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diff --git a/43743-8.txt b/43743-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 543317b..0000000 --- a/43743-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6287 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Munster Village, by Mary Hamilton - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Munster Village - -Author: Mary Hamilton - -Release Date: September 16, 2013 [EBook #43743] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MUNSTER VILLAGE *** - - - - -Produced by Delphine Lettau, Norbert Müller and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - -Transcriber's Notes - -On page 122 there was duplicated text of about 28 lines, which has -been deleted. - -Variations in spelling, punctuation and hyphenation have been retained -except in obvious cases of typographical error (see list after text). - - - - - MUNSTER VILLAGE - - MARY HAMILTON - - - - - CONTENTS - - - Volume I 1 - - Volume II 65 - - - - - VOLUME I - - -Lord Munster devoted himself entirely to ambition: what has been said -of Cinna might be applied to him, _he had a head to contrive, a tongue -to persuade, and a hand to execute any mischief_. Weak people are only -wicked by halves; and whenever we hear of high and enormous crimes, we -may conclude that they proceeded from a power of soul, and a reach of -thought, that are altogether unusual. - -He stuck at nothing to accomplish his political plans; and his success -rendered him still more enterprising: But being at last refused a -favor from his Sovereign, he retired disgusted with the court, and -in vain sought that happiness in a retreat, which his crimes made it -impossible he should ever find. He was so chagrined that everything -became intolerable to him; and he continually vented his spleen on -those of his friends, whose circumstances rendered them subservient to -his caprices. He possessed good health, a large estate, and had fine -children, that equalled his most sanguine expectations. In the opinion -of the world, therefore, he was a _very happy man_, but in his own, -_quite the contrary_. No man can judge of the happiness or infelicity of -his neighbour. We only know the external causes of good and evil, which -causes are not always proportionable to their effects: those which seem -to us small, often occasion a strong sensation; and those which appear -to us great, often produce only a faint sensation. The great advantages -Lord Munster possessed, as they excited in him only indifference, -in reality were inconsiderable in themselves. But the small evil, -his having been refused a ribbon by his Sovereign, exciting in him -insupportable uneasiness, was in reality a great evil. Lady Munster -had been dead many years: Lord Finlay and Lady Frances were the only -surviving children. Engrossed as the earl had been in public affairs, he -still paid particular attention to their education. Though a man of the -world, he was at the utmost pains in selecting those of distinguished -worth, to whom only he committed the care of his children. Lord Finlay -had promising parts; but force of mind makes a man capable of great -vices or great virtues, but determines him to neither. - -Education, discipline, and accidents of life, constitute him -either a profound philosopher, or a great knave. The probity and -disinterestedness of Mr Burt's principles recommended him to Lord -Munster, for a tutor to his son.--He had been brought up to the -ministry, with an inclination to it, and entered into it with a fervent -desire of being as useful as he could. His education being all his -fortune, he subscribed, and took every step the church required, before -he was sufficiently acquainted with the doctrines subscribed to;--their -foundation in scripture, and the controversies which he afterwards found -had been raised, and carried on about them in the christian world: -and, after a diligent inquiry, was dissatisfied with some doctrines -established in our articles, liturgy, &c. and declined accepting a -considerable living in Lord Munster's gift, on which _alone_ he depended -for his future subsistence, and that of an amiable woman, whom he had -espoused upon these expectations. - -I heartily wish that all who are disposed for the ministry of the -church, were as careful to satisfy themselves about the lawfulness of -_conformity_, and that the church of England laid fewer obstructions -in the way of those who are both disposed and qualified for advancing -the interests of religion and virtue; but dare not engage publicly -in her service, for fear of violating the peace of their minds, and -wounding their consciences. In such a situation what must a clergyman -do? must he preach and maintain doctrines he disapproves of? this would -be acting both against his persuasion, and his solemn promise at his -ordination. Shall he preach or write against them? this he must not do -neither, lest he should be judged guilty of impugning his subscription, -and consequently incur the censures of the church. Shall he then be -quite silent, and neither preach nor write about them at all? but how -will this be consistent, with his other solemn promise, made likewise -at his ordination, _to be ready with all faithful diligence, to banish -and drive away all erroneous and strange doctrines_--all doctrines -which he _is persuaded_, are contrary to God's word? He must therefore -necessarily offend, either against the church, or against truth, and -his own conscience. A sad alternative! when a man can neither speak, -what he thinks to be truth, with _safety_, nor be silent without -_offence_. These considerations induced Mr Burt to refuse a proffered -establishment--by which conduct, he proved his belief in a _future -state_, more firmly than a great many of them appear to do, by their -immoderate desires of the good things _in this_: but his faith was -founded, not on the fallacious arguments of too many of his brethren; -but on that adorable conjunction of unbounded power and goodness, which -must certainly someway recompense so many thousand innocent wretches, -created to be so miserable here. He possessed that virtue in an eminent -degree, which the christians call humility, and which the ancients were -ignorant of.--But he had real merit, and could easily be modest, which -is almost impossible to those, who have only the affectation of it. -With this respectable man was Lord Finlay placed, at five years old, -when a considerable settlement was made on him, in compensation for -relinquishing other pursuits, with a promise of its beings continued for -life. Lord Munster from time to time examined his son, and was highly -satisfied with the progress he made; and not a little surprised, to find -him no way deficient in those accomplishments, which, though of less -consequence in themselves, a late noble author has illustrated as being -absolutely necessary, in compleating the character of a fine gentleman. -For these Lord Finlay was indebted to Captain Lewis, father-in-law to Mr -Burt. This old gentleman was of an antient family, and had retired from -the army, disgusted at his situation, having been many years in a very -subaltern station. - -The condition of many brave and experienced officers is to be lamented, -who, after having passed through many various dangers in the service -of their country, are subject to the command of boys and striplings. -Whilst stations, which should be the reward of martial virtues, can be -purchased, it is in vain to hope, that our officers can be animated like -those of a neighbouring nation. - -Honour alone can support the soldier in a day of battle; without this -invigorating principle, humanity will tremble at the sight of slaughter, -and every danger will be avoided, which necessity does not impose. - -Captain Lewis retained that dignity of sentiment, which no misfortunes -could surmount. Our hearts and understandings, are not subject to -the vicissitudes of fortune. We may have a noble soul though our -circumstances be circumscribed, and a superiority of mind without being -of the highest rank. He had been much among the _great world_, in the -early part of his life, having been _aide-de-camp_ to Lord S----. Upon -his daughter's marriage with Mr Burt, he resided entirely with him; and -though she died of her first child, he continued with him, and became -as fond of lord Finlay as his grand-daughter, who, after her mother's -decease, became the object of his tenderest affection. - -Thus were Lord Finlay and Miss Burt brought up together; and from the -time of her birth never separated until she was nine years old. At that -period she was sent to a convent at Paris, and returned, after six years -absence, highly accomplished; uniting in herself everything that could -charm a heart that was disengaged. - -The consequences to Lord Finlay were inevitable, though never suspected. -A student of about eighteen, full of the amours of Ovid, and the soft -odes in Horace, has a heart very susceptible of love. These sensations -were too agreeable to be repulsed; he delivered himself entirely over -to his passion, which absorbed every other faculty of his soul. The -most perfect affection soon subsisted between these young people: but -the dignity of Miss Burt's manners inspired her lover with such respect -as rendered him silent on the subject of his passion, as he could not -enforce it without his father's sanction. - -But there is an intelligence between tender souls, and the most animated -expression may be conveyed without the aid of words; and this dumb -language is so eloquent, that it is generally understood where the -heart is in unison. Friendship, indeed, was only spoke of; but their -every look, their every action, bespoke the most ardent love. 'What -transports,' (said he, one day to her) 'can friendship bestow! what -refined feelings, what delightful sensations, actuate the human soul in -such happy moments as these!' - -We contemplate each other in silence; but the soul is never more -eloquent than under the influence of such a silence. She expresses, in a -moment, a train of ideas and sensations, which would be but confounded -by utterance. - -Miss Burt had a merit the more engaging, from its avoiding notice and -parade: a refined genius, enriched with great knowledge and happy -expression, united with the most candid sincerity and goodness of heart; -these qualities entitled her to the esteem and friendship of every noble -mind: and the thick veil, under which her too great modesty concealed -her pre-eminence, exalted her in the penetrating eyes of her lover. She -scarce ever laid _this veil_ aside, except to him, whose approbation -rendered her indifferent with respect to the commendations of every one -else. He became every day more attached to her: and was so ignorant of -the world as to expect his father's approbation of his passion, and that -he would be propitious to it. - -Thus situated were the lovers, when Lord Munster disgusted with the -court retired to the country. He immediately sent for Mr Burt and Lord -Finlay: although the distance was only a few miles, it was very grievous -for the latter to leave a place where he had access every minute of the -day to behold the object of his wishes. - -Upon this occasion he was determined to disclose to her the situation of -his heart. He threw himself at her feet, in that pathetic disorder of -spirits which constitutes the true eloquence of love, and endeavoured to -speak, but hesitated at every word. In the mean time she saw and pitied -his confusion. - -'I can read,' said she, 'my lord,' with an air of frankness, 'the -sentiments of your heart: I am not insensible of your passion; but why -hath fortune placed us at so great a distance from each other? how -delightful it would have been to me, if--But,' said she, (stopping short -in her discourse) 'let us not flatter ourselves with chimeras.--Let us -suppress the emotions of our hearts; it may be dangerous to indulge -them.' - -'How? dangerous!' replied Lord Finlay, 'why suppress them? do not those -emotions constitute our happiness? It is the duty of love to repair -the injustice of fortune. How enraptured should I be to make happy the -object I love. Prejudice might object to it perhaps: but that shall -never enslave my understanding, especially as it must be founded only in -pride.' - -With these sentiments they parted. It may be easily conceived how -impatient Lord Finlay was to see the idol of his heart, but he could -not with propriety propose quitting his father, for the first days -after his arrival in the country. He at last fell upon the expedient of -suggesting, whether, as he was under such obligations to Captain Lewis, -it would not be proper to call, and invite him to Munster house. This -Lord Munster agreeing to, he and his son called one morning; when Miss -Burt entertaining them with a little music, the light-winged god took -one of the sharpest arrows from the fair-one's quiver, applied it to -his bow, and swift as the forked lightning of Jove, fixed it in the old -man's heart. Lord Munster became desperately in love, and determined to -make her his wife. It is not at all surprising that a young woman makes -an impression on an old man. While we have life we have our passions; -age _represses_, but does not _extinguish_ them. As in maturer years, -the fire lurks under the ashes of prudence; so, if that be wanting, love -burns up and blazes fiercely; and is generally inextinguishable, if it -takes hold of the dry and worm-eaten wood of old-age. Persons of languid -passions (it has been observed) have few partialities; they neither -love, nor hate, nor look, nor move, with the energy of a man of sense. -People of real genius, and strong passions, have great partialities. The -blamelessness of the former should be weighed with their insignificancy; -and the faults of the latter balanced with their superiority. - -Lord Munster made proposals to Mr Burt that very day, never doubting but -that Hymen would soon rekindle his _torch_.--But the same principles -determined him respecting his daughter, which had influenced him in -his own affairs. He thanked Lord Munster for the honor he intended -him, which he should acquaint her of--but that in an affair in which -her happiness for life was so immediately concerned, he must forgive -his interfering further. When he acquainted her with it; instead of -enforcing the acceptance of the honor proposed to her, he was at great -pains to precaution her, against many disagreeable consequences of such -an unequal alliance, both in age and condition, lest she should be -dazzled by wealth or titles, to sacrifice her inclinations! - -Miss Burt, with unfeigned concern, was greatly chagrined to hear of Lord -Munster's proposals: she, therefore, with great warmth, declared herself -totally unfit, for such an exalted station. 'I can neither,' said she, -'adopt the virtues, or the vices of the great: the former are too -conspicuous, the other too obscure. A round of peaceable employments, -proper to satisfy the mind, and to soothe the heart, is the kind of -happiness for which I find myself inclined.' - -'With such principles and inclinations, I could not be happy in the -great world, where the general way of life is solely calculated, to -flatter the senses, and where a superior genius is contemned, or at -least only permitted to exhibit itself in lively sallies, or smart -repartees.' - -Mr Burt informed the earl of his daughter's sentiments. But his -lordship's self-love prevailed so far as to render it impossible to -conceive that _he could be refused_. He, therefore, made preparations -for his nuptials, and sent for his daughter home to be present on that -occasion. Lord Munster had taken the same pains on Lady Frances's -education, as her brother's. Mrs Norden, a distant relation, had the -entire charge of her. She resided in London until Lady Frances was -fourteen years old: at that time she accompanied her to Rome, where she -had the best masters, and where Santerello improved her taste in music. -After remaining three years at Rome, they went to Paris, from which -they were just returned at the period above mentioned. Lord Munster was -greatly charmed, both with the personal, and acquired perfections of his -daughter: and professed himself much indebted to Mrs Norden, for the -very great attention she had paid to her. - -The day after Lady Frances's arrival, she went to Mr Burt's to pay her -respects to her intended mother-in-law. - -No servant happening to be in the way to announce her, she walked -forwards into a room, the door of which she saw open, with an intention -to ring the bell, when she found Miss Burt in her father's library, -weeping bitterly: never before had she seen such an air of languid -softness, mixed with so much beauty. What an affecting sight! She was -going to retire, to save her from that confusion which a sensible heart -is apt to feel at having its afflictions perceived by a stranger; but -the lovely mourner, observing her, endeavoured to suppress her emotions: -but her grief was too violent to be checked; and her tears burst forth -the more, for having been an instant subdued. She could only say, 'That -she could be no stranger to _who_ did her the honour of waiting on -her, from the likeness Lady Frances had to her brother.' The thoughts -of Lord Finlay then renewed her affliction; and asking pardon for her -rudeness, she again shed a torrent of tears. Lady Frances answered, -'That apologies were only due on her part, for breaking in upon her -retirement, and witnessing emotions she might have wished to conceal.' -After a few general things, she told her the pleasure it gave her of -having so near a prospect of being entitled to take an interest in all -her concerns; when she would be happy in her friendship. In this Lady -Frances was perfectly sincere; for though she had been alarmed at the -intended marriage taking place, and although she was of a very shy -disposition, yet, at first sight, feeling the greatest partiality for -Miss Burt, she echoed her sighs, and her eyes bore testimony of the -feelings of her heart. With all the confidence of an ancient friendship, -she conjured her to acquaint her with the cause of her sorrows; and -took upon her to console, soothe, and comfort her. Miss Burt had only -time to express the sense she entertained of her goodness, and to add, -her miseries were _too great_ to be _alleviated_; when her grand-father -entering the room, the conversation turned upon general topics. - -Upon Lady Frances's return home, her father gayly enquired, What she -thought of his intended bride? She answered, Every thing that was -charming; and that she had prepared for her an eternal habitation in the -warmest part of her heart: 'There is every thing in her,' added she, -'that can engage the affections, or command the respect, of people of -taste and judgment.' - -Lord Finlay mean while was under the greatest oppression of spirits. -A thousand conflicting passions tortured his (until then) undisturbed -bosom. Love and filial piety alternatively took possession of his -soul. Each in their turn was rejected.--When sentiments are nearly of -equal force, the soul, as if unsettled, and wavering between contrary -emotions, knows not which to resolve on; its decrees destroy each other; -scarce is it freed from its troubles when it is involved in them anew; -this undetermined state does not always terminate to the advantage of -the most powerful sentiment. - -After a long conflict, the soul wearied out with the efforts it has -made, gradually loses its sensibility and force together; and finally -yields to the last impression, which thus remains master of the field. -After many struggles, Lord Finlay was determined to sacrifice his -_inclinations_, or in other words, (what he thought, his life, to his -father.) - -This pious resolution, no doubt, was strengthened by his supposing Miss -Burt had acquiesced to the proposed marriage. His resentment supported -his prudence. Such was the situation of Lord Finlay's mind, when Lady -Frances received the following letter from Miss Burt. - - 'Madam, - - You found me in tears, and kindly insinuated your desire to mitigate - my distress; receive from me all the acknowledgments which can proceed - from a full heart, raised from the lowest distress, to a glimmering - prospect of avoiding misery, while that superior Power which witnesses - your generosity, will _reward it_. Thus, when unhappy, we grasp at - the least shadow of relief! we seize upon it with eagerness, and - in a moment raise ourselves above our afflictions. When an unhappy - drowning wretch is carried away by the current, while intimidated by - the steepness of the banks, and the rapidity of the torrent, he looks - upon death as inevitable; his sinews relax, his heart fails him, he - looks forward to an awful dreaded futurity: but if the least twig - presents its friendly assistance, his courage at last revives, he - raises his head, he seizes upon it with a hasty avidity, and makes a - sudden and violent effort to save himself from destruction. Such is my - application to your ladyship. Heaven grant you may avert from me those - evils I so much dread! even the horror of involving my respectable - parents _in want and misery_. My father's probity has entailed on - him poverty; and my grandfather's half-pay is our sole dependance, - exclusive of the salary Lord Munster settled on my respectable parent - when he undertook to superintend the education of his son; and which - he promised to continue for life, in compensation for his giving up - _all other pursuits_. I flatter myself, the frowardness of his unhappy - daughter will not frustrate his lordship's beneficence, and which he - judged his labours entitled him to. May I intreat your ladyship will - soften, through the medium of your influence, the refusal of the honor - intended me! - - _An attempt to deceive would wring my soul to torture_: Can I then - take upon me vows at the altar, incompatible with the feelings of - my heart, and the possibility of conforming myself to? forbid it, - gratitude, truth, and justice! let me sooner become a martyr to these, - as my unfortunate father. In every event of my life, integrity and - honor shall influence me. If my refusal is not founded upon the most - _advantageous_, yet it is upon the most _worthy_ terms: if that of - embracing _tranquility_ before _profit_, and preferring probity of - mind, even attended with the greatest inconveniences, before its - opposite, although surrounded with every outward accommodation, be - deserving of that epithet. I ask pardon for this intrusion, and have - the honor to be - - Your Ladyship's - Obliged humble servant, - MARY ANN BURT.' - -The little tenderness Lord Munster had ever shewn Lady Frances, the -impressions she entertained of the sourness of his disposition, and the -severity of his temper; all conspired to fill her with the greatest awe -and dread of his displeasure. It may then be easily judged how badly -qualified she was for the office enjoined her in the letter. To add to -her distress, her valuable friend Mrs Norden was absent, and she dared -not conceal the receipt of it until her return, as it was a subject that -admitted of no delay. - -She accordingly summoned up sufficient courage to take the letter in her -hand, and to present herself before her father; when her timidity and -confusion were sufficient vouchers of her unwillingness to be an agent -in such a disagreeable business. Her apprehensions were considerably -increased, when the earl asked her, in a harsh tone, _her business with -him_? Being unable to reply, and trembling from head to foot, she gave -him the letter--which he eagerly pursued, while he was alternately -agitated with indignation, pride, and confusion! He at length broke -into a great rage, loading Lady Frances with invectives, for having -innocently produced these emotions, adding, that he then discovered the -cause of her partiality for Miss Burt: but that if she, or Lord Finlay, -ever presumed, from that time forward, to hold any communication with -_the Burt family_, he should consider them as aliens _to his_! Where -friendship is reversed, and turned to enmity, the _latter_ is generally -as _extreme_, as the _former_ was _fervent_. If we were more regular -in _our affections_, we should be more moderate in _our aversions_, -and, without consulting our interest, should hate nothing but what is -really odious: but we are so unjust, that we judge only of things by -their relation to us; we approve of them when agreeable to us, and, by -a strange infatuation, do not esteem them as good or bad, but by the -satisfaction of disgust they give us: we would have them alter their -quality according to our caprices, and cameleon like, assume our -colours, and accommodate themselves to our desires. We fain would be the -center of the world, and have all creatures join with us in inclination. -Lord Munster was not only disappointed in his affections, but piqued in -pride, that, after he had by his intrigues led some of the first princes -in Europe, and made them subservient to his views, a little obscure -girl should render him the laughing-stock of the country. Lady Frances -retired, not daring to return him any answer. - -Lord Finlay met her, and, alarmed at her appearance, followed her into -her apartment, intreating to know the subject of the letters she had -received from Miss Burt! She informed him of it, and the disagreeable -task she had just executed; when his looks very soon (to one of her -penetration) betrayed the situation of his heart. He owned to Lady -Frances that his life depended on Miss Burt, their mutual affection, -and the violence he had done his inclinations, by the obligations he -had imposed on himself to subdue his passion whilst it interfered with -his father: but remarked with joy, that he was now relieved from such -a painful effort. 'The Almighty,' said he, 'my dear sister,' (for he -was in a state of mind which both inclined him to be wise and kind) -'implanted both reason and the passions in human nature, mutually to -conduce to men's happiness. But, in order to become a happy creature, -man is not blindly to follow the impulses of his passion to the -exclusion of reason: nor is he to contradict his natural desires but -when they invert the order of nature, and oppose the common good of -society, the dictates of right reason, and the manifest design of -Providence.--I have done what man could do,' added he; 'I did not -interfere when my father was concerned; but I will not relinquish the -object of my affections to any other man breathing.' This was Lord -Finlay's philosophy, which he strictly adhered to--Tremblingly alive -to his interest, Lady Frances told him the risque he would run of his -father's displeasure; but the impetuosity of his passion rendered -him deaf to her remonstrances; and, regardless of everything but its -gratification, he sat down and wrote the following letter to Miss Burt. - - 'Madam, - - The strict injunctions of my father, that all communication should - cease between our families, renders it necessary for me to _write_, - instead of _waiting_ on you in person. Alas, how poor a substitute is - the former for the latter! To express my sorrow, or paint my grief, - is impossible! Were you to know my distress, you would be sensible of - my sufferings, and compassionate my wretchedness! To be debarred from - the presence of your respectable parents, to whom I have a thousand - obligations, and for whom I feel the greatest respect and tenderest - regard, is a very great hardship: but to be prevented from beholding - you, is downright tyranny, and forces me to rebel! Could I see Mr - Burt, I would intreat him to pardon, what I am mortified to call the - injustice of my father, and assure him that nothing shall be wanting, - on my part, to soften, and bring him to reason. But I know too well - the inflexibility of his virtue, he will not see me contrary to the - inhibitions I have received. - - Permit me on my knees to intreat from you that favor I dare not - request from him! We may meet at--any day before seven in the morning. - My life depends on your answer! Let us at least enjoy the soothing - pleasure, the melancholy consolation of mingling griefs, and bearing a - part in each other's sorrows; satisfaction that even renders despair - itself more tolerable! Be persuaded there is nothing, not even my - father, that can divert my eye, my heart, or hand, from an opportunity - of expressing how much I am, with the greatest respect, - - Your devoted - Humble servant, - FINLAY' - -After dispatching the above letter, Lord Finlay spent his time, -fluctuating every moment between hope and despair, agitated with all -the pains of a solicitous suspence; but Miss Burt was too much attached -to him not to agree to his proposal, nor did her condescension at all -infringe on her delicacy.--She could not suppose that the good qualities -so distinguishable in her lover, and which had been so studiously -cultivated by _her father_, could be _only_ violated to the dishonor -of _his daughter_. Lord Finlay's passion was too ardent to submit to -prudence, and could not be long concealed: they met often, and remained -long together; time is easily forgot in the society of those we love--In -Cupid's dial, _hours_ are but _minutes_.--Their interviews were -discovered. - -Captain Lewis being informed of it, jealous of his honor, insisted -on Lord Finlay's instantly espousing his grand-daughter; who, loaded -with his reproaches, led away by his passion, and the fears of being -interdicted from steering her more--forgot every thing but the -justification of his honorable intentions. - -The indignation with which Lord Munster was seized when informed of this -marriage, is easier to be conceived than delineated. He swore he would -never see his son more, or contribute to his support! - -The passions are more easily excited in the young than in the old; in -women, as being of a frame more delicate than in men; in the poor and -distressed, than in the rich and fortunate, for prosperity hardens -the heart; in the illiterate than in the learned, because more prone -to admire; and for the same reason in those who have lived privately, -than in men of large experience; but when once fixed, are not so easily -eradicated as in the others. - -The indiscreet solicitations of a gentleman in the neighbourhood, served -only to exasperate him _the more_. A weak friend, if he will be kind, -ought to go no further than wishes: if he either says or does more, it -is _dangerous_. Good intentions are indispensable to constitute a good -man; but other adjuncts are necessary to form the man who interferes in -our behalf. An excellent cause has often suffered through an indifferent -advocate; and I once heard of a lawyer retained by his client, to _hold -his peace for him_. - -In consequence of Lord Munster's implacability, Lord and Lady Finlay -were involved in a variety of wretchedness, and most affecting distress; -under all which they bore up with becoming fortitude, and never departed -from that dignity of behaviour, which innate virtue, and conscious -innocence inspire; strengthened by true principles of religion, and -a rational trust in providence, tempered with genuine humility, and -unfeigned resignation to whatever fate should be alloted them. In every -action of their lives they had a view to each other: if they were -serious, or cheerful, amused or grieved, still by their sympathy and -love, every trifle made a pleasure, and every pleasure was heightened -into rapture, by their mutual participation of it. Their hearts exulted -with that joy which is built on the strong foundation of undissembled -tenderness. Happy it is for mortals, that grief is only an exotic in -the human breast--the soil does not naturally afford nutriment for its -constant growth. A perfect similarity of sentiment soon produced that -mutual happiness which arises from loving another better than one's -self: they were no longer anxious for events they could not direct, nor -tasted pain from the disappointment of their hopes. - -The half-pay of Captain Lewis, was the only ostensible support of his -unfortunate family, increased by the birth of several children: but -their income had been enlarged, by Mr Burt's literary productions. His -greatest enjoyment was in study--pleasures vary with each different age; -for God and nature never made any faculty, either in soul or body, but -he prepared a suitable object in order to its regular gratification. - -The follies of men of a certain age, on this account, have the -pre-eminence to all others, a ridiculous dignity, that gives them a -right _to be laughed at in the first place_. The phenomenon of feeling -amorous pursuits under grey hairs, may as much astonish us, as to see -those mountains whose top is covered with snow, and whose bowels abound -with flames. Mr Burt had a happy temper, formed on the principles of -Christian philosophy. Such was his cheerfulness, that none of the -accidents of life could discompose him; such his fortitude, that not -even the severest trials could unman him. He had a collected spirit, and -on no occasion wanted a resource. He could retire within himself, and -hold the world at defiance. - -His amiable daughter possessed also these qualities in an eminent -degree. Captain Lewis dying, their circumstances were reduced; but -Lady Finlay, by her ingenuity supplied the loss they sustained in his -half-pay. She had a fine genius for painting, and in that art did -wonders. By the sale only of a _Crucifixion_, and an _Arcadia_, she -maintained her family for two years. She concealed her name, lest she -should irritate Lord Munster more against her; but had too much good -sense to be ashamed of employing those talents, bestowed on her by -nature for _so natural a purpose_. And the hours that the _indolent_ -devote _to rest_, and the licentious to _pleasure_, she dedicate to -providing bread for her family. Good blood cannot be kept up, without -the shambles of the market, so it is no scandal to procure _that_ by -ingenuity or industry, when the appendages of gentility are so far -reduced as not to afford it otherwise. - -The picture called Arcadia, is in the possession of the Marquis of -P----. In it there is exhibited a view of the most delightful region, -with the grandest rural scenery in the world; and a romantic wildness -runs through the whole, which gives uncommon beauties to the piece. Her -happy fancy, and the prospects in the country (they had retired to Wales -for cheapness) supplied her with vales more charming than those of _Juan -Fernandez_, with lawns like those of _Tinian_, and finer water-falls -than those of _Quibo_. She copied the greatest beauties in nature, and -formed the finest imitations. The invention of the whole is extremely -pleasing; and has been applauded by all who have seen it, as a master -piece in the landscape way. - -Lady Finlay's health decreasing she could no longer _exert this -talent_; and the miserable situation to which her Lord was reduced, in -consequence of his attachment to her, afforded her constant uneasiness. -The griping hand of poverty, produced painful fears, and corroding -cares, while the anxiety of mind _each_ suffered for _the other_, -increased their _mutual calamity_. - -The death of two fine children at last entirely subdued Lady Finlay's -remaining spirits--She died in child-bed, (the infant surviving her -a few hours) leaving behind her only two children. It was then Lord -Finlay's cup of affliction was filled. He had reason to fear, the -deceased, dearest object of his tenderest affections, had perished for -want of proper assistance. _Assistance!_ their scanty circumstances -denied! If previous to this, when he perceived in her any marks of -sorrow, it was to him as if all nature had been eclipsed; what must have -been his sensations _then_? they were too great for humanity to support! -His reason forsook him; and the third day after her decease, he expired -in the delirium of madness. - -Nothing can give a better sense of the consideration man ought to have -of his latter end, than the following lines of Sir Thomas More: - - 'You'd weep, if sure you'd but one month to stay; - Yet laugh, uncertain of a single day!' - -Few are the happy marriages contracted contrary to the consent of -parents.--Disobedience to them, like murder, seldom goes unpunished in -this life[1]. Mr Burt wrote Lady Frances Finlay a letter informing her -of the melancholy catastrophe of this unfortunate couple, and beseeching -her interest with Lord Munster, in behalf of their helpless progeny. - -'Could tears, Madam,' said he, 'write as legibly as ink, my streaming -eyes would be an inexhaustible fund, to assist me to send you the -woes of a poor old man, and to pour forth the sorrows of my soul! But -_Cicero_ could not have _described_, _Apelles_ could not have _painted_, -nor _Roscius_ have _represented_, the heartrending scenes I have lately -witnessed.' - -Lord Munster died the day before his daughter received the above -letter. He had for some time before lost all sensation. The pleasures -or pains of others were to him of so little importance, that he lived -as if he had been the only creature himself in the universe. He could -not bear to hear of the applause some of his opponents in politics -had acquired, and grudged them a reputation he thought only suitable -to his own distinguished abilities. Different from that conqueror, -of whom it is said he silenced the whole earth, he fancied that the -whole world must talk of his disgrace. He could not support it; and -a pistol put an end to his wretched existence. A careful observer of -events will frequently see, that flagrant vices are punished by some -remarkable strokes of wretchedness, and bad dispositions made sensible -of the evils they bring on others. Never did any Greek or Roman commit -suicide, from too quick a sense of private misfortunes.--Vain glory in -the vulgar may be supportable, nay, may be diverting; but in a great man -it is _intolerable_: nothing is greater in a man, than to be above even -greatness _itself_. - -Lady Frances was left by her father the entire possession of the family -estate.--She immediately wrote to Mr Burt, desiring he would leave a -place which must necessarily revive in him such melancholy ideas, and -bring her nephew and niece to Munster house; enclosing him a sum of -money to discharge debts, and to defray the expenses of the journey. He -instantly complied with her request, and resided with her, though she -immediately not only settled on him the annuity he had formerly been -promised, but also paid the arrears due on it. - -Had Lord and Lady Finlay lived a few weeks longer, Lady Frances would -have cheerfully assigned to them the estate bequeathed to her, and which -their virtues so justly entitled them to. - -It is a strong argument for a state of retribution hereafter, that in -this world _virtuous people_ are often _very miserable_, and _vicious -ones happy_, which is wholly repugnant to the nature of a Being, who -appears infinitely wise and good in all his works, unless we may -suppose, that such a promiscuous and undistinguishing distribution -of good and evil, which was necessary for carrying on the designs of -Providence in this life, will be rectified and made amends for in -another. - -Lady Frances possessed the most attractive beauty, was surrounded with -every grace, and blessed with every virtue, that could enslave the -affections, and captivate the soul of the most stubborn philosophers. -The sound of her voice had an engaging sweetness; and her expressions -were well chose, without being affected.