LONDON,April 26,O.S.1756.
MY DEAR FRIEND:As your journey to Paris approaches,and as that period will,one way or another,be of infinite consequence to you,my letters will henceforward be principally calculated for that meridian.You will be left there to your own discretion,instead of Mr.Harte's,and you will allow me,I am sure,to distrust a little the discretion of eighteen.You will find in the Academy a number of young fellows much less discreet than yourself.These will all be your acquaintances;but look about you first,and inquire into their respective characters,before you form any connections among them;and,'caeteris paribus',single out those of the most considerable rank and family.Show them a distinguishing attention;by which means you will get into their respective houses,and keep the best company.All those French young fellows are excessively 'etourdis';be upon your guard against scrapes and quarrels;have no corporal pleasantries with them,no 'jeux de mains',no 'coups de chambriere',which frequently bring on quarrels.
Be as lively as they,if you please,but at the same time be a little wiser than they.As to letters,you will find most of them ignorant;do not reproach them with that ignorance,nor make them feel your superiority.It is not their faults,they are all bred up for the army;but,on the other,hand,do not allow their ignorance and idleness to break in upon those morning hours which you may be able to allot to your serious,studies.No breakfastings with them,which consume a great deal of time;but tell them (not magisterially and sententiously)that you will read two or three hours in the morning,and that for the rest of the day you are very much at their service.Though,by the way,I hope you will keep wiser company in the evenings.
I must insist upon your never going to what is called the English coffee-house at Paris,which is the resort of all the scrub English,and also of the fugitive and attainted Scotch and Irish;party quarrels and drunken squabbles are very frequent there;and I do not know a more degrading place in all Paris.Coffee-houses and taverns are by no means creditable at Paris.Be cautiously upon your guard against the infinite number of fine-dressed and fine-spoken 'chevaliers d'industrie'and 'avanturiers'
which swarm at Paris:and keep everybody civilly at arm's length,of whose real character or rank you are not previously informed.Monsieur le Comte or Monsieur le Chevalier,in a handsome laced coat,'et tres bien mis',accosts you at the play,or some other public place;he conceives at first sight an infinite regard for you:he sees that you are a stranger of the first distinction;he offers you his services,and wishes nothing more ardently than to contribute,as far as may be in his little power,to procure you 'les agremens de Paris'.He is acquainted with some ladies of condition,'qui prefrent une petite societe agreable,et des petits soupers aimables d'honnetes gens,au tumulte et a la dissipation de Paris';and he will with the greatest pleasure imaginable have the honor of introducing you to those ladies of quality.Well,if you were to accept of this kind offer,and go with him,you would find 'au troisieme;a handsome,painted and p----d strumpet,in a tarnished silver or gold second-hand robe,playing a sham party at cards for livres,with three or four sharpers well dressed enough,and dignified by the titles of Marquis,Comte,and Chevalier.The lady receives you in the most polite and gracious manner,and with all those 'complimens de routine'which every French woman has equally.Though she loves retirement,and shuns 'le grande monde',yet she confesses herself obliged to the Marquis for having procured her so inestimable,so accomplished an acquaintance as yourself;but her concern is how to amuse you:for she never suffers play at her house for above a livre;if you can amuse yourself with that low play till supper,'a la bonne heure'.
