over a boat.
              in blue:
            On Hosier’s PolesHosier’s Poles: the poles on which hosiers hung their wares.
              dependingdepending: hanging from. stockings ty’d,
            
            Flag with the slacken’d Gale,Gale: a wind not tempestuous, yet stronger than a breeze (Johnson). from side to side;
            Church-Monuments foretell the changing Air;
            Then NiobeNiobe: in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Niobe was transformed to stone, inconsolably
                weeping for her children who were killed by the gods because of her boastfulness. From Virgil’s, Georgics I, ll. 646-48 (trans. Dryden): “The yawning Earth disclos’d th’Abyss of Hell: / The weeping Statues did the Wars foretell; / And Holy Sweat from Brazen Idols fell.”
              dissolves into a Tear,
          

And

            And sweats with secret Grief; you’ll hear the Sounds
            Of whistling Winds, e’er KennelsKennels: gutters. break their Bounds;
            Ungrateful Odours Common-shoresCommon-shores: sewers. diffuse,
            And dropping Vaults distil unwholesom Dews,
            E’er the Tiles rattle with the smoaking Show’r,
            And Spouts on heedless Men their Torrents pour.
          

            Supersition to be avoided.
              All Superstition from thy Breast repel.
            

            Let cred’lous Boys, and prattling Nurses tell,
            How, if the Festival of
              PaulFestival of Paul: the weather on the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, held on the 25th of January, was believed to foretell certain events of the upcoming year. be clear,
            Plenty from lib’ral Horn shall strow the Year;lib’ral Horn shall strow the Year: if the weather is good, the horn of plenty will provide abundantly through the year.
              
            When the dark Skies dissolve in Snows or Rain,
            The lab’ring Hind shall yoke the Steer in vain;lab’ring Hind ... in vain: if it snows or rains, the labourer who drives the yoked ox to do his seeding will not produce a successful crop.
            But if the threatning Winds in Tempests roar,
            Then War shall bathe her wasteful Sword in Gore.Gore: if there are tempests, there will be war.
            How, if on
              Swithin’s feastSwithin’s feast: Swithun’s or Swithin’s Feast, held on the 15th of July, was believed to determine the weather for the following forty days. It was popularly held that if it
                rained on St. Swithin’s Day, forty days of rain would follow, but if it was fair, forty days of fair weather would follow.
              the Welkin lours,Welkin lours: dark airs or clouds signalling bad weather.
            And ev’ry PenthousePenthouse: an inclined shed sloping from the main wall of a building.
              streams with hasty Show’rs,
          

Twice

            Twice twenty Days shall Clouds their FleecesFleeces: wool shorn from a sheep, here used to describe snow or perhaps more general
                precipitations.
              drain,
            And wash the Pavements with incessant Rain.
            Let not such vulgar Tales debase thy Mind;
            Nor Paul nor
              Swithin
              rules the Clouds and Wind.
          

            
              If you the PreceptsPrecepts: divine commands. of the Muse despise,
            And slight the faithful Warnings of the Skies,
            Others you’ll see, when all the Town’s afloat,
            Wrapt in th’ Embraces of a Kersey Coat,Kersey Coat: Kersey is a coarse/cheap material used here for a coat.Or double-button’d Frieze;Freize: a coarse type of warm cloth or fabric, perhaps originating in Friesland. their guarded Feet
            Defie the muddy Dangers of the Street,
            While you, with Hat unloop’d, the Fury dread
            Of Spouts high-streaming, and with cautious Tread
            Shun ev’ry dashing Pool; or idly stop,
            To seek the kind Protection of a Shop.
            But Bus’nessBus’ness: business. summons; now with hasty
              ScudScud: to run away with precipitation (Johnson).
            You jostle for the Wall; the spatter’d Mud
          

Hides

            Hides all thy HoseHose: breeches or stockings. behind; in vain you
              scow’r;
            Thy Wig alas! uncurl’d, admits the Show’r.
            So fierce
              Alecto’sAlecto: one of the Furies in Greek mythology, notably, with snakes for hair.
              snaky TressesTresses: knots, curls, or braids of hair. fell,
            When
              OrpheusOrpheus: a classical musician and prophet from Virgil’s Georgics and Greek
                  mythology. A renowned poet, Orpheus travelled with Jason and the Argonauts seeking the Golden Fleece,
                  and famously made a descent into the underworld to recover his lost wife, Eurydice.
              charm’d the rig’rous Pow’rs of Hell.
            Or thus hung
              Glaucus’Glaucus: a Greek prophetic sea-god, born mortal but turned immortal after eating a magical herb.
                It was believed that he came to the rescue of sailors and fishermen in storms, having earlier earned a
                living from the sea himself.
              Beard, with brinybriny: salty. Dew
            Clotted and strait, when first his am’rous View
            Surpris’d the bathing Fair; the frighted Maid
            Now stands a Rock, transform’d by
              Circe’sCirce: an enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and religion. Circe was
                renowned for her vast knowledge of potions and herbs and for connections to healing and nature. Through
                the use of these and a magic wand or staff, she would transform her enemies, or those who offended her,
                into animals.
              Aid.
          

            Implements proper for female Walkers.
              Good Huswives all the Winter’s Rage despise,
            
            Defended by the Riding-hood’s Disguise;
            Or underneath th’ Umbrella’s oily Shed,Umbrella’s oily Shed: the umbrella is a shed, a temporary covering; it is oily because it has been treated with oils to make it waterproof.
            Safe thro’ the Wet on clinking PattensPattens: shoes made of wood with an iron ring that women wore fastened around their regular shoes to keep them above the dirt and mud.
              tread.
            Let PersianPersian: a native or inhabitant of Persia, known today as Iran.
              Dames th’ Umbrella’s Ribs display,
            To guard their Beauties from the sunny Ray;
            Or sweating Slaves support the shady Load,
            When Eastern Monarchs shewShew: show. their State abroad;
          

Britain

            Britain
              in winter only knows its Aid,
            To guard from chilly Show’rs the walking Maid.
            But, O! forget not, Muse, the Patten’s Praise,forget not, Muse, the Patten’s Praise: ironic reverence for ordinary footwear. 
            That female Implement shall grace thy Lays:
            Say, from what Art Divine th’ Invention came,
            And from its Origine deduce the Name.
          

            
              Where
                LincolnLincoln: a district situated to the north of the Fens, a large area of wetlands.
                wide extends her fenny Soil,
              An Episode of the Invention of Pattens.
            
            A goodly YeomanYeoman: a man with a small estate in land; who perhaps also is a farmer and farms his land; a
                gentleman farmer.
              liv’d grown white with Toil;
            One only Daughter blest his nuptial Bed, 
            Who from her infant Hand the Poultry fed:
            Martha
              (her careful Mother’s Name) she bore,
            But now her careful Mother was no more.
            Whilst on her Father’s Knee the Damsel play’d,
            PattyPatty: an ignoble nickname based on the pattens.
              he fondly called the smiling Maid;
            As Years increas’d, her ruddyruddy: a rosy complexion.
              Beauty grew,
            And Patty’s Fame o’er all the Village flew.
          

Soon

            Soon as the blushing Morning warms the Skies,
            And in the doubtful Daydoubtful Day: early; it is still too dark to see well. the WoodcockWoodcock: a migratory bird with a long bill easily captured in a snare or net. “It is a word ludicrously used for a dunce,” according to Johnson. Here, it is appropriate as a reference to gullibility or folly.
              flies,
            Her cleanly Pail the pretty Huswife bears, 
            And singing to the distant Field repairs:
            And when the Plains with ev’ning Dews are spread,
            The milky BurthenBurthen: or Burden is a heavy load.
              smokes upon her Head.
            Deep, thro’ a miry Lane she pick’d her Way,
            Above her Ankle rose the chalky Clay. 
          

            Vulcan,Vulcan: the mythological Roman god of fire, 
                metalworking, and the forge.
              by chance the bloomy Maiden spies,
            With Innocence and Beauty in her Eyes,
            He saw, he lov’d; for yet he ne’er had known
            Sweet Innocence and Beauty meet in One.
            Ah
              Mulciber!Mulciber: an alternate name for the Roman god Vulcan. recall thy
              nuptial Vows, ’
            Think on the Graces of thy PaphianPaphian:  adjective referring to the goddess Aphrodite, known also as the Roman goddess Venus,
                who is a Greek goddess of love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, procreation, and sex.
              Spouse,
            Think how her Eyes dart inexhausted Charms,
            And canst thou leave her Bed for
              Patty’s Arms?
          

The

            The Lemnian Pow’rLemnian Power: Vulcan, who was said to be an inhabitant of the volcanic isle of Lemnos in the Aegean Sea. 
              forsakes the Realms above,
            His Bosom glowing with terrestrial Love: 
            Far in the Lane, a
              lonely Hut he found,
            No Tenant
              ventur’d on th’ unwholesome Ground.
            Here smoaks his Forge, he bares his sinewy Arm,
            And early Strokes the sounding Anvil warm;
            Around his Shop the steely Sparkles flew, 
            As for the Steed he shap’d the bending Shoe.
          

            When blue-ey’d
              Patty near
              his Window came,
            His Anvil rests, his Forge forgets to flame.
            To hear his soothing Tales, she feigns Delays;
            What Woman can resist the Force of Praise? ’
          

At first she coyly ev’ry Kiss withstood, And all her Cheek was flush’d with modest Blood:

With

            With headless Nails he now surrounds her Shoes,
            To save her Steps from Rains and piercing Dews;
            She lik’d his soothing Tales, his Presents wore, 
            And granted Kisses, but would grant no more.
            Yet Winter chill’d her Feet, with Cold she pines,
            And on her Cheek the fading Rose declines;
            No more her humid Eyes their Lustre boast,
            And in hoarse Sounds her melting Voice is lost. 
          

          
          This
            Vulcan saw,
            and in his heav’nly Thought,
          A new MachineMachine: complicated construct or scheme. Mechanick FancyMechanick Fancy: mechanical genius/skill. wrought,
          Above the MireMire: wet mud or dirt. her shelter’d Steps to
            raise,
          And bear her safely through the Wintry Ways.
          StraitStrait: immediately, straight away.
            the new EngineEngine: an instrument or tool; there is probably some irony in Gay’s use of the term, given other meanings: for example, “a mechanical complication, in which various movements and parts concur to one effect or any instrument” (Johnson), or “an instance or a product of ingenuity; a contrivance or means. With pejorative connotation: a plot, a snare, a wile” (OED).
            on his Anvil glows,
          And the pale Virgin on the Patten rose.
          No more her Lungs are shook with dropping Rheums,Rheums: “thin watery matter oozing through the glands, chiefly about the mouth” (Johnson). Earlier, a flow or flux of humours, a cold in the head. The medical understanding of the term evolved through the century: in 1702 John Kersey defined a rheum as a “defluxion of humours.”
          And on her Cheek reviving Beauty blooms. 
          

The

  
          The God obtain’d his Suit,Suit: courtship. though Flatt’ry
            fail,
          Presents with Female Virtue must prevail.
          The Patten now supports each frugal Dame,
          
            Which from the blue-ey’d
            Patty takes
            the Name.
        

C 2

TRIVIA.

TRIVIA.

BOOK II.

Of Walking the Streets by Day.

          THus far the Muse has trac’d, in useful Lays,Lays: songs, lyrics.
          The proper Implements for Wintry Ways;
          Has taught the Walker, with judicious Eyes,
          To read the various Warnings of the Skies. 
          Now venture, Muse, from Home to range the Town,
          And for the publick Safety risque thy own.
          