--In a word, it was her -character and mind that gave charms to her person. Lord Darnley made his -addresses to her, in which he had been countenanced by Lord Munster, and -every preparation was making for their nuptials, before her father's -death. - -Lord Darnley was one of the most amiable of men. He gave a grace to -every thing he said--a refined and delicate wit enlivened all his -discourse, and the vivacity of his imagination discovered itself -continually in fresh sallies. But what irresistibly fixed Lord Munster's -partiality; was the art with which he disguised his _own wit_ and -_knowledge_ to make _him shine_. He conformed entirely to that pleasing -criterion of true humour which Mr Addison gave,--'That it looks grave -itself, while it makes all others laugh.' He had a turn for placing -things in a ridiculous point of view, which was highly diverting--but by -this he never offended; he formed his ridicule on a circumstance, which -the party attacked, was not in his heart unwilling to grant him; that he -was guilty of an excess in something which in itself was laudable[2]. -He very well understood what he chose to be, what was his predominant -passion, and knew he need not fear his anger, for declaring he was a -little _too much the thing_. - -Nice raillery is a decent mixture of praise and reproach; it touches -slightly upon little failings, only to dwell the more upon great -qualities. I believe what renders courtiers pleasing, is the attention -they pay to the self-love of others. I shall only add, that the -politeness of Lord Darnley's manners would not suffer him to omit any -of those engaging attentions which are so capable of pleasing; and as -he was deeply in love with Lady Frances, he inspired her with mutual -sentiments. How then must it surprise the world to find, that upon her -sudden acquisition of wealth, the marriage did not take place! The -philosopher, experienced in the vicissitudes of human events, views such -sudden dissolutions of the most intimate connections without surprise -or amazement. In regard to the moral and political world, it is not -always great and adequate causes that produce strange and surprising -events; on the contrary, they often are the result of things seemingly -small, and utterly disproportionate to their effects. The same constant -fluctuation that attends the seasons, and all the appendages of the -globe we inhabit, affects the heart of man, making it a prey, by turns, -to different passions. The well-regulated mind alone, can boast of any -degree of consistency, and _that_ too often late in life, the product -of long experience, and unnumbered cares. It was in vain Lord Darnley -declared the disinterestedness of his passion, and intreated Lady -Frances to settle the property of the family out of his power, previous -to her marriage. - -She remained unmoved; only assured him, that nothing but what she -apprehended was her first duty, could alienate her from him, and that -she never would dispose of herself to any _other_: but advised him to -marry. She applied herself entirely to the care of her family, and to -the improvement of that property invested in her person. - -Living entirely in the country, she sought, in the beauty of nature, in -science, and the love of order, that satisfaction, which in the world -(where people are the _slaves of apology, and the dupes of caprice_) is -eagerly pursued, but _never found_. It is principally on this account, -that people in general are so often declaiming against human life. -She considered society is manifestly maintained by a circulation of -kindness: we are all of us, in some way or other, wanting assistance, -and in like manner qualified to give it. None are in a state of -independency on their fellow-creatures. The most slenderly endowed are -not a mere burthen on the community; even they can contribute their -share to the common good. We learn what are justly our mutual claims, -from this mutual dependency; that on its account, as well as for other -reasons, our life is not to pass in a round of pleasure of idleness, -or according to the suggestions of mere fancy, or in sordid or selfish -pursuits. Can there be any thing more evidently our duty than that we -should return the kindness we receive; than that, if many are employed -in promoting our interest, we should be as intent in advancing theirs? -All men are by nature equal: their common passions and affections, their -common infirmities, their common wants, give such constant remembrances -of this equality, even to those who are most disposed to forget it, that -they cannot, with all their endeavours, render themselves unmindful of -it. They cannot become _insensible_, how unwilling soever they may be -to _consider_, that their debt is as much their demands, as they owe to -others as much as they reasonably can expect from them. It is not to be -supposed that Providence would have made such distinctions among men, -such unequal distributions, but that they might endear themselves to one -another by mutual helps and obligations. Gratitude is the surest bond of -love, friendship, and society. - -The various conditions of human life seem so admirably adapted to the -several dispositions of individuals, that if our happiness in this life -were intended, the unequal distribution of the gifts of fortune affords -the most plausible means to effect it. Through nature, indeed, love -is centered at home, and not improperly, though the most amiable and -God-like is the most diverged. But as the principle regards of human -love, are, for the much greater part, over selfish and contracted, -the divine goodness has so directed its operations, as to render them -necessary, and very often unintentionally productive of common social -good. I have often observed, that people favoured by fortune seldom feel -for the pain of the mind, even though they themselves are the authors of -it; their pity alone is excited by certain disgraces, certain exterior -evils, such as sickness and poverty. This was by no means the case with -Lady Frances, who interested herself in the distresses of the soul, with -a goodness equally noble and judicious, and offered to the unhappy, all -those labouring under any species of innocent distress, consolation and -relief. - -Her education taught her, that _virtue_ and _abilities_ can only procure -us real happiness, and that nothing but _doing good_, in that sphere of -life in which we are placed, can afford the true felicity to a noble -soul. Upon her father's death she found herself possessed of an estate -of twenty thousand pounds a year, and three hundred thousand pounds -in mortgages. The house and pleasure grounds were in great disrepair, -from the late Earl's constant residence in London and the _environs_. -Lady Frances sent for Mr Brown, who found great _capabilities_ in the -situation: under his direction it is now one of the finest places in -England. She acquainted him of her intention of building a number of -houses for the reception of artificers, and the introduction of certain -manufactures. He fixed upon a beautiful situation, at the side of a -navigable river. Mr Adams approved very much of the plan Lady Frances -submitted to his inspection--he perfected and improved it. It consisted -of one hundred houses; and a _tribuna_[3] in the center. Upon the solid -foundation of the Doric, the Ionic, and Corinthian orders rise gradually -with all their beauty, proportion, and ornaments. - -The fabric seizes the most incurious eye. No modern building is -comparable to it for the outward decorations; and for the disposition -within, it has been formed from whatever ancient and modern times afford -most adapted and suitable to the purpose of the structure, not excluding -decorations, which are distributed with equal taste and economy. The -sciences and arts are assembled together in this fine building, and -connected (if I may be allowed the expression) by a large and well -chosen library in all faculties: Here is whatever the lower people's -interest, or the man of taste's curiosity can desire. The first object -that presents itself to the eye, on entering into this noble hall, -which is no less spacious than splendid, is the statue of the founder, -inviting the lovers of literature to make use of the helps which she has -provided for them. This statue is of white marble, as large as life, -and entirely worthy of Mr More, the artist; who has improved the exact -likeness with an air of grandeur and benevolence, dignity and -affability. - -And what is a very well chosen ornament for such a place, there is a -representation of nine of the most eminent libraries--the Babylonian, -Athenian, Alexandrian, Palatine, etc.--with short inscriptions giving -an account of each. And to set in view, the origin and first advance -of learning in several countries--there are painted on large pilasters -ranged along the middle of the library, those persons who were reputed -to have been the inventor of letters in several languages. Adam, -Abraham, Moses, Mercurius, Ægyptius, Hercules, Cadmus, Cecrops, -Pythagoras, and several others, with the letters which each of these are -said to have invented written under their pictures. - -This library is open at stated times, (like that of the Vatican, and -the French king's) with every proper accommodation to all strangers. -This was greatly wanted in this kingdom. London, after so many ages, -remains without any considerable public library. The best is the Royal -Society's: but even that is inconsiderable; neither is it open to the -public; nor are the necessary conveniences afforded strangers for -reading or transcribing. The British Museum is rich in manuscripts, the -Harleian Collection, the Cottonian Library, the collection of Charles -I. and many others, especially on our own history; but it is wretchedly -poor in printed books: and it is not sufficiently accessible to the -public; their revenue not being sufficient to enable them to pay a -proper number of attendants.[4] - -An ingenious Persian lately in England, gave an account of many thousand -Arabian manuscripts, totally unknown to the gentlemen of the university -of Oxford. It is to be wished these were procured. The Orientals and -Hebrews were the parents of knowledge, and the Greeks no more than -their scholars: how gross were their notions of prudence and _virtue_, -till Orpheus, and the travelled philosophers taught them better! The -institutions of modern nations are not to be compared to those of -the ancients, as almost all these had the advantage of being founded -by philosophers. Athens and Sparta were the two first formed states -of Greece. Solon and Lycurgus, who had seen the success of the plan -conducted by Minos in Crete, and who partly copied after that wise -prince, erected these two celebrated republics. The sagacious system of -Egypt served as a model to all the east. - -The astronomical observatory is furnished with the best instruments; -anatomy has an amphitheatre, and a spacious room filled with a compleat -set of anatomical pieces in wax. - -Painting and sculpture, besides a most convenient apartment for the -study and practice of these arts, have two large rooms full of models of -the most valuable remains of antiquity, taken from the originals. - -The pupils of architecture have a hall, crowded with designs and models -of the finest pieces, ancient and modern--and there are contiguous -apartments where all the liberal sciences are read and taught, as logic, -physic, ethics, metaphysics, astronomy, geography, geometry, etc. - -These assemblage of studies in every branch is further enriched with -curious museums of antiques, and natural history. All these advantages -are heightened by the lectures of able professors in every art and every -science. - -This academy receives two hundred scholars, affords them a liberal -support, and leads them through a perfect course of education; from the -first elements of letters, through the whole circle of the sciences; -from the lowest class of grammatical learning, to the highest degrees -in the several faculties. It properly and naturally consists of two -parts, rightly forming two establishments, the one subordinate to the -other. The design of the one was to lay the foundation of science; that -of other, to raise and compleat the superstructure: the former was to -supply the latter with proper subjects; and the latter was to improve -the advantages received in the former. - -The young gentlemen in the neighbourhood are permitted to receive -instructions from the several professors--and a day is set apart, -when they examine young people, in order to discover wherein their -genius conflicts, and to what kind of studies or employments they -naturally are suited. Every man finds in himself a particular bent and -disposition to some particular character; and his struggling against -it is the fruitless and endless labour of Sisyphus. Let him follow and -cultivate _that_ vocation, he will succeed in it, and be considerable -in one way at least; whereas, if he departs from it, he will at best -be _inconsiderable_, probably _ridiculous_. Cicero said, that masters -should consider the nature of their scholars, least they should act -like unskilful husbandmen, who would sow wheat in a soil, that was only -proper for oats. Might it not prove an useful institution if public -societies were erected on this plan? By this means most subjects might -become beneficial to the public; and not only the arts be brought to -perfection, but all the posts of government be well supplied: whereas, -we now daily hear complaints of the want of proper persons to direct -affairs, whilst the youth are condemned to studies, and matriculated -into certain arts or employments before they arrive at years of -discretion. - -Some parents on the birth of a son determine what profession he is to -be of. The father sometimes designs his son for a judge, because his -grand-father was one[5], which may be as absurd as to design a _weakly -child_ for a _running footman_, or a _purblind boy_ for a _painter_. -Sometimes a young man is to be a colonel because he is tall, or an -alderman because he has a large belly. - -When any remarkable genius displayed itself in any of the young men, -their talents have cultivated for that art of science. The master for -oratory was recommended by Mr Sheridan, who says that the art of oratory -may be taught upon as certain principles, and with as good a prospect of -success, as it ever was by the rhetoricians of Greece or Rome, or as the -arts of music, painting, etc. are taught by their several professors. He -formed himself on Quintilian's institutes of eloquence, who particularly -recommends _chironomy_, or gracefulness of action, which took rise in -the age of heroism, was practised by the greatest men in Greece, was -approved of by Socrates, ranked by Plato amongst the civil virtues, and -recommended by Chrysippus in his treatise upon the education of youth. -Quintilian had the acquisition of an hundred years after Cicero's death, -to improve his knowledge--he had greater opportunities than Cicero ever -had to study 'that intellectual relation, that secret charm, in the -liberal professions, which, connecting one to the other, combines them -all.' - -One angle of the _tribuna_ is entirely dedicated to the education of -women. Twenty young ladies are admitted, and there are funds for their -perpetual maintenance, as that of the two hundred scholars. In the -selection of these young gentlewomen, she always gives the preference -to those who labour under any imperfection of body--endeavouring, by -increasing their resources _within themselves_, to compensate for their -_outward defects_. When it is found that any of these ladies have a -taste for any manual or mental art, they cultivate it, and assist them -in the pleasantest means, and by various little attentions confirm these -inclinations with all the spirit of pursuit requisite to preserve minds -(in general) from that state of languidness and inactivity, whereby -life is rendered irksome to those who have never found it unfortunate. -In this establishment she entirely runs counter to that of Madame de -Maintenon's at Saint Cyr; where the young women, who should have been -instructed in rural labours, and economy in the duties of a family, in -the employments of _Solomon's virtuous women_, by their education, were -only fit to be addressed by men who were rich enough to require in a -wife nothing _but virtue_. This is also the foible of too many parents, -who all expect their daughters are to fill exalted stations in life, and -by educating them with that view, disqualify them for their after lot. - -As divines say that some people take more pains to be damned than -it would cost them to be saved, so many people employ more thought, -memory, and application, to be fools, than would serve to make them -wise and useful members of society. The ancients esteemed it an honor -to understand the making of every thing necessary for life one's self, -without any dependence on others; and it is that which Homer most -commonly calls _wisdom_ and _knowledge_. He describes old Eumæus making -his own shoes, and says, he had built some fine stalls for the cattle -he bred. Ulysses himself built his own house, and set up his bed with -great art, the structure of which served to make him known to Penelope -again. When he left Calypso, it was he alone that built and rigged the -ship.--From all which we see the spirit of these ancient times. - -These young ladies are not instructed to declaim with grace, or sing -with taste; but if they are less amusing, they are infinitely more -useful and interesting companions to those they afterwards associate -with, whether in the character of wives or friends. Several of them -have married very well in the neighbourhood. There is no sentiment more -cold, or of shorter continuance, than admiration. We grow weary of a -set of features, though ever so beautiful. Between folly, and a homely -person, there is this difference; the latter is constantly the same, at -least with imperceptible alteration, whilst folly is ever putting on -some new appearance, and giving, by that means, fresh pain and disgust. -However true this may be, I believe it would require some rhetoric to -convince a young man not to prefer the folly that accompanies beauty, -to wisdom and deformity. Though Sir Francis Bacon assures us in his -natural philosophy, that our taste is never better pleased than with -those things which at first created a disgust in us. He gives particular -instances of porter, olives, and other things, which the palate seldom -approves of at first; but when it has once got a relish of them, -generally retains it for life. - -The streets, which were built on each side of the _Tribuna_, were -uniform, and the houses ornamented with emblematical figures of the -different trades intended for the possessors. She permitted them to -live rent-free for the two first years, and admitted none but such who -excelled in their art. This was certainly very political--By encouraging -them in this manner, it enabled them at first to work, and sell their -manufactures at a moderate rate; which insured them the business of -the neighbouring counties that would otherwise have sent at a greater -distance, for what could be equally produced at home.[6] - -The size of the houses decreases gradually from the centre of every -street. As Lady Frances spared no expense in the execution, Mr Adams -directed it with the greatest taste and propriety. The smallest houses -are, indeed, exteriorly, the handsomest, on account of their twisted -columns; yet, as they convey an idea of weakness, they always displease -when they are made use of as supports to heavy buildings. The different -orders succeed each other, from the Corinthian to the Tuscan, according -to the size of the houses. Mr Hogarth observes on this head, that the -bulks and proportions of objects are governed by fitness and propriety; -that it is this which has established the size and proportion of -chairs, tables, and all sorts of utensils and furniture; has fixed the -dimensions of pillars, arches, etc. for the support of great weights; -and so regulated all the orders in architecture. - -In the course of ten years Lady Frances brought all the above plans to -perfection; which she the more easily effected from Mr Burt's having -maintained a correspondence with the _literati_ in most parts of the -world. And as the encouragement given was great, it is not surprising -that her academy became a seat of the muses, and a place to which many -resorted for the solution of literary doubts. - -If their ears were enchanted by harmony, their eyes were equally -ravished by the beauties of painting and sculpture. In this charming -mansion is blended the improvement of the arts, with that of -philosophy: an exquisite assemblage of all the sweets of life. -Architecture, statuary, painting, and music, find in her a patroness. -Refinement of taste in a nation, is always accompanied with refinement -of manners. People accustomed to behold order and elegance in public -buildings, and public gardens, acquire urbanity in private. The -Italians, on the revival of the liberal arts and sciences, gave them -the name of _virtù_; from this was derived the term of _virtuoso_, -which has been accepted throughout Europe. Should not this appellation -intimate, to those who assume it to themselves, that the study of what -is beautiful, in nature or art, ought to render them more virtuous than -other men. Exclusive of the above buildings, there are others finely -adapted to their different purposes, at the same time calculated to -ornament the grounds. There are manufactories of different kinds; and -silks wrought by hydraulic machines, which renders the workmanship more -easy and expeditious. Lady Frances procured artificers from Tuscany -for a porcelain manufacture, which has continued with them from the -ancient Etruscans. She has also established a manufacture of earthen -ware, procuring models of Etruscan vases in Terra Cotta, made after -those in the Vatican library. These are used even in the most common -vessels. She also took some pains in regulating the dress of the young -women. A country girl returning from the spring with a pitcher of water -on her head, perfectly resembles those figures which the most exquisite -antiques represent in the same attitude. The great share _variety_ has -in producing beauty, may be seen in the ornamental part of nature; -the shapes and colours of plants, flowers, leaves; the painting in -butterflies wings, shells, etc. which seem of little other intended use, -than that of entertaining the eye with the pleasure of variety: in this -all the senses delight and are equally averse to sameness--The ear is as -much offended with one continued note, as the eye is with being fixed to -a point, or to the view of a dead wall. - -Every building is rendered ornamental to the grounds. There is a -botanical garden, which is filled with plants and flowers, which have -been presented to Linnæus, from whom she received them, from every part -of the globe. One of his pupils resided here, in an elegant habitation, -in which there is a rotunda where lectures on botany are given: this -fine room is surrounded with exotic plants. Mr Burt entirely concurred -with Linnæus, in wishing, that gentlemen designed for theological -studies were directed to apply as much time to the study of physics -as they spent in metaphysics and logic, which he judges neither so -indispensably necessary, nor useful as the former. - -Lady Frances also erected an hospital for the reception of two hundred -incurables; a thing much wanted in this kingdom, without paying any -regard to their country, religion, or disease, requiring no security -in case of death. The practice of most of the public hospitals in this -country is widely different, the restrictions of admission being such -as frequently deprive many from receiving the benefit first intended by -the founder. But she had a fund of charity of another stamp, which gave -her infinitely more pleasure, as it was free from the ostentation of -those acts of public bounty. These were private donations to those whose -circumstances were not yet so bad as to oblige them to beg publicly. If -an industrious tradesman had a numerous family, little business, or a -small stock, she found means to supply his wants, or put him in a way of -carrying on his business to greater advantage, in such a manner, as that -sometimes he himself did not know the source of his relief; at most, -none but the party succoured, and Mr Burt, knew any thing of the matter, -for this worthy man was her secret almoner, and searched out for the -secret necessities of modest and industrious poor. She had the happiness -arising from the consciousness of having maintained numerous families in -decent plenty, who, without her well-timed and secret bounty, must have -been a charge to the parish. But she was a great enemy to poor-rates, -judging with Davenant, that they will be the bane of our manufactures. - -Lady Frances was far from being alarmed at the great expenses of her -undertakings. She thought her large fortune, and her nephew's long -minority, as it put it in her power, could not be better employed than -in works of national magnificence. The power and wealth of ancient -Greece were most seen and admired in the splendor of the temples, and -other sublime structures of Pericles. He boasted, that every art would -be exerted, every hand employed, every citizen in the pay of the state, -and the city, not only beautified, but maintained by itself. The sums -Lady Frances expended in bringing these plans to perfection, diffused -riches and plenty among the people, and has already doubled the estate. -She has a fine collection of pictures.--The only way to raise a genius -for painting, is to give encouragement: historical painters get so -little by their profession, that we have very few. This Lady Frances -made her particular object, to afford our youth ready access to good -pictures: till these be multiplied in Great Britain, we shall never -have the reputation of producing a good painter. If we expect to rival -the Italian, the Flemish, or even the French school, our artists must -have before their eyes the finished works of the greatest masters. It -is a pity, that when an ingenious gentleman[7] last winter submitted -to the parliament, as worthy of their attention, some considerations -that might tend to the encouragement of useful knowledge, and the -advancement in this kingdom of the arts and sciences, he did not with -his usual intelligence, represent the bad consequences of the duty laid -on pictures imported into Great Britain: Were the bad effects of this -represented to our legislature, it is impossible but it must be amended. -This gentleman took notice in his speech, that a remarkable opportunity -of improving the national taste in _painting_, which was lately lost, -he hoped would now be recovered. The incomparable Sir Joshua Reynolds, -and some other great painters, who do honor to our country, generously -offered to adorn the cathedral of St Paul's (a glorious monument of the -magnificence of our ancestors) with some of their most valuable works: -but the proposition was rejected by the late Bishop of London[8], though -he flatters himself it will be renewed, and accepted by the gentleman -at present in that fee[9], who is not only a man of _solid piety_, but -of the _soundest learning_, and of _exquisite classical taste_. The -great art of human life is not to eradicate the passions, but to adopt -the proper objects of them: if mankind cannot think so abstractedly as -a pure effort of unmixed reason implies, I presume it follows, that -some degree of passion is warrantable in devotion. While we are in our -present imperfect and embodied state, it will be found necessary to -call in _externals_ to our aid, for the proper discharge of religious -worship. Even among those who in their private devotions are most -sincere, external acts and ceremonies, when properly conducted, become -real assistances; because the connection between the body and soul, -between the senses and the imagination, between the passions and the -reason of mankind, is so strong and mutual, that they uniformly act and -re-act upon one another, and mutually raise the soul to new and higher -degrees of fervor. - -This was so much Lady Frances's opinion, that she had some fine pieces -of painting in her chapel, which is also a very fine new building; the -architecture and paintings do honor to the artists--She made it a rule -to be constant in her attendance at church. Public acknowledgments of -the goodness of God, and application for his blessings, contribute to -give a whole community suitable apprehensions of him: and these, if it -was her duty to entertain, it was equally her duty to propagate; both as -the regard she paid the divine excellencies was expressed, and as the -same advantage that she received from such apprehensions, was received -by all whom they affected in the same manner. - -She had not the smallest degree of superstition, having too much good -sense to imagine the Deity can be persuaded to recede from the settled -laws of the universe, and the immutability of his nature. But she -knows the perfections of God are a ground and sufficient reason for -prayer, and that it is both an act and a means of virtue.[10] She had -a mind free from prejudice, adorned with knowledge, and filled with -the best principles; a noble firmness in showing these principles, -and in maintaining them; in short, every talent joined to the most -amiable modesty. She was advised to call her elegant village by the -name of _Athens_; but this she declined, naming it _Munster Village_: -but she justly thought it deserved it; with this difference, that the -inhabitants are too well informed to give into such gross superstitions, -and so easily suffer themselves to be imposed upon by astrologers, -divines, soothsayers, and many other sorts of conjurers, as the Grecians -did. - -They excelled in arts; their laws were wise; they had brought everything -to perfection that makes life easy and agreeable: but they took little -pains in the speculative sciences, geometry, astronomy, and physics. -The anatomy of plants and animals, the knowledge of minerals and -meteors, the shape of the earth, the course of the stars, and the whole -system of the world, were still mysteries to them. - -The Chaldeans and Egyptians, who knew something of them, kept it a great -secret and never spoke of them but in riddles; so that until Alexander's -time, and the reign of the Macedonians, they had made no great progress -in such learning as might cure them of superstition. An immoderate love -of the study of astrology, was a weakness which characterized also the -fifteenth century. In the age of Lewis XIV, the court was infatuated -with the notion of judicial astrology: many of the princes, through a -superstitious pride, supposed that nature, to distinguish them, had -writ their destiny in the stars. Victor Amadeus, Duke of Savoy, father -to the Duchess of Burgundy, had an astrologer always with him, even -after his abdication. The same weakness which gave credit to the absurd -chimera, judicial astrology, also occasioned the belief of sorcery and -witchcraft; courts of justice composed of magistrates, who ought to have -had more sense than the vulgar, were employed in trying persons accused -of witchcraft.--Latest posterity must hear with astonishment that the -Madame d'Ancre was burnt at the _Gréve_ as a sorceress. This unfortunate -woman, when questioned by counsellor Courtin concerning the kind of -sorcery she had used to influence the will of Mary de Medecis, having -answered, _She had used that power only which great souls always have -over weak minds_; this sensible reply served only to precipitate the -decree of her death[11]. - -It must be confessed there is a strong propensity in man's nature, to -assign every thing uncommon to supernatural means. But though I am very -apt to believe there is greater credulity in most minds, than will be -candidly acknowledged, yet the degree of it must be in proportion to -people's ignorance and want of information. Thus the famous doctors of -the faculty at Paris, when John Faustus brought the first printed books -that had then been seen in the world, or at least seen there, and sold -them for manuscripts, were surprised at the performance, and questioned -Faustus about it; but he affirming they were manuscripts, and that he -kept a great many clerks employed to write them, they were satisfied. -Looking further, however, into the work, and observing such an exact -uniformity throughout the whole, that if there was a blot in one, it was -the same in all, etc. etc. etc. their doubts were revived. The learned -divines not being able to comprehend the thing, (and that was always -sufficient) concluded it must be the _devil_; that it was done by magic -and witchcraft; and that, in short, poor Faustus (who was indeed nothing -but a mere printer) dealt with the _devil_. - -They accordingly took him up for a _magician_ and a _conjurer_, and -one that worked by the _Black Art_, that is to say, by the help of the -devil--and threatened to hang him; commencing a process against him in -their criminal courts; when the fear of the gallows induced Faustus -to _discover the secret_--that he had been a compositor to Koster of -Harlem, the first inventor of printing. - -Gardening made a much slower progress among the ancients, than -architecture. The palace of Alcinous, in the seventh book of the -Odyssey, is grand and highly ornamented; but his garden is no better -than what we call a kitchen garden. This also Lady Frances excelled -in. She had also a receptacle for all sorts of animals to retire to -in their old age. It was of old the custom to bury the favourite dog -near the master. To use those of the brute creation who toil for our -pleasure, or labour for our profit, with hard and ungenerous treatment, -is a species of inhumanity which all men allow to be derogatory from -virtue. The authors of wanton cruelty towards the dumb creation, are -justly execrated for their brutality. It is a crime which I believe many -commit, without either considering the misery it _produces_, or the -guilt _it incurs_: and many more, who in fits of causeless or capricious -displeasure intend to inflict the misery, have yet no sense that they -incur guilt. Lady Frances makes use of buffaloes to draw her ploughs. -These animals are far stronger than oxen, and eat less. Why have we not -them in this country, and dromedaries and camels? - -She cultivates India corn, which grows with vast reeds, which is of -great use; and has attempted the culture of rice, and some other things -upon boggy ground, with tolerable success. As our cork used to come from -France, and now grows in Italy, she has tried it here, where it thrives -amazingly; it resembles the evergreen oak, and bears acorns. When you -strip other trees of their bark, they die; but this grows stronger, and -produces a new coat. She leaves nothing unattempted which has a chance -of becoming useful. She also procured sheep from Norway, which are -peculiar from having four horns, and being spotted like deer, with a -coat of substance betwixt the hair and wool, which is admirable for many -uses. - -Edward IV has been greatly censured, as taking a very impolitic and -injurious measure in making a present to the King of Spain of some -Cotswold sheep; the breed of which has been very detrimental to the -English woollen manufacture, which has been a national branch of trade -ever since. The celebrated Buffon affirms, that our sheep are very far -removed from their natural state; from which it has been the usual -course of things to decline. - -Lady Frances cultivates silk-worms. The ancient Romans for a long time -never dreamed that silk could be produced in their country; and the -first silk ever seen in Greece, was after the conquest of Persia by -Alexander the Great. From thence it was imported into Italy, but was -sold at the rate of an equal weight of gold.[12] - -The Persians being the only people of whom it was to be had, would not -permit a single egg or worm to be carried out of their country. Hence -the ancient Greeks and Romans were so little acquainted with the nature -of silk, that they imagined it grew like a vegetable. Holosericum, -or a stuff made of silk only, was worn by none but ladies of the -first rank.[13] But men of the greatest quality, and even princes, -were contented with subsericum, or a stuff made of half silk; to that -Heliogabulus is remarked for being the first who wore holosericum[14]. -In the reign of the emperor Justinian, a trial was made for bringing -silk-worms alive to Constantinople, but without success; however, two -monks who had been employed in the affair, repeated the trial with -silk-worms eggs.[15] The experiment succeeded so well, that to this -Constantinopolitan colony, all the silk-worms, and silk manufactures in -Europe owe their existence and origin. Till the middle of the twelfth -century, all the silken stuffs at Rome and other parts of Europe were -of Grecian manufacture. But Roger I. King of Sicily, about the year -1138, invading Greece with a fleet of vessels with two or three benches -of oars, called Galeæ or Sagittæ (from whence are derived the words -galley and saique) and sacking and plundering Corinth, Thebes, and -Athens, brought away to Palermo, among other prisoners, a great number -of silk weavers to instruct his subjects in that art. From them, as -Otto Trisingensis de gestis Frederici, lib. I. cap. 23. informs us, the -Italians soon learnt the method of manufacturing silk. - -Lady Frances did not restrain farmers, or the sons of farmers from -shooting, as none are better entitled to game than those whose property -is the support of it. - - 'See that assemblage of the sons of wealth, - Whose pity and humanity extend - To dumb creation! with what costly care - They study to preserve the brutal race - From _vulgar_ persecution! Truly great - Were such benevolence, could their design - Deserve so laudable a name!--Alas! What are they but - monopolists in blood, - That to themselves endeavour to preserve - Inviolate the cruel privilege - Of slaughter and destruction? What is this - But petty tyranny, th' ambitious child - Of luxury and pride? If Heaven indulge - A right to kill, each free-born Briton sure - May claim his portion of the carnage. All - O'er nature's commoners, by nature's law, - Plead equal privilege: what then supports - This usurpation in the wealthier tribe; - The _qualifying_ acres? no, proud man, - Possessions give not thee superior claim - To that, which equally pertains to all-- - Whose property you timid hare, which feeds - In thy inclosure? thine? denied--allow'd, - Yet if the fearful animal be thine, - Because the innocently crops _to-day_ - The herbage of thy freehold, whose will be - The claim _to-morrow_, when thy neighbour's soil - Affords her pasturage? Assuming man! - How is the hardy Briton's spirit tam'd - By thy oppressive pride!-when danger comes - Who shall defend thy property? thyself? - No; that poor Briton, whom thou hast undone - By prosecutions--will he not retort, - "What's liberty to me? 'tis lost! 'tis gone! - "If I must be oppress'd, it matters not - "Who are th' oppressors. Shall I hazard life - "For those imperious lordlings, who denied - "That privilege, which Heaven and nature meant - "For food, or sport, or exercise to all?"' - - _British Philippic._ - -Mr Burt devoted his time much to his grand-children, though he was far -from wishing to obtrude too much knowledge on their tender years, as the -mind may be overstrained by too intense application, in the same way as -the body may be weakened by too much exercise before it arrives at its -full strength. - -Quintilian compares the understanding of children to vessels into -which no liquor can be poured but drop by drop. But there is a certain -season, when our minds may be enlarged--when a great stock of useful -truths may be acquired--when our passions will readily submit to the -government of reason--when right principles may be so fixed in us, as to -influence every important action of our future lives. If at that period -it is neglected, error or ignorance are, according to the ordinary -course of things, entailed upon us. Our passions gain a strength that -we afterwards vainly oppose--wrong inclinations become too confirmed in -us, that they defeat all our endeavours to correct them. A superior -capacity, an ardent thirst for knowledge, and the finest dispositions, -soon discovered themselves in Lord Munster; particularly a singular -warmth of affection, and disinterestedness of temper. And although -experience evinces, that memory, understanding, and fancy, are seldom -united in one person, yet he is one of those transcendant geniuses, who -is blessed with all three. Mr Burt treated him always with that distant -condescension, which, though it encourages to freedom, commands at the -same time respect. He appeared in different characters to him, that he -might find something new and agreeable in his conversation. - -Montaigne says; 'there is nothing like alluring the passions and -affections; otherwise we only make asses loaded with books.' Exquisite -is the fruit produced by a right temperature of the different qualities, -and mixture of the world and philosophy, business and pleasure, dignity -and politeness. The Romans termed it _Urbanitas_, the Greeks _Atticism_. - -At the age of sixteen years the Earl of Munster having received every -advantage education could bestow on him, fully answered the most -sanguine expectations his aunt had formed of him. She then insinuated -to him his dependent situation--her own intentions of marrying, the -great expenses she had been at in the various improvements she had made -on the estate, which rendered it necessary for him to apply himself to -business, as it would disable her from doing so much for him as she -would have inclined: that as she had bestowed on him every advantage of -education, the alternative before him was that of _application_ on his -part, or the utmost severity of _censure_ on that of the world. - -Lady Frances adopted this plan with Lord Munster to keep him ignorant of -her intentions in his favor, that she might not obstruct his exerting -all his physical and moral strength in acquiring that knowledge and -virtue he at present so eminently possesses. Though a man of rank born -to a large fortune may have fine natural parts, yet it takes a great -deal to make him a _great man_. His splendid titles and large estate, -are in some degree a bar to those acquirements, as he rests secure in -his rank and independent fortune. How would the number of the nobility -be reduced, were only those allowed to assume that title who could make -good their claim to it by the distinguished endowments which raised -the founder of the family? A man of rank who is a jockey at Newmarket -rises no higher in my estimation than the lowest mechanic. Men of -literature are the only nobility known in China: In other countries -the laws inflict punishment _on criminal actions_: there, they do -more; _they reward virtue_. If the fame of a generous action is spread -in a province, the mandarin is obliged to acquaint the emperor, who -presently sends a badge of honor to the person who has so well deserved -it. Be their birth ever so low, they become mandarins of the highest -rank, in proportion to the extent of their worth or learning. On the -other hand, be their birth ever so exalted, they quickly sink into -poverty and obscurity if they neglect there studies which raised their -fathers.[16][17] - -The care, attention, and labour incumbent on men for their support, -invigorate both the soul and the body, and they are the natural causes -of health and sagacity. Virtue itself would be indolent if she had no -passions to conquer and regulate. It is every way our advantage that -we have no such slothful paradise as the poets feigned in the golden -age: and the alledged blemishes in nature, are either the unavoidable -accompanyments or consequences of a structure, and of laws subservient -to advantages, which quite over-balance these inconveniences, or -sometimes the direct and natural means of obtaining those advantages. -The situation of the King of Sardinia, environed on all sides with -powerful monarchs, obliges him to act with the greatest circumspection; -which circumstance seems to have formed the character of that house.--As -Lady Frances was desirous of her nephew's understanding commerce, she -proposed his becoming a merchant:--with great modesty, and deference -for her opinion, he submitted to her, whether the confined maxims of a -trader were not destructive of the social virtues; if they did not tend -to destroy those refined feelings of the soul that distinguish man from -man?[18] She answered, 'What situation is like that of a man, who with -one stroke of a pen makes himself obeyed from one end of the world to -the other? his name, his signature, has no necessity, like the army of -a Sovereign, for the value of metal to come to the assistance of the -impression: himself does all; he has signed, and that is enough.' - -Lord Munster replied, 'that there were two ranks in life he should -prefer as more suitable to the title he bore, though unaccompanied -by fortune, the magistrate who supports the laws, or that of the -soldier who defends his country!' Highly charmed with his sentiments, -it required no small resolution for his aunt, who fondly loved him, -to support the character she had assumed; but recollecting herself, -observed, that it was not unusual for men of high birth to enrich their -family _by trade_. - -When the Earl of Oxford was at the head of affairs in England, his -brother was a factor at Aleppo; and if Lord Townshend was respected in -parliament as a secretary of state, his brother was no less regarded -in the city as a merchant. Without giving way, added she, to ideas of -birth, you may be happy, and by your temper, application, and personal -accomplishments, make a figure in life without the aid of such an -accidental _appendage_; and by your attainments and engaging qualities -obtain a general esteem, the surest step to advancement and honor. - -Lord Munster seemed _convinced_, though not allured by her arguments, -yielding himself to her guidance, with that sweetness of disposition, -which though so amiable in itself is so much to be apprehended. For -those dispositions of the mind, which are generally termed virtuous, are -frequently the occasion of our falling into vices, from which opposite -ones, though generally condemned, would have secured us. - -In pursuance of Lady Frances's plan, Lord Munster was sent to Holland, -where he was boarded for two years in a creditable family in Amsterdam, -as the best school for learning, temperance, economy, and every domestic -virtue. - -Men of all climates and religions being also natives of Holland, gave -him liberal notions and enlarged ideas; their earth is as free as their -air. Their toleration of religion, indeed, is so extreme, it amounts -to a total unconcern about them. At the same communion, in the same -church, some receive sitting, others standing, or kneeling; and this -freedom appeared to that crafty people, such unquestionable policy, that -it came in from common sense alone, and passed without a law.