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of the intricacies of form, and am the more angry with myself because I fee men with mean understandings acquire what I could not attain.

In the treating of topics at all profound and difficult, I am obliged to reflect much as I proceed, to prevent my ideas from falling into confufion. If I perceive that I am listened to, the fubject feems to vanish from me, or my thoughts rife in fuch hurry and diforder that nothing is diftinct. But when difficult points are difcuffed in converfation, where there are other speakers, I acquit myself infinitely

better.

I never could fee tears, without fympathy.

I may be faid to have a paffion for friendship,

I am prone to forgive, because hatred is a troublesome companion. When my enemy wishes to be reconciled, he applies to my vanity, and I can no longer regard as an enemy one who does me the favour to give me a good opinion of myself.

When I am refiding in the country, among my vaffals, I never encourage unfavourable reports of any of them. If a tale-bearer would repeat fomething faid to my disadvantage, I interrupt him with faying-I do not wish to incur the danger of believing a falfe report, and would not give myself the trouble to hate a knave.

At the age of 35, I was once more in love.

I can no more make visits with mercenary views, than I can accompany birds through the air.

In the bustle of public life, I felt as if I could not endure retirement. In retirement, I forgot the world.

A man of eminent merit I can never bear to analyze ; a man, who, with valuable qualities, does not rife above mediocrity, I analyze very carefully.

I believe I am the only writer who has not been fmitten with the paffion of being reputed a wit; and my intimate friends know that in converfation I never affect it, but have sense enough to use the language of those with whom I affociate.

I have often had the misfortune to be difgufted with perfons whofe good-will I had earnestly fought.

I never loft but one friend, through any misunderstanding; and I have lived with my children as with friends.

It has been a principle of my whole life, never to do, by the agency of others, what I could do for myself; and hence I have improved my fortune by means

within my own reach-moderation and economy-unmingled with foreign aid, which is always mean or unjust.

When I have seen a company expect to find me excel in conversation, I have been more than ufually unfuccefsful. I would rather be present with men of talents to enliven my understanding, than with fools to applaud my fayings.

The perfons I inoft despise are-the minor wits; and men of high ftation without probity.

I never wrote a pafquinade; I have committed miftakes enough, but never was guilty of ill-will to any one.

I never was prodigal in my expences, yet I am not avaricious, and I know of no enterprize that I would at any time have undertaken to amafs riches.

It has been very prejudicial to my affairs, that I could never forbear to despise thofe I could not esteem.

I have not failed to increase my property, my lands being greatly improved; but, I am perfuaded, my motive was rather to enlarge my power than my re

venue.

On my entering into life, I was fpoken of as a man of talents, and people of condition gave me a favorable reception; but when the success of my PERSIAN LETTERS proved perhaps that I was not unworthy of my reputation, and the public began to esteem me, my reception with the great was difcouraging, and I experienced innumerable mortifications. great, inwardly wounded with the glory of a celebrated name, feek to humble it. In general, he only can patiently endure the fame of others, who deferves fame himself.

The

I do not think I ever expended four pounds for the fake of fhew, or made one vifit for the fake of intereft. In what I undertake, I employ no trick; and am let's anxious for the fuccefs of my enter prize, than for the discharge of my duty in it.

Had I been born in England, nothing could have confoled me in failing to accumulate a large fortune; I do not lament the mediocrity of my circumstances in France.

I own, I have too much vanity to wish my children to make a fplendid fortune, for they would find it difficult to pronounce their father's name, and my tomb would be a monument to perpetuate their difgrace. I do not fuppofe they would level my tomb with the ground; but they would fcarcely rebuild it, if thrown down. Their origin would embarrass

their flatterers, and twenty times a day bring blushes on their own cheeks. My memory would exist only to give offence, and my unhappy fhade haunt the living with unceafing terrors.

Timidity has been the bane of my life, it feems to affect even the organs of my body, and my intellect; to arreft my tongue, caft a cloud over my thoughts, and confound my language. I am lefs fubject to this humiliation before men of fenfe than fools, because I trust to their perceiving the train of my ideas. Sometimes, I have chanced to acquit myself well enough. Being at Luxembourg, in an apartment where the emperor was at dinner, Prince Kinfki faid to me" You, Sir, who came from France, will be furprifed to fee the emperor fo ill lodged.'

name.".

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Sir," I answered, "I am not forry to fee a country in which the fubje&ts are better lodged than their fovereign." Being in Piedmont, the King faid to me, "I understand, Sir, you are a relation of the Abbé de Montefquieu, whom I have feen here with the Abbè d'Eftrades." "Sir," I replied, "Your majefty is like Cæfar, who never forgot any one's -Dining in England with the Duke of Richmond, the French envoy there, La Boine, who was at table, and was ill qualified for his fituation, contended that England was not larger than the province of Guienne. Ioppoled the envoy. In the evening, the Queen faid to me, "I am informed, Sir, that you undertook our defence againit M. de Ja Boine." "Madam," I replied, "I cannot perfuade myfelf that a country over which you reign, is not a great kingdom."

