THE EDITOR TO THE READER.

 Clown. ‘List ye now, friend—let’s hear what this fellow would be saying.’

Sneer¹. ‘God’s blessing²! man—d’ye believe any of his feather?’

Farquhar.

Gentle Reader,—

As I am about to have some little converse³ with thee, I cannot pass this first bright page of our Magazine, without a greeting word, and a ‘God’s benison⁴’ on our acquaintanceship. Good fellowship and kind wishes betwixt man and man, should first be established. I have ever held this to be one of the little items that go towards making up the sum of human happiness; and as we ourselves cannot justly lay claim to that which we deny to others, and as I would at any sacrifice purchase thy good will, I must needs as a matter of course tell thee, how much I wish for thy prosperity. I cannot flatter thee, gentle reader, (and a wise man will not be flattered into fellowship,) else I should tell thee how much I respect thy good taste and sagacity, on all the delicate matters of nice criticism. I should tell thee, how anxious I am to please thee—how patiently I shall think—write and rewrite—polish and repolish—roam here and every where, culling⁶ the sweetest plants and blossoms I can find—only to suit thee; and make a melancholy⁷ hour, if any such thou hast, less painful; and if thou art troubled with misanthropy, bring thee back into peace with self and harmony with those around thee. I should tell thee, how patiently I shall submit to the opinions of others—receive their strictures—transpose and re-transpose—twist and re-twist some of my sentences—for fear they may not accomplish the object whereunto I send them, viz. thy pleasure and profit; and how, in more than one instance, I hope even to sacrifice my own taste, lest unhappily it come in contact with thine. I should tell thee, how I shall repeatedly twitch⁸ at my purse strings,2 and with no miserly hand—and how, when unfortunately some inaccuracies slip into a page, I shall cast the same aside and give it a reprint, that nothing may offend the nicety of thine observation. But I cannot flatter thee—therefore these things shall all remain in oblivion.

* The reader will please suppose himself conversing⁹ with the Editors of this Magazine, ‘rolled into one.’

Modesty¹⁰ does not permit me to speak largely of my deserts, gentle reader, (though we Editors—that means me—are excepted and a degree of favor, an egotistical licence, is sometimes extended to us,) else I should acquaint thee with some of my excellences¹¹. I should tell thee, how much I mourn the wicked independency which may characterize my speculations¹²; and the silly egoisms which may disfigure my otherwise beautiful compositions. I should tell thee, how much I mourn over the badness of my style, so contrary to etiquette¹³, and sometimes so outrageously¹⁴ fantastical; and the vile¹⁵ spirit of satire¹⁶, which now and then perhaps, may be found in them. I should tell thee, how much I mourn over (what you may think) my inaccuracies of taste, thought, and expression; and the vulgarisms, which, in spite of me, may creep into them; though, indeed, vulgarisms are less exceptionable of late, since the delicate (detestable—beg pardon!) Fanny Kemble pottered in them. I should tell thee, how much I mourn over my infallibility, as now established on the Editorial throne—that, as Editor, I can never be in the wrong—that I can never do or say a silly thing—that I can never criticise¹⁷, but with the sagacity of Wisdom’s self—that I can never be called into judgment¹⁸ by any one who honors himself by reading my papers—and that I shall feel my independence, shall act from it, and always disregard every thing that barks or brays¹⁹, and meet meddlers with the cartel—I am your servant, but I will not bear your dictation. But, as I am very modest, these things shall all remain in oblivion.

Would you believe it, gentle reader, I sometimes find me endeavoring to fashion to myself, who and what thou art? ’Tis a truth though—and pray tell me now, who art thou? Art thou one who is ever looking on the dark side of poor humanity—one ever neglecting the beautiful truth, that thy being is necessary to the happiness of the world—one unconscious of the fact, that thou art an item in the great economy of human action—and one ever searching for, and caviling at, the wants and weaknesses of thy fellow men? I think thou wilt²⁰ find something congenial in the work I proffer²¹ thee.

Again—art thou the reverse of this—one ever choosing the bright side, ever giving the light and fairer traits of human character thine admiration—one ever looking abroad on the earth with a deep spiritual eye—to whom nature is familiar—to whom the winds, and woods, and waters are companions—one to whom the breathings of spring, the twitter of birds, the voices of infancy²² are a melody—one ever sending out thy fancy for imaginary bliss²³, exploring amid the3 haunts of evil for good, and tracing out the sweet attractivenesses of virtue²⁴? Thou too, I think, wilt find something pleasant and profitable, in the medley²⁵ I lay before thee; and to thee I commend it with a hearty²⁶ good will, trusting that thou wilt be content to pass the evil for the sake of the better, and give the writer here a kind wish for his labor²⁷ in your behalf.

