cafional kindness; but to love all equally is impoffible; at least impoffible without the extinction of those paffions which now produce all our pains and all our pleasures; without the disuse, if not the abolition, of fome of our faculties, and the fuppreffion of all our hopes and fears in apathy and indifference. The neceffities of our condition require a thousand offices of tenderness, which mere regard for the species will never dictate. Every man has frequent grievances which only the folicitude of friendship will discover and remedy, and which would remain for ever unheeded in the mighty heap of human calamity, were it only furveyed by the eye of general benevolence equally attentive to every misery. The great community of mankind is, therefore, neceffarily broken into smaller independent societies; these form diftinct interefts, which are too frequently opposed to each other, and which they who have entered into the league of particular governments falfely think it virtue to promote, however deftructive to the happiness of the rest of the world. Such unions are again feparated into fubordinate claffes and combinations, and focial life is perpetually branched out into minuter fubdivifions, till it terminates in the last ramifications of private friendship. That friendship may at once be fond and lasting, it has been already obferved in thefe papers, that a conformity of inclinations is neceffary. No man can have much kindnefs for him by whom he does not believe himself efteemed, and nothing fo evidently. proves esteem as imitation. That benevolence is always ftrongest which arifes from participation of the fame pleasures, fince we are naturally moft willing to revive in our minds the memory of perfons, with whom the idea of enjoyment is connected. It is commonly, therefore, to little purpose, that any one endeavours to ingratiate himself with fuch as he cannot accompany in their amufements and diverfions. Men have been known to rife to favour and to fortune, only by being fkilful in the fports with which their patron happened to be delighted, by concurring with his tafte for fome particular fpecies of curiofities, by relishing the fame wine, or applauding the fame cookery. Even thofe whom wifdom or virtue have placed above regard to fuch petty recommendations, must nevertheless be gained by fimilitude of manners. The highest and nobleft enjoyment of familiar life, the communication of knowledge and reciprocation of fentiments, must always prefuppofe a difpofition to the fame inquiry, and delight in the fame discoveries. With what fatisfaction could the politician lay his schemes for the reformation of laws, or his comparifons of different forms of government, before the chemift, who has never accuftomed his thoughts to any other object than falt and fulphur; or how could the astronomer, in explaining his calculations and conjectures, endure the coldness of a grammarian, who would lofe fight of Jupiter and all his fatellites, for a happy etymology of an obfcure word, or a better explication of a controverted line. Every man loves merit of the fame kind with his own, when it is not likely to hinder his advancement or his reputation; for he not only beft understands the worth of those qualities which he labours to cultivate, or the usefulness of the art which he practifes with fuccefs, but always feels a reflected pleasure from the praises, which, though given to another, belong equally to himself. There is indeed no need of research and refinement to discover that men muft generally felect their companions from their own ftate of life, fince there are not many minds furnished for great variety of converfation, or adapted to multiplicity of intellectual entertainments. The failor, the academick, the lawyer, the mechanick, and the courtier, have all a caft of talk peculiar to their own fraternity, have fixed their attention upon the fame events, have been engaged in affairs of the fame fort, and made ufe of allufions and illustrations which themselves only can understand. To be infected with the jargon of a particular profeffion, and to know only the language of a fingle rank of mortals, is indeed fufficiently defpicable. But as limits must be always fet to the excurfions of the human mind, there will be some study which every man more zealously profecutes, fome darling fubject on which he is principally pleased to converfe; and he that can most inform or best understand him, will certainly be welcomed with particular regard. Such partiality is not wholly to be avoided, nor is it culpable, unless fuffered fo far to predominate as to produce averfion from every other kind of excellence, and to fhade the luftre of diffimilar virtues. Those therefore, whom the lot of life has conjoined, fhould fhould endeavour constantly to approach towards the inclination of each other, invigorate every motion of concurrent defire, and fan every fpark of kindred curiofity. It has been justly obferved, that discord generally operates in little things; it is inflamed to its utmost vehemence by contrariety of tafte, oftner than of principles; and might therefore commonly be avoided by innocent conformity, which, if it was not at first the motive, ought always to be the confequence of indiffoluble union. NUMB. 100. SATURDAY, March 2, 1751. Omne vafer vitium ridenti Flaccus amico PERSIUS. Horace, with fly infinuating grace, Laugh'd at his friend, and look'd him in the face; And tickle while he gently prob'd the wound. But made the defperate paffes, when he fmil'd. DRYDEN. SIR, To the RAMBLER. AS very many well-difpofed perfons, by the una voidable neceffity of their affairs, are so unfortunate as to be totally buried in the country, where they labour under the most deplorable ignorance of what is transacting among the polite part of man N4 kind, kind, I cannot help thinking, that, as a publick. writer, you should take the case of these truly compaffionable objects under your confideration. These unhappy languishers in obfcurity should be furnished with fuch accounts of the employments of people of the world, as may engage them in their feveral remote corners to a laudable imitation; or, at least, so far inform and prepare them, that if by any joyful change of fituation they should be fuddenly transported into the gay scene, they may not gape, and wonder, and ftare, and be utterly at a lofs how to behave and make a proper appearance in it. It is inconceivable how much the welfare of all the country towns in the kingdom might be promoted, if you would use your charitable endeavours to raise in them a noble emulation of the manners and cuftoms of higher life. For this purpose you should give a very clear and ample description of the whole set of polite acquirements; a complete hiftory of forms, fashions, frolicks, of routs, drums, hurricanes, balls, affemblies, ridottos, masquerades, auctions, plays, operas, pup. pet-fhows, and bear-gardens; of all thofe delights which profitably engage the attention of the most sublime characters, and by which they have brought to fuch amazing perfection the whole art and mystery of paffing day after day, week after week, and year after year, without the heavy affiftance of any one thing that formal creatures are pleased to call useful and neceffary. In giving due inftructions through what steps to attain this fummit of human excellence, you may add |