C 3

For

            The Morning.
              For Ease and for Dispatch the Morning’s best:
            
            No Tides of Passengers the Street molest.
            You’ll see a draggleddraggled: soiled with dragging on the ground or through the mire.
              Damsel, here and there,
            From
              Billingsgate her fishy Traffick bear;
            On Doors the sallow Milk-maid chalks her Gains;
            Ah! how unlike the Milk-maid of the Plains!the sallow Milk-maid… unlike the Milk-maid of the Plains: a contrast between the “sallow” health of life in the city versus the health and beauty
                  of agricultural life.Before proud Gates attending Asses bray,
            Or arrogate with solemn Pace the Way;
            These grave Physicians, with their milky Chear,
            The Love-sick Maid and dwindling Beau repair;
            Here Rows of Drummers stand in martial File,
            And with their Vellom-ThunderVellom-Thunder: the sound made by a drum's parchment. shake the Pile,
            To greet the new-made bride. Are sounds like these,
             The proper Prelude to a State of Peace?
            Now Industry awakes her busy Sons,
            Full-charg’d with News the breathless HawkerHawker: a person who goes from place to place selling goods. The modern equivalent is a pedlar. runs:
          

Shops

Shops open, Coaches roll, Carts shake the Ground, And all the Streets with passing Cries resound.

            What Trades prejudicial to Walkers.
              If cloth’d in Black you tread the busy town,
            
            Or if distinguish’d by the rev’rend Gown,
            Three Trades avoid; oft' in the mingling Press
            The Barber’s Apron soils the sable Dress:
            Shun the Perfumer’s touch with cautious Eye;
            Nor let the Baker’s step advance too nigh.
            Ye Walkers! too, that youthful Colours wear,
            Three sullying Trades avoid with equal Care.—
            The little Chimney-Sweeper skulks along,
            And marks with sooty stains the heedless Throng:
            
              When Small-coalSmall-coal: charcoal.
              murmurs in the hoarser Throat,
            From smuttysmutty: “black with smoke or coal” (Johnson). Dangers guard
              thy threaten’d Coat:
            The Dust-man’s CartDust-man’s Cart: the cart that is used to carry away dust and ashes.
              offends thy Cloaths and Eyes,
            When through the Street a Cloud of Ashes flies;
          

C 4

But

            But whether Black, or lighter Dyes are worn,
            The Chandler’sChandler: candle-maker.
              Basket, on his Shoulder born,
            With Tallow spots thy Coat; resign the Way,
            To shun the surly Butcher’s greasy Tray,
            Butchers, whose Hands are dy’d with blood’s foul Stain,
            And always foremost in the Hangman’s Train.
          

            To whom to give the Wall.
              Let due Civilities be strictly paid.
            
            The Wall surrender to the hooded Maid;
            Nor let thy sturdy Elbow’s hasty Rage
            Jostle the feeble Steps of trembling Age:
            And when the Porter bends beneath his Load,
            And pants for Breath; clear thou the crouded Road.
            But above all, the groaping Blind direct,
            And from the pressing Throng the Lame protect.
            You’ll sometimes meet a Fop,Fop: “a simpleton; a coxcomb; a man of small understanding and much ostentation; a pretender; a man fond of show, dress, and flutter; an impertinent” (Johnson). of nicest Tread,
            Whose mantling PerukePeruke: a wig. veils his empty Head,
          

            At ev’ry Step he dreads the Wall to lose,
            And risques, to save a Coach, his red-heel’d Shoes;
            Him, like the Miller, pass with Caution by,
            Lest from his Shoulder Clouds of Powder fly.
            To whom to refuse the Wall.
              But when the Bully, with assuming Pace,
            
            Cocks his broad Hat, edg’d round with tarnish’d Lace,
            Yield not the Way; defie his strutting Pride,
            And thrust him to the muddy Kennel’s side;
            He never turns again, nor dares oppose,
            But mutters coward Curses as he goes.
          

            Of whom to enquire the Way.
              If drawn by Bus’ness to a Street unknown
            
            Let the sworn Portersworn Porter: one who is legally a member of the Fellowship or Society of Porters, a corporation of the City of London. point thee through the Town;
            Be sure observe the Signs,Signs: signs were so plentiful that they could impede progress through the streets, but were necessary for finding one’s way before the houses and buildings of the city were numbered. for Signs remain,
            Like faithful Land-marks to the walking Train.
            Seek not from PrenticesPrentices: apprentices; young men who were contractually bound to serve a man of trade for a certain term of years, usually seven, on the condition that the tradesman instructs him in the trade. to learn the Way,
            Those fablingFabling: inventing.
              Boys will turn thy Steps astray;
          

Ask

Ask the grave Tradesman to direct thee right, He ne’er deceives, but when he profits by’t.

            Where fam’d
              Saint Giles’s ancient Limits spread,
            An inrail’dinrail’d: closed in with a railing.
              Column rears its lofty Head,
            Here to sev’n Streets, sev’n Dialsseven Dials: where seven streets converge. This was named after a column which had seven
                sun-dials, each one facing a different street.
              count the Day,
            And from each other catch the circling Ray.
            Here oft the Peasant, with enquiring Face,
            Bewilder’d, trudges on from Place to Place;
            He dwells on ev’ry Sign, with stupid Gaze,
            Enters the narrow Alley’s doubtful Maze;
            Trys ev’ry winding Court and Street in vain,
            And doubles o’er his weary Steps again.
            Thus hardy
              Theseus,Theseus: a Greek hero, famous for slaying the Minotaur. The son of Aegeus, King of Athens.
              with intrepid Feet,
            Travers’d the dang’rous Labyrinth of
              Crete;Labyrinth of Crete: an elaborate, Grecian structure, like a maze, constructed by Daedalus for
                King Minos. Its intended purpose was to entrap the Minotaur, a monstrous beast half bull and half man.
            But still the wand’ring Passes forc’d his Stay,
            Till
              Ariadne’s ClueAriadne’s Clue: Ariadne was a Cretan princess and the daughter of King Minos. Ariadne gave Theseus
                a ball of thread which he unwound as he went
through the labyrinth, to aid him in finding his way out again. The couple escaped after Theseus slayed the Minotaur. He then abandoned Ariadne. According to one legend she hanged herself; according to another, he left her at Naxos to die, where she was rescued by the god Dionysus who married her. As Brant and Whyman comment, this aspect of the myth makes Gay’s next lines about female duplicity more misogynist.
              unwinds the Way.
          

But

            But do not thou, like that bold Chief, confide
            Thy ventrous Footsteps to a female Guide;
            She’ll lead thee, with delusivedelusive: beguiling; deceptive.
              Smiles along,
            Dive in thy Fob,Fob: "a small pocket" (Johnson). and drop thee in
              the Throng.
          

            Useful Precepts.
              When waggishwaggish: knavish; joyfully mischievous; frolicksome. Boys the stunted BeesomBeesom: the modern equivalent of a broom. ply,
            
            To rid the slabby Pavement; pass not by
            E’re thou hast held their Hands; some heedless Flirt
            Will over-spread thy Calves with spatt’ring Dirt.
            Where Porters Hogsheads roll from Carts aslope,
            Or Brewers down steep Cellars stretch the Rope,
            Where counted BilletsBillets: pieces of wood cut for fuel. are by
              CarmenCarmen: men whose employment is to drive carriages or chariots.
              tost;
            Stay thy rash Steps, and walk without the Post.without the Post: outside of the posts that demarcated the boundary between the walkway and the street.
          

            Where, elevated o’er the gaping Croud,
            Clasp’d in the Board, the perjur’d HeadClasp’d in the Board, the perjur’d Head: perjury was punishable by time spent in the pillory, a wooden framework with holes or rings to confine the head and hands, usually mounted above the crowd on a stage. The punishment often included such abuses by the crowd as verbal insults and taunts, being pelted with vegetables and eggs, and other assaults. is bow’d,
            Betimes retreat; here, thick as Hail-stones pour,
            Turnips and half-hatch’d Eggs (a mingled Show’r)
          

Among

Among the Rabble rain: Some random Throw May with the trickling Yolk thy Cheek o’erflow.

            Of narrow Streets.
              Though Expedition bids, yet never stray
            
            Where no rang’d Posts defend the rugged Way.no rang’d Posts ... rugged Way: streets usually were fenced off by heavy posts. This one was not.
            Here laden Carts with thund’ring Waggons meet,
            Wheels clash with Wheels, and bar the narrow Street;
            The lashing Whip resounds, the Horses strain,
            And Blood in Anguish bursts the swelling Vein.
            O barb’rous Men, your cruel Breasts asswage,
            Why vent ye on the gen’rous Steed your Rage?
            Does not his Service earn your daily Bread?
            Your Wives, your Children, by his Labours fed!
            If, as the SamianSamian: A reference to Pythagorus, who lived in Samos, a Greek island in the Aegean Sea.
              taught, the Soul revives,
            And shifting Seats, in other Bodies lives;
            Severe shall be the brutal Coachman’s Change,
            Doom’d, in a Hackney Horse,Hackney Horse: a hired horse.
              the Town to range:
          

Carmen,

Carmen, transform’d, the groaning Load shall draw, Whom other Tyrants, with the Lash, shall awe.

The most inconvenient Streets to Walkers. Who would of Watling-Street the Dangers share, When the broad Pavement of Cheap-Side is near? *Thames Street. Or who* that rugged Street would traverse o’er, That stretches, O Fleet-ditch! from thy black Shore To the Tow’rs moated Walls? Here Steams ascend That, in mix’d Fumes, the wrinkled Nose offend. Where Chandlers Cauldrons boil; where fishy Prey Hide the wet Stall, long absent from the Sea; And where the Cleaver chops the Heifer’s Spoil,Heifer’s Spoil: the fat used by candle-makers. And where huge Hogsheads sweat with trainy Oil,trainy Oil: oil taken from the carcass of a whale. Thy breathing Nostril hold; but how shall I ✝ Cheshire anciently so called. Pass, where in Piles ✝ Cornavian Cheeses lye; Cheese, that the Table’s closing Rites denies, And bids me with th’ unwilling Chaplain rise.

O bear

            The Pell-mell celebrated.
              O bear me to the Paths of fair
                Pell-Mell,Pell-mell: a street in Westminster (also spelled Pall Mall). The word also means
                  confusion, disorder, and indiscriminate mingling.
            
            Safe are thy Pavements, grateful is thy Smell!
            At distance, rolls along the gilded Coach,
            Nor sturdy Carmen on thy Walks encroach;
            No Lets would bar thy Ways, were Chairs deny’d,
            The soft Supports of Laziness and Pride;
            Shops breathe Perfumes, thro’ Sashes Ribbons glow,
            The mutual Arms of Ladies, and the Beau.
            Yet still ev’n Here, when Rains the Passage hide,
            Oft’ the loose Stone spirts up a muddy Tide
            Beneath thy careless Foot; and from on high,
            Where Masons mount the Ladder, Fragments fly;
            Mortar, and crumbled Lime in Show’rs descend,
            And o’er thy Head destructive Tiles impend.
          

The Pleasure of walking through the Alley. But sometimes let me leave the noisie Roads, And silent wander in the close Abodes

Where

            Where Wheels ne’er shake the Ground; there pensive stray,
            In studious Thought, the long uncrouded Way.
            Here I remark each Walker’s diff’rent Face,
            And in their Look their various Bus’ness trace.
            The Broker here his spacious BeaverSpacious Beaver: a beaver hat that a business-man might have worn.
              wears,
            Upon his Brow sit Jealousies and Cares;
            Bent on some Mortgage, to avoid Reproach,
            He seeks bye Streets, and saves th’ expensive Coach.
            Soft, at low Doors, old Letchers tap their Cane,
            For fair Recluse, that travels
              Drury-lane.fair Recluse, that travels Drury-lane: a prostitute. Drury Lane was infamous for its streetwalkers.
            Here roams uncomb’d, the lavish Rake, to shun
            His
              Fleet-Street Draper’sDraper: one whose occupation is to sell cloth.
              everlasting Dun.Dun: insistent demands that the rake pay his debt owing.
          

