—Dulcique animos novitate tenebo—Ov.Met.1. I.translation
I
have
seen a little Work of a learned Man
1
, consisting of extemporary Speculations, which owed their Birth to the most trifling Occurrences of Life. His usual Method was, to write down any sudden Start of Thought which arose in his Mind upon the sight of an odd Gesticulation in a Man, any whimsical Mimickry of Reason in a Beast, or whatever appeared remarkable in any Object of the visible Creation. He was able to moralize upon a Snuff-Box, would flourish eloquently upon a Tucker or a Pair of Ruffles, and draw practical Inferences from a full-bottomed Perriwig. This I thought fit to mention, by way of Excuse, for my ingenious Correspondent, who hath introduced the following Letter by an Image which, I will beg leave to tell him, is too ridiculous in so serious and noble a Speculation.
Mr.SPECTATOR,'When I have seen young Puss playing her wanton Gambols, and with a thousand antick Shapes express her own Gayety at the same time that she moved mine, while the old Grannum hath sat by with a most exemplary Gravity, unmov'd at all that past; it hath made me reflect what should be the occasion of Humours so opposite in two Creatures, between whom there was no visible Difference but that of Age; and I have been able to resolve it into nothing else butthe Force of Novelty.'In every Species of Creatures, those who have been least Time in the World, appear best pleased with their Condition: For, besides that to a new Comer the World hath a Freshness on it that strikes the Sense after a most agreeable Manner,Beingit self, unattended with any great Variety of Enjoyments, excites a Sensation of Pleasure. But as Age advances, every thing seems to wither, the Senses are disgusted with their old Entertainments, and Existence turns flat and insipid. We may see this exemplified in Mankind: The Child, let him be free from Pain, and gratified in his Change of Toys, is diverted with the smallest Trifle. Nothing disturbs the Mirth of the Boy, but a little Punishment or Confinement. The Youth must have more violent Pleasures to employ his Time; the Man loves the Hurry of an active Life, devoted to the Pursuits of Wealth or Ambition; and Lastly, old Age, having lost its Capacity for these Avocations, becomes its own insupportable Burthen. This Variety may in part be accounted for by the Vivacity and Decay of the Faculties; but I believe is chiefly owing to this, That the longer we have been in Possession of Being, the less sensible is the Gust we have of it; and the more it requires of adventitious Amusements to relieve us from the Satiety and Weariness it brings along with it.'And as Novelty is of a very powerful, so of a most extensive influence. Moralists have long since observed it to be the Source of Admiration, which lessens in proportion to our Familiarity with Objects, and upon a thorough Acquaintance is utterly extinguished. But I think it hath not been so commonly remarked, that all the other Passions depend considerably on the same Circumstance. What is it but Novelty that awakens DeSire, enhances Delight, kindles Anger, provokes Envy, inspires Horror? To this Cause we must ascribe it, that Love languishes with Fruition, and Friendship it self is recommended by Intervals of Absence: Hence Monsters, by use, are beheld without loathing, and the most enchanting Beauty without Rapture. That Emotion of the Spirits in which Passion consists, is usually the Effect of Surprize, and as long as it continues, heightens the agreeable or disagreeable Qualities of its Object; but as this Emotion ceases (and it ceases with the Novelty) things appear in another Light, and affects us even less than might be expected from their proper Energy, for having moved us too much before.'It may not be an useless Enquiry how far the Love of Novelty is the unavoidable Growth of Nature, and in what Respects it is peculiarly adapted to the present State. To me it seems impossible, that a reasonable Creature should rest absolutely satisfied in any Acquisitions whatever, without endeavouring farther; for after its highest Improvements, the Mind hath an Idea of an Infinity of things still behind worth knowing, to the Knowledge of which therefore it cannot be indifferent; as by climbing up a Hill in the midst of a wide Plain, a Man hath his Prospect enlarged, and, together with that, the Bounds of his DeSires. Upon this Account, I cannot think he detracts from the State of the Blessed, who conceives them to be perpetually employed in fresh Searches into Nature, and to Eternity advancing into the fathomless Depths of the Divine Perfections. In this Thought there is nothing but what doth Honour to these glorified Spirits; provided still it be remembred, that their DeSire of more proceeds not from their disrelishing what they possess; and the Pleasure of a new Enjoyment is not with them measured by its Novelty (which is a thing merely foreign and accidental) but by its real intrinsick Value. After an Acquaintance of many thousand Years with the Works of God, the Beauty and