Sylva; or, The wood: being a collection of anecdotes, dissertations, characters, apophthegms, original letters, bons mots, and other little things..

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/ '

v.^.

h;:

t^.

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*■'

. •. *.

S Y L V A;

O Rj T H B

WO O D.

S Y L V A;

OR, THE

W O O D

BEING A COLLECTION OF

ANECDOTES, DISSERTATIONS, CHARACTERS,

APOPHTHEGMS, ORIGINAL LETTERS,

BONS MOTS, AND OTHER LITTLE THINGS.

Rerum et Sententiarum quail v\ri didta eft, a multlplici niatena eC
varietate in iis contenta. Quemadmodum enim vulgo folemus infinitam
arboruni nafcentium indifcriminatim multltudinem fylvam dicere ; Ita
ctiam libros fuos, in quibus varlae et diverfse msiMae opufcula temere
congefta font, Sjhas appellabant Antiqui. - Sacotu

BY A SOCIETY OF THE LEARNS D«

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR T. PAYNE, ANp* SON,
AT THE MEWS-GATE.

M.OCC.LXXXVX*

I

PA/

C2A.S
'H44.

777^7

ADVERTISEMENT.

SOLOMON has faid, that of making
mkny books there is no endy but, as Gro-
tius afks, ** what would Solomon fay now,
*^ were he to vifit our libraries'?'* — Se-
neca complained, that, **as the Romans
** had more than enough of all other
^ things, fo they had alfo of books and
*^ authorfhip* :" and what Seneca faid of
declining Rome, may ferve equally well
for declining Britain. Look into all the de-
partments of authorfhip, and you will find
them crowded ; into all our colleftions of
books, and you will find them overloaded.
And, where is the matter df wonder ? it
having long been the fafhion to writ?

■ ^id nunc dtaret^ ft nojtras vijtnt bibliothecas f in
Ecclef. xii. 12.

* Stmt omnium rtrum inUmpirantia^ ita UteranM
i^9quc^ hhoramus*

a down

down all we think* and tp print and pub-
lish all wc: write. Nor for this is genius,
learning, tafte required: paper, pens, and

ink, with (as Fielding expreffes it) the

manual capacity of u£ng them, moflabun-
dsmtly ■ 'fuiSce* > *^ The^ art of writing^''
£iys Voltaire,. ' *^i6 becoixie in many coun-

'^f tries .art infamous trade ; where illite-
*^ rate bookfelicrs pay fo much a fheet for
f* lyes and impertinence to mercenary fcrib-
f' biers, who have made of letters the
*' meaneft of profeflions^" So that, as

■\ it ftiould feem, the book fellers in reality
ure the capital authors, of the times.

:... Solomon adds, that muckjiudy^, or " read-
ing," is awearinefs of thtfiejh. And what-
ever hur.t it may caufe to the body, it muft
certainly caujCe no lefs to the mind 5 by
overloading the rriemory,. and ftifling all
th^t reflection, which is neccflaj-y to make
reading of any kind.ufefuK We have in-

' Van d'ecrire eji devenu en plujieurs pays un vil

.metier J dans lequH des libr aires gui ns-favent pas lire

.. paiint des menfmgi^ ^ desfutilitis a tant.lafeuUle^ a

des ecrivains mercenaires qui jontfait de^ la literature la

plus Idche des profejjions. Siecle de Louis, in Cat.

Saurin.

, Q deed

* tided great -tod reverendift^klhwily in'bb-
half of thifc- capia 'Kf^rerumt'^ftbt Ghrj^fil-

• ftom hath fomewherefaidi thati ** hci wHo
^^ writctfi good bookisi fpreaiddh nets for
^ fal vation j''* ind GoribKiSiS'a' jLapidercc-
kcntth them among thfe worfcs which cqd-
ducc to the ' gloty 4i Gbd^ ad- Dei mag-^
ntjieenfiam^. Nevertheleft^ what was faid
upon rfic fut^eftby ajgreilt Witin his day,
vrill ever be f(>ulKi tnw: 4^ hauH^
Unt quam digeruntiUt ftdnkicbis^ Jic etiam ih^
geniisy naufea fcepius nocuit quam fames \

And now, after fuch an exordium, many
will be curious and eager to afk, what gentle-
men, who thu§ complain of a redundancy of
books, can poffibly mean by adding to the
number ?— Perhaips it might fuffice to fay,
peritura'parvere' cbartae quid prodeji ? but
we add, that we wotild not ha^jre ours con-
fidered as a book : we would rather call i(
(if we durft) tht Beauties of books. There
are the Beauties of Shakfpeare^ where a fc-

♦ This writer muft, in his own cftimation, have
greatly contributed to the glory $f God: for there ire

" irommentaries of his upon the Bible to the amount of
ten large folios.

* Petrarch, in Dialog.

a 2 ledion

viii ADVERTISEMENT.

ledion is made of his moft brilliant paf-
%es, by Do£lor Dodd*. There are, if wc
miflake not^ the Beauties of Mujic amd Pa^
etry : and there are the Beauties of Fax,
Norti, and Burie, which contain (we fup*
pofe) the beauties of politics. We would
make ours, if we could, the Beauties cf
Knowledge^ Wit^ and Wifdom ; fele^ed from
all indifcriminately who can furniih them,
and brought more clofely and compendia
oufly together. For the great objedl of
our work is to make men wifer, w*ithout
obliging them to turn over folios and
quartos ^ ; to furnifh matter for thinking,
inftead of reading.

And

* This was no new idea. The Beauties of Piat$
were publUhed, under the tide of Gannue Platenh^
at Paris, 1554, 2410.

''La muhipUcite des faits^ &c« *^ the multiplicity
•• of fads and writings," fays Voltaire, *' is become
^^ fo great, that every thing muft foon be reduced
^* to extrads and didionaries." in Cat. Henaut.
Inftead of this, we are got altogether into the other
extreme : far from contrading and abridging, we en-
large and expatiate beyond all bounds ; as if quan-
tity, not quality, were the point to be attained. Let'
the fubjea be Politics, Belles Lettres, Tafte, Morals,

or

ADVERTISEMENT, ix

And many have becii perfuadcd, that
knowledge, delivered in this our fhort and
mifcellaneous way, will ftrike more forci*
bly; yea, will make clearer as well as
ftrongej- impreffions, than in a tedious,
formal, didactic ftile and manner, ^* Con-'
** cife fentences, like darts, fly abroad, and
^* make impreffion ; while long difcourfcs
** arc flat things, and not regarded/* So
fays Bacon, in one of his mfays ; and ano-
ther writer of deep and ftrong fenfe, who
is alfo laid afide for the trafh of the day,
hath delivered himfelf on this wife. ** As
** St. Aufl:in faith of fhort and holy eja-
** culations, that they pierce heaven as
foon, if not quicker, than more tedious
prayers ; fo I have reaped greater bene-
fit from concife and cafual meditations
on feveral topics, than from long and
** voluminous treatifcs, relating merely to
*' one and the fame thing */'

or what ^ou will*— have we'not quarto piled upon
quarto, till the heap grows as huge a^ Pelion upon
Offa?

* The works of Fronds OJhrn^ B/q. p. 454. 17OX,
8vo.

a J Comr

€€

C€

X 'Al5vERTIS'EMENT.

/ , Complaints will doubtlefs be preferred
againft us for the numerous quotations we
tfave made, thofe efpecially from learned
or foreign languages : but it muft be
noted, that quotations are effentid'to our
pfan, which is to inftruft and amufe by
nory and anecdote, not by deduction ot
chains of argument ; by example chiefly,
not biy reafoning. We have, however, ge-
nerally given the fubftance, and often a
tranflation, of the pafTages we quote.—
Mean while, it need not be diffembled, that
this work is not fo much intended for the
mere illiterate Englifti reader, as for men
who have been liberally trained, and are
not unacquainted with languages ; men,
who may wifh to have fome pabutum men--
fisy or mental fodder, always at hand, but
whofb prbfeflions and fituations in life do
rtot permit leifure to turn over volumes.

As for thofe, whofe literary nourilhment
is chiefly drawn from the daily prints
and periodical publications— to whom, as
one writes, *' reading is nothing better
*' than a dozing kind of idjenefs, and the
'' book a mere opiate, that makes them

'' fleep

AD VER TI S.RM EN T. xi

V flecp with their eyes open%" — for
fuch, (and various are the forts of theipi)
there are works. bet ter.fuited to their. capa-
cities and tafte. Thofe of a graver and
tuore fedate caft will iS:nd much felf-com*
placency and coipfprt in hiftorjes of Eng-
land, biographical didionarics, liodies of
divinity, and the like. For tholp of uni-
verfal kijowledge, (and fuch we meet. with,
out pf cofFee-houfcs as well as in them)
there are ..Maga;2:.ij^e5 pf vfirious kinds,
which will S\xf^p\y,veriiage, or matter of
talk and harangue, de omni fcibili et nott
fcibili. Fojr the i^re gay and lively, hovels
and romances ; and, laflly, for the critical
or rather hypercritical tribe, who are am-
bitious to. figure with airs of higher im-
portance, there are journals and reviews,
which will furniih, the titles of all publi-
cations, with ©bferyations and ftri(3:ures to
defcant upon t^iem. Such afpirants will
hence be enabled to pronounce upon all
fubjedts and all authors, without having

• EJfays of Pope Blount : a writer of great good
fcnfe and wit, laid afide for the trajh of the day^ and
now become obfolete and alihoft forgotten.

a 4 read

arii ADVERTISEMENT.

read or examined any "*" ; to appear learned^
without being fo; in fliort, to be admired
as critics and fcholars, by thofe who are
not critics and fcholars : for this, furely,
is as much as can in reafon be defired.

But we need not detain our reader herei
thefe and other fimilar points . being oct
(Dafionally touched in the cpurfe of 9Ur
work.

'^ Lord Bacon fpeaks of certain perfons, who thought
it no mean thing, if, by compendious cxtraSs from.
0tber men^s wits, they could figure and parade with
fome fhcw of learning : magnum certe qtuddmn praftar^
videtitur^Ji deltbantes aJiorum ingenia^ ex compenJio fa-
fiantj aut in cortite doiiriria alifuqUnus hmreant. De ,
Augm. Sclent. !• it

CON-

( xUi }

m \ ■ I PIP ■ ■ ' 111^

=3=

CONTENTS.

J. QF apophthegms J anecdotes, maximsj

bons mots, ^c. — — i

II. OfquotationsfromMher writer Si ejpe^
(tally the ancient Greek and Latin 8

III. Of the ancient Jtate of letters in Eng-

land •— — . ""^ 13

IV. A lettfr of Bean Swift to his curate i6

V. Of ahufes in female drefs — 1.9

yi. Of fine gentlemen : with the charaHer

and defcriptlon tff an upjlart — 2$

VII. Of making a figure : with two pictures

of human munnejs^ — — 32

VIII. Old age not defirahh — *— Z^

IX. Againft the marriage of old men — jg

X. A capital difiinSlion of the rational from

and above the brute creation — 40

XI.. Of

xlr CONTENTS.

Page
XL Ofibe dignity of tbt human na-

/«r^3 abfolutc — — 40

XII. Of the dignity of the human na-

turcy relative — — 42

XIII. Keep within your boundaries — 43

XIV. Of government y and its various

forms — '""45

XV. Of the ptomutgation of laws — 49

XVI. Of reprejentdtion in parliaments'^ 52

XVII. Of a reprejentative in parlia-

ment — — ^4

XVIII. EleSlioneering — -— ib.

XIX. Upon juftices of the peace '^ SS

XX. Of the inefficacy of laws without
educatian^ or regulated man-
ners — — 60

XXl. An apology for Dr. Jameses fe-
ver-powder *' — — 64

XXII. Againfl the abridgment of labour 72

XXIIL. ^0 the founders^ proprietor Sy and

managers of the Pantheon — 76
XXIV. Upon,

<r O Tf r E N' T S? XT

*■•■■•••'■■ Page .

XXIV. upon «' nolo epi/coptri " — 80

XXV. The cure 0/ love — — 82

XXVI . Tou had better leave t^em to fight

it out — — 83

XXVIL Of vanity and lyes ' — ' — ^s

XXVIIl. J cure for lying ~ — 86

XXIX. j4 man of honour — — 87

XXX. Ofjejiing and frolic^ as well as
jefting upon ferious occajions
andJMous matter-, and ofDa--
vid Hume, EJq. fo far as he
is concerned in thU — 88

XXXI. Of reformations , — —.51

XXXIL Of libels — ^ loi

XXXIII. Of the liberty of the frefs — 106

XXXIV. Of juries — — 116

XXXV. Of Englijh patriotijm, with the
idea which foreigners have of
it — — lao

XXXVI. Of the conduSl of Eaft India ad-
venturers ^ —•1^4

XXXVIK Of

xvi CONTENTS..

Pag©

XXXVII. Of civilized and barbarous na^

tions — — 128

XXXVIII. Great effeSls from caufes appa^

rentlyfmall -^ ^^ |j^

XXXIX. Of king's friends — — 136

XL. Dolors differ — — * 137

XLI. f be love of life — — 138

XUL Mii^Ci& i^i^ «^^tt/ nothing — 139

XLIII. Human Nature differently eftima-

ted — — 141

XLIV. Of gallantry and devotion — 14a

XLV. Of ante-nuptial fornication J with
a hint or two for its preven-
tion ^ ^ — 143

XLVI. Aho'mpar , M,mm ■ — 14^

XLVIl. Human ferfeff ion n^t in nature - 147

XLVIII. Ofprcfeffional charaHer — 148

XLIX. Of perfonal identity -r- — 150

L, Of conferring and receiving fa-

vours — . — 5^3

LI. Law and equity — — 156

UI. Why

CO NT E N T S. xvU

HI. JVby lawyers are aver/e from de^

ciftons according to equity -^ i6o

LIII, Manner swill prevail ugainft laws i6j

UV. Laws muji befitted to a people ^'^ 178

LV. Not wbatfeems perfeSly hut what

is praSicahle — — 182

LVI. Of coffee-boufe politicians, as they

are called -^ — 18S

LVI I. Of reafon of ft ate , or ftate-necef-^

ftty — . — , — i83

LVIII. Of alls of infohency — — 1.90

LIX. A decifton by the King ofPruffta 191

LX. Experience makes fools Wife — 191

LXL 27;^ bravado oppofite to what he

would feem — — 193

LXII. Of academies gr private feminaries 19^
LXIIL A compendious way ta he faved -^ 196
LXIV. A vindication of Pat atelfus — 197

LXV. A panegyric upon impudence — 225

LXVI. Of courts -r — 227

4 LXVII. Of

xviii CONTENTS.

Ptgc
LXVII. Of Madam de Maititenon — » 230

liXVIII. Ambition no mark of magnanimity 239

LXIX. "Two letters of Sarab Bucbefs of

Marlborough — * — 241

LXX. Of wit and witticifms — — 245

LXXL Of UgiCy or the art of reafoning 246

LXXII. ^e love of money the ruin offtates 25 1

LXXIII. Of advertifements ^- — 253

LXXIV, ^be vices of youth and old age j and
the difference between the one
and the other — — 257

LXXV. Of the abufe of medals^ and of

Lewis XIV — — 259

LXXVI. Thoujhalt not do £vil, that good

may come of it — — 262

LXXVII. The Bible Jhould not be ufed in

teaching to read — -—268

LXXVIII. The eccentricities and caprices of

imagination — — 272

LXXIX, J trait of ^een Elizabeth — 275

LXXX. One trait of Oliver Cromwell — 276

LXXXL Another

^ O N T ]^ |J i; ^, XXX

.., LXXXI, Another trait. (if QUvfirCrm-

well — —.47^

■ LXXXII. ExtraEls from Utters of Mr.
Locke to Dr. Mafletoft^
' • upon love and mhtrimony —282

LXXXIIL A letter ^ofAlgernoon Sydney

to Dr, Mapletoft — 286

LXXXIV. From Mr. Nelfon's letters to

Dr. Mafletoft — — 289

LXXXV. Of great men ; and of Dr. Sa-
muel Jobnfon -^^^ -<- 290

IXXXYl. Upon David Hume's moral

charatter >— 1 — 295

LXXXVIL Concerning the difpute between
Mr. Hume and Mr. Rouf-
• Jean *^ — 300

SYLVA,

s y L V A,

OR THE

wo O D.

I.

Of APOPHTHEGMS, ANECDOTES, MAXIMS, BONS

MOTS, &C',

FOOLS by profeflion, or (as they have
fometimcs been called) jefters, were for-*
merly of great account. Cardinal Wolfey, in
1529, prefented his to Henry VIII. as a t6k"en
of grateful and afFedtionate regard ; as did Sir
Thomas More his,, upon refigning the feals in

■ This and the followitig number may be confidercd as
frefator^ to the reft; fince they fet forth the utility of the
work, and alfo plead in fome meafure for the form and
;i(imneT'iDf it,

ft tSih

t SYLVA, o*

1532, to the Lord Mayor of London and hit
fticccffors m office *.

I have fome times thought^ that thefe obje^
of ncurth, however ftrangely and unnaturaUy
they became fo, might yet be made fubfervient
to good purpofes among the great; among
kingSy minifters, and ^U who govern and bear
influence with men. In the firft place I would
propofe, that the term of fool be difcarded, and
that of Jefiir only retained. Fopl implies a per-
fon deficient in underflanding ; but natural
deficienccs and imperfections mufl: never; be
made obj«^ ef mk«h. Agamy ^kefe fools in
reality have not been fuch natural fools^ as
Ibme have imagined : on the contrary, if they

* Herbert's Hift. of Henry. — Angcli was ayW of this
l^rt itt-Fratioe. He H^d been a follower of the great Conde#
and was given by him to the king y yet was far from want«
ing wit. He was once fome time in company, before he
began to play the fool: when» M. dc Bautru (who was the
wit «f thjB court) entering, *<^ I am gla<l," fayfr he, " jcnk
<' are ccuii«i'; i waa afraid I.flumldhave been alon&'' Me^^
. ii^/Vz»«.-^Sy his addrefs in pleafiag fonae, and in awing
others, he x^ade them all tributaries ; and amafled fo much
money, that M. de Marigni faid, ** Of all the fools who
<' had followed^ Mt)nfiear the prince, Angeli was the only
<< one whO'had madeJiis farmne," I^'i^-— Boileaa-s*ilarved
poet complains, that Angeli in preferment outftripptd all
competitor s> of what mftrit foevei^ :

£t V'BJprit k plus ht&u, I'ra^uT- U fhf fsJtm
Ny farviitHfrajamaU a^ /art. 4c l*4kftU^.

were

TheWOOD- s

were not the wifeft pcrfons at court, which yet
might fomctimcs admit a doubt, they have of-*
ten been wifcr, and known better what they
were doing, than many who have laughed at
them. The appellation of fools therefore is
improperly applied to fuch.

Let me now fet forth, what ideas 1 would
include under the term jefter y by whom, then,
I do hot mean a perfon, who is merely to raifc
a laugh, by doing abfurd and ridiculous things :
none of our kings have been fo poorly at-
tended, but who have abounded with fervants
qualified for this. By z jefter^ I mean one, who
Ihould mix utile dulciy the ufeful with the plea-
fanti who fhould inftruft, at the fame time
that he diverts ; and, if the freedom may be
allowed me, who fhould make the king wife
as well as merry*

For this purpofe I would have him endowed
with ftrong original powers, cultivated with let-
ters, and thoroughly praftifed in the ways of
men. Nor fhould his letters confifl in a Am-
ple knowledge of languages, or in critical and
philological matters ^ for thefe of themfelves,
though they excite admiration among the ig-
norant, yet leave the underflanding as poor as
they find it : but I would have them to confifl of
hiflory, philofophy, and other branches of fci-
cnce and literature, which tend to make men
knowing in human nature and human life.
B a 'Thus

4 S Y L V A, oit

Thus accomplilhed, a jcftcr may not only be
diverting, according to the original inftitution
of his place, but ufeful alfo and inftrufting m
a very fuperlative degree.

By profefliori, he is a manufa6kurcr and dealer
in apophthegms, proverbs, aphorifms, maxims,
and bons mots of every kind : all which are not .
only highly calculated for wit and amufement^
but (in the opinion of the wifeft men) the
moft efficacious means of conveying knowledge.
Seneca fays, that " even rude and uncultivated
«* minds are ftruck, as it were, with thefe Ihort
<* but weighty fentences, which anticipate all
*^ reafoning, by flafhing truths upon them at
" once;" and he relates, that Agrippa, the
minifter of Auguftus Caefar, ufed to own him-
felf much indebted to that of Salluft, concortUd
farva res crejcunty dijcordid maxima dilabun^
fur ' : a pithy fentence indeed, and which the
good people oC old England would, at all
times, do well to ponder. Plutarch drew up
and digefted a colleftion of apophthegms for
Trajan, and Erafmus did the fame for a Ger-.
man pririce; in the dedication to whom, after
obferving how finely fitted thefe clofe and
pointed fentences are for iiiftruftion, he adds,
thiat they are " Angularly accommodated to
«« the fituation and exigencies of a prince, who

3 Epift. 94.

«^ has

The wood. s

« has not time to read Plato, Ariftotle, and
*^ other voluminous writers upon government,
*' laws, nianners, &c."

Now with fuch inftruments as thefe, ma-
naged judicioufly and with addrcfs, a jefter
may produce furprifing cfFefts : nay, Bayle has
not fcruplcd to fay, that " a fentence, taken
** from Livy or Tacitus, is capable of faving
*^ a nation, and perhaps has faved more than
^* one ♦.'* It is very well known, that war,
peace, and other i'mpbrtant national events, have
often originated in fccret from very minute and
(as would be thought) inadequate caufesj
while th^ rejafojis, publicly given out, have
been merely oftenfible. But a jefter, fuch ^
one as I mean, is or may be often within the
cabinet. He may therefore inftruSi his mafter,
as I have faid j but he may do more : he may
alfo in fome meafure regulate and direft his
paflions, and greatly influence his political
conduft, while hi? apparent objeft fhall be
only to divert him. There was a jefter among
the houfehold of Charles I. who was brought
before the council, and with mych folemnity
difcarded fronfi gourt, for pointing his raillery
at archbilhop L^ud ; but many knowing ones
have thought, th^t, if the king had difcardcd

♦ Projcft for a Diftionaryt

B 5 thf

^ SYLVA, on

the archbiSiop inftead of the jefter> his affairs
IBight haye ended better than they did.

Diocleiian, a Roman emperor, made the dif*
ficulty of reigning well to confift chiefly in the
difficulty of arriving at the real knowledge of
affairs. ** Four or five courtiers," faid he,
<' forn) themfelves into a cabal, and unite in
*' their counfels to deceive the emperor. They
«^ fay what will pleafc their mafter ; who, be-
^< ing (hut up in his palace, is a ftranger to the
^< truth, and forced to know only what they
" think fit to tell him K" Now the jefter will
Ve fure to prevent or diffipate all this darknefs
9nd obfcurity : he will be a perpetual intelli*
gencer to his mafter : be will daily and hourly
laugh him into true ideas of perfons vand
things, and lead him gradually to fee them a^
they are*. Thus royalty will be guarded
againft many evils : it will not be mifled by
cither flattery or abufe ; but taught to lay the
due ftrefs, and no more, upon whatever fliall
be faid for or againft itfelf. Thefe and innu-
*

9 Vopiicus ia Aureliano.

^ This was what the famous Car<ualbq Tq maoh dreade4
from the lively and witty Count d'Obidos : II craignott, fays
the hiflorian> que/es. bons mots nefiffent a la Jin quelque impre/^
Jbn fur Vifprit du MonarquCi £sf ne pawinffent ptut-itre a
Im ouvrir hs yeux, Memoires dc Carvalho, Marquis de Pom-
bal. Toih. II. p. 35,

3 merablp

TnK. w o- O I>. it

mcrablc other benefits will be obtained, and
all in the way of mirth and pleafantry.

Upon the whole then, agreeably to my idea
rf a jcfter, many might be glad to fee this per*
fbnag^ re-cftablifhed at court, and a proper
ftipend alfigned to his office ^, If he produce
the cffefts I have fpccified, well and good:
and, let the worft happen that can, it will be
only addirig one more to thofe many places
and penfions, which, being of no great ufe or
ornament to the kingdom, muft unavoidably
create difafFeftion and complaint; unlefs \re
could fuppofe the Englifh of the fame humour
with the fubjefts of a duke of Savoy, who,
being afked ^' how they could bear their heavy
'^ taxations ?" replied, fFe are not Jo much of--
fended with the duke for what he takes from us^
0S thankful to him for what h^ leaves us '^

^ Yet a certsiR writer feems to think tbis in no wife n««
(ceilkry : *' The h&jefter wc had at court," fays he, ** was.
^ in the Ucentiotts reign of Charles XI. Since that time our
•* manners have been fo gradually refining, that our court
'' at preient is full of patriots, who wifii for nothing but
'< the honours and wealth of their country ; and our ladies
.<' are all fo chafte, fo fpotlefs, fo good, {o devout, that
^ there is nothing for %jifttr Xf} make ^jifl of.'' Ymck's
fiitainmnialjmmey.

^ Lord Herbert'^ Z^, p, no. 1770, 4to.

^ 4 IL OP

S Y L V A, OKI

II.

OF (UrOTATIONS FROM OTHER WRITERS, ESPE-
CIALLY THE ANCIENT GREEK AND LATIN,

T N quotations, as in all other things, men
have run into extremes. Some writers have
quoted moft abundantly, in order (as Ihould
fccm) to make an oftentation of learnings
with one of whom La Mothe le Vayer, though
himfclf a great quoter, appears to have been
much fatigued : " God grant you," cries, he,
*' to become Icfs learned" — Dieu vous fajfe la
grace de devenir moins Jcavant. . Others have
fcarcely quoted at all, as Locke and Hoadlcy,
with, fome of an inferior kind, who perhap$
have hence afFefted to pafs for original writers,
that needed no extraneous helps : and Indeed,
in books of inqrje reafonjng, all quotation tor
many may feem impertinent. ...

La Bruyere has animadverted Tipon the for-
mer extrerrier he complains of books being
crowded fp with quotations, as to be hardly
any thing elfe ; of citing Oyid and Tibullus at
the i>ar, Horace and Lucretius in the pulpit :
where, fays he, " Latin and fometimes Greek*
*' are the languages chofcn to entertain the
-^^ women . and churchwardens with 9." And,

^ Charaft. De la Chain.

doubtlefs.

The W O O d: ^

doubtlcfs, nothing can be more abfurd ^nd ri-
diculous than this :• by this an author's fenfe,
if peradventure he has any, is almoft opprefied
and fmbthered under his learning; andj as
Ovid faid of a girl overloaded with drefs and
ornament, he is fo garnifhed out with foreign
materials, as to be, in truth, the leaft part of
himfelf. Mean while, as Bayle obferves upon
Bruyere, " it is to be feared, that the very op*
f polite^ cuftom of not citing at all, into which
^^ we are fallen, will make learning too much
?^ defpifed, as a piece of furnitiire entirely ufe-
^^ left '° :'^ and he has elfewhere mentioned, as
^* one principal caufe af negleft in theftudy
^' of the Belles Lettres, that a great many wits,
*^ real or pretended, haye, with an air of dif-
*' d^in, run down the cuftom of citing Greek
*^ authors, and- making learned remarks, as fo
<^ much pedantry, and fit only for a col-
*^ lege"/*

It is however certain, that many pleafing a*
well as ufeful purpofes may be ferved by quo-^
tations, judicioufly made and aptly applied. It
is pleafing to know, while contemplating any
fubjeft, what other writers, men of name and
abilities, have thought and faid upon it : and
then the variety, which the frequent introduc-
tion of new perfonages (as I may call them)

?^ Dia. BovcHXN. Note B. '] MiziRXAC.. Note C.

creates.

|o S Y L V A, on

envies, wiU greatly contribute to enliven $tm
tention^ and thereby keep off wearineft and
difgufl:. With the Greek and Latin authors
the clailical reader is always entertained: <* Mr»
«« Clarke's book of coins is much above my
•^ pitch/' faid the karned Markland to his
friends <^ but I read it with pleafure as hiib
«^ and hecauje of the qwtations from the ancientSp
♦* which are numerous '*•
: Sue quotation is ufeful^ as well as pleafing,
to confirm and illuftrate the fentiments of a
writer i and cfpecially in works^ like this of
ctuts : where the great objed is> not fo much to
teach men things of which they are ignorant,
\>y defcanting in detail and at large^ as to re«
mind them of what tb^y know^ not {o much to
m^ke^ men read^ to borrow Montefquieu's ex*
preflion^ as to make thefn think. For this, tlw
citing of authorities^ and dealing in perfona)
anecdotes and apophthegms, feem perfeftly
well calculated : for, however it be, men fre-
quently paufe and dwell upon names, who
would , haftily and inadvertently fkim over
'things* Nay, let the reafoning be ever (b cloie
and found, it fhall often pafs for little more
than declamation; while the name of fome ad^
mired author, cfpecially if he be dead, fhall
axxeft the imagination, and make all the im^

»* Bowycr*8 MifcdU Trafts, p. J^ . .,

-*'*preffion

The W Q O D. tl

predion which is neceflary to produce con^
Flftion*',

Again, the praftice of quoting from other
writers, and efpecially from the Greek and Ro^
man authors of antiquity, is ufeful, inafmuch
(as above hinted) it muft give fome counte«^
nance and fandtion even to Utters themfelves :
letters! neglefted, declining letters ! and with
them declining all that is wife, and excellent^
and beautiful, and polifhed. How would an
aftonifhed macaroni Hare, to be afTured, that the
civilization of kingdoms is founded upon /rN
ters J and that, in proportion as thefe are cul-
tivated, fo is nearly the progrefs of mankind
from their mod rude and favage ftate, up tQ
that perfedion of elegance and refinement,
which beameth forth from his all-finilhed and
refulgent perfon ! I fpeak according to the
gentleman's own idea of himfelf,

Laftly, were the pradtice of quoting once^
received and eftablifhed, this great advantage
would farther accrue to letters, viz. that it
would reduce the bulk of fcribblers, with
which they are difgraced. Nothing is more
common in thefe days, than for men to begin
to write, and afFc<5t to be authors, not only bc->
fore they underftand Greek and Latin, but be*

** Vautborite peut feuU en*wrs les communs entimiemnift
Uyt Montaigne, it pnfi pU$ #« Umgag$ firegrin. Eflais,
III. 13.

fore

ti S Y U V A, OE

fore they have any real or accurate knowledge
of Englifli, It is enough for them, if they can
ijpell with tolerable exa6lnefs : for this accom-
pliflinnent, joined with fuch materials as ma*
g'azines, reviews, and other public prints fup-
ply, is ufually the ftock in trade, with which
authors now as well as critics fet up. In fhort,
writing is become a mere manual operation >•
Ztid books are made every day by men with-
out genius, without letters, who are but barely
fufficicnt to tranfcribc, at the moft to compile.
Upon which account it might well be wiftied,
that every one who prefumes to write, efpeci-
llly-upon matters of religion and government,
(for in romance and moral painting it is not
neceiTary) ihouid be obliged to fupport his
meaning, once at leaft with fome Greek, and
once with forine Latin, citation ; and fhould
'produce at the fame time a true and well au-
thenticated teftimonial, that thcfe citations
were not furnifhed by another, but bond fide
Ms own a£t and deed. A teft of this fort
would give a mighty check to fcribbling'^i
and fave reams of paper, which are every mo-
ment going to ptnih'^eritur^ parcere charts. *

14 *( The world has got fuch an appetite for reading,"
ftys our learned printer, " that it fwallows every thing
** which is offered to it. Carelefs readers have made care-
«« lefs writers ; and, amidft a multiplicity of books, I every
" day fee barbarity creepi»g in." Bowyer's Mifc. Trad^,
p. 281.

Upon

The W O O D. t^

Upon the whole, therefore, let us not con^
demn, and ajFeftcdly avoid, the citation of au-
thors; falfely delicate, falfely faftidious. Let u$
recoiled, that the gre^teft and moft refpedable
writers have done this : that CicerOy Plutarch^
Seneca, Bacon, Montaigne, and Montefquieu, left
nothing unborrowed from others, which mightT
icrve to embelliih their own writings 5 and
that the things thus borrowed may, if ikilfuUy^
applied, have not only all the energy of their
old fituation, but all. the graces of invention ia
their new one. And why fhould they not?.
there being no lefs wit in juftly applying the
thought of another, than in being the firft ati^
thor of that^ thought '^ At leaft, fo fays Mr.
Bayle -, whom I have quoted the more freely-
upon this topic, becaufe he was a very great
wit, as well as a very great fcholah

III.

OP THB ANCIENT STATE OF LETTERS IW
ENGLAND.

^HERE was a time in this kingdom, when

letters were fo low, that whoever could

prove himfelf, in a court of juftice, able to

read a verfe in the New Teftament, was vetted

*5 Dift, Epicurus. Note E,

with

14 S ^f L V A, OK

with the hfgheft{>rivileg6si and a clcrgymarf^
who knew any thing of grammar, was looked
upon as a prodigy**. In thofc enlightened
days, a redor of a pariih, as we iire told, go-
iti'gtb law with his pafifhioners about pavingf
Ihe church, quoted this authority as from St.
Peter — -paveat^ilUy nM faveafn egd; Which htf
Gonftrucd, they are to falje the cburcb, not li
and this was allowed to be good law by a
judge, who was an ccclefiaftic too. Alfred
the Great complained, towards the end of the
Ainth century, that «^ from the Humber to the
•^ Thames there was not a prieft, who under-
<* ftood the Liturgy in his mother-tongue, oi*
'f could tranflatc the eafieft piece of Latin *^:'*
and a correfpondent of Abelard, about the
middle of the twelfth, complimenting him upon
a refort of pupils from all countries, fays, that
«^ even Britain, diftary; as fhe Was, fent her fa-
*^ vages to be inftrufted by him"— r^w^/^
Britannia/ua animalia erudienda deftinabat '*.

If the clergy had then, as theyjfe faid to
have had, all the learning among inemfelves,
what a bleffed ftate muft the laity have been
in ? And fo indeed it appears : for there ii ex-
tunt ah old a6i: of parliament, which prdVides,

- ■* Ordinati if a literatura carehant^ ut eaterts ejfet ftuforig
fid grammaticam diUciffet, Matth. Paris^ anno lo6i*
*' Affer. de gdlis Alfrcdi.
"• Abelard. Op. p. ziy. Paris, 1616^

that

that a nobleman Jhall he entitled to the benefit of
bis clergy i even though he cannot read : and ano-
ther law, cited by Judge Rolls in his Abridg--
ment^ lets forth, that «^ the command of the
^ fherifF to his officer, by word of mouth, and'
" without writing, is good; for it may be,
<* that neither the Jheriffnor his officer can write
« or read^^^^ — ^Who can fay, that fuch hal-
cyon times may not return ? When wC con-
template the ignorance and diflipation of thtf
^^ff/,-whom the little are fure to follow: whcftf
we confidcr their not only negleft, but eveft
contempt, of letters ; their gambling, and loW
tfmufements ; their luxury \ the avarice, mean-
hefs, and feliiflmefs, which prevail among
them— when we confider all this, and more,
can we forbear to exclaim, that fi^s follo'OOinl
figns lead on^tbe mighty year *** ?

IV- A

*^ Many charters are yet extant^ where perfona of great
CBunencie, and even kings, have afHxed the fign of the crOfri
hBoaafe not able to write or read^-^^^MM crutit manu fre^
friipro ignoratione Ut$rarum : whence the term of figning^
inftead c^ fuhfcrihing. Da Cange, in voce Cmx. '

^ I take the above cairfes to be equal tO-dit'efta,.a]idl
Ihonktbt ibrry toibrebodc it from that fpleaedc and AUA
taomciur only, with which fome Utirati have been vehe«
mently afeOad^ J^picn or§, rm^ UtwmrUmh iaid Beiitky
to his patron, in the dedication of his Horace^ 1714 1 sjpu.
fiiBam /ani atrpcitau Uantidqui tmfnmmr eHfue 4tgi/¥'adm»»
dumtit ingruntii hMhmm^ MmH$ caf^ fkjpm iitftnnttmt

thit

|6 S y L V A, oi

IV.

A LETTER OF DEAN SWIFT TO HIS CURATB *'♦

*' S I R, Dublin, April z, 1723*

^^ T WRIT to you a month or two ago, to
•« let you know, that I had a percwig
f* made for you, out of the hair I had from
f^ you, to which I added more hair given me
^^ by a lady : the making, and fome other haiTu
'^ which the perewig-maker was forced to put
*^ in, coft twelve ihillings. It is a dark perc-
'^ wig, and is not worth above thirty ihillingsj
^^ but will be good enough on ordinary occa^
*^ fions, and is well made. I defire you to let
" me know, how I could fend it to you. I fup-»
<^ pofe my letter mifcarried. Pray write me
'* an anfwer. My humble fcrvice to Mrs*

Jiat is, the learning of Dr. Bentley was not likely to be
.-ewarded with an archbifhopric, for a bifhopric (I fappoTe) '
i^ould fcarcely have fufiiced. With the like fpirit Jofeph Sca^
iiger, admiring the early progrefs of Cafpar Barthiof in
letters, faid, natum ejfe adhuc unum aternitati ingeniumf qmod
J' ad maturitatem per^eniret y literas aliquandiu ntivirt pQffi%
lut [Barthius, .after living 71 years, died fo long ago at
1658 ; yet letters are (kill alive, Blount, Ctns, Author, im
larthiQ.

** '51fi my chief ^wijh, my joy, my only plan.
To lo/e no drop of this immortal man.

^^ Warburton?

The W O O D. 17

«k Warburton : I hope your whole family is
" well. I am

" Your mod faithful humble fcrvant,

*^ JONATH. SWIFT/*.

7(? the Rrv. Mr. H^arhurton,,
at Maberafelt.

Mr. Urban, from the fame dcfirtf to prcfcrve
every drop of a man of genius y hath infcrtcd in
the Gentleman's Magazine, for June 1785, the
following letter from Mr. Chambers to hia
tmanucniis, Mr. Macbcan.

" Mr. Macbean,
" I want all the apparatus, tliat I ufcd in
** corrcfting the new edition of my book, to
" be brought to Cambury houfe. I fancy you
** can gucfs pretty nearly what it is. The
" principal thing is the cafe with Ihclves and
*' papers 6n them : on the top of this I left,
•' I think, almoft every thing elfc I wanted %
<' particularly a number of books, I believe
<' ten or twelve, and an index wrapped in
" thick brown paper. The firft volume of the
*< Dictionary too, I was at work upon, fhould
** be fent : it is cut in two, the letter A
** by itfclf. I am furry to give' you this

C «« trouble.

If S Y L V A, OR

'* trouble, but know not how to get the things
*^ without you. I am

*^ Your aflured friend and fcrvant,

« E. CHAMBERS."

Thefe are the drops of men of genius, the
drops of immortal men. Should a tafte^ how-
ever, prevail for collefting and prcfcrving
thefe drops, as from the reception they meet
with is much to be feared, every one muft fcc>
that genius, and fenfe, and wit, and learnings
will not only by degrees be ftifled and op-
preffed, but finally overwhelmed and loft, un-
der an inundation of impertinence and rub-
bifli**.

•

** ** The prefent age," fays a very acute writer, " ha»
** manifefted an uncommon relifh for all fuch reading as ne-
•* ver was read."— Alluding to the mifcellanies or vdunii-
nous colledlions of every thing, which daily come forth, he
compares them to the ^< tree of Nebuchadnezzar's dretm, ia
«' which was meat for aU\ and as this meat," fays he, *' is
*' of light digeflion ; or rather, as it is found to pafs oiFeafily
'' without admitting or requiring any digeftion at all, an
** inexhauftible fund may be neceiTary to feed, though it
*' cannot fatisfy, an unfathomable curiofity." Letter to
Warton, upon his editioa of Milton^ Juvenile Poems, pii.
40* 1785> 8vo,

V. oi

The W O O P, 19

V.

OF ABUSES IN FEMALE DR£S8^^

T LATELY faw a print of a lady of* qua-
lity, fitting to the operations of a frifeufs
with thcfc words written under : ^he folly of
1771. But this folly was far from being the
produdlion of 177 1: it is indeed of ancient
ftanding, and hath probably prevailed more or
lefs in all ages of the world. We trace it dif-
tindtly to the Chriftian aera j for St. Peter,
fpeaking of the adorning of women, would not
have it to be that " outward adorning of plait-
'^ ing the hair, or wearing of gold and fine
^* cloaths, but the hidden ornament of a meek
" and quiet fpirity which" (I prefume, from
the fcarcity of it) " is faid to be of great
" price:'

TertuUian and Cyprian, early fathers of the
church, have left profeffcd difcourfes againfl:
the luxury of female drcfs, and fpecify among
other things the fpurious ornaments of the
head. Syncfius, a Chriftian bifliop of the fifth

^ This was firft printed in \J%o, with this motto 1
Auferimor cnlta : gemntis auroqne teguntur
Omnia. Pars xninima eft ipia pttella fui. Ovi p*
C a century.

JO S Y L V A, OR

century, defcribcs a bride, as " walking about
«' like Cybele wiih turrets on her head *+." The
heathen writers alfo have noted this extrava-
gance s and Juvenal, particularly, mentions the
orders or ftories of this kind of architecture *'.
Thus you might follow thcfc head-dreffcs, with
fmall intermiflions, through the writers of
every age down to the prefent. They pre-
vailed in France in the 15th century, when>
fays one of their hiftorians, «' the ladies were
*« exceflive in their drefs, and wore wonder-
" fully high and broad horns; having on each
" fide two ears fo large, that it was impollible
*« for them to come through a door *^." This
was about 1428, when Conefte, a monk>
preached furioufly againft them : whofe preach-
ing, however, had nothing near the effeft of a
fingle word of Lewis the XI Vth, in 1699, which
brought t)iem down in an inftant ; and which
fliews, as Bayle obfervcs, that, '« if crowned
«' heads knew their ftrength in this refpcdt, or
«« would ufe it, they might avail more than
" all the preachers upon earth ^^" '

The form and ftrufture of head-dreflcs, now-
in fafliion with us, are known to all > and, if

^ Epift.IIL

*^ Tot premit ordinibas, tot adhuc compagibus altum

-ffidificat caput. Sat. VI.

*« Argentre, Hili. de Bretagne, liv. x.
•^ Dia. CoNECTF. NoteE.

they

The W O O D. m

they were not, I could not dcfcribe them. I
mufl: needs wonder, in the mean time, at that
ftrange propcnfity in the fex, to difguife and
make themfelves fo different, from what their
Creator dcfigned them to be. God never made
his works for man to mendy might any one fay ;
but our ladies are far from thinking thus : on
the contrary, to judge from their perpetual
employ, they fhould feem perfuaded, that their
very cxjftence has no other objeft, end, jot
meaning, but to improve their natural felvcs
by artificial decorations*'. This they fome-
times do, as at prcfcnt, by high heads and high
heels ; and in both incur the guilt, which Ter-
tullian imputed to the tragic aftors of his age :
" The Devil," fays he, " mounts them on buf-
*^ kins, in order to make Jcfus Chrift a liar,
'* who has faid, that no one can add a cubit to
*' bis ftature ;" which he elfewhere applies to
the ftrufture upon the head *'.

At other times, inftead of lengthening, they
take a fancy to dilate and broaden themfelves
by fpacious hoops and e^anding draperies :

*• Like (bme artifts mentioned by Hogarth, who have
'* contrived ornaments to correft the poverty of nature , as
«* Ay exprcfs thcmfelvei." Analyfis of Beauty.

•^ TragxdosDiabolas cothurnis extulit, quia nemo poteft
adjicere cubitum unum ad <laturam faam. Mendacem fa-
cere Vult Chriftum. De SptBac. c. 23. 5? f/^ Qultu Virgin.

C 3 under

f» S Y L V A, OR

under which rotunda form, Addifon fomewhere
compares them to the dome of an Egyptian
temple, and pleafantly fports upon what he calls
the idol of the place. I know indeed, that the
hoop-petticoat is fuppofed to have been intro-
duced as a matter of convenience, as well as
ornament : but I know too, that it perffeftly
coincides with that prevailing pafllon in the
fex, of fwelling themfelves beyond their natural
fize. The proportions of the human form arc in
like manner deftroyed, by pinching in and con-
trading the waift, as the Chinefe women do*
their ftet, Both praftices are equally abfurd^
^nd upnatural j but the former is more pernio
cious, as it lays a foundation for innumerable-
ailments.

Painting the fkin is another art they ufe to'
improve their perfons, in which alfo they have '
the teftimony of a primitive doftor againft
them^ who affirms it *« contrary to the will of
^« God to ufe paint, or black the hair, becaufe
^« the Lord has faid, thou can^Jl not make one
f' bait white or blafk^""/* I am not yet fuflBci-

ently

'° CypriaBjj tie Hahitu Firginum.Tr'Fowdcnng the hair^ '
though not ufually numbered with the artificialiti€s ofdtt€s, '
is certainly as much fo as any of them : and this is pemi-
f:ious not oi^ly to the individual, by ditching up the pores ■
and obftrufting perfpiration, as painting does, but to the
fprnmunity alfo at large j inafmu^h as it converts immenfe-

quantiticf

The wood. aj

cntljr deep in the myftery of the cork rump, to
be able to give any accurate defcription of it %
but every body knows, that it was invented
upon the fame principle, and calculated for
the fame purpofe, of mending God's works by
the arts of vt\tn ^\

And, as if to difguife w,as to perfect the fcx,
are not their interiora made to keep pace with
their outward manesuvres? I mean, are not
their tempers, fpirit, and inward feelings, all
as artificially modelled, and as (iudioufly con-
cealed, as their perfons in the manner defcribed
above?— When Mifs fets out for boarding-
fchool, fhe ufually takes leave of fimplicity and
truth of appearance. She is no longer to look,
fit, fpeak, or do any one thing, as nature diredb,
and as (he ufed to do it ; but to regulate all
her movements, and adjufl: all her attitudes^

quantities of the beH flour into dirt, while the bulk of the
people are feeding upon the worft. To what purpofe are all
our caudons againfl withholdings monopolizing^ and ex-
porting grain^ while this moft flnful waHe of it continues
and is encouraged ?

^' This Cyprian calls adulterating the works of God^ and
then goes on: cuttm medicaminibus uttgunt, genas.ru bere ma*
ciUant. Dijplicet iUis^ mmirum plaftica Dei^ ^am auttm in*
dignum nomim CbriftiaMafac\mfiSamgtftari^ effigiem mentiri !
It is curious to fee this good father, figuring them to his
imagination as rifing from the dead« with all thefe artifici-
alities about them : an cifm etn^a^it fHrfur{//ot it illo ambU
iu cafitif, rt/urgatu f Ibid.

C 4 according

«4 S Y L V A, oiv

according to difcipline and rules of art, Sho
is not to confider what fhe really /V, or what
fhe ought to be^ but how fhe will affear y and
thus, by the way, is gradually led to enjoy no-
thing for Its own fake, but only fo far as it ex-?
cites admiration in others ^*. She muft learn to
counterfeit and diflemble every affeftion of the
heart ^^ She niuft know how to rejoice and
to grieve, without any emotion at all : and, on
the contrary, to feem as calni and as cool, as
jhe fnowy top of JEtna, without ; though per-
haps, like this fame vulcano, there may be
very warm, unruly, tempeftupus doings within,
Now, under all this curnberfome afFeftation
of drefs ai|d manners, which leaves no will^^
XiO fentimcnt, no principles^ no character, — •
may not pne fayj with the poet, that the real
girl is the leaji part of berjelf? We have a

3* " The wanton defire of admirationy'* faid one very
knowing in her department, ** ruins more women ^ thai
?* any other weaknefs the fex is fubjeft to.'^ Con, Fhillips*t
Jipohgy.

33 It was (I fuppofe) this fpirit of artifice and diffimu-
lation, which made the celebrated Mad. dc Maintenon ef-
teem her own fex infinitely more dangerous than ours.
f* Be circumfpeft," fays Ihe to a young female friend, " in
*' your connexions with women. You had better be feen
f * with fome men at an opera, than with fome women at a
*' fermon :*' fayez. circon/pe£ie dans vos liaifons a*vec Us fem^
ptes ; // vaut mieux etre *vue a V Opera avec tel bomm» f»^
fvcc tfiHe femme au Jermon. Lcttres.

coarff

The wood, %$

coarfc vulgar proverb, as indeed ours chiefly
are, that " Joan is as good as my lady in the
f^ dark j*' but trick oyt Joan as artificially a$
fny lady, and darknefs in the cafe will be no
ways neceflary. Joan will, tben^ be as good a3
my lady in the light ;- that is, Joan and my
lady being equally difguifed, their fpecific dif-
ferences will be as little perceived at mid-day^
as they would at midnight.

I have only to caution my reader, not to
fancy me fuch a favage, as would decry all
culture of body and mind. On the contrary,
I would have both the one and the other im-
proved and adorned, as muoh as may be i bu(
I would have this done naturally, and unaffeft-
cdly. Inftcad of artilijing nature, to fpeak
like Montaigne, I would have us naturalife art.
While we co-operate with nature, we cannot
labour too nuicli in^thc cultivation of our-
felves : but, when we force or rather contradift
her, by fubftituting a fantaftic piece of mum«
mery in her (lead, then, far from mending this
form divine y as we prcfumptuoufly imagine, we
^ indeed degrade and fink it below human '♦.

9f Tbi hmmifirm divine. Miltoxu

VI. OT

0^ SYLVA, ok

VI.

OF FINE GENTLEMEN : WITH THE CHARACTER
AND DESCRIPTION •? AN UPSTART.

"gXTRAVAGANCE is now become fo ef-
fentialto z fine gentleman, that young heirs
arc almoft trained to believe, they cannot be
^ne gentlemen without it. For an heir apparent
of 3000I. a year, 20 or 25,000!. of principal
is not now deemed too much, to carry him
through the heats and excentricities of youth :
as if a fupernumerary fum was needful to
purge the paflions, or like zeft to work out the
ferments, which predominate in the confti-
tution at this feafon of life. Thus profufion is
become an eflential of a man of honour " : a
young fellow cannot be of the /^« without itj
and oeconomy, or any degree of prudence, is
utterly incompatible with that largenefs of
foul, which, while it fquanders thoufands upon
the turf or at Arthur^ s, perhaps reluftantly af-
fords half a crown to diftrefs.

35 By honour is not here meant that quality, whith difl
kis nothing from honed)', except in its being difplayed in
a more gentleman-like lorm ; but only that empty phan*
torn, which' often fupplies the want of honefly.

FuU

The W O O D. 47

Full of thcfc fublimc ideas, an infolcnt for-
merly lamented, in my hearing, that the cir-
cumftances of his houfe had deftined him to a
profeflion j for that *« himfclf was the gentleman
^^ of it. He had indeed brethren of profef-
*^ fions, and liberal profcflions too, who were
«^ able and accompliftied, as well as honeft and
" worthy men j but, then, they were not i;^;^-.
«« tlemen. T^ey wanted that freedom of fpirit
*' and humour, which ^/^v^^^j above accountsi
^^ calculations, and other minute and grovc-
«^ ling attentions : they wanted that eafy, care-*
*« lefs, ftiuntcring habit, which is fo very be-
^« cominjg, becaufe it fits fo very naturally, upon
*^ gentlemen who have nothing to do. There
'' was a method, a littlenefs of management,
*^ favouring of pedantry and the fchools, in all
^< they did : and, though likely to get well
" enough through life by playing a fafe game,
«« yet they would never win a prize, any more
^« than other dull fellows/»^/^i& -a grace, beyond
^^ the drudgery and rules of art.'* — What pity
it is, that there was only one gentleman in this
worthy family ! who, to cut fhort his hiftory,
as he lived an extravagant, fo he died a bank«>
rupt ; to the very fincere afflidlion of his ««-
gentlemen brethren ^^,

Thus

»• It it recorded of Democritus, that, by the Jawi of hit
country, he wm t^X entitled to burial with his forefathers 1

becaofs

iS SYLVA, OR

Thus far of men liberally born, and liberally
edacated : but there are others, who, though
neither the one nor the other, yet parade and
figure in the ihape of gentlemen ; and, in this
nwney-getting age, are by far the commoneft
character of the two. I heard one of thefe
pieces cf mechanifm obferve, with much affcAa-
tiOTiy thzt bis misfortune was to have ataftei
that this misfortune had been incrcafed, bjr
keeping too much good company^ and feeing too
much of life upon the large fcale ; and that what
ftill added to his cxpences, were the obliga-
tions he lay under to cultivate the little people
(ib this upftart called them) about his villa :
for it will eafily be imagined, that he was not
without the low ambition of being populfir '\
Now who, do you think, this extraordinary
perfon was ? I will tell you.

JIc was the fon of a cockney in low life,
who, by cow-keeping and the help of a milk-

hcoLuCe he had fpent his patrimony, and thereby loft his
fank. What an admirable inflitution ! But a nolle fpend-
ihrift, with as, s« (o far from being degraded, that on this
rcry account he is nfually deemed an objed for a penfion :
to fupport the form of quality, after the fubfbnce is gone.
*^ Doci ever grwb or caterpillar live to pat forth wings^
and be a butterfly f 'Tis ten to one but the fpirit of popu-
larity feizes him. Yet what is this fpirit of popularity, even
among fupcrior compofitions ? 'Tis the love of doing fool-
lib tfiings, for the fake of being admired by fooli/h people. ,

board.

Thb wood. ^

boai*d, had fcrapcd together enough to leave
him independent of trade ; but wno, retaimng
the fpirit and manners of his orfginal mean-
nefs, which is often the cafe with thofe who
rife to fudden riches, gave him no education
above that of the vulgar. Coming however to
his inheritance, he determined to be z gentler-
matt J and, firft, he applied to PearcCy a taylor
of prime and falhionable goutj who made him
at once a gentlematt in drefs : which, by the
way, is no fmall advance; for this, with the as
triplex frontisy that " front of threefold brafs,'*
in which this pupil was Angularly happy, will
procure admiffion to the firft perfonages of the
kingdom, and no queftions ajked. Then he ap-
plied to tradefmen, manufafturers,* artifts :
who, from their feveral departments, made him
?^ gentleman in houfes, furniture, and appara-
tus of every kind: and then he got the whole
befpangled with piftures and virtu. — I had al-
moft forgot to mention, what is a very capital
article in the conftruftion of thefe new gentle-
men s and that is, a library '\ For this he ap-

3* Fielding,'in his Voyage to Lijhon, mentions one Boyce,
a blackiknith at Gofport, who, by fmaggling and other ho-
nefi: arts^ became pofTeiTed of 40,000!. This accompUihed
peiTon^ afti^r procuring abundance of .fine things, conclu-*
ded with having a library ; and, accordingly, fent an order
to a bookfeller in London, f&r 500]. worth of his hand'^
Jbmeft books.

plied

y> S Y L V A, OR

plied to Payne ; and Payne made him a gentle--
man, with regard to books. Payne talked to
him of original (bndard authors^ which he mu0
not he without I of rare and curious copies^
in the finefl: prcfervation^ and moft elegaiu:
l)indings: and thus at length furnifhed him
with a colledion^ in all languages^ of far from
inconfiderablc value. They might, if properly
painted, as well have been of wood ; for their
pofleflbr had no more pretenfions to learnings
than he had to taile,— or than a mere obfervcr
of rites and ceremonies has to religion. In
Ihort, he knew no language but his own 5 and
that no better than the women who fwept hift
rooms ^^

Did riot I rightly call this ape of elegance
and magnificence a fiece of mecbanifm ? and are
not many fine gentlemen thus mechanically
formed ?

39 Lucian confidered this tafte for book-buying« as fo fare
a fymptom of an illiterate fellow^ that he joins the two
characters together. Thefe book-gentry fboold feem tQ
think, like the man who bought Orpheus's harp, that it
would make admirable mufic of itfelf, without any ikiU
or knowledge in a performer; or him, who purcha&d
EpiCtetus's lamp at a vail fum, in hopes of having with it
Epidletus's wifdom ; or, lailly, like thofe wild Indians, who
believe, that they inherit not only the (polls, but the abi«
lities of any- great enemy, they have tha luck to kilL i«-

10 Not

The W O Q I). 31

Notfor^himJelfbeJeeSf or bears ^ or eats ^
Artifts muft chufe his piilures, mujtc, tneaU.
To be furc : the artifts fqrnifh the tafte, as well
as the objeft of it. Mean while, this deftina-
tipn pf ngteo tQ fityations andobjeftj?, forwhici^
they arc unfit, is no finall detrinjspt as well as
nuifance to (bciety* Many oi tht^e fine gentle-^
f^en^ who ^ce at le^ ufel^fs burdens to the
earth they eocunjiber, might h^yedone good fer*
yice in the m.efli^l offices and ajrts of life. The
only fervicc thpy do, under this forced and un*
natural charadter, is the transferring of pro^
perty, which by prgdigality they fonietimes
^bufe, into the hands of mcjtJi who may rightly
ufe it 5 and thus juftifying Providence, whof^
vrays are conftantly to educe good from evil. .
p. S. I am not fure, that my upftart is equaj
^o the purchafe of a borough : clfe I fliould
have mentioned a feat in parliament as one of
the qualifications, by which thefe gentry rife
to greatnejs. The Herald's Office, hoyreyer, wa?
^ott negledted, a coat of arms having been his
firft acquifition ; and we are juft informed,
that, to render his name illuftrious after death,
lie hath ordered his funeral to be in the ftylej
and manner of tb^ Iw Richard RuiTers, Efq*
r-SQol. for 9 noQjoHiwjnt, apd 4I. yeyly tq have
it bruflied by the fe^ton. '

VII. or

^a S V L V A, dR

Vll,

OF MAKING A FIGURE: WITH TWO PICTURE*
OF HUMAN MEANNESS.