[19] To -this cause is assigned the number of inhabitants; as the land fit for -tillage in Holland does not exceed four hundred thousand acres[20]. This -country in itself furnishes an illustration of the plan Lady Frances -was following with her nephew. Industry, honesty, and concern for the -public welfare, made the inhabitants considerable. If they depart from -these, and if the sea returns upon them, their having existed will be -known only from tradition and books. The preservation of both Egypt and -Holland depends upon the care they take of their dykes, and canals; -but there is no work in the former so great as the building such a -city as Amsterdam upon piles in the sea[21]. Venice also furnishes a -striking instance of what wonders may be effected by industry: that out -of a morass, a city of such splendor could be raised, and become the -emporium of Europe, as it was before the discovery of the East and West -Indies, is extraordinary. But this trade decayed, as that of Holland -increased: almost all merchandizes which came from the Mediterranean -were formerly landed at Venice, and from thence brought to Augsburg; -from which place, they were dispersed through all Germany. But Holland -has taken away all, and distributes all; and Augsburg suffers, as well -as Venice, Milan, Antwerp, and an infinite number of other cities, -which are at _present_ as _poor_ as _formerly_ they _were rich_. This -furnishes an excellent example of the benefits arising from industry, -and the necessity of exertion. Lord Munster rendered himself entirely -master of the knowledge of our English trade and privileges. He also -attained a competent skill in the history of jurisprudence[22]. As it is -requisite for every man who has leisure and capacity for such researches -to be acquainted with the nature and extent of that judicial authority -which is to decide upon his person and property, and to which as a -citizen he is bound to submit, he studied the English constitution and -government in the ancient books of common law, and more modern writers, -who out of them have given an account of this government. He next -proceeded to the history of England, and with it joined in every king's -reign the laws then made----This gave him insight into the reason of -our statutes, and shewed him the true ground upon which they came to -be made, and what weight they ought to have. By this means he read the -history of his own country with intelligence, and was able to examine -into the _excellence_ or _defects_ of its _government_, and to judge of -the _fitness_ or _unfitness_ of its _orders_ and _laws_: and by this -method he knows enough of the English law for a gentleman, though quite -ignorant of the _chicane_ or wrangling, and captious part of it, or the -arts how to _avoid_ doing _right_, and to _secure himself_ in _doing -wrong_. As Lord Munster was now eighteen years of age, Lady Frances -wrote and acquainted him, that as he had rather testified a dislike -to the mercantile scheme, she desired he would relinquish it; and as -nothing contributes more to enlighten and improve the understanding, -than a personal acquaintance with foreign climates, she desired he would -travel.--The man who by his birth-right is a free member of society, -not a slave to despotic power, and who, in matters of religion, enjoys -the invaluable blessing of private judgment, should not fail to visit -other nations; for this will not only rub off all the selfish asperities -he may have contracted from a narrow survey of things, but will also -accompany him home with a more rational attachment to that constitution -under which he had the happiness to be born. Heaven has placed us in -a most advantageous situation; unless we are divided at home, attacks -from abroad may molest but cannot ruin us. Our laws are the laws of -freedom; our merchandise the traffic of opulence----Our constitution is -framed and joined together by the choicest parts, picked and extracted -from aristocracies, democracies, and sovereignties. We have a natural -force to _defend_ and _maintain_ the empire of the seas. We enjoy -wealth and possessions in both the Indies, if we do not lose them by -our own misconduct----We boast at regular choice, and singular system -of parliamentary government, so nicely calculated, as to be at once the -defence and the support of the kingdom and the people. Our Sovereign has -the power--but the parliament has still the law of that power[23].--What -people on earth can say the same? The studies Lord Munster made of our -constitution, when contrasted with his observations of other countries, -made him return after three years, not a _nominal_, but a _real_ -patriot. This is not always the case. Too many of our young gentlemen -bring home only a miserable reverse of every good purpose for which -they were sent out:--as none travel more than the English, they ought, -therefore, to let none surpass them in manly or generous perceptions. -But we have reason to fear that what Mr Pope observes of _one_ of them -may be applicable to _most_. - - '_Europe he saw, and Europe saw him too._' - -Is not this owing to their early visiting France, where slavery is so -artfully gilded over as to hide its natural deformity? If our countrymen -were first to make the tour of Denmark, where the people are more -apparently slaves, it would remedy this evil. On the contrary, when the -subject of an arbitrary government has travelled into countries which -enjoy the inestimable advantages of civil and religious liberty, he -returns with a diminished affection for his own, and learns to despise -and dislike that constitution which denies him the enjoyment of those -natural rights, the knowledge and the value of which he has learnt from -his happier neighbours. - -Hence it is that despotic princes are cautious how they permit their -subjects to _range abroad_; and for the reasons above intimated, -travelling has ever been encouraged in free states. - -With the finest person, Lord Munster possessed all the virtues and the -graces----was all complacency in his manners, all sweetness in his -disposition; humane, susceptible, and compassionate. - -While Lady Frances had taken so much care of his education, it may -be readily supposed she was not forgetful of Lady Eliza's, his -sister--whose person is faultless, and of the middle size--her face is -a sweet oval, and her complexion the _brunette_ of the bright kind. -The finest passions are always passing in her face; and in her lovely -eyes there is a fluid fire sufficient to animate a score of inanimate -beauties. She has a clear understanding, and a sound judgment; has read -a great deal, and has a most happy elocution: possesses a great share of -wit, and with equal strength and propriety can express the whole series -of the passions in comic characters. The pliableness of her dispositions -can raise and keep up agreeable sensations, and amuse her company. - -Lord L---- declares he never saw anything equal to her, even on the -French stage, in the article of transition from passion to passion -in comic life. She is perfect mistress of music, and plays admirably -well on the harpsicord; having great neatness, and more expression and -meaning in her playing, than is often found among lady-players.--In -this, as in every other branch of her education, she has had every -advantage--Lady Frances herself being highly accomplished--and her -long residence in Italy and France having perfected and improved her -taste, in every accomplishment that can embellish or add graces to -the youth and beauty of her niece--All her musical band have been the -pupils of the first masters, and recommended to her by Santirelli, -Jomelli, Galuppi, Piccini, and Sacchini. It is not then surprising that -the works of these different masters are performed admirably well at -Munster-house; and as there is great variety in their manner, there -is that in every one of them to charm and please the most insensible. -Lady Frances is highly charmed with Jomelli; while the fancy, fire, -and feeling of Galuppi, and Piccini's comic style, are infinitely -more attracting to Lady Eliza, than the taste, learning, great and -noble ideas of Jomelli, or the serious style of Sacchini.--One of -the Bezzodzi's, from Turin who excels on the hautboy, is also at -Munster-house. - -There is also a set of very excellent actors, who perform at the -Tribuna, judging the representation of dramatic works of genius -contribute as much to soften manners, as the exhibition of the -Gladiators formerly did to harden them. When we complain of the -_licentiousness_ of the stage, I fear we have more reason to complain of -_bad measures_ in our policy, and a general decay of _virtue_ and _good -morals_ among us. - -Moliere's comedies are said to have done more service to the courtiers, -than the sermons of Bourdalone and Massillon. The great Saint -Chrysostom, a name consecrated to immortality by his virtue, is thought -to owe a great part of his eloquence and vehemence in correcting vice, -to his constantly reading Aristophanes; nor was he even censured on that -account, in those times of pure zeal, and primitive religion. - -Lord Shaftesbury says, 'Bigotry hurries us away into the most furious -excesses, upon trifles of no manner of consequence.' What is more -useful to a nation than the picture of strong passions, and their fatal -effects; of great crimes, and their chastisement; of great virtues, -and their reward? Scarce had Peter the Great polished Russia, before -theatres were established there. The more Germany has improved, the more -of our dramatic representations has it adopted. Those few places, where -they were not received in the last age, are never ranked among civilized -countries: and theatrical entertainments have their use everywhere, and -often keep the common people from a worse employment of their time--and -so far were the institution of theatres from being the fore-runners of -slavery, or the badges of despotism, that they were most encouraged, and -flourished best in free states. - -It is easy to conceive that the acquaintance of Lady Frances was much -courted, as no private person had it so much in their power to entertain -their company so well; there being every requisite at Munster-house to -delight the heart, please the eyes, and satisfy the understanding.--No -person of any taste but would blush to acknowledge they have not been in -Shropshire to admire her buildings, manufactures, schools, etc.--And it -fares with her merit like the pictures of Raphael, which are seen with -admiration by all, or at least no one dare own that he has no taste for -a composition which has received so universal an applause. - -Upon Lord Munster's being of age, she was thirty-seven; yet the -regularity of her life contributed to make her lose no more in her -person than what might be considered as the slight touches in a picture, -which when faded diminish nothing of the master-strokes of the piece. -Lord Darnley, since the time he had expected to become Lady Frances's -husband, still continued to attach himself to her. 'Whatever her -determinations may be,' said he, 'I am sensible of the value of her -soul; her friendship is more tender than the endearment of love in other -women.' Such forbearances were not uncommon in ages of chivalry; and -however justly ridiculed by the inimitable _Cervantes_, when carried to -extremes, and terminating in Quixotism, yet it appears to constitute -a capital part of the character of _a true_ knight. Lord Darnley's -attachment to Lady Frances was not founded on the weakness of his -intellects; it never made him forgetful of his duties to society. He is -at the same time a philosopher and a politician; and adds practice to -speculation, experience to knowledge, in both these departments. Though -the brilliant actions of some heroes are only handed down to us, and -we view their characters through the magnifying end of the tube, yet -Hercules himself could lay aside his club, and amuse himself with the -distaff, to enjoy the company of the woman he loved. All great souls -have descended occasionally, and divesting themselves of their heroism, -have become susceptible of the _tender passion_. - -Lady Frances respected Lord Darnley's character, as much as she loved -his person; and the time was now arrived when she proposed ingenuously -to confess to him the reasons of her past conduct, and to offer to -dedicate the remainder of her life in rewarding his tender, fond, -faithful attentions. But she suspected that--years had made such an -alteration in her person, that she ceased to be an object _of love_, -(to his lordship) although perfectly convinced she possessed _his -esteem_--Under this apprehension it became impossible for her to act -the part she intended--She became disquieted, and was determined, had -that really been the case, never to have allied herself to any other. -After revolving a thousand things, she at last determined to confirm or -confute her hopes, by employing a particular friend, and a relation of -Lord Darnley's, to discover his sentiments. Lady Frances's intimacy with -this lady had commenced at Paris, when they were in the convent of the -----. As her character is peculiar, the indulgent reader will perhaps -pardon the introduction of her story in this place. - -At the time Lady Frances returned to England, Mrs Lee was taken out of -the convent to be married. Her parents, dazzled with Mr Lee's wealth, -forgot to attend to other requisites to render that state happy. Without -his being a man of very shining parts, he had such talents as made -him acceptable to women, in particular to a girl so young as she was -when this alliance took place. He sung and danced well, was lively to -extravagance, full of agreeable trifling, and always in good humour: -add to this, he was handsome in his person, liberal to excess, and -calculated for the seduction of the fair. Mrs Lee's great beauty, her -parents partially flattered themselves would fix his affections.--All -the graces of which the figure and emotions of a female were capable, -were united in her; but his love for her was nothing but an impulse -of passion which soon subsided. Addicted by his natural disposition -to pleasure, he despised those which a tender sensibility renders -so exquisitely delightful; such would have trespassed too much on -his vanity. Unexperienced and artless, his innocent wife could not -long retain his affections, and in the few years she lived with him, -encountered many mortifications; first from the alienation of his -affections, afterwards from the distressed situation of his affairs, -which entirely changed his temper, rendering him impatient and -passionate. His very footmen were taught to insult her, and every one -in the family knew the most effectual way to ingratiate themselves with -him, was to disregard his wife. Yet she bore it all with patience, -and acted her part with prudence, endeavouring to disarm his anger -with gentleness. She sometimes, indeed, lamented and complained, but -the dove and the lamb do so too--'The poison of grief exhales only in -complaints.'--She was neither sullen nor gay when he was out of humour; -nor impertinent or melancholy when he was pleased--She obliged her -affections to wait and submit to the various turns of his temper--trying -to bribe his passions to her interest. She endeavoured also, by economy -and proper attention, to retard as long as possible, the ruin that -threatened him; and considerably diminished the household expenses. - -This pleased her husband; he wanted to retrench, without appearing -less magnificent; for his prudence (or rather his desire of saving at -home to squander abroad) was still subordinate to his ostentation. But -all these innocent stratagems were ineffectual; spending his whole -time between women, racing, and gaming, one excess succeeded another, -until his affairs were intirely involved. Previous to this, Mrs Lee had -resigned her jewels to pay one of his game debts, which she afterwards -saw adorning a girl he kept. The world saw he devoted himself only to -objects of contempt, and pitied his neglect of a woman of her merit, -and who was still handsome, having that style of beauty which is the -image of a sensible heart, though sorrow and tears had deprived it of -its freshness. This laid her open to the assiduity of men of gallantry, -who are generally obliging enough, upon such occasions, to offer their -assistance to dry up a _pretty woman's tears_. It is to be confessed a -woman under these circumstances is in a very _dangerous situation_. - -None of Mr Lee's conduct was founded on propriety--he was witty, kind, -cold, angry, easy, stiff, jealous, careless, cautious, confident, -close, open, but all _in the wrong place_. She often retired into her -closet, and wept the silent hours away for his hard-heartedness--yet -without one unkind word or reproach. Her parents were dead, Lady -Frances at a distance, her sorrows of a complicated kind, which -required great delicacy to discover; she had no person to open her -heart to, none to whom she could pour forth the sorrows of the soul! -she had a susceptible heart, and no object she took any interest in, -or who participated in her trials.--This situated, (the candid must -acknowledge) she was perhaps more to be _pitied_ than _blamed_, in -permitting another object to glide insensibly into her affections--more -especially as he was introduced by Mr Lee, as one to whom she was -indebted for his life and fortune. - -_The first_ he had defended, when two gamblers, his adversaries, were -on the point of killing him; _the last_ he had preserved by discovering -a scheme that had been practised on him by them when inebriated by -liquor, to which he was much addicted. Her husband left her young and -unexperienced heart to all the tortures and pangs of jealousy, and -that _ennui_ attending an unoccupied heart; after flattering herself, -as she had done nothing to deserve the estrangement of his affections, -that they would be as permanent as her own. Why did he forsake her; why -did he lay her open to temptations? her heart might have been his own, -had he not cruelly abandoned her--at any rate it was too good to form -another tye, had he not at last added _contempt_ to _neglect_ and his -cruel usage at last would have animated a statue, at least I may safely -declare nothing warmed with flesh and blood could bear it. A man of this -humour is to be beloved only in the way of christianity--that is the -utmost obedience which can be allowed to the commandments of God, and -the authority of religion. - -Were I obliged to draw a picture that should represent the happy union -between an elevated soul, a penetrating mind, and a heart in which sweet -humanity resides, I would form it entirely of the person and features of -Mr Villars; and I fancy that all who had any just idea of those three -qualities might perceive them plainly expressed in his form, look, -and demeanor. Mr Lee pressed him to be much at his house; and as his -_innocent_, though _oppressed_, wife had been kept in constant alarms -concerning the consequences of his gaming----she could not but look on -Mr Villars as the favour of her fortune, and on one to whom she might -be indebted for her husband's reformation. I shall not expatiate on the -sweetness and charms of his voice, of his noble appearance, and of the -tincture of melancholy which softens the vivacity of his fine eyes; but -what distinguishes him from most other men is the sentimental look of -modest virtue, which never gives offence. He is not in the least a slave -to interest; but as he is no stranger to the necessities of life, his -conduct is always regular, and he never abandons himself to any excess. -Such is and was Mr Villars. Mrs Lee very soon perceived his partiality -for her--circumstanced as she was, his attentions were dangerous--but -she could not with any propriety forbid him _a house_ to which her -husband so constantly _invited him_, without letting him see she -mistrusted herself--more especially as he never failed in his respect -for her. - -He became her only comforter and friend; and if from her youth and -inexperience she was likely to fall into even the appearance of any -error, it was this kind, this friendly monitor that guarded her from it. - -His attentions became as necessary to her soul, as aliments of food -are to the support of the body, while the respectful distance of his -behaviour proved to her his passion was controlled by his respect. - -Some surmises were at length insinuated to Mr Lee, to his wife's -dishonour. He paid little attention to them--but coming home one night -flushed with wine, and finding Mr Villars alone at supper with her, (no -unusual matter, and by his own request) he drew his sword, and wounded -him before he had time to defend himself! Mrs Lee fainted away----on her -recovery she removed herself from a house to which no entreaties on his -part could prevail on her to return--declaring she would live no longer -with a man who could at once suspect her virtue, endanger his friend's -life, and ruin her reputation. - -The world talked differently about this affair. Should not the example -of the law be followed, which is so tender in criminal cases, that -delinquents are often found _not guilty_, for want of legal evidence, -at the same time that the court, the jury, and every one present at the -trial feel the strongest _moral_ conviction of their _guilt_? Scandal -on the contrary always gives its most important and fatal decisions -from _appearances_ and _suppositions_, though reputation is dearer to -a woman of honor than life itself. Mrs Lee experienced the malevolence -of her own sex particularly. What, said they, could engage Mr Villars -to devote all his time to her? is not friendship between a man and a -woman a chimera, the mark of a passion which honor or self-interest bids -them conceal? But whilst the world represented this affair in the worst -colours, Lady Frances wrote her an affectionate letter, offering her -assistance, and begging she would communicate her real situation, that -she might the more effectually be enabled to serve her; to which Mrs -Lee returned the following answer. - - 'Dear Madam. - - I received the honor of your letter, and find myself elevated by - your notice--if there can be pride that ranks with virtues, it is - that we feel from friendships with the worthy. The liberal sentiments - you express, are a proof of the goodness of your heart----I have ever - thought that to believe the worst is a mark of a mean spirit, and a - wicked soul; at least I am sure, that the contrary quality, when it - is not due to weakness of understanding, is the fruit of a generous - temper. In return for your generosity, I will lay open my whole heart - to you; and if in consequence I lose your esteem, I shall at least - have the satisfaction resulting from a consciousness of my candour. - This is a liberty I should have taken before, had it not proceeded - from the timidity I felt in unbosoming myself to one whose virtues - I dreaded, and in discovering _my weakness_ to one who I think has - _none of her own_. Your ladyship knows the trials I suffered for many - years; my conduct under the severest mortifications human nature could - sustain. I was wounded in my affections, condemned and insulted in - my person, impoverished in my circumstances: I still had strength of - mind to regulate myself so as to meet your approbation: no species - of calamity was unknown to me, nor were there wanting those of the - other sex, who judged from my situation they might have a chance of - succeeding with me, if I was weak enough to listen to them--but they - soon gave up the pursuit, judging the excess of my misfortunes had - hardened my heart entirely against certain impressions. But this was - so far from being the case, that my sorrows, my sufferings, rendered - my heart (naturally tender) more susceptible of that refined passion, - which, when dignified by respect, and softened by tenderness, found so - ready access to it[24]. - - In short, circumstanced as I was, if it is a crime to love, I am - very culpable! but had I unfortunately proceeded to any act contrary - to my engagements with Mr Lee, I myself would have acquainted him with - it, though, in the opinion of many, he would not have deserved so much - candour from me. - - This being the real state of the case, I flatter myself your - ladyship will think me more _weak_ than _wicked_, more _frail_ than - _culpable_, more _unfortunate_ than _indiscreet_. And I must now - acquaint you, that I am determined never to return to my husband--I - have consulted my reason on this subject, and when we have done - so, whatever the decision be, whether in favour of our prejudices, - or against them, we must rest satisfied, since nothing can be more - certain than this, that he who follows that guide in the search of - truth, as that was given to direct him, will have a much better plea - to make for his conduct, than he who has resigned himself implicitly - to the guidance of others. My maxim is, our understanding, _properly_ - exercised, is the _medium_ by which God makes known his _will_ to us; - and that in all _cases_, the voice of impartial reason is the _voice - of_ God. Were my marriage even to be annulled, all the theologians - in the world could not prove the least impiety in it.--Milton wrote - _the doctrine and discipline of divorce_; wherein he proves, that a - contrariety of mind, destructive of felicity, peace, and happiness, - are greater reasons of divorce than adultery, especially if there be - no children, and there be a mutual consent for separation. - - He dedicated the second edition to the parliament of England, with - the assembly of divines----The latter summoned him before the house - of Lords, who, whether approving his doctrine, or not favouring his - accusers, dismissed him. Necessary and just causes have necessary and - just consequences: what error and disaster joined, reason and equity - should disjoin. - - I see no reason why those who upon the evidence of more than - fourteen years experience are unsuited to each other, _joined_ - not _matched_, should live disagreeably together, and exist - miserably--merely for the inadequate satisfaction of exulting upon - the degree of their patience in having to say they did _not part_. - A person may mistake in fixing love without knowledge of the party, - but he cannot err that finds cause to dislike from woeful experience. - It is, indeed, convenient for the lords of the creation to inculcate - another doctrine, upon the same principles that the extreme and - timorous attention to his own security made James I. very anxious - to infuse into his subjects the belief of divine hereditary right, - and a scrupulous unreserved obedience _to the power which God had - set over them_. Mr Villars, who is now reconciled with my husband, - has written to intercede in his behalf, assuring me of his penitence - and affection. Boileau has observed, that it is an easy matter in a - _Christian poem_ for _God_ to bring _the devil to reason_. Could I - believe that all my husband did, were the effects of love, it would - not in the least alter my resolution, since I should consider a - person whose affection had such dreadful effects, as dangerous to - my repose, as one whose anger was implacable.----What signifies it - to me whether it be love or hatred by which I suffer, if the danger - and inconvenience be the same? I am certain were we to live together - again, whenever we met we should as naturally quarrel as the elephant - and the rhinoceros. Reconciliations in the marriage state, after - violent breaches, are seldom lasting, and after what has passed - between us, like the father of the gods and the queen of heaven, we - shall be the best company when _asunder_. - - He says his conduct proceeded from an excess of love! I desire to - be subject no more to such excesses! I am content to be moderately - beloved; nor shall I ever again give occasion for such extraordinary - proofs of affection. Were I to act otherwise, it would afford too much - encouragement for the men to use their wives ill. _Too good subjects - are apt to make bad kings._ He has my consent to live with any - woman who can delight in such a _loving husband_, while I will force - him to esteem my conduct, and irritate his animosity by declining a - reconciliation. We are tired with perpetual gratitude, and perpetual - hatred.----He wishes to be reconciled to me, not from any religious - motive, or return of affection, his animosity being still the -same--but because he is tired of acting the part of a provoked husband. - - I am piqued at Mr Villars's interesting himself in this matter. I - shall not answer his letter for a week; I mistrust my own vivacity. - - Our imagination is often our greatest enemy: I am striving to weary - mine before I act. Business like fruit hath its time of maturity, - and we should not think of dispatching it while it is half ripe. The - Cardinal de Retz said, 'I have all my life-time held men in greater - esteem for what they forbore to do on some occasions than for what - they did.' - - I have here a most delightful dwelling----It is thatched, and - covered on every side with roses, wood-bines, and honey-suckles, - surrounded with a garden of the most artful confusion. The streams all - around murmur, and fall a thousand ways. A great variety of birds are - here collected, and are in high harmony on the sprays. The ruins of an - abbey enhance the beauties of this place: they appear at the distance - of four hundred yards from the house; and as some great trees are now - grown up among the remains, and a river winds among the broken walls, - the view is solemn, the picture fine. Here I often meditate on my - misfortunes. - - 'There is a joy in grief when peace dwells - in the breast of the sad.' - OSSIAN'S Poems. - - Sadness receives so many eulogiums in the scripture, that it is easy - to judge, that if it be not of the number of the virtues, it may be - usefully employed in their service----and it may be truly observed, - that without experiencing sorrow, we should never know life's true - value. - - About a mile above the house is a range of very high hills, the - sight of which renders me less incredulous of the accounts of Olympus, - and mount Athos. Hygeia resides here, and dispenses the chief - blessings of life, ease and health. I will pass my days in sweet - tranquillity and study. - - 'In either place 'tis folly to complain, - The mind, and not the place, creates the pain.' - HORACE, lib. i. epist. 14. - - Could I flatter myself I should ever be honored by your presence, - how happy I should be!----Your eye, I am sure, would catch pleasure - while it measures the surrounding landscape (even at this season - of the year) of russet lawns and grey fallows, on which stray the - nibbling flocks: the mountains too, which seem to support the - labouring clouds, add sublimity to the charming scene. When I take a - walk after a sedentary occupation, I feel a sensible pleasure; rest - in its turn becomes agreeable, if it has been preceded by a moderate - fatigue. Every action of our lives may be converted into a kind of - pleasure, if it is but well timed: Life owes all its joys to this - well-adapted succession; and he will never enjoy its true relish, - who does not know to blend pleasure with dissipation. I ask pardon - for detaining your ladyship so long--My cousin Lord Darnley has been - to see, and admires my cottage.--I perceive plainly he flatters - himself that you will one day make him happy. I do not presume to - offer my advice; it would be imitating the savage chief, who marks - out to the sun the course it is to take----but surely his respectful, - uninterrupted attachment deserves your consideration. Were I not - perfectly convinced of his worth and sincerity, I should be _the last_ - person to speak in his behalf. The bitterness of conjugal repentance, - which I have experienced, is beyond all others poignant; and happy it - is if _disunion_, rather than perpetual _disagreement_, results from - it. - - I ever am your ladyship's - Obliged and affectionate friend, - LUCY LEE.' - -Lady Frances returned Mrs Lee immediately the following answer. - - 'Dear Madam, Munster-house. - - I return you many thanks for the confidence you honored me with; - and I sincerely sympathize with you on the many disagreeable events - that have occurred to you. If my approbation can confer on you any - satisfaction, you possess it in a very eminent degree: for though I - cannot approve of your sentiments concerning divorce, etc. yet your - conduct in your family was exemplary. - - There is no reasoning about the motions of the heart. Reflection and - sensation are extremely different--our affections are not in our own - power, though yours seem to have been under proper regulations. - - I am not surprised at the calumny you met with. Many people stoop - to the baseness of discovering in a person distinguished by eminent - qualities, the weaknesses of humanity, while there is scarcely to be - found an honest heart, who knows how to render a noble and sincere - homage to another's superiority. I acknowledge myself guilty with - respect to you, of a too common instance of injustice, that of - desiring that others would always _conduct themselves_ by our maxims! - I am the more culpable, as I entirely agree with you in thinking that - all our actions should proceed from the fixed principles we have - adopted. I never pay a blind deference to the judgment of any man, or - any body of men whatever. I cannot acquiesce in a decision, however - formidable made by numbers, where my own reason is not satisfied. When - the mind has no _data_, no settled principles to which it may recur - as the rule of action, the agent can feel little or no satisfaction - within himself, and society can have no moral security whatever - against him. - - The most permanent, the most pleasing enjoyment the human soul is - capable of entertaining, is that which arises from a consciousness - of having acted up to that standard of rectitude which we conceive - to be the proper measure of our duty: and the best grounds on which - we can expect others to place confidence in us, is the assurance we - give them that we act under the influence of such moral obligations. - This principle has influenced my conduct: and as you say you are - absolutely determined never to live with your husband again; although - my sentiments do not correspond with yours on that head, I will add - nothing further on that subject, but refer you to certain passages - in scripture, which I think on sober reflection must invalidate your - present opinion[25]. - - The caprice you have often tacitly blamed me for respecting Lord - Darnley, had you known the motives for, you would have approved--I - will now in reward for your candour _to me_ be equally sincere _with - you_--trusting to your honor, that you will not _divulge_ what is it - so material to me to _conceal_. - - At the time I agreed to give Lord Darnley my hand, I was at liberty - to indulge my inclinations, and to devote myself entirely to him: - But on my father's death, when I found the estate in my possession, - I considered myself as mother to my brother's children. This was my - motive for rejecting the man I (_did_, and do _now_) fondly love: who - by his generous and friendly, his respectful and tender behaviour, - deserves every thing from me. Whoever pretends to be without passions, - censures the wisdom of that Power which made him; and if men of sense - (for they alone are capable of refined pleasure) would so far admit - love, as not to exclude their necessary and more important duties, - they need not be ashamed to indulge one of the most valuable blessings - of an innocent life. I honor the married state: and have high ideas of - the happiness resulting from an union of hearts. Domestic society is - founded on the union betwixt husband and wife. Among all the civilized - nations, this union hath been esteemed sacred and honorable; and from - it are derived those exquisite joys, or sorrows, which can embitter - all the pleasures, or alleviate all the pains in human life. The - heart has but a certain degree of sensibility, which we ought to be - economists of. Lord Darnley engrossed my whole soul; nothing could - afford me any pleasure which had no reference to him.--He was ever - uppermost in my thoughts, and I bestowed only a secondary reflection - on all other subjects. - - I could have cheerfully, for his _conversation_, abandoned all - society on earth beside, and have been more blessed, than if, for - them, I had been deprived of _his_. But if we suffer one particular - duty (even the worship of the Deity) to engross us entirely, or even - to encroach upon the rest, we make but a very imperfect essay towards - religion, or virtue; and are still at a considerable distance from - the business of a moral agent. "The dial that mistells one hour, of - consequence is false through the whole round of day." - - _Virtue_, in my acceptation, is nothing else than that principle - by which our actions are _intentionally directed_, to produce good, - to the several objects of our free agency. I was aware, that it was - not only necessary that I should mean to act a right part, and take - the best way which could direct me to effect it, but that I should - previously take those measures which were in my power to acquire the - knowledge of my duty, and of the weaknesses I had to guard against. - I was sensible, that, had I given my hand to Lord Darnley, I would - have been defective in the duties incumbent on me to my own family:-- - Love would have taken entire possession of my soul, and shut up the - avenues of my heart against every other sentiment. Upon this occasion - I felt how justly the sacrifice of our own happiness is placed among - the highest virtues. How painful must it be to the most generous - heart! Men lose their lives to honor--I relinquished my love--the - life of life. I am sensible I have been condemned for permitting him - to be so much with me: but what recompence can the world bestow on - me, for relinquishing the society of a real and tender friend? Common - attachments, the shadows of friendship, the issue of chance, or - fantastic likings, _rashly cemented_, may as hastily be _dissolved_: - but mine has had the purest virtue for its basis, and will subsist - whilst vital breath in me remains. My affections are founded on those - amiable qualities, which are seldom united, and therefore but little - liable to be displaced. My partiality is founded on esteem: take away - the cause, the effect will cease. The dread of the world has never yet - withheld me from following the bent of my own inclinations, and the - dictates of my own heart, not the dread of censure ever influenced my - conduct. - - Your mention of his continued attachment is highly flattering, and - very pleasing--There you touched the tenderest springs of my heart, - bring me down to all the softness of my sex, and press upon me a crowd - of tender, lovely, ideas-- - - If the consciousness of good-will to others, though inactive, be - highly delightful, what a superior joy have I not experienced, my - dear friend, in exerting this disposition, in acts of beneficence! - Is not this the supreme enjoyment in nature? It is true, the great - works I have carried on, the encouragement I have given to learning, - the manufactories I have introduced into this kingdom, etc. etc. have - procured me the suffrage of the world, and may transmit my name down - to posterity. But what flatters me most is, that if I have acquired - any fame, it is derived from the man I love. My acquaintance with him, - has been a happiness to my mind, because it has improved and exalted - its powers. The epithet of _great_, so liberally bestowed on princes, - would, in most cases, if narrowly scanned, belong rather to their - ministers. Unassisted by Agrippa and Mecænas, where should we have - placed Augustus? What is the history of Lewis XIII. but the shining - acts of Richelieu? Lewis XIV. was indeed a great king; but the Condés, - the Turennes, as well as the Luvois, and Colberts, had no small share - in acquiring the glories of his reign. In all situations of life, it - is of great consequence to make a right choice of those we confide - in--It is on that choice our own glory and peace depend.--But it is - still more so to princes, or persons of large property. A private man - will find a thousand persons ready to open his eyes, by reproaching - him with the wrong steps into which bad advice drew him; whereas - courtiers, or those who are interested, approve and applaud whatever - the prince or the great person does. An ingenious courtier replied to - his friend, who upbraided him with his too great complaisance for the - emperor who had made bad verses, which he commended; "Would you have - me have more sense than a man who commands twelve legions, and can - banish me?" - - That day my nephew is of age, I shall assign over his estate, and - acquaint him of his obligations to Lord Darnley, to whom, at the same - time, I shall offer my hand, if I have reason then to think it shall - be agreeable to him. If it should not, I shall be mortified, though I - shall not deck my brow with the plaintive willow. I need not tell you - how agreeable it will be for me to see you at this place, which is - considerably improved since you were here last. This day month I give - a feast, in imitation of the Saturnalia[26]; make me happy by your - presence on that occasion. - - I remain, with great esteem, - Your affectionate friend, - - FRANCES FINLAY. - -Mrs Lee, soon after the receipt of the above letter, came to -Munster-house, where she generally resided during the winter months, -(after her separation from her husband) retiring to her cottage in -Wales, in the summer. - -Lady Frances had always a select number of friends with her. -Notwithstanding her passion for music, she kept the performers in their -own line; and though she venerated the liberal sciences, and contributed -so largely to their cultivation, their several professors only waited on -her by invitation: by this means she had it always in her power to suit -her company, and never to be intruded on; as the best things are irksome -to those whose inclinations, tastes, and humours, they do not suit. - -I have already mentioned Mrs Norden, who had the care of Lady Frances's -education, and who now continued to reside with her: this Lady's -seriousness was happily contrasted with Lady Eliza's sprightliness, -while Lady Frances's scientifical knowledge was agreeably relieved by -the strokes of nature observable in Mrs Lee--who declared she had never -read, or studied, any more than to assist her decyphering what was -incumbent her _to understand_. 