Inconveniences that attend those who are unacquainted with the Town. Careful Observers, studious of the Town, Shun the Misfortunes that disgrace the Clown. Untempted, they contemn the Jugler’sJugler: a jester or conjurer, one who performs magic tricks by sleight of hand. Feats, Pass by the Meuse,Meuse: or Mews, a group of stables and carriage houses built around an open yard or alley to accommodate horses, carriages, etc. nor try the *Thimble’s Cheats

A Cheat, commonly practic'd in the Streets, with three Thimbles and a little Ball.

When

            When DraysDrays: also known as “draycarts.” Carts that carry beer.
              bound high, they never cross behind,
            Where bubbling YestYest: yeast. “The foam, spume, or flower of beer in fermentation” (Johnson).
              is blown by gusts of wind:
            And when up
              
                Ludgate-hill
              huge carts move slow,
            
            Far from the straining Steeds, securely go,
            Whose dashing Hoofs, behind them, fling the Mire,
            And mark, with muddy Blots, the gazing ’Squire.
            The ParthianParthian: native or inhabitant of Parthia, a region of the Achaemenid empire and later a kingdom
                in modern-day Iran.
              thus his Jav’lin backward throws,
            And as he flies, infests pursuing Foes.
          

            The thoughtless Wits shall frequent Forfeits pay,
            Who ’gainst the Centry’s BoxCentry's Box: a small wooden structure where a guard can stand in bad weather.
              discharge their Tea.Tea: in this case, urine.
            Do thou some Court, or secret Corner seek,
            Nor flush with Shame the passing Virgin’s Cheek.
          

Precepts vulgarly known. Yet let me not descend to trivial Song, Nor vulgar Circumstance my Verse prolong; Why should I teach the Maid when Torrents pour, Her Head to shelter from the sudden Show’r?

Nature

            Nature will best her ready Hand inform,
            With her spread Petticoat to fence the Storm.
            Does not each Walker know the warning Sign,
            When Wisps of Straw depend upon the Twine
            Cross the close Street; that then the Pavior’s Art
            Renews the Ways, deny’d to Coach and Cart?
            Who knows not, that the Coachman lashing by,
            Oft’, with his Flourish cuts the heedless Eye;
            And when he takes his Stand, to wait a Fare,
            His Horses Foreheads shun the Winter’s Air?
            Nor will I roam, when Summer’s sultry Rays
            Parch the dry Ground, and spread with Dust the Ways;
            With whirling Gusts, the rapid Atoms rise,
            Smoke o’er the Pavement, and involve the Skies.
          

Frosty Weather. Winter my Theme confines; whose nitrynitry: referring to nitrous. Wind Shall crust the slabby Mire, and Kennels bind;

She

            She bids the Snow descend in flaky Sheets,
            And in her hoary Mantle clothe the Streets.
            Let not the Virgin tread these slipp’ry Roads;
            The gath’ring Fleece the hollow Patten loads;
            But if thy Footsteps slide with clotted Frost,
            Strike off the breaking Balls against the Post.
            On silent Wheel the passing Coaches roll;
            Oft’ look behind and ward the threatning Pole.
            In harden’d Orbs the School-boy moulds the Snow,
            To mark the Coachman with a dextrous Throw.
            Why do ye, Boys, the Kennel’s Surface spread,
            To tempt with faithless Pass the Matron’s Tread
            How can ye Laugh, to see the Damsel spurn,
            Sink in the Frauds and her green Stocking mourn?
            At
              White’s, the harness’dharness’d; like a horse. Chairman idly stands,
            And swings, around his Waste,Waste: waist. his tingling hands:
            The SempstressSempstress: seamstress. speeds to ’Change
              with red-tipt Nose;
            The Belgian StoveBelgian Stove: a foot-warmer that uses burning charcoal.
              beneath her Footstool glows,
          

            In half-whiptwhipt: to whip is “to sew slightly”  (Johnson). Muslin Needles useless lye,
            And Shuttle-cocks across the Counter fly.
            These Sports warm harmless; why then will ye prove,
            Deluded Maids, the dang’rous Flame of Love?
          

            
              The Dangers of Football.
              Where
                Covent-garden’s famous
                Temple stands,
            
            That boasts the Work of
              Jones’ immortal Hands;
            Columns, with plain Magnificence, appear,
            And graceful Porches lead around the Square:
            Here oft’ my Course I bend, when, lo! from far,
            I spy the Furies of the Foot-ballFoot-ball: a game involving kicking a round ball that is commonly made of a blown bladder encased with leather. War:
            The ’Prentice quits his Shop, to join the crew,
            Encreasing Crouds the flying Game pursue.
            Thus, as you roll the Ball o’er snowy Ground,
            The gath’ring Globe augments with ev’ry Round;
            But whither shall I run? the Throng draws nigh,
            The Ball now Skims the Street, now soars on high;
          

D 2

The

The dext’rous GlazierGlazier: a person who makes glass windows. strong returns the Bound, And ginglinggingling: jingling. SashesSashes: windows that can be lifted up and down by pullies. on the Pent-house sound.

            
              An Episode of the great Frost.
              O roving Muse! recal that wond’rous Year,
            
            When hoary
              Thames, with frosted OziersOziers: now spelt osier, they are a type of willow tree.
              crown’d,
            When Winter reign’d in bleak Britannia’s Air;
            Was three long Moons in icy Fetters bound.
            The Waterman,Waterman: a boatman. forlorn along the
              Shore,
            Pensive reclines upon his useless Oar,
            Sees harness’d Steeds desert the stony Town;
            And wander Roads unstable, not their own:
            Wheels o’er the harden’d Waters smoothly glide,
            And rase with whiten’d Tracks the slipp’ry Tide.
            Here the fat Cook piles high the blazing Fire,
            And scarce the Spit can turn the Steer entire.
            Booths sudden hide the
              Thames, long streets appear,
            And num’rous Games proclaim the crouded Fair.
          

            So when a Gen’ral bids the martial Train
            Spread their encampment o’er the spacious Plain;
            Thick-rising Tents a Canvas City build,
            And the loud Dice resound thro’ all the Field.
            ’Twas here the Matron found a doleful Fate:
            In Elegiac LayElegiac Lay: referring to Greek and Latin poetry: a structure consisting of a hexameter followed
                by a pentameter. Also, possibly meaning mournful or tragic. the Woe relate,
            Soft, as the Breath of distant Flutes, at Hours,
            When silent Ev’ning closes up the Flow’rs;
            Lulling, as falling Water’s hollow noise;
            Indulging Grief, like
              Philomela’sPhilomela: a figure of tragic Greek myth. She is locked up and raped by her sister’s
                husband King Tereus of Thrace. After getting revenge, the gods transformed her into a nightingale out of
                pity. The bird’s cry is thus associated with grief and sorrow.
              Voice.
          

            DollDoll: a nickname for Dorothy. ev’ry Day had walk’d these treach’rous roads;
            Her Neck grew warpt beneath autumnal Loads
            Of various fruit; she now a Basket bore,
            That Head, alas! shall Basket bear no more.
            Each Booth she frequent past, in quest of Gain,
            And Boys with pleasure heard her shrilling Strain.
          

D 3

            Ah, Doll!
              all Mortals must resign their Breath,
            And Industry it self submit to Death!
            The cracking Crystal yields, she sinks, she dyes,
            Her Head, chopt off, from her lost Shoulders flies:
            PippinsPippin: a variety of sweet apple. she cry’d, but Death her Voice confounds,
            And Pip-Pip-Pip along the Ice resounds.
            So, when the ThracianThracian: a native or inhabitant of Thrace, historically a region to the north-east of
                Macedonia, which now comprises European Turkey, southern Bulgaria, and the region of Thrace in
                north-east Greece.
              FuriesFuries: “deities of vengeance, and thence a stormy, turbulent, violent, raging woman” (Johnson).
              Orpheus tore,
            And left his bleeding Trunk deform’d with Gore,
            His sever’d Head floats down the silver Tide,
            His yet warm Tongue for his lost Consort cry’d;
            Eurydice
              with quiv’ring voice he mourn’d,
            And Heber’s banks
              Eurydice return’d.Orpheus tore...Eurydice return’d: another tragic Greek myth. Orpheus, after losing Eurydice by breaking his promise and
                looking back at her while leading her out of Hell, vowed never to have affection for women again, and
                convinced his companions to follow his example; the Thracian women were so angered by this that, while
                celebrating the Festival of Bacchus on the banks of the river Heber, they tore him to pieces and
                scattered his limbs through the nearby fields. See Lewis Theobald, Orpheus and Eurydice, “The Argument,” n.p. (1740).
          

A Thaw. But now the western Gale the Flood unbinds, And black’ning Clouds roll on with warmer Winds, The wooden Town its frail Foundation leaves, And Thames’ full UrnUrn: a pitcher or vessel for holding water. rolls down his plenteous Waves:

From

From ev’ry Penthouse streams the fleeting Snow, And with dissolving Frost the Pavements flow.

            
              How to know the Days of the Week.
              Experienc’d Men, inur’d to City Ways,
            
            Need not the Calendar to count their Days.
            When through the Town, with slow and solemn Air,
            Led by the Nostril, walks the muzled Bear;
            Behind him moves, majestically dull,
            The Pride of
              Hockley-hole, the surly Bull;muzled Bear ... surly Bull: bear baiting and bull baiting was a low form of entertainment for which Hockley Hole was renowned.
            Learn hence the Periods of the Week to name,
            Mondays and Thursdays are the Days of Game.
          

            When fishy Stalls with double Store are laid;
            The golden-belly’d Carp, the broad-finn’d Maid,Broad-finned Maid: “maid” here refers to a species of skate fish.
            Red-speckled Trouts, the Salmon’s silver Joul,Joul: head.
            The jointed Lobster, and unscaly Soale,
          
        

D 4

And

            And luscious ’Scallops, to allure the Tastes
            Of rigid Zealots to delicious Fasts;
            Wednesdays and Fridays you’ll observe from hence,
            Days, when our SiresSires: fathers. were doom’d to
              Abstinence.
          

            When dirty Waters from Balconies drop,
            And dextrous Damsels twirle the sprinkling Mop,
            And cleanse the spatter’d Sash, and scrub the Stairs;
            Know Saturday’s conclusive Morn appears.
          

            
              Remarks on the Cries of the Town.
              Successive Crys the Season’s Change declare,
            
            And mark the Monthly Progress of the Year.
            Hark, how the Streets with treble Voices ring,
            To sell the bounteous Product of the Spring!
            Sweet-smelling Flow’rs, and Elders early Bud,
            With Nettle’s tender Shoots, to cleanse the Blood:
            And when June’s Thunder cools the sultry Skies,
            Ev’n Sundays are profan’d by Mackrell Cries.Mackrell Cries: the cries of a mackerel seller.
          

Wallnuts

Walnuts the fruit’rer’sfruit'rer: a fruit seller. Hand, in Autumn, stain, Blue Plums, and juicy Pears augment his Gain; Next Oranges the longing Boys entice, To trust their Copper-Fortunes to the Dice. Of Christmas. When Rosemary, and Bays, the Poet’s Crown,Poet’s Crown: a wreath made from bay laurel. Are bawl’d,Bawl’d: to bawl or cry, as in the case of a town crier. in frequent Cries, through all the Town, Then judge the Festival of Christmas near; Christmas, the joyous Period of the Year. Now with bright Holly all your Temples strow, With Laurel green, and sacred Misletoe.Rosemary ... Misletoe: Rosemary, laurel, holly, and mistletoe were used to decorate at Christmas. Now, Heav’n-born Charity, thy Blessings shed; Bid meagre Want uprear her sickly head: Bid shiv’ring Limbs be warm; let Plenty’s Bowle, In humble Roofs, make glad the needy Soul. See, see, the Heav’n-born Maid her Blessings shed. Lo! meagre Want uprears her sickly head;

Cloath’d

Cloath’d are the Naked, and the Needy glad, While selfish Avarice alone is sad.

