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C H O I C E

EMBLEMS.

€nteteti at Stationer's ^alU

CHOICEEMBLEMS,

NATURAL, HISTORICAL,

FABULOUS, MORAL, and DIVINE;For the Improvement anr* Pallime of

Y U T H:DISPLAYIXG THE

Beauties and Morals of the Ancient Fabulifls

:

The Whole calculared to convey the

GOLDEN LESSONS of INSTRUCTIONUnder a new and more delightful Drcfs.

For the Ufe of SCHO O L S.

Written for the Amulemcnt of a Young Nobleman,

THE SEVENTH EDITION.

«' Say, fhould the philofophic mind difdain

" That good, which makes each humbler bofom vital'' Let fchool-taught pride di/Temble all it can,

*» Thefe little tb^nis are great to little man."

LONDON:PRINTED BT J. CHAPMAN,

FORK. NEWBERT, CORNER OF ST. PAUl's-CUURCU-YARD,

M D C C X C I 1 I

.

uos^i:)^ c

i -

( vii )

TO THE

RIGHT HONORABLE

Lady ELIZABETH KERR,

ELDEST DAUGHTER OF

The Rt. Hon. Lord ANCRAM.

MADAM,

YOUR Ladyfhip will im-

mediately perceive, that

the author of the fublequeiit

Allegories has availed himfelf

of the honour of your permif-

lion to this Dedication.

A 4 So

( viii )

So gracious a condefcenfioii

is ftill the more pleafing to him,

as it "gives a peculiar propriety

to the addrefs of this pubhca-

tion, which, while it aims to

recommend Religion, Morality,

and all the Virtues, is honoured

with the Patronage of Nobility,

and the Prote6lion of Innocence.

Naturalists, my Lady,

acquaint us, that the Rofe, in^

its uifant ftate, while in its bud,

contains in epitome, all the na-

tive fweetnefs, bloom, and beau-

ty of maturity :—Thofe who beft

know your Ladyfhip, can never

accufe me of flattery, while I

prefume to prophecy, from the

evidence of your difpofition,

that

( ix )

that the latent hereditary orna-

ments of your illuftrious fami-

ly, will, in you, one day (hine

out with fuperior brightnefs,

and juftly entitle you, not only

a bleffino; to vour inferiors, a

glory to your fex, but, in a

word, a pattern to the nobility,

your contemporaries.

These inftruftive Emblems,written for the amufement of

your noble brother, the Right

Honorable the Lord Newbat-

tie, claim a particular attention,

from your Ladyihip, as they re-

commend the immediate paths

to happinefs, both here and

hereafter.

A 5 Be

( X )

Be tjiis Eliza's care, let thi$

Ker earliefl: thoughts engage ;

Be this the buiinefs of her youth.

And comfort of her age,

Attentive then, confult the Mufe,

And each fair path purfue;

Let's mend a world, by Precept I,

And by Example You.

Your Ladyfhip's fmcere,

and moft obedient

t humble fervant.

The author,

INTRO-

INTRODUCTION.

-z\lL the happinefs and glory of a

ftate, fays a celebrated writer, de-

pend on the Education of Youth ;

and, it may be added, there Is not a

more important duty incumbent on a

parent, rhm the early cultivation of

their tender offspring. Howeverlittle the following trifles may appear

on the firft view, it is humbly pre-

fumed, that, on their perufal, they

will be found to contribute fomewhat

towards that great and defir^ ble end.

The author of the following flieets

A 6 has

( -^ii )

has taken nature for his principal

guide, and it has been his fole aim to

defcribe her in the pureft forms; in

which he has not fo much at heart

to be confidered an elegant Poet, as

to be approved for a good Moralift.

Fable has already employed manylearned and ingenious pens, both an-

cient and modern ; and, as the Em-blematical Hieroglyphic Devices of

the Hebrews, Egyptians, and other

Ancients, feem to afford fit fubjedls for

inftrudion, it has been the Author's

endeavour to fend many of thefe into

the world under a modern habit.—If

fome of them are found to be too pue-

rile for the learned eye, it mull be re-

membered, that they were written for

the amufement of a young nobleman*

not -^ more than nine years old.

* The Ri. Hon. Ld. Newbattle, now Ld. Ancrara.

Yet

( ^iii )

Yet, in the words of the celebrated

Mr. Gay, do not

The daily labours of the Bee

Awake my foul to indullry ?

AVho can obferve the careful Ant,

And not provide for future want ?

My Dog, the truftieft of his kind,

With Gratitude inflames my mind!

I mark his true, his faithful way,

And in my fervice copy Tray ;

In Conflancy and Nuptial Love,

I learn my duty from the Dove j

The Hen, who from the chilly air,

With pious wing protects her care,

And every fowl that flies at large,

Inftru£l me in a parent's charge.

Do not we jufl abhorrence find

Againft the Toad and Serpent kind ?

But Envy, Calumny, and Spite,

Bear ftronger venom in their bite.

Thus every objecr of creation,

Can furnifti hints for contemplation ;

And from the moH minute and mean,

A Virtuous Mind can Morals glean.

In

( xiv )

In fhort, many of the brute crea-

tures feem fo formed by inftind, as

to make up an univerfal fatire on

mankind." For where is the Un-

dutiful Child but muft be alhamed

to fee himfelf outdone by the Stork,

in Filial Duty and AfFeftion ? the

Faithlefs Servant, by the Fidelity of

the Dog ; the Sluggard, by the Lark

;

or the Man of Indolence by the Bee

and Woodpecker ? The Falfe

Friend, the Inconftant Lover, may

here find proper leiTons to copy from.

In fine, there are fcarcely any per-

fons in life who may not find fome-

what here to fult their particular fitu-

ations, or inculcate in their minds

the mod neceiTary Virtues.

VERSES

[ XV ]

VERSESADDRESSED TO THE

Author of Choice Emblems

A,̂C C E P T, fweet Bard, the tributary Song;

To drains like thine, fuperior praife belong!

Warm from the heart thy pleafing Morals glow •

Warm from the heart thefe grateful Numbers flow •

The humble Mufe aflumes no higher claim,

Than (till to follow in the Path to Fame.

O friend to Virtue in a waning age,

PleasM ftill for Youth to pen th' inilruftive page

;

Sure friend to Truth, of no proud title vain,

Thy Emblems fimple, as their Moral plain!

Labours like thine fhall wear old Time away.

And live when lofty monuments decay

!

FamM was the ancient Sage of other times.

Who brought his myfJic lore to Grecian climesj

Who all the brevity of ftyle pofTefsM,

And facred Truth in various Fables drefs'd

:

Greatly

[ xvl ]

Greatly obfcure, till more enlightened days

Explained his morals, and infur'd his praife,

^3ot fuch thy aim, in each familiar line,

Where fweet fimplicity and Virtue fhine

Alike Cunfpicuous ; nought appears obfcure,

But plain thy Morals, as thy Diftates pure.

For this^ O friendly Bard, thy only care,

Juit thy defcriptions, as thy leflbns fair :

In thy inftriiftive work each youth and maid.

May view great Nature's volume wide difplay'd.

OfBeafiS, Birds, Fifhes, Plants, the tribes may know

>

And fcan the Heavens above, the earth below.

Th' hiftoric ^ages trace of ancient lore,

And in few moments travel ages o'er.

Thus the wife Hebrew Prince, in Virtue's rule

Traia'd up and ripen'd in fair Wifdom's School,

With curious fearch enquired of Nature's laws,

And trac'd all beings to their firfl: great caufe.

From the tall trees on Lebanon that rofe,

To humble Hyflbp by the wall that grows;

From vail Leviatlian's unwieldy fize,

To the fmall Emmet in the earth that lies,

And treafures wintry florts ; all thefc he knew;

From this vail fource his fund ofknowledge drew •

The moft that man could boaft in this abode,

A gift indeed divine, and worthy of the God

But

[ xvll ]

But thou proceed to form ih' expanding mind,

By Wifdora rsiis'd, by Sentiment refin'd;

Proceed inftruftive, nor the taflc forego,

While grateful -wc the juft earned wreath beflow,

And with our honourM worthies place thy name,

As jufl: diflinguifh'd in the lift of Fame.

While ftill thy precepts in thy writings fhine,

And ev'ry friend to ev'ry Mufe is thine.

Clapham-i

March, 10, 1775. D. S-

TABLE

TABLEO F

G O NTENTS.

EMBLEM I.

C/ F Filial Duty and Affeaion

EMBLEM n.

Of Silence ....EMBLEM in.

Of the Danger of Pleafure

EMBLEM IV.

Of Fidelity ....EMBLEM V.

Of Purity ....

I

10

Of

[ ^Ix ]

[ XX ]

E 3M B L E M

[ xxi ]

E M B

[ xxli ]

EMBLEMOfEvil and ItI Funijhment

EMBLEMOf Fride

EMBLEMOfJpplaufe

EMBLEMOf Opprcjfion

EMBLEMOffelf'Love

EMBLEMOf the Danger of Greatnefs

E M B L E ]M

Of Heavenly Love .

EMBLEMOf Falfe Appearances

E M B L E

OffVar

E M B L E

Of Dijftpatlon

EMBLEMIhe Oyjier and Pearl

M

M

XXXIX.

117

XL.

119

XLL

XLII.

122

125

XLIIL128

XLIV.

131

XLV.

134

XLVL136

XLVIL

XLVIIL

XLIX.

139

[.

142

145

Of

[ xxiii ]

EMBLEM L.

OfTiiAth

[ xxiv ]

EMBLEM LXI.

OfDetraB'im . . . l8o

EMBLEM LXn.

Of Human Grandeur . . 183

EMBLEM LXIIL

Ofthe Uje of Time . . 187

EMBLEM LXIV.

The Frailty ofSublunary Thi

EMBLEM

EMBLEM I,

Of Filial Duty and AffeBion,

LO, the young Stork his duteous wing prepare

His a^ed Sire to feed with conftant cares

;

Cer hills and dales his precious load conveys,

And the «^reat debt o^ Filial Duty pays;

Grateful return I by Nature's felfdefi^u'd,

A fair example fet to human kind.

* MORAL.Should'ft thou refufe thy parents needful aid,

The very Stork might the foul rnme i braid:

Be mindful ho-.v they reared thy t:nder youth,

Be?r with their frailtieS; ferve them flill whh truth :

So may'ii; ;hou wirh long life and peace be blsft,

' JillHeav'n fliall qA\ thee to eieinal reft:

S T H I S,

_[ 2 ]

THIS bird is generally efteemed an Em-blem of Filial Love ; inlbmuch, that it has

ever acquired the name of pious, from the

juil regard it is faid to pay to a6ls oifilial

piety and duty.

Storks live to a very advanced age : the

confequence of which is, that their limbs

grow feeble, their feathers fall off, and they

are no ways capable of providing for their

own food or fafety. Being birds of palTage,

they are under another inconvenience alfo,

which is, that they are not able to remove

themfelves from one country to another at

the ufual feafon. In all thefe circurallances

it is reported their young ones aflift them,

covering them with their wings, and nourifh'

ing them with the warmth of their bodies ;

even b.inging them provifions in their beaks,

and carrying th«m from place to place on

their backs, or fupporting them with their

wings ; in this manner returning, as much

as lies :n their power, the care which was

bellowed on them when they were young ones

in the neft. A ftriking example oifilial piety ^

infpi^'ed by inflinft ; from which rea/onkkK

needs not be afhamed to take example.

Honour thy father and thy mother, that thy

days may be long in the land^jich the Lord thy

God

[ 3 ]

Cod gfjeth thee, was zn exprefs command-

ment, and the on'y one to which a promifc

was annexed.—Among the Ifraelites, the

flighteft otfence againil a parent was punifned

in the moll exemplar^' manner.

Certainly nothing can be more juft or rea-

fonable, than that we (hould love, honour,

and fuccour thofe who are the very author?

of our being, and to whofe tender care (un-

der Heaven) we owe the continuance of it,

during the helplefs ftate of our infancy.

L©ve, Charity, and an intesrcourfe of good

offices, are what we imdoubtedly owe to all

mankind ; and he that emits them is guilty

of fuch a crime as generally carries its pun-

ifhment with it ;—but to our Parents, more,

much m.orethan -11 this, is due ; and, whenwearefervingthcm, we ought to reflecl:, that

whatever difficulties we go through for their

fakes, we cannot do more for them than they

have done for us ; and that there is no dan-

ger of our over-paying the vail debt of gia-

titude they have .iiid us under

In fine, we Aiould confider that it is a duty

moft peculiarly infiftcd en by Heaven itfelf;

and, if we obey the command, there is no

doubt but we fhall alfo receive the reward

annexed to it,

Bz EMBLEM

EMBLEMOfSilence,

II.

O ! here the portrait of that ancient powV,

^Which fwayM before the world's great natal hour;

Silence ! the flill Companion of the wife,

That flirouds e'en folly in its deep diiguife:

«f A living death that is of nothing made,

«« In noon-day's fun wrapt up in thickefl fhade ;''

Blufh not good youth to court his friendly aid:

He fliall your fecrets keep, your friends retain,

Improve your hononr, and fecure your gain.

}

MORAL.Be not too rafh in fpeech, left others find

The depth and fecrets of your inmoft mind

:

Silence may oft times make your fenfe extolPd,

Bur utter'd words can never be recallM.

SILENCE

.[ S ]

SILENCE was a quality fo much revered

among the ancients, that the:r prieits andphilolbphers tried their initiates and difci-

ples by enjoining them Taciturnity for a

certain ftated period, teaching it as the firft

of all fciences.

They likevvife paid divine honours to Si-

lence, worfhipping it as a deity, under the

nam.e of Harpocrates, who was reprefented

as in the Emblem, and whofe figure was

fufficiently exprellive of the moral they meant

to inculcate.

APPLICATION.

Silence is a fare friend in difficulties; it

is a charm againft anger, and a kind of talif-

man which often gains its owner a knowledge

of the thoughts of others, while it leaves himentirely mafter of his own. Though it is ufe-

ful to thofe of weak parts, yet need not the

wifell be afiiamed of it. In effe^l, it has

this- bcft of qu.ditics, that it may do muchgood, but is entirely incapable of harm.

Hovj heaiitiful is a nvord in duefeafon, fays

the wife man ; but he who is perpetually

talking is not likely to reap fuch praife,

becaufe he minds no feafon \ whereas, one

B 3 that

[ 6 J

that knows how to keep fiUnce^ may eafily

know alfo, by his obfervations on the dif-

courfe of others, when to fpeak ; and his

words being few, are hkely to be more

properly applied, and will be more ef-

teemed by the hearers.—But, in a multi-

tude of words there is often a multitude of

errors ; and to rule that little member, the

tongue^ is often more difficult than to go-

vern a city%

EMBLEM

E M B L E jNI III.

Of the Danger cf Pleafure.

BEHOLD x.\\Q Boy, forbidden fvreets to prove,

Wich lucklefs hand ibe honhi Hive remove :

Strait with an angry hum that founds to arras,

Forth rufh the winged tribe in all their fwarms;

Too latCj alas ! they make th' offender find.

That pleasure's Honey leaves a fling behind.

MORAL.Learn htnce, ye heedlefs train, rvho gai'y glide

In youch's trj;-n bark, dov.n life's uncertain tide.

That death oft iurks beneath fome g,ildcd toy,

And poifan mir.gles in the cup of joy.

B4 THE

f 8 ]

T H E thoiJghtlefs child overturns the

Hive, in order to get at the Honey ; he

knows the Bees have Sweets, but he forgets

that they have alfo Stings. When he has

done the mifchief, he perceives it too late ;

for the indullrious people fhew him that

they will not be difluibed with impunity ;

and he finds it impoffible to get the Honey,

unlefs he w^ere able to deflroy thofe whoguard it.

Amazed at the confequence of his adlion,

he flies with precipitation, but is overtaken

by the/mfeds, who fettling upon. him, leave

behind them their flings, the anguifli of

which may ferve as a perpetual memorial of

his rafimefs, and warn him how he attempts

llolen fweets for the future.

APPLICATION.

In many people of a more mature age,

we fee the r.mblem veiified ; and thoughcommon experience might prevent the evil,

yet o carelefs are fome, that they will makeufe of no experience but their own, which

is always dearly bought, and often comes

too late to have the eiteft defired by every

rauonal and thinking perfun.

The

[ 9 .].The wild and unthinkin':; always ima-

gine forbidiUn pkajures to be Uveet ; and,

proceeding on this maxim, often plunge

themfelves into the moil ruinous circum-

ilances, and repent only when it is too late

to amend them.

But they will overturn the Hive ; they

muft have the Honey, while they little ex-

pert the Sting :—when they feel it (like

the Boy in the Emblem), furp^ize is added

to their aSictlon, and their dillrefs is dou-

bled, by their being no ways provided to

fullain the accident.

Ifyou would be wife, take not the Honey

wniic '.lie iiiVc ia lUr'alinin^ j -C^ HOt yourPlcafures be mixed with Guilt ; and then

you may reft fecure that they will leave no

Sting behind them.

B 5 EMBLEM

EMBLEM IV.

Of Fidelity,

BEHOLD the faithful bcafl, refolvM to die,

Near where his much-lovVl m?.fter''s alhes liej

Emblem of Conl'rancy, he yields his breath

For arxient love, and keeps his Faith by daatb.

MORAL.Hence learn Fidelity ;—with grateful mind

Repay the courteous; to your friends be kind;

Whatever fortune on your life attend,

The beft of treafures is afaithfulfntnd*

THE

[ > ]

THE Dog is of all animals the moft

faithful and fugacious. There are few things

he may not be taught to lerve his mafter ;

and, if he be well ufed, there are fewer ftill

he will not do to defend him.

We have many inftances, both in ancient

and modern hiflory, of the Fidelity of thefc

creatures, and of fome of them having been

the caufe ofdifcovering their mailer's murder,

by obftinateiy refuting to fiir from his corpfe.

They have often faved men's lives, by inter-

pofing againfl thofe who offered them vio-

lence ; and have proved both ufeful and faith-

ful guards to their perfons and properties.

Homer tells us, that after Troy was de-

flroyed by the Grecians, UlyfTes. returning

from the fiep:e in mem apparel, having gone

through vaiious dangers, and been absent

twenty years, was unknown to bis queen,

and every one in his palace, except his Dog,

who recognized him.Forgot by all his own domeiHc crew,

The faiihfui Dog alone his mailer k".ev.'

;

Unfed, unhoused, negiefted on the clay,

Like an old fervant now calhi<?.-'d he lay :

Touch'd \\ith resentment to ungrarcful man,

And }on;Ting to behold his anc ent lord again;'

Him when he faw, he rofc andcravl'd :^ meet,\T\vas all he conld) jnd fx^vu'd z:.d iick'd his feet

:

Seiz'd with dumb joy—.hen falUng by his fide,

Owa'd his leiurning lord, look'd up and died.

-A P P L I-

[ 12 3

APPLICATION.Gratitude and Fidelity to our friends,

are the beft qualities that can adorn our na-

ture : the Emblem of the Dog is a very ftri-

Icing one in this regard, and is calculated

to convey the fevereil fatire on falfe friends,

and ungrateful perfons.

There is nothing in which a man (liould

be more cautious and deliberate than in the

choice of a friend ; but, having once chofen

him, he fliould repofe in him all manner of

coniidence, and in his turn keep his fecrets,

and be ever ready to do him any fervice that

is conliilent with the rules of Religion and

"Virtue : he that requires anything contrary

to thefe, can never be a true friend : for,

properly fpeaking, no friendfhip can exift

that is not founded on a n)irtuous bafis ; it

is only a connexion of interell, which the

iirfl puff of adverfe fortune will blow away,

and fcatter to the winds of Heaven.—Bur,

-

when you have really got a true friend,

< Grapple him to your foul with hooks of fleel I'

Abide by him alike in profperity and adver-

fity, and let no change of circumiiances alter

your regards or fervices : fo may you expect

afliftonce In the hour of diftrefs, and a com-

forter in the day of trouble.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM V.

Of Purity •

SO nicely formed by Nature''s bidden laws,

Lo ! from the touch the confcioxis Plant withdraws:

Emblem of Purity ; which flill retires

From the rude glowing of unhallowM fires;

Yet ftill more weak the frequent touch it trieSj

Droops in approaching, and by prefllire dies.

MORAL.Shun Evirs firft advance ; be timely wife;

Shrink at th' appearance ; fly the name of vice

;

Like this fair Plant th* crapoifon'd touch avoid,

Nor be by too much confidence deftroy'd.

THE

C H ]

THE Senfit've Plant is fo conftrufted by•Nature, that it fhrinks from the warmth of

the human touch. A property fo extraor-

dinary, for which various caufcs are affigned

by philofophers, occafioned fome ftrange Ho-

lies to be told of this wonderful vegetable :

one of which was, that it would not bear the

touch of any but chafte perfons ; however,

the truth is, that it retires alike from the ap-

proach of any hand, as has been often expe-

rienced. Among fome papers of a late cele-

brated poet, there is a £.ble concerning it,

on the plan of that of Apollo and Daphne, in

Ovid. He relates, that a certain nymph,flying from the embraces of Pan, the God of

the woods, juft as he was on the po'nt of

overtaking her, was changed into this plant,

and- flill retained, in a vegetable, the fame

nice chaftity for which Ihe had been cele-

brated when a nymph. The llory is pretty,

and the metamorphofis aptly turned. This

Plant is to be found in the gardens of the

curious, and is generally much efleemed bythofe who delight in enquiries into the na-

ture of the vegetable world : but it is not

allowed to be often handled, becaufe fre-

quent touching hurts its delicate texture,

and in time, it is fuppofed, would quite

deftroy it.

