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Various, that the mind of desultory man, studious of change and pleased with novelty, may be indulged-Cowp.

Vol. V.

Philadelphia, Saturday, January 16, 1808.

ORIGINAL PAPERS.

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THIS is the inimitable description, in the Acts of the Apostles, of pathetick incidents, which occurred in the parting interview, between St. Paul, and the elders of the Ephesian Church.

In my prior speculations, whenever I have mentioned the name of that great man, I have always expatiated, with a warmth, which I sincerely felt, upon the fine features of his moral and intellectual character. The strongest passions, and a most fervid imagination, he controlled by the science of self-government; and though he always felt warmly, he always spoke and acted wisely. He had all the learning of a scholar, the skill of a statesman, the manners of a courtier, the principles of a gentle

No. 3.

In

man, and the piety of a hermit. short, he was a Cavalier Christian, and one of Nature's Nobles. He was the phoenix, and paragon of primitive goodness. Noble in reason, infinite in faculties, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god!

The proofs of his learning and ge nius are discernible in every page of his annals. It is a curious circumstance, that he was not only educated by one of the most accomplished of the Jewish scholars, but that the place of his nativity was consecrated to Science and Art. Of his natal spot, he was justly proud, and sometimes alludes to his citizenship of Tarsus, with a patriot's exultation, and a scholar's complacency. The most accurate and authentick of the Greek geographers, Strabo, who, contemporary with Augustus and Tiberius Cæsar, flourished in the gol den age of Literature, and witnessed the production and perusal of many of those immortal pages, whose authours are canonized by the purest Taste, and the most rigid Criticism, says expressly, of the inhabitants of this learned metropolis, that they st

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sedulously studied philosophy, and the whole circle of knowledge, as to surpass Athens, Alexandria, and any other place, where profound science and elegant letters were cultivated. In this other and better Athens, this OXFORD of Asia, disciplined by a Gamaliel, and assisted by brilliant parts, and constant application, St. Paul became one of the wisest men of the age. He was an admirable linguist, and an acute logician; and his genius, as an oratour and a writer, is acknowledged, even by infidels. During his visits to Athens and Rome, the fairest cities in the world, enlightened by strong rays of Philosophy, and polished by all the refinement of liberal studies, he seems to be entirely at home, in the circles of literature and genius. The poetry, the philosophy, and the theology of the times are perfectly familiar to him. Over the subtlest of the sophists, his dexterity of disputation obtains many a signal triumph, and whether he harrangues before princes, or mean men, whether he is ardent and argumentative, before the Areopagus, or playful and familiar in the Forum, he seems to challenge the general applause. He was the Jewish Aristippus, and an Alcibiades might have learned new lessons of versatility, from this compliant Cilician.

But, independently of his intellectual worth, there are many features in his moral character, which deserve the most careful contemplation. He was singularly intrepid. indefatigable, industrious, affectionate, pious, charitable, and benevolent. With the courage of a soldier, he combines all the kindness of a woman, and though wise as a serpent, he is harmless as a dove. Of his patience of persecution, labour, sorrow, and adversity; of his affection for the sisters Humility and Content, let him, in permanent colours, delineate the lovely picture:

tions, in necessities, in distresses, in
stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults,
in labours, in watchings, and fast-
ings, by pureness, by knowledge, by
long suffering, by kindness, by THE
COMFORTER, by love unfeigned, by
the Word of Truth, by the DIVINE
POWER, by the armour of righteous-
ness on the right hand and on the
left, by honour and dishonour, by
evil report and good report; as
deceivers, and yet as true, as unknown,
and yet well known, as dying, and
behold! we live; as chastened, and
not killed; as sorrowful, yet always
rejoicing; AS POOR, YET MAKING MA-

NY RICH; AS HAVING NOTHING, YET
POSSESSING ALL THINGS."

I cannot resist the temptation to
remark incidentally, upon the conclu-
sion of this round and rhetorical pe-
riod, that it finely describes the in-
dependent spirit, and inexhaustible
treasures of Genius, associated with
Labour, and Learning. I have, in
the works of some minor poet, read
the following lines, which finely dis-
play the hidden treasures, and pow-
erful resources of intellect:
He who has treasures of his own,
May leave a palace or a throne,
May quit the world, and dwell alone,
Within his SPACIOUS MIND.