Magnificence of the Creation fills them with the same pleasing Wonder and profound Awe, whichAdamfelt himself seized with as he first opened his Eyes upon this glorious Scene. Truth captivates with unborrowed Charms, and whatever hath once given Satisfaction will always do it: In all which they have manifestly the Advantage of us, who are so much govern'd by sickly and changeable Appetites, that we can with the greatest Coldness behold the stupendous Displays of Omnipotence, and be in Transports at the puny Essays of humane Skill; throw aside Speculations of the sublimest Nature and vastest Importance into some obscure Corner of the Mind, to make Room for new Notions of no Consequence at all; are even tired of Health, because not enlivened with alternate Pain, and prefer the first Reading of an indifferent Author, to the second or third Perusal of one whose Merit and Reputation are established.Our being thus formed serves many useful Purposes in the present State. It contributes not a little to the Advancement of Learning; for, asCicerotakes Notice, That which makes Men willing to undergo the Fatigues of Philosophical Disquisitions, is not so much the Greatness of Objects as their Novelty. It is not enough that there is Field and Game for the Chace, and that the Understanding is prompted with a restless Thirst of Knowledge, effectually to rouse the Soul, sunk into the State of Sloth and Indolence; it is also necessary that there be an uncommon Pleasure annexed to the first Appearance of Truth in the Mind. This Pleasure being exquisite for the Time it lasts, but transient, it hereby comes to pass that the Mind grows into an Indifference to its former Notions, and passes on after new Discoveries, in hope of repeating the Delight. It is with Knowledge as with Wealth, the Pleasure of which lies more in making endless Additions, than in taking a Review of our old Store. There are some Inconveniencies that follow this Temper, if not guarded against, particularly this, that through a too great Eagerness of something new we are many times impatient of staying long enough upon a Question that requires some time to resolve it, or, which is worse, perswade our selves that we are Masters of the Subject before we are so, only to be at the Liberty of going upon a fresh Scent; in Mr.Lock'sWords,We see a little, presume a great deal, and so jump to the Conclusion.'A farther Advantage of our Inclination for Novelty, as at present circumstantiated, is, that it annihilates all the boasted Distinctions among Mankind. Look not up with Envy to those above thee. Sounding Titles, stately Buildings, fine Gardens, gilded Chariots, rich Equipages, what are they? They dazzle every one but the Possessor: To him that is accustomed to them they are cheap and regardless Things: They supply him not with brighter Images, or more sublime Satisfactions than the plain Man may have, whose small Estate will just enable him to support the Charge of a simple unencumbered Life. He enters heedless into his Rooms of State, as you or I do under our poor Sheds. The noble Paintings and costly Furniture are lost on him; he sees them not: As how can it be otherwise, when by Custom, a Fabrick infinitely more grand and finish'd, that of the Universe, stands unobserved by the Inhabitants, and the everlasting Lamps of Heaven are lighted up in vain, for any Notice that Mortals take of them? Thanks to indulgent Nature, which not only placed her Children originally upon a Level, but still, by the Strength of this Principle, in a great Measure preserves it, in spite of all the Care of a Man, to introduce artificial Distinctions.'To add no more, Is not this Fondness for Novelty, which makes us out of Conceit with all we already have, a convincing Proof of a future State? Either Man was made in vain, or this is not the only World he was made for: For there cannot be a greater Instance of Vanity, than that to which Man is liable, to be deluded from the Cradle to the Grave with fleeting Shadows of Happiness. His Pleasures, and those not considerable neither, die in the Possession, and fresh Enjoyments do not rise fast enough to fill up half his Life with Satisfaction. When I see Persons sick of themselves any longer than they are called away by something that is of Force to chain down the present Thought; when I see them hurry from Country to Town, and then from the Town back again into the Country, continually shifting Postures, and placing Life in all the different Lights they can think of;Surely, say I to my self,Life is vain, and the Man beyond Expression stupid or prejudic'd, who from the Vanity of Life cannot gather, He is designed for Immortality.
Footnote 1:
Meditations, &c.
by the Hon. Robert Boyle.
return to footnote mark
ContentsContents, p. 8
Tantum inter densas umbrosa cacumine fagosAssidue veniebat; ibi hæc incondita solusMontibus et Sylvis studio jactabat inani.Virg.translation
The following Account, which came to my Hands some time ago, may be no disagreeable Entertainment to such of my Readers, as have tender Hearts and nothing to do.
