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THE DEAD ASS.

ND this, faid he, putting the remains of a crust into his wallet-and this should have been thy portion, said he, hadft thou been alive to have shared. it with me. I thought by the accent, it had been an apostrophe to his child; but 'twas to his afs, and to the very afs we had seen dead on the road, which had occafioned La Fleur's misadventure. The man seemed to lament it much; and it inftantly brought into my mind Sancho's lamentation for his; but he did it with more true touches of nature.

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The mourner was fitting on a stone bench at the door, with the afs's pannel and its bridle on one fide, which he took up from time to time-then laid them down-look'd at them-and fhook his head. He then took his cruft of bread out of his wallet again, as if to eat it; held it fome time in his hand-then laid it upon the bit of his afs's bridle-look'd wistfully at the little arrangement he had made-and then gave a figh.

The fimplicity of his grief drew numbers about him, and La Fleur among the refl, whilst the horses were getting ready; as I continued fitting in the poft-chaife, I could fee and hear over their heads.

-He said he had come last from Spain, where he had been from the furthest borders of Franconia; and got fo far on his return home, when his afs died. Every one feemed defirous to know what bufinefs

had

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could have taken fo old and poor a man fo far a jour◄ ney from his own home.

It had pleased Heaven, he faid, to bless him with three fons, the finest lads in all Germany; but having in one week loft two of them by the small-pox, and the youngest falling ill of the fame distemper, he was afraid of being bereft of them all; and made a vow, if Heaven would not take him from him also, he would go in gratitude to St. Jago, in Spain.

When the mourner got thus far on his story, he ftopp'd to pay nature her tribute-and wept bitterly.

He faid Heaven had accepted the conditions, and that he had fet out from his cottage, with this poor creature, who had been a patient partner of his journey-that it had eat the fame bread with him all the way, and was unto him as a friend.

Every body who stood about, heard the poor fellow with concern-La Fleur offered him money-the mourner faid he did not want it-it was not the value of the afs-but the lofs of him.-The afs, he said, he was affured, loved him-and upon this, told them a long story of a mischance upon their paffage over the Pyrenean mountains, which had feparated them from each other three days: during which time the afs had fought him as much as he had fought the afs, and they had neither scarce eat or drank till they met.

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Thou haft one comfort, friend, said I, at least in the lots of the poor beaft; I'm fure thou hast been a merciful master to him.-Alas! faid the mourner, I thought fo when he was alive-but now he is dead, I

think otherwife.-I fear the weight of my felf and my afflictions together have been too much for him-they have shortened the poor creature's days, and I fear I have them to anfwer for.-Shame on the world! said I to myfelf-Did we love each other as this poor foul but lov'd his afstwould be fomething.

SENT. JOURNEY, p. 74.

HUMOURING IMMORAL APPETITES. THE humouring of certain appetites, where mo,

rality is not concerned, feems to be the means by which the Author of nature intended to sweeten this journey of life, and bear us up under the many fhocks and hard joftlings, which we are fure to meet with in our way. And a man might, with as much reason, muffle up himself against sunshine and fair weather, and at other times expose himself naked to the inclemencies of cold and rain, as debar himself of the innocent delights of his nature, for affected reserve and melancholy.

It is true, on the other hand, our paffions are apt to grow upon us by indulgence, and become exorbitan, if they are not kept under exact difcipline, that by way of caution and prevention, 'twere better, at certain times, to affect fome degree of needless reserve, than hazard any ill confequences from the other extreme.

SERM XXXVII. P. 13.

UNITY.

OOK into private life-behold how good and pleasant a thing it is to live together in unity;it is like the precious ointment poured upon the head of Aaron, that run down to his fkirts; importing that this balm of life is felt and enjoyed, not only by governors of kingdoms, but is derived down to the lowest rank of life, and tafted in the most private receffes ¡--all, from the king to the peasant, are refresh. ed with its bleflings, without which we can find no comfort in any thing this world can give.-It is this bleffing gives every one to fit quietly under his vine, and reap the fruits of his labour and industry :-in one word, which befpeaks who is the beftower of it-it is that only which keeps up the harmony and order of the world, and preferves every thing in it from ruin and confufion,

SERMON XLI. P. 203.

OPPOSITION.

HERE are fecret workings in human affairs,

THERE

which over-rule all human contrivance, and counterplot the wifeft of our counfels, in so strange and unexpected a manner, as to caft a damp upon our best fchemes and warmeft endeavours.

SERMON XXXIX. P. 170.

Captain Shandy's Juftification of his own Principles an Condu& in wishing to continue the War.

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Written to his Brother.

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AM not infenfible, brother Shandy, that when a man, whofe profeffion is arms, wifhes, as I have done, for war, it has an ill aspect to the world; and that, how juft and right foever his motives and intentions may be, he ftands in an uneafy pofture it vindicating himself from private views in doing it.

For this caufe, if a foldier is a prudent man, whic he may be, without being a jot the lefs brave, he wil be fure not to utter his wifh in the hearing of an ene my; for, fay what he will, an enemy will not believ him. He will be cautious of doing it even-to à friend, -left he may fuffer in his efteem:-But if his heart is overcharged, and a secret sigh for arms must have its vent, he will referve it for the ear of a brother, who knows his true character to the bottom, and what his true notions, difpofitions, and principles of honour are: What, I hope, I have been in all these, brother Shandy, would be unbecoming in me to fay; -much worse, I know, have I been than I ought,and fomething worse, perhaps, than I think: but fuch as I am, you, my dear brother Shandy, who have fuck'd the fame breafts with me,-and with whom I have been brought up from my cradle,-and from whofe knowledge, from the first hours of our boyi

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