at all?—If I have not, I am a fool for staying here. It is a fmoky house, and the fooner out of it the better. But why no intereft? can I be contented with none, but one feparate and detached?-Is a focial interest joined with others fuch an absurdity, as not to be admitted? The bee, the beaver, and tribes of herding animals, are enough to convince me, that the thing is, fomewhat at least, poffible.

4. How then am I affured, that it is not equally true of man? Admit it; and what follows? If fo, then honour and juftice are my intereft; then the whole train of moral virtues is my intereft; without fome portion of which, not even thieves can maintain society.

5. But further ftill-I ftop not here--I purfue this focial intereft, as far as I can trace my feveral relations. I pass from my own stock, my own neighbourhood, my own nation, to the whole race of mankind, difperfed throughout the earth-Am I not related to them all, by the mutual aids of commerce? by the general intercourfe of arts and letters? by that common nature, of which we all partici pate? Again I must have food and clothing; without a genial warmth, I muft inftantly perifh. Am not related, in this view, to the very earth itfelf; to the diftant fun, from whofe beams I derive vigour? To that ftupendous courfe and order of the infinite host of heaven, by which the times and feafons ever uniformly pafs on? Were this order once confounded, I could not probably furvive a moment; fo abfolutely do I depend on this common wel fare.

6. What then have I to do, but to enlarge virtue into piety? Not only honour and juflice, and what I owe to man, is my intereft; but gratitude alfo, acquiefcence, refignation, adoration, and all I owe to this great polity, and its greater Governor, our common Parent.

7. But if all thefe moral and divine habits be my intereft, I need not- furely feek for a better. I have an interest compatible with the fpot on which I live; I have an intereft which may exift, without altering the plan of Providence; without mending or marring the general order of events. I can bear whatever happens with man. like magnanimity; can be contented, and feel happy in

D

the good which I poffefs; and can pass through this turbid, this fickle, fleeting period without bewailings, envyings, murmurings, or complaints.

I.

"D

CHAPTER X.

SENSIBILITY. (1)

EAR fenfibility! Source inexhauflible of all that is precious in our joys, or coftly in our forrows! Thou chaineft thy martyr down upon his bed of straw, and it is thou who lifteft him up to heaven!

2. Eternal fountain of our feelings! It is here I trace thee, and this is thy divinity which stirs within me; not, that in fome fad and fickening moments, "my foul fhrinks back upon herself and ftartles at deftruction"-mere pomp of words! But that I feel fome generous joys and generous cares beyond myfelf-all comes from thee, great, great ferforium of the world! which vibrates, if a hair of our head but falls upon the ground, in the remoteft defert of thy creation.

3. Touched by thee, Eugenius draws my curtain when I languifh; hears the tale of my fymptoms, and blames the weather for the diforder of his nerves. Thou givest a por. tion of it fometimes to the rougheft peafant, who traverses the bleakeft mountains-he finds the lacerated lamb of an. other's flock.

4. This moment I beheld him leaning with his head against his crook, with piteous inclination looking down upon it.-O! had I come one moment fooner!-it bleeds to death! his gentle heart bleeds with it! Peace to thee, generous fwain! I fee thou walkeft off with anguifh; but thy joys fhall balance it: for happy is thy cottage, and happy is the fharer of it, and happy are the lambs which fport about you.

(1) See Rule V. page 17.

1.

∙A

CHAPTER XI.

ON CRITICISM.

ND how did Garrick fpeak the foliloquy last night? Oh, against all rule, my lord, moft ungrammatic. ally! Betwixt the fubftantive and adjective, which should agree together in number, cafe, and gender, he made a breach thus --stopping as if the point wanted fettling ; -and betwixt the nominative cafe, which your lordship knows, thould govern the verb, he fufpended his voice in the epilogue a dozen times, three feconds and three fifths by a top watch, my lord, each time.

2.

Admirable grammarian! But in fufpending his voice-was the fenfe fufpended likewife? Did no expreffion of attitude or countenance fill up the chaẩm ?-Was the eye filent? Did you narrowly look ?—I looked only at the ftop-watch, my lord.-Fxcellent obferver !