T HAVE read of a fquib, which was reprtf-
fentcd burfting with this motto under it,
per earn dum luceam — «^ let me perifli, if I d6
" but fhine.'* The fame motto will do for aW,
who diffipate their fubftance by Jhinivg or fi^
guring with Ihew and equipage.

All mankind would make a figure. To afpird
to ftations above us, is a maxim univerfally
adopted 5 yet perhaps the trueft wifdom and
the fureft happinefs is, to cultivate well the
rank in which we are born. Why fhould any
man covet to raife and diftinguifli himfelf far-
ther, than his real well-being may make necef-
fary '^^ ? A mark of diftinftion is, in general,

nor

*® When an hufbandman claimed kinfhip witi Robert
Grollhead, Bifliop of Lincoln, and thereupon requcfted .
from him an office, " Coufin," faid the bilhop, ** if your
•* cart be broken, I'll mend it ; if your plow be old, VVL
<« give you a new one, and even feed to fow your knd t
** but an hufbandman I found you, and an huHxandman
" I'll leave you." Fuller's Holy State, p. 25. The bifhop "
thought it kinder (as fhould feem) to ferve him in his way,
than to Uke him oat of his way : and perhaps Stephen

Duck»

The woo D. jj

no better than a mark for human malice to
Ihoot at.

There are various ways of making a fgure,
according to Lord Melcombe. In a mean traf*:
fick with the Duke of Newcaftle for court-pre-
ferment, the meaneft perhaps that ever was
trufted upon paper, he fays — «* The Duke muft
** think, that loooL a year would not make
*^ my fortune, with one foot in the grave j
*' that, as to rank, I have as much refpedt for
" the peerage as any man j but that in my fi-
** tuation, without fucceffion or collateral, a
" peerage to me was not worth the expence of
«* new painting my coach/' He told the Duke,
neverthelefs, that, though he bad one foot in the
grave, he was determined to make fome fort of
figure in life : " I earneftly wifli it may be un-
" dcr your Grace's proteftion ; but, if that
«« cannot be, I muft make fome figure. What
" it will be, I cannot determine yet: I muft
" look about me a little, and confult my
*' friends; but iomt figure I am refolvcd to

Dack» the threftier, had been better provided for, if, in-
flead of being firfl penfioned and afterwards ordained, he
had been endowed with ten acres ot Jand. r^n . iiJlvr- to
threfti on. By turning the laborious threftier into an in-
a6Hve parfon, they brought lunacy firft, and then fuicide,
upon a man, who might otherwife have enjoyed himfelf
with two cows and a pig, and ended his days in ferenity
and eafe.

D ^^ maker

34 S Y L V A, OR

« make.**^Ov\d and Horace, though related ta
a court, have both expreffed themfelves, as i£
to live and die unknown were the firft of arts z
certainly to do fo would be better, than to mak^
ftich a f^ur^ as this. Should it be aflced, off
what this contennptible perfoft grounded his
pretenfions, he tells you, that he bad a good
deal of marketable ware^ parliamentary infcrefi i
and by boroughs could infure fix members of
parliament. Yet the Duke feems to have valued
him according to his real merits \ for the King^
would not receive him to any mark of his fa^
vour. Pages 297. 299. 308. 315. of the Diary
of George Bubb Dodingtorty Lord Melcombe, by
Henry Penruddocke Windham. 1784, 8vo.

Though this Diary every where difplays that
mean, bafe, and villainous fpirit, which> with;--
out any regard to conneftions and obligations',
fubmits to court and flatter the powers that are ;
though it Jfhews its author to have been wholly
direftcd by motives of avarice, vanity, and
fclfiflinefs i yet I entirely think with the editor,
that Lord Melcombe, far from fufpefting^any
inference from it diflionourable to himfelf^
meant it as an apology for his political con-
duft. So different, as he adds, is the moral
frnfe of courtiers from that of other men I
Editor's' Preface.

To put things of a fort together^ let mefub-
12 joia

TThe wood.

H

join another pifture of human meannefs, taken
from the Memoirs sf Madame de Pompadour.

When this lady became miftrcf3 of Lewis
XV, all France paid her their court ; and per-
fons> who had decried her birth> afterwards
claimed a relationlhip to* her. .The follpwing
letter to'h|p> from a gentleman of a very an^
cienc fathiiy irt Provenccy will flitw to what
intenfe meaEnfte& human Mature is capably of
defcen'dingv

^' My deaf coufi«i^

*^ I was ignot;i|iit of b^Idrtglftg to yotli till
'" the king had nominated you Marchionefs of
^' Pompadour : then an able genealogift proved
*' to mCi that your great grandfather was my
^' grandfather's coujin in the fourth degree*
" You fee by this^ dear coufin, that there is a
" real confangiiinity .between Us. If^it is your
^^ pleafurcf, I; will fend you the genealogical
'^^ tree of our relationlhip, that you may pre-
*^ fent it to the kitig. My fon, however, your'
•^ coufin, who ferved with diftinftion for fome
^ years. Would be glad to have ai rtgirtneiiti
*^ and, as he cannot hope to obtain it by; hi*
^^ rank, I pray you to alk it frorti the king zi
« a favour/* ^

HEIt: Al^SW£R.

« Sir,
" I fhall embrace the firft opportunity of re- -
« qu^ing the king to grant your fon the re-
D 2 *^ gimcnt

26 S Y L V A, OR

" gimcnt you defire j but I have in my turn a
" favour to a(kof you, which is, to permit me
** not to have the honour of being your rcla-
** tion. Family reafons hinder me from be-
" lieving, that my anccftors have been allied
" with the ancient houfes of the kingdom."—
She adds, in her narrative, that fiit Ihould.
*' put the half of France to the blufti, were
" fhe to mention att the letters (he had re-
*^ ceived, full of the moft abje6t fubmiffions»
*« from the firft families in the kingdom." ^«-
fiuaJ Regijier for 1766.

VIII.

OLD AGE NOT DESIRABLE.

npHE Gerocomice, or art of prolonging life
to old perfons, is afcribed to Herodicus,
one of Hippocrates's matters j who is cenfured
for it by Plato *% and I think very juftly. For,
why ftiould people be made anxious to live,
when they can in reality no longer enjoy life ?
when they are foon to be*a burden to them-
felves and all about them ?

/*^ In Rcpubl. I. 3.
: Gaffendus

The wood. 37

^ Gaflendus h faid to have lamented, -while
the phyficians were "bleeding him %o death,
that he " perifhed in a frefli and vigorous old,
<^ age *' i** but I know not how to believe it of
him : Gaflendus was too wife for this. A man
of (ixly-four, as Gaflendus nearly was, however
unimpaired in either body or mind, may juftly
be reckoned, according to Horace's idea, con-
'vivajatur ; .and to any offers made him might
then, as I fliould think, with fincerity reply,
that he had indeed had enough of every thing.

Is it not aftonifliing, that fuch hien as Ba-
con and Defcartes fliould engage in fo wild
and unphilofophical an attempt, as that of ex-
tending life beyond its natural boundaries ?
Bacon, aware of objeftions, affefts to apologize
for it ; but his apology is fo abfurd, that one
might almoft fuppofe him not in earnefl:*
" Though the life of mortals," fay^ he, ^^ be
*' nothing elfe but a mafs and accumulation
** of fins and forrows, and though they, who
«' afpire after an eternal life, fet butfmall va-»
« lue upon a temporal ; yet the continuation
<* of works of charity is not to be defpifed

*' Poflcm hie viri femper lugendi mortem dolorofam toti
Europae, immo mundo, recenfere, nimio ilk) remedio fan-
guineo; et verba ab ejus ore deprompta referre, quibus
ante obitum fafTas eft, fe nimio objiequio periijfe, et ad inferos
turn *viridi adhuc et fiante feneSa defcendijfe. Petri BorelliOb-
fervat. Phyf. Med. cent. 3. obferv. xi.
♦ D 3 . « even

3« S Y L V A, OR

'* even by us Chriftians." Hijl. tf Life attli

Death.

IX.

AGAINST THE MARRIAGE OF OLD MEN.

Jk LCESTES, aged 72, was lately married tQ
a fecond wife. Were I advifed to take
another wife, under the mean and unmanly
profpeft of being coddled now I am old**, my
reply would bain fome fuch terms as thefe :—
^' My dear Sir, I am greatly obliged by your
*' attention to my happinefs, but (with your-
" leave) I will referve the little ftrength
^ a^ fpirits I have remaining for the better
*« fupport of my old age. Secondly, thougji
<' I ^m ftot k old as Alceftes, I am old enough
<^ -to have contrafted many ways and humours,
*' which, being by habit become natural, can-?
** not now be contradidked without making mc
«* unhappy : but they would be contradiftcd
V by new connexions, or any new'fyftemof
«* living. Thirdly, if a man has any decent

♦* To be £iiddUdy is not only to he »iirfed and humoiured
like a diild^ but to be made a fool of in eveiy fenfe of tk^
word : the common fate of men^ who many when they ais^i
oli

*f pride

The wood. 39

*^ pride remaining, he will difdain to be efti-
*' mated merely as a convenience: but an old
*^ fellow cannot be accepted of in marriage
" from any other motive. Laftly, I have lived
*' long enough to Jiav^e but one general objea:;
*' and that is^ to bear the growing infirmities
'^ of old age, and to wait my di{rolution,.with
" a fpirit and temper as peaceful, as refigtyed,
*' as contented, an^ as feirne, as may be. I
*^ am, therefore, determiined to continue as X
" am."

M^ean while, and to return once more to the
^ubjed, if an old man will fo far forget himfelf
^ to marry, he ihould (above all things) avoid
^youngWiki left, as Baylc expreffes it, ^« he
** cxpofc his forehead to a Ihameful and very
" uneafy difgrace." A young nian is not ex-
empt from this misfortune ; how Ihould an
old ? If thefe things happen where the wood is
green^ wkdf can be expelled where it is dry ? Be-
' fides, if he efcape the thing, he may be haunted
with the idea : that is, he may fujf>e£l himfdf
.to be a €uckaldy though he really be not ; which
is perhaps a greater evil, than to be one with*
ovit/ufpe£ling it.

P. S. Alceftes> I hear, is juft ftruck with a
palfy J brought on, as the phyficians whifper,
by the unnatural drudgery, to which his fates
b^d configned him.

D 4 ^ X. A

40 S Y L V A, OR

A CAPITAL DISTINCTION OF THE RATIONAL
FROM AND ABOVE THE BRUTE CREATION.

A SIMPLE-minded country wench, in Wor-
cefterftiire I think, was lately driving a
cow to be bulled; when, lo ! the bull was gone
aftray, or abfent at leaft. Upon this, the poor
girl took mightily on, and at length fell a cry-
ing J when a perfon who was near aflced, why
flie cried, fince the bull was fure to be found
again : " Aye," fays the girl, " but then it
^* may all be gone over with the cow i for
^* that they are not like us Cbrijiians *^

XI.

OF THE DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN NATURB,

abfolute.

T2EFORE Anaxagoras, who lived above

2000 years ago, the univerfe was fuppofcd

to confift of matter and its modifications : but

Anaxagoras introduced mind or fpiriti and

♦^ Brought to us by a fafe hand:

V matter

The W O O D. 41

matter has fmce been confidered as only the
caput mortuum oi the univerfe. This idea of
mind, or N«?, was greatly cultivated afterwards, '
and made at length fo entirely the effencc of
man, as if body was^almoft a difgrace to him.
The Platonifts exalted and refined it to fuch a
degree, that PlcJtinus was aftually afhamed of
being found in the body— aio-p^uvojtAf^oj on h
cdfAxri hr\ ^ ; infomuch that he could not fpeak
with temper of his family, parents, or country:
and, when ftatuaries and pointers would have -
taken his image, he rejefted the propofal with
contempt and indignation. The idea has been
uninterruptedly tranfmitted down ; and the
following paflage ftiews, that our Sir Thomas
Brown was not a little infefted with it. '* I
^' could hq content," fays this philofopher,
*' that we might procreate like trees without
' ^* conjunction, or that there were any way tA
*' perpetuate the world, without this trivial
'^ and vulgar way of coition : it is the foolifh-
^^ eft aft a wife man performs jn all his life ;
<^ nor is there any thing that will more dejeft
" his cooled imagination, when he fhall con-
*' fidcr, what an odd and unworthy piece of
" folly he hath committed *^"

Mean while, this fublime and fpiritual idea

*♦ Fabric. BibL Grace. 1. iv. c. z^*/
« adigio Medici, Part 11. kO. 8. "

^ ■ of

41 S T L V A, OR

of the fauman nature hatfa been far frOm .faeaag
univenfally received, i might quote M<MI«-
taigfle and other /eminent writers againft jc ;
and the Worcefterflaire wench, in the laft arti-
cle, did moft certainly not entertain it.

XIL

OF THE DIGNJTy OP THE HUMAN KATUJLt,

relaiiv}.

TO Y the dignity of human nature, men ufu-
ally mean the pre-eminence of the humAn
above other natures. But every nature h^
its dignity, fua cuique dignitas^ whether hum.an
or brutal, according to the diftinftion 5. ^
'every man in fociety, from a king to a peafant :
that is, a propriety and even refpeftability of
charafter are appropriated and belong to eacb,
in their feveral fituations and conne6kions. So
that, were the lion to fay to the hedge-hog, or
the lobfter to the oyfter, " I am above you, or
*^ the dignity of my nature is greater than the
" dignity of yours," would he not talk ab-
furdly ? Yes, he would ; but not a jot more
abfurdly, than if mao (hoidd fajr to the ele-
phant, « I am above you i" not a jot more

abfurdly.

t«E WOOD. 43

^bftirdlyy than if a duke fliould ilay to <Mje of i»
Jonas Hanway's chiipney-fweepers, <^ I aaji
f* above you/'

Faotaflic wretched aoimak^ might a w^ep«-
iQg angel intcrpofe^ ceafe to be v;ain and infbt-
Icnt. You are, all of you, mad€ by thie fa-m^
hand« of the fame ftuff, and for the fanjie pur*-
pofc of filling fonpie departttient in the wiivorfal
fyftem. You are, 41 of you, parts of one
whole, where there is neither abovt nor below ;
and though, to accomnoodatevourfelyes i^
worldly ideas, fome parts are f^ to be nnade
for honor, others for diifaonor, yet you are ^U
pf eqxial dignity, all of equal honor.

XIII.

KEEP WITHIN yOUR BOUNDARIES.

<^ T DOUBT,\ whether cxceffive laughter
^' becomes men who are mortal," fays
Bruyerc : je doute que le ris excejjif xonvienne aux
hommes qui font mortels ^. He might as well
have doubted, whether it became a monkey to
(kip about and play tricks, becaufe poor jaejcoo
^as fome time or other to return to the earth,
from whence Jus x:ancie.-^Xhat prodigious fage

■^ 4> Charaa de P Homme.

perfon.

*.

44 S Y L V A, OR

perfon, the late Lord Chefterfield, who, among
other ways and means of cultivating the
graceis, advifed his fon and pupil to intrigue
with the dames of Paris, — be could not bear
the idea of laughing. He thinks, thzt fmiling
may be permitted to a wife man j but fhould
be forry if it could be faid, that, " fincc he
«' came to the full ufe of his reafon, he had
*' ever been heard to laugh ^^Z'

What pity it is, that, inftead of cultivating
their nature well, men fhould fo often attempt
vainly and fantaftically to foar above it,—*,
fliould want to be angels before their time!
Thus, we have feen Plotinus above **, aftiamed
to find his foul amidft the f^ces of matter j
and our Sir Thomas Browne, reprobating the
aft of generation as very debafing. Agreeably
to which latter idea, another fublime philofo-
pher hath declared *' the noblenefs of the foul
" of man to be fuch, that fuch grofs enjoy-
*' ments are exceedingly ielow her : and, there-
" fore, even nature hath taught her to fneak,
'* when fhe, being heaven-born, demits her
" noble felf to fuch earthly drudgery *9/' Yet
this faid Sir Thomas Browne did at length
condefcend to Jneaky and to demit his noble ^
felf to this faid earthly drudgery : for he took a

♦7 Lett. 112. ^^ No XL

♦9 Dr. Henry More. Sec Norris's Ti^ory and Regulation
ef L0VC9 p. 173. \^i',

wife.

The W O O D. 45

wife, with whom he lived one-and-forty years,
and by whom he had no lefs than ten children.
Stupendous fall! She was, however (as we
prefume to have been recorded by way of ex-
cufe), fhe was " a lady of fuch admirable fym-
, ** metrical proportion to her worthy hufband,
*^ both in the graces of her body and i^ind,
" that they feemed to come together by a kind
« oi natural moBfetifm^''.''

OF GOVERNMENT, AND ITS VARIOUS FORMS *'•

N

A LL the difputes about government, and its
various forms, feem to hate arifen from
thefe two particulars : firft, from men's view-
ing human nature, each through different me-
diums, or in different lights i and, fecondly,

' 5* Whitefoot.

5' This N*> is taken from The Irenarcb of Dr. UeathcoUi
pag. 199, 1 78 1, 3dedidon: and, if we have tranfcribed
a little freely from this writer, it is becaufe we would make
more public fome^^^r^/ matters oT importance, which he
hatW^^reated in a fhort clofe way, agreeably to our plan,
but which mufl eafily cfcapc notice under the particular
' title of his book. *

'* • from^

46 S Y L V A, ex

from their coniiicring h as &tf»oanr in
mocfc, or of manners ii-ar jrj thr fa.-r.e.

Hcbb€s fc^::-Tri IrTrr.an r.irjir ro be
bar! : chxt there was no :.-?rire bcacrolcacc m
men, no focii! prin^p!- ro hold ttcm tc^e*
rherv but that ail were narjrallT in a ftttr of
war with one another. Hi^btes therefore con-
tended for the moft abfolute form of gorem-
mcnt, as deeming no cha:n$ rrt ftrong for Ae
reftraining of fuch a fivagc : Hzbies was, in
ftiort, for having him douUc-ironed. Sbafi^^
hurj^ on the other hand, thoughr highly of hu-
man nature : he afcribed to it a mzraljtnfe^ or
inftinftivc feeling for what is reafonable and
benevolent ; and fuppofed, thar the human
kind, if not corrupted bf education, would as
naturally be virtuous, as a fig is fweet : ShmfieJ^
bury therefore would approve a republic^ or
that form of government, which grants tbcS
moft to private will. Lockcy who thought hu*
man nature neither fo bad as Hobhesy nor fb
good as Shaft ejburyy fuppofed it; LockCj who
v/as neither fo timid as HobbeSy nor yet
any thing near fo firm as ShafteJhtry^^foY let
ir be remembered, that, in difquifitions of tteii^
fort, bodily temperament availeth much^-^

^ Men derive their opinions, civil and rellgioBS, cliiefljr
from tempenuncnt : yet Hobbes, in ^ueftions of «eligioii8

concern^

The wood. 47

Lccke^ I fay, was led to that mixed and mode-
rate form of government, under which he
wrote, and to which his principles of govern-
ii&g were nn^atic t^ be adapted. And thus men
vary m their ideas of civil policy, each con-
ceiving hi» Own to be the befii the very ar-
chetypal pattern or ftandard> which every na-
tion and people fhould afpire after : and hence
the many Utopiasy with which the world hath
been prefented ".

Were the queftion put to me, what form of
government I think the hefi ? my reply would
be, tbaty which is beft adapted to the nature,
temper, and manners of a p^ple. Could the
fpirit of virtue be kept up, and the manners
remain fixed and uniform, as by education and
difciplin^ anciently at Sparta, a well inftituted

cohceia^ was a moft nncommofi andftnking exception to -
ihis geheral truth ; '' the boldnlks of his opinions and fen-
** timents forming |t remarkable contrail to the timidity
•* of his charader.*' Hu m b.

^ Thcfe ideal governments have been called, as we fay,
Utopias, or No-^heres ; and they have been called fo very
truly, for they have never exifted put of the imaginations,
which formed them. But they may alfo, with a peculiar
propriety, be ftyled, in my Lord Bacon's terms, Idola Spe^
€us, if we may extend the meaning of thofe terms a little ;
Cnce, if not adually Uolized by their framers, they have al-
ways been contemplated with a morti than Narcijfean fond-
nefs. This fondnefs is finely flridhired hy Luciano when he
reprefent^ Plato as quitting an Elyfium, for the fake of
living in his own dear republic: h r^ Ix' uvrS a»«wX«<r^/«rjj
mifiBt' oixtTf. De Vera HifL L. 2.

republic.

48 S Y L V A, OR

republic, or whatever might be deemed the?
frecfl: form, would certainly be the moft eligi--
ble ; bccaufe, under fuch a form, human per--
feftion and human happinefs would be carried .
to the higheft pitch they are capable of attain-
ing- But where, for want of education and
difcipline, the manners are fubjeft to change-
where tl^ere is what has been called a frogref^
fion of manner Sy there government muft alio*
change, and together with the manners affume
a different form : and it is poflible, that, agree-
able to their manners in the different ftages or
periods of this ^ri^^r^d?;/, the different forms of-
government, fpecified above, may be fuited to
the very fame people. Does not the hiftory of ^
ancient Rome give us rcafon to fuppofe fonic-
thing like this ?

Upon the whole, the heft government for fo-
ciety is like the beft good for individuals. Con- .
fidered as general abftraft ideas, or archetypal
ftandards, they are both fantaftic and vifionary %
and politicians and philofophers may fearch
for ever, without finding them : for, as all go-
vernment muft be the beft, which is beft ac-
commodated to the circumftances and manners-
of its people ; fo that muft be thtjummum bo^
num to individuals, which is- beft adapted to
their refpeftive temperaments and difpofitions.
And who does not fee, that, in both thefe cafes, =
the variety of beft governments and of beji

goods

YiiE W 6 O Di

49

gobds may be conctiircd to be almoft infi^
hite ** ?

II iiii

blF THE PkOMULOATIOiff OF LAWS*

tN 1729 was pafled an aft, to pirevcnt bri-
bery and corruption in clefting members of
parliament jj when the legiflators provided alfo^
that the faid aft fhould be publicly known
and promulgated^ by ordering it to be read
openly at proper times and places. It were to
be wilhed, that the fame provifion might ac-
company all other laws and ordinances; the
promulgation of which is fo little regarded, or
rather fo totally neglefted, that, ridiculous as
it may found, the people of England, in gene-
ral, know nothing of the laws^ which they
themfelves are faid to nlak^.
No nation has been more free to make laWs,

'♦ T\it fo*veretgn good Yi2L% btfcn compared to the panacea,
or univerfal remedy, and aptly eiioqgh ; thfe one being as
fitted to procure all people healfJIf, as is the other t6 procure
«// people hafpinefi. The /o*vereign form of government
#ould be juft as well fitted to the various mdnners, as the
others t6 the various temperaments and conftitutions of
mankind. In (hort, they arc all chimKras, and without
exiftence.

K than

50 S Y L V A, cif

than the Englifh ^* :— they have indeed been too
free ; and we may almoft fay with Tacittw, ^
diJtehae flagiiiisy it a nunc legibuSy laborafur-'-^yxt
many Ivations have been more attentive to the
proKifirtgation of their laws. The Athenians,
for this piirpofe, had their yojutcfcVat ; whofc pro-
vince it was to have their laws written upon a
tablet, and fixed up at the ftatues of the heroes^
called iwconu/Aot, that the people might have
them in contemplation, even before they were
propofed to the affembly^ The promulgatioa
of Roman law was by clear and legible cha-
rafterSj in fome frequented public place : cla^
ris Uteris y unde de piano refte legi foffit^ ante ta^
bernam Jcilicety vel ante eum locuniy in quo nega-^
tiatio e^ercetur j non in remoto loco, Jed in tvp-
. denti ^^.— And hence Caligula contrived to fix
up laws, minuttjfimis Uteris et anguftijftmo loco ;
as a ways and means of railing money upo& the

55 Pickering^s edition dEThe Statutes at Large , froa Magna
Charta in 1225 to 1784 inclufive, confifts of above thirty
Yolumes in 8vo, belides the index volume: three-and«
twenty- of which have been enafted iince the Revdotipn in
1688, and ten of thefe fince 1760, when George III. be-
gan to reign. — Henry VII. fays Lord Bacon, " may juftly be
** celebrated for the bell law-giver to this nation, after Ed-
*' ward I. : for his laws are deep, and not vulgar ; not made
** ufon the fpitrre of a particular occafion for the prefint, but
" out of providence for the future, to make the e&ite oT
*' his people itill more and more happy.'* Hifi. of Hany

yii.

* Digcft, xiv. 5- II. f. 3.

|& 6 people.

'fni WO O D. 51

licbpie^ whoi from not difcerning and being
apprized of, incurred forfeitures by offending
agaihft them ^^^

But neither in great characters nor fmall> nei-
ther in ptiblic places nor privatCi are the iaws
of England promulgated to the peo|>le of
JEiiglandi They are Hot even advertifed, as
Common pamphlets are; They may indeed be
had from the ihops, and read^ income time
afieo among the Statutes at Large ^ by men of
the profeflion, and a few others ; but the mul-^
titude art left to know them as they can, or (td
ipeak more pfopcply) not to know them at alU
In fliort, when I coiifider the egregious igno-
, l^^ice of the people of England touching their
laws> it calls to my mind that period in the
Roman government, when ** the Calendar was
«* fo profound a myftery, that application wasi
** ufually made to a few lawyers in the fecretj
** in order to know the days of pleading ^*."

*7 Sueton; in Viti § 41.

*• Gicer. ad. Attic, vi. i.--ctprd Muraen. § ii.^^Thia
<ttiy feeiri ridiculoasi but certainly is not more fo, th^n what
Was afttrally ti^nfa^ed among ourfdves the very laft year ;
When, in nlany of our public prints, we had the names of two
lawyers tacked to an interpretation, of the aft for a horfe-
tax : as if a meaning, which fhould have been obvious to
every farmer in the kingdom, could not be drawn frofti it;
tvithout the afliftance of thefe profeffional gentlemen ; who
yet, after ^!, were liot iit general thought fufficiently gifted
for the talk ailigncd to them,

E at XVI. OF

^2 S Y L V A, Oft

XVI.

OF REPRESENTATIO>f IN' PARLIAMENT.

npIIE term repre/enlalive feems lately to have
deviated from its original fignification and
import: for we hear of fome, who conlider
themfclves as *^ nothing more than the at^
<* tornies or delegates of their conjiituents 5 and,
^* regardltfs of their own, pride themfelves in
" afting according to the fenfe of thefe con-
^' ftituents only." But this feems a very de-
grading idea of a reprefentative, and furcly ex-
hibits him under a moft fervile point of view.
A reprefentative in parliament is a pcrfon, de- -
puted by individuals to execute their portion
of the public bufmefs in the national council
or affcmbly, and vcfted by them with full and
complete powers in order thereunto. In this
fituation, he is to ufe his beft judgment to-
wards knowing and afcertaining> and his beft
endeavours in promoting, what Ihall be moft for
the national good j and this, without any retro-
fpeftive view upon his conftituents, or any re-
gard to xhziT fenfe of affairs: for it maybe,
either that thc/en/e of thefe conftituents cannot
be conveyed to him, or that they may have no
fi^l/c to convey.

And

T « E ' W / O O Dv 5J

And that this independency of the reprefen*
tative is fuppofed by the conftitution, appears
plainly from hence, viz,' that the powers with
which he is invefted, are not revocable at plca-
fure, or before the expiration of the term for
which they were given j even though they
fliould Be cniplo'yeli^ . not only againft the/^«/fc
of Jbiis conftitu^htsV tilt even againft the na-
tional weal itfelf.^^How far fuch ah ordain-
ment of things is eligible, 1^ f^y not; but I fay,
that, if a. reprcfentatlvc be nothing more than
a perfon,' who fifs in the Houfe of Commons
to fpeak t\i^ /enfe of a certain number of people,
as he receives it bjt the poft out of the country,
he is no better tbkn a tXibe, an organ-pipe, a
kind of wind-inftrurtient, which fends fortl^
(ound mechanically.

E 3 XVII. QT

54 S Y L V A, c?|

XVIL

©F A REPRESENTATIVE IN PARLIAMlWr

<^ 'T^HE ^eateft flave in a kingdom iis genets
«^ rally the king of it/' fays a certain
writer**. I am tempted, ^pon well-groundecj
conclufions, to except a reprefcntative in par-r^
liament, refiding among his cqnftittjents, an4
immediately depending upon them : who, whe-
ther you regard the attentions he pays, or
the compliances he fubmits to, may (I think)
moftjuftly be deemed, if not indeed tht grfat^
efiy yet certainly t\it/maUeft^ of flavcs.

XVIIL

ELECTIONEERING.

Jl PRIL 1784. The rhichefs of I), has mixed

with thp mob of Weftminfter, and is caii-

« vafling for Fox. Alas ! fhe little knows what

kind of theatre flie has entered upon. Lift<jn

'• Majfims, Qharaftcrs, and Rcfl^dioiis. 1768, 8vo. N»
397: •

to

T H r WOOD. 55

to the Canaille^ and learn-^hat they fay of her :
look intx) the print-fhops, and fee how ih€ is
painted. What billinfgate, what caricature!
Yet the CanaiU^ are only tools : they are cm-
ployed by .pepple, whp, by . the curtefy of
England, are not of the Canaille. Retire, my
dear vnthinking Duchefs ! Though thou were
clean and pure a3 an angel, they will make
thee dirtier and filthier than even Gulliver
vendor xhe Yahoos.

XIX.

UPON JUSTICES OF THE PEAC£^%

fi I R, March 14, 1785.

1 N your Advertifer of the nth, you have a
fliort. paper Kpon the police^ in which it is
afked, whether ^^ Jujiices are ftill to make a
'' tra4e of jujlice ?"' and where it is infinuated,
that one great obftacle to an amendment of
the f^lke is this very trade. The police and the
Juftices do moil: certainly, both of them, want
to be ^mended ; and this, not within the bills
of mortality only, but even to the remoteft
corners of the kingdom,

•* TWs Is taken from the Public ddvertifir.

£4 Lord

£6 S Y L V A, on

Lord Coke hath faid of this magiftracjr, that
*' the whole Chriftian world hath not the Hke^
" if it be duly executed." 4 Inji. 170. It
Ihould fcem then, as if it had not been July ex^
ecutedi for it is really aftonilhing, with what
fupreme contempt and even averfion this order
bf magiftratcs hath, from time to time, been
treated. Sir Thomas Overbury fpeaks of a
^' country gentleman as a thing, out of whofc
*^ corruption a juftice of peace is generated.**
Chara^ers. — Lord Bacon^ in his Jpopbtbegms^
mentions a wife Juft-ajs, who, being compelled
to thruft a delinquent out of his office, faid>
*f thou fhalt go, nogus vogus\* meaning (poor
'gentleman !) nolens velens. — Bilhop Francis
Godwin^ preaching about the fame time upon
Oives and Lazarus, obferved that, " though
<f the fcriptures had not expreffed plainly who
♦^ Dives was, yet by his cloaths and his face
*^ he might be bold to affirm, he was at the
«« leaft a Juftice of Peace," &c.^'— Thefe were
in the reigns of Elizabeth and James, when
thofe we call Tr^^/z^g-- Juftices now, went by the
jiame of 5^^/-Juftices s as if men, who could
do nothing without a prefent, yet who " for
*« half a dozen of chickens would difpenfe
f ' with a whole dozen of penal ftatutes.'* So a
Member expreffed himfelf in the Houfe of

*? Uarrinp9n\ View of the Church, p. 167.

Commons.

The :W O O D*;. 57,

Commons, as ,Sir .Syman^s. I>^Ewe.s reUtes {la
his Journals, ^.»pji6iQj, . ... / ,; .. ^ .',,
- The AutW pf HuiOiri^Sy w^l^ip^ lived under
Charles I, ;a^djl..ijijpnfiqns,.a jMftjc^.of Peacft
.^s *f, oae, vwhe^^itaf ; .^^p^efltt £?jr his. jvit, . and. un-.
^« 4erftaads^.byvCQa>mifl^9in,^.*^.;r^ the

late Henry Fieldingt hath ^ repreieriteid bi^.-hrp-*
ther Juftices a&. a <,vpry Jia;^. ordci; of jb^ing^
furcly, when, . ipe^k^ng.qf^ oA?i who was about
to ,«' execute;, Jy%i^efhip,wjiich, fays he, ^ 9,
" fyllable pipre.ithan Juftijce/' he adds, ^.^ but
*< luckily the .clerlf:. ha^: a, qualification, .no
f* clerk tp a Juftice ofPeafe^-pught ever to be
*^ without, namely, fome.undef Handing in the
" law of this realm ?^" The .rnagiftrate here
jmeant. w^s . the furious Squire JVeJlerni and
really, when fqch images occur,, a little harni^
^cfs mirth mufl be forgiven. .Ih?,ve never con-

•* Butler*s Remains, 1759, 8vo,

•2 Fielding does not feem to have been apprifed of the
expedient fince found nmt, to remedy the defeft here alladed
ta It is now i)ecx)me a eufbrn, ioi the country at ieaft, for
two or oiore Judice^ to meet at an.alehoafe, and to ftatloji
an attorney amidft them ; who^ while he officiates oflen-
iibly as a clerk, is in reality the firft rnagiftrate in tKe
room, by being as it were a light to lighten the reft. The
great inconvenience to whi^h this contrivance ftands expo-
fed, is, that, (hould any mifchance befal the attorney,;^
^uid humaffitus ei acdder^yh&re's an affemblagc of lumin^-
pes extinguiihed at once.

templated

58 S Y L V A, OR

templated one of thcfe wild-looking *♦, blii(^
tering, overbearing ignorants, amidft his pca-
fants at a village-meeting, without feeling an
impulfe to accoft him, in the language of Tc^
rencCy^eone es feroxy quia babes imperiumin hel-^
has ? but, alas ! I might as well accofl: him in
the Chinefe.

Mean while/ notwithftanding the ridicule to
which the above honeft gentlemen feem to
have been obnoxious, — who probably had little
knowledge of any kind but what related to their
horfes, their dogs, and the game, and who a6l-
ed rather from the authority of fquirefliip, than
the authority of law,— yet they were not in ge-
neral 5^^/-Juftices, but abftained from even
the idea of lucre: whereas fww nothing is
more common than to fee pcrfons obtruded
xipon the public as magiftrates, who are not
only as ftupid and as ignorant as men can be^
but whofe fituations and circumftances dp not
fet them above the temptation of trading. And
they are obtruded at random ; as much at ran-
dom as alehoufes are licenfed ; that is, without
any regard to ufe in the thing, or charader in
the perfon.

Spirit of Reformation ! thou art careful about

** — rudisfant bonarum artium, et robore corf oris ^^idi
fenx. Taritus,

many

Ttm W Q O d; fy

many thkigi ; when wik thoti carry thyfelif
fnto the department of Jufticing, t^rhkh is at
feaft one of thp things needful ?

PHILODJjCUS,

Yes, Phllodicus, y? quid humaniius ei acdde^
4er€t I that, is, in plain Eivglilh, *^ if the at-
^« torney fhould come to be hanged/* A mif-
jchance, indeed, that he may at Icaft dderve,
when we confider the impofitions and extor-
jtions he. will almoft be fure to pradtife : for it
is hardly conceivable, that any attorney of
(charadter and credit Ihould fubmit to engage
jn fq humble a fervice.

Mean while, as Philpdicus is fo fenfibly
touched with abufesy why would he not give u^
fome idea of a reform f which, however, feems
to lie in the fmallert compafs. Inftead of Juf-
tices made at random^ and without regarding
pither ufe in the thing or charaSfer in the per/on,
Jet fit and proper perfons be chofen at fit and
proper diftances j and, inftead of taking fees,
which are juft what is demanded ^^ let a fet-
tled ftipend be paid to the office of each ma-
giftrate by treafurers of counties, and levied
upon pariflies as. other rates are. Were fome

y

^» A dcrk pf the peace is finable lol. if he negled to
pxpofe conftantly ia the Seflions-Room a table of the fees ;
and a juftice-clerk 20I, if he exafts more than due. We
|cnow it : bat can it be expe^ed, that a pcwr, ignorant, af-
frighted peafantry fhould india and/»^^

fuch

6o S Y L V A, oit

fuch regulation as this to take place, what is
now a dirty trade^ would become a liberal ^/Jfr-
vice : the fpirit of litigioufnefs among the
people, which this trade has fo much contri-
buted to inflame and keep up, would be diT-
countenanced and checked; and, in (hort, die
police throughout the kingdom be corrected
^nd amended.

Of THE INEFFICACY OF LAWS WITHOUt EDV*
CATIONj OR REGULATED MANNERS*

^UID leges fine moribus vana proficient t
^^^ fays Horace : and it is an exclamation that
has, or might have, been made in all ages and
nations of the world. We in England have an
ccclefiaftical, as well as civil, eftablilhment for"
the fecurity of good manners j but neither
feparately, nor conjun6tly, have they ever cfr
fedually performed their bufincfs. The truth
is, that this famed alliance between church and
ft ate hath not had the promotion of good mart- '
ners for its objeft, fo much as might bje
wifhed ; the parties having rather ^attended tot ^
the promotion of their refpeftive rights aj3k4

privileges.

The 'W O O Eh U

privileges.^. And hcncc^ wc.are forry to fay,
the terms of this alliance have been on botK
fides but ill pbfcryedi for,, when either hath
prevailed over the othery there hath always
been an end of the ajUiance^ i • ^ p

..But, fuppofe the haljanpe pfjppwei'to have
been preferyedj between thenp, aj^d that they
had unanimoufly made good manners their ob-
jeft ; yet neither Would this have availed, with-
out a previous attention to thefe manners by
education and early difciplihe :

Eradenda cupidinis

Pravi/unt elemenfa 5 ef tenera nimis
Mentes afperioribus

Firmandaftudiis. Hor.

Without education, all the folemn pompous
exterior of .civil and ccclefiaftical eftablifh^
ments, all the laws and ordinances upon earth;
will not be able, for any long time, to keep
mankind in decency and order : experience ha$
ever fhewn, that manners, as they degenerate,
will fooner or later prevail againft them.
" The laws of education," fays Montefquieu,
" are the firft we reeeiye> and fhould have rc-
«* fpeft to the principles and fpirit of the go-
" vernment we live under: as they prepare

^ Lord Bolingbrokc calls this an ancient and dofe alliance
ietween /ecular' and ecclejiafiiceil tyrantr^. 01dcaftle*s Re#
jnaxb.

6% S Y L V A, o*

'< us to be citizens, each individual family
«« Ihould be governed conformably with thli
«« plan which comprehends them all ^^."

It was on this article, that Plutarch fo juftly
preferred Lycurgus to Numa ; the latter hav-
ing paid no attention to youth, in his fyftcm
of legiilation^ but left them to be educated at
random, and juft as accident, or the caprice
of parents, might direft : lirl tocT^ rZv xrarigtaw

VO^n^d/Asyoq itri^vfiiotig J( j^ffita^ rag ruv yiutv iyuyag^^m
And what powerful cffefts education wrought
at Sparta, the long duration and hiftory of its
government fufficiently declare : Laced^emonii
foil toU>i>rbe terrarum feptingentos jam annos am^
flius unis moribuSy et nunquam mutatis hgiius,
vivujit^. The laws were not changed, bccaulc
the manners were not changed ; — for the laws
muft depend upon, and be fubfervicnt tOj
the manners— and the manners were not

*' Comme les lobe de V education nous preparent \. etr«
citoyensy chaque famille particuliere doit etre governee
ihr le plan de la grande famille qui les comprend toates«
Dt PE/prit, £2ff. iv, I.

•* Jn Fit. Numae.

•^ Cicero pro Flacco, § a6. — ^When one obferved, thaC-
the Spartan government lafted thus, becaufe the kinga-
knew how to govern ; f yea rather," fays Theopompiu^
** becaufe the citizens knew how to obey." Multum hahei
momenti princifis int^ritas, fed tnulto plus cimum rsSainfti*
tutio. Erafmi ApophtL p. 55. Amft. 167 1.

changed^

The wood. ^j^

changed, becaufe education and difcipline held
them fixed and uniform ^. .

But in other nations, fuch as ours for in--
ftance, where morals in educating arc little
cultivated, and mere accmpJiJhments chiefly vc*
garded, manners will. never obtain any fixed
and regular form j but exhibit that variegated
and niotley appearance^ which muft needs re-
fult from individuals, difi^erently trained> and
differently fafhioned. And thqs the body fo«
cial> compofed of heterogeneous and diflbnaM
materials^ as it were, which do not kindly mix>
and confpire to form a whole, will generate
ill humours, fermentation, and diforder with*
in ; and thcfc operating furely, though perhaps
flowly, will gradually corrupt, and finally dif-
folve it.

^^ £«rii y if td TiXof T^ «roXi» wio'nt (feut^lif on net) rhf vctf
hiuv fAtftf km) Tfif uvryi* wayKoTov tl^asjmavruv^ See, As there
is one end in viiw in every city, it is evident, that education
•ugbt to be •ne and the fame in each ; emd that this Jhould he
the obje& of the public, not of indimduaU^ as it now is, whem
every om takes care tfhis own children feparately. And their
mode of educating is particular alfo, each inftruSting his chil-
dren as he pletifes ; though, ivhat all ought to be engaged i pi ^
might to he cotmHon to aii. For this the Laceiitmonians may he
praifed ; Jince they give the grekteft etttention to education, amt
mMktitpmhUc. Ariftotcl. Pdit. VHl. \.

XXI. AH

S Y L V A, •&

XXL

AN APOLOGY FOR DR. JAMES'S FEVBR-POW-^
DBR 7/.

^^^UONJM fato fieff'^by what unac-
*^^ countable pcrvcrfencfe in our franne
does it happen^ that we fct ourfelves fa zea-*
loufly againft any thing new f The Fever-Pow-
der grew into repute about the year 1750 ; and
it was no fooner in repute^ than the phyficians
began to perfecute, as fome time after the che-
mifts began to counterfeit, it. Two fets of
men, therefore, might be confidered as inimi-^
cal to it, the phyficians by their inveftiycs, the
chemifts by their adulterations ; and the latter
would difgrace it more effefhially than the
fornier, by being the occafion of nuipbers to
perifh, whom the genuine powder would have
cured. It was, it feems, fo natural toexpeftthc
perfecution of fuch a powder, that one of the
profeflion may almoft be thought to have ac-
tually foretold it. " Can any one," fays he»
*^ behold without fcorn fuch drones of phyfi-
" cians, that, after the fpace of fo many hun-
«^ dred years experience and praftice of their

7« This N® is taken from the Vniverfal Biography^ in
12 vols* 8yQ. aru JAMES.

*^ predeccflbrft^

*^ prcdcccffors, not one firiglc medicine hitH
^' yet been deteftcd by them, that hath the
^* Jeaft force, dirfcftly and per /<?, to oppofe,
^V^cfifti ^ihI e|[pda continual fever? Should^
*^' any by a more fedul6ti3 obfervation pretend^
*^ or make the I'eaft ftep towards, the difco^
** veiy of fuch rcmediesi their hatred' and envy
** would fwell againft him, $s albgion of devils
" ^ainft viitueli^fcole fck:ieties would dart'
'^ their malice at hinn and torture him with
^* aU the calumniea imaginable^ iKrithout-ftick-^
*^ ing at any thing that ikould deftroy him
'^ root and branch : for he,, who profeffes a
" reformation of the ait of phyiBc^ tnuft re-
*^ folve to run the hazitd bf the martyrdom of
** his reputation, life, and cftatc^*." Dr. Mor-
ton, who has faved millions of livesj as James
tobferves, by pointing out the ufe of the bark^
tomplaths of the oppofition which was madd
to that medicihe : <« It is an undoubted truths''
fays he, ' «' that there were many Villainoua
*' flahderers every wherit, efpeciaHy inLotidonj
^^ who wickedly and fitfully coWpirtd to fup*
" prefs the rifing reputation of this febrifuge ;
^^ left, by this Jh'ori method of curing fcviirs,

^* The Art of curing Difeafes by Exf^eAaMom By Qh^
vkon Harvcyj M. D; Lond. i689» p. 196.

F they

96 5 t L V A, . tf«

^ they flioukJ lofc opportunities of pickiitgl
^^ the pockets of their patients ''V ;

It ftiould fecm, as if an inventor was in a fi-.
milar fituation with the citizen of old, who covil^
not propound a Jaw, without a;n halter about
his neckrf Nay,- indeed, in a worfe fituatipn»
as having a more ceptaiii fire*ordeal to ga
through : for the few might pafs, and the prcH
pounder efcaipe hanging; but thenoveKft^or
innovoitsrj as they call him> is fure to be perfe-^
cuted. The efficacy of James's Powdtr 10, li»
prefmiie, as well eftaWifhed by irvattei^ of fa&,
as the efficacy of aay medicine that ever, was
bit on : but, alas t what is matter of faft agaiuft
prejudices and pa0ions ? and, efpecially^ when
thefe prejudices and pafTions are inflanae<^ and
Iieightened by interefted and felfiflx OKMivcs*
There was once a violent diiTention betlrceq;
Peripatetics and Galenifts about the origin of
the nerves i the former deducing thcn^ firma
the heart, the latter from .the brain.^ A G*^
lenical anatomifl: of Venice happened to]"^
. performing at a ledure upoa t|i4( iM>jf^

. .1

^ '' VeriifimQm ({uidem eft, noh defaiflb wsGam ij^*..
«' dam detredlatores ubique, prafertim Londini, Jjiu fldb-
;*' malo confilium ceperunt de hujus febrifagi famapnairti*
^ txai fupprixneivda | ae» leilicct, hac fucdnfla trf^dwife-
^-^^ febres obtranca&di, segrotantium crumenas emvlgjOti^
♦* ©ccafiatdkrctur.*^ Pyrctologia, Lond. 1692, p.iau-^

Th^v wood. ^^7

. ^tkcn a* noble Petnp^tiCf l^is anjcagoru^ was
prefenti and h^.|xrocfedi?d vyittt oq^oi^^,^ or-
dinary careu bc(:ftttfc.ii.Ci fead ^^hc ^.Ofnyiiftion of

.fo&ed^with ^c^Ewy y^ach minptfi .pari:^ and,
iayiflg open th$ root qjjt of whkh the nerves
grcj»r, .|><;iblicJy-e^ibUed iu in the

Jbrpi». Upo;j:Fhi<^j: turailig tohis antagoniil,

ijifiafljed, *f^if ^ was. at Iqflgth convinced, that
f*^ tfacb nerves fi^uagfipm thf; brain, and npt

'y¥ Jrom the heart ?'* whoj, after fome paufe,
!f ^IpwjBd indeed tj^e £ji(3: to ^ £b very plain
55 aftd obyious, ;ha; he cojald <w>t but have

' f^ ai&ated to it, i^ Arijafk ba^^ot declared the
#^ contrary ^\''

..Bat pvhat are dtbe pbjei^ions to this julljiy
fanious Powder ? Why, fonie (it is i(aid) rcfufe

^ This Itory is told in the Syftema Cofixtictiti^ of Gali«
:lm^il, who was himfelf an illu^ipus example^.to ihew how
feeble a thing even a matter of fadl is, againft theory and
hypothefis fupported by an eftabliihinent. When Coperni-
^ CVLS revived the ancient aftronomy, y^Mdi inade the fan,
'Abtthe earth, the centre of the planetary fyftein, it wa$
(aid, by way of objeflionj that Venus then muft undergo the
..j$^9e;p^a{es with the xnooo. This Galilseas afterwards
, difcpvered by his telefcope to be the real matter of faft;
J^t this real matter of faS shying adverfe to received opi-
rRioa> cxpofed him tp the cognizance of Pope Urban VIII.
,::)rho profqribed him as ^n heretic, and threw Ubn into pri^
fon ; whence he was npt releafed^ till he had formally ab*
jiired what he had feen with his eyes.

Fa tQ

$J S Y L V A, OK

to give it, becaufc they know not what it isr
and indeed, once in my hearing, an olid country
apothecary (than whonm exifteth not, in gene-
ral, a more fclf-fufficient '^ creature) declared
himfelf, with much confcientious formality, to
this purpofe i-^he did not kmw^ forfooth, of
nvbat 1/ was compounded. He hsid better have
faid, that he was afraid it might hurt the falc
of his drugs ^ : and then, though he would
have faid nothing more than what every body
knew, he would at leaft hare fpoken fenlc*
For, did the dotard know the conftituent partSy
or of what any thing was compounded ? Sup-
pofing integrity and philanthropy to be any
way concerned, his bufinefs was, not to difpute
captioufly about principia or primogenid par-

75 *f In country-towns, where no phyfician ufiially re-
" fides, apothecaries, efpecially thofe in years, look upon
** themfelves as perfedl Hippocratefes in knowledge and ex-
*' perience/' Dn Stevenfon en the Gout, p. 137.

7* •* An objection to my Powder, and a very ferious one,
*' is, that it has a tendency to impair the trade of apothc*
** caries. I am certain, that this is the true reafon of all
" the oppofitioil made to its ufe, and to me as the author
*' of it. The phyficlans, that have lifted under the apothtt*
^' caries banners, have meanly defoited the canfeofthe
•' public." James's Vindication of his Powder, p. 99.—
l»ut all have not lijlcd under the apothecaries : for fame avow
Its efficacy, and prefcribe it openly j while others, to whom
the fpirit of martyrdom is not vouchfafed in fuch abundance,,"
tTiough they afFefl to difcountenance, ufe it under a dil^
guife.

tides.

The W O O D. 6^

titrles, but to fearch anxioufly and curioufly in-'
to fd£ts or cfFefti; and, if the Powder was
fotind to operate as reprefented, to give it at
all ad^ntureS, lit it be donnpourided of what
it would. I co^ld riot fUbmit to engage upon
this occafiori ; eWfe I might have referred this
apothecary^ iai !l wduld fbme of his bettcris, to
Hippocrates, the father of them A\\ : who, far
from difdainidg^ahd'fottrnfuHy rejefting with-
out examinationi' adVifes praftitioners to exa-
mine every thing; and "-to enquire of all,
** phyficians or not, if in any dafe they know
" of any thing ufeful^;'* And, furely, with
good I'eafon; fince, as a late phyfici4n obferved,
^^ even ignorant people, not knowing the the-
*^ ories of the learned, nor therefore mifled by
*^ them, have fometimes followed, what is not
*' unfrequently a better guide, traditional cx-
" perience^.^''

Another objection to this Powder is, that it
is empirical. If by empirical they nnusan a me-
dicine that has been tried or experienced^ as the
wprd according to its Grecian origin imports,
fo it ought'to be I dJfe. it may be good for no-
thing, or even hurtful, for any thing that is J

PVakeptis.--^** Empirici &" Vetulae fepenum^*^ in curandis
"' morbis felici^s opcrcnttkr; qaam inedlcl erttcBti.** Ba-
con dc Augm. Scient. fib. 4.
7* Mufgr^ve on the Nerves, ch. 6.

F 3 knQwn^

fo S Y L V A, on

known. But they do not mean this : they meitf,
that it is not agreeable to Pbarmac. Londinenf% i
that it is below the dignity of liberal fra^
tice ^ } and that, in fhort, it is hot an orthodox
medicine. For there is an orthodoxy ih phy^
fie, as well as in divinity; and a ma{iw«y be
an heretic with the profeffors of either, if lie
fhall offend againft their refpeftive cftablifir^i
ments, by advancing any thing newy or incoit*^
fiftent with them. Let, however, what will
become of orthodoxy, truth in all cafes ought
to prevail; and cfpecially, as in the prefent^
where the fafety and lives of men are at ftake :
for, as Jafhes himfelf writes, *' if the dignity
'* of phyfic, like that of Moloch, is to be fup-
^* ported by human facrifices, it is the duty
« of every civil fociety to treat both the art
^« and its profeffors like the Knights-Xemplars,
<* who, for their tranfcendent villainies, were
•* extirpated from the face of the earth '^"

Another- circumftance, which hath been ur-
ged tb difgrace the Powders (and the laft I
ftall.mentten)is, that it ^ hath no Jpecific effi*
" cacy in the cure of fevers, and that other

'• Dr. Donald Monro hath dedicated his *' Pnelcaaiie^
«* Medicas,'* printed in 1776, 8vo, to the College of Phy«
..£.<;ian$^ in thjpfe terms : /^ Coliegio Regio Medicdrum *Loa*
<f dineiifj, rmdicina Uheralis cultori & patrono***
^^ Vindication, &c» p. 9^

*^ medicinaa

Thb r W/ Ot (V i>^ ;7|

^ medkints will do as well "/' We , verily be^
lliew, and oiir foith i$ grounded iJpon matter
of fa6t^ that it Hath Jpedfic i|9(ili|:ics ; .that it
trill cure. fer^3;7n<>re.,<;^i$^uaU^^^ and (as all
own) more fpcffdily^; jhan any oth^r medicine:
lMat>were this not fO;^ andwisrc it only of equaj
efficacy with othersji thfjre is fwely fomething
^rery un^nerous and no^alfgfl in the cavii. For
wh&t does it amount to? why, it amounts to
this, viz. that Dr. Janaqs is a bufy, forward,
prefumptuous fellow, for labouring to diftin-
guilh himfelf by being ufcful in his profeffion^
and ought particularly to b^ difcoiiraged, ha«»
ted, and perfecuted, ibr ^fpiring after z/pecific^
which none of his fraternity had been able to
difcover. Thus I recoiled an Athenian voter,
a notable wifeacre doubtle&, who, when, afked
why he thought Ariftides deferving of baniih>*
ment, replied, " that for his part he knew no-
«* thing of Ariftides, but that he ^lad no notion
^^ of his pretending to bcyi;^ above othejrs ;"—

fe ignorare Arijiidem^ Jti fibi non flacere^ qu^d
fUm cufidi elah^rajfet^ ut pr4eter cater qs Juftua
apfellaretur. Nepos*

To conclude : if James did not live to fee

^bi$ Pojipder r(?c^ivcd^ and its ufe adopted, «»/•*

-n *f " vcit Jr in^ic^cntum mcHas Aon^ft quam tana*
'< rum /9!«tff/Vi^j./uiaqae'medicamenta a me^cis qnotidii
«' adhibita^ nullam enixn Vim fpecificam ad fbbret proflU
V ^^^ poffid^t." Monro's l^nel. Med. p. 62*

7a S Y T. V A, OR

verfaily^ he only experienced what all advaa«
cers of new things experienced before him i
unlefs we may except Harvey, the difcoyiCTOr
of the hlood's circulation i who is faid by
Hobbes to have been *^ the only one, that con-
«' quered envy in his life-time^ and faw his
" new dodtrine eftablifhed i^Harveitu folm^
*' quodjcianty doSlrinam novamyfuperatd invidid^
" vivens^Jiabilivit. Praefap, ad Elenn^nt. Ph^-?
" lofoph/'

AGAINST- THE ABRIDGMENT OF LABOUR. ■

I

^0 the Society for promoting Arts and Sciences.

G^TLEMEN, March, i773»

A SOCIETY fpr the advancement of arts
and fciences may certainly have many cu-
rious and fome ufeful objefts^ but I cannot
think that the abridgment of human labour
fhould be one of either fort. For, what is the
end of fociety at large ? It is not, that one man
Ihould batten in wealth and luxury, and that
nine hundred ninety ^nd nine fhould ftarve
under wretchednefs and poverty ; it is, that all
ibould enjoy the comforts adapted to each

man*s

oiaa's llation and condittpn* But the 1[^uikx>f
.naaftkind muft live /by kboufj and, if by any
/contrivances tl^c^ are> deprived of this labour^
Jiow ajc thcfc.comforts^tO be procured ?

1 have fometrkerc readof a famous printer,
who .went: front! .Holland to Conftantinpple,
and carried with himjipreffes and types of all
forts, in order to. vOiitroduce the art of printing
there. The Vizir juhcaring. of itj^ ordered the
printer to be hanged, and all his apparatus to
be deftroyed ; declaring it cruel, that one man^
to enrich himjelf^ ^Sft^ii^i^tiMiT Jr^<^^/^^»^ ^/<?-
ven thoufand Jcribes, who gained their living by
their fens. The execution of the printer fa-
voured of Turkifh manners, and was indeed fa-
yage. I like the conduft of that Roman Em- ^
peror better, who, when a mechanic under-
cook to carry fome large pillars into the Capi-
fol at a very fmall expence, made the artift a
handfome prefent for his device, but refufed to
accept it, faying, that he muft Juffer the poor
people to live*^. .

