vifions by night, and his delight is to follow them all the day long.

He formeth great defigns, he rejoiceth in the execution thereof, and his name goeth forth to the ends of the world.

But the heart of the envious man is gall and bitterness; his tongue fpitteth venom; the fuccefs of his neighbour breaketh his

reit.

He fitteth in his cell repining, and the good that happeneth to another, is to him an evil.

Hatred and malice feed upon his heart, and there is no reft in him.

He feeleth in his own breaft no love to goodnefs, and therefore believeth his neighbour is like unto himself.

He endeavours to depreciate thofe that. excel him, and putteth an evil interpretation on all their doings.

He lieth on the watch, and meditates mifchief: but the deteftation of man purfueth him, he is crushed as a spider in his own web.

5. PRUDENCE.

Hear the words of Prudence, give heed unto her counfels, and store them in thine heart: her maxims are univerfal, and all the virtues lean upon her: fhe is the guide and miftrefs of human life.

Put a bridle on thy tongue; fet a guard before thy lips, left the words of thine own mouth destroy thy peace.

Let him that fcoffeth at the lame, take care that he halt not himself: whofoever fpeaketh of another's failings with pleafare, fhall hear of his own with bitterness of heart.

Of much speaking cometh repentance, but in filence is safety.

A talkative man is a nuifance to fociety; the ear is fick of his babbling, the torrent of his words overwhelmeth converfation.

Boaft not of thyfelf, for it fhall bring contempt upon thee; neither deride another, for it is dangerous.

A bitter jeft is the poifon of friendship; and he that cannot reftrain his tongue, shall have trouble.

Furnish thyfelf with the proper accommodations belonging to thy condition; yet fpend not to the utmost of what thou canst afford, that the providence of thy youth may be a comfort to thy old age.

Let thine own bufinefs engage thy attention; leave the care of the ftate to the governors thereof.

leit the pain of purchafing them exceed the pleasure thou haft in their enjoyment.

Neither let profperity put out the eyes of circumfpection, nor abundance cut off the hands of frugality; he that too much indulgeth in the fuperfluities of life, fhall live to lament the want of its neceffaries.

From the experience of others, do thou learn wisdom; and from their failings correct thine own faults.

Truft no man before thou haft tried him; yet miftruft not without reason, it is uncharitable.

But when thou haft proved a man to be honeft, lock him up in thine heart as a treasure! regard him as a jewel of inestimable price.

Refufe the favours of a mercenary man; they will be a fnare unto thee; thou fhalt never be quit of the obligation.

Ufe not to-day what to-morrow may want; neither leave that to hazard which forefight may provide for, or care prevent.

Yet expect not even from Prudence infallible fuccefs; for the day knoweth not what the night may bring forth.

The fool is not always unfortunate, nor the wife man always fuccefsful: yet never had a fool a thorough enjoyment; never was a wife man wholly unhappy.

6. FORTITUDE.

Perils, and misfortunes, and want, and pain, and injury, are more or lefs the certain lot of every man that cometh into the world.

It behoveth thee, therefore, O child of calamity! early to fortify thy mind with courage and patience, that thou mayeft fupport, with a becoming refolution, thy allotted portion of human evil.

As the camel beareth labour, and heat, and hunger, and thirst, through defarts of fand, and fainteth not; fo the fortitude of man fhall fuftain him through all perils.

A noble spirit difdaineth the malice of fortune; his greatnefs of foul is not to be caft down.

He hath not fuffered his happiness to depend on her fimiles, and therefore with her frowns he shall not be difmayed.

As a rock on the fea-fhore he ftandeth firm, and the dashing of the waves disturbeth him not.

He

He meeteth the evils of life as a man that goeth forth into battle, and returneth with victory in his hand.

Under the preffure of misfortunes, his calmness alleviates their weight, and his conftancy fhall furmount them.

But the daftardly fpirit of a timorous man betrayeth him to fhame.

By fhrinking under poverty, he floopeth down to meannefs; and by tamely bearing infults, he inviteth injuries.

As a reed is thaken with a breath of air, fo the fhadow of evil maketh him tremble. In the hour of danger he is embarraffed and confounded; in the day of misfortune he finketh, and defpair overwhelmeth his foul.

7. CONTENTMENT.

Forget not, O man! that thy ftation on earth is appointed by the wifdom of the Eternal, who knoweth thy heart, who feeth the vanity of all thy wishes, and who often, in mercy, denieth thy requests.

Yet for all reafonable defires, for all honeft endeavours, his benevolence hath eftablished, in the nature of things, a probability of fuccefs.

The uneafinefs thou feeleft, the misfortunes thou bewaileft, behold the root from whence they fpring! even thine own folly, thine own pride, thine own distempered fancy.