Again—for our poets (for poets we must have, and I must defend them) let me ask, art thou one of those who look upon poetry, and the mystic profession of the poets, with contempt—one carrying a wise man’s wig²⁸ on a fool’s crown—one talking of what thou hast not sense to understand—a child grasping at air? ‘Wert thou,’ in the quaint⁵, yet rich language of Sir Philip Sidney, ‘born so near the dull-making cataract²⁹ of Nilus, that you cannot hear the planet-like music of poetry; have you so earth-creeping a mind, that it cannot lift itself up to look at the sky of poetry, or rather, by a certain rustical disdain³⁰, will become such a mome as to be a Momus of poetry?’ If thou wert, take then, in his words, my hearty anathema—‘Though I will not wish unto you the ass’s ears of Midas, nor to be driven by a poet’s verses, as Bubonax was, to hang himself; nor to be rhymed to death, as is said to be done in Ireland; yet thus much curse I must send you, in the behalf of all poets; that while you live, you live in love, and never get favor, for lacking skill of a sonnet³¹; and when you die, your memory die from the earth, for want of an epitaph.’

Again—art thou a bright and gentle one—full of the rich life and soul of poetry—taking every thing in its first aspect—and ready to launch thy little barque on the stream of life? Ah! it is for such as thee I write. And yet, I tremble for thee, thou Peri, slight in thy person, pale, yet beautiful, glossy³² hair, and eyes as bright as Love ever looked on, and shrinking in thy native timidity as at the shadow of thine own happiness! ’Tis painful to look at thee, so young, so beautiful—knowing that thou must one day cast thine all—thy dreams—thy high hopes—thine innocent feelings—thy depths of woman’s tenderness into the hands of another—to hang upon him—to look to him for hope, for council, for happiness! It pains me to think of what a world this is; to think of the hazard thou must ever run of losing thy bliss, and of being dashed on some of the hidden shoals that lurk³³ beneath the current of human felicity; to think of detraction³⁴, and the thousand calumnies³⁵ that may be aimed at the purity of that breast, which seems too innocent even to suspect harm! But—softly, softly—where the deuce am I running?

Finally—whatever be thy disposition³⁶, gentle reader, whether thou be critic or no critic, misanthrope³⁷ or no misanthrope, fool or wise man—whether thou be sneering³⁸ and cynical³⁹, or young and buoyant—whether thou be a phlegmatic⁴⁰ old proser, and a doughty⁴¹ advocate of mustified knowledge, or one not altogether too wise, and one that can be delighted with the more delicate blossoms of literature;—I4 trust at least, thou art willing to be pleased; and that thou thinkest a hearty laugh at times, is no sacrilege. Now I give thee leave to laugh at me or about me, just as shall seem good to thee—only make thyself happy. I give thee leave to curse my work and all of my fraternity, from the days of—I know not who, down to those of old Kit⁴² North himself; and pour out thine honest indignation against our Eleusinian mysteries (for such they are, and thou wilt never understand them, especially if thou be blessed with a stock of modern dullness,) and to hold us all in the most righteous contempt;—this thou may’st do—only make thyself happy. I give thee leave to call me (thy humble⁴³ servant,) conceited⁴⁴, because I dare to think—presumptuous, because I dare to print—impudent, because I present thee my speculations—only make thyself happy. In short, thou may’st do any thing, only pleasure thyself;—be thou thus employed, and I am content.

And now, gentle reader, as I have given thee thus much—as I have made not the least reservation—as I have given thee permission to be happy, and in thine own way, and that too, without the least regard to my feelings—pray grant me in return, a simple privilege. Permit me sometimes in memory, to think upon the pleasant ramble⁴⁵ we may have together—to think of its green and sunny spots, as well as its dark ones—of its pleasant, as well as disagreeable windings—and to enjoy the sweet consciousness of having sought to contribute to thine, a fellow creature’s happiness.

‘GOD’S BENISON BE ON YE.’

1 sneer   

v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语

参考例句：

• He said with a sneer.他的话中带有嘲笑之意。
• You may sneer,but a lot of people like this kind of music.你可以嗤之以鼻，但很多人喜欢这种音乐。

2 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

3 converse   

vi.谈话，谈天，闲聊；adv.相反的，相反

参考例句：

• He can converse in three languages.他可以用3种语言谈话。
• I wanted to appear friendly and approachable but I think I gave the converse impression.我想显得友好、平易近人些,却发觉给人的印象恰恰相反。

4 benison   

n.祝福

参考例句：

• Here,I,on behalf of our manager,express our sincere benison.在此，我仅代表我们总经理，表达我们诚挚的祝福。
• You hurt me a lot,so forget to get my benison for your marriage.你伤我太深，所以休想得到我对你的婚姻的祝福。

