est sense of their juniors by the mere force of feniority; fo that for a young man in the bloom of life and vigour of age to give a reasonable contradiction to his elders, is esteemed an unpardonable infolence, and regarded as a reverfing the decrees of nature. I am a young man, I confefs, yet I honour the grey head as much as any, one; however, when in company with old men I hear them fpeak obfcurely, or reafon prepofterously, (into which abfurdities, prejudice, pride, or intereft, will fometimes throw the wifeft) I count it no crime to rectify their reafonings, unlefs confcience muft truckle to ceremony, and truth fall a facrifice to complaifance. The ftrongest arguments are enervated, and the brightest evidence difappears, before thofe tremendous reafonings and dazzling difcoveries of venerable old age: You are young giddy-headed fellows, you have not yet had experience of the world. Thus we young folks find our ambition cramped, and our laziness indulged, fince, while young, we have little room to difplay ourselves; and, when old, the weakness of nature must pafs for ftrength of fenfe, and we hope that hoary heads will raife us above the attacks of contradiction. Now, Sir, as you would enliven our activity in the purfuit of learning, take our cafe into confideration; and, with a glofs on brave Elihu's fentiments, affert the rights of youth, and prevent the pernicious encroachments of age. The generous reafonings of that gallant youth would adorn your paper; and I beg you would infert them, not doubting but that they will give good entertainment to the most intelligent of your readers:

own eyes.

So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu, the fon of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he juftified himself rather than God. Allo against his three friends was his wrath kindled, because they had found no anfwer, and yet had condemned Job. Now Elihu had waited till Job had spoken, because they were elder than he When Elihu faw there was no answer in the mouth of these three men, then his wrath was kindled. And Elihu, the fon of Barachel the Buzite, anfwered and faid

-"I am young, and ye are very old, "wherefore I was afraid, and durft not "fhew you mine opinion. I faid, "Days fhould speak, and multitude of years fhould teach wifdom. But "there is a fpirit in man, and the in"fpiration of the Almighty giveth them "understanding. Great men are not "always wife: neither do the aged "understand judgment. Therefore I "faid-Hearken to me, I alfo will "thew mine opinion. Behold I waited "for your words; I gave ear to your "reasons, whilft you fearched out what "to fay. Yea, I attended unto you, "and behold there was none of you "that convinced Job, or that answered "his words; left ye fhould fay, We "have found out wifdom: God thruft"eth him down, not man. Now he hath "not directed his words against me: "neither will I anfwer him with your "fpeeches. They were amazed; they "answered no more: they left off speak. "ing. When I had waited (for they "fpake not, but stood still and answer"ed no more) I faid-I will answer "alfo my part, I alfo will fhew mine "opinion. For I am full of matter; "the fpirit within me conftraineth me. "Behold, my belly is as wine which "hath no vent, it is ready to burst like

new bottles. I will speak that I may "be refreshed: I will open my lips and "anfwer. Let me not, I pray you,

accept any man's perfon, neither let

me give flattering titles unto man. "For I know not to give flattering ti"tles; in fo doing my Maker would "foon take me away."

I

MR. SPECTATOR,

Have formerly read with great fatiffaction your papers about idols, and the behaviour of gentlemen in those coffee-houfes where women officiate, and impatiently waited to fee you take India and china fhops into confideration: but fince you have paffed us over in filence, either that you have not as yet thought us worth your notice, or that the grievances we lie under have efcaped your difcerning eye, I muft make my complaints to you, and am encouraged to do it, because you seem a little at leifure at this prefent writing. I am, dear Sir, one of the top chinawomen about town; and, though I fay it, keep as good things, and receive as fine company, as any o' this end of the

town,

town, let the other be who the will: in fhort, I am in a fair way to be easy, were it not for a club of female Rakes, who under pretence of taking their innocent rambles, forfooth, and diverting the spleen, feldom fail to plague me twice or thrice a day to cheapen tea, or buy a skreen; What elfe fhould they mean?' as they often repeat it. These Rakes are your idle ladies of fashion, who, having nothing to do, employ themselves in tumbling over my ware. One of these no-customers (for by the way they feldom or never buy any thing) calls for a fet of tea-dishes, another for a bason, a third for my best green tea, and even to the punch-bowl, there is fcarce a piece in my fhop but must be difplaced, and the whole agreeable architecture difordered; fo that I can compare them to nothing but to the night-goblins that take a pleasure to overturn the difpofition of plates and dishes in the kitchens of your houfe

