wifdom the bleffings which heaven has more or lefs difpenfed to you; and if you can once learn to be content with them, you will certainly be happy.' Alimek, aftonished to find fuch good fenfe in a peafant, was deeply impreffed by the latter part of his argument. He took leave of him; and as he walked along, and revolved what had paffed in his mind, the more his heart began to relish the leffons he had received. Really,' thought he, this felicity which I have fo long fought with fuch folicitude, is to be found, after all, in the rural life to which I was bred. Ever fince I quitted my native fields, whatever I have done has removed me ftill farther from the object of my wishes. Alas! the secret which I found in the cavern, that invaluable fecret as I thought it, has proved a very fatal one. The more I think of it, the more I am convinced of this truth. In fact, what advantages have I derived from it. Tired of wandering here and there, I have acquired only the melancholy knowledge of the wickedness of men, every where the fame, and only foolishly varied by their extravagant caprices. Difgulted with their infipid pleasures, which have never afforded me one moment of real fatiffaction, and have led me almoft to the grave, I have seen the bow ftring prefented to me as the only reconìpence of all the anxiety which was the fruit of my ambition. Betrayed by a woman, who appeared to love me, and to flatter my hopes, behold me now, unknowing whither to direct my fteps, become infupportable in future to myself. Ah! how much happier fhould I have been, had remained in my native country, with my youthful timplicity of manners The re, paft I was wont to take there, was prepared with lefs art, but a good appetite gave it a relish. My clothes were plain, but they kept me from the feverity of the feafons. My cottage was poor, but my fleep was undisturbed by unquiet dreams. The care of my flock, or the culture of the fields, employed me the whole day. Ah! the good old man, whom heaven has certainly fent to rescue me from my error, was undoubtedly in the right. His voice is the voice of wisdom, which recalls me to the right way; and fince I have found it again, I must follow it.' He spent the whole night in these reflections; and in the morning he rofe early, with a refolution to go to the old man, and request his confent to live with him in future, that he might find, at laft, that happinefs from which he had fled, even while he was purfuing it. The old man, with a benignant fmile, said to him: I am rejoiced to find that the fimplicity and innocence of our life appears fo defirable to you now. You did not think so yesterday. We muft not imagine, however, that there are no other methods of being happy than by living in the country. Even in the hurry and buttle of cities, and of opulence, you may become fo, if you know how to preferve conftantly tranquillity of mind, enjoy the bleffings of life by reftraining the turbulence of defire, and fcorning indolence, employ yourfelf wifely and ufefully. Nothing more is requifite' This is poffible,' returned Alimek; but I should find it very difficult to obtain, by myself, the happiness that appears with you: befides, I am no ftranger to a rural life.' He then re. lated to him his origin, his adventure in the cavern, and all that had happened fince. He prefented both the purfe and the ring to the good old man. I prefept them to you,' fid he, if you will only permit me to live with you in future. I accept your gi't,' replied the old man,' not to make use of it, (Heaven preserve me from fuch fatal thoughts) but merely to keep it for you, in cafe, unfortunately, the time fhould come, when the fimplicity and frugality of cur life, may with you to refume it. How wife foever the refolution you have taken, it appears to me too fudden and precipitate: you may repens of it when too late. You will make At might requeft her for his wife, with- Alimek having now attained a flate of happines which neither riches, pleasures, nor honours had ever been able to procure him, was anxious to have the purfe and ring buried in fuch a manner, that no perioa, by finding them, foould adopt, like him, the fatal defire of rendering himfe.f miferable, in the fearch of happiness, where he is feldom or never to be found. On the TRUE MEANS of PROMOTING FEMALE BEAUTY, WHEN I had finished the pa per, in the laft Magazine, On Natural and artificial Beauty, it occurred to me, as, perhaps, it did to many of my readers, that the fubject was fo far from being exhaufted, that, in fact, I treated only of one, and that not the principal branch of it. I had, indeed, to the best of my abilities, endeavoured to show, that the artificial beauty which may be bought, which, as the wits fay, comes and goes,' comes at noon and goes at night, and which may even be fetched and carried,' is not only inefficacious, but even hurtful. But I had faid lefs on the true means of promoting female beauty than a fub jett of fuch importance demanded. This defect I fhallow endeavour to fupply, after a few preliminary confiderations, the truth of which mult be granted to me, otherwife all that follows wil pafs for nothing, or, which is next to nothing, the reveries of a vifionary, who thinks of things impracticable. In the first place, then, I hope it will be allowed, that all beauty of face proceeds from expreffion, which is, in other words, faying, that it proceeds from the mind, and, confequently, that the best minds must convey the moft pleasing and lovely expreffion to the face. Hence it is that we find fome women irresistibly attactive, whofe features cannot be called either regular or beautiful. To exprets this mixed beauty, th's beauty made up of parts which cannot and alone, it is called the tour-cnfmble, a phrafe which we borrow from the French, having no word in our language, which comes quite up