Of her old captive parents the fole joy:
And that a hapless Celtiberian prince,
Her lover and belov'd, forgot his chains,
His loft dominions, and for her alone
Wept out his tender foul; fudden the heart
Of this young, conquering, loving, god-like Roman
Felt all the great divinity of virtue.

His wishing youth flood check'd, his tempting power
Reftrain'd by kind humanity.-
At once

He for her parents and her lover call'd.
The various fcene imagine; how his troops
Look'd dubious on, and wonder'd what he meant :
While ftretch'd below the trembling fuppliants lay,
Rack'd by a thousand mingling paffions, fear,
Hope, jealoufy, disdain, submission, grief,
Anxiety and love in every fhape.
To these fo different fentiments fucceed
As mixt emotions, when the man divine
Thus the dread filence to the lover broke.

"We both are young; both charm'd. The right of war "Has put thy beauteous miftrefs in my power; "With whom I could, in the most facred ties, "Live out a happy life: but know, that Romans "Their hearts, as well as enemies, can conquer. "Then take her to thy foul; and with her take "Thy liberty and kingdom. In return "I ask but this; when you behold thefe eyes, "These charms, with transport; be a friend to Rome."

-Thomfon.

COURAGE.

TRUE courage but from oppofition grows;
And what are fifty, what a thousand flaves
Match'd to the finew of a fingle arm
That ftrikes for liberty!-Brooke.

This is true courage, not the brutal force
Of vulgar heroes, but the firm refolve
Of virtue and of reafon. He who thinks
Without their aid to fhine in deeds of arms,
Builds on a fandy bafis his renown;
A dream, a vapour, or an ague fit
May make a coward of him.-Whitehead.

Court.

COURT.

Would you be happy, leave this fatal place;

Fly from the court's pernicious neighbourhood,
Where innocence is fhunn'd, and blufhing modefty
Is made the fcorner's jeft; where hate, deceit,
And deadly ruin, wear the mafk of beauty,

And draw deluded fools with fhews of pleasure.-Rowe.
-THE noblet proof of love
That Athelwold can give, is ftill to guard
Your tender beauties from the blasting taint
Of courtly gales. The delicate foft tints
Offnowy innocence, the crimfon glow
Of blushing modefty, there all fly off,
And leave the faded face no nobler boaft
Then well-rang'd, lifelefs features. Ah, Elfrida;
Should you be doom'd, which happier fate forbid !
To drag your hours thro' all that naufeous scene
Of pageantry and vice; your purer breast,
True to its virtuous relish, foon would heave
A fervent figh for innocence and Harewood.-Mafon.

73

LET us compare what the historians of all ages have faid concerning the courts of monarchs; let us recollect the converfation and fentiments of people of all countries, in refpect to the wretched character of courtiers; and we fhall find, that these are not mere airy fpeculations, but things confirmed by a fad and melancholy experience.

Ambition joined to idleness, and business to pride; a defire of obtaining riches without labor, and an averfion to truth; flattery, treachery, perfidy, violation of engagements, contempt of civil duties, fear of the prince's virtues, hope from his weaknefs; but, above all, a perpetual ridicule cast upon virtue, are, I think, the characteristics by which most courtiers, in all ages and countries, have been conftantly diftinguished.-Montesquieu. ALL the prostitutes who fet themselves to fale, all the locufts who devour the land, with crowds of fpies, parafites, and fycophants, and whole fwarms of little, noifome, nameless infects, will hum and buz in every corner of the courta fort of men too low to be much regarded, and too high to be quite neglected, the lumber of every adminiftration, the furniture of every court. Thefe gilt carved things are feldom answerable for more than the men on a chefs board, who are moved about at will, and on whom the conduct of the game

P

G

is not to be charged. Some of thefe every prince muft have about him. The pageantry of a court requires that he should. -Bolingbroke.

I HAVE known courts these thirty-fix years, and know they differ; but in fome things they are extremely conftant. First, in the trite old maxim of a minitter's never forgiving those he hath injured. Secondly, in the infincerity of those who would be thought the best friends. Thirdly, in the love of fawning, cringing, and tale bearing. Fourthly, in facrificing thofe, whom we really wish well, to a point of intereft or intrigue. Fifthly, in keeping every thing worth taking, for thofe who can do fervice or dif-fervice.-Swift.

GOD help the man, condemn'd by cruel fate
To court the feeming, or the real great.
Much forrow fhall he feel, and fuffer more
Than any flave that labours at the oar.
By flavish methods must he learn to please,
By Imooth-tongu'd flattery, that curst court difeafe
Supple to every wayward mood, ftrike fail,
And fhift with fhifting humour's peevish gale.
To nature dead, he must adopt vile art,

And wear a smile with anguish in his heart.
A fenfe of honour would deftroy his fchemes,

And confcience ne'er must speak, unless in dreams.—Churchill.