Mr.SPECTATOR,'A Friend of mine died of a Feaver last Week, which he caught by walking too late in a dewy Evening amongst his Reapers. I must inform you that his greatest Pleasure was in Husbandry and Gardening. He had some Humours which seemed inconsistent with that good Sense he was otherwise Master of. His Uneasiness in the Company of Women was very remarkable in a Man of such perfect Good-breeding, and his avoiding one particular Walk in his Garden, where he had used to pass the greatest Part of his Time, raised abundance of idle Conjectures in the Village where he lived. Upon looking over his Papers we found out the Reason, which he never intimated to his nearest Friends. He was, it seems, a passionate Lover in his Youth, of which a large Parcel of Letters he left behind him are a Witness. I send you a Copy of the last he ever wrote upon that Subject, by which you will find that he concealed the true Name of his Mistress under that ofZelinda.A long Month's Absence would be insupportable to me, if the Business I am employed in were not for the Service of myZelinda,and of such a Nature as to place her every Moment in my Mind. I have furnished the House exactly according to your Fancy, or, if you please, my own; for I have long since learned to like nothing but what you do. The Apartment designed for your Use is so exact a Copy of that which you live in, that I often think my self in your House when I step into it, but sigh when I find it without its proper Inhabitant. You will have the most delicious Prospect from your Closet-window thatEnglandaffords: I am sure I should think it so, if the Landskip that shows such Variety did not at the same time suggest to me the Greatness of the Space that lies between us.The Gardens are laid out very beautifully; I have dressed up every Hedge in Woodbines, sprinkled Bowers and Arbours in every Corner, and made a little Paradise round me; yet I am still like the first Man in his Solitude, but half blest without a Partner in my Happiness. I have directed one Walk to be made for two Persons, where I promise ten thousand Satisfactions to my self in your Conversation. I already take my Evening's Turn in it, and have worn a Path upon the Edge of this little Alley, while I soothed my self with the Thought of your walking by my Side. I have held many imaginary Discourses with you in this Retirement; and when I have been weary have sat down with you in the midst of a Row of Jessamines. The many Expressions of Joy and Rapture I use in these silent Conversations have made me for some Time the Talk of the Parish; but a neighbouring young Fellow, who makes Love to the Farmer's Daughter, hath found me out, and made my Case known to the whole Neighbourhood.In planting of the Fruit-Trees I have not forgot the Peach you are so fond of. I have made a Walk of Elms along the River Side, and intend to sow all the Place about it with Cowslips, which I hope you will like as well as that I have heard you talk of by your Father's House in the Country.Oh!Zelinda,What a Scheme of Delight have I drawn up in my Imagination! What Day-Dreams do I indulge my self in! When will the Six Weeks be at an End, that lye between me and my promised Happiness?How could you break off so abruptly in your last, and tell me you must go and dress for the Play? If you loved as I do, you would find no more Company in a Crowd, than I have in my Solitude.I am,&c.'On the Back of this Letter is written, in the Hand of the Deceased, the following Piece of History.Mem.Having waited a whole Week for an Answer to this Letter, I hurried to Town, where I found the Perfidious Creature married to my Rival. I will bear it as becomes a Man, and endeavour to find out Happiness for my self in that Retirement, which I had prepared in vain for a false ungrateful Woman.I am,&c.
A long Month's Absence would be insupportable to me, if the Business I am employed in were not for the Service of myZelinda,and of such a Nature as to place her every Moment in my Mind. I have furnished the House exactly according to your Fancy, or, if you please, my own; for I have long since learned to like nothing but what you do. The Apartment designed for your Use is so exact a Copy of that which you live in, that I often think my self in your House when I step into it, but sigh when I find it without its proper Inhabitant. You will have the most delicious Prospect from your Closet-window thatEnglandaffords: I am sure I should think it so, if the Landskip that shows such Variety did not at the same time suggest to me the Greatness of the Space that lies between us.The Gardens are laid out very beautifully; I have dressed up every Hedge in Woodbines, sprinkled Bowers and Arbours in every Corner, and made a little Paradise round me; yet I am still like the first Man in his Solitude, but half blest without a Partner in my Happiness. I have directed one Walk to be made for two Persons, where I promise ten thousand Satisfactions to my self in your Conversation. I already take my Evening's Turn in it, and have worn a Path upon the Edge of this little Alley, while I soothed my self with the Thought of your walking by my Side. I have held many imaginary Discourses with you in this Retirement; and when I have been weary have sat down with you in the midst of a Row of Jessamines. The many Expressions of Joy and Rapture I use in these silent Conversations have made me for some Time the Talk of the Parish; but a neighbouring young Fellow, who makes Love to the Farmer's Daughter, hath found me out, and made my Case known to the whole Neighbourhood.In planting of the Fruit-Trees I have not forgot the Peach you are so fond of. I have made a Walk of Elms along the River Side, and intend to sow all the Place about it with Cowslips, which I hope you will like as well as that I have heard you talk of by your Father's House in the Country.Oh!Zelinda,What a Scheme of Delight have I drawn up in my Imagination! What Day-Dreams do I indulge my self in! When will the Six Weeks be at an End, that lye between me and my promised Happiness?How could you break off so abruptly in your last, and tell me you must go and dress for the Play? If you loved as I do, you would find no more Company in a Crowd, than I have in my Solitude.I am,&c.
