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The crash of falling

me redoubled my amazement. houfes, the tottering of towers, and the groans of the dying, all contributed to raife my terror and defpair. On every fide of me, I faw nothing but a scene of ruin; and danger threatening wherever I fhould fly. 1 commended myfelf to God, as my laft great refuge. At that hour, O how vain was every fublunary happinefs! Wealth, honour, empire, wisdom, all mere ufelefs founds, and as empty as the bubbles in the deep! Juft ftanding on the threshold of eternity, nothing but God was my pleafure; and the nearer I approached, I only loved him the more. After fome time, however, finding that I remained unhurt, amidst the general concufsion, I refolved to venture for fafety; and running as faft as I could, I reached the fhore, but al moft terrified out of my reafon. I did not fearch long here, till I found the boat in which I had landed; and my companions alfo, whofe terrors were even greater than mine. Our meeting was not of that kind, where every one is defirous of telling his own happy escape: it was all filence, and a gloomy dread of impending terrors."

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Leaving this feat of defolation, we profecuted our voyage along the coaft; and the next day came to Rochetta, where we landed, although the earth ftill continued in violent agitations. But we were scarcely arrived at our inn, when we were once more obliged to return to the boat; and, in about half an hour, we faw the greater part of the town, and the inn at which we had set up, dashed to the ground, and burying the inhabitants beneath the ruins."

"In this manner, proceeding onward in our little vefsel, finding no safety at land, and yet, from the

fmallnefs of our boat, having but a very dangerous continuance at fea, we at length landed at Lopizium, a caftle midway between Tropea and Euphemia, the city to which, as I faid before, we were bound. Here, wherever I turned my eyes, nothing but fcenes of ruin and horror appeared; towns and caftles levelled to the ground; Strombalo, though at fixty miles diftance, belching forth flames in an unusual manner, and with a noife which I could diftinctly hear. But my attention was quickly turned from more remote, to contiguous danger. The rumbling found of an approaching earthquake, which we by this time were grown acquainted with, alarmed us for the confequences; it every moment feemed to grow louder, and to approach nearer. The place on which we ftood now. began to flake moft dreadfully; fo that being unable to ftand, my companions and I caught hold of whatever fhrub grew next to us, and fupported ourselves in. that manner."

"After fome time, this violent paroxyfm ceafing, we again ftood up, in order to profecute our voyage to Euphemia, which lay within fight. In the mean time, while we were preparing for this purpofe, I turned my eyes towards the city, but could fee only a frightful dark cloud, that feemed to reft upon the place.". This the more furprised us, as the weather was fo very ferene. We waited, therefore, till the cloud had paffed. away: then turning to look for the city, it was todally funk. Wonderful to tell! nothing but a difmal and putrid lake was feen where it flood. We looked about to find fome one that could tell us of its fad catastrophe, but could fee no perfon. All was become a melancholy folitude; a fcene of hideous defolation..

Thus proceeding penfively along, in queft of fome human being that could give us a little information, we at length faw a boy fitting by the fhore, and ap、 pearing ftupified with terror. Of him, therefore, we inquired concerning the fate of the city; but he could not be prevailed on to give us an answer. We entreated him, with every exprefsion of tenderness and pity, to tell us; but his senses were quite wrapt up in the contemplation of the danger he had efcaped. We offered him fome victuals, but he seemed to loath the fight. We ftill perfifted in our offices of kindness; but he only pointed to the place of the city, like one out of his fenfes; and then running up into the woods, was never heard of after. Such was the fate of the city of Euphemia: and as we continued our melancholy courfe along the shore, the whole coaft, for the fpace of two hundred miles, prefented nothing but the remains of cities; and men fcattered, without a habitation, over the fields. Proceeding thus along, we at length ended our diftrefsful voyage, by arriving at Naples, after having escaped a thousand dangers both at fea and land."

GOLDSMITH.

SECTION 11.

Letter from PLINY to GEMINIUS.

"Do we not fometimes observe a fort of people, who though they are themselves under the abject dominion of every vice, show a kind of malicious refentment against the errors of others; and are most severe upon those whom they most resemble? yet, furely a lenity of difpofition, even in perfons who have the least occa

fion for clemency themselves, is of all virtues the most becoming. The highest of all characters, in my eftimation, is his, who is as ready to pardon the errors of mankind, as if he were every day guilty of fome himfelf; and, at the fame time, as cautious of committing a fault, as if he never forgave one. It is a rule then which we should, upon all occafions, both private and public, most religiously observe; "to be inexorable to our own failings, while we treat those of the rest of the world with tenderness, not excepting even fuch as forgive none but themselves.”

I fhall, perhaps, be asked, who it is that has given occafion to these reflections. Know then that a certain perfon lately-but of that when we meet-though, upon fecond thoughts, not even then; left, whilft I condemn and expose his conduct, I fhould act counter to that maxim I particularly recommend. Whoever therefore, and whatever he is, fhall remain in filence: for though there may be some use, perhaps, in setting a mark upon the man, for the fake of example, there will be more, however, in fparing him, for the fake of humanity. Farewel. MELMOTH'S PLINY.

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SECTION III.

Letter from PLINY to MARCELLINUS, on the death of an amiable young woman.

I WRITE this under the utmost oppression of forrow: the youngest daughter of my friend Fundamus is dead! Never furely was there a more agreeable, and more amiable young perfon; or one who better deserved to have enjoyed a long, I had almoft faid, an immortal

life! She had all the wisdom of age, and difcretion of a matron, joined with youthful fweetness and virgin modefty. With what an engaging fondnefs did the behave to her father! How kindly and refpectfully receive his friends! How affectionately treat all thofe who, in their respective offices, had the care and education of her! She employed much of her time in reading, in which the discovered great ftrength of judgment; fhe indulged herfelf in few diverfions, and those with much caution. With what forbearance, with what patience, with what courage did fhe endure her laft illness! She complied with all the directions of her phyficians; fhe encouraged her fitter, and her father; and, when all her ftrength of body was ex- hausted, fupported herself by the single vigour of her mind. That, indeed, continued, even to her laft moments, unbroken by the pain of a long illness, or the terrors of approaching death; and it is a reflection which makes the lofs of her fo much the more to be lamented. A lofs infinitely fevere! and more fevere by the particular conjuncture in which it happened! She was contracted to a moft worthy youth; the wedding day was fixed, and we were all invited.— How fad a change from the highest joy, to the deepest. forrow! How fhall I exprefs the wound that pierced my heart, when I heard Fundamus himself, (as grief is ever finding out circumftances to aggravate its affliction,) ordering the money he had designed to lay out upon clothes and jewels for her marriage, to be em. ployed in myrrh and fpices for her funeral? He is a man of great learning and good fenfe, who has applied himself from his earliest youth, to the noblest and most elevated ftudies; but all the maxims of fortitude,

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