Murmur not therefore at the difpenfations of God, but correct thine own heart: neither fay within thyfelf, If I had wealth or power, or leifure, I should be happy; for know, they all bring to their feveral poffeffors their peculiar inconveniences.

The poor man feeth not the vexations and anxieties of the rich, he feeleth not the difficulties and perplexities of power, neither knoweth he the wearifomeness of leifure; and therefore it is that he repineth at his own lot.

But envy not the appearance of happinefs in any man, for thou knoweft not his fecret griefs.

To be fatisfied with a little is the greatest wisdom; and he that increaseth his riches, increaseth his cares: but a contented mind is a hidden treasure, and trouble findeth it

not.

Yet if thou fuffereft not the allurements of fortune to rob thee of juftice or temperance, or charity, or modefty, even riches themfelves fhall not make thee unhappy.

But hence fhalt thou learn, that the cup

of felicity, pure and unmixed, is by no means a draught for mortal man.

Virtue is the race which God hath fet him to run, and happiness the goal, which none can arrive at till he hath finished his courfe, and received his crown in the manfions of eternity.

8. TEMPERANCE.

The nearest approach thou canft make to happiness on this fide the grave, is to enjoy from heaven understanding and health.

Thefe bleffings if thou poffeffeft, and wouldfl preferve to old age, avoid the allurements of voluptuoufnefs, and fly from her temptations.

When the fpreadeth her delicacies on the board, when her wine fparkleth in the cup, when the imileth upon thee, and perfuadeth thee to be joyful and happy; then is the hour of danger, then let Reason stand firmly on her guard.

For if thou hearkenest unto the words of her adverfary, thou art deceived and betrayed.

The joy which the promifeth, changeth to madnefs, and her enjoyments lead on to difeafes and death.

Look round her board; caft thine eyes upon her guests, and obferve thofe who have been allured by her fmiles, who have liftened to her temptations.

Are they not meagre? are they not fickly? are they not fpiritlefs?

Their fhort hours of jollity and riot are followed by tedious days of pain and dejection. She hath debauched and palled their appetites, that they have no relish for their nicest dainties: her votaries are become her victims; the juft and natural confequence which God hath ordained, in the conftitution of things, for the punishment of thofe who abufe his gifts.

But who is fhe that with graceful fteps, and with a lively air,trips over yonder plain?

The rose blufheth on her cheeks, the fweetness of the morning breatheth from her lips; joy, tempered with innocence and modefty, fparkleth in her eyes, and from the chearfulness of her heart the fingeth as fhe walks.

Her name is Health; fhe is the daughter of Exercife and Temperance; their fons inhabit the mountains of the northern regions.

They are brave, active, and lively, and partake of all the beauties and virtues of their fifter.

Vigour ftringeth their nerves, ftrength dwelleth in their bones, and labour is their delight all the day long.

The employments of their father excite their appetites, and the repafts of their mother refresh them.

To combat the paffions is their delight; to conquer evil habits their glory. Their pleasures are moderate, and therefore they endure; their repofe is fhort, but found and undisturbed.

Their blood is pure, their minds are ferene, and the phyfician findeth not the way to their habitations.

But fafety dwelleth not with the fons of men, neither is fecurity found within their gates.

Behold them expofed to new dangers. from without, while a traitor within lurketh to betray them.

Their health, their ftrength, their beauty and activity, have raifed defire in the bofom of lafcivious love.

She ftandeth in her bower, fhe courteth their regard, the fpreadeth her tempta

tions.

Her limbs are foft and delicate; her attire is. loofe and inviting. Wantonnefs fpeaketh in her eyes, and on her bofom fits temptation. She beckoneth them with her finger, the wooeth them with her looks, and by the smoothness of her tongue, the endeavoureth to deceive.

Ah! fly from her allurements, ftop thy ears to her enchanting words. If thou meeteft the languishing of her eyes; if thou heareft the foftness of her voice; if she cafeth her arms about thee, fhe bindeth thee in chains for ever.

Shame followeth, and disease, and want, and care, and repentance.

Enfeebled by dalliance, with luxury pampered, and foftened by floth, ftrength 4all foríake thy limbs, and health thy conflitution: thy days fhall be few, and thofe inglorious; thy griefs fhall be many, yet meet with no compaffion.

The PASSIONS.

1. HOPE and FEAR. The promifes of hope are fweeter than roles in the bud, and far more flattering to expectation; but the threatenings of fear are a terror to the heart.

Nevertheless, let not hope allure, nor fear deter thee from doing that which is

right; fo fhalt thou be prepared to meet all events with an equal mind.

The terrors even of death are no terrors to the good; he that committeth no evil hath nothing to fear.