'I hate your wise ones,' said she, 'there -is no opinion so absurd but it has been mentioned by some philosopher.' -She is nature itself, without disguise, quite original disdaining all -imitation, even in her dress, which is simple but unaffected. She -plays most divinely on the fiddle. Her genius for music is sublime and -universal. She holds the fiddle like a man, and produces music in all -its genuine charms, raising the soul into the finest affections. - -An aunt and sister of Sir Harry Bingley's were also much at -Munster-house. Miss Bingley was of the same age with Lady Eliza: to -the charms of a regular beauty she joins all those of a cultivated -mind, together with a disposition replete with candor, and a turn for -ridicule; two things rarely joined together--as a calm dispassionate -love of truth, with a disposition to examine carefully, and judge -impartially, with a love of diverting one's self at other people's -expense, seldom meet together in the same mind. Mrs Dorothea Bingley is -a maiden lady of fifty, possessed of a large independent fortune, which -she proposes to bestow on her niece. She was in her youth very handsome: -but having lived all her life in the country, she derived all her ideas -of love from the heroic romance. To talk to her of love was a capital -offence. Her rigour must be melted by the blood of giants, necromancers, -and paynim knights. She expected, that, for her sake, they would retire -to desarts, mourn her cruelty, _subsist_ on _nothing_, and make light -of scampering over impassable mountains, and riding through unfordable -rivers, without recollecting, that, while the imagination of the lover -is linked to this _muddy vesture of decay_, she must now and then -condescend to partake of the carnality of the vivres of the shambles. - -Those of the other sex who were mostly at Munster-house, were, Lord -Darnley, Sir Harry Bingley, Sir James Mordaunt, etc. etc. etc. Great -marriages had been proposed to Lady Frances; but she had ceased long -to be importuned on that head. When Lord Munster was of age she gave a -splendid entertainment to the neighbourhood, which finished with a ball. -The day after she shewed her nephew the state of her affairs, when she -succeeded to the estate: and that, exclusive of the buildings, etc. etc. -she had already doubled it: that the perpetual burdens she had entailed -on it, did not amount to one quarter of the advanced rents, which would -continue to encrease: that she had put aside for Lady Eliza's fortune -fifty thousand pounds, and an equivalent sum for herself, and then -with great pleasure resigned the remainder to his Lordship, who she -was happy to find so worthy of filling the place of his ancestors. She -at the same time acquainted him with her motives for concealing her -intentions in his favor, and that, had she seen him addicted to any -irregularities, she would not have assigned over the property so soon -to him--as the law of this country does not interfere like that of -France, where, if a person, before he attains the age of twenty-five, -wastes his fortune by anticipation, or other means, and is in a fair -way of ruining himself, and, perhaps, his family; the government -interposes: guardians of his estate are appointed, and his person may -be detained in custody till he arrives at that age; but _there_ the -jurisdiction stops. The acknowledgments of Lord Munster are easier to -be conceived, than expressed--he concluded by saying, 'he hoped Lady -Frances would always consider Munster-house as still her own, and make -it her principle residence!' She smiled, and looking to Lord Darnley, -said, 'Having my lord performed my duty to this family; it is now in my -power to make myself happy by conforming to your wishes--Sixteen years -ago, I had singly an engagement to fulfil; but I have now a breach of -it to repair.' Lord Darnley's joy may easily be supposed great on this -occasion, who had maintained for Lady Frances, for so long a time, an -uninterrupted attachment.--They were married a few days afterwards. -Never did Phoebus gild a more auspicious day; never did Cupid inspire -two lovers with a higher sense of each other's merit; and never did -Hymen light his torch with a greater complacency, than to reward that -constancy which remained invincible in Lord Darnley, without even being -supported by hope. - -The part Lady Darnley performed would have been difficult for another; -but the club which a man of ordinary size could but lift, was but a -walking-stick to Hercules. - -No one enjoyed this wedding more than Mrs Dorothea Bingley. A sixteen -years courtship corresponded entirely with her ideas of the right and -fitness of things. She harangued her niece and Lady Eliza on this -subject, telling them that Lady Darnley is the only woman she knows -in this degenerate age, that has acted up to the propriety of the -ancients--that she respected the sublimity of her ideas. She was very -desirous of her niece's marrying a Mr Bennet, because he made love -in heroics, was inebriated in his science, and thought all the world -considered him as a Phoenix of wit. Miss Bingley would often reason with -her aunt on this subject? 'Of what use in the world (said she) is an -erudition so savage, and so full of presumption?' - - One moral, or a mere well-natur'd deed, - Does all desert in sciences exceed.' - - SHEFFIELD - -But Mrs Dorothea always insisted that he was a classical scholar, and -a fine gentleman! The niece declared he was a Pagan, and ought to have -lived two centuries ago, as he spoke a language she did not understand! -'He may be learned (said she) but he has no passion!' - -'No passion (replied Mrs Dorothea) how comes he then to write such fine -letters?' - -'The fine letters (replied Miss Bingley) show memory and fancy, but no -sensations of _the heart_! lovers who make use of extravagant tropes -are reduced to that expedient, to supply the defect of passion by the -deceitful counterfeit of hyperbolical language. The passions of _the -heart_ depend not on the deductions of _the understanding_--but it -was necessary he should have a _Corinna_, because Ovid had _one_; and -he makes me inconstant, although I never gave him any encouragement, -because Gallus's favourite run away with a soldier. He seems to be -intimately acquainted with the history of Cupid and Venus, but knows -nothing _of love_: and would be sooner applauded for writing a good -elegy, than have his mistress smile on him.' - -Mrs Dorothea told her, that she was exceedingly perverse, but she would -give her leave _to talk_, as she had the power _to do_. - -Miss Bingley said, 'Since Mr Bennet was so much in her good graces, she -made no doubt but he would pay her his homage, on the smallest hint, -would transfer his affections--as the foundation of his passion was _the -same_ for _both_, built on that of her _mansion_, would _grow_ with her -_trees_ and _increase_ with her _estate_----Increase, you know, my dear -aunt, is the end of marriage; and your fortune is better than Medea's -charm, for that only made an old man young again; but your riches will -make a young man enamoured of an old woman! He will swear you are not -only wiser than Minerva, but fairer than the Paphian queen! Though you -are old, your trees are green; and though you have lost the roses in -your cheeks, there are great plenty of them on your pleasure-grounds.' - -Mrs Dorothea with great good-humour laughed at her niece's sallies, -saying, 'You remember what Martial says; - - 'Fain would kind Paula wed me if she could: - I won't, she's old; if older yet, I would.' - -'But seriously, niece (said she) you will never make a choice that I -shall so much approve of--he has so much wit.' - -Miss Bingley replied, that all the credit he has for wit is owing to -the gratification he gives to others ill-nature: and said she would be -very happy to accommodate herself to her aunt's wishes; but was not upon -such a religious strain, and so desirous of canonization hereafter (if -sufferings can make a saint) as to marry a man of his character, that -she might have her mortifications and punishments in this life: but -at the same time would faithfully promise never to marry any man she -disapproved of. - -There were great rejoicings for some weeks at Munster-house:--at which -time Lord and Lady Darnley set out for their estate in Dorsetshire, -and Lady Eliza accompanied Lord Munster to London. As a correspondence -commenced at this period between the parties I have already introduced -to the reader, the sequel of this history will appear from their -letters. I shall only observe, that Lord Munster's figure was remarkably -agreeable, his address engaging; he first attracted, and then commanded -the admiration of all who knew him. On the slightest acquaintance with -him, a most exact regard to all the proprieties and decencies of life -were observable in his conduct; and such an evident desire to oblige, -and to make all about him easy, as became a good mind and a liberal -education. An agreeable chearfulness made his conversation as lively -and agreeable as it was useful and instructing. But the discerning eye -of friendship could discover that he was not happy, and that delicacy -to the feelings of his friends restrained him from giving way to an -uneasiness, which it was too apparent he laboured under. His general -behaviour bore the genuine stamp of true politeness, the result of an -overflowing humanity and benevolence of heart. Such qualities very -justly and forcibly recommend, lying obvious to almost every observer; -but to the more discerning, a nearer view of him quickly discovered -endowments far above the common standard. He had, in truth, endowments -of mind to have honored any station. - -As Lady Darnley's breast glowed with that exalted fervent charity -which embraces the wide extended interests of men, of communities, -of the species itself; it is easy to conceive how her heart exulted -at finding her nephew so deserving of all she had done for him. But -though she felt the greatest satisfaction at his being so conformable -to her wishes, and his fortune so adequate to his beneficence; the same -sensibility rendered her wretched for the evident melancholy in which -he was plunged. Her social affections ever awake, even on those whose -objects lie beyond the nearer ties of nature, on many occasions gave -her most painful sympathetic feelings; so deeply was she interested in -the fortunes of all with whom she had any connection. How then must -she mourn to observe, that, notwithstanding the possession of every -advantage of person and wealth, her nephew was miserable!--If men -would but consider how many things there are that riches cannot buy, -they would not be so fond of them--for all the outward advantages Lord -Munster had, were, to a man in his situation of mind, _landscapes_ -before a _blind man_, or _music_ to one that _is deaf_. - -Delicacy kept Lady Darnley from interrogating her nephew on the subject -of his grief; sensible that the remotest desire _from her_, must amount -to a command _to him_. She only, at parting, insinuated the happiness -it would afford her to see him ally himself suitably to some lady of -merit: and, as Lady Eliza was to accompany him to town, requested him to -moderate her liveliness, and to be a careful observer of her conduct. - -'I never see (said she) a single man, who hath passed middle age in -celibacy, where no particular security arises from his profession or -character; but I think I see an unsafe subject, and a very dangerous -instrument for any mischief that his _own_ parts may _inspire_, -or _other men's_ may _prompt him_ to: As to other achievements of -virtue, a distinction _ought_, I think, to be _made_; because, in -common acceptation, there is a variety of things which pass under that -name, and are generally applauded, which, properly estimated, would -not _deserve it_. A regard to posterity hath carried arms, arts, and -literature, further than any other motive ever did or could. Who is so -likely to be influenced by this regard as they who are to leave behind -them the darling pledges of their affection, in whom they hope to have -their names continued, and all the fruits of their study, toil, and -exploits, abiding and permanent?' Lord Munster assured the Countess, -that he would ever think it his glory to conform to her wishes in ever -respect. - - - END OF THE FIRST VOLUME - - - - - VOLUME II - - -Soon after Lord Munster's arrival in London, he wrote Lady Darnley the -following letter. - - From the Earl of Munster to the - Countess of Darnley. - - 'My Dear Aunt, - - Over powered as I am with a weight of obligations, I should think - myself highly wanting to my own feelings, were I in any one instance - in my future life to leave you dubious of my gratitude, or the earnest - desire I have of conforming to your wishes. - - You have, my dear Madam, expressed your desire I should marry; - but that, my dear aunt, is impossible at present. But I revere that - state: men who laugh at a serious engagement, have never known the - allurements of modesty when blended with affability; nor felt the - power of beauty, when innocence has increased its force. This has been - my case, and my heart is already a prey to a hopeless passion. But it - is necessary to carry you back some years, in order to give a recital - of its commencement. - - The amiable character of Mr Vanhagen, my landlord at Rotterdam, you - are already acquainted with: his humanity and benevolence inspired me - with the greatest respect. The advantages his countrymen have over us, - are their industry, vigilance, and wariness: But they in general exert - them to excess, by which means they turn their virtues into vices. - Their industry becomes rapine, their vigilance fraud, their wariness - cunning. But my worthy landlord possessed all the virtues. - - He had in the early part of his life resided much at Venice, and - brought from thence the economy and frugality which distinguish them - in their private families, their temperance, their inviolable secrecy - of public and private affairs, and a certain steadiness and serenity - to which the English are supposed to be utter strangers. His long - residence there, made him well known to the duchess de Salis, whose - distant relation he had married. - - This lady had resided some years at Rotterdam with her family. - She was only daughter to the Count de Trevier, was heiress to a - large fortune, and possessed exquisite beauty, good-sense, and - every accomplishment that was likely to preserve and to improve the - authority beauty gives to make it _indefectible_ and _interminable_. - But the duke, her husband, unfortunately was soon satiated with the - regularity of her virtues: His affections could not long be preserved - by a woman of her amiable undisguised character. When custom had taken - off the edge from his passion, he endeavoured to rouse his torpid - mind by a change of object. That vivacity which the tender passions - impart to pleasure, was a powerful incentive for him to indulge them. - His heart found fresh delight in gallantry, to which he was naturally - prone: a dangerous delight, which, habituating the mind to the most - lively transports, gives it a distaste to all moderate and temperate - enjoyments: from thence forward the innocent and tranquil joys which - nature offers, lose all their relish. His sophisticated mind made him - blind to the merit of his wife, who loved him tenderly.--She felt most - severely his neglect, and contracted insensibly a settled melancholy, - which served the more effectually to alienate his affections from - her. She became miserable:--and no temper can be so invincibly good - as to hold out against the siege of constant slights and neglects. - Misfortunes she had strength of mind to support, and death she could - have encountered with greater resolution than the displeasure and - peevishness of the man she loved. Wherever there is love, there is a - degree of fear--we are naturally afraid of offending, or of doing any - thing which may lessen us in the esteem of an object that is dear to - us: and if we are conscious of any act by which we may have incurred - displeasure, we are impatient and miserable, till, by intreaties and - tokens of submission, we have expiated the offence and are restored to - favor. - - By the duchess's earnest solicitude to please, she destroyed her - own purpose, and her obedience, like water flung upon a raging fire, - only inflamed her husband's follies; and therefore, when he was in - an ill humour, the duke vented his range on her. He did not care - _how_ often _he quarrelled_ with, or, to speak more properly, how - often he _insulted_ her; for that could not be called a quarrel - wherein she acted no part but _that of suffering_. But though his - displeasure was grievous to her, yet she could bear it better than - his indifference--for resentment argues some degree of regard. But - whilst she was breaking her heart for him, he passed his time in - gallantry--though his affections were always the satire of a woman's - virtue--the ruin of a woman's reputation. - - A favourite mistress, by pursuing a different plan from that of the - duchess, secured his affections. She kept alive his ardour by her - caprices. _Affectation_ always exceeds the _reality_. But is not the - extravagance of some men's fancy to be pitied, who lodge all their - passions in a mistress, a dog, or a horse, which but in general do - them no service but what they are prompted to through necessity or - instinct? Art and cunning are _unknown_ to a woman of virtue, whose - conduct is determined by her principles, whose anxiety alone is - excited by affection. - - After five years, in which the duchess had a son and a daughter, and - in which she had experienced many of the _vexations_, but few of the - _satisfactions_ of a married state; the duke left her, and resided - entirely in Paris with his mistress. She retired to the country, to - a family-seat of her father's, and devoted her time entirely to the - education of her children, and that of a young lady (of great beauty - and fortune) whose mother with her last breath bequeathed to her care. - - She from time to time wrote the duke letters, expressing great - resignation, and such a tenderness for him as she thought might have - power to touch his heart. "I am obedient to your wishes," said she, "I - will not urge, with one unwelcome word, this unkindness--I'll conceal - it--If your heart has made a choice more worthy, I forgive it--pursue - your pleasures--drive without a rein your passions--I am the mistress - of my own mind, that shall not mutiny--If I retrieve you, I shall be - thankful--If not, you _are_ and must be still _my lord_." - - To letters such as these she never received any answer! as the - charms of a woman's eloquence never have any force, when those of her - person are expired (in the eyes of her lover I mean): it might be - perhaps as easy to persuade a man to dance, who had lost the use of - his limbs. - - I shall pass over the first ten years of her retirement, as they - furnish nothing more than the unwearied attentions she took in - employing every means for the instruction of her son, daughter, and - ward. I shall only observe, that the regularity of her conduct gained - her the esteem of every one. She was a friend to virtue under any - denomination, and an enemy to vice under any colour. She established - an institution for the provision of the infirm and destitute. This - was constructed on that wise and excellent plan, that excludes the - undeserving from participating in the charity, and extends only - to those who, from their real necessities, are proper objects of - benevolence.--At that period she was advised to take her son to - the capital. But she wisely considered that the education which - commonly attends high birth or great fortune, very often corrupts or - sophisticates nature; whilst in those of the middle state she remains - unmixed and unaltered. I have somewhere read; _Jamais les grandes - passions et les grandes vertus ne sont nées, & ne se sont nourries que - dans le silence & la retrait. L'homme en societé perd tous ses traits - distinctifs: ce n'est plus qu' une froide copie de ce qui l'environne. - Voilà pour quelle raison on nous accuse de manquer de caractere: - nous ne vivons pas assez avec nous-mêmes, & nous empruntons trop des - autres_. - - The duchess procured for her son's tutor, a very respectable man, - who was at the utmost pains in forming his morals, and improving his - understanding; while so many of the degenerate nobility in great - cities are trifling away their time and their fortunes, in idle - dissipations, in sensual enjoyments, or irrational diversions, and - making mere amusement the great business of their lives. Happiness - and merit are the result, not so much of truth and knowledge, as - of attaining integrity and moderation. Many ridiculed the duchess's - plan of education, of debarring herself from those pleasures and - enjoyments her youth, rank, and beauty so well intitled her to: But - she often observed it would be the height of imbecility to judge of - her felicity by the imagination of others; considering nothing under - the title of happiness, but what she wished to be in the possession - of, or what was the result of her own voluntary choice. Women of the - world counteract their intention, in so assiduously courting pleasure, - as it only makes it fly further from them. They will not understand, - that pleasure is to be purchased, and that industry is the price of - it; to reject the one, is to renounce the other. They are to learn - that pleasure, which they idolize, must now and then be _quitted_ in - order to be _regained_. They have tried in vain to perpetuate it, - by attempting variety and refinement. Their fertile invention has - multiplied the objects of amusement, and created new ones every day, - without making any real acquisition. All these fantastic pleasures, - which are founded on variety, make no lasting impressions on the mind; - they only serve to prove the impossibility of permanent happiness, of - which some women entertain _chimerical expectations_: but the duchess - was too rational to make amusement her principal object. A woman that - is hurried away by a fondness for it, is, generally speaking, a very - useless member of the community: A party of pleasure will make her - forget every connection: and she is often sick without knowing _where_ - her complaint _lies_, because she has nothing _to do_, and is tired of - being _well_. - - The duchess had loved her husband passionately. If any person had a - desire of ingratiating themselves with her, they had only to begin by - him: To praise, to please, or admire him, opened to them a reception - in her heart. But our best virtues, when pushed to a certain degree, - are on the point of becoming vices: She soon found she was to blame, - in dedicating herself too fondly even to this beloved object. She - exhausted her whole sensibility on him, and in proportion to the - strength of her attachment, was the mortification she endured in being - abandoned by him. But had not even this been her fate, the extravagant - excesses of passion are but too generally followed by an intolerable - langour. The woman who wishes to preserve her husband's affection, - should be careful to conceal from him the extent of _hers_: there - should be always something left for him to expect. Fancy governs - mankind: and when the imagination is cloyed, reason is a slave to - caprice. - - Women do not want judgment to determine, penetration to foresee, nor - resolution to execute; and Providence has not given them beauty to - create love, without understanding to preserve it. The pleasures of - which they are susceptible, are proportioned to the capacity and just - extent of their feelings. They are not made for those raptures which - transport them beyond themselves: these are a kind of convulsions, - which can never last. But there are infinite numbers of pleasures, - which, though they make slighter impressions, are nevertheless more - valuable. These are renewed every day under different forms, and - instead of excluding each other, unite together in happy concert, - producing that temperate glow of mind which preserves it vigorous, - and keeps it in a delightful equanimity. How much are those of the - fair-sex to be pitied who are insensible to such attainments, and who - look upon life as gloomy, which is exempt from the agitation of unruly - passions! As such prepossessions deprive them of pleasures which are - much preferable to those which arise from dangerous attachments, the - duchess knew how to make choice of her amusements, and _improved_ her - _understanding_ at the same time that she _gratified_ her _feelings_. - Life to those who know how to make a proper use of it, is strewed - with delights of every kind, which, in their turn, flatter the senses - and the mind; but the latter is never so agreeably engaged as in the - conversation of intelligent persons, who are capable of conveying both - instruction and entertainment. The duchess preferred the conversation - of _such_, to _men of the world_; being sensible she had every thing - _to gain_ on _one side_, and every thing _to lose_ on _the other_. - - The Baron de Luce resided in the same part of the country. He was a - man of great gallantry, wit, and humour. He judged it impossible that - a woman in the bloom of beauty, possessed of the united advantages - resulting from rank, riches, and youth, should retire to an obscure - part of the world, and sequester herself from (what he judged) the - pleasures of life, without being _compelled_ by her husband or - _prompted_ by some secret inclination which she wished to conceal. - Determined to unravel this mystery, and to amuse himself during the - time he staid in the neighbourhood, he tried to insinuate himself into - her good opinion--but without giving any offence she avoided entering - into his plans. He still persisted in his intentions, judging, as he - wrote well, the duchess would be glad to enter into a correspondence; - but he found nothing in the reception she gave him that was for - his purpose, _to embellish the history of his amours_. But what he - undertook at first from vanity, became at last sufficient punishment - for him. The more he saw of her conduct the more his respect - increased, but which instead of making him relinquish his _intentions_ - (from a conviction of the inefficacy of the pursuit) made him persist - _in them_, as he _then felt_ the passion which at _first he feigned_. - - The duchess knew the predicament on which she stood; but as _the - hatred_ of men of a certain character is _less_ pernicious than _their - love_, she gave orders never to admit him into her presence. The good - or bad reputation of women depends not so much upon the propriety of - their own conduct, as it does upon a lucky or unlucky combination - of circumstances in certain situations. Some men calumniate them - for no other reason, but because they are in love with them. They - revenge themselves upon them for the want of that merit which renders - them despicable in their eyes. This was the case with the Baron; he - insinuated there were reasons which he knew that rendered it highly - proper for the duchess to live in the manner _she did_, speaking - in a _style_ which conveyed more than met the ear! The people he - addressed greedily listened to what seemed to bring the duchess more - on a footing with themselves; a thousand stories were circulated to - her prejudice (though innocence itself): Thus if there be but the - least foundation for slander, some people believe themselves fully - authorized to publish whatever malice _dares invent_. But there are - no enemies more dangerous to the reputation of women, than lovers - that cannot gain the reciprocal affection of their mistresses. These - reports were confirmed from another cause--A lady of fortune in the - neighbourhood became much attached to a man who resided with the - duchess as her son's tutor; he was ingenuous, sensible, and much - respected. She offered him her hand, and as she possessed a handsome - fortune could not conceive how he could decline that happiness. As - he was constantly at home, agreeable to the stories that had been - circulated, she concluded at once (and then affirmed) he was a - favourite of the duchess. - - Self-love is of the nature of the polypus; though you sever her - branches or arms, and even divide her trunk, yet she finds means to - reproduce herself. In consequence of the information the duke received - from this lady, who wrote to him in the character of an anonymous - friend, he left Paris and his mistress abruptly; and, to the great - surprise of his wife, came to--. He accosted her in a distant, but - respectful manner.--Nothing gives so sharp a point to one's aversion - as good-breeding--The duchess, unconscious of having given him any - occasion of offence, was highly delighted at his return, flattering - herself with a return of his affection. And as she considered him the - aggressor, received him graciously, insisting that no mention should - be made of past transactions; assuring him that she still retained - the same love for him, and as she regarded him as the first of human - beings, had perhaps been too sanguine in expecting his constancy, - as so many temptations must occur from his superiority to the rest - of mankind. She thought he was but too amiable--that his very vices - had charms beyond other men's _virtues_. Adding that (grievous as - his neglect had been to her) yet she had never done anything that - could reflect upon his honor! He heard her in a sullen humour; - his inclinations _were revived_ by remarking, that time, instead - of _diminishing_, had _added to her charms_: this increased his - resentment, and he answered, that the worst a bad woman can do, is to - make herself ridiculous; it is on herself only that she can entail - infamy--but men of honor have a degree of it to maintain, superior to - that which is in a woman's keeping. Had she had a mind to retaliate, - she might easily have said, that a man of honor and virtue which, in - themselves indeed, are always inseparably connected, are but too often - separated in the absurd and extravagant opinions of mankind. For what - a strange perversion of reason is it, to call a person a man of honor - who has scarcely a grain of virtue! She only observed, we are indeed - civilized into brutes; and a false idea of honor has almost reduced us - into Hob's first state of nature, by making us barbarous. Honor now is - no more than an imaginary being, worshipped by men of _the world_, to - which they frequently offer human sacrifices. He told her she needed - not _be troubled for her minion_: and retiring to rest, left her quite - at a loss to account for his conduct. - - It is not sufficient we know our own innocence; it is necessary, for - a woman's happiness, not to be suspected. - - For unfortunately after she has been once censured (however falsely) - she must expect the envenomed shafts of malice ever ready to be let - fly at her, and that in the transaction of any affairs that will admit - of two interpretations (to avoid the worst, and enjoy an unblemished - reputation). It is not enough to govern herself with propriety, there - must be nothing that will carry two interpretations in the _accidents - of her life_: A woman must therefore be necessarily always guilty, - when innocence has need of many justifications. Happy are those who - are not exposed to such inconveniences! - - The Duke most injudiciously next morning publicly dismissed the - object of his jealousy, and, by his want of prudence, confirmed every - thing that had been falsely alledged against his innocent wife, who - continued ignorant of it for some months. - - When acquainted with it--The less ground she saw for the reports - against her honor, the more courage and greater resolution she had - to condemn them. She thought herself unfortunate to have lost the - merit of her innocence by scandalous reports which she thanked Heaven - she had not incurred by her guilt: and was so far from slighting the - probabilities that might confirm opinions founded against her, that - she by no means thought herself in the same situation with others, - who had never _been contemned_, and that consequently she was not at - liberty to act on some occasions as _they might do_. - - How many women _err_ from the obstinacy of people in defaming - them--they give up the point, despairing of success in conciliating - the esteem of a world who never _retract censure_--It is not with - detraction as it is with other things that displease by repetition: - Stories that have been told a thousand times, are still new when - revived to the prejudice of another. The duchess bore all these - calumnies with patience, _which_ was never yet a _solitary virtue_: - like an angler she endeavoured to humour the duke's waywardness, - flattering herself that her study to please would conquer his - disagreeable temper; and that if she could not become a pleasing wife, - she might at least be thought an agreeable companion, a serviceable - friend. Hope was the only blessing left us, when Pandora's fatal box - let out all the numberless evils which infest these sublunary regions. - But she was at last obliged to resign all ideas of submitting longer - to his caprices. He became jealous even of his menial servants; and - she could speak to no man without incurring his suspicions; which - produced to her the most mortifying scenes. Like that conqueror of - China, who forced his subjects into a general revolt, because he - wanted to oblige them to cut their hair and their nails, he reduced - her to form the resolution of leaving him, because (as he represented - it) _he had dismissed a servant_. But it was in reality his temper - and abuse that occasioned it--and when she was under the necessity of - taking that step, she rather let the world judge amiss of her, than - justify herself at her husband's expense. No condescensions on her - part could affect _him_, as daily experience convinced her, that from - a consciousness of the part he _himself had acted_, he could never - _love her_. Are there not many occasions in life in which it would be - reasonable to say, _I conjure you to forget and forgive the injury you - have done me_? - - They at last parted amicably: she came to Rotterdam with her family, - and there I contracted an intimacy with her son, who was an amiable - young man about my own age. There I first beheld the lovely Adelaude, - Countess de Sons, the duchess's ward: the first time I saw _her_, - and the charming Julia, I know I had _a heart_; until then I was - insensible--These young ladies were instructed in all the arts of - Minerva; Julia was skilled in music; but the countess's voice was, - accompanied with the lyre, more moving than that of Orpheus. Her hair - hung waving in the wind without any ornament, which the duchess had - taught her to despise: her motions were all perfectly easy, her smiles - enchanting! Without dress she had beauty, unconscious of any, and - thus were heightened all her charms. - - The marquis enquired what I thought of his sister, and her fair - friend? I answered, "They were charming," and asked if it was - possible he had resisted the charms of the beautiful countess? He - replied, "I will own to you, my dear friend, I have not: Adelaude - is formed for love; my heart is naturally susceptible; she has been - my constant companion: he must be something more, or something less - than a man (a god or a devil) who hath escaped, or who can resist - love's empire.--The gods of the heathens could not; Jupiter, Mars, - Mercury, Apollo, their amours are as famous as their names: so that - sturdiness in human nature, where it is found, which can resist, - argues plainly how much the devil is wrought up in the composition. - But if my sensibility had not been so great, yet so many opportunities - she has had to engage my affections, could not fail of rivetting - me her's for ever," "You are beloved then" said I hastily. "Yes," - replied he, "Adelaude calls me her dearest brother; but entertains - no ideas beyond that relation; and I am fearful of letting her know - the extent of my sentiments, lest it should render her constrained in - her manner to me; and the charming _naiveté_ of her behaviour forms - the charms of my life! The marks of that innocent affection, which - first attached me to her, have hitherto been looked upon as a childish - play: and as no one has troubled their head about the consequences of - it, I have taken care to profit by the liberty allowed me.--You make - me no answer!--Wherefore this gloomy silence, your dejected air, and - languishing looks?" I pretended an indisposition, and left him under - the greatest oppressure of spirits; I loved, I adored the charming - Countess! judge then of the horror of my situation.-- - - How many sacrifices could I not willingly have made to friendship! - My passion I thought was indeed the only one I could not make: how was - it possible I should? but convinced of the happiness of my rival, what - did I not suffer? I saw a pair of happy lovers, suited to each other; - I thought it would be safe to alienate her affections; and considered - myself only in the light of a dependent on your bounty: in such a - situation, had my friend been uninterested, could I hazard addressing - a young lady of the countess's rank and fortune? I became melancholy - and _distrait_. Many people, and particularly those who have no idea - of that delicacy of passion peculiar to susceptible minds, looked on - me as a particular kind of a young man. To please such persons, I - must have devoted my time to them: you will easily conceive then, I - could well enough bear the want of their good opinion. Such become the - artificers of their own misfortunes, by the false idea they form of - pleasure, and they philtre (if I may use the term) their own sorrows. - - It was what is called pleasure, that sunk into ruin the ancient - states of Greece; that destroyed the Romans, that overturns cities; - that corrupts courts; that exhausts the fortunes of the great; that - consumes youth; that has a retinue composed of satiety, indigence, - sickness, and death. But _my passion_, as much as a _dislike_ to - their _manner of life_, secured me from _their dissipations_. The - constant endeavours I used to suppress an inclination I could not - overcome, had a fatal effect on my constitution--I was threatened - with a consumption!--This I carefully concealed, lest your kindness - should have urged my removal from a place, which I could not determine - to quit: though I carefully avoided the sight of those who were - interesting to me in it. - - At this time the marquis received a peremptory command to rejoin - his father. He came to me in the greatest distress: "How", said he, - "can I resolve to leave the countess?