            
              Precepts of Charity.
              Proud Coaches pass, regardless of the Moan,
            
            Of Infant Orphans, and the Widow’s Groan;
            While Charity still moves the Walker’s Mind,
            His lib’ral Purse relieves the Lame and Blind.
            Judiciously thy Half-pence are bestow’d,
            Where the laborious Beggar sweeps the Road.
            Whate’er you give, give ever at Demand,
            Nor let Old-Age long stretch his palsy’dpalsy’d: “privation of motion or feeling, or both, proceeding from some cause below the cerebellum, joined with a coldness, flaccidity, and at last wasting of the parts” (Johnson).
              Hand.
            Those who give late, are importun’d each Day;
            And still are teaz’d, because they still delay.
            If e’er the Miser durst his Farthings spare,
            He thinly spreads them through the publick Square,
            Where, all beside the Rail, rang’drang’d: organized in a line. Beggars lie,
            And from each other catch the dolefuldoleful: sorrowful or querulous; also full of “dole,” deceitful, fraudulent.
              Cry;
          

With Heav’n, for Two-pence, cheaply wipes his Score,wipes his Score: pays his debt. Lifts up his Eyes, and hastes to beggar more.

        Where the brass Knocker, wrapt in Flannel Band, 
        Forbids the Thunder of the Footman’s Hand; 
        Th’ Upholder,Upholder: undertaker. rueful Harbinger of Death 
        Waits, with Impatience, for the dying Breath; 
        As Vultures o’er a Camp, with hov’ring Flight, 
        Snuff up the future Carnage of the Fight. 
        Here canst thou pass, unmindful of a Pray’r, 
        That Heav’n in Mercy may thy Brother spare?
      

        Come, F***F***: William Fortescue was Gay’s attorney friend and cousin by marriage. sincere, experienc’d Friend, 
        Thy Briefs, thy Deeds, and ev’n thy Fees, suspend; 
        Come, let us leave the Temple’s silent Walls, 
        Me Bus’ness to my distant Lodging calls:
      

Through

            Through the long
              Strand
              together let us stray,
            With thee conversing, I forget the Way.
            Behold that 
              narrow Street, which steep descends,
            Whose
              Building
              to the 
              slimy Shore
              extends;
            Here
              Arundell’s 
              fam’d Structure
              rear’d its Frame;Arundell’s fam’d Structure rear’d its Frame: the following lines reference
                Thomas Howard Arundel’s large art collection which was held at Arundel House.
            The
              Street
              alone retains an empty Name:
            Where
              Titian’sTitian: an Italian Renaissance painter, known for his work in the Venetian school. glowing Paint the Canvas warm’d,
            And
              Raphael’sRaphael: an Italian Renaissance painter and architect. fair Design with Judgment, charm’d,
            Now hangs the Bell-man’s Song,the Bellman’s Song: could be either a broadside of verses about the bellman and his
                function or one of the bellman’s various announcements written in verse (Dearing).
              and pasted here,
            The colour’d Prints of
              OvertonOverton: Philip Overton, printseller at the White Horse or the Golden Buck two or three doors to the west of Mitre Court in Fleet Street. His brother and partner, Henry Overton, whose shop was the White Horse without Newgate near the Fountain Tavern, had published The Cryes of London, which Gay seems to have drawn upon in Trivia, in 1711.
              appear.
            Where Statues breath’d, the Work of
              Phidias’Phidias: an Athenian sculptor, known for his role as artistic director in the construction of
                the Parthenon.
               Hands,
            A wooden Pump or lonely
              Watch-houseWatch-house: this watch-house was part of St. Clement Danes’ Parish. stands.
            There
              Essex
              stately PileEssex stately Pile: most of Essex House was taken down in 1675-6.
              adorn’d the Shore,
            There
              Cecil’s,
              Bedford’s,
              Villier’s,Cecil’s, Bedford’s, Villier’s: references to the mansions of William Cecil,
                first Baron Burleigh (1520–1598), John Russell, first Earl of Bedford (1485–1555), and George Villiers,
                first Duke of Buckingham (1592–1628), all of which were taken down or sold for develpment in the years
                preceding the publication of Trivia.  now no more.
            Yet
              Burlington’s fair
              Palace
              still remains;
            Beauty within, without, Proportion reigns.
            Beneath his Eye declining Art revives,
            The Wall with animated Picture lives;
          

There

            There
              Hendel
              strikes the Strings, the melting Strain
            Transports the Soul, and thrills through ev’ry Vein;
            There oft’ I enter (but with cleaner Shoes)
            For
              Burlington’s belov’d by ev’ry Muse.
          

            
              The Happiness of Walkers.
            O ye associate Walkers, O my Friends,
            
            Upon your State what Happiness attends!
            What, though no Coach to frequent Visit rolls,
            Nor for your Shilling Chairmen sling their Poles;
            Yet still your Nerves rheumatic Painsrheumatic Pains: John Kersey (1702) defines “Rheumatick” as “troubled with rheum” (a “defluxion of humours”). defye,
            Nor lazy Jaundicelazy Jaundice:  Gay suggests jaundice results from inactivity. Johnson has: “A distemper from obstructions of the glands of the liver, which prevents the gall being duly separated by them from the blood,” which can lead to the skin and whites of the eyes taking on a yellow colour.
 dulls your SaffronSaffron: deep yellow. eye;
            No wasting Coughwasting Cough: possibly consumption (tuberculosis), known as the “wasting disease.” Richard Blackmore, M.D., described one “accidental, or acquired Consumption” (that is, not inherited from the parents) as coming from “noxious Humours” generated in the blood. The “Seeds of this wasting Disease,” he wrote, “are bred in the Patient ... by the defective economy of Nature.” A Treatise of Consumptions and other Distempers Belonging to the Breast and Lungs (London, 1724), 38. discharges Sounds of Death,
            Nor wheezing Asthma heaves in vain for Breath;
            Nor from your restless Couch is heard the Groan
            Of burning Gout or sedentary Stone.sedentary Stone: kidney stones.
            Let others in the jolting Coach confide,
            Or in the leaky Boat 
              the Thames
              divide;
          

            Or, box’d within the Chair, contemncontemn: to scorn or disdain.
              the Street,
            And trust their Safety to another’s Feet,
            Still let me walk; for oft’ the sudden Gale
            Ruffles the Tide, and shifts the dang’rous Sail,
            Then shall the Passenger, too late, deplore
            The whelming Billow, and the faithless Oar;
            The drunken Chairman in the Kennel spurns,
            The Glasses shatters, and his Charge o’erturns.
            Who can recount the Coach’s various Harms;
            The Legs disjointed, and the broken Arms?
          

            I’ve seen a Beau, in some ill-fated Hour,
            When o’er the Stones choak’d Kennels swell the Show’r,
            In gilded Chariot loll; he with Disdain,
            Views spatter’d Passengers, all drench’d in Rain;
            With Mud fill’d high, the rumbling Cart draws near,
            Now rule thy prancing Steeds, lac’d Charioteer!
          

The

        The Dustman lashes on with spiteful Rage, 
        His pond’rous Spokes thy painted Wheel engage, 
        Crush’d is thy Pride, down falls the shrieking Beau,
        The slabbyslabby: “wet; floody: in low language” (Johnson). Pavement crystal Fragments strow, 
        Black Floods of Mire th’ embroider’d Coat disgrace, 
        And Mud enwraps the Honours of his Face. 
        So when dread Jove, the Son of Phoebus hurl’d, Scarr’d with dark Thunder, to the nether World; 
        The headstrong CoursersCoursers: large and powerful horses that are usually ridden into battle. tore the silver Reins, 
        And the Sun’s beamy Ruin gilds the Plains.So when ... gilds the Plains: these lines allude to the story of Phaethon which appears in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Phoebus (Apollo) is Phaethon’s father. In the story, Jove (Zeus) strikes Phaethon with one of his lightning bolts after Phaeton drives Phoebus’s chariot too close to the earth.
      

        If the pale Walker pants with weak’ning Ills, 
        His sickly Hand is stor’d with friendly Bills: 
        From hence, he learns the seventh-born Doctor’s Fame,seventh-born Doctor’s Fame: an allusion to the commonly accepted belief that the seventh son of a seventh son was to be born a physician.
        From hence, he learns the cheapest Tailor’s Name.
      

Shall the large Mutton smoak upon your Boards? Such Newgate’s copious Market best affords;

Would’st

            Wouldst thou with mighty Beef augment thy Meal?
            Seek
              Leaden-hall;
              St. James’s sends thee Veal.
            Thames-street
              gives Cheeses;
              Covent-garden
              Fruits;
            Moor-fields
              old Books; and
              Monmouth-street
              old Suits.
            Hence may’st thou well supply the Wants of Life,
            Support thy Family, and cloath thy Wife.
          

            Volumes, on shelter’d Stalls expanded lye,
            And various ScienceScience:  knowledge (Johnson). lures the learned Eye;
            The bending Shelves with pond’rous ScholiastsScholiasts : people who wrote explanatory notes or commentary upon an author or text.
              groan,
            And deep Divines to modern Shops unknown:
            Here, like the Bee, that on industrious Wing,
            Collects the various Odours of the Spring,
            Walkers, at leisure, Learning’s Flow’rs may spoil,
            Nor watch the Wasting of the Midnight Oil,
            May Morals snatch from
              Plutarch’s tatter’d Page,May Morals snatch from Plutarch’s tatter’d Page: a reference to Plutarch’s
                Moralia.
            A mildew’d
              Bacon, or
              Stagyra’s
              Sage.
              Stagyra’s Sage: Aristotle, who was born in the Ancient Greek city Stagira.
          

Here

            Here saunt’ring ’Prentices o’er
              Otway
              weep,’Prentices o’er Otway weep: Thomas Otway was known for writing emotionally moving
                plays.
            O’er
              Congreve smile,O’er Congreve smile: William Congreve was known for writing comic plays. or over
              D***
              sleep;over D*** sleep: John Dennis was Alexander Pope's longstanding enemy.
            Pleas’d Sempstresses the Lock’s fam’d RapeLock’s fam’d Rape: Alexander Pope’s
                Rape of the Lock (1712).
              unfold,
            And ✝The Name of an Apothecary in the Poem of the Dispensary.
              Squirts read
              Garth
              ’till ApozemsApozems: decoctions or infusions. grow
              cold.
          

            O
              Lintott,Lintott: Bernard Lintot published Gay’s  Trivia.
              let my Labours obvious lie,
            Rang’d on thy Stall, for ev’ry curious Eye;
            So shall the Poor these Precepts gratis know,
            And to my Verse their future Safeties owe.
          

            What Walker shall his mean Ambition fix,
            On the false Lustre of a Coach and Six?
            Let the vain Virgin, lur’d by glaring Show,
            Sigh for the Liv’rysLiv’rys: the identifying uniform worn by the liverymen of a Guild or City of London livery company.
              of th’ embroider’d Beau.
          

