[From the Literary Magazine, vol. ii. No. xiii. 1757.]


Our readers may, perhaps, remember, that we gave them a short account of
this book, with a letter, extracted from it, in November, 1756. The
author then sent us an injunction, to forbear his work, till a second
edition should appear: this prohibition was rather too magisterial; for
an author is no longer the sole master of a book, which he has given to
the publick; yet he has been punctually obeyed; we had no desire to
offend him; and, if his character may be estimated by his book, he is a
man whose failings may well be pardoned for his virtues.

The second edition is now sent into the world, corrected and enlarged,
and yielded up, by the author, to the attacks of criticism. But he shall
find in us, no malignity of censure. We wish, indeed, that, among other
corrections, he had submitted his pages to the inspection of a
grammarian, that the elegancies of one line might not have been
disgraced by the improprieties of another; but, with us, to mean well is
a degree of merit, which overbalances much greater errours than impurity
of style.

We have already given, in our collections, one of the letters, in which
Mr. Hanway endeavours to show, that the consumption of tea is injurious
to the interest of our country. We shall now endeavour to follow him,
regularly, through all his observations on this modern luxury; but, it
can scarcely be candid not to make a previous declaration, that he is to
expect little justice from the author of this extract, a hardened and
shameless tea-drinker, who has, for twenty years, diluted his meals with
only the infusion of this fascinating plant; whose kettle has scarcely
time to cool; who with tea amuses the evening, with tea solaces the