to the fame meaning A face, on the other hand, merely beaut ful, that is regularly beautiful, and which correl, ponds with thofe rules of proportion in which we fancy real beauty confils, never pleafes one moment longer than we become convinced that it is animated, or put in motion, if I may use the phrafe, by a fenfible and virtuous mind. From From these premises I would propofe certain rules by which beauty may be heightened and improved, where it already exifts, and may be even created where nature, no doubt for very wife purposes, has not thought fit to grant it. Thefe rules, although they may feem rather negative than pofitive, rather prefcribing what is to be avoided than what is to be practised, will nevertheless answer the purpose intended as well in this form as in any other. The first thing which I fhall mention as creating ugliness, and that in an eminent degree, is affectation. This is a fpecies, and a very difagreeable one, of hypocrify. It is a pretending to fome quality of the mind, or grace of the perfon, which does not belong to us. It difcovers itfelf in all the motions and actions of life, in fpeaking, in walking, and every gefture. In fpeaking, it gives birth to a thoufand abfurdities, and unna⚫tural tones of the voice, counterfeiting a lifp, a fentimental melancholy, nay will even fometimes condefcend fo low as to show how prettily a ftammer may become the lips of a fine lady. In walking, it produces many mincing and tripping steps, as far removed from the rules of the dancing fchool as those of nature. The tofs of the head, flirt of the fan, and all the motions of the eyes maiplaced, are alfo the confequence of a habit of affectation. Coquetry is one very common effect of the fame; and coquetry, if it ever reaches the married flate, is abominably difgufting, while in that of aged celibacy, it degenerates into fmething worie, fomething fo forbidding, as to repel the utmolt efforts of good-nature to bear with it, and, at this time of life particularly, argues a mind very delitute of refources within itself, and very defirous to how the eagerness of expectation with the hopelenets of defpair. Whoever, therefore, would with to appear beautiful at any age, muft caft off this ridiculous habit, and let nature and good fenfe have fair play. Pride is a fecond caufe of uglinefs. It is almoft impoffible to look on a beauty with any fatisfaction after we difcover the operations of pride and haughtiness. The conquefts of beauty are to be afcribed to its attracting power; but if there be a repelling power greater than the other, victory is attempted in vain. It does not matter much what the object of this pride may be, whether rank, riches, or beauty itself; the effect is the fame. It cannot be contemplated without pain and difguft, and when it operates, it creates a deformity of feature which is really ridiculous. But pride is a fubject which has been fo often treated at great length, and is, I prefume, fo well understood, that it is not neceffary to enlarge upon it here. I fhall only oblerve that pride, fuch pride as is here meant, has never for its object any thing really good, or meritorious. Ilnature is fo obvious an enemy to beauty as to need only to be mentioned. It inclines a man,' as an eminent author fays, to those actions that thwart, and four, and difturb converfation, and confifts of a pronenefs to do ill turns, attended with a fecret joy upon the fight of any mifchief that befalls another, and of an utter infenfibility of any kindnefs done him.' A difpofition like this is fo truly unamiable, that it is impoffible we can accept of the most beautiful face as an apology; whereas a dispofition to acts of good nature never fail to heighten our peaiure, and to throw into the countenance an expreffion of heartfelt approbation, which may furely be denominated a beauty. To fay of a woman that he is rich, of high rank, and accomplished, but illnatured, is fayi: g quite enough to deter any man from viewing her with the eye of approbation or deûre, except, perhaps, fome wretched fortunehunter, who would confent to be miferable on condition of being rich, or who perhaps meditates the poffeflion of her perfon, that he may lavish her riches on pleafures in which the must not participate. The regular government of the paf fions is the great fource of beauty. Anger, which is fo nearly allied to illnature that I might have included both in one, is a greater enemy to beauty than almost any other paffion; for it directly transforms the woman into the fury; and although its effects may be temporary, they are feldom forgotten. When a man expreffes his admiration of a lady's beauty, it is robbing him of his good opinion at once, to fay-Yes, but you have not yet seen her in a paffion!' Indeed we are fo apt to connect the ideas of female beauty with meeknefs, good nature and a placid temper, that if we have once feen a reputed beauty in a violent paffion, we fee a phenomenon fo ftrange and terrifying that we never forget it, and are, perhaps, too ready to bring it to mind. From this, like wife, proceeds what may be called, habitual anger, peevishness. This, though not fo violent and ftormy as the other, yet commits more dreadful ravages on the features, because it is almost always in motion. A peevish perlon is continually difpleafed at trifles, fretful, morofe, and wafpifh. There is no pleafing fuch, and they are most frequently left to themselves as incurable. The utmost that can be done is to pity fuch, for the greatest fund of good-nature must foon be exhaufted, if expended on peevishness. That this difpofition muft foon spoil, the finest features ever formed is obvious from a thoufand examples. It operates like sickness, and without the hope of a cure. The oppofite of this is good-humour, and a temper formed for focial compliance. Where we meet with this we are