dictate; without affection there can be no friendship. The feelings of tenderness, and regard for Regard In our friends and relatives, form the most amiable o our part of our nature, and nothing can impress the Friends world with a more favorable opinion of any one of the most Candalle man's character, than his kindness to his near-lues est connections. Some there are, indeed, so dull, so cold, so selfish, so hardened, and so impenetrable, as to have little claim to our regard, and if we pay them respect, it is all they are entitled to; but to be devoid of feeling toward those who deserve it, is to write our own condemnation, and bear about with us a sentence of excommunication from all virtuous and refined society. Yet, tho' we ought to feel for our friends every sentiment of tenderness and affection, we are not to take it for certain that they are at all times right, nor defend them at all hazards. Tho' we should feel for their injuries, we should always reprove their offences; and tho' we ought to take a lively interest in all that concerns their welfare, we should not therefore be guilty of injustice to others, nor attempt to depreciate their rivals or competitors. The feelings of affection and friendship are not superior to the claims of justice, or the dictates of prudence. 166 The Sorne The tender emotions of sorrow or regret lo te desh they affect our happiness or disturb our repose. but restrained Pity, tho amiable Yet it is difficult to banish the tender remem- The feelings of pity are, of all others, the Quis desiderio sit pudor aut modis world, that, when indulged in to excess, they expose us to the most ridicule and contempt.The idea of weakness is always attached to the man who is subject to the overflowings of compassion, because the distress which excites those emotions is so easily counterfeited, that those who are not constantly on their guard, are liable to be imposed on by artful pretenders; and nothing can render us so contemptible in the eyes of the world, as being deceived even by plausible pretences, for it bespeaks a want of judgment, which the world is always disposed to laugh at or condemn. purate. Life. Our pity may be excited by a variety of ob- Bodily pain jects, but those of bodily pain or want most for a hiking cibly press upon our notice; these are obvious subject for to every eye, and from every hand that pos- sympathy sesses the means, they claim immediate and substantial relief, while the wants, the pains, and distresses of the mind can be known only to those who are more nearly acquainted with the sufferers, and these it is not in every man's power to alleviate. Ignorance, when arising from poverty, can only be removed by the means which are applied to bodily wants, and distress can only be soothed by the tenderest attentions. To commiserate the suffering part of mankind, in every clime and country, is not 168 merely a feeling, but a duty. Humane and tender minds are irresistibly impelled to it, if they are cultivated by knowledge, and expanded by philanthropy: yet what we pity, it is not always in our power to relieve. Pecuniary aid can be imparted to few, the efforts of the mind may be extended to all. be extended to all. Whether it is the duty of him who feels for the distresses of his fellow-creatures to use every moral means for their relief, has been doubted by those who restrain their benevolence to the objects which come immediately under their notice. In every rank and department of life, - there are many that excite our pity, who are Yet not within the power of our relief; there are many, who, tho' subject to no bodily wants, nor to any particular distress of mind, are yet to be pitied for their ignorance, their privations, and their deficiency of mental resources. far be it from me to render any one unhappy by ideal grievances, or to suggest to them the wants which they do not feel; for they are in no need of pity who are content, tho' their happiness is limited within narrow bounds. To make those unhappy who have all they wish for, by urging them to seek for more, is not kindness, but cruelty; yet ignorance to a certain point is misery, and they who have no knowledge of their rights and duties as members of society, are in the lowest state of ignorance. Beyond this, all our knowledge is superfluous, and by no means essential to happiness, or even to comfort. The feelings of pity which are excited by Sympathy private distress, may be equally extended to In public the distresses of a whole people, and he must desses have a callous heart, who does not sympathize with the sufferings of oppressed and injured nations. To hear of the defeat and misery of those who are struggling to be free; who feel their degraded state, and yet are unsuccessful in their attempts to improve it, and who finally are compelled to yield to the sword of the oppressor, must excite in every feeling heart the liveliest emotions of pity and regret; but to be an eye witness of the desolation and slavery of oppressed countries, is almost too great a trial for men of refined sensibility. Who that is endowed with common sensi- for plai bility, can forbear to commiserate the lot of umarried those unhappy females, who, with small fortunes females, and disgusting persons, have been neglected by man, and seem almost abandoned by heaven, who are, as the poet describes them, "Young, without lovers; old, without a friend!-" Y |