The principle, however, from which both
Vizir and Ehipcror a6ted, will always deferve
attention. Whe'n nations are got to their height
of civilizatioii, as we fay; when wealth Vnd
luatury prevail i when arts ahd Sciences flourifhi
then they naturally abound with people. Then

9* Suctohi i;i Vcfpaf, i i8i '

every

74 S Y L V A, o R

every trade is crowded, every profcflion orer^
charged ; « and, as Seneca cbnr^plained with re*
gard to the Romans in his tinne, «* they hainp
** indeed too nnuch of every thing :" omnhim
terum infemperantid labor ant •'. At ftich a pe-
riod, methiiiks, it would be rather doing (er«
vice to increafe, than to diminiih, human la-»
bour. Our com is ground by wind and watef*
Suppoie that fome wonderful mechanic cotsld
invent and fabricate fuch a fyftem of machi<r
nery, that all our lands fhould be cultivated^
^nd all our manufactures carried on, by wind
and water too; what would be the effcflt?

There has been a projedtor of this kind at
Leicefter, in the frame- work-knitting ways
and the knitters have rifcn, apd pulled his ma-?
chine to pieces. I am greatly (hocked at tu-.
rnultuous affcmblics and violence : they are
fure to generate a fpirit of infurrcftion and
riot 5 and it will be in vain to fay to this Q)irit^
Jo far Jhalt thou go, and no farther. Neverthc-r
lefs, my heart is made to ache almoft daily by
the complaints of poor fufFcrers j not only of
iome, who (fuch is the prefent unfortunate
ftate of our proyifions) cannot procure the
common comforts of life, even with all their
honeft induftryj .but of others alfo, who could
procure them^ if they could but procure cm---

« Epift, 106.

ployoricnt.

ployment; Yet, furely, the labourers and
manufadurers ;aj-e not tliofc, who ought to be
ft^lyi or perhaps even the moft, alarmed at
any contrivances, to. abridge labour; for if
thofe (hall come to. have, nothing to do, every
body knows at whofe e^cpence they are to live.
Mean whiles it is. pot in the nature of things,
that all times. ftiQuldJ^e, the f^me* If we do
Aiffer any little hardihip? under the prefent, let
us bear them with patience and contentednefs;
In full alTurance, that Godj in his gpod time,
will enable the inftruments. and minifters of
his government to remove tjiiqin.

I am. Sirs, yours, &c.

P. S. That the ftrength of any kingdoni is
in proportion to its populoufnefs, is a favourite
axiom with many; and it may be admitted,
always provided, that objefts can be found for
the hands to be employed. But the abridg-
ment of labour will not ferve to this purpole.
Nothing hath conduced more to the jibridg-
meht of labour, than the late rage in fome
countries of iriclofingopen fields^ and thereby
converting much of arable land to pafturage^
Yet this may be borne, nor will any great in-
convenience be felt, while trade or manufac-
tures can employ the hands which arc not
wanted in agriculture. But fuppofe a death-
blow to be given to trade (and let us remem-
ber.

7^ STLVA,ox

h to lyicomc of the i.-;n:in:erxc!c rr.2inj£a&u^
ftri r W:ii tf-j^ poviIoufbHs of a nsdoa ^Mx
b^ the ftrength of it ? Will :r zot ndscr he «
fwA opprcfEvc burthen ?

XXIIL

TO THE, FOUKDEJIS, PROPRIETORS, A^TD MA-
KACERS OF THE PAKTHEOH •♦.

GCKTLBMElfj

\X7HEN you conceived the dcfign of your
magnificent ftructure, you undoubtedly
had in view the reception and amufement of
thofc chiefly, who arc diftinguiflied by theif
birth and fortunes. The very title fcts forth
yonrpurpofe: for Pantheon is compofcd of two
Greek words, which fignify a receptacle for all^
the Godsj and originally exprefled a temple i(i
ancient Romci which the Deities then in fa-
(hion were fuppofcd }o honour with tlieir pfC;^^
frnrc.

■♦ This Number was prinwd in ttie St. Jameses Cbrtntck!
ol' March xi^ 1772 ; and ivas oceaiioned by a rumoar>' that
tha proprietors of the Patukton nj^eax>t to confine it to tk».

fudjity, und to exclude the people.

FrQa^

The W O O D. 77

From the heathenifin of the name^ yoy have
been imagined by fbme to have defigned it
only for tho(e who have rqeded the Chrif^
dan religion^ in oppofition to thofe who ftill
retain it: but this conftru^on. is altogether
invidious. Befides, the icheme would have
been quite impracticable ; fince fome few
Chriftians, at lead, would have been fure to
creep in, under one difguife or other, in fpite
of all your care to keep them out.

Others have drawn a different conduGon
from your title, but in my humble opinion
equally remote with the former from your
true intent and meaning. Thcfe, far from
fuppofing you to confine yourfelves to any
particular rank and charader, have on the con-
trary fuppofed you ready to admit all charac-
ters, not excluding even the worft; fuch as
gamblers, cheats, whores, and debauchees of
the very firft and mod illuftrious magnitude.
And they affedt to fuppofe this, becaufe the
ancient Pantheon was prcfenced with charadters
not unlike j for even whores, and (harpers, and
debauchees were found among its Deities.

But we have, happily for* us^ no fuch cha^-^
rafters among thofe, to whom yours is dedi-^
cated. Your Pantheon, gentlemen, is dedica-
ted to the very flower and quinteflence of the
kingdom ; to thofe who muft be called, if any
can be called, the Gods and Goddcffcs among the

fons

98 S, Y L Y A^ OR

ions af men. And I wilh you had reeolldSed
this fpeech of Quartilla, the prieftcfs of PrMf-
pus, inPecronius: Utiquenqfiraregiotamfr^^
fentihus plena ifi numinibusy utfscilius pofigdemm
quam bominem invenirei that is^ <' ttttdivXj our
" part of the town abounds fo with Delttw^
*^ that you may iboner find a God than' ^ a
«« man.'' It would hare graced your froAtiT-
piece very well : and tfa«re-s(rQi44^^ve beeii^a
ftriking propriety in it, on your iafiecrfbiy^
nights efpecially*

But could any doubt remain about the dc*
£gnation of *your Pimtbim^ the foUowiog. fk*^
cumftance j(hews> that you intended it for^this
fuperior order c^ beings. For it is fuffiQc^tfiJ]".
known, that as fooa as it was finifhed^'^i^^^i: ^
for confecratibil, you very judicsppflyj^ j^^wq)}
as very fublimely, appropriated this cer6mOd]f - .
to their High Mightinefles, thcPcerefles of ^bc^ '
Realm. You vetted in them folcly the power '
of thV key? i the power ^ admitting imd ^x^ ,
eluding whom they, in the pkautu^of-rtfaiir
wifdoiti, fliould or fhould.oot deiem worthy .^
the honour. -■ ^ ' • \ ' :. ■

And forry am I to fa^, that this mea&ne i^
yours, however wifely conceived and deofify
proje^ed, has taken for you a molt unfoitd*
nate turn. By aimihg rather ^officiotifiy .:fio
pleafe the Lords, you have exceedingly jdifo-
bilged the ComoioAs* Thde. xieridc vjrou :

they

th* w o o a .7^

^[|Cy coafidcr your overture tp the Beere0eS|. as
«. ftroke of the<fnoft foril^ adidatiofii and d>ey
4eteft you, as a.coq[ipaiiy of fawning fyicp-*
,|)ihaQt9^ wli9 are wiUing aad i:eady ^^to rulh
«, keadl<^ uHQ: flaycry" (hu/irtxitiwiL rmr^w
as TaciCtts: exprefles it) vithputa^itii^ that
{^adiial progreiHon oC.jna^mi^ers sow prevail--
jog) which at Iwxg nm arefuroto^ intrwiuce it.
And what is woife and more mortifying ihaa
even this^ while th^ Ccnnmonfi ipum at your
contempt of their lower order^- thePeereffes do
'not feem to havie a {v^cientreffentiment of the
iiomage you: have paid thenu

Should this Biii&rtunatexonftru£bioD of your

good meaning dtfcat the. rife and intent of

your magnifiocnfepile; as it is generally believed

it will ; Ikoidd your Panthcn become in con-

ibquence un&fiiionable and unfrequented^ ^ou

will have^ nothiog IdDr ro do^ but to convert

:it into a church;, and for this you have an U*

luftriousk pDCocdcnt- The ancient P^ntbectt at

Rome- was converted into a j church by Pope

Bonifact tV. inufaBeysar €07^ iind confecrated

to the Virgin Mary> and All Saints, under the

'' 'ftame of: SmS^t .Maria Rstunda. Indeed . no-

thirn^ wai more cammon^ in the early ages of

Chriftianiqr^ when the converfion of the he^-

jtficn world wȣpretty well advanced,, than to

give Cfariftian <nasnes to heathen temples, and

to apptopriatettbdn tOc iObriftiaa ufes; juft as

\^^ : they

6

86 S Y L V . A, 5 k

they gave Chriftian names to heathen rites 4nci
ceremonies, which they alfo adopted and cm-
ployed in the Chriftian myfteries.

However, gentlemen, let what will happen^
you need not be in any mighty panic. The
worft I fuppofe you have to fear, is, that the
public may at length be brought td afcribc to
you more money than wit j and that indeed is
very likely to happen.

' I am. Gentlemen,

Your humble fervant,

^e Man of the Hilh

XXIV.

Ul>ON '^NOLO EPISCOPARI.**

IN the Dedication of Balguy's Sermons to
the King, his Majefty's goodnefs is acknow-
ledged " both in naming him to an high fta*
^^ tion in the church, and in allowing him t6
** decline it.'* The writer, from whom I learn
this, afks, whether there be " another inftance
^^ upon record of a Nolo Epijcopariy declared
^^ in good earneft '* ?" Yet why ftiould it feem

»* St. James's Chronicle, i6 April, 1785*

wonderful^.

The wood. 8i

' ■ ' ' '

Woridftrful, that a man of near ft venty years or
age, who has always enjoyed independency and
his own humour^ and has a fund for contem-
plation and Jiappinefs within himfelf, fhould re-
fufe to facrifice eafe and leifure, and Jubmit to
the reftraint of crowds and bufinefs ? But thus
it is, that men make one another, as they ufu-
aily make their God *% according to the ftand-
ard and image of themfelves : what they feel
poffible or prafticable within themfelves, may
be done j yfhile all above their feelings or con-
ceptions paffes for vifion, and not in rerum na^
turd ^\

Is there a woman who could refufe ^^ a title,
'^ a ribbon, a pompous equipage, and a great
" eftate?" Impoflible, would the general reply
be J becaufe the generality of women could
not refufe them. Yet, when Mrs. Vigor was
congratulated by her female friend, upon the
profpedt of marrying a gentleman with thefe
accomplijhments^ " Can you,'* faid the Ipiritcd
dame, *^ can you have fo mean, fo contcmpt-
" ible a thought of me, to imagine, that.

*^ Almoft all mankind are» in one fenfe, Antbropomor^
phites : for, thougli they may not fdl fuppofe the Deity of
human form, or to have a body like ottrs> yet each is apt to
afcribe to him his own ideas, temper, paifions, prejudices^
&c.

*' ^J^fihi qui/que facilia faSu putet, €tquQ auimQ accipit ;
fupra^ <velutifi3a jprofalfis ihtciu Salluft*

G ^' thcfc

82 S Y L V A, OR

^' thcfe alone would be of any weight ? It muft
" be either a fordid foul, or a very trifling
<• mind, that can be charmed with what is fo
«' often the decoration of a fool or a knave *•/*

XXV.

THE CUR^ OF LOVE.

Q SIJJANTUM eft in rebus inane f " Oh
what vanity in human things !'* Damon
dies for Caelia, or (which is worfe) lives in
mifery. Rhafes, an Arabian phyfician, hath faid^
in his treatife upon the Prefervation of Health,
that " concubinage is an excellent cure for
^ perfons defperately in love :'^ but, however
efficacious a remedy this might be with Ma*
hometans, it cannot even be mentioned among
Chriftians.

Did Damon ever hear what the woman at •
Lincoln faid, as flie was coming from the min-
fter, after having been married ? She thanked
God, moll devoutly, that " the troublefome
** bufinefs of love was now at an end»*'-^WiH
this be any eafement to Damon's paffion \ But^
if this Ihould not fuffice, let the following re-

^ ^hiu Litters from Kujfia.

4 cipc

"The WOOD- ^3

cipc be tranfcribed from Lord Bacon's Apoph-
thegms : I mean, if the very gr^ve reader wJU
permit. " A wifei in bed with her hufband,
^' pretended to be ill at eafe, arid defired to
** lie on her hufband's fide. The good |T>an^
" to pleafe her, pafled over her; not, how-
" ever, without being fomewhat detained in
" the ttanfit. She had not lain long, before
^' {he wilhed to lie in her old place again ;
** and urging her hufband to repafs the road he
** ^came^ / haii rather ^ faid he to her^ go 4 mie
*' and an half about.'* Apophth. 45*

XXVL

VOU HAD BETTBR LEAVE .THEM TO FIGHT IT
OUT»

A CERTAIN old Roman, being ciomc to
Greece as Proconful,. aflembled the philo-
fophers at Athens, and. offered to affift in fet-
tling their difputes, and in bringing about at
laft an agreement in their opinions :. upon which
they all agreed^' fays TuUy, " in laughing
at hiip for his pains ^^:^ This was pleafgint,

•» Dc iMg, h M

G 2 arid

u

84 S Y L V A, OR

and no harm enfued -, but it is far from ending
thus in general.

To interfere with parties who quarrel, with
what good meaning foever, is always a nice
and delicate affair ; and, inftead of efFefting the
fervice intended, is ufually rewarded with con-
tempt or ill treatment. Pray, neighbour^ don't
beat your wife thusy faid the man in the play,
who humanely interpofed upon a brute of a
hulband. Buty fays the wife, turning fhort
upon him, fupfojey SiVy that I have a mind to he
heat : what huftnejs is that of yours ? Ayey SiVy
continued the hufband, what bufinejs is that of
yours ? And thus the ftorm increafed, till the
poor peace-maker was fairly driven off ^".—-Hu-
man nature, contemplated upon a larger fcale,
fhews itfelf precifely thus. In the civil wars
of France between the Frondeurs and Maza-
rinsy the famous Chriftina of Sweden " had a
'^ ftrong defire to interpofe. She offered her
" mediation," fays the hiftorian, '« which no
^^ body wanted. She wrote to the Prince of
*' Conde, to the Parliament, to the Duke of
** Orleans, 6fr. The Cardinal did not thank
^* her ; the Queen was ftill lefs fatisficd ; and
*' the public opinion was, that by intermed-
** dling in an affair, which no way concerned
" her, ihe had afted contrary to decorum, and

^ Molierc, Malade Imaginaire.

" to

The wood. 85

*' to her dignity. Hence the cool reception
** fhe met with at the court, when fhe paffcd ,
^^ through France after her abdication 9*."

XXVII.

OF VANITY AND LYES.

"VTANITY and lyes are often joined together
by Solomon j and what fo naturally ac-
comp^ies vanity ^ as lyes ? The vain man's aim
is, upon all occafions, to appear bigger than the
life^ as the painters fay.; and his immediate objeft,
like that of Bayes in the Rehearfal, to elevate and
/urpri/e. For this fole purpoft he will not only
tell the moft ftupendous lyes about hirnfelf, his
family, his fortune, £s?^. but he will alfo per-
form aftions, from which even felf-prefervation
jfhould naturally reftrain him : and I have feen
an aljpirant after this fort of celebrity, gallop
on horfe-back down a flight of done flairs,
purely to make me wonder how he durft do

>■ Henault, Citron. Abreg. annd 1653.

Q ^ XXVIII. A

t^ S Y L V A, II

XXVIII.

A CURE FOR LYING.

TliTENDOSUS was a conftant and notorious
liar; fo notorious and fo conftant, that
(as ufually happens) he did not gain creditj^
even when he fpake truth. Sometimes he lyed,
in order to defame, and therein gratify a fpi-
rit of malignity ; at other times for ihterefl:,
and to gain fome advantage; at other times
he would tell incredibilia and fortentoja^
merely from a paffion to elevate zxi^ Jurpfije z
and, in fhort, the habit was fo predominant
and ft'rbng, th^t he would lye withbut any
view or meaning conceivable. Once upon z,
time, however, a quack undertook, by a fin-?
gular nofirumy to cure this eyil quality, all in-r
veterate as it was ; and with the faireft propo^ ,
fal of ifio cure no pay. The recipe was admi-"
niftered in the form of a pill, with a dircdion
to the patient to grind \x. well with his teethj^
left the virtues of it fhould efcape for want of
maftication. After champing and champing
fome time^ he afked the quack, what the deuce'
he had given him ? for that it feemed very
nafty ; and, taking it out of his mouth, whe-
ther frpm its a^eft oy its favour, pronounced

The W O d D* tf

it to ht a t—d. Truth, by G—y ftys thi
quack, and claimed his pay : but the cure Wai
ahly momentary, for the patient (as was faid)
immediately relapfed.

XXIX.

A MAtf O F R a »r O U R»

TLJONS. VOLTAIRE, obferving tipon cer-
tain dramdtis perfdna in Congreve's Plays,
fays, that " their language is every where that
*^ o{ men -ef hemury but their aftions are thofe
"of knaves : a proof, that he was perfcftly
*' well acquainted wit;b human nature, and
'* frequented what we call polite company^/*
So that the arranteft fcoundrel, the blackeft
and moft deteftable villain, by frequenting po-
lite company, and pretending to an higher
^nd more refined integrity, may be denomi-*
nated a man of honour. What a perverfe and
ridiculous ufe of words^, which convey an idest
juft the contrary to what they exprefs ! — " We
*^ know very well,** fays Bruyere, " that an
" honeft man is a man of honour j but it is
^* pieafant to conceive, that every riiw of ha-.

^ Zi^ttcrf oii ^ En^lUh Nation, ijd^

G 4 *^ nour

«8 S Y L V A, OR

*^ nour is not an honeft man ^^" Pleafant in-
deed i but this is not the worft : fociety fuffers
from this abufe of terms. " By feparating the
" man of honour from the man of virtue," fays
Hume, " the greateft profligates have got
" fomething to value themfelves upon 5 and
" have been able to keep themfelves in coun-
^' tenance, though guilty of the mofl: (hamc-
^' ful and dangerous vices. They are debau-
*^ chees, fpendthrifts, and never pay a farthing
^' they owe : but they are men of honour^ and
*^ therefore to be received as gentlemen in all
** companies," Jta noftri mores coegerunt.

XXX.

OF JESTING AND FROLIC, AS WELL AS JESTING
UPON SERIOUS OCCASIONS AND SERIOUS MAT-
TER; AND OF DAVID HUME, ESQ^ SO FAR AS'
HE IS CONCERNED IN THIS.

r\ULCE eft deftpere, " *tis delightful to play

the fool," fays Horace : Scipio was the

boy, and even Cato would unbend s as if it

*' On conntUt affeXy qu^un bomme de bien eft honnete bomme ;
ftiais il eft plaifant d* imagtner, que tout honnete bomme t^ejt
fas bomme d$ bien. Charad. des Jugemens^

were

The wood. Sft

were not right ** to be wife at all hours>** qm^
nibus borisjapere. Very well : play the. fool^
be the boy i but remember that you dp thefe,
as Horace adds, in Iqco^ — that is, f^ at proper
*^ times, and before proper perfons." For, if
the gay and frolicfome humour, however in-
nocent, be fuffered to expatiate at random and
at large — before fools who cannot, or nialcvo-
lents who will not, underftand it — ^you may af-
terwards hear comments upon it, which will
ftrangely furprife you. Yes, your fooleries
may be magnified into crimes ; and you may
have faft as well as meaning imputed to you,
of which 'tis likely you never thought : for, a$
in Shakfpeare,

You do not aSi^ who often y^ and laugh :
'Tis old- but true, Jlilljwine eat all the draught

An habit of jetting leads into many fcrapes :
but the moft ferious furely that ever attended
it, is one recorded by Speed in the reign of
Edward the Fourth 5 when a citizen in Cheap-
fide was executed as a traitor, for faying, that
he would make his Jon heir to the Crown, though
he only meant his houfe, which had a crowa
for its fign.

Jetting in illnefs, or at the point of death, is
reckoned not barely indecent, but almoft pro-
fane : as, when one, who was proceeding to
the gallows, advifed his conduftors not to carry

him

fo SYLVA, OR

him through fuch a ftrcet, left a merchant, who
lived there, fhould arreft him for a debt j or,
as when a dying Catholic, upon the prieft's ap-
proaching for extreme unftion, and afking
where his feet were, which pain it feems had
made him pull up, replied with feeming gra-^
vity, af the end of my legs. And numbers, I
doubt not, have had hard work to reconcile
Sir Thomas More's piety with his mirth upon
the fcafFoldj namely, in defiring the execu-
tioner to put his beard afide, fince ^* // had
^ not committed any treafon." They have
thought, perhaps, that, as we come whinfng
m$(h the world, foit is decent to go whining
out of it «»*.

There is, however (and it ought to be noted)
an extreme oppofite to wbiningy which is na Icfs
weak and unmanly j and that is, an affeSlation
of mirth and gaiety at this folemn period— for
folemn, at le^ft> it mpft certainly is. Hume ne-

^ Partridge feems to have apj«t)vcd of this : for, when
^»nes9 in a fit of deipair, refolved for the army, and to die
as foon as might be in the field of glory. Partridge fhrunk
with horror uader the idea. ** I know/* faid he, ** wc}
•' muf^ all die ; hut then there's a great difference be-
'< tween dying in one's bed, a great many years hence>
** like a good Chriftian, with all our friends crying about
<< us, and being (hot to-day or to-morrow like a mad dog i
** Or perhaps hacked in twenty pieces with a fword, and
*' that too before we have repented of ougr fins.'' B» xii^

The wood. ^%

utef appears to n\e ^nder^a more unphikifophie
actktide, than whfen 1^ fports about GharoR at
the clofe of his life. Wat thb to ftcw, that
be died a f^hitofopher M he had lircd ; and
could ridicule the dreams a^out fimwitjr, with
which others an( haunted^ at this trying icrifts f
»-4»Thefc wa« certainly fomc bravado, fome^^-
rade of magnanimity 9 in this-j a^ I fufpe^k there
was> when, fpeaking of his Uft iUnefs, which
was a diarrhosa of more than a year's ftanding,
be fays, that^ ^f were he to name the period of
<f his life, which he fhould moft chufe to pafa
f^ over again*, he might b^ tempted to poinr
'f to this later period^*/* U this conceivable ?
-^Scire tuum nihil eft^ niji Upir^ idfciat alter f
Is philofophy then nothing, uAlcfs exhibiee^*
pftcQtatioufly to the public ?

ipp*

OF REFQftMATlONjS^^

'T^HE work of reformation, in church and

in ftate, hath long been agitated ; and,

doubtlefs, there are many things in both^ that

f ' Life by Ui^fel^ ^ Fropi The fraiarcb.

may

90. S Y L V A, OR

may well be thought to want it. Some, howw
ever, averfe from reforming, think it more ex-
pedient to temporize with prevailing fnanners-
and cuftoms j and would rather acquiefcc un-
der, than attempt a correftion of, thft nume-
rous irregularities and evils with which wc
abound. This may be juft and good, as well
as wife and politic, in certain fituations : yet,
if we mean any thing when we talk of human
perfedbion and human happinefs, it muft furely
be right to correift errors and abufes ; nor can
reformation poffibly be deemed unreafonable,
always provided, that the reformers, amidft
their zeal, will ponder well the materials,- tie
fiuffj they have to work upon^?. left, being
hurried on by vifions, and ideas of a perfeftion
not to be attained, they produce greater evils
than thofe they would remove. *^

In the laft century, by pufhing the fpirit of
reforming too far, greater evils were produced
than the reformers had it in their view to re-
move. Refiftance was made to the encroach-
ments of regal poWec, and made fuccefsfully :
but did th^ fpirit of reforming reft here ? No j
it proceeded till the monarchy was deftroyed%

57 Mens bumanay Ji agat in materiam, naturam rerum con^
temflandoy fro tnodo materi^e operatur, atque ah eadem determi^
natur. Bacon.-— And is not this as ne^effary in the world of
fpirit y as in the world oi matter ?

Ancl

The W O O D- $3

And what followed then ? Why, anarchy fuc-
cecded- monarchy ; a republic, fuch as it was,
fucceeded anarchy j a proteftorate fucceeded a
republic $ and, finally, the nation, having reel-
ed to and fro from one form of government
to another, and having found no. reft under
any, recurred at length to a monarchy, more
arbitrary even with their own oonfent, and
more pernicious in its confequences, than that
which had been abolilhed. But to proceed.

The objefts of reformation are, manners y opt*
ni&ns, and ejlablijhments. On the article of
manners^ enough has been written : enough to
Ihew, that manners cannot.be reformed by laws^
but only by education, or an eftabliflied fyftem
of early difcipline^^ With regard to opinions^ I
am free to own, with Mr. Baykj that " there
*^ are no truths fo minute, but what are wor-»
^^ thy to be promoted j no errors, fo trifling,
*« but what had better be correfted than re-
" tamed. But, when the circumftances of time
'^ and place will not fufFer novelties to be pro-
*' pofed, though ever fo true, without occa-
*^ fioning a thoufand diforders," I muft alfo
concur with Mr. Bayle in fuppofing, that *' it
" were much better to let things remain as
*^ they are, than undertake to reform them;
f^ fince the remedy would be worfe than the
*« difeafc99." To which I may add, that, after

•» SceNoLIII. »» Dia. Arminius. Note E.

all

^ SYLVA, oiE

all the reformation which can bt maide^ cvtrf
man will have', becaufe every man muft have,
his own epnion flilL Iho^wxfwla is defined
by a certain phyfician bumorum illud peculiars
iemperamentutHy unde Jua eft cuique fanitas^fuus
tuique morbus : and might he not have added,-
if his fubjeft had required rt,/«^ euique indolesy
fua cuique OPINIO ? — To fuppofe that any
man fhould think as I do^ is to Aippofe that?
man organized as I am ; that he has received
the fame temperament, the fame nutrimenty
the fame education^ and (which includes all)
the fame modification, with me, in every in-
ftant of his duration : in one wordy it is to fup-
pofe, that be is what / am. Why iwt expedt
from him a conformity of features, as well aa^
a conformity of opinions, with mine ? the for-
mer, as ihould feem, being juft as much in his
powQ-, as the latter.

With regard to eftahlifl^mentSy I fuppofe my-
felf to diffent from thofe, whom the fpirit of'
reforming agitates the moft, only in this \ that,*
whereas they would have the principle of re-
formation to operate at all times, arid in aU
fituations of things, I "would limit and confine
it to certain times and certain conjundtures.
«* There is a time for all things," fays a great
reformer : " it is not every conjunSure which
<« calls with equal force upon the aftivity of
^^ honeft men J but critical exigencies now and
4 then

The wood. ^s

tlicn arifc(^')." As therefore, on the one handj
I Would not) with a Leviathan fpirit, aflert the
reditude of mMutaimng at all events whatever
was eftabliihed i {oy on the other, I would af**
fert the wiidom and expediency of tolerating^
not only imperfedions, but even evils, in an
cftablilhment, until thofe evils can be removed
without producing greater. And I feem to af«-
fert this upon the fureft foundation j becaufe
the principle of reformation, unlefs reftrained
by this qualifying claufe, will never fuffer the
world to remain in quiet. As furely as no efta*-
bliftiment can be perfeA> fo furely will refor-
mers never be wanting to difturb it (^). I know

('*) Mn Burke. — See to what an extent Erafmus carried
the idea of waiting for conjunQures^ in the bulinefs of reform-
ing religion. Scio quidvis effeferendum potius, quam wt fui"
Ucut orhitftatus turbetur in pejus : /do pittattm ^ mmfmH"
qtuun cilari *uiritatem i neqm earn qtttwit loco, ntfug quo^h
tempore f neque apud fuofvis, neqiu quovis modo, tuque totam
ubique promendam, Epift. 501.

(••) The world can never remain in peace, becaufe (eda-
ries and &natic8 will every where think it a duty to difturk
ft:—

And prove their doctrine orthodox

By apoilolic blows and knocks ;

Call fire, and fword, and defolatioft,

A godly, thorough reformation :

Which always muft be carried on«

And IHll be doing* never done ;

As if religion were intended

For nothing elfe but to be mended.

HtTDIBRA^s;

the

96 S Y L V A, Ok

the difficulty of afcertaining the crifis, when
reformation is to commence y, — this muft be
determined by the circumftances of time: ahd
place — ^yet I cannot forbear to think as I do::
and, if I am in error, it muft be my love of
peace and good order that has mifled mci
*^ Very many perfons," fays Mr* Bayle, *< will
«« inflexibly adhere to this maxim. That it is a
" leffer evil to bear with abufes in church and
" ftate, than to cure them by remedies which •
*« will overturn the conftitution in church and
<« ftate ''"'.'' I muft own myfelf to be one of
thefe perfons : and am ready to fay, with the
good Bifhop Hally that /ome quiet error may be
better thanjpme unruly truth '"' \ or, as Erafmus
had faid before him, mihi adeo eft invifa iifcor^ ^
dia^ ut Veritas etiam dijpliceat Jeditiofa.,

But it ihould feem, as if reformations in the
ftate were far more eafy and far more prafti-^-
cable, than reformations in the church ; andy -
accordingly, a worthy perfon hath lately >exhi- >
bited a plan, very elaborately drawn, for par^'. -
liamentary independency and oeconqmical reformat/,
tion "*. 1 was affefted with uncommon- pleafure "
at the report of this plan, which (I thought) ^
was ftriking direftly at the root of the thing? -
for true patriotijmy as a great ftatefman obferved'^^*'-

^^ Dia. Castellanus. Note Q^ ' '- u >

»^' DecaA yi. EpifL 7. -^

'®* Burke's Speeoh, &c. on Feb^ 11, 1780,

moft

The - W O O D. $7

ftioft juftly, can ba^e ^no foundathny but fruga^
A/j^»iv and yam will be all attemjpts to ren-
der Members of Parliament independmiy tilt
they can be cured of their extravagancies, and
prevailed on to be oscmomifts. But, to my
very great grief 'as well as furprift, the plan of
rrformation^ hei^ pfc^ofed,' hasno refpeft at
^ to the oecoftomy of parliameiit-m^n, but
only to the expences of certain departments,
conneAed with and dependant on the court;
as if great and impoitant f^tvings might, thence:
be'made to the n^ion. Too great favingscan-.
not be made tathc nation : the riatioh ftands in
need of all that can be iaved: abd.what Mr*
Burke advances^ under this general idea, hath'
a real found^ien in reafon and equity, I only*
doubt, whether the honourable gentlenian, in'
jftiriuing this idea, -doth- not contmflate upon
t66'fmall a fcale, when he would reduce the;
expences of royalty t(^ the accuracy and preci-
fVoft" of private t)cconomy. I doubti aifo, whe- '
ther the favings from this reduftidnwould be'
indeed of fuch Capital attd effential importance, '
as is imagined. 'Andy lafHy, I >doubt mod of
ail, whether, with olir prelent manners, even *
government itftlf could make the reformation '
propofed ;*th»t is, whether fuch rcfonhation be
rtzlly prafficaHe. r ,

Bdt here, Mr; Burke hath been before us :

^ Lord Bath, in Swi/t^i tetur/.

H " I know,"

9$ S Y L V A, on

*^ I know/' feys he» " it is common for mea
«« to fay, that fuch and fuch things arc per*
^« fcftly right,^Tcry dcfiraWc, but unfortu*
<< nately not prafticablir. Oh, no, Sir» iia:
^< thofe things, which are not pra^cable> arc
'^ not defirablc '**♦. Jndeed ? But, is iK>t ptP^
liamentary, ind^aidency deitrahle ; and dots it
thence follow, that it is attainabk ? PisWiiMi^i^
tary independinty muft be according to parlia-^
mentary manners ) which, if we may trtift the
reprefentationr of thofe who. knew them weU>
arc by tm means favourable to it, at prefcAt;
The late lx)rd CM^'^> . Q^caking of Sk
Bjbert W^lpd^ ddivera himfdf on thit wife i
<^ Money was the chief engine i^ his admini**
«« ilratioo, and he employed it with a fuQGe6»
<< which in a. manner difgraced bumamty^ Ht
«^ was not, it is true, the inveator 9f tfatt
<< ihamcful method. oCgoveroing, which v^
<^ been guning: groiu94 infeftfibly eve<? 6|K)a.
<^ Charles II. I but, with uncommon fluU:.isad
^' unbounded profufiop, he bropight it to dba(
«^ perfection, which at this time difbonours and
<^ diftrcffes this country, and which, if itot
<^ chocked (and God knows him it can nwi bi
" checked) muft ruin' it *V' The latp, U«)^
Baih^ apologizing to $mff for defifting ;V.|||
«< ftruggle againft corruption,'* declared ^^i^it.
"• whole niaition to be fo abandoned amd-^cB^

" ruptt

^HE ,1W O O D. p9

«»• ixipt, thtt theOfolt^h can netret ftiiof a ina-
*tu)prttikf in bodi 'Hobfeft'Of PaHi!^htent.«~I aifi
*o**ohiV*ne«d,"'ftf»:'h», v*t»tha€ 6ttr ctfnftitu-
^-tioAijis i^ttdf'$6ttt.t:-aiibaif9 dkceidly ftrug-
•««»gH^ itb'^RhiiftMin^'i^wkati^ t^iccki 4ia$' beeii

^ord»v)M!ie i«^»befcAttfd chei%ionimt k^y not f
fftt^%« {M^Aitritf'fttftK c&>dlltidt.^^vl£¥(^y^be fo;
^)r''the»,'>feife^y(ty»t^oritifteioii in parlia^
itititty fo boi^S^d!^ rit^wt^, ^ iisti;rluyw6Ter;
Anctinfeflbdly^<^r<i^>'*;M^Aitdnwlf«ii6e; af^

»^4ul4^ff^iftffl»eii, l^jlull-e* T«ri^ bfaV*, And
« ylitdcAis ^ah i «tfiei^rift> It degeMttaiieft-irf-
^4o4{eeffttic«lh«ri>'t{id*«nd« % bd«oflitttg the
•c^ef= 6f a'iliirfliifi Wte^«aft purchafe in A

"fr^ : truism ilib«^j^<ifnuftbei Accompanied witl^

*-'">-■ ' ■ ' - . • "i ' * '"' " .'fi > ; . . i • . . ii i i . . . ■ i» . . : . . . t" . . .

imds. r^rmadomLi d^x^as.well as Pplicy ^^Id put m
iipdn teftming Whatever caA by'fcfortofedr iVc may*mo*
ierdte i)fiV^ Ifw^ eaf^<A'j-<H^e'lh^r^^
biA; tiybsmtfaypcMbttLaims ati^s^yMmubif hal^by th^

^^im^uum f^ire, ut ffnum ftrat, C^intU. IV. {•

.; -li Ha *^ a love

loo S Y L V A, OR

" a love, of equity, humanity, a deep fenfc of
" the natural rights of .men. Feelings of this
" kind can only be the fruits of a liberal and
" virtuous education 5 , far different from that
*' narxrow aqd fe.rvil^ mp^e of educating,
*^ which now prevails in every country. What
" then- can be wanting to complete, the hap-
'Spinefs^ of a peopl?, who. glory in. the beft
*^ and fcP^ft conftitution ? What rem^^na$o.be
"defired by a natiooy into whofe ,pprts,th©
" riches of the wprld find their way J Thift je-
*' ip^ins to be defired ; a generous education,
^ • integrity of jpiannerst true notions of jufliicc ;
*« in a >vofd,- difpofitions and appetites> , oppo*
*^ fite to that ardent and unquenchable thirft
*^ B£itr JJihylucr^, th/e abundance whereof is
V fit. only tQ ftifle and extinguifti virtues the
*^ moft -noble, the moft ufeful to fociety, ' .

" People of Britain, whence thefe continjual
*< alarms i. thefe fadions which tear you, thefe
^^ dark and fplenetic . hunaours which, devour
** you ? The treafures you accumulate, far
^^ from confirming your happinefs, are to you
*^ a ncver-ceafing fource of trouble. How is
«^ it, that, in the very'bbfom of liberty and
*' abundance, we fee you deep in reverie, uriT
** quietj and more diflaUsfied with your, lot,
•* than the meaneft and moil contemptibly
<^ flaves ? Learn the true caufe of your anxieties
'^ and your fears. The love of gold never

" makes

The W O O D. lor

^ makes good citizens. Liberty cannot be
**' firmly eftablifhed, but upbn equity ; or
** bravely defended, but by virtue. Leave to
^^ dfefpots the foblifh' and defWiiftive glory of
":• miking cohqufefti, and be content with en-
" joying the bleffings of nature rn'peace. Cul-
^rtivate then, O Britons, realbn and wifdom r
" employ youriblvis tn peffefting your go-
" vcriinient and your IkwsJ Fear luxury, fatal
«^ to manners, fatal to liberty: dread fariati-^
*' cifm, political and religious. So Ihall your
<^ fortunate Ifle become the model of nations,
*^ and your liberty fhine |Jit>pitiotis to all the
«« people upbfi earth *°*;" . ' '■- - '

XXXIL ^

OF LIBEl-S '''9.

CONCERNING Libels and Libellers, niuch

hath been faid, and much hath been done.

Indeed too much, as I am free to think; and I

have often wifliedi that the public perfonage^

' ^ • ».'. ". ' i'

'^^ Une naticm venfAK*, videufe, corrompue, peut*elle
done, long-terns conferVer fa-libertef &c, fyftim Smal.
PartU.ch.6.

•*^ Lord Bacon calls Libels, *^ the fcmalesbf fcdition;"
as if th< fcblding;, ox' fmiU-part 'of the cohfliA/ were per-
formed by them, 'Bift. ofHewryVYL^

H 3 , of

IC2 S Y L V A, o»

of the realm would not be quite fo tender-'
fibred and irritable, with regard to what is ikid
or written about them.

The famous Reformer Calvin told Francis 1.
that <^ there would be no fuch thing as inno-
*^ ccnce, either in words or deeds, if a fimple
•^ accufation was fufficient to dcftroy it :" nuh
lam neque in diStiSj neqne in faSis^ innocentiam
forey fi accufdffe Jufficiat "*. Now, if this be
really fo, as I verily believe it is : if cenforions
criticifm, detraction, and calumny, muft more
efpecially accompany men, engaged in the tur-
bid fphcreof a&ive lifej and if nothing can fe-
cure from thefe, but imbecility, fnfignificanciy,
indolence, or obfcurity, — of all which I am
moft firmly perfuaded,— what is fatire and a-
bufe? no criterion, furely^i of innocence or
guilt : nothing, or it may be nothing, but Ac
fermentations and ebullitions of human pre-
judices and human paffions"'. — ^Befides, the
profccution, or (which they will klWays ball it)

"*> In Dcdicat. IniHtttt -;• t *

"' Whatisfcaadal? It U, as thai my joffiy defii^«
iirmofiiu wlh certo tLuBore HJperfiiii cut fmJfgidiat itriUkd dt-^
4ii, incrmeMtum en^uUt^ i fmdn0U img^^i^ jmn/f^Hf'
JimOffqfit oicidere : that is, "z yag»e ^nd, ki^nfy]^ ^'^fff^
*^ from no certain authcVj invented by malice, anil nmtimd
^' byaeduUty; and which*' (d>ntfary to* iOicf piW^
*#>«{f wi^bMfriJ «' jnay be pMfvagat^d oFOv bidX^
' *' nocent nan i^ive." QuintiUant V/y ^fi iol')nj .

• ••'■■' ■•■ '■•-the

The W O O D- 103

tlic pprfccution, of Libellers can never produce
SU17 other effe^. but to give weight and con-
lequence to both the LUbel and the Libeller :
that of Tacitusi being univerfaUjr tmej punitis
ifii^niif glifcit auSfffrifjifs^, Nay, there is no oc-
casion for iMffinuityi if that idea be included
licre, to give arl^ftre tp.thje profecution : fince
nothing is more frequent, than that writers of
neither fenfe> j»or wit;, nqi:. learnipg, nor ho-
nc&y, become^ by being profecuted^ poflefled
of them all.

Philofophers have from tioic to time held
out to poor fuSerers in ,tlus way (I mean, to
thofc who have wept under the (mart Qf fatire)
certain meJicatntM mentis^ certain fpecifics to
render the mind callous and infenflbk to this
ibrjt.of correAion; and one qf then)^ I thinks
prefcribes the following r^</p^ ; if Whenever

" you labour under defamation,, or whenever

-," wy thing falfe is reported to. your difcredit,
*^ confider, that it is not ym^ but fome imagi-
** nary perfonage, to whom the imputed in-
^ famy belongs/' But thi3.feen[)s nothing near

, ip i^caqiojusy ai>- the vimlence and malignity
«f die- cafe. may Te(|]t»irr. For if R^hert^ mif-
ttkiffg 4in the daik,'fhiDuM fall upjon the ihoid-
dtfrs bfJ?/^i&4rJ^witli a ciidg^^^^ wbuld the iih-

,j)it(flions be Jlels fprcible, <w; the fenfations
M» :lircly> becapA; Uiih^rd jrnight.«ot be the
perfon, for wh6m the fSlvbur was intended f

J There is more good fenfe, if not fo much

H 4 fubtlety.

104 S Y L V' A, OR.

fubtlety, in the faying of Auguftus ; who,
when urged by his fon-in-law to purfue this
race of fcribblers, replied, « Don't indulge
*^" a fpirit of rcfehtment againft thefe our ad-
'* verfaries ; it is quite fufficient, that wc arc
*' not in a fituation to be hurt by any one :'*
Jatis efti mi Tiberi, fi hoc habemusy ne quls nobit
mali facere fojjit^^''.

But, neither does this- entirely pleafemc:-
for, firft, this Emperor derived his boafled
fecurity from ufurpation and tyranny 5 and,
then, he afterwards became himfelf a fevere
profecutor of libellous productions "'. The ex-
ample of Timolebn is more perfeft in its kind.
This wife and virtuous man, being wrong-
fully accufed in an afTembly of the people, in-
ftead of refenting or even taking it ill, thank-
ed the immortal Gods for granting what he hacj
fo often prayed for -, which was, that «* the Sy-
•^ racufans might have the liberty of fpeaking
«f what, arid of whom, they would, with im-
«^ punity"^/* This example is, I fay; ittorc
perfeft j but then, aks ! it is too perfcdk for the
age we live in : itisabovetheftrengthofnwn, as
men are now — ©To* yZv ^^orirUtrx. I chufe/tbere-
fore, upon thfe whole, to recommend the bcha-

• '■■ t"
»" Sueton. >>^«{r. 51. . -i ^.

**3 Primus Augnftus cognitionem defamojts Lii^Uis^^CcU Zf-*
. gU Majcjiatis, traSa^f^it. TaciU Annti I*
. »** Nepos in TitnoL ' ^ ' * " '

■ TlOtit

The W O O D» 105,

viour of the Emperor CoDftantihe ; ^ho> be^
ing importuned to punilh fome feditious per*
ibnsj for disfiguring his .ftatues. by throwing
{tones at them^: didnothing.niace than calmljr
ftroke; his face^-j^ihd tell, hiy friends with a
fmile, th^thct did no^ ^peueive him/elf S^ it
huri "^ This qcJd contempt of what men Jay
or think, feenia to have beeachejpecific of our
celebrated Dodor ^ Swift, againflr ;impreffiofis
from the maiignky of fcandal, as fet forth ia
a poem he hai left u$i Mfbichy. being Ihort.ahEl
edifying, tnay ^ wel^feerhlClrc^ fobgjoined,

■*'•« ill'. •:.'•:-' J --^iL'^ ; . V

•. ..O^N CEN^SURE,.,in.I727*. ...

YE wife, inftr^ me.j^Oy^diw;,

An evil, whicl^ a49>i^:P^ £^^'^ ^ .
Or how this evil can be borne.

Which breeds at once both hate and fconu

Bare innocence is fttrlufjport,
. When you are tried in fcandal's court.

Stand high in honour^ w.ealth, and wit :

All others whp laferipr fit^

Conceive themlelyes in tfonfcience bound

Tojpina^fijdr^gyo^p^fhejground^-^ -
. ypur altitude pffqnds the eyes ^ •

Qf thofet who, want , the^gower . to rife* ; .. *

The world,. a willing ftander-by, ... -

. Inclines to aid a fpecious lye; ..[ .. . ^,;

.^fJihiyfOom. fiMf/ria.

^^Alas!
9

,o6 S Y L V A, OR

«, Alas ! they vouldnot do you wrongs
/' But all appearances ar« ftrpng."

Yet, whence proceeds this weight we lay
On what detra&iiig people fay ?
For let mankind difcharge their tongues
In venom^. till they burft their lungsy
Their utmofr malice cannot make
' Your bead^ or toodv^r finger ak^- :
JKor fpoil yfcur ih9pcj diftorr^youit face>
..Or put one featiire out of place ^ :'
Nor will you 'find your fortune frnky -
. By what they fpeak> or what they thinit t
Nor can ten hundred thoufand lyes
Make .yooriefs vurtuous^ leam'd^ or wiie»

The mb^effeStutl way to baulk
Their -malice, is— A It/ ibm talk.

or TriE LIBERTY OF THE MESS;

» ■ . , : y- • . . ^ ■ . •

*'7pHE Liberty Dfthc Prefe,^ faith a ccfttHH
writer "^ << is the paHadiom of ail^iflie
•< civil/ political, and religioui ri^fitsf of 'Ita
*^ Englilhmatt,*'-^to which^ I have no'bbjitfc*-
tion : but he contends, that <^ no particular

- "•7*ww^itt Defies. Pwft> 4^^ ^

T;hb W O O D; fo7

^^ abufes diighty in reafpiiatid equity^ t^^^pro-
<< duce a gentralibrfeitbrt^ 6f to^ abolift? tlie
«' ufc erf itj^^-^^Q whicfe I muik ohjcft' Very
loudly. I agfcf y ' tbac is^i^ ought not t9 abo-
Uib 1^ ; but I ^ iiififl^ ^ that* thir pofidon cannbt
be maintaioed ^ib iabfolutdy^ a^ >!$' here* faf»«
pofed. For^ .Aireiyy whenever dd9 evUs^ wififa^
from the oiM/e, QnM exdid the dirik^ which
Vould vikrQ^rcki^hHJkh^f^b^'ufel^ this
«/2r in reafon o«ight to be ^rfiik«i§#ei^i provided
only, that tbk #^i{/& bC: incplTigiblew . '

With regarfto^ the Libtety of the Prefti I
fliall not dd(cati> ^hether^abiiiies augkt^ot wgbt
not to aboliih it&.-fife' r pecfindedMni ( ^ncieaibiyy
that, if our pre&nt^^ianfifi^s^j^hoM^^^
affuredly w/7/..'V^hc|i tbp Frcft ridicules openly
and barefacedly the moft revered and funda-
mental dodrines of religion : when the Prefs, in
political nSatters, attacks perfons without any
regard to things, or perhaps attacks things for
the fake of abufing perfons: when the Preli
not only v?n|9;^jy^aflraiuljjs. the i^rflt gjjarafters
in church and ftate, but even facrifices the
pf ac^-and-ijfdi^^f jprivat&ifamilies^tb Wt Iport
^{id (QinlerCftiorbeHti^f'dn ill-natured public :-^
and >is-rit3#ioi noiclrtous^ that ail this, w <]one
d»Uy V7,2viHthefi>r I 'f^jry/thisnoble^rrQaSiiiable^
•w» i.o, •• or -' ^*^'-:'» •{.:::■:':•..*•: ;'■•■-. -^nd

w 'f.SaoIi.jmiuigi^'ttie tndgar ninrevpiBcSUf^
^5> ti«j|ig9taken with |>ctalaiice and fcurrility. They are tho

"food

loft S Y L V A, oil

and manly Liberty is degenerated into a bale,
unwarrantable^ cruel licentioufnefs ; and thii=
licentipufnefs— determine as logically, and con-*
tend ^ loudly, as you pleafe— -will, by an un-'
avoidable confequence flowing from the nature
and .copftitution of things, fooner or later bring'
about its deftruftion.. 'JThings are fo formed,-
tba^ extremes muft ever beget, and prepare the
way for, extremes* Abufes. of every tlung^
n^&, deftrpy the ufe of every thing: and if the
people grow licentious and ungovernable, it is
as natural, perhaps as neceflary, for their rulers
to. increafe their, reilraint, and: abridge thehr
lii^rfy^ .as for the bireakers of horfcs to tighten
th^ reipsy.in .proportion as their fteeds fhall
Ihew^n inipatiepce to bC; managed "'•

Xt has been, faid, that without freedom of
thought there can b^ no fuch thing as wifdom,

*' foc^ of men's natares« the diet of the times. The ^wiiter
*\ mufi lye ; and the gende reader reils happy, to hear^
*♦ the worthieft wOrks ftiifinterpreted, the cleareft actions.
<' obfeared,' the innocenteft life tradnced." £ot fonfit^t

'^^ Montaign^ looked upon ''(cribibliag, as the ^git of
•' a licentious age ;" and thought, that ** there .ihouldb©;'
•' laws againft foolifh and impertinent fcribblers, as well.
" as againft vagabonds and idle perTohs." EffMs, iii. 9.^
The misfortune is, that it would be difficult to' draw tie
line betwixt fooliih and wife fcribblers ; and a liee^<^»
with an imprimatur, would defeat the end of all fcribblers, '
wife-gs well as fboliih.

' nbr

^the -W a 0"d; (109

ii<»!tai^ fuek thin^ astiberi^ vidthout ffbeditfh
cif^lpdBch : andjrtbecaufcrtl» latter is^onie^m W
t}uadified £ei>iib^xa]id ,i2ndi»a*cmftm limicattcmii
tlie authority ffafTadcios hM''imn4bfxi»Ay 4ind
ewn AupiEd^obtndied^ia9:aapirM>mhr^

liceoccy/a^ well 4n fpeakinigiisis ki^Atlri^mg^^
*^ Jlarciifln^ihappy :timc9,^i*,%s^^ h«y ^^•:HiSiclfa
MMraan iiiay<thtnkwba(/kei;^i^ a»^4|}e^
^f he thu^:>f^jr^^^v»iWii^j/%^ ^ujif^^
tire ifu^ '/9ilh^ r^ qu^JinH^^jMiereyiictst^ ' fteti^ '
and h^i^' timeff:^un}6ed4-:^BW>|ferayv''gS^

of aay time&> when men 'Were not aV^UMit^veo
tbink^.imi'iiftffufmmldf: A'*tM3i^UtAy ibhtkidj^ Jbc
pkafes. vot the .m>cflrnJiiM)i atitwdl itf'ittfitEbliefl^
becaufor^tbought,^ as/ih<^ iwf^ ia ac^iall Jiffies
free/<l)tn: osxkuzrmwl^asrt^^
any goYcrrintient> even^the bcft, txe allowed* the
iibcrtyr^f jJpM/fctti^ wlmtlbe pko/h^ offcdirtmij-,
nicatipg' hihrifel£ up'.ib. the ifl:andard,)0f:^'5iri
id^s J! . MayHCVjei^r-'^W >i^peak^ of ^neiyxiWMn,
what, fbrin^ance, thelplecnof humpiip,-« thVf
capiiocj oftamagmaf^M, :^11:' h&{>peft' tadBbg^
gcft ^*-^lH^tIie&'gctli^yi i ijk .tfajth, icnoy: i& 4it- ^
tie of Ibtcii!^, 'as^rheyl4D;o&£>ciety^
k will hfeai;*.a./it^Jf JffOi^em^ *'!

<* :Jmwo; rcfc«rcdy>^f&^-<te'feii^l(>ym^ scn^
« oid^igeinthert€ii^;*6f ?ctfe:delfiedv^lier.yii
:: . ':ivy * * '^ :^ '* with

nt> S Y- I. V A, oil

«^^wth:that of die Emperor Tragaitr it worf^
<< more capiou8> as well as mQreiiafer.iuch is
'« the rare feHcity of thefe times^ .wheh juntarc
<< at full libertf' to^ entertain what felitimenti
^ you pkftfe, and- to tlechoc wiut icntimema
^ y«ru eniertaiii.*-^~^^9V'i2i^^
j9it 'e»teriaim ■: yc9, but of wboni^ or v^t^ivf'i^
not dfteieery tmx^ywi mcety/ or 4ifever)^. thing,
that happent'9 ^ Tackni :iiiider(h)od<^hQn»it ^al^
fiirs id a different maanerr bia>-<»o£t|iofe ]jar-^
tbcular reigns^ oppofed W- former ^tp^nmUical
tingjas i when >inenji^ far &o«n peaking dwi
diiift^lciu-cely tnifli theinfdves aren iirikh thcitf

. ' It i« itiaaarkabi^riihtt tim ficeeft dnnkcbt^
ail^^Hlraa £fe:firoeflrljraalcer% faavd se^
lowed fuck; a licemiifc in thenr^^ wfaaceieriifaemir
fehsa may hare takea in:praftice^ «« ^%M
!f. feek trtth/* &jra oiie».:H but iiedk ie::tpi^fl^
^fraawdla&firoolf. 'iLec us imtimai^inipyrttiar
<^ fome «ho are caUed::free^thiidc)erii»;itliAc
'^ everf maiv wha^catt.:diiidc andj«dgeir^
^^ hiaifelf> as he has u right to 'do^ has^tfamiM
^^ ibrr a right tfi^akhg^Mttf nu^Asr^^bm
<^ a&ing, according to the fiJi fteeiutkciiaib
^thoughts. ThefrecdMabdong^Mlhjm-i^
^ a rational Cfeature; he lies under reftraint aa
<* ameadber of jfiw:iety---^We may ciimitt^^^
^^ cate our thoughts only fo> as it may he! 4jp^
5 ' "Without

Tkk w o: o IX €11

^ without offeitdiog^ the laM 0£ our ^fwintry^
€^ aiid)di{hui>iiigth6 public j>eace'^V>: r,

moBAp fluU it /noi:i.be.fo/ m^/criimii tithcR 4pK
plMd ta liecfeiM' Mdjchara&iw^P.rMiifl! % |^^:
li9fi»p^^ fa«r j^^circwii^& ^ aiid, gmrded, ^ w^en
tfCKiog' of . ahftc»& prc^pofitiMf^ iMiidifciiffiiii:
ijj^culatifve pMitft whifik iim{caak\twof9AttnA^
*wliil6 4ay l(MiVr0i«liaiouSi.ujq;>riiK:ipkd:^^^
ihtU bcpemudsd to ioutor j^mhriteds indi&
<;rmi4tiU«iy iirxibciei^ aad (fi^mii^t &iiniKt|r;
«ftd s^uftt wthouti jufticpvMd witjioutinea^
f ure ? 'Will «i]^ vckmLlSv^^^£ax^JbiiBWsi^.mm
country (ure not ojfendod^ and the pod/^jifjoii^
difiuriod, movt in^ the la£f3erdii& than in the
former ?-^I know -kr. wiUi bfe aflccd^ vriitre^witf.
you draw the line of diftinftioni?. how cfetf'*^
taift the point,; where iiberty-enda^i and: Mceb^
tipv^Ewfs begins^:* and I ^^U iQ this>^ as^ iit;
many, other cmfisi^ allow the extreme dtAcaltf.
of.tnadung boundaries '^% and reducing ku^
nuia affaksi to piredfioD-.and<xaAfle{si>but |
belkre aevcithelefs^\4tfast^^iiniefs foi^ expe*
dient candle. hiC:UfQ9'M>«^fp3^^fce wrjr atro**
ciou^'a;biift4){ die Pitffy t^e^deftrudion o^ici
uiewiUlffe^lQP&ttidauna^iMdable^ > er .j.':

^^JCerum nafura nuiUm^edif cogntttonemjimum^ ut tola tfi

t;.-ci:»w ' As

»j» S Y L V A, OE

As t^^axf firmed dc&gn againft the Liberty
of the Prefs^ about which fame have dreamed,
I cwfioc fuffer myfelf to be at all apprehenfive
of it : it is of more ufe aod importance to a
King of Great Briuin, than (if poffible) to anr
of his fubje&s ; and this alone (uffices with me
to ftifle and keep down every rifing jealoofV.
In abfolute dcfpotic governments, where the
will of the Prince is the law of the countrr,
where all things are adminiftered by force and
arms, and where the glory of the Grand J16-
narque is the fole end and objeft of the mo--
narchy, it matters not much for him to know,-
what the condition of his fubjeds is, and what'
they fay or think about him : but in a quali*
fied and liitiited monarchy, like ours, where the-
King is no more than the Firft Magiftrate ap«
pointed by the people, where he is as bound to^
obey the laws as the meaneft of his fubjefts,
and where the well-being of thefe fubjefb is
the fole end of his appointment— furely to-
fuch a Prince it muft be of the laft confequence •
to know, as minutely as he can, what is doing
in every corner of his kingdom ; what the ftate
and condition of his fubjeAs; whether they'
enjoy plenty, proportioned to their induftryi
and whether, in ihort, the end of his kingly
government be in every refpeft anfwered ? AU
this^ I fay, and more, a King of Great Britnn <

muft

It k E W 6 C D.' tif

Ittbfk know as he can : but — how muft he know

it? .