See

            See, yon’ bright Chariot on its Harness swing,
            With
              Flanders
              Mares, and on an arched Spring,
            That Wretch, to gain an EquipageEquipage: carriage. and Place,
            Betray’d his Sister to a lewd Embrace.
            This Coach, that with the blazon’d ’Scutcheon’Scutcheon: escutcheon, used in heraldry; the shield-shaped surface on which a coat of arms is depicted, or a painted representation of it.
              glows,
            Vain of his unknown Race, the coxcomb shows.
            Here the brib’d Lawyer, sunk in Velvet, sleeps;
            The starving Orphan, as he passes, weeps;
            There flames a Fool, begirtbegirt: girded around, encircled with. by tinsilledtinsilled: made to sparkle or glitter with gold or silver thread, brocade, or embroidery.
              Slaves,
            Who wastes the Wealth of a whole Race of Knaves,
            That other, with a clustering Train behind,
            Owes his new Honours to a sordid Mind.
            This next in Court Fidelity excells,
            The Publick rifles, and his Country sells.
          

May

            May the proud Chariot never be my Fate,
            If purchas’d at so mean, so dear a Rate;
            Or rather give me sweet Content on Foot,
            Wrapt in my Virtue, and a good Surtout!
          

E 2

TRIVIA.

TRIVIA.

BOOK III.

Of Walking the Streets by Night.

  
          O TRIVIA,Trivia: the Roman goddess Diana or the Greek goddess Artemis.
            Goddes, leave these low Abodes,
          And traverse o’er the wide Ethereal Roads,
          Celestial Queen, put on thy Robes of Light,
          Now CynthiaCynthia: another name for Diana, also known as Luna (the moon goddess).
            nam’d, fair Regent of the Night.
          At Sight of thee, the Villain sheathes his Sword,
          Nor scales the Wall, to steal the wealthy Hoard.
        

E 3

Oh!

Oh! may thy Silver Lamp in Heav’n’s high Bow’r, Direct my Footsteps in the Midnight Hour.

        
          The Evening.
          When Night first bids the twinkling Stars appear,
        
        Or with her cloudy Vest inwraps the Air,
        Then swarms the busie Street; with Caution tread
        Where the Shop-Windows falling threat thy Head;
        Now lab’rers home return,  and join their Strength
        To bear the tott’ring Plank, or Ladder’s Length.
        Still fix thy Eyes intent upon the Throng,
        And as the Passes open, wind along.
      

Of the Pass of St. Clements. Where the fair Columns of Saint Clement stand, Whose straiten’d Bounds encroach upon the Strand; Where the low penthouse bows the Walker’s Head, And the rough Pavement wounds the yielding Tread;

Where

  
          Where not a Post protects the narrow Space,
          And, strung in Twines, Combs dangle in thy Face;
          Summon at once thy Courage, rouze thy Care,
          Stand firm, look back, be resolute, beware.
          Forth issuing from steep Lanes, the Collier’sCollier: person who sells coal.
            steeds
          Drag the black Load; another cart succeeds,
          Team follows Team, Crouds heap’d on Crouds appear,
          And wait impatient, ’till the Road grow clear.
          Now all the Pavement sounds with trampling Feet,
          And the mix’d Hurry barricades the street.
          Entangled here, the Waggon’s lengthen’d Team
          Cracks the tough Harness; Here a pond’rous Beam
          Lies overturn’d athwart; For Slaughter fed,
          Here lowing Bullocks raise their horned Head.
          Now Oaths grow loud, with Coaches Coaches jar,
          And the smart blow provokes the sturdy War:
        

E 4

From

 
          From the high Box they whirl the Thong around,
          And with the twining Lash their shins resound:
          Their Rage ferments, more dang’rous Wounds they try,
          And the Blood gushes down their painful Eye.
          And now on foot the frowning Warriors light,
          And with their pond’rous Fists renew the fight;
          Blow answers Blow, their Cheeks are smear’d with Blood,
          Till down they fall, and grappling roll in Mud.
          So when two Boars, in wild *New Forest in Hampshire, anciently so-called. Ytene
            bred,
          Or on
            Westphalia’sWestphalia: region in Germany fatt’ning Chest-nuts fed, Gnash their sharp Tusks, and, rous’d with equal Fire,
          Dispute the Reign of some luxurious Mire;
          In the black Flood they wallow o’er and o’er,
          Till their arm’d Jaws distil with Foam and Gore.
        

Where

  
          
            Where the Mob gathers, swiftly shoot along, 
            Of Pick-Pockets.
          Nor idly mingle in the noisy Throng.
          Lur’d by the Silver Hilt, amid the Swarm,
          The subtle Artist will thy Side disarm.
          Nor is thy Flaxen Wigg with Safety worn;
          High on the Shoulder, in a Basket borne,
          Lurks the sly Boy; whose Hand, to Rapine bred,
          Plucks off the curling Honours of thy Head.
          Here dives the skulkingskulking: sneaking, lurking. Thief, with practis’d Slight
          And unfelt Fingers make thy Pocket light.
          Where’s now thy Watch, with all its Trinkets, flown?
          And thy late Snuff-BoxSnuff-Box: box to hold snuff, otherwise known as powdered tobacco. is no more thy own.
          But, lo! his bolder Thefts some Tradesman spies,
          Swift from his Prey the scuddingscudding: darting, lurcherLurcher: one who steals or pilfers.  flies;
          Dext’rous he ’scapes the Coach, with nimble Bounds,
          Whilst ev’ry honest Tongue Stop Thief resounds.
        

  
          So speeds the wily Fox, alarm’d by Fear,
          Who lately filch’d the Turkey’s callow Care;
          Hounds following Hounds, grow louder as he flies,
          And injur’d Tenants joyn the Hunter’s Cries.
          Breathless he stumbling falls: Ill-fated Boy!
          Why did not honest Work thy Youth employ?
          Seiz’d by rough Hands, he’s dragg’d amid the Rout,Rout: a “clamorous multitude; a rabble; a tumultuous croud” (Johnson).
          And stretch’d beneath the Pump’s incessant Spout;
          Or plung’d in miry Ponds, he gasping lies,
          Mud chokes his Mouth, and plasters o’er his Eyes.
        

            Of Ballad-Singers.
               Let not the Ballad-Singer’s shrilling Strain, 
            Amid the swarm, thy list’ning Ear detain:
            Guard well thy Pocket; for these Syrens stand,
            To aid the labours of the diving hand;
            Confed’rate in the Cheat, they draw the Throng,
            And Cambrick HandkerchiefsCambrick Handkerchiefs:  linen made in Cambray, a city in Flanders. This style of linen was often used to make women’s
                sleeves.
              reward the Song.
          

  
          But soon as Coach or Cart drives rattling on,
          The Rabble part, in shoals they backward run.
          So Jove’sJove: poetic name for Jupiter/Zeus, god of lightning. loud Bolts the mingled War divide,And Greece
            and Troy
            retreat on either side.
      

            
              If the rude Throng pour on with furious Pace,
              Of walking with a Friend.
            And hap to break thee from a Friend’s Embrace,
            Stop short; nor struggle thro’ the Croud in vain,
            But watch with careful Eye the passing Train.
            Yet I (perhaps too fond), if chance the Tide,
            Tumultuous, bear my Partner from my Side,
            Impatient venture back; despising Harm,
            I force my Passage where the thickest swarm.
            Thus his lost Bride,lost Bride: reference to Aneas turning back to look for  his wife, Creusa, in the underworld and seeing her
                ghost in The Illiad Book II.  the TrojanTrojan: warrior from the city of Troy. sought in vain
            Through Night, and Arms, and Flames, and Hills of Slain.
            Thus NisusNisus: one of a
                  pair of male lovers in The Aeneid. Another example of doomed lovers in this section, along with
                  Aneas and Creusa. wander’d oer the pathless Grove,
              To find the brave Companion of his Love,
          

The

The pathless Grove in vain he wanders o’er; Euryalus, Euryalus: one of a pair of doomed male lovers in The Aeneid, partnered with Nisus. alas! is now no more.

            
              Of inadvertent Walkers.
            That Walker who, regardless of his Pace,
            
            Turns oft to pore upon the Damsel’s Face,
            From side to side by thrusting Elbows tost,
            Shall strike his aching Breast against a post;
            Or Water, dash’d from fishy Stalls, shall stain
            His hapless Coat with Spirts of scaly Rain.
            But if unwarily he chance to stray
            Where twirling Turnstiles intercept the Way,
            The thwarting Passenger shall force them round,
            And beat the Wretch half breathless to the ground.
          

Useful Precepts. Let constant Vigilance thy Footsteps guide, And wary Circumspection guard thy Side; Then shalt thou walk unarm’d the dang’rous Night, Nor need th’ officious Link-Boy’s Link-Boy: (or Link-man) a person employed to carry a light along London streets, so that people can see their way. Smoky Light.

Thou

  
          Thou never wilt attempt to cross the Road
          Where Alehouse Benches rest the Porter’s Load,
          Grievous to heedless Shins: No Barrow’s Wheel,
          That bruises oft the Truant School-Boy’s Heel,
          Behind thee rolling, with insidious Pace,
          Shall mark thy Stocking with a miry Trace.
          Let not thy vent’rous Steps approach too nigh
          Where, gaping wide, low steepy Cellars lie:
          Should thy Shoe wrench aside, down, down you fall,
          And overturn the scolding Huckster’sHuckster: merchant selling their wares in a small shop or stall. The word often has a connotation
              that specifically denotes that the seller is an unscrupulous or unethical.
            stall,
          The scolding Huckster shall not o’er thee moan,
          But Pence exact for Nuts and Pears o’erthrown.
        

Though you through cleanlier Allies wind by Day, Safety first of all to be consider’d. To shun the Hurries of the public Way, Yet ne’er to those dark Paths by Night retire; Mind only Safety, and contemn the Mire.

Then

Then no impervious courts thy Haste detain, Nor sneering Ale-WivesAle-Wives: women who brew or sell ale. bid thee turn again.

          The Danger of crossing a Square by Night.
             Where
              Lincoln’s-Inn, Wide Space, is rail’d around,
          
          Cross not with vent’rous step; there oft is found
          The lurking Thief, who, while the day-light shone,
          Made the Walls eccho with his begging Tone:
          That Crutch, which late compassion mov’d, shall wound
          Thy bleeding Head, and fell thee to the Ground.
          Though thou art tempted by the Link-man’s Call,
          Yet trust him not along the lonely Wall;
          In the Mid-way he’ll quench the flaming Brand,
          And share the Booty with the pilf’ring Band.
          Still keep the public Streets, where oily Rays,
          Shot from the Crystal lamp, o’erspread the ways.
        

Happy

  
          
            Happy
              Augusta!
              Law-defended Town!
            The Happiness of London.
          
          Here no dark LanthornsLanthorns: lanterns. shade the Villain’s
            Frown;
          No Spanish Jealousies thy Lanes infest,
          Nor Roman vengeance stabs th’ unwary Breast;
          Here Tyranny ne’er lifts her purple Hand,
          But Liberty and Justice guard the Land;
          No BravosBravos: hired murderers. here profess the bloody Trade,
          Nor is the church the murd’rer’s refuge made.murd’rer’s refuge: refers to the right of sanctuary, still held outside of England, where a lawbreaker or fugitive was immune from arrest inside a church or sacred place.
        

          
            Let not the Chairman, with assuming Stride,
              Of chairmen.
            
            Press near the Wall, and rudely thrust thy Side:
            The Laws have set him Bounds; his servile Feet
            Should ne’er encroach where Posts defend the Street.
            Yet who the Footman’s Arrogance can quell
            Whose FlambeauFlambeau: a flaming torch. gilds the sashes of
              Pell-mell?
            When in long Rank a Train of Torches flame,in long Rank a Train of Torches flame: Williams suggests this passage echoes Juvenal, Satires III. 284–5. Dearing adds the two preceding lines, “since part of the idea of the ‘Footman’s Arrogance’ comes from Juvenal’s remark that the drunken bully, however reckless, still shuns the rich man’s retinues: ‘Yet however reckless the fellow may be, however hot with wine and young blood, he gives a wide berth to one whose scarlet cloak and long retinue of attendants, with torches and brass lamps in their hands, bid him keep his distance.’”
            To light the Midnight Visits of the Dame?
        

