pleafure and goods that we enjoy, there is not one exempt from fome mixture of evil and inconvenience. · -medio de fonte leporum, Sargit amari aliquid, quod in ipfis floribus angat *. Our greatest pleasure has fome air of groaning and complaining in it: would you not fay, that it is dying of anguish? Nay, when we forge the image of it, in its excellency, we paint it with fickly and painful epithets, languor, foftnefs, feeblenefs, faintnefs, Morbidezza, a great teftimony of their confanguinity and confubftantiality. Exceffive joy has more of feverity than gaiety in it the fulleft contentment, more of the fedate than of the merry. + Ipfa fælicitas, fe nifi temperat, premit : " even felicity, unless it moderate itfelf, oppreffeth." Pleasure preys upon us, according to the old Greek verfet, which fays, "that the gods fell us all the good "they give us ;" that is to fay, that they give us nothing pure and perfect, and which we do not purchase but at the price of fome evil. 66 Pain and pleafure joined at one end, as appears from melancholy. Labour and pleasure, very unlike in nature, affociate, nevertheless, but I know not what natural conjunction. Socrates fays, "that "fome god tried to mix in one mafs, "and to confound pain and pleasure, "but, not being able to do it, he bethought him at least "to couple them by the tail." Metrodorus faid, "that in forrow there is fome mixture of pleasure." know not, whether he intended any thing elfe by that faying: but, for my part, I am of opinion, that there is defign, confent, and complacency in giving a Lucret. lib. iv. ver. 1126, I · τῶν πόνων Πωλῶσιν ἡμῖν πάντα ταγαθὰ Θεοί. + Senec. ep. 74. Epicharmus apud Xenophon. lib. xi. droμmuovevμe. Metrodorus, Senec. ep. 99. . Hh 2 man's man's felf up to melancholy; I fay, that befides ambition, which may also have a ftroke in the business, there is fome fhadow of delight and delicacy, which fmiles upon, and, flatters us, even in the very lap of melancholy. Are there not fome complexions that feed upon it? eft quædam flere voluptas *. A certain kind of pleasure 'tis to weep. And one Attalus, in Seneca, fays, "that the memory "of our deceased friends is as graceful to us, as the bit"ternefs in the wine, very old, is to the palate, Minifter vetulis puer Falerni Thou, boy, that fill'ft the old Falernian wine, and as apples that have a fweet tartnefs." Nature difcovers this confufion to us. Painters hold, "that "the fame motions and screwings of the face that serve "for weeping, ferve for laughter too;" and, indeed, before the one or the other be finished, do but observe the paintets conduct, and you will be in doubt to which of the two the defign does tend and the extremity of laughter is mixed with tears; Nullum fine autoramento malum eft; "no evil is without its compenfation." When I imagine man furrounded with all the conveniences that are to be defired, let us put the cafe, that all his members were always feized with a pleasure like that of generation in its most exceffive height: I fancy him melting under the weight of his delight, and see him utterly unable to fupport fo pure, fo continual, and fo univerfal a pleasure: indeed he is running away whilst he is there, and naturally make hafte to efcape, as from a Conftant and univerfal pleafure not to be born by man. Ovid. Trift. el. 3. ver. 37. epift. 25. ver. 1, 20 + Senec. epift. 63. Senec, epift. 69. ↑ Catul. place place where he cannot ftand firm, and where he is afraid of finking. When I religioufly confefs myself, I find, that the best good quality I have has in it fome tincMoral good and ture of vice; and am afraid, that Plato, evil confounded in his pureft virtue (I who am as fincere in man. and perfect a lover of him, and of the virtues of that ftamp, as any other whatever) if he laid his ear clofe to himself, (and he did fo) he would have heard fome jarring found of human mixture, but fo obfcure as only to be perceived by himself: man is wholly and throughout but a patched and motley compofition. Even the laws of juftice themfelves cannot fubfift without fome mixture of injuftice: infoThe jukeft laws much that Plato fays, "they undertake they undertake have fome mix"to cut off the Hydra's head, who pre- ture of injustice. "tend to purge the laws, of all inconvenience." Omne magnum exemplum habet aliquid ex iniquo, quod contra fingulos utilitate publicâ rependitur ; " every great example "of juftice has in it fome mixture of injuftice, which "recompenfes the wrong done to particular men, by its public utility," fays Tacitus. ftanding more proper for affairs than what is moft Common under refined. It is likewife true, that for the bufinefs of life, and the fervice of public commerce, there may be fome exceffes in the purity