179^- Timothy Hair^ra'n. 95 



naked stalks. Immense swarms of insects suck oat 

 their vital sap ; and no sooner does a leaf appear 

 than a caterpillar siezes on it, warps it up like a gar- 

 ment around her, and soon consumes it. It is true 

 that a few insects sometimes are found attempting 

 to prey upon this plant of mine too ; but I have 

 people constantly upon the watch to brufh them ofF 

 with a feather. By this gentle kind of remedy we have 

 contrived to keep them under ; and though we never 

 can eradicate these insects entirely, we so diminifli 

 their power, that they do no material damage to the 

 plant : And if, at a time, a caterpillar fhould chance 

 to seize upon a leaf, it is soon discovered, and picked 

 off by hand, and singly destroyed. Under this mode 

 of management has our rose flouriflied for ages ; and 

 has at length attained the envied pre-eminence it 

 now enjoys : And though it, indeed, cannot boast of 

 perfection, yet by the same mode of management, 

 and the blefsing of heaven, we hope to be able to 

 make it attain a still higher degree of beauty. 



' Go elsewhere then, Mr Quack, and sell your 

 boasted wares. Britain is not the place for you to 

 succeed in.' 



Here ends, for the present, the lucubrations of 

 Timothy Hairbrain *. 



• The above remarks of our friend l/ai>irfli«, mnny will think, are 

 more plain rhan pleisiiig. And on rlie firs: glance, we were in somedoub: 

 whether the in'xrting of them might not g ve umbrigc to some of our 

 readers. But, on a second perusal, there seemed to be in good truth so 

 much gjoci humour, and so very little gall in every part of them, that ic 

 xemcd to be impofsible any one could be seriously displeased to see our 

 facetious corn spondnt making gamt of all who came in his way a! he pal- 

 Md along If afl^ ont (hould find himself dirposed to b* piqued at stciig 