--She is now beautiful as an - angel, exclusive of her immense fortune; to remain single cannot - possibly be long in her power, for her beauty must necessarily strike - every eye, and charm every heart. But I will go and unburthen myself - to my father; her riches and rank will insure his approbation. You, - my friend, alone are acquainted with the secret of my heart. See - the lovely Adelaude often; to you I confide the secrets of my soul. - Farewel." - - The marquis set out, and soon informed me that his father would not - yet hear of his marriage, and had insisted on his immediately joining - a regiment in which he had procured him a command: It was in time of - war; his honor at stake, and love was subordinate to his glory. The - susceptible mind is capable of enjoying a thousand exquisite delights - to which those are strangers, whose pleasures are less refined; but - what chagrin, what regret, what pain does not so delicate a passion - bring on the heart that entertains it? _Quand on est né trop tendre, - on ne doit pas aimer_, says some French author. But the sufferings - of my friend could not equal mine; the object of my passion being - daily before my eyes heightened my inquietude. The general characters - of men, I am apt to believe, are determined by their natural - constitutions, as their particular actions are by their immediate - objects. The innocent marks of partiality she honored me with, made me - in constant fears of acting dishonorably to the marquis. The duchess - fell soon after into a languishing illness, which in a short time put - a period to her life: The duke came, but _too late_, to receive her - last breath. He at first appeared inconsolable for her death; but - his grief insensibly decreased, and softened into that mournful and - tender regard, which a sense of her merit, and his own unkindness - to her, could not fail of exacting from him. Disgusted at an union, - which had caused him (from his own errors) so much uneasiness, he - formed a resolution carefully to avoid entering again into a similar - engagement. But he saw every day before him the lovely Adelaude: he - loved her; it was perhaps impossible for him to do otherwise. He - declared his passion; but was rejected: The countess told him her - affections were engaged! Next day I received the following letter. - - From the Countess de Sons to the Earl of Munster. - - My Lord, - - I am well aware of the delicacy which prescribes certain - observances to our sex. But there is no rule in life which must not - vary with circumstances. Come to me this evening: Julia will be with - me--Adieu. - - ADELAUDE de SONS. - - I went--Abashed at the step she had taken, the cheeks of the lovely - Adelaude glowed with the most lovely red; her eyes sparkled with - the brightest lustre; while the loves and graces hovered around her - charming form, and fluttered on her breast--Love, almighty love, - preceded her steps, when she approached me. Heavens! how quick my - heart beat at that instant with pleasing hope! I endeavoured to speak - to her, but hesitated and trembled. After a few moments' expressive - silence, I desired to know what commands she meant to honor me with? - She was greatly confused, but at length told me the dilemma she was in - from the declaration of the duke's passion. To support my politics, I - began and talked of my friend. - - She told me that his partiality was no secret to her, although he - had never disclosed it, but that she rejoiced at his absence, as it - would enable him to triumph over a passion she could _not return_. - Surprised at this declaration, I should have been wanting to myself - not to improve it. But love only can give an idea of those pleasures - we enjoyed in each other's company with reciprocal tenderness. - But _it_ affords few sweets that are not dashed with a mixture of - bitterness. Happy moments! how soon ye fled! a sad remembrance only of - that delightful interval left behind. Ah no, it is impossible I should - ever forget that day in which she first confessed those sentiments for - me my heart had long divined, the assurance of which, nevertheless, - gave me inexpressible transport. But when I reflected on my friend, - and that of my depressed circumstances, it gave a sudden check to - my joy. My sighs, my tears, made known to her the distress of my - heart! I could only utter the name of _my friend_, and wrung my hands - in despair. She soothed my uneasiness. "This is the fatal stroke I - feared" said the gentle Adelaude; "this is what my foreboding heart - presaged. But your interest does not interfere with his, for whom I - never experienced any thing more but that of a _sisterly affection_." - - I then acquainted her with my dependent situation: that I should - be hurt at allying her so unsuitably, though had I had the wealth of - worlds it would have been hers. She told me her estate was sufficient - to enrich me: that the duke talked of leaving Rotterdam; she dreaded - being in the power of a man so impetuous, who would stick at nothing - to gratify his passions; and that she would place herself under my - protection. Infatuated I was, not to comply with her request! My - friend's woes wounded me to the quick: false honor determined me to - write and inform him of the state of the affair, previous to my - taking advantage of her inclination for me. I wrote instantly to the - marquis; but a few days after the duke set out for Italy with his - family. The night before their departure I saw the countess. "Thou - must go," said I, "and with thee all my joy, my happiness, my only - hope--Go, and take with thee all my heart holds dear, all that is - left for me is despair. Reason will resume its empire over love, and - you will forget a poor unfortunate, who hath nothing to offer but the - most pure and ardent affection; an affection in which consists all the - happiness of his life." - - "Ah, my lord," said she, "forbear to speak a language so injurious - to your merit and my sentiments. Can I cease to love you? Can I forget - you? No! whilst my heart beats it will be yours, and yours only--I - will preserve myself for you, and nothing can ever make me forgetful - of the engagements I have made with you." - - The conflict of contending passions had tortured me so much, that - I confess, I was rather relieved, when they set out, and when it was - out of my power to have realized the charming scheme the countess had - suggested to me. What forbearance did it not cost me? Nothing is more - common than for men to declaim against those things which they are - not in a capacity to enjoy: Diogenes said to Aristippus the courtier, - as he passed him in his tub, "If you could content yourself, as I do, - with _bread_ and _garlic_, you would not be the _slave_ of the King of - Syracuse:" "Are you," replied Aristippus, "if you _knew_ how to _live - with princes_, you would not make such _bad cheer_." - - Perhaps the circumstances of age, health, and fortune, vary the - taste, and regulate the appetites of mankind more than reason and - reflection. - - But everything conspired to render the sacrifice I had made a _great - one_ to _friendship_. I soon received the following letter from Julia. - - "My Lord, - - The countess is so closely watched, that she cannot write. Would - to God you had followed your inclinations! We are going to Sweden: - follow us, if possible, and repair the error you have committed. I - am fearful she will be constrained to choose another husband. Adieu. - - JULIA de VILLEROI." - - Upon the receipt of this letter I went to Sweden; but could hear no - tidings of those I pursued. I became quite melancholy, and seldom went - abroad, but could not refuse being introduced by the Baron de R---- to - the Queen Dowager, who is an exalted character: she is sister to the - reigning King of Prussia, is the avowed protectress of letters, and - encourager of merit: and during her husband's life possessed an almost - unlimited influence over affairs of state; but at present leads a more - retired and secluded life. She is perfect mistress of Latin, as well - as the modern languages. - - The present King of Sweden at the age of twenty-six changed the - form of government, without blood or difficulty. Sweden can boast - of her two Gustavus's, the first and second; nor are her Christina, - or her Charles, unknown to fame. In what country is not the name of - Peter celebrated, the greatest legislator that modern times have seen? - Hearing no tidings of the duke's family, I made out my northern tour. - In Denmark the sun of genius has not yet blazed from a throne, and - shed a temporary lustre on the surrounding darkness; if we except - the celebrated Margaret de Waldemar, to whom history has given the - epithet of the _Semiramis_ of the north, who united under her reign - all the kingdoms beneath the polar sky, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. - There are, however, two favourite monarchs of Danish story. The first - of these was Christian IV, who was the opponent and competitor of - Gustavus Adolphus, but with far inferior fame. The last was Frederic - IV. This prince loved the arts, and made two visits to Italy, one - previous to his ascending the throne, and one after it. During a - carnival at Venice, he resided in that city, and in one evening is - said to have won, at the card-table, a bank worth one hundred thousand - pounds sterling, which he immediately presented to a noble Venetian - lady, in whose house this happened, and whose whole fortunes were - involved in this game of chance: All the company were in masque. - - I cannot omit mentioning the literary merit of the ladies in - Denmark; which has already been taken notice of by Lord Molesworth, - who says, that Tycho Brahe's sister, and especially Dorothea - Engelerechtie, may contend with the famous poetesses of the ancients. - The lady Brigetta Tot has translated Seneca the philosopher into the - Danish tongue, with all the elegance any language is capable of, and - has conspired with our ingenious countrywoman Miss Carter[27], to - shew that the most rugged philosophy of the stoics must submit, when - the fair-sex is pleased to conquer. But I forget who I am writing - to--Thanks to your extensive reading--I have nothing to tell you that - has been written and published before. I shall only observe, that I - met with many ingenious men abroad who held the English cheap. I can - account for this in no other way, than that they form their judgment - of us only by the _philosophical transactions_. Absorbed in deep - melancholy, on account of my ignorance of the fate of Countess de - Sons, I went little into company, but applied myself constantly to - study: I amused myself in painting; the cataract of the river Dahl - is the subject of one of my pieces. The tremendous roar of these - cataracts, which, when close, is superior to the loudest thunder; the - vapours which rise incessantly from them, and even obscure them from - the eye in many parts; the agitation of the river below for several - hundred yards before it resumes its former tranquillity; and the - sides covered with tall firs; form one of the most picturesque and - astonishing scenes to be beheld in nature's volume. - - Wrapt up one day in the contemplation of this scene, Lord Ogilby - whom I became acquainted with at Upsal, approached me under an - apparent agitation of spirits. We lived much together, but I had - observed him very absent, and missed him several evenings. My Lord, - said he, near this place resides all that my soul holds dear: I am - in love--in love, to a degree I never felt till now. I am myself - astonished at it. But blame me not until you see the object of my - affections. He said, that he had been charmed with a young woman's - figure and beauty, and that she appeared to be possessed of the - greatest modesty, prudence, and good humour. He finished his - panegyric with saying, _how happy will that man be who first inspires - her gentle heart with love_! - - I accompanied Lord Ogilby (who remained silent) for about a hundred - yards, when we approached a cottage. - - A window being opened, he said to me, There, my Lord, you can see - her without being observed. I looked, and beheld a most exquisite - Beauty. She was of a fair complexion, had fine full blue languishing - eyes, which sparked through the long lashes of their beautiful lids, - and expressed, with the most innocent simplicity, all that an insipid - coquet attempts in vain. When she perceived we looked at her, it - heightened the vermilion on her cheeks, through the consciousness that - they betrayed the extreme sensibility of her heart; and if even the - rest of her person had not been equally engaging, yet the bewitching - sweetness of her countenance alone would have intitled her to be - ranked among the first class of pleasing Beauties.--A beautiful boy - of about two years of age, whose hair flowed in natural ringlets like - her own, was playing beside her while she was making some artificial - flowers. Her dress was a brown camblet jacket and petticoat clasped at - the breast. - - Upon perceiving us she arose, and received us with the greatest - politeness--It was easy for us to conceive she had been accustomed - to genteel life. She acquainted us that whatever honor we might do - her in condescending to come into that poor cottage, yet she must for - the future desire we would not repeat our visit. As it was entirely - contrary to her plans, and to those views which determined her to - retire to that place. There appeared in her a timid bashfulness; - but as this seemed to proceed from the fear of _my friend_, who had - been importunate lover, and was a proof of the purity of her heart - instead of an awkwardness, it appeared a grace. Yes, I repeat it, - this bashfulness appeared in her quite engaging; for as the shade in - a beautiful picture, it served to set off the masterly strokes of the - piece. Lord Ogilby assured her in my hearing, that he had no views but - which were highly honourable, that if she would give him her hand he - would make her his wife. "I am one of those, said he, who have ever - despised the common prejudices of mankind, particularly in the affair - of love. A fine person, a graceful carriage, an amiable disposition, - are all the titles or wealth I should look for in a woman. You - possess all these advantages, and to them add the greatest delicacy - of sentiment--so many charms compensate for the want of those other - qualifications the injustice of fortune has deprived you of."--"Hymen, - my lord, answered she, can have no joys for me, and I am sure will - never light his torch on my account; for I have fountains of tears - which would soon extinguish it!" What was my surprise to discover - this beautiful girl (for her age did not appear to exceed eighteen) - so accomplished, that she could read the Iliad of Homer, the Georgics - of Virgil, the inimitable Cervantes, and the plays of Terence, in the - original languages, with great ease! She was a _Hebe_, with the head - of a philosopher, the knowledge of a divine, accompanied with all the - exterior accomplishments the most finished education could bestow. - As we found her fond of reading, we carried her a book of periodical - papers then just written at Vienna. The next time I saw her I inquired - if she approved of it--she replied she was no judge; but that she - apprehended humour in writing chiefly consists in an imitation of the - foibles or absurdities of mankind; so our pleasure in this species of - composition, arises from comparing the picture with the original in - nature, which she had no opportunity of doing. - - In the works of our own countrymen we have frequent opportunities - of making this comparison, as the originals are generally before us: - But when we read the productions of foreigners, as their portraits are - copied from manners with which we are not sufficiently acquainted, - they must often appear forced and unnatural. There is a cast of - humour, as well as of manners, peculiar to each country; and this - is what makes every nation give the preference to its own humorous - subjects. Nor is this preference ill founded, since the several - drawings are made from originals widely different from each other; and - as in portrait-painting, the value of the picture is enhanced by our - connections with the person who sat for it; so here we must approve - those pieces the originals of which we are best acquainted with. The - language of humour is also in every country different from that used - upon common occasions, which makes foreign satire an exotic of too - delicate a nature to bear transplanting. - - I was not surprised at my friend's situation; nothing I _then_ - supposed could have secured my own heart from her attractions but its - being pre-engaged. All the great heroes, the scripture worthies in - particular, have had their _Delilah's_, to whose bewitching charms - they have _one and all yielded_; reluctantly some, and fondly others; - _these_ proving their wisdom, and _those_ their folly; since _there is - no enchantment against beauty_, nor any thing it cannot enchant. - - But notwithstanding my predilection in her favor, prudence suggested - to me that my friend's passion might hurry him into an improper - connection. I therefore inquired particularly concerning this lovely - woman. I found she had resided there fifteen months, having brought - with her a maid, and the child whom we had seen: that soon after her - arrival she had disposed of some valuable effects; and that she had - employed herself since that period in making artificial flowers, which - her maid carried to--and disposed of them: that it was with great - pleasure they observed she was now much more cheerful than she had - been at first. That she was very regular in her conduct; never saw any - person, nor went abroad but for divine service or a little air and - exercise. This account served only to increase my friend's passion. He - left nothing unsaid, nothing undone, to convince her of his sincerity; - but she remained inexorable! We were there one day; when I took the - liberty of remonstrating with her on this subject: She was affected, - and said, "My lord, you distress me greatly; but at once to relieve - myself _from your_ friend's importunities, and to prove _to you_ how - unavailable _his_ pursuit _is_, I must be reduced to the humiliating - detail of _my sorrows_: then, pointing to the lovely boy, she added, - that cherub calls me _mother_, although his cruel father has not given - me the name _of wife_: let this, my lord, render you unsolicitous - concerning me." - - Lord Ogilby, though struck at the intelligence, assured her, that - she was infinitely superior in his eyes to women of the world, who - vainly flatter themselves, that, while they appear _not_ to be - conscious of their errors, mankind never discover _their follies_! - that he respected her candour, he would be a father to her lovely - boy, and, by his tender faithful attachment, atone for her former - disappointment. She said every thing a sensible heart could feel on - the sense she had of the honor he did in addressing her on such - honorable terms, in the strange situation he found her in; but added, - her heart might break, but that in breaking it must be the entire - property of Sir Harry Bingley! - - I am very sensible, my lords, continued Miss Harris, that the - foibles of those to whom we are indebted for our existence, though - open to the attack of all the world beside, ought to be sacred to us. - But it is incumbent on me to paint my father's character, in order to - inform you of the origin of my misfortunes. He was the younger son of - a family of distinction, had received every advantage of education, - and had travelled all over the world; which he himself said had - divested him of many narrow prejudices! But this was not sufficient - for him--he must triumph over reason and nature. He was too wise to - adopt the opinions of his fore-fathers, yet at the same time too - indolent to establish any of his own; and as he lived without system, - he made present convenience the rule of his conduct. His virtues - consequently were _accidental_--but his vices _habitual_. A clergyman - that kept him company countenanced _his errors_, and confirmed _my - belief_, that religious duties were only an _imposition on the - vulgar_. I am sure, my lord, you must agree with me in thinking that - _immorality_ in a _clergyman_ is as unpardonable as _cowardice_ in - a _soldier_. _One_ flies from the foes of his _king_ and _country_; - the _other_ justifies the _enemies of his God_. My father married - a young lady of large fortune. She had received a very religious - education, and had too much sensibility not to be exceedingly wounded - at his infidelity. He told her it was very well she thought as _she - did_--that all capacities cannot command a sufficient degree of - attention to pursue the intricacies of philosophical speculation; - neither if they could, are they endowed with proper powers of - perception to discern and judge for themselves. As these must - necessarily be governed by prejudices, if you remove them, you leave - such weak objects without any principle _whatever_. - - My mother answered, that the apostles were no _meta-physicians_: nor - did their blessed master teach them any thing that should make them - so. Wherefore she contented herself with their plain instructions, - finding much more satisfaction from them than she did from any human - writers, especially those who use so many and so nice distinctions, - tending more to _puzzle_ than _enlighten_ the understanding, and - having little effect upon the heart to make it better. It is to me, I - own, (said she) no recommendation of any cause, that the abettors of - it are obliged to have recourse to _abstruse terms_, and especially - when they introduce such terms into any system that pretends to be - Christian. I admire no scholastic phrases, or terms of art, when - applied to a doctrine which is matter of revelation only; and wherein - neither schools nor arts have any thing to say further, nor can say - any thing more clearly or more certainly than what God hath said. I - am far from commending any imposition upon men's judgment, or any - dictating by one man what is to be believed by another! But here my - father interrupted her; and, in a passion, made use of terms delicacy - prevents a repetition of--adding, neither _man_ nor _woman_ should - dictate or make a fool of him! That religion, etc. etc. varied in - different countries, as he had often observed something in the - climate, soil, or situation of _each_, which had great influence in - establishing its particular mode of superstition. Thus in Syria they - worship the sun, moon, and stars, as they live in a flat country, - enjoying a constant serenity of sky; and the origin and progress of - that error may be traced in a certain connection between those objects - of worship considered physically, and their characters as divinities. - - Thus the pomp and magnificence with which the sun is worshipped - in Syria, said he, and the human victims sacrificed to him, seem - altogether to mark an awful reverence, paid rather to his power than - to his beneficence, in a country where the violence of his heat is - destructive to vegetation, as it is in many other respects very - troublesome to the inhabitants. Superstition, since the world began, - has consisted of every particular, which either people's _fears_ or - their _follies_, either the _strength_ of their _imagination_, or - the _weakness_ of their _judgment_, or the _design_ and _artifice_ - of their _leaders_, taught them to _embrace_, in order to please any - being, or order of beings, superior to themselves, whom they made - the objects of their religious regards. My mother answered, that the - unbeliever changes nothing of the design of God, when he dares to - rise up against him--He ever enters into his plan, where the evil - concurs with the good, for the harmony of _this_ world, and the good - of the _next_. I need not, my lords, tire you with an account of - these particulars, further than to mark the difference of my parents - characters--these arguments recurring often, in the end produced such - contentions, that it impaired my mother's health--she died, and left - me under the guidance of a father, _totally unfit_ for that _important - trust_ He endeavoured to impress me with his sentiments of religion, - etc. If I imbibed his ideas, could I be blamed for it? Is it not - injurious and ridiculous to censure others for thinking in the same - manner we ourselves should have done under the same circumstances? - For if we do not consult our reason (which in matters of religion - is prohibited us) the capacity and credulity of individuals are - different, in consequence of their diversity of temperament, - education, and experience. And it would be still more absurd to - reprobate the rest of mankind, for not believing what we ourselves - do _not_, nor can be made _to believe_. But to return to my father: - About a year after my mother's death, when I was only eight years old, - he set out for Italy, and returned home inebriated with a love for - antiquity--He could sit all day in contemplation of a statue without a - nose, and doated on the decays with greater love than the self-loved - Narcissus did on his beauty. Sir Harry Bingley did me the honor to - address me; but my father, on his first proposal, would not hear of - it; he wished me to marry a brother antiquarian, who was desirous, - among other pieces of age and time, to have one young face be seen to - call him father. My lover told him, he would pray to Heaven to have - merit or deserve me--He returned, "When your prayer is answered, renew - your suit; but if you stay till then, you must have spectacles to see - her beauty with." Had Sir Harry appeared to him like a Sibyl's son, - or with a face rugged as father Nilus is pictured on the hangings, it - would have been otherwise. But the qualities, which recommended him - _to me_, produced the contrary effect on _my father_. - - Signor Crustino, whom he favored, had presented him with books, - that he said were written before the Punic war; and some of Terence's - hundred and fifty comedies that were lost in the Adriatic sea, when - he returned from banishment.--There were powerful inducements--He - commanded me to marry him: I expostulated, but without effect. Had - Sir Harry Bingley been old in any thing, even in iniquity, I believe - he would have shown him some respect. Had he not, said he, the - indiscretion to betray weakness, even to myself? did not he mention - that his _old_ rents produced one thousand a year; but that he had - made _new_ leases, and doubled them; and by the sale of a gallery of - pictures had paid his father's debts? O such preposterous folly! he - values more his gold, than whatever Apelles or Phidias have invented! - "What is more honorable than age?" said he: "Is not wisdom entailed - on it? It takes the pre-eminence in everything: antiquities are the - registers, the chronicles of the age, and speak the truth of history - better than a hundred of your printed commentaries!" It was in vain - I pleaded a contrary opinion; my tears had no power to mollify his - stony heart. I was ordered to prepare for my wedding; which I was - determined, at all events, should not take place. In the mean time - Sir Harry Bingley's passion was increased by the difficulty of - obtaining me, as the lovers of the fair Danäe desired her more when - she was locked up in the brazen tower. He was importunate with me to - elope: inclination pressed hard on one side, duty on the other; I was - torn with contending passions: my distraction was increased by the - preparations for the marriage feast. My father took his bill of fare - out of Athenæus, and ordered the most surprizing dishes imaginable. - But I was reprieved by a most extraordinary accident--He was possessed - of a couple of old manuscripts, said to have been found in a wall, and - stored up with the foundation: he supposed them the writing of some - prophetess--They were, he said, of the old Roman binding: And though - the characters were so imperfect, that time had eaten out the letters, - and the dust made a parenthesis betwixt every syllable, yet he was - inconsolable upon discovering he had lost them; and suspected his - brother antiquary of the theft, _such_ generally being very _adroit_ - on _pilfering_--Words arose on the subject; they parted in wrath; - my father declaring the marriage should not be celebrated. Signor - Crustino next day wrote a mollifying letter, intreating his acceptance - of several other manuscripts, which he said were dug out of the ruins - of Aquileia, after it was sacked by Attila, King of the Hunns.--But - he returned them with indignation, and took to his bed, where he - remained nine months in a very lingering condition--then died--leaving - me a prey to the oppressive insolence of proud prosperity.--It is that - only which can inflict a wound on the ingenuous mind.--These are the - stings of poverty! Misfortunes never create respect: dependence of - course meets with many slights--On such occasions, some show their - _malice_, and are witty on our _misfortunes_; others their judgment, - by sage reflections on our conduct; but few their charity.--They - alone have a right to censure, who have hearts to assist: the rest is - cruelty, not justice[28]. - - I found that my father's collection of curiosities, for which he - had expended all his fortune, did no more than pay his debts. On this - occasion all my acquaintances forsook me. A rich aunt was the only - person who recollected such a being existed (my lover excepted). - She afforded me help, but more as if she had been giving _alms_ to - a _stranger_, than _relief_ to a relation. How few are acquainted - with the art of conferring favors in that happy manner that doubles - the value of the obligation! If in doing good, people consulted the - circumstances and inclinations of those they oblige--if, instead of - shocking their self-love, (inherent in us all) they knew how to take - advantage of it, with as much address as the flatterer employs to - gain his ends, the empire of morality would long ago have extended - its bounds, and the numbers of its adherents would have greatly - increased.--This is the more easily done, as the _distressed_ think - any mark of attention shown them by the _wealthy_, _a real favor_--But - _neglect_ in general is the _portion_ of the _necessitous_--and - _outrage alone_ employed to recover _the guilty_. - - Lord Ogilby could not help here, with some warmth, asking where Sir - Harry Bingley was all this time. Miss Harris bowed, and resumed her - story. "Alas!" said she, "the Marquis of M---- his uncle, on whom he - had considerable expectations, insisted on his marrying Lady Ann - Frivolité--and though he absolutely declined this overture, he thought - in prudence, he ought to defer for some time entering into another - engagement until he could bring his uncle to hearken to it." - - My necessities increasing, relying entirely on the honor of my - lover, I permitted him to conduct me to a seat he had in a remote - part of the country--It was a frightful dismal house surrounded with - yews and willows, whose different forms recalled to my ideas Ovid's - Metamorphoses, and made me sometimes ready to bemoan the fate of - unhappy lovers converted into evergreens by the supposed enchantress - of this dreary mansion. The house had been long uninhabited: by the - blackness of the walls, the circular fires, vast cauldrons, yawning - mouths of ovens and furnaces, one would conclude, it was either the - forge of Vulcan, the cave of Polypheme, or the temple of Moloch. The - hangings of the apartments were indeed the finest in the world; that - is to say, which Arachne spins from her own bowels. But the affection, - the tender respectful behaviour of my lover was _everything to me_. - He said he made no doubt but the marquis, when convinced of my merit, - would approve of his passion! Unwilling to see him continue in so - delusive an error, I told him there was little probability of reviving - the golden age in his family; or, hoping that the benevolence of his - own heart would become epidemical, was an illusion! that relations or - parents saw things in a very different light from their children; as - the sentiment of the former arose from cool reflection, and as those - of the latter commonly resulted from the caprice of an irregular - imagination, or the violence of an impetuous passion, which prompted - them to act sometimes in direct opposition to the salutary advice - of their best friends.--He replied, that granting that were even - the case--the Marquis of M---- could not live for ever--but that no - power on earth could induce him to sacrifice his happiness; that he - had a _competent_, though not _great_ estate of his own--and would - marry me directly, if I chose it, or would take the most solemn oath - imaginable, to do it as soon as circumstances rendered it prudent - with safety. I consequently rejected agreeing to his proposal: I - could not bear the idea of my lover's running the risk of losing a - family inheritance on my account; though a possibility of possession - altering his sentiments, never entered into my imagination. We - remained three months together, the happiest time of my life: Happy - moments, how soon you fled, never, never to return! - - Miss Harris here blushed and stopped; we encouraged her to proceed. - With some hesitation, she added, At that time my lover's importunity - prevailed; I resigned myself to his wishes. I had his solemn promise - he would ratify our engagement at the altar; and my father had - instilled notions into me of marriage being only a civil institution: - he had often said, that the marriages among the Israelites were not - attended with any religious ceremonies, except the prayers of the - father of the family, and the standers by, to beg the blessing of God. - We have examples of it in the marriage of Rebecca with Isaac, of Ruth - with Boaz. We do not read that God acted the part of a priest to join - Adam and Eve together, only that of a father to the young woman, in - giving her away--_For he brought her to the man_: We do not see, he - used to say, that there were any sacrifices offered upon the occasion; - that they went to the temple, or sent to the priests. So that it was - no more than a civil contract. I also knew the present custom in - Sicily and in Holland. Thus I justified myself _to myself_, though - not effectually; but I was willing then _to believe_ what I _wished_; - as no inconvenience _to myself_ could equally affect me in its - consequences, as my lover losing his fortune on _my account_, which - made me decline marrying him at that time. And I firmly relied on his - honor, whom from that time I considered, and shall do, as my husband. - With this difference--if a woman survives her husband, after some - time set apart for decency, there are many circumstances may combine - to render a second attachment eligible. But one who like me has - evinced a weakness must be more exemplary in every other part of her - character, and more tenacious in her conduct, least the _particular - affection_ which occasioned _her error_, should be imputed to her as a - _depravity_. The event will prove, how requisite it is, for the good - of society, that certain rules should be established, the infringers - of which ought to suffer, for the good of the community. - - The effect of our passion was soon evident in my person--but sorry - I am to relate, grieved to repeat it--he left me; and at a time - when I expected every minute to become a mother; without affording - me one single line to _comfort_ or _relieve_ my mind from a state of - distraction, little short of madness. I was at last told he had been - obliged to set out on confidential business to the continent! Alas, in - what way did I lose his confidence? His _glory_ was dearer to me than - my _own life_; and had he told me of the circumstances, I should have - _urged_ his _departure_, instead of wishing to _protract_ his stay. - - I was in despair for his unkindness! Had my steps been strewed with - flowers, had I been possessed of every outward accommodation wealth - could bestow, alas, how unavailing would all these advantages have - been to me! but in my situation, oppressed, afflicted, and surrounded - with mortifications, ignorant even of the means of my future support, - and that of his child, how dreadfully were my woes increased! This - mark of his inattention redoubled my grief. An assortment of flowers, - plants, etc. arrived after his departure, which only served to remind - me of the happiness I had proposed myself from their cultivation in - his company: but I could not live by their scent, like a Dutch damsel, - nor was I descended of Cameleons that could be kept with air. In my - despair I refused all kind of nourishment; but a worthy girl who lived - with me, recovered me from this _reverie_. If you are resolved, madam, - (said she) never to eat a morsel more during your existence, your - behaviour at present is very consistent; but if you design ever to do - so, believe me that this is the best time you can possibly do so for - yourself, exclusive of your child, who must suffer with you. The last - argument was a prevailing one--I enquired for food, and eat greedily. - - I was soon afterwards delivered of a lovely boy--I took him in my - arms--each feature depicted his beloved, though cruel father! He has - since been my only solace, comfort, and happiness--were I hunted out - of society, and were I to meet with every species of abuse on _his - account_, he would be infinitely more interesting to me than all that - the world could confer upon me. - - After two months, during which time I flattered myself I should - hear from Sir Harry, though my hopes proved too sanguine, I removed - from his house--I cared not where I went, if distant from a place he - could discover me in, at a time when his capricious passion might - bring him back to me. Many unfortunate women, in such a situation, - give themselves up (as Ariadne did) to Bacchus, from the day they are - deserted--But a superior education taught me better. My maid's brother - was a captain of a ship; I agreed with him to bring us to this place. - My child justified my keeping a few valuable trinkets Sir Harry had - given me, which I should otherwise have returned--I set out, and, - philosopher-like, carried all my possessions about me. These trinkets, - and industry, have hitherto supported us--I revere virtue, though I - have unhappily swerved from the established rules of virtue _in my - country_--but I have the same warm affection for virtuous people, the - same tenderness for the unhappy, and the same regard for those whom - prosperity hath not blinded! - - Lord Ogilby replied, Sir Harry Bingley must have been nursed among - rocks, and suckled by tigers, to have used you thus! But you, even - now, would prefer being the object of his licentious passion, rather - than to become my virtuous wife! Miss Harris bowed, and replied, - I flattered myself, my lord, that I had, though not without great - confusion to myself, made you acquainted with my character--I - therefore am highly superior to the inference you have indelicately - made. I shall owe my future innocence to the sense I have of my - lover's perfidy; as the sore wound the viper gives, the viper best - cures. But my unfortunate circumstances exclude my ever thinking of - any other of the sex: All the rest of mankind _are_, and must remain - to me _a distinct species_. I would much rather die a thousand deaths, - than that my heart should have once conceived such a thought! I have - imprinted him in my heart in such deep characters, that nothing can - rase it out, unless it rub my heart out. Although he has left me to - be for ever miserable--may he be blessed--and may the fair-one whom - he selects to be his happy, happy wife, love him the hundredth part I - did! In this cottage will I remain! here dedicate my life to industry, - to procure for the child of the man I love, the means of food and - education: and when the great God calls upon me to offer up an account - of all my deeds, I _cannot_, _do not_ believe, I shall be found very - defective in what his justice will exact from me. Though I lament the - error I fell into, and am now convinced that we can have no distinct - notions of human happiness, without the previous knowledge of the - human constitution, of all its active and perceptive powers, and their - natural objects: therefore the most natural method of proceeding in - the science of morals, is to begin with inquiring into our several - natural determinations, and the objects from whence our happiness - can arise.--This, my lord, I have carefully done--my resolution is - consequently fixed. Lord Ogilby again said, Madam, let me still - intreat you to consider--If you have any hopes of his return, of all - old debts, love, when it comes to be so, is paid the most unwillingly; - and all you get by your constancy, is the loss of that beauty for - _one lover_, which independent of my proposal to you, would procure - you the vows, sacrifice, and service, of _a thousand_! She renewed - her thanks for his lordship's good opinion; added, she entertained no - hopes such as he had suggested, and must only beg leave to add, before - she concluded, after entreating we would conceal his name, that it was - not only a partiality for his person, but admiration of his character, - that must bind her for ever his. - - Lord Ogilby consigned a sum of money with her maid, that in case - indisposition should interfere with her plans, she should still - encounter no inconveniences. - - I should not, my dear Aunt, have detained you so long with this - story, did I not know your friendship to Sir Harry Bingley--I - founded his sentiments, he is still fondly attached to this lovely - woman--Honor, and a responsible situation, obliged him to leave her at - the time, and his letters miscarried by the sudden death of a friend - he entrusted them to. No part of my life, said he, can I recollect - with so much satisfaction, as that which I spent with my lovely wife, - for _such_ I shall ever consider her. I reflect on the supposed - injuries she thinks she has received from me, and I lament I know not - _where she is_ to make her every reparation in my power. Immediately - on my arrival, I went to the place where I had left her--but no trace - remained; she was fled, and had carried along with her the fruit of - our affection. I have been fatigued with inquiries to no purpose--and - conclude her dead; perhaps with grief for my supposed ingratitude. - - Without letting Sir Harry know I was acquainted with his story, I - discovered every thing from him I wished; and had the pleasure of - hearing of his present independent fortunes, which put it in his power - to realize the truth of his professions to Miss Harris. I sent off a - courier to her--she is now on her return to England. - - But to return to my own affairs--I went to Italy, but could hear no - tidings of the Duke de Salis; was only informed, that his son, after - some irregularities inherent in youth, had made a very good figure in - the army, but for some time past had not been heard of--Nor was it - known to what place the duke had retired. To amuse my chagrin, I went - one evening to masquerade at Venice, in the time of the carnival, and - fell in chat with a very agreeable young gentleman and his sister. - They politely hoped our acquaintance would not cease at the end of the - ball, and solicited a continuance of it--with this I very cheerfully - complied. I went--and am mortified to betray my weakness to you; but - truth obliges me to confess, that notwithstanding the pre-engagement - of my heart for the Countess de Sons, yet I could not resist the - attractions of Mademoiselle de Querci: my passion for her commenced - the first moment I saw her; and her charming behaviour hourly - increased it. She was majestic in her appearance; and in her were - combined all the qualities that can make desirable the woman I adore. - - The more I saw her, the more was her empire confirmed over me; - but still dubious of the Countess's fate, and conscious of my - pre-engagement, honor kept me silent. I had every reason to flatter - myself my address would have been acceptable, but my passion was - subordinate to that sense of honor my former obligations subjected - me to. It is hard to account for the motions of the human heart, or - trace the little springs that give rise to its affections--numberless - latent accidents contribute to raise or allay them, without our being - sensible of their secret influence. Thus situated, I came to England - at your request. The uncertainty of the Countess's fate renders me - wretched, while, to confess the truth, Mademoiselle de Querci haunts - my imagination. But _your_ felicity alleviates _my_ uneasiness--as - your joys or sorrows must ever be reverberated on the heart of - - Your ladyship's obliged - And affectionate nephew, - MUNSTER.' - - From Lady Eliza Finlay, to the Countess of Darnley. - London. - - 'My Dear Aunt, - - This is a place I often wished to come to, but the peaceful - satisfaction I have had in your company makes me in vain find it in - your absence--everything I see, everything I hear, is so contrary - to reason, that, without diverting one's self of that quality, it - is impossible to be pleased with any thing, though the novelty may - engage one's attention at first. All here appear to adopt the reigning - ideas, and fashionable pursuits, with as much pleasure as I feel in - conforming to the principles which your kind instructions and edifying - example have implanted in my mind. They do not, however, appear to - me to be happy, and, like comedians (who are not diverted with the - amusement they occasion) regret being condemned to communicate a - pleasure which they do not partake, and lament not having received, - from a different education, other tastes, other talents, and other - manners. I connect myself as little as possible with them; as in - epidemic distempers we are only secure whilst we escape the touch - of the contagious person; and with respect to wounds of the mind, - they are like those of the body. These extravagancies I might, - perhaps, some months ago have considered in a less serious manner, - but the evident melancholy in which my brother is, shews me the - vanity of everything in this world--So handsome in his person, so - accomplished in his manners--possessing everything the world places - a value on--and yet too apparently wretched. The Marquis of P----, - Lord Sombre, and his other friends, endeavour in vain to rouse him - out of his _reveries_.--You are possessed of such philosophy, that - you may look upon this matter in another light; as for me, who have - _strong passions_, and that inseparable companion of them, _weak - reason_, I cannot help being seriously alarmed. My beloved brother - has undoubtedly some secret cause of disquietude--he sighs at times - as if his heart would break! This affects me very sensibly; I never - was so unhappy in my life; besides, I have not my dear Aunt to give - a friendly check to my extravagance of spirits, so am afraid of - hazarding anything.