thofe who are to encounter the most terrible dangers, offences of this nature meet with great indulgence. But there is a courage better founded than this animal fury. The fecret affurance, that all is right within; that if he falls in battle, he will the more speedily be crowned with true glory, will add strength to a warrior's arm, and intrepidity to his heart. One of the most fuccessful stratagems whereby Mahomet became formidable, was the affurance that impostor gave his votaries, that whoever was flain in battle, should be immediately conveyed to that luxurious paradife his wanton fancy had invented. The ancient Druids taught a doctrine which had the fame effect, though with this difference from Mahomet's, that the fouls of the flain fhould tranfmigrate into other bodies, and in them be rewarded according to the degrees of their merit. This is told by Lucan with his usual fpirit.. You teach, that fouls, from fleshly chains-unbound, Once more to mix with animated clay. Hence death's a gape, if men but trust the lore, A bleft mistake! which Fate's dread power difarms, Our gallant countryman, Sir Philip Sidney, was a noble example of courage and devotion. I am particu. larly pleased to find, that he hath translated the whole book of pfalms into English verfe. A friend of mine in forms me that he hath the manufcript by him, which is faid in the title to have been done by the most noble and virtuous Gent. Sir PHILIP SIDNEY, Knight. They having never been printed, 1 fhall prefent the public with one of them, which my correfpondent affures me he hath faithfully tranfcribed, and wherein I have taken the liberty only to alter one word. PSALM CXXXVII. I. NIGH feated where the river flows, II. Now while our harps were hanged fo, And more to grieve us thus did fay; Oh no! we have no voice nor hand III. Though far I be, fweet Sion hill, If thy neglect within me fpring, IV. But thou, O Lod, fhalt not forget Thy holy city to deface, Did thus the bloody victors whet, What time they enter'd first the place; Down, down with it at any hand, • Make all a waste, let nothing ftand; V. And, Babylon, that didst us waste, And happy he who what thou haft **********.♬ No 19. 7-*********} Thursday, April 2. Ne te femper inops agitet vexetque cupido ; Left avarice, fill poor, disturb thine ease; Creech. IT was prettily obferved by fomebody concerning the Igreat vices, that there are three which give pleasure, as covetoufnefs, gluttony, and luft;. one, which taftes of nothing but pain, as envy; the reft have a mixture of pleasure and pain, as anger and pride. But when a man confiders the state of his own mind, about which every member of the Chriftian world is fuppofed at this time to be employed, he will find, that the best defence against vice, is preferving the worthieft part of his own fpirit pure from any great offence against it. There is a magnanimity which makes us look upon ourselves with difdain, after we have been betrayed by fudden defire, opportunity of gain, the absence of a perfon who excels us, the fault of a fervant, or the ill fortune of an adverfary, into the gratification of luft, covetoufnefs, envy, rage, or pride; when the more fublime part of our fouls is kept alive, and we have not repeated infirmities till they are become vicious habits. The vice of covetoufnefs is what enters deepest into the foul of any other; and you may have feen men, other wife the most agreeable creatures in the world, so seized with the defire of being richer, that they fhall startle at indifferent things, and live in a continual guard and watch No over themselves from a remote fear of expence. pious man can be so circumfpect in the care of his conscience, as the covetous man is in that of his pocket. If a man would preferve his own spirit, and his natural approbation of higher and more worthy purfaits, he could never fall into this littleness, but his mind would be still open to honour and virtue, in fpite of infirmities and relapses. But what extremely difcourages me in my precautions as a GUARDIAN, is, that there is an univerfal defection from the admiration of virtue. Riches and outward fplendor have taken up the place of it; and no man thinks he is mean, if he is not poor. But, alas! this defpicable fpirit debafes our very being, and makes our paffions take a new turn from their natural bent. It was a caufe of great forrow and melancholy to me fome nights ago at a play, to fee a croud in the habits of the gentry of England, ftupid to the nobleft sentiments we have. The circumftance happened in the fcene of diftrefs betwixt Piercy and Anna Bullen. One of the centinels who stood on the ftage, to prevent the diforders which the most unmannerly race of young men that ever were seen in any age frequently raise in public affemblies, upon Piercy's befeeching to be heard, burst into tears upon which the greatest part of the audience fell into a loud and ignorant laughter; which others, who were touched with the liberal compaffion in the poor fellow, could hardly fupprefs by their clapping. But the man, without the leaft confufion or fhame in his countenance for what had happened, wiped away the tears, and was still intent upon the play. The diftrefs Itill rifing, the foldier was fo much moved, that he was obliged to turn his face from the audience, to their no finall merriment. Piercy had the gallantry to take notice of his honeft heart, and, as I am told, gave him a crown to help him in his affliction. It is certain, this poor fellow, in his humble condition, had fuch a lively compaffion as a foul unwedded to the world. Were it otherwife, gay lights and dreffes, with appearances of people of fashion and wealth, to which his fortune could not be familiar, would have taken up all his attention and admiration. It is every thing that is praise worthy, as well as pure religion, (according to a book too facred for me to quote) to vifit the fatherlefs and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unfpotted from the world. Every step that a man makes beyond moderate and reasonable provifion, is taking fo much from the worthiness of his own fpirit: and he that is entirely set upon making a fortune, is all that while undoing the man. He mult grow deaf to the wretched, eftrange himself from the agreeable, learn hardness of heart, difrelish every thing that is noble, and terminate all in his defpicable felf. Indulgence in any one immoderate defire or appetite, ingroffes the whole creature, and his life is facrificed to that one defire or appetite. But how much otherwise is it with those that preferve alive in them fomething that adorns their condition, and fhews the man, whether a prince or a beggar, above his fortune? I have just now recorded a foot-foldier for the politeft man in a British audience, from the force of nature, untainted with the fingularity of an ill-applied education. A good fpirit, that is not abused, can add new glories to the highest ftate in the world, as well give beauties to the meaneft. I fhall exemplify this, by inferting a prayer of Harry IV. of France, juft before a battle in which he obtained an entire victory. O Lord of hofts, who canft fee through the thick. ⚫ eft vail and clofest disguise; who viewest the bottom ⚫ of my heart, and the deepest defigns of my enemies; who haft in thy hands, as well as before thine eyes, ⚫ all the events which concern human life: if thou knowest that my reign will promote thy glory, and the fafety of thy people; if thou knoweft that I have no other ambition in my foul, but to advance the honour of thy holy Name, and the good of this (tate; 'favour, O great God, the juftice of my arms, and ⚫ reduce all the rebels to acknowledge him whom thy • facred decrees, and the order of a lawful fucceffion, ⚫ have made their fovereign. But if thy good providence has ordered it otherwife, and thou feeft that I ⚫ should prove one of thofe kings whom thou giveft in ⚫ thine anger; take from nie, O merciful God, my life ⚫ and my crown; make me this day a facrifice to thy |