and perfpicacity of our mind; that penetrating light has too much of fubtilty and curiofity: it must be a little stupified and blunted, to be rendered more obedient to example and practice; and a little veiled and obfcured, to bear the better proportion to this dark and terreftrial life and yet common and lefs fpeculative fouls are found to be more proper, and more fuccefsful in the management of affairs; and the elevated and exquifite opinions of philofophy are unfit for bufinefs: this acute vivacity of the mind, and the fupple and reftlefs volubility of it, disturb our negociations: we are to manage human enterprises more fuperficially and roughly, and leave a great part to the determination of fortune. It is not ne • Tacit. Annal. lib. xiv. Hh 3 ceffary ceffary to examine affairs with so much subtlety, and fo deeply a man lofes himself in the confideration of fo many contrary luftres, and various forms. Veluntantibus res inter fe pugnantes, obtorpuerant animi: "whilft they "confidered of things fo inconfiftent in themselves, they "were astonished." It is what the ancients fay of Simonidest," that by reafon his imagination fuggefted to "him, upon the queftion king Hiero had put to him (to "anfwer which, he had many days to confider it) feveral "witty and fubtle arguments, whilft he doubted which "was the most likely, he totally defpaired of the truth.” He that dives into, and in his inquifition comprehends all circumstances and confequences, hinders his choice: a little engine, well handled, is fufficient for executions of lefs or greater weight and moment: the beft managers are those who are least able to tell us why they are fo; and the greatest talker; for the most part, do nothing to purpose. I know one of this fort of men, and a most excellent manager in theory, who has miferably let an hundred thoufand livres yearly revenue flip through his hands. I know another, who fays, that he is able to give better advice than any of his council; and there is not, in the world, a fairer fhew of a foul, and of a good understanding, than he has; nevertheless, when he comes to the teft, his fervants find him quite another thing; not to bring his misfortune into the account. TH CHA P. XXI. Against Sloth. HE emperor Vefpafian, being fick of the disease whereof he died, did not, for all that, neglect to In what posture inquire after the state of the empire; and, even in bed, continually dispatched af. fairs of great confequence; for which a prince ought to die. • Livy, lib. xxxii. cap. 20. + King Hiero had defired him to define what God was. Cic. de Nat. Deor. lib i. cap. 22. being reproved by his phyfician, as a thing prejudicial to his health, " An emperor, (faid he,) muft die ftand"ing." A fine faying, in my opinion, and worthy of a great prince+. The emperor Adrian afterwards made ufe of one to the fame purpofe; and should be often put in mind of it, to make them know, that the great office conferred upon them, of the command of fo many men, is not an idle imployment; and that there is nothing can fo juftly difguft a fubject, and make him unwilling to expofe himself to labour and danger for the fervice of his prince, than to fee him, in the mean time, devoted to his ease, and to vain and unmanly amusements: nor will the subject be follicitous of his prince's prefervation, who fo much neglects that of his people. He ought to command his ar mies in perfon. Whoever offers to maintain, that it is better for a prince to carry on his wars by others, than in his own perfon, fortune will furnish him with examples enough to thofe whofe lieutenants have brought great enterprifes to a happy iffue, and of thofe aifo whofe prefence has done more hurt than good. But no virtuous and valiant prince can bear to be tutored with fuch fcandalous leffons; under colour of faving his head, like the ftatue of a faint, for the happinefs of his kingdom, they degrade him from, and make him incapable of, his office, which is military throughout. I know one, who had much rather be beaten, than fleep whilft another fights for him; and who never, without envy, heard of any brave thing done, even by his own officers, in his abfence and Selima the first faid, with very good reafon, in my opinion, that victories, obtained without the fovereigns, "were never complete." Much more readily would he have faid, that that fovereign ought blush for fhame, to pretend to any share in it, when he had contributed nothing to it, but his voice and thought; nor even fo much as thofe, confidering, that, in fuch works, the direction and command that deferve honour, are only fuch as are given upon the place, and in the heat Suetonius in Vefpafian. fect. xxiv. +l. Spartiani Ælius Verus, fe&t. xvi. Hift. August, of |