wifely maids. Well, after all this racket and clutter, this is too dear, that is their averfion; another thing is charming, but not wanted: the ladies are cured of the fpleen, but I am not a shilling the better for it. Lord! what fignifies one poor pot of tea, confidering the trouble they put me to? Vapours, Mr. Spectator, are terrible things; for though I am not poffeffed by them myfelf, I fuffer more from them than if I were. Now I must beg you to admonish all fuch day-goblins to make fewer visits, or to be lefs troublefome when they come to one's fhop; and to convince then that we honelt fhopkeepers have fomething better to do, than to cure folks of the vapours gratis. A young fon of mine, a fchool-boy, is my fecretary, fo I hope you will make allowances. I am, Sir, your conftant reader, and very humble fervant,

REBECCA THE DISTRESSED. ESSED MARCH THE 22D.

T

HOR. EP. II. L. I. v. 64.

I from the gentleman, who has already given the public two effays upon education. As his thoughts feem to be very juft and new upon this fubje&t, I hall communicate them to the reader.

SIR,

IF I had not been hindered by fome

extraordinary business, I should have fent you fooner my further thoughts upon education. You may pleate to remember that in my last letter I endeavoured to give the beft reafons that could be urged in favour of a private or public education. Upon the whole it may perhaps be thought that I feemed ather inclined to the latter, though at the fame time I confelfed that virtue, which ought to be our firft and principal care, was more ufually acquired in the former.

I intend therefore, in this letter, to offer at methods, by which I conceive

CREECH.

tue, as they advance in letters.

in vir

I know that in most of our public fchools vice is punished and difcouraged, whenever it is found out; but this is far from being fufficient, unless our youth are at the fame time taught to form a right judgment of things, and to know what is properly virtue.

To this end, whenever they read the lives and actions of fuch men as have been famous in their generation, it fhould not be thought enough to make them barely underitand fo many Greek or Latin fentences, but they fhould be afked their opinion of fuch an action or faying, and obliged to give their reafons why they take it to be good or bad. By this means they would infenfibly arrive at proper notions of courage, temperance, honour and justice.

There must be great care taken how the example of any particular perfon is recommended to them in grofs; instead

of which they ought to be taught where in fuch a man, though great in fome refpects, was weak and faulty in others. For want of this caution, a boy is often fo dazzled with the luftre of a great character, that he confounds it's beauties with it's blemishes, and looks even upon the faulty part of it with an eye of admiration.

Plu

I have often wondered how Alexander, who was naturally of a generous and merciful difpofition, came to be guilty of fo barbarous an action as that of dragging the governor of a town after his chariot. I know this is generally afcribed to his paffion for Homer; but I lately met with a paffage in Plutarch, which, if I am not very much miftaken, till gives us a clearer light into the motives of this action. tarch tells us, that Alexander in his youth had a mafter ramed Lyfimachus, who, though he was a man deftitute of all politenefs, ingratiated himfelf both with Philip and his pupil, and became the fecond man at court, by calling the king Peleus, the prince Achilles, and himfelf Phoenix. It is no wonder if Alexander, having been thus ufed not only to admire, but to perfonate Achilles, fhould think it glorious to imitate him in this piece of cruelty and extravagance.

Το carry this thought yet further, I fall fubmit it to your confideration, whether instead of a theme or copy of verfes, which are the ufual exercises, as they are called in the school phrase, it would not be more proper that a boy fhould be tasked once or twice a week to write down his opinion of fuch perfons and things as occur to him in his reading; that he should defcant upon the actions of Turnus or Æneas, fhew wherein they excelled or were defective, cenfure or approve any particular action, obferve how it might have been carried to a greater degree of perfection, and how it exceeded or fell short of another. He might at the fame time mark what was moral in any fpeech, and how far it agreed with the character of the perfon fpeaking. This exercife would foon ftrengthen his judgment in what is blameable or praife-worthy, and give him an early featoning of morality.