--Every person looks formally at me. When your - friend the Duchess of W---- introduced me to Lady Charlotte Sombre, - she said she pleased herself with thinking what a harmony would arise - between us; for in the character, said she, I drew _of her_ to you, - she only sat _for yours_. Lady Charlotte is very agreeable, lively, - and entertaining. Lord Sombre, I fancy, is what you would esteem a - superior character; he is noble, and has a soul; a thing questioned - much in most of the gay youths whom we converse with. He appears to - have fine feelings--I intend to be on my guard before him--a man of - true taste and delicacy prefers the smile of the soul, to noisy mirth. - - Lady Charlotte is addressed by Sir Alexander French--he told - her, his love would be eternal! That is, said she, neither to have - _beginning_ nor _end_. Sir Alexander is a very great coxcomb, she - therefore gives him no encouragement; and amused me with an account - of him--her brother checked her, and said there is an ostentation - in these kind of confidences, which he was mortified to observe in - her--that at least she should respect a man she had rendered unhappy, - and who had almost lost his reason on her account. She replied, it - were indeed a trifling sacrifice, were it even so, as he had so little - to part with, that it made the loss inconsiderable--love, said she, - never makes such a bustle in hearts like his--his is a _laughing_, not - a _melancholy_ Cupid. She has the charms of an angel, and dresses with - the greatest simplicity, regarding the colour and make of her cloaths, - rather than the quality. - - When Lady Charlotte shewed me the _Arcadia_ of my mother's - painting[29], all the tender passions were up in my soul: I requested - to be left alone, and bursting into tears, I partly relieved the - emotions of my heart--Lord Sombre surprised me in this situation--I - was too much agitated at first to return him an answer to some - obliging things he said, but at last made an apology for my weakness! - His Lordship told me, the sensibility I testified confirmed him in the - high ideas he entertained of my character. He then expatiated to me on - a subject very agreeable, _my mother's virtues_. That the gentleman - who educated him had been well acquainted with her--who said, - that good sense and genius were united in her, and that by study, - reflection, and application, she had improved her talents in the - happiest manner--having acquired a superiority in thinking, speaking, - writing, and acting--and in manners, her behaviour, language, and - understanding, were inexpressibly charming. - - The discourse of people here, my dear Aunt, appears to me - malicious; their civilities feigned; their confidences false; and - their friendships resemble a rose, which pricks the hand of him who - smells it. Every animal seeks its food, digs itself a hole, or builds - itself a nest--sleeps--and dies. It is a melancholy reflection that - the greatest part of mankind do _no more_. The employment which - distinguishes them most from other animals, is the care of cloathing - themselves, and their enmity to each other--the first of these - engages the attention of millions of the younger people in this great - city--while the more aged employ themselves in the last. Although - pride is observable in a peacock and a horse, passion, in a tiger, - gluttony in a wolf, envy in a dog, laziness in a monkey, and treachery - in a cat, yet one does not find, in any animal whatever, falseness to - their own species. - - A love of play, and building, are the characteristics of this - age--our sex imitates the other as far as they can in the former--and - having no _terra firma_ for the latter, and not contented with the - ancient custom of castle-building, erect fabrics on their heads three - stores high. The rage of building is so great, that nothing can check - their ardour in it, although it has been the ruin of many individuals; - and there are at present (it is said) fifteen hundred uninhabited - houses in the two parishes of Saint Mary-le-bone and Pancras. Though - the fortunes of most individuals are decreased in value by the rise - of the prices of provisions, and other articles of expense, yet the - houses, good enough twenty years ago, are now judged inadequate. Among - many other reasons alledged for this, every woman of any tolerable - fashion requires a room for her wardrobe: what formerly could be kept - in a chest, occupies the space of a large apartment, as gowns (on - account of their trimmings) cannot be folded. - - In short, my dear Aunt, all seem to walk in a vain show, and the - curls of _the head_ are more attended to, than the sensations of _the - heart_. - - I hope Mrs Dorothea Bingley is become more reasonable than to wish - to force my dear friend's inclination to marry a man she detests. - Don't you think, my dear aunt, that marrying to increase love, is - like gaming to become rich; they only lose what little stock they had - before. - - My brother desires his respectful compliments to you, as I beg mine - may be acceptable to your Lord; and I ever am, with the greatest - esteem, - - Your ladyship's affectionate, - And obliged niece, - ELIZA FINLAY. - - From the Countess of Darnley to - Lady Eliza Finlay - - My Dear Niece, - - As in my present situation[30] I am interdicted from writing--I - shall only indulge myself in a few words to you. The civilities you - have received from all friends give me great pleasure. Brought up - in the lap of friendship, I am not surprised, that upon your first - emerging into the great world you should feel the coldness of the - common address of strangers. It is possible those very accomplishments - which delighted your fond aunt and friends, _interested_ for your - welfare, procure you the envy of _uninterested observers_. But if - any one denies you the praises your merit claims, betray not any - mortification at their want of candour, as your sensibility would - afford them a malicious pleasure. - - I have ever made it a rule, before I vexed myself about people's - appearing to slight me, to consider the character of the person, and - to discover the motives of his acting; and I very often found it was - with no design to affront me, but that the party was so humoursome as - even to be insupportable _to himself_. I have so long indulged myself - in the society of a few friends I love, that I am but ill suited - for the world, as anything unreasonable _vexes me_, and the want of - sincerity _offends me_. Mrs Dorothea Bingley continues to persecute - her niece on account of Mr Bennet! Nothing appears to me so barbarous. - I feel myself the happiest of women, and of wives, and enjoy my - felicity with a double _goût_, by reflecting upon the restrictions - I put on my inclinations for so many years. And I am perfectly - convinced, it is not until women have got over their early years, that - they can taste the delightful pleasure of loving and being beloved. - But no felicity is perfect in this world, and I find my joy allayed - from the observations I made on your brother's apparent melancholy. To - see you and him happy, and properly allied, are circumstances I still - must look forward to with great anxiety. I am very apt to believe man - a much greater machine than he is generally supposed to be. "Whoever - (says Dr Johnson) shall inquire by what motives he was determined on - important occasions, will find them such as his pride will scarcely - suffer him to confess; some sudden ardour of desire, some uncertain - glimpse of advantage, some petty competition, some inaccurate - conclusion, or some example implicitly reverenced." - - Such are too often the causes of our resolves. Rousseau says, if - you would understand the men, study the women--I myself think that - it is difficult to know what a man's conduct will be, until you are - acquainted with his wife's character, particularly when he enters into - that connexion at an early period of his life. - - My best affections ever attend you and your brother, in which my - lord most sincerely joins. - - FRANCES DARNLEY. - - From Miss Bingley to Lady Eliza Finlay. - - 'Dear Madam, - - Agreeable to your desire I write you a long letter in hopes of - making you laugh (for your letter to me gave me the vapours, you - appeared so serious, so unlike yourself)--it is probable I may not - effect my intention; but it will be a proof to you of my affection. - My aunt has been even rude to Sir James Mordaunt, told him that - he need not presume on my partiality for him, that I had nothing - to say in regard to disposing of myself--that he must _treat with - her_. He answered her with some heat, that he had no idea of modern - marriages, where their lawyer is the priest that joins them; and the - banns of matrimony are the indentures, land and ring--That in short - he had no notion of treating for a wife as he would buy stock of a - broker--that if she chose to give me her fortune, it _was well_--if - not, we could live _without it_! lovers you know, my dear Lady Eliza, - are always philosophers!--Your fortune, answered my good aunt, won't - be a superfluous maintenance for a family, and you shall not have a - shilling of mine! Very true, returned Sir James; but where content - attends a competency more is _unnecessary_. - - I hope, said she, you are in the court party and may get a pension? - Sir James told her he was not; but if he were it would be worse - for him, as the principles by which the court govern themselves - are literally these: The man who has trumpeted their merits for - years, cannot on any provocation assume an opposite character, - without impeaching his judgment and proving the instability of his - attachment--Our enemies it is wisdom to buy; but our friends will - either be firm in our cause from motives of interest, or silent - sufferers from motives of pride--Therefore, said he, good madam, - laughing, I mean to rise by being _in the opposition_--as most of the - great men have done before me! but, turning to me, said, I never yet - opened my mouth in that celebrated assembly, but to give utterance to - an occasional little monosyllable: But I may improve in time. - - My aunt detains Mr Bennet for hours together, as Aristæus held - Proteus to deliver oracles, judging I shall be charmed with his - learning and oratory; but I should like him infinitely better if - she would imitate Dulness, who kept the Muses in the Dunciad to - silence them. But for this eternal teazer's _presence_, and your - _absence_, (which by the by increased my consequence) I should have - enjoyed the races very much. Mrs Damer, on whom nature has bestowed - an understanding greatly superior to her form, confesses you are - handsome; whilst Miss Maydew, who has no other ambition than that - of attracting applause by the charms of her person, allows you good - sense. We seldom withhold the applause which is due to virtues or - accomplishments for which we cannot value ourselves. - - As to news, Mrs Trevors is parted with her husband: she put the poor - man out of all patience by her sameness of character: If he made an - observation, she assented; if he altered his mind, she gave a nod. She - was always the same tune, the same object, that is to say _the same - woman_. Perfectly agreed, no quarrels indeed subsisted between them, - but they _fell asleep_. Water freezes only in stagnation. Indifference - hung over them like a cloud, and irksome passed the hours, which might - have flown with a swift pace, perhaps, had they been passed with your - humble servant. - - The world would have been already laid in ruins if the elements - that compose it did not maintain it by their discordant concord. If - water did not resist fire by its coldness and humidity it would have - reduced all into ashes, and having no further nutriment would have - consumed itself. I will not lose Sir James's heart from this cause. - Diversity of opinions shall quicken our conversation--Opposition shall - not be wanting on my part to cheer _his heart_, and make his time pass - _agreeably_. An accommodating temper is all a man ought to expect - in a wife; more than this is disgusting--I am very apt to believe - that though a man of spirit would not suffer his wife to dictate to - him, yet he would as soon talk to a parrot, or be the companion of - a monkey, as of one who is his eccho on every occasion. It is very - possible with some men to be _too good_. But there are no rules - without exceptions; for was my husband very perverse I would (follow - the late example of the _Premier_[31] with the Opposition) revenge - myself on him by agreeing in opinion with him, which would oblige him - to commence hostilities with himself if he meant to _continue the - dispute_. - - Our ancient neighbour Lady Ogle married the other day a young ensign - in the guards, although you know she has more diseases than Galen - ever wrote of--at every cough resigns some of her teeth, and every - night screws off her leg--scarcely has her own nose, and by the course - of nature ought to have kneeled in marble, or lifted up her arms in - stone twenty years ago. In apology for her conduct, she says, it was - merely to procure herself _a friend_. But as experience does not - coincide with her ladyship's expectations, I should marry Mr Bennet, - to _get rid of him_, were it not for my penchant _elsewhere_. I look - upon all these romantic notions of Platonic, or spiritual love, as - highly ridiculous. Our passions were bestowed on us for wise purposes. - When precepts of virtue are strained too high, they are either - impracticable or become vicious in their consequences. - - The captain, _her friend_, is contriving a _visto_ through some - _woods_ on _her estate_, to pay _his debts_; she tells every body, - however, that he is not only possessed of _all the graces_, but an - independant fortune. The next heir to the estate happens to be of a - different opinion--his picture of captain Plume is _all shade_, hers - _all light_. The former awkwardly imitates the style of Rembrandt, and - with a dark pencil loves to describe hideous wrinkles and deformed - features--but the latter artfully copies the taste of Titian, and - brightens the canvas with all the lively glow of colouring. Perhaps - if light and shade were properly blended together, we might behold - a real likeness.--I don't like him. I mistake much if he is not - conceited--you know I pretend a little to be a physiognomist as well - as a botanist. In the natural world the external form of plants afford - us a hint for a conjecture of their virtues. Almost all the plants of - the same kinds are of the same virtues. The poisonous plants, natives - of our soil, are hardly a dozen, and these are characterized even to - the eye by something singular or dismal in the aspect. - - When I wrote you I was jealous of Sir James's attentions to Miss - Ords, I did not wish to be understood _au piè du lettre_--She has a - vacant countenance, her youth only renders her _passable_. Her wit - is not picquante, nor her manners alluring. She can answer _yes_ and - _no_, with tolerable success, nay sometimes hazards further: and when - she goes to a comedy does not intreat the company to instruct her - _when_ she should laugh. Her father lives _en Prince_: like Lucullus, - he _plundered all Asia_ to assist him _in house-keeping_. Sir James - was very lively in his usual way--She said she did not like puns, and - had never made one in her life--I could not help answering--It's my - opinion _you never will_. - - You ask me if I have got no more lovers? To talk ingenuously with - you--no; I know not what further inconveniences such an acquisition - might put me to: and as it might probably happen (not on _my account_, - but for my _aunt's acres_) I have whispered my passion for Sir James - Mordaunt as a secret to Mrs M----; so you need not doubt but it has - spread. She is an antiquated virgin, who endeavours to make chastity - atone for the want of every other virtue. She wanted me sadly to - ask her some question; I mortified my own curiosity, to punish her - propensity to detraction. - - Lady Dun is at last expired, notwithstanding the prayers of the - faithful. Had she lived any longer, her _piety_ must have ruined _her - family_ by her total want of economy, as she did the reputation of her - neighbours by scandal. - - _Can so much gall in holy breasts reside?_ - Boileau's Lutrin. Canto I. - - I met the following story lately in an old book; the writer appears - to have been a person of great judgment, and not in _the least_ - given to credulity. He relates, that a certain man who had a wife - that made this world his purgatory (though, according to the _common - acceptation_, she was _virtuous_ and prudent) happening to die some - little time after her, he went to paradise, as soon as the breath - was out of his body, as a reward for his patience in this world; - being come to the gate, he knocks, the good man St Peter opens the - door, and desires him very civilly to walk in, and take what seat in - heaven he pleased. The husband stopped a moment to recollect himself; - and then asks St Peter, Whether or not his wife was there? The good - Saint answered in the affirmative: upon which the honest man, without - staying for any thing further, takes to his heels and makes for the - road to hell; rather choosing to renounce heaven, than be in the same - place with his dear rib, whom he was well assured would, out of the - abundance of her virtue, make heaven as great a hell to him, as she - had done this earth. - - I must now, my dear friend, tell you what sincerely grieves me. My - brother equals _yours_ in melancholy: before he went abroad, no man - whatever had better spirits; but now, although he does not complain of - any particular disorder, yet is he always indisposed--ever wretched, - constantly sighing and lamenting. This affects my spirits much: "_my - heart is not of that rock, nor my soul careless as that sea, which - lifts its blue waves to every blast, and rolls beneath the storm!_" - But truth obliges me to confess that I cannot go on with my admired - poet as--"_The virgins_ have not as yet _beheld me silent in the - hall_!" No, no no, it is not come to that yet! I relieve you from my - company--be sensible of the obligation--let me hear from you soon, and - believe me, - - Your ladyship's - affectionate friend, - H. BINGLEY.' - - From Lady Eliza Finlay to Miss Bingley. - - 'My dear Harriot, - - Many thanks for your agreeable letter, your _gaieté de coeur_ always - pleases me, _Vive la bagatelle!_ - - But, my dear friend, I am uneasy at your aunt's persisting in - her persecution of you on Mr Bennet's account. He seems to me to - be a person rather created to fill up a vacuum in nature, than to - perform any active good in it. His want of sensibility is sufficient - to prepossess me against him--There are in the occurrences of a - married life so many trials of a man's humanity that he whose want - of tenderness might pass unobserved had he continued single--must - often appear a very monster considered as a husband. May you be - blessed in that state with the man of your heart! I agree with you - that opposition, carried on without violence, gives a dignity to our - condescension; but we must not carry this too far or we may counteract - our design of preserving the heart we have gained. - - To manage men requires more dexterity than to win them, as the - consequence of most _love matches_ evinces. - - You ask a thousand questions, having never been in London yourself, - on account of your aunt's apprehensions of a disease she had not the - resolution of giving you at an early period of life[32]. I told you - that you must not expect any characters from me, as I was always an - enemy to detraction, and few there are that merit commendation. Let - us, my dear friend, regulate our _own conduct_, rather than condemn - that _of others_: but as I cannot refuse you anything you ask (though - I may wonder at your asking) I will suppose we are chatting over a - dish of tea, and giving our opinion of a gown or a cap, and will tell - you who suits my taste, or who my reason contemns, with as little - meaning as if I talked of the gown and not the woman: and this I the - more readily do, as I know you will not betray the confidence I place - in you. - - The truth is, however, I am perfectly astonished at the strange - characters this town abounds with; and stupified (_if I may_ be - allowed the expression) with what I have heard: but, as Shakespeare - allows Desdemona to speak after she was smothered, you will permit me - to write though I have lost my understanding. And as it was the choice - of certain great men to be intelligible, it is probable my present - state of mind will lead me to imitate them. But on second thoughts, my - being not _au fait_ to the subject may perhaps make me excel in it. - Men often expatiate _best_ on what they _least understand_, by the - same rule that people in general are contrary to what they would seem. - - The Mantuan Swain lived constantly at court: Horace wrote in - celebration of a country life when he resided in Rome: and it is well - known travels, voyages, etc. to every part of the world have been - written in London. Why should I not then, Eliza Finlay Spinster, - attempt delineating manners, which I have really seen? My scruples - would intrude--that perhaps I am not sufficiently informed, as I have - only resided here a month; but these vanish on the recollection that - I must certainly be in the right in the above position--Otherwise, - could it be possible for Mr Blacklock[33], a poet blind from his - birth, to describe visible objects with more spirit and justness, - than others blessed with the most perfect sight? Could certain - orators, famous for their _extravagance_, harangue on _economy_--Or - the learned at Venice employ father Piaggi to copy the manuscript - found at Herculaneum (though he is unacquainted with Greek, the - language they are written in)--Or could our own countrymen, the - _learned_, _judicious_ body in Warwick-lane, refuse to admit to be - their associates in the science of _Æsculapius_, any but those who - have studied where--_medicine is not taught_? After such precedents - as these, it is clear I cannot err, in informing you of what--_I - know little about_. Besides, it is an established rule of prudence, - on the contrary, never to commit yourself by talking or writing on a - subject the world gives you the credit of understanding, as you have - _nothing_ to _gain_ but _much_ to _lose_. This consideration no doubt - induced one author[34] to omit in his tragedy _morality_, which should - be the ground-work of every fable, and deterred another[34] from - acknowledging providence, though it so eminently presided, and was so - conspicuously displayed in the miraculous escapes made in the voyages - he wrote of. This being premised, I will now begin boldly to _relate_ - many things I cannot _comprehend_. - - _Miss Ton_ accompanied me to the opera; I was amazed at the height - of her head, and how her chair had failed to crush the fabric of - feathers and frivolity which rose above each other! I could not think - she had flown, though she was composed of cork and feather; and - willing to be informed how she had managed it (as ignorance, you know, - is reprehensible) I ventured to ask her the question. She returned me - a look of contempt (as if to pity my ignorance) saying, she always - took care to prevent a misfortune of that kind! When I go to court, - said she, as heads are wore lower[35] there--I fit like your old woman - upon the seat of the chair, which is convenient enough on account of - one's trimmings, but when I go to the opera, where _fancy directs_ and - _fashion prevails_, I say my prayers the whole way--that is to say, - I kneel _on the bottom of the chair_. I admired her ingenuity; only - observed, I hoped it did not fatigue her knees so much as to prevent - her from going to church next day! O, not in the least, said she; - but I always go to the drawing-room of a Sunday! except when I go to - the Chapel-royal--_the closet there_, indeed, that is no bad public - place--nobody but people of fashion are admitted, and it is really - sometimes very amusing! The truth is, if one liked church very much, - there is time enough to dress afterwards; for it is not _the rage_ - which a certain set to go to the drawing-room until your old-fashioned - people are coming away. Oh the dear delight of meeting these dowdies - on their _retour_ home to their spouses and family dinners at _four - o'clock_. Then we make such glorious confusion! I took the liberty of - saying that I thought the respect due to their Majesties had induced - every body to be in the drawing-room previous to their appearance! - Oh, not at all, child, said she--except your _formal ones_! But - why, said I, madam, need you go to court of a Sunday, why not of a - Thursday as well? Of a Thursday! Nobody goes of a Thursday! Pardon - me, replied I, the Duchess of W---- introduced me on that day! That - may be, replied Miss _Ton_, her Grace is very old, wrinkles make her - religious--but none but such, or courtiers, go of a Thursday! I again - took the liberty of telling her that it had also been a very full - drawing-room--Then, said she, it must have been the Thursday after - the birthday--or some particular day; for otherwise few of a certain - set, who understand _the rage_, would go. The _rage_, said I, madam! - I am again at a loss; did I hear you right? O, perfectly well, said - she; the _ton_, was formerly the word, but _the rage_, has lately - been adopted from the French! (It is to be hoped, that the Parisians - will also, from their late partiality for _English Gauzes_, _Silks_, - _Linens_, _etc._ induce us to adopt _them also_, instead of too often - procuring these articles from France.) - - Forgetful of the imprudence I was going to commit--I told Miss - _Ton_ her prayers had proved ineffectual--her largest feather - was snapped in two. Is it possible! exclaimed she, and reddened - prodigiously.--Shocked at the blunder I had made, and pitying her - weakness, I gave her my bottle of Eau de Luce; and not caring to - hazard any further on so interesting a subject, lest it should hurt - her nerves, I turned the conversation to what was more indifferent--a - sister of her's, who _had died in child-bed a fortnight before_. - - (This, my dear friend--to philosophise--no abstract evil exists; - for whatever calamities human life is subject to, their evil depends - merely on our own sensibility.) - - Sir Timothy Clinquant rejoined us. He is handsome, has a good - opinion of himself, and is no stranger to the art of flattery. She - lamented to him the accident of her feather. From a knowledge of - human nature, that nothing pleases so much as to have a defect of any - kind turned into a beauty--he assured her the feather being broke - gave it an air of negligence so perfectly adapted to the _contour_ - of her fine face, that he could not be convinced, but that she - _accidentally_ on _purpose_ afforded it _that grace_. Thus was she - restored to good-humour.--I can tell you little of what I saw; Miss - Ton's head intercepted my view of the stage: _her rage_ of going late - having prevented our getting any other but end seats, and she sat - before me. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth there was a law made to - restrict the growth of ruffs: I wish our legislators,[36] who, in this - accommodating age, do sometimes condescend to bestow their attention - on trifles, would take the size of heads into their consideration. Mr - Walpole observes, in his anecdotes of painting in England, that in the - reign of the two first Edwards, the ladies erected such pyramids on - their heads that the face became the center of the body. - - An eminent physician has declared, that more deformed children have - been brought into the world this last year than for twenty years - before, on account of the ladies stooping in their carriages--One - thing I am certain of--it makes them contract a habit of frowning, - that furrows their foreheads. - - A fine lady is the least part of herself, and is every morning - put together like some instrument. Dress is the subject eternally - discussed. Gulliver tells us, that the sages of Laputa, having - substituted things in place of words, carried along with them such - things as were necessary to express the particular business they - intended to discourse on.--Were this the case, it would be a great - relief; but alas! they do no more here than propose the subject. But - to return to the opera--Miss _Ton_, in telling me who the people - were, said they were _horrid creatures_, that is to say, censorious or - _awkward_, because _not of her particular set_. - - But what was my surprise to perceive her familiarly afterwards - whispering to one, curtsying to another, telling a third how - unfortunate she had been in not being at home when she did her the - honor of calling on her! I could not help testifying my astonishment - at her conduct!--She laughed, and said--I am civil to those people, as - the Indians worship the devil--_for fear_. Besides, said she, the last - Lady has a rich brother lately come from India. In days of yore women - married for a title, a fine seat, etc.--A title is very agreeable, - but a _fine seat_, the very idea of it gives me the vapours! I would - rather marry a London justice than a lord lieutenant of the county. It - did very well formerly (when people were so dull as to be able to bear - their own thoughts) to live moping at an old family place; but manners - are _now_ too much improved for _that_: and a nabob's cash, without - the appendages of the seats of his ancestors, will suffice to carry - me one season to Spa, another to Tunbridge, etc. etc.--In marrying a - nabob, there is a moral security of never being buried in the country. - I am no _devot_, but I believe there is such a thing as conscience; - and, as few of these continental heroes can bear to listen to their - silent monitor--it induces them to lead _exactly the kind of life I - like_--to _exclude reflection_! - - I answered, that she was too severe; I made no doubt but that a - man may get rich across the Atlantic, without wounding his honor, - and all the finer feelings of humanity by peculation and extortion, - which leaves the possessors more wretched than pale-eyed poverty with - all its whole train of meagre haunts. To change the conversation, - I said, so madam, I find you intend to marry. Yes, said she, _to - be sure_--But I hope in god I shall have no children to _spoil my - shape_. I cannot here refrain from telling you a circumstance I saw - occur myself. We dined at Lady ----'s; I observed a lady change - colour--Mrs. ---- whispered to her, that ladies in her situation (for - she appeared with child) were apt to be _indisposed_. She seemed hurt - at the supposition, and denied any thing was the matter with her! - As by the conversation it appeared she had _already had children_, - I was at a loss to account for _her conduct_. Colonel H----, her - husband, appeared very uneasy--an inquisitive look of kindness, a - tender affectionate concern, were strongly depicted on his manly - countenance--his anxiety appeared to me to proceed from that fond - attachment arising from loving another better than one's self. I - entered into his ideas, contemplated her happiness, and as he is not - a very young (though agreeable) man, the apparent attention he paid - her confirmed me in what you know was always my sentiments, that - _such_ make the _best husbands_. Desirous of relieving his anxiety by - contributing to her ease, I begged she would permit me to accompany - her to another apartment. As her uneasiness had greatly increased--she - was under a necessity of accepting my offer--and fainted as soon - as she got into Mr. ----'s library. The alarmed and fond husband - followed, who intreated a maid might be called to cut the lacing of - her stays. He was much affected, and, addressing Lady Charlotte Sombre - and me, said, There, young ladies, lies a victim of the fashion! - Before I brought her to this town--she was the delighted mother of - three fine children--but these fond sensations are now lost in the - trifling consideration of a _fine shape_; and though in the last month - of her pregnancy, she has a vanity in flattering herself she cannot be - thought in _that situation_! The lady was carried home, and we heard - next day she had been delivered of a _still-born child_. - - Lord Spangle asked Miss _Ton_, how soon she got to bed the other - morning? Not, my Lord, until eight--you know we did not sit down to - dinner until twelve at night. Not until twelve at night! said I. No, - returned she; you know nobody dines till after the opera: it was - _Danzi's_ benefit; all the world were there, and there were many songs - _encored_.--Dinner was ordered by eleven; but Lady Peccedillo was not - at the opera--her monkey died, and she had not nerves for seeing Lord - ---- who is always there, and who she esteems the direct image of her - dead favourite. Her hair-dresser was ordered at ten, but disappointed - her--and dinner was retarded on her account. Pray, said I, at what - time did you sup? Why, we sat down to cards at two o'clock, played - until six, then went to supper, and parted half an hour after seven! I - find, said I, that the people of the _ton_ reckon the time according - to the _Mosaic_ custom, where the evening and the morning make the - day. But pray, madam, what becomes of your servants all this time? I - hope you only appoint them to attend you home? Servants! Lord, Madam, - nobody thinks of their servants! I do not see myself what business - servants have to sleep _at all_! I can do very well with three hours - sleep, and I expect next winter to bring myself to two[37]! - - You say that lady and Mrs. ---- have been lately abused, even - by their own friends, that is to say--those they associated most - with--Would you know the reason? My dear friend, they have left off - play, at which they generally lost considerably. The first of these - ladies, from unavoidable misfortunes, altered her plans in life: the - last, from a different cause--Her family remonstrated, her husband - frowned; but they remonstrated, and he frowned to _no purpose_! Her - luck turned, her passion increased for that dangerous amusement, yet - she took a resolution, and would _play no more_.--She who was before - set down as an agreeable acquaintance, was now deemed capricious, and - the eyes of her card-playing acquaintances, who were before _blind_ - to her _real imperfections_, became now _scrupulously attentive_ to - her _imaginary errors_. Many various conjectures were formed for the - reasons of her conduct--many allegations made that she had formed _an - attachment_, or was deterred by _spouses's directions_! To clear her - at once from these imputations, neither of which (be they _crimes or - virtues_) she has a mind capable of--The truth is--she has beautiful - teeth--and accidentally read Mr Tolver's book, where he considers the - passions as internal causes of their diseases. - - _Errors_ proceeding from the _sensations of the heart_, are not - _those_ of this age. I was told there had been a long attachment - between Lady ---- and Colonel ----. I deplored, I pitied her! He is - now abroad in a dangerous situation! What anxiety, what wretchedness - must she not suffer! How surprised I was to find--she never misses - _a public place_. The Duchess of W---- was much amused at my - simplicity--Formerly (said she) if a woman had the misfortune _to - love where_ she could not avow it--decency induced her carefully - to conceal her weakness--but now it is _quite otherwise_--The soft - sensations find no admittance into their sophisticated hearts--though - they have no objection to a man of fashion _in their train_.--And a - certain set of _the ton_, or _the rage_ go so far as even studiously - to afford an appearance _of what_ in reality never entered into _their - imaginations_! - - I think I hear you say, how strange! But everything is so I think - in this place. I met Lady Bab Cork-rump the other day: My dear Lady - Eliza, said she, I love a comedy of all things; pray let us go to one - soon. I am disengaged next Thursday--That is very lucky, returned I; I - have _a box that evening: it is our favourite play_; and _Mrs Abington - acts_!--That is _delightful_, said she! And, added I, it is a charity - play for the dispensary of the infant poor--upwards of twenty-six - thousand children have been relieved by this humane institution - since its commencement nine years ago. Lady Bab heard the above - impatiently.--It is a charity play, you say, madam!--I don't know, I - believe my brother expects some friends from the country. I suppose it - will be no disappointment to your ladyship if I _don't go_?--O, not in - the least, said I--Thus the idea of _Charity_ makes a fine lady shrink - (as if it were contagious) into herself, and prevented Lady Bab from - going to a place her inclination otherwise induced her to. - - Lady Bab seems to have a great partiality for Sir Hugh, - our neighbour--Since he got his fortune--his riots are - generosity--carelessness, the freedom of his soul--his prodigalities, - an easiness of mind proportioned to his estate. He quarrelled the - other day with Captain Essence on her account; and I was alarmed to - the greatest degree for the consequences! she laughed at my fears, - assuring me there was no kind of danger in what I apprehended. The - gentlemen, said she, have renounced the conduct of heroes. The custom - of wagers is the happy succedaneum, and prevents much blood-shed. Thus - matters of dispute are left in _tranquil doubt_, until the period - arrives for _its_ no less _tranquil decision_. It turned out as she - said; Captain Essence wagered with Sir Hugh, that _the new club in - Saint James's Street would be the ruin of Lord ----, before the old - one vis-à-vis had knocked up General ----_. - - I have spent so much money on _bagatelles_, that I cannot help - regretting the expenditure of what if otherwise applied might have - produced such beneficial effects.--But if we commit some follies, - we are sufficiently kept in countenance by the other sex. Modern - story tells us the late King of Poland was so much captivated with - forty-eight china vases, that he purchased them of the late King of - Prussia at the price of a _whole regiment of dragoons_. - - You know, my dear friend, how many elogiums have been bestowed on - Lady Darnley, on account of the aids she afforded for the disquisition - of the particular genius's which distinguished the young people, to - prevent a misapplication of the talents of the rising generation. "Is - it not by a misapplication of talents," said one, "that our present - mortifications arise? Many a man miscarrying in one profession, would - have succeeded happily in another. Hence we see so many heads applied - to what requires thinking, which might have been applied to their - country's good in the manner of the ancient use of _battering rams_, - and have been run against stone walls _without the least danger of - being hurt_.--If the mechanic should invert all the principles which - compose the knowledge of that science; if he should assign the wheels - to be the principle of motion, the spring to run round and be moved, - the weight to vibrate and regulate, and the pendulum to urge; would - not all mankind deride such a machine, because it could not perform - its office? Is not this the unhappy case of this country at present? - have not our enemies taken the advantage of it?" - - But to leave politics--which I owe to the observations of an - old gentleman, who has too much reason to be chagrined with the - procrastination in the conduct of public affairs, as it has affected - the interest of his private family--I am most sincerely concerned on - account of your aunt's apparent obstinacy in favour of Mr Bennet. - Parents, imagining that years _impart wisdom_, which have only - _altered tastes_, are apt to be arbitrary in their determinations, - and dress in the furs, which become the ice of old-age, the glowing - blood of youth. But do not, my dear friend, barter your happiness for - splendour. I suppose (but do not take my supposition for an oracle) - that it is not likely I shall every marry--If I do not, my fortune - shall be yours; being ever most affectionately - - Your sincere friend - ELIZA FINLAY. - - From the Earl of Munster to the - Countess of Darnley. - - My dear Aunt, - - Since I wrote you last, I walked one day in the city. A _black man_, - _well dressed_, fell down in the street: as none was near, I run, - took him in my arms, and carried him into a house of refreshment, - where I immediately procured him assistance. Upon his recovery he - acknowledged his obligations to me, and said, that but for me he must - have died:--and at the end of the lottery of life, our last minutes, - like benefit tickets left in the wheel, rise in their valuation. I - accompanied him home, where I saw his wife; who, though as black as - the collyed night, is as ingenious, sensible, and agreeable a woman as - can be found among the daughters of England. He inquired of her for a - friend; who arriving, to my inexpressible surprise proved to be the - Marquis de Villeroy, but so emaciated that the eye of friendship could - not behold him without shedding tears--he knew me at once, and ran to - my embrace--This, said he to the black gentleman, is Lord Munster, my - friend, the companion of my youth. - - After the joy we mutually testified at meeting, I could not help - testifying my surprise at the alteration in his person! My Lord, - replied he, I will acquaint you with the most extraordinary history - that ever occurred to any one. Upon the receipt of your letter, I - made no doubt, in the first impulse of passion, but you had betrayed - me; I suddenly left the army, and travelled day and night until I - took shipping for Rotterdam. On my arrival at that place, I found my - father had left it; and was also informed of the honorable part you - had acted, and that I had falsely flattered myself with the Countess's - affection. I lamented your misfortune and my impatience, as on - reflection I was sensible of the imprudence I had committed in leaving - my post--I was determined, however, not to lie under any imputation - of cowardice--I returned to--waited on the general officer--acquainted - him with the real truth, obtained forgiveness of my fault, which - was afterwards looked upon in a proper light, as I had the good - fortune to distinguish myself soon after in two engagements. Upon - our being ordered into winter-quarters, I obtained leave of absence, - and was resolved if possible to discover to what place my father had - retired; for although my love was hopeless, I flattered myself still - with having it in my power to rescue the Countess de Sons from his - _tyranny_, and restore her _to you_. - - My servant one day, with a face of joy, communicated to me that he - had learned my father lived at a house near Marseilles. He heard this, - he said, from a brother, who had an intrigue with one of the Duchess's - maids.--Is the duke then married? said I.--Alas, my friend, said the - Marquis, I am sorry to inform you, the object of your affections fell - a victim to my father's designs--he compelled her to give him her - hand!--I found he had turned the Countess's fortune into cash and - jewels, on which he lived, being desirous of concealing the place of - his abode, jealous to the last degree of her being seen! With this - view all his servants _were females_. - - Notwithstanding these precautions, his domestics talked of his - peculiarities; which occasioned interrogatories concerning his funds - of expense. These the inquirers soon discovered were in specie in - the house: this determined them to rob him. My servant's brother, - who was courting the Duchess's maid, informed her _of me_; next day - received a letter from my sister, who promised to admit me one night - into the house, where she directed me to come in disguise with my - servant!--Thus was I made a tool of by these ruffians: they meant - to effect the robbery by _my means_; and if detected, flattered - themselves they would be pardoned _on my account_! At the time - appointed I went; Julia let me in, leaving the door open for my - servant. She was beginning to inform me of all their distresses, when - our ears were assaulted by an alarm-bell!