character was a very difgraceful thing, and that we ought not to be only as bad as our paflions and our fituation may incline us, but that there is fomething noble and dignified in concealing all that is good, and magnifying and multiplying all that is evil. I have faid that this affectation muft proceed from an excess of humility; and truly that man who is contented to be accounted infamous must be as humble, as he ought to be contrite, if he really were fo. I, who hold fome antiquated notions, do humbly prefume to be of opinion, that the portion of wickedness which we cannot eafily avoid is quite enough to boast of, if there be any merit in the cafe, and quite enough to repent of, when we come to entertain different views of things. I cannot fee the propriety of thinking ourselves fo contemptibly virtuous, that it becomes neceffary for us to be reputedly vicious, contrary to inclination and ablity. But I am aware that other people confider this in a different light, and that feats of frolicsome life are virtues in fome eftimation. It would elfe be perfectly unaccountable that any man fhould wish to inform his friends that he had made a beast of himself, deftroyed the peace of a family, or killed a horfe in mere wantonnefs. laundrefs' daughter, and of her now being on the town; his friends fmiled, for they all knew the extreme tendernefs of his heart, and that he would have been the verieft miferable wretch' upon earth, had he even in the most diftant degree affifted, or even connived at villany. It was but the other day, I reprefented the diftrefs of an unhappy family to a party of my acquaintances, and informed them, that I propofed to raise a fmall fum for their immediate relief, until fomething more fubftantial could be provided for them. Most of the company gave me a contribution, but Ned Careless declared with an oath, that he would give nothing; fuch applications were endless; as for the woman and her brats, there was the parish workhoufe; I wonder, Mr. Oldftile, that you would difturb the conviviality of a company of gentlemen by such stuff.'-I did not refent Ned's language. We all knew his foible, and before parting he took an opportunity to flip into my hand a fum equal to all that I had gathered, accompanying it with a fqueeze and a fhrug, Don't let this go farther, my dear Oldftile.' Ned has a coufin, Sam. Serious, a young fellow who is always cracking jokes at religion and the parfons, and may be feen every Sunday at church twice-aday, into which, however, he fteals, as if he were doing a bad action. Ned. I ought not to omit, has worked himself into a pretty bad character, and I am much at a lofs to know how he will be able to extricate himself from it. Nothing fatisfies him fhort of being the first in all forts of wickednefs and debauchery. If one boats that he drunk three bottles at a fitting, Ned is fure to have drunk four; when he goes aftray, it must be with two frail ones at leaft; and where another would have røde the fame horfe fifteen miles without ftopping, Ned adds a mile or two for fuperiority's fake. One would really think, Mr. Editor, that the acquifition of a good My name, fir, lets you partly into the fecret of our family. The Oldft.les are now faft decaying. A few of us exift, the ruins of our former confequence and grandeur. It was always a maxim in our days, that it was not neceffary for any man to ap pear worse than he is, and that when he confeffed his follies, he ought to do it with fidelity, and not caricature them into improbabilities. To do otherwife is, in the language of one of our family, an inverted ambition,' and thofe who are guilty of it are not true but falfe hypocrites; a ftrange expreffion, but ftrange follies require ftrange expreffions. The motive, says he, of this monstrous affectation, I take to proceed from that noble thirst Сс of of fame and reputation, which is planted in the hearts of all men. As this produces elegant writings and gallant actions in men of great abilities, it alfo brings forth fpurious productions in men who are not capable of ditinguishing themfelves by things which are really praife worthy. As the defire of fame in men of true wit and gallantry fhews itfelf in proper in ftances, the fame defire in men, who have the ambition without proper faculties, runs wild, and discovers itself in a thousand extravagances, by which they would fignalize themfelves from others, and gain a fet of admirers. My advice to young men, who are addicted to this inverted ambition, is to confider whether they really have fo many good qualities, and virtuous difpofitions as to expofe them to ridicule, and whether