Maxims. 1. We shall never be free from debt, till we learn not to be ashamed of industry and economy. 2. All should be taught how to earn, save and enjoy money. 3. Teach children to save everything; not for their own use exclusively, for this would make them selfish; teach them to share everything with their associates, and never to destroy anything. 4. True economy can be as comfortable with a little, as extravagance can with much. 5. Never lessen good actions, nor aggravate evil ones. 6. Good works are a rock; ill ones a sandy foundation. 7. Some receive praise, who do not deserve it. 8. It is safer to learn, than to teach. 9. He, who conceals his opinion, has nothing to answer for. 10. Reason, like the sun, is common to all. Anecdote. The late king of England, being very fond of Mr. Whiston, celebrated for his various strictures on religion, happened to be walking with him one day, in Hampton Court gardens, during the heat of his persecution. As they were talking upon this subject, his majesty observed, "That however right he might be in his opinions, it would be better, if he kept them to himself." "Is your majesty really serious in your advice?" answered the old man. "I really am," replied the king. "Why, then," says Whiston," had Martin Luther been of this way of thinking, where would your majesty have been at this time?" Varieties. 1. What are the three learned professions? 2. Great minds can attend to little things; but little minds cannot attend to great things. 3. To marry a rake, in hopes of reforming him, and to hire a hightouch'd-wayman, in hopes of reclaiming him, are two very dangerous experiments. 4. A clear idea, produces a stronger effect on the mind, than one that is obscure and indistinct. 5. Those that are teaching the people to read, are doing all they can to increase the power, While Chaos, hush'd, stands listening to the noise, and extend the influence of those that write: And wonders at confusion not his own. I look'd, I listen'd, dreadful sounds I hear, Mourners. Men are often ingenious, in making themselves miserable, by aggravating, beyond bounds, the evils, which they are compelled to endure. "I will restore thy daughter again to life," said an eastern sage to a prince, who grieved immoderately for the loss of a beloved child; "provided, thou art able to engrave on her tomb, the names of three persons, who have never mourned." The prince made inquiry after such persons; but found the inquiry vain, and was silent. for the child-will read to please his teachers, If music be the food of love, play on; tion by its beauty and grandeur, it excites admiration, which is a mixture of approbation and wonder; so sure is the observation of the poet; Late time shall wonder, that my joys shall raise For wonder is involuntary praise. WONDER OR AMAZEMENT-opens the eyes and makes them appear very prominent: sometimes it raises them to the skies; but more frequently fixes them upon the object, if it be present, with a fearful look: the mouth is open and the hands held up nearly in the attitude of fear; and if they hold anything, they drop it immediately, and unconsciously; the voice is at first low, but so emphatical that every word is pronounced slowly and with energy, though the first access of this passion often stops all utterance; when, by the discovery of something excellent in the object of wonder, the emotion may be called admiration, the eyes are raised, the hands are lifted up, and clapp'd together, and the voice elevated with expressions of rapture. Thou art, O God the life and light Of all this wondrous world we see; Its glow by day, its smile by night, Are but reflections caught from thee. Where'er we turn, thy glories shine, And all things fair and bright are Thine! When Day, with farewell beam, delays Among the opening clouds of even, And we can almost think we gaze Through golden vistas into Heaven, Those hues, that make the sun's decline So soft, so radiant, Lord! are Thine. When Night, with wings of starry gloom, O'ershadows all the earth and skies, Like some dark, beauteous bird, whose plume Is sparkling with unnumber'd eyes,That sacred gloom, those fires divine, So grand, so countless, Lord! are Thine. When youthful Spring around us breathes, Thy spirit warms her fragrant sigh; And every flower the Summer wreathes, Is born beneath that kindling eye. Where'er we turn, thy glories shine, And all things fair and bright are Thine! How inexpressibly various are the characteristics impressed by the Creator on all human beings! How has he stamped on each its legible and peculiar properties! How especially visible in this the lowest class of animal life! The world of insects, is a world of itself: how great the distance between it and man! Through all their forms, and gradations, how visible are their powers of destruction, of suffering and resisting, of sensibility and insensibility! Importance of Early Principles. If men's actions are an effect of their principles, that is, of their notions, their belief, their persuasions, it must be admitted, that principles-early sown in the mind, are the seeds, which produce fruit and harvest in the