--in an instant the house - was filled with people; I heard my father say, Where is the rascal - who calls himself my son? My servant, upon being discovered, had - informed him, that I had hired him and his three companions (whom he - had introduced into the house) to murder and rob him, and to carry - off the ladies! It was in vain I assured him to the contrary; he would - not hearken to me; he recollected how much I had been in love with his - charming ward; he upbraided me with my wickedness, and perhaps did - believe me guilty. - - This affair, I make no doubt, has been misrepresented in the - world--we have no true histories, but such as have been written by - those who were sincere enough to relate what they experienced, in what - relates to themselves. - - I was seized, and carried to a dungeon until my trial; when, without - a hearing, I was condemned for life to be a galley-slave, and sent - for that purpose on board the gallies at Marseilles. The labour of a - _galley-slave_, is become a proverb; nor is it without reason that - this may be reckoned the greatest fatigue that can be inflicted on - wretchedness. - - Imagine six men chained to their seats, entirely naked as when born, - sitting with one foot on a block of timber fixed to the footstool; - the other lifted up against the bench before them, holding in their - hands an oar of an enormous size. Imagine them lengthening their - bodies, their arms stretched out to push the oar over the backs of - those before them; who are also themselves in a similar attitude. - Having thus advanced their oar, they raise that end which they hold - in their hands, to plunge the opposite in the sea; which done, they - throw themselves back upon their benches below, which are somewhat - hollowed to receive them. But none but those who have seen them labour - can conceive how much they endure: none but such could be persuaded - that human strength could sustain the fatigue which they undergo for - an hour successively. But what cannot necessity and cruelty make men - do? Almost impossibilities. Certainly no galley can be navigated in - any other way, than by a crew of slaves, over whom a _comite_ may - exercise the most unbounded authority. No free man could continue at - the oar an hour unwearied: yet a slave must sometimes lengthen out - his toil for ten, twelve, nay, for twenty hours, without the smallest - intermission. On these occasions the _comites_, or some of the other - mariners, put into the mouths of those wretches a bit of bread steeped - in wine, to prevent their fainting through excess of fatigue or - hunger, while their hands are employed upon the oar. At such times - are heard nothing but horrid blasphemies, loud bursts of despair, or - ejaculations to Heaven; all the slaves streaming with blood, while - their unpitying taskmasters mix oaths and threats, and the smacking of - whips, to fill up this dreadful harmony. - - At this time the captain roars to the _comite_ to redouble his - blows; and when any one drops from his oar in a swoon, (which not - unfrequently happens) he is whipped while any remains of life appear, - and then thrown into the sea, without any farther ceremony. The - _Diable Boitteux_, in order to make _Cleofas_ sensible of the happy - condition of an inquisitor, tells him, Was not I a Dæmon, I would be - an inquisitor? Were the devil to become a mortal, he would incline to - be the _comite_ to the galley-slaves at Marseilles, whose hearts are - inlapidated by cruelty. - - How these slaves are fed, to enable them to support such enormous - toil, may be judged from the following account.--When it was necessary - we should take some refreshment, the captain ordered _the dogs to - their mess_. He only meant by this, that we should be served with - beans, the usual food allowed us. These are indeed most intolerable - eating, and what nothing but the most pinching hunger could dispense - with. They are ill boiled, with scarce any oil, a little salt, and - all to be eaten out of a capacious cauldron, not the cleanest in the - world, as may easily be conceived. - - I was never so hungry but that I preferred eating my portion of - bread dipped in vinegar and water to this mess, which even offended - the sense of smelling. However, these, and twenty-two ounces of - biscuit, are all the food allowed for a galley-slave. Each of the crew - receives four ounces of this beverage; that is, provided none of it be - secreted before it is brought upon deck, which is not unfrequently the - case. - - I once had the curiosity to count the number of beans which - a brother slave had got for all his portion, which amounted to - just thirty; and those of the little black bean, commonly called - horse-beans. We did not even commiserate one another. To pity, we - must be acquainted with the sufferings of our fellow-creatures, but - not feel them. When we know by experience what pain is, we pity those - who suffer; but when we ourselves are in pain, we then feel only what - we ourselves undergo. In every station, subject to the calamities of - life, we allow to others that share of our sensibility only which we - have no occasion for ourselves. People in ease, people in affluence, - may think otherwise, but it is not _in nature_. - - Dreadful as this was, I have always thought death a punishment that - was no way adequate to the crimes of some public villains who have - been punished with it; and I am certain the most cowardly among men, - would prefer it to being a galley-slave. We are condemned to death by - nature; the sentence of the law, and the hand of the hangman, only - anticipate a few months or days; but to be daily wishing for death, as - a friend, to relieve us, and to be debarred of all means of meeting - him, is such a quintessence of wretchedness as would, I believe, make - all mankind keep a strict guard upon their actions, that they may - avoid falling into it.[38] - - From this infernal state of existence I was delivered by Mr Worthy, - who is a slave-merchant--he saw, and pitied my distress--he had - accidentally saved the life of one of the ruffians who had assisted in - the attempt to rob my father. This man afterwards, upon his death-bed, - acquainted his good master of my situation, who promised to release - me. This was effected by his giving a large sum to the captain and the - _comite_. The secret was told me; it was agreed I should pretend to - faint, and appear insensible; when I should be thrown into the sea as - dead--This happily succeeded. - - Nothing can be more unjust than to confine the instance of humanity - within the narrow circle of a few European nations. The noble, the - generous, the humane dispositions are diffused throughout all nature, - and exert their engaging force wherever a body of men subsists. Virtue - and vice are mingled in all societies: we have savages in Italy; and - there are worthy men amongst those we call savages. Christians do - often those things which a modest heathen would blush at, and, while - they boast of their religion, are strangers to the common laws of - humanity. It should be the boast of a wise man to despise nothing that - he is not well acquainted with, and to do justice to all mankind, of - whatever country or complexion.--Virtue, like the rays of the sun, - shines over the whole habitable globe, enlivens the moral, as that the - material world, and exerts its benign influences from the _scorching - equinox_ to the _frozen poles_. We feel its force; all communities are - bound together by its magnetic influence; and without it the nations - of Barbary would be covered with devastation, and no more inhabited - than the scorching sands of its inhospitable deserts. - - Mr Worthy no sooner cast his eyes on me, and perceived my sorrow, - than pity, tenderness, and compassion glowed in his countenance; his - eyes moistened with generous sympathy, and the first word he spoke - convinced me that he already felt _all I had suffered_. But there is - no pleasure so transporting to him, as to be in any way instrumental - in making any of the human species happy. - - I acquiesced in the justice of these sentiments--and could not - sufficiently admire the fortitude which had supported the Marquis - under such unheard-of trials! And as our sense of many high - enjoyments, both natural and moral, is exceedingly heightened by our - having observed or experienced many of the contrary evils; he bids - fair at least to be contented, when he looks back to the horrors he - has escaped. The poet says, - - The heart can ne'er a transport know - That never felt a pain. - - It may easily be conceived the Marquis is most anxious to inquire - after his family--but gratitude to Mr Worthy has made him accompany - him to England. - - When I seemed to compassionate his sufferings, his gratitude assumed - a grateful humility; but the moment I appeared the least inattentive - to his misfortunes, his countenance collected such an air of dignity, - as not only reproached my seeming want of sensibility, but reminded - me also, that his sufferings were not the consequences of guilt, nor - could in the least degree lessen his greatness of mind. - - I find Mr Worthy has a law-suit depending; when that is settled - he is to accompany my friend to Italy. He appears to me a very - acute, sensible man;--we were talking the other day of the - disturbances at Madras, and of the strange conduct of the people - in Leadenhall-Street--He said it put him in mind of Anacharsus's - observation to Solon, as they were returning from a public assembly, - 'That he could not help being greatly astonished to find, that, in - their deliberations, it was the _wise that spoke_, and that _fools - that decided_.' I believe, in public assemblies, this will be found - generally to be the case, where party governs, and the most powerful - cabal is generally composed of the least rational. - - I attend these dear friends everywhere. The Marquis is an _amateur_, - and his taste will be highly gratified, when at Munster-house, to view - the prodigies of _your creation_--he is a descendant of the Medici - family: consequently highly charmed with the character of the Countess - of Darnley. But this is a subject, I am incapable of entering upon--to - praise exquisite merit is perhaps the most difficult part of polite - writing, and which I have no talents for; but which if I possessed, I - should tire you with what few other ladies ever yet was--_their own - praises_. But I will yield to none in what I value myself upon, being - truly and affectionately. - - Yours - MUNSTER - -The Marquis de Villeroy became much enamoured with Lady Eliza, whose -compassion for his misfortunes had so far softened her heart in his -favor, that she listened to him first with complacency, afterwards with -tenderness, and at last with the most lively interest. Congenial souls -soon form an union. She acknowledged her partiality for him, but that no -predilection whatever could induce her to leave her country and friends. -This opinion was greatly strengthened by the idea she entertained of the -inconstancy of mankind, and the little regard they pay to women after a -few years possession. - -The Marquis thought his renouncing his native country would be too -great a sacrifice to be offered at the altar of the Graces. Yet the -idea of parting with Lady Eliza was what he was unable to support.--She -told him it would be in vain to think of making her soften the rigour -of her decree; for it proceeded from a firmness, which nothing could -conquer! for, from all her observations in life, no love ever lasted -long enough to make it worth while to sacrifice every thing else to -it; the _Paradisiac_ vision of eternal constancy having long vanished -from these sublunary regions:--and that unless he would reside in -England--she never would be his!--A sigh, which stole from him, conveyed -to Lady Eliza the height of his despair--his embarrassment and dejection -increased her regard for him, while it awakened a tender commiseration -for them, believing herself entirely the cause of them. She therefore -thought it incumbent on her to endeavour to remove them by every -attention in her power.--In consequence of this consideration in his -favor, she strove to look cheerful, though she was not a little hurt at -finding it absolutely necessary to reject so amiable and deserving a -man. - -The Marquis, perceiving that remonstrances would be ineffectual, -took his leave with a heart distracted by grief, perplexity, and -despair! Being naturally of a restless, gloomy disposition, and of -violent passions, in his despair he thought his adventures had been so -extraordinary that he was doomed to be wretched! and formed a resolution -of laying violent hands on himself: and the more he meditated on his -situation, the more strongly was he confirmed in his precipitate -resolution. Yet, as the instinct of self-preservation is one of the -strongest in our frame, it inspired him with a counter-idea, that of -renouncing Italy; this only acquiescence being requisite to recommend -him to Lady Eliza, without whom his life would be a burthen. He -communicated his intentions to Lord Munster, who apprised his sister of -this proof of the Marquis's attachment for her. - -Flattered to the greatest degree at the strength of his affection, -she promised to give him her hand on his return from Italy--where he -must necessarily go, to prove the identity of his person, and to take -possession of his fortune. - -The Marquis made immediate preparations for his journey, and soon set -out, accompanied by his friend Mr Worthy, Mrs Worthy accompanying Lady -Eliza to Munster-house--Soon after their arrival Lord and Lady Darnley -rejoined them with their little son, her ladyship being too tender a -mother to leave him behind her, or to commit him to the care of any but -herself. The tender brain of _Newton_, or _Alexander_, altered in their -infancy by a small compression, or slight commotion, might have rendered -the first stupid, and the other a wise King--Yet people in general, -though emulous of obtaining wealth for their heirs, commit them to the -care of uninterested hirelings. Sir Harry Bingley, his aunt and sister, -and most of the parties already introduced to the reader, assembled at -Munster house to spend the summer. - -Mrs Lee had rejected every overture from her husband for a -reconciliation, whilst his health and fortune lasted--but to a mind -like hers, misfortunes cancelled every injury--His fortune ruined, -his health impaired, he plunged deeper and deeper into every species -of excess. This soon brought him to the greatest distress, and he was -so much reduced as to be in want of the common necessaries of life. -Mrs Lee, upon being informed of his deplorable situation, immediately -converted that villa in Wales, of which there has been a description -given[39], into money, paid her husband's debts, and accompanied him at -a wretched hovel, to which his poverty, the consequence of his crimes, -and infidelity (_to her_) had reduced him.--There she continued, shewing -him every attention until his decease; when she came with Lady Darnley -to Munster-house. - -Lady Eliza soon received the following Letter from the Marquis de -Villeroy. - - Madam, Venice. - - On my arrival at this place, I found that, on the report of my - death, my father had consigned over his estate to a near relation - of mine--who knew me at once, though so emaciated, and has acted in - the most honorable manner to me. My father has retired to La-Trappe - in France: thither my duty must lead me, previous to the happiness I - shall receive in throwing myself at your feet. - - Were I disposed to draw the most engaging _portrait_ imaginable, - I could easily find a subject; but as you may possibly wish for an - intimate acquaintance with the original, I shall omit the attempt, - since it would be difficult for you to obtain it from that principle - in human nature which makes us strangers _to ourselves_. - - I shall detain your ladyship no longer, than to request you will - inform my friend, your brother, that I am mortified to be unable to - deliver his letter to Mademoiselle de Querci--no such person can be - found. - - Need I paint that passion I have given you such proofs of?--No; - all descriptions would fall short of my feelings. I will ever yield - to every wish your soul can form; you are entirely absolute, unless - you should attempt impossibilities, amongst which I reckon this as - the greatest--for me to breathe a moment without being entirely and - inviolably yours. - - DE VILLEROY. - -It may here be, perhaps, proper to inform the reader of what perhaps his -own sagacity may have made him anticipate--The Duke de Salis had neither -been able, by intreaties or threats, to compel the Countess de Sons to -marry him, though he had given out that she had; this induced him to -keep both her and his daughter closely confined. It has been already -related, how he had consigned over his son as a house-breaker;--when -he found him condemned to the gallies--like the cruel inconsistency -of an _Admiral's[40] judges_--he laid himself under the necessity of -declaiming the equity of his own sentence--and when he found the decree -against his son was inevitable--unable to bear the reproaches of his -inward monitor, and listening to the whispers of a gloomy disposition, -he became almost frantic--In this situation of mind, torn with the -agonies of grief, he became more careless of his ward--and the Countess -and Julia escaped from him--After his conduct to his son--they trembled -lest in some act of despair he should on some future occasion equal the -past scene, which _chilled them with horror_--The Countess was seized -with the small-pox, which altered her features considerably, without -impairing her beauty; this circumstance facilitated their eluding all -search after them from the Duke, as Julia wore men's clothes; and they -supported themselves by the sale of jewels. - -The intelligent reader now perceives, that Mademoiselle Querci and her -brother, were no other than the Countess de Sons and Julia, whom Lord -Munster had met at Venice. - -When the Duke de Salis retired to La-Trappe, the Countess de Sons -appeared, and took possession of her fortune. She had remained -constantly and sincerely attached to Lord Munster was flattered by his -attentions at Venice, and found her esteem increased by the regard -he paid to his pre engagements; but would not at that time discover -herself, fearing that she only flattered herself that he saw her -with the eyes of affection, and lest the small-pox had made _such_ -an alteration, as might change his sentiments. Upon the Marquis de -Villeroy's arrival in Italy, she was highly charmed to receive a letter -from Lord Munster addressed to Mademoiselle de Querci, and determined to -accompany him and Julia to England; but this was carefully concealed, to -render the discovery more pleasing. - -In the mean time, the family at Munster-house passed their time most -agreeably, though Lord Munster, Sir Harry Bingley, and Mrs Lee, (who -knew nothing of Mr Villars) often were melancholy and _distrait_. - -Lord Munster made great preparations to celebrate the anniversary of -Lady Darnley's wedding-day: on which occasion a number of buildings -were added to those already mentioned on the pleasure-grounds--As all -the best artificers were on the spot, these were executed in the ablest -manner. One temple he finished without the inspection of any one. - -On the morning of the masquerade, walking out with Sir Harry Bingley, -he told him he should be glad to have his opinion of it. In this temple -was painted the _cataract_ of the river Dahl, which he had drawn on -the spot[41]--the cottage where Miss Harris resided--and herself at -work, in the same way in which he saw her, with her lovely boy playing -beside her (Miss Harris had permitted Lord Munster to draw her picture, -and he had fortunately taken an exact likeness)--Sir Harry Bingley -started at beholding it, and exclaimed, 'It is her, it is, by Heaven, -it is her! What artist drew the picture? it is, it is herself!'--he -then sunk almost motionless in a chair!--Lord Munster carelessly -answered--'Bingley, are you mad? That picture _cannot_ concern you; I -painted it from life! Where did you see her? Answer but that question, -and I am gone, gone that instant; the world should not detain me!' 'It -is, it is, my Lord, the lovely woman I told you of. But her graces -were yet more charming still than her beauty! an external glare of -beauty may _captivate the eye, and ravish the sight_; but it is the -graces that win the heart, that powerfully attract every faculty of a -kindred mind!--I loved her, and was beloved! She loved my person, not -my fortune. Her tenderness, her affection were my only joy!' 'Why then, -replied Lord Munster, did you leave her? but make yourself easy on her -account; she can be nothing to you; I expect her soon in England.'--'In -England!'--'Yes, Sir, in England, I fancy by this time she is married -to my friend Ogilby.' 'Lord Ogilby!' 'Yes; he was passionately in -love with her: she absolutely refused him; but it is not likely, -possessing such beauty, such perfections--slighted by the author of her -exclusion from every dear and valuable claim in society, relations, -friends, reputation, and protection--that she should continue deaf to -the earnest solicitations of _another_, who can restore her to these -advantages--such a man as Ogilby, a tender lover, who would sacrifice -his time and fortune to her, and who promised he would be _a father to -her boy_.' - -Sir Henry's senses appeared suspended.--He at last repeated, -'Distraction, madness, fury! But, by the great God of Heaven--he shall -not be a _father to my boy_!' The agitation of his spirits rendered -him almost unintelligible: Lord Munster could only understand that -he intended to set out directly--he therefore dissuaded him from -it--telling him, that if he refused staying that day (on which he -meant to mark his respect to Lady Darnley) that he must renounce his -friendship for ever! 'My Lord, returned he, I honor, I love you; your -virtues demand the first, your amiable engaging qualities the last; -but were you God instead of man you should not detain me!--A few hours -may render her the wife of the happy Ogilby! There is damnation in -that thought!'--As Lord Munster had contrived an agreeable surprise -to Sir Henry--and Miss Harris and her child were actually arrived, -and concealed at Mr Burt's, who had taken a separate house, for -retirement,--it was necessary he should detain him; and as he had forgot -to ask where there scene represented _was_, he availed himself of that -circumstance, saying, 'Since, Sir, I cannot command your _complaisance_, -I may at least enforce your _obedience_, for you know not _where_ to go, -without I tell you--and my lips shall be sealed up _for ever_, unless -you pass this night here--If in the morning you choose to set off, I -will instruct you in every particular.' In the time Lord Munster was -enjoying Sir Harry's happiness--some of his friends were equally engaged -for him. The Countess de Sons and Julia, the Marquis de Villeroy, Mr -Villars, and Mr Worthy, came to London before the masquerade--Mr Villars -wrote to Lord Darnley, acquainting him privately with their arrival, and -it was agreed in return they should all make their appearance on that -occasion. - -This entertainment was executed equal to the munificence and taste of -Lord Munster--and as it was given entirely in honor of Lady Darnley, -the principal objects in his arrangements had a reference to her. Never -was parental affection more fondly evinced, never was filial gratitude -more entire.--It has been already observed, that nothing was ever more -elegantly planned than Munster Village, the farm adjoining, and the -pleasure-grounds which lead to the house: in the farm you wandered from -variety to variety; buildings of great utility and much fancy, groves -inspiring different sensations, from the lucid summits that wake the -mind to gaiety, to the dark brown or _clair obscure_ of trees crowding -their branches together in the vale, which possess the soul with -home-felt contemplation. - -Above three hundred of the nobility and people of fashion in the -neighbourhood were invited. Lord and Lady Darnley, Lord Munster, Lady -Eliza, and Mr Worthy, were the only people unmarked. They received the -company in the temple of Minerva, which faced a fine piece of water, -on which there is an island. The river represented the Styx[42], the -island Elysium, and Charon ferried over passengers. His boat landing, -the names of Demosthenes, Aristotle, Pindar, Plato, Apelles, Phidias, -and Praxiteles, were announced to Lady Darnley--They were all dressed -in Grecian habits. Demosthenes, in an elegant harangue, acquainted her, -that the wise Minos had indulged them in their request, of taking that -opportunity of doing homage to her superlative merit, and to return her -thanks for reviving their memories in the encouragement she gave to the -arts and sciences, as under her patronage the Muses had made Munster -Village their capital seat. He then expatiated on the advantages she -had procured to society--the influence of the philosophic spirit in -humanizing the mind, and preparing it for intellectual exertion and -delicate pleasures--in exploring, by the help of geometry, the system of -the universe--in promoting navigation, agriculture, medicine, and moral -and political science. Lady Darnley (though totally unprepared, being -ignorant of her nephew's plans) made a very ready and polite answer, -returning them thanks for the honor they did her, which (she said) as it -could afford them no other _pleasure_, than that of _obliging_, rendered -the obligation greater. Demosthenes replied, that great geniuses are -always superior to their own abilities. - -Some time after Charon was observed to land some passengers in Roman -habits; they proved to be Cicero, Lucretius, Livy, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, -Varro, Tibullus, and Vitruvius. Cicero advancing, made Lady Darnley a -speech similar to that of Demosthenes--as like thoughts will be ever -born of the like subjects, by people who live in corresponding periods -of the _progression of manners_. In such cases some considerable -_similarity_ of expression may be occasioned by the agency of _general -principles_. Lady Darnley made a gracious reply, intimating her small -merit, and the apprehensions she felt that physical causes might impede -her good intentions; that her powers had been limited; but that she was -far from thinking with Boileau, that wherever there is a Mæccenas, a -Virgil or an Horace will arise, (curtsying to these gentlemen.) Cicero -observed to her the happiness she enjoyed in living at a _period_ -distinguished by men of such shining abilities in every department! - -Lady Darnley answered, that he honored her countrymen very much: that -she acknowledged we have at present very able men in every department; -but that in morality she was afraid we have refined more upon the -_vices_ of the ancients than _their virtues_, and she could not help -questioning whether there was any minister, magistrate, or lawyer, now -in Europe, who could explain the discoveries of Newton, or the ideas -of Leibnitz, in the same manner as the principles of Zeno, Plato, and -Epicurus, had been illustrated at Rome[43]. - -He thanked her for her polite compliment, and retired with his -companions. - -They were succeeded by Italians, who were announced Lawrence de Medicis, -Michael Angelo, Raphael, Titian, Ariosto, and Tasso. Lawrence de -Medicis expressed his happiness from having been permitted the honor -of paying his respects to her, and admiring the works of her creation, -and complimented her in the name of his friends for the encouragement -she had afforded the arts.--She said, the applause of the worthy is too -valuable to be received with indifference; but still modestly declined -the praises bestowed on her, saying, she had endeavoured to follow -_his_ example, although the imitation was _a faint one_; and that the -only commendation she aspired to was from _the attempt_. That without -her assistance, she made no doubt, if physical causes did not prevent -it[44], that the society for the encouragement of arts, manufactures, -and commerce in London, is well calculated to diffuse a spirit of taste -in this nation--a society, which, without neglecting what tends more -immediately to the improvement of agriculture, and the necessary arts -of life, gives the most honorable encouragement to those which are -elegant and ornamental. Had such a society been instituted fifty years -ago, London, perhaps by this time, would have been the grand seat of the -arts, as it is the envied seat of freedom. - -Michael Angelo, that celebrated restorer of the arts of painting, -sculpture, and architecture, expressed how infinitely he was charmed -with Munster Village[45].--'What is really beautiful, said he, does -not depend either upon fashion, or times; there may be _different -ways_ of expressing things in different ages; but there can only -_be one_ of conceiving them properly.' The temple, in which they -were, was adorned with the paintings of Raphael[46], copied by an -able artist. Lady Darnley, pointing to these, (and addressing him) -said 'There is proof how much we fall short, how faintly we copy -originals!'--Raphael replied, that her ladyship did him much honor; -the pieces she had selected, had met with the suffrage of the public; -but that, in his own acceptation, _the cartoons_ were the best of his -performances--which he apprehended a juster prevailing taste at present -condemned: Otherwise the father of his people, approved of by Minos--so -good so indulgent a prince to his subjects--would not lock them up -from public observations.--Lady Darnley was here quite at a loss; she -blushed, hesitated, unwilling either to refuse her sovereign _taste_ or -_philanthropy_! - -Lawrence de Medicis perceiving her situation, in pity of her confusion, -retired with his company. - -Charon again landed a groupe of figures; their dress declared them -English, of the reign of King Charles II--They proved to be the Duke -of Buckingham[47], Sir William Petty, Mr Dryden, Mr Locke, Mr Waller, -etc. The Duke addressed Lady Darnley with that polite address peculiar -to himself in his age, and which has since been sedulously studied, to -the prevention of qualities which it should only be the harbinger of--he -expatiated on her merit; that she had obliged the whole nation, as every -one individual might receive improvement or pleasure by her means.--Lady -Darnley returned him a most gracious answer, still intimating her -apprehensions, that the arts perhaps were not likely to thrive in this -soil, where our pursuits, opinions, and inclinations, vary with the -weather--that the declension of letters after the reign of Charles -II. but too fully justified her opinion.--The Duke answered her, that -indeed that was the common and received opinion, and that the reign she -mentioned was the Augustan age in England; but that he had the honor to -assure her, that a just taste was by no means then formed.--The progress -of philological learning, and the _Belles Lettres_ was obstructed by -the institution of the Royal Society, which turned the thoughts of men -of genius to physical inquiries.--To that body we were indebted for the -discoveries relating to light, the principle of gravitation, the motion -of the fixed stars, the geometry of transcidental qualities; but that -it was left to her ladyship to revive the agreeable arts, for which her -name must be handed down to posterity with honor. - -The following dialogue ensued between Charon and a Beau. - - Beau.--I have seen all parts of the world, and should like to take - a view of Elysium, being rather tired of this side of the Styx. - - [48] Mercury to Charon.--He is too frivolous an animal to present to - the wife Minos! - - Charon.--Minos, Sir, knows nothing of _the graces_--but if you - please I will row you to the infernal regions. - - Beau.--With all my heart, I believe I shall meet more people of - fashion there[49]; but, good master Charon, in what way shall I pass - my time? - - Charon.--If you are fond of doing nothing (a favourite passion with - many fine gentlemen) Theseus will readily resign his seat to you: or - if it is your genius, like many others, to choose to be, - - '_Though without business, yet in full employ,_' - - you may join Sisyphus, or accompany the Danaides. - - Beau.--Neither of these will suit me; _idleness_ is _insipid_, and I - _detest business_! But are there no public places? - - Charon.--O! yes; great variety: each person in that place pursues - those inclinations, whereby he had been swayed, or had rendered - himself remarkable here on earth. - - Beau.--There are fine women then, of course? - - Charon.--As to women, no seraglio in the world comes up to it; as a - part of whatever the world, since its creation, has ever yet produced, - of lovely and enchanting amongst women are there assembled.--There - you may view and gaze, with admiration, upon Helen, whose bewitching - charms were so destructive to the family, the city, and the empire - of King Priam.--On each side of her are Galatea, and Bressis, Lais, - Phryne, and thousands more--There also you may behold in all their - charms, in the full lustre of attraction, and decked in every grace, - some of those happy fair-ones, whom the greatest poets, so lavish in - their praise, have in their lays immortalised; such, amongst many - others, are the Corinna of Ovid, the Lydia of Horace, the Lesbia - of Catullus, the Delia of Tibullus, the Licoris of Gallus, and the - Cynthia of Propertius. - - Beau.--I will go; I am enchanted with the idea of seeing these _dear - creatures_.--But I will shiver the wheel and distaff of the Destinies - against the wall, and spoil their housewifery--I'll take their - spindle, where hang the threads of human life like beams driven from - the sun, and mix them all together, kings and beggars! But hark'ee, - master Charon, is there good music? I cannot do well without music! - - Charon.--There are all kinds of concerto's and opera's, both vocal - and instrumental, executed by the very _best_ of the Italians, and - the most celebrated voices from every part of the world. There are - various pieces performed in all languages, and in all kinds of taste, - for the universal satisfaction of the audience. Those who have a - taste for ancient music, will be more gratified than they can be in - Tottenham-street[50]. They will hear with admiration the gentle flute - of Marsius, be ravished with the thorough-bass of Stentor, and expire - with delight at the thrilling note of Misurus's trumpet. - - Beau.--All this is charming; but what sort of a table is kept? - One cannot altogether live on _love_ and _music_, though one must - _languish_ and _expire_ without them, as well _as with them_! - - Charon.--If you are fond of good cheer, you have nothing to do but - to pay a visit to Tantalus. Are you thirsty? The Styx, the Cocytus, - and the Phlegethon present their waves to your acceptance. - - Beau.--I should indeed rather prefer the nectar of the Gods--but as - I shall not stay long (for I make it a rule never to stay long in a - place) water may suffice! - - Charon.--It would have been as easy to have escaped from the - Labyrinth of Dædalus, as the infernal regions! - - Beau.--I have always (though as wild as March, and inconstant as - April) been a favourite with the fair! Ariadne procured for her - Theseus a means of escape. - - Charon.--I make no doubt, from your conversation, that you are not - only the favourite, but the blessed Adonis of all the women: but - _that_ will avail you nothing. Lucifer, the unpitying Lucifer, though - you should promise to offer him every day three hundred bulls in - sacrifice[51], would not lend you even one of the smallest of his imps - to help you to get out. - - Beau.--Did not Hercules escape from it, and carry Cerberus along - with him? Did not Æneas (with the assistance of the golden bough, and - led by the Cumæan Sybil) take the same journey to pay a visit to his - father? Why may not I, like Orpheus, go to visit it while living? - - Charon.--Orpheus was particularly indulged, and Eurydice restored to - him on account of his charming voice, and the delightful music of his - lyre! You have no such pretensions. But Alecto, Megara, and Tysiphone, - will receive you graciously and open the gates of _Tartarus_ to you. - The least of your exploits will entitle you to their attentions:--they - are too good, too reasonable, too indulgent to require from you the - very great pains you have taken, through the whole course of your - life, to recommend yourself to them. - - Beau.--Let us go then, old boy! I will try what a little flattery - will do with them! I can _say with Cæsar_, I wonder what fear - is!--(Aside) But my heart plaguily misgives me for _all that_! but in - my circumstances I must change for the better; my money is gone; and - as I never gamed, I cannot expect the _club_, _or the waiters at the - club_, to make _a subscription for me_! - -Two peers and a baronet applied to Charon, to ferry them over to -Munster-house: but Mercury again interfered, telling Lord C----d that -although he had been thought in the world not to have been _sans quelque -goût_ in the _belle maniere_, and had been an encourager of the _Belles -Lettres_, yet as Minos only permitted them to come back to the world (in -the present case) to do honor to superlative feminine merit, none but -such who had paid a proper respect to the sex in their life-time could -be indulged in that pleasure. But if he would burn his book (wherein he -depreciates women, and considers them only as the toys of dalliance) -in _the fiery billows of Phlegethon_, he would intercede for him with -Minos. This the peer rejecting, his brother the baronet intreated to -be permitted to go in his stead; but Mercury reminded him, he had -pulled down a house built by Inigo Jones, and therefore could have no -pretensions to taste! - -Lord L----n was ferried over by himself; and after paying his -compliments to Lady Darnley, returned; when the following dialogue -took place in Elysium between his lordship, and the other peer above -mentioned. - -Lord C----d.---- Your lordship may believe that I could have no great -pleasure in seeing a woman's follies: I was only desirous of inquiring -what they are doing at home, or in America? Did I desire to punish an -enemy in the severest manner, I would inflict nothing worse upon him -than to oblige him to listen to all the follies in which he has no -share, and to be witness to gaieties in which he cannot partake. My -heart was never dilated by the amplitude of generous principles; nothing -was ever interesting to me, but in proportion as it contributed to my -_own_ particular _gratifications_. Curiosity now however prevailed with -me to attempt going to discover in what way they are going on, being -apprehensive of the consequences of the measures formerly adopted. -Whoever would deprive men of their natural rights, is an enemy to -the race of men; and he that thinks it can be effectuated without -universal mischief, is a stranger to the ways of Providence; the -most invariable rule of which is, That nothing contradictory to its -original laws shall ever be accomplished, either of a physical or moral -nature, without bringing ruin on that people which has instituted it. -How few are capable of distinguishing the good and pernicious effects -which will follow the instituting a new law, before it is enacted! To -remedy present evils, they make a law which brings greater mischiefs -along with it, though imperceptible to their shallow capacities. No -two understandings on earth are more different than a judicial and -legislative; many men enjoy the first, who have not the least emanation -of the second. When a law is to be founded, which depends on the first -principles in human nature, there genius only can effectuate any -discovery of truth; the mind must dart forward into futurity, from -the principles which it knows in human nature: a genius of quite a -different kind from that of distinguishing between right and wrong in -any particular case. The first only can form the legislator, and plan -laws of utility and public good, the latter decide of the consequences -of them when they are made. The one capacity is the most rare, most -excellent and beneficial blessing bestowed on man; the other to be found -in almost all mankind, or attainable by habit, yet useful when confined -to its proper sphere of action, and not permitted to rove, with the -imagination of the superior _few_, amongst the regions of exalted -genius. - -Lord L----n.---- It is not enough, my Lord, that the English are a -_miserable_, they render themselves a _ridiculous_ people: And, after -all the noise the brawlers make in the lower house, they only fight the -battles, aid the wishes of the Americans, and exalt the triumph of the -French! In private life it is reckoned a good expedient, for the sake -of an easy, quiet life, to be patient and submissive under what are -supposed _necessary evils_: but I differ so much from this maxim, that -I am convinced those will ever be _trod upon_ who _creep_; and that -certain submissions derogatory to a sense of honor in an individual or -the nation, never _prevent the blow_, though it may be _protracted_ for -a reason, in order to lay it on with a redoubled force at a time our -strength is weakened, and that we are debilitated by our mortifications -and a sense of the submissions we have made injurious to the honor of -an individual or the pride of the nation. It is a mortifying area, but -must have its place in the annals of this disgraced kingdom, whilst -extravagance and every species of gaieties daily increase. - -I am sorry to acquaint your Lordship, that the publication of your -book has given in England the same wound to morality and business -as the publication of _the spirit of laws_ has given in France to -the monarchical constitution. The English study nothing now but the -_Graces_. Procrastination is the _ton_, because any thing _abrupt -is ungraceful_. The increase of manners has always been thought as -imperceptible as the hand of a clock, which though in constant motion -cannot be distinguished in _that motion_. But your book has occasioned a -more rapid change: your countrymen having exchanged the _armour of Mars_ -for the _amours of Venus_, their _greatness of mind_ and _magnanimity_ -for _trifling pursuits_; and, instead of speaking forcibly in the -senate, they whine a tale of love in the ear of their mistresses: having -descended suddenly, like skilful musicians, from the _forte_ and the -_pomposo_ to the _pia_ and the _pianissimo_. Refinement will bring us -back to barbarity--far be it from me to suppose such an event can happen -suddenly; but in the course of a few years, I make no doubt, as a man in -days of yore that could read _had the benefit of clergy_, so will a man -be esteemed an able minister, or an expert negotiator of business, if he -can write a pretty sonnet--or dance a good minuet. - -Lord C----d.---- The graces, my lord, I still say, the graces for -ever--and as to dancing, can there be any science more useful for a -minister to learn--to figure _out_ with a good grace, never to _lose -time_, and not even to nod, instead of _sleeping a century_?[52] - -Two other passengers applied to Charon to ferry them over the Styx, -Homer and Ossian. - -Mercury told Charon that he might carry Homer to Olympus, and place him -with the Demigods; but he could not be permitted to go to Munster-house, -for the same reason Lord C----d had been rejected: But Ossian had a just -claim to that indulgence. - -The Chief of other years being landed, addressed Lady Darnley as -follows: - - Ossian.