Next to thofe examples which may be met with in books, I very much approve Horace's way of fetting before youth the infamous or honourable characters

of their cotemporaries: that poet tells us, this was the method his father made ufe of to incline him to any particular virtue, or give him an averfion to any particular vice. If,' fays Horace, my father advifed me to live within bounds, and be contented with the ⚫ fortune he should leave me: "Do not you fee," fays he, "the miferable "condition of Burrus, and the son of "Albus? Let the misfortunes of thofe 66 two wretches teach you to avoid luxu66 ry and extravagance.” If he would

infpire me with an abhorrence to debauchery," Do not," fays he, "make "yourself like Sectanus, when you "( may be happy in the enjoyment of "lawful pleafures. How fcandalous," fays he, is the character of Trebo"nius, who was lately caught in bed "with another man's wife?" To illuftrate the force of this method, the poet adds, that as a headstrong patient, who will not at first follow his phyfi cian's prefcriptions, grows orderly when he hears that his neighbours die all about him; fo youth is often frighted from vice, by hearing the ill reports it brings upon others.

Xenophon's fchools of equity, in his life of Cyrus the great, are fufficiently famous. He tells us, that the Persian children went to fchool, and employed their time as diligently in learning the principles of juftice and fobriety, as the youth in other countries did to acquire the most difficult arts and fciences: the r governors spent most part of the day in hearing their mutual accufations one against the other, whether for violence, cheating, flander, or ingratitude; and taught them how to give judgment against thofe who were found to be any ways guilty of thefe crimes. I omit the ftory of the long and short coat, for which Cyrus himself was punished, as a cafe equally known with any in Littleton.

The method which Apuleius tells us the Indian Gymnofophifts took to educate their difciples, is still more curious and remarkable. His words are as follow: When their dinner is ready, be'fore it is ferved up, the masters enquire of every particular fcholar how he has employed his time fince funriting; fome of them anfwer, that having been chofen as arbiters between two perfons, they have compofed their differences, and made them friends;

friends; fome, that they have been executing the orders of their parents; and others, that they have either found out fomething new by their own application, or learnt it from the inItructions of their fellows: but if there happens to be any one among them, who cannot make it appear that he has employed the morning to advantage, he is immediately excluded from the company, and obliged to work while the reft are at dinner.'

It is not impoffible, that from thefe feveral ways of producing virtue in the minds of boys, fome general method might be invented. What I would endeavour to inculcate, is, that our youth cannot be too foon taught the principles of virtue, feeing the first impreffions which are made on the mind are always the strongest.

The archbishop of Cambray makes Telemachus fay, that, though he was young in years, he was old in the art of knowing how to keep both his own and his friends fecrets. When my 'father, fays the prince, went to the fiege of Troy, he took me on his knees, and after having embraced and bleffed me, as he was furrounded by the nobles of Ithaca" O my "friends," fays he, "into your hands "I commit the education of my fon; "if ever you loved his father, fhew it "in your care towards him: but above "all, do not omit to form him just, "fincere, and faithful in keeping a fe"cret." These words of my father,' fays Telemachus, were continually repeated to me by his friends in his ab• fence; who made no fcruple of communicating to me their uneasiness to ♦ fee my mother furrounded with lovers,

I

and the measures they defigned to take

on that occafion.' He adds, that he was fo ravished at being thus treated like a man, and at the confidence repofed in him, that he never once abufed it; nor could all the infinuations of his father's rivals ever get him to betray what was committed to him under the feal of fecrecy.

There is hardly any virtue which a lad might not thus learn by practice and example.

I have heard of a good man, who fed at certain times to give his fcholars fixpence a-piece, that they might tell him the next day how they had employ. ed it. The third part was always to be laid out in charity, and every boy was blamed or commended as he could make it appear he had chosen a fit object.

In fhort, nothing is more wanting to our public fchools, than that the mafters of them fhould ufe the fame care in fashioning the manners of their scholars, as in forming their tongues to the learned languages. Wherever the former is omitted, I cannot help agreeing with Mr. Locke, that a man must have a very ftrange value for words, when preferring the languages of the Greeks and Romans to that which made them fuch brave men, he can think it worth while to hazard the innocence and virtue of his fon for a little Greek and Latin.

As the fubject of this effay is of the higheft importance, and what I do not remember to have yet feen treated by any author, I have fent you what occurred to me on it from my own obfer. vation or reading, and which you may either fupprefs or publish as you think fit. I am, Sir, yours, &c. X

HOR. SAT. III. L. 1. v. 18.

