On the ECONOMY of TIME. Hope my readers will excuse my obtruding on them a little ferious advice with regard to the usefulness of the great art of economy of time. Precious as time is, nothing is more fquandered away, nothing which we wafle fo much of, not even our money, which in this extravagant age I am fenfible is thrown away in the most trifling manner. day with feeing a coachman on his box pull out a book from his I was much ftruck the other pocket as foon as his mafter was fet down at his visit, and begin reading very attentively. Whatever were his ftudies, he loft no time in them; and I must confefs I thought his example worthy imitation. I do not here mean to recommend a dry, formal, methodical way of fpending time; but in general to make fuch ufe of every part of it, that we may live as long as we can; for how very short would fame folks lives be, if we were to deduct all the blanks from them which idleness has made; and how much longer would they appear than they really are, if we could fill thofe hours up with fome ufeful employment! How different would our lives appear on a review of them, were it our wish to make them as valuable to others, and benefical to ourselves, as might be! The fhorteft life would then appear long, when every day could be distinguished and recalled; or at leaft, when altogether, fo much had been done by us, that nothing but a conftant economy of our time could have enabled us to get through fuch a variety of agreeable as well as ufeful employments. We fhould look upon our time as a small field, to which we are confined for a certain, or, I would rather fay, for an uncertain time. In this our field, which has been given us by our best friend, we should take care to cultivate every thing that the ground is capable of producing; every fpot fhould be fown with the feed fuitable to its foil. Our fpade fhould be continually going; we should dig for new treafures, find out new fources of improvement, and, when found, fhould labour to bring them to perfection; we should hough down every weed, not fuffering it to take root. Thefe will keep us employed a great part of every day, and where the foil is moft fertile, there will moft caufe be for our hough. Here we fhould fow nothing but good feed, nothing but what will be fure foon to yield us rich encrease. with the feafons: in our fpring, be putting in our crops and our We should vary our work alfo plants; in our fummer, weeding and pruning them; in our autumn, reaping and receiving the produce of our labour; and in our winter, endeavouring to keep alive whatever we have found most valuable, and reflecting with pleasure on all our labours. VOL. II. 45. 3 L In this our little field of time we have a part of it for pleasureground too. Here we should enter with caution, always taking care to keep that walk smooth which leads back again to our neceffary and ufeful works, that, while we indulge ourselves with a little relaxation it it, we may never lofe fight of, or a relish for returning to, the other parts of our field again. And even to this our pleafure-ground we should carry our implements, and keep it free from every noxious weed, filling it only with those delightful fruits and flowers, which, when dead, give us no dif agrecable fenfations. One piece of advice more let me add, and that is, fo to dif pofe our ground that it may afford us an agreeable prospect into that beautiful country which our Friend will one day or other remove us to, and there prefent us with an eftate fuitable to the improvement we have made in the final tract now lent to us. I have now done with my little allegory; but fuppofe we were juft to ftop a little, and take a review of the years that are paft. Let us ak ourselves what fatisfaction they brought us? what that was which has yielded us any? and whether it will always give us the fame? Thefe queftions fairly put, and candidly answered, we shall be able to form fchemes for our future fatisfaction, either by pursuing our old methods, or adopt ing new ones; above all, remembering that no day need pals without yielding es fome felf-fatisfaction, and affording us fome agreeable reflections. This would be indeed to have the art of ceconomy in time; and idlenefs, that king of