five o’clock
Aspiring young ladies , who read flaming accounts of some ` fancy fair in high life , ' suddenly grow desperately charitable ; visions of admiration and matrimony float before their eyes ; some wonderfully meritorious institution , which , by the strangest accident in the world , has never been heard of before , is discovered to be in a languishing condition : Thomson 's great room , or Johnson 's nursery-ground , is forthwith engaged , and the aforesaid young ladies , from mere charity , exhibit themselves for three days , from twelve to four , for the small charge of one shilling per head ! With the exception of these classes of society , however , and a few weak and insignificant persons , we do not think the attempt at imitation to which we have alluded , prevails in any great degree . The different character of the recreations of different classes , has often afforded us amusement ; and we have chosen it for the subject of our present sketch , in the hope that it may possess some amusement for our readers . If the regular City man , who leaves Lloyd 's at five o'clock , and drives home to Hackney , Clapton , Stamford-hill , or elsewhere , can be said to have any daily recreation beyond his dinner , it is his garden . He never does anything to it with his own hands ; but he takes great pride in it notwithstanding ; and if you are desirous of paying your addresses to the youngest daughter , be sure to be in raptures with every flower and shrub it contains . If your poverty of expression compel you to make any distinction between the two , we would certainly recommend your bestowing more admiration on his garden than his wine . He always takes a walk round it , before he starts for town in the morning , and is particularly anxious that the fish-pond should be kept specially neat .