ripe state of manhood. How lightly soever some men may speak of notions, yet, so long as the soul governs the body, men's notions must influence their actions, more or less, as they are stronger or weaker and to good or evil, as they are better or worse. Anecdote. Cyrus, the great king of Persia, when a boy, being at the court of his grandfather As-ty-a-ges, engaged to perform the office of cup-bearer at table. The duty of this office required him to taste the liquor, before presenting it to the king; but without performing this duty, Cyrus delivered the cup to his grandfather; who observed the omission, which he imputed to forgetfulness. "No," said Cyrus, "I purposely avoided it: because I feared it contained poison: for lately, at an entertainment, I observed that the lords of your court, after drinking it, became noisy, quarrelsome and frantic." Varieties. 1. In every departure from truth, it is the deceit and hypocricy we exert, to compass our purpose, that does the evil, more than the base falsehood, of which we are guilty. 2. It is a strong proof of the want of proper attention to our duty, and of a deficiency of energy and good sense, to let an opportunity pass, of doing or getting good, without improving it. 3. Of all the passions, jealousy is that which exacts the hardest service, and pays the bitterest wages; its service is to watch the success of a rival; its wages-to be sure of it. 4. Base envy withers at another's joy, and hates that excellence it cannot reach. 5. How does the mental and bodily statures of the ancients, compare with those of the moderns? 6. It seems like a law of order, that no one shall be long remembered with affection, by a race whom he has never benefitted. 7. The charity, that relieves distressed minds, is far superior to that, which relieves distressed bodies. 8. Think'st thou-it is honorable-for a noble man still to remember wrong? 9. This is the monstrosity of love, that the will-is infinite, and the execution-confined; that the desire-is boundless, and the act-a slave to limit. What's in a name; that which we call a rose, Anecdote. Pulpit Flattery. One of the first acts, performed by the young monarch, George the Third, after his accession to the throne of England, was, to issue an order, prohibiting any of the clergy, who should be called before him, from paying him any compliments in their discourse. His majesty was led to this, from the fulsome adulation which Dr. Thomas Wilson, prebendary of Westminster, thought proper to deliver, in the royal chapel; and for which, instead of thanks, he received a pointed reprimand; his majesty observing, "that he came to hear the praise of God, and not his own." Love. The brightest part of love is its confidence. It is that perfect, that unhesitating reliance, that interchange of every idea and every feeling, that perfect community of the heart's secrets and the mind's thoughts, which binds two beings together more closely, more dearly than the dearest of human ties; more than the vow of passion, or the oath of the altar. It is that confidence which, did we not deny its sway, would give to earthly love a permanence that we find but very seldom in this world. Varieties. 1. Some misfortunes seem to be inevitable; but they generally proceed from our want of judgment, and prudence. 2. Ignorance of the facts, upon which a science is based, precludes much proficiency in that science. 3. Trade, like a restive horse, is not easily managed; where one is carried to the end of a successful journey, many are thrown off by the way. 4. No accident can do harm to virtue; it helps to make it manifest. 5. True faith is a practical principle; it is doing what we understand to be true. 6. It is very difficult to talk and act like a madman, but not like a fool. 7. Rely not on the companions of your pleasure; trust not the associates of your health and prosperity; it is only in the hour of adversity, that we learn the SCORN, CONTEMPT. 482.SNEER is ironical a p probation; with a voice and countenance of mirth, somewhat exaggerated, we cast the severest censure; it is hypocritical mirth and good humor, and differs from the real by the sly, arch, satyri cal tones of voice, look and gesture, that accompany it; the nose is sometimes turned up, to manifest our contempt, disdain. SCORN-is the extreme of contempt; that disdain, which springs from a person's opinions of the meanness of an object, and a consciousness, or belief of his own worth and superiority. Satan beheld their flight, And to his mates-thus, in derision call'd: As they would dance; yet for a dance, they rais'd The Investigation of Thought. While investigating the nature of thought, we forget that we are that, whithinking: we propose to understand in the very effort to do so, necessarily becomes the more unintelligible; for while we think that we appreciate the desired end, the power that enables us to do so, is a part of the thing sought, which must remain inexplicable. Since it is impossible to understand the nature of thought by thinking, it is manifest, that every modification of thought, must be quite obscure in its nature; and, for the same reason, in judging of what we call ideas, we must use ideas derived from the same original, while every judgment is only a new modification. Therefore, the only true philosophy of mind, must, as to its principles, be revealed. Has there been such a revela tion ? Anecdote. Brotherly Love. A little boy, seeing two nestling birds peck at each other, inquired of his elder brother, what they were doing. "They are quarreling," was the reply. "No," replied the other, "that cannot be, for they are brothers." VARIETIES. But seven wise men the ancient world did know; If a better system's thine, Impart it freely; or make use of mine. 3. He, who knows the world, will not be too bashful; and he, who knows himself, will never be impudent. 