A King, let his iifeerkment offpiriii bfe what'
it will, let him piy ercr fo acutely into thd
heads and hearts of thbfe about hkn, will ne«
Vcr be able t6 -pierce throligh the nnanifold dif-
guifes, iK^hich courtiers always knoW how td
wrap themfelvea in. By courtiers ate not meant
thofe gaudy painted images, which move me-
chanically about a palacey and are really no-^
thing more than fo much furniture i but thofe>
who are entrulled with the great offices, to
whom the adminiftration of affairs is commit^
ted, and who for the moft part manage and di-
tedk the reins of government as they pleafc^
And as he cannot difcover, by any natural fa*
gacity in bim/elfy the latent principles>of thingsj
any more than the real Charaders of « perfons ;
fo he muft not eitped to receive any effeSual
infonxiation from others. For, I fuppofe, it
will be no fatire upon any. particular courts
that now is, or ever was, to fay, that there ne-
ver was a Prince, who was told by any of bis
fervants all thofe truths, whidh it Concerned
him to know. At leafl this feems a proportion
fo very well grounded, that I do not think the.
feverc plain-dealing of a Clarendon, or the ho*
neft blunthefs of a SuUy^ fuificient to form aa
exception to it. The Emperor Diocletian made
thcjdifiiculty of reigning well, to confift chiefly

I in

J14 S y L V A, oji

IP die difficoltjp of anriving at the real kmnr-r
ledge of affairs. ^' Four or five courtiers^"
ftys hC| *^ form themfelvcs into a cabal^ and
<« unite in their counfels to deceive the £m«
<< peror. They iay what will pleafe their maS-
^ ttr I who^ being (hut up in his palace^, is. a
4< ftranger to the truth, and forced to know
<< only what they think £t to tell him '^V
. Now this great hindrance to good gOYertif-
ment, as Diocktian thought it» is almoft^ if
not altogether^ removed by the juftly valued
liberty $f Ae Prejs. By means of this» the
loweft fubje& may find accefs to t^t Throne i
and, by means c^ this» the King has a key> if
I may fo call it, to all manner of intelligence :
nor is there any thing> the leaft important tQ
government> of which he can remain Ipng un-
informed, unlefs he delignedly ihuts hts eyef«
It is not meant that he &ould fiiddenljr.^Qpfy
, » real truth and matter of £U%, every thi|i^
which may be read in the public pn^:

^ '** DioclitUiTMif dixit, nihil eJfiJifficiliut qu^m ietd imf^m^.

CoUiguntJe quatuor 'vel.quinquii atqut tmuM eonfiUum aJltUd*
fienJum Impmaorem tafiunt: ^ienm, quid fribmiitmr Jiu
Imf€rator^ qui dcml claufutif, nfera nak novH : <^jkwif*Hk»
Um hifffiiri, qn»d ilh htqmntwr^ ^ ' Vopifcttif mAm^vmi^
^' Princes/' fays Ben Joo&n,. <r learn n^ ^rt.-^ uuly*^^
^' the art of horiexnaiifklp. The reafofi^ is^ the brare bttft
^* u no flatterer : he will throw a Fdnee; as foob; u '^
^ ^00*l.'» pi/€^k;eHef. " - ^-^"^

■ : . . if;...;-:. •:...;■■ - \}gM

T tt E W O* d' 3. *i5

tmd Many perbap» m«y' thktk^ i^ac toii^ lb
HMdi ttA(ttpte{im3Aioti and ^rroir^ ^ riltich
partialfty amd dtfguife> fo l^U(iK kfdircriminsHJs
fcurriKty tad abtife, fcc dawTitrdfly depcftd
wporf arty thing at^ alJ, or takt^ any meafurea
firora foch a cftaos tif with arid^ firffehood. Bnt
of this chabs/Werc? it tentitttta marefe, It h
Indifputably certain^ that very tniith uife, and
Very many advantages, ni^f Ik rrtade. Thd
King may be dir^ftcd ta find, wh^rt he would
neirer have thotight of looking f6r : more than
glknmcrings will ever and anon appear, which
will enable him to pufh his difdovferics ftf ;
and he will tra<* from hehee many things td
their fource, which would othci-wife have re-
mained for ever i^nknawm In fhort, from
thcfc public iritelligi^iccrs, fomc things will be
hinted, others fpokch out more freely, others
prefcnted in their foil glare; arid thus, tipon
the whole, all concerns of moment will lie open
before him.

Wicked and felfifh miniftcrs know this fo
well, that We hjlve bftien heard of maiiagenpent,
in courts very corrupt, to ftop pprhcie chan-
«cla^in«cllig«ncc to the Prince; They know,
Aat bf tjicm^ m conftant commerce, corre^g|[in-
tfeiice, and trniohyas it were* nfiay bb madntained
kef ween the Prjnce and his 'people. They
know, that while thefc arc fo maintained,
ihify vainly attempt ta cabal, and to impofe
I 2 upon

11^ S Y L V A, oji

upon their maderi and if, notwithftanding,
they will not tell him all the' truth they Ihould,
yet they dare not abufe him with mifreprefen-
tation and lyes. Why ? -becaufe difcovery i$
inftantly at hand, and becaufe difgrace and
rqin will tread upon the heels of it. So that^
all things confidered, the advantage to the So-
vereign frorn the Liberty of the Prefs is one
great fecurity with me for the continuance and
prefervation of it j nor, I perfuade myfelf, will
its abolition ever be attempted by any King,,
who knows his true intereft, and purfues the
well-being and happinefs of his people, as the
fole end and objedt of his reigning.

XXXIV,

OF JURIES.

JURIES, or the trial f er fares ^ is an eflential
part of the Englifh conftitution, being exr,
prefsly fpecified in Magna Ckarta. Yet an. au-
thor, very learned in the law, " conccivcs^i
"that by this was meant chiefly the tri^ oC
" the barons by their peers j though it hath,
" fortunately for the liberties of this country,;
*^ been expounded to extend to the trial .of all
" perfons by a jury." He thinks that a French

law.

The W O O D. ii^

Tiw/ by which ^^ all nobles were to be tried-
^^ par leurs patrSy*^ made near the tinne of ouf-
Magna Cbartay and by perfons of the fame or-'
der, namely, the "nobles and barorls in both,
kingdoms, may rightly be cohlidered as expo-
litdry of the Englitti^". . But, ' however an-
cient and conftitutional their power, there arcf
not' wanting perfons to ridicule and condemn,
if. The Scythia^n AnaCharfis, ' having fecn the
orators haranguing the 'people at- Athens, ex-i
prefled his fufprife, that " ift Greece w;if<i^
"men pleaded caufes, but fools determined
« them "^ :'• and fomc. With . us, * think it
equally abfurd, that fuch fort of perfons, as
tifually compofe our Juries, fhould. be made
judges in matters of law: they would confine
their judgment, or power of deciding, to the
matter of faff.

It is certain, that this latter notion of Juries^
whether well or ill grounded, is by no means
new : for all our law-books infift upon it, as the
prime and effential qualification of a Juryman^
that he be chofen out of the Vifne, that is,
vicinage or neighbourhood ; de^ vicinetOy uH
faSlum fuffonitary fayS' Fortefcue '^^j becaufe,
as they v/rkc, vicious fa£fa vicini prafumitar
fcire '*^ ; but fay little or nothing of his qua*

■** Barrington» on Ancient Statutes ^ p. 29. 3^ edit. '
»*» Plut. in Solon, »*♦ De La^. Leg. c. ao,

»5 Hawkins's P/C. n. 25.

I 3 Ufication«

11$ S y L V A, oti

Biic^tionE^ In law; and therefore include onljr

bftlf the id^a of a Juryman according to thofc,

who will hare him a judge of law as well as

/^^.-^Thcre U a |>affag«L in Bradon> whick

feems to fhew, that, in Henry the Third's

tinfiCt it was the duty of the Judge to con-

troul the verdift. of the Jrwy : Jedy cwm W

Judicsm f&Hne9f Jttfium fr^trr^judiciim% 4fprm

iiebii cum dilipnter txamnarcjfi ii€t^ Jurato^

turn in/i vmtatem €on$iniant^ etfi eorumjuftHm

fit judkiumy n^dfahtum^ n^yfi centing^f Judi^m

isrum diSa/equi et wmmjudiciumy Uaf4lfimfa^

ciat judivHm ^t fatuum "^^.-—Lord Gla^rendios

declanrs him&lf explicitly of opinion,, that; (;ha

Jwy ar^ not to judge of the /<^w; and Q)ealw

^ntemptuoufly of Hobbes* for making th(m

judges afJam.Bs well tsfa£f ^^\ I (hciuld tuot^

I confefs^ have fufpeded Hobbea of a^y bia;^»

in farpur of the peoiplc ojp their priTikgcs j

mid if he has 4iny where exprefied himiklf VX^

caonlifi^ntly with hia: general fyftem» fait i^;

liut he ceitaSnlf iays, that <« thcfe twelve «l0n,

«. the Jury, arte no court of equity or of Jpfticc^

f* becauife they determine hot what i^Jvil oi?

•^ luijuft^ but only whether it be done Cff not

V donet arid their judgment is nothing dftt

«* but a confirmation of that, which is properly

«' the judgment of the witncflcs "*." Laftly,

»*« Lib; IV. c. 19. ■'*' Survey flmatkMft^ f. tZSh

♦?? yfoxksy p. 598. edit, i7jOt ^
'. tho

The W O O D. 119

fte rktreilcnt Mdntcfquicu, if I und^ffc^i*!
Hth, liad the fame riicHten -oif dilf Juries : ^hA
« England,*^ ftys :1k?> « thts |t3ift)rs dccid*/
^ whether or ho "thtf i^€ofed^ h« guilty of the
*^ jfHa brt>ught'b€fbr€ .thftM^*^•^ " -•

Dn the othtr hintSj Llttfetoi^m his Benares
CTpfcfsly fays, that, ^ if a Jury will tdce wpotr
•^* them the knowledge of ^hc lam \ipon tbp
'<'« matter, they w/?y *^'';** to whichXord Coke
agrees, in his comment theretrponr And in*
deed it is not eafy to conceive, how thcf<f
twelve men can properly bring in a verdifl:,
(that is, can pronounce zm^xi guilty, ov not
guilty) without being judges of the. /tf was well
as oit\itfa£li becaufe a combination of both
theie ideas is neceifary to.afcertain and fix the
idea of a crime. Sir Thonfias Smith, in his J>e
Republica jinglorums bad the following paiTagss
in his chapter upon Juries : ^amprimumjuri/-,
jurandi religione ehfiringuntur Duodecemviri ad
fa£li veritatem dicendam^tumjuri/peritih&i fpc-
ciem aferiunt:'^ubi:res HftHus atffirmatay 7«-
itx/ub vetitn'umtompendiif propria 4 yMrM^Jftl-!^
tis inmiramfue p^tHUi i^amnta Duodecm^viris
dlte b capite npHft i tiftium ditfa iommemofaT;
rur/itfqM foSti fpeciem inculcM *^\ Thtjpccies

w ««« du/ait, gut ^ (ti fmi dnmm lux. li'E/prit* Ab
VI. 3.
I" Sea s8^. »»*Lib.ii. x«.

I 4 /«^*,

J20 S Y L V A, OK

faSi^ the qaturci tht/pecific nature, of the it&y
is, wc fee,, fully and accurately fet forth to the
Jury ; ^nd wjth r^afon ; for, without knowing
tlie na^ture 4s well as certainty of the faft/ how,
ihall they judge of its legality or illegality^
it? crinciinality or its innocence ? and, without
thefe, how bring ^ veydid, or pronpunce about;.

¥if iiJ.mu 'i'i'

OF ENGLISH PATRIOTISM, WITH THE IDEA
WHICH FQREiGNERg HAVE OF. IT,

VX^HOEVER (hould take a view of pqlitical

manciuvre$ in England, muft be ready to

Aippofe it one of the beft governed nati9n5

upon earth. For why ? \t would fee all rank^

and prpfeffipns, alj ages and fej^cs, anxious aU

.•.'.' »j

#■
V* TTicrc Is a dirioas medal of the fomous John Lilborne,

who flood a trial ander Ciomwell ; which, as far as its an-^.

diority goes, confirms thA alcove notion of th<i rights of, %

Jury. The medallion repf efents his eHigies to the life, witl^

this remarkable infcription : John. Lilborne. fyvtd. hy. the.

f ovftr. tf. the. Lord, and, the* integrity, of. his. Jury. '*whd^

iure. judges. of.krtAf. as. well. as./a3. Od. 26. 164^. ]^ve- ■■

Ijn upon Medals^ p< 171.— »See particnlariy, upon this liiE^

jtA^ Mr piece iptitied> The EngUJhnuin^s Right, 9r a Diahgtu-

^iotu Juries. By Sir John Hawles^ ' ■-■ ''•

T4I E W O O D.> lii

ways, and fomctimes even fcditious, for juft"
3nd right admtniftration in th€ affairs of ftate*-
But this apparent benefit is a red misfortune^
as it tends to keep tis ever.*refl:lefs and un-^
quiet: and I call the benefit apparent, becaufe,
vpon a nearer infpe(9:iony this zeal for theftatc^
will ufually be found only a xeal for the zealot f
J mean, that all his pretences and clamours fo^
the Public have, at the bottom,, no other ob-^
jeft but Ws- own ^ pfi raice e m ohmntent, — Lel>
me, upon this occafion,. call forth a certain
anecdote from antiquity, which, while it illufr
trates and countenances what } fJ^y, ^t^^hy
proper meditation be rendered highly edjfying:
it is; that of more thanfixty patriots, or //^^r^-
men^ who confpired againft Julit,cs C^^xr^/iiat
one, excepting Brutus, was believed to have
jpeen influenced by the noblcnef^ and fplendor

of the deed, tj XoLiATr^irriri xa» tw x«Aw Tijf tJf a^fWf, ,

l?ut to have afted folely from interefted and ,
felfifh motives *^^

The truth of the cafe is, and almoft every
one now feems reafonably well convinced of it,
that all this buftle and contcft ampng us is '**,

»*» Plutarch, in Prut9n

>S4 XMs conteft hath sow for many years (b wholly ta-
)cen up our political leaders^ that the police of the kingdom,
^md all interior regulation8» which hi more concern dnr
lyell-being and happineft than nnho fiftdl (•vim, hare been
gln^ft totally negleOcd.

^^ not

112 S Y L V A, on

« not t&^w tKe goverrrmcnt ihall be adrfiini-
«« &tredyhi3it who fhall admitiiftcr it :'* magis
qttortim in 'matm fit y to vi^ttht language of Livy,
jjrMli!^' ut' incdlkms fit rejpuhlicay qtidtri. Arid
this is the ideii">fWiicIi foreigners in general cn-
ttftairi of the ErigKih. •^ Ytry long expfcri^
^ tiAKSt prdves/^ ftrjrs oht xDf thenn, «* that the
•« J>St^dkKrh*<^ thofe, who oppofe the go-
** verhfTTenti hath hS other objcft but to tca2c
« dhc So^refgn, to thwart the rneafiires of his
« rifihifttrri/ to trtivetfe their beft concerted
** ^j^fojefts 5 and (btely', that thetnfelres may
'•* ^havfc^^ a^are itt the miniftry '^^ An Ertglifc
•?^ patriot Is iomfrtonly nothing more than an
•* fibil^iibus man, who makes effort^ to fuc-
'w tt€i\1^ minifters he decries ; or a covetous,
^ greedy-minded man, who wifhes to amafs
'^' tflfaibrc i or a factious, turbulent' mian, who

: *is Xk&mgiaal gets ov '^•^tbat is to fzy^ m ih/fdih
/< of thi nation ;" as if to plunder ^^'m cqaaUf^ theobjc|ft
of gU who gov«riL«-»TJbis writer ihould fo/^m to luve ^K^isht
with Ti^emiflocles ; wiio^ when the people of Athens mur-
mvired at i^xadllotis, and were importunate for a change o^
.«iagi^ate^> paci^ed tiiem with the foUomng apologil^
*^ A fox flicking faft in a bog» whither he had dcfcendA<I
" in qaefl; of water, flies fwarmed apoA him» a«d alxocft
•* fucked out all his blood. To an hedgehog, who IdiuUy
•* oflfensd to difperfc them, iVi^, replied thei faxi^/w^ij^
^ fbife <Ufho art glutted hefrightida^ay^ ^ hungry,^wrM
i^ nmH Jucmd^ m^o wit de*V^f tht tittU Ubodrmainif^/^
Plutarch.

-'" ' ' '^ feek«

T«E wo O D, f?j

•* feek5 to rcftore' a fliattercd fortune. But
«^ arc patriots of this ftamp formed to take fin-
** cercly to heart the intcrcifts of their country ?
'^ Accordingly, nrhen they obuia the places
^* they wanted, they foU w jptwifdy the track*
y of their pre4eceflbrs,-apd become in their
« tucn the obj^&s of eiivy and damiuc t*
'^ thofe they difppffeffed, who. arc;^no^^ agafo,
*^ thq patriots apd favorites of the.^ublif: s f<Jf
" a fickJe reftlefs people always believe (hofc
»* to be -their trvie iriends, .who are the cneniic*
f' of tlie pcrfons in poujcfj -and thus, not a
;^ jot the wifer by, cxpeir|icnce,; arc coiiuirftdl
^^ and taken by the faqie piopular artv praftit
" cduponthepni in an cfernaJi Ijjcc,efl}afi '^/*

XXXLVtof

'3^ Une trSs longue experience prbuve, qoe dans Ja
Grande Bretiagne !e fatriottfine tie ceox, qnx fe ^(mittht
oppofes a la coar on au parti du miniilere^ n'a poor objet
^^nc d'importMef* le^Sewrffaln) de «oiil^ner Mt iidMs de
i«ea miHifh«tli (fe retimiffe^ 1e«n pro}ets Im pltii feifflEs';

i d&^e> «ttt depodlks de In Mtfolu Le ^mthtt Jb^gbh
i'tfb cdi|i»tt«e»6at qu*«l bftibitU^vk^ iSc. Byfiinu B^eM,
¥an II. dt. 6.^^^ nm the fipg^ ^ inlUiice ef iW/m<t» A^A^
fkiit ti»%iM ilMR i»f being hillooads and kd on fsmmdy,
hy patriMiy If ^$jff04mie t^uU muki ^f^ f Wtdf^U^ mini*
Ibf was ^pipofed and attacked itltny ytor8> and ihkeniy
w«6 at tke bead^lf tte ^ppofttim : y«< no Iben^r wis Wtit^
rftii driven of> t)Mm PtilMkfy afad Cartint entered into
^itfAtr vnegociotioiH wMi tim Mtuftifiti fUty, wko were
incn of Wuif9k*t mnhftt \ audi cemjpromifinj: matteri^

154 S Y L V A, OR

XXXVI.

OF THI CONDUCT OF EAST INDIA ADVEN- ■
.. . ' TURERS. ■

^|X7HAT IS the .reafon, that men fhould con-
'. ' cur to doi» a hody^ what not one indivi-
dual of them would even think o^ftngle ? The
fame, which permits men to a6t in the Indies,
lyhat in Europe they would Ihudder at with
horror; An Englifhman, a Dutchman, a
Frenchman, a Spaniard, or a Portuguefe, fets
out td thefe regions, in order to make a for-
tune. When he bath crofled the Line, or per-
haps beforei he ceafes to be any of thefe, or in-
deed ,of any country : in fhort, he ceafes to be
iiumah. As Abbe Raynal fays, /rh^ is a.do-

P»Zr#4ri^ became Lord Sath, and CMeret Lord Grenvillo*
They took very few of their compatriots with thpin into
the new*fbrmed minifhy ; and hordChifiirfieU, being one
Xhot wa&left behind^expreifed his refentment thus^in a paper
csi]]e4 '^ Old England^ or the.ConftijCotionai Jounutl, If !" !•
/• Feb. 5, 1743."—" This paper,^fays he, f ' i» wadeitakeii
*^ againft thofe^ who have found the fecret of acquiriai;
.«* more infamy in ten months, than their prcdeceffors,'
«* mth all the pains they tobk, could acquire in twenty
•f year$. We have fccn the noble fruits -of a twenty yeacs
f* opposition blafted by the connivance and treachery of a
'< few> who^-by all the ties of gratitude ahd honour, oiight
y to.hav^ chcrifhed and preferved them to the people.? \

^' ipeftlc

The W O. O p. %af

** mcftic tiger, again let loofe in the woodsy
5< and who is again feized with the third; of
'* blood. Such have all the Europeans been^
." when arrived at the rfegions of the new
" wprld ; where they have been, aftuatcd w^th
** one common rage, the paffion for gold*^^:;.'?
and, after being fatiated with blood and gold,
they come home in the/ ihapc of firft-^att
gentry, and are received as Jiumaoe,jufl:j equi-
table, good kind of pcrfons. . -^ ' . »
The following is an extraiS): * from the Ga^
Z^tteevy dated " Eaft Indid Hpufe,, 13 Mayi
«* 1784. The Court of DireiStors having re-»
*' ceived intelligence, that, forhe boat« with fca-i
" poys having been wrecked Tiear Gannonare;
*« about two hundred of them* were feized and
*' detained by the Bibby, notwithftanding re^
f* peated applications made for their releafei
" and, Cannonarc government being on aU
*^ occafions inimical to the Company, General
" Macleod, in order to take fatisfad:ion*for
" .thofe injuries, made a capture of the place §
<< in the attack .and redudiion of which and its
<* dependencies the Company's troops merited
«« the warmeft praifes/' Upon which, the day
after, appeared this juft and (pirited comnient ;
**.The Court of Directors have now publiihcdy
i^and W€ have it from authority, that the fame

•'^ Hift. 9iSur9fean Stttlemints in Eaft andWtfi India.,
Bookix.

*' fyftem,

i$$ S Y L V A, OR

^ iyftcm, whkh has fo lang difgraCed us in the
** Eaft> ftiU continues to be followed. The
^* Bibhy, an independent princefs, is to be
•* (blundered on a Weak pretext, but really be-
«^ caufc ftie is wealthy 5 and, becaufc the ra-
«* paeious invaders of her country may, by this
♦' fingle ftroke, accumulate the fortunes of
^ l^abobs^ and return to* their niative country
^ rich enough to invade its jufticc. This has
«f been for a long time the ^ftem of the Eaft ;
«♦ and, now that the Company has ftcured
1* ftich an imefeft lA the Britilh Houfe of
^ Commons, the fame (we are afraid) will be
« continued, till the Englilh race are extir-
?« pared in the Eaft."

Kefpefting this great and important objcft,
t fay nothing as a politician, or as a merchant;
but as a man, and a friend to the rights^ of hu-
manity, I fay, that I wifli we had M wtMSHons
t»kb the Etijt Iff dies. -^Behold a disfflercnt fpi-
iit in the Weft, from what theft ad^nttirers
hare cultivated in the Eaft ; and how Immanely
k operates towards the*loweft of t>or feltew*-
treaturcs^ even African flaves : off which the
fUlowing extrafb from the Bpiftle, at the" ywif
meeting of the Quakers, hdd in Londtftf 178^4,
prefimts a noble fpcciitien. 1

^ The Chriftian religion being defigmed tO

^« regulate and refine the natural aSedioi^s ,Qf

*^ mai)» and to exalt benevolence into tba<

8 ^« charity^

T.HE w a a n. ^^

« charity, which prompt;es. peace oft ea?<]pk«^ikadl
<r good-will towards all r^nks ^lul cls#p? of
5' mankind the wprU over-^-^oxadtf ch^- influx
^. cnce thereof, ©w wr\dshaye beea»n4i}wedljr
*« affefted in fynapathy .i^ith i^;pqar ^n(lav>ed
'^ Africans; wbfun avau<;^ i:^tk taug^ 4C^^

ff ChraUa^Sit ta confidcr as> thj^j^j(^
<< human race,;^djaotei^tl^ tc^tj^k^jpommoa
*< privileges, of vflaa^ m

« which they. are hel^, and the r^nfioteqc6 of
«« their fuffierings frpna, tluj^notice ^f difinte-^
" refted obfervcKj^ h*ve <)^afi^n€4.f^^
f^ cates to plead their ^caufe.-.: The confidera-
** tion of their cafe being; brought weightily
« before the laft yearly meeting, friends were
** .engaged tQ recommend endeavours for ptitj-
** ting a ftop to a traffick, fo difgraceful to hu^
«* manity, and fo repognant to the precepts of
"the gofpei. The report of the mcafures
** adopted in execution thereof, hath afforded
/f comfort and fatisfaftipn to this naeeting; aad
.^.. it* hath been our conceri* to recommeftd to
..If ^r friends, to whofe pare this bufinefe i&
y cottunitted^ to perfcvcrein all prudent c^-
"-vcstio^s fonaiitaining the defirable end^ AnA
" it is our earneft defijre> that none uadefipur

-. ,^»3» %^if, for i^ifence^ andi9rfier/ff/r/fl^jjMyipide»

'iiMr £^/r/v and the im/ttris/ n/M of nieA*

" ' ~ ' .^^ name

128 S Tf L V A, OR

^^ namie may weaken or counteraft our endea-*
** vours, by contributing in any way to thd
** fopport of this iniquitous Commerce '^^."

This was a great and noble motion, and
would have ddne honour to the beft order of
religious, that ever appeared on earth ; and
were the Ipirit and temper, from which this
motion originated, to be fincerely and univer-
fally, cultivated, how much more happy, be-
eaufe how much more perfect, would man be-
come I

xxxvii.

• OF CIVILIZED AND BARBAROUS NATIOlCSi

A/T U C H of the European cruelty, perhaps
the greater part, which, to the dijgrsbcc of
human nature, hath been pra6tifed in the £aft
and Weft Indies, originated doubtlcfs from
the auri Ja$ra famesy the accurfed pafldon for
gold : but much, I am perfuaded, proceeded
alfo from men's having confidered the natives
of thofc diftant countries, as barbarians^ fa*-

139 €€ Negroes for fak. A cargo of very fine ftoat men
«' and women, in good order, and fit for immediate fervice»
" joft imported from the windward coaft of Africa, in the
«« ihip Two Brotbenn^ From a South Carolina Gazette^
July 1784.

yagCS,

Thi W O O ©. • 129

vages, and greatly below the ftandard of our
humanity. This hath been a fatal error ; and 1
call it an crror^ becaufc, from all the informa-
tion I have been able to acquire^ the inhabi-
tants of England^ whether regard be had to
either knowledge or mannersy may be deemed as j;\^ ^

much barbarians and favages^ as thofe of any
other country in the world****. And here I
Ihall not inftance from the coafts, where the
Chriftian people of good Old England confider
the diftreflcs of feamen and the plunder' of a
wreck as a bleffing^ and, fays Fielding '♦',
blajfhemoufly call it fuch ; but will refer to the
inland and nearly central parts, ^yhere civilizar-
tion and knowledge may be fuppofed to prevail
the moft.

I. have fpent fome years in a village of about
two hundred families, confifting of farmers,
manufafturcrs, and labouring men ; and which
hath a parfon, a free-fchool, and the ufual ways
and means of improving and adorning human
nature. Meeting one day a farmer, an intel-
ligent fkilful man in his way, and obferving
him as it were fuperftitioufly attentive to a very

*^ Individojili in England may be, and certainly are,
snore polite and knowing, than can be found in the countries
alladed to : but iniMduah do not (bimp the gtneral cha-
raOer of a nation : this muft be determined by the com-
monalty, or people at large.

'^ Voyage to Lilbon.

K fmall

130 S Y L V A, OR

fmall fprig of cldar, I accofted him lipon tht
fubjea:. <* Perhaps, Sir," fays Ruff, '' I. can
" now tell you fomething, that may hereafter
" be of ufe to you. Sir, I rode above thirty
«* years to L— — rriarket, yet never without
'* bliftering my a — , and lojtng leathery as the
^^ faying is ; but, Sir,' fince I have' put this bit
*^ of eldar in my breeches-pocket, to virhich I
'' was advifed by my neighbour P— , and
*' which with God's leave I will never' go
" without, far from being bliftercd, I have
" not been even chafed or heated." Upon
my fmiling, as if l' did not conceive how this
could be — *^ Sir," lays he, *' perhajps you may
*^ not believe another thing. John H*s pig
** got lamed the other day : and how do you
*^ think he cured him ? By nothing in the
** world, but only boring a little hole in his
*' ear, and putting in a fmall peg about as big
'' as my eldar." I told him, that thefc things
were perfeftly above my comprehenfibn j and
endeavoured to Ihew him, in language' he un-
derftood, that there could be no conne£fion be-
tween the caufes and efFeds in either Cafe.' 'He
was much difconcerted with my fpirit of \in-
belief J and feemed to think me a perfon^
whom nothing could convince,

A few years ago, in this fanic village, the
women in labour ufed to drink the urine of their
huibands s who were dX\ the while 'ftationedj as

I^have

Thb wood. 131

1 h^ve fcen the cows in. St. James's Park, and

flxaining thenfifelvesto^/w?is much as they coufd.

The rationale of this cuftoni (that is, the why

;and jthe wherefore) I never could get rightly

.cxpUined: it. is however become obfolete, if

. no( exploited i fhe, patronefs of it, who was a

. fupcriorpcrfoa in t.he.parilh, having fome time

fince departed this foplifh world,— I will men-

, tion. but opq,ij;ifl;ance more; ojrUy begging the

. -reader not.p con^fider the above as fiftitious,

.; ,but a$ nutters of faft, that may be afcertainei

, even by lejgal evidenqe.

,.A young woman in the neighbourhood was

. Jfubjcdb to fits, .and. during the paroxyfms \yas fo

. . vnijuly, tljat there was a necefllty of holding

. Ixer. down by force. To do this nriore effcdlu-

..ally, a. very w/ell meaning young man once

Iprcad himfelf . upon her, in the prefence of

many attendants : to whom he foon and fpd-

denly exclaimed, as. if compelled by infpira-

. tion ***,. that " the Lord had fpoken to him,

" and that it was the Lord's will he Ihould

. *^ marry the patient." Now what emotions

the young rnan. felt within, during this tender

and delicate fituation> I am unable to fay : but,

"♦* There is no interior movement of either body or
mind, but> with weak and enthuiiaflic perfons, may pafs for
a divine impalfe : this (hoald put us upon our guard againft
4iilttlion, or rather madnefs.

K 2 whether

J3t. S Y L V A, OR

whether from natural or fupernatural impulfe>
he fpeedily married the woman ; and the whole
affair-at this prefent writing is not two months
old.— Having this only from rumour, I can-
not afErm that all the circumftances were ex-
aftly as I have related : however, a divine in-
terpofition is believed upon the whole, and the
hand of the Lord to be plainly vifible.

Thefe few fpecimens may ferve to fhew the
fuperiority of knowledge in us enlightened civi-
lized people, to that of Hottentots and other
barbarians. How ftands the comparifon with
regard to manners? Do the former equally
tranljrend the latter in manners alfo ? Let us
hear thofe, who feem to have had better op-
portunities of being informed than ourfelves.
For my part, fays a fehfible writer, and as
ftiould feem traveller, '^ I have met with peo-
*^ pie as polite, ingenious, and humane, whom
** we have been taught to look upon as cani-
«' bals, as ever I converfed with in Europe;
*' and from my own experience am convinced,
** that human nature is every where the fame,
*' allowances being made for unavoidable pre-
" judices, inftilled in their infancy by igfto-
" ranee and fuperftition. And nothing has con-
" tributed more to render the world barbarous,
** than men*s having been taught, from their
^* cradles, that every nation almoft but their
*^ own are barbarians ; they firft imagine the

" people

The wood. 133

^^ people of diftant nations to be monfters of
^' cruelty and barbarity, and then prepare to
** invade and extirpate them, exercifing greater
*^ cruelties than ever fuch nations were charged
*^ with. This was exaftly the cafe of the
" Spaniards and the natives of America *♦' ;"
and would to heaven the cafe could fuk no
other people and country !

An ancient writer, who lived when the Ro-
mans were the mofl: polite and knowing, clearly
gives the preference to thofe they called bar-
• barians, in point of manners. He is fpeaking
qf the Scythians ; and, after defcribing their
way of life, obferves, that " juftice was culti-
** vated and preferved among them, not by
" laws, but by the fpirit and temper of the
" people ; that they held no crime more atro-
" cious than theft i that they had not the fame
" paflion for gold and filvcr with other aa-
** tionsj and that a moderation, contented-
•' nefs, and fobriety of manners, laid them un-
^f der no temptation of invading what was not
*f their own. And I wiih," fays the hiftorian,
^' that the reft of the world poffefled the fame
" fpirit of moderation, the fame juftice in ab-
" ftaining from what belongs to others : arms
«' would not then commit the ravages they do;
V nor mankind perifh more by the fword than

>4i Sal2non'0 Gcograph. Grammar^ in Pref.

. K 3 " from

134 S Y L V A, OR

'^ from the natural lot of mortality. And it
** may feem altogether wonderful, th^t nature
'^"^ grants to favages, what the Greeks cannot
*^ attain with all their refinement and parade
" of philofophy ; and that civilized and' po-
^' lilhed manners are exceeded by thofe of un-
*^ cultivated barbarifm. So much more ad-
** vantageous to the one is an ignorance of
" what is wrong, than to the other a know^
" ledge of what is right *^."

'♦♦ Juftitia ^entis ingeniis culta, non leg!bus. Nullain
fcelus apud eos furto gravius : aurum et argentum non per-
inde, ac reliqui mortales^ appetunt. La6he & melle vefcun-
tar, t^t. H^sc continentia illis morum quoqde juftitiam edi*
dit, nihil alienum concupifcentibus : quippe ibidem diviti-
arum cupido eft, ubi et ufus. Atque utinam reliquis mor-
talibus fimilis moderatib et abftineiitia aliehi fbret ! pre-
fer non tantum belbrum per omnia (ecula terris omnibus
continuaretur ; neque plus homiaum ferrum et arma, qoani
natoralis fatorum conditio, raperet. Prorfus, ut admirabile
videatttr> hoc illis naturam dare, quod Grasci longa fapien*
tium dodbinS praeceptifque phijofophorum confequi neque-
unt ; cttltofque mores incultae barbariae callati6ne fuperari.
Tanto plus in illis proficit vitiorum ignoratiO, quam in hi^
cognitio virtutis. yu/in. IL 2,

XX}^VIIL GREAT

The wood. 135

XXXVIII.

'It'

GREAT EFFECTS FROM CAUSES APPARENTL'K
SMALL*

OOMEBODY hath called Swift's Drapier's
Lettersy " the brazen monuments of his
'« fame :" alluding, I ihould fuppofc, to the
cffetft thejr. produced, rather than to any thing
extraordinary in their compofition. They 'are
^written, as Swift ufually wrote, with abilities
and addrefs j but they were far from being the
^tf«/^ of the ^/f?. that followed. The truth is,
and we have Swift himfelf confeltmg it, that
" the fuccefs X)f the Draper's Letters was not
«* owing to his abilities, but to a lucky junc-
*^ ture, when the fuel was ready for the firft
" hand, that would be at the pains of kindling
** it/* Letters. — The royal commentator upoii
Machiavel's Prince, if indeed his Majefty of
Pruflia be the author of that comment, makes
the change of Queen Anne's Miniftry, and the
confequent peace with Lewis XIV, to be caufei
by a difpute between the Queen and the Du-
chefs of Marlborough about a pair of gloves*
Chap. 25. It might be fo; but it muft have
been, juft as the fcratch of a pin upon the cu-
ticle may be the <;aufe of a mortification, where

K 4 the

136 S • Y L V A, o It

the conftitutional habit is very bad, — I would
not fay therefore, in this and the former in-
ftance, that the Drapier's Letters and gloves
were the caujesy but that they occafioned caufes^
already provided, to begin to operate in pro-
ducing their effedls: which is what (hould pro-
perly be meant, >vhen great effeBs are faid to
proceed /r^^ caufes apparently Jmall.

XXXIX.
or king's friends.

** ^HE King of France," fays Machiavel,
«* fufFers nobody to call himfelf of the

*' King's party, becaufe that would imply
<« there was a party againft him/' Di/cors. IIL
27. With us, by affefting to be diftinguifhed
as King's friends, many minute things have
crawled up to fituations, both in church and
ftate, which (to ufc the Poet's language) may
reafonably make one wonder, how the Devil
tbey got there. — The King of England has no
enemies.

XL. Doctors

q'HE WOO D. 137

DOCTORS DIFFER-

r\R. POWELU iu the firft of his Sermons^
publiftied by Dr. Balguy^ i776,.fp€aking
of '^ abfurd and flavifh principles of govern-
*' ment, which now," he fays, ^* are fled into
" evcrlafting darknefs/' notes, that they " left
" their laft footfteps before the altars of God,
«* and in the faireft temples of literature:'*
meaning PaJJive Obedience and Non-rejijiance at
Oxford. — But Dr. Miles Newton, in his Faft-
Sermon before that Univerfity, 1777, fliould
feem to confider this as a rnifreprefentation and
calumny : and, alluding to the dodtrines of ori-
ginal compaifs, power derived from the people y and
the lawfulnejs of rejiftance when fuch power is
abufed, ** fuch wild, vifionary, enthufiaftic no-
*' tions," fays he, ''have always been counter-
« afted and oppofed by the examples and in-
" ftrudions of this Univerfity : which may,
" without vanity, boaft, that it has been" ftea-
«' dier in its principles, and fufFered more for
«' its confiftency, in the fupport of regal go-
«< vernment, than perhaps any other place of
« the like nature in the Chriftian v/orld.'*
P- 22. See N* XIV..

XLI. THE

138 S Y L V "A, on,

. ^ ; XLL

THE LOVE OF LIFE,

AN old man, fays ^fop, coming home from
the woods fomcwhat OTcrloadcd, threw
down his burthen, and in the anguifh of fatigue
called for death. Death appearing, to know
his commands 2 only, fays he, to-rrbelp me up
wifb this wood. Let us not grow peevifh with
life upon every little vexation j that is to fay,
upon every change of the weather. In like
manner, Antifthenes the Stoic being very fick,
and impatiently crying out. Who will deliver
me? " This," faid Diogenes, prefenting a
knife, *' very ibon if thou wilt." / do not
meaiiy from my lifcy replied Antifthenes, but from
\Trf" dtfeafe. — Montaigne fays, that there is na
condition fo wretched^ which men will not
accept, '^ provided they may .live :'* and he
quotes from Seneca the exa^mple of Mecsnas,
w(h"o is there rcpreferited to have held this lan-
guage :

Behilemfadto matiUy

Dehilem -ped^y 4oxa i

"tuber aJ^TM gibherum^

Lubricos quate denies :

fita dumfitperefi^ bene eft. Epift* lOi.

"' Seneca

The W O O" C; 139.

Siiicca caHi tl^s, and-JuftJy^ turpiJ/hHmuv&^im i -
nor; hlumbly as I think of • humaa philofophy,
can r pcrftadd; rttyfdf, tHkt this is-thfe wifli of v
men univcrially. MeanwWle, it is certainly/
the true tonectf fpirit and -tfeiftpcr, ^« neither- to
<* vriih nor fcartodie/'

Sumftmk nee rHetuas diem neo^opUs.

Martial; 3t.47v

XLIL

MUC» ADO AKOUT NOTNINXS.

]\/rUL I'UM agentes nihil agenddy hath ufually
been faid of thofc officious, bufy, flutter-
iftg thrngfr, t^ho' are always in a hurry, yet do-
ing nothing : but it may juftfy be faid of mait
in general. Upon what poor uninterefting oh-
jefts is he perpetually employed, and with
what importance and moft ferious concern V
" Is that the point," faid the philofopher^
looking contemptuoufly down Upon the earth,
" is that the point, which fo many nations arc
" partitioning with fire andXword '♦^ ?'* When
Alcibiades was pluming himfclf upon his nu-

?*' IftuJne efi fyndum, fuoa inter tot gentes ferro et igne di-
niiditurf SfeneCal

9 mcrous .

I40- S Y L V A, o-R

merous farms and pofleflions, Socrates drily
afkcd to fee them upon a map of the earth,
which was hanging before them ^^ : not unlike
a Grand Seignior, who, enquiring where Eng-
land was, which made Jo much difturlance '*^,
was defired to remove his thumb, which hid it
upon the map. In (hort, life, as inftituted and
condufted by mankind in general, is all vanity,
folly, and madnefs; our Ipeculations nothing
but a Comedy of Errors ^ our adions Much adm
About Nothing '*^

»♦• iElian. m. 28.

'♦7 England, minute as flie may feem, hath always been
jrefUefs, unqmiet, difiurhing ; like Dryden's AchitopheU

A fiery foul i *whtch, ^working out its luofs

Frettetb the piga^ hody to decay,

Ando^er^nforms the tenement of clay*
142 t€ jtis certain," fays Hume, ** were a fupcrior being
<; thruft into a human body, that the whole of life would
*< to lum appear fo mean, contemptible, and puerile, that
•« he never could be induced to take part in any thing.'*
The Sceptic."-^! cannot think it neceflary to call down angels,
for this contempt of e^thly things : I think that men are
fully fufficient for it. A ipund underfbmding, well and ho*
neftly cultivated, and rightly and duly eitimating what
pafles around him, may eafily withhold a man from taking
part in any thing. I do not call in the aid of Chriftianity,
whidi is known to be more than fufficient.

XLIII. Hu,

The W O O D. 141

XLIIL

HITMAN NATURE DIFFERENTLY ESTIMATED* .

*^ A LL," fays a certain writer, " which can be
^^ done by a wife man (feeing that by na-

^^ ture he is appointed to aft, for the fpace of
^^ 3^1 50, or 70 years, fome ridiculous filly part
" in this fantaftic theatre of mifery, vice, and
^' corruption) is either to lament with He'racli-
** tus the iniquities of the world, or (which is
*' the more cheerful, and therefore I do pre-
*^ fume the more eligible, courfe) to laugh
*^ with Democritus at all the fools and knaves
*^ upon earth '^9/» — Montaigne preferred De-
mocritus's humour to Heraclitus's j <^ not,'*
fays he, *' becaufe it is more pleafant to laugh
«* than to weep, but becaufe it is more fcorn-
" ful, and more expreflive of contempt, than
" the other : for," adds he, '^ I think we can
'* never be enough defpifed." EJais, I. 50.—
To Brutus, courting him into the confpiracy
againft Csefar, Statilius anfwered, that he was
" perfeftly fatisficd of thejuftnefs of the caufe,
" but did not think mankind fo confiderable,
«^ as to deferve a wife, man's concern :" agree-
ably to that of Theodorus, who " would not

'^s' Swift's Life by Dcaae Swift, p. 206.

" have

142 ,S Y L V A, OrR

•* have a wife man run any rifques for a com-
*^ pany of fools." — Muretus feems to have en-
tertained a fublinief idea of human importance ;
when, having fallen fick upon the road, and
overhearing a confult-ation of phyficians, .who,
fuppofing. him an obfcure perfpn, agreed at
lep^th facere perifulum in jcorpore viliy as they
^cxpreffed it; he cried aloud, " What ! will you
**, prefume to make experiments upoa one, for
*^ whom Chrift died?" Mena^ana. 'jSee N^.XL
XII. XIIL

XLIV.

OF GALLANTRY. AND DEVOTION*

.rpHE ftrongeft argument againft devotiotiy in

the very high fenfe of that word, is, that

though it may elevate aind fpiritualize the

foul, yet it doth not feem to be neceflarily con*

nedled with any influence over the body. The

devotee feldom or never finds a difficulty, in

reconciling meditations and prayers to even the

.,groflcft immoralities : with him fenfuality and

devotion, mix cordially together. Margaret,

. Queen of Navarre, tells of a young Prince,

who, having an intrigue with an advocate's

wife in Paris^, and his way to her lying through

'a church.

The WOOD- 14J

* a cHuridh/ iicvcr pafRd that holy place, going
"to or rettirnihg frbm this godly cxcrcife, b\it
'' ilway^ khceted' doWfi to pray, and was very de-
vout*^.
N. 3. I take this pious Queen to hare been
^thcfaihe Margaret,' who, upon a complliht
^ from fome court-lady of being b^^erdone with
what is called family-duty, made an edidi that
** no man ihould know his wife carnally mofrt
** than fix times in ohe night.**

XLV.

OF ANTE-NUPTIAL FORNICATION, WITH A HINT
OR TWO FOR ITS PREVENTION.

o

SBORN calls this commerce before mar-
riage, a fin againft prudence rather than
againft virtue. Doubtlefs, it is but too natural
to conifider the fame aft, as no worfe than an
indulgence l^efore, which is ufually confidered
as a duty after. This indulgence, however, is
againft law and order : the confequences of it
arc often produftive of mifery : and, therefore,
it cannot be tod much guarded againft. But
it is not guarded againft enough ; for only con-

'»** -Montaigne-, lir. L ch. 56.

template

144 S Y L V A, OK

template the bufinefs oicourtjhipy how it is corv-
dudled, elpecially. among the common people.
A male and female begin to fympathize with,
and feel a fondnefs for, each other : they courts
as it is called i that is, they carefs each other;
and thefe carefles pafs, not openly and in the
day-time, but in the darkncfs of midnight and
moft hidden retirement. Amidftfuchcareffing, it
is impoffible to fay, " So far (halt thou go, and
*^ no farther, — fo far is innocent, any farther
^' is finful." The boundaries of things are dif-
ficultly denned ; and, in the prefent cafe, the
parties often get into the territories of fin, be-
fore they fufpedl themfelves out of the pre-
cin6ls of innocence. Or, if they do fufpe6t
and recolleft themfelves, after they have paflcd
the line, all power of alarming hath ten to one
ceafed; and fo unhappy is their fituation and
condition, that each might juflly fay, were ut-
terance granted, frudensy Jciens^ vivus, vUenf-
qucypereo. Such fituations muft be carefully
avoided, unlefs mankind would lead them-
felves into temptation.

There is a particular inftance of our police,
which, on this very account, I fliould be pleafed
to fee correfted and amended. May and June,
in 1779 I think, iourttcn filiations y or father-
ings of illegitimate children, were made in my
prefence. I was ftruck with the Gngularity of
the things I mean^ at the concurrence of fo

many

The wood. 145

ftWiny fimilar cafes in thefe two months ; "which
were more in nunnber than what the reft of
the year produced. But, upon ruminating, I
fcencrcd to trace the caufe to the Statute SeJJions^
or (as they are commonly called) the Statutes^
held in Oftober or November preceding : whi-
ther all the young men and maidens of the vil-
lages refort, for other purpofcs, frequently, be-
fides that of being hired. I have fometimes
thought, that if at Statutes^ as well as FairSy a
public bell were rang at a certain hour, as a
fignal for this fort of gentry to difperfe and take
themfelves off, many, very many, good effefts
would follow. Perhaps the nation might not
be fo populous, but a vaft deal of rioting and
drunkcnnefs would be prevented.

M'

XLVL

ABOVE PARb

[EAD recommends a little exccfs or jovia-*-
lity, now andtben^^^ i and, I confcfs, 1 be-
lieve it to be as falutary to the mind and af-
fections,

"' Quamvis tempetantia omnibus fit utilise medici tamca
antiqtti auAores faenint, at qui ben^ valeret, & fpontis fux
fflet, genio Mnnun^uam indulgens^ tam cibum quam potuni

L ToLito

146 S Y L V A, o It

fc6lions, as it can be to the body. Shaftlbury
fomewhere calls company or converfation an
amicable colliJion\ but, methinks, it fhould be
a little warmed and elevated with wine. I
would not rant wijh Horace, quid non ebrietas
defignatj and fo forth? Drunkennefs is an odious
and beaftly thing, and as noxious to the mind as
to the body : but, to be cheered beyond the na-
tural toneof thefpirits^and raifed to a ftandard
fomewhat bigger than the life, may (I fhould
think) be attended with good efFedls upon both.
By thus invigorating the vital powers, and
quickening for a while the circulation of tho
fluids, obftruftions may be removed among the
interiora of the body, as the g2it\itnng/ordes of
rivers are occalionally forced down by a flj-ong-
er current than ordinary. The immaterial part
of us will alfo be benefited equally with the
material ; aye, perhaps more fo. Frefh ftrength
and firmnefs will be given to the fpiritsj .all
thofe clouds or vapours, with which the human
noddle is, like Shakfpeare's towers^ frequently
capped, will be difperfedi the heart and affec-
tions will be warmed and exalted s and the
whole man will be a better, as well as an hap-
pier, being. In fhort, by taking off his atten-

Iblito abundantiils afliuneret : tatior autem eft in p§iiotH»
qoaixi in e/ca, inumpcnuitia. ifMt. (ST Pr4fc^* Mid. fob.
fin.

. tioa"

tiA^ WOO lb. 147

lloft fr6m folly, vice, care, and mifery, and thus
forgetting his fituation a little, he will infen-
iBbly procure a new edition of himfelf *^*,—
All thisi however, if you mean to preferve its
«fEcacy> only now and then.

mmtml^^mmilmatitmitm

XL.VIL

HUMAN PEkFECTION NOT IN NATURE^

T ORD CiHESTERFIELD tells his fon, in
one of his letters to him, that he «* fhall
*^ difleft and analyfe him with a microfcope,
** fo as to difcover the leaft fpcck or blemifh."
Lord Chefterfield was not altogether in earneft \
fb it is, however> that men ferioufly diJfeSi and
unalyfe one another. They overlook the great
and good in a charafter or compofition, and
dwell upon foibles, impcrfeftions, and infirmi*-
ties '"• But this is bafe, injurious, cruel ma-

«s» *r Liquors, taken in fuch qijantity is elevates without
*• intoxicating^ are the inward cloathing of the body in our
*' foggy, damp atmofpherek'' Dr. Stevenfoii om tlje Gout,
p. 161.

'*' The uhfortunate Chancellor Bacon Complained, vety
feelingly I fliould think, of this iniquity in judging. Ini-
qua aJnfodum tt mi/era eft conditio hominum <virtute pracellen^
iium^ quia errorihus eorum^ quantuni'vis ieviffimis, nullo modo
ignofcitur : qui tamen in hominihus mediocribus aut omnino late'-
nutf aut veniam/acili teperirent. De A. S. lib. 8.

L 2 lignity.

148 S Y L V A, OA

lignity. ' They fhould furvey and examine each
other, as they would furvey and examine a
noble pile of building : not pink and peep-about
for afperities upon the furface, or little irre-
gularities among the minutiae ; but contemplate
the magnitude, ftrength, and form of the whole,
with the beauty and proportion arilirig from all
the parts. By their way of criticifmg and cen-
furing, it fhould feem as if all nnen were to be,
what Paterculus makes the firft Scipio to have
been ; who, he fays, *^ did never, in his whole
*^ life, either fay, or do, or think any thing;
'^ but what was highly excellent, and to be
^^ commended,"— »/i&// in vita nifi laudandum aut
dixit ^ aut fecit y aut Jenfit^^^. Such a ftyle might
fuit the writer, who was to extol the virtues of
Tiberius and Sej anus; but mankind afTuredly
are not fo formed : they are a mixture of qua-
lities; and happy is he, whofc good fhall be
found to overbalance his bad.

xLvni.

OF PROFESSIONAL CtiFARACTEIt.

T> AMAZZINI, a phyfician of Padua, wrote

a book de morbis artificum\ to fliew the

J)eculiar diftempers of tradefmen, arifing froin

•>♦ Lib. I. c 12^

each

The wood. 149

each refpeftive trade. Might not a philofo-
phic obferver conftru6t a work upon a fimilar
plan^ to mark the fpecific habitudes and man-
ners of each refpedtive order and profeflion ?

In the courfe of this difquilition, he would
be led to obferve,' for inftance, that infincerity
in a courtier muft be the ruling feature of his •
charader : and why ? becaufe, without allowing
any thing to private humour, principle, or af-
fe£tion^ the men of this order accommodate
themfelves folely to times and perfons.* — He
might afcribe lying to an ambaflador; becaufe,
being " fent to lie abroad for the good of his
*^ country," as Sir Henry Wotton defined his
office, he preferves a habit of lying, even when
the officiality or duty of fo doing may not re-
quire it. — A want of moral fenfe and fympa-
thifing humanity woiild be found in men of the
law J becaufe, paying no regard to the diftinc-
tions of right and wrong, but only intent upon
ferving their clients, they are led to treat with
indifference, and fometimes even to fport with,
the mod injurious decifions againft the moft
pitiable objefts. — The love of gain in all who
traffic ; becaufe fuch have been habituated to
confider money as the chief good, and to value
every man according to what he is worth.—
And, laftly, an open fyftematical kind of kna^-
very in the boneft farmer; who, without any
regard to value in the commodity, proteffes to
L 3 buy

150 S Y L V A, on

buy as cheap^ and fell as. dear^, as he can ; and
who, if you. remonftrate againft his offering a
horfe or cow for twice its worth, aiks you,,
with a fneer, «^ whether he muft not do the
^' beft he can for his fanaily '^^ ?"— Would not,
I fay, all this be perceived, where profeflional
fpirit is not checked arvi counteracted by natu-
ral temperament ? And thus through life, and
every department of it : where the charafters
of men would be found in a compound ratio of
temperament and profeflion ; and be natural or
artificial, according tQ the proportion in which
thefe are combined.

0» PERSONAL IDENTITY.

IX^E are born, it is faid, with the feeds «r
principles of diffolution in our frame,
which continue to operate from our births to
our deaths s fo that in thi& fenfe we may be fud
to die daily. Butj I thinkji we may be faid to

■^s Oar good Chrifiian fiinner, Iiowever^ may deign ta
learn a better leflbn from an he^uthen. Ex mni 'Qittfinuda^
iio dijfimulatioqiu tolknda ejt: it a, nee ui emat melius, nee ut
vendat, qmdquam finudabit out Mffimulabit virhaus* Ciccra
4c Offic UI. 15.

dh

The wood. 151

die daily in another fenfe ; and that is, in the
change we are always undergoing in our per-
fbnSfc tenmpers, and manners, which makes us, in
the difFcrent ftages of our lives, quite different
beings : — which makes, if I may fo fay, onejelf
to be continually dying, while another Jelf is as
continually growing out of it.

Let me illuftrate this reflexion, by what
gave rife to it. — A boy of three years old wa$
playing before me the other day, upon whom a
matron gazed with uncommon fondnefs, be-
caufe he bears a ftriking refemblance to what
her own fon, who is fifteen, was at that age ;
and who, it is certain, would not now excite ia
her the fqndnefs, that this ftrange child does.
She owned it was fo ; and I told her what I ftip-
pofed to be the reafon : viz. that fhe viewed
the little boy as the image of a being, who
once exifted, but whom fhe now confidered as
no more ; and recoUefted only with that defide--
rium or longing fondnefs, with-which we call,
up the images of departed friends or relations^
And, added I, <* there is between the two
'« objefts not the difference which at firft fight
** there may feem to be : for your fon at three
*' years old, whom this little boy refembles,
** was as different from what he is now, as if
** he were a different being. Nay, though a
" being with his name and cornieftions hath
«* grown out of him, and ftill fubfifts, was he
L 4 not

15^ S Y L V A, OR

** not really a' different being? and is not his
*^ then-felf Acdidi, as his now-Jelf^Wl be twenty
^' years hence ?" — It feems to me, that this fen-
timent and reafoning niay be applied to every
moment of our lives : by the continual flux
our Material part is in, we are every moment
laying afide (7»tf /^//" and afluming another Jelfy
every moment dying and reviving. Death
therefore is not fo much laying afide our old
bodies (for this we have been doing all our
lives) as ceafing to aflume new ones.

Let me add another illuftration of the abovc>
from an affair between t>vo boys, in which
there is nothing fiftitious but the names. When
William left London, and went into the North,
he wept at parting with his friend and compa-
nion "Tcmmy. He enqiiired frequently and af-
feftionately after Tommy i he longed to fee him
again 5 and, after two years abfence, be did fee
him. But he did not meet him fo warmly as
was expefted : on the contrary, he looked dif-
mayed, as if difappointed ; and his behaviour
to him was fomewhat cold and diftant. Being
alked the reafon, he replied, that "this was
•^ not Tommy ^ . at leaft the Tommy he left ; and
«^ that he fhould love him as well as ever, if he
" looked more like Tommy J' The truth isj^
Tommy's ftature was incrcafed, and his fea-
tures altered ; and William no longer ac-
knowledged the identity of his friend, but;

thought

The wood. 153

thought him another perfon ; at leaft the fame
as another perfon, becaufe not prefenting the-
idea he had been accuftomed to be fond of.
Juft fo, I fuppofe, I may love my mother, under
that image which fhe-bore in 1738, when fhe
died *y but were my mother to be prefented to
me, all decrepit and withered with age, as flie
would have been now in 1784, 1 could fcarcely
fancy her the lively pretty woman, who ufed to
carefs me, and whom under that form I ufed to
love. In fhort, fhe would appear a new per-
fon, a new being ; and, though I might from
rea/on efteem her as my mother, yet I fhould
feel none of that love which inftinlt produces.

Upon the whole, therefore, did not Locke
determine rightly, when he made perfonal iden-^
tity to confift in confcioufnefs ?

L.

OF CONFERRING AND RECEIVING FAVOURS.

COCRATES, though importuned, refufed to
go to the court of Archelaus, King of Ma-
cedonia. Seneca, who , has recorded the faft^
fays that his oftenfible reafon was, " not to
*' receive favours, which he could not return,"
^nolUJe ad cum venire^ a quo accifcret beneficia^

cum

154 S Y L V A, OR

€um nddere illi faria non pojfet : his real one,
♦^ not to go into voluntary fervitude," — noluit
in ad voluntariamjervitutem '^^. The real one,
certainly: for Archelaus was a bad prince;
and courts are not places of freedom and in-
dependence, evc;n under good ones. — Befides,
the former reafon would, I fliould think, have
been unworthy of Socrates. What ! is no ipan
to receive a benefit, but who is able to return
it ? If fo, then (as Ariftotle makes him reply
vpon this occafion, but furely unphilofophi-
cally) ^^ it muft be as great an affront to con-
<« fer a benefit upon a perfon who cannot re-
^^ turn it, as to injure a perfon who cannot re-
« drefs himfelf '^7 :" and then all afts of kind-
nefs, generofity, and charity, muft be banifhed
from among men j fince one party is no more
at liberty to confer, than the other to receive, a
favour.