I have had the double misfortune--to write books, and to be ashamed of them.

I never wished to increafe my wealth by the favors of the court; but, content to improve my lands, have held my fortune dependent only on providence. N********, having certain purposes to anfwer, intimated, that a pention would be granted me. I replied, "Having never degraded myself by conceffions to the court, I have no need to feek confolation in its favours.”

If I may predict the fortune of the SPIRIT OF LAWs, it will be more praifed than read. Such works afford fatisfaction, but are never reforted to for anrufement. I conceived the defign of making parts of that book more elaborate and profound, but the ftate of my eyes would not permit me to pursue the neceffary ftudies.

If I knew of any enterprize that would do myfelf a fervice at the expence of my family, I would reject it; if it were one that would advance the fortune of my house to the injury of my country, I would endeavour to forget it; if it were fomething that would be useful to my country, but inconfiftent with the interefts of Europe or the human race, I should regard, the profecution of it as a crime.

My ambition is-to be fimple in my manners; to receive as few favours as poffible; and to grant as many as poffible.

I am going to do a very foolish thing, it is to make a table of my genealogy.

MISCELLANEOUS THOUGHTS, BY

MONTESQUIEU.

(Tranflated from the fame.)

To take delight in reading, is to have the power of changing thofe moments of laffitude that vifit every man, for the most delicious moments of life.

What an unfortunate neceffity is it in the conftitution of man, that his underftanding is fcarcely matured when the organs of his body begin to fail!

A celebrated phyfician was afked—If the commerce of the fexes was prejudicial to health-" No," faid he, "if provocatives are not ufed." But I should rank variety among provocatives.

It is a proof that merit is of the highest kind, when it continues to fhine with accuitomed luftre, although merit of as high a rank is in its prefence.

I call genius a fecret gift of the Deity, which the poffeffor difplays unknown to

himfelf.

He who runs after wit is apt to embrace folly.

I once faid to Madam du Châtelet"You poftpone your fleep, to read the philofophers; you should read the philofophers, to haften your flumbers.'

Hope is the link that unites all our pleafures.

The interval is too fhort between the time of our being too young and too old.

It demands a great deal of study to acquire moderate knowledge.

Of those who make companions of their fervants, I have only to fay, that vice is its own punishment.

Men of talents govern fools; and fome fool or other often governs a man of talent.

When I reflect on our difcoveries in

natural philofophy, I think we have gone very far for human beings. Idlenefs

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Ordinary graces lofe part of their beauty by being fet in competition with each other: graces of the highest rank acquire a brighter luftre when opposed to each other.

Moft virtues are relative to individuals, or to parts of the whole: fuch are friendfhip, love of one's country, compaffion. But juftice is relative to the whole; and when any action interferes with that, it is vice, though ranked among the virtues.

The fuccefs of moft enterprifes depends upon knowing how much time is neceflary to their fuccefs.

That ought never to be attempted by the laws, which can be effected by the customs and manners of a people.

I have remarked that, to fucceed in the world, one must have a vacant air with a fubtle head.

One's drefs fhould be a little inferior to one's condition.

Supper destroys one half of Paris, and dinner the other.

I hate Versailles, because every body is little and mean there; but Paris I love, for there one finds great men.

If we were content to be happy, that would not be difficult; but we are ambitious to be more happy than others, and that is difficult, becaufe others appear to be happier than they really are.

Some people hate digreffions; but I think he who understands their ufe is like one with long arms: he has more objects within his reach.

Men are of two forts: thofe who think, and those who amufe themselves.

A fine action is one that is beneficial to man, and whofe accomplishment requires talent.

The common people have generally good intentions and vicious manners. Hiftories are romances founded on

facts.

A work gives celebrity to a man's name, and after that, his name gives celebrity to his works.

It is a nice point to know when to quit a company an accurate knowledge of the world gives a readinefs in perceiving it.

Bravery and a love of glory are declining among us: it is of little moment to

our happiness to belong to one mafter or to another; but formerly, defeat in the field, or the reduction of a man's country, was the lofs of all that was dear to him, his country, family, and friends."

We fhall never arrive at principles in finance, because we never know more than that we do fomething, and never what it is we do.

We do not now call a minifter great, when he is an intelligent adminiftrator of the public revenue, but when he is fertile in expedients to increafe the revenue, and indefatigable in their application.