A r p L I-

[ '5 ]

APPLICATION.In this Vegetable we may fee the fymbol

of a truly virtuous peifon, who fhuns even

the fliadow of evil, and ftarts at the thoughts

of vice. Thofe who fland in their ownflrength can never be fure they fhall not fall

;

and no diilance can be too far to be removed

from the habitations of the wicked.

To become familiar with the name of

vice, is the firft introduction to the practice

of it ; and to fee ill adions, unmoved, is the

firil flep towards committing them,

Accuftom yourfelf, therefore, to fhrink,

like the Plant ia the Emblem, whenever

vice approaches you. Prevent evil in its

firft ftage, and you will fave yourfelf manvperiods of unhappinefs. AlTume a habit of

virtue, and it will grow every day eafier to

you : fo may you be enabled to refill temp-

tation ; for, be aflured, you can never boaft

the lead degree of freedom from any fin,

till you fliudder at the leafl fhadow ofaa

incitement to commit it.

E M B L E ai

EMBLEM VI.

Of Guilf,

SEE where, with drovvfy wing the Bird of Night

,

Bends from the Riling Sun her fullen flight

;

Opprefs'd and weaken'd by the morning ray,

She leeks in fliadesto llumber out the day :

"While the blyth Lark, afcending, cheers the eye,

Sings as he mounts, and feeks the dillant fky.

MORAL.Thus confcious Guilt its head detefted hides,

Nor Heav'ns, nor man's, nor day's broad eye abides;

While virtue, ftill undaunted and lerene,

With chearful brow, in open light is feen.

THE

[ '7 ]

THE Bat is a Bird fo much accufiomcd

to Darknefs, that it generally flies only byNight ; and if at any time it is found abroad

in the Day, impelling it towards the Sun, to

whofe beams it has a particular averfion, is

a fure method of furprizing and taking it.

This creature partakes parcly of the na-

ture of a beaft, and partly of that of a bird,

his body being formed fomewhat like that

of a moufe, though it has wings wherewith

it mounts in the air : but its flight is always

fluggifli and heavy, and its whole form is

frightfully difagreeable.

APPLICATION,

That the Bat, which in its firfl: creation

was formed a Bird of Night, flioyld fliun

the fun Ihine, is by no means to be won-

dered at. Ir follows its nature, and confe-

quently fuliih, in every point, the end tor

which it was made.

How much more do we admire the

fprigwily Lark, who with his morning fong

awakes the day, and ibars towards Heavenupon expanded wing !

Would

[ i8 ]

Would you apply the Emblem ? In tkc

Lark, behold the chearful opcnnefs of the

virtuous and pious man, who is always

found in the fair face of day, and (while

the drunkard is retiring to his bed) is feen

early rifmg to falute the morn : and after the

due tribute rendered to his Maker, whopreferred him through the perils of dark-

nefs, he goes chearfuUy about his temporal

concerns, and never feeks the fliades, but

when repofe invites him to it.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM VII.

Of Conjtant Jffeclion.

WITH plaintive cooings, lo I the Turtle-dove,

Laments the fate of his departed levc;

His mate once loft, no comfort now he knows.

His little breaft with inward anguifh glows

;

isor lawns nor groves his throbbing heart can cbanis,

Kor other love his languid bofom warm :

Opprefs'd with grief, he yields his lateft breath.

And proves at Jafl his Conilancy in death,

MORAL.A proper hflbn to the fickle mind.

An Emblem apt of lendernefs refinM;

Affection pure, and andiilembled love,

Which ab.ence, time, nor death, caa ne'er remore.

TEE

[ 20 ]

THE Dove is the moil: gentle and loving

©f Birds—for which qualities the ancient

Heathens feigned, that the chariot of Venu3the Goddefs of Love, was drawn by Turtle-

doves. The Conlkncy of the Dove is fuch,

that it is become a proverb ; and when one

of a pair dies, the other generally pines it-

felf to death : fo true is then- love, and fo

far are they from a defire of changing.—

A very flriking inflance of the power of in-

ftind, and an example worthy imitation.

The Dove and Lamb are fo remarkable

for their Gentlenefs, that they have been

adopted as fyrabols of our moft holy

religion, and are always reprefented in the

facred writings, as the moll perfe6l Emblems

of virtue and innocence.

APPLICATION.

Constancy whether in Love or Friend-

fliip is certainly one of the mofl fliiking

proofs of a great and noble mind, as fickle-

nefs is of the contrary ; Love is but a more

refined, a more tender friendfjiip ; and when

that love is llrengthened by the more facred

ties of marriage, it ought to be equally lail-

ing and inviolate.

Ill

C21 ]

In fuch a ftate, the joy or grief of either

party muft be fh.ired by the other ; they

muil be both as one, or happmefd can never

be expeded.

In order to promote this agreeing will,

conftancy, tendernefs, and an allowance for

the frailties of humanity, are indifpenfably

neceflary. Where thefe are united, there

may truly be faid to be an union of fouls,

which is the greatefl felicity on earth.

The Emblem of the Dove is one of thofe

leflbns drawn from Nature, whereby the

beft among us may profit ; fince we maywell be afhamed to be outdone, either in

conftancy or tendernefs, by any of the

brute creation.

Thus like the Dove, let Conftancy and truth,

And fpotlefs innocence, adorn your youth;

In every {tate ihc fame blefsM temper prove,

B« fix'd in Fritdjhipi and be true to Love.

E M B L E M

EMBLEM VIII.

Of 'NeceJJary Confidence.

HOPE is the firft great b'eiTing here below,

The only balm to heal corroding woe :

It is the ftafF of age, the lick man''s health,

The pris^ner^'s freedom, and the poor man's wealth*,

The Tailor's fafety ; lalling as our breath.

It ftill holds on, nor quits us e'en in death.

MORAL.Encourage Hope , which heals all human care,

The leaft mad folly is a fad Defpair :

If you are wife, that dreadful evil fhun,

Nor fall unpitied, by ^/o^^r/c//" undone.

IT

[ ^3 ]

IT is faid in the old heathen fable, that

when Pronietheus dole fire from heaven,

with which he animated mortal bodies, Ju-

piter, in an^^er to mankind, gave Pandor^a

box, which was clofe fhut; but her curiofity

(which the God forefaw) promoting her to

open it, out flew a variety of plagues and

evils, which immediately difperfed them-

fclves over the world.—Confounded and

aftoniihed, Pandora at length fhut the fatal

box again, w^cn all the refl of its contents

being fie J, Hope alone remained at the bot-

tom, which proved the only confolation to

mankind for the plagues that Jove had fent

amongll them.

Hope, according to our fyftem, Is deemed

one of the Chriftian virtues, and is repre-

fented as in the Emblem, leaning upon an

Anchor, whereby is aptly exprefTed her ftea-

dinefs and trufl.—In religious pi6turcs fhe

is, moreover, generally painted with her eyes

turned up towards Heaven in token of her

confidence in that help which comes only

from above, and which is indeed the only

fure aid to trufl to, when man forfakes us,

and when the llorms of this world beat hard

upon our bark, and threaten to wreck it.

p p L I-

[ H ]

> I C A 1

Alas ! without Hope, of what value

would our mortal exlilence prove ?' Howfliould we be enabled to bear up under at-

fnctions ? What cordial lliould we have to

Oppofe to the thoufand heart-corroding cares

which this frail life abounds with ?

It is then we avail ourfelves of this An-

chor; and, oix.h.t three Chrijiian graces, are

moft relieved by Hope, which leads on,

through Faith, to the promife of happier

days here, or a better ftate hft"eafter.

To be without Hope is the moll dreadful

of all earthly pURifliments : it is the refuge

of the poor and needy, ail^jfenders trie di-

ftribution of our lots below n^pre equal.

Since the high and low, the rich and poor,

cannot, with jullice, be deemed fo widely

different in their eilates, when we confide r,

that

Thcic arc placM in Hape and thme in Fc^r,

Hope is, in fliort, our bell companion

here ; it leads us as it were, by the hand,

through all difficulties and dangers; and,

it may juftly be faid of it, as has been ob-

ferved of love ; that it is

The cordial drop Heav'n in cur cup has thrcvvn.

To make the naufeous draught of life go down.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM IX.

Of Zeal ton}:arcli God,m

LO ! to the golden fun's euliv'ning rays,

The grateful Plant itj opening leaves difplays5

Rejoicing in his beams and radience bright,

Expands and opens with approaching light

:

But when dim night Extends her dufky fhade.

Its clofir-g beauties licken aJl^ aiid fade

!

The Flow'r which Phcebus' warmth firit bade to rife,

Lives in Ids beams, and in hh abfeiice dies.

MORAL.Each human bread may this example moveTo a£ts of Gratitude and Heavenly Love,

To HIM who gives us all our hearts to raife,

Live ia his light, and trixmph in his praife.

HE

[ ^6 ]

THE Sun-flower was, according to the

heathen fable, a nymph called Clytie; wholoved, and was at firll: beloved, by Phoebus,

or the Sun, and afterwards by him changedinib a Flower, which, ever mindful of the re-

gard fhe once bore to him, always turns it-

lelf to his beams.—This Plant, as it has al-

ways been remarl^ed for its property of par-

ticularly turning to the Sun, <b has it like-

wife been ever efleemed an Emblem of Gra-

titude in general ; and in particular of that

which is owing toGod our Creator, in whomwe Uve, and move, and have our being.

APPLICATION.Man may \ea.rn gratitui^e from the brutes,

and often even from the inanimate part of

iJie creation ; and, indeed. Nature herfclf

does not fail to teach him this lelTon, which

he* muft take great pains to eradicate from

his heart, before he can be fo bafe as to be-

come ungrateful.

Ingratitude (fays the fcripture) is nuorfe

than theJin of Witchcraft^ which mufl be a

heinous cfime indeed, to be fpoken of in

fuch terms in the lacred writings.

He who can return evil for goody or who

can even negledt to retura a good office

, when

.t '7 .]

when it is in his power, is To far from ever

deferving. again to be obliged or affifled,

that he docs not even deferve to live.

If the gratitude we owe to our friends be

fuch an indifputable duty, how much greater.

is that which we owe to God, to whole

paternal care we are indebted for all weare, and all we ever fliall be ?

How much does it behove us to turn to

Him as to our Sun, in whofe beams we live,

and whofe face being withdrawn, we fhould

return to our primitive nothing.

Remember thy Creator in the daysofthyyouth^

was the precept of the wifeft of mortals;

of one who well knew that this was not a

fi-uitlefs duty, but fuch a one as would be

returned by unnumbered bleilings fhowered

on the head of thofe who attached them-

felves to it.

Then like the Flower which to the Sun difplays

Its orient colours, and invokes his rays,

Still turn your heart to him \\1io reigns above,

Whofe yolre is Freedom, and whofe tribute Love

!

Ca EMBLEM

EMBLEM X.

Of the Cares of Greatnefs*

LO ! where Ambition's Emblem fit appears,

That great reward which pays the toil of years;

i^dorn'd with all the pomp of ftate, behold,

With jewels blazing rich the Giown of Gold:

>Tear, ah i too near, its fure companion lies,

The dire attendent on the dazzling prize.

The Crown of Thorns, vvhofe fliarpeft flings await,

On the vain pageantry of Regal State.

MORAL.Care follows Greatnefs

;guilt or fear annoys

The ScepterM Prince, and all his peace deitroys

:

And he who to poflefs a Crown is born,

For cv''ry gUtt'ring Jewel fiods a Thorn,

AMBITIOUS

[ 29 ]

AMBITIOUS men can conceive no g^ood

or happinefs but that which they imagine

is derived from greatnefs \ yet he is often

the object of their Envy, who (if the fecrets

of his heart were known) might more pro-

perly be faid to deferve their Pity.

Of all the purfuits of Ambition, a Crownis reckoned the moft noble and valuable

:

and, in the opinion of fome men, all humanfelicity is centered in the circle of it.—But,

where they exalted to the dignity they fo

much covet, it is certain they would foon

find their error, and be compelled, by ex-

perience, to confefs, that the Cronxjn ofGold\% infeparable from a Cro~vn of Thorns^

which is for ever galling the brow of Ma-jefly, and poifoning all the joys a IMonarch

can expert to tafle.

The reflections which Shakefpeare puts

into the mouth of Prince Henry, (after-

wards the great Henry V. who conquered

the French at Agincourt) are very applica-

ble to this purpofe. Seeing the Crowalying on his father's pillow, he breaks out

j»to the following exclamation :

C 5 Why

[ 3° ]

Why doth the Crown lie there upon his pillovr,

Being fo troublefome a bed-fellow ?

O polifh'd Perturbation ! Golden Care !

Thou keep'ft the ports of fluinber open wide

To many a watchful night !—He fleeps with''t now"!

Yet not fo found, not half fo deeply fweet

As he whofe brow with homely biggen bound

Snores out the watch at night.—O Majefty!

When thou doll pinch thy bearer, thou doll fit

Like a rich armour worn in heat of day,

That/fd/(/j wiihfafdy.

APPLICATION.

That to be ^reat is to be happy^ is one of

thofe errors which have almoll in all ages

prevailed among the generality of man-kind. But, that to be ^^W is to be Z'^^/j',

is a fccrer referved for the wife and virtuous

few, v\ ho are the grace and ornament of

themfelves, their friends, and their country.

An exalted flation always brings with it

a weight of cares ; and he is happier, whoin the humble vale of life, purfues his wayin the paths of Reafon and Virtue, than

he who fhares the favours of a Prince, or

the applaufe of a giddy multitude.

A monarch, if he is a tyrant, mufl be

in perpetual fear of his fubje^ts ; if a good

prince, he mufl be involved in perpetual

carss.

.[ 3' ]

carfs hrthem: either way he Hands a chance

never to tafte of real happinefs ; and thofe

Princes who have gone through the world

with the greatefl eclat, have been ready to

declare, that the Croivn of Gold was ever

accompanied by a Crown of Thorns-, and

that he who refolves to gratify his ambition^

mufl always expcd to facrifice his happinefs.

C4 EMBLEM

Emblem xi.

Of Brotherly Love%

BEhold the valiant twins, whofe glorious nameThe poets confecratc to endlcfs fame !

Two bodies fsvay'd by one agreeing mind

;

Loving in life, and not in death disjoined.

For feats of arms thro' all the world renown'd,

For friendfhip more^ the brother chiefs were found:

—

Thro"' life's whole race one common fate they fhare ;

Al:ke united, or in peace or war

;

For Pollux^ Castor fiHits; in battle flain,

Pollux for Castor begs new life in vain :

Yet half Aij days at length allow'd to give,

Alternately they die, alternate live.

MORAL.Learn hence true Friendfhip and Fraternal Lovc

;

An oft 'ring grateful to the Throne above.

CASTOR

[ 33 ]

CASTOR andPOLLUX are fald to have

been the fons of Leda ; the former, being

begotten by Tyndarus, was mortal; but

the latter, being the offspring of Jupiter,

Ihared in his father's immortality.

The ftrict Friendfhip, and more than

Brotherly Love, which fublifled between

thefe chiefs, was mofl remarkable. Whe-ther in peace or war, they were always to-

gether; they had the fame defigns, the

fame purfuits, and were fwayed by the

fame fpirits—infomuch, that none could be

Pollux's fr end without being beloved by

Caftor; none could be Caftor's foe, with-

out being alfo the enemy of Pollux.

Thefe chiefs atchieved together many no-

ble adventures, and were the companions of

Jalbn when he failed to fetch the Golden

Fleece from Colchis ; at which time, whenthe Ihip Argo was in danger from a florm,

two Ih-ange fires were feen harmlefsly play-

ing round the heads of thefe youths ; after

which a calm enfued.—They took the city

of Athens, and recovered their fifler Helena

who had been flolen away by Thefeus, being

at the fame time fo merciful, that they fpared

all the citizens. After this, in a battle

they fought with Lyncaeus and Ida, the fons

C5 of

of Alpharcus, near the mountain Taygettfs,

Caflor (the mort:;l brother) was llain by

Lyncasus, as Lyncceus was by Pollux; who,

not confoled by revengmg his brother's

death, begged of Jupiter to make him im-

mortal ; which requeft not being granted,

he intreated that he might beftow half his

own immortality upon him, fo that they

might live and die by turns; to which Ju-

piter aflented; but they were both after-

wards received into heaven, and ranked

with the Gods ; and, being placed among

the ftars, were known by the name of

Gemini.

Thus far the Fable, which has carried

Friendjhip and Brotherly Love to the great-

eft height pollible .--As to the truth of the

flory it may feem, that thefe brother chiefs

were remarkable for their agreement in

every thing, and, by their union, perform-

ed many great exploits.—At length, Caftor

was flain in battle, and Pollux, h.v/ing

killed Lync3EUS, who flew him, Aiding it

impoffible'to live without his brother, fought

the firft occafion of falling in war ; and thus

fhared in his death, to whom all his wdfhes

could not reflore life, once departed.

* Or the Twins.

A P P L I-

t 3S ]

APPLICATIOX,

Tkis is a fit Emblem oi Brotherly LovC'^

and the advantages arifing from focial con-

nexions.—-Man was by Nature framed for

fociety, and there can be no happinefs be-

low without its benefits.—It is by this that

we mutur.Uy fupply each others wants, and

enjoy tho'e bleffings of life, which without

it we could never purchafe.

Friendfhip is the deareft of all focial ties,

and adds the higheft relilli to thefe bleirings.

There is not in the world fo unhappy a manas he who has not a Friend; whiie he whois pofleiled of fuch a jewel as a true one, maybear up under the ftorms of Affl.dion, and

rife fuperior to the frowns of Fortune.

C6 EMBLEM

EMBLEM XII.

Of Forejight,

THE wary God with iouhhfront is grac'd,

One face furveys the prefent, one \.\\tpa(h^

With equal looks his watchful eyes appear,

To mark th' expiring^ and the rifng year

:

All plans of nnoment own his guardian care.

He fhews to rule the doubtful chance of war:

Emblem of Forejight, (till in danger known,

By which great a<ftions are atchiev'd alone.

MORAL.Seek ftill that Prudence, which to Virtue join'd

Makes the beft treafure of the human mind;

Confider well each deed you mean to do.

But oacc refolvM, with carneft zeal purfuc.

THIS

[ 37 ]

THIS figure is a good reprefentation of

Prudence and Forefight ; which, by coni-

paring the Paft with the Prefent, is enabled

to look forward to the Future, and thus to

judge of the confequence of things; as for

us, it is not within the compafs of humanpower to do fo.

Janus was an ancient deity, to whom the

Romans in particular paid divine honours ;

his temple was always open in time of war,

and fhut in time of peace ;^the latter cir-

cumftance happened but three times in the

courfe of many centuries, the laft, and moll

remarkable of which was in the reign of

Octavius, better known by the name of

Auguftus Csefar, in whofe reign the Saviour

of the World was born.

It is not certainly known who this Janus

was ; but, according to the bcft authors of

him, it feems he was a king of Etruria, whowas famous for his Wifdom and Prudence j

and who, by the-llrength of his judgment,

forefaw fo well the events of many under-

takings, both of his own and others, that

he was fuppofcd by many to poflcfs fome

fupernatural knowledge.

Though nothing of this kind was true, yet

he was a very wife man, and a good prince.

He taught his people the culture of the vine

and

[ 38 ]

and olive, together with many other ufeful

and neceflary arts of life : he alfo inflru6ted

them to raife temples to the deity, whomthey worfhipped before oa hills, and in

groves. It is no wonder the heathens, whomade gods of tyrants, (hould, after his death,

pay divine honours to this prince, whofe

fymbolical figure was deligned to reprefent

his great wifdom and extraordinary abilities.

APPLICATION.It is a truth that can never be too much

inculcated, that prudence is a moft proper

guard to prote(^l people through life. In

youth, in maturer years, in old age, it is

equally necelfary ; but it becomes particu-

larly fo to iuch as are engaged in any con-

cerns of importance to others, who muft

otherwife fufter by their want of it, and will

too late have occahon to repent the confi-

dence they placed in them.

Though experience belongs properly only

to Age^ yet leli'uns oi prude?ice may be learn-

ed in Touth ; ano, indeed, they can fcarcely

be too early inculcated, as with the Toung^

it mull fland in the place of that experience^

and is one of the betl guides they can trull

to, to conduct them through the dangerous

road of life.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XIII.

Of Senfuality,

THAT monftrous fhape behold with threai'ning bow,

Whofe ardent eyes wiih favage ardor glow

;

That doub e-foim'd, whom neither race can claim •

Who yet, trefumptiious, fcoris all fenle of fliamc;

Glorying in brutal ftrength and brutal deeds,

'Till unexf-efted punifhment fucceeds:

Such cs once Thefeus dealt the favage train,

>^nd fent th-ra roaring to the wilds again;

When at the Marriage Feafl they darM intrude.