5 quaint   

adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的

参考例句：

• There were many small lanes in the quaint village.在这古香古色的村庄里，有很多小巷。
• They still keep some quaint old customs.他们仍然保留着一些稀奇古怪的旧风俗。

6 culling   

n.选择，大批物品中剔出劣质货v.挑选，剔除( cull的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The mathematicians turned to culling periodic solutions. 数学家们转而去挑选周期解。 来自辞典例句
• It took us a week to find you, a week of culling out prejudice and hatred. 我们花了一个星期的时间找到你们，把偏见和憎恨剔除出去。 来自演讲部分

7 melancholy   

n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。
• He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

8 twitch   

v.急拉，抽动，痉挛，抽搐；n.扯，阵痛，痉挛

参考例句：

• The smell made my dog's nose twitch.那股气味使我的狗的鼻子抽动着。
• I felt a twitch at my sleeve.我觉得有人扯了一下我的袖子。

9 conversing   

v.交谈，谈话( converse的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I find that conversing with her is quite difficult. 和她交谈实在很困难。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They were conversing in the parlor. 他们正在客厅谈话。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

10 modesty   

n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素

参考例句：

• Industry and modesty are the chief factors of his success.勤奋和谦虚是他成功的主要因素。
• As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后，谦虚使人进步。

11 excellences   

n.卓越( excellence的名词复数 )；（只用于所修饰的名词后）杰出的；卓越的；出类拔萃的

参考例句：

• Excellences do not depend on a single man's pleasure. 某人某物是否优异不取决于一人的好恶。 来自互联网
• They do not recognize her many excellences. 他们无视她的各种长处。 来自互联网

12 speculations   

n.投机买卖( speculation的名词复数 )；思考；投机活动；推断

参考例句：

• Your speculations were all quite close to the truth. 你的揣测都很接近于事实。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• This possibility gives rise to interesting speculations. 这种可能性引起了有趣的推测。 来自《用法词典》

13 etiquette   

n.礼仪，礼节；规矩

参考例句：

• The rules of etiquette are not so strict nowadays.如今的礼仪规则已不那么严格了。
• According to etiquette,you should stand up to meet a guest.按照礼节你应该站起来接待客人。

14 outrageously   

凶残地； 肆无忌惮地； 令人不能容忍地； 不寻常地

参考例句：

• Leila kept smiling her outrageously cute smile. 莱拉脸上始终挂着非常可爱的笑容。
• He flirts outrageously. 他肆无忌惮地调情。

15 vile   

adj.卑鄙的，可耻的，邪恶的；坏透的

参考例句：

• Who could have carried out such a vile attack?会是谁发起这么卑鄙的攻击呢？
• Her talk was full of vile curses.她的话里充满着恶毒的咒骂。

16 satire   

n.讽刺，讽刺文学，讽刺作品

参考例句：

• The movie is a clever satire on the advertising industry.那部影片是关于广告业的一部巧妙的讽刺作品。
• Satire is often a form of protest against injustice.讽刺往往是一种对不公正的抗议形式。

17 criticise   

v.批评，评论；非难

参考例句：

• Right and left have much cause to criticise government.左翼和右翼有很多理由批评政府。
• It is not your place to criticise or suggest improvements!提出批评或给予改进建议并不是你的责任！

18 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

19 brays   

n.驴叫声，似驴叫的声音( bray的名词复数 )；（喇叭的）嘟嘟声v.发出驴叫似的声音( bray的第三人称单数 )；发嘟嘟声；粗声粗气地讲话（或大笑）；猛击

参考例句：

• Then he quieted down and let out some happy brays. 接着，他安静下来，还快乐地放声嘶叫。 来自互联网
• IF a donkey brays at you, don't bray at him. 驴子向你嘶叫，你可别也向它嘶叫。 来自互联网

20 wilt   

v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎；(指人)疲倦，衰弱

参考例句：

• Golden roses do not wilt and will never need to be watered.金色的玫瑰不枯萎绝也不需要浇水。
• Several sleepless nights made him wilt.数个不眠之夜使他憔悴。

21 proffer   

v.献出，赠送；n.提议，建议

参考例句：

• He rose and proffered a silver box full of cigarettes.他站起身，伸手递过一个装满香烟的银盒子。
• I proffer to lend him one.我表示愿意借他一个。

22 infancy   

n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期

参考例句：

• He came to England in his infancy.他幼年时期来到英国。
• Their research is only in its infancy.他们的研究处于初级阶段。

23 bliss   

n.狂喜，福佑，天赐的福

参考例句：

• It's sheer bliss to be able to spend the day in bed.整天都可以躺在床上真是幸福。
• He's in bliss that he's won the Nobel Prize.他非常高兴，因为获得了诺贝尔奖金。