People love their grand-children better than their children, and it is because they can eftimate tolerably well the worth of the latter; but their knowledge of the former being lefs perfect, they flatter themselves with vain hopes respecting them.

The reason why fools fo often fucceed in their plans is, that never diftrusting themselves, they always perfevere.

It is worthy to be obferved, that the greater part of our pleasures are unrea

fonable.

Old men, who have ftudied in youth, need only refort to the memory for pleafure or ufe, when others are obliged to begin to study.

Merit is a confolation in every affliction.

A figurative ftyle is fo far from difficult, that a nation emerging from ignorance first employs the figurative and fwelling ftyle, and afterwards acquires the fimple. The difficulty of fimplicity is, that it borders on the mean, although in itfelf most expreffive and beautiful; while there is a wide distance between a figurative ftyle and bombast.

There is very little vanity in feeling a neceffity for rank or important station to attract notice.

The heroism that refults from just morals interefts few; the heroism that is most deftructive, is the admiration of the multitude.

Ariftotle and Horace have told us of the virtues of their forefathers, and the degeneracy of their own times; and authors, from age to age, have done the fame; but if they had spoken the truth, men at this day would be degenerated into brute animals.

Raillery is a panegyric on the fpeaker's wit, at the expence of his humanity.

People whofe minds are never profoundly occupied, are generally great talkers.

Obfcure people, who are ambitious of

making a large fortune, are only preparing for the moment when they will be in defpair for their want of birth.

A greater number of vices are occafioned by our not fufficiently efteeming ourfelves, than from a too high opinion of our merit.

In the whole courfe of my life, I never faw any perfons univerfally defpifed but fuch as univerfally kept bad company.

Experiments make the hiftory of phyfics, and theories its fables.

Every nation and every man ought to be civilized; but every nation and man ought alfo to be free.

Modefty becomes every one; but though we fhould give it a place in our minds, we should keep it in fubjection to greater qualities.

Be fingular, if you will; but let it be in the elevation of your thoughts. He that can diftinguifh himfelf no otherwife than by his dreis, is a despicable creature in every country.

I once had the curiofity to keep an account of the number of times I heard a flory repeated, that never deferved to have been related; during three weeks that it occupied the polite world, I heard it told two hundred and twenty-five times, which I thought quite fufficient.

Modefty is a fpecies of fund that brings its owner great intereft.

I vifited the galleys, and faw no one unhappy face; here, I fee many unhappy faces, whofe owners are feeking to be happy in the pursuit of blue ribbands.

This is a fine faying of Seneca---" Sic præfentibus utaris voluptatibus, ut futuris non noceas. "Enjoy the present hour, fo as not to injure thofe that follow."

There is an error which pervades the whole of the Greek philofophy; its phy. fics, morals, and metaphyfics, were incorrect for want of the diftinction between pofitive and relative qualities. Thus Aristotle falls into mistakes, fpeaking of the heat and the cold; and Plato and Socrates, of the beautiful, the good, the great, and the perfect. It is a great dif covery, that there are no pofitive qualities. The terms beautiful, good, great, &c. are attributes of objects relative only to the beings that contemplate them. This principle is a fponge to wipe away almoft every prejudice. The dialogues of Plato are a tiffue of fophifins, wove through ignorance of this principle. Malebranche committed a thousand mistakes from the

fame caufe.

Never did a philofopher make men more perfectly feel the sweetness of virtue, and the dignity of their nature, than Marcus Antoninus; he touches the heart, elevates the mind, enlarges the foul!

We must read the politics of Ariftotle, and the two republics of Plato, to have a juft idea of the laws and manners of the ancient Greeks. To look or thofe in their hiftorians, is as fruitless as to look for French laws and cuftoms in the history of Lewis the Fourteenth's wars.

The republic of Plato is not more chimerical than that of Sparta.

To judge justly of men, we muft overlook the prejudices of their times.

Our comedies begin to degenerate, because our writers are in fearch of the ridiculous in the paffions, instead of the ridi culous in manners: the paffions are not ridiculous in themselves.

If I were to give the character of our poets, I would compare Corneille to Michael Angelo; Racine to Raphael; Marat to Correggio; La Fontaine to Titian; Defpreaux to Dominichino; Crebilion to Guerchino; Voltaire to Guido ; Fontenelle to Bernini; and La Motte to Rembrant.

I have feldom given my opinion of any authors but thofe I admire, having as feldom as poffible read any authors but

the best.

Fanaticism will find reasons to justify a bad action, that an honest man could not find.

Priefts are the fycophants of princes when they cannot be their masters. The English esteem but two thingswealth and merit.

The English are too much employed to be polifhed.