To Ilain the feftive hail with ftreams of blood.

MORAL.If you would {hun that punifhment, their due.

Be timely wife;—fhun 'heir cxceffes too;

Heav'n ftill with anger will your crimes regard,

Which fooa or late ^ill meet their fure reward.

ANCI£>'T

[ 40 ]

ANCIENT fable fays the Centaurs were

Moiiflers ; the oft'spring of Ixion, by a Cloud

whom he miftook for Juno; for which crime

he was condemned to be bound perpetually

to a wheel in Tartarus. It feems, how-ever, that the Centaurs were a people of

ThefTaly, the lirlt who tamed horfes fo as to

ride upon them ; but being alfo a very bru-

tal race, they were (from that circumftance,

and their ftrange appearance when on horfe-

back) fuppofed to be half man and half beaft.

Being invited to the wedding of Pirithoiis,

one of them attempted to foice away the

bride j but being oppofed by Thefeus, the

infeparable friend of the bridegroom, a (kir-

milh enfued, which was fucceeded by a war,

wherein that hero, affifled by the Lapithas,

totally exterminated them ; almoft an age

before the famous liege of Troy was under-

taken by the confederate Greeks.

APPLICATION.Such are the effeds of Drunhnnefs and

DlJJipation ; fuch the reward of Cruelty and

Brutality ; which, though they may leem

triumphant for a while, will at laft certain-

ly meet their doom, when they will remain,

to the lateftpofterity, as dreadful monuments

of the wrath of Heaven,

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XIV.

Of Wifdom,

BEhold, with graceful mien, the heav'niy maid.

Shines forth in ftrong and glict'ring arms array'd!

The power of Wifdom in her looks flie fhows,

Arid {lands the terror of an Hoft of Foes.

MORAL.Let PALLAb* arts your ev'ry aftion guidf,

And more in Wiflom than in Strtngih confide;

If you with Virtue and with Prudence arm,

No fraud can reach you, and no flrength can harm;

Safe in yourfelf, your foes you may def

And vice and folly from your face fhall fly.

PALLAS

[ 42 ]

PALLAS, or Minerva, was faid to be

the daughter of Jupiter ; llie fprang out of

his head in a full affembly of the Gods. She

fcon gave evident tokens of her divine de-

fcent by her nx:ifdnny the ctFefts of which

were feen both in heaven and earth. She

alMed her father Jupiter in his war with the

Giant Titan.—When Ihe had a difpute with

Neptune, God of the Sea, which of them

Ihould name a city, it was agreed, which-

foever produced the moft beneficial thing,

fhould have the privilege ; on which Nep-

tune prefented them with a Horfe, an Em-blem of Strength and Courage ; but Pallas

gave them an Olive, an Emblem of Peace

and Plenty ; whereupon it was determined in

her favour, and (lie called the city Athens.

Thus far the Fable;—the Moral is plain:

Wifdom fprang from the Supreme Being

;

and by that Wifdom He overcomes Evil.

—

By Wifdom, Peace and Plenty flourlfli in ci-

ties and civil focieties; and, by its means,

private men may be enabled to enjoy do-

meflic happinefs.

APPLICATION.When the Almighty gave king Solomon

his choice ofblefTmgs, he afked for W'ifdom

and Length of days ; Riches and Honour

were

[ 43 ]

were added to them, becaufe God was pleafed

with his requeft, as he a&ed only that which

was fit and necelTary.

The man who is armed with true Wifdom,

has little to fear from the aflaults of his ene-

mies, becaufe he finds his refource in him-

felf'j while he that depends only on the help

oi ot/jersy is often defertcd at his need, and

finds his millake when it is too late to rec-

tify it.

Wifdom is the companion of Vi*-tue, as

Folly is the fifter of Vice; but it is impof-

lible for a wickfed man to be truly wife j for

if he were fo, he would fee the folly of hi»

evil ways, and turn from them.—Wifdom is

a Safeguard^ and a T(nver of Defence -, and

he that trufls to her, will never have reafon

to repent his confidence.

Be 'Virtuous, be nvife, and be happy ; for

in the true fenfe of the words, they are

the fame thing; from Virtue and Prudence,

all the good we can hope for in this world

is derived ; without them we muft expect

nothing but mifery and anxiety.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XV-

Of Inflalility,

THIS is the Syren, vvhofe enchanting fong

Draws the unthinking multitude along;

That feeds with faithlefs hopes and luring bait,

The poor deluded wretch (he means to cheat I

Men call herfalfe, inconllant, cruel, vain.

Yet feek her favours with unwearied pain.

Th' unhappy bear her Frowns, (till led away

With expe»5lation of a better day;

Th' ambitious court her fmiles ; but {till the wife,

Do her and all her gilded pomp defpife.

MORAL.Her fairy kingdom, her fantaftic good

Avoid ; and by more certain hopes purfu'd,

Truft not to fickle Fortune's partial powV,

Eut, timely wife, employ the prefent hour.

FORTUNE

45 ]

FORTUNE \V2S among the ancient hea-

thens, of all powers reprelented as the mofl

partial. The old Romans uorfliipped her a»

a deity ; but at the fame time it is to be ob-

fcrved, that they reprefented her as blind,

and flanding on a wheel. Her hlindnefs re-

prefents her undifcerning partiality^ and the

"joheel h^r JiLklenefs \juft Emblems of her

conduift in the diflribution of thofe favours

wh'ch the wife will always learn to contemn.

That the heathen world, who made deities

of almoft every thing, fhould afcribe divine

honours to Fortune, is not at all wonderfulj—but in this more enlrghtened age it is moft

ridiculous to make a Goddefs of her; and

yet, what lefs do they, who leave all to her

power, and let the feafons pafs away ? Dayand night fucceed to each other, without

ever thinking how properly to employ them

;

trufting all to Fortune and Chance ; forget-

Ing that fuccefs attends an honeft induflry ;

and that Poverty is the infeparable compa-

nion of Idlenefs.

APPLICATION,There is not a jufter maxim, than that

' Fortune is the Deity of Fools ,* they wor-

fhip oi>l) her; they leave every thing in her

power ; while the wife and good man, whotruiU

[ 46 ]

trufls nothing to her but what he cannot

help, bears her fmilcs with equanimity, and

her frowns with fortitude.

Fools, on the other hand, not only wor-

fliip, but in fome fenfe, according to the

old adage, make Fortune j that s, they

truft all to chance^, and then complain of

thofc, whereof themfelves are authors.

Thofe who would be candidates for fuc-

cefs in life, fhould never rely on fo fickle a

patronefs ; in fliort, they fhould confider

that there is no fuch thing as chance^ but

that every thing depends on their own in»

duftryy accompanied by the blelfing of Pro-

vidence, which generally attends the Wife

and Virtuous ; and is far more proper to

truftto, than fuch a fickle friend as Fortune,

who

Undifcerning fcatters crowns and chains.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XVI.

Of Improvement*

THE wife induftrious Bee employs the hours.

In lipping fragrance from the various flow'rs.

No plant, no herb, that Nature's hand prepares.

But yields her Honey to reward her cares.

MORAL.Learn by the Bee from each event to find

Some hint of ufe or profit to your mind

:

Nothing fo fmall but you may draw from thence,

Irrfprovement for your Virtue or your Senfe.

Honey like this life's evils will afluage,

And yields you fweels in your declining age.

THE

[ 48 ]

THE Bee is a noble pattern of induJlTy

and prudence* She fettles upon every plant

and flower, and makes the moft infignifi-

cant, nay, even the moft hurtful of them,

ufeful to her purpofe.—Thus flie toils all

the Summer, while the days are fair, in

ordertogetaftock, which (lie lays by toferve

for Winter, when the herbs and flowers arc

dead, the trees deprived of their leaves, and

the weather bad and unfavourable.

Then the Bees retire to their Hive, which

is formed like a little ftate, and governed by

a Queen, who difpenfes jultice to her fub-

je6ls. It is faid they bury th eir dead, punilh

criminals, and drive the Idle (which are

called Drones) from their Hives.—Theykeep a regular order, whether in war or

peace ; and, as foon as their Queen dies,

appoint another to iucceed her, and rule

their little ftate, which may ferve as a pat-

tern for a well-ordered community.

APPLICATION.The Bee is one of the apteft Emblems of

Indujiry^ and the arc of extra6ling_§-o<?^out

of e'viU that can be found in Nature. It

is endued with an i7ifiin5l^ that reafon itfelf

needs not be atiiamea to copyj as its

perjeverance is an admirable example for

the wifeft of us to follow.

As

[ 49 1

As the Bee; in the Summer, provides for

itfelf that, which may fervc for its fupport ia

Winter, fo fliould we, in the Summer of our

days, take care to lay in a (lore of profitable

virtue?, and good quilities, which may ren-

der us juflly admired in age, and enable us

to fet a good example to pofterity.

Like that induflrious Infect, llkewife, wefhould learn to make every occurrence of

life ferviceable to us ; for nothing is fo fmall

or minute but it may be made of ufe ; no-

thing fo bad in Nature, but we may draw

from it fome profit or inilru6tion; and thus,

by chufing the Good, and avoiding the Evil,

we may purchal'e to ourfeh'cs, Peace here,

and the Hopes of a brighter Reward here-

after.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XVII.

Of Deceit,

WOuld'll: thoujunthmking, to the beafl draw near,

Caugbt by his plaintiveCry, andfiaudfulTear ?

Ah ! fiy in time the dreadful ftroke of Fate,

Nor ftay to feel it, and be wife too late.

MORAL.Deceitful men, and all tbelr mazes fhun,

J^or by diflcmblcd forrows be undone:

If much they feem their aftions to deplore,

Forgive their crimti^ but truft their -worii no more*

THE

THE Crocodile is reported to weep over

its prey, and to fend forth a piteous and dif-

trefsful cry, in order to allure men or beafls

to its haunts, that it may feize and devour

them. This ftory is variouily told—Some

fay it devours whatever it catches, all but

the head, and then weeps becaufe no more

is left to fatisfy its rapacious appetite. It

is moil likely, on comparing the different

accounts, that this animal makes a noife,

which other creatures take for a complaint,

though probably it is only a found It com-monly fends forth over its prey, as .the

grovvling of a cat over a moufe. Howeverthat be. Crocodile's Tears are become a

Proverb; and a moral of found prudence

may by drawn from the Emblem,

APPLICATI. ON,

As it is man's greateft praife " to be Wife

as a Serpent, aad as Innocent as a Dove,'*

fo, h.e who fuffers himfelf to fall into the

fnares of deligning men, will quickly put

it out of his own power to be of fervice to

the good and v rtuous.

No principle is more noble than that offorgiving injuries—nothing fo wicked or

D a unpro-

[ .5^ ]

iinprontablc as a rancorous revenge. Hea-

%xn itfelf commands us to forgive our ene-

mies ; but it is the height of tolly to truft

thofe who have injured us.

There are fome people, who, like the

Crocodile in the Emblemj will even feem

to lament their former injuries, in order to

have it in their power to do you frefh ones.

Of fuch perfons beware: do them no harm,

but take care not to put it into their power

to doyou any.

If you would pafs through life with any

degree of fatisfadion, it is necefTary that

you be good and priidejit, Wifdom is the

iifter of Virtue ; join them both in your

condudt ; and, If it fliould happen that you

do not enjoy all the felicity you might ex-

peft, you will at leaft have the comfort to

deferve it.

EMBLEM/

EMBLEM XVIII.

Of Indifcretion,

npH E bufy infeft hov'ring round the light,

PieasM with the taper's beams which gild the night,

Siill round and round in giddy circles files,

Till caught within the Icorching blaze, it dies.

Ah ! filly thing, the fource of all thy joy,

(A beauteous mifchief!) (bines but to deflroy

:

EVn fo the youth who burns with wild defircs.

Oft falls the riftim of unhallowM fires.

MORAL.Avoid the glitt'ring evil, Ihun the fnare,

Which Sin and Guile for artlefs youth prepare;

Left with the Moth one common fate you prove.

And perilh by th' exccfTes which you love.

D3 THE

[ 54 ]

THE Moth, allured by the Brlghtnefs of

the Candle, plays round the Flame, till at

lafl it is confumed by its heat. A fit Emblem

of thofe unwary ones who play round the

verge of Evil, till at length they precipitate

themfelves into infamy and ruin.

The Fly, and many other winged infeds,

have the fame propcnfity to hovering round

any luminous body, and frequently die by

the heat, which is infeparable from that

brlghtnefs they fo much defire ; but none fo

frequently find their fate in the Blaze, as

the Moth, which is almoft as fure to perifh

by the Candle, as to perceive its light. The

Moth feeds chiefly upon cloth and woollen

itufFs ; and is an animal of fo delicate a tex-

ture, that a flight touch crufhes it to pieces

;

it is therefore the lafl creature in the world

to fuftain the attacks of fo terrible an enemy

as fire ;yet this enemy, in the refemblance

ofa friend, courts it to draw near, and after-

wards works its inevitable deflrudtion,

APPLICATION.What an .unhappy flate is theirs, who

will not take warning by the end of others,

nor avoia the mifchiefs which have proved

fatal to fo many.

What

[ 55 ],

What numbers have experienced the fi.mc

fate with the Infedl in the Emblem ; and yet

what numbers are daily running on, in the

fame manner, to their ruin, Iporting with

Vice and Folly, and, as it were, making

Danger their playfellow;—they cannot, or

will not fee, that the endofthefe things is death ;

they g:i on from one ilep to another, till it

is too late to recede, and fink into the gulph

of mifery ; leaving behind them freflie:sam-

ples ofwhat was already well enough known,

but always too little regarded.

If you are wife, fliun all temptntions, and

be not deceived by appearances ; Vice, Fol-

ly, and Danger, ofren lurk under the mofl

inviting forms ; but try the Tree ; not by-

its appearance but by its Fruit, you ihall

know it.

Sweeteft leaves the Rofe adorn,

Yet beneath them lurks the Thorn;

Fair and fiow'ry is the brake,

Yet it hides the fpeckled fnake.

ConTder, and beware ; for he who wouldavoid forrow, muftbe wary in his lleps; andhe who would fhun misfortune, muH be care-

ful to take Wifdom for his com.panion.

D4 EMBLEM

EMBLEM XIX.

Qf Temperance %

WHILE drownVl in Luxury yon fellal train,

Court this frail world's felicity in vainj

R'thold the Cynic from his Tub derides

Their idle mirth, and laughing fhakes his fides

!

He, who the world's great mafter* could contemn,

Might fit at eafe, and laugh at Vice and them :

Few were his Wants, and therefore few his Woes;

He who has nought to lofe, no terrors knows:

Not riches, but Coritentment, muft procure

Our peace below, and make our blifs fecure.

MORAL.Learn nought to covet;— prize what is your own,

And you're more blefl: than he who fills a throne.

* Alexunder the Great.

DIOGENES

[ 57 1

DIOGENES was a Grecian philofophcr,

who much admired Poverty, and placed hia

chief happinefs in Content. His (method of

living, however, was extraordinary; for,

inftead of a houfe, he dwelt in a Tub, from

whence he laughed at the luxuries of the

Great, and even went fo far as to fpeak

againfl the ufe ofwhat are generally deemed

the necelTaries of life ; almoll all of which

he contrived to fubliii without; infomuch,

that one day feeing a boy drink out of the

hollow of his hand, he broke his pitcher,

faying, that nothing wasneceflary to him,

which it was poffible for any one to do

without.

When Alexander, for his conquefls fur-

named the Great, the fon of Philip, king

of Macedon, once made him a vilit, anj

alked him what he fliould do for him ?

** Nothing, replied the Cynic, but iland out

of my funfliine, and do not deprive me ofthat

which thoucan'ft not give me."—In fo little

eflimation did he hold princes, or their fa-

vours. To fay the truth, his chiefaim being

Content, and his condudl being founded

on the maxim, " That he who has leaft

Wants is the happieft man," if his wants

were reaUy as few as the fapplies he afforded

D 5 them,

.[ 58 ]

them, he might, not unreafonably be fup-

pofed to be as happy as any one.

He was a great declaimer againfl Vice ia

general, and Luxury in particular; and his

raillery, and that of his feft, was fo Iharp,

that their countrymen called them Cynics,

that is, Snarlers ; and this is the apellation

by which they are known, wherever their

names are mentioned in hiftory.

APPLICATION.There can be no doubt, but that the

happinefs of every man mufl, in a great

meafure, depend on the difpoiition of his

mind ; elfe we fhould not every day fee fome

people unhappy with every thing that, to

all outward appearance, could contribute to

their felicity, whilft others, fcarcelypofleffed

«f neceflaries, feem merry and happy.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XX.

Of Falfe Friendjhip,

TH E Stag once wounded, 'tis in vain he flies,

In vain to mingle with the herd he tries ;

The herd avo d hira as markM out for death,

Till in defpair he draws his latefl breath

;

His wayward fate all frie'-d'y aid denies

;

Deferted as his utmoft nted, he dies.

MORAL.So thofe falfe friends whom worldly int'refts fway,

When Milcbief threatens will fly far away;

Baflc '.n thy fuiilhine ; but in evil times,

And lowVing days, feek out for warmer climes.

Chufe then with caution, if hou would'ft fucceed

;

A Friend in Poverty 's a Friend icdecd.

D6 IT

[ 6o ]

IT has often been remarked of the Stag,

that, being wounded by the hunters, he at-

temps to take fhelter among the firft herd

of Deer that he efpies; while thefe, on their

part, like falfe friends, as induflrioufly avoid

him ; and, to keep off from danger them-

felves, abandon him to his fate. The de-

fertion of his fpecies is beautifully pit^ured

by Shakefpeare, in his play, called, As YouLike it ; in the following lines :

•- A poor fequefterM Stag

That from the hunter's aim had ta'en a hurt,

Did come to languifli there;

The wretched animal heavM forth fuch groans,

That their difcharge did ftrctch his leather coat,

'

Almoft to burfting; and the big round tears

CoursM one another down his innocent nofe

In piteous chace :—Anon a carelefs herd

Full of the palture, jump'd along by him,

i^nd never ftay'd to greet him.

This creature, if he efcapes the hunters,

generally lives to a great age—Some au-

thors fay he attains to 300 years ; but this

feems to be a fable : however, that he is a

very long-lived animal, is clear, from manycircumllances inconteftibly authenticated :

Nature has endued him with a remarkable

fwiftnefs of foot, and the branches which

vegetate from his head, are equally ufeful

and ornamental.

A P P L I-

[ 6. ]

APPLICATION.

There cannot be a fitter Emblem oifalfe

Friendjkip^ than that which is here exhi-

bited—The flag is wounded ; he flies from

his purfuers, who have marked him out for

death ; he feeks, by mingling with the

croud, to efcape their notice. Where fhould

he hope for fhelter, but among his ownkind—perhaps, the very herd of which he

was once the leader ? he throws himfelf

therefore upon their protedion : but, alas,

how vain are his deligns ! refolved not to

fliare in his misfortunes, they fly, and teach

him, too late, how little he has to hope

from their kindnefs,—He falls—the con-

fequence of which is, that among all thefe,

every one in his turn experiences the fame

treatment from his fellow.

Juft fo it fares with thofe Friendfliips

which are founded only upon Interefl,

which have neither Piety, Virtue, nor mu-tual Benevolence for their balls.—Inprofpe-

rity, thefe men will be ever ready at your

command, either becaufe you do not wantthem, or becaufe they know you will over-

pay their fervices. Change the fcene to

Adverfity, and they change with it—they

defert

[ 6i ]

defcrt you—you will fiad no flielter with

them ; but like the Deer in the Fable, each

will Ihift for himfelf, and leave you to your

fate.

Be careful then how you chufe a Friend,

which is the greatefl of all earthly acquili-

tions ; and, above all things, remember,

that can be no real Frlendfhip, which is

founded merely upon Intei'eft.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXI.

Of Education*

qEE in what evil plight yon Vine appears,

^ isor fpreading leaves, nor purple clufters bears;

But if around the Elm her arms fhc throws.

Or by fome friendly Prop fupported grows,

Soon fhall the ftem be clad with foliage green,

And cluiter'd Grapes beneath the leaves be leen.

MORAL.Thus prudent care muft rear the youthful mind,

By Love Supported, and with toil refin'd :

'Tis thus alone the Human Plant can rife;

UnproppM it droops, aod uofupported, dies.

THfi

[ 64 ]

TKE Vine never flourifiies without a

Prop or Support. Like the fruit it bears, it

is of a fo^lal nature, and rewards the friend-

ly Ihade which fupports it, with its purple

tre^fures. But if it is fuffered to creep

along without a Prop, it will moil certainly

difappoint the hopes of the planter, and

prove barren and ufelefs.

APPLICATION.This is a fit Emblem of Youth, which,

if left to Itfelf, will never grow up in Wifdomor in Virtue,—To Education alone, muft

children be indebtfrfor their Morals, and

the Care of the Parents is always vifible in

the CoiTdu6t of their Offspring.

When a Youth has received a virtuous and

liberal Education, no gratitude can be fuffi-

cient to difcharge the debt he owes to his pa-

rents; fmce he is notonlyindcbtedtothemfor

bis Being, but alfo for all his hopes of peace

here, and of eternal happinefs hereafter.