How is It, I wonder, that we hear fo many
exclaiming loudly againft receiving favours ?
** I think nothing fo dear as what is given
*' me," fays Montaigne; *^ and that, becaufe
*^ my will lies at pawn under the title of in-
** gratitude. I more willingly accept of offices
«* to be fold ; being of opinion, that for the
" laft I give nothing but money, but for the
«^ firft I give myfclf *^' :" as if, according to

«« De Bcncfic. V, 6. »*7 Rhetor. II. 23.

'5» Effais, III. 9.

ancient

The wood. 155

ancient language, ^ " to receive a favour was to
*' fell our liberty,"— ^^»glfa«i» accipere eft liber^
iatem vendere. It may be fo in fome cafes, and
with fome perfons 5 and I (hall fo far compro- ^
mife the matter with Montaigne, that we ought
to be careful, and perhaps fomewhat nice,
from whom we receive favours. But to lay
down the propolition univerfally, aod with re-
fpe6t to all manner pf perfons j to ipurn the
very idea of receiving a favour from, or being
pbliged to, any one i to think and reafon, as if
fervices conferred and received ought, like
other trading commodities, to be weighed as in
a fcale ; to keep an account as of creditor and
debtor ; and to dread a balance againft us as
much, as if lofs of liberty and imprifonment
were the confequence — all this is wretched:
'tis all faftidious hauteur^ pride, infolence, de-
noting a fpirit and temper certainly unchri-
ftian, but unphilofophical alfo and impolitic in
the higheft degree. And why ? Becaufe it
would greatly weaken, if not deftroy, all that
mutual afFeftion, all that intercourfe of kind-
nefs and good offices, fo by nature necefTary to
the helplefs, dependant ftate of man, and fo
contributing (if not effcntial) to his happinefs
in fociety.

LI. LAW

iS6 S Y L V A, OK.

LI.

tAW AND EQUITY.

JUSTICE, " the miftrefs and queen of all
the virtues '*9/' the bafis of all focial virtue
as well as happinefs, the very corner-ftone on
which fociety is built— this very juftice, if ex-
crcifed too rigoroufly, would often be found,
amidft the combinations and entanglements of
human aflfairs, even to border upon injuftice;
infomuch that the civilians have eftablifhed it
into a maxim> that "extreme juftice is extreme
«* injuHice^^^'^ummum jus /umma injuria/

It fhould feem, therefore, that the magiftrate,
to whom the execution of juftice is committed,
muft not only dojuJUy^hxxt (in the language of
the Prophet) alfo love mercy. I do not. mean,
that he ihould ever a<5b otherwife than the laws
direft, or at any time difpenfe with the right
execution of them 5 but only, that he be go-
verned therein, as often as he can, by xkitfpirit
rather than the letter of them. For in the law,
as well as in the gpfpel, the letter frequently

■'• Omnium domina et regina 'virtutum, Cicero de Offiu
III. 6. — According to an ancient Greek moralifl, every
other virtue is comprehended in that of juftice : '£f A
hxa^Q^rf wKhi/iha via'' a^ri 'n* TheC^gniff*

kilUfb i

The W O O D^ t^f

iillttb ; as when any ftatute, from a new and
difFerent fituation of things and perfons, gra-
dually brought on by courfe of time and
change of manners, enforceth proceedings dif-
ferent from, or, it niay be, contrary to^ the true
original intent and meaning of it. The office, .
therefore, of a magiftrate, a; Juftice of Peace for
inftance, fhould be in part a kind of a petty
chancery ; a court of equity, as well as a court
of juftice : where a man, although purfued by
lawy may yet be redrefled by reafon^ fo often as
the cafe will admit of it; and that will be as
often as tht J^irit of any law or ftatute fhall be
found to clafh with its letter.

Mean while, it muft be carefully noted, that
the magiftrate. has no power to decide accord-
ing to equity, when it is oppofed to written and
pofitive law, or ftands in contradiftindtion to
it : no, not even the Judge,. much lefs the Juf-
tice. It is a maxim, ubi lex non diftinguity nee
nos dijlinguere debemus 5 and again, judicandutn
€x legibusy non de legibus : and an ancient pro-
nounced it very dangerous for a Judge tojeem
more humane than the law \ fxivia-^oti ^*Xai/Of«vo-
rs^ov T» vofjf,H. The danger confifts in its open-
ing a latitude of interpretation, and thereby
giving room to fubtlety and chicanery, which,
by gradually weakening, would in time deftroy
the authority and tenor of law : for, " though
^^ all general laws arc attended with inconve-

" niencies.

tsi S Y L V A, on

«^ nicncies, when applied to particular cafe^j
** yet thcfe inconveniencies are juftly fuppofed
*^ to be fewer, than what would refult from
^* full difcretionary powers in every magif-
** tratc/* Hume.— So that the difpenfation of
equity feems refervcd, and with good reafon,
not to the Judge who is tied down by his rules,
but to the law-giver or fupreme Icgiflator:
according to that well-known nnaxim, ejus efi
inferpretari cujus efi cvndere. Thus Conftantine
the emperor : Inter aquitat'em jufque interpojitam
interpretationem nobis Jolts et oportef et licet in*
fpicere. Cod, 1. 14. i. — See alfo Taylor's JE/^*
ments of Civil LaWy p. 90, &c»

It is not meant, therefore, as is faid above,
that the magiftratc fliould ever difpenfc with
law, or aft againft it ; but only, that he (hould,
as far as he can, temper it with lenity and for--
bcara«ce, when the letter is found to run coun-*
tcr to the fpirit. For inftance ; our ancient
Saxon laws nominally puniftied theft with
death, when the thing ftolen exceeded the va*
lue of twelve pence : yet the criminal was per-
mitted to redeem his life with money. But, by
9 Hen. I. in 1109, this power of redemption
was taken away : the law continues in force to
this very day ; and death is the puhifhment of
a man who fteals above twelve-pennyworth of
goods, although the value of twelve pence now

is
S

Thb wood. 159

is near forty times left than when the law waS
made. Here the ffirit is abfolutely outraged
by the letter : and therefore might not a Juftice,
when a delinquent of this fort is brought, en-
deavour to foften the rigour, of this law; or fa-*
ther to evade it, by depreciating the value o£
the thing ftolen, by fuflfering the matter to be
compromifed between the parties, and, where
the charafter of the offender will admit of it,
inftead of purfuing the feverities oijuftice^ hf
tempering the whole procedure with f»fn?y.^--
This, and fuch like modes of ading, nrtay be
faid indeed to be draining points ; but, unlefs
fuch points be flrained oc c a fionall y, magiftrates
muft often aft, not only againft the fpirit of the
laws, but againlt the di£tates of reafon, and the
feelings of their own hearts.— Sir Henry Spel-
man took pccafion, from this law, to complain/
that *^ while every thing elfe was rifen in its.
" value, and become dearer, the life of man
^^ had continually grown cheaper '^'*."

Fortefcue has a remarkable paffage concern-
ing this law. " The civil law,'' fays he,
" where a theft is minifeft, adjudged the cri-
" minal to reftore fourfold ; for a theft not fo
^' manifeft, twofold : but the laws of England,
•^ in either cafe, punifh the party with death,
'^ provided the thing ftolen exceeds the value

^ Ghjkr. in Vdce l^arichium,

€C of

l6o S Y L V A, oit

« of twelve pence *^'/' But, is not this com-
parifon between Civil and EngUJh law aftonifh-
ingly made by a man, who was writing an apo-
logy for the latter againft the former ? What ?
-—is it nothing to fettle a proportion between
crimesrand puntQiments ? and fhall one man,
triio fteals an utenlil worth thirteen pence,
be deemed an equal offender againft fociety,
and fuffer the fame punifhment, with another,
who plunders a houfe, and murders all the fa-
mily ? — See Beccaria, an Italian marquis, Ufo^
Crimes and Punijbments.

LIL

WHY LAWYERS ARE AVERSE FROM DECISIOKS
ACCORDINO TO EQUITY.

IT has conftantly been imputed to the men of
this order, that they love to adhere to law^
in oppofition to equity i that they had rather
kill by the letter^ than fave by tht/piriti and
that they always murmur, and fometimes cla-
mour *^% let reafon determine ever fo rightly,
if (he determines otherwife than the law di-
rcfts. The imputation is not new, or even

■^* i^^ Laudr Leg. AngUa^ C« 46* .
?«*SectheP.S.toUii8N<*.

modern.

The wood. l6i

modern. The younger Pliny, I remember, in
a cafe where law and equity clafhcd, determin-
ed (as all men would, where they could) ac-
cording to equity: but tells you, at the fame
time, how apprehenfive he was^ left by fo do-
ing he ftiould incur the difplcafure of the law-
yers. " Hoc, fi jus accipias, irritum," fays he ;
'• fi defundti voluntatem, ratum & firmum eft,
" Mihi autcm defunfti voluntas, vereor quam in
^^ partem jurijconfulti quodjum di£iurm accipianf,
*^ antiquior jure eft '^^"

A more recent inftance will illuftrate this ftill
farther. The trials of Sir William Friend, Sir
William Parkyns, and others, pn the aflaffina-
tion-plot, came on, after the provifion of coun-
sel learned in the law (nqt allowed before) had
received the royal affent, but before the com-
mencement of its operation. ** I entreat,"
faid Parkyns, " that I may have the allowance
*^ of counfel : I have no fkill in indiftments :
'* I do not underftand thefe matters ; nor what
*^ advantages may be proper for me to take.
*^ The new ftatute wants but one day. What
*^ IS juft and reafonable to-morrow, furely
" is juft and reafonable to-day; and your
*^ Lordfhip may indulge me in this cafe." But,
fays the humane author '^^ from whom I tran-
fcribe this. Holt, Chief Juftice, was too good a
Judge to fuffer the ftubborn principles of law

*•» Epift. V. 7. *«♦ Principles of Penal Law, ch. xv.

M ta

i62 S Y L V A, on

to yield to the milder inferences of equity^
We cannot (he replied) alter the law^ till law^
makers direit us : we muft conform to the law, as
it is at prefent, not what it will he to-morrow : we
are upon our oaths fo to do ^^K

This, fo far as I can learn, has ever been the
temper and fpirit of the lawyers. They are
difplcafed when things are done, not only a-
gainft forms, but even without them. They
hate, we fay, to have points judged and deter-
mined by equity : why ? not furely from any
natural averfion to equity (for how can this be
peculiar to any order of men ?) but from its
tending to fuperfede law. All orders hate, and
cVer will hate, whatever tends to deftroy the
charafteriftics of their profeffipn. Divines hate
morality, when oppofed to religion ; as phyfi-
cians hate regimen, when oppofed to medi-
cine ^. The reafon is, that morality and regi-
men,

t's- FOrfter^s Crown Law, 230. 232* State Trials^ 630,
631.

*^^ The prefent Biftiop of Gloucciler, in his Faft Sermon,
Feb. I782> is offended at Dr. Adam Smith for iaying> that
** Mr. Hume approached as neariy to the idea of a perfe^hf
** nui/e and virtuous man, at perhaps fi-ail homanky will per-
'' Slit '** and well he may be offended ; for, if this can b«
without aid from religion, what ooeafion for a charob and bi*
fliop^ ? HumeU Lifi.-^Dr. William Stevenfon, a phyfician,
complains repeatedly, that he hath been vehemently oppofed,
or in his own language perfecuted^ every wl^ere byapocheca-
rics : which who will be furpiifed at, when he is tdd, that this

faid

The W O O D, i€^

men, thus circumftanced, tend to fet afide rdi-
gion and medicine ; becaufe they reprefenc
them, indire&ly at leaft, as fuperfluous and un»-
necefiary. And what can be more mortifying
to a profeiTor, than any thing which tends to
ifaew, that his profeffion is an ufelefs, and therc*-
fore probably a pernicious, burthen to fociety ?
Human nature, upon this head, is uniform
throughout. Pythagoras, we know, exhorted
every man to reverence himfelf, as the bed pre-
ferrative againft doing any thing below, or un-
worthy of, himfelf : «i<r;^T;v£o raurov, fays he, in
the verfes called golden. Now a man's fecond
felf is his profeffion i yea, in truth, it is often
iiis firft felf: I mean, his natural chara3:er 4$
not only difcoloured, diftorted; and difguifed,
fcut it is fometimes totally abforbed and fwal-
iowed up, by his profeffional character. AH or-
ders of men have reverenced thcmfelves as or-
ders, and perhaps none more than the men of
the law. Sir Edward Coke, in his Inftitutes^
frequently takes occafion to fet out the learn-
ing and importance of the lawyers: he calls

(aid Do^r would have reduced the whole Materia Medica
to thefe ** eight officinals, viz. Cantbdridesy Tartar Emetic,
** Mercurius Dulcis, Aloes^ Sena^ Jalap, Salts, and OpiuM,
^ Th^, fiiys hity compofe all the virtue^ all the efficacy, of
*^ the apothecary's fhop : give me thefe, and the contents
** of all the ihops in England (befide) may be poured into
** the ftrcets for mc." d^fes in Medianey.^. .56; 58. 1781,
8vo.

Ma them

i64 S Y L V A, OR

them *<f the fages of the parliament 5 the very
:** life and foul of the King's council." Alfo,
in a fpeech made upon a call of fcijcants, he
-compares the coif to Minerva's helmet^ who was
the Goddefs oiCounfel\ and likewife fays, that
*^ the four comers of their cap import fcience,
•^ experience, obfervation, recordation'^^.

Sir John Fortefcue had exprcffcd himfclf be-
•fore in the like magnificent terms, anddifplayed
with a kind of oftentation the great advantages
of ftiidying the law, as well as the awful dignity
and pomp of its profcffors j and he a thinks
*Mt a great and peculiar token of the Divine
*** goodnefs, magna et quafi approbata benedi&io
^«* Dei^ that from amongft the Judges and their
<« offspring have fprung more peers of the
«^ realm, than from any other order of men
«^ whatever : which," fays he, *^ can never be
«« afcribed to mere chance or fortune, that be-
<' ing nothing ; but ought to be attributed to
** the blefling of God, who by his prophet had
♦f declared, that the generation of the upright
<^ fhall he blejfed^^^r From which pofition,
thefe two corollaries manifeftly arife : firft, that
exaltation to a peerage is a bleffing from Hea-
ven ; and, fecondly, that this bleffing njay be
obtained by juftice and uprightneis in the pro-
feflion of the law. And if this.honeft Gbancel-

' ><7 Barrington on Auc. Stat. p. 406. jd e£t*
*^^ Di Laudibuf, i^c. cap. ci.

r- tor's

The wood, 165

lor's reafoning be good> we are led to think
highly of our prcfcnt chiefs in the law 5 finceit
is plain^ that the pradice of it is in our times^
as it was heretofore^ ifrequencly the road to
peerages and preferment.

P. S. No true man of the.profeflion was ever
heard to fpcak^ith temper upon the noted cafe
of Coke^ a gentleman of Suffolk^ and Woodbum^
a labourer, who were indided, in 1722, upon
the famous Coventry Aft of i% and 23 of Car.
II. ; Coke for hiring and abetting Woodbumy
and Woodbum for the.aftual fa£i: of flitting the
nofc of Mr. Criffe, Cake's brother-in-law. The
murder of Crtfpe was the thing intended ;. and
he was left for dead, being terribly hacked and
disfigured with an hedge-bill: but he reco-
vered. Now though, by this ftatute, to disfir
gure, with an intent to disfigure, be felony,
yet the bare intent to murder is not fo : and
Cokfy who was a lawyer, had the Ikill and ad-
. drefs (I fay nothing of the modefty) to reft
his defence upon this point, that " the af-
*' fault was not committed with an intent to
*• disfigure, but with an intent to murder i and
^^ therefore not within the ftatute.*'

The court however held, that, if a man at-
tacks another with fuch an inftrument ^s an
hedge-bill, which cannot but endanger the dif-
figuring of him, and in fuch attack happens not
to kill, but only to disfigure him, he may be
indifted on this ftatute : apd it Ihall be left to

M 3 the

1^ SYLVA, OR

the Jury, whether it were not a defign to mur-
der by disfiguring, and confequently a mali-
cious intent to disfigure as well as^to murder.
Accordingly, the Jury found them guilty of
fuch previous intent to disfigure, in order to cf-
fipft their principal intent to murder j and they
were both condemned and executed *^.

Now, though thefe delinquents were crimi-
nal enough, God knows, yet, according to this
ftatute, they were not condemnable ; and the
lame conftruftive violence, in the interpreta-
tion of laws, might often hang an honeft man
as well as a. knave. Lam, therefore, here with
the men of the .profefiion, though for reafons
probably different from theirs, and wiih thiit they
bad been acquitted; for I think entirely with
Eortefcue, that " twenty evil doers Had better
^^ cfcape death, than one juft man be unjuftly
** condemned :" mallem revera^ fays : the hu^
mane Chancellor, vigintt facinorofos merfem ^iV-
(aid ^evad^re^ quam juftum unum inj^Jfi cond^m^

*•• State Trials, VI. 212. "® DeLauJiius, &c. c. zjt

The W O O a 167

LIIL

MANNERS WILL PREVAIL AGAINST LAWS,

Y T hath often been affirmed, and with airs of
of high concern, that there is no nation upon
the globe better provided with laws than the
Englifh ; nor any, whofe laws are more loofely
and negligently executed. The cenfure, im-
plied in the latter of thefe propofitions, is ufu-
ally levelled at the magiftrate 5 and it is level-
led, as I have always obferved, with fome de-
gree of peevifhnefs and warmth : better j it is
faid, to have no laws at all, than to have laws of
no effeSl^^^. But the magiftrate is cenfured
without any juft caufe,— indeed for neglefting,,
what it is not at all in his power to perform :
and the cenfure, if traced to its origin, will be
found to arife from a very common, but very
miftaken fuppofition, that laws are Jufficient to
controul and govern manners -, whereas it is cer-
tain, that the very reverfe is true, and that man-^
ners will always controul and govern laws.

The prevalence of manners over the laws in
ancient Rome was long complained of, before
the deftruftion of the commonwealth, Plautus

*^* — fraftra interdifU quae vetnerant cenicntcs, nullas
potius qaam irritas cffc leges malucnint, PUn. Nat. Hift^
xxzvL 3«

M 4 flourilhecj

i6% S Y L y A, OK

flourifhed about a century and half before the
civil war broke out between Caefar and Pom-
pey ; yet the manners in Plautus*s time were
become fo notorioufly degenerate, and withal
fo prevailing againft the laws, that he makes
even a flave to hold the following language *7* :

Nunc mores nihil faciunt quod licet , nift quodlubet.
Ambitiojam moreJanSla ]/? : libera eft legibus.

Mores leges perduxerunt jam in foteftatem Juam.

Neque quicquam lege JanSlum *ft: kges morijer-^
viunt.

—But, not to loiter upon ancient theatres, let
us defcend at once to modern j to that parpcu-
larly on which we aft, and with which alone wc
are concerned. And here, without rambling
over an immenfe field, let us confine our obfer-
vations to three or four afts of parliament,
which folely refped inanners : for thefe will
fufiice to fhew, that laws will be of little, or
rather no efficacy at all, when manners bear
ftrongly and powerfully againft them.

By a law, enafted in 2 Geo. II. common
fwearing is forbidden, as being juftly deemed
the mark of a very profligate or a very foolifh
fpirit : and the delinquent is fined, according to
the K^nk he holds in fopicty,. But is the prac*

*7* Trinummus, Aa. IV.

ticc

The wood, . 169

ticc of it fuppreffed, or even curbed ? Nay, can
anything prevail more univerfally ? and is it pof-
fible to ftir out, without having our ears every
moment annoyed with it ? Very true : but therea-
fon is, that the Juflice of Peace, y^ho has the care
of this, as of almoft all other ftatutcs, will not
put it in execution. Say you fo ? Well then,
let us fuppofe this magiftrate, with half a fcore
of fetters or- informers, marching forth upon a
vifitation in his diftrift, with a determined pur^
pofe to execute this law againft all, gentle as
well 2LsJimple, who fhall be found to offend a-
gainfl: it : — ^I am obliged to march him out, bc-
caufe, unlefs per accidensy no information of this
kind will ever be brought home to him — I alk
now, what reception he would meet with, and
what amendment he would work ? He would
be deemed an officious, troublefome, imperti-
nent perfon : he would be abufed, infulted,
hated : and, as to reformation and amendment,
far from any thing tending thereto, he would
infallibly promote the crime he was endeavour-
ing to correft. He has indeed law to fupport
him, and gofpel too, if that could do any good :
but leges moribusferviunty the laws give way to
manners : licentioufnefs is eftabliflied, and pro-
fligacy triumphant. So, by an ordinance in
1650, when the righteous ruled the land, it was
made felony in both fexes, without benefit of
clergy, to commit adultery or fornication : but
3 laws.

170 ,S Y L V A, OR

laws, made againft manners which will always
prevail, of courfe repeal thcmfelves; and for
this particular ordinance, as one pleafantly ob-
fcrvcs, " it could not have continued long un-
<^ repealed, even if Charles II. had not fuC-»
" ceeded to the thrond '^J."

XKe afts of parliament, relating to alehoufes
and tipling, arc very explicit, precife, and
ftrong : and they are too well known, to need
to be enlarged on. But, is it poffible to put
thcfe a6ts in execution ? Shall every man be
^ed, who is known to* be drunk; and every
ale-feller deprived of his licence, who may hap-
pen to fuffer irregularities in his houfe ? Not
only the manners, but the very police, of the
country would oppofe this. It is believed, with
good reafon, that the Jufticc of Peace cannot,
in any fingle branch of his office, fcrve his
neighbourhood more efFe6tually, than by pay-
ing a rigid attention to houfes of this fort ;
they being indifputably, as they have ever been
deemed '7*, the grand fources of corruption and
debauchery among the people : and this atten^

'^' Barringtoii M jdb^. 5/ir/. p. 125.

>74 €€ jji (]|e ftatotes of tlii»-reigii, there are ever coupled
** Hktpmifimettt of'vagabtnds, the forbidding of dice and
** cards to fervantsVLXid. mean people, and iht putting down and
** JuppreffingfiUMhufes^ as Miigl ofono root tiif;etber» aiid
«' as if ttie one were unprofitable wxthoat the otkfcr." Ba*
eon's Hift. of Henty VIJ.

tion

The wood. 171

tian is frequently inculcated upon him by the
Judge from the bench. Yet, fhould this magif*
trate proceed, as the ftatCite direfts, againft any
of thefe houfes, though ever fo notorioufly and
fcandaloufly diflblute, the very loweft officers
of the Excife would inftantly ereft themfelves
in oppofition to him. They would abet the ale-
feller, with the ufual infolence of their office ;
would be ready to gauge the unlicenfed calk s
and plume themfelves perhaps as better friends
to Government, for fupporting its revenue,
than the magiftrate, whofe procedures have a
tendency to diminifh it '7^

It is pleafant enough to confider, that, while
Government is making laws for the preventing
of drunkennefs, thefe little officious minifters of
it are promoting drunkennefs, for the righteous
purpofe of ferving Government '7*. But I have

feen

'7S Mandeville was abufed for writing a book to fhew»
that Private Fires ivere Public Benefits : that is, that a cor*
Tuption of manners, though pemicioas to individuals, might
yet be ferviceable to the State. Rut, are they not made fo
in this cafe, in the cafe of lotteries, which promote a fpirit
of^amiMg, and in many other Cftkif where we may almoft
fay with Seneca, that ** iniquities are pradifed according to
«< afts of parliament,'*— ^;ir fenatus con/ultis fcelera exercm^

X76 Doubtlefs, a more ftrildng contradiction cannot be ;
and a French writer has expreifed himfelf very properly, as
well as very pleafantly, upon the fubjeft. Une/ociete, qui pu*
nit Us ixch, ju* elltfait naitri, lie. that is, «' a fociety,

** whiok

172 S Y L V A, OR

feen the thing happen, having indeed experi*
enced it in my own praftice 5 and it brought to
my mind an affair of a fimilar kind, related by
Dr. Giles Fletcher, who went in a public cha-
rader to Ruflia towards the end of Queen Eli-
zabeth's reign. This obferver, fpeaking of the
many wicked and barbarous arts, which were
ufed by the Czars, to drain and. opprefs their
people, fays, that " in every great town the em-
" peror hath a drinking houfe, which he lets
«^ out for rent. Here labourers and artificers
" many times fpend all from their wives and
*^ children. Some drink away every thing they
** wear about them, even to their very fhirts
'^ inclufive, and then walk naked : all which is
" done for the honour of the Eippejon Nor,
f' while they are thus drinking themfelves
«« naked, and ftarving their families, mufl:
<« any one call them away, becaufe he would
" hurt the Emperor's revenue '^^^
. Duelling is another good inftance, to Ihew
the prevalence of manners over laws. " The
" law," fays Mr. Hawkins, " fo far abhors du-
" cUing, that not only the principal, who ac-
<^ tually kills the other, but alfo his feconds,

" which panifhes the exccffes it occafioiis> may be compared
** to thofe, who have the loufy diAemper : they are forced to
** kill the vermin with which they are tormented, though
<« the ill habit of their conftitutions every moment produces
<' it." Syjieme de la Nature^ du 12.

"77 Of the Ruffe Commnwjealtb, cL 12. LoncL 1591.

"arc

The woo D. 173*

•^ arc guilty of murder, whether they fought
«* or not '7':'* and the puniftiment of courfe is
death. But, in fpite of this fanftion, ftrong
and powerful as it is, is not the age of Quixot-
ifm coming on again? Does not the humour
rodomontade prevail among the great ; and is
it not creeping down, even to apprentices and
attorneys clerks ?— I called it Quixotifm : and
furely I had reafon. Obferve the manners of
our prefent duellifts j weigh the principles they
go upon ; attend to the ceremonial of their en-
gagements J and tell me then, if any adventures
of the famous Knighr of La Mancha are built
upon a more foolifh foundation, and accompa-
nied with more folemn yet more ridiculous
rites, than theirs.

. Perhaps a ftronger inftance cannot be
brought, than this before us, to fliew the pre-
valence of faftiion, not over laws only, but
over fenfe, and reafon, and equity, and huma-
nity. The duellift is never an amiable, and
oftentimes a bad, compofition : but he has ho-^
nour for his fanftion and fupport ; honour y all-
powerful honour: and this vain, unmeaning,
empty word,— this jfw^ imaginary notion^ as Sy-
phax truly calls it, — is, through the prevalence
of faftiion, fufficient to prefcrvc him upon terms

»7» , Hawk. P. S. 82.

with

174 S Y L V A, Ok

with focicty, and tx> fecure His reception as
ufual amongft gentlemen ^'^.

Let me fubjoin a paffagefrom a good writer ;
which, while it animadverts upon this particular
inftance of Britifh manners, will ferve to con-
firm our general pofition. " No law will, or
<« ever can, be executed by inferior magiftrates,
" while the breach of it is openly encouraged
«^ by Jthc examples oijuperior. Does any man
" think, that the beft laws againfl: duelling
«* would have any effeft, if there was at the
" fame time a duelling office kept open at St.
*« James's ? The example of thofe, who fhould
*^ execute laws, or fee them executed, is
«* ftronger than the authority of thofe, who
** make them. The example of Vefpafiftn did
*^ more towards the reftraint of luxury, than
** all the fumptuary laws of Rome could do
" till his time J for,*' fays Tacitus, ^^ a com*
** flaifance towards the prince^ and a Jfirit of
*« rivaljhif in imitating bis manners y were of far.
** more force y than any dreaded punifhment from
« the laws '^\*'

'7» Addifon fpeaks of a clui ofiuell^fhs, but dbferves, tliat>
** confifting only oimen of honour , it did not continue long ;
•* moft of the members of it being put to the fword, or
«' hanged, a little after its inftitiftion." BpeB. N*> 9.

''® Oh/equium in principem, et amulandi amor, njaUdior
quam pcena ex legihmt et metui^ Anna!. III. 55.— -Cato'a
Letters.

I will

Thb wood. 175

I will cite but one inftance more ; and that
ihall be the aft, to prevent bribery and cor-
ruption in elefting Members of Parliament^
paiTed in 1729. It ihould feemj that no fta*
cute was ever better guarded, and enforced
with ftronger fanftions, than this. The eleftor
fwears> if demanded, that he has not received
any thing direftly or indireftly, in one fhapc
or other, in order to give his vote : this oath
to be adminiftered by the officer, who prefides
at the poll, on forfeiture of 50I. upon refufal.
No perfon (hall be admitted to poll, till he
hath taken this oath, if demanded as aforefaid ;
and if the IheriflF, or other returning officer,
fliall admit any perfon to be polled before he
is fworn, if demanded, he forfeits looL ; as
does alfo the perfon, who fhall vote or poll,
without firft taking this oath, if demanded.
After this, the ftatute enafts, that every return-
ing officer fliall take an oath, that he hath
afted with impartiality, difintereftednefs, and
fidelity, in the returns he hath made. And
then follows the great and tremendous claufe^,
which lays a penalty of 500I. on all perfons,
who fliall take money or reward for their votes,
as well as on the candidates, who by themfelves
or any other perfons fliall give it ; and which
for ever difables both from voting in any fu-
ture eleftion, and from holding, exercifing,
or enjoying any office, franchi/e, &c. as if fuch

perfons

176 S Y L V A, ok

perfons were naturally dead. This, one wotild
think, was going as far as human wifdom
jcould forefeej and muft have been fecurity
enough, if any thing. could be, againft bribery
and corruption in all fiich cafes : yet> what
has been the efFe6t ? Every body knows : every
body knows, that bribery and corruption have
been praftifed ever fince, and are now avowed
without referve or difguife,
. The Minifter, againft whom this aft was
levelled, was fuppofed to pack his parliaments,
and. to carry all his meafures by the fingle ex-
pedient of corruption. At firft indeed he op-
pofed it ; but, foon dropping oppofition, he
afFefted to co-operate with thofe, who were for
it. Aware of the no-effefts it would have, the
minifterial writers of thofe days ridiculed it
vnder the name of the goiden dream '^' : and
doubtlefs the Minifter laughed at it himfelf ;
for he abounded with pleafantry, and was of an
humour to laugh. He was not learned ; and
poffibly never heard, how Anacharfis laughed
at Solon, for thinking to reftrain avarice and
ambition by laws '^* : but he knew human na-
ture and the world, and perceived, no doubt,
as clearly as* Anacharfis, how little afts of par-
liament would avail in ftemming the torrent of
popular manners.

»•' Craft/man, N* 313. «•* Plut. in Salon.

Overzealoua

The wood. 177

OverzealouS reformers, when they fee crimes
committed often and with impunity, are apt to
grow angry : they blame the magiftrate for
negligence : they call aloud for feverer laws
and more aftive magiftrates. But fevere laws,
inftead of reforming, would harden a people:
they would make them defperate, and perhaps
they might make them rebellious. " It is a
^* perpetual remark of the Chinefe authors^*'
fays Montefquieu, " that, the more the feve-
*^ rity of puniftiments was increafed in their
^' empire, the nearer they were to a revolii-
*^ tion. I'he reafon isy fays he, that punijh^
*^ ments were augmented^ in proportion as the
** public morals were corrupted '^^"

In (hort, to punifli is to begin at the wrong
end. If we would efFeftually reform a people,
we muft lay a foundation in difcipline and
manners. " Good manners," fays Tacitus,
'^ did more with the Germans, than good laws
" in other countries '*+ ;" and, among the Spar-
tans, the rigid education of their youth, and
the facred regard that was paid to the regula-
tion of manners, in a great meafure fuperfeded
the ufe of laws. « It is an old complaint,"
fays Lord Bacon, « that governments have

*83 L'Efprit, VI. g.^FUebis eaf<epe committi, qua/cepius
nflndicantury faid Seneca formerly.

*»♦ Flus ihi boni mores valent, quam alibi bona leges. De
Mor. German.

N been

*c

178 S Y L V A, OR

^^ been too attentive to laws, while they have
*' neglefted the bufinefs of education '^^ :" the
wifeft ftatefmen and the ableft obfervers of hu-
man nature have always joined them together^
as the only folid bafis, on which the well--
being and happinefs of a nation or people can
bccrefted'^^

LIV.

LAWS MUST BE FITTED TO A PEOPLE.

T\irHEN it was iiifinuated to Solon, that he
had not given the Athenians fo good
laws as he might have done, that wife and re-
fpedtablc perfon' anfwered, " I have giycn them
" the beft they were able to bear '^7." BelU

parole I

^U Vetus querela eil:> inde ufque ab optimis et prudentIA
£mis feculis dedudta^ refpablicas circa leges quidem iiimi<«
urn faUgcre, ciicsL educationem indiligentes eiie. Di Jug*
Scient^Uh, 1. .

i»6 tt There are two diings," fays Polybiiis, "which
«' are eflential parts in every government ; and thefe arc
•• the iofws and the manners, &c." Lib. VI. extradk 3.

««' Plut. in Solon, — ^It is remarkable, that Mofes praiHTed
this conformity with the Jewifli people, by accommodatiik^
certain rites and ceremonies to their ancient prejudices ;—
ritus aliquos^ fays Spencer, longo ufu receftos refiirmuii9\ e^fpm

^The W O O D. 179

faroU ! " a fin^ obfervation/' fays Montefquieu,
^' and which ought to b€ perfeftly underftood
if by ^very legiflator '"." Certainly : how elfe
will he be able to adapt his means to his end ?
Laws, to produce their efFefts, muft, like all
other things, be fitted to their objefts. Would
you tame a wild animal from the deferts of
Africa, you would doubtlefs adapt your manege',
Bs nearly as you could, to the nature of the
bead you had to deal with. The human is
reckoned by fome the wildeft of all beafts :
but, wild or tame, why not treat him accord-
ing to his nature, and according to the fitua-
tion he may happen to be found in ?

A legiflator therefore, who knows what he
is about, who takes aim, as they fay, and does
not mean to bolt at random, will not retire
into his clofet, and there feign abftraft and
ideal fyftems of laws and government ; but he
will look abroad, examine and contemplate
well the materials he has to work upon, and
direft and regulate all his operations by what
he fees. He will not confider only what is
true, but what is prafticable alfo ; and, if he
cannot make men fo perfeft as he would, he

md Dei iffius cuUum transformando : ritus enim baud paucos
MHtiquitus ufitatos in no*vam quafi formamfinxit Deus, ut flebis
ttmimos, quos ratio ntufl potuity ufus aut di'vina avyxaruSaa-ti cuU
tui/uoconciliaret, De Legibus Hebrseor. L. I. c. 5.
»" L'Efprit,/w.xix.f>&. 21.

N 2 will

iSo S Y L V A, OR

will make them as perfeft as he can. Wh^fi
the Diftator Caefar was projefting a reforma-
tion of abufes and manners among the Ro-
mans, his counfellor advifed him, to accom-
modate his meafures to their prefent prevailing
habits and cuftoms, and not to think of " re-
*^ calling them to thofe ancient original ftand-
^^ ards and rigid rules of difcipline, which in
.^^ the then degenerate and corrupt ftate of
*^ their manners, inftead of being obferved,
*^ would only be made a jeft of '^^ :" and who
can fay, that he did not advife him well ? So,
when a motion for reforming was made to Ti-
berius, the politic tyrant replied, that " it
^^ might poflibly be better to overlook prc-
** vailing and inveterate corruptions, than ex-
<^ pofe their impotence to the world, by Ihew-

'*• — non ad 'Vetera infiituta revocare, qu/e jamfridem
4orruptis moribus ludihriofunt, Salluft. Orat. I. ad Caef. de
Rep, ord, — But Caefar does not feem to have profited by this
advice ; for, foon after his return from the African war> he
enadted laws to regulate their drefs, equipage, furniture, faff,
but chiefly their tables, and flyle of eating. Legem pr^pcifue
fumptuariam exercuit : dtfpojitis circa macellum cujtodibus, qui
oh/onta contra <uetitum retiverenty deportOrentque adfe ; fnhmiffis
Honnunquam licloribus atque militibuSy quiyfi qua cuftodes feftUif-
fenty jam appofita e triclinio auferrent. Suet, in Vit. § 43.
More, furely, could not be done to enforce the execution ef
any law ; yet it appears to have been neglected, and of no
cfFeft at all. Cafari certum eft Roma manere ; ne, fe abfentt,
leges fua negligerentur, Jicut ejjet negleSa SUMPTUARIA.
Cic. ad Att. xiii, 7,

ing

The wood. i«i

*' ing how unequal they were to the reforma-
*^ tion of them '9°." — The Emperor Galba con-
firmed the wifdom of this ; for, exerting a fpi-
rit of reforming, beyond what the manners of
Rome would bear, he not only failed, but loft
his life, in the attempt : nccuit antiquus rigor et
nimia /eyeritasy cut jam pares non Jumus^ fays
Tacitus. Hift. I. i8.

Mean while one cannot, without fome fur-
prife, behold certain patriotic leaders among
the Romans, fuch as Cicero and Brutus, making
a ftand for liberty, and vainly ftruggling to
reftore it to a people, whofe virtue was entirely
gone, and whofe manners were totally relaxed
and diflblute. Liberty y fays Sidney, cannot be
prejervedy if the manners of the people be cor^
rupt^^\ But the Roman manners were in a
high degree corrupt; which made Jugurtha
fay, even half a century before, that ^« Rome
^^ itfelf would be fold, if a buyer could be
'' found :'* urbem venalem^Ji emptorem invenerit.
Salluft.

'^ Ne/cio an fuafurus fuerim omittere potius pran^alida et
adulta 'viiia, quam hoc aJ/equi^ ut pulamfieret, qmbus flagitiu
impares effmus. Tac Ann, iii 53.

*>" On Government, ch. n.

J^ 3 LV. NOT

i8^ S Y L V A, 0%

LV.

NOT WHAT SEEMS PERFECT, BUT WHAT IS
PRACTICABLE.

^HAT wild enthufiaftic fpirit, which would
elevate human nature above her genuine
ftandard, would in like manner pufh civil fo-
ciety beyond any degree of prafticable perfec-
tion. The fame Plotinus, whom we have al-
ready ftriftured for the former *'% was equally
ftimulated with a zeal for the latter. It is re-
lated by Porphyry, who hath written his life,
that he afked the Emperor Gallienus to build
and endow a city for philofophers, that fliould
be governed according to Plato's ideas, and be
called Platonopolis '^^ ; and Porphyry adds>
that Plotinus woyld have obtained what he '
afked, if fome malignants at court had not in-
terpofed. They probably thought, that the
Treafury-money might be more ufefully em-
ployed : the Emperor, however, might hiave
found fome advantage from it, as he w6uld
certainly have got rid of all the Ufopiansy the*
vijionaries in politics, the rtatefmeri of general
abftraft ideas ; which, when they are fufFered
to be bufy, are a very troublcfome order of

'»» No XL 'M Fabric. Bibl. Grace- IV. la.

3. : ^ beings:

The wood. 185.

beings : thefe would all,' with one accord, have
haftened to Platonopolis.

A certain writer has obferved, that thefe
well-meaning fpeculative politicians (for
well-meaning they arc often allowed to be)
** are of all others the moft untraftable in go-^
*' vernment, and mifchievous in bufmefs : who.
*' endeavour to deftroy all governments, be^i
*^ caufe they are not perfeft ; and oppofe all
*' adminiftradons^ becaufe they cannot govern
•^ men by fuch means, as they are not defigned
*^ or formed to be governed by *9+." Cato,
formerly, was an offender in this way : he was
a " well-meaning fpeculative politician ;" and
is recorded to have done mifchief in the Senate
at Rome, merely from not diftinguilhing be-
tween Yfh^tfeems perfeSl and what is praSlicabk.
*' With the very beft intentions and the clear-
'^ eft integrity," fays TijUy, " he fometimes
*^ hurts the commonwealth/' And how ? " By
^' giving his opinion upon all occafions, as if
^^ he were in the pure and incorrupt republic of
*' Plato, and not amidft the low and degenerate
" tribe of Romulus '^^ •/' contrary to which,
as the fame Tully obferv^s, «' a ftatefman muft
<^ confider, not only what is beft in itfelf, but
«^ what is neceffary alfo to times and fitua-

**♦ Upon the Origin rfEmil. Letter V.
*»* Tanquam in Platonis 1ro^lTlU, UQii tanquam in faece
Romuli. AdAtuYL, u

N 4 ^' tions.*'

iS4 S y L V A, on

^' tions '9^." ^empori cedere^ that is, to fubmit
totnetime, is a fubmiflion, which the ftatef-
inen of all ages have ever found it expedient
tS m^ke. Tully lays it down as a capital and
tundamental maxim in politics ; and, fpeaking
to Atticus of fomething he had done as the aft
cptimi civisy he adds, fed ita optimi, ut temporuj
quibus parere omnes TroXiTixol pra^cipiunt. Nor
could even Casfar himfelf, though conqueror
and diftator, be exempt from this fubmiflion
to the circumftances of affairs : nos WYiJervimuSj
fays Tully, ipfe temporibus \ nee ille, quid tem^
porn poftulatura funt, fcire poteft '9^.

It is common to blame individuals, when af-^
fairs go wrong, and it is fometimes right j but
it is not always fo : for the ftatefman, any more
than other men, cannot aft invariably and al-
ways as he would : he is often forced along by
a neceflary train of things, and obliged to aft,
not as he would, but as he can. He may
watch conjunftures : he may avail himftlf at

"5* Non folum ei quid ciTet optimum videi^dum eil, fed
etiam quid neceflarium. De Leg. III. ii. — And to this wife
maxim even Cato himfelf, in a more reafonable mood, and
when (;ommon fenfe prevailed over ftoicifm, could occafion-
ally conform : for, when the Senate found it. expedient to
fbpport Bibulus againil Caefar^ in fuing for the confulihip,
they '' made a common purfe, to enable him to bribe as
** high as his competitors ;'' ne Catone ^uidem abnutnte^ as
Suetonius fays in Vita Ca£ §. 9.

*^^ Ad AtU xiL ^..^AdFam. iv. 9, f/ }x. 17.

moments

Thb W O Q D. : 185

moments by policy and expedient: he may
rightly adapt certain means to certain ends,
and fometimes fucceed ; but he will, frequently
mifcarry : for there are in all governments .fo
many circumftances and contingencies, inde-*.
pendent of human forefight and will, that of-
tentimes the moft which the wifeft manager
can do, is to make the wifeft ufe of incidents as
they rife : qua cafus offert^ infapientiam vertere.
Tacitus '98.

1*8 <t j^Q may lament the imperfeftions of our human
*' ftate, which is fuch, that, in cafes of the utmoft importance
*' to the order and good government of fociety, we are rc-
«* duced to have no part to take, which our reafon can ap-
<^ prove abfolutely. Per(e6t fchemes are not adapted to our
*' imperfedl ftate. Stoical morals and Platonic politics are
*' nothing better than amufements for thofe, who have had
** little experience in the affairs of the world, and who have
'' much leifure. In truth, ail that human prudence can do,
«* is to furnifh expedients, and to compound as it were with
** general vice and folly ; employing reafon to aft even
** againft her own principles, and teaching us (if I may fay
" fo) in/anire cum rationed* Bolingbroke's Idta of a fatriet

LVI.

ii$ S Y L V A, on

LVL

DF COFFEE-HOUSE POLITICIANS^ AS THEV ARl
CALLED^

^HERE is no order of men, who arc more
* an objed of curious contemplation, than
thofe %»fiioym^Ah or knowers of hearts (for fuch
I think they muft be deemed, if any uninfpired
mortals can be fo deemed) who are perfeftly
acquainted with the tempers and principles of
Minifters, whofe pcrfons they never faw j and
can at once, as if by intuition, trace all tranf-
aftions in politics to the caufes from which
they fpring. The famous Cardinal de Retz^
who was the life and foul of the fa6tion he go-
verned, and muft have been privy, if any one
could be fo, to all tlie moft fecret fprings and
movements of it, yet declares, that " there arc
«^ inexplicable points in affairs^ which are ac-
*« tually fo at the moment in which they hap-?
, ** pen ; that they arc impenetrable even by
" thofe, who are the neareft to them : whence
*« he cannot but wonder at the infolence of
*' certain obfcure perfons, who imagine them-
*^ felves to have penetrated into the very hearts
«« of thofe, who are concerned the moft in
<c thefe affairs ^99/>

It

'59 y^ admire P infolence de ces gens de neant, qui s^imaginent
Mfuoir fenetre dans tons les refits des caurs de ceux, qui ont eu

Im

Thb W O O D. tSf

It is obfervable, that he makes this remark
no lefs than four timcSj while he relates the
tranfaftions of the Fronde in 165 1: and, though
his animadvcrfions are levelled at certain low
impertinent hiftorians, which infefted his times
as they do ours, yet — are they not equally ap*
plicable to thofe innumerable Aatefmen feat-*
tered through the land, who afFeft to know
the penetralia of a court, and to trace every
idea with as much exadlnefs and certainty,
as if they had perched upon the pineal glanjl
of the Minifter, at the mondent it ifluei
forth? .

Among this order of ftatefmen are your Doc-^
tores Umbratici j — for there are fuch doftors in
politics, as well as in divinity, law, and phyfic
—men, who, fitting in the Jhade as it were, Jee
vifions and dream dreams: that is, form the
mofl: perfeft fyftems of governing, if Minifters
were but wife enough to attend to them duly.
All which may poffibly be amufing, and would
be alfo innocent, if kept at home for private
ufe J but the misfortune is, that thefe^^^r^ of
vifions and dreamers of dreams are ever eager
and zealous to have them introduced into.pub^

la plus de part dans les affaires. — II y a des points dans les af^
f aires inexplicahks dans leurs inftans.'-^Ne doit'On pas admirer
Pinfolence des Hiftoriens Vulgaires, qui croiroient fe faire tort, fi
ils laffhient un/eul e'venement dans leurs ouvrages, dont iU m dc^
darafent pas ks r^orts P lA^m^t^i

lie

tM S Y L V A, o It

lie affairs, and fure to grow angry and difaf-
fefted, when they are not, in their eftimation,
properly attended to : little confidering, alas !
that what they^^^ and dreamy is not Reducible
to praftice, or to be made of any ufe in the af-
fairs of men — nihil ex iisy qua in u/u habemus^
aut audiunty aut vident. Petron.

LVII.

OF REASON OF STATE, OR STATE-NECESSITY.

TX^HAT is Rea/on of State yOX State Necefttj ?
Why, in truth, neither more nor lefs, ex-
plain them as you will, than an affumed right
to difpenfe with the laws, whenever they ob-
ftruft the meafures of a Prince or his Miniftcrs.
Milton has called neceffity the tyrant's flea.
Another writer calls it " the great patronefs of
'* illegal aftions, which politicians have ufed,
*' as certain philofophers did Occult Quality,
" though to a different purpofe; this being the
*^ philofopher's refuge for ignorance, that the
*^ politician's fanftuary for fin/' — Pius Quin-
tus, fays Lord Bacon, could not bear the name
of Ragioni di StatOy being wont to fay, that
thefe were the mere devices of wicked men,
wherewith to opprefs religion and virtue : no-
men i^um av erf at us eft Pius V.folitus dicer Cy ^e
mera makrum bominum comtnentay qua oppone^

rentur

The wood. t8^

rentur religioni et virtutibus moralibus *°^.*—
They had once a term in France, which, if it
had been properly nurtured up and cherilhed,
would have anfwered all the purpofes of this
reafon of State^ by countenancing Kings and
Minifters in whatever manoeuvres they might
pleafe to fet on foot ; and that was, the public
good. Thus, the princes of France leagued
againft Lewis XL for the public good : on
T appella la ligue du bien public, fays Meze-
ray, anno i/^6\yparce que les princes luy donnoient
ce beaii pretexte : and, in 1475, Edward IV. of
England was preparing a defcent upon France
under the fame pretext of public good ^''\ — Our
State lawyers, however, reprobate thefe ideas,
and certainly with good reafon: " Lknow,"
fays one of them, " of no diftinftion between
Sfate necejfities and others : our books do,
not make any fuch diftinftion : and we find,
in 3 Car. L Mr. Serjeant AJhley was com-
mitted to the Tower, for faying, in one of
his arguments at the bar, that there was a
State power y or law of the State, as well as of
the Country. And the Judges, with refpeft
to Ihip-mpney, were committed for faying,
that there was a State necejjtty for it *°*/'

^^ Dc Augm. Scient. 1, i.

*®* Comines, anno 1464 and 1475.

**** Judgment in the cafe of Entick and Carritigton, C. B.
Michaelmas Term, 1765, delivered by Lord Chief Juflicc
Frat.

LVJIL OF

i^or S Y L V A, oi

LVIIL

OF ACTS OF INSOLVENCY.

I^ETHINKS, they fhould be called aSs
of/alvency; fince they enable men to
pay debts, and (which is extraordinary) with-
out money or efFefts. But to be ferious.—
A<9:sof infolvency are occafional adts, by which
.perfons are difcharged from fuits and impri-
fonment, upon furrendering their all to their
creditors ^''^ It hath often been agitated, to
whom the benefit of thefe afts fhould extend ;
whether to all indifferently, or only to fome,
who could with propriety be deemed proper
objeds of it ? But, though to draw the line,
and define boundaries, be generally difficult in
human affairs, yet here it feems eafy. Let a
coui:t or committee of equity be ordained, to
fit at ftated times upon prifoners for debt : and
let all, whom misfortunes have brought into
durance, be releafed; but let defaulters or
rogues be detained, or otherwife diipofed of ac-
cording to fome wife police. To think of re-
leafing all, the guilty as well as innocent, would
be as unjuft and partial, as it would be weak
4ind impolitic \ and were any one to propofe

^^ Blackflone's Commentaries^ ii. 31.

this.

Thb wo O D^ »99

this, *' perhaps to be fibular ^* I ihould deem
him knavifli as well as foolilh. As deliberato
ichemes, as ever were concerted for a burglary,
have been concerted to gain truft and credit,
in order to defraud and rob : and getting into
debt, with fuch concertcrs, is nothing clfe but
a certain mode of robbing.

-limmi 1 1

LIX.

A DSCISION BY THE KING OF PRUSSIA.

nn H E Amftcrdam Gazette, of 13 Feb. i7?'4,
records the following dccifion by the King
of Pruffia. A foldier of Silefia, being convift-
cd of ftealing certain offerings to the Virgin
Mary, was doomed to death as a facrilcgious
robber. But he denied the commiflion of any
theft J faying, that the Virgin, from pity to his
poverty, had prefented him with the offeringsr.
The affair was brought before the King, who
afked the Popifli divines, whether, according to
their religion, the miracle was impoffible ? who
replied, that the cafe was extraordinary, but
not impoffible. Then faid the King, the ^^ cul-
** prit cannot be put to death, becaufe he de-
" nies the theft, and becaufe the divines of

« his

191 S Y L V A, o a

*^ his religion allow the prcfent not to be im-
^^ poffible 5 but we ftridtly forbid him, undet
«« pain of deaths not to receive any prejent hence--
€€ forward from the Virgin Mary, or any Saint
*^ wbatever.**'^Th\sy I take it, was anfwering
fools according to their folly, and is an inftance
of wifdom as well as wit*

IXPERIENCE MAKES FOOLS WIS£«

^^OT it indeed; no, nor even men, who
are not fools. For inftance, experience
may convince every man, even the wifeft, that
his " judgment conftantly deceives him : is he
*^ not therefore a fool," fays Montaigne, " if
^^ he does not dillruft it ?" Very true. Seigneur:
but, pray, how many beings have you known,
who, from this refledtion, have become lefs
pofitive in their manners, lefs dogmatical in
their opinions, lefs fudden in their decifions ?
—•Experience may fhew every man, that public
rumour always lies : that the fafts related, how-
ever confidently warranted for truths, are oftea
without any foundation at all, notwithftanding
the proverb no f moke without fire \ but always,

by

The wood. 193

by adding or diminifhing, difguifed and altered
from their real felves *°*. Yet, who is there,
that hefitates to admit and fwallow at once any
thing faid of any man, and efpecially (thanks
to the milkinefs of human nature) if to his dif-
gracc or detriment *°* ?

Another ftriking inftance, where even the
wifeft men are not taught by experience, may
be feen in pages 122 and 123 above, No.
XXXV.

s

LXI,

THE BRAVADO OPPOSITE TO WHAT HE
WOULD SEEM.

OME years ago, at St. Georgc^s Hof-
pital, Weftminfter, two boys underwent
each the amputation of an arm. The one ex-
prefled juft and natural apprehenfions of the
operation, yet bore it in a firm and reafonable

*°* Fama ne tunc quidem^ cum aliquid veri affert^Jinemen^
dacii 'vitio eft ; detrahens, adjiciens, demutans de veritate^
Tertullian. Apol. c. 7.

*®5 When any thing bad is faid, human malignity fwal-
lows it greedily, and the gulp is , delicious ; not fo, when
any t\iiTi% good : this is fwallowed, as a medicine is fwal-
lowed, and often flays as difficultly upon the flomach.

O manner.

194 S Y L V A,, OR

manner. The other defpifed the tinnidity of
his fellow-patient, made extremely light of the
operation, and even fet it glorioufly at defiance ;
yet complained during the procefs in the moft
Womanilh*^ and daftardly ftile, and was, in
fliort, totally fubdiled by it* Upon my feem-
ihg greatly ftirprifed, the furgeon faid, that //
Ki^as aitbajs/di^^l believe it is {o in other things^
as well as ciouragc. Whenever vanity oftenta-
tioufly parades either upon wealth, or know-^
ledge, or learning, t?r. (^c. there fufpicion
fliould naturally arife : and why ? becaufe re-
alities are feldom folicitous about appearances,
yea^ often not enough attentive to them i while
wind and emptinefs inflate ind puff.

*^ This t6nn by right fliould be withdrawn; for I
adually faw a woman, i» the &me hofpital, undergo the
empatation of a breai!, without complaining at all, fb far
as I could parcHre.' Hew is it, that the women (ecm fo
modi better fboncii for fidferix^g tJuui ijpc men ? is it, that
they are more trained toexped it as a thing in coorfe ?

LXII.

X H s W O O D. 19s

LXIL

OFACADEMIIS OR PRIVATE SEMINARIES.

■\X7 Hy do people, in the education of their
children, avoid public fchools, and afFeft
academies *°7 ? or fome of thofe choice nurferies
for youth, where the gentleman, not for profit>
but for amufement, and the pleafure of mak*
ing pupils more finifli<d, confines himfelf to
fix or eight, at the rate of 100 1, inftead
of 20 1. a year!— Why? for the fame rea-
fon, that many le^ve the eftablilhed church,
and run to a Methodift meeting-houfe j in
fure and certain hope of being better inftruft-
ed by a Ihoemaker or a weaver, than by a man
trained at a fchool and univerfity :— for the
fame reafon, that men leave regular phyfi-
cians for the fake of quacks or waterologers ^

108

^^ By Academies are not here meant thofe public feml-
Aaries among the DiiTenters, where education is conduded
in its beft manner ; but fchools in private Jhoufes* which
afTume the name of Academies^

**• *« Mifs Molitor, juft arrived from Strafbourg, cm-^
" braces this opportunity . to acquaint the public* that
" through long praftice with her father. Dr. Molitor of
•< Strafbourg, fhe undertakes to cure all thofe diforders,
♦* that are deemed incurable by the Faculty. She flatters
«* herfelf, hy feeing the iMater of the patient, to tell if cur-
«» able or not." Mom. Chron, 21 April, 1784.— This, I
t^e itt is the way to have bufinefs.

O 2 There

196 S Y L V A, on

There may have been, but it has not been my
fortune to fee, even a fmgle youth accomplifh-
ed in letters, and who could fairly be called a
fcholar, dome forth from any of thefe private
.feminaries. And indeed, how ihould their
mafters teach, what not one in ten hath ever
learned ?

Lxiir.,

A COMPENDIOUS WAY TO BE SAVE6*

COME, who defpair of being faved by Works,
turn Methodifts to obtain falvation by Faith.
They refemble the Butler in Addifon's Drummer 4
Having loft a filver fpoon, he confults a con-
jurer; who promifes him the Ipoon again, but
upon condition, that he Ihould " drink nothing
'^ but fmall-beer for a fortnight:" but the
Butler, defpairing to '^ recover it this way,
^' e'en bought a new one." Thus, it is much
cafier to be faved by faith among the Metho-
difts, or abfolutions among the Papifts, than
by a courfe of moral pra6tice **9 . all finners

*y9 Churchmen do not inculcate moral pradice, as rf

it/elf fufficient to fave, but only as a Jine qua non ; that

"is, a man cannot be faved without, it, his befl endeavours

towards moral perfeftion being i^eceflary to qualify him for

the benefics of ChriA's death*

like

The W O O D* 197

like it better, for the fame reafon,that an epi-,
cure or voluptuary had rather be cured by me-
dicine or Bath waters, than fubmit to abftinence
and regimen.

LXIV.

A VINDICATION OF PARACELSUS.

