→When I meet a man of pleasure, facrificing every daudable improvement of the mind, or of his fortune, to mere corporeal fenfations; Miftaken man,fays I, you are providing pain for yourself, inStead of pleasure: you give too much for your whif

tle.

If 1 fee one fond of fine clothes, fine furniture, fine equipages, all above his fortune, for which he contracts debts, and ends his carcer in prifon; Alas, fays, I, he has paid dear, very dear for his whistle.

When I fee a beautiful, fweet-tempered girl, married to an ill-natured brute of a husband What a pity it is, fays I, that she has paid fo much for a whistle!

In fhort, I conceived that great part of the miferies of mankind were brought upon them by the falfe eftimates they had made of the value of things and by their giving too much for their whistles.

*****

A PETITION.

TO THOSE WHO HAVE THE SUPERINTEND. ENCY OF EDUCATION.

ADDRESS myself to all the friends of youth, and conjure them to direct their compaffionate regards to my unhappy 'fate, in order to remove the prejudices of which I am the victim. There are twin fifters of us: and the two eyes of man do not more refemble, nor are capable of being upon VOL. II.

B

better terms with each other, than my fifter and myfelf, were it not for the partiality of our parents, who make the most injurious diftinctions between us. From my infancy I have been led to confider my fifter as a being of more elevated rank. I was fuffered to grow up without the leaft inftruction, while nothing was fpared in her education. She had matters to teach her writing, drawing, mufic and other accomplishments; but if by chance touched a pencil, a pen or a needle, I was biterly rebuked and more than once have I been beaten for being aukward, and wanting a graceful man ner. It is true, my fifter affociated me with her upon fome occafions; but the always made a poin of taking the lead, calling upon me only from ne ceffity, or to figure by her fide.

But conceive not, Sirs, that my complaints an inftigated merely by vanity-No; my uneafine is occafioned by an object much more ferious. is the practice in our family, that the whole buf nefs of providing for its fubfiftence falls upon n fifter and myfelf. If any indifpofition fhould at tack my fifter--and I mention it in confidence upon this occafion, that he is fubject to the gout the rheumatism and cramp, without making men tion of other accidents-what would be the fare d cur poor family? Muft not the regret of our pa rents be exceflive, at having placed fo great a di ference between fifters who are fo perfectly equal Alas! we muft perish from diflrefs: for it woul not be in my power even to fcrawl a fuppliant fe tition for rel ef, having been obliged to emplo the hand of another in tranfcribing the reque which I have now the honour to prefer to you.

Condefcend, Sis, to make my parents fenfib

of the injuftice of an exclufive tendernefs, and of the neceffity of distributing their care and affection among all their children equally.

I am, with a profound respect,

SIRS,

Your obedient fervant,

THE LEFT HAND.ES

******

THE

HANDSOME AND DEFORMED LEG.

HERE are two forts of people in the world, who, with equal degrees of

TH

health and wealth and the other comforts of life, becomes the one happy, and the other miferable. This arifes very much from the different views in which thy confider things, perfons, and events; and the effect of thofe different views upon their own minds.

In whatever fituation men can be placed, they may find conveniences and inconveniences: in whatever company, they may find perfons and converfation more or lefs pleafing: at whatever table, they may meet with mea's and drinks of better and worfe tafte, difhes better and worfe dreffed: in whatever climate, they will find good and bad weather: under whatever government, they may find good and bad laws, and good and bad adminiftration of thofe laws in whatever poem, or work of genius, they may fee faults ar d beauties: in almost every face and every perfon, they may difcover fine features and defects, good and bad qualities,

Under thefe circumstances, the two forts of eple above mentioned,' fix their attention, those who are difpofed to be happy, on the conveniences of things the pleafant part of converfation, the well dreffed diflies, the goodness of the wines, the fine weather, &c. and enjoy all with cheerfulness. Thofe who are to be unhappy, think and fpeak only of the contraries. Hence they are continually difcontented themselves, and by their remarks, four the pleafures of fociety; offend perfonally many people, and make themfelves every where difagreeable. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, fuch unhappy perfons would be the more to be pitied. But as the difpofition to criticife, and to be difgufted, is, perhaps, taken up originally by imitation, and is, unawares, grown into a habit, which, though at prefent ftrong, may nevertheless be cured, when thofe who have it are convinced of its bad effects on their felicity; hope this little admonition may be of service to them, and put them on changing a habit, which, though in the exercife it is chiefly an act of ima gination, yet has ferious confequences in life, as it brings on real griefs and misfortunes. For as many are offended by, and nobody loves, this fort of people; no one fhews them more than the moft common civility and refpect, and fcarcely that; and this frequently puts them out of humour, and draws them into difputes and contentions. If they aim at obtaining fome advantage in rank or fortune nobody wishes them fuccefs, or will flir a ftep, or fpeak a word to favour their pretenfions. If they incur public cenfure or difgrace, no one will defend or excufe, and many join to aggravate their misconduct, and render them completely o

I

dious. If these people will not change this bad habit, and condescend to be pleased with what is pleafing, without fretting themfelves and others about the contraries, it is good for others to avoid an acquaintance with them; which is always difagreeable, and fometimes very inconvenient, efpecially when one finds one's felf entangled in their quarrels.

An old philofophical friend of mine was grown, from experience, very cautious in this particular, and carefully avoided any intimacy with fuch people. He had, like other philofophers, a thermometer to fhew him the heat of the weather; and a barometer, to mark when it was likely to prove good or bad; but there being no inftrument invented to cover, at firft fight, this unpleafing difpofition in a perfon, he, for that purpose, made ufe of his legs; one of which was remarkably hand fome, the other, by fome accident, crooked and def rmed. If a ftranger, at the first interview, regarded his ugly leg more than his handfome one, he doubted him. If he fpoke of it, and took no notice of the handfome leg, that was fufficient to determine my philofopher to have no further acquaintance with him. Every body has not this two-legged inftrument; but every one, with a little attention, may obferve figns of that carping, fault-finding difpofition, and take the fame refolution of avoiding the acquaintance of thofe infected with it. I therefore advife thofe critical, querulous, difcontented, unhappy people, that if they with to be refpected and beloved by othe s, and happy in themfelves, they fhould leave off looking at the ugly leg.