On the other hand, he who has been neg-

lected in his youth, has a heavy accufafon to

bring againft thofe who reared him, when he

comes to years of maturity. Evil inclinations,

if not checked, will grow amazingly upon

us, while good ones, if they be not properly

encouraged, will fade and die away ; and that

will

will be too late deplored in age, which might

have been remedied in our earlier years.

How careful then ought Parents and

Guardians to be of their charge, of which

they mud one day render up an account,

where no idle excufes will be admitted : no

evafion nor equivocation can avail them !

If it be then found that they have been

careiefs in this great work, how poignant

will be their fhame, and how fevere their

punlfiiment

!

But if they have faithfully difcharged this

truft, committed to them by Heaven itfelf,

how great will be their honour, how glorious

the cro.vn of their reward!

The Education of Children is indeed a

matter of fuch confequence, that it con-

cerns not only private perfons, but the pub*

lie in general ; and that nation will always

be the moll virtuous, and the moft refpe^l-

ablc, whofe youth are educated with the

greateft care, and are earliell inftru<fted in

the duties of Men, and of Chriflians.

Thefe, like the generous Vine, will fully

repay the pious care of the Planter ; and,

while they are known by their Fruit, will

refle£t honour upon the hands that reared

them.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXII.

Of refijling the evil Principle*

Bygreat Apollo's arm the Python flain,

O'er many a rood lies Itretched upon the plain;

The world rejoices from the Monfter freed;

The Godhead triumphs in the glorious deed.

For feats like thefe, heroic chiefs of old,

In Fame's bright temple higheft honour hold.

MORAL.With valiant heart proceed in Virtue's ways,

And gain the tribute of immortal praife :

The Monfter Vice with all your pow'rs engage,

And rife the Phoebus of another age.

THE

[ 6; ]

THE Serpent Python was a Monfler,

\vhich, according to the fabulous account,

fprung from the mud and llagnated waters

that the General Deluge left behind.

This Monfter, the God Apollo (who is

alfo called Phoebus) engaged, and deflroyed

with his unerring arrows I tor which fervicc

divine honours were paid him, and the Py-

thian Games were eft^bllihed. He had a ce-

lebrated temple at Deiphos, where Oracles

were delivered in his name, by a prieftefs

called Pythia, and was, next to Jupirer, the

mofl efteemed of all Heathen Gods.

The Fable fignifies, that the Deluge left

behind it certain ftagnate waters, and thefe

produced peftilential vapours, which, how-

ever, at length, the beams of Apollo, Phoe-

bus or the Sun, exhaled, and deilroyed their

noxious quality.

The Moral is, that Vice and Oppreffion

ought to be courageoufly refilled ; and that

thole who do good to their fellow-creatures,

deferve to receive public honours at their

hands.

APPLICATION.If we mean to atchieve praife-worthy ac-

tions, we muft not be daunted at difficulties,

nor terrified by oppofition. We mult re-

folve

[ 68 ]

folve to vanqiilfli thefe obftades which may

arife, and this refolution will be half the

viftory.

We muft, moreover, be ever ready pre-

pared, on every occalion, to refill the Evil

Principle, which, like the Python in the

Emblem, lays all waile before him. Chdin the armour of Virtue, we muft advance

boldly TO the combat; we muft conquer all

bad inclinations, and, with the aiTiftance of

the Divine Grace, make war upon the de-

pravity and wickednefs of our own nature.

This is the conqueft we fhall find hardeft to

gain ; but, when obtained, it will fully re-

compence our toils ; fince he that has his

paffions at command, is greater than he

who rules a kingdom ; and the man that

vanquiflies himfelf, is greater than he whotriumphs over an enemy.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXIII.

Of Fortitude,

qAFE in its ftrength, the Rock's broad bafe derides

*^ The roaring Tcmpefts, and the raging Tides

:

Unmov'd, tho' Boreas blufter from oh high,

Or Ocean lift his billows to the fky

:

Its fixt foundations, which by Heaven were caft

When Time began, with Time itfclf fhall laft,

MORAL.Be flrong, be ftedfaft, in fair Virtue's caufe,

Nor fear reproof, nor covet vain applaufe :

Heed not of evil tongues the envious ftrife,

Nor the loud ftorms that rage thro' human life:

On Truth's firm bafis let your Hopes remain.

And Seas may rage, and Tempefts roar in vain.

A ROCK

[ 10 1

A ROCK in the midft of a troubled

Ocean, attacked by Tempcfts, and beaten

by the foaming furgc, is a juft refemblance

of a virtuous man bearing up under the

florms of affli6tion, and refifting every temp-

tation to abandon his innocence. This is

he who has built his houfe on a Rock : the

Rains and the Winds may come, and beat

upon it, but in vain : becaufe its Foun-

dation is ftedfaft, and cannot be removed.

But he whofe Conftancy is not proof againft

the florms of Adveriity, is indeed, like one

who has founded his houfe on the Sand,

which the firft Tempeil will be likely to

overthrow, and to fweep away its remem-

brance from under Heaven. To fuch a man,

what avails it that he has been accounted

virtuous, if he falls off in the day of trial

;

if at length, when he is weighed in the ba-

lance, he is found wanting?—His good

deeds will be forgotten, but his offence will

be had in perpetual remembrance.

APPLICATION,

Adversity is the teft of Conftancy ; it i%

the fiery trial, which, when the virtuous

have gone through, they are found as pure

gold, neither diminilhed in weight nor value.

It

[ 7' ]

It is an eafy thing for a man to poflefs him-

fclf in the fummer and funlhine of life ; it

is eafy for him to boaft that Virtue which

never yet was tried, and to exult in that

Fortitude which he has never yet had occa-

fion to exert ; but true magnanimity and

greatnefs of foul are found in fupporting

Evils with Refignation, and refifling Temp-

tations with Rcfolurioii.

It is by the tefl of misfortune that the

greateil and beft of men have been proved

;

it is to their noble behaviour under it, that

they owe the titles of Good and Great.—

The faints and martyrs among the primitive

chriflians, and So rates among the heathens,

dying for the teft mony of truth, are cha-

racters which will ever be juflly admired in

this world, as doubtlefs they were rewarded

in a better flate.

Learn then to copy fuch great examples,

and hold lafl: the Truth, even to death; this

is to lay yowx foundation on arock^ which de-

fies the Tempeit, and itands i'ecure amidfl

the Roaring Waves of the Ocean, which

endeavour m vain to (hake it, becaufe itg

bafis is ftedtafl and immovable.

EMBLEM' J/

y>^

EMBLEM XXIV.

Of the Ufe of SelfDenial.

WITH hafty fleps, at the firfl: dawn of day,

The chearful traveller purfues his way

;

But tir'd at noon, he feeks a fliady grove

Of lofty trees, whofe branches meet above

:

Conceal'd beneath the Grafs the Serpent lies,

The Iwain draws near, and by his venom dies.

MORAL.Thus he, who leaving Virtue's facred ways,

Securely thro' the paths of Pleafure flrays:

Wounded by Vice, his Peace and Honour loft,

Buys late experience at too dear a coft:

To him who perjeveres alone are giv'n

Fair fame on eartb, and endlels blifs in Heav'n.

A SER-

[ 73 ]

A SERPENT concealed In the Grafs,

13 ail apt Emblem of Fraud arvi Vice, con-

cealed under fpccious appearances.—TheTraveller goes on his road with chearful-

nefs, during the morning hours : he doubts

not but he fliall foon get to his journey's

end, and expeds not to meet with the leaft

obflacle in his way.

But when he feels the heat increafing,

his vigour begins to relax. When the hour

of noon arrives, he is abfolutely weak and

faint. He beholds a wood fpread its invit-

ing fiiade ; he confiders not that to enter is

to deviate from his road j he thinks not

what danger he may encounter there : all his'

attention is taken up in relieving himfelf

from a prefent inconvenience.

He enters the grove, and lofes himfcIf

among its cool and agreeable windings.

When he would return, he finds himfelt

perplexed, as in a maze, and before he can

regain the road, he is bitten by a venemous

reptile, which was concealed from his fight

among the grafs—He now wifhes he had

borne the heat of the day ; his blood is con-

fumed with fires more intolerable. He fal-

ters—finks under his pains, and falls a vie-

urn to his own imprudeacet

E A P P n«

[ 74 ]

APPLICATION.

Virtue is never fafe but when fhe is fc-

cured by the guard of Prudence : Difcre-

tion is her handmaid, and Wifdom her

counfellor and inltruftor.

Caution is a neccflary leffon to be learned

by Youth ; and Perfeverance one of the bell

qualities they can be indowed with.

When Fortune fmilcs upon us, it is not fo

difficult to go on in the pradice of Virtue :

•—a man may eafily obtain the reputation

oi ht'ing gooi^f when he is fo circumftanced,

that he muft become a monfter of Vice to

be nvicked.

But you who would attain to the end of

your labours, be virtuous, and to your vir-

tue join prudence I be prudent alfo, and to

your prudence ]om perfeverance ; fo Ihall younot fall into the Snares of Pleasure

j nor

feci the envenomed Sti.iga of Guih andRemorfc, whofe fangs are fliarper than rhofe

of the Serpent, and wiiofe polfon is moredeadly than that of the venomout. Adder,

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXV.

Of the Danger of Temptation

»

ripHE filly fifli, while playing in the brook,*• Hatb gorgM ard fwallowM the deltrufti ve hook •

In vain he flounces on the auiv'ring hair,

Drawn panting forth to breathe the upper air

:

Caught by his folly in the glittVing bait,

He meets his. ruin, and fubmits to fate,

MORAL.Avoid bafe bribes; the tempting lure difplayM,

If once you leize, you perifh fe'f-betray'd.

Be ilow to take when ftracgers hafte to give,

Left of your ruin you the price receive.

THE

[ 76 ]

THE fimple Fifh fports on the furfacc

of the clear flreams, while the wily Angler

plies his Rod and Line ;—the timid animal

often approaches the bait, and as often

returns from it ; till at lall, juft as the fun

fhrouds his radiance behind a cloud, he

ventures to jump at the fiditious fly, fwal-

lows it at once, and with it fvvallows the

bearded hook. That moment fcals his ruin :

Smarting from the wound, he fbuggles and

endeavours to free himfelf, but in vain.

The Angler, giving full play to the Line,

permits him to run away with it. But this

ftruggle only tends to make his ruin more

certain. He is foon tired out, and then,

being lifted out of the water, proves an eafy

prey to his foe. He pants, he expires in

agonies, yet ow^s his deitrudion to ^.Jlender

hah-: fo often do fceming trifles tend to

Ruin and Perdition.

APPLICATION.What a fit Emblem is this of thofc

heedlefs perfons who fufFer themfelvcs to be

deluded by glittering temptations, or drawn

into fnares by the artifices of the vicious

and defigning.

If, for a while, like the fifh they play

about the Hook, yet, in fome unguarded

moment

[ 77 1

moment, when the light of their realon it

obfcured, they I'cize the fpecious Bait, and

then they find all their flruggles ineffectual.

He who has had the art to catchy like the

Angler in the Emblem, has generally the

judgment lofecure his Prey. Such an one

will but fmile at their vain attempts tore-

cover their liberty", while he is fenfible thefe

only ferve ftill farther to enthral them. Thedye is cafl, and they become the vicftims of

their own imprudence.

The ofifers of fome men are dangerous

;

be not therefore led away by fpecious ap-

pearances: think before you act; and let

the character oi xht giver, and the condi-

tions he is likely to exad, be well confidered

before you receive the gift. If it be the

price of vice ov folly, Ihun it, as you hope,

for peace and h:?ieji fame : each Tempta-

tion you have avoided, will, by reflection,

ilrenthen you againit the next ; cuilom

will make the moft difficult fclf-denials eafy,

and by one victory, you will be cnabied

to gain another. You will thus be delivered

from the fnares o(vice, and folly fhall never

triumph over your tall.

E 3 EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXVI.

Of Perfeverance,

JASON, a bold adventurer failM to claim,

The precious prize which rais'd his country's famC

His velTel bore the flowV of ancient Greece

To Colchis' ftiore to claim the Golden Fleece

:

But firft the Brazen-footed Bulls he train'd,

And vath hard yokes their {lubborn necks reftrain'd ;

Sow'd Serpent's Teeth, from which immediate rofe

A grove of lances, and a hod of foes;

—

And charm'd the Watchful Dragon to repofe.

Thefe toils o'erpaft, in peace he ends his days.

And gains the tribute of immortal praifc.

MORAL.Be refolute in Good, and you will find

All evils flirink before a Conftant Mind.

»

}

[ 79 1

THE Golden Fleece was fald to be the

fliin ofa Golden Ram which had been offered

up to Jupiter, and was kept at Colchis

;

but on the condition of being furrendered

to any man who could tame the King's

Brazen-footed Bulls, which belched out fire

and fmoke;

gain the victory over an ArmedTroop that were to rife out of Serpent's

Teeth, fown in the earth ; and charm to

flccp a Wakeful Dragon which guarded the

fplendid prize.

To a^chieve this adventure, feveral Gre-cian heroes failed for Colchis, the chief of

whom was Jafon, the fon of ^Efon, a chief

renowned for courage and fortitude ; who,

by the aiEftance of certain charms which he

received from Medea, the Colchian mo-narch's daughter, yoked the Bulls, overcame

the armed Men by a flratagem, caufed the

Dragon to fall into a deep fleep, and brought

away the Golden Fleece, together with the

Princefs who helped him to obtain it.

The velTelthey failed in was called Ar^^o,

from whence thefe adventurers were termedArgonauts. This is fuppofed to have beenthe firfl expedition of any confequence the

Greeks ever undertook; and thofe whoE 4 were

f So ]

were concerned in it, were fome of the mofl

famous heroes in fabulous hillory.

This is the tenor of the ftory, which is

greatly mixed with fable. The truth feems

to be, that Jafon and his companions failed

to ellablifh a gainful commerce at Colchis,

In this their expedition they met with manyobflacles from the favage manners of the

people they had to deal with, but at laft, by

perfeverance, overcame them, and happily

returned to their native country, crowned

with ail the fuccefs their warmeft wifhcs

could have induced them to exped.

APPLICATION.

Examples like thefe, of Fortitude and

Perfeverance in all laudable undertakings,

for the benefit of ourfelves, our friends, or

our country, carry their application with

them, which can never be too much incul-

cated, or attended to.

If, like Jafon, we would bear away the

Prize, like him we muft learn to deferve it;

we muft hazard ourfelves againft the^erce;

nor muft we be afraid to oppofe the Jiroiig^

•when Virtue, and the duty we owe to Hea-

ven and to our country, demand it. Above

all things, we muft learn to curb our immo-

derate

C 8i ]

derate PafllonS} thefe are the ^ery Bulls wemuft break to the yoke. We mufl conquer

the /joj? of Temptations, and charm to ileep

the e^vil principle in our nature, which is

always ready to moleft us.

Finally, we mull never hope to vanquifli

the flubborn temper of others, till we have

firfl learnt to fubdue our own ; nor mufl weever expe£l to atchieve any great actions,

unlefs we are endowed with an unconquer-

able Firmncfs and Perfeverance,

E5 EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXVII.

Of Vain Purfuits,

"pROM fultry noon, till night's dull fhades dcfcead,

Behold the Boy his fruiilefs chafe attend

!

To gain the Infeft's painted wings he flies,

And pleas'd, at laft, obtains the gaudy prize \

But whilft its beauties he furvcys with joy,

Tbcfe hands which feize thena, fatally deftroy.

MORAL.Even fo thofe Pleafures which we wifli to gain,

A»d facrifice our quiet to obtain,

With gaudy flutt'rings tempt us to purfuc,

But, while we grafp them, vanifh from our view;

Or gain'd, but ill reward our labour paft,

Cfufti'd, as -wc leize thcno, by our eager hafte,

THE

t 83 ]

THE fimpleBoy, fmitten with the gaudy

colours of the Butte ifly, chaces it from

flower to flower, with the utmoft eageniefs.

—The fluttering infcd llill flies before him,

flill eludes his purfuit. When he thinks he

has it juft within his grafp, it flips away,

and foars aloft in air ; at another time, it

ikulks behind the leaves of a plant, and

hides itfelf from his curious fearch.

The hours Hip away unperceivcd, and

the wanton lofes himfelf while he is purfu-

ing his prey.—The chafe began at noon :

he fuftains the heat of the meridian hours ;

the day declines, and he is not yet at the

€nd of his labour.

Bur, at length, juft at the time of the

fun's fetting, he furprifes the gay fluttering

infed in the cup of a blue-bell. Eagerly he

haftens to catch it, he fqueezes the fides of

the flower together, to prevent the efcape of

his captive ; he does indeed moft effectually

prevent it, but at the fame time he oefcats

his own end, for he cruflies the infe6l to

pieces; and thus, by his own eagernefs^

lofes the fruit ot his toil, and deftroys that

beauty he coveted fo much to poli'efs.

E 6 APfLICATIOiV.

[ 84 ]

APPLICATION.This Is an apt Emblem of the impetuo-

fity of Youth, which, with a blind precipi-

tancy, purfues vain pleafures that never can

afford axij folid enjoyment,

Paflion is ever fierce, headftrong, and re-

gardlefs of confequences ; it is ready to en-

counter all oppofition, to run through every

danger for the moil: trifling acquifition ; and

its hurry often deftroys the objects on which

its wiflies have been fct, by no other means

than its eagernefs to polfefs them.

Paffion thus indulged, cari never contri-

bute any thing to f'elicity ; and he whoknows not what it is to oe moderate in the

purfuit of Pleafures, will never know what

it is truly to enjoy them.

And, moreover, we fhould ever

Avoid to take the life we cannot give,

Since all things have an equal right to live.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXVIIL

Of Ambition*

"trrHY would yon Eagle proudly foar fo high,

^ i\nd ftrivc to emulate thediflant fky ?

What; fees Ihe not the weight and llraight'nitig band,

That all her pow'r with double force withstand

!

In vain, fond bird, your pinions you extend,

CheckM'in your flight, to earth you muft defcend:

Ev'n fo would mad Ambition widely tow'rj

Boundlcfs his wiih, but limited his pow'r.

MORAL.Remember all things have a certain bound,

Which, once obtained, your neplui ultras found

:

Ambition fhun, if you would tafte of peace.

For while its views extend, its forrows ftill increafc.

THX

[ 86 ]

THE Eagle is generally eftcemed tlie

chiefof birds : it flies higher than all ochers,

and builds its ncfl in the tops of the loftieft

trees, or on high rocks, poifing it with

ftones, in the former cafe, to prevent its

falling. The long life, and fharp fight of

this bird, have been much exaggerated : it

has been reported to live more than a cen-

tury, and to fly always diredly againfl the

fun, fixing his eyes on him in its greatcft

fplendor. Thus much, however, is certain

;

that the Eagle poflefles a very piercing light

and lives to a great age. It is a bird of prey,

like the Vulture, and others of that kind;

and will, fometimes, even attack hving

quadrupeds.

The Eagle has ever been reckoned an

Emblem of Ambition. It was efleemed

facred to Jupiter, among the heathens, as

being fet to carry his thunder; and was

always reprefented as one of the fymbols of

that god.

APPLICATION.In the Emblem before us we have an apt

leprefentation of Ambition, which, in fpite

of all its towering, mufl: fl:ill be confined to

limits ; a circumftance perfe6tly againfts its

nature, and which never fails of adminiilcr-

ing caufe of anxiety to its poffcflbr.

Can

f ^7 I .

Can there be more flriklng inflances of

this truth, than thofc which are exhibited to

us in the perfon of Alexander, furnamed

the Greats fon of Philip, King of Macedon ?

—This prince was contented to renounce

his father, and travel over burning defarts,

to get himfelf acknowledged the fon of the

god Jupiter.—The fame prince, having

over-run Pcrfia and India, and moft ofthofc

parts, known to the Greeks, wept, bccaufe

he fuppofcd there was no more to conquer.

Ridiculous madnefs! infatiable ambition!

this fon of the great Jove died of a furfeit

at Babylon, in the bloom of his years ; and,

being too proud to admit that any one de«

ferved to fucceeded him, he left his empire

to be divided and torn with inteftine broils,

which, in a courfe of years, occafioned its

becoming) a prey to the Romans, who led

the laft King of Macedonia in triumph

through the flreets of Rome, and at length

llarvedhim to death in a dungeon.

Such are the fruits of Ambition ! It was

the firft, and continues to be one of the

greatefl of follies—for, hy that Jin fell the

angels; how can man then ever hope to be

a gainer by it ?

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXIX.

Of the Regard of Vice.

T O, here the nymph, by her own father's doom,^ Condemn''d alive to perifh in her tomb,

Becaufe fhe yrelded to a flattVing tale,

And over her Virtue let her love prevail

;

Her groans no pity from a parent claim.

She finks, at once bereft of life and fame.

MORAL.Thofe who qtiit Virtue, Heaven itfelf forfakes,

And of their fuffVings no compaffion takes

;

Whom Heaven forfakes, mufl: feek relief in vain,

From their own parents and their kindred train:

ShunnM like a thing accurs'd, in duft they fall,

The dread of many, and the fcorn ot all.