it be really a fact, that fuch difpontions do expofe them to the ridicule of perfons, whofe good opinion it would be an honour to acquire. I have many doubts on this fubject myself; I queftion very much whether the young gentlemen of our .. days be in danger of falling into contempt, upon account of the rectitude of their conduct; and, as far as my obfervation goes, I do aver, with fome earneftnefs, that I know of none whose faults, fimply and fairly reprefented, are not quite enough to form the fade of character. As to the opinion of the world, much may be faid. If by the world, we mean geographically the whole earth, the majority, I believe, will determine in favour of goodness; but I know that, in the common acceptation of this word, it means no more than the circle of a man's acquaintances. If they be fuch as to be charmed with the exaggerations of this inverted ambition, he will no doubt gratify them with a caricature of his foibles, but out of that circle, I am afraid, he will lofe more reputation than he will gain, and will be accounted very infignificant and very contemptible, in compliment to his having endeavoured to be really fo. I am, fir, your humble fervant, OLIVER OLDSTILE. Interefting ANECDOTE of a celebrated ENGRAVER. [From The Rhine: Or a Journey from Utrecht to Francfort; chiefly by the Borders of the Rhine, and the Paffage down that River from Mentz to Bonn; by T. Cogan, M. D.' 2 vol. 8vo.] LETTER XIX. Duffeldorff. fpirit breathed in their narratives, and tempted to curfe the fpecies. But compaffionate readers would Nothing gives us more fallacious feel themielves more compofed, if they ideas of human nature, or militates with greater force in favour of the opinion, that a very inconfiderable portion of comfort is poffeffed by mankind, than the pages of general history. We are induced, I may fay, feduced, by the narratives of the hiftorian, to contemplate the creation as one great theatre of violence. Mankind are confidered as univerfally oppreffive, cruel, unrelenting. In a word, blood-fhed and devaftation are fuppofed to be the common lot of humanity; fo that even the compaflionate reader is impelled to catch the 5 recollected, that, by the perufal of a few months, a feries of events are made to pafs in review before us, which required years and ages to be put into execution;-if they recollected, that general history is the magazine of diftrefs, villany, and cruelty;-that its pages are profeffedly crowded with extraordinary incidents;-and that the intermediate periods, paffed over in filence, are filled up with peaceful enjoyment. Of every army that has been cut off, the individuals that compofed it, must have paffed through years allotted to growth growth and maturity, before they could be brought forward upon the theatre of action: they must have arrived to a certain age, before they were ripe for being hot through the body, or hewn to pieces in battle; and, fince ftanding armies, and difciplined troops, have been fubftituted in the place of irregulars, the largest affemblage of military force, is but a comparatively finall felection from the multitude. All cities muft have flourifhed for years, and fome have for ages, before difcord and tyranny could have deftroyed them. In short, the hiftory of diftreffed countries, refembles the hiftory of hofpitals and mad houfes whoever takes a furvey of thefe, may be aftonished, perhaps, as well as affected, with their number. But, excepting in occafional epidemics, or in other particular circumftances, this number of the fick and the maimed, &c. does not frike us in the common walks of life, or they appear in too fmall a proportion, to excite a murmur. We are not to form an estimate of the quantum of enjoyment poffeffed by oxen and fheep, by the bloody fcenes of a ilaughterhoufe. We fhould also recollect, that the narratives of commotions and wars, and great exertions, and great fufferings, are highly pleafant to the mind. In history, romance, and tragedy, it is the plots, and intrigues, and cruelties of one party, and the diftrefs, or intricate fituation of the other, that render thefe publications fo peculiarly interefting. Our attention relaxes, when fufferings are at an end. We drop the curtain, when the ftrug gles of diftrefs are no more, and are contented with very c nfuled and general ideas of the happiness which enfues, without being inquifitive concerning the minuter circumftances that compofe it. Thus, after the mind has been eagerly engaged in the contemplation of all the component parts of mifery, and dwelt upon every part with minute attention, it draws the fallacious conclufion, that