quired thereto by any in his name ;-and that this treaty, having been figned by the States, was fent to London, from whence it had returned but yesterday morning, and totally finished yefternight betwixt him and a private committee of the States. He reprefented his master's intelligence to be fo good, that a difcovery would be made even to himself (DOWNING) of his Majefty's being there; and if he neglected to apply to have him fcized, his mafter would resent it to the highest, which would infallibly coft him his head, and deprive his Majefty of a faithful fervant. And being defirous to prevent the miserable confequences of what would follow, if his being here was discovered, he refolved to communicate the danger he was in, and for fear of a future difcovery he had difguifed himself, being refolved to truft no person with the secret. He then proposed that his Majesty would immediately mount his horfes, and make all the dif patch imaginable out of the States' territories. That he himself would return home, and under pretence of fickness, lye longer in bed than usual; and that when he thought his Majefty was fo far off, as to be out of danger to be overtaken, he would go to the States and acquaint them that he understood his Majefty was in town, and require his being feized in the terms of the late treaty. That he knew they would comply, and fend to the place directed: but on finding that his Majesty was gone off fo far as to be safe, he would propose to make no farther noise about it, left it should difcover the treaty, and prevent his Majesty's afterwards falling into their hands. The King immediately followed his advice, and he returning home, every thing was acted and happened, as he propofed and foretold. The King having thus efcaped this imminent danger, most religiously performed what he had promifed, never mentioning any part of this ftory, till after his restoration, and not then defiring to know how DOWNING's intelligence came, (which he never discovered) tho' he (the King) often faid it was a mystery, for no perfon knew of his defign till he he was on horseback, and that he could not think FLEMING went and difcovered him to DowNING. Befides he fo foon returned from his fifter, he could not have time, DOWNING having come much about the time FLEMING returned. I have heard this ftory told by feveral, who frequented King CHARLES's court after the restoration; particularly by the Earl of Cromartie, who faid, that next year after the reftoration he, with the Duke of Rothes and several other Scots Quality, being one night with the King over a bottle, they all complained of an impertinent fpeech DowNING had made in parliament, reflecting on the Scots nation, which they thought his Majefty fhould refent fo as to discard him from court, and withdraw his favour from him. The King replied, he did not approve what he had faid, and would reprove him for it; but to go farther he could not well do, because of this ftory, which he reported in the terms here narrated, which made fuch an impreffion on all prefent, that they freely forgave what had pass'd, and Rothes asked liberty to begin his health in a bumper. Two Paffages in TULLY's Tufculane Difputationes corrected. T enim corporis temperatio, cum ea congruunt inter fe,, e quibus CONSTAMUS, fanitas: Sic animi dicitur, cum ejus judicia opinionefque concordant. Tufculan. Difputation. L. iv. C. 13. Edit. Davis. TULLY is here giving a distinct description of what he calls fanitas corporis and fanitas animi. The former, (fays he) is, Cum ea congruunt inter fe, e quibus- -What? Not furely CONSTAMUS, for that includes the whole man, whereas FULLY, in this branch of the fentence, evidently confines himfelf to the body only. The true reading therefore seems to have been CONSTAT, and fo I am inclined to think Dr. Davies Davies would have printed it, had any of his MSS. warranted the alteration. For the quotations from Stobaus and Plato, which he gives us in his note upon the place, do, I conceive, very clearly point out the neceffity of fuch alteration. But be that as it will, the reading now offered is fupported by a very valuable MS. of the Tufculana Difputationes lately in the poffeffion of Dr. Shippen Principal of Braze-nose college, in which the whole sentence runs thus: Sicut enim cor poris temperatio, cum ea congruunt inter fe, ex quibus