LEU-

[ 89 3

LEUCOTHOE was the daughter of

Orchamus, King of Perfia. With her the

5^od Apcllo is iaid to have been in love.

She was not virtuous or prudent enough to

relift his Iblicitations, and they carried on a

correfpondence together, which they thought

to be private; but this being difcovered by

one of Apollo's old favourites, the king,

her father, was foon made acquainted with

it. Being a haughty prince, he could not

endure the difgrace which was put on his

family by this accident; and therefore, not-

withftanding all his daughter's prayers and

tears, he commanded her to be buried alive.

This terrible fentence was accordingly exe-

cuted, without her receiving any relieffrom

her lover. However, after her death, the

fable fays, Apollo, whofe aid was too late to

fave her, caufed the Frankincenfe Tree,

which weeps perpetually, to fpring out of

her grave.

APPLICATION.

There is a fine contraft between Daph-

ne's ftory, and this of Leucothoe : the for-

mer eluded the fnares of Vice, and perfe-

vering in defence of her Virtue, was beloved

amd honoured in her end ; but the latter,

yielding

[ oo ]

yielding 'to unlawful folicltations, periflies

miferably, neglected and defpifed by all, at

the exprefs command of her father, without

having received the aid fhe ringht have cx-

pedcd from her lover, who appears, but too

late to fave her, and only pays a fort of

mournful tribute to her memory.

If we delire to be had in eflimatlon byothers, or aflifted by them in time of dif-

trefs, we mull firfl learn what is due to our-

felves, and a6t up to the dignity of our ownnature, by not being defiled with Vice ; and

fo rendering ourfelves unworthy of fupport

and ailiilance.

Finally, if we expeft or defire that Hea-ven Ihould not forfake us, we fhould not

forfake Heaven; and, if we (hudder at the

puniiliment of an offender, we fhould leambetimes to avoid the crimes which occafion-

cdit.

EMBLEM

I M B I, E M XXX.

Of Brutality.

»THE grov'ling bead, whofc favagc flrength deflroyi

The floVry gardes that the fwain enjoys;

Shews, that when in his beaftly paftime flain,

His death alone caa be his maftcr's gain.

MORAL.The wicked, felfifh man, who gripes the peer.

And rates the injured orphan from his door.

Like the bafc Swine, his neighbour's peace dcftroyi,

And all his powV in evil ftiil employs.

When all bis riches he has left behind,

Dyings alone, he benefits mankind.

[ 92 ]

THE Hog is of all bcafts, the moH fa-

vage and untrat-^able ; it is fvvayed by no-

thing but a favage fiercenefs, and a ftupid

Gluttony. Of moft other creatures made

for the ufeofman, fome profit may be gained

in their life. This in its death alone is

ufeful ; and then it is more profitable than

any animal of its own dimenfions.

When boars run wild in the woods, they

are the moft dreadful of ail beafts ; firft, bc-

caufeof their great fiercenefs; and, fecondly,

on account of their ftupidity, which is fo

great, that it makes them difregard their

fafety, and rufh on their own certain deftruc-

tion, in order to accomplifh that of thofe

whom they engage with.—In fiiort, it is

become fuch a proverb, by which to exprefs

Ohftinacy, Gluttony^ and many evil qualities,

that to be faid to refemble a Swine, is the

worft comparifon a man can be fubjeft to.

APPLICATION.

Natupe feems to have fet us examples

of good and evil qualities even among the

hrute creation* Thus, the Lamb for Inno-

cence ; the Hoife for Courage ; the Ox for

Patience; the Serpent for Deceit; and the

Swine

[ 93 ]

Swine, in the Emblem betorc us, for Fierce-

nefs and Senfuality.

It is a melanchoUy confideration, that

fome men feem to have taken pattern by

this groveling beaft, as they lead a life of

Gluttony, and Drunkennefs, are entirely wrapt

up in Self-Love, and loft to every thought

of Charity and Godd-uuill to their neigh-

bours.

Such men, indeed, can do no other goodto the world, but by their deaths ; when, if

they have any riches, they may, perhaps,

leave them to others, who will make a better

ufe of thofe gifib than they have done.

Therefore, if you would have men wifli

you life and profperity, live in fuch a man-ner as to be ferviceable to fociety; for, de-

pend upon it, if you copy the manners of

the Swine, you will fhare the fame fate; that

none will be forry for your misfortune or

your death, while they can reap nothing but

injury from your life and profperity.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXI.

Of Precipitation*

WHAT means that rafli and heedlefs charioteer,

Down the ftecp rock to urge his mad career ?

Sees he not round him various dangers grow,

High cliffs above, and yawning deeps below?

Yet down the dreary, dreadful path he hies,

Madly meets ruin, and defpairing dies.

MORAL.So fomc wild youth to PafTion gives the rein.

And buys fhort Pleafures with an age of Painj

Fot him Deftruftion fprcads the fatal fnarc,

Ke Hnks is gulphs of rnisVy and defpair.

THIS

[ 95 ]

THIS Emblem has formerly been adopted

by Plato, the Greek phiiofopher. Heufed to fay, that the foul or reafon ofman

reprefented a Charioteer, and hit paiTions

wild horfcs, which it was his bufinefs to

reftrain, left they fhould hurry him on to

ruin and deftrudion.

Certainly it is but a fad confideration,

that fome men {hould not have fo much go-

vernment overthemfelves, as by habit they

acquire over their beafts—thefe are feen ge-

nerally to turn, to ftand ftill, to proceed

this way or that, or to ftop in the midft of

their career, as the driver would have them

;

and, if he be a Ikilful man, it is feldom that

we have an inftance of his falling in go-

verning them.

But how many inftanccs have we of menspaffions not fubmitting to the government

of their reafon ? A fad example of peoples

negleding great matters to attend to fmall

ones, who think it lefs worth their whileto mind the management of themfclves,

than that of their hones.

APPLICATION.

If you would ever wlfh to enjoy peacehere or hereafter, you muft learn that great

and

[ 96 ]

and ufeful lefTon, to controul yourPaiTions

;

—like fire and ivater^ they are good fcr-

vants, but terrible matters ; if you do not

learn early to command them, they will

certainly command you ; and, in the end,

lead to inevitable deftru6lion.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXII.

Of the Changes of Human Affairs,

npHE beauteous Moon renews her faded light,

Not with her own, but borrovv'd luftre bright

:

Uncertain Planet ! whofe great changes ihow,

Th' unftable {late of all tilings here below:

Tho* now but half her radiant form fhe fliows,

Her waxing luflre every moment grows;

Till to the Sun her glowing face fhe turns,

Drinks all his beams, and in full glory bums*

M O R ^ L.Thus all things change with Time's revolving roundAnd nothing permanent on earth is found*

'

Tho' now but half thy wiihes thou can'ftfharcSucceeding times thy fortune may repair.

'

But whate'er chance on thy concerns await, -j

Scorn to do ill, in order to be great

;

'

LThe njced of Virtue is as fixt as fate. J

F THE

t 98 ] .

The Moon, though a beautiful and ufeful

Planet, receives all her iight from the Sun,

«nd is but as a miirouror looking-glafs to re-

fled his beams—yet flie gives us light in his

abferice ; rules the ebbing and flow ng of the

tides j and is particularly attended to byphyficians in the treatment of theii- patients.

Her periods of Change in the Month, are

dividedintoFour. T\\tJirJI(iuarter, whenflie

flievvs but half her face, in the increafe—Thefully when fhe is entirely enlightened—Thelafi quarter, when only half her face is again

to be feen, in the decreafe—And the Neixj

Moon begins immediately after her being en-

tirely darkened.—All thefe are occafioned

by her pofltlonwith regard to the Sun ; the

more of his beams flie receiver, the more light

fhe is in a condition of giving; and it is, con-

fequently, when fhe turns her whole face ex-

actly oppolite to him, that flie is faid to be at

the Full, and reflects the flrongefl luflre.

In the Emblem flie appears as jull before

flie enters the Firft quarter; at which time,

though flie does not impart half the light of

the Full Moon, yet flie gives figns ofher in-

creafe ; from whence we may conclude, that

we fliall loon fee her in her greateft glory.

APPLICATION.The Moon has ever been reckoned a

fymbol

[ 99 ]

fynibol of inconjlancy^ from her perpetual

changes ;yet thefe are fuch as God and

Nature have appointed for her; and her va-

rious courfe :s, doubtlefs, as necelTary for

the Univerfe, as the ccnflancy of the moll

f^eady fixed ftnr we can obferve, or any

t)ther principle in Nature.

Why the^ may we nor conclude the fame

of Fate, whofe partiality we are fo ready to

accufe, when it does not favour us ?—But

who was ever heard to accufe fste for the

good dealt to him, though, for aught he

knew, many worthy people might be the

worte for it ?

On this Emblem we may found a fyllem

of rational phllofophy, fince it teaches thofe

who polTefs much, not to be too proud of

what they may foon be deprived of: it com-

forts thofe who have but little, that a day

may come, when their forro.vs fliall have an

nd ; and if not fo, that Time certainly muft

by its Revolution, bring them eafe, and

change their condition and life together.

Defpond nor, therefore, though thou art

not arrived to the polTeliion of thy wiflies—

•

think on thefe Morals, and be wife—above

ail things, ftick to Virtue, for that will be

I

"found unchangealJe, and will certainly carry

its reward with it, either here or hereafter.

, F a EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXIII.

Of the Snares of Fice,

\ H I fee you yonder Bird, devoid of care,

•^*" Which lang and fluttcrM near the Fowler's fnare !•

Too foon, alas! her flate flie will deplore,

Boom'd to a lonefome cage, to mount no more

;

But plaintive notes, imprifonM ftill to try,

And wifh in vain for naiivt liberty^

MORAL.Beware of Vice, whofe empire will contro«l,

The native freedom of a gen'rous foul;

Avoid her fnares, where certain mifchiefs wait,

Nor rufh, unthinking, on deftruftiv&fatc.

BEHOLD

[ loi ]

BEHOLD the filly Bird ftruggllngin the

Snare which the artful Fowler has contrived

for its dellrucVicn.—Too late the poor

flutterer finds its fatal error, too late repents

its raflinefs, when confined in a w*Iry

prifon, and obliged to pour its complaints

in folitude; fit Emblem of a man, who, by

his Vice or Follies, has forfeited that chief

of all blelTmgs, Heaven-born Liberty.

A celebrated Englifh traveller in France,

mentions a very peculiar flory of a Bird in a

Cage, which (juft at the time when he was

reflecting on the nature of Confinement)

fuddenly cried, ** 1 can't get out."—Thisfo flruck him, that it at once convinced

him of the blelUng of Liberty, which he

was now difpofed to give the poor Bird

alfo, which^ftiil continued its note ; and as

the gentleman was complaining, that he

could not open the cage, the Starling flill

cried, *' No, I can't get out," which ffill

more confirmed him in his love of Native

Freedom.

APPLICATIOX.

Liberty is, indeed, one of the moft va-

luable blcffings in the world ; and Life itfclf

F 3 is

t lOS ]

is of little worth without it. For this, wife

men have argued, heroes have died, and left

the glorious prize to potlerity.

Yet, after all, it is in vain for any one to

fuppofe hlmfelf Free, who is not alfo Fir-

tuousJwhen once we give way to our paf-

fions, like the Bird in the Emblem, we arc

caught in the fatal fnare which muft entangle

lis, and deprive us of our Real Liberty.

The flaves of P^ice and PaJJion can never

be deemed Free j and a Slave he ever will be^

who fuffers his own bad inclination to get

the better of him.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXIV.

Of PaJJion,

T)EHOLD the furious beafl, more fierce he grows, ">

When the clear itream his proper image fliews ? rFor for his own the hideous figure knows. ^

MORAL.So could we fee how Paflion'siireadful florm.

And madding Fury all our fouls deform;

Erafe God'*s image planted in our breaft,

And change the Mm into zjavarc besji ;

Ourfelves we Hiould abhor, the fhape difown,

A.id hate the fiend that put our likenefs on.

F4 THE

[ I04 ]

THE Lion, the Bull, and other fierce

creatures are particularly enraged at viewing

their own fl/ape in water, or a glafs ; it is

a circumflance which doubles their Fury,

iince they there behold a diflorted figure,

which inftinft impells them to war upon.

To thefe animals it is not given to know,

"

that the fhape they are fo much offended

with, is their own : they are not fenlible that

their own Rage makes them fuch frightful

figures; they t::ke the 'hateful image for

another fierce creature, and immediately

commence a fight with it.

Heaven not having beftowed on the Lion

and the Bull, the facred gift of Reafon,

their miftake is natural, as their fury is ex-

cufablc. In both thefe points, they a6t

iuft as they were orda'ned, and fixU up that

neceflary part ot the creation, which, for

wife ends, they were created to occupy :

Man alone is blameable when he runs

counter to Reafon^ and reduces himfelf to

the fituation of the favage animal, w^hofe

Fury and evil qualities he is abfurd enough

to imitate.

APPLICATION".

The is not a fiercer fi.end than Anger,

when indulged, nor a Paffion, fo deteftable

in

[ ^°; ]

in the fight both ofGod and Man—It leads

to all manner of Evil ; its way is in Wicked-

nefs, and to thofe who encourage it, its end

muft be certain deftrudion.

The diftinction of father, mother, bro-

ther, filler, friend, and every tender tie of

humanity, are loft when it rages ; and it

tempts men to commit in a moment, fuch

enormities, that an age of repentance is not

fufficient to attone for.

It is a fhort Madnefs, whofe effects are

equally terrible in thofe who indulge it, as

in thofe who are the objects of its rage ; it

has often led to real Madnefs, to Ruin^ and

to Death J and he who gives way to it caa

nomore anfwer for his actions, than ifhe were

Drunk, or Lunatic, or poffelfed with an Evil

Spirit, at the time he is angry and enraged.

In fine, Anger is a Fice of fuch a caft, that

it debafes God's image, which is ftamped

upon our nature, making us rather referable

Daemons than Human Creatures ; if paffio-

nate men could have a juft and full view of

themfelvcs, in all their deformity, both of

foul and body, they muft hate themfelvcs;

and, like the Lion in the Emblem, makeWar with their own Image; than which

nothing in Nature can be more hideous and

deteftable*

£5 EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXV.

DOf Chaftity,

jAPHNE, the faireft of the woodland train,

Apollo long had \voo"'d, but wooM in vain,

At length the God furpriz''d her in the fliade,

And Ilrove to gain with promisM gifts, the Maid •

Her, ftill relifting, o'er the plains he chac'd

;

But when he thought the Nymph to have embrac'd,

Inftead of Daphne j bright in blooraing charms,

Surpriz'd, he clafp'd a Laurel in his arms.

Tlie Tree belov'd, flill bears his honoured name,

£mblem of Conqueft, and ofdeathlefsFame.

M O R A, L.

Avoid Temptation, tbo' the giliei halt

JBe deck'd with all the pomp ofguilty /fate;

Uor with the Tempter ilrive to try your might :

—

Retire betimesJ—your Conqueft is in flight.

DAPHNE,

[ 107 ]

DAPHNE, fabled to be the daughter of

the River God, Peneus, was Co beautiful,

that Apollo, or Phoebus, the God of Day,

was fmitten with her, and made her manyoffers if Hie would confent to his fuit ; but

flie flill relifling, he ftrove at laft to accom-

plifli by force, that which was denied to his

requeft. But Daphne, finding his purpofe,

fought her fecurity in flight. Apollo followed

with a fwiftnefs not to be matched by

mortals, and was jufl upon the point of

overtaking her; when, in the midfl of her

diftrefs, .flie prayed moft earneftly, that fhe

might be enabled to preferve her Chaflity—

Her prayer was heard, and at the inftant

her purfuer came up with her, he found

her changed into a Laurel.

Apollo, though difappointed of his^«r-

po/e, could not but admire her conjlancy,

he therefore pronounced the Tree his own,and confecrated it ns facred to the reward of

virtuous actions.—The Laurel has ever fincc

been efteemed an Emblem of excellency,

either in arms or arts, to thofe who were

crowned with it ; And what was once Apol-

lo's lonje^ has always been coafidered as his

Tree-^-So far the ancient fable,

APPLICATION.Th£ application is plain and ftriking.

Nothing

[ 108, ]

Nothing ought to be held fo dear as our

Innocence ; and, in feme cafes, we fhould

be content to part even with our own being

itfelf, to preferve it.

Daphne fled from Apallo : flie loft her

Life^ t)ut fhe preferved her Honour, Herfair fame furvivcd her mortal body, and fhe

remained a monument oiFlrtue to poflerity.

She challenged refpecl even from him

who was mofl difappointed ; and, at the

very time he found hirafelf lolled, he bore

tefllmony to her Honour and rewarded her

generous Conjlancy.

Even they who feek to draw us into the

fnares oi Fke, cannot help fecretly applaud-

ing us, when they fee, that in fpite of all

their arts we flill proceed in the paths of

Virtue. The harder the trial, the greater

will be the reward of thofe who perfevere.

But above all things, it is necelTary for

us to fly from Temptation. There are none

who fbnd fo flrong, but that it is poffible

they may fall ; how unwife then is it for us

to approach to the brink of a precipice,

merely to try whether he can bear to look

down from it with a fleady eye ! Thofe who

feek a danger they may Ihun, deferve the

confequences of their folly, when they meet

it, and mufl: fall unpitied, if the evil is of

their own fceking. EMBLEM

E M B L E ^I XXXVI.

Of theFanity of Pleafures,

BEHOLD the beanty of yon Damafk Rofc,

Joy of the eye, in gaudy pride it blow^

;

The fetting fun fhall fee its bloom decay,

^nd all its boaited beauties fade away

:

The envious Thorns its fragrant leaves furrounc^

Proteft the bloffbm, and th' unwary wound.

Pleafure mud coft too dear when bought with pain

!

The Rofe Iliail wither, when the Thorns rcniaifl.

MORAL.With cautious hand pluck the vain flowV of/'<y,

Left hiMcH evil fliould your foul suuioy.

THE

[ no 1

THE Rofe, the pride of the garden, is

furrounded with fharp pricklts ,: and he whois too eager to pluck the former Hands a

chance of being injured by the latter.

Yetafterall, when the Flower is obtained

in a few fliort hours it muft wither and

die ; its beauty is loft, and it is defpifed and

rejedcd by thofe who prized it before. TheThorns will remain, even when the Rofe is

withered, and their fharpnefs ends only with

their exiftence : be cautious then, how you

pluck the Flower, and forget not the Thornwhich guards it.

APPLICATION.

Even fuch, fo tranlient, are the joys of

life, which feemfo inviting, and court us, as

it were, to tafte them : they quickly wither

and die, but are furrounded with Thorns,

wh.ofe fmart is too often felt long after the

fenfe of the pieafure is loft and extinguiflied.

Yet neither Virtue nor Prudence declare

againft the moderate enjoyment of the plea-

fares of life; but we are admoniihed not to

be too eager in our purfuit of them, left we

injure our health, our fortune, our reputa-

tion, or, which is ftill worfe, our Virtue.

The

I

[ III ]

The difference between a moderate man,

and one who purfues after pleafure to an ex-

treme, is thus beautifully defcribed by the

poet; where he fays, that

—Eager this its objefts would devour

;

That tafte the Honey but not wound the FlowV.

Learn then to fet no more than a due va-

lue on the things of this world ; but not over

hafty to gain them ; and when you poflefs

them, be moderate in your enjoyment; fo

fliall you be gratified -vvith the beauty of the

Rofe, without wounding yourfelf whith its

Thorns ; fo fliall you enjoy the Honey of

Pleafure, while you avoid the Sting and

Venom of Remorfe.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXVII.

Ofthe Improvement ofLife,

rpIME's an hands-breadth; 'tis a tale

;

-* 'Tis a veflel under fail •

'Tis an eagle in its way,

Darting down upon its preyj

'Tis an arrow in its flight

;

Mocking the purfuing fight

;

'Tis a fliort-Jiv'd fading flower;

'Tis a rainbow on a fhower;

'Tis a momentary ray,

Smiling in a winter's day

;

'Tis a torrent's rapid ftream;

'Tis a Ihadow ; 'tis a dream;

'Tis the clofing watch of night,

Dying at the rifing light

;

'Tis a bubble ; 'tis a figh ;—Be prepar'd, Man to die.

TIME

[ 113 ]

Tl^IE is the great deliroyer of all things.

There is nothing in this world, which muft

not, Iboner or later, fubmit to his llroke ;

none ftrong enough to re lift, fo cunning

as to evade, his power.

Yet this great dejiroycr Heals on us, as it

were, unperceived : days^ months^ andj'^^^i,

roll on, while we content ourlelves with

faying '* Time pafTes," without confider-

ing, that our time aifo paiTes with it, and

that every moment brings us nearer to

Eternity,

How much more priife-worthy would it be

to mark each day of our exiftence with fomc

a6l of Religion or Vinue, the remembrance

of which might live when we ourfelves are

departed, and make our memory dear to the

good, and our deeds approved by Heaven.