Mem.Having waited a whole Week for an Answer to this Letter, I hurried to Town, where I found the Perfidious Creature married to my Rival. I will bear it as becomes a Man, and endeavour to find out Happiness for my self in that Retirement, which I had prepared in vain for a false ungrateful Woman.
ContentsContents, p. 8
Labitur et labetur in omne volubilis avum.Hor.translationMr.SPECTATOR,'Therearenone of your Speculations which please me more than those upon Infinitude and Eternity1. You have already considered that Part of Eternity which is past, and I wish you would give us your Thoughts upon that which is to come.'Your Readers will perhaps receive greater Pleasure from this View of Eternity than the former, since we have every one of us a Concern in that which is to come: Whereas a Speculation on that which is past is rather curious than useful.'Besides, we can easily conceive it possible for successive Duration never to have an End; tho', as you have justly observed, that Eternity which never had a Beginning is altogether incomprehensible; That is, we can conceive an Eternal Duration whichmay be, though we cannot an Eternal Duration whichhath been; or, if I may use the Philosophical Terms, we may apprehend aPotentialthough not anActualEternity.'This Notion of a future Eternity, which is natural to the Mind of Man, is an unanswerable Argument that he is a Being designed for it; especially if we consider that he is capable of being Virtuous or Vicious here; that he hath Faculties improvable to all Eternity, and by a proper or wrong Employment of them, may be happy or miserable throughout that infinite Duration. Our Idea indeed of this Eternity is not of an adequate or fixed Nature, but is perpetually growing and enlarging itself toward the Object, which is too big for human Comprehension. As we are now in the Beginnings of Existence, so shall we always appear to our selves as if we were for ever entring upon it. After a Million or two of Centuries, some considerable Things, already past, may slip out of our Memory; which, if it be not strengthened in a wonderful Manner, may possibly forget that ever there was a Sun or Planets. And yet, notwithstanding the long Race that we shall then have run, we shall still imagine ourselves just starting from the Goal, and find no Proportion between that Space which we know had a Beginning, and what we are sure will never have an End.'But I shall leave this Subject to your Management, and question not but you will throw it into such Lights as shall at once improve and entertain your Reader.'Ihaveenclos'd sent you a Translation2of the Speech ofCatoon this Occasion, which hath accidentally fallen into my Hands, and which for Conciseness, Purity, and Elegance of Phrase, cannot be sufficiently admired.Act V. Scen. I.Catosolus &c.Sic, sic se habere rem necesse prorsus est,Ratione vincis, do lubens manus,Plato.Quid enim dedisset, Quæ dedit frustra nihil,Æternitatis insitam cupidinemNatura? Quorsum hæc dulcis Expectatio;Vitæque non explenda melioris sitis?Quid vult sibi aliud iste redeundi in nihilHorror, sub imis quemque agens precordiis?Cur territa in se refugit anima, cur tremitAttonita, quoties, morte ne pereat, timet?Particula nempe est cuique nascenti inditaDivinior; quæ corpus incolens agit;Hominique succinit, Tua est Æternitas,Æternitas! O lubricum nimis aspici,Mixtumque dulci Gaudium formidine?Quæ demigrabitur alia hinc in corpora?Quæ Terra mox incognita? Quis orbis novusManet incolendus? Quanta erit mutatio?Hæc intuenti spatia mihi quaquà patentImmensa: Sed caliginosa nox premit;Nec luce clarâ vult videri singula.Figendus hic pes; certa sunt hæc hactenus:Si quod gubernet Numen Humanum genus,(At, quod gubernet, esse clamant omnia)Virtute non gaudere certè non potest:Nec esse non Beata, quâ gaudet, potest.Sed quâ Beata sede? Quove in tempore?Hæc quanta quanta terra, tola estCæsaris.Quid dubius hæret animus usque adeo? BreviHic nodum hic omnem expediet. Arma en induorEnsi manum admovens,In utramque partem facta; quæque vim inferant,Et quæ propulsent! Dextera intentat necem;Vitam sinistra: Vulnus hæc dabit manus;Altera medelam vulneris: Hic ad exitumDeducet, ictu simplici; hæc vetant mori.Secura ridet anima mucronis minas,Ensesque strictos, interire nescia.Extinguet ætas sidera diuturnior:Ætate languens ipse Sol, obscuriusEmittet Orbi consenescenti jubar:Natura et ipsa sentiet quondam vicesÆtatis, annis ipsa deficiet gravis:At tibi juventus, at tibi immortalitas,Tibi parta Divûm est vita. Periment mutuisElementa sese, et interibunt ictibus:Tu permanebis sola semper integra,Tu cuncta rerum quassa, cuncta naufraga,Jam portu in ipso tuta, contemplabere.Compage rupta, corruent in se invicem,Orbesque fractis ingerentur orbibus;Illæsa tu sedebis