3. And what of this new book the whole world makes fuch a rout about? Oh! it is out of all plumb, my lord, quite an irregular thing! not one of the angles at the four corners was a right angle. I had my rule and compaffes, my lord, in my pocket.-Excellent critic!

4. And for the epic poem your lordship bid me look at ; upon taking the length, breadth, height, and depth of it, and trying them at home upon an exact fcale of Boffu's-it is out, my lord, in every one of its dimenfions !

5. Admirable connoiffeur!-And did you step in to take a look at the grand picture in your way back? it is a melancholy daub! my lord; not one principle of the pyramid in any one group! and what a price!for there is nothing of the colouring of Titian-The expreffion of Rubens the grace of Raphael-the learning of Pouffin-the airs of Guido- or the grand contour of Angelo!

6. Grant me patience, just heav'n!Of all the cants which are canted in this canting world-though the cant of hypocrites may be the worst, the cant of criticism is the moft tormenting!

7. I would walk fifty miles on fout, to kifs the hand of that man, whose generous heart will give up the reins of his imagination into his author's hands-be pleafed, he knows not why, and cares not wherefore.

CHAPTER XII.

DAVID'S LAMENTATION OVER SAUL AND JONATHAN. (1)

3.

IT

T came to pass on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul, with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head; and fo it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeifance. And David faid unto him, from whence comeft thou? And he faid unto him, out of the camp of Ifrael am I escaped.

2. And David said unto him, how went the matter? I pray thee, tell me. He answered, that the people are fled from the battle, and many of them alfo are fallen and dead, and Saul, and Jonathan, his fon, are dead alfo. And David faid unto the young man, who told him, how knowest thou that Saul, and Jonathan, his fon, be dead?

3. The young man that told him faid, as I happened by chance upon mount Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon his fpear; and lo, the chariots an horfemen followed hard after him. And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called after me; and I answered, here am I. And he faid unto me, Who art thou? And I answered him, I am an Amalekite. He faid unto me again, ftand, I pray thee, upon me, and flay me; for anguifh is come upon me, be. caufe my life is yet whole in me.

4. So I ftood upon him, and flew him, because I was fure that he could not live after he was fallen; and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither unto my lord.— Then David took hold on his clothes, and rent them, and likewife all the men that were with him. And they mourned, and wept, and fafted until even, før Saul, and for Jon. athan, his fon, and for the people of the Lord, and for the houfe of Ifrael; because they were fallen by the fword.

5. And David faid unto the young man, who told him, Whence art thou? And he anfwered, I am the fon of a franger, an Amalekite. And David faid unto him, How, waft thou not afraid to ftretch forth thine hand to destroy the Lord's anointed? And David called one of the young men, and faid, go near, and fall upon him. And he

(1) See Rule VII. page 20.

fmote him that he died. And David faid unto him, thy blood be upon thine head; for thy mouth bath tellified against thee, faying, I have flain the Lord's anointed.

6. And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul, and over Jonathan, his fon. (1) "The beauty of Ifrael is lain upon thy high places; how are the mighty fallen! Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon; left the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, left the daughters of the uncircumcifed triumph.

7. "Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain upon you, nor fields of offerings; for there the shield of the mighty was vilely caft away, the fhield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil. From the blood of the flain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the fword of Saul returned not empty. Ye daughters of Ifrael, weep over Saul, who clothed you in fcarlet, with other delights, who put on ornaments of gold upon your apparel.

8. "How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O, Jonathan, thou waft flain in thine high places. I am diftreffed for thee, my brother Jonathan; very pleasant haft thou been unto me; thy love to me was wonderful, paffing the love of women. How are the mighty fallen! and the weapons of war perished !”

1.

CHAPTER XIII.

INDUSTRY OF DEMOSTHENES.

had a

of speaking, and a very fhort breath; notwithtanding which, his periods were fo long, that he was often obliged to stop in the midft of them for refpiration. This occationed his being hiffed by the whole audience. As he withdrew, hanging down his head, and in the utmost con. fufion, Satyrus, one of the moft excellent actors of those times, who was his friend, met him; and having learnt from himself the caufe of his being so much dejected, he affured him that the evil was not without remedy, and that the cafe was not fo defperate as he imagined.

(1) See Rule VII. page 20.