r sex, and as some say,
who are more skilful in the like affairs than myself, of good profit to
the commonwealth.

Now began the native spleen of Oceana to be much purged, and men not to
affect sullenness and pedantism. The elders could remember that they had
been youths. Wit and gallantry were so far from being thought crimes in
themselves, that care was taken to preserve their innocence. For which
cause it was proposed to the Council for Religion by the Right Honorable
Cadiscus de Clero, in the tribe of Stamnum, first censor, that such
women as, living in gallantry and view about the town, were of evil
fame, and could not show that they were maintained by their own estates
or industry, or such as, having estates of their own, were yet wasteful
in 'their way of life, and of ill-example to others, should be obnoxious
to the animadversion of the Council of Religion, or of the censors: in
which the proceeding should be after this manner. Notice should be first
given of the scandal to the party offending, in private: if there were
no amendment within the space of six months, she should be summoned
and rebuked before the said Council or censors; and, if after other six
months it were found that neither this availed, she should be censored
not to appear at any public meetings, games, or recreations, upon
penalty of being taken up by the doorkeepers or guards of the Senate,
and by them to be detained, till for every such offence L5 were duly
paid for her enlargement.

Furthermore, if any common strumpet should be found or any scurrility
or profaneness represented at either of the theatres, the prelates for
every such offence should be fined L20 by the said Council, and the
poet, for every such offence on his part, should be whipped. This law
relates to another, which was also enacted the same year upon this
occasion.

The youth and wits of the Academy having put the business so home in the
defence of comedies that the provosts had nothing but the consequences
provided against by the foregoing law to object, prevailed so far that
two of the provosts of the Council of State joined in a proposition,
which after much ado came to a law, whereby L100,000 was allotted for
the building of two theatres on each side of the piazza of the halo: and
two annual magistrates called prelates, chosen out of the knights,
were added to the tropic, the one called the prelate of the buskin,
for inspection of the tragic scene called Melpomene; a