Others,

 
          Others, perhaps, by happier Guidance led,
          May where the Chairman rests with Safety tread;
          Whene’er I pass, their Poles, unseen below,
          Make my Knee tremble with the jarring Blow.
        

            Of crossing the Streets.
            If wheels bar up the Road where Streets are crost,
            
            With gentle Words the Coachman’s Ear accost:
            He ne’er the Threat, or harsh Command obeys,
            But with Contempt the spatter’d Shoe surveys.
            Now, man with utmost Fortitude thy soul,
            To cross the Way where Carts and Coaches roll:
            Yet do not in thy hardy Skill confide,
            Nor rashly risk the kennel’s spacious Stride;
            Stay till afar the distant Wheel you hear,
            Like dying Thunder in the breaking Air;
            Thy foot will slide upon the miry Stone,
            And passing Coaches crush thy tortur’d Bone,
          

  
          Or Wheels enclose the road; on either Hand,
          Pent round with Perils, in the midst you stand,
          And call for Aid in vain; the Coachman swears,
          And Carmen drive, unmindful of thy prayers.
          Where wilt thou turn? ah! whither wilt thou fly?
          On ev’ry side the pressing Spokes are nigh.
          So Sailors, while
            Charybdis’Charybdis: a sea monster in Greek mythology. Charybdis, along with the sea monster Scylla, appears
              as a challenge to sailors. Both monsters are encountered by such epic heroes as Oddysseus,
              Jason, and Aeneas.
            Gulphs they shun,
          Amaz’d, on
            Scylla’sScylla: sea monster. See “Charybdis” above. craggy Dangers run.
          

            
              Be sure observe where brown
                OstreaOstrea: an oyster wench, one who sells oysters. stands,
                Of Oysters.
            
            Who boasts her shelly Ware from
            
              WallfleetWallfleet: a place in Essex, well-known for its oysters.
            Sands;
            There may’st thou pass, with safe unmiry Feet,
            Where the rais’d Pavement leads athwartathwart: across the course of. the
              Street.
            If where Fleet-Ditch with muddy Current flows,
            You chance to roam; where Oyster-TubsOyster-Tubs: tubs where oyster sellers put their wares while calling out to customers.
              in Rows
            Are rang’d beside the Posts; there stay thy Haste,
            And with the sav’ry fish indulge thy Taste:
          

The

The Damsel’s knife the gaping Shell commands, While the Salt Liquor streams between her Hands. The Man had sure a Palate cover’d o’er With Brass or Steel, that on the rocky Shore First broke the oozy Oyster’s pearly Coat, And risqu’d the living Morsel down his Throat. What will not Lux’ry taste? Earth, Sea, and Air Are daily ransack’d for the Bill of Fare. Blood stuff’d in Skins is British Christian’s Food; And France robs marshes of the croaking brood; SpungySpungy: like a sponge. MorellsMorells: mushrooms. in strong RagoustsRagousts: ragouts, “meat stewed and highly seasoned” (Johnson). are found, And in the Soupe the slimy Snail is drown’d.

Observations concerning keeping the Wall. When from high Spouts the dashing Torrents Fall, Ever be watchful to maintain the Wall;

For

  
          For shouldst thou quit thy Ground, the rushing Throng
          Will with impetuous fury drive along;
          All press to gain those Honours thou hast lost,
          And rudely shove thee far without the Post:
          Then to retrieve the Shed you strive in vain,
          Draggled all o’er, and soak’d in Floods of Rain.
          Yet rather bear the show’r, and Toils of Mud,
          Than in the doubtful quarrel risque thy Blood. 
          O think on
            OEdipus’Oedipus: Oedipus is a central figure in Greek mythology. His life revolves around a prophecy that
              he would kill his father and marry his mother, a destiny he unknowingly fulfills. His story appears in
              Sophocles' plays Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus.
            detested state,
          And by his Woes be warn’d to shun thy Fate.
          

            Where three roads join’d he met his sire unknown;
            (Unhappy Sire! but more unhappy Son!)
            Each claim’d the Way: their Swords the Strife decide:
            The hoaryhoary: white- or grey-haired with age. Monarch fell;
              he groan’d, and dy’d!
          

F 2

Hence

  
          Hence sprung the fatal Plague that thinn’d thy Reign,
          Thy cursed Incest! and thy children slain!
          Hence wert thou doom’d in endless Night to stray
          Through Theban Streets, and cheerless groap thy Way.
          

Of a Funeral. Contemplate, Mortal! on thy fleeting Years: See, with black Train, the Funeral Pomp appears! Whether some Heir attends in sable State, And mourns with outward Grief a Parent’s Fate; Or the fair Virgin, nipt in Beauty’s Bloom, A Croud of Lovers follow to her Tomb. Why is the Hearse with ’scutcheons blazon’d round, And with the nodding plume of Ostrich crown’d? No: the Dead know it not, nor Profit gain: It only serves to prove the Living vain. How short is life! how frail is human Trust! Is all this Pomp for laying Dust to Dust?

Where

  
          
            Where the nail’d Hoop defends the painted Stall,
            Of avoiding Paint.
          
          Brush not thy sweeping Skirt too near the Wall:
          Thy heedless Sleeve will drink the colour’d Oil,
          And Spot indelible thy pocket soil.
          Has not wise Nature strung the Legs and Feet
          With firmest Nerves, design’d to walk the Street?
          Has she not given us Hands to grope aright,
          Amid the frequent dangers of the Night?
          And thinkst thou not the double Nostril meant,
          To warn from oily Woes by previous Scent?
          

            
              Who can the various City Frauds recite,
              Of various Cheats formerly inpractice.
            
            With all the petty Rapines of the Night?
            Who now the Guinea-Dropper’sGuinea-Dropper: a person who cheats by dropping counterfeit guineas.
              bait regards,
            Trick’d by the Sharper’sSharper: a fraudulent gamester; cheat; swindler.
              Dice? or Juggler’s cards?
            Why should I warn thee ne’er to join the Fray,
            Where the Sham-Quarrel interrupts the Way?
          

Lives

 
          Lives there in these our Days so soft a Clown,
          Brav’d by the Bully’s Oaths or threat’ning Frown?
          I need not strict enjoin the Pocket’s Care,
          When from the crowded Play thou lead’st the Fair;
          Who has not here, or Watch, or Snuff-Box lost,
          Or Handkerchiefs that India’s Shuttle boast?
          

            An Admonition to Virtue.
              O! may thy Virtue guard thee through the Roads
            
            Of
              Drury’s mazy Courts and dark Abodes,
            The Harlots’ guileful Paths, who nightly stand,
            Where
              Katherine-street
              descends into the
              Strand.
            
            Say, vagrant Muse, their Wiles and subtilsubtil: cunning.
              Arts,
            To lure the Strangers’ unsuspecting Hearts;
            So shall our Youth on healthful Sinews tread,
            And City Cheeks grow warm with rural Red.
          

How to know a Whore. ’Tis She who nightly strolls with saunt’ring Pace; No stubborn StaysStays: an undergarment stiffened with strips of whale bone. her yielding Shape embrace:

Beneath

  
          Beneath the Lamp her tawdry Ribbons glare,
          The new-scower’d Manteau,new-scower’d Manteau: a loose-fitting cloak or robe, second-hand, or one that had been badly soiled. and the slattern
            Air;
          High-draggled Petticoats her Travels show,
          And hollow Cheeks with artful Blushes glow;
          With flatt’ring Sounds She soothes the cred’lous Ear,
          My noble Captain! Charmer! Love! my Dear!
          In Ridinghood near Tavern-Doors she plies,
          Or muffled PinnersPinners: a woman's cap with long flaps that hung down on either side and could be pinned up on the head or fastened to the breast. hide her livid Eyes.
          With empty BandboxBandbox: a slight box used for bands or ruffs, collars, hats, caps, and other things of small weight. she delights to range,
          And feigns a distant Errand from the Change;
          Nay, she will oft’ the Quaker’s HoodQuaker’s Hood: ironic, suggesting hypocrisy. Members of the Religious Society of Friends advocated plainness of dress.
            profane,
          And trudge demure the rounds of
            Drury-Lane.
          She darts from SarsnetSarsnet: very soft and fine material made of silk.
            Ambush wily Leers,
          Twitches thy Sleeve, or with familiar Airs
          Her fan will pat thy Cheek; these Snares disdain;
          Nor gaze behind thee when she turns again.
          

F 4

I knew

  
          
             A dreadful Example 
            I knew a Yeoman who, for thirst of Gain,
          
          To the great city drove, from
            Devon’sDevon: a county in Southwest England plain,
          His num’rous lowing Herd; his Herds he sold,
          And his deep leathern Pocket bagg’d with Gold;
          Drawn by a fraudful Nymph,Nymph: ironic. In the classical tradition, a nymph is a divine spirit in the form of a maiden inhabiting the woods, meadows, or waters; here, the nymph is a prostitute.
 he gaz’d, he sigh’d;
          Unmindful of his Home, and distant Bride,
          She leads the willing Victim to his Doom,
          Through winding Alleys, to her Cobweb Room.Cobweb Room: dingy, dirty; also suggests he has been caught in her trap.
          Thence thro the Street he reels from Post to Post,
          Valiant with Wine, nor knows his Treasure lost.
          The vagrant Wretch th’ assembled Watchmen spies,
          He waves his Hanger, and their Poles defies;
          Deep in the
            Round-HouseRound-House: used for a place of detention, a watchhouse. pent, all Night he snores,
          
          And the next Morn in vain his Fate deplores.
          

Ah!

            Ah hapless Swain,Swain: ironic. Johnson defines swain as “A pastoral youth,” that is, a young lover or suitor from the country. unus’d to Pains and
              Ills!
            Canst thou forego Roast-Beef for nauseous Pills?nauseous Pills: pills administered for venereal disease that functioned as emetics or laxatives in an attempt to rid the body of disease.
            How wilt thou lift to Heav’n thy Eyes and Hands,
            When the long Scroll the Surgeon’sSurgeon: doctor. Fees demands!
            Or else (ye Gods! avert that worst Disgrace!)
            Thy ruin’d Nose falls level with thy Face;
            Then shall thy Wife thy loathsome Kiss disdain,
            And wholesome Neighbours from thy Mug refrain.
          

            
              Yet there are Watchmen,Watchmen: men who were appointed to patrol the streets and keep watch from sunset to sunrise. who, with friendly Light,
               Of Watchmen
            Will teach thy reeling Steps to tread aright;
            For Sixpence will support thy helpless Arm,
            And Home conduct thee, safe from nightly Harm;
            But if they shake their Lanterns, from afar,
            To call their Brethren to confed’rate War,
          

When

            When RakesRakes: “loose, disorderly, vicious, wild, gay, thoughtless” fellows, addicted to pleasure (Johnson). resist their Pow’r—if hapless you
            Should chance to wander with the scow’ring Crew;scow’ring Crew: a group of  lawless hooligans.
            Though Fortune yield thee Captive, ne’er despair,
            But seek the Constable’s consid’rate Ear;
            He will reverse the Watchman’s harsh Decree,
            Mov’d by the Rhet’rick of a Silver Fee.Silver Fee: a bribe. 
            Thus would you gain some fav’rite Courtier’s word;
            Fee not the petty Clarks,petty Clarks: subordinate clerks who keep accounts and records. but bribe my lord.
          

             Of Rakes
               Now is the time that Rakes their Revells keep;
            Kindlers of Riot, Enemies of Sleep.
            His scatter’d Pence the flying *Gentlemen, who delighted to break Windows with Half-pence. Nicker flings,
            And with the Copper Show’r the Casement rings.
            Who has not heard the Scowrer’s Midnight Fame?
            Who has not trembled at the Mohock’sMohock: member of a gang of aristocratic ruffians.
              Name
            Was there a Watchman took his hourly Rounds
            Safe from their Blows, or new-invented Wounds?
          

