pretend to the flavour and ripeness of that which is of nature's own growth.

IN plain words, my Lord, modesty is the ornament of youth; and the earnest or rather the proper caufe, of all that is excellent in riper age. It graces the boy, and, in due time, forms the man: whereas in fuppreffing this young virtue, you precipitate, indeed, a fort of manhood; which, yet, in effect, is only a perpetual boyism, or rather a portentous mixture of both states, without the vir tues of either.

I AM far from meaning by all this, and your Lordship will be as far from fufpecting me to mean, that an eafy unconftrained manner is not an amiable

and agreeable thing. I am only for waiting the proper time of its appearance; which nature makes a little later than our impatient fancies are ready to prescribe to her. CONSIDER

H 4

CONSIDER too, this polite accomplishment, this fupreme finishing of a wellformed character, can only be acquired, except in fome extraordinary inftances, by long inceffant ufe and habit in converfation; which, befides the unfitness of the thing in other refpects, would dif fipate the young mind too much, and take it off from thofe other more important pursuits, which are proper to that age.

NAY, I might further fay, and with much truth, that politeness, in your Lordfhip's, at least the court-fenfe of the word, is not to be attained by the ableft men; and when it is attainable, would generally do hurt, I mean beyond a certain degree, to its poffeffors.

No very great man was ever what the world calls, perfectly polite. Men of that stamp cannot afford fuch attention

to

to little things, as is neceffary to form and complete that character.

AND even to men of a common make, that exceffive fedulity about grace and manner, which conftitutes the effence of good breeding, would be injurious; as it tends to cramp their faculties, effeminate the temper, and break that force and vigour of mind which is requifite in a man of business for the dif charge of his duty, in this free country.

So that, for any thing I fee, this exquifite ease of good breeding fhould be left to the ambition of still inferior fpirits, of fuch indeed as are conscious to themselves of an incapacity for any other.

LORD SHAFTESBURY.

THE Conceffion is gracious; and the danger, no doubt, alarming, left our fenators and men of business should be

difabled

difabled for their high functions by an excefs of good manners. Yet 'tis fome confolation, that at prefent I fee no fymptoms of that enfeebling politeness among fuch of the ornaments of either house, as I have the honour to be acquainted with.

MR. LOCKE.

YOUR Lordship may divert yourself as you think fit, with an old man's fears. But if this mode of travelling, which has taken fo much with us fince the peace [g], fhould continue for any time, the day may come but too foon, when these fancies of mine will be realized: when politeness fhall be fatal to ability of every kind; and, at least in the higher ranks of life, when our countrymen shall be too well bred to be good for any thing.

AND now, having ventured fo far, fhall I proceed one step further, and take to [g] Of Ryfwick, in 1697.

myself

myfelf the privilege of an old man, to express my sense of this whole matter, a little unfashionably? The mighty value, that is set upon manners, comes, as I have already hinted, from a quarter, which, though it may imprint refpect on a perfon of your Lordship's age and gallantry, must not pretend to be so much confidered by grey hairs. If you can forgive the liberty, I will then, at length, speak out, and fay, They are the ladies, only, or chiefly, that have affixed fuch an idea of merit to this envied quality of good-breeding; and that, as appearances are thought to fway full enough with that delicate fex, they may perhaps have advanced the credit of it fomething higher than fuch an accomplishment deferves.

AND when I further confider the mighty influence which thefe fair dif pensers of reputation must needs have on our gallant and courtly youth, I cannot

wonder