Titus Vefpafian, Emperdr o.-Rome, (tho'

a heathen) was a man of fo good a difpofi-

tion, that recollecting one night as he fat at

fupper, he had not done one good adion

that day, cried out " Friends I have loft a

day." This prince was furnamed by his

people, The Delight of Mankhid, Happyare they who know fo u^ll the value of

Time, and make fo good an ufe of it.

A P P L 1-

[ 1-4 ]

APPLICATION.How many are there amongft us, who

are for ever exclaiming againft the fhortnefs

of life, and yet are not afliamed, with the

fame breadth, to complain, that their Timehangs heavy on their hands, and that they

know not how to employ it ?

But what an idle complaint is this, whenwe conlider, that there cannot be any pcr-

fon, in whatfoever flation of life, who has

not an opportunity of fpending his days in

the exercife of fomething that is inftru6live

or ufeful to himfelf or others !

—

Go to the

^nt, thoujluggardl Conjider her njoays-, and

he *wife /

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XXXVIII.

Oflnduftry.

"tTt tITH what hard toil, with what unceafing care^^^ The Woodpecker his fcanty meat prepares:

Tho' fmall the feaft that mufl reward his pains,

Sweet is that raeal which heneft Labour gains.

MORAL.

"Rtfrugal, be ir.li/flriouif if you're wife,

The road to plenty through thefe maxims lies.

The iilc to ill ftars afcribe their Hate,

But FoqU mikc FertunCj and deferve their Fate.

THE

[ ii6 ]

THE Woodpecker is a fmall bird, with

fhort legs, long bill, a tongue fharp like a

horn, and fortified with feveral little points.

With this it makes holes in the branches of

trees, and then utters a cry not unlike a

whiftle, the intent of which is to difturb in-

fei^s that may harbour in the wood ; which,

i^hen put into commotion, it eafily catches

and devours.

So much pains doth this bird take to come

at a few minute reptiles, which Nature or-

dains for its prey ; on which alone, inconfi-

derable as they feem, it is deflined to fublift,

A pattern of Indujiry^ and an example of

Perfcverance^ which man need not be afhamed

to copy ; as the Idle may learn an ufeful

leflbn from the labours of this little animal.

APPLICATION.As Idlenefs is the root of Mi/chief, fo is

an honeft Indufiry the fource of the moHlaudable and ingenious undertakings.

It is to this principle chiefly that we owethofe arts and manufadures which at this

day flourifli amongft us, and which add to the

convenience and grandeur ofthe great, while

they maintain numbers of the lower clafs of

people, who without them rauft be reduced

to a flarving condition, or have recourlc to

begging, in order to procure a fubliilance.

EMBLEM

M B L E M XXXIX.

OfEi'ily and its Funijhment.

'ITIT'HILE the fwcet Bird chaants forth its tuneful layS^

Her warbling throat the hidden ncft betrays;

Eager to feize it haftes the thoughtlefs boy,

And all the mother's comfort to deflroy

;

Whenlo! the fiithlefs branch in pieces broke,

His limbs are Ihatter'd with the dreadiul ftrokc,

MORAL.So, when we feeW fome dear-prizM joy to gain,

Aud buy our Pleafure with an'<lhtT% Pain;

Our flipp'ry fteps to evil are betray'd.

We fall unpiticd in the fnarc we made.

THE

[ i'8 ]

THE fweet warbler of the grove chears

the liient plains with her melodious fong ;

—and anfwering woods repeat the harmo-

nious trillings of her voice ; when lo ! the

wanton boy draws near ; he liflens a while,

and foon difcovers whence it comes. Eager

for the prize, he hailens ;to rob the mother

bird of her neftj but as he climbs the lofty

tree, the bough gives way and throws him

on the ground. He mourns his fall with

tears, and is at once difabled and difcou-

raged from his enterprize,

APPLICATIO N.\

They who feek their own good at the

expence of that of others, often meet with

a bitter difappointment, and lament too late

the evils which themfelves have occafioned.

If every man would do to others, as he

would wiih to be done by, Evil would be

banifhed from the world; Peace and Righ-

teoufnefs would flourifh ; Man would draw

nearer to the Divine Nature ; and Earth

would be a repreferitatlon of Heaven.

But while people will follow their own

evil inclinations, they have no right to com-

plain of the ills they fuilain; fiace, as Vir-

tue makes Happinefs, Vice, muft, at one

time or another, end in Mifery.

EMBLEM

E M B L E IM XL.

Of Pride.

VjEHOLD the fiily bird, how proudl)*vain

Of the bri^rfat colours of his gaudy train ?

Ev'n to a proverb gro\Mi his idle pride,

By outward fhew alone in worth fuppiy'd;

For no harmonious found, no chearful note,

Mull ever illue from that hideous throat;

Nor of the Hundred Eyes that grace his tail,

Can one for Hgnr, or real ufe avail.

MORAL.O fon of Vanity ! be wife in time

!

Apply the Moral of this homely" rhyme 5

To real Txorth alone fhould praife be givc-'^

And rcjliKOrth inherits it fron; Heaven.

JUK©

[ 120 ]

JUNO, fays the fable, having fet Argus,

who had an hundred eyes, to guard and tor-

ment the damfel 16, who was transformed

into a young heifer, Hermes (or Mercury)

commillioned by Jupiter, defcended from

Heaven to delivc her.

He found Argus bufily employed about

his charge ; but fitting down by him, began

to tell him flories ; by virtue of which^ and

of his charming rod, he at length lulled all

his hundred eyes to flcep; which being done

he flew him, by cutting off his head.—Onwhich Juno took the eyes of her fervant, and

placed them in the tail of the Peacock, a

bird efteemed facred to her, who was, in a

great meafure, the Goddefs of Pride and

Splendour.—So far Ovid.—As to the Pea-

cock, it is a bird known to moft countries

for its fine plumage, which, indeed, feems

to be all it has to boaft of; for as to its

voice, it is a moft frightful one ; and the.

flefli of it, though a rarity, is generally faid

to have no very delicate flavour. The pride

this bird takes in its plumage, and the ill

tone of its voice, are both become equally

proverbs; and it is worth while to obferve,

that the fonner circumftance has fervcd to

make the latter more remarkable,

A p P L I-

[ t2l ]

A?PLICATION.

Like the proud Peacock, is the fon of

Vanity— and lurely it is more ridiculous

in a rational creature to indulge this pride,

than in an unreafoning animal.

But what is the vain-glorious man proud

of?—his drefs?—furely the Peacock has

more reafon to be proud of what Nature

gave her, than man of that covering, for

which, at belt, he is obliged to the brutes,

or to the vegetable creation.

Is it of the beuuties or his perfon any

on€ is vain ? Let him confider how Ihortly

ficknefs or accident may, and how certainly

old age mvji^ if he attains it, deprive him of

thofe. Let him confider, likewiie, at befl,

how worthlefs they are, without the Beau-ties of the Mind.

EMBLEM

EMBLEMOf AppUufc.

XLI.

1}

< ttAME ! that ftrange powV, which ev'ry mo-* '• ment grows,

* And gathers flrength and vigour as fhe goes,

* Firfl frnall with fear, flie fwells to wondVous Hze,

* Andftalks on earth, or tovvVs above the fkies;

* Beneath her various plumes fhe ever btars,

« A thouland piercing eyes and lift'ning ears,

* And with a thoufand mouths and babblin.c

tongues appears-''

MORAL.1.0! to thisGoddefs evVy mortal bends,

And (till from pole to pole her tyrant race extends.

Wifdom and Virtue will for ever claim,

The deathlefs honours of an hoJieft fame :

Where thefe are wanting, weak is lie, who draws,

Sis fund of gloiy from a vain applaufe,

FAME,

[ 1^3 1

FAME, as reprefented in the Emblcrft,

was one of the deities of the ancients, wh(*

defcribed her as a monftrous figure, and

reported her to be the daughter of the giant

Enceladus, who warred with Jupiter. Theyfay, Terra, or the Earth, being angry with

the gods for having deftroyed her offr^pring,

brought forth this laft of monfters, which

fhc fent into the world to publifh their

Vices.

Thus far the fable.—Of this fitlious

being the poets have given the moft lofty

and extraordinary defcriptions—

——Some fhe difgrac'd, »nd fomc with honoHiB

crown"'d.

Unlike Ricceflcs equal merits found

:

Thus her blind fifter, fickle Fortune reigns.

And, undifcerning, fcatters crowns and chains.

But it needs not be wondered at, that

the heathens, whofe lupreme, Jupiter, wa«

defedtivc, (hould fuppofe all the fubfcrvicnt

deities to be impcrfe^^

APPLICATION,

The Love of Fame is juftly IBlcd the

Vniverjal FaJ/ion^h\\ men fecm poffeflcd

Gfl of

of it;—but, in their purfuit of Apphufe,

as in that of Happiiiefs, it falls out, that va-

rious people take different roads to attain it.

In the defile itfelf there is certainly no-

thing ami's; it is implanted in our nature

as an incentive to Virtue, and, doubtlefs, to

this we owe many of the bell and greatefi:

aftions which have been performed ;—if it

were taken away, the world would become

worfe than it is, as the force ot example, in

the caufe of Virtue, would be far lefs pre-

valent.

But, as there is an excefs, and Ikewi'e a

pcrverlion of all things, fo it is in regard to

Fame : men often m.itake glaring charac-

ters for 'Virtuous ones ; and hence has arofe

the falfe glory which has been too often

attributed to the deftroyers of mankind.

This is the perverfion of Fame.—An excefs

in courting her favours is alfo an abufe too

frequent.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLIL

Of Opprefion.

Tj^ROM airy heights the rav'nous bird furvey

^ With matchlels fwiftnefs darting on her prey;

The hclplcfs flruggling viftim ftrives in vain.

From fuch a foe, its freedom to regain

;

Proudly fectire, fhe fkims the fkies along,

And haftens ho'Tie to feed her hungry young;

But when the wily Serpent's ftrength fhe tries,

And ftrives to bear aloft her fcaly prize,

At once the viftor, with the vanquifh'd, dies.

MORAL.Beware of Vice with lawlefs might combin'd •

All ills ?re eafy to a wicked mind:

But if an ufefal leflbn you will prove.

Be -wife as Serpents, harmlejs as the Dove.

G3 THE

\

[ i«6 ]

THE Eagle, as we have already obferved^

is one of the flrongeft of the feathered kind :.

— it is likewife the moft voracious.— It has.,

been reported of the Lion, that he will not

prey upon carcafes ; but the contrary is;

true of the Eagle, which, notwithftanding,

is no lefs fierce in its attacks upon living-

animals —Birds, Beafts, and even Serpents,^

are its prey; and if the Dove often falls a

i(fVim to this feathered tyrant, the Hare,

with all its fwiftnefs, cannot always efcapc

it pounces : ftooping, as it were from the

clouds, the deftroycr feizes on the timorous

creature, and carries her off with incredible

fwiftnefs.—But when the Eagle and the

Serpent meet, the combat is long and

doubtful; for, though borne through the

air by a force fuperior to his own, the wily

yeptile, ftruggling, curls his angry fpires^

and often, even in that fituation, mortally

wounds his conqueror; fo that he either

cfcapes, or both fail down dead together.

Thus his cunning ferves either to deliver or

revenge him; while the poor innocent Hare

falls an eafy vi6Um to the great opprefTor.

AJ^PI^.IC.'LTIDN-

[ 127 J

APPLICATION*

It is thus that unfufpe£tmg innocence is

often loft and ruined : it is thus that guilty

greatnefs triumphs in deftru(5lion. Virtue

alone cannot always be fafe from the dan-

ger of Slander or Opprellion.—Caution is

therefore a good companion, and a necef-

fary guard to keep us from the force or

fraud cf arbitrary or deligning men.

It is a great millake of thofe uho fiippoie

Prudence to be incompatible with Good-

nefs.—A low and vicious cunning may in-

deed juftly be deemed fo; but fome of the

moft virtuous charaders that have graced

humanity, have alfo been the moft remark-

able for Wildom, which has been conrpi-

cuous in all their conduct, even to thn end

of their days, and tranfmitted in. their wri^

tings topoftcrity.

G 4 EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLIII.

Of Self'Love.

/I'HE felf-enamourM fair NarcifTus oft retires,

** When the warm fun darts forth meridian fires.

To the clear fountaia, there enraptur'd lies,

In vain to catch the fleeting fhadovv tries,

And fmit with hopelefs love, defparing dies.

The Theban nymphs a ruftic tomb prepare,

Rend their fair garments, tear their golden hair:

But to a FlowV transform'd, the corpfe remains,

Which Hill his name and memory fuflains.

MORAL.

\

The felf-aimtring Youth, whofe weaker mind

Is ftill to childlefs vanity inclin'd.

Will find too late, by the vain fhew betray''d.

He courts indeed, the shadow ofa shade.

NAR-

C i^9 ]

NARCISSUS (according to Ovid) was

a beautiful youth, who deli-hted in hunt-

ing, and was beloved by Eccho, then a

nymph. However, he equally llighted her

and all his admirers ; at length, viewing hi.*'

own face in a fountain, he fell in love witt

himfelf, andconftantly reforted to the flream

to court his own (hadow.

But when he perceived the beautiful form

retire as often as he withdrew, and mockhis purfuit when he ftretched out his arms

to embrace it, he fell into the greateft ago-

nies of paffion, and with vain prayers in-

voked the infubftantial form.

Though convinced at laft of his miftake,

and affurcd that the figure he faw was only

the reflection of himfelf, yet he could not

conquer his unhappy paffion, but ftill con-

tinued to pine with a prepofterous love of

his own perfon.—Thus his form wafted, his

beauty decayed, and the breath oflifeatlaft:

forfook him ; but when his body was fought

for to be interred, in its ftead they found a

flower, which ftill retains his name, and

perpetuates his memory.

G5 A P f L I-

r I so ?

APPLICATION,,There is not a greater Vanity or Foily

than that of Self-admiration ; he who in-

clines to it will court a vain fliadow, and

will ever, like the Youth in,the fable, find

himfelf difappointed.

But it happens to too many perfons of

weak minds, as it did to NarcilTus, that

they fufFer themfelves to be led away by

fuch vanities, before they know that they

are poflelTed by them, and are far gone in.

the intoxication of Self-Lo've before they

are aware of it. The ill habit, ftrengthened

by cullom^ thus grows too powerful for

their reafon ; and the confeqiience is, that

they often become the authors of their ownmisfortunes, only by loving themfelves too

•well; and thus may be faid, like Narclfllis

in the fable, to fall vidims to their Self*

t^miration»

EMBLEMi

EMBLEM XLIV.

Of the Banger ofGrcatnefs.

WITH dreadful force the lofty Tree of Jove,

Is ftruck and rent by Lightning, from above:

Molly and old its fhivcr'd trunk appears,

The growth of ages, yet unhurt by years;

Long had it flouriih'd, and with (lately pride

The utmod force of fighting winds defy'd :

But yet in duft its honours (tretchM at lafl.

In dreadful ruin by th' cethereal blaft:

While the low Shrub, in far more humble Hate,

Unknown to Greatnefs, flands fecure from Fate.

MORAL.Would yovifccurity and /cjc^ obtain.

Contented in 2i private liate remain.

G6 THE

[ i3» ]

THE Oak is one of the ftrongeft trees of

the foreil. It has been faid to be a whole

century in growing; to continue a century

in perfection ; and to be a century more in

decaying.—However this account may be

exaggerated, yet it is certain that it flou-

rilhes a long time ; of which we have manyinftances in this land—This tree is generally

found to refill the greateft tempefts ; except

when, as in the Emblem, it is flruck byLightning, which fometimes cleaves it to

the ground.

The Oak was eftcemed facred among the

Romans.—It ftood at Caefar's gate, together

with the Laurel, which was held in high ve-

neration ; and they even pretended to have

had fome which delivered oracles.—TheAncient Britons, the firft inhabitants of thefe

Iflands, alfo held it facred, as they did the

IVlifletoe, andfome of their Druids or Priefts,

are faid to have delivered their le£lures on

the religion of their country, from the fprea-

ding branches of this lofty tree.

/PPLlCATiaN.

[ 133 1

A.P PLICATION.

This Emblem is well adapted to repre-

fcnt the Dangers generally infeparable from

Greatnefs, and the fccurity of a private andobfcure flation. To be Great, is to be fet

as a mark for all the fhafts of misfortune,

to be expofcd to all the florms of adverfe

Fate, which generally delights in fporting-

with perfons in exalted flations. Content

dwells not with power, neither is Security

the child of wealth and honours. If thou

wouldfl tafle the ferene joys of life, fly far

from Greatnefs, and make thy abode witk

the ^diW^itv oi Simplicity,

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLV.

OfHeavenly Love,

npHE tender Pelican with ceafelefs cares,

Protedls her young oncS, and their food prepares

;

From her o\vn breaft the nonriihment proceeds,

With which, as with her blood, her brood flic feeds'^

Emblem of Hearen's furpernal graces known,

And parents'* love to dearefl children fhewn..

MORAL.To God above, and to your friends bel

Still let your breaii with zeal and duty

MitchXo your Pdrenisy more to Heaven

low, -^

glow; C

^you owe. \

THE

r i3> ]

THE Pelican is a bird known to moft

people. It has given rife to many ftrange

llories, the principal of which is, that of

feeding its young with its blood; which,

upon examination, has not proved true.

But it has a bag, or pouch, in which it puts

provifion to fupply their wants; doubtlefs,

the manner of the female's taking it from

that repofitory, appeared, to the firfl ob-

fervers of it, as if flie had made an opening'

in her breall:, and nouriflied them with her

blood ; from whence it has been made a.

fymbol of Chriftianity,

APPLICATION.In this Emblem is expreffed the ftate of

dependence we are in, on the one h .ud,

and the great goodnefs of God on the other,

who fent his only Son to be apropitiarion

for our fins, who, as it were, noariihe:. us

with his blood, and hy ivhofe Jiripcs ive are

healed. The Pelican, indeed, iffl.ehad:

granted this fupply from her own vitals,

would have done ir only to her brooJ ; butthe great author of our falvation did this.

for wicked offenders ; he died even for his

greateft enemies; and bore our fins to be

made righteoufnefs for us, that we mightproceed from grace to grace, till at lait wewere made heirs of his glorious inhencarne.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLVI.

OfFalfe jippcarances,

qEE the gay Tulip, dippM in various dyes,

•^ Blooms in full pride beneath the vernal Ikies;

But when the wintry clouds deform the year,

How faded will that beautious form appear !

Not fo the Myrtle, deck'd in chearful green.

The humble plant among the flowers is fcen;

What tho' it boaft no varied colours bright.

That drink Sol's radiance, or refleft his light

;

Yet ever greeny and fragrant it remains,

J^ or change of feafons, nor of time fuftains.

MORAL.Emblem ofreal worth, whofe gloomiefl hour,

Tranfcends the blaze oipotnpy excels the pride of/owV.

THE

157 1

THE Tulip is reckoned by the florifts

one of the moft beautiful flowers our gardens

produce j its colours fliining in the fun with

all the glows of variegated beauty.—But this

is only afliort-lived excellence ; it is not cal-

culated to ftand the change of feafons, nei-

ther has it any fragrance to boail: of. Its

worth confiding only in its hues, which fa-

ding, it is paiTed by up.regarded, becaufe it

has nothing intdnfic to recommend it.

But the Myrtle difperfes a fweet fragrance

round about it : and though it produces no

various coloured flowers to glitter in the fun-

beams, yet it always preferves (Nature's ownhue, and fiourifhing an Ever-green through

the year, is admired for its coriflancy^ that

renders it preferable to all thofe gaudy tints

of the Tulip which only bloom to fade, and

are equally devoid oifragrance, as they are

of continuance,

APPLICATION.

We are not always to trufl to appearances,

nor to conclude on the merit of perfons, or

the worth of things, from tht'ir out^'arJformand flicw; fince there is nothing more com-

mon in the world, than for people to affect

being

[ '38 I

being what they are not ; and thofe often^

piakethegreateflfliew of worth, who have,

in reality, the leall to recommend them.

Not only pomp ?ir\6.fplendour^ nxjit and

talents^ but even 'virtue and religion^ are

too often afFeded, by fuch as are far from

being pofTelTed of either : and he who is led

away by the dazzling appearance, in either

of thefe cafes, prefers the Tulip to the Myr-tle, and mullexpedtofucceed accordingly,*

* Ihis fubjeft is beautifully dcfcribed, jfl t^Fables of FcwerSiL

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLVII.

Of War.npHE God of War, who vfakes to loud alarmSjj

Stands here before you, terrible in arms :

Mark with what fires his favage eye-balls glow^

Comets prefaging dire diftrefs and woe !—The powV of battles thus his force employs;

Foe to fweet peace, and all domedic joys;

Hateful his mien, more hateful are the fires;.

Wiih what contending boforas he infpircs;

^rts, fcience, commerce, all fly far away^

And itaik and ruin mark his horrid way.

MORAL.Fly far from War^ unlefe your country calls^

To ftand a champion for your native walls

;

Strife is but evil ; let all contefts ceafe,

"JEhe. real jpys of life, are joys of Ptacu

MARS,

[ MO ]

MARS, according to the Heathens, was

the God of War : he was generally, repre-

fented in complete aimour, an.! hii firft

temple is fald to have been in Thrace ; from

the model of which the plan for all the reft

were taken. His char.ot was drawn by

Lions, as fymbo s of his Ferocity ; he was

generally fuppofed to be preceeded by the

Furies, and followed by Terror and Fa-

mine, in order to fhew the evil confe-

quences of War, and its concomitants.

