to it themselves.The foldiers immediately stripped those late judges of their robes, and ranged them with those who were before their prifoners, in order to conduct them to the place ap-. pointed for the execution of criminals.

How dreadful a fpectacle was this! The princess, the two generals, with all the nobility and magiftracy of the kingdom, about to be destroyed at once !-Who, when they were no more, would be left to maintain order among the people ?-Where could there one be found to protect the peace of Candy -All administration of public juftice muft ceafe :-all laws be abolifhed, and the whole realm involved in a wild confufion.

The old general could now hold out no longer all his obduracy melted at the reflection of his country's ruin; and as he knew his breath was the hinge on which the lives of all depended, forgave his fon, his fon with tears of joy the princess, and the no lefs readily remitted the offences of his father.-The young lady, by whofe ftratagem this happy change was wrought, defired the fenate to refume their places, and all was now reftored to its antient form; but the fad confequences which this law had like to have occafioned, and which it would always have been liable to draw on, made them unanimously agree to repeal it.

This little abstract from the Cretan annals, may ferve to fhew of how ambiguous and perplexed a nature ingratitude is in reality-how impoffible it is to be entirely free from it ourselves, and how readily we fix the imputation of it on others :—in fine, there yet has never been, and poffibly never will be, a standard found for it, by which one may truly know what is or is not fo.

Lovers complain of it more than any people in the world, and indeed with the least reafon; and a woman, who has the merit or the chance of being addreffed by feveral, muft of confequence be guilty of it; fince, in recompencing one, the must be guilty of what they will call ingratitude to all the others.

Every one, who labours under any distress in life, is full of accufations on the ingratitude of perfons whom he either has, or imagines he has, conferred fome obligations on at one time or other; though perhaps those whom he thus brands, were never fenfible of any favour received from him; or if they are, may not have it in their power to return them in the manner he expects.

It must be confeffed, there is in most of us a partiality to ourfelves: we are too apt to magnify every good office we do, and leffen the merit of thofe we receive; and this is an innate in

gratitude,

gratitude, even though we fhould in effect repay the obligations conferred on us a thousand fold.

There is also a partiality in us to one another of two perfons we may happen to be acquainted with of equal merit, we often fhall be led by a fecret propensity which we cannot account, nor give any reafon for, to like the one much better than the other; and yet, perhaps, he who moft fhares our good wishes, is by the fame impulfe inclined to have the least for us; and this is a fpecies of ingratitude which we fall into unknowingly, or if we knew, have it not in our power to avoid, because it is implanted in our nature, and not to be eradicated...

Reason, however, and a thorough understanding it in ourfelves, may put a check on inclination, and prevent the illjudging will from running into practice we may do a vio lence to our own hearts, and in our outward behaviour give the preference to those who love us, rather than to those we love : but few there are who will take this pains; and I know not, in deed, whether we ought always to impofe fo fevere a task on our felves, or whether to perform it would in all cafes be laudable, or even agreeable to the very perfon for whose fake we undertook

it.

On the CAUSE and FOLLY of DISSENSIONS in a COUNTRY NEIGHBOURHOOD.

I

[From KNOX's ESSAYS, Moral and Literary. ]

T seems extraordinary, that with all our pretenfions to the focial affections, and to christianity, there are few country towns or villages, in which the families, which are reckoned genteel by the right of fortune, and of felf-eftimation, live upon terms of cordial and fincere friendship. One might, I believe, venture to go farther, and to affert, that there are few where a general enmity and diflike does not lurk, under the for mality of ceremonious vifits, and civil falutation.

The foundation of all the uneafinefs is a foolish pride, which, though it was not made for fo weak a creature as man, yet adheres fo closely to him, that he can feldom divest himself of it, without fuch an effort as few minds are able to make. Philo. fophy is vainly applied; for few are prouder than philofophers. Religion only can effectually eradicate a vice fo deeply rooted; that amiable religion, which teaches us to love our neighbours as ourselves; and which has informed us of a truth which ex

perience

money to his father, to redeem fome lands, which, by his former liberality among the foldiers, he had been obliged to mortgage; and in the next, to keep the thing an inviolable fecret.

This implacable old man received thankfully the donation, as coming from the princefs; but being unhappily informed afterwards, by fome one he had trufted, of the love the bore his fon, and that it was by his inftigation fhe conferred this favour on him, instead of being appeafed by this new proof of filial affection, became infinitely more irritated against him than ever; and to be revenged on the infult, as he termed it, formed a refolution the most ftrange and unnatural that ever was harboured in the heart of man.

Borne on the wings of fury, and deaf to all the remonftrances that were made him, he flew to the capital, and demanded juftice in the execution of the law against his fon, whom, in a most pathetic fpeech, he accused of ingratitude; repeated the various obligations he had to him, both as a father and a preceptor; proved that in the heat of battle, while yet a novice in the art of war, he had thrown himself between him and impending danger; received the wounds defigned for him, and times unnumbered fhielded him from death. "For all which bounties (added he) he ftripped me of the glories I had gained before he had a being; ravished from me the prize of fame, more dear to me than life, and brought my age with forrow to the grave."

The young general refused to make any defence, and, hating a life his father's unkindness had made wretched, fubmitted to the fentence the fenate, though unwillingly, were obliged to pafs on him.