there is fcarcely any thing in the world but wretchednefs. No, my friend, this is not fair: there must be a large portion of enjoyment in the world, when diftrefs itfelf is made the fubject of innocent, and even fublime delight! Once more: vice generally advertifes itself, by the great and immediate mifchief it does;-vice, like poifon, is deftructive in fmaller dofes; while the practice of virtue, like the daily ufe of nutritious food, is a ítill, quiet, habitual procefs, fupporting habitual health and comfort. Thoufands, and tens of thousands, for example, are daily nourished by the ufe of milk, and no one rejoices at the good; but, if this milk happens to turn four in a brafs kettle, and proves fatal to a few individual, the disaster is in every public paper, and in every mouth; and we all fhudder at the evil. In this manner I love to contemplate human nature; and it does my heart good. It has a triple advantage. It infpires with more pious fentiments of the divine government,-with more kindly ideas of our fellow mortals, and it diffuses a cheerful calm over the mind, which the mind never can enjoy, without being in tolerable unifon with every thing around it. Yes, fir, I am pofitive that there is much virtue in the world, and confequently, much happinefs. Innumerable would be the inftances of virtuous conduct, if, unfortunately for the juftification of the human character, virtue was not, generally fpeaking, of fo filent and referved a nature. As it moftly loves to do good in private, we cannot always trace its fteps. It may work infenfibly; but it works with efficacy; and fociety is kept together in tolerable order, without its energy being immediately perceived, or the links of its connection being diftinctly marked. If all the good which has been done, were as loudly proclaimed as the evil, fure I am, that it would make noife enough to ftifle the voice of complaint. the wish of his foul; but his father, having a numerous family, could not afford the expence of fuitable inftructions. I defign to travel,' adds he; When, therefore, we are able to draw out of obfcurity, inftances of noble fentiment and conduct, I beg leave to confider these as the accidental discovery of what is naturally la-but, as my father cannot furnish the tent, and as fmall fpecimens of the means, and as I knew that you were much that remains behind, rather than fond of drawings, I was emboldened as unufual inftances of philanthropy. to make this application to you, in With this view, I fhall proceed to the hopes that you would purchase the Narrative promifed you, and intro- copy, to furnish immediate help, and duce to your acquaintance a whole I must truft to my industry and good groupe of worthies, co-operating to fortune, for future advancement." effectuate the happiness of an individual. Every one who vifits Antwerp, is made acquainted with the hiftory of the Smith, whom love converted into an excellent Painter; but every one who vifits Duffeldorff, is not informed of the hiftory of a Baker, changed into an excellent Engraver, Love, indeed, was not the cause, but the confequence of this change. NARRATIVE. Call here to-morrow, without fail,' fays Mr. Krahe, with an emphafis that manifefted pleasure and atonishment. Early the next morning, the profeffor called upon an intimate friend at Keyferfwerth, a few miles diftant from Duffeldorff: of which place the young man was a native. I take no fecurity,' anfwered his friend; and he advanced three hundred crowns. This friend, with the power, had the difpofition to do good. Krahe told him the ftory, fhewed him the workmanship, and begged him to lend SOME years ago, while profeffor the young artist two hundred crowns. Krahe was fuperintendant of the gal-He will, doubtlefs,' adds he, belery of paintings, he received a vifit come, in a few years a distinguished from a young baker of the town; engraver, and be able to reimburse who, after a very fhort introduction, you. I will be fecurity for the paytook a book out of his pocket, which ment.' he prefented to Mr. Krahe, expreffing a defire that he would purchase it. The fuperintendant found, upon examination, that it was a prayerbook, ornamented, in the ancient ftyle of religious foppery, with a number of coloured figures and engravings. It was the one which the elector Clement Auguftus, of Cologne, had ordered to be publifhed, and was become very scarce and valuable. The profeffor enquired whence he had it; and the young man antwered, with a modeft blufh, that it was a copy from one he had borrowed. By whom?' By myself,' rejoins the youth. Upon a clote examination, Mr. Krahe could fcarcely