Homer has been very diftufe in the defcrip-

tion of this God, whom however, notwith-

llanding his power, he has thought fit to re-

prei'ent as fometimes foiled, and even woun-

ded by a mortal,—Minerva, he has charac-

teiifed as his particular opponent, and has

always, in fuch cafes, crowned her with fuc-

cefs, which indeed is no^ more than jufl ; as

Wifdom is generally averfe to entering into

warlike contefts at all, yet, when engaged,

it is likely to prevail over brutal force, and

to bear off the Laurel and honours of the

day.

Ai'PLICATION,

[ I4t ]

APPLICATION-,

It fliould be the policy^ as well as Wr-tufy both of princes, and of private men,never to enter into any mortal contells,

when there Ts the leaft poffibility of avoiding

it J but having been unavoidably engaged

in any thing of the kind, they fhould adopt

HfAfdom rather than forcc^ and depend not

fo much on Mars, as on Minerva. Theevents of war are, at beft, always uncer-

tain ; but, next to pro'vidence^ prudence alone

can be expefted to give any affurance of

them. Difputes of a private kind partake

of the feme nature ; and he who thinks to

carry a point againfl his adverfary by

mere dint of force, will generally find him-

felf difappointed.—As in the difpute be-

tween Ajax and UlylTes, he will find that

Minerva will bear away the palm front

Mars, and Wifdom prevail Q\'txf.rength and

military pro'joefs,

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLVIIL

OfDijipation,

-15EHOLD the man, who, as old fables tell,^ By Dian'swralh, for his intrulion fell

:

At noon retired from Phcebus' fultry belms,

He view'd her bathing in the limpid flreams:

For this th' unhappy Hunter flie difgrac'd,

And fpreading antlers on his forehead placM;

Him, as a Stag, his own fwift Hounds purfuM,

Unknowing feizM, and fhed their mafter''s blood-;

Yet had their Lord not reared the Park in vain,

JJotDian's felfhad ftretch'd him on the plain.

MORAL.*Tk DiJJlpation that th' unwife annoys,

And, lik© Aaaeon's Hounds, vmpkij'urt ftiU dcflroy*.

THIS

[ 143 ]

THIS IS a fit Emblem of the evil effecbi

of extravagance and dijfipation, which will

ever, fooner or later, bring the unwar)- to a

fruitlefs repentance, when fame, pleafurcy

fortune, and health itfelf are loft ; and they

find they muft at laft fall the vidtims of their

own folly.

AcTy^oN" (fays the Fable) was a famous

Hvmter, who kept the fineft hounds for his

pleafurc, which he purfued at all events,

through woods and at all hazards alike,

over hills and dales ; no' place was fo dan-

gerous that he would nor attempt to pafs, no

reccfs fo fecret that he would not venture to

explore, when in purfuit of this his favo-

rite diverfion.

One day, retiring from the heat of the

Chace, he ftraycd into a cool rccefs, where

moft unexpc<3:edly he furprized Dlan, the

Goidels of Hunting, with her nymphs,

bathing in a clear fountain. The offended

jx)wer was refolved firft to wreak her ven-

geance upon him.—She therefore changed

his form *m fuch a manner, that horns grewvpon his head, which refembled that of

a Stag. Now, firft ftruck with imufual

fears, he flies when he hears the diftant

fiiouts of the Huntfmen, and the cries of

tht

[ H4 ]

the Hounds ; at length, furveying his fcnn

fn a limpid ftream, he too late difcovers his

change; yet to fly, was ftill all that was left

him, his own domefticks purlue him with

his own pack of hounds ; at length they

overtake, and tear him in pieces, while he

is in vain endeavouring to make them

fenlible that it is their Lord they are thus

cruelly deflroying.

APPL ICATION.

The extravagance of many has proved

their ruin ; nay, there have been thofe, who,

like Adaeon in the fable, have been eaten up

by their own Dogs, i, e, have ruined their

fortune to fupport them.—To all fuch the

Moral of the Emblem fpeaks for itfelf.

When men run into exccjfes^ they frequently

are ruined by them ; while thole whomthey formerly maintained, like the unhappy

Hunter's hounds and dogs, know them no

longer for their former benefadors, but are

the firft, without remorfe, to join in accom-

pliihing their deftru6tion.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM XLIX.

The Oyjer and Pearl.

pEARLS of great price from frnall beginnings rifC;

* Which feems of no account in vulgar eyes

;

But yer, when npen'd by th' indulgent clime,

NursM by old Ocean, firft maturM by Time,

And Poliih'd by th'' indultrious artifls hands,

Among the firlt of precious gems it ilands;

By ealfern beauties valued for its worth,

And chiefs renown'd throughout the (pacions earth.

MORAL.How hard foc'er your prcfent (tate you find,

Nought to th' induftrious hand and virtuous naind

Is yet impoflible : Heav'n Itill may raife

Your low eitate, and blefs your latter days.

H HE

[ 146 ]

HE who views the felt fame Pearl, which

once wasinclofed In the (liell of a fitb, adorn-

ing the necks of princelTes, may well ownthe Emblem to be well adapted, when he

conliders, how things of little worth often

change their fituation.—A grain of fand,

fays a certain author, (fpeaking in the Eaft-

ern ftyle) once complained of the inconfi-

derable ftation it occupied in the fcale of in-

animate beings ; but benig often fliifted, it

owned its o;vn ignorance and prefumptlon ;

when at laft, after frequent changes, it be-

came a Diamond of the fineft water, and

was deftined to adorn the crown of one of

the greateft Monarchs in the world.

The Pearl fiflicry is carried on in the Eaft

Indies, and is generally efteemed a very va»

luable one : As to the Pearls themfelves, fomc

have efteemed them to be only a dew-drop,

while others allert, that they are in reality

a fpecies of diftemper in, or excrelcence of,

the Pearl Oyfler. Thefe are generally taken

by a man who dives for them, binding a

ftone live inches thick, and a foot long, un-

der his body ; each diver carrying w ith him

lilfo a net to hold the Oyfters, one end of

which is faftencd to the boat from which he

(iefcends, holding h^s breath, though fome-

times

[ '47 ]

times fixty feet under water; and, furpriA

ing as it may fecm, in this manner he con-

tinues to tear the Oyflers from the folii

rock, on which they grow, and put them

into his net or bag ; then pulling the rope

by which he has been let down, thofe in

the boat, talking the %nal, hoill him up

again, and the work is compleated. ThePearls thus obtained, are of various values

:

Tavernier mentions one for which the

crown of Perfia paid one hundred thoufand

pounds fterling.

APPLICATION.Learn from this Emblem, that it is as

highly improper, as it is impious, to com-

plain of the difpenfations of Heaven ; and

that how low foever you maybe, if you per-

fevere in Indujiry and Virtue by the blef-

fing of Heaven, you may ftill be rewarded

and exalted.

H z EMBLEM

EMBLEM L.

Of Truth.

QEE where fair Truth has made her glorious fland,

And bears the faithful Mirror in her hard;

The good man's boall:, and fraud's eternal foe,

The bel> of gifts Heav'n canon man beflow;

Where %ht is found, bright Virtue (till refides,

And equaljujiice every aftion guides.

]n the I'Ure heart and fpotlefs mind file reigns,

And with mild power her happy fway maintains;

The Attribute of God himfelf confefl,

That ilamps his image on the hunaan breaft.

MORAL.Whatever betides thre-igh life's dark dangerous way,

If Truth dircas, you cannot go aftray.

OF

[49 ]

Of^11 the qualities that adorn the human

mind, Truth is the molt refpeiftable. It is

a rich, though a llmple orn^tment ; and he

who is not pofTjf.ed of it, let his rank and

qualities be what they may, will be for ever

defpicable in the fight of all the good and

wife.

It is reported of Cyrus, when young, that

being afeed what was the firll thing he

learned, he answered, it was ' to tell the

truth,'' which was indeed,

Though no fcience, fairly worth the feven.

When the wife men were commanded by

the king to declare what was the flrongell

power upon earth, fuch as exceeded even

that of the monarch himfelf, they were all

at a lofs to anfwer ; at length, one faid IFo-

men^ another declared for Wine ; but neither

of thefe anfwers proving fatisfadory, the

prophet Daniel was confulted, who, being

endued with wifdom from on high, anfwered,

that Truth was the ftrongeft, and fup-

ported his aflertion with fuch weighty ar-

guments, that nobody could controvert

them ; thus his underftanding was approved

by the king, and all the fages wer« humbled

in his prcfence.

H 3 APPLICATION,

[ '50 ]

APPLICATION.There is nothing can render a man move

refpedable in this world, or more accept-

able to Heaven, than a flrid adherence to

Truths and an unalienable regard for fin-

cerity. We are naturally led to uiflike

thoie who are always intent upon deceiving

us. Whereas, on the contrary, we makeno fcruple to confide in thoie who are fin-

cere, becaufe we know ourfelves to be fafe

in their hands. They will be either con-

llant friends, or open enemies ; and even if

through human frailty, they are fometimes

led into errors yet their generous acknow-

ledgment of them makes amends, in a great

degree, and is a good token of their avoid-

ing them in future.

To conclude, Truth is one of the Attri^

lutes of the Almighty^ who will moft certainly

punifli fiich as deviate from it, either in

this world or in the next.

EMBLEM

E

EMBLEM LI.

Of Envy,

KVY, that fiend, dire fource of human woe,

Who draws her birth from difmal fliades below,

Dares to bright worth her horrid eyes to raife,

And on her human heart rcraorfelefs preys:

Lofbto a.11 fhara? file pines with black dcfpair,

At aught of good, of virtuous, or of fair,

That fav ourM man enjoys; their wee and pain,

Havock and lofs, and ruin are her gain.

MORAL.Would you be happy here, and bleft above,

Be rich in deeds oi Charity and Lo-ue\

But Envy fhun, if you would tafte oi Peace,

Or with your days your forrows will increafe.

Ha envy

ENVY hai ever been looked upan, by

tbc wifefl and beft of men, in all ages, as a

principle equally hateful and contemptible.

The poets placed her in the infernal re-

gions, and drew her as a hag wafted to

a fkeleton, with gloomy eyes and fnaky

locks, preying upon a human heart, pining

at the good of others, and never enjoying a

gleam of comfort, but fuch as arifes from

the misfortunes of mankind ; a confideration,

fay they, which is of itfelf fufficient to

make her nateful both to God and man.

A PPLICATION,

Of all the evil difpofitions that ever in-

fpired the human breaft, furely Eufvy is the

wonl, and produces the moft uneafy fenfa-

tions. The envious man is, in effect, the

foe of all the world ; he cannot therefore

reafonably expeft any where to find a Friend,

He, contrary to the reft of mankind, is

pleafcd only at his neighbour's misfortune ;

but this is a gloomy kind of pleafure, in

comparifon of which, the very afiiictions of

the virtues may be termed felicity. But

what

[ IS3 ]

what are the feelings of this wretch whenany thing falls out to another's advantage ?

he is reftlefs ; he is tormented with a thou-

fand anxieties, and pines, unpitied, in all

the miieries of extreme defpair. The an-

cient fabuliil has well depictured the na-

ture of his palEon, where he has reprefented

the envious man as being contented to lofe

one of his o^n eyes^ on condition that his

neighbour lliould lofe both his» Of all the

things in nature, fure fuch a temper mail

be moll deteftable ; and he who encourages

it, neither defervcs, nor will gain any thing,

but unhappinefs in this world, and inevita-

ble mifery hereafter.

To avoid incurring thefe, indulge not an

envious thought as to the eflate of others,

but be ever contented with your own ; andyou will never fail, in every lituation of

life, to meet with fomc kind of fuccour and

confolatron#

H 5 EMBLEM

EMBLEM LII.

Of Melancholy,

J O ! where the fweet-ton'd Nightingale complains,•*-' Her mufic echoing thro^ the lonely plains;

"What time the Quttn of Night her car has driven,

Withfo emn Itillnefs, upth' afcent ofHeaven:

Sweet bird, her notes, tho' drawn from inward woe,

In lovelieft melody are taught to flo%v

;

And while (he mourns in vain her ravilh'd young,

< The pow'r of mulic dwells upon her tongue/

MORAL.Tho' worn by grief, and heart-corroding care,

Yet never ihould the Virtuous know defpair;

Pour your due ibrrows o'er the filent urn,

But Itil! W'th Hope, with Moderation mourn;

Fc Heav\i with anger views immodVato-grief,

But to each heart refiga'd imparts the wiih'd relief.

THE

[ 15? ]

THE Nightingale was faid to be once the

daughter of Fandion, king of Athens. She

was abufcd by Tereus, king of Thrace, whoafterwards married her filler. This tyrant

afterwards deprived her of her tongue, that

(he might not tell her griefs; but fhe found

her way to his court, and worked the ftory

in a fampler, which ftie prefented to her

iillcr Procne, who revenged her hi {band's

barbarity, by killing the fen fhe had by

him* Philomela, after this, being purfued

by him, who threatened her for being con-

cerned in the death of his offspring, took

wing, and was changed into a Ni^hringale ;

which bird, ((iiys the poet) mindful of its

former ftate, continues ever to fing mourn-

ful notes in folitary places.

APPLICATION.This is the fable of Philomela ; the moral

is fuch as fhews the impropriety of defperate

courfes taken in times of misfortune, grief,

or afflidtion.—The Nightingale laments,

ever bments the lofs of her young ; but

her lamentations are all in foothing ilralns,

H 6 not

i ii;6 J

not in notes of terror and deftra6lion : plt^^

indeed is often awakened by her fojig. but

horror never,

She all night long

Chaunts to the liftning woods her moumfirfiale;

but Ihe chaunts it in' fuch a manner,' that

Night's fair Queen

Liltens attentive from her throne ferene.

From this fweet Bird let \is take ourlefTon ; at leaft fo far as to moderate our

complaining ; for though nothing is more

humane than to dilTolve in forrrow for the

death or misfortunes of our friends or rela-

tipnsj yet nothing is more abfurd than to

let thjat forroyv. dege-rierate^ into a difguHful

gloom in our behaviour towards men, or a

prefiimptuous arraignment of the difpenfa-

tions of Heaven.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LIII.

Of Parental Affe^ion,

TtARK ! loudly chauntingfiom the vernal fpray,

^^ The joyful Linnets pour the ruftic lay !

Sweer, feathered warblers of the vocal grove,

Tliey -^rain their tuneful throats to ling of love.

Their tender brood they fofter with delight,

Supply with food, and prune their wings for flight,

WakM by whofe cries they quit their peaceful homejAnd far abroad to feek provifions roam :

Nor flay in lawns, in groves, or verdant fields,

To.tafte the various fweets the feafon yields;

But to their young with eager hade repair,

And prove trtie Emblems ^f paternal care.

TH£

[ 158 ]

THE Linnet is a bird of fine plumage,

but yet more excellent note ; it is juflly

cfleemed one of the fweeteft of the feathered

warblers, and %led the Englifli Canary-

bird, In the beautiful mornings of the

Spring he makes the woods rcfound with

his note, and heightens their vernal delight

and joy by his ruftic melody.

This bird breeds about the month of

Auguft, and is particularly tender of its

young. There is fomething very remark-

able in the attachment of the feathered

creation to their offspring, which they

nurfe with the tenderell care, providing

them with food at all hazards, and, if they

think their ncfts are likely to be found out,

decoying their purfuer to fome other fpot,

and thereby faving what they hold dearer

than their own lives. With fuch a power-

ful and fagacious inftin6l has Providence

fvrrniflied them for the prefervation of their

fpecies.

APPLICATION.

[ '59 ]

APPLICATION.

Thebe is fcarcely any fpecies of ani-

mals generally noticed by mankind, from

whence fomcthing may not be learnt. Thecreation is a large book written by the hand

of God, wherein we may read, and fcan

his works. Scripture itfelf has bade us

learn from the creatures ; and furely this

quality in the birds deferves our attention;

whilft it is to be expetted, that the parent

who copies the Linnet in their care for

their offspring, will find the latter imitats

the Stork * in duty and offeBiorK

* See Emblem I.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LIV.

Of Content,

TjERE, far remote from cities, courts, and care,

•*-- The Chili o/A^jf^rc breaths the bahny air;

The rural fcene, the field and fliady grove,

Whi^h Dryads haunt, and which the mufes love,

Attraft his wnfh, who feeks not to renaain

In pop'lous cities, or the haunts of raen.

M OR A L.

The fimple fwain bis pleafing charge attends,

Cr o'er the brook in contemplation bends.

Serene at op'ning dawn, or clofing light,

Calm are his thoughts by day, his dreams by night

;

No anxious doubts perplex his happy breaft.

His Conjcicnct quiet, and his heart at refl.

Contenfs befl: Emblem ;—in ail ftates refignM,

He lives and dies—a pattern for fnankind.

PHILOSOPHERS

[ i6i ]

PHILOSOPHERS In all ages have gf*-

nerally concluded a rural ilate to be the moft

virtuous, and, conlequently, moil happy.

Poets have agreed with them, and illullra-

tcd their maxims, by giving U3 the moft

enchanting pidures of the pkaiures of a

country life.

In the Goltlcn ^ge in Saturn's reign, we

are informed men lived in the greatell fim-

plicity—they frequented groves and lawns,

and had all things in common among them :

then fraud and treachery were unknown, and

men were happy, becaufe they were gooJ.

It is a melancholy truth, that great cities

too much abound with great vices, A rural

retreat is the nurfe of contemplation, where,

by frequently converfmg with our ownhearts, we are moft likely to gain a portion

of that feif-know ledge, which is juftly

efleemed the moft valuable of all fciences.

Eeiides, if we compare all the beauties of

art with thofe oijimple yiature^ we {hall find

the former to be but faint copies of the

latter ; and, when put in competition with

the works of the Great Archited, there is

no wonder that they fljould fuik in the

comparifon,

APPLICATION.

C '62 ]

APPLICATION.

Content, which is one ot the greateft

bleffings on earth, is, above all, to be ,ex-

pected in /weet r.ural reth-cment. She flies

from palaces and popuious cities, to the

fcenes oijimpk nature, where llie abides with

the fimple fwain, and the village maid.

Here, too, the Philofopher muy befl woo

her to his arms, and, bV'felorting to Na-

tureU haunts^ may embrace the felicity he

admires.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LV.

Of Lojl Reputat'ioiu

nr HE well-formM Bell, which formerly was found

**• To charm the ear with its loud pealing found,

Thus crack'd, no more can of its mufic boaft,

Ics pow'r of melody for ever loft :

Its notes no longer fill the ambient air

With founds of joy, or call to facred pray'r.

MORAL.Thus Reputtiion^ while preferved, will, raife.

The conftant tribute of a well-earn'd praife;

Her fame, like fweeteft mufic, far is borne,

And echoes plcas'd, the grateful notes return :

But flaw'd, or fully'd once, here ends ker f\s-ay,

The notes furceale, the mufic dies away.

THE

[ i64 ]

THE Bell, which fends forth a folemn

found, to invite to prayers, and a ftill more

doleful one, to ring the funeral knell, is

alfo ufed for triumphs and rejoicing; and,

when the joyful fires blaze, and the feftal

bowl goes round, heightens the mirth, and

increafes the pleafures of thofe who are dif-

poied to feftivity.

The pealing found of the Bell is heard at

a diftance, and often proves an admonition

to us to think of that time which we wafte,

and which can never be regaiiied.

APPLICATION,He that fets lightly by his character, is

generally a man little to be trufted ; and he

who cares not what the world fays, will be

likely to care little what he does. We fhould

not be anxious about every idle report, but

it becomes us all to endeavour to prefervc

our Reputation,

EMBLEM

E IM B L E M LVI.

Of Unanimity,

T tNITED thus in one v el!-chofen band.

Aid I^rongly grafp'd by the fui^porting hand,

Tne fler.der fliafcs all ilr;n2;th aflaijsin vain,

Firm and unbroke ftiil they \\-i)l remain;

Forfaken by that hand, dilTolv'd the Tie,

Strewn on the ground the glitt'ring fragments lie.

MORA L.

FnxttTTitWnion thus will ftrength impart,

SufHcien: to repel nil force and art

:

Yet ft:!! oa^ head ih" united band muft claim,

Aud find proieftio . ft cm a parent's aame

:

Depriv'd of thir, they lofe their ancient boad.

Their Union breiJts, and all their hopes are loft.

WE

[ i66 ]

We learn from ancient hiflory, and from

modern examples, that Union^ the bond

of fello'wJJjip, will ever be the beft means

of fecuring us againlt the attacks of our

enemies. Fraternal Union deferves parti-

cularly to be recommended—The Unity of

Bretheren is, above all others, the raoft happy

and compleat, where it takes place j yet

how many families do we fee, in which the

neareft and deareft relations are at variance,

to their own difgrace, and frequently to the

ruin of their houfe.