In all thy undertakings, let a reafonable affurance animate thy endeavours; if thou defpaireft of fuccefs, thou fhalt not fucceed.

Terrify not thy foul with vain fears, neither let thy heart fink within thee from the phantoms of imagination.

From fear proceedeth misfortune; but he that hopeth, helpeth himself.

As the oftrich when purfued, hideth his head, but forgetteth his body; fo the fears of a coward expofe him to danger.

If thou believeft a thing impoffible, thy defpondency fhall make it fo; but he that perfevereth, fhall overcome all difficulties.

A vain hope flattereth the heart of a fool; but he that is wife purfueth it not.

In all thy defires let reafon go along with thee, and fix not thy hopes beyond the bounds of probability; fo fhall fuccefs attend thy undertakings, thy heart fhall not be vexed with difappointment.

2. Joy and GRIEF.

Let not thy mirth be fo extravagant as to intoxicate thy mind, nor thy forrow fo heavy as to deprefs thy heart. This world affordeth no good fo tranfporting, nor inflicteth any evil fo fevere, as fhould raise thee far above, or fink thee much beneath, the balance of moderation.

Lo! yonder ftandeth the houfe of Joy. It is painted on the outfide, and looketh gay; thou mayeft know it from the continual noife of mirth and exultation that iffueth from it.

The miftrefs ftandeth at the door, and calleth aloud to all that pafs by; fhe fingeth and fhouteth, and laugheth without ceafing.

She inviteth them to go in and taste the pleasures of life, which the telleth them are no where to be found but beneath her roof.

But enter not thou into her gate; neither affociate thyself with those who frequent her houfe.

They call themfelves the fons of Joy; they laugh and feem delighted: but madnefs and folly are in all their doings.

They are linked with mischief hand in hand, and their fteps lead down to evil. Dangers befet them round about, and the

pit of deftruction yawneth beneath their feet.

Look now on the other fide, and behold, in that vale, overshadowed with trees, and hid from the fight of men, the habitation of Sorrow.

Her bofom heaveth with fighs, her mouth is filled with lamentation; the delighteth to dwell on the fubject of human mifery.

She looketh on the common accidents of life and weepeth; the weakness and wickedness of man is the theme of her lips.

All nature to her teemeth with evil, every object fhe feeth is tinged with the gloom of her own mind, and the voice of complaint faddeneth her dwelling day and night.

Come not near her cell; her breath is contagious; fhe will blaft the fruits, and wither the flowers, that adorn and fweeten the garden of life.

In avoiding the house of Joy, let not thy feet betray thee to the borders of this difmal manfion; but purfue with care the middle path, which fhall lead thee by a gentle afcent to the bower of Tranquillity.

With her dwelleth Peace, with her dwelleth Safety and Contentment. She is chearful but not gay; fhe is ferious, but not grave; fhe vieweth the joys and the forrows of life with an equal and steady eye.

From hence, as from an eminence, fhalt thou behold the folly and the misery of thofe, who led by the gaiety of their hearts, take up their abode with the companions of Jollity and riotous Mirth; or infected with Gloominefs and Melancholy, fpend all their days in complaining of the woes and calamities of human life.

Thou shalt view them both with pity, and the error of their ways fhall keep thy feet from ftraying.

3. ANGER.

As the whirlwind in its fury teareth up trees, and deformeth the face of nature, or as an earthquake in its convulfions overturneth whole cities; fo the rage of an angry man throweth mischief around him. Danger and deftruction wait on his

hand.

But confider, and forget not thine own weakness; fo fhalt thou pardon the failings of others.

Indulge not thyfelf in the paffion of anger; it is whetting a fword to wound thine own breaft, or murder thy friend.

If thou bearest flight provocations with

patience, it fhall be imputed unto thee for wisdom; and if thou wipest them from thy remembrance, thy heart shall not reproach thee.

Seeft thou not that the angry man lofeth his understanding? Whilft thou art yet in thy fenfes, let the wrath of another be a leffon to thyself.

Do nothing in a paflion. Why wilt thou put to fea in the violence of a florm?

If it be difficult to rule thine anger, it is wife to prevent it: avoid therefore all occafions of falling into wrath; or guard thyfelf against them whenever they occur.

A fool is provoked with infolent speeches, but a wife man laugheth them to fcorn. Harbour not revenge in thy breast, it will torment thy heart, and discolour its beft inclinations.

Be always more ready to forgive, than to return an injury: he that watches for an opportunity of revenge, lieth in wait against himself, and draweth down mischief

on his own head.

A mild answer to an angry man, like water caft upon the fire, abateth his heat; and from an enemy he shall become thy friend.