CONSTAT, fanitas: Sic animi dicitur, cum ejus judicia opinionefque concordant. In Oliver's edition the fentence is thus read and pointed; Ut corporis eft temperatio, cum ea congruunt inter fe, e quibus conftamus: Sanitas fic animi dicitur, cum ejus judicia opinionefque concordant. But conftamus will as little agree with this text as with that above. IN the fame Book C. 37. we have the following paffage : Cum multa in conventu vitia collegiffet in eum Zopyrus, qui fe naturam cujufque ex forma perfpicere profitebatur; derifus eft a cæteris, qui illa in Socrate vitia non agnofcerent: ab ipfo autem Socrate fublevatus, cum illa fibi figna, fed ratione a se dejecta diceret. The latter part of this paffage is manifeftly corrupt; and various have been the conjectures of the critics, in order to reftore it. Some, inftead of figna read ingenita, others innata, a third fort infita, or infita naturâ. Each of thefe alterations, it is confeffed, is perfectly agreeable to the fenfe of Cicero, but then they all of them depart too far from the MS. Copies, to be haftily admitted. That which comes the nearest to them is the conjecture of Monfieur Boubier --Cum illa, fibi fi qua ineffent, ratione a fe dejecta diceret. But this emendation is exceptionable on another account, as it puts an evafive answer into the mouth of Socrates, inftead of a plain acknowledgment of his natural propenfity to the vices charged upon him. For that fome fuch acknowledgment was made, is evident from Cicero's affirming of Zopyrus, that he was ab ipfo Socrate fublevatus. If the foregoing corrections be deem'd unfatisfactory, the following one is fubmitted to the reader's confideration. Some of the MSS. in this place read vitia ineffe, others figna ineffe, others figna only, without ineffe. From whence it feems to be no forced or improbable conjecture, that Tully really wrote, Cum illa fibi figna ineffe, fed vitia ratione a fø dejecta diceret. In favour of this reading it may be observed, that every word of it may be found in fome MS, and that the whole yields a fenfe perfectly clear and confiftent. It is, I think, neceflary, in order to avoid obfcurity, to read figna and vitia in the latter part of the sentence, as they answer to forma and vitia going before, tho' there is no fingle MS, that I know of, which has both the words. REMARK on a paffage in HORACE. SIR, To the STUDENT. S none of the commentators seem to have done justice, to one of the most delicate paffages in HORACE, give me leave to offer my fentiments. In the 26th ode of his third book, the poet intreats Vers to chaftife Chloe for her arrogance: O, quæ beatam, Diva, tenes Cyprum et Regina, SUBLIMI FLAGELLO TANGE Chloen SEMEL arrogantem. O Goddefs, &c. raife thy SCOURGE ALOFT, and give the haughty Chloe-What?-ONE gentle TOUCH. The conduct of this ftrophe is admirable. He folemnly invokes a Goddefs, and vows fevere revenge. The elevated ftroke is impending, impending, and we are in pain for the fair criminal; when by an unexpected but natural turn, the relenting lover drops. his vengeance, and defires to have her tenderly treated. A modern tranflator (a gentleman of the birch) renders it: On fcornful Chloe lift thy wand, And fcourge her with UNPITYING hand. But HORACE was a man of too much gallantry, ever to be guilty of fuch a piece of barbarity to a lady. I am, &c. J. R -N2 SIR, YOU To the STUDENT. OU will be able to judge by this of my following letters; which, being upon a fubject of the highest concernment to man in all his purfuits and engagements, will not, I hope, be unacceptable to the generality of your readers, to whofe improvement in ufeful and polite knowledge you seem to have generously devoted your labours. THE prevailing Iniquity of the times is upon record, as what has been a general obfervation in almost every age of, the world, of which we have hitherto had any accounts. But that the prefent generation fhould (as we are told it does) very far furpass all preceding ones in this, is, I think, not strictly true; at least common appearances are again it, and do ftrongly declare the contrary. I can easily conceive, and as readily acknowledge, that certain circumitances may conspire in accelerating this pernicious deftructive progrefs more under one period than another; yet to fay, that Vice fhould have fo infected all orders of men, and was Numb. III. M ΠΟΥ |