/^ N E of the papers, in the Medical ^ranjac^
tions juft publifhed *'% contains the fol-
lowing paragraph : «^ If modern times had not
" furniflied fimilar inftances, it would have been
" matter of aftonilhment to us to have heard,
^^ that Erafmus, the friend, the correfpondent,
«* and the patient of our excellent Linacer^
" whofe great fkill in the fcience of phyfic he
*' extols in feveral of his epiftles, ever confult-
** ed, in his own cafe, fo wild^ fo .illiterate an
** cnthufiaft, as Paracelfus appears to have been.
*^ But it is to be lamented^ that in matters^
^^ which relate to phyfic, even the moft fenfible
^' part of mankind has ever Ihewn a degree of
" weaknefs and credulity, eafily impofed upon
*^ by the felf-importance of thofe, who know
'^ how to recommend themfelves to the world
^' by bold promifes \ and that diffidence ^ dotibt^

**** The publication here alluded to was in 1768, an 8vo ;
whence it appears^ that this article was drawn up man/
years ago«

O 3 . *^ and

19? S Y L V A, OR

" and hefttationy which help to conftitute th<?
'' true charaftcr of a philofopher, have mmed
*' both the fame and fortune of nnany an excel*
" lent phyfician/' — Thefe words are impor*
tant, and will furnifh, as a preacher would fay,
abundant matter for edification.

Now, though it is not meant to vindicate
Paracelfus fully and abfolutely throughout, yet
—hath not this writer's zeal againft him fome-
what tranfported, and carried him farther, than
the matter of fa£twill in ftridbnefs admit of?^
That Paracelfus was wild to a confiderable de-
gree, will not be denied j but, whether he was
cither fo wild^ or fo illiUrate^ as he is here re-*
prefented, it is at leaft pardonable to doubts
bccaufe men^ neither wHd nor illiterate, have
thought and fpokcn highly of him* The writer
quotes Erafmus, as having confulted him in bis
€wn cafe: his complaint and lamentation are
grouhded upon this vely faft. If then Erafmus^
though the friend and patient of Linacer, whofe
Ikill too in phyfic he/ hath greatly extolled^
did (as by thus confulting him he certainly did)
fuppofe, that Paracelfus might do what Linacer
had not done — could Erafmus think otherwifc
than highly of him ?

True it is, diat Erafrhui hath not fpoken fa-
vourably of phyficians in general ; a letter of
his to Warham, archbilhop of Canterbury, be-
ginning in thefe terms: Incidit Etafmo tuo
fericuloja et mnium graviffima cum caUulo c$n^

JliaatiQ.

The wood, 199

JlWatio. Deventum in manus Meduorum et Phar-
macBpolarumy hoc efty carnificum et harpyiarum^
6?^ *". But thefe and fimilar ftrokes regard
only the morals of the profeffion, and in no wife
afFedt his tcftimony Tor Paracelfus, whofe abili-
ties, as a profeffor, are the point in queftion*
Others alfo have fpoken in the higheft terms
of thisphyfician. J^lacuit AitiJJimo Paracelfum
fnifijfey fays Van lielmont, qui medicaminum
altiores fraparationes mundo proponeret *" : and
Gerard Voffius fpcaks of him, as having aftually
raifed chcmiftry from the dead *'^— But, as we
mean to comment a little upon the qualifica-
tions and manners of this phyfician, let us^ for
the fake of contemplating his hiftory and cha-
raflcr the better, draw the chief lines and fea-
tures of them out, and prefcnt them here under
on? point of view.

Paracelsus was born, 1493, near Zurich in
Switzerland *'\ His father being a phyfician,
he learned from him the elements of his art %

*" Opera. Tom. III. p. 164. L. Bat. 1706.

"* De Ortu Medicinae, p. 406. Amft. 1652.

•*' Chemiam^ dia fepaltam, qaafi ab orco revocavit:
fcriptor, ut de eo nobiliffimus Tycho, pluribus oppugnatvw
qttam intelledkus. De Philofopb*

**♦ Boerhaave, Elcmcnta Ch^miae, p. 19. L. Bat. 1732.—
Hiftoire d^ la Medecine, par Dan. Le Ckrc, p. 792. Axn^
1723.

O 4 but.

floo . S Y L V A, OR

but, captivated with alchymy, as he grew up,
he was placed under the moft eminent mafters
in that way. He then travelled, and vifited al-
. moft all the countries and univerfities in Eu-
rope; confulting indifferently, wherever he
was, phyficians, barbers, old women, conjurers,
chemifts, &c. and eagerly adopting from any
whatever he thought ufeful. About his 20th
year, he examined the mines in Germany;
then proceeded as far as to Ruflia : on the bor-
ders of which being taken by the Tartars, he
was carried to the Cham, and afterwards fent
with that prince's fon to Conftantinople ; where,
ias himfelf relates, he was let into the fecret of
the philofopher*s ftone. Returning to Europe,
he fettled at Bafil ; and here grew famous, ef-
pecially after his fuccefsful treatment of Frobe-
nius, the celebrated printer "K By this, he be-
came acquainted with Erafmus; and was, in
/hort, |fb highly efteemed, that the magiftracy
of Bafil made him profefTor of phyfic in 1527,
and fettled upon him an handfome falary. Here

*" Now poflum polliceri praemium Vti tuae ftudioque par :
certe gratum animum polHceor. Frohenium- ah infer is
re<vocaftif hoc eft, dimidium mei : fi me quoque refUtueris,
in fingulis utramque reftitues. Udnam fit ea fortuna, quae
te fiafileae remoretur. • Erqfm. ad Paracelf. Epift* — ^He did
not however ftay long at fi^l, but went to Alface, July
1528 : and, rambling afterwards through feveral countries,
came at length to Saltzbourg, where he died Sept. 154$,
Le ClerCi p. 8ox« •

■ he

The wood. aoi

he read leftures two hours every day, fpmetimcs
in Latin, but oftener in German ; and here, in
a public and folemn manner from the chair, he
burned the writings of Galen and Avicenna,
though he afFefted to value highly Hippocrates
and the ancient phyficians.

" He had," fays Rapin, " a profound ge-
*« nius, but a dark and obfcure expreflion : all
** his words were enigmas, and all his difcourfes
^« myfteries *'^" RuUamkis, a German Phyfi-
cian, formed a dictionary of his new-invented
terms, which however did not fuffice to make
them intelligible. He was thought to have
ufed a familiar or demon, and to have carried
it about in the hilt of his fword. It is certain,
that he afFedted to pafs for a magician ; and
did not fcruple to teach, that, if God refufed
to lend his afliftance, it was lawful and right to
confult the devil *'7, He was prepared alfo to be
an ecclcfiaftical reformer, and had his Angulari-
ties in divinity, as well as in phyfic. He main-

*'^ Toutes fes paroles efloient des enigmes, et fes difcours des
myfteres. Reflex, fur la Philofoph.

*'7 G. Voffius, though an admirer of Paracelfus, muft yet
have looked upon this with horror ; (Ince he thought it bet-
ter to die, than to be cured by charms or magical operations.
Similis eil quartanx ianatio, f^ys he, per abracadabra
charta; infcriptum, et collo appenfum. Plane autem affentio
"^^ Chryfoflomo, qui docet, utu^ hujufmodi amuleta prxfla-
rent quod promittunt, fatius. nLhilominus fore, ut morbo
obeamus, quam iic recupcremus fanitatem. Dt Philofoph.

tained.

i02 S Y L V A, OR

tained, among other flrange things^ that ^« our
«* firft parents before the fall had not the parts
•^ ncceffary to generation ; but that they protu-
*« berated afterwards, like a fcrophulous tumor
*^ from the throat *'^" His manners were
fomewhat favage : he was arrogant and affum-
ing, a mighty boafter, a great promifer. By vir-
tue of his Elixir Proprietatis^ he undertook to
protraft the life of man to any period; but^
while he was deliberating how far to protraft his
own, he died, after a few days illnefs, in his 48th
year. His works are in Latin 5 but hisLatinity,
like his manners, is rather barbarous. They
have been printed more than once *'^ : the beft
edition, as I fuppofe, is that of Geneva, 1658,
in 3 vols, folio.

Now, from this general furvey of Paracelfus,
what is the idea to be formed of his cha-
rafter? why, undoubtedly, wildnefs appears
to have been a prevailing caft in it. But,
was wiidnefs peculiar to Paracelfus ? Was

**• Negabat primos parentes ante lapAim habuiiTc partes
generationi hominis neceflarias : poftea acceffiffe^ ut firumant
gtitturi, Voflius, ibid.

*'^ Guy Patin is quite angry, that printers and prelTes
fhould be found for fuch work ; and declares, that they had
better print the Koran. J'vex vous oui dire, fays he, que le
Paracelje s^imprimg a Geneve ? Quelle honte, qu*un fi mecbant
li'vre h'ouue des frejfes et des otrvriers f J^aimeroii mieux qu^on
eut imprime V Alcoran. Lettre 58. On the other hand. Van
Helmont calls him Monarcbam arcanorumt decus Germania,
kz. De Ortu Med. p. 603. So it is, that dodors differ.

5 not

The wood. oo^

not Van Hdmont, were not an hundred others,
mid as well as he ?— Take but the bulk of wri-
ters upon other iubje&s i upon philofophy^ upon
divinity, upon metaphyfics, particularly ; bring
them to the teft of rcafon : examine them welK
You will find, that they abound with wild and
fantaftic notions^ with vain and groundlefs con-
ceits ; that fome write purely from imagination
and temperament, that others are milled by
prejudice and paflion, and that all are con(lant«
ly lofing fight of nature and common fenfe*
From Paracelfus this cenfurer ** tranfcribes
<^ paflages^ on account of the juft obfervations
** they contain i" and owns, that, " in the
" midft of the- moft incomprehenfible jargon,
•^ he fonrtetimes talks intelligibly"**:" which
really is as much, as can be faid of almoft any
writer, upon fubjefts fo abftrufe and profound.
Even from Galen, whofe name has been founded
fo high in the regions of phyfic, and whofe
Works are reckoned to contain fo many excellent
things ; I fay, from Galen will I undertake to
produce as folid, full, and elaborate nonfenfe, as
this writer for his life can from Paracelfus.
Galen was doubtlefs an illuftrious phyfician in
his day, and alfo a very acute and learned man.
Ifaac Cafaubon hath called him Criticorum^ non
minus quam Medicorumy principem *" 3 but, if he

•*• Medical Tranfaft. p. 330.
?** In Athen«um, ir^^rr.

IS

ao4 S. Y L V A, OR

is now read by here and there a man. It may
poflibly be as much for his language and critical
flcill, as for any medical treafur^ fuppofed to be
lodged in him.

So much then for Paracelfus's wildnejs : as for
his illiteracy y if I may fo call it, this may not be
fo eafily afcertained, I can indeed readily con-
ceive, that he was no critic in Greek and Latin j
but muft not haftily pronounce illiterate a man,
who has left us two or three folios in a learned
language. True it is, that his Latinity favours
of barbaj-ifms but it is equally true, that profef-
fional men, who could have written in this lan-
guage with purity and elegance, have yet afFeft-
cd an obfcure and even barbarous ftile, merely
to give their works a more myfterious and fci-*
entific air : and Paracelfus, poflibly, ma:y have
done fo too *".

^^^ M. de la Monnoie is perfaaeled^ that Francis Aretia
induftrioufly affedled barbarous expreflions in his works
upon law ; left, being .deemed a polite writer, he ihould not
be thought a profound lawyer. The fame barbarous hu«
mour prevailed at the fame time among j^yficians and di-
vines : thofe among them, who firft attempted to introduce
politenefs, were reckoned neither phyficians, nor divines^
but grammarians only. They were fcarce cured of this pre-
judice in the days of Lud. Vives, whofe words upon the
fubjed are really curious : ^it Lyranus et Hugo fcrihunt,
Theohgia eft ; qua Erafmusi Grammatica. Idem dt Hieronymo^
jimbrofiof Auguftitu, Hilario diHuri, ntfi nomina ohftarent ;
tamctji hie etiam ne/cio quid tnujfant. ^od Ji Joannes Picus
apologiam fuam cwrupto illo non fcripjtffet fermoHifbaudquaquam
haberetur Theokguf, Jed Grammatifus^ Dc Caufis Corrupt^
jS^uent. L i.

Mean

The wood, ao^

Mean while, whether he was, or was not,
illiteratey fo far as relates to languages, is of
no import in the queftion between us ; becaufe
it does not at all afFeft his abilities as a phyfi-
cian, or thejudgment of E>afmus in confulting
him. A critical knowledge, or (as fome will
have it) any knowledge at all, in the Greek
and Latin tongues, though " an ornamental
'« acquifition, and fuch as no phyfician, who
"f has had a regular education, is found with-
'^ out, is not yet abfolutely neceffary to the
^« fuccefsful pra6tice of medicine **' :" and I
have a piece now before me, written in 1724,
and entitled ^^Pbarmacofolajujiificatiy or, Apo-
" thecaries vindicated from the imputation of
*' ignorance j wherein is Ihewn, that an acade-
^^ mical education is no way neceffary to qua-
'** lify a man for the praftice of phyfic." The
cruth is, that, whatever forms and diftances
may be outwardly kept up, for the fake of do-
ing things decently and in order "% the apo-
thecary

"3 On the Duties and Offices of a Phyjtcian, p. 5. 1770.
8vo.

**♦ Nimia familiaritas cum Pharmacopoeo parit contemp-
turti, f^ys Fr. Hoffman, in Medic. Politic, Pars ii. c. i. reg.
8. — Yet fome, even phyficians, have contended, that the
•partitions, which have kept phyfician, furgeon, and apo-
thecary afunder, fhould be removed ; and that the three pro-
*feffions, as it were three departments, Ihould be thrown to-
gether. Hear one, who attended the plague at London in

1665,

2o6 S Y L V A, OR

thecary will ever fuppofe in Tecret, that he
underftands the adminijiration of medicines in the
cure of difeafes, as 'coell as the phyjician i and in
1704, when the conteft ran high between the
Difpenfary-phyficians (as they were then called)
and the apothecaries, reafons were openly given
to prove it "^ And it muft be confefled, that
phyficians themfelves have countenanced this
idea; fince, from-Galen downwards, they have
^Imofl: unanimoufly agreed, that the know-
ledge- of phyfic cannot be acquired from books.
When Sir Richard Blackmore aflced Sydenham,
what books he fhould read to qualify him for

166; » and yrho fpeaks the fentiments ofiiaany of his bre-
thren : ** My.judgment is," lays he, " that it is no fuch
** prepofterous thing, as fome account it, for a Jhyfician,
** who intends to acquire e}(cellency in his fcience, to begin
** with I^harmacopcta zxA' Chyrurgia, — I have aded many
** years fermerly, but Specially now-^f late when there was
*' moft need, the part .of a phy£tian, chymrgion, and apo->
*' thecary, as becomes ev^fy honeH able man, lawfoUy
*' called to this noble faculty. Take it for an infallible
•' verity, that it is impoffibley without miraculous inipira-
«' tiqn, for a phyfitian to difcharge his duty in this honour-
" able profeffion, unlefs he bring to unity that, which of
" late hath been made a trinity:* AOIMOTOMIA : The
Teft Jnatomitceil. By George THompfon, M% D. 1666^ 1 2mo.
Prcf. to Reader.

**5 The title o{ the piece alluded to rans thus : " Rea-
*'. fpns,. why the Apojth«:ary may be fiippofed to ondcrftand
<r the adminiftratian,'' (ffr. as above ; .and the motto firom
.Ovid is, Et herbarum efi/uljeSa foteutia ntiis.

pradice ?

The wood* 407

prafticc ? *« Read Don Quixote/' fays Syden-
ham : ** 'tis a very good book ; 1 read it ftill.**
This Blackmore relates himfclf, in the preface
to his Treatije on the Small Pox ; and mentions
there alfo another " celebrated phyfician/'
meaning Ratcliff, as declaring on his death-
bed, that he " would leave behind him the
** whole myftery of phyfic upon half a fheet of
" paper.''

But furely thefe famous praftitioners could
not ftriftly mean, what they have been ufually
underftood to mean, Galen fays cxprefsly,
*hat phyfic cannot be learned from books:
but, as he adds, neither can any other art be
learned from books***. So Cicero had faid,
that " neither pbyjiciansy nor generals, nor ora-
^' tors, although they may have drawn the pre-
*' cepts of their art from books, can ever attain
*^ to any thing great without ufeandpradice**^."
But, did any man in his wits ever deny this ?
Take, not arts and fciences but, human nature
in general : by ftudying it in books only, you
will know it no more, than you would know a
man's perfon, from having feen only his pifbure.
It is rare, that a pi£lure Would enable you to
know the original, if it occurred : I think that

«AXiij TiX^^ i^a-njir. De Aliment, faciead. cap. i.
«•' DcOffic. r. li.

books,

2o8 S Y L V A, OR

books, without obfervation and experience,
would ftill left enable you to know mankind
and the world* But, becaufe attention and
praftice are neceflary, does it follow that books
are altogether ufelefs ?

^^ A thoufand writers perhaps for a thoufand
*' years," fays Freind, *^ haye been improving
^* the art and profeflion of phyfic : and he, that
^^ induftrioufly ftudies thofe authors, will, in
*^ the fhort period of life, find out as much,
** as if he had lived a thoufand years him-
«* felf, or erhployed thofe thoufand years in
^' the ftudy of phyfic "\'' But this afcribcs
too much to books, and too little to obfervation
and experience : fuffice it to fay, that books
muft unavoidably fuggeft variety of ufeful hints
and edifying matter^ direft praftitioners often
what to look for, and thus ferve in Tome mea-
fure as guides in their refearches. Yet when
I allow thus much to books, I do not mean by
books thofe hypothetical produftions, fpun from
the brains of doSlores umhraticiy without any re-
gard to the phasnomena ; — for thefe, inftead of
pointing out what is, may lead men to look
for, aye, and (as paradoxical as it may found)
often to find, what is not "^ — but 1 mean thofe

narrationes

... ^ - ■• . .

"» Hift. ofPhyfic. II. 63.

"» Men, who have theories to fupport> as they will often

fnd what is not, fo they will as often ovirUok what is. Pre-

. ^ jttdiced

The wood. 209

narrationes me'dicinalesy Lord Bacon mentions':
thofc hiftorical narrations of medical cafes, on
which alone, fo far as books are concerned, a
folid foundation for practice can be raifed ; and
to the intermiffion of which Hipfocratic diligence
he afcribcs the very flow progrcfs that phyfic
has made *'*.

Will it be faid, that books and methods of
praftice, even formed upon obfervations thus
accurately made> will neverthelefs fix a biafs
upon the underftanding, give it infenfibly a con-
fined and fyftematic habit, andprevioufly'indif-
pofe it for enlarged and impartial contempla-
tion? But this, were it really an objeftion,
would bear againft all other, as well as medical^
inftitution: for, while any fort of education
fhall be thought expedient, men mull be cul«
tivated andfafhioned according to fome lyftemj
fome digeftcd and eftabliftied form, ofdoftrine.
If there be any original power of intellefl:, this
doftrine will afterwards be brought to the
teft of reafon and nature i and men will then

jadiced and predetermined, they will fee no fa&» but what
they come prepared to fee : as, on the other hand, they will
greedily catch at any thing, however obfcnre and doabtfiil»
which may feem to favour a private fyftem. This is the
trae fpirit of hypothetical procedures, and the grand fource
•f error among men.

»•• De Attgm. Sdcnt. iv, 2.

P embrace

iio S Y L V A, OR

embrace or rejeft upon eonviftion, what they
Jiad aforetime learned by rote. If there be no
fuch power of intellcdl, — if the praftitioner be
not of a fort to examine things himfelf, but
deems it fafer as well aseafier to. rely upon
others, and to pradife what his tutors and the
fchools have taught him — ^why, all which can
be faid is, thut they, who cannot lead, muft be
content to follow. And this, indeed, muft be
the cafe with mankind in general -, who, as
Thucydides obferved long ago of hiftorical
knowledge, and it will equally apply to all
other knowledge, ^d ther Jearch after truth
Jo very grievdus and difir effing^ that they eajily
acquiejce in what is ready prepared to their
hands ^'\

. And, now, enough oi wild and illiterate ; ef-
pecially, as many may be conceived moft im-.
patient to alk, whether I am in eameft, and
ferioufly mean to vindicate fo ftrange a. chara6ber,
as that o( Paracel/us ? Why, no, not abfolutely,
as I have faid; but, furely, from any thing
this v/riter has advanced againft him. For
what is it, after all, that he has advanced ? He
has pronounced him wild and illiterate : he has
condemned him for a/Tuming that hldy felf^
important, and confident air, which was neceflary

6f i«$, KM kvl T» troifAu f«»Mdy T^tTTonat^ , Lib« i*

The . W O O D. an

to recommend bim to the world: and he has ob-
liquely cenfurcd in hini the want of that dif-
fiience^ douhty and hefttatioHy which, though el-
fential to a pbilofophery would have ruined hini
as a pbyjician. But are not thefe ftriftures of a
moft peculiar complexion, and can they be con-
fidered without fome degree of wonder ? If a
boldyjelf "important y and confident air be neceflary
to recommend a man to the world, why is Par
racelfus to be blamed for afluming it ? What !
is Paracelfus to^ be blamed for accommodating
himfelf to mankind, by affuming fuch qualities,
as their infirmities require ? — On the other
hand, if diffidenccy doubt y and befitation, be ac^
companied with attitudes and modes of beha-
viour, which would reprobate him with man-
kind ; if they would not only put him out of
all condition to ferve others, but be alfo a fure
and certain means of ruin to himfelf j would
it not be madnefs in him to appear diffident^
doubtful^ and hefttating ?

As angry as this writer feems at a bold dog-
matical behaviour in phyficians, there is no
order of men, in my humble opinion, to whom
it is more allowable, and even neceflary \ none,
whom it more concerns nibil tarn vererij as
Tully fays, quam ne duhitare aliqua de re vide^
rentur : and there ftands upon record an honefl
apothecary, whofe. wifdom in this refped: I
P 2 greatly

$11 S Y L V A, OR

greatly reverence. He knew the niifchievoM
confequences of feeming at a lofs, or of being
deficient, in any thing. When his boy there-
fore fcnt away unfervcd d cuftortier, who
enquired for plantaiie-watcr, ' with an excufe
that they had none, " Sirrah," faid he, though
** you could find no aqua plantaginis in the
*^ fhop, you might have found aqua pumpa-
'* ginis enough in the yard : and that would
*' have done juft as well." Without this firm
and perfevering affurance, what would many a
celebrated praftitioner have been ? What raifed
RatclifF to the heights he attained, and enabled
him to tyrannize, in the manner he did, over
his brethren as well as his patients ? Was it hii
tranfcendent fuperlative fkill in phyfic ? Con-
fult the files : read his prefcriptioiis. You will
foon perceive, that it was no fuch thing. No :
it was an afluming, encroaching, confident
fpirit 5 it was a dogmatical, overbearing, info-
lent manner *^*. And what elfe is it, that caufes
fo many to fucceed and flourifh, in thcfe blefled
days of ours,— for ///«/ hodie^ qui for/an olim
fiominabuntur — but the felf-fame qualities; ac-
companied, as his were, with a knowledge of
mankind, and with temper and addrefs to make
the moft of it ? And as thefe qualities are allow-
able to recommend the phyfician, fo they arc

**» Sec J Panegyric uton Jmpudinci, bclow.

alf9

Thb W O O D. 213

alfo neceilary to revive and confirm the patient :
|uft as the contrary qualities, the doubts the
diffidence^ the bejitation^ which would ruin the
phyfician, would ruin alfo the patient, by de-
ftroyjng his hopes, . and plunging him into
defpair.

• Mean while, let it not be imagined, that I
would explode all diffidence^ doubt , and bejitation :
very far from it. I not only allow, that they
kelp to conftitute the cbarailer of a true fbilojopber \
,butl am of opinion with Defcartes, that they
are the foundation of, all true philofophy. I
ipbjed, not fo much to them> as to the fitua-
tion in which this writer places them; and only
contend, that they muft never be the oftenjible
qualities (for that is the matter between us) in
t phyfician, who means tp do bufinefs. The
truth is, he hath inadvertently confounded th«.
charaftcrs of philofopher and phyfician, the
man and the profeflor, efoteric and exoteric :
ideas, which muft ever be kept diftindt, if we
would aft with any juftnefs amongft men and
manners. ,

I formerly knew a pleafant philofopher (he
muft, if alive, be fupcrannuated now) who cauf-
cd to be infcribed over the door of his mufeum,
*« Let none but men enter here." He did not
mean men^ in oppofition to women ; — for I fup-
pofc, that the members of the Blue Stocking Club,
P 3 fomc

«4 S Y L V A, OR

fomc of them at leaflr, might have found ad-
mittance here — but he meant men, as diftiri-r
guifhed from profejftofiahmen; from divines^
lawyers, phyficians, &c. Thus, it was ufual
with him, when any familiar was approaching,
to admonifh him aloud, with a gaiete de cceur^
*' to lay afide his cloke before he entered *" /*
that is, to diveft himfelf of every thing pro-
feflional, of all exoteric trappings whatever*'*:
nor do I remember to have feen him more dif-
concerted, than upon the entrance of counfellof
Tanturian. This folemn mortal, far removed
from eafe and nature, fagely ftalked in with all
his pontificalia, juft as he arrived from Weft-
minfter Hall. Nor did his behaviour mend
the matter in the leaft : for, inftead of entering
heartily into the fpirit of fuch a meeting, and
converfing with that open, candid, chearful air^
which muft ever be the life and foul of it, he
was ftifF, referved, and even faturnine. He
looked with a caft of jealoufy anddiftruft upon

*33 And it was as ufual with him, at their departure, to
imitate the Spartans in their aifemblies : where the eldeil
among them, pointing at the dcx)r, was wont to cry aloud.
Let nothing that has been /aid pafs thofe doors : hu, rlirm Gtgwr
h^iiq i^ipyiTM T^oyo;, Plutarch. Inftitut. Lacon.

*3* Burleigh, Lord Treafurer, ufed to put off his caret,
when he put ofF his cloaths ; and, when he laid down' hit
gown, would fay. Lie there. Lord Treajkrer. Camden's Reign
^ Queen Eliz.

all

Tfti AV O O D. M5

all about him r and was as guarded in his move- ^
mcnts, as if he feared to be kidnapped. He
brotight to my imagination the ridiculous pic-
ture of Hobbes, whom Eachard makes fo very
circumfpeft and wary, that he refufed to fit
down to a conference with Timothy, till furc
that Timothy would not get behind biw, and bite
him by the legs ^^K

But to proceed. In fuchi a fociety as the
above, the diffidence^ doubty and bejitation^ are
cxaftly in their place. Men arc here aflembled
as men : they endeavour to put off every pecu-
liarity, whether arifing from temperament or
profeflion : they are, for the time being, with-
out complexion and private humour, without
prejudice and paflion, without even opinions
and habits of thinking; that, by- being thus
enabled to xrontemplate pure nature through .
the medium of pure reafon, they may the more
furely arrive at real knowledge. Here, if any
where, muft be found that feafi of reafon^ of
which the Poet fpeaks; 'and on which a very
great philofopher, as well as mod excellent
man, delivered himfelf thus in raptures to a
friend: O felicia tempora^ qtiandb nobis fie rider e
hijirioniam licuity quam Jeu veramjeu affcSlatam
totus exercet mundus! quandb inter philojophandum

•*« Dr. Eachard's Works, 1705, 8vo.

P 4 tarn

4i6 S Y L V A, OR

famJ^iUcuit dicere, SOLI SUMUS *^^ : ticei
nobis verum difquirere fine invidia *'^. Here, I
fay, the qualities are in their place : here, it not
only becomes, but it is neceflary for, men to be
di^dent, to doubt, to hefitate: while all afFefta-
tion of appearing wifer than others, all vain de-
fire of Ihining in difputation, all ftriving after
tiftory inftead of truth, in a word, 2X\f elf "import
fance, confidence, boldnejsy and whatever partak-
cth of this kind of fpirit, fhould be totally ex-
cluded from fuch a fociety, as utterly fubvert-
ing its intent and meaning, and folely confign^
cd to exoteric purpofcs.

But, it may be faid, are qualities like thefc
to be configned to any purpofes whatever ? to
be encouraged, or even borne with, in any fitua-
tion ? apd can you poflibly mean to recommend
them? I will declare explicitly what I do

*^ Thefe are alTemblies^ where men confort wldi> becau/e
they love one another, and where honefl focial affedion it
not adalterated with motives of avarice or ambition.

*S7 Gaflcndi Praefat. in Exerc. Farad, contra Ariftot.^^
Balzac feems to have had a flrong reliih for this faid eafe
and freedon in cpnveriing. He had a party one evening at
his houfe; when each endeavoured to difplay what he knew»
and to exprefs liimfelf with a guarded accuracy and preci-
£on. After all were withdrawn but Menage* ** Come/'
fays Balzacy taking him by the hand^ *.* let us now we art
<< alone fpeak frt elyj and without the fear of commiting
. '* folecifms :" a prejnu fue nmusjommis fiuUffarhnt libre^
Mientf & /mmj craitUf Jt faiu dn /Md/ms. McsBagiana,
torn. i.

meanj

meaxi, and what I do not mean. I do nptmeaot
then, to recomniend ^ny thing odious and bad :
but I mean to deal with mankind^ as they only
can be^ and ought to be^ dealt with^^ if I am to
deal with them at alU Is medicinej or the prac-
tice of phyfic, neceffary to men, or is it not i
If notj let the prefent; generation of practitioners
retire upon penfions^ and be there a flop hence-
forward to this branch of education* If it be
neceiTaryj then let phyficians ufe fuchmeans^ as
fliall recommend them to thofe who may want
them. But iottfidenfe, f elf -importance^ boldm/sy
are the means to recommend them^ while
diffidence^ doubt ^ and befitatim^ are fure to- ob-
ftrudt their progrefs. So you fay, and fo I
believe: for a man, who walks grave, ereft,
and folemn, has a confirmed yet fpirited air,
and pronounces with a tone of decifion and au-
thority, will certainly be thought to know more,
and be fooner employed, than a far abler
man *^% who, with a peaking pitiful afpedt, ap-
pears

Mt A French writer, fpeaking of pcrfons of a certain caff,
fays, s*ils reftent dans Pina&ion, tf /§ Aornerit'prudamint au
Atoit de juger decifi*vement. Us u/urfent dans P opinion uni
tjfici de fuperiorite fur Us talens mimes. On les croit capahles
de fain tout ce quUls n*ont pas fait H uniquement para quails
n^ont rien fait : that is, " if they remain ina^ve, and
'' wifely confine themielves to the privilege of judging de-
«' cifively," and with di^torial authority upon every thing
that occurs, " they gain in the eftimation of men a kind of
1^ fuperiority even over real abilities and genius. They will

V be

4i« g t L V A, OR

pears to (hrink and droop, and does nothing ap^
parently but with fear and trembling.

This perverfc judgment our author imputei
to the weaknefs and credulity y which, he fays,
even the moftjenfible have ever Jhewn in medical
matters: and this he moft piteoufly laments.
But' nothing can be more piteous than this his
piteous lamentation. Why does he lament, that
men and things are fo and fo formed and con-
ftituted ? or, that he is to ufe means neceflary
to ends, if thefe ends are neceflary to be ac-
complifhed ? All things animate, as well as ina-
nimate, muft be treated according to their feve*
ral natures : a lion requires one mode of treat*
ment, a horfe another, and fo on. Yes, but man
is a very fuperiour being, and ought to be
governed by reafon : but, fuppofe man will not;
why mufl: he, like a poor dejefted poltroon, be
carried blubbering along the flreets, and pour-
ing forth lamentations^ becaufe man will not be
what he is not formed to be ? — Let me refrefh

*' be thought capable of doing every thing which they have
•* not done, zxAfohly becaufe they ha<ve not done itJ^ Du Clofs,
Conjid.fur lei Mcturs, ch. xii. Yes, " if they remain inac-
•* tive :'* but, when once they become writers or aftors, the
illufion vaniflies ; their admirers arc difmayed" and hang down
their heads ; and you may juftly apply •to them, what Tacitus
fays of Galba, *vix. that " by the confent of all, he would
•* have been thought capable of reigning, if he had noi
" reigned" — major privato 'vi/us, dum pri'vatvs fuit ; ST em*
nium confrnfu cafax imperii 9 nifi imperaffit. Hift. I.

3 hi^j

The wood. -215

liim, trpoii this forrowful ocoafiofi, with a little
fcrap of* Greek ; which I know will fpeak com-
fort to him, if only as calling up the idea of
old Eton t Ta ToiatJra Xvpov ^yntrxfAsvo^y tSro fAouoy Jg
avKyrog iripd^y owco^i ro Trocpov h 81/Afvof, ^apaJ/Ja^y^
^iXjSv rot iFoXKotj Kat 7rsp\ lAfiilv IcnrnJaxw? *'' S
which, for the benefit of the Englifti rea-
der, I thus tranflate, asMherally as I can:
^* Don't jumble difcordant qualities blindly to-
<* gether, but keep each diftinft, and in iifs
*' proper department : your diffidence^ doubt^
** and hefitatiofiy for the philofopherj your
** boldnejsy felf-importance^ and confidence^ for
** the phyfician."

I pcrfuade myfelf, that 1 have now vindicated
Paracelfus, fo far as he can want a vindication
from the ftriftures of this writer : let us add a
word or two upon other traits of his charadcr,
and upon other of his qualities, which by fome
perhaps may be thought to want apology, more
than thofe already noted. His attachment to
alchymyy his pretence to the pbilofopher's ftoncy
and his elixir proprietatisy may be ranked
(I prefume) among thofe weakneffes, which
have been common to him and other great men.
1 fuppofe alfo, that he will not be cenfured for
confulting indiforiminately all forts of people,
as well as phyficians, becaufe this is no more
than what the father of phyfic himfelf has

^'^ Laciani NiKvo/Aa»Ti»««

prefcribed :

lad S Y L V A, oK

prefcribed **® : and, if he may feem to have a^ed
a little fanatically in burning with form the
works of Galen, his good fenfe and candor muft
be acknowledged in the value he fet upon
Hippocrates. Come we then to what may
feem the moft plaufible charge againft him ; I
mean, his " pretending to magic, affefting to
" carry a demon about with him, and coining
*' new and barbarous terms, to which nobody
*' could affix any ideas j'* for thefe, it will be
faid, are not barely fooliih and abfurd, but
favour ftrongly of knavery and impofture.

Gentlemen may allow themfelves liberties,!
and ufc what language they pleafe j but of this
I am very fure, that if all are knaves and im-
poftors, who affedt to pafs for what they arc
not, the greater part of mankind muft fubmit
to be deemed fuch. One man afFedbs more
knowledge, another more property, than he
has : why ? becaufe ignorance and poverty arc
attended with contempt, and would hinder
from emerging. Dealers and all who traffic
reprefent their commodities bigger than the life,
and fccretly applaud themfelves, when they have
difpofed of them as fuch. Phyficians affume
ofienjible qualities, to procure themfelves pa-
tients; and when they have procured them,
fcruple not to deceive tjiem for the good .of
their bodies, as divines often do for the good

^ Hippocrat d$ Pmtfi.

of

The wood. m

of their fouls.' Now all thefe are> ftriftly
Ipcaking, arts of impofture ; yet necefTary, as
^ould fecm, ift the commerce of life, becaufc
juftified by the univerfal confent andpraiStice of
mankind.

I will not deny that Paracelfus might carry
this grimace fomewhat too far ; but, if he ran a
little into one extreme, the prefent medical
gentry have certainly run into the other, by lay-
ing afide elaborate wigs, gold-headed canes, and
other pompous paraphernalia. It has been faid>
that this grand revolution in phyfic was aftual-
ly brought about by a female, nam fuit ante
HelenatHy ^c ; but, let who would bring it
about, it was highly impolitic. There is no
cflFcftual way of arrefting the attention of men
-in general, and of acquiring reputation enough
even to ferve them, without afFefting .things
uncommon and extraordinary. Common fenfc
^ and common things make no impreflion. Def-
cartes was wild in philofophy, as Paracelfus
was in phyfic, and doubtlefs admired on this
very account; for I take Voltaire to be in-
difputably right, when he fays, that '* Gaf-
*' fendus would have been thought the greater
*« man, if he had not been the more reafonable,
« of the two**'/' The ridiculous Bayes in
the Rebear/al, as grofs a fool as he was, had

•♦* Gajfendi eut moins dt rfpufation qui De/carttt, parcc
y*il itntflus ras/ifmatUr^

wit

122 S Y L V A, 1.

wit enough to difcern, that common fenfe is a
poor low creeping thing, wJiich would never
produce any efFeft; and, as his obje6t was to
elevate zxi^jurfrijey fo he fought things ftrangc,
and altogether remote from it. He defpifes
Beaumont and Jonfon, fof copying fervilely
after nature j and foars himfelf above it, " for
" fome perfons of quality and friends ofhis^
" whounderftand \AidX flame and power in wri--
" ting is."

The flightefl and moft curfory glance over
human life will evince, that the principle here
adopted is the fureft groundwork of admira-
tion among men; that the moft diftinguiftied
perfonages, in the feveral departments of it,
have been real Bayefes ; and that the fyftem of
Bayejijm^ if I may fo call it, muft be carefully
purfued and cultivated by every man, who
means to Jhiney and make a figure in the world,—
Bejunt cat era ***.

*♦* Though this Vindication of Paracel/us be apparently
ironical y and more for the fake of pleafantry than ferious ar-
gument* yet it contains fome edifying refle^oos, and this
above all* <vi%, that mankind are to bi dtalt with as they are,
and not according to 'vain and fantafiic ideas of a perfe&ion, of
nvhicb tbej are not capable. See N*» XIV. and LV,

LXV.

The WOOD/ fi2j'

LXV.

A PANEGYRIC UPON IMPUDENCE*

QRATORS and men of wit have fre-
' quently amufcd themfelves with maintainr
ihg paradoxes. Thus, Erafmus has written- a
panegyric upon /c/^: Montaigne has faid fine
things upon ignoranccy which he fomewhere
calls ^^ the fofteft pillow a man can lay his
•' hqad ypon :*' and Cardan, in his Encomium
Neronisy has, I fuppofe, defended every vice
and every folly. It is aftoniftiing to me, that
no one has yet done juftice to impudence ; which
has fo many advantages, and for which fo much
rnay be faid. Did it never ftrike you, what fim-r
pic, naked, uncompounded impudence will do ?
what ftrange and aftonifhing efFefts it will pro-
duce ? Aye, and without birth, without proper*
ty, without principle, without even artifice and
addrefs, without indeed any fingle quality, but
t\i^ as frontis triplex y " the' front of threefold
** brafs,'*— Obje6t not folly, vice, or villainy
however black : thefe are puny things : fron>
a vifage truly bronzed and feared, from fea-
tures mufcularly fixed and hardened, ifliies forth
a broad overpowering glare, by which all thef(f

arc

^04 S Y L V A, OK

arc as totally hid, as the fpots of the fun by
the luftrc of his beams. Were this not fo, how
is it, that impudence ihall make imprcffions to
advantage ; fhaU procure admiflion to the
higheit perfonages, an J no queftions ajkei% fhall
fuffice (in ihort) to make a man's fortune,
where no modeft merit could even render itfelf
vifiblc***? I alk no more to infure fuccbfs,
than that there be but enough of it *** : with-
out fucccfs a man is ruined and undone, there
being no mean. Should one ravage half the
globe^ and deflroy a million of his fellow-
creatures, yet, if at length he arrive at empire,
as Caefar did, he fhall be admired while living
as an hero, and adored perhaps as a god when
dead : though, were the very fame perlbn, like

*♦* ** Impudence," fays Ofiornt *' is no virtn.e» yet able t©
*' beggar dieoi alf; being for the noft part in good plight,
** when the reft ftarve, and capable of carrying her followers
f* op to the bigheft preferments : as ufefal in a court, at
** armoor in a camp. Scotchmen have ever made good
'* the troth of this, who will go farther with a ihilling, than
** an Englifhman can ordinarily pafs for a crown." Jdvkt
to a ^MT.— Bot this to my thinking is rather a mark of fape*
rionr wifdom, than of fuperioor impudence: I'fafpeftan
error of the prefs, and that in (lead of Scptcbmin it fiionld
have been Irijhmtm, Not that I approve of »«/i#smi/ ftriftures :
there is no occafion to apply either to Scotlaad or IreUutd fet
impudence of the very firft metal.

*^ ^i Jhul wncumii^t/Mis irAnfitritt oporttt ifi gunriltr
imftidmUm. Gicero^

TiiE W O O Di MS

datiliAiCj t« fail in the attempt^ he would be
hanged as a Uttlt fcoundi^ rbbber^ and hia
iiMie deroted to infamy or oblivion *♦*.

Prajr^ what do yoil think' the elder rtiny
fuggcft«,when ht affirmb it to be f^ th* pfcroga-
*^ tivc of the Art of Healing, that ahy man^
** \rho profefTes himfelf aphyficiani is inftantlj^
*' rsceiredas fuch*** ?'* He certainly fuggefts^

*♦♦ This coxnparifim of* a hero with a robber hath beea
biten' iftade. '' Father M^caron told us from the pulpit to*
** -iaji** fays Madam de Maihtieinon, *^ that th^ ^erd txras a
** roUer, niDhodklai the head ef an amvft njohat a bigbrnji^^aft
** did akne* Our mafter^*' flie adds, " was hot pleafed
'' with the comparifon i** notn maitre n* a fas Ue ccntent de
la cmnfaraifon, LettreSy 9 Fev. i675.«>— Boileau's language
i& e4^ally forcible, in Sat. xi. v. 75.

Vn if^u/te guerrier, femur de V uftii/ersg
IPeJt qu*uH plus grand voleurf fue du Tefte, iSc*
*^ t iUh a pirate^*' faid one of that order to Alexandefj
'' becaufe I have only a fingle yeflel : had I a great fleets
** I (hottld be a conqueror." — Seneca calls conquerors magnos
it fnriofis latrones ; and juftly : quid enim, as St. Auguftin
fayi, fitni regna, remotajuftfttd, niji magna latrocinia f

*♦* In bdc artium/old evenit, ut cuicunque medieum/e pro^
feffofiatim credatur, Nat. Hift, xxix.-^I cannot, however,
confine this to phyfic : it is truej snore or lets, of «i7 thi
profeffioDt:

For he that has but iaapudence
To all things has a fair pretence.

tnd, certainly, it is moft true of diviiiity. Let any peafant
Or village mechanic dart forth as a preacher, without any
)Atparation or qualiication of any kind, will he not inftantly
be Miewed, and liftened to as a divine?

Q^ that

aa6 S Y L V A, o R

that fuch fort of profelTors in his days, like the
itinerant and advertifing dodlors of ours, had
a more than ordinary portion of that bold,
felf-important, and confident look and manner, -
which, with a very little heightening, may juftly
be called impudence. And what but this could
enable a little paltry phyfician, of no name or
chara6tcr, to gain fo mighty an afcendency over
fuch a fpirit, as that of Lewis XI. of France ?
Read the account in Philij^.de Commines; and
then blame me, if you can, for thinking fo
highly of this accomplijQament. — True it is,
that Lewis was afraid of death even to horror,
and fo as not to bear the found of the word ; and
I grant, that on this fame fear the empire of
phyfic, as well as the empire of divinity, is
chiefly founded : but I infift, that neither the
one nor the other will ever be raifpd eflTeftually^
without the aid and co-operation of this great
and fovereign quality.

Pope Gregory VIL whp governed the church
frpiT^ 1073 to 1085, is celebrated for having
carried, ecclefiaftical donainion to the height:
for he was the firft who .maiotained and efta-
bliftied, that popes, by excommunication, may
depofe kings from their ftates, and loofe fubjedts
from their allegiance. And how did he effeft
this? Not by genius or eloquence; not by a
knowledge of canon law, and the conftitutions
of the holy fee -, no, nor by the arts of policy

^nd

The W d O t>4 IlTj

and grimaces of his religion (with all which
he was amply endowed) but by a moft'infolent,
daring, ufurping fpirit, ' He feized the papal
chair by force, as it were; |:hrew the dhurch into
confufionto gratify his ambition; mad^ kings
bis flaves, and biftiops his creatures j and efta-»
blilhed in his own perfon a tyranny over things
both fpiritual and temporal.— But my admi--
ration of impudence tranfports me too . far : I
will fay no more upon it.

LXVL

OT COURTS*

/^ O U R T S have always been efteemed
placesr^of iniquity and corruption. Ac-
cording to fome^ the moment a man fteps
into the precinfts of a court, he fhould feeni
forcibly carried away with his brpt her- courtiers j
to commit all mani^er of fin and wickednefs 5
as if by a vortex, rolling round the center of
royalty, which involves them all in one common
guilt. — Indeed, an ancient poet has made a
xrourtier fay, that the palaces of kings and virtue
are incompatible *^ : and our unfortunate Ra-

«4« ' ■ exeat aula

^i voUt ^ipius : virtus it /umma fotejfas
• Ne/i C99unt* Lucan*

, . 0^2 leigh

228 S Y L V A, o !t

kigh fe^ms to have entertainfed an idea of this
fort, as if iniquity was not accidental merely^
but abfolutely effential, to the profeffion of a
courtier : I have lived, fays he, in his fpeech
from the fcaffbld, ** I have lived a finful life,
1^ in ^11 fmful callings, having been a foldier,
^' a captain, a fea-captain, and a €ourtier*^''i
*« which iare all places of wickednefs and
^ vice."

If I could believe this opinion to be well-
grounded, it would greatly lower my notions of
the divine inftittrtion t^f government ; of mo-
narchical government, more particularly. While
I have been meditating in the drawing-room
upon a birth-day, a reverential awe, almoft
bordering upon devotion, has gradually over-
fpre^ and arretted all my powers: and this
cannot fecm ftrange, while I confider myfclf as
it were on holy ground, and in the prefence of
him, who reprefents the King of Kings. But,
according to Raleigh^ inftead of the palace of
a righteous moniarch, I am to fancy myfelf
rather in a kind of Pandsemonium $ or upon
that particular fpot, where fome of the moft
•wicked fpirits in the land are frequently aflem-
bled to work unrighteowfnefs : and where a

«4T a Father la Chaife is an honeft man," fajK Mad. de
Maintenon ; '* but the ur of the court taints the pureft
« irirttte." Lctt^. yir

inan

The wood* aag

man can no more preferve his innocence and
integrity, than he could his perfon from in-
fe&ion in a peft-houfe, Tt was certainly this
idea, which made the famous Richard Baxter^
in the Account of his own Lifey fo feelingly re-
prefent it as '^ one of the greateft bleffings,
^^ that in his youth he very narrowly efcaped
«' getting a place at court."

And, as courts ftre confefledly not places of
'uirtuiy fo it feenis equally certain, that* they
arc not places to fetk bapj^inifs in. There is no
occafion for any near approacli, to know the
caballing among the great officers of ftate, and
their unwearied attempts to undermine and
fupplant qne another : the miferable efFefts of
thefe are felt fufRciently at the remoteft dif-
tances. And for thofe mechanical toy-Ihop
things, the little gentry of the palace, who are
only fo mtKh furniture, *or:more concerned in
the adminiftrjation of affkirg than the chairs an4
tables-bereft thefe are not without their fuf-
picioas, jealoufies, whifperings, backbiting^,
and all the Httle arts of envy and malevolence;
from the fame principle and with the fame view,
but only upon a fmaller fcale, and for objefts
Icfs important. — But, for a more particular and
nearer view of the happinefs of court-life, fee
fpm? ftriking traits in the following Number,

CL3 LXYIL

ijo S Y L V A, on

LXVII.

OF MADAM DE MAINTENON,

A MOST extraordinary perfon, who, from
a low condition and many misfortunes^
became the wife of Lewis XIV. She was of an
ancient family **% her name Frances Daubigne ;
and Mezeray fpeaks of M. Daubigne, her
grandfather,^ who was a leader among the Pro-
teftants in France, as a man of " great courage

^ '^ and boldnefs, of a ready wit, and of a fine
'« tafte in polite learning, as well as of good
*^ experience in matters of war/* She is faid
to have been born in a prifon at Niort, where
her father was then confined, 1635 ; and carried
to America, when four years old.

Returning to France, upon the death of her
father in 1647, ^^^ ^^^ livelyhood being pre-
carious, fhe became the wife of the famous
Scarron in 1651. She was then fixteen, and

, Scarron forty : Scarron too was very defbrmed,
infirm, impotent, and (after all) in no advan-
tageous circumftances to her j for he fubfifted
only by a penfion from the court. She lived
with him many years : and Voltaire has not fcru-
plcd to fay, that " this part of her life was un-

^ SiickchLmsXIF.

{^ doubtedly

The woo D. 231

*^ doubtedly the happieft." She had indeed
fcnfe and wit ; but fhc had another quality too
which might help to fupport her, and that
was devotion. Obferve the language fhe held
^ to a female friend in trouble, when (he was not
niorc than nineteen : " Addrefsyourfelftofome
*' good man, who may conduftyou in the ways
** of the Lord. All is vanity, all is vexation
** of fpirit. Throw yourfelf into the arms of
*^ God. There is none but God alone on whom
** to depend, and who never faileth them that
« love him *^9."

Mean while, though Scarron was not formed
to infpire any tranfcendent happinefs, yet, in
anfwer to thofe who wanted her to engage in
a fecond match, fhe runs a comparifon be-
tween the new gentleman and Scarron, and gives
the preference to Scarron altogether : (he gives,
indeed, a very excellent charafter of him. But
the truth feems to be, that fhe had no great
notion of the married flate : " I have too
" much experienced, fays fhe, that there can
*^ be nothing very delightful in marriage ; but
" I know that there is in liberty :'' Je Vai trop
eprouve, que le marriage neffauroit etre delicieux j

*♦* AdreffeX'*uous a quelque homme de hien, qui vous conduife
dans Us 'votes du Seigneur. Tout eft vanite, tout eft affliSion
d^efprit. Jettez-'vous dans les bras de Dieu, JI n'y a que lui
dont on ne fe lajfe point, 13 qui nefc lajfe jamais de ceux qui
Paiment, Lcttres dc M. dc Maintenon, 1758, 9 torn. i2mo.
0.4 ^>

ft3t 5 Y L V A, on

l^je troH've que la liherte Peft, Thus fhe writes,
March i$66, in a letter toNinqn de yEnclos,
who was fure to agree with her.

Scarron dying in x66o, fhe became as indi-
gent as Ihe was before Ihe had him. Her
friends did all they could to have his pcnlion
continued to her, and petitions were frequently
given in, beginning always with ^' The widow
<« Scarron moft humbly prays your Majefty,
<* &c. i" but thcfe petitions fignificd nothing^
and the King grew fo weary of them, that he
has been heard to fay, " Muft I be always
" peftered with the widow Scarron ?'* At
length^, however, a larger penfion was fettled on
her, and the King at the fame time faid to herj,,
*' Ma^am, I have made you wait a long time j
^f but you have fo many friends, that I was rc««
*' folyed to have this merit with you Qn my

** own account."

In 167 1, fhe was entrufted with the care of
the Duke of Maine, a fan of the King's by Ma-^
dam de Mpntefpan ; and thus was introduced
to court. She had occafion to write fometime^
to the King : her letters charmed him, and this
was the origin of her fo^ftuoc : her own perfonal
merit eflfefted all the reft. The King bought
her the lands of Maintenon \t\ 1674, with a
magnificent caftlej and, feeing her extremely
pleafed with h^r ellatc, called her publicly Ma-
dam de Maintenon, This change of ^jame
was perhaps of great ^4 important ufe to her j

for

Th£ wood. «33

for flic could hardly have been raifed to the
rank fhe afterwards obtained^ with the name of
the widow Scarron*

Meanwhile her elevation was to her only a re-
treat. Shut up in a room> which was on the
fame floor with the King's, Ihe confined herftlf
tp the fociety of two or three ladies j and eveii
thefe ftie faw but feldoni. The King eame
every day to her apartment, and there did hufi-
A^fs with his minifters; while Ihe employed
herfelf in needle work, never flaewing the leafl:
inclination to meddle, often feeming wholly in-
Attentive, and always avoiding whatever h^d the
leaft appearance of cabal or intrigue. This was
her ftile and manner of living; but from this
ftile ar^d manner of living, as is eafy to b^ fup-
pofed, Ihe gradually grew unhappy. Befides,
her fituation with M. de Montefpan nfiuft have
been extremely difficult. This miftrefs would
naturally be jealous of her ; and, accordingly,
was conftantly «* hurting her with the King,
<* while the little Duke of Maine as conftantly
^* reconciled her to him :" la mere me brouille
avec le Roiifonfils me recondite aveclui. Lettres.
Once, when thefe two ladies were quarrelling;^^
the King came fuddenly in, and after fome
time made them embrace one another; faying
with a fmile, that it was " eafier for him tp
«' give peace to Europe, than to two women :'*
qu'il lui eioitplus aije de dotnter la paix a V Europe^
que de la dcnner a deuxfemmes. lb.

About

234 S Y L V A, OR

About the end of 1685, Lewis XIV. married
M. de Maintenon; by the advice, as was faid,
of Father la Chaife. He was then in his 48th,
fhe in her 50th year. How this ftrangc event
was brought about, has been matter of won-
der to all : devotion was certainly one great,
if not the fole, inftrument. For Lewis,
notwithftanding a moft pompous magnificent
exterior, had a very minute fpirit within ;
and efpccially in matters of religious concern.
He was wont to tremble before his confeflbr,
and carried about him reliques, as (he herfelf
relates. But obferve the following extrafts
from her letters, which, furely, are edifying
in an high degree ; and for the fake of which
I have prefixed this fhort account of her.

" The King has fpent two hours in my
^^ clofet : I difcourfedwith him about his falva-
« tion, and he gave me an attentive hearing.
«' He has good fentiments, and frequently
•' turns his thoughts towards God. It would
<* be great pity, if God did not enlighten a foul
<« that is rtiade for him. — The King abounds
<« with good fentiments : I endeavour to bring
^* him back to God : he fometimcs reads the
«' Bible, and thinks it the fineft of all books.
<* He confeffes his weakncffes, and acknow- •
^' ledges his faults, to me. We muft wait for
'f the workings of grace/* All this, and abun-
dantly more of the kind, was in 1679.

Voltaire, fpcaking of the Edidt of Nantes,
which was revoked in 1685, fays, that M. dc

Maintenon

The wood. 135

Maintenon *< did not urge this meafufe, but
^^ that (he did not oppofe it j" qu'elk ne la
prejfa pointy mats qu^elle ne s'oppQfa point ^^''i
but, I think, the following -paflages from her
-Letters will not fufFer us to believe her alto-
gether paflive. " The King thinks ferioufly
'^ about the converfion of heretics, and in a
^^ little time it will be profecuted warmly/*
This Letter . is dated 28 0£l. 167.9, fix years
before the event.—" The King thinks ferioufly
^* of his falvation, and that of -his fubjed:s : if
*^ God preferves him, there will be but one
*^ religion iri.the kingdom. I fancy no Hugo-
^' nots will be left in Poitou, except our rela-
^' tions : methinks, nothing is wanting to my
*^ felicity, but the converfion of my family.
." —The King intends to fet ahouta total cson-
^^ vcrfion of the heretics : he has frequent
*^ conferences on this fubjed with Le Tellier
^^ and Chateauneuf, where I am not one to$
«' many. The King is ready to do every thing,
^* which may beft promote the caufe of reli-
^' gion : this undertaking will render him glo-
** rious in the fight of God and man, as it will
** bring all his fubjefts into the pale of the
^* church, and prove the deftruftion of he-
f^ refy."

Nothings (he fays, is wanting to my felicity^
^ut the converfion of my family. Yes, but there
V^ras a great deal wanting i for (he had fcarcely

^ giccle dc Low, tf r,

been

^^6 S T L V A, OR

been the wife of Lewis three years, when flic
began to write in the following ftrain to her
/riends. '' I experience more than ever, that
** nothing can make amends for the lofs of
** freedom. Philofophy fets us above grandeur,
*^ but nothing fets above heavinefs pf hearts
*' I envy your folitude and tranquillity; and
*^ ani no longer furprifed, that Queen Chriftina
<* dcfcended from a throne, to live with more
^^ freedom, Hope not for perfedt felicity;
*' there is none upon earth; and, if there w^,
«^ it would not be at court *^'. Except thofe
«« who fill the higheft ftations, I know none ib
^^ unhappy as thofe who envy them. Why
*^ cannot I," fays fhe to Madam de la Maifon-
Ibrt, " why cannot I give you my experience ?
<* why cannot I make you fenfible of thatunea-
«^ finefs which wears out the great, and of the
«' difficulties they labour under to employ their
' ♦'« time ? Po not you fee th^t I am dying with

/ 'SI Philip de Commlncs fccms to have thought otherwife ;
Je I*ay cogneu, ^ ay efiejbn/er'uiteurf h lafienr dkfm^t» IS en
fii grandes profp^itex ; maisje le m v/y onfues/anspiine ^foMs
Joucu Feu d^efperanae doji/ent avoir leipawures ifi menuis gfns
uufcdt de ce tnoude ; puis quefi grand Roy, ISc, ; that is to fay^i
^' If happincfs could not be found in th^ court of fo great
** a monarch as Lewis XI. » howmuft the villager hope for it
** in a cot ?** Very feafibly^ Moniieur Commines : his enjoy-
ments will be more iincere and pure, and he will have no
unnatural fantaftic miferies tg interrupt and difturb then^
Memoir es, liv.vi. ch. 13.