The old fable is well known. Vis unita

fortior^ (Itrength unted requires more vi-

gour) is a plain leffon : but., in order to

render their vigour more refpedable, and to

preferve the band inviolate, it is necefTary

to have a perfon to confirm the connexion

;

where Brothers are concerned, who is fo pro-

per as a Parent^ who may fettle all their lit-

tle difputes, and, with the bleffings of Hea-

ven, confirm their unity in the Bondof Peace*

APPLICAT ION.If we take all thefe things into our con-

iideration, we Ihall find, that a parent whoproperly difcharges his duty to his children,

is the only perlon to whom they can look

up for prote6tion, and forms the only Bondof their Fraternal Union*

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LVII.

Of Obedience,

rpHE facred Tables of the Law \Tere made,

By all of mortal race to be obey'd;

Awd but for thffe what were our baplefs ftate,

Tlie fport of Fortune, as the prey of Fite :

Well is it he.e, tha; in the righteous caufe,

The pow'r of Justice can fupport her Laixi.

For ever bonour'd be her high beheft,

Which aweful bdsall human kind bebleft;

And let the wicked dread th' aven;^ing hand,

That punilhes the breach of Virtue's Bind'

MORAL.Who breaks her Rula, breaks Unions and will fiad,

Tne Sworimuft punifh ihofc nO Ljui can hlni.

THESE

[ i68 ]

THER 3 imot a greater happinefs than

for a people to be governed by juft and er»ul-

tuble laws; nor is there among the whole

catalogue of illuftrious characters, one that

is equal to that of a wife and good. An-cient hiflory has immortalized thofe, who,

by the promulgation of good laws, have

contributed to the fervice of their country.

Sages have honoured, Poets have fung

them, and their memory is as a fweet

fmelling favour, grateful to all the world.

The name of Solon aud Lycurgus * will be

had in honour, as long as the recording

page of the hiftorian fliall continue to tranf-

init the catalogue of ancient worthies to

pollerity.

The harmony refulting from a well or-

dered flate, has often been compared to the

melody of fine mufic. Hence, perhaps

arofe the fable Ox Amphlon's building the

walls of Thebes, merely by playing on his

harp.f He is reprefented indeed as a great

mulician ; but the moral feenib to indicate

that he was rather a great law-giver, who

* See the Univerfal Hiaory.

f Amphion thus the loud creative Lyre

Strikes, and behold a fudden Thebds sdpire,

drew

[169]drew men from their woods and wild?, and,

by his perfuafive manner, induced them to

fubied themfelves to laws, and live in har-

mony and fellowfliip with each other.

APPLICATION.

SuEORPixATioN' Is the life of fociety,

and muft be enjoined by all good laws.

Thofe who will not obferve it are fit only

to live in defarts, as they break that Union

which is neceirary in all communities.

The idea that all men Ihould be equal, is

as pernicious as it is abfurd. It tends to

fubvert all order ; and where it takes place

for one inftant of time, muft be changed in

another; fince all men are neither equally

ftroag, valiant, nor prudent. As to thole

reftlefs fpirits, who pretend to defpife all

laws, and excite others to refift the legal

government, and break through the rules

prefcribed by the conllituticn of their

country, the Sword in the Emblem, is juftly

applicable to fuch, as it is better they

Ihould perifh, than that, by their rafhnefs,

the whole community fhould be endan-

gered.

I EMBLEM

EMBLEM LVIIL

Of Humility,

•nENE ATH the friendly far extended fhad-,

The lowly Violet lifts her blooming head;

No fwelling pride her gentle boCom knows,

The' rich in Spring's perfume fhe beauteous grows

:

Content flie views tlie lofty tree afpire,

Which gives her fhelter from the Solar Fire

:

Averts the Ilorms thai threaten from on high,

And all the fury of th'inclement iky.

MORAL.Emblem of thofe, who in an humble flate,

Stand flielter'dfrom the ftorms of adverfe Fate;

Who ftill fubmifllve to fuperior fway,

Eniw proteftien, and in Peace obey.

THERE

[ i;i ]

THERE is fomechirg very ilnking- lo

tlni) Emblem, which ought to be par:icu-

larly attended to by young people, ho^v

are too apt to afpire, a-^.d frequently look

with an eye jof diliike on the very power

that is ufed for their protedion.

The Violet is one ot the moft fragrant

child len of the early fpring, from wh.ch

the Bee extracts the choiceft fweetci; and

her fragiance is become a proverb. She

boafts not the dyes of the Tulip, nor the

variegated tints of the Carnation; yet her

charms are acknowledged by all, nor is (he

difgraced by her Humility.

When file blooms in the fliade, (he is beft

protected from aflailing tempefts, yet fhc

lofes not any thing of her fragrance ; fhe is

ftill grateful to the fenfe, and is ftill ad-

mired by all thofe who pr-efer real worth to

the pageantry of empty (how.I

APPLICATION.This is a proper Emblem of Humility,

which will ever be honourable, and of

that S'-ibmilTion, which w"Jl ever engage

the protection of thofe whofe place it is

to afford it. Rulers, Parents, Kindred,

I 2 Friends,

[ n^ ]

Friends, will alike refpecl this quality.

Submiliioii is the life of fociety; witho u

this, neither public nor private tranquility

can be eftabliflied. Thus the headftrong

youth is feldom known to become a good

member of the commonwealth. A fub-

miffion to Rulers, Parents, and Teachers,

fliould therefore be early taught, and ftrictly

attended to by the pupil, who can never

be the lofer by the progrefs he makes in

Humility, while he finds himfelf rewarded

by that protection w^hich is always to be

expected by thofe who fubmit to the Rules

»fSuhordination,

EMBLEiM

EMBLEM LIX.

AOf Retirement.

LAS ! too ofi the perfect, goodj and fair,

Mi'taken hee, provt- caufe of mortal care-.

The garden Lily, proud of outward Ihow,

Her boCm whi'e as is the fieecy fnowj

Amonglt fweci Flora's faireft train is found,

i^nd by her pow'rs with flatiVing glories crown'd.

hr\% yet fhe droops, iranfplanted from the fpot,

Where once /he found a liunabler, happier lot.

Ah! hapleli Flowerl no pomp can give relief

7o drooping health, or inward heart-felt j^rief.

MORAL.Attend the Moral, fo the liin.wle {train,

^or we ihali pen, nor you ^u'-fue :n vain.

I 3 THERE

[ -74 ]

THERE is nothing for which cnortals

are more remarkable, than for their wifli

to change their lituation, n ot being con-

tented with that lot which Heaven has af-

ligned them, in order to fulfil that circle

which is juft marked out for every created

being.

The Lily, in the Emblem, isfeen droop-

ing in the Giirden, where {he feems to be

the Queen of Flowers ; but however juftly

efteemed, flie droops ; and being plucked,

foon fades ; and, confequently, is in a flate

by no means to be envied.

Thus do we often find a female,, who.

might remain happy in a peaceful Retire

rient^ running a thoufand hazards for the

fake of fhewing, and the ^dea of improving

her accomplifliments. She has heard, that

great ciiics are the places where people

iline moft—flie conceives, that to fhine

IS to be happy—and entertaining thefe

notions, there is no wonder that fhe fliould

endeavour to put her favourite project in

execution.

Thus influenced, {lie leaves the country;

file quits the fcenes of fimple nature; tli^s

to the capital; endeavours to fee, and be

feen, and to mix in all the trifling (if not

criminal

[ 75 ]

criminal) pleafures of the gay world. I£

fhe has a fortune, flie ealily d lliputes what,

if well managed, might contribute to her

happinefs, and perhaps to that of numbers

of her tellow creatures. If fhe had no fuch

depend.ince, her caufe may probubly be ftlU

mere depJorible. She is likely, in this

cafe, to faci i'^ice her health and reputation,

to forego her claims to honour and fair

name, from the idea of making herfelf

more refnecled.—^^er Vanity meets its re-

ward, and ruin is the confequence of her

raflmefs.

APPLICATION.

I -V DEED, we generally find, that fplen-

dor, noife, and crowds, are not favourable to

Virtue. She often flouriflies even in a rag-

ged fo 1, beneath an apparently inclement

cl mate, yet droops beneath the influence

of too warm a fun.

Let ihofe who are not contented with

their ftation, conlider, that Providence is

the beft judge of their welfar-e ; and they

will not become like the drooping Lily,

fecking an ideal happinefs at the expence

of their intemalpeace and tranquility.

1

4

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LX.

Memorial of Virtue*

T O! where the Cyprefs with the Palm Branch•*-' crownM,

The trueft Emblem of our end is found.

The mournful Cyprefs and the Palm unite

!

For virtue ne'er can fmk in endlefs night.

MORAL. ^Thro' death's dark gates each mortal once muft pafs,

Frail our exiltence, for all flefh is grais;

Vain man's the pageant of a moment made,

Blooms but to ixiiher^ flouriflies \o fait.

But for the good all honetl hearts fliall mourn,

And '* Palms eternal floarifli round their urn."

AS

[ '77 ]

AS tUe Cyprefs was the Emblem of

Funeral Rites, fo was the Palm the token

of Victory. The latter being ufed in

triumphs with the Laurel, " meed of

mighty conquerors."

No man is tried, no man can be faid to

be victorious or happy, till his end. Thegreateft heroes have fuUied their Virtues,

and thofe have turned to vice and felly

who once were remarkable for religion and

'virtue; but to thofe that perfeveie to the

end, the Croivn ofReivarJ (hall be given.

Scripture and Phik>fophy alike inform

\is, thst Death is the Gate of Life, and that

the Righteous fliall always be had in re-

membrance. It is in this view that n^.en can

face death with fortitude, as Martyrs,

Heroes, Patriots, braving the King of

Terrors, while they are obeying the dictates

of Heaven, in fulfillmg their duty to God,

their Friends, or their Count y

.

To theie the funeral Jhade has nothing

really dreadful. The wicked and the

foolifh indeed may be afraid to venture into

the gloom of the Grave. Thofe who are

confcious that they ha e behaved ill in life,

cannot be fuppofed ready to meet death.—

Is But

[ >78 ]

But he who can look back on marly years

well fpent, confiding in Heaven's mercir?,

looks forward to a better Itate hereafter,

and juftly expefts his memory to become

dear to the woife and virtuous in this fab-

lunary ftate.

APPLICATION.The Lo've of Fame,, if kept within proper

bounds, is certainly as ufeful^ as it feems

to be an univerfal pajjicn-y and the honours

which the juft receive after death, ought by

no means to be contemned. Sages, Legilla-

torp, and the firft of men in all ages have

had fome refped to this pofthumous re-

ward. There is a duty the furvivors owe

to thofe who have diftinguiflied themfclves,

which cannot be better difcharged than by

paying a proper refped to their memory.

As when the perfons are dccea'ed, interefl

is not fuppofed to interfere ; and that muft

be the grolTeit of flattery indeed, which is

carried beyond the grave.

Death, which at laft flamps the bullion of

nature with its real worth, as it precludes

envy^ can have little to fear from adulation.

But it is the part of every wife and right-

eous

[ '79 ]

cous perfoD, tp perpetuate the manory of

the worthy part of mankind, and by that

me:hod to encourage othcs to follow their

illuftrious example. The Cyprefs being

thus twined with the Palm branch, menwill learn, that even here below their light

will (hine, as it were in darknefs, and

virtue, in every ftate, will not fail of meet-

ing with its due reward.

1

6

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LXI.

OfDetraHion.

'pHE Telefcope, for noblelt ends defign'd,

Has he]p'd, with Scierxe, to adorn the mind

;

Brings diftant objefts full upon the view,

Explores one world, and points out thoufandsnew,

Its ufe well known, with double powV indu'd,

T' enlarge or leflen cv''ry objed; view'd;

One end with forms enlarged, engage our eyes,

The other fhews them of diminifhM iize.

MORAL.Emblem ofhuman judgment, weak and vain,

Whxh mil muft err where Paffion holds the reigni

Partial to felf, while life's dark maze we fcan,

Small is the knowledge ofmankind ofman :

Wbillt other's faults at once enlarged are fhewn.

The changM Perfpeaive fcarcely marks our own.

THE

[ i8i ]

THE Telefcopc is amongft the modufeful of mo.'ern inventions. By this we

are enabled to travel through the vaft fields

of .Ether, and become acquainted with other

worlds. By this we are enabled to make

cbfervations on the heavenly bodies, which

are ufeful to the inhabitants of the eai th.

The various phoenomena which we remark

in the Coelcllial Regions, are always to

be confidered as the difplay of Almighty

power, the volume in which we are to

read his works ; and the Divine Archite<5t

has fo fully difplayed himfelf in the great

edifice he has erected, and

Has built

So fpacious, and his line ftretch'd out fo far,

That men may know he dwells not in his own.

This amazing ftructure may well be term-

ed glorious. How great and glorious then

is he who built it r—The Telefcope maybe reckoned as the medium through whichwe are acquainted with his works, and as

fuch deferves our particular attention.

APPL^-

[ -8^ ]

APPLICATION,

With regard to the Emblem itfelf, the

Moral is clear enough. We are too apt to

view through the magnifying glafs the

faults of others, while our own are always

feen through the diminiftiing end of the

Perfpe^tive. Of all knowledge, felf-know-

ledge is certainly the beft, at the fame

time that we muft own it the hardeft to

attain. Happy is he that can gain fuch an

empire over himfelf, as to hold the rein

of his paffions, and to view his own faults

in their true light, which is generally the

firft Hep towards amendment.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LXII.

Of Human Grandeur,

TOEHOLD how facrcd Majefly is torn

'-' With racking pains, with care and auguifh worn.

While the poor Shepherd-boy the time beguiles,

"With rural fports ar.d unafFeftcd fmilcs.

MORAL.*Tis not 'm grandeur peace of mind to give,

Nor arc thofe happiefl who infpUndor live;

Content alone thofe blefTings can beftow,

Which teach the mind with heart-felt joy to glow,

Banifh vain care, and all her difmal train,

>nd give true pleafure, unallay'd by pain.

[ i84 ]

HAPPINESS is not to be bought with

goJdy nor fecured by the charms oi grandeur.

Sehold here the Queen opprelled with grief,

flies to folitary and melancholy fliades,

whe^re fhe fits, overwhelmed with forro'vj^

and is almoU perfuaded to put an end to

her own exiflence.—Her ftate divided by

Fa6lions, and her private Peace of Mind

deflroyed by public cares, llie remains a me-

lancholy inftance of the troubles that attend

on greatne/s, and the Sacrifice thofe make,

who exchange their tranquility for Cronjons

and Sceptres, and their Peace for the Splendor

of Dominion,

Not fo the Shepherd-Boy; he, though

poor, is contented ; he riles in health, and

lies down in happiaefs.—The fun is now

fet ; he has folded his flock, and returns

home whiftling over the plains ;—Majefty

beholds his ruHic gaiety, and fiekens at the

fight. She cannot taflc thofe Pleafures

which dilate his breaft, nor ftiare in his

Ruftic Joy.—The event is, that flie pines

to death with forrow, while he lives happy

in rural fimplicity, and in the enjoyment

of his wiflies, becaufe all his wifhcs arc

moderate t

APFLI'

iSs ]

APPLICATION,

FELICITY dwells not with Princes ;—flic is not the gueil of the great ones of the

earth. It is long fince (lie flea from palaces

and retired to the fcenes of fimple nature,

to dwell in rural quiet, and become the

companion of the harmlefs village fwain.

Yet not there alone does fhe refide

:

Would you trace her dwelling, you muft

follow the footfteps of Conte?it, and the

track will lead you to her peaceful manfion.

But forget not, that as Contetit is never

to be found except in the Paths of Virtue^

if you deviate from Her ways, you muft

never expert to find the Road to Happi-

nefs

:

—you will become a Wanderer, and

the hope of your Piigiimagc will be loft.

For thefe three are as inieparable as, fire,

light, and heat ; where the one i?, there

you will find the others ; and the reward

Ihall be fuch as will far tranfcend the pains

you may be at in acquiiing fuch an inefti-

raabie Treafure.

In

'Ulfl-

[ ^86 ]

In the mean time, envy not the acqt

tions of others; for that is bafe and feifiih*;

neither fay within yourfelf, Such an one is

happy ^ nxihilfl I am expofed to adverjify.

For you know not the fecrets of mens

hearts ; and it may be, that the perfon

whom you efteem happy^ is a prey to corrod-

ing grief-iand pines in fecret anxiety. At

leaft, know this, That the ftatc of no

.human being can be determined, till Death

cloff s the fcene ;—and the lall end of the

Goodo^Xy can be Happy, Emulate their

virtues^ and, doubtlcfs, you fiiall fliarc in

their felicfiy*

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LXIII.

Of the U/e of Time,

'^RUE to the Sun the Dial ftil! abides,

And points Time's cou'fe minutely as it glides;

Th's bids us haflen to be wife, and fhow

How rapid in their courfe the minutes uow

;

Seize on the winded hours without delay,

Njr trufl to-morrow v/hile you Jive to-day.

MORAL.Time well em^loy'd is a moft- certain giif^j

Eaincil: of pleafure, remedy for pain;

The chief of biefljnjrs on its courfe attends,

Sicce on its uFe Eternity depends.

BEHOLD

[ i8S ]

BEHOLD how true the Dial is to the

Sun, and how exa/lly it marks the hours,

whofe courfe might otherwife pafs unno-

ticed or unknown.

This ufeful invention we owe to the ma-

thematicians, of ancient days, who thus fur-

niflied men with the means of accurately

diftinguifhing the difierent parts of the day,

and dividing them into equal portions,

whereby labour and reft, ft.udy and amufe-

ment, were better regulated, and the wafte

of time feen in a moment, without the trouble

of tedious calculations.

The Romans (mafters of the world) were

at one time fo ignorant of the ufe of Dials,

that having taken one at the liege of an

enemy's city, the Conful ordered it, without

any alteration, to be fixed up at Rome ; but

as it was not calculated for the meridian of

that place, it went wrong, a thing wh-ch

furprifed every body ; till at laii a mathe-

matician told them the reafon of it, and

remedied the defcd. Dials, and various

other methods of marking the hours, were

ufed in Rome ever afterwards.

ATPL I-

[ '89 ]

APPLICATION,

Nothing can be more uieful to us than

that which points out the fwift flight of

Time^ and fhews us how our days dratv on

to aconclulion, even while we arc revelling

in the fummer and the pride of life.

The Dial is a kind of filent monitor,

which, by informing us how the hours fleet

away, feems to exort us to make a proper

ufe of them, and not to wafte thofe precious

moments, which an hour will come, whenwe fliall think of more worth than all the

riches of the earth, and which, then, all the

riches of the earth will not be fufficient to

purchafe for us.

EMBLEM

EMBLEM LXIV.

Of the Frailty of Suhlunary Things,

rpHE lofty pi'e that rearM its head To high,

Afpiiing (lill, and pointing to the Iky,

The boaft of ages, but their boaft is vain;

OVturn'd at laft, and levelM with the plain.

So falls the pride of life: fb worlds mud fall.

And one long, laft oblivion, bury all.

MORAL.Time conquers all things; would you Time furvive,

Be good, and in your virtuous anions live;

For Virtue fliall refift the tyrant's fway,

And bloom, and flourifh in eternal day.

THUS

[ '9> ]

THUS muft the moft lofty, and tnc

ftrongeft edifices decay ; if they efcapc

frorms, tempcfts, and earthquakes, yet

muft they yield at hft to Time, and their

glories be buried in the dufl.

Pyramids are juftly reckoned the greaieft

inftaiue of the tolly and vani:;y of man-

kind.—The life for which thofe famous

ones in Egypt v^eie erected, was only for

their kings to be interred in.—And it is

even fuid by fome writers, that a monarch,

who had built one of them for this purjx)fe,

was not afrer de '.th fuffered to be laid in

this hi monument, becaufe he had been a

g-eat tyr.;nt in life; and, among otherac-

cu "acions brought ag unft him, was that

of having caufed a number of innocent mento lofc their lives in executing this magnifi-

cent plan ;— a Uriking inftance of the vanity

of mens defirt-s, who often defeat, by

their vices and follies, thofe ends they are

piompted to purfue by their ambition.

Take a view of the ruins of Antiquity,

and remember, O man ! the frail flate of thy

mortality !—Art thou rich and great; is thy

name known throughout the world ; and do

thy lofty buildings afpire to the clouds ?

yet

[ 192 ]

yet a little while, and thou flialt link iit

dull ! Thy edifices and thy monuments too,

muft at lengtn decay, and leave no traces

behind them !

Where now is Babylon ? Where is the

feat of Solomon ? Where is wife Athens ?

and where ancient Rome, the miflrcfs of the

>yorld ? Where are thofe mighty cities, once

fo famous upon earth ?—Of fome there is

not left even a ftone wpon a Hone, and

others are remembered only in their ruins.

E'en as an infubflantial pageant faded

The cloud-capt towVs, the gorgeous palaces,

The folemn temples, the great globe itfelf

!

Yea, all which it inherit, fliall difTolve,

And, like the bafelefs fabric of a vifion,

Leave not a wreck, behind.

Be alfured then, O man, who glorieft in

thy ftrength and might, that there is no-

thing folid but peace of mind, nothing

permanent but Virtue : Ihc alone fliall laft

through the ages, and grow brighter

through the endlefs fucceffion of Eternity,

FINIS.

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