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creditable Quality, argues a little Mind, and a Defect of Generofity and Good Nature. Revenge, when improved into Habit and Inclination, is the Temper of a Tyrant: 'Tis a ftrong Compofition of Pride and Cruelty, impatient of the leaft Provoca tion, and unconcerned at the Mischief of a Return.

How much nobler is it, to palliate, than aggravate; to pardon, than refent? Good Nature will teach us to stifle our Refent ments, to diffemble the Pain, and mother the Injury, rather than let them break out to the Disturbance of another: A generous Perfon will pity that in another, which he will by no means pardon in himself. Good Nature is willing to make Excuses, and interpret Things to the best Sense; and always drives the Reafons of Clemency as far as they will go: It confiders, that Ignorance is often at the Head of a Fault; that Generofity never goes to the Rigour of Matters, nor delights in giving Pain and Pu nifhment; is willing to overlook and pity the uneven Starts, and Mifperformances of Life and Converfation; backward to expoftulate and complain, to expofe Defects, or demand Reparations.

A favage and inhofpitable Difpofition, is the most unbeloved Quality; we fhould endeavour to sweeten our Humours, and keep

the

the Ferment down. I confefs, the World affords Provocations enough, and fome Men deferve to be mortified; but we may fee, the Remedy is worse than the Difeafe. We

fhould therefore arm ourselves with Thinking, and keep Reafon upon the Guard: We fhould always look out for the best Conftructions, wish every Body well, pity Ignorance, and defpife ill Ufage. In a Word, true Honour is always lodged with Justice and Humanity; and Courage must be blended with Fortitude, and have more in it than Force and Daring, to make it valuable.

H 6 AFFECT A

AFFECTATION.

A

S bad as the World is, we may find,

by a ftrict Obfervation upon Virtue and Vice, that if Men appeared no worse than they really are, there would be much less Work for Reformation than there is, as they order the Matter. For they have generally taken up a kind of inverted Ambition, and affect even Faults and Imperfections of which they are innocent.

Mr. Locke has defined Affectation to be an aukward and forced Imitation of what fhould be genuine and eafy, wanting the Beauty that accompanies what is natural, because there is always a Difagreement between the outward Action and the Mind within.

Nature does nothing in vain; the Creator of the Universe has appointed every Thing to a certain Ufe and Purpose, and determined it to a fettled Course and Sphere of Action, from which if it in the leaft deviate, it becomes unfit to answer thofe

Ends

Ends for which it was defigned. It is, I think, pretty plain, that most of the Abfurdity and Ridicule we meet with in the World, is generally owing to the impertinent Affectation of excelling in Characters Men are not fit for, and for which Nature never defigned them. Plain and rough Na ture, left to itself, is much better than an artificial Ungracefulness, and ftudied Ways of being ill-fashioned. The Want of an Accomplishment, or fome Defect, in our Behaviour coming fhort of the utmost Gracefulness, often efcapes Obfervation and Cenfure: But Affectation, in any Part of our Carriage, is lighting up a Candle to our Defects, and never fails to make us be taken notice of, either as wanting Senfe, or wanting Sincerity.

It is one Part and Symptom of Affectation, when a Man would outwardly put on a Difpofition of Mind, which then he really has not, but endeavours, by a forced Carriage, to make a Shew of; yet fo, that the Conftraint he is under difcovers itfelf: Thus a Man affects fometimes to appear fad, merry, or kind, when in Truth he is not fo. Another Indication is, when Men do not endeavour to make Shew of Difpofitions of Mind which they have not, but to express those they have by a Carriage not fuited to them. And fuch in Converfation

are

are all constrain❜d Motions, Actions, Words, or Looks, which, though design'd to fhew either their Refpect or Civility to the Company, or their Satisfaction and Eafinefs in it, are not yet natural nor genuine Marks of the one, or the other, but rather of fome Defect or Mistake within.

Affectation, indeed, is a Difeafe which breaks out upon us in various Kinds: It fometimes fhews itself in our Cloaths and Habit, fometimes in our Features and Mien of the Face, often in our Actions and Deportment of the Body, and too frequently in our Words and Converfation. Each Spe

cies of it fubjects a Man to a Proportion of Ridicule; but the Stiffness and affected Pedantry of Expreffion makes him most the Object of Contempt.

There are many Men, and fome of great Senfe too, that lofe both the Profit and the Reputation of good Thoughts, by the uncouth Manner of expreffing them. They love to talk in Mystery, and take it for a Mark of Wisdom not to be understood. They are fo fond of making themselves public, that they will rather be ridiculous, than not taken notice of. When the Mind grows fqueamish, and comes to a loathing of Things that are common, as if they were fordid, that Sickness betrays itself in our Way of fpeaking too: For we must have new

Words,

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