This intelligence no fooner reached the princefs, than, with grief, fhe ran to the fenate-houfe, and firft, by foft perfuafions, endeavoured to move the heart of the old general; but he continuing obdurate, she vowed then he fhould fuffer the fame fate with his innocent fon; and accufed him of the highest ingratitude to her, as being obliged to her for the redemption of his lands, he had contrived to deprive her of what he knew was moft dear to her.

Her charge was too juftly founded to be denied, and the fenate were compelled to fatisfy the demand the made.

The young general, who had heard with an unfhaken courage his own doom pronounced, could not fupport that of his father; and revolving in his mind what he should do to fave him, became in his turn an accufer of the princefs. He urged, that having for a long time fought his affections, fhe had at last obtained a promife of marriage from him, on which the pretended her life depended; yet, after he had won him to her will, had moit ungratefully

ungratefully betrayed a fecret he had bound her to conceal, and by that fatal difcovery irritated his father, and been the cause of both their ruin.

To this the amorous princefs pleaded guilty, defirous of dying with him he loved, even cruel as he now feemed; and as no perfon whatever was exempted by this law from the penalty, fhe alfo was condemned to fuffer with the reft.

The power of preventing fo tragic a fcene, lay wholly in the old general; who, by remitting the offences of his fon, would have obtained of the princess remiffion for himself, as she also would from her lover but not all the arguments made ufe of by the fenate for this falutary purpose, nor even their tears and entreaties, could prevail on his inflexible heart; and these three illuftrious perfonages were about to be conducted to their fate, when a young virgin, daughter to the general, rushed into the council-hall, crying with a loud voice, as the preffed through the croud, Stop, ftop the execution, 'till my claim is heard: if these must fuffer, it is fit others more guilty should partake their fate."

The guards, on this, were ordered to bring back the prifoners, and all waited with impatience to fee what this new wonder was to produce; when the maid, with an undaunted courage, began to fpeak to this effect:

"I think (faid he) the law against ingratitude falls indifcriminately on all found guilty of it." To which being anfwered by the prefident, that it did: "Then I accufe you all," refumed fhe, "all you of the fenate -All you, who having the power and treasure of the public invested in you, forgot the fervices of this old man my father, fifty years your general, and ftiled the guardian angel of his country, and fuffered him in age to feel the ftings of poverty, to be reduced even to beggary, but for the compaffion of the princefs; while you yourselves were rioting in that affluence, preferved for you by the best part of his blood. If this is not ingratitude, nothing can be called fo :--quit then your feats, and be content to fuffer the punishment of your crime."

Never was confternation equal to that which this demand occafioned the populace feconded the accufation, and cried out for juftice all the lords, who compofed this auguft affembly, looked one upon another without the power of fpeech :--what, indeed, could they fay! How reply to fo jut, fo felf-convicted a charge! The law by which they were condemned, was wrote in terms too plain for any evafion - there was no remedy to be found; and thofe who but a moment paft had pronounced the fentence of death against others, were now compelled to fubmit

to

perience abundantly confirms, that from pride only cometh con

tention.

The moft trifling diftinction, or appearance of fuperiority, is fure to excite all the heart-burnings of fecret envy and jealousy. Inftead of rejoicing at any fortunate event which contributes to the happiness of a neighbour, the greater part fecretly repine at it, and endeavour to leffen the fatisfaction it might afford, by diffeminating fome mortifying furmife or infinuation. Indeed, the fortunate person sometimes deserves fome humiliation; for, as his neighbours are endeavouring to lower him to their own level, he, on the other hand, oftentatiously displays his fuperiority, and labours to deprefs them below their due rank, that his own elevation may be more confpicuous. It would be entertaining to behold the little contrivances which the petty gentry in vent for the purpose of eclipfing each other, if there were not always fomething of a malignity which difgufts and hurts the mind of a humane man. The rivalry is by no means of an amicable fort; and though the parties are wonderfully civil when they meet, they often hate each other with the greateft inveteracy. Nothing would, indeed, give them greater pleasure, than to hear of each other's loffes or ruin, though they would not fail to vifit on the occafion, and to fympathife in the politeft and most approved fashion.

Scandal, indeed, which has long reigned with arbitrary fway in country towns, is ufually the caufe of all that latent hatred which poifons the happinefs of families, whofe birth or fortune has placed them in the fame neighbourhood; and who, enjoy. ing plenty, might alfo enjoy peace, if they could prevail on themselves to turn a deaf ear to the tale-bearer. But fuch is the perverfenefs or malignity of many, that though they have themselves but juft fuffered from the falfe reports of flanderers, they liften, with delight, to the next whisper, that flies like the arrow in the dark, and wounds a neighbour's reputation. If any favourable report begins to prevail, it is with difficulty ad mitted; it is doubted, contradicted, or extenuated. But there is no lie fo improbably falfe, fo little like the truth, but it will be joyfully received and believed, without examination; fo long as it tends to lower an object of envy in the esteem of a neighbourhood, to injure the intereft of a rival in vanity, or to wound the heart of him whom we hate, only because we feel the weight of his real fuperiority.

It is to be wished, that people would confider from how contemptible a fource most of thofe calamities originate, which induce neighbours to entertain a bad opinion of each other, and, in confequence, to live in a state of conftant, though fecret en