rom the Penalty of a
Wager, [1] and consequently made it unprofitable to attend them.
However, good Breeding obliges a Man to maintain the Figure of the
keenest Attention, the true Posture of which in a Coffee-house I take
to consist in leaning over a Table, with the Edge of it pressing hard
upon your Stomach; for the more Pain the Narration is received with,
the more gracious is your bending over: Besides that the Narrator
thinks you forget your Pain by the Pleasure of hearing him.

Fort _Knock_ has occasioned several very perplexed and inelegant Heats
and Animosities; and there was one t'other day in a Coffee-house where
I was, that took upon him to clear that Business to me, for he said he
was there. I knew him to be that sort of Man that had not strength of
Capacity to be inform'd of any thing that depended merely upon his
being an Eye-Witness, and therefore was fully satisfied he could give
me no Information, for the very same Reason he believed he could, for
he was there. However, I heard him with the same Greediness as
_Shakespear_ describes in the following Lines:

'I saw a Smith stand on his Hammer, thus,
With open Mouth swallowing a Taylor's News.'

I confess of late I have not been so much amazed at the Declaimers in
Coffee-houses as I formerly was, being satisfied that they expect to
be rewarded for their Vociferations. Of these Liars there are two
Sorts. The Genius of the first consists in much Impudence and a strong
Memory; the others have added to these Qualifications a good
Understanding and smooth Language. These therefore have only certain
Heads, which they are as eloquent upon as they can, and may be call'd
Embellishers; the others repeat only what they hear from others as
literally as their Parts or Zeal will permit, and are called Reciters.
Here was a Fellow in Town some Years ago, who used to divert himself
by telling a Lie at _Charing-Cross_ in the Morning at eight of [the]
Clock, and then following it through all Parts of the Town till eight
at Night; at which time he came to a Club of his Friends, and diverted
them with an Account what Censure it had at _Will's_ in
_Covent-Garden_, how dangerous it was believed to be at _Child's_, and
what Inference they drew from it with Relation to Stocks at
_Jonathan's_. I have had the Honour to travel with this Gentleman I
speak of in Search of one of his Falshoods; and have been p