extra Fragmina.Act V. Scen. ICatoalone &c.It must be so—Plato,thou reason'st well—Else whence this pleasing Hope, this fond DeSire,This Longing after Immortality?Or whence this secret Dread, and inward Horror,Of falling into Nought? Why shrinks the SoulBack on her self, and startles at Destruction?'Tis the Divinity that stirs within us;'Tis Heaven it self, that points out an Hereafter,And intimates Eternity to Man.Eternity! thou pleasing, dreadful, Thought!Through what Variety of untry'd Being,Through what new Scenes and Changes must we pass!The wide, th' unbounded Prospect, lyes before me;But Shadows, Clouds, and Darkness rest upon it.Here will I hold. If there's a Pow'r above us,(And that there is all Nature cries aloudThrough all her Works) He must delight in Virtue;And that which he delights in, must be happy.But when! or where!—This World was made forCæsar.I'm weary of Conjectures—This must end 'em.Laying his Hand on his Sword.Thus am I doubly arm'd: my Death and Life,My Bane and Antidote are both before me.This in a Moment brings me to an End;But This informs me I shall never die.The Soul, secur'd in her Existence, smilesAt the drawn Dagger, and defies its Point.The Stars shall fade away, the Sun himselfGrow dim with Age, and Nature sink in Years;But thou shalt flourish in immortal Youth,Unhurt amidst the War of Elements,The Wrecks of Matter and the Crush of Worlds.
Act V. Scen. I.Catosolus &c.Sic, sic se habere rem necesse prorsus est,Ratione vincis, do lubens manus,Plato.Quid enim dedisset, Quæ dedit frustra nihil,Æternitatis insitam cupidinemNatura? Quorsum hæc dulcis Expectatio;Vitæque non explenda melioris sitis?Quid vult sibi aliud iste redeundi in nihilHorror, sub imis quemque agens precordiis?Cur territa in se refugit anima, cur tremitAttonita, quoties, morte ne pereat, timet?Particula nempe est cuique nascenti inditaDivinior; quæ corpus incolens agit;Hominique succinit, Tua est Æternitas,Æternitas! O lubricum nimis aspici,Mixtumque dulci Gaudium formidine?Quæ demigrabitur alia hinc in corpora?Quæ Terra mox incognita? Quis orbis novusManet incolendus? Quanta erit mutatio?Hæc intuenti spatia mihi quaquà patentImmensa: Sed caliginosa nox premit;Nec luce clarâ vult videri singula.Figendus hic pes; certa sunt hæc hactenus:Si quod gubernet Numen Humanum genus,(At, quod gubernet, esse clamant omnia)Virtute non gaudere certè non potest:Nec esse non Beata, quâ gaudet, potest.Sed quâ Beata sede? Quove in tempore?Hæc quanta quanta terra, tola estCæsaris.Quid dubius hæret animus usque adeo? BreviHic nodum hic omnem expediet. Arma en induorEnsi manum admovens,In utramque partem facta; quæque vim inferant,Et quæ propulsent! Dextera intentat necem;Vitam sinistra: Vulnus hæc dabit manus;Altera medelam vulneris: Hic ad exitumDeducet, ictu simplici; hæc vetant mori.Secura ridet anima mucronis minas,Ensesque strictos, interire nescia.Extinguet ætas sidera diuturnior:Ætate languens ipse Sol, obscuriusEmittet Orbi consenescenti jubar:Natura et ipsa sentiet quondam vicesÆtatis, annis ipsa deficiet gravis:At tibi juventus, at tibi immortalitas,Tibi parta Divûm est vita. Periment mutuisElementa sese, et interibunt ictibus:Tu permanebis sola semper integra,Tu cuncta rerum quassa, cuncta naufraga,Jam portu in ipso tuta, contemplabere.Compage rupta, corruent in se invicem,Orbesque fractis ingerentur orbibus;Illæsa tu sedebis extra Fragmina.Act V. Scen. ICatoalone &c.It must be so—Plato,thou reason'st well—Else whence this pleasing Hope, this fond DeSire,This Longing after Immortality?Or whence this secret Dread, and inward Horror,Of falling into Nought? Why shrinks the SoulBack on her self, and startles at Destruction?'Tis the Divinity that stirs within us;'Tis Heaven it self, that points out an Hereafter,And intimates Eternity to Man.Eternity! thou pleasing, dreadful, Thought!Through what Variety of untry'd Being,Through what new Scenes and Changes must we pass!The wide, th' unbounded Prospect, lyes before me;But Shadows, Clouds, and Darkness rest upon it.Here will I hold. If there's a Pow'r above us,(And that there is all Nature cries aloudThrough all her Works) He must delight in Virtue;And that which he delights in, must be happy.But when! or where!—This World was made forCæsar.I'm weary of Conjectures—This must end 'em.Laying his Hand on his Sword.Thus am I doubly arm'd: my Death and Life,My Bane and Antidote are both before me.This in a Moment brings me to an End;But This informs me I shall never die.The Soul, secur'd in her Existence, smilesAt the drawn Dagger, and defies its Point.The Stars shall fade away, the Sun himselfGrow dim with Age, and Nature sink in Years;But thou shalt flourish in immortal Youth,Unhurt amidst the War of Elements,The Wrecks of Matter and the Crush of Worlds.