•^melancholy.

The wood. 4jy

*' melancholy, in a height of fortune, which
** once my imagination could fcarcely have
*' conceived ? I have be^h young and beauti-
^' ful, have had a relifh for pleafures, and have
«* been the unircrfal objedl of love. In a more
** advanced age I have fpent my time in intel-
** ledtual amufements. I have at laft rifcn to^
*' favour J but I proteft to you, my dear girl,
*^ that every one of thefe conditions leaves irt
*« the mind a difmal vacuity.*' If any thing,
fays Voltaire, could (hew the vanity of am-^
bition, it would be this Letter. She could
have no uneafinefs, but only the uniformity of
her life at court ; and this made her fay once to
the count Daubigne, her brother, / can hold it
no longer ; Iwijb I were dead.

The court grew now every day lefs gay and
more ferious, after the King began to live re-
tired with M« de Maintenon. Her relations
complained, that (he was not fufficiently atten-
tive to their intcreft -, and fhe fays, *^ they
*• will not be fenfible of what (he has done for
" them, till they meet together in the valley of
•^ Jehofaphat. Some imagine I govern the
" ftate : they perceive not, I am perfuaded, that
** God has heaped fo many bleflings upon me,
*' only that I might attend to the King's falva-
*' tion.*' The convent of St, Cyr was built at
the end of the park at Verfailles, in 1686 ; in the
regulation of which eftablifhment (he employed
many of her hours. At the death of the

King,

438 S Y L V A, oit

King, in 1715, fhe retired wholly to it; fpent'
the remainder of her days in devotion j and died
there in 17 19, aged 84*^*.

Though courts are certainly not places of
happinefs, yet this lady (as fhouid feem) would
not have been completely happy in any fitua-
tion whatcve;'. There was fomething difcon-
tented, querulous^ and pettifh abyout her : when
the girls at St. Gyr had deviated a little from
her ordcrSj I have always repent edy Jays fhe, of
my endeavpurs: to direSl women ; men are infinitely
piOre tradable and docile. She was, however, a
woman of many virtues, and of piety more than
^noygh : (he was indeed righteous overmuch.

*5* June II, 1717> the Czar Peter made her a vilit, ai
flie writes to Madam de Caylus ; and (he received him on
her bed. •* At feven in the evening he atrived, and fat
*< down by my bed-fide. He afked, if 1 was fick ? I faid I was.
«* He alked my ailment ? I anfwerefj, great age «id no
** ftrong conilitution. His vifit was very Ihort : he caufed
** the curtain to be opened at the bed's -feet, in order to
*• have a peep at me ; and you'll allow, that it muft. have
<* given him a mighty fatiafadion." Lettus. ' *«*

Lxvin.

The wood. 239

LXVIII.

AMBITION NO MARK OF MAGNANIMITY.

T HAVE often wondered, how ambition came
to be thought the mirk o^2l great foul. Mon-
taigne and Montefquieu join it to a little onti
and they have certainly this in their favour,
that it is as common to the i^wefl and mean-
cftj as to the moft exalted compofitions *^'.
Yet Dryden calls ambition " the glorious fault
** of angels and of gods :" and even Clarendon
has not fcrupled to fay, that, if ambition " be a
*.^ vice, it loves to grow in a rich foil.'' If by
growing in a rtcbjoily he means growing out of a
great foul, we may be the more furprifed, be-
caufe he afcribcs the exorbitant ambition of
Cardinal Wolfey to the poverty and htxmejs of
his birth y and makes it mofi natural to men of the
meaneft extraSion *^*. It is, I believe, a matter
of fadt, that men of mean birth, who are bred in
low fentiments, and accuftomed to ftare at pa-
rade and (hew (falfely, very falfely, called mag^
nificence) with a kind of adoration, are always
the moft inordinate in their purfuits after them,
and of all others the hardeft to be fatisfied :

*5» GUriam, honorem^ honus ignavui aquijibi exoftant. SaL
*»* Tra6b, in folio,

1% Vrhilc

i46 S Y L V A, oit

while others of ingenuous and liberal parentage^
being familiarized to then! frdm the firft open-i.
ing of their eyes, are more oftfen content with the
fphere they are bom in,, and with a fupply for
thofe. habits to which they are trained.

But to proceed. — Pray, did Lord Melcombe'jl
ambition to make afiguri Originate froHi great-
nefs of foul ?— Gcoi-ge Bubb was the foh of
an apothecary in Xbrfieltbirdy and nephew of
George Dodington Eiq. who left him an eftate
and his name. This ambitious man was not
without abilities; but the meannefs of his fpirit
furp&fles all conception. Tranfcripts from his
limry would be endlefs; we will only give one
farther *^^ trait of it. After many fervilities,
cringing attentions^ and various little tricks^
, whi^h low-born perfons ufiiallypraftife to trawl
up to preferment, this fon of an apothecary was
ireceiv^d into the family of Frederic Prince of
Walfes i who <^ promifed him^ when he fliould
«^ come to the crowft, a peerage and the feals
« of the Southern Province, together with the
«' rilanagemcAt of thcHoufeofLofxis.'' Diary,
p. 4. This was in March 1749. Some time
after he was informed, that the Prince's f&n^ily
had an averfion to him ; iund^ 1(1 a fit of j^lous
defpondehcy, esrclaims, «• God forgive them 2
" I have not ^ferved it of them^" Ih. p^ IBi*
At length, in 1750-51, when death deprived the

•«' S«e above, N« Vfl*
6 world

The wood* 141

World of the Prince, and all were precipitated
into the blacknefs of defpairo this devout perfon
again ejaculates, •* Father of mercy ! thy hand
*« that wounds alone can fave." Ih. p. 100.
—Reader, behold the greatnefs of foul from
which amiitien fprings *^^ 1

•pAwCMf

LXIX.

TWO LETTERS OF SARAH DUCHESS OF MARL*
BOROUGH.

THIS old Sarah, ks fhe was then called^
■ publiflied, in 1742, ail Account of her CoH-^
duff under Queen Anne 2 which account ^ by the
way, gives an excellent infight into the manceu-
vres of a court. She was affifted herein by Mr,
Hooke the hiftorian ; to whom, though oppref-
fed with the infirmities of age^ and almoft bed-
rid, Ihe would continue fpeaking for fix hours
together. She delivered to him, without any
notes, her account in the mod lively as well as
the moft connefted manner : and, though the
correftion of the language was left to Hooke,

«56 The fame may be eftimatcd of the LovitfFams, which
Milton fomewhere calls «' the laft infirmity of noble minds ;*'
and which Hitme has pronounced to bt ^' juftly fo called."
//;>?. 0/ En^Iaml, ch. viiL

yet the- ^holc \i pfemly anintated with hw
fpiTit ; and, as Tome phitofc^ers have faid of
foul whK regard to body, Ihe was /^^ in t0to, et
4rtain^lWet'filrte. She was of a ftrong xin^
dedlandmg and \j«eommon fagacity, whkfa^l
premifc to ji<ftify my V^ondes^ at the ftrange iie-
gleft of eductition atnong the females i for h6r
woman woul<i have written as well, and perhaps
better. Hei'fe folk>Wj;^mercly as curiofities, two
letters from her 'OWn hand-^writing, direfted
•* for Dodfcor Clarke'aw las hous near. S' James'
«5* Church," without alteration of either gram-
taar 01* okhogt-aphy ; that is, 'perbatim €t lite^
ratim^ as Mrs. Bell^ny cxjpreffes it.

Saterd^y

\ give y^u many thinks for the favour of your
i^er to me, and am glad I ded fiot hear of the
poor Bilhop of Bangors illnefs tell the danger i»
over, I have DeVerft«iigi'.sWft/- fence I came out
of Town, but I €Kpe£t Wm h^re to day, at din-
ner, I wifh 1 may have any thingf to fay from
him that is worth troubling cither of yoq with,
but you ^ili be goto bcfpre^ipfiyjetercan com? to
you, and therefore I wfH wotc to the Biftiop,,^-
the furjgeons affure me that they fee no^danggr
in the Duk€ ofMarlborotigJ^'s fhoulder Ixoyf^
ever thejiT jB^jllnpt y^t/eonffs^^ that hceJfc^U
goe ta Woddfltock, I fu^jefi: tijat caution may
proceed from thtu- ^knowing, Hhftt opc^f the|p

r myft

The W O O D. HI

mvftbee a^lw^ys with us ^hen we ^9 at fuch 4
idiftance from Londfwi, and therefor^ they mil
i^efeF our going as long as they can to attend
^Ur other bufiiicfs> I do and^ have told thenrj
.that I will buy thenri at their own {^teSi and )
have known \>Mt very few nFiinifiers. or faveritf
that were not to bee .boiiiglw>' which muft be
49M in this ca£b> for when they ihaU pom^ an4
tdi mc that his ihouider jogftjf be drelftd by
IH»y body, I can't fleep fifty mile from Lon-
fk>nj if one of the'hefb furgeoro do^s not lye in
the hous» by this account I am apt to think at
youffeturn upon the;22d of Auguft you will
Iknd us here, but where 'Cvcr I ihall happen to
bee you are fure of being always wellcome to
your mod faithful 1

humble fervant and friend
my humUefenrifs S; Marlborough'.

to Mrs Clarke

having this opertunity of writing to you by the
Surgeon which will come to you before you
leave London, I have a mind to tell you that
my Lord Sunderland was here as I expedled, I
had a great deal of difcourfe with him upon the
B. of Bangor and your affaires, tis impoflible
-for me to write all the particulars, but hec pro-
fefles all the v^lue and efsteem imaginable for
you both, he affures me that the B. of Bangor
js to be B. of Bath and Wells when it falls,
R a * but

(244 S Y L V A, o It

but he only fix's him there becaufe it is the
tnoft probable to bee vacant firfl:, but if any
other fhould fall before that, except fome of
the very great ones hee will bee for the B.
* of Bangors having it, what he continues to
think of for you is a very good thing which
Doftor Youhger has at S\ Paul's, which is con-
fiftent with what you hare, and when I fpoake
of what you wifhed for your brother hee ex-
prefled as much pleafure in doing that for him>
as you could have in it yourfelf, and faid he«
knew him and ownd that he was a very good
man and had a grete deal of merrit, hee added
that he defign to get a thoufahd pound in the
winter of the King for the B. of Bangor to help
him tell fomthing happend that was better thaQ
what he has, hee appeared to me to bee very de-
Sfous of ferving you both in any thing that
fhould happen to bee in his, power, and I do i
really believe that hee thinks Jiimfelf that men
of your abillitys, would he of fo much ufe to
him, that he fencerely wifli's that you would
help him to eafe fom things which makes it
more difficult to compafs what I defire then
perhaps you will beleive, tho I hope you
will never dowbt of my being with all. the
truth imaginable your moft faithful frienci
and humble fervant - .

S : Marlborough.

I hppe

Sunday the a6 of July
windfor lodge •

t H E W O O D. ^45

I hope you will give the B. of Bangor an ac-
count of the fubllancc of this leter.

LXX-

OF WIT AND WITTICISMS.

SOMEBODY fpeaking of Lord Chefter-
field as a wit, ^^ Aye," fays Sam. Johnfon^
' ^^ he is a wit among lords, and a lord among
*^ wits." ^uumney ohfecro ? I fliould have replied
to Johnfon : vetus credidi. And fo it is i for
Proclus faid long ago of Critias, that he was
*^ a novice among philofophers, and a philo-
^^ fopher among novices : Ihurni i^h Iv fiXotri^

Johnfon's application of this, if Johnfon did
apply it, was not amifs. Lord Cheftcrfield was
a witling, rather than a man of genuine wit :
his wit, as it has been called, was chiefly
premeditated, and mechanrcal as I may fay,
Bilhop Newton relates, in th^ Jceount of his
own Lifey that Lord Chefterfidd ufed to lay
baits^'2Lnd traps for the introduftion of witty
ftories and witticifms, which he brought ready

*^^ Proclus, in Timxum Platonis, apod voccm KPITIAS^
R 3 - prepared

14* S Y L V A, oit

preparecl to let otf in company 5 and fo I hav6
often heard: But how hairieous, how mckny
how difgiifting, the idea! Such management
flicws a littlenefs of foulj as well as a littlcnefs
of underftanding ; and a manr of fpirit would
difdain it. Wit fhould be a fudden inftanta-
neous produ(5tion^ by VC ftroke of imagination
lipoh the objeft or occafioii, as fire from the
collifion" of ffirit arid ftcel : But wrtticlfms ready
made— Oh, heavens ! Bayes's good things bca?
*cm hollow.

fciitf ■•

LXXI.

t>f LOGIC, (Mt THl ART 6* REASOmN<*»

r OGICt or (as it niay truly be called) the
art of difputing fophii3;ically, makes "a con-
fiderahle pan of our actidemical education:
yet-Gaffcndus^ who wa3ua very great rfofoner^
has. attempted, to prpve^., that it isj irv truth,
neither nccefiary nor ufeful, ; He • thinfe^ that
reafon, or innate f<urce^M4; energy of xinder-
fiandingi is fufliQieAt .fi^* itf^^lf* ^*i tfiat its

^s8 Dialeaica naiurdls eft ipfktt^f ratio, vel ingettlta ilia
inteHe^tfts vis et enerpa« qu%rfttV>^Qaiiuiri et difconimiis :
-«-et taotam videmus ^^xoiXfix^t {f>)[jertiam| nt qaifqoe facili, .
per fe, et fine obfervatione, prxftet quicquid neceflknum eft.
Ad<verfus Ariftottl. li^r iL cxer^iu I*. J^mm/ nulla Jit tuc^as
uulita/qui Dialeaica.

own

OWA natural ino.YenjQ5it3* without any difci^
plinc from arty arc equal 1:0 the invcftigarion
9,Q4ibttling of.trufh; that it no more wanta^
the aflSftance of Logic to conduffc to this, than
the eye wanta a lanthorn to enable it to fee the
fun ; and, however he might >dmit as curious,
tie would doubtlefs have rejected as ufelefs^
all fuch produAions, as Quillet's Callipadia^
Thcvenot on the Art of Smmmingy ox Borelli di
Motu Animalium ; upon the firmeft perfuafion>
that the innate force and energy of nature,
when inftinft honeftly does her bed, is fure to
atuin thofe feveral obje&s, without any didac*
tic rules or preceptsi.

If Logic therefore be not neccffary, it is pro-
bably of no great ufe ; and indeed it has been
deemed not only an impertinent but a pernir*
cious fcience. ^'ftbgrcj^^* fays Lord Bacon, ^< is
*^ ufually taugfct too «rly in life. That mindsf,
*« raw and unfurniflied with matter, fcould be-
<« gin their cultivation from fuch a fcience, is
<< juft like learning to v^igh or meafure th«
«'wind.' Heiw, Vhat in young men fliould
<^ be manly reafoning) often degenerates into
<' ridiculous affedaeiom and childilh fophif-^

. <* try «^/' Gertaioly, . where materials are
wanting, the difputc muft turn altogether

'upon words; and' the whole will be con-

^ De Augtt. Sdeat. I a«

R 4 duftcd

a45 S X L V A^ dn

dufted^withthe.fleiglvt and icgcrdemain dffo^
phifkry*.' '■ We iiave a plcafant inftanee upon
record af: this fchoo^trrantry, this trick of
fccming ta p^ove fomcthifig) when in reality
you prove notfaing; A ■ <!ountryman> for the
entertainment x>f hi»- fon^ when returned from
the UniYerfityf/ordered fix ^ggs to be boiled j
two for hitiv two for his^ another, and two for
himfclf : but the {on, itGhing to give a fpeci-
men of his newly ac^qtiiredfcience, boiled only
three^ To thefathe^, aQ^ing the reafon of this,
«' fFhy,*' fays the fon, " there arefi^r "How
«* faf" fays the father, *^ I-can make but three."
<* NoV^ replies the young fophifter, " is mt
^'.for^w^/' (counting them out) is not there
^f. twe? andisnhttberetbreetanddd not one, twoy
^^andthree^makefix ?" <« Well then^*' fays the
father, " I'll take two, your^ mother Ihall have
<^ one, and you (hall have the other three.''

Many appe^anees may iempt one to fuf-
peft, that the tlnderftariditljg, d^ifciplined with
Logic, is not fo competent for the inveftiga-p
tion of truth, as if left to Its natural operations,
^^ A man of wit,'^ fays Bayk, *^ who applies
«^ himfelf long ahdclofely 'to Logic, feldom
P fails of bi^comin^ a cayill^r*^'*; and by his

. ^^ fophifticat

»«o '^^ititfyllogifiici are terrible company to men in gene,
*al, and fit pnly for one another. With them you cannot be

foi4

The wood. ^9

^f fophiftical fubdcties perplexes and' embroils
f* the very thejfea he hath defended. He chufes
f^ to deftroy his own work, rather tham forbear
*« difputing ; and he . ftarts-fbch objeftrons
^* agajnfl: his own .opinions^ that his whole aft
*« cannot folve them. Such is the fate of thofe,
?^ who apply. themfelves too much to the fub-
^^ tleties of dialedtics^^'." This is the opinion
of Bayle, who probably knew from feeling and
experience the truth of what hie faid ; for he
was a very gr^at .Logician, as well as a very
great Sceptic.

Qur niemorable Chillingworth is another in-
ftance to prove, that Logic, inftead of aflift-
ing, may poflibly obftruft and hurt the under-
ftanding. Chillingworth, fays Lord Clarendon,
who knew him well, ^^ was a man of great
<f fubtjety of underftanding, and had fpent all
*^ his younger time in diiputationj of which
*^ he arrived to fo great a rhaftery, as not to
«« be inferior to any man in thofe fldrmiflies-:

faid to have converfation, but altercation rather : for there
is fomcthing fo captious and litigious in their fpirit, that
they draw every the moftr trifling thing that can be ilarted
into 1^ dispute. Before fuch, yon muft not expedl to talk at
Cgfe ; tiiat eafe and indolence, which make a man carelefs
about both ideas and language : no> you mull be wary and
correft ; you muft be always upon the defenfive ; you muft
keep a perpetual guard, as you would over your purfe, wcxe
^ pickpocket in the room.

»«' Dia. CHRYSIPPUS.

but

45^ Sj: Y L > V .A, on

«< but he had, with his notable pcrfeftjon in
•* this cxercife, contrafVed fuch an irrefolution
«« and habit of doubting^ that by degrees he
•^ grew confident in nothing,, and a fceptic at
^« leaft in the great€)ft jnyfteries of laith. All
♦' his. doubts grew out of himfelf, when he
«« aflifted his fcrup^es with the ftrength of hi$
•« own reafon, and w^asthe^i too hard for him^
« felf*^*y . »

To cQndude,-.-W^^^ ^** ^^^ cneaning of
that ilrifturc upoft .Seneca,. V^rhrum minuHzst
rerum frangitfond^rayVfhiQhy according to L»ord
Bacon, may thus be applied to the fchoolmen^
^^eftionum minutiis Jciiitiarum franguntJolidUa-*
tern ? Why, that by their UtigUfa Jubtilitasj as
he calls it, by thtw hgiccl refinements- and diA
tindtions, they had ^bopped truth fo down into
inincemeat, as to leave it not only without
proportion or fonxij, byt alcnoft without fub-^
ilance,

»«* Life by himfclf, i. s6. 8yt)u

LXXIL

LXXiL

The LOVl OF MOMiY THfi KlfrN OP STATKt

^J^OTHINGis grfcat/' fays Longimis,
■ «^ a contcrript of Which isgit^at^*' ;" as
riches, honours, and fo forth. Yet, how rare-
ly do' wc meet with fo much grcatncfs (and ^
little, mcthinks, fliould ftiffice) a$ will enable
a man to del^ifc riches ! Evfcry reptile can mo-
ralize upon them in as heroic terms as Senecifi
himfelf, but will at the fame time fubmtt to
the meaneft tricks for the meaneft profits,

Salluft, in his Second Oration to C^ar about
regulating the Roman Commonwealth, advifes
Wm, above all tKn'gs, ^« either to aboHlh, or
♦« (as far aS he can) to di^irtiffi, the love of
*^ money :" for that, otherwife, not only tio re-
formation of manners could be made, but even
government itfelf could not be fupported ^

To

••♦ Muiti mMtummm botutm p^tria, civiBus, tibi, liheris^
fofiremi htmana genti, pefertrii ^ fi ftudium pecuni^t autfufiuU-
risi aut, quod res /emt, minueris : aUter nequi privata res,
mqui puHica, tuque demip neque militi^e, regi poteJt.'^SaXliiii is
an anthor veiy a prepoj to our prefent times and manners ;
hoxh Iiis HiAories^ with his two Orations to Csfar^ inculcat-
ing

25^ S Y L V A, o R

To abolifh the love of money, were it pofllble,
would doubtlefs be excellent : but then, it
might be faid, we muft forego the adnniration
of the far greater part of mankind, who value
people only for th.Q figure they make. I grant
it readily, and that this may, perhaps, at firft
occafion fome fmall ftruggle in the breaft*^^;
but a fingle refleftion, methinks, might ferve
to quiet the tumult. For, if you muft needs
have this popular efteem, which furely a wife
man might well do without, you muft be con-
tent to ihare it with your dentift, your hair-

drefler,- Madame Mara "-^^y and Mrs. E ,

who fells . paint and pafte to mend God's
works with.

Meanwhile, this Jludium pecunU^ this love
of money, the gaining of which feems to be
thought the great objed: of living, is (as it has
moft truly been called) the. root of ail evil.
Look into the feveral departments of law, po-
litics, trade; into the other departmisnts of life ;
nay, examine this greedinefs of fpifit, even in
private families, and efpecially when accompa-
nied (as it often is) with vanity and a paflioa
(or 'figuring I — examine all this carefully and

ing in almoll: every pagfe, that this'' appittntiii ulieni ttii prot
fufiofui, as he cxpr^iTes it> was thfi\:omiption of Roman^jttan*
ners, and would be the ruin of the SLomanftate.

**^5 Ulji honus deteriorem dMtiis • magis clarum magifque acn
ceptum 'uidety primb ofjluaty multaqut in pe£iore *V9lvtt» Ibid,

^^^ An infolent, faucy, finging wench,

well|

The woo t)/ n^S

5Vell, and you will eafily perceive it to be the true
and genuine fource of nine tenths of the folly,
meannefs, vice, and mifery, which prevail
among mankind — that it is not only the cor-
ruption of all manners, but muft fooner or later
be the ruin of all dates.

LXXIIL

OF ADVERTISEMENTS*

T H A VE often thought, that the manners ojt^
•* our ietter fort of people (as by curtefy they
are called) might be well traced from the pub-
lic advercifements ; and could wilh, that fome
little 'y/>//>-man, juft equal to the work, would
exert himfelf to make a coUeftion of thofe
which are the moft charafteriftical. Fielding
has preferved, in his T. J. xiii, 5, an advcrtife-
ment of Broughton's for Leftures upon Box-
ing, dated i Feb. 17473 doubtlefs, with a view
of letting pofterity fee, 6000 years hence, what
civilized, humane, and polifticd perfons the
Chriftians of thefe primitive ages were. Other
advertifements might equally ferve this curious
purpofe. The fame Fielding mentions a ^^ Mrs. "
" Huffey, a celebrated mantua-maker in the
^f Strand, famous for fetting off the fhapcs of
'« women," and fo forth ; but does not fay that
Ihe advertifed.-—*^ Foreign Perfumery y by Abry
6 «f perfumer

854 S Y L V A, 0A

^« perfuitter to- {he Gountefs of Aftois/' t^ho
offers at the fame time (d^g-cbeap) a vail
number of thmg3> wherewith to mend the bu-^
mm firm divwi and among Others, the Cremi
de Be^uti : my comfort, however, is, thit in
the very fame Paper, 19 May 1785, Was adver^^
tifcd Dr. Watts's Improvement of ibe Mind.^^
«« Harrifon begs to inform the ladies, that he
*« has invented afummer-cufhion, entirely dif-
«• ferent from any thing yet thought of. Some
*f very fine-eflenee <A roife, oratige> and jefla-
/^^min pomades, only a few days from Paris*
^ His fummer-rouge at is. 6'd. pcjr pot. 30
«* May 17B5.'* This hair-dreffer, who was
lately a journeyman only, his now (as I am
told) belides a fplendid tbwn-houfe, a villa
and a carriage.

The ftile of thefc advertifcmfents llfo is often
•as lingular as th^ matter of* theiti. Monft
Veftris, in a Morning Chronicle, May 1784,
addrefles himfelf, upon the fubjeft of his
movements, to z. judicious zhfi ^en&ous pub-
lie* Generous perhaps mfay be borne with,
becaufe the epithet is given to every fool who
fquanders his money; but it is a downright
abufe and proftitution of the term judicious j^ '
when it relpe&s fuch objeflb, as make thi?
^mufement (I had almpft faid the bufinefs) xrf"
our iff /^ fort* The Dancing Dogs ! Tbe Leametl
pig! ne Learned Fox ! General Jackoo I &?r.

The W 00 0w isS

i^c. Wc^ *^' I one day alfccd a delicate ^nng
<afihe ttm, whether he would not fee this.famous
monkey carried to the inafquetade ? *' Lab J'*
lays hemincinglyy and afTe&ing horror> ^< th
** irute €dmes too near us t'* as if this human'
ninny could poflibly be degraded by the refem^
blance. ** Near us l" replied I j •* why, he
*^ is Jupmer to at kaft half of his admirers/'
But to proceed*

«< April 1785, Mr. Lepicq, after fo many
<c proofs of the pubSic'^s partiality to him, finds
♦' his feelings wjXy overpowered by their pa-
^* tronage," &?a I wilh, with aU my hcarr,
that the public would be more companionate
and tender to the feelings of Mr. I«epicq.
Even Ml*. I^unardi has not efcaped this aff^Qa*
tion in the ffiile of his advertifements. ^ Mr,
'< Lunardi is peculiarly happy in experiencingt
<5 that the attachment of the public to hiiaa is
«* in . umfon with bis feelings ,*[ and, March
1785, we are told, that << certain ladies mean
«« to try the natnrt of their JenJationSy by afcend«
<^ ing a few yards in Mr. Lunardi's balloon.'^

^ 'nuiB^rkiciilo in Shakefpeare, taking Galibtn ibr a
fi&, exdaims : '" Were I in Englamd now, andiiad hat this
^^ fiih p^iked^ not an liQliday fool therf, but ^ttld give a
** -piece of filveir. Tit^i' would this monficr make a.aian ^
••. any^ftraagebeaftv^J^^inakfei a man/' li_c.i and, which it
very remarkable; the daft of peojde, who moft wafte their
money npon rarities of this kind^ are nfuaUy the londeft in
tiicir clamours againft taxations.

< By

QS6 S- Y L V A, d.R

By the way, this curiofity among the ladies t»
fry the nature of their Jenfatims need not be el^-
couraged by Mr. Lunardi f it being likely t^
lead them into perils enough, without rilking
their necks in his balloon.

The following advertifemcnt is of a more
ferious caft, and from which (I am forry^tO;
fay) too ftrong a- trait »dF our manners may be
drawn. ^^ Morn, Poft, April 17S5. Ladies
<« or gentlemen poffcflbd of cftates or incomes
«^ for- life, defirous of raifing money by grant
'^ 'of annuities either for their own br the lives
«^ of others— clergymen on their livings — ofR*
*^ cers on their pay— ^or perfons of any defcrip--
** tion — may be accommodated on the moft
" hheral terms, by applying to —/' I very
fincerely.wilh, that the author of this advertifc*
ment may come to be hanged ; and Ihall eon<«-
elude with another, which will open a more
pleafing profpeft to many of my readers, — to
all (I prefume) within the bilb of morta-
lity. *< Wood's Coffci-houfe, Coveiit Garden^
«' 'tUR'TLE.^ Three fin* turtks'dreffed
«« this day in the higheft perfeftion. Families
«< pay b.c fupplied with any quantity, to any
«' part of town or. country. Will continue
«^ drefling every day during^ the feiafon. ■ N. BV
" Some very fine lively turtle to be dilpofcd
«^ of."

. " LXXIV.

T H B W O ' Q D. a57

LXXIV.

THB VICES or YOUTH AND OLD AOB, AND THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THB OiNB AND THE
OTHER.

^Uf E N are Stoics in their early years. Epicu-
reans in their later i focial in youth, felf-
iih in old age* In early life they believe all
men honeft, till they know them to be knaves ;
in late life they believe all men knaves, till
they know them to be honeit. Young men
not only take virtue for a folid good, but afFedb
it often with enrhufiaftic ardor; old men ufu-
ally treat it as an empty name, or (to ufe the
words of Lord Rochefter) " if they do talk of
^^ it as a fine thing, yet this is only becaufe
*' they think it a decent way of fpeakin^, and
" neceffary for their credit arid affairs*^'/'
Thus, fome how or other, men pafs, in the
courfe of living, from one of thefe extremes to
the other s and, from having thought too well
of human nature at firft, think at laft, perhaps,
too ill of it.

It has ufually been obferved, and I believe
juftly, that youth is the feafon of virtue .• but,
fays a certain preacher, «* it might have been
«« obferved with equal truth, thtit youth is the
" /ea/on of vice; fmcc every age of human life
" has vices as well as virtues, which are almoft

*^ fiumet's Life and Death of Rochefter, p. 23.

S ** peculiar

..2jfi .s X 1; ▼/ A,-> i a R

«^ peculiar to itfelf *7^." True : but the vices,
peculiar to youth, iriajry with fome indulgence
at leafl, be deemed fins againft prudence, ra-
ther than iagijnft^irtu^t they are^fin*^^ the
body, rather than fins of the foul, if the diftinc-
ti6ii-maytbfcidll01^d$^ thit is, they do jiojl^fo
IttVfeh pr9eet«> lh>fiff ifhl^ufty or dep-arity\)f
^*»^i'arftia^^Wkt te^thfe bloe^ ahd'tfrength

itod^ 0dckicAlcHy?indd^ with v?dmcn and
^^ne,^>b€yiQ«)d ^bl^t IfeitSfe'^,^^ ahd tfeinper-

'l^tt'^ttt^^ frankfiiHrs, Rbhefty

of tiekrt, w^m afreaiqHS^ focial arid fyrhpathe-
:^clic^ih^. BtffSy oh ^e'other haiid^ k^pt up
. hi:^ it^rigOXir tfacvlwn of itioriats, arid alTum-
^iatdltlpbn xtefcatbh !'dic: gart df iainthoiod j bwt
:\S2J^/ w^ Mthout Tfeniihilityv: referycd^^lclJBfc,
' cunrtilig, a vUiaim/' SuckHecms to have been
rAc dlflferth« btft*kiE»Jtbcr.aim !Par-

iiiinScfi* ittd Ch^Ks 1:^ ; iJucfoldiirs; iX Cliarkis
^'bcittg TwiiiT/^olligAtievJii-B^^
i:«f tharPa^liarmni'^jrftDein fefth *Kl 6b^«»^(ilcs
b^^-f^Ats- ^^•S fay3 f£^valieirsio a^x^fmlht^d
^>«ftd*^^ibfr4ttJaft^ thmfiyprrit't^^^'fbr

w Sir J?Hlxl>*WarWick*s -Mcihoirs ol Cliarlcs 1. p. 253.
* 9 LXXV.

T H E w o' a a. %S9

MEDALS iSi«uld ivBCord ^oripu^ 4eeds,
and be fubfidiary voudietrti 'Mi^ goo4.^U^

-rwryrbtn tkw haw jbceltilan^p^/or »flao&s
4s inhuman and opprdH^t, as amis^ififMi aj)4
•crudity could derifca Of^thdc tbc reign of
iLewit i&iy.| called Lnrifl 71»# iGrAK .b(y tbofir,
iirhoj(as .£vclyji £^}Mi/jpimm£\forifr^

/furmfti fufficient i^iftaacGi, vidiout going fiir*
^er« fivclfn vecf pr^eilyiUfes the term hUj^

' |>A«»:*7*T for, while fomi of their infcrip-
.tioas arc anxigant awbTahi-g^onous^ othtsrs

7 are profane and erea iolpious; To .prodsioe
an inftance or two o(Ut*of la: thd^fand* \. One

. medal treprtfents ^ Lewis: ibuidiilg betwmi the
cities of Genoa and' Luxemburg^ holding the
world on the point of his fword-— t^/^iri

j^etuo^ eb iXfuffiittax mriis ducentas } .^ot pi

/erv^tos, <h>€S9 for . ptdSorviB^g citizens and

.j>ron)odog. human happii^efs, hut^£br laying
whole cities «aad^ countries in deflation and

.ts&QSi Another,, ispon.. the tewooMon of the
Ed 18: t)f Nanftes in i^d^y^'^ofcto ectttemt mttia
CalvinianieEccleJiey^ijiJoita^&c. iJut is, forhav-

•^ ETelyn'i Z)j/?««ryJ rfU$idh j* *s;

S a ing

a6o S, T: L v.. A, ojt

ing converted two millions of proteftants by
dragon^ing and deftniftibh. Others arc^s
remarkabfe for tlieir rhbdefty, as thefe for therr
piety :—quoJ UbeY licet] ''what I lift is lai^"^^

Jiat pro ratione voluntas^ " the eaufe is in rhy

/« will, I will'* — nufq^uam meta mtbiy " I hive

," no boundary."

irhcfe are the effefts' of arbitrary power*:
thefe things are feen only under abfolute mo-

•narchs (ai' Voltaire faid upon another occi-
fion*^') and might, one' would think, ferve as a
leffon to mankind ; but they will not. Other
niedals are profane and impious: they radiate
the king with the beams of the fun (they do
no rhore, fays Evelyn, in their piftures of God
the Father*'*), as if alone fufficient to govern
the univerfe : '

Non alio cerni majefias /e velit ore,

Non aliud mundus po/cat habere caput : . . -

comparing him tQ xhithjtjxixn^ry in no few-
er than feVeniy-fivfi dtvices. and infcriptions.
All this, and a thoufand times as much, for
■Louis le Grdndy for le. Rot 4rei ChriJOenne. And
who wa$ this Lewis the Greats xy\\% wojl Cbfif^

*" Peliffon was confined four years ^d ahalfinthcBaftilc,
purely for having been faithful t^ohis friend ^d mafter Fou-
quet ; and then fpent the reminder of his life in writing
clogcs iipon the King. C^eftune chofe qi^on ne voit que Jam
kf monanbiet*

»74 Evciynyp. 79. '

- tian

The W O^ d D. i^

tian King? A moft vain, oftentatiqus^ para^^

1)ully, whofe gl.orjr confifted of dpvaftatiohs

abroad^ and oppreffion^^at home^ whicli glbry

however, infamous as it was, he could nev^r

^,hayc attained, but for the . pitiful part out

Charles II. aftcd. And for greatncfs, that of

X<ewis was to real greatneljs,.what the 'fimulacra

Qf JEpicurus were to real bodies : it rielei-nbled

the facrifice, with which Proniet^ieiis formerly

.attempted to impbfe upon Jupiter, viz. ^^ not

/* a real ox, biitonly ah ox's hide, ftufFed with

y ftraw, and leaves, and twigs *^* :" it was, in

Ihort, all appearance, devoid of fubftance *7^.

No language ho>yever was too magnificent
for this enormous idol or image of greatnefs,
*jrhe Jefuit Mcneftrier, in a pompous folio,
169 1, thus befpeaks him in his dedication:
'* To Lewis the? Greit, the invfncible, the

* '* wife, the coiiquerot, thif ivoAder of his? age,
** terror of his emdnrYies, lover of bis people,
*« arbiter of pieace and war, adnamftratar of the

^< univerfe^ and tv^rity ip' ifs its tnafter^ arc of-
** fer^d with^ profound fubrijiflion the medals of
**• an -«ceompliJhcd bcrd f. pre&ming him the
ffj^ b^ftoiy of a reign worthy of immortality, and,

,.,»!» Adclviwt Prpmetlietts, loco boyls vei^> pellem lovis
^ fiiiauuii^ Sc folus, et viminibas fuffarcinatam. !Bdcon*

*^* For traits of this hero's interior littlen/qls 4uid mean*
Xiti9, fecN*" LXVII. Of Madam diMaittUHon.

S3 *^ the

ai6^ S Y L V -A, on

«^ the veneration o( all ages/' So that, A ip-
pears> this t%ccf% of flattery/ this pr<rfaneft*ft
and impiety, was not iconfined to wits and
poets, or fuch as ila/f heme fir breads but bad
infcfted all orders, even the moft facred*

Of this flaviih adulation to princes, ntratie-^
rous inftances may be feen in Cafaubo»*i
Animaiverf. in AthenawHy lib, ri. capi; 14, \\^

LXXVI.

WdTT SHALT NOT DO IVIL, tHAT febbO- MAl^

COME or rr.

A LL chriftians vrili rcaiSify fubfcribe to this i
but Ale whole hiftory of cliiifUanitylhcWs,'
that few will allow any tiling to be «//, whifch,;
according to their concejptions, leacfe to ;jW.'
That itli fraud is evil, muft*(6ne wouW think)
be univerfally allowed; tmt the niah of reli-
gion diffehts, and diffinguiflies. *« Fraud,'* fays'
he, *< is not always, a pernicious thing, but is
'^ go6d or bad according to the.lntentiqa, i^
*« him who ufes it. A fraud, in ftafon, %ni
" praftitei with judgment, is attended with

" great

X^ E : WO V O/ DU fS^

•^igwigt • goodr : it XHigJUt twt Jwdq^.tft M
V^^ecmed fo mucha firau4, ^^,9^, certain ^w^U^^
?i and politic way^of m^.atgi^g.*"^,..'^^
tprgea: ;and h^ wges it.in ,tHc:.jj^guage.pf
Chryfoftom> who ccwiten4& fyx ^^i^^ ntili^p oi
fr*ud' in milit:^ry, ciyiW, And tiCyen 4oaveftic
concerns 9 and, par^icul^riy, makc& j^XM necef-
fary m phyfici^jjis to dcc^ve,/or ,t^gDA4,.Qf
bodies, as he would infer it to be in divines for
the good of fouls.

Jerom, another wrifer in the times of primi-
tive chriftianity, in"" u&T manner adopted this
principle of deceiving 5 and plainly believed
no deviation from xefkitudc to be unlawful,
which flowed from piety and zeal fdr chrif-
tianity : n^ condetnnamus errorefu^ fays fee, q^
de odio Judmrum eij^etpietafe defeendit. AncJ,
fpeaking in another place orcbntroYerfial writ*
lAgs againft jhe jP^ns^ be hold«. it g^Qwabl^
^. .vrge >ll arg^^m weJt 43' true j/tp

wiTe tncks in,difpiJtat16n J in jlk^fu ^ em-
ploy any ari^ce whatever, wjiicfe'ni^ l&ell:
^crvfe tp refute *and conquer im' a^^i^l^V and
he juftifies^this praftice by thil'ixwtiplw of

. Di Sacerdo^ lib. ti fob fin.
S 4 Origea

tfiA Sri IT- L V. A,: :d3t

Origin ^d;Btlfebiia«j^ihftGd(us and Por^^

T?he irc?tf>»ifttf is, Ohd it ii in vain to diffcmi^
M^'itj thit? fefcraJS^svin^all siges haYc ncwif
fcruplcd at any means^ to bring aboatwhaj
riiejr .d^cnied' 4*^^d:/.and pious end^T^ : dfc
wlience tH<5i^' i^Ot^ bi^ly: frauds and tricks, but
jlcrft€Utidflsy:irtq^ifiti<Wi^ >a|id:t*[e various tcr-n:
nt>k mc^eg of^^cMverfi^^,* which have been
pradifed iff- the chorch,vfi»nt its earlieft efta^
blifhment ddwn>Co the prefcnt. hour ? whence
th» infatutrtJdii JK>. be-^perftuukd^ that mea
rhight a£hjd)y:W^^(7^7h'^ while they made
bavock arid deftruiftioh of hi^ creatures ?
' Biit there' arfc^ no lengtfas^^ to which men may:
n6t be ^^aitied^ wh<!n infliMnced by zeal and
fafigotry^ without any 'CQfnsmol from reaibn and;
cbmmon fenfe. The very devout and over-
righteous have ever been ahove ordinances y as the
cap.t of ^^V^irm'c^p^^ r^" ^y^ Ahtifto^
mlans JDf all ligcftii^wiiTd^wL o^Ih^

«« gations of morality and natural law are fuf-
«? pertd«idf ifh^ttte^^^ int*r-

«^ j>al prind^c, m^^ dtvincy are^

,-*7'-Qpera, torn* iv. p, 113- 256* edit, MentdiS.' . ',' '" '
y^JSxsxti^ the allowance and praftice c5f'//flwj^/i«^^lt;
CQm^s.|;p^pafs, by an eafy tranfition, ihat many valHy'gbda-
people* ;wJio would notfwmr for the worl2, or dbiirtiit'atlj^
fm. oifj^^^yet ivill not fcruple occafipnally'ro.^^tlilB^

ajvraprftof Allikis. "^ V

^* fuperior

^H E , w Oi or IT. ^

«>LJupertor tb die; k^arly ekmMtti of jijfticc
** and humanity y and'that, in fhortj every
tlwng. b lawful to the faints. TQ^Kha^t p^^ofe
fliall it be faid to fnchyytJisU^ft d» eviiythai
g^admof come of it ?

.Mean while it is certain^ that this principle
oi. doing (or, which is. the- fame thing, of firfi-
fering) /w/, that pod viafMom\of jt^ has by
no. means bee& cofifioiod to th^* pale of the
church : it has indoedt.bfieoicowtenanced by
the uniyeriiil' praftice ;of rlniMkindi ^ well ia
civil as religious concerns. Ancient ^d mod era
writers hare been quoted tpjuftifx^^c^'^pc^^i^Pt
of deceiving the people*'*: and a m^n^ who
Aould deteft and expofe any received and efta-
hliihed fyftem^in either government or religion,
[towever falfe or futile its fouDdatiqa^*"', would
v.. V ".. •• - . A : >., ; -■ 'be

*•• Hac Pontifex Sc^eifdla nojJe'popuUs im wh^^xpiMH
fgintr exiJNmat faiii in riH^ine civitatesp fMod diare etiam
in libris rerum Mvinarum iffi Fam wm duiitaU Ai^. de
Civ.lv, 17. ■:-...-;v' ■■ r

. *^' A vny ind^gtfmt -rdi^^-^mM beUmfid, will g$ a,
griat way^ &js Jeremy Cdlier» the famous non-jnrar ; am
bumft biotben is noncjof the toorft mitt. • View of tJic Im*
mondity and Pfo&iehefii of the Bngliih Stage, p. 28. — Je«
rem^ Collier moft have liked the foUorndg-paffiige fibm
Cqr^M- * nulla ns eficaeiSts wndlitu^ntm figU, fitamfi^er-
^fiithfi iHofm imfi$nit fo^^^a^ mutaUBs .* mSi vatut ttUj^i
tapta eft, mdius vatibuifoam Judtus fids font. Bat thef lat^
ter part of it, fi) much to the relilhof Jeitmy, nuy probidily

%U S Y L V A, oi

be pinfecuted by biH' vompatriflfts »< a bad
member of fociety* And why l becaufe thefe
fyftcms are deemed -ufeful and even nccefi^ to
keep the pec^le in qrder ^\ -

And if from bodies and efiabiiibmencs wf
defirend to individuals or fingle^ inftances, we
fiuUritnd die worft and hdSdk meanx employed
to biing about (what have been deemed) juft
and lawful;^/. When the £ari of Suffc^
fled into Flanders,-eo promote. an infurredion
againft Henrf the Vlith, H^nry donbdeft
thought himfelf warranted to caunterouae and
fubdue him. Fbr this piurpofe^ he caufed Sir
Robert Curfon> captain of the eaflle at Ham*
mes, to fly from his charge, and to feign hims^
felf the Bail's fervant* Curibn did fo i and^
having infinuated himfelf into die fecrets of
th'e Earl, and become his confident, communis
faiK4«£fl7 tbiog to Hei\^. .]^few,w^iie.JFieo-
ry, to eonfivu ^ credit, fd C^ififi^^rSl^^ Ui

liave made the uriiole unpalatable to the ftatefinani^lui^ it if
him. %Cfm.vr.^^ -^.^ . -.;•'.,...;; .", 'v.. v.= ■

<^* ftit /dp P9t xom iiiio.ijiw imus4M tH^^fii^jf

a// yeHgiaos to tlia fiq^pott tf |f6w^

«fc* «ad, if «oiemimfe*,QWi^ t^ >1fi^«^
hmxi -md imffAa^ 9? hf u gnaise.aBd i»i«* r^

dttind beings }

be

^fmblifhedftt Paulas Cnoft the ^opt^ Bull 4f
exeommunication and curfe againft tbcf Ewl
of SufFolk and Sir Robert Ciirfott t '«*wK€^in
«* it muft be confcffcd,*^ fays LcM^d Bacon V6iy
gthtlft ^^ tfhat hectven 'was made. tO!6 mUch- to hw
^s(o earthy' txA religion to'pcdicy*^.***

In the time of Cromwcil, a thotifend' trickii
Were piayed to find out and tfoAVift the difaf^
ifefted ; and an accurfed order of villains^ . wh*
were c^Wt^ Thickoys and ?rtfp<*Wj- werte' ei«f-
ployed to womA out their fecrctsuftdfer-hype^f
critical pretences, and then betray tfcem. *Fhtfl
overreached. Colonel Andrews loft his head ;
nor, fays my author, ** was the Prefident Brai^
** fl)av> afhamed openly to declare in court,
<^ that by counterfeit letters he had correfpond-
•« ed with him in the ftameof the King *^."—
Even in the cafe of petty traitdrfi^ thefe artl
liftve not beto\|udgied too mean to be prac^
tifed $ andj untells my memory deceives me,
Ji|bii the Paiqter*? corriftion 9ou|cJ not t»
9)^9, fgU wi. (^rof^^;v44 ^!^ .pcetonde^

•H Hat oF J^tay VIL— Bofy^iw aSftc* preclfel^^ tSe
44r ftit • fo^ IRsrioi agdatt tie MH^riaiii, Miom 1mi be.
W^;(ml)r>t«^^ga^ tl^^ h«

^S^d'iiii ^ofc,e«'|,i|n(|i.iip« to bp-cut c^, and. tl^feignoi
W ikvilwh iitsM thiis tiraclly 1^ fiarius, Juftin. Hia.
t IP, ,..-.■ '

friends

a68 S Y L V A, or

friends h^d cajoled and drawn him to conviS:
himfelf, \

AH TudTiart?! boyrever, are not only mcanj
but bale and wicked, A m^n^ who would pre^
ferye his integrity uptaiatcd, Ihould not pu|
himfclf into tl^o afuti?cie:.qf a villain, no, not
for a nrionaeni:^ .TM io^^j^rd feelings foon ac-.
conmmodatip.dvcpaf^ycs t;q,^^ outward fituatioa
and garb j f he artificial chara£jter ibon becomes
natural: and. therefore I fliouU, diflikc, as a
player, to aft.a bad oianj but I would not^ as
fci adypwtej defend a bad i9au((:,/

m/mmm

•ffl* BfBtl SHdVLiy NTO^ SB USED IN TBACH-*

' ■ ^ -^ "iKt?- ta ^MAt/i '"

. . -. ... •■: r--\': :r> :-:^-r.i-.ii ^'/' - -. ;•-•:
JjENRYKNYGHT<»fi!ai canon of Lci-
: cefte^ complaindd^belavilyiOf Wickliff, hin
neighbour and contem|)ora*y;!??»i-^^./cKr haring
<< tranflated out pf X^a^in ,fiita^Ei^l|fli .d^ ^f-
'^ pel, which Chrift had entrufted with t\it
<« cler^ and do6x)iis of the chtaJpch, tTlat'>i^
•» might minifter it t6 the lait^j^* an3 ^ip^^^^

••» Wickliff was reftor 6? LiitfcrwortHia twcifcrftttTC^
. ajid died in 138^11,

« fort,

The W O O D. ^69

*' fort, according to the exigency of times and
^^ their fcveral occafions : fo that by this means
** the gofpel jewel, or evangelical pearl, was
^^'mzdt vulgar, was thrown abdtit, and trod-
«* den under foot of fwine ***/' The Moham-
medans have been very careful to preferve their
Koran from the prophanation here complained
of: it is, fays Mr. Sale, the trahflator, «^ in
** the greateft reverence toiong them. They
** dare not fo much as touch it, without be-
*• 4ng firft wa&cd br legally purified : which,
*' left they fliould do inadvertently, they write
*^ thefe words on the cover^ Let none taucb it
** but <bbo are clean. They read it with a fu-
«* perftitious reycrcnce, never holding it be-
«< low their girdles : they adorn it with gold
'« and precious ftones, &c. •'7'* Henry Knygh-
ton would have approved and commended all
this, as ]\^^^ Jecentj, and in order : but what
would Henry Knyghtoa have faid, if he had
feen the Bible thumbed and dirtied in our
fchools, thrown by the boys at one another's
heads, and configned perhaps at length to the
mod; humiliating offices ?

"•*•• Lewis's Hijt, ofTranflations of the SM^p. 20. 1729.
Sto.

.^ *•' Sale's Preliminary Difcoiufe to the Koran, 410. — The
Jews had the fame veneration for their law ; not daring to
touch it with unwaflien hands> nor then neither without a
xover. Fi^ MiUium de Mohammtdifmo ante Mohammedj
f. 366. ^ -

It

: it&Dtfia faern imt^ ia>rdiB«0(Ui^ifti^ fhfd f|-
. gnitiorkf mth tbe dibk nnght l^d 4)7 4egr«t&

iisnfe tf God'b cxiftonoeifoi-, reciftmmg<4^ ^tHe
farts, dp. adiiSftiyte i^ysv little ftMffs ypbn tfft
trontemplari<ire, fopkiftictl, ^hi^lotop^ical ^k^*-
iiOs, m chef att^ ddied»^ rAtnong ^h^Tty fayt ht,
5< Mhci&i IB ^ratM-; in) tti« li>> thiti in the
^ ^biart^ ifceftfinli bv^ be «alkfl% 'ttf their
« bpimotr, a«/af^dief itene ^^w^^^i^Mabcmt it,
f^Mid tmtdit gladly tfc ^Pc&^Aittv&dt'by ^tht
"^.lOM&Ataf QtktH.:.ir fewn to^ie more

ff ?ai«(lifjioliri«e8,' vflMo Weevcr handling holy
H^faih^>^wiiAidat :di&4«ftft TcHfc or feeling dF
^^ rk^ bdng^ '& 1^ fo ^lat thefe ixiuft needs i>e
'* tMUttri!ztd 'in the -en^ *••." Ndtfi -according
tb tbe&^kfeo^ «KKiy iiot the cimflQMtt>i&^d:b'ftn«-
dHiiig of hplyr 4hi!^s 'itiaJK- men'>afdie!ftss' bjr
hnki»% th^Jm'^ ^'ia^iaBy tttfe*"^^^ "'of theifr

ifdHhets t /fcddk'kt^^ fing.-

ing •'b^, xApiiiviTOfi (i, neci g^ Lfl9::^highef')
and Ac wbtt fe»ifr or &efing tJneyhaw^df the
faolinefs of tl^ thing* ^tmii^'fSilkfA.i^'^t^^ ittt
taiighrtoreixtmth^ 8i|il^']^c^^
)« a good book *^5: the J)dhi ,^iftcn a

. ^ Maya, xvL- ■ ■ -■- r::^--^?-- A- -'^-^ '^'H^ .. ..:.^.v .::

^^ THe l>eadlft or a^Stf ^ arifiag fiMi tfieii^ih^aiSj, il

kUpffiihtr Imaginary. '^ Wanting an %j^^ book-fbr jliy

•* fcholars

^Ifiwrt^pf thecliurch, tricwfa'y^e church is an
^kokf. i)lace >^. Sumly buft pious ancefbrs *&d
^iim kaow^ that familiftn^ breeds oomem
'for more effe&ual meftM CMld 'not be coil--
trived to cxtinguifli or prevent all fenfe of ho-

; There is yet another reafon, why boys Ihould
not be taught to read by the ufe of the Bible^
if there be any fudh thihg as afibciation of
ideas. /The Bible^ diftindt from its religious
impOTtance, is certajniy ^ very curious as well
as uieful book: but the Bible is ufually the
Jtft boc^ men tsikt Aip^.eiiher fisv laltMiftU>nt>r
amufcmtnt. Why } libecaitk 4hcy faove for*
tnerly been teazed,; and- buSeted> and:.*flogged
about it I atid hec^xjJk tiicf hate the rceiktr)i»2

y wkk)l»fi%hti|i^?C!Cke0i iliXeafe add Laimhl poue
jj (two tjiiiys whick ftpfild ney^ b^ dinded in teaching)
«< I thodght Qotking more proper for that puxpoTe, ihza.Ba"
*^ ^dk*tij^t.^' !As if a ttJiiof-tey iv6utd dheAd to 6> (if
lie¥i»olUa) ootfd txknptibitlAd^^btll^
jwtt trwett flight St he ftsdrtfaat bosrs Aodd %e ttagftt fh
^ BitfU^and af. the chorql^ becaife celigkm and l^^Kg
flMMild neyer b^e diyidfd. fr^.toJfa^omU mps^s^ traoilat^d
by W)^«r«r, l7'20^ 2 Vols, ^vo.
£ ^**^%^Sili«m^^*i&ircKl7^^
ttfttedy aiid ffluft ctrtaiftl j bate foine degree of bdliiit>rs,
•s wdlMtkednirch, betooH ^ itweiv a licesifbd ]rfa7<»
4101114 &r tiff ijriidol4x>>rs> and sttbe&me time abear-

fp|rd(in^#l|li|4W»tf^.. t;r.;r;;/'7''* v- :..-.... :V' -

a72 S Y L V A, o it

which it naturally revives. 'Tis pity but a
little knowledge of human nature had been
cultivated by thcfe good people, together with
their piety and learning.

Lxxvm.

THE ECCENTRICITIES ASD CAPRICES OF IMA-
GINATION.

A CERTAIN writer, apologizing for the ir-
regularities of great genii, delivers him*
fclf thus. «* The gifts of imagination bring
y the heavieit talk upon the vigilance of rea-
" fon ; and to bear thofe faculties with uner-
•* ring reftitude* or invafiablfe propriety, re-
«' quires a degree of firmnefs and of cool at-
" tention, which doth not always attend the
*«« higher gifts of the mind. Yet, difficult as
«^ nature herfelf feems to have reduced the talk
<* of regularity to genius, it is the fupreme
*' confblation of duUneis to feize upon thofe
«« cxceffes, which are the overflowings of fa-
«' culties they never enjoyed •''."t— Are not
the gifts of imagination here miflaken for the
ftrength of paffions ? Doubtlefs, where ftrong

*•> Laaghorne's Lift of W» CoUin*.

paffions

^ V .■■ ^ ^ ::•

Thb "V^T O O D.^ ft73

^

Jl^affibhs accompaiiy great parU,p as perhaps
they pftcn do> there imagiaation may incrcafe
their force and aftrnty ; but, where paffions
are calm and gentle, imagination of itfelf
fliould feem to have no Cohflift but Jpecula^
tively with reafom --^cnr indeed it wages an
eternal war j and, if not controukd and ftriftly
i-egulated, will carry the patient into endlefs
extravagancies* I ufe with propriety the term
patient : becaufe ftien, ttAde** the influence of
imagination j are moflr trulyxiiftempered. The
degree of this diftemper will be in proportion^
to the prevalence of imagination over reafon,
and, according to this proportion, amount to
more or lefs of the whimficali but, when rea-
fon fhall become as it were extinfl, and imagi*
nation govern alone, then the diftemper will be
madnefs under the wildeil: and molt fantallic
modes. Thiis one.of thefe Invalid?, perhaps,
Ihall be all forrow for having been moft unjuftly
deprived of the crown i though his vocation,
poor man ! be that of a fchoolmaften. Another
is all joy, like Horace's madman ; and it may
feerh feven cruelty to cure him. A third all
fear j and dare$ qot make water, left he fliould
caufe a deluge •^.

The operations and caprices of imagination
are various and endlefs; and, as they cannot be
reduced to regularity or.fyitem» fa iii is highly
imprabaUe thak any certain method of cure

••» Rivcrlj Praxii Midica, p. 188,

T fliould

4^74 S Y L V A, OR

ihould ever be found out for them. It "hath
generally been thought^ that matter of fadt
might moft fuccefsfuUy be oppofed>to the <ie-
lufiora of imagination^ as being proof to the
fcnfes, and carrying conviftion unavoidabdy to
the underftanding: but I fufped, that the un-
derftanding> or ireafoning faculty, hath little to
do in all thefe cafes: at Icaft fo it Ihould fccm
from the two following, which are very re-
markable, and well attefted,

Fienus, in his curious little book de viriius
imaginationtjy records from Donatus the cafe
of a man, who fancied his body increafed to fuch
a fize, that he durft not attempt to pafs through
the door of his chamber. The phyfician, be-
lieving that nothing cotald -more ieflfefltually
cure this error of iniagin^tipn^ than to ihew
that the thing could a6tually be done, cmifed
the patient to be thruft forcibly through it::
who, ftruck with horror, and falling fuddenly
into agonies, complained of being cnifiicd to
pieces,'and expiredfoon after ^^---^eafon,^ cer-
tainly, was not concerned here.