4. To speak all that is true, is the part of fools; to speak more than is true, is the folly of too many. 5. Does a candle give as much light in the day time, as at night? 6. I am not worthy of a friend, if I do not advise him when he is going astray. 7. A bad great man, is a great had man; for the greatness of an evil, makes a man's evil greater. 8. All public vices, are 483. You pretend to reason? you don't so much as know the first elements of the art of reasoning: you don't know the difference between a category and a predicament, nor between a major and a minor. Are you a doctor, and don't know that there is a communication between the brain and the legs? 2. SNEER. He has been an author these twen-not only crimes, but rules of error; for they ty years, to his bookseller's knowledge, if to no one's else. 3. Chafe not thyself about the rabble's censure: they blame, or praise, but as one leads the other. O what a rogue and peasant slave am I! What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba, Thou look'st a very statue of surprise, are precedents of evil. 9. Toyish airs, please Aside the devil turn'd, Ey'd them askance, and to himself thus plain'd: The happier Eden shall enjoy their fill Self-love never yet could look on Truth, FEAR, CAUTION. 484. FEAR is a powerful emotion, excited by expectation of some evil, or apprehension of impending danger; it expresses less apprehension than dread, and this less than terror or fright: it excites us to provide for our security on the approach of evil; sometimes settles into deep anxiety, or solicitude: it may be either filial in the good, or slavish in the wicked. See the engraving for its external appearance, and also Terror or Fright. Now, all is hush'd-and still, as death! [cold, of silver, which the boy conceiving was to be changed, went for that purpose; but, on his return, not finding his benefactor, he watched several days; at length the gentleman passed that way; when the boy accosted him, and gave him all the change, counting it with great exactness. The nobleman was so pleased with the boy's honesty, that he placed him at school, with the assurance of provid ing for him afterwards; which he did, and that boy became an ornament to humanity. Etiquette of Stairs. In showing a visitor-up or down stairs, always precede him, or her: there is a common error upon this subject, which ought to be corrected. Some persons will suffer you to precede them; even when they hold the light. Gentlemen should always precede ladies, up and down stairs. Etiquette of Riding. The gentleman should keep the lady on the right hand, that she may the more conveniently converse with him, and he may the more readily assist her, in case of accident. Varieties. 1. When you have bought one fine thing, you must buy ten more; so The tombs, and monumental caves of death, look that your appearance may all be of a piece. And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart. Amid the chords bewilder'd laid; A sudden trembling-seized on all his limbs, Full fast he flies, and dares not look behind him; Come, old sir,-here's the place-stand still; Anecdote. A nobleman, traveling in Scotland, was asked for alms, in Edinburgh, by a little ragged boy. He told him he had no change; upon which the boy offered to procure it. His lordship finally gave him a piece 2. Miraculous evidence, is inefficacious for producing any real, or permanent change in one's confirmed religious sentiments; and this is the reason, that no more of the Scribes and Pharisees of old, embraced the christian religion. 3. The great secret, by which happiness is to be realized, is to be contented with our lot, and yet strive to make it better, by abstaining from everything that is evil. 4. Every one is responsible for his own acts: all must be judged according to their deeds. 5. Is it not much easier to blame, than to avoid blame? 6. What is the difference between good and evil? 7. What makes us so discontented with our condition, is the false and exaggerated estimate, we form of the happiness of others. 8. It is much easier to plunge into extravagance, than to reduce our cxpenses; this is pre-eminently true of nutions, as well as individuals. 9. Be decisive, or mild, according to circumstances. 10. Suit your conduct to the occasion. As flame ascends, Nature Never did bring forth a man without a man; Spare not, nor spend too much; be this your care- |