Footnote 1:
Nos.
565
,
571
,
580
, and
590
.
return to footnote mark
Footnote 2:
By Mr., afterwards Dr., Bland, who became Provost of Eton and Dean of Durham.
return
ContentsContents, p. 8
Experiar quid concedatur in illos,Quorum Flaminia tegitur cinis atque Latinâ.Juv.translation
Next to the People who want a Place, there are none to be pitied more than those who are solicited for one. A plain Answer, with a Denial in it, is looked upon as Pride, and a civil Answer as a Promise.
Nothing is more ridiculous than the Pretensions of People upon these Occasions. Every thing a Man hath suffered, whilst his Enemies were in play, was certainly brought about by the Malice of the opposite Party. A bad Cause would not have been lost, if such an one had not been upon the Bench; nor a profligate Youth disinherited, if he had not got drunk every Night by toasting an outed Ministry. I remember a Tory, who having been fined in a Court of Justice for a Prank that deserved the Pillory, de
Sir
'd upon the Merit of it to be made a Justice of Peace when his Friends came into Power; and shall never forget a Whig Criminal, who, upon being indicted for a Rape, told his Friends,
You see what a Man suffers for sticking to his Principles.
The Truth of it is, the Sufferings of a Man in a Party are of a very doubtful Nature. When they are such as have promoted a good Cause, and fallen upon a Man undeservedly, they have a Right to be heard and recompensed beyond any other Pretensions. But when they rise out of Rashness or Indiscretion, and the Pursuit of such Measures as have rather ruined, than promoted the Interest they aim at, (which hath always been the Case of many great Sufferers) they only serve to recommend them to the Children of Violence or Folly.
I have by me a Bundle of Memorials presented by several Cavaliers upon the Restauration of K.
Charles
II. which may serve as so many Instances, to our present Purpose.
Among several Persons and Pretensions recorded by my Author, he mentions one of a very great Estate, who, for having roasted an Ox whole, and distributed a Hogshead upon K.
Charles's
Birth-day, de
Sir
ed to be provided for, as his Majesty in his great Wisdom shall think fit.
Another put in to be Prince
Henry's
, Governor, for having dared to drink his Health in the worst of Times.
A Third petitioned for a Colonel's Commission, for having Cursed
Oliver Cromwell
, the Day before his Death, on a publick Bowling-Green.
But the most whimsical Petition I have met with is that of
B. B.
Esq., who de
Sir
'd the Honour of Knighthood, for having Cuckolded
Sir
T. W.
a notorious
Roundhead.
There is likewise the Petition of one, who having let his Beard grow from the Martyrdom of K.
Charles
the First, till the Restauration of K.
Charles
the Second, de
Sir
ed, in Consideration thereof, to be made a Privy-Counsellor.
I must not omit a Memorial setting forth, that the Memorialist had, with great dispatch, carried a Letter from a certain Lord to a certain Lord, wherein, as it afterwards appeared, Measures were concerted for the Restauration, and without which he verily believes that happy Revolution had never been effected; who thereupon humbly prays to be made Post-Master-General.
A certain Gentleman, who seems to write with a great deal of Spirit, and uses the Words
Gallantry
and
Gentleman-like
very often in his Petition, begs that (in Consideration of his having worn his Hat for ten Years past in the Loyal Cavalier-Cock, to his great Danger and Detriment) he may be made a Captain of the Guards.
I shall close my Account of this Collection of Memorials, with the Copy of one Petition at length, which I recommend to my Reader as a very valuable Piece.