The other cafe, ^s related by Van^.Swieten
in his Gommentaries upon.Boerhaante^Vis that
of a learned man, who had fttidIed,*tiUAe fan-
cied his legs to be of glafir; in confequeiice of
which, he dtirft not lattempt to ftitj but was
-con(btntly under anxiety, abopt them* His
maid, bringing one day fome wood to :the fire,

*♦« P. iji. L* Bat,.if635. , ^ Jphcri/m. 1113.

threw

th* wood. trs'

thitJw it carelej&ly down; and was .fevcrely re-
primanded by her mafter^ who was terrified not
a Jittk.for hi* legs of glafs. The furiy wench,
out of .all patience with his m^rims, as >ihe
called them, gave him a blow with a log upon
the parts affedted : which fo enraged him, that
he inftantly rofe up, and from that moment re*
coyered the ufe of his legs.— Was reafon con-
cerned any inorc ltW€?.Or> was it not rather
one blind impulfe adting againft another ?

LXXIX^

A TRAIT OF QUEEN ELIZABETH^

^HE following copy of an original letter
from this Queen to Hcaton, Bifhop of Ely,
is taken from the Rcgiftcr of Ely :

" Proud Prelate,

** I underftand you arc backward in com-
" plying with your agreement : but I would
" have you to know,. that I, who made you
*' what you are, can unmake you j and, if you

do not forthwith fulfil your engagement,

^y ■ I will irtimediately unfrock you.

Your*s, as yow demean yoiu'felf,

^^ ELIZABE'tHr

T t Heaton.

cc
u

276 S Y L. V A, <JR

Hcaton, it fccms, had promifed the Quccaoi
to exchange fome part of the land belonging
to the fee for an equivalent^^ and did fo; but ic
was in cohfequcncc of the above letter. ' >

LXxx:.

ONE TRAIT OF OLIVER CROMWELL.

npO his Highfiefs thjc Lord Proteftor of the
commonwealth of England, Scotland, and
Ireland,

The humble petition of Marjery, the wife of
William Beacham, mariner, Iheweth, That your
petitioner's hufband hath been aftive and faith-
full in the wars of this commonwealth, both by
fea and land ; and hath undergone many hazards
by imprifonment and fights, to the endan-
gering of his life 5 and at laft loft the ufe of
his right arm, and is utterly difabled from fu-
ture fervice, as dpth appear by the certificate
annexed; and yet hath no more than forty
(hillings penfion from Chatham by the year :
•that your petitioner, having one only fonne>
who is tradable to learn, and not having
wherewith to bring Mm up, by reafon of their
Drefent low eftate, occafioned by. the poblique

icrvicc

The wood. 1277

fcrvice aforcfaid, humbly prayeth, that your
highnefs would vouchfafe to . prcfent her faid
ibnne Randolph Beacham, to be fchoyer in Sut-
tpn's-hofpital, called the Charter-Houfe.

^^ OLIVER, P, We referre this petition and
*' certificate to the commiflioriers of Slit*-
** ton's-hofpital.
^^ July 28th, 1655/'

Jl Letter Jent by Oliver to hUJecretary on the above
petition.

^^ You receive from me, this aSth inftant, a
'^ petition of Marjery Beacham, cJefiring the
^ admiffion of her fpn into the Charter-Houfe,
'^ I know the man; who was employed one
" day in a very important fecret fervice, which
*f he did effeftually, to our great benefit and
'^ the commonwealth's. The petition is a
*^ brief relation of a faft, without any flattery.
*^ I have wrote under it a common reference
*' to the cofTimiflioners, but I mean a great
'^ deal more; that njhall be done, without
' *^ their debate, or confideration of the matter:
'*^ and fo do you privately hint to ■ ,

*' i have not the particular fhining bauble or
^< feather in my cap, for crouds to gaze at or
*^ kneel to; byt I have power and refolution
*« for foes to tremble at. To be fliort, I know"
*^ how to tleny petitions ; apd whatever I think
^' proper, for outward form, to referre to any
T 3 " ofiicer

ft7« S Y~ L .V A, on

*^ officer or office, I expcft that fuch my com-
*^ pliancc with cuftom Ihall be alfo looked
'^ upon as an indication of my will and plea-
*' fure to have the thing done. See therefore^
*« that the boy is adnnitted,
" July 28, 1655- " Thy true friend,

• '' ouver,p:'

Thus it is always, when tyranny gains the
rucendant : the forms are preferved, the fub-
ftance is gone. And thus it was in ancient
Rome : confuls, prsetors, tribunes, and other
officers, were elefted duly and in form, long
after the empire had loft its liberty, and alt
were fubjefted to the will of one. It is curious
to obferve, with what apparently confcientious
refpeft' Tiberius, for inftance, abffiained from
interfering with thefc perfonages, either zi
their eleftions, or with their deliberations in
the fenate; while the diifembling tyrant was
the capricious and arbitrary direftor of the
puppets, and the fole Ipring of every move-
iTicnt. Perhaps other nations might be found,
who have fancied themfelves free, becaufe ini
pofleffion of ancient and known forms, though
the fubftarice or vital fpirit of liberty was reitly
departed, and fome fecret influence has go-
verned the whole ; and perhaps thtfr0greffion
4>f mantfersy as it has been called, and the fte-
ceflary courfe pf human things, will always
liave it fo,

tXXXIt

The W a D^ 27 j

LXXXI.

ANOTHER TRAIT OF OLIVER CROMWELL^

^TpHERE never was an impoftor, who waht-
-*- ed to lead and govern, but enjoined, in
tTie firft: place, that rhen Ihould quit reafon,
and ftifle common-fenfe. This has always
been the corner-ftone, when religion has been
cither the means to be employed, or the end to
be brought about. There is extant a curious
letter from Oliver Cromwell to Colonel Ham-
mond, which illuftrates this pofition in an
high degree. Hammond was governor of the
Ifle of Wight, during the confinement of
Charles I. in Carifbrook Caflle ; and had con-
ceived fome fcruples concerning his royal
charge, which made him defirous to quit the.
army and retire. Cromwell, in a letter of
Nov. 25, 1648, about two months before the
beheading of Charles, endeavours to remove
thcfe fcruples 5 but how ? not by topics drawn
from reafon or policy, but by canting and
whining about faith and grace.

",Dear Robin, owx fiejhly reafonings enfnare

** us: thefe make us fay, heavy yjad^ fleafant^

V i^Jy* Was there not a little of this, whea

^^ Robert Hammond, through diffatisfaftion,

T 4 " dcfired

a8o . S^,Y. L/V. A, ail

" dcfired retirement from the , army, an4
«' thought of quiet in the Ifle of Wight ? — !
** Dear Robin, thou and I weire never worthy
*^ to be door-keepers in this fervice. If thou
«' wilt feek, feek to know the mind of God ir^
'^ all that chain of providence, whereby God
** brought thee thither, and th^vt perfon to
^^ thee i how before and fii\ce God has ordered
*^ him, and affairs concerning him : and thea
*' tell me, whether there be not fome glorious
" and high meaning in all this, above what
^^ thou haft yet attained ^ and, laying afide thy
^^ flejbly reafofiy feek of the Lord to teach
«^ thee what that is/' — In the following paffage
he reafons, and fhews that jie ^ould talk fenfe
if he would: " Authorities and Powers arc
*' the ordinance of God 3 this or that fpeciesi
<« of human inftitution and liipite4, fom?
^^ with larger, others with ftrifter. bonds, each
«' according to it$ confiitution, I do not
'* therefore think^ authorities rnay do any
*^ thing, and yet obedience be due j but a^l
<^ agree there are cafes, in which it is Jawful to
'^ refift."— Reafoning, however^ would not do
with Hamnriond 3 and therefore Cromwell de-
fifts from it, as totally to be diftrufted. <« But
" truly thefe kind of reafonings may be but
•^ flejhly^ either with or againft 5 and let us be-
" ware, \t^ flejhly reafonings^ £s?r. — Dear Ro-
«* bin, tempting of God ordinarily is either by

^'^afting

The W O O D. fi$f

^' afting prefumptuoufly in carnal confidence,
^' or in unbelief through diffidence ; botH
^* thefe ways Ifrael tempte4 God in the wiU
^« dernefs, and he was grieved with them^
^* The encountering difficulties therefore makes
^' us not to tempt God, but afting before and
^ without faith. If the Lord hath in any
<^ meafure perfuaded his people, as generally
'* he hath, of the lawfulnefs, nay of the duty,
^ this perfuafion prevailing upon the heart i%
*^ faith I and afting thereupon is aftjng in
^* faith J and the more the difficulties are, the
^' moTt faith. — Dear Robin, beware of men,
♦^ look up to the Lord. Let him be free to
^ fpeak, and command in thy heart. Take
« heed of the things, I fear, thou haft reafoned
^ thyfclf into J and thou Ihalt be able through
*^ him, without confulting flelh and blood, to
^ do valiantly for him and for his people."

Thus ftrengthertcd, Hammond perfevered
pioufly in his duty, and the king was brought
valiantly to the block about two months after i
and thus knavery hath praftifed upon folly and
madnefs, in all ages of the world, and among
9X1 ranks of men.

LXXXIL

|t9 &'T L V A, mH

ixxxit

j|XTItACTS MOM lk£'9T»S OF UR^ tOCKB T»

Tf\IU John M^Ieto^ boHi a&our 1^313 w»

^<n theiekttf|(^iir«ffev!^itt0]%9r aii^ continiieA
fa till 1^75* Thprt he mwTfftd,. *rt* in i68ar
^6C9^e s^di^kiie^ |t ^^eaTs fi^m the foikim^
io§ fxtradl^ thgi :Lpi:I«& hfid^ ar ftlm^ $le(ii?r t9

J^ QUvc f^'^a Me never w»u^ pra^fe re^

SSHi^h^ tntilbrtfaip faktl ^ fro&U jet he wa9
Ycry^xixyNUkgin the (cifmecf^^iH} hjgh2)refteem'^
ffd by^ ^1 ^e piof^fibt^ of k* The eDlkaion^
^-om whence thefef extraAst ^ made;, funiKh ar
ftFiking pfoof of the High o|HnMrv that war
(pM;§rtaiine4 of hi& ikiU in liiedieine: fot in one
ofthcIctter#,d4<edParis,4 Dec. 167^,, Re tells
you, that he ** was fent for to the lady ambafla*
." drice, after having met with fo little fucceft
^* from the French phyficians, that (he was re^
<* folved to try them no more."— Locke how^
ever did not fuccced to Grclham.

. *^ Biblioth, Choif. vi, 340.

XtTE W 0*0' IX ^s

Vans, 22 June itjy.
m " If cither abfcncc (which fometime^
increafes our dcfirc^) or love (which wc iea
every day produces fbrange effcfts in the world)^
have foftened you> or difpofed yovi to a> likings
of any of our fine new things, 'tis but faying fo^
and I anm ready to furnilh you, and lhould:be
forry not to be employed,. I mention love,
for you know I have a pancicula)' interefl: of my
own in it. When you look thlat way, no body^
will be readier (as yo\i may gucfe); to throw an
old (hoc aiftcr youj much for your own fake,
and a little for a friend of yours. But were I
to advifey perhaps I Ihqiuld fay to you, that
your lodgings at Grcftam GoHege were a very
quiet and comfortable habkatidn/'-^-r— i*

tiLA$, 9 Aug. lijf^
^— «« Though your leHci^ hath fatasfi*d
me that you are v«iry well, yet it hafh p^t new
doubts into me 5 andy methinks, I fee you
going to lofe yourfclf. IiJlrill fay no worfe of
it, not knowing how far tfie matter is goht 1
clfe I would afk you, whether fhe were youngs
old, or middle-aged -, each of ifrhich is furc to
meet you with the horns of a dilemma. I fee
you are, whatever you think, hot upon thfc
fccnt : if you have nothing elfc to defend you,

buC

jg^* S Y L V A, OR

but thofe maxims you build on, I fear the
chafe will lead you where you yourfelf will be
caught. For be as grave arid ffeady as you
pleafe, refolve as much as you will, ncvtt to
go out of your way or pace for any an bey^
trony-nofiy whatever, you arc not a jot the fafer
for all this fturdinefs. For, believe it. Sir, this
fcrt of game, having a defign to be caught,
will hunt juft at the purfuer's rate, and will go
no fafter before, than will juft fervc to make
you follow ; and let me affurc you, upon as
good authority as honeft Tom Bagnall's, that
njifuus videnfque fereo h the lamentable ditty of
many an honeft gentleman. But if j^ou or the
fates have determined, (for the poor fates arc
ftill to be accufed in the dafe) if your mettFe
be up, and, bold as Sir Francis Drake, you will
fhoot the defperate gulph ; yet cohfider, that
thoiigh the richer of Peru lie thait way, how-
well you can endure the warm navigation of
the Mare de Zur, which ?ill travellers alfqrc us
i? nick-named Pacificum^ .

" But hold, I go tob far tatt this; perhaps,
notwithftanding your ancient good principles,
will be herpfy to you by the time \t comes to
England; and therefore I conjure you by olir
fricndfhip to burn this as fobn as you have
rfrad it, that it never m^y rife up in judgment
againft me. I fee one is never f\ire,of one's

. felfj

The wood. ' i9$

fclf 5 and the time may come when I may r'c-
fign myfclf to the empire of the foft fex, and
^abominate myfclf for thefe miferable errors^
However as the matter now ftands, I have dif-
.charged my confcience, and pray do not let me
fufFer for it : for I k(iow you lovers are a fort
of people, that are bound to facfifice all to
your miftrefles. But, to be ferious with you,
if your heart does hang that way, I wifli you
good luck: may Hymen be as kind to you, as
ever he was to any body -, and then I am fure
you will be much happier than any forlorn
batchelor can be. If it be like to be, I beg
you to continue the care of my intereft in the
cafe ', and remember it is for one, who knows
how to value the quiet and retirement you are
going to quit. You have no more to do for
me, than what lovers ufe to do upon their own
account, viz. keep the matter as fecret and pri-
vate as you can ; and then, when it is ripe and
refolved, give me but notice, and I fhall quick-
ly be with you: for 'tis by your direftions I
ihall better govern my motions, than by the
flight of thrufhes and fieldfares. Some re-
mains of my cough will probably keep me
longer here than the time you mention; but,
liot knowing whether the air of France will
• ever cjuite rcn^ovc my old companion or np,

I /hall

^86 5 Y au V A* ojt

J (hall negleft diat iinccrtainty> -upon die
confideradon of fa comfonabk «ti impor-
tance*^/'—

:LXX3HH.

JL LITTER OF ALGBRNOON .SYDNJ^V TO DR..MA--

^HE following letter is dated from Geneva^
July the 6th ; but the year is not n>entioncd.
It muft> however, h4ve been written in 1662 ;
for, [early in 1663, Dr. MapJetoft returned to
England, after haying lived near a year at
Rome in the houfe of Algernoon Sydney- The
letter, though upon a very, light occafion,. yet
breathes the fame fevere and agrimonious fpirit,
for which that republican was always reoaark-
able : he wa3 then in^ ftate of voluntary exile,
becaufe he would not perfonaliy accept at the
Redoratlon of the oblivion and indemnity,
granted generally to the. whole nation.

«»« '^Comfortahk imporiattci. It u remarkable, that.An^
drew Marvel made hlmielf very merry wich thi expreffioBj^
t which had been ufed by^Parkifj in the RiieMtfU Tranf-
^fttftd^ 1672, ia»%

^ Sir,

The W O O D.

« Sin,

« Coming to Vcnke five or fix d^ aftfS:
your departure from Padua, 1 received a letter
of YO\xr% giving me notice of your taking the
way of France in tte company of Sir John
Vaughan ; concluding that I did not intend to
remove fi-om Home, nor make the journey in-
to Germany of which I had fpoken, becaufe
the feafon was not fit for it. I am fq much
your fervant, that I was glad to hear you had
joined yourfelf unto better company, than that
whidh I had offered unto you ; but,- by your
favour, if you had remembred how little I do
«fc to difguife my intentions, and how far t
was from having any intercft, that in this parr
ticular Ihould Iway me beyond my inclinations
and cuftoms, you would never have judged
that I would ftay at Rome, when I did publiik
my rcfdlution of removing. The truth is,
my head is not fo hot, as thofe of the youths,
who ordinarily run from place to place, with--
out knowing why or Confidering when j but I
did obferve the feafon, and when I found it fit
for travelling with convenience, I did execute
the defign which I had formerly refolved, and
have advanced as far as this place with more
convenience, than ever I did make any other
in my life. When I came hither, I was in-
formed by fevcral perfons that thofe foolifh
boys, who were with you at the Ville de Vien-
12 - '' na.

m S Y L V Ai &t

na, when they were here, pretended to h^ verj?
well acquaidted with me^ as I think to gain thd
more credit to the report which they fpread>
that I was turned Roman Catholick. I am not
naturally rcry follicitous of fuch matters j buti
hearing that you intend to* feek the fame com-
pany, I think it worth the pains of writing a
few linesj to defire you to tell them from me>
that it would become them in good manners
not to talk at that rate of men, that they ought
to ufewith a little more relpedt 5 and that the
framing of foolifh and malicious untruths is
moft unworthy of any, who do fo much as pre-*
tend to the name of honeft men. After I have
pafled fome few days in this place, I intend to
purfue my formerly refolved journey ; but that
is fo little important to you, that I will not
trouble you with an account of it. When I
come to fix, it is probable you will by fome
way or other know where I Im; and then, if
you have any thing to comrnand me, you may
cafily know how to addrefs your letters unto
your very humble and afFedionate fervant,

AL. SYDNEY-^

LXXXilL

th» woo d; nBf

LXXXiV.

mOM MR. NEL&<m*S fcBtTSRS TO..DIl...lfAPI.In:

JPFT. , .. ; ,.i

London^ a Jan. 1679.
« Y'*^UR fftend'-Shd fchoolfellow, Mr.
Dryden, has been fevcrely beaten for
being the fuppofed author of a late very abu-
live lampoon. There has been a good fum of
money offered to find who fet them on work:
'tis faid they received their orders from the
Duchefs of Portfmouth, who is concerned in.
the lampoon.**—

Londonj la Dec. 16 jg^
— *^ Tis the petitioning of Parliament, that,
has enraged him ^ (Charles II.) and he fwears
by God, they may knock out his brains, but
Ihall never cut off his head." — ^Thi& r^elates to
a difpute the King had with the Commons,
about the impeachment of Lord Danby»

Crancford, 17 July, 1708.
He mentions, in this letter, a defign of
*' immediately fetting up fifty-two parochial
libraries, which, fays he, at 16/. a library, will
atnount to 832/ i'* and there pafled the fame
year, an aft for the better prefervation of paro-

U chial

il9P 5f Y) 1^ % Ay, ,t>n

chial libraries, Parochkl libwiies imply i
greater dep^n, as fliould feen), than can ev^f
be executed J tjpf^ wghjt jaot a C/iunty library,
vnder wife reg^J^^pn;^^ and with a catalognic;
for proper perfons who jhoulcj chufe to purchafe
it,, be an ob)c&^/^qi;thyo{ mention^

i Ttiii lirtMihiiiriri iri V ■.■■^'

7

.:n.?r

uLv:

6f great ME^rAl*^<^*'l^*^*^i^^£^ lOHNSOrf^

:••=. ■ , ■ ■. . •• >- .' ^■■■.•.' ^ '- '^ 1 ', • ♦ ;

^T^REAt mani fays Yoltaii;.e, %»e muft lym
S^ meams ii lavipvfjhif title ^^^ We caijia^
deed hardly ever apply it.at alV if by p^eat hi
meant uriiirerfaUjr la i that is^ omnibus numtris
i^ojutusi: Lord Bacon was r* igfeait niari, a irery
great manf y^t ipnly pattfikily fp. HehaA^a
gfeat and catnpreiieiifiyi5f iindetftandingj p^'^
baps thfe greateft ihat -b^tb yet (hone forth
among the fijna of meiv ? btj it do^: ndt ap-
pear, that tit : would bave h^n, grjeat lift cither
field or cabinet i and forigfeatueii ofufptd, as
dt is called, th* pdey ifrho^iftHe^ftiift.lhe -t^l/^
afid the brightefty brftnd^; bina al^J:he fafrjetkn^
fox the meane^gf^ mankind* /\>, « i

•*^ Grand bomm? il nt fata pai^j^rpdigutr A^^^

'4.

-^ Churchili, Cuke of Marlborough, was a very
^at fnan : even BoHngbrbke, Who certainly
was not prcjiidiced in hisfivour; allows him to
Kave been «' the'greateft general as well as the
^* greateft mihiftef, that otir Coiihtry or per-
*' haps any other ha^ produced *99.»» Yet
Churchill, Diike of Marlborough, was illitei-ate
to an extreaie ^uoEiuai^uAderflaading totally uri-^
fcultivated; arid inwhichi if you could have crept
under the glare of hiS ejttcriori you would pro-»
bably have difcerhied w'eikrieflesi equal to thofe
of the weikeft,taw.«---J]iiliu$^Casfar was a very
great general^ and a Very great ftatefmari ; but
he was more; > Julius Caefai* Was a rhari of Jet^
tersi and a fine writer; h&d a moft comprc-
iiertfive as Sfrell iaS cultivated trndefftanding j
Andi withal; a rhbfl: uncoi^ilaon greatriefs of
foul. Julius C&fi^r isi in my humble opinion,
tht ireate^ th^ii iipm rd(ford:^Lewls XI V;
like many oiher tyrants' fbrrounded by pimps
and flatterers^ had the title of Great cbnferred
upon him : but Lefwis's gr^atnefs^ was to real
greatnefsi- vrha« tilt bdmblift i« to the fublime,
^r xhtfifHulatfA of Spfclu^ui ta jfeal bodies.
t\ The late Dr. Bilimid JohnfoH wad a man of
:great parts, and was infdifputably a gr^at man,
if great parts fimply can make onfe *»9 - but t)r.
^ Samuel

\ *^ UponWfiary. Letter vlii.

•»» He was probably leiarncd ; but | do not reckon ItziA^

lAjr^faloiig the attributes of great men. Learning may b«

tJ 2 attained

292 S Y L V A, on

Samuel Johnfon was the meaneft of bigots, a
dupe and flave to the moft contemptible pre-^
judices^°''j and, upon fubjedts the moft im-*
portant, is known to have held opinions, which
are abfolutely a difgrace to human under-
Handing.

The Prefident Montefquieu has faid, that
" the rank or place, which pofterity beftows,
*^ is fubje£t like all others to the whim and
'^ caprice of fortune ^""^ :" and our Wollafton
was fo difgufted with the foolifh and iniquitous
judgments of men, that he betook himfelf
early in life to retirement, — propter iniqua ho--
minumjudiciay as he left to be infcribed upon
his tomb^ftone. If any thing could cure a
man's anxiety, and render him indifferent, about
what is faid or thought of him, now or here-
attained by little men, who will apply : but learning with*
out parts, or a capacity to ufe it, is merely dead unweildy
matter, caput mortuum, devoid of Ufe or fpirit. Like wealth
or titles, it often ferves only to make a blockhead confpi-
cuqus.

3°° One would think, from a paflage in the Rambler, that
he himfelf did a little fufpedl this : " the pride of wit and
*' knowledge/* fays he, *' is often mortrfifed by finding,
*' that they can confer no fecurity againfl the conunon er-
*' rors, which miflead the weakeft and meaneft of man-
'' kind." N^ 6.

3®» Les places que la pofterite donne font fujettes, comme let
Autres, aux caprices de la fortune. Grand, des Rom. c. I.

after.

The .woo D. 293

after, it would be thefe blind, abfnrd, iniqui-
tous judgments of men -, who break riotoufly
forth into praife or cenfure, without regard to
truth or juftice, but juft as paflion and preju-
dice impell.

Dr. Johnfpn " feems, together with the
*' ablefl: head, poffefled of the very JDeft heart
" at prefent exifting /' fays one writer. " Ne-
<* ver on earth did one mortal body encom-
«^ pafs fuch true greatnefs and fuch true good-
«' nefs," fays another '°*; who obferves alfo,
that his Lives of the Poets '^ would alone have
- *< been fufficient to immortalize his n,ame."
How able his head^ or (as a third exprefles it)
what Jiupetidous ftrength of underftanding he
might have, cannot be precifely defined 3 but it
is certain, that ihh Jiupendous underftanding was
not ftrong enough to force its way through the
meaneft prejudices, with which it was once en-
tangled. And for the very beft hearty and fuch
true goodnefs as one mortal body did never before
incompafsj — this is the language of journalifts
and periodical writers : let us hear the tefti-
mony of thofe, who have always known him
perfonally, and intimately.

Bilhop Newton, fpeaking of the above Lives
of the PvetSy fays, that ^^ malevolence predomi*
<« nates in every part 5 and that, though fgmc

*f* Gent's Magaaine, for Dec 1 784.

U 3 ^ paflagcg

55 paflaees are ludicfbus and well writteh/' vet
/^ they make not lufficient cbmpenfatioh f6r Iq
'** much fpleen and III humour ^^" An imtar-^
//^/ aqcount (foit is called) of Dr. Johnjhn in
^.tiit European Magapiine^'^^y faid to be witteri
ty the ingenious 'Afj^i Semdrdj fets forth, that
he was in^eed'a man pf very jgreat parts, and of
many good qualitic3, -wliith it is far from our
intent to deny or dictraa: fr6ni j but that his
fbaraSier was a very mixeJj^znd (&it might havq
added) a very imper^eft, iO»^. His writings
are repreiented as eKcellent and fine, where
inot " difgraced, as in his criticifms, with the
f* faults of his difpofition". He had ftrong af-
" feftions,** it is faid, 5^ where literary enVy
*^ did not interfere -, but that envy was of fuch
<« deadly poteneyr**"to.ioad his converfation,
" as it has loaded his biographic works, with
<^ the rancour of party- violence, with national
" averfioi|i, bitter farfeafrtij and unchriftian-likc
•^ inveftiVe. He turned from the compofi-
«« tions of rifirig geniiis' With a VifibJe hdrror,
" which proved too plainly, that envy was the
" *• boibttl^fcrp^nt bf this liwriai'yi4d"po«
'« pride was infinite;* y^tikrAMft ^11 the over-
«* beairiing' artbgance #'|)rod^cfedi hi»: feOart
«' melted at' the fight, dr*^» thfc reprcf€?fttatit>n,
i^ of difeale and pbVert^r j - and, in th»^ houi*$ of

M £;/# bjrfcafelfi . ' •(^•^orMay, 1785.
' •" ■ ^ r •' affluence.

ff afjluence, his purfe was ever open to relieve

,*f them. He was a furious Jacobite, while

y one hope for the Stuart line remained ; anci

V .his politics, always leaning' 'towards defpo^-

f^.tifm, were inimical to liberty, arid the na-i

/' tural rights of mankind. . He was punftiial

/* in his devotions 5 but his religious faith had

., *^ much more of bigot-fier^nels, than of that

" gentlenefs which the^ofpel inculcates^** G?r.

If this rcprefentation; be in any degree juft,

^and I have never heard of its being either dif-

owned or contradifted, what are we to think

of panegyrifts, who afcribe to him /ucb true

greatnefs and fuch true goodnejsy as were never

.J^efor^ encompajfed byonemortal body '°^ ?

LXXXVI.

VP50N PAVID hump's MORAL CHARACTER.

ji-T^R. Adam S^aithj in his Appendix to jthc
- . ( JJfe of Mrw ,^ume, ^fter reprefenting him
(j«nd juftly) a3 a man yy of the moft ej^tcqfivc

,/f,*^ learning, ihc gi-eateft depth of thought, and
•k* f* a capacity in every refpe^ the moft com-

!•> $#e tite nest N*, paninilarlr the clofeof it,

U f Lhenfive^'

^ S Y L V A, OIL

If prchenfive," fixppdes him to tave afproacb^
ed as nearly to the ideaef aperfeHly wife and vir*
tuous man J as perhaps the nature of human frailty
will permits

. A French writer hath obfervcd of his coun«
trymtn, that tbey n^vcr fpeak with moderation
"iipon any thing-^«Wi ainpons d tout prodiguer^^
buty whether they praife^orccnlure, are always
extravagant and outrees^ The fame may be
faid of the Englilh, who are equally lavilh of
titles and pompous epithets '"^j and give them
(I will not fay with the above writer, to all ex-*
fepting thofe who deferve them ^^^^ but certainly)
to many who do not deferve them,

Mr. Hume was undoubtedly a very virtuou*
^nd very excellent man : he was honeft, hu-
mane, benevolent, good-natured : he was free
from what are called the vices of eclat i at
leaft 1 have never heard, that he allowed him-
felf any profane liberties with either women ot
wine. Neverthelefs, was he fo fupremely ex-
cellent^ as Dr, Smith defcribes him? was there

?°^ Oaf laft N° bath furni&ed an illiiftrk>\is inilanc^ of
Jhis.

?°' Speaking of certaii^L forei^ Journalills, Journaliftes
itrangers, (I dbHht> be meaas the&nglijQb) be fays« that daut
huts mimoires pmodiqupt f »* on fetft apfelUr comme Af* de Vol"
taire npfeUe V hifigircy dUmmfinfes arcM'ves de nkmfongt ^ </' awj
fiu de 'veritef prefqiite tgut eft loue, excepte ce qui merite dc
I* fire. Melanges de Literature, l^Cf tpw. i^ p. }J2, 143.

not

The . W O O D. ^^

not fomcthing little, coatradcd, (I had almoft
faid) worldly, in his make ? did not his foxii
want much of that dignity and greatnefs, whicli
is neceffary to make virtue of the^r/? andpurefi

We have already pfefentedMn Hiamc under
a very tjnphilofophic attitude, fporting about
Charon at the clofeof his life^°^ But there
are other traits of his conduct, no Icfs unphilo*^
fophic and degrading ^^., It has, been faid^
but we know not how truly, that he was pauh
attentior ad rem^ a little too clofely attached to
the pelf: hut he was obliged by his circum-^
dances to pradife a feverc ceconomy in hi^
younger days, as he relates in .his Life-, and th^
apology he makes for Monk, Duke qi Albe-t
marie, may be thought to ferve well enough

>•' N« xxx,PPf-The Bravado is always a charader to be
fufpeded : for, as we have above obfcrved, realities are/eUom
folicitous about appearances^ N« lxi.

30^ We have heard, that he had a paffion to ht admired by
the French ; and what does the ingenious author of the Letters
Qn Infidelity mean, when he alludes to fomebody ** running
*« round a counter with bis drawn fword after a Reviewer ^
*' and quitting a room on the entrance of his antagonift ?"
p. 28. — ^We know thefe ate but vi^eaknefTes ; but they cer-
tainly detract fomewhat from the luftre of that perfe& n»if-
dem andifirtui, that {npremtly phiU/iphical government ofthi
paj/tons, for which Mn Hume's apologifts have fo loudly ce«
lebrated him. Apology for the Lifk and Writings of David
UtifMyEfq, p; ia«

for

for himfelf^ ^^ BurBct/' fays he, « chargcj tbii
*« noblenian with avarice : but, as he ^pear$
^^ hot to iiave' b^fcri in the kaft 'tainted with
5< rapa)city, hi^fcugal conduft may more can^
5« didly be imputed to the habits, acquired ia
V early life^ whUc hp was pofifefled of a very
ff narrow fortune 5' V; : • ,'
r ^e would gladly ^cquiefp« under this apoy
logy; but we cannot account for his attendance
upon the embafliesto Paris, firft in 1763, and
then in 1767, fropn any other motive than that
of intereft or profit. At the earlieft of thefe
ijates, Mr. Hume was " turned of fiftyiapaflion
^* for literature had been the ruling paffion of
^^ his life, and the great fource of l^is enjoy-
f' ments i'* he had a quick and lively fenfe of
independency, and values himfelf as it were
upon " having never preferred a requeft to one
«^ great m^n, pr even making advances of
^« friendftiip to any of themi*- h^was ^^ become
5^ npt only; iodepeadeat, bjit opujent i and had
** retired tq ^his nati^ve coyptryi detertijined
f* never more to fei: hi3 foot, out, of it, buit to
t* be buried henceforward ;iof!afphi4ofophical
« retreat." All this being fo^ andvfo he repre-
fenfs it, hpw could hcJ pQ0\Wy.bl3«feduf:ed from
the ijiades of contemplatio© :ifwl netir^ment,

into fcenes fo new and remote from his former

■ * * . ♦' ^ . • ■ ■.

^'® Hifi:. of Great Britain, anno 1670^

habit^

\

The W O'OYD? I^|

fiabitd and tenor of life-^hd# ftibmir to iiralk
itit a great man's train; to'^ niir with die jp^/ft
nkiitris of Paris^ and pri)bably/ ttb 'talk'b^d
French in W Scorch' brog^S^i^l*^^,^\!nfef^
ftntd by "fome Utiles ^affioW^fVoWi 'Withih^^^irfd
what can thii llttl<t paWiorf hW^e feeeri I ' c=, *
Monf. d'Alembert, the 'iii1h(>i^ ^9f th^^ Aflr^
iangesy&c- qU0t^d^^6Ve,^i(^d«Jd 1>y rto rWi^ans
think -s^^U of HlJffi<<^&^ ^tfefMiSce'upbh tl«fe
^baflles J tos if>ktnty ^^Sp^eSr^ ft(>in' his ftriftote^
lapon Lucian.*'^<L\:iciah hath left us a-ftrdii^
f^^nd highly CQj'Oiired piece Upon fuch ///^rtf#J,
5* as devote thenhiftlves to the fervic^ of fbe
f* great. , It grieves me/' fays he, «< thatthi^i
^^ fame Luciart, after having juftly obferved
" that friendlhip with the great is no bettcf
^' than flaveryj did at length accept a place
^* in the IbrviCC' of the emperor. He had bief-
" gun by being i- philofophet ; tWreputa;tion
<« of his works made hirh fought after > to pur-
" fue more efFeftudly what he had /begun, he
•<* (hOuld have made hi^ retirement fure; but*
/« he beckme infenfibly ,a man of the world,
<' and' cttded- by bemg a courtier. This l^Jii4
" the l^wefi fart a ptan'rf letters can a& ^"/*
- Meani whiW,t:an3 notwJthftanding appcafer
ances, we fliall not decide upon Mf. Humc^s

^*' Ce d^rnUr role eft, leplus has que pui£e jouer un honimi dt
ftttrcs, ib, torn, u p, pz^

motives.

300 S Y L V A, OR

motives. We are far from meaning to depre-
ciate Mr. Hume, or^ to impute to him any '
thing falfely : yea, the time was, when we de-
fended him from falfe imputations'". Our aim
in this, as well as the foregoing N% is only to
difcountenance thofe extravagant eloges, fo
frequently and fo blindly given to an irnagined
perfeftion, which human nature, when culti-
vated in the bell and happiefl: manner, never
,was, nor ever will be, able to attain.

LXXXVIL

CONCERNING THE DISPUTE BETWEEN MR. HUMK
AND MR. ROUSSEAU ^'^ .

^TpHE fimple Enthufiaft is a quiet and harm-
•** lefs creature. He fees vifions, and he
dreams dreatns s but he keeps thefe vifions and
dreams to himfelf, and enjoys the comfort of
them in filent meditation. The Fanatic is ever
reftlffs and turbulent ; and, though a dreamer
as well as the Enthufiaft, is not however con-
tent, like him, with what pafles within himfelf,

3'* See the following N°.

3*3 This N» is part of a Letter to the Hon, Mr. Horace WaU
pOkCi publifhed at the end of 1766, i2mo«

3 but

N

The W O. O t)*. 301

but is impatient to rage and riot abroad : » fM,o¥i$
ivhtnivy dxxoi pax;^£u«y. Society muft intereft it-?
felf in favour of his reveries; nor is it too
mucji for their fake, even to difturb the public
peace.

EhthuGafm and Fanaticifm are, both of them^
a mixture of Folly and Madnefs; and for the
latter, if diflionefty and rancour be not of it$
eflence, they are at leaft confiftent with it, and
alrhoft always found to tinftiire it very ftrongly*

The term Fanatic has ufually been applied
to the Religionift, when difordered, and not in
his right mind : may it not, under the fame cir*
cumftances, fuit as well the Philofopher? The
Religionift, I know, is fuppofed to do all for
the glory of God 5 the Philofopher, to a6t only
for the giory of himfelf. But the difference is
triflings apparent furely, not real. Self at the
bottom is the principle of aftion ; and however
the one may clamour for Religion^ and the
other for Virtue ^'*,yet thegloryof Ww/'^iJ^is the
great objeft of both. But I will not contend:
let the Religionift, if you pleafe, walk firft.
. It would grieve one, that two members of So*-

lu €€ 2jfj^^ Roujfeau is fo paflionate an admirer of Ftrtui,
** that his eyes always fparlcle at the bare mention of that
** word." So at lealt he relates of himfelf. Account of th€
Di/pute bet^etn Mr. Hume and Mr. Roufleau, hy Mr. Hume,
p. 63.

ciety.

Boi S::t L V A, 0*

€ic%Yy &-ufefol:aiid fo amrable, (hcJ^ld qiiariw
aiwwt precedency; r-o;?

r. TioKftr reflcfiiionsowe their birth WtheiiHif-'
Hiidcrftaridingi whfch hath ^rii&ii befiWe^n ;ift»<i
Ifyme and Afr. Roaffmui and they are addrcffeJ*
to youi Sky faecaiife you are fij{>poTed to Bivc
eccafioncd it' by ^ flipJpaiiGy of yoirr vrir;i I
00 not believe, riiat yotr^' ^tt^ tvett- the in6o-
fcent occafion^dif feb ]fi^4m.- Dhtk ftifpictoris
attditornicMing jcak)u/ie^ hiiiJvplaitol^ occupied
4he JmagittsttioH of ^i^r; Rdufeau, i^fon fbxxf
Letter WJte Written iartd^^ajqiiffrrel infrft hav*
happened; if it had /r^OTf^beeii l^^ritten;
•: The firft iritlrhation 6f ithefe fufpicions frorri
Afr. Rohffnui himfelf appeals in his letter tS
iir. UumB of Mirch 22, 17665 Wherein^^itf
read, as follows. ^^ The afEjiir of the carriagii
• i^ is not yet adjufted, beca^fc I kriow I waslrri-
^^ pofed on : it is a triffing fault however,
<f :which may be only the* effeft of an ohli^ng
*« vanity y iinlefs it ftiould hajipen to" be repeat-^
«fcd; If yoii were cdncerhed ih it, I woulci
** advife yon to give up, fance for kll, thefe
« little impdfitions, which cannot proceed from
^* any good motive j when converted into ihareal
<« for fimplicity ''^ SinrrpHcity inSfeed ? tf
Mr. Roiiffeau'% be fimplicity, it rs of ar ftew
^d very peculiar kind, —^ Welt: but whkf
were thefe Jnares for ftmflicity ? Why tf ulf /

^'^ Difputcr; p. 14.

Mr.

\

The W O^a D* $ci

MfyRoi^eau being «ncan tnou^ to aflfedt po>»
rerty, and yet Wb prou4 to be riribbe'i^^cdit-iacpe^
dient* were fought to fenrc, witftoiit drfgi;tfdng
him ; andi among the reft, t\m ofadycrtlfiiig;*
chaife at an under-price, contritedJbyikSr; Dii
vmportf and afleftted to by Mr ^ Hume. / v
? But waS: not Mr. Hm&^ hqw^yer well^nican*
ing, too officious ?; W^as ijbere, snot ibmcthing
indelicate in^hefe fort of fefcvices ? and .was it
not natural /or ikfr^ KouJfi^Au^ r toi fufpeft tKefc
obliging aAs, a^ /refiiiting fiwnr'yi^arV/iWthcy;
who aik fuch queftjoasi do ftoteonfider/host
cxtreniely diftrcflcd Mr. \R^»^^Mi appc3rcd\to
Mr. Hume. In his letticr to. Mr^ Ciairaufy of
Marqh the 3d, 1765, he implores that gentler
maR to correft a work^ which' h^ is " obliged^
*5 he fays, to republifh for fubfiftence, pc^
*^ av$ir du pain 5 declares himfelf overwhelmed.
*^- with a torrent of misfortunes ; and affbres
If him, that this would be doing a very great
*' charity ta the nioft unhappy of men ^'V
. Is i>ot this to call-Quti in effeft, for the con^
tributions 0/ charitable and weil-difpofed per^
fons, to prefe^ve a poor wretch from perifhing
through wajii^? ;lt is true, th^s was not thc;Eeal
ftate of Mr. Rwjfeau i for we find hirti fpeaking
^ft^wards of bis fiifEciency ia a ftrain 6f tri-*
umph : ^f I did ftot^come ovcrj fs^s he, to beg

ai« uiinutc, f, j;

my

504 S Y L V A, ox

" my bread in England j I brought the means'
*« of fubfiftience with me ^'7/' But Mr. Hume
at that time knew nothing of this; and had
therefore juft reafon to fay, that " this afFeda-
«* tion of (extreme poverty and diftrefs was a
«* mere pretence, a petty kind of impofture>
^* which Mr. Roujeau fuccefsftilly employed to
** excite the compaflion of the public," and by
that means if he could to ehgtofs its attention*
Soon after. Sir, your letter caWe forth; in
which you exhibited this fantaftic mortal rriorc
riearly to vicw> by giving the outlines of his
charafter with much good fenfe and wit. That
youlhould do this with fenfe and wit, I d6 not
wonder ; but I wonder extremely, that any man
of fenfe and wit fhould difapprove of your do-
ing this. Mr. D^jilembert fays, that " wc
f^ ought not to ridicule the unfortunate, efpe*
*^ cially when they have done us no harm ''*."
But, was Mr. Roujfeau really unfortunate ? Has
he not exaggerated matters? With regard to
his poverty rnofl: certainly he has ; and, per-
haps, with regard to his perfecutions. You
feem to have known this ; for, if I underftand
you, it is chiefly againft this, that your ridicule
is direfted. You believed, that thefe exaggera*
tions were the tricks of a Cbarlatan, who want-
ed the public to talk of nothing but him; and

3»T Difpute, p. 41. «»8 Difjpute, p. 94.

' you

The wood. ^oJ

you juftly thought, that the gentlefl: punifh-
ment he deferved was to be laughed at a little.
It may be that Mr. Roujeau had never injured
or oJfFended . you, per/onally or privately : but
an author affumes a kind of public charac-
ter i and every man has a right to correft his
notions and his manners too, fo far as thefe
manners regard the fublicy if eithel* the one or
the other ftiali ftand in need of correftion.
Mr. D'Alembert is a very refpcftable perfon^
but furely has not decided here with his ufiial
accut-acy.

But to what purpofe dwell on your innocent
letter ? The grounds of difcontent were laid in
Mr. Roujfeauy and the impulfe to quarrel with
Mr. Hume had doubtlefs begun to operate, be-
fore your letter came to his hands. He feems to
have imagined, that, as foon as he arrived at
Dover, the Englifli Ihould have been afFefted,
as they were at the Rejioratioriy or upon the
landing of the Prince of Orange. " Before 1
*' arrived in England," fays he, ^' there was
'^ not a nation in Europe, in which I had a
" greater reputation — The public papers were
*^ full of encomiums on me — my arrival was
" publifhed with triumph -^England prided
*« itfelf in affording me refuge ''^.^

^^ You fee. Sir, that the arrival of Mr. JobH

^^ Difpute, p. 43.

X James

306 S 't "t V, a; or

tional concern ; fo that it Was natuni for Mm

] to expert, ^hd h6 jffainly did cxpcft, tlikt" the

eyes, the c^rs, the thoughts' bfevery«^uidivid!uil,

fhoulii be tatieh aTS 6ncc frdhi theif feVerd oc-

cupatio^ns ani^ purfuijtis; aihd fi^ed entirely upon

[ inm alone.* Tnc maniief of his"rcc6ptton did

- by no aieans . ah/wer ' to thefe iihc ideas* con-

" cwyed bdlprel^a^^i lo fair jfrbrit itv that dlof

' a iudden^ as be hiififelf f elates^ ^ without tlie

*<* leaff.^gnable q^iife; the tbjhc was changed 5

' '^^ and that to fpeedityind totally, that of all

** the caprices of the public hicvcr was known

^^ ^ny thing more furprifing^ '**'.•' However,

while hip wa3 ip lipftdpn 01^ ne^ it, fome viBtcd

him qut of curibfity, as others did out of ranily j

"arid thus, thouigh " greatly difappointed, he was

not as yet in any high degree miferablfe.

Buf, alas ! things grew- dailySfrohl bad to

' worlci till at lehgfh^he fiys^ *<^"n6t oheof thofe,

V ^.^9. ^^^ ^^ mud\ praif^i trifein my ihftnce^

;^^ appeared; ndw I was *^ref<^ti tordiiiirkcven

«« of my exiftence '".** JHfe ffiejg irtt6 tfie cdunr

try J ftill prduming, and rtdflr cat^^

"ing, that the attcritlpn of the TbWn rtlight fly

\thither after him 'I ' ^ ^ ^^ - ^ . :..

Et fugit adJaliteT^ etje e;/i^/f ^»/^ iv^m*

5" Bifputc, p. 43- **» Difputc, p. 4J.

- It

Thb W O p. 397

it is, true, were a judgment to be formed from
JWr* Roujfeau'% declarations, yre Ihould of courfc
conclude, that to be buried in folitudc was tHe
Very tiding he wilhed; for he fpeaks of "rural
*' walks, as the only pleafures 6f his life ^"."
*' You live andconverle with the world,** fays
he to Mr. Humci " I with myfelf in folitude.*—
" I live retired from the world, I am ignorant
*^ of what pafTes in it. — I am told nothing, and
«' I know only what I feelK" The pifture,
you fee. Sir, of a poor abje£t animali who
fcarcely perceives by rcfleftion, but only knows
what he feels by fcnfation.

Now nothing can be more unfit to reprefent
the original truly and as it is, than this fort of
colouring. So far is Mr. Roujfeau from defus-
ing not to know what is doing in the world, that
his own letters fliew him to have been conftaht-
ly fearching the public papers and magazines
for intelligence of himfelf ; or, to fpeak more
properly, for puflFs to feed his vanity. So far is
Mr. Roujfeau from wifhing to live unknown and
unregarded, that a greater caufe of mifery to
him, I am perfuaded, does not exift.

** Arriving at this folitary, convenient, and
" agreeable habitation," fays he, " I became
^^ tranquil, independent : and this feemed to
" be the wi(hed-for moment, when all my mif-

i»» Uifpttu, p. 60. "» Difpute, p. 39. 34.

X a " fortunes

^o8 S Y L V A> OR

" fortunes (hould have an end. On the con-
^' trary, it was now they began ; misfortunes
" more cruel than any I had yet expcri-
" enced'*^" I verily believe, becaufe I fo
cafily conceive, it. He was never perhaps in
a fituation before, where he was fo little liable
to be molefted ; where he was fo unnoticed, fo
altogether left to his own will and humour.
For the good people of England, after the firft
ftare was over, had (as their way is) entirely
done with him. Far from continuing to ad-
mire, they had ceafed to mention him ; and, if
they had not totally forgot, they cared no more
about him, than if he had been in SwifTerland.
His mifery increafed : your letter appeared ^*^:
it became extreme. He fell into a paroxyfm :
he raged: and, in fhort, as fometimes happen-
eth among wild beafts, he fell upon his keep^

3** Difpute, p. 40.

3*5 ^< In this letter," fays Mr. R^uffeau^ " I knew the
" pen oi Mr. t>^ Alcmbert as certainly, as if I had feen him
*' write it. In a moment a ray of light difcovered to me
** the fecret caufe of that touching and fudden' change,
* * which I had obferved in the public refpedling me ; and
«^ I faw that the plot, which was put in execution at Lon-
•' don, had been laid at Paris." Difpute, p. 58, 59*
Alas ! this ray of light, darting upon the brain, has occa-
fioned many an unhappy mortal, before Mr. Rouffeau, to
fee^ and hear, and fsel too, what never exiiled out of his
own difordered cranium.

The wood. 309

/r'*^. To fpeak without a figure, he quar-
relled with his greateft friend and benefaftor
Mr. Hume, by all accounts a very quiet pcr-
fori J and who in the prefent cafe feems only
faulty, in having condefcended to humour a
man, whom it is not poflible to oblige : ari^
nothing doubtlefs but the exceeding humanity
of Mr. Hume, and his prejudices for Mr. Rouf^
Jean, could hinder one of his penetration from
difcerning fomewhat earlier, than he feems to
have done, th^it Roujeauyvzs a favage, whom no
offices of kindnefs could civilize and tame.

The difpute between thefe gentlemen is now
before the public j which feems reafonably well
convinced, that Mr. Hume is the firft m^n,
who was ever obliged to defend himfelf in
form againft fuch a train of ridiculous and
groundlefs imputations. Mr. Roujfeau really
brings them in fuch a manner, as if he meant
to betray his own caufe, and to acquit Mr.
Humcy while he afFefts to accufe him. In his
letter of June 23, he fays, " I thank you for
<^ the good offices in matters of intereft, which
<« you have ufed as a mafic **7 "—for what ? truly
to do. him ill ones. He abounds with fuch paf-

3*<5 Je liens J. J. R.—Mr. Roujfeau affirms, that he " heard
'* Mr, Hume pronounce, with an extreme vehemence, the
** above words, / keep John James Roujfeauy feveral times
'* in his flcep," Difpute, pag. 76.

'*' Dispute, p. 30.

X 3 fagcs

310 S^ y L; V A, oik

fages as thcfe. in hH; letter of Jtily i6, after
having urged all he cbuld inveat ag«nfl: Mr^
Uume^ he fays, thit ^^ every circumftanqe of th^
*« affair is equally incomprehenflble. A con^
** duft fuch as yours is li^t in nature : it is i,
«' contradidion 5 and yet it is demonftrable to
** me'*^'* Thus the ^r^/35? j«/a imfoffibilei
which even the religionift is now grown
aihaiTicd of, is at length adopted by the philo-
sopher.

No maa however but Mr. Roujfeau will be
able to perdeive the Icaft conjradiftion. The
marks of friendftiip from Mt^ Hme to him
were, as the French editor obferves, the leaft
equivocal, les moins equivoques ^^: they did not
confift of verbiage and profeflions, but of true
and real fervices. A Cbrijtian*s fzHxh is gene-
rally allowed to be beft determined by his
works : and what better teft can be contrived
for the fineerity of a friend ? Indeed the Mc-
thodiftsin religioil are wotrt to reafpn other-
w;ife ; efteeming all, who. dontend for works, asi
loofe and fceptical ih the fait& : iand Mr.Rot^
JeaUj who is certainly a Mcthddiifc in phild-
fophy, fcems to have reafbncd thus o^. Mr.
Hume-y elfe he would never Jiavfe: oppofed a ie^^
Ties of fuppofitions, or ratbcr fufpkioB5,,cif:.his
own againft Mr. Hume^ tp % feries: ofrf fa€k3 io
that gentleman's favour, . v

»»» Difputc, p. 8«. '^^ Advertifement to Bifpot?, &«

But

T H E W O 0>" Di 5if

^ B*it jWr* RouJfeoH^ a$ I liare bc«i given td
uiiderftand) niuft not be confified altogether fid
philofophy . An advocate of his declared^ iti
my hearingi. that he was indeed a very good
Chriftian; at leaft a better than -Wr. Hamt^
who, it was feared, is only a philofopher. Con-
cerning thefe important points I can neither
afiirm, nor deny any thing. Mr. Roujfeau is
evidently an heap of inconfiftencies and c(»u
traditions, fo that he may, or he may not, be
a Chriftian i for, where there is nothing fyfte^
matical or regular in the condudfc of the un^
derftanding, there is no criterion or teft, by
which a judgment about principles can be
formed with any certainty. In the mean time
I tneddle with nfi man's faith. That affair lies
wholly between God and himfelf, and can be
no concern of mine. Yet> were we to judge of
Chriftianity, as exemplified in the condu6l of this
believer, I fliotjld make no fcruple to fay, with
AverroeSy Sit unima mea cum fMio/cpbis: for I
had rather be: fuch ti philpfophf^r as Mr. Hme^
than fuch a Chriftian as A^. Rouffeau.

The French cditbr feems afraid, Sir, left thl$
quarnel between phiiofophers ffaould bring a
Jcandal upon pbibfopby . Not much, I fhould
think, if any" at all: fcifts and profeffions of
every kind, religious bs well as civil, have
long been too wife to be refponfible for indivi-
duals. But whatever difgrace. it may bring

upon

312 S Y L V A, OR

upon the philofophers, he fuppofes, that the
dunces will reap from it no fniall comfort:
which, if the numbers of each be rightly efti-
mated, is fuppofipg it to produce more phyfi-
cal good than evil by far. Let us not envy
them thisf confolation : it feems indeed necef-
fary, that they fhoufd fometimes have it: for who
can fay, what might otherwife happen ? Genii
of a fuperior order might gain too great an
afcendency : they might in time pafs for more
than Genii : they might be reputed Gods, as
Paul and Barnabas were at Lyjira^ if they did
not difcover by things of this kind, that they
are men of like fajfions with the meaneft of their
Ipecies.

Other refledlions more folid may be made,
and leffons more ufeful drawn, from the dif-
pute between thefe celebrated perfonages. We
may learn from the character of Mr. Roujfeaji,
and from his very ftrange treatment of Mr.
Hume^ to what extravagancies the human mind
is capable of being carried, when the humour
atrabilaire has once thoroughly infefted it. A
perfon thus diftempered, or rather thx\^ pojfejfedy
-(for is he not a Demoniac ?) is able to con-
ceive any thing. The power of imagination
in fuch a one is creative beyond meafure. Ex-
iftence or non-exiflehce are precifely to him
the fame : for he makes no difference at all be-
tween fa6t§, on which alone depends the cer-
tainty

The wood. 313

tainty of all human information j I fay, be-
tween the plaineft and mod notorious fafts,
and fuppofitions the moft wild, the moft im-
probable, the moft vifionary. He overlooks
or contemns the former, as non-entities :- he
builds dcmonftrations upon the latter. In Ihort,
he cannot fee what adtually is, while he fees in-
tuitively what is not J and things do or do not
exift with him, as they happen to fuit with his
prejudices and paffions.

We learn from the fame objeft, that fuperior
abilities, and even fhining force of genius, are
confiftent with great mifery in him who pof-
feffes them, if his temperament be thoroughly
bad. Rigid philofophy, I know, will not al-
low this temperament to be within the reach
of even alteratives j but Chriftianity teaches,
that it may be greatly corredled and amended,
if not cured. And it is furprifmg that Mr^
Roujfeauj who is fo good a Chriftian, fhould not
have laboured this point more abundantly ; as
his whole happinefs feems to have depended
upon it.

From the ftrange and unexpeded fitqation
of Mr. Hume it appears, that an adlive benevo-
lence may fometimesexpofc a man to inconveni-
cncies and troubles ; as it almofl: always does to
ingratitude. I have often wondered, why men,*
as they grow old, fhould grow lefs benevo-
lent (for I take the fadt to be inconteftable) ;
5 but

3t4 S t L V A, oH

bot th!3 and firhilar inftanfiea hkvt hilf^td *fti
to account for it» And foJ-r^ anv I t6 fty- itj
but, alas! human nature, thy pride cariiiw
bear to be t6o much obliged '^^ It is dattger^
<ius, I have bfcen told> with regard td tM
Great; arid if there be not ^h ei^ual dahgef itt
obliging the fmallef getttry^ it is not (tomWaAt
of will, but Want 6f paWetj t6 hurt their bend-*
factors.

It appears again> that tfti utnibft* prudence
*nd kindnefe arc no fecuf ity againft the bafeft
End moft injurious ufage, when a man's ill ftars
ihall have conifiefted him with folly or kna-
t^eryj dr, which is conrimonly the cafe, with
thefe two fubftances united in one perfon*
People of this make fee every thing in a wrong
light. They mifinterpret from foIly> they mif-
reprefent from malice, every well-meant word
and deed. They treat their trueft friends as
their moft inveterate enemies; and load the
beft men with imputations, which can belong
to none but the worft. No wonder then, that
the Stoicaly not to fay the Chriftian, principle
of doing good fhould wax weak and cold with
increafing years: no wonder that fo many
fhould, like Epicurus, contraft their fphere of
aftion, and fufFer their happinefs to depend on

J JO ^idam, quo plus dehent, ma£is oderint. Leve ^s alit*
num dehitorem facit f grave inimicum. Senec. Epiil. 19.

7 none

The wood. 315

none but themfelves. Doubtlefa the great bu«
finefs of a wife man's Life is to keep himfelf^ as
much as may bej from being teazed by fool$«
and over-reached by knaves : and neither can
be done to any purpofe^ but by avoiding both
the one and the other. •' Live freely and un-
<« knownj" fays a philofopher« " Solitude will
*^ procure you the true and only pleafure of
*' being always fatisfied with yourfclf. Fools
" and knaves^ feen at a diilance^ will only
** move your compaffion 1 but will force you,
** when near, to either hate or defpifc them "*•**

'^' f^ivex iiinPientt^ igHOfi. La fiUtude njous procurtra
It *wai V unique plaifir d^etre toujour s content de fit. Lesfits
tS les mecbans n* exciteront que votre comfajjion vis de lota |
mah v6s de prh ilfaudrait les hair ou les meprifir*

T A N T U M.

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