COWARD.

COWARDS die many times before their death:
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange, that man fhould fear;
Seeing that death, a neceffary end,
Will come when it will come.-Shakespeare.

COWARDS have courage when they fee not death;
And fearful hares that skulk in forms all day,
Yet fight their feeble quarrels by the moon-light;
-But valiant men

Still love the fun fhould witnefs what they do.-Dryden.
AS cheats to play with those still aim,

That do not understand the game;
So cowards never use their might,
But against fuch as will not fight.-Hudibras.

1

Croifade.-Crown.-Credulity.

CROISADE.

SURE I am, 'tis madness,

Inhuman madness, thus, from half the world
To drain its blood and treafure, to neglect
Each art of peace, each care of government;
And all for what? By fpreading defolation,
Rapine and flaughter o'er the other half,
To gain a conquest we can never hold.
I venerate this land. Thofe facred hills,
Thofe vales, thofe cities, trod by faints and prophets,
By God himself, the fcenes of heav'nly wonders,
Infpire me with a certain awful joy.

But the fame God, my friend, pervades, fuftains,
Surrounds and fills this universal frame;
And every land, where fpreads his vital prefence,
His all-enliv'ning breath, to me is holy.
Excufe me, Theald, if I go too far:
I meant alone to fay, I think these wars
A kind of perfecution. And whene'er
That most abfurd and cruel of all vices,
Is once begun, where fhall it find an end?
Each in his turn, or has, or claims a right
To wield its dagger, to return its furies;
And firft or laft they fall
laft they fall upon ourfelves.-Thomfon.

CROWN.

O polish'd perturbation! golden care!
That keep'it the ports of flumber open wide,
Το many a watchful night: fleep with it now:
But not fo found, and half fo deeply fweet,
As he whofe brow, with homely biggen bound,
Snores out the watch of night. O majefty!
When thou doft pinch thy bearer, thou doft fit
Like a rich armour, worn in heat of day,
That fcalds with fafety.-Shakespeare.

75

CREDULITY.

THE credulous man is ready to receive every thing for truth, that has but the fhadow of evidence. Every new book that he reads, and every ingenious man with whom he converfes, has power enough to draw him into the fentiments of the fpeaker or writer. He has fo much complaifance in him, or weakness of foul, that he is ready to refign his own opinion

to the first objection which he hears, and to receive any fentiments of another that are afferted with a pofitive air and much affurance. Thus he is under a kind of neceffity, through the indulgence of this credulous humour, either to be often changing his opinions, or to believe inconfiftencies.

The man of contradiction flands ready to oppofe every thing that is faid. He gives but a flight attention to the reafons of other men, from an inward fcornful prefumption, that they have no frength in them. When he reads or hears a difcourfe different from his own fentiments; he does not give himself leave to confider, whether that difcourfe may be true; but employs all his powers immediately to confute it. Your great difputers, and your men of controverfy, are in continual danger of this fort of prejudice. They contend often for victory, and will maintain whatfoever they have afferted, while truth is loft in the noife and tumult of reciprocal contradictions: and it frequently happens, that a debate about opinions is turned into mutual reproach of perfons.-Waits.

THE prejudice of credulity may in fome meafure be cured, by learning to fet a high value upon truth, and by taking more pains to attain it; remembering that truth often lies dark and deep, and requires us to dig for it as hidden treasure; and that falfehood often affumes a fair difguife, and therefore we fhould not yield up our judgment to every plaufible appearance. It is no part of civility or good breeding to part with truth, but to maintain it with decency and candor.

A fpirit of contradiction is so pedantic and hateful, that a man fhould take much pains with himself to watch against every inftance of it: he fhould learn fo much good-humour, at least, as never to oppofe any thing without jult and folid reason for it he fhould abate fome degrees of pride and morofeness, which are never-failing ingredients in this fort of temper, and fhould feek after fo much honesty and confcience, as never to contend for conqueft or triumph; but to review his own reafons, and to read the arguments of his opponents, if poffible, with an equal indifferency, be glad to fpy a truth, and to fubmit to it, though it appear on the oppofite fide.-Idem.

OF all kinds of credulity, the moft obftinate and wonderful is that of political zealots; of men who being numbered, they know not how, or why, in any of the parties that divide a state, refign the use of their own eyes and ears, and refolve to believe nothing that does not favour thofe whom they profefs to follow. Idler.