24 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

25 medley   

n.混合

参考例句：

• Today's sports meeting doesn't seem to include medley relay swimming.现在的运动会好象还没有混合接力泳这个比赛项目。
• China won the Men's 200 metres Individual Medley.中国赢得了男子200米个人混合泳比赛。

26 hearty   

adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的

参考例句：

• After work they made a hearty meal in the worker's canteen.工作完了，他们在工人食堂饱餐了一顿。
• We accorded him a hearty welcome.我们给他热忱的欢迎。

27 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

28 wig   

n.假发

参考例句：

• The actress wore a black wig over her blond hair.那个女演员戴一顶黑色假发罩住自己的金黄色头发。
• He disguised himself with a wig and false beard.他用假发和假胡须来乔装。

29 cataract   

n.大瀑布，奔流，洪水，白内障

参考例句：

• He is an elderly gentleman who had had a cataract operation.他是一位曾经动过白内障手术的老人。
• The way is blocked by the tall cataract.高悬的大瀑布挡住了去路。

30 disdain   

n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑

参考例句：

• Some people disdain labour.有些人轻视劳动。
• A great man should disdain flatterers.伟大的人物应鄙视献媚者。

31 sonnet   

n.十四行诗

参考例句：

• The composer set a sonnet to music.作曲家为一首十四行诗谱了曲。
• He wrote a sonnet to his beloved.他写了一首十四行诗，献给他心爱的人。

32 glossy   

adj.平滑的；有光泽的

参考例句：

• I like these glossy spots.我喜欢这些闪闪发光的花点。
• She had glossy black hair.她长着乌黑发亮的头发。

33 lurk   

n.潜伏，潜行；v.潜藏，潜伏，埋伏

参考例句：

• Dangers lurk in the path of wilderness.在这条荒野的小路上隐伏着危险。
• He thought he saw someone lurking above the chamber during the address.他觉得自己看见有人在演讲时潜藏在会议厅顶上。

34 detraction   

n.减损；诽谤

参考例句：

• Envy has no other quality But that of detraction from virtue.嫉妒除了损坏美德外，别无可取之处。
• Faced with such detraction,scientists characteristically retort that science,unlike witchcraft,works.面对诋毁，科学家们出于天性给予反驳，宣称科学不是巫术，确实有效。

35 calumnies   

n.诬蔑，诽谤，中伤（的话）( calumny的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He doesn't care about scandals, slanders, calumnies, aspersions, or defamation. 他不在乎流言蜚语，诽谤，中伤，造谣，诬蔑。 来自互联网
• Spreading rumors and calumnies and plotting riots. 造谣诽谤，策动骚乱。 来自互联网

36 disposition   

n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署

参考例句：

• He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
• He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

37 misanthrope   

n.恨人类的人；厌世者

参考例句：

• While not a commercial success-a pattern largely unbroken until I'm Your Man-this lackadaisical triumph is an inspiration to the misanthrope in us all. 尽管并不是一个商业上的成功，这一模式直到《我是你的男人》才被打破。 这个漫不经心的胜利是对独来独往的我们的一个激励。
• If this all strikes you as fancy, handlebar moustache talk from an old misanthrope who doesn't get things like whatever the hell we're calling “conversations” this week, maybe you're on to something. 如果你觉得我所说的复杂，就像我们今周所说的一个守旧的不愿与他人来往的人在自言自语，那可能你准备做其他事。

38 sneering   

嘲笑的，轻蔑的

参考例句：

• "What are you sneering at?" “你冷笑什么？” 来自子夜部分
• The old sorceress slunk in with a sneering smile. 老女巫鬼鬼崇崇地走进来，冷冷一笑。

39 cynical   

adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的

参考例句：

• The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
• He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。

40 phlegmatic   

adj.冷静的，冷淡的，冷漠的，无活力的

参考例句：

• Commuting in the rush-hour requires a phlegmatic temperament.在上下班交通高峰期间乘坐通勤车要有安之若素的心境。
• The british character is often said to be phlegmatic.英国人的性格常说成是冷漠的。

41 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

42 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

43 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

44 conceited   

adj.自负的，骄傲自满的

参考例句：

• He could not bear that they should be so conceited.他们这样自高自大他受不了。
• I'm not as conceited as so many people seem to think.我不像很多人认为的那么自负。

45 ramble   

v.漫步，漫谈，漫游；n.漫步，闲谈，蔓延

参考例句：

• This is the best season for a ramble in the suburbs.这是去郊区漫游的最好季节。
• I like to ramble about the street after work.我下班后在街上漫步。