seldom anxious to discover fine features, or complexion; where we meet with a peevith difpofition, beauty cannot fatisfy us, even if we could find it. As I have ftated that pride, illnature, anger, and peevishness, are the principal enemies to beauty, it may not be improper to hint, that there is one amusement which, as it is now too frequently managed, contributes more to produce thefe deformities than perhaps any other that can be mentioned. I mean gaming. Whenever playing cards ceafes to be an amufement, whenever people play for more money than they are either able, or willing to lofe, I call it gaming. The anxiety produced by the hopes and fears of luck may be observed to have a vifible effect on the countenance, and I may venture to say, feldom a pleafing one. When we difcover a frowning, difcontented countenance, and that for a whole evening, at a run of ill luck, we are apt to wonder that any reasonable being will fubject herself to what he is fo ill able to bear; and where, on the other hand, we discover gladness and rejoicing, and a fine flow of fpirits, we are as apt to regret that fuch happinefs has no better foundation than in mere chance, and in the acquifition of that which is again perhaps immediately to be hazarded, and to be lott. I know not what the fentiments of all men may be, but the fentiments of all I ever converfed with on this fubject, amount to this, that a woman never appears to lefs advantage than when her countenance undergoes all the viciffitudes of anger, fretfulnefs, anxiety, and joy, on account of what the may lofe or gain at the card table. In fact, when we know the effects which gambling produces on men, we know that it mult produce the fame on women, although, in fome respects, in a lefs degree, or rather I should say in a lefs obvicus degree. They may not, for example, fwear and blafpheme; but it is to be feared that when an oath is rifing, they are often compelled to take lady Townley's method, and gulp it down.' How fhocking it is (an author fomewhere fays, but I quote from memory) to fee that eye which was formed to beam delight on all around, impiously uplifted to heaven, at the lofs of an odd trick! Many recent examples in high life, very plainly fhow that the love of gaming deprives a woman of all that is amiable in the fex; and when peace of mind is destroyed, what becomes of the finest form, or the most beautiful features? I have dwelt perhaps too much on this odious fubject; connected as it is with the means of injuring female beauty, I could not well omit it; and prevalent as it is in the higher circles, it was not easy to say any thing, and fay lefs. As beauty is itself a fign of health, it must be obvious that to preferve it, great attention must be paid to health. To prefcribe in this matter would be the province of the physician rather than of the effayift, were there not certain fashionable practices which may be adverted to in a paper of this kind with fingular propriety. Of thefe, however, I-fhall only mention late hours, which are commonly spent in crowded rooms or affemblies; and that exposure to the air which follows. It is almost needless to say that these are pernicious to health, and confequently deftructive of beauty. But they are fo powerfully fupported by fashion, that it is impoffible to abftain from them; and it was no doubt to repair the ravages committed on the faces of our charming country women by fuch practices, that cofmetics were invented. Of these enough was faid in an effay on this fubject. There is one other enemy to female beauty which may be mentioned, and which is not unfrequently to be met with; I mean, an affectation of mafculine manners and language. Nature has endowed the fair fex with fuch amiable qualities, even of manner, voice, and words, that we can feldom look with approbation on her who attempts the more rough, and uncourteous manners of our fex. The Spectator gives us an account of a rural Andromache, who,' fays he, ⚫is one of the greateft fox-hunters in the country. She talks of hounds and horses, and makes nothing of leaping over a fix-bar gate. If a man tells her a waggish ftory, the gives him a push with her hand in jeft, and calls him an impudent dog; and if her fervant neglects his bufinefs, threatens to kick him out of the houfe. I have heard her, in her wrath, call a fubftantial tradefman, a loufy cur; and remember one day, when he could not think of the name of a perfon, fhe defcribed him, in a large company of men and ladies, by the fellow with the broad fhoulders.' The fame author obferves that, if those fpeeches and actions, which in their own nature are indifferent, appear ridiculous when they proceed from a wrong sex, the faults and imperfections of one sex tranfplanted into another, appear black and monstrous. To conclude, as we have feen that the common methods of restoring, or improving beauty, are not only inefficacious, but hurtful, it might not, perhaps, be amifs to confider, that the fource of all beauty is in the mind, and that its greateft deficiencies in the perfon may be amply fupplied, by cultivating habits of benevolence, good nature, kindnefs, and affability; by ftoring the mind with fenfe and obfervation, and providing resources, not only against the trivial and petty afperities, but even the more ferious calamities of life. The beauty of a woman who has recourfe to fuch cofmetics will never fade, and never cease to preserve the affection it has attracted; whereas mere beauty of face is given but for a few years, and is liable to a thousand accidents, which may deftroy it in a moment. The highest character that can be poffibly given of a woman, I hall conclud with, in the words of Juba: True fhe is fair-Oh how divinely fair! But ftill the lovely maid improves her charms With inward greatness, unaffected wif- fmiles Dwell in her looks. THOUGHTS |