a fortnight
before; since which time it had the perpetual possession of his mind and
thoughts, and he did verily believe was the true natural cause of his
present distemper: For, said he, I am thoroughly persuaded, and I think
I have very good reasons, that Mr. Bickerstaff spoke altogether by
guess, and knew no more what will happen this year than I did myself.
I told him his discourse surprized me; and I would be glad he were in a
state of health to be able to tell me what reason he had to be convinc'd
of Mr. Bickerstaff's ignorance. He reply'd, I am a poor ignorant fellow,
bred to a mean trade, yet I have sense enough to know that all pretences
of foretelling by astrology are deceits, for this manifest reason,
because the wise and the learned, who can only know whether there be any
truth in this science, do all unanimously agree to laugh at and despise
it; and none but the poor ignorant vulgar give it any credit, and that
only upon the word of such silly wretches as I and my fellows, who can
hardly write or read. I then asked him why he had not calculated his
own nativity, to see whether it agreed with Bickerstaff's prediction? at
which he shook his head, and said, Oh! sir, this is no time for jesting,
but for repenting those fooleries, as I do now from the very bottom of
my heart. By what I can gather from you, said I, the observations and
predictions you printed, with your almanacks, were mere impositions on
the people. He reply'd, if it were otherwise I should have the less
to answer for. We have a common form for all those things, as to
foretelling the weather, we never meddle with that, but leave it to the
printer, who takes it out of any old almanack, as he thinks fit; the
rest was my own invention, to make my almanack sell, having a wife to
maintain, and no other way to get my bread; for mending old shoes is
a poor livelihood; and, (added he, sighing) I wish I may not have done
more mischief by my physick than my astrology; tho' I had some good
receipts from my grandmother, and my own compositions were such as I
thought could at least do no hurt.

I had some other discourse with him, which now I cannot call to mind;
and I fear I have already tired your Lordship. I shall only add one
circumstance, That on his death-bed he declared himself a Nonconformist,
and had a fanatick preacher to be his spiritual guide. After half an
hour's conversation I took my leave, being half stifled by the closeness
of the room. I i