Confider how few things are worthy of anger, and thou wilt wonder that any but fools should be wrath.

In folly or weaknefs it always beginneth; but remember, and be well affured, it feldom concludeth without repentance.

On the heels of folly treadeth fhame; at the back of anger standeth remorse.

4. PITY.

As bloffoms and flowers are strewed upon earth by the hand of fpring, as the kindnefs of fummer produceth in perfection the bounties of harveft; fo the fmiles of pity fhed bleffings on the children of misfortune.

He who pitieth another, recommendeth himself; but he who is without compaffion, deferveth it not.

The butcher relenteth not at the bleating of the lamb; neither is the heart of the cruel moved with distress.

But the tears of the compaffionate are fweeter than dew drops falling from rofes on the bofom of the fpring.

Shut not thine ear therefore against the cries of the poor; neither harden thine heart against the calamities of the innocent.

When the fatherlefs call upon thee, when the widow's heart is funk, and fhe imploreth thy affistance with tears of forrow; O

pity her affliction, and extend thy hand to those who have none to help them.

When thou feeft the naked wanderer of the street, fhivering with cold, and deftitute of habitation; let bounty open thine heart, let the wings of charity fhelter him from death, that thine own foul may live.

Whilft the poor man groaneth on the bed of fickness, whilft the unfortunate languish in the horrors of a dungeon, or the Foary head of age lifts up a feeble eye to thee for pity; O how canft thou riot in fuperfluous enjoyments, regardless of their wants, unfeeling of their woes!

5. DESIRE and Lovв.

Beware, young man, beware of the alhurements of wantonnefs, and let not the harlot tempt thee to excefs in her delights.

The madness of defire fhall defeat its own purfuits; from the blindness of its rage thou shalt ruth upon destruction.

Therefore give not up thy heart to her fweet enticements, neither fuffer thy foul to be enflaved by her enchanting delufions.

The fountain of health, which muft fupply the stream of pleafure, fhall quickly be dried up, and every spring of joy shall be

exhaufted.

In the prime of thy life old age fhall overtake thee; thy fun fhall decline in the morning of thy days.

But when virtue and modefty enlighten her charms, the luftre of a beautiful woman is brighter than the ftars of heaven, and the influence of her power it is in vain to refift.

The whiteness of her bofom tranfcendeth the lily; her fmile is more delicious than a garden of rofes.

The innocence of her eye is like that of the turtle; fimplicity and truth dwell in her heart.

The kiffes of her mouth are fweeter than honey; the perfumes of Arabia breathe from her lips.

Shut not thy bofom to the tenderness of love; the purity of its flame fhall enoble thy heart, and foften it to receive the faireft impreffions.

WOMAN.

Give ear, fair daughter of love, to the inftructions of prudence, and let the precepts of truth fink deep in thy heart, fo

fhall the charms of thy mind add luftre to the elegance of thy form; and thy beauty, like the rofe it refembleth, fhall retain its sweetness when its bloom is withered.

In the fpring of thy youth, in the morning of thy days, when the eyes of men gaze on thee with delight, and nature whispereth in thine ear the meaning of their looks: ah! hear with caution their feducing words; guard well thy heart, nor listen to their foft perfuafions.

Remember that thou art made man's reasonable companion, not the flave of his paffion; the end of thy being is not merely to gratify his loofe defire, but to affift him in the toils of life, to footh him with thy tenderness, and recompence his care with foft endearments.

Who is fhe that winneth the heart of man, that fubdueth him to love, and reigneth in his breaft?

Lo! yonder the walketh in maiden fweetnefs, with innocence in her mind, and modesty on her cheek.

Her hand feeketh employment, her foot delighteth not in gadding abroad.

She is cloathed with neatnefs, fhe is fed with temperance; humility and meekness are as a crown of glory circling her head.

On her tongue dwelleth mufic, the sweetnefs of honey floweth from her lips.

Decency is in all her words, in her anfwers are mildness and truth.

Submiffion and obedience are the leffons of her life, and peace and happiness are her reward.

Before her fteps walketh prudence, and virtue attendeth at her right hand.

Her eye fpeaketh foftnefs and love; but difcretion with a fcepter fitteth on her brow.

The tongue of the licentious is dumb in her prefence, the awe of her virtue keepeth him filent.

When fcandal is bufy, and the fame of her neighbour is toffed from tongue to tongue: if charity and good nature open not her mouth, the finger of filence refteth on her lip.

Her breaft is the manfion of goodness, and therefore the fufpecteth no evil in others.

Happy were the man that fhould make her his wife: happy the child that shall call her mother.

She prefideth in the houfe, and there is peace; the commandeth with judgment, and is obeyed.

She arifeth in the morning, fhe confiders N her