;

The pride of ordinary people is quite as well founded as that betrayed by the Cardinal de Polignac one day that I dined with him. He took the hand of the Duke d'Elbœuf, heir of the house of Lorraine and when the prince had retired, he gave me his hand. When he gave me his hand, it was a mark of his fuperiority; when he took the hand of the prince, it was an expreffion of his esteem. It is in the fame spirit that princes are familiar with their inferiors: these think it a proof of their regard; it is connected with no idea but of their condefcenfion.

I confef's my partiality for the ancients. I am ready to lay with Pliny---" You are going to Athens, once the residence of the gods."

Extracts

Extracts from the Port Folio of a Man of Letters.

VOLTAIRE AND HIS BOOKSELLER.

bookfeller's edition was long fold before

WE have had feveral anecdotes of the impofition was detected, while the au

Voltaire's duplicity, in certain

tranfactions with his bookfellers. The following one is not well known; but authentic. It is a curious inftance of that

reciprocal impofition which is fometimes practifed by certain authors and bookfellers; and in which it has happened, that the public becomes the dupe of both; it does, however, great honour to our author's ingenuity. Voltaire having accidentally feen, when at Bruffelles, in a Dutch newspaper, the name of Van Duren, a bookfeller at the Hague, he deter mined to send him, as a gratuitous prefent, the manufcript of that political work, "The Anti-Machiavel." Shortly afterwards he went to his bookfeller, and very earnestly begged to have this MS. returned to him. As this was refused, he offered for it two thoufand florins. Notwithstanding this liberal offer, and the repeated interference of perfons of the first refpectability, who interested themselves for Voltaire, the Dutchman was inflexible. Voltaire then expreffed a wish only to make fome effential corrections. But thefe Van Duren would only allow to be dore in his fhop, and upon his desk. Though irritated at the harfhnefs of fuch behaviour, Voltaire was obliged to agree to this propofal. Having at length the MS. in hand, while the bookfeller concluded he was correcting it, he erafed whatever he thought proper, and filled up the gaping chasms with any nonfenfe that occurred. At length, Van Duren difcovers the trick; he fnatches the MS. from the author's hands in this mutilated fiate. He threatens to print it with all its imperfections: but perceiving that this would ferve no purpose, he configns it to one of his Paternofter-Row authors; one of those repairers of bad works, though they cannot themselves build; lardooners of meagrenefs. This writer heals the lacerations, as skilfully as he can. Two Anti-Machiavels appear at the fame time; one by Voltaire, and the other by Van Duren. But the publication of Voltaire was by no means fo fuccefsful as the one by Van Duren; for it was got up in great hafte. Van Duren's edition was eleegant, and its chief materials drawn from Amelot de la Houffaie's commentary on the Prince of Machiavel; and by an artifice (employed not feldom) the title-page was to contrived as to make them appear to proceed from the pen of Voltaire. The MONTHLY MAG. No. XLII.

thor's own work was little attended to.

THE DEVIL ON TWO STICKS. The Gil Blas of Le Sage is a very fuperior compofition to his Devil on two Sticks, as the English translator calls Le Diable Boiteux, or the Lame Devil. This laft work however had an honour paid to it, of a very peculiar kind. Du Radier tells us, that the first edition went off with astonishing fuccefs, and the fecond was bought with equal eagerness. Two noblemen, at the fame moment, entering the bookfeller's shop, to purchase them claimed it; and they disputed it fo a copy, found only one unfold. Both of warmly, that at length they drew their fwords; blood would have been shed, had not the bookfeller borrowed a copy, that the rival purchasers might be quieted!

THE ENMITY OF GENIUS.

No enemy is fo terrible as a man of genius. The memoirs of Philip de Comines are well known. The caufe of his enmity to the Duke of Burgundy in thefe memoirs has been difcovered by the minute researchers of anecdote. De Comines was born a fubject of the Duke of Burgundy, and had been a favourite with that prince, for feven years. Afterwards De Comines attached himself to the Duke's great enemy, the King of France. He was induced to this by the following circumftance: One day, returning from hunting, with the Duke, (then Count de Charolois,) in familiar jocularity, he fat himself down before the prince, and ordered him to pull off his boots. This the count did, and laughed, but in return, for his princely amusement, dashed the boot on Comines's nofe, which bled. From that time he was mortified in the court of Burgundy by the nickname of the booted head Comines felt a rankling wound in his mind. He went over to the King of France, and amply exhaled his bile against the Duke of Burgundy in thofe memoirs, which give to pofterity a most unfavourable likenefs of that prince, whom he ever cenfures for prefumption, obftinacy, pride, and cruelty. This Duke of Burgundy, however, had but one great vice, that of ambition; but he had many virtues. A man of the world will not think that the impertinence of Comines was chaftifed with great feverity; but,

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