Find the tragedy of The Diftreffed Mother is published to day: the author of the prologue, I fuppofe, pleads an old excufe I have read fomewhere of being dull with defign; and the gentleman who writ the epilogue, has, to my knowledge, fo much of greater moment to value himself upon, that he will

I

MR. SPECTATOR,

Had the happiness the other night of fitting very near you and your worthy friend Sir Roger, at the acting of the new tragedy, which you have in a Jate paper or two fo juftly recommended. I was highly pleafed with the advantageous fituation fortune had given me in placing me fo near two gentlemen, from one of which I was fure to hear fuch reflections on the feveral incidents of the play, as pure nature fuggefted, and from the other fuch as flowed from the exacteft art and judginent: though I must confefs that my curiofity led me fo much to obferve the knight's reflections, that I was not fo well at leifure to mprove myself by yours. Nature, I found played her part in the knight pretty well, till at the laft concluding lines the entirely for fook him. You must know, Sir, that it is always my custom, when I have been well entertained at a new tragedy, to make my retreat before the facetious epilogue enters; not but that thofe pieces are often very well writ, but having paid down my half-crown, and made a fair purchafe of as much of the pleafing melancholy as the poet's art can afford me, or my own nature admit of, I am willing to carry fome of it home with me; and cannot endure to be at once tricked out of all, though by the wittieft dexterity in the world. However, I kept my feat the other night, in hopes of find. ing my own fentiments of this matter favored by your friend's; when to my great furprife, I found the knight entering with equal pleafure into both parts, and as much fatisfied with Mrs. Oldfield's gaiety, as he had been before with Andromache's greatnefs. Whether this were no other than an effect of the knight's peculiar humanity, plea.ed to find at laft, that after all the tragical doings every thing was safe and well, I don't know. But for my own part, I muft confefs I was fo diffatisfied, that I was forry the poet had faved Andromache, and could heartily have wifhed that he had left her ftone-dead upon the ftage. For you cannot imagine, Mr. Spectator, the mifchief fhe was refei ved to do me. I found my foul, during the action, gradually worked up to the highest pitch; and felt the exalted paffion, which all generous minds conceive at the fight of virtue in diftrofs. The impreffion, believe me, Sir, was fo

ftrong upon me, that I am perfuaded if I had been let alone in it, I could at an extremity have ventured to defend yourself and Sir Roger against half a fcore of the fierceft Mohocs: but the ludicrous epilogue in the clofe extinguished all my ardour, and made me look upon all fuch noble atchievements as downright filly and romantic. What the rest of the audience felt, I cannot fo well tell: for myfelf I must declare, that at the end of the play I found my foul uniform, and all of a piece; but at the end of the epilogue, it was fo jumbled together and divided between jeft and earnett, that if you will forgive me an extravagant fancy, I will here fet it down. I could not but fancy, if my foul had at that moment quitted my body, and defcended to the poetical fhades in the pofture it was then in, what a ftrange figure it would have made among them. They would not have known what to have made of my motley spectre, half comic and half tragic, all over refembling a ridiculous face, that at the fame time laughs on one fide and cries on the other. The only defence, I think, I have ever heard made for this, as it feems to me the mott unnatural tack of the comic tail to the tragic head, is this, that the minds of the audience must be refreshed, and gentlemen and ladies not fent away to their own homes with too difmal and melancholy thoughts about them: for who knows the confequence of this? We are much obliged indeed to the poets for the great tenderness they exprefs for the fafety of our perfons, and heartily thank them for it. But if that be all, pray, good Sir, affure them, that we are none of us like to come to any great harm; and that, let them do their beft, we fhall in all probability live out the length of our days, and frequent the theatres more than ever. What makes me more defirous to have fome information of this matter, is, becaufe of an ill confequence or two attending it: for a great many of our church muficians being related to the theatre, they have, in imitation of thefe epilogues, introduced in their farewell voluntaries a fort of mufic quite foreign to the defign of church-fervices, to the great prejudice of well-disposed people. Thole fingering gentlemen fhould be informed that they ought to fuit their airs to the place and bufpels; and that the musician is obliged to

keep