The Petition of E. H. Esq., humbly Sheweth,'That your Petitioner's Father's Brother's Uncle, ColonelW. H.lost the Third Finger of his Left Hand atEdge-hillFight.'That your Petitioner, notwithstanding the Smallness of his Fortune, (he being a younger Brother) always kept Hospitality, and drank Confusion to the Roundheads in half a Score Bumpers everySundayin the Year, as several honest Gentlemen (whose Names are underwritten) are ready to testifie.'That your Petitioner is remarkable in his Country for having dared to treatSirP. P.a cursed Sequestrator, and three Members of the Assembly of Divines, with Brawn and Minced Pies uponNew Year'sDay.'That your said humble Petitioner hath been five times imprisoned in five several County-Goals, for having been a Ring-leader in five different Riots; into which his Zeal for the Royal Cause hurried him, when men of greater Estates had not the Courage to rise.'That he, the saidE. H.hath had six Duels and four and twenty Boxing-Matches in Defence of his Majesty's Title; and that he received such a Blow upon the Head at a Bonfire inStratforduponAvon, as he hath been never the better for from that Day to this.'That your Petitioner hath been so far from improving his Fortune, in the late damnable Times, that he verily believes, and hath good Reason to imagine, that if he had been Master of an Estate, he had infallibly been plundered and sequestred.'Your Petitioner, in Consideration of his said Merits and Sufferings, humbly requests that he may have the Place of Receiver of the Taxes, Collector of the Customs, Clerk of the Peace, Deputy Lieutenant, or whatsoever else he shall be thought qualified for.And your Petitioner shall ever Pray, &c.
ContentsContents, p. 8
—Favete linguis—Hor.translation
Having no spare Time to write any thing of my own, or to correct what is sent me by others, I have thought fit to publish the following Letters.
Oxford, November22.Sir,'If you would be so kind to me, as to suspend that Satisfaction, which the Learned World must receive in reading one of your Speculations, by publishing this Endeavour, you will very much oblige and improve one, who has the Boldness to hope, that he may be admitted into the number of your Correspondents.'I have often wondered to hear Men of good Sense and good Nature profess a Dislike to Musick, when, at the same time, they do not scruple to own, that it has the most agreeable and improving Influences over their Minds: It seems to me an unhappy Contradiction, that those Persons should have an Indifference for an Art, which raises in them such a Variety of sublime Pleasures.'However, though some few, by their own or the unreasonable Prejudices of others, may be led into a Distaste for those Musical Societies which are erected merely for Entertainment, yet sure I may venture to say, that no one can have the least Reason for Disaffection to that solemn kind of Melody which consists of the Praises of our Creator.'You have, I presume, already prevented me in an Argument upon this Occasion (which some Divines have successfully advanced upon a much greater) that Musical Sacrifice and Adoration has claimed a Place in the Laws and Customs of the most different Nations; As theGreciansandRomansof the Prophane, theJewsandChristiansof the Sacred World did as unanimously agree in this, as they disagreed in all other Parts of their œconomy.'I know there are not wanting some who are of Opinion that the pompous kind of Musick which is in Use in foreign Churches is the most excellent, as it most affects our Senses. But I am swayed by my Judgment to the Modesty which is observed in the musical Part of our Devotions. Methinks there is something very laudable in the Custom of aVoluntarybefore the first Lesson; by this we are supposed to be prepared for the Admission of those Divine Truths, which we are shortly to receive. We are then to cast all worldly Regards from off our Hearts, all Tumults within are then becalmed, and there should be nothing near the Soul but Peace and Tranquility. So that in this short Office of Praise, the Man is raised above himself, and is almost lost already amidst the Joys of Futurity.'I have heard some nice Observers frequently commend the Policy of our Church in this Particular, that it leads us on by such easie and regular Methods, that we are perfectly deceived into Piety. When the Spirits begin to languish (as they too often do) with a constant Series of Petitions, she takes care to allow them a pious Respite, and relieves them with the Raptures of an Anthem. Nor can we doubt that the sublimest Poetry, softened in the most moving Strains of Musick, can ever fail of humbling or exalting the Soul to any Pitch of Devotion. Who can hear the Terrors of the Lord of Hosts described in the most expressive Melody, without being awed into a Veneration? or who can hear the kind and endearing Attributes of a merciful Father, and not be softened into Love towards him!'As the rising and sinking of the Passions, the casting soft or noble Hints into the Soul, is the natural Privilege of Musick in general, so more particularly of that kind which is employed at the Altar. Those Impressions which it leaves upon the Spirits are more deep and lasting, as the Grounds from which it receives its Authority are founded more upon Reason. It diffuses a Calmness all