I pass

          I pass their desp’rate Deeds and Mischiefs done,
          Where from
            
              Snow-hill black steepy TorrentsTorrents: sudden streams caused by rain; tumultuous currents. From the Georgics: When shrivell’d herbs on with’ring stems decay, / The wary ploughman, on the mountain’s brow, / Undams his wat’ry stores, huge torrents flow, / Temp’ring the thirsty fever of the field. run;
          How Matrons, hoop’d within the Hogshead’s Womb,Hogshead's Womb: the Mohocks were said to have put a woman into a hogshead (cask) and rolled her down a hill. 
          Were tumbled furious thence, the rolling Tomb
          O’er the Stones thunders, bounds from Side to Side.
          So Regulus,Regulus: the Roman general Marcus Atilius Regulus was captured by the Carthaginians, who sent him to Rome to secure peace. Instead, he urged the Senate to resist. When he returned to Carthage, the Carthaginians tortured him to death by cutting off his eyelids and putting him into a barrel of spikes in the sun.  to save his Country dy’d.
          
        

            
              Where a dim Gleam the paly Lantern throws 
               A necessary Caution in a dark Night.
            
            O’er the mid’ Pavement; heapy Rubbish grows,
            Or arched Vaults their gaping Jaws extend,
            Or the dark Caves to Common-Shores
              descend.
            Oft by the Winds, extinct the Signal lies,
            Or smother’d in the glimm’ring SocketSocket: the seating for a lamp . See Dryden’s translation of Georgics: “The nightly virgin sees / When sparkling lamps their sputt’ring light advance, / And in the sockets oily bubbles dance.”
              dies,
            Ere Night has half roll’d round her Ebon Throne;
            In the wide Gulf the shatter’d Coach, o’erthrown,
            Sinks with the snorting Steeds; the Reins are broke, 
            And from the crackling Axle flies the Spoke. 
          

            So when fam’d
              Eddystone’sEddystone: Eddystone lighthouse, to guide ships from the rocks of Plymouth Sound. far-shooting
              Ray,
            That led the Sailor through the stormy Way,
            Was from its rocky Roots by BillowsBillows: swollen, hollow waves.
              torn,
            And the high Turret in the Whirlwind borne,
            Fleets bulg’d their Sides against the craggycraggy: rough or uneven, hard to walk on or climb.  Land,
            And pitchy Ruins blacken’d all the Strand.
          

Who then through Night would hire the harness’d steed And who would chusechuse: choose. the rattling Wheel for Speed?

A Fire. But hark! Distress, with screaming Voice draws nigh’r, And wakes the slumb’ring Street with Cries of Fire. At first, a glowing Red enwraps the Skies, And borne by Winds, the scatt’ring Sparks arise; From Beam to Beam the fierce Contagion spreads; The spiry Flames now lift aloft their Heads,

Through

  
          Through the burst Sash a blazing Delugeblazing Deluge: the flames overflow like a river overflowing its banks.  pours,
          And splitting Tiles descend in rattling Show’rs.splitting Tiles ... rattling Show’rs: the clay tiles of the roofs crack apart from the heat and pour down like rain.
          Now with thick Crouds th’ enlighten’d Pavement swarms,
          The Fire-Man sweats beneath his crooked Arms,crooked Arms: possibly, the yokes used to carry buckets of water (Dearing).
          A leathern CasqueCasque: a helmet or armor used to protect the head. his
            vent’rous Head defends,
          Boldly he climbs where thickest smoke ascends;
          Mov’d by the Mother’s streaming Eyes and Pray’rs,
          The helpless Infant through the Flame he bears,
          With no less Virtue, than through hostile Fire,
          The Dardan HeroDardan Hero: the Trojan hero Aeneas, whose family descended from Dardan, a son of Zeus, carried his aged father away from the burning ruins of Troy on his shoulders. bore
            his aged Sire.
          See forceful Engines spout their levell’d Streams,
          To quench the Blaze that runs along the Beams;
          The grappling Hook plucks Rafters from the Walls,
          And Heaps on Heaps the smoky Ruinesmoky Ruine: the burned building in the aftermath of destruction.
            falls.
          Blown by strong Winds, the fiery Tempest roars,
          Bears down new Walls, and pours along the Floors:
          

The

 
          The Heav’ns are all a-blaze, the Face of Night
          Is cover’d with a sanguine dreadful Light;sanguine dreadful Light: the sky is filled with fire as red as blood.
          ’Twas such a Light involv’d thy Tow’rs, O
            Rome
          The dire Presage of mighty
            Caesar’s Doom;Caesar’s Doom: fires in the sky were said to be omens of Caesar’s assassination. See Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar Act 3, scene i: “The skies are painted with unnumbered sparks; / They are all fire, and every one doth shine.”
          When the Sun veil’d in Rust his mourning Head,
          And frightful ProdigiesProdigies; “any thing out of the ordinary process of nature, from which omens are drawn; portent” (Johnson). the Skies o’erspread
          Hark! the Drum thunders! far, ye Crouds, retire:
          Behold! the ready Match is tipt with Fire.
          The nitrous Store is laid; the smutty Train,
          With running Blaze, awakes the barrell’d grain;
          Flames sudden wrap the Walls; with sullen Sound,
          The shatter’d PilePile: building. sinks on the smoky Ground.
          So when the Years shall have revolv’d the Date,
          Th’ inevitable Hour, of
            Naples’ Fate,Naples’ Fate: allusion to the prodigies foretelling Caesar’s fall in the Georgics: “What Rocks did Aetna’s bellowing Mouth expire / From her torn Entrails! and what Floods of Fire!” Dearing comments that there was reason to believe when Gay wrote Trivia that the eruption of Mount Aetna might be modern Naples’s fate as well: eruptions of Vesuvius had increased in the course of the seventeenth century and there had been one in each of the three years preceding 1715.
          Her sap’dsap'd: undermined or destroyed. Foundations shall with Thunders shake,
          And heave and toss upon the sulph’roussulph’rous: pertaining to brimstone; hellish.
            Lake;
          Earth’s Womb at once the fiery Flood shall rend,
          And in th’ Abyss her plunging Tow’rs descend.
          

Consider,

  
          Consider, Reader, what Fatigues I’ve known,
          The Toils, the Perils, of the wintry Town;
          What Riots seen, what bustling Crouds I bor’d;
          How oft I cross’d where Carts and Coaches roar’d;
          Yet shall I bless my Labours, if Mankind
          Their future Safety from my Dangers find.
          Thus the bold Traveller, inur’d toinur’d to: habituated or accustomed to.
            Toil,
          Whose Steps have printed Asia’s desert Soil,
          The barb’rous Arab’sbarb’rous Arab: in Gay's time, prejudice against non-Christian peoples was common. Here, “barbarous” means, in Johnson’s words, “Stranger to civility; savage; uncivilized.” Originally, the term concerned language, that is, “not Greek; subsequently not Greek nor Latin; hence, not classical or pure (Latin or Greek), abounding in ‘barbarisms’” (OED). Haunt; or shiv’ring crost
          Dark
            Greenland’s Mountains of eternal Frost,
          Whom ProvidenceProvidence: either the protective care of God, or the narrator’s own prudent foresight and preparation for his dangerous journeys. in length of Years restores
          To the wish’d Harbour of his native Shores,
          Sets forth his Journals to the publick View,
          To caution, by his Woes, the wandering Crew.
          

And now compleat my gen’rous labours lye, Finish’d, and ripe for Immortality.

Death

  
          Death shall entomb in Dust this mould’ring Frame,mould’ring Frame: the body returning to dust.
          But never reach th’ eternal Part—my Fame.
          When W*W*: Edward (Ned) Ward (1667–1731), Tory author of
              The London Spy (1698–1700), a “Grubstreet” author whose low subject matter
              would place him among Alexander Pope’s dunces in The Dunciad (1729). Pope’s
              treatment of Ward is gentler than his critiques of others: characterizing the island of Jamaica in
              Ward’s A Trip to Jamaica as “ape and monkey lands,” Pope glosses the
              reference: “Edward Ward, a very voluminous poet in hudibrastick verse, but best known by the
              London Spy, in prose. He has of late years kept a publick house in the City (but in a genteel
              way) and with his wit, humour, and good liquor (Ale) afforded his guests a pleasurable entertainment,
              especially those of the high church party.” (Ward objected, saying that he served wine and that his
              public house was not in the City of London, which was associated with Whiggish interests).
            and G**,G**: Charles Gildon (1665–1724), author of A New Rehearsal (1714), another
              “Grubstreet” author featured by Pope in The Dunciad: “Charles Gildon, a
              writer of criticisms and libels of the last age, ... signaliz’d himself as a critic, having written
              some very bad plays; abused Mr. P[ope]. very scandalously in an anonymous pamphlet of the Life of Mr.
              Wycherley printed by Curl, in another called the New Rehearsal printed in 1714, in a third
              entitled the Compleat Art of English Poetry in 2 volumes, and others. mighty Names, are dead;
          Or but at
            Chelsea, under Custards read;Chelsea, under Custards read: the village of Chelsea, a short distance to the west of London, was
              famous for its baked goods. Ironic: Gay refers to a future time when the great works of these authors will
              be read only when their pages are used to wrap desserts for sale.
          When Criticks crazy Bandboxes repair,When Criticks crazy Bandboxes repair: when critics consider their books so inconsequential that
              they rip out the pages to repair broken bandboxes.
          And Tragedies, turn’d Rockets,Tragedies, turn’d Rockets: great works are used to ignite fireworks.
             bounce in Air;
          High-rais’d on Fleetstreet Posts,Fleetstreet Posts: the doorposts of booksellers' shops, decorated with the title pages of books
              for sale.
            consign’d to Fame,
          This Work shall shine, and Walkers bless my Name.
          

FINIS.

INDEX.

AUthor, for whom he wrote the Poem, p. 8
Asses their Arrogance, p. 22
Ariadne’s Clue, p. 26
Alley, the Pleasure of Walking in one, p. 30
Almanacks, useless to judicious Walkers, p. 39
Autumn, what Cries then in use, p. 41
Arundel-street, p. 44
Author, his Wish, p. 52
Alley, not to be walk’d in by Night, p. 61

B. Bavaroy,

B

Bavaroy, by whom worn, p. 4
Brokers keep Coaches, p. 8
Bookseller, skill’d in the Weather, p. 11
Barber, by whom to be shun’d, p. 23
Baker, to whom prejudicial, ibid.
Butchers to be avoided, p. 24
Bully, his Insolence to be corrected, p. 25
Broker, where be usually walks, p. 31
Burlington-house, p. 44
Beau’s Chariot overturn’d, p. 46
Bills dispersed to Walkers, p. 47
Ballad-Singers, p. 58

C

Country, the Author’s Love of his, p. 2
Civic-Crown, ibid.
Cane, the Convenience of one, p. 5
— An Amber-headed one useless, ibid.
— The Abuse of it, ibid.
Camlet, how affected by Rain, p. 4
Coat, how to chuse one for the Winter, ibid.
Chairs and Chariots prejudical to Health, p. 5
Coachman asleep on his Box, what the sign of, p. 11
Chairmen, an Observation upon them, ibid.
Church-Monuments foretell the Weather, ibid.
Common-shores, p. 12
Cold, the Description of one, p. 18
Clergy, what Tradesmen to avoid, p. 23
Chimney-Sweeper, by whom to be avoided, ibid.