diftinguish the copy from the original. He could not conceal his furprife, and asked, why he did not practife engraving, rather than continue a baker? The youth anfwered, that it was Krahe returned to the aftonished and tranfported baker with the money. He quitted the oven, learned geometry and perfpective, applied to drawing according to the rules of the art, and acquired a competent knowledge of hiftory. After affiduous application, for the fpace of two years, the young man had made fuch rapid progrefs, that Mr. Krahe advised him to quit Duffeldorff, where no further improvement was to be expected, and visit Paris, promifing him a letter of introduction to Mr. Willes, a celebrated engraver in that metropolis. Schmitz (for this was the young man's name) put his advice into execution; and, in order to economize his little flore, he travelled on foot from from Duffeldorff to Paris. But unfortunately, he fell ill immediately upon his arrival; and, although he applied to a monaftery, where he was hofpitably received, and carefully attended, yet incidental expences, during an illness of fome continuance, had entirely exhausted his little store. Upon his recovery, that delicate kind of pride, which fo frequently accompanies true genius, forbade his making application to Mr. Willes, while he must appear as an indigent beggar. One day, as he was walking penfively in the streets, his mind occupied with his unfortunate fituation, he was met by two foldiers of the Swifs guards; one of whom accofted him with the enquiry, young man, are you not a German ?'-yes.' From whence?'- From Keyferswerth, near Dusseldorff.'— You are my countryman.-What do you do here?'-Schmitz relates to him the particulars of his hiftory; adding, that a long illness had exhaufted a large portion of his time, and all his money; and that he could not fupport the idea of being troublesome to any one. The foldiers advised him to enlift, affured him that the fervice was not fevere, and that he would have leifure to follow the bent of his genius. Schmitz accepted the propofition, was introduced to the captain of the regiment, was enlifted for four years, and fhortly after, was introduced to Mr. Willes, by the captain himself. As much time was indulged to him, as the nature of the fervice could poffibly admit, to purfue his favourite object, under the direction of Mr. Willes. He continued in this fituation the four years, when he received his difmifion. Finding that he was in the line of improvement, he continued at Paris two years longer, applying himself, with the utmost diligence, to the art of engraving: at the expiration of which term, he returned home, with the best attestations concerning his talents, industry, and moral conduct. Profeffor Krahe received him with open arms, was charmed with the progrefs he had made, and engaged him to work in the cabinet. He continued to work under the inspection of the profeffor, about two years, con→ ducting himself in fuch a manner, as to gain upon the affections of his patron. It was about this period, that the profeffor invited our artift to an entertainment, where feveral of his friends were to be prefent. He met his friends, and was entering into the joys of convivial intercourse, when he was informed that the entertainment was in honour of a ftranger. But alas! this ftranger was the destined husband of the profeffor's eldest daughter;-beautiful, in his eyes, as an angel; and wife, in his judgment, as a goddefs of wisdom. He made as precipitate a retreat as decency would permit, and left the brisk glass, and jovial fong, to circulate among the happy. The next morning, he returned to the cabinet with the utmoft dejection of mind and countenance. This fudden change was noticed by his benefactor, who inquired into the cause. Schmitz, in confufed expreffions, and with faultering voice, confeffed that he had fallen deeply in love with that very daughter who was fhortly to be in the poffeffion of another. Have you intimated to my daughter, the ftrength of your affection?' Never,' anfwered the noble youth; not in the most diftant manner. Could I, without title, fortune, or pretenfions of any kind, be fo bafe as to speak of love to the daughter of my friend, my patron, my benefactor? I was contented to fee her, and was careful to conduct myself in such a manner, that no fufpicions might arife, to debar me of that happiness; and now, I learn, that I am fhortly to bet deprived of the only fatisfaction to which I dared to atpire.' The benevolent profeffor tried his utmost to fcothe and comfort him,aflured him of the ftrength of his affection,-that he loved him as his own |