around us, it makes us drop all those vain or immodestThoughtswhich would be an hindrance to us in the Performance of that great Duty of Thanksgiving1, which, as we are informed by our Almighty Benefactor, is the most acceptable Return which can be made for those infinite Stores of Blessings which he daily condescends to pour down upon his Creatures. When we make Use of this pathetical Method of addressing our selves to him, we can scarce contain from Raptures! The Heart is warmed with a Sublimity of Goodness. We are all Piety and all Love!'How do the Blessed Spirits rejoice and wonder to behold unthinking Man prostrating his Soul to his dread Sovereign in such a Warmth of Piety as they themselves might not be ashamed of!'I shall close these Reflections with a Passage taken out of the Third Book ofMilton's Paradise Lost,where those harmonious Beings are thus nobly described.Then Crown'd again, their Gold'n Harps they took,Harps ever tun'd, that glittering by their sideLike Quivers hung, and with Preamble sweetOf Charming Symphony they introduceThe Sacred Song, and waken Raptures high;No one exempt, no Voice but well could joinMelodious part, such Concord is in Heav'nMr.SPECTATOR,'The Town cannot be unacquainted, that in divers Parts of it there are vociferous Setts of Men who are calledRattling Clubs; but what shocks me most is, they have now the Front to invade the Church and institute these Societies there, as a Clan of them have in late times done, to such a degree of Insolence, as has given the Partition where they reside in a Church near one of the City Gates, the Denomination of theRattling Pew. These gay Fellows, from humble Lay Professions, set up for Criticks without any Tincture of Letters or Reading, and have the Vanity to think they can lay hold of something from the Parson, which may be formed into Ridicule.'It is needless to observe, that the Gentlemen who everySundayhave the hard Province of Instructing these Wretches in a way they are in no present Disposition to take, have a fixt Character for Learning and Eloquence, not to be tainted by the weak Efforts of this Contemptible Part of their Audiences. Whether the Pulpit is taken by these Gentlemen, or any Strangers their Friends, the way of the Club is this: If any Sentiments are delivered too Sublime for their Conception; if any uncommon Topick is entered on, or one in use new modified with the finest Judgment and Dexterity; or any controverted Point be never so elegantly handled; In short whatever surpasses the narrow Limits of their Theology, or is not suited to their Taste, they are all immediately upon their Watch, fixing their Eyes upon each other, with as much Warmth as our Gladiators ofHockley in the Hole, and waiting like them for a Hit; if one touches, all take Fire, and their Noddles instantly meet in the Centre of the Pew; then, as by beat of Drum, with exact Discipline, they rear up into a full length of Stature, and with odd Looks and Gesticulations confer together in so loud and clamorous a manner, continued to the close of the Discourse, and during the After-Psalm, as is not to be silenced but by the Bells. Nor does this suffice them, without aiming to propagate their Noise through all the Church, by Signals given to the adjoyning Seats, where others designed for this Fraternity are sometimes placed upon Tryal to receive them.'The Folly as well as Rudeness of this Practice is in nothing more conspicuous than this, that all that follows in the Sermon is lost; for whenever our Sparks take alarm, they blaze out and grow so Tumultuous that no After-Explanation can avail, it being impossible for themselves or any near them to give an Account thereof. If any thing really Novel is advanced, how averse soever it may be to their way of thinking, to say nothing of Duty, Men of less Levity than these would be led by a natural Curiosity to hear the whole.'Laughter, where things Sacred are transacted, is far less pardonable than Whining at a Conventicle; the last has at least a Semblance of Grace, and where the Affectation is unseen may possibly imprint wholesome Lessons on the Sincere; but the first has no Excuse, breaking through all the Rules of Order and Decency, and manifesting a Remissness of Mind in those important Matters, which require the strictest Composure and Steadiness of Thought; A Proof of the greatest Folly in the World.'I shall not here enter upon the Veneration due to the Sanctity of the Place, the Reverence owing to the Minister, or the Respect that so great an Assembly as a whole Parish may justly claim. I shall only tell them, that as theSpanishCobler, to reclaim a profligate Son, bid himhave some regard to the Dignity of his Family, so they as Gentlemen (for we Citizens assume to be such one Day in a Week) are bound for the future to Repent of, and Abstain from, the gross Abuses here mentioned, whereof they have been Guilty in Contempt of Heaven and Earth, and contrary to the Laws in this Case made and provided.I am,Sir,Your very humble Servant,R. M.
Then Crown'd again, their Gold'n Harps they took,Harps ever tun'd, that glittering by their sideLike Quivers hung, and with Preamble sweetOf Charming Symphony they introduceThe Sacred Song, and waken Raptures high;No one exempt, no Voice but well could joinMelodious part, such Concord is in Heav'n