Chandlers

C

Chandlers prejudicial to Walkers, p. 24
Civility to be paid to Walkers, ibid.
Coachman, his Metamorphosis, p. 28
Carman when unmerciful, his Punishment, p. 29
Cheapside, ibid.
Cheese not lov’d by the Author, ibid.
Country-man perplex’d to find the Way, p. 26
Coachman, his Whip dangerous, p. 33
His Care of his Horses, ibid.
Coaches dangerous in snowy Weather, p. 34
Chairmen, their Exercise in frosty Weather, ibid.
Covent-Garden, p. 35, 48
Cries of the Town, Observations upon them, p. 40
Christmas, what Cries fore-run it, p. 41.
— A Season for general Charity, ibid.
Coaches, those that keep them uncharitable, p. 42
Charity most practised by Walkers, ibid.
— Where given with judgment, ibid.
— Not to be delay’d, ibid.
Chairs, the Danger of them, p. 46
Coaches attended with ill Accidents, ibid.
— Despised by Walkers, p. 49
— Kept by Coxcombs and Pimps, p. 50
Clement’s Church, the Pass of it described, p. 54
Colliers Carts, p. 55
Coaches, a Stop of them described, ibid.
Coachmen, a Fight of them, ibid.
Crowd parted by a Coach, p. 59
Cellar, the Misfortune of falling into one, p. 61
Cu-de-Sac, p. 62
Chairmen, Laws concerning them, p. 63
— Their Poles dangerous, p. 64
Coachmen despise dirty Shoes, ibid.
Coaches, a Man surrounded by them, p. 65

G 2

Constable

Constable, his Consideration,
Coach fallen into a Hole, described,
Criticks, their Fate,

D.

D’Oily Stuffs, useless in Winter, p. 74
Drugget-Silk, improper in cold Weather, ibid.
Dress, Propriety therein to be observed, p. 9
Drummers improper at a Wedding, p. 22
Dustman, to whom offensive, p. 23
Drays, when not to be walk’d behind, p. 32
Doll, a melancholy Story of her Death, p. 37
Dustman Spiteful to gilded Chariots, p. 47
Drury-Lane dangerous to Virtue, p. 70

E.

Evening described, p. 51
Eddystone Light-house, p. 76

F.

Frieze, its Defects, p. 4
Footman, his Prudence in rainy Weather, p. 9
Fair Weather, Signs of it, p. 10
Farrier’s Shop, a Description of one, p. 17
Fop, the Description of one walking, p. 24
— The ill Consequence of passing too near one, ibid.
Female Guides not to be made use of, p. 27
Foot-ball described, p. 35
Frost, an Episode of the great one, p. 36
Fair, one kept on the Thames, ibid.

Fishmongers,

Fishmonger, the Description of his Stall, p. 39
Friday, how to know it, p. 40
Friend, the Author walks with one, p. 43
— Rules to walk with one, p. 59
Fox, like a Pick-pocket, p. 58
Foot-man very arrogant, p. 63
Fleet-Ditch, p. 65
Funeral, the Walkers Contemplation on one, p. 68
Fire, the Description of one, p. 76
Fire-man, his Vertue, p. 77
Fire-Engines, ibid.

G.

Gamester, his Chariot described, p. 8
Glasier, his Skill at Foot-Ball, p. 36
Guinea-droppers, p. 69

H.

Health acquired by Walking, p. 6
Holland, the Streets of that Country described, p. 7
Hosier’s Poles, what observed by them, p. 11
Hawker, at what Time he crys News, p. 22
Horses like Parthian's, p. 32
Hands, their Use, p. 69
House blown up, the Description of it, p. 78

I.

Invention of Pattens, p. 15
Jugglers to be avoided, p. 31
Industry not exempt from Death, p. 38

June

June, what Cry denotes that Month, p. 40
James St. its Market, p. 48

K.

Knocker of a Door, an Observation on one, p. 43
Katherine-street, p. 70

L.

London, its Happiness before the Invention of Coaches and Chairs, p. 7
Ladies walking the Streets, p. 8
— In the Park what they betoken, p. 10
— Dress, neither by Reason nor Instinct, p. 10
Letchers old, where they frequent, p. 31
Leaden-hall Market, p. 48
Lintott Mr. Advice to him, p. 49
Lawyer passing the Street in a Coach, p. 50
Labourers return’d from Work, p. 54
Lincoln’s Inn Fields, p. 62
Linkman, where not to be trusted, ibid.
Luxury, a Reflection on it, p. 66
Legs, their Use, p. 69
Lanthorn, what it shews in the middle of the Street, p. 75

M.

Martha, a Milk-maid of Lincolnshire, p. 15
Morning, then what first to be considered, p. 9
Morning described, p. 22
Milk-maid of the City, unlike a Rural One, ibid.

Mercy

Mercy recommended to Coachmen and Carmen, p. 28
Masons, dangerous to pass where at Work, p. 30
Modesty not to be offended, p. 32
Monday, by what Observations to know it, p. 39
Miser, his manner of Charity, p. 42
Moor-Fields, p. 48
Monmouth-Street, ibid.
Mobs to be avoided, p. 57
Mohocks, a Sett of modern Rakes, p. 74
Matrons put in Hogsheads, p. 75

N.

Naples, the Streets of that City, p. 7
Newgate Market, p. 47
Nisus and Euryalus, p. 59
Nose, its Use, p. 69
Nicker, his Art, p. 74
Naples, its Fate, p. 78

Oysters, at what time first cry’d, p. 3
Old Woman, an Observation upon one, p. 10
Observations on the Looks of Walkers, p. 31
Ox roasted on the Thames, p. 36
Orpheus, his Death, p. 38
Overton the Print-Seller, p. 44
Oyster-Wench, p. 65
Oyster, the Courage of him that first eat one, p. 66
OEdipus, p. 67

P. Pavers

P.

Pavers, their Duty, p. 2
Paris, the Streets of that City, p. 6
Poor, their Murmurs, what the Sign of p. 10
Paul Saint, his Festival, p. 12
Precepts, what the Consequence, if neglected, p. 13
Pattens, a Female Implement, p. 14
Presents better than Flattery, p. 19
Patten, its Derivation, ibid.
Perfumer, by whom to be avoided, p. 23
Porter sworn, useful to Walkers, p. 25
Prentices not to be rely’d on, p. ibid.
Post, when to walk on the out side of it, p. 27
Pillory not to be gaz’d upon, ibid.
Pall-Mall celebrated, p. 30
Pythagoras his Doctrine, p. 28
Petticoat, its Use in bad Weather, p. 33
Pavers, a Signal for Coaches to avoid them, ibid.
Pattens inconvenient in snowy Weather, p. 2
Phaeton, a Beau compared to him, p. 47
Perriwigs, how stolen off the Head, p. 57
Pick-pocket, his Art and Misfortunes, ibid.
Paint, how to be avoided, p. 69
Play-house, a Caution when you lead a Lady out of it, p. 70
Quarrels for the Wall to be avoided, p. 67
Quarrels, sham ones, dangerous, p. 69

R. Riding-

R.

Riding-hood, its Use, p. 14
Rome, the Streets of it, p. 7
Rain, Signs of it, p. 11
Rakes, how they avoid a Dun, p. 31
Raphael Urbin, p. 44
Rakes, their Time of walking, p. 74
Regulus, his Death, p. 75
Reader, the author addresses him, p. 79

S.

Scavengers, their Duty, p. 2
Stage-Coaches, an Observation upon them, p. 3
Shoe-cleaning Boys, the Time of their first Appearance, ibid.
Shoes, when to provide them, ibid.
— What sort improper for Walkers, ibid.
— What proper for Dancers, ibid.
— What most proper for Walkers, ibid.
Surtout Kersey, its Description, p. 5
Shower, a Man in one described, p. 13
Shins, what they betoken when scorch’d, p. 10
Signs creaking, what they betoken, p. 11
Superstition to be avoided, p. 12
Swithin Saint, his Festival, ibid.
Smallcoal-Man, by whom to be avoided, p. 23
Summer foreign to the Author’s Design, p. 33
Signs, the Use of them, p. 25
Seven Dials of St. Giles’s Parish described, p. 26
Stockings, how to prevent their being Spatter’d, p. 27
Streets, narrow ones to be avoided, p. 28

Snowy

Snowy Weather, p. 34
Shoes, how to free them from Snow, ibid.
Snow-Balls, Coachmen pelted with them, ibid.
School-Boys mischievous in frosty Weather, ibid.
Sempstress, the Description of her in a frosty Morning, ibid.
Saturday, by what Observations to know it, p. 40
Spring, the Cries then in Use, ibid.
Streets formerly Noblemens Houses, p. 44
Sempstress, Advice to her, p. 35
Swords silver, lure Thieves, p. 57
Street, how to cross it, p. 64
Scylla and Charybdis, p. 65
Street, where to cross it by Night, ibid.
Scowrers, a Sett of Rakes, p. 74
Snow-Hill, p. 75

T.

Trivia, the Goddess of Streets and High-Ways, invok’d, p. 1
Trades prejudicial to Walkers, p. 23
Tradesman, in what to be trusted, p. 26
Theseus in the Labyrinth of Crete, ibid.
Thames-Street, p. 48, 29
Trades offensive to the Smell, p. 29
Tea-Drinkers, a necessary Caution to them, p. 32
Thames, Coaches driven over it, p. 36
Thaw, the Description of one, p. 38
Thursday, by what Observations to know it, p. 39
Titian, p. 44
Trivia invok’d as Cynthia, p. 53
Turnstiles, p. 60
Tragedies, their Fate, p. 80

V. Umbrella,

V

Umbrella, its Use, p. 14
Vulcan in Love with a Milkmaid, p. 16
— Advice to him, ibid.
Venice, the Streets of it, p. 7
Vaults, an Observation upon them, p. 12
Vulcan metamorphos’d to a Country Farrier, p. 17
— The Inventor of Hob-Nails and Sparables, p. 18
— The Inventor of Pattens, ibid.
Upholder, where he frequents, p. 43

W.

Winter, the beginning of it described, p. 3
Witney Broadcloath proper for Horsemen, p. 4
Wig compared to Alecto’s Snakes, p. 14
— To Glaucus’ Beard, ibid.
— What to be worn in a Mist, p. 9
Waterman, judicious in the Weather, p. 11
Winds whistling, what they foretell, p. 12
Wall, to whom to be given, p. 24
— To whom to be deny’d, p. 25
Way, of whom to be enquired, ibid.
Watling-Street, p. 29
Walkers inadvertent, to what Misfortunes liable, p. 31
Wits, a Caution to them, p. 32
Walker distress’d by a Foot-Ball, p. 35
Watermen, their Dominion invaded, p. 36
Wednesday, how to know it, p. 40
Walkers, their Happiness, p. 45
— Free from Diseases, ibid.

Water,

Water, the Danger of being upon it, p. 46
Walking advantageous to Learning, p. 48
Women, the ill Consequence of gazing on them, p. 60
Wheel-barrows, how they prejudice Walkers, p. 61
Whore, how to know one, p. 70
Watchmen, the Method of treating with them, p. 73
— Their Signal to their Fellows, ibid.
— What to do, if taken by them, p. 74
Wall, when to keep it, p. 66

Y

Yeoman, a dreadful Story of one, p. 72

TRIVIA:OR, THEART of WALKINGTHEStreets of London.

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ERRATA.

TRIVIA.

BOOK I

Of the Implements for walking the Streets, and Signs of the Weather.

TRIVIA.

BOOK II.

Of Walking the Streets by Day.

TRIVIA.

BOOK III.

Of Walking the Streets by Night.

INDEX.

B

C

C

D.

E.

F.

G.

H.

I.

K.

L.

M.

N.

P.

R.

S.

T.

V

W.

Y

TRIVIA:
OR, THE
ART of WALKING
THE
Streets of London.

Of the Implements for walking the Streets, and
Signs of the Weather.