mifchief, that pre venter of innumerable pleafures to ourselves and others, would -be for ever banished into exile. A little recollection at night the employments of the paft day, and a little forecast in the morning towards thofe of the enfuing one, would fave manya forrowful reflection, and give many a joyful one. In fhort, let uszemember,, The fpirit walks of every day deceas'd, AN ANECDOTE. S the prince of Wwas lately rising in the neighbour hood of W, his horfe flung a fhoe. He alighted near the door of a cottage, where he faw a lad and girl talking toge ther, and fent bis fervant away with the horie. The grl was pretty, and attracted his actice; the dropped a curtfey as he came towards her." Well my pretty maid (lays the prince), what Soft foft things does Colin fay to you this fine morning "She fmiled, and the man coloured. When is the happy day to be?""I don't know," fay the girl.-"Father fays he wants money, and please your honour," fays the lad.-"How much will fatisfy him ""We ha' got ten pounds to buy things with, but we want as much more for expences, and I owe a little money."The prince was charmed with the girl's beauty and modefty, and, after looking at her fome time, took her by the hand, and faid, "If you'll make this good lad happy, I'll give you ten pounds, but I'll have a kifs into the bargain;" and, putting his hand into his pocket, he took out ten guineas, and received thanks for it from the lips of the girl herself. To the PRINTER of the WEEKLY ENTERTAINER. YOUR giving the following a place in your agreeable En You Ytertainer, and fome of your ingenious correfpondents ex plaining the fame, will greatly oblige Your conftant Correfpondent, Shaftesbury, Onber 29, 1783. S. M. O. A.NIN. Script. Ion onamo num enter ec ted to them. Emo Ryo fone La! wren Cecole READ, ERY-ou have Wit-Hint his G Rave COURT eo us fat Efaw Itwas la! Tea S.S. wept up Tobe kep tal, Thet Rumps ho! uldb lowi Tup ands T Hendon, otdoubt the COL es N. otout, Thelitt Thelitt Les park-No-Win the DAR For the WEEKLY ENTERTAINER. LINES occafianea by the Interment of the late JOHN WILLS, Efq; of Hood, near Totnes, one of his Majefty's Juftices of the Peace for the County of Devon. N fable weeds fincerity is feen, To whom from early youth he'd wedded been. * Jefus wept.-See the Gospel. Answer, by Taffo, of Bristol, to W. Weftcott's Enigma, inferted DEA August 25. EATH fhall make the haughty bow, Age nor beauty can withstand The force of his all-conquering hand. Anfever, by a Conftant Reader, to J. Geft's Enigma, inferted September 22. N APRON 'tis, the ladies fay, A That graces them at ball or play; Invented first by mother Eve, Her daughters, to their coft, believe; `Deceit, by which frail woman fell. *§* We have received the like anfwer from J. Browning, ef Dickerton; E. Sherman, of Cornwood; and S. M. O. of Shaftefbury. An fwer, by Sobrius, of Chedzoy, to J. S.'s Chronogram, inferted D August 18. EAR fir, I've fought your chronogram with care, MDCCLV, or 1755; So that the proposer is 28 years of age. ** We have received the like answer from G. M. of Compton. AFRICAN CITIES enigmatically expreffed, by S. M. O. of Shaftesbury. I. ALF of a warlike inftrument, the fame of a mineral reverfed, and two-fifths of the god of laughter. "H 2. Half of one of the graces tranfpofed, a vowel, and fourfifths of to destroy, expunging a letter. 3. A king that was killed by Eneas, expunging one letter and changing another. 4. One-third of a plant, half of to revel, the initial of an Heathen deity, and three-fifths of the emblem of peace. 5. To rub, transposed, half of a tree, and a moiety of a term ufed in heraldry. 6. An interjection, three-tenths of the name of Hector's wife, and a vowel. 7. A puritan, four-ninths of a preservation, and to worship, expunging a letter. 8. Half of one of the furies, a confonant, a conjunction, twofifths of to pillage, and a vowel. 9. Half of to ramble, three-fourths of a trial reversed, and the two first letters of the infect whose bite is cured by mufic. 10. A word fynonimous with fplendid, two-fixths of a fign of the Zodiac, half of a mineral, and the fame of a quadrupede. An ANAGRAM, by S. M. O. of Shaftesbury. A Reptile if you right transpose, A gift it will to you difclofe. POETRY. |