ly treated the question as very doubtful, whether virtue could be taught or not*? They juftly confidered, that cowardice, meannefs, levity, anxiety, impatience, folly, and many other qualities of the mind, might appear ridiculous and deformed, contemptible and odious, though independent of the will. could it be fuppofed, at all times, in every man's power to attain every kind of mental, more than of exterior beauty.

Nor

And here there recurs the fourth reflection which I purposed to make, in fuggefting the reason, why modern philofophers have often followed a course, in their moral enquiries, fo different from that of the ancients. In latter times, philofophy of all kinds, especially ethics, have been more closely united with theology than ever they were obferved to be among the Heathens; and as this latter fcience admits of no terms of compofition, but bends every branch of knowledge to its own purpose, without much regard to the phænomena of nature, or to the unbiaffed fentiments of the mind, hence reasoning, and even language, have been warped from their natural course, and diftinctions have been endeavoured to be establifhed, where the difference of the objects was, in a manner, imperceptible. Philofophers, or rather divines under that difguife, treating all morals, as on a like footing with civil laws, guarded by the fanctions of reward and punishment, were neceffarily led to render this circumftance, of voluntary or involuntary, the foundation of their whole theory. Every one may employ terms in what sense he pleases: But this, in the mean time, must be allowed, that fentiments are every day experienced of blame and praise, which have objects beyond the dominion of the will or choice, and of which it behoves us, if not as moralifts,

*Vid. PLATO in MENONE, SENECA de otio fap. cap. 31. So alfo HORACE, Virtutem doctrina paret, naturane donet. Epift. lib.i. ep. 18. ESCHINES SOCRATICUS. Dial, 1.

ralifts, as fpeculative philofophers at least, to give fome fatisfactory theory and explication.

A blemish, a fault, a vice, a crime; thefe expreffions feem to denote different degrees of cenfure and disapprobation; which are, however, all of them, at the bottom, pretty nearly of the fame kind or species. The explication of one will eafily lead us into a juft conception of the others; and it is of greater confequence to attend to things than to verbal appellations. That we owe a duty to ourselves is confeffed even in the moft vulgar fyftem of morals; and it must be of confequence to examine that duty, in order to fee whether it bears any affinity to that which we owe to fociety. It is probable, that the approbation, attending the obfervance of both, is of a fimilar nature, and arises from fimilar principles; whatever appellation we may give to either of thefe excellen

cies.

A

Y 3

A

DIALOGUE.
A L

friend, PALAMEDES, who is as great a rambler in his principles as in his perfon, and who has run over, by ftudy and travel, almoft every region of the intellectual and material world, furpri fed me lately with an account of a nation, with whom, he told me, he had paffed a confiderable part of his life, and whom he found, in the main, a people extremely civilized and intelligent.

There is a country, faid he, in the world, called FOURLI, no matter for its longitude or latitude, whose inhabitants have ways of thinking, in many things, particularly in morals, diametrically oppofite to ours. When I came among them, I found that I must submit to double pains; first to learn the meaning of the terms in their language, and then to know the import of thofe terms, and the praise or blame attached to them. After a word had been explained to me, and the character which it expreffed had been described, I concluded, that fuch an epithet must neceffarily be the greatest reproach in the world; and was extremely furprifed to find one in a public company apply it to a perfon, with whom he lived in the ftricteft intimacy and friendship. "You fancy," faid I, one day to an acquaintance, "that CHANGUIS is your mortal enemy: I love to extinguish quarrels; and I must therefore tell you, that I heard him talk of you in the most obli"ging manner." But to my great aftonishment, when I repeated CHANGUIS's words, though I had

66

46

both

both remembered and understood them perfectly, I found, that they were taken for the moft mortal affront, and that I had very innocently rendered the breach between these perfons altogether irreparable.

As it was my fortune to come among this people on a very advantageous footing, I was immediately introduced to the best company; and being defired by ALCHEIC to live with him, I readily accepted of his invitation; as I found him univerfally efteemed for his perfonal merit, and indeed regarded by every one in FOURLI as a perfect character.

One evening he invited me, as an amusement, to bear him company in a serenade, which he intended to give to GULKI, with whom, he told me, he was extremely enamoured; and I foon found that his tafte was not fingular: For we met many of his rivals, who had come on the fame errand. I very naturally concluded, that this mistress of his must be one of the fineft women in town; and I already felt a fecret inclination to fee her, and be acquainted with her. But as the moon began to rife, I was much furprised to find, that we were in the midst of the univerfity where GULKI ftudied: And I was fomewhat ashamed for having attended my friend on fuch an errand.

I was afterwards told, that ALCHEIC's choice of GULKI was very much approved of by all the good company in town; and that it was expected, while he gratified his own paffion, he would perform to that young man the fame good office which he had himfelf owed to ELCOUF. It feems ALCHEIC had been very handfome in his youth, had been courted by many lovers; but had beftowed his favours chiefly on the fage ELCOUF; to whom he was fuppofed to owe, in a great measure, the aftonishing progress which he had made in philosophy and virtue. It gave me fome furprife, that ALCHEIC's wife (who

Y 4

(who by-the-bye happened also to be his fifter) was no wife fcandalized at this fpecies of infidelity.

Much about the fame time I difcovered (for it was not attempted to be kept a secret from me or any body) that ALCHEIC was a murderer and a parricide, and had put to death an innocent perfon, the most nearly connected with him, and whom he was bound to protect and defend by all the ties of nature and humanity. When I asked, with all the caution and deference imaginable, what was his motive for this action? he replied coolly, that he was not then fo much at eafe in his circumftances as he is at prefent, and that he had acted, in that particular, by the advice of all his friends.

Having heard ALCHEIC's virtue fo extremely celebrated, I pretended to join in the general voice of acclamation; and only asked, by way of curiofity, as a stranger, which of all his noble actions was moft highly applauded? and I foon found, that all fentiments were united in giving the preference to the affaffination of USBEK. This USBEK had been to the last moment ALCHEIC's intimate friend, had laid many high obligations upon him, had even saved his life on a certain occafion, and had by his will, which was found after the murder, made him heir to a confiderable part of his fortune. ALCHEIC, it feems, confpired with about twenty or thirty more, most of them alfo USBEK's friends; and falling altogether on that unhappy man, when he was not aware, they had torn him with a hundred wounds, and given him that reward for all his paft favours and obligations. USBEK, faid the general voice of the people, had many great and good qualities; his very vices were fhining, magnificent, and generous: But this action of ALCHEIC's fets him far above UsBEK in the eyes of all judges of merit; and is one of the nobleft that ever perhaps the fun fhone upon.

Another part of ALCHEIC'S conduct, which I alfo found highly applauded, was his behaviour towards CALISH,