----I have escaped from _the narrow-house_[53]! I have - crossed _Col-amon_[54], O daughter of Munster, to behold thy glory. - My joy returns as when I first beheld the maid, the white-bosomed - daughter of strangers, _Moina_[55] with the dark blue eyes: But - _Crimiona_[56] should be thy name, for thou art the guiding star of - the women of Albion, who mark no years with their deeds! Time rolls - on, seasons return, but they are still unknown. Vanity is their - recompence; and when their years shall have an end, no grey stone - shall rise to their renown! But the departure of thy soul shall be a - stream of light! A thousand bards shall sing of thy praise; and the - maids of harmony, with their trembling harps, shall relate thy mighty - deeds! - - Thy son, when the years of his youth shall arise, will raise the - mould about thy stone, and bid it speak to other years! The joy of his - grief will be great! Like the memory of joys that are past, pleasant - and mournful to the soul. He will say, 'she will not come forth in her - beauty, will move no more in the steps of her loveliness: but she will - be like the rainbow on streams, or the gilding of sun-beams on the - hills! She has not fallen unknown! Her fame surrounded her like light; - her rays, like those of the sun, cherished all on whom they fell. Her - wealth was the support of the needy; the weak rested secure in her - halls! She softened at the sight of the sad; her blue eyes rolled in - tears for the afflicted; her breast of snow heaved for the oppressed; - and the moving of her lips assuaged their grief!--O sons of Albion, - may you behold her son, like the _halo_ of the _rainbow_, exhibit _the - same_ though _fainter colours_!' - - Lady Darnley.--Father of heroes, dweller of eddying winds, thy - praise gladdens my heart! My soul is exalted, my fame secured, by the - voice of Conna[57]! Thou hast been a beam of light to latter times, as - thy mighty deeds have been remembered, though thou hast long been a - blast! - - Thy renown grew only on the fall of the haughty; thy foes were the - sons of the guilty; but thine arms rescued the feeble! - - Thou wentest forth in echoing steel, and conquered the king of many - isles: He brought thee his daughter Oina-moral, as an offering of - peace. She was gentle as the evening breeze; her hair was of a raven - black, and her bosom vied in whiteness with the _Canna_[58] on the - Fuar-Bhean[59].--And though thy locks were young, yielded her to the - hero she loved[60]! But like unto Cathmor[61] of old, I perceive the - sound of thy praises is displeasing to thine ear! - - Ossian.--Just praise, like the water of a _clear fountain_, was ever - pleasant to my taste; but I never rejoiced in unmerited applause, - resigning that _muddy joy_ to the sons of later days! - - It is true, O daughter of Albion, that, surrounded by the valiant in - arms, I conquered the king of many isles--that he presented the maid - to me in her loveliness as an offering of peace! She purpled the morn - with blushes as she approached, and scattered such bright rays, as the - sun might have dressed his beams with for that day's glory! But she - had given her heart to another, and met my eyes of love with sorrow! - In thrilling notes vibrating from her inmost soul, she conveyed to me - the pangs of her heart! 'Breaker of the shield (said she) give ear - unto the voice of mourning, attend to my tale, of woe--a tale, which - though thy eyes of steel are used more to strike fire than shed a - tear, must have that power to move thee.' - - My parents had seen many returning seasons with their springs, - but no offspring of theirs arose. My mother lamented a disgrace, - scarce known amongst the daughters of Caledonia. She consulted the - cunning-man of the rock: He said, 'Daughter, be of good cheer; take - the son of thine adversary that is low, rear him; thy piety will be - rewarded; thou shalt have a daughter whom thou _must give him to - wife_!' When she declared this unto my father (as she was stricken in - years) there immediately ran a smile over his face, like the little - ruffling of water when a gentle breeze breathes upon the surface of a - lake; but he adopted Tonthormid, and some moons after I came forth as - a flower; but as the bud, hit with an envious worm ere he can spread - his sweet leaves to the air, or dedicate his beauty to the sun, dies, - so shall I soon fly away as a shadow. Not the white down that decks - the silver swan is more unlike the sooty raven's back, than my lover - from the rest of his sex. Bred up with him, my first accents were - attuned to love; he took delight in my infantine caresses. Time ran - on with its years--My father corrected my tenderness; and I became - sensible of my error as soon as I was conscious of my feelings. - Tonthormid also, from our inequality of fortune, tried to suppress his - passion, judging what was then a lambent fire, would soon blaze into a - flame! True love, like the lily of the vale, is fond of concealment; - but, as the fragrancy of the one occasions its discovery, so does the - concealment of the other prove its reality! I loved and was beloved; - my father saw, and approved our passion. A succession of moons had not - frozen the genial current of his soul, nor repeated shocks blunted all - its tenderest sensations--But we were ignorant of his intentions. When - he appointed us to meet him at his cave of contemplation, the heart of - Tonthormid palpitated with fear, mine with hope--we had a considerable - way to go, but _remained silent_!--we walked through a pleasant grassy - walk, shaded with rows of lime-trees, at the side of which ran along, - in plaintive murmurs, a crystal brook, on the side of whose mazy and - translucent stream were planted bushes of various kinds, with birds in - high harmony on the sprays. - - Arrived at the cave, my father announced to my lover that he must - prepare to accompany him to battle! Aghast he stood, silent as the - midnight hour, unmoved as the statue of despair! The venerable Chief - reproached him for his coldness. - - 'Alas! said he, the din of arms is no more offensive to my ear than - the murmuring of falling waters, the vernal breeze sighing through the - leaves, or the melodious song of the evening nightingale; but if we - should fall in battle, what will become of this lovely maid?' - - My father, swearing by the great Loda, promised I should be his--if - we conquered--but reminded him, that - - 'Love should be the zephyr, not the whirlwind of the soul!' - - Tonthormid was all rapture, while every line in my countenance, - witnessed my satisfaction. We were restored to that unexpected - tranquility of spirits, which naturally follows a great dejection in - most minds, when the first pangs are somewhat abated--not unlike that - stillness in the sky which is sometimes observed when two opposite - and gentle winds have just overcome one another's motion--or like the - tide at the moment of high water, before it has received the contrary - direction. - - They set out, receiving my caresses, intermixed with smiles and - tears, like an April sun shining through transient showers. They met - the foe, _conquered_, and _returned_. - - The feast of shells was prepared, the maids of mirth attended with - their harps, and the rising sun would have beheld me Tonthormid's! The - virgins envied me in the hall, my steps were strewed with flowers, and - I was happiest, where a thousand are happy. The subtile air was calm - from mists, and water with her curled waves swept the bounded channels - of the deep; the nightingales were heard in the grove, and soothed - my soul with tender tales of love; not a breeze breathed through the - trees; all nature was still, as if it paid homage to our passion. But - oh! my summer's day was soon turned into winter's night! Ah, soul - ambition! which like water-floods, not channel bound, dost neighbours - overrun!--fell violence leaped forth like thunder wrapped in a ball of - fire! Thou camest with thy men of steel; I beheld thee from the clefts - of the rock; terrors turned upon me, like an earthquake they shook - my trembling heart! they still pursue my soul as the wind. My joy is - withered; my welfare has passed away like a cloud; my comforts have - been like winter suns, that rise late and set betimes, set with thick - clouds, that hide their light at noon!' - - Thus sang the maid in her grief, like the _Lus-cromicina_, bending - in pensive silence, a beautiful flower drooping in the shade, wanting - the beams of the sun to revive it. She soon perceived my heart was - not made of brass, or carved from the stony rock. Hope animated her - weakened spirits, whilst the dignity of her soul irradiated every - feature; the blush of modesty stole over the cheek, and the graces - dwelt on her coral lips. Sweet as the dew from heaven her lovely - accents fell, and moved me. She proceeded, 'I see my tears have - mollified thy heart! If fame tells true, never over the fallen did - thine eyes rejoice, and thou knowest the herbs on the hill![62] - Restore me then to the hero that is low; my tears will refresh him, - as the dew of the morning doth the green herbage!--He mocked at fear; - never retired from the foe, or was ever vanquished, but by the son of - Fingal! Glorious is it to thee, O hero! great will be thy renown; thou - hast subdued the first of men! - - Were the earth his bed, a rock his pillow, his curtain heaven, - with him alone could I be blessed! From a rock that weeps a running - crystal, I will fill his shell cup. I'll gently raise his weakened - body[63], and the murmur of this water, instead of music, shall charm - him into sleep; and whilst he sleeps my cares shall watch to preserve - him from the beast of prey! The fern on the heath, if cut a thousand - times, represents the same figure--so is the image of my love engraved - on the inmost core of my heart! I hold the _thread_ of his peace: can - I forget its delicate texture, or that it is warped with _those_ of - his heart? I could grow to my hero like ivy; but like the aspenleaf - I tremble, like the sensitive plant I shrink back at thy approach! - Thou mayest swim against the stream with a crab, feed against the wind - with the deer, but thou canst never possess my heart! Love for him, or - grief, are the only passions that can fill the heart of Oinamoral! But - thou mayest go forth in echoing steel and increase thy glory--or the - hearts of a thousand other virgins, will beat an unison to thy sighs, - and return thy passion!' - - Thus sung the daughter of many isles; her trembling harp was turned - to mourning, and her lute into the voice of them that weep. My heart - was never wrought of steel, nor hewn out of the rugged pebble; but - she would have extracted honey out of the rock, and oil out of the - flinty rock! My heart was _tender_, though my _arm was strong_! I - resigned her to the man of her soul! But I had the supreme delight of - exhaling the falling tear from the cheek of beauty, as when the pearly - dew on the surface of the narcissus, and the snow-drop evaporates at - the kindly instance of the solar ray. Had I been deaf to her tale of - woe, I should have merited a cold chill to extinguish my flame, as - if a _thousand winters_ contracted _into one_, scattered their snow - and froze the very centre! No praises can be due for refraining from - barbarity, unknown till the sons of refinement came into the world! - - Lady Darnley.--A great mind is ever tenacious of even the shadow of - a favor received, but loses the idea of a benefit conferred--In what - way, O first of men! shall I welcome thy approach? Wilt thou partake - of the feast of shells, or be honored with the dangers of the chase? - - Ossian.--Chase was never to me such sport as the battle of the - shields! But this is a tale of the times of old, the deeds of the days - of other years; manners alter with times, as the earth by the seasons. - Let the sons of Albion listen to the voice of Conna, 'Never search for - battle, nor fear it when it comes.' - - Ossian retired, and a hangman from the assizes told Lady Darnley, - that she had ruined his trade; for, all the poor of the country-side - being employed in manufactures, etc. they had no inducement to steal, - theft being the necessary consequence of idleness[64]. - - The hangman retired; and Lady Darnley was addressed by a few women - in tattered robes. Making an apology for their dress, they said, it - was her ladyship who had condemned them to those unseemly garbs. She - inquired, In what way she was culpable to them? They answered, By - not only promoting industry, which was highly detrimental to their - interests, but also procuring by her munificence theatrical and other - entertainments for mankind, which completed their misfortunes, as - it rendered ineffectual their allurements:--that they might formerly - (out of the profits of their industry) have purchased annuities, - like other eminent personages in the age, and _lived comfortably_ - on the _distresses of others_; but that they had always too much - conscience, and too great and generous souls for that:--that they - were now reduced to the alternative of removing from that part of the - country, or starving where they were; and, preferring the first to - the last, they had determined to go to Birmingham, where, under the - auspices of the magistrates[65] of that place, they would have a good - chance of succeeding in their profession; as it had always been found - that recreations of some kind are necessary, and that if innocent - amusements were denied, mankind would have recourse to the other. - -The Goddess of Folly, with her cap and bells, approached Lady Darnley; -who, smiling, asked her what had procured her the honor of her company? -She answered, That being excluded at all other times from these regions, -it induced her to come then, where she flattered herself, for one night -in her life, not to be ridiculed; as it is only Absurdity that laughs at -Folly. Her ladyship replied, That none indeed were entitled to smile at -another's weakness, who are conscious of their own. - -Miss Bingley, by her aunt's request, was in the character of a pastoral -shepherdess, and affected to by vastly coy, and a great huntress. She -said she wielded the crook and the javelin with equal dexterity; and -that though she was terrified at the voice or appearance of a lover, yet -she made nothing of lopping off the head of a wild boar, or of thrusting -a spear into the jaws of a lion. She was pursued by (James Mordaunt as) -a pastoral lover. Lady Darnley told her that such swains are mighty -good-natured, and never do any mischief to any _but themselves_; a leap -from a rock, or a plunge into a river, being their usual catastrophe. - -Lord Munster walked away with Sir Harry Bingley, and shewed him, on one -of the back grounds a cottage similar to that represented in the temple -above-mentioned. They advanced, and saw Miss Harris, and her lovely -boy playing at her feet. Sir Harry fixed his eyes, and with a peculiar -wildness exclaimed, Sport not, my friend, with my sorrows!--Lord -Munster assured him of the reality; but he almost swooned away at -the discovery, and was perfectly enchanted with his lovely boy. Every -explanation taking place to their mutual satisfaction, Mr Burt being -in the secret, and some more friends, the ceremony was immediately -performed, and Miss Harris was introduced that very evening, as Lady -Bingley, to the family at Munster-house. - -Lord Munster, leaving this happy pair, joined Lord Sombre; two ladies -passed by them, one in a habit similar to that Mademoiselle de Querci -had wore at the masquerade at Venice: the other had assumed the figure -of Diana. Struck with their majestic appearance, they followed them. The -mask of the latter dropped, as if ashamed to conceal so much beauty. -Lord Sombre stooping, instantly restored to her the _unfaithful_ -guardian of her charms. The lady, covered with that agreeable confusion -inherent to the sex, apologized for the trouble she had given him! He -replied, he could not but acknowledge that it was a trouble to him to be -the instrument of depriving the company of the sight of so much beauty. -That, Sir, replied she, may be your opinion; but my intention is to see, -and _not be seen_. But a lady, replied his lordship, who represents -Diana, would appear more in character if she could consent not _to be -concealed_, nor to hide those beams of brightness which were designed -to be the light of the world. Sir, said she, if I must support my -character, it is not at all the less in my power because my mask is on, -being still the moon though in eclipse--but my intention of appearing in -the character of Diana, was to keep Actæon at a distance. - -In the mean time Lord Munster had neither seen or heard the above -conversation, the whole powers of his soul being absorbed in attention -to the lady first mentioned. But what were his emotions, when he knew -the well known voice of Mademoiselle de Querci! She told him, that she -believed he was the gentleman who was still denominated at Venice _Il -Febo del Inghilterra_! He told her, it was impossible he could have -any pretensions to so flattering a distinction; but intreated to know -whether he could believe that he had the happiness of addressing the -woman he adored, whom from motives of honor he had been induced to -suppress his passion for, but which scruples on his part he had been -relieved from since that period? Mademoiselle de Querci (for it was she -herself) answered, that every apology he could make for his infidelity -to the Countess de Sons, would only lessen him in her esteem, as, to -her certain knowledge, she was still single, and fondly attached to -him. Had it been otherwise (said she) my Lord, I should have cheerfully -_consented_ to what I must now refuse, as I never will act in opposition -to the interest of the Countess. Lord Munster, flattered at her coming -to Munster-house, asked if she was perfectly sincere in the favourable -hint she had given him--that nothing but his pre-engagement would have -prevented her from according herself to his wishes? She answered, I -desire, my Lord, you'll not judge me by your country-women; for, from -what I have heard of their characters, there is no well-bred woman who -ever makes any pretensions to _sincerity_. Does not every body say what -they do not mean, and promise what they never intend to perform? and yet -all of them, to a single woman, will compliment the justness of your -remarks.--In Italy we are more sincere; and I now have the honor to -assure you, that nothing at present occupies my thoughts, or interests -me equal to your fulfilling of your engagements with the Countess de -Sons, whose constancy for you demands on your part every return. In -saying this, a sigh escaped Mademoiselle de Querci, which took refuge in -Lord Munster's bosom--while her blushes raised hopes which her tongue -denied confirming! Her lover felt a severe struggle between love and -honor.--The most severe misfortune to a virtuous man is to be in such a -state that he can hardly so act as to approve his own conduct. But his -distraction was increased, in finding Mademoiselle de Querci had taken -advantage of his _reverie_ to retire, with a composure that deceived his -vigilance, and an address which prevented his distrust.--He went every -where in pursuit of her, but she eluded his search. - -A magician with two enchanted knights addressed Lady Eliza, who (I -have already observed) was dressed as a slave attending Mrs Worthy. He -told her he would unfold her future fate, and, if she would retire to -a place of privacy, he would convince her, and the queen she attended, -that he was very well skilled in the science of astrology. Lord and -Lady Darnley; Lord Sombre, Lord Munster, and Mrs Lee begged leave to -accompany them. The two knights accompanied the magician, who he said -must remain enchanted until they were released by the hands of their -fair mistresses. After several magical incantations, he told Lady Eliza -many things concerning the Marquis de Villeroi, and Mrs Lee of Mr -Villars. But he astonished Lord Munster more particularly in telling -him he was a _perplexed lover_--but assured him that he would be soon -relieved from his anxiety; and that perhaps that very evening would -terminate his adventures, and render all the present company joyful! -Could you do this, replied Lord Munster, I would swear you had more wit -than Mercury, or his son Autolycus, who was able to change black into -white! - -In the mean time two ladies appeared: They were majestic in their -persons, and very magnificent in their apparel. The magician, addressing -himself to the company, said, if it was agreeable, he would give -them ocular proofs of his art. They answered, By all means! He then -presented one of the enchanted knights to Lady Eliza, the other to -Mrs Lee, and Lord Munster to one of the ladies who had just appeared -(in the mean time Lord Darnley had prevented the admission of other -company.)--He then desired them all to unmask. The agreeable discovery -this produced is not easy to give an adequate idea of; as the magician -was no other than Mr Worthy; the enchanted knights, the Marquis de -Villeroi, and Mr Villars; and the Lady Mademoiselle de Querci.--Mr -Worthy then, addressing Lord Munster, said, Your perplexity, my Lord, -now ceases:--This Lady is the Countess de Sons (whose smiles confirmed -her previous conversation with him that evening.) He made his suitable -acknowledgments: whilst Lord Sombre was enchanted to discover, in the -Countess's companion, his lovely Diana, who had changed her dress, -and proved to be Julia, sister to the Marquis de Villeroi, and justly -admired by all who saw her: Her shape was as fine as the statue of the -Medician Venus, of as fine a complexion as the Leda of Corregio, with a -sweetness of expression that would have made Guido paint no other face, -if he had been alive. - -The masquerade finished, which had afforded so much amusement, and -conferred so much happiness on the parties. Lady Bingley was received -by Lady Darnley with the utmost complacency. It is the imperfection -of _human_ goodness to make its conscious worth an argument of want -of mercy to those that are deficient: but Lady Darnley had thoroughly -studied the most useful of all sciences, human nature, and was ever -ready to make allowances for its defects. She was the more attentive -to Lady Bingley, on account of her peculiar situation; while in the -effusions of her gratitude there was a dignity that commanded as -much respect as if she had been conferring a favor beyond that she -acknowledged. Her relations, who abandoned her in her adversity--when -alone true friendship can prove its superiority over its shadow, -_worldly civility_--were now eager to pay their compliments to her. - -Mr Villars was the only person who appeared unhappy at this time. Mrs -Lee had been hurt at never hearing from him since her husband's death, -and was confirmed that his present appearance was occasioned more from -a concurrence of circumstances than from his own particular desire or -inclination.--It was in vain he urged, that his having absented himself -from England was occasioned by her refusing to see him previous to her -husband's death; which circumstance he had been unapprised of, previous -to his meeting the Marquis de Villeroi at Paris.--She answered, That he -had neither been a lover that had the tenderness, nor a friend that had -the generosity to interest himself for her; though he must have been -sensible of her partiality, from the pains she took to avoid him:--that, -concerning the strange event that had occurred relative to her husband -and him, she had never taken any pains to justify herself; and she -thought people in general were to blame that did so; for satire is -generally levelled against persons, not vices, as there are few who wish -to punish what does not put them out of humour, and they make a personal -affront the pretended defender of virtue. If a woman, therefore, would -_preserve her character_, this is the effectual way _of losing it_, -and if she has _none to preserve_ she need not tell _all the world_ -so.--'But (said she) as I must now decline your proffered hand, the -offer of which does more honor to your generosity than the acceptance -would to my prudence, I shall now disclose my sentiments to you without -any disguise:--I was married to a man, whom I could not look up to with -a consciousness of his superior understanding or worth; his treatment -of me was injurious; my feelings I with difficulty suppressed: my quick -apprehension of injury, and my partiality for you, made me indulge an -inclination that aggravated to me the horrors of my situation.--I loved, -and was utterly incapable of divesting myself of a passion, which, -although often dangerous, is always delightful.--I was punished for my -temerity; the calumny I met with, I justly incurred, from the appearance -I had subjected myself to. When I parted from my husband, I would on no -account see you--you went abroad; your caprice now brings you back; you -judge it equitable, perhaps, to restore me to that world I relinquished -on your account--but time has conquered my partiality, and, after my -former experience in that state, I cannot help shuddering at a contract -which nothing can dissolve but death. To me it is terrible to reflect, -that it is a strangely unequal conflict, in which the man only ventures -the loss of a few temporary pleasures, the woman the loss of liberty, -and almost the privilege of opinion.--From the moment she's married she -becomes the subject of an arbitrary lord; even her children, the mutual -pledges of their affection, are absolutely in his power, and the law -countenances him in the use of it--and a woman finds no redress for -the indelicate abuses of an uncivil, a passionate, and avaricious, an -inconstant, or even a drunken husband--from matrimonial decisions there -is no appeal.'--Mr Villars said every thing to justify himself, adding, -that the most candid mind will sometimes, under certain circumstances, -deviate from itself; but it is the property _only_ of narrow minds to -persist in prejudice against conviction.--As the quarrels between lovers -are the renewal of love--these differences were soon settled, agreeable -to their mutual wishes. - -Mr Burt testified great joy at the celebration of the nuptials of his -grandson--That good man died the next day, without any complaint, with -a smile of complacency on his venerable face. In an age where men -of letters seem so regardless of morals--in an age where they have -endeavoured to persuade mankind, with but too much success, that the -virtues of the mind and of the heart are incompatible--let them cast -their eyes on the character of Mr Burt--When they find so many virtues -united in a man, whose understanding was both sublime and just--when -they find a man of his penetration to have been a strictly moral -man--they will then, perhaps, be convinced that vice is the natural -effect of an imperfect understanding. - - - - - FOOTNOTES: - -[1] See the Fifth Commandment. - -[2] Pliny recommends ridicule as an admirable weapon against vice. It is -surely better here employed, than as Shaftesbury recommends it, for the -test of truth. - -[3] _Tribuna_, a term applied to a building quite round, or such as -consists of many sides and angles, as the famous room within the great -Duke's gallery at Florence: sometimes it is applied for a building, -whose area or plan is semicircular, as the section of a cupola. - -[4] The reason polite literature is more cultivated in Paris than -London, is on account of the university libraries, and academies of the -former. - -[5] The Chinese are said to adapt an admirable piece of policy; the son -is always of the father's trade, which makes them admirable artisians. -May not this be the cause of the small progress the arts have made in -that part of the world, and of the dull uniformity and want of taste -that distinguishes all their works? - -[6] The enormous taxes the Spaniards lay on manufactures are the ruin -of trade, which would otherwise flourish; and the people are reduced, -by that misconduct in their rulers, to purchase from their enemies -things they themselves could produce, if the artificers met with proper -encouragement. - -[7] Mr Wilkes, in the motion to refer to the consideration of the -committee of supply the petition of the trustees of the _British -Museum_. - -[8] Dr Richard Terrick. - -[9] Dr Robert Lowth. - -[10] We may quote from the Zendavesta, a wise and benevolent maxim, -which compensates for many an absurdity. He who sows the ground with -care and diligence, acquires a greater flock of religious merit than he -could gain by the repetition of ten thousand prayers. - - _Zoraster's Institutes._ - -[11] See Voltaire's Hist. of the age of Lewis XIV. - -[12] Vid. Vopiscus in Aureliano. - -[13] Tacitus Annal. II. Flav. Vopiscus in vita Taciti Imperat. - -[14] Ælius Lampridius in vita Heliogabali. Primus Romanorum holoserica -veste usus fertur, cum jam subserica in usu essent. - -[15] Procop. de bello Goth. p. 345. - -[16] See Duhalde's description of China. - -[17] In opposition to this, noblemen and men of fortune bred at the -Dublin University, are excused from learning morality, as they can -graduate without any skill in that science; the professor making no -doubt, but that honesty necessarily springs up with nobility. The same -University refused Swift his degree of _Batchelor of Arts for dulness -and insufficiency_, but he at last obtained it _Speciali gratia_. - -[18] This Lady Frances entertained no fears about: A French author -justly observes, _Jamais on ne prend les vices d'une condition au -dessous de la sienne: L'enfant du riche, par un sentiment d'orgueil, -hausse les épaules sur les defauts du pauvre._ - -[19] The Empress Catharine II, whose name will be immortal, gave a code -of laws to her empire, which contains a fifth part of the globe; and -the first of her laws was to establish universal toleration. In France -foreign protestants are admitted to all the rights of natives after -working for a certain time in the manufactory of the Gobelines. The same -policy has been adopted by the Spaniards. - -[20] Ruben's pictures are _a toleration of all religions_. In one of the -compartments of the Luxemburgh gallery, a cardinal introduces Mercury -to Mary de Medicis, and Hymen supports her train at the sacrament of -marriage, before an altar, on which are the images of God the Father, -and Christ. - -[21] As both are against nature, she in the end will get the better of -them. The modern philosophers of Sweden seem agreed that the waters -of the Baltic gradually sink in a regular proportion, which they have -ventured to estimate at half an inch every year.--Twenty centuries ago, -the flat country of Scandinavia must have been covered by the sea; -such is the notion given us by Mela, Pliny, and Tacitus, of the vast -countries round the Baltic. Adria, that ancient and famous city, which -gave its name to the Gulph is now but a pitiful half drowned village. - -[22] See Gilbert's treatise on the Court of Exchequer, chap. 2. -well worthy the perusal of those who would be acquainted with the -foundation of our constitution: also Mr de Lolme's book on the English -Constitution, which has been mentioned in both houses of parliament, and -has been commented on, and quoted by, the most celebrated writers of -every party. - -[23] See Bacon on government. - -[24] I lately met with the following story, which affected me very -much, and which I give in the original; it elucidates, that a return -of affection seems absolutely necessary to the existence of the human -heart. 'Un homme respectable, après avoir joué un grand rôle à Paris, -y vivoit dans un reduit obscur, victime de l'infortune, et si indigent -qu'il ne subsistoit que des aumônes de la paroisse; on lui remettoit -par semaine la quantité du pain suffisante pour sa nourriture; il en -fit demander davantage; le curé lui écrit pour l'engager à passer chez -lui; il vient. Le curé s'informe s'il vit seul; et avec qui, Monsieur, -repond-il, voudriez-vous que je vécasse? je suis malheureux, vous le -voyez, puis que j'ai recours à charité, et tout le monde m'a abandonné, -tout le monde! Mais, Monsieur, continue le curé, si vous êtes seul, -pourquoi demandez vous plus de pain que ce qui vous est necessaire? -L'autre paroit déconcerté; il avoue avec peine qu'il a un chien: le curé -ne le laisse pas poursuivre; il lui fait observer qu'il n'est que le -distributeur du pain des pauvres, et que l'honneteté exige absolument -qu'il se defasse de son chien. Eh! Monsieur, s'ecrie en pleurant -l'infortune, si je m'en défais, qui est ce qui m'aimera? Le pasteur -attendri jusqu'aux larmes, tire sa bourse, et la lui donne, en disant, -Prenez, Monsieur ceci m'appartient.' - -[25] Chap. of St. Mark. XVI Chap. of St. Luke. VII Chap. of the Romans. - -[26] Which was upheld in Heathen Rome, about the time we keep our -Christmas. - -[27] Miss Carter translated Epictetus - -[28] Francis the First of France, who had heavily taxed his subjects, -when told the people made very free with his character in their songs, -answered, 'It would be very hard if they were not allowed _to sing for -their money_.' - -[29] See Vol. I. Page 47. - -[30] She expected to lay in every day. - -[31] In the conciliatory Measures proposed concerning America. - -[32] The difference in the degrees of danger between suffering a person -to take the small pox in the natural way, and communicating it by -innoculation, is upon the lowest computation estimated _thirty_ to _one_ -in favor of innoculation. - -[33] Mr Blacklock may, in reality, be regarded as a prodigy--He is a -man of a most amiable character, of singular ingenuity, and of very -extraordinary attainments. - -[34] Both clergymen. - -[35] In compliment to the Queen, who has too much good sense to approve -of what is ridiculous. - -[36] Witness the purchase of a collection of antique and Etruscan vases, -by the public money--and their enacting a lottery for toys. - -[37] Thus do many women sacrifice their healths, without considering -it is in vain to conquer nature. Man can subsist but for a determinate -space only asleep or awake--by continual watching the incessant motion -of the fibres would destroy their organic elasticity, and prevent their -future reparation; and by continual sleeping, though the fibres are not -fatigued, the nervous fluid would be gradually exhausted by the action -of the organs of life, and would never be repaired. - -[38] All misdemeanors are punished, among the Danes, by servitude in -chains a longer or shorter time. - -[39] Vol. I. Page 165. - -[40] Admiral Byng; on which occasion the following verses were made, -which I now present to the reader. - -We the court-martial now begin to sicken, And find at last that we -are conscience stricken. Sad suppliants in Byng's behalf we come, And -humbly crave you would defer his doom! Bound by our oath, we cannot yet -make clear What 'twas we meant, nor _never_ shall, we fear. We found -him guilty, and we found him not; We wish'd him sav'd, yet wish'd him -to be shot. But as at land, so did we find at sea: If we did one, the -other could not be. Save him, great chief--your royal mercy show! Shoot -him, dread chief--let royal justice flow! Relieve our consciences with -pitying eye, And grant that Byng may neither live nor die! - -[41] See Vol. II. Page 52. - -[42] Elysium, Minos, Mercury, Charon, Styx, &c. are here necessarily -introduced. If they should offend any pious or critical ears, I shall -defend myself (as has been done before) by the solemn declaration which -is always annexed by the Italian writers to works where they are obliged -to use such expressions: '_Se havessi nomenato Fato, Fortuna, Destino, -Elysio, Stigé, Etc. sono scarzi di penna poetica, non sentimenti di -anema catolico._' If I have annexed Fate, Fortune, Destiny, Elysium, -Styx, &c. they are only the sports of a poetical fancy, not the -sentiments of a Catholic mind. - -[43] By Cicero. - -[44] According to the Abbé de Bos's hypothesis. - -[45] Those in the shades are supposed acquainted with the transactions -in the world. - -[46] The pictures were, the Parnassus of Raphael--and the school of -Athens, which is a most glorious performance, and worthy the hand of a -divinity--The first is in the hall of Constantine at Rome, and contains -no less than twenty-eight figures--two of which in particular, the one -representing Justice, and the other Meekness, are incomparable--They -were the last things he executed before his death--They contain all that -is excellent in painting, whether we consider them in the beauty of the -composition, the noble gracefulness of the characters, the uncommon -greatness of the style of the draperies, or the wonderful force of -colouring, light, and shade. - -[47] He was sent over as Ambassador extraordinary to France on -the King's restoration. He was received at that court with great -distinction; which seldom considers more than the external appearance. -His Grace possessed _all the graces_. Lewis XIV, then in the flower of -his age, said he was the only _English_ gentleman he had ever seen. - -[48] Deities interfere when they please--unseen by mortals! - -[49] I Corinthians chap. i. v. 26. - -[50] A concert established there in 1776. - -[51] Horace, lib. ii. ode 14. - -[52] Alludes to a circumstance that passed in the house of commons. - -[53] _The narrow-house_, the grave. - -[54] _Col-amon_, a narrow river. - -[55] _Moina_, a woman soft in temper. - -[56] _Crimona_, a woman with a great soul. - -[57] Ossian is sometimes poetically called Conna. - -[58] _Canna_, a sort of down, like, but whiter and shorter than cotton; -it is very common on the hills of the highlands. They have attempted -to spin it, but it was either too short, or the fingers that made -the experiment too indelicate--Nothing can exceed the purity of its -whiteness. - -[59] _Fuar-Bhean_, cold mountains. - -[60] Livy has justly raised the praise of Scipio, who restored to her -lover the Celtiberian captive; which has been the favourite topic of -eloquence in every age and every country. The author cannot think it -merited such commendation, as to have acted otherwise would have been -mere brutality--but if granted so liberally to Scipio, it cannot be -refused to Ossian. - -[61] Cathmor is represented in Ossian's poems, as lying down beside a -river to have the sound of his praises lost in that of a water-fall. - -[62] The Highlanders are peculiarly intelligent in understanding the -virtue of plants in curing wounds--The regularity of their lives -precludes all diseases, such as are incident to old age excepted. - -[63] Tonthormid was supposed wounded by Ossian. - -[64] In the years 1759 and 1760, when we were at war with France, there -were but twenty-nine criminals who suffered at Tyburn. In the years -1770 and 1771, when we were at peace with all the world, the criminals -condemned amounted to one hundred and fifty-one. - -[65] Who opposed a licensed theatre there last year. - - - - List of corrections - - - Page 7: Inserted single quotation mark - But,' said she - - Page 13: changed mens to men's - conduce to men's happiness - - Page 13: changed interefere to interfere - I did not interfere when my father was concerned - - Page 14: changed an to and - I feel the greatest respect and tenderest regard - - Page 17: changed melanocholy to melancholy - informing her of the melancholy catastrophe - - Page 24: changed estabishments to establishments - rightly forming two establishments - - Page 26: changed porcelaine to porcelain - for a porcelain manufacture - - Page 28: changed equisite to exquisite - and of _exquisite classical taste_ - - Page 32: changed prosterity to posterity - Latest posterity must hear with astonishment - - Page 36: changed to to too - wrong inclinations become too confirmed in us - - Page 38: added period - neglect there studies which raised their fathers. - - Page 41: changed pesonal to personal - a personal acquaintance with foreign climates - - Page 43: changed stile to style (two times) - Piccini's comic style - the serious style of Sacchini - - Page 43: changed excells to excels - who excels on the hautboy - - Page 44: added comma before etc. - buildings, manufactures, schools, etc. - - Page 49: changed senitments to sentiments - The liberal sentiments you express - - Page 49: added period - and there be a mutual consent for separation. - - Page 52: changed position of comma - if it be not of the number of the virtues, - - Page 57: changed supereme to supreme - Is not this the supreme enjoyment - - Page 58: changed ro to to - who now continued to reside with - - Page 62: changed moritifications to mortifications - that she might have her mortifications - - Page 70: changed nourriès to nourries - ne se sont nourries que dans le silence - - Page 70: changed ne'est to n'est - ce n'est plus qu'une froide - - Page 70: changed nous-mémes to nous-mêmes - nous ne vivons pas assez avec nous-mêmes - - Page 71: changed to to too - dedicating herself too fondly even to this beloved object. She - - Page 73: changed flander to slander - Thus if there be but the least foundation for slander - - Page 74: changed mens to men's - that his very vices had charms beyond other men's _virtues_ - - Page 75: changed injudicously to injudiciously - The Duke most injudiciously next morning publicly dismissed - - Page 77: removed quotation mark - I have not: Adelaude - - Page 77: changed single to double quotation mark - Wherefore this gloomy silence, your dejected air, and languishing - looks?" - - Page 83: changed firr to firs - the sides covered with tall firs - - Page 86: changed artifical to artificial - that period in making artificial flowers - - Page 89: changed comma to period - produced the contrary effect on _my father_. - - Page 90: changed indocuments to inducements - There were powerful inducements - - Page 95: changed philsopher to philosopher - I set out, and, philosopher-like, carried all my possessions about - me. - - Page 104: changed quarels to quarrels - no quarrels indeed subsisted between them - - Page 104: changed aggreeably to agreeably - and make his time pass _agreeably_. - - Page 121: changed ever to every - In every station, subject to the calamities of life - - Page 121: changed villians to villains - the crimes of some public villains - - Page 123: changed contary to contrary - many of the contrary evils - - Page 124: changed remonstances to remonstrances - The Marquis, perceiving that remonstrances would be ineffectual - - Page 128: changed captivte to captivate - an external glare of beauty may _captivate the eye, and ravish the - sight_ - - Page 129: added single quotation mark - I will instruct you in every particular.' - - Page 133: added comma before etc. - Mr Dryden, Mr Locke, Mr Waller, etc. - - Page 136: changed wil to will - what a little flattery will do with them! - - Page 140: changed they to thy - as thy mighty deeds have been remembered - - Page 140: changed though to thou - though thou hast long been a blast! - - Page 146: changed pasied to passed - two ladies passed by them - - Page 146: changed similiar to similar - one in a habit similar to that - - Page 147: changed decieved to deceived - with a composure that deceived his vigilance - - Page 148: changed colon to period - (whose smiles confirmed her previous conversation with him that - evening.) - - Footnote [10] on Page 31: changed Zendavsta to Zendavesta - We may quote from the Zendavesta - - Footnote [18] on page 38: changed bauffe to hausse - hausse les épaules sur les defauts du pauvre. - - Footnote [22] on Page 40: changed acqainted to acquainted - those who would be acquainted with the foundation - - Footnote [58] on Page 140: changed is to its - Nothing can exceed the purity of its whiteness. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Munster Village, by Mary Hamilton - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MUNSTER VILLAGE *** - -***** This file should be named 43743-8.txt or 43743-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/3/7/4/43743/ - -Produced by Delphine Lettau, Norbert Müller and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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