But notwithstanding the ardour of his piety, and the variety of his learning, notwithstanding all his gifts of Reason, Imagination, and Elostrued by the absurdity of some, and quence, his opinions were misconhis life jeopardized by the malignity of others. The novelty, boldness, and unpalatableness of his doctrine were extremely offensive to the Pagan world. The captiousness of Philosophy cavilled at every line, and the Stoick frowned, or the Epicurean laughed at every precept! persecution of Paul was exactly like that of every other great genius, who has the misfortune to be contemporary with Ignorance and Fanaticism. Giving no offence in any thing, Moreover, the illiberal treatment that the ministry might not be bla- that he received, was not, we are demed, but in all things, approving our-cidedly of opinion, from his attachselves, in much patience in aflic- ment to Christianity. His superiour

The

talents and endowments provoked envy and hostility. By an evil and an adulterous generation, in certain execrable epochs, in the annals of mankind, the sunbeams of Truth and Genius are shunned as sedulously as the rays of the brightest luminary are blinked at by the opticks of an owl. When the great majority of any nation, in any age, have determined to be wrong, they, naturally, detest the man, who dares to tell them so, and who determines to be right. This was precisely the case of Paul. He was the votary of Reason and Truth. Of these powers, he was the ingenious and eloquent advocate. Hence, the hatred of Prejudice, the persecution of Party, the fury of blind zealots, the malevolence of the mad multitude, the bleating of the silly sheep, and the grunting of the stupid swine of society. These are vile principles, and viler sounds, and they are never more operative, than when a benefactor to the human race is to be hunted down as a victim. The fate of Paul, like that of an Archbishop in a more recent era, was, to be sacrificed at the shrine of Superstition.

Marked out by dangerous parts, he meets the shock,

And fatal Learning brings him to the block;

Around his tomb, let Art and Science weep,

But hear his fate, ye blockheads, hear and sleep.

In the decline of his apostolical labours, Paul has constantly a gloomy presentiment of his martyrdom at Rome. After numerous trials, and vexations, his patience and goodness are not yet exhausted; and he commences a pious pilgrimage to Jerusalem. While he was hasting thither, mindful of his approaching dissolution, he sent to Ephesus, ́and called the elders of the Church. In a strain of manly, touching, and sublime eloquence, he here addressed them; and the passage to which we refer, is his valedictory oration, which is one of the most affecting, as

well as elegant, of the speeches, that have been preserved, among the archives of Genius, and the rolls of Rhetorick. After a concise and rapid enumeration of his services to the Christian Church, he adverts to his future fate, but regards it with a steady eye, and avows the most implicit resignation. He will be a joyful martyr, if he perish in the cause of Truth. He assures his religious friends, that this is a final interview. He then seriously adjures them, to attest the purity of his innocence, the integrity of his motives, the perseverance of his industry, and the candour of his life. He warns them against the delusions of Infidelity, the heresies of Schism, and the spirit of Persecution. He recommends assiduity and vigilance in the discharge of their pious duties; and, justly cites himself, as an example of one, who was a punctilious and a watchful Mentor. He then benignantly and fervently commends them to the Divine Protection, and concludes with an eulogium on the virtues of Charity and Benevolence, and a declaration of his own entire disin terestedness, through the whole of his laborious career: He thus nobly describes his freedom from avarice, his patience of labour, and his generous spirit:

"I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel. Yea, ye yourselves do know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me. I have showed you all things, how that so labouring, ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord, how He said It is more blessed to give, than to receive.”

When he had thus spoken, he reverently knelt down, and offered his orisons with those of the Christian sages. His recent address, his dignified manner, his affectionate tones, the remembrance of his glorious services, and his torturing afflictions, the melancholy foreboding of his unhappy doom, and the consciousness, that this was the last time that they

should listen to such an oratour, be taught by such a philosopher, and be edified by the example of such a saint, produced a burst of enthusiasm, affection, and regret. They all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him, sorrowing most of all, for the words which he spake that they should see his face no

more.

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This group of primitive Christians, thus exchanging these affectionate salutations, could not be perfectly delineated, even by the great masters in the schools of Painting. Nothing but the language of the text is adequate to the scene. While revolving the topicks of this imperfect essay in my mind, I at first thought, with too much presumption, that I might, possibly, sketch something like a paraphrase. But this was a vain imagination. No artist can give a brighter tint to the violet, than its own azure. We cannot redden the rose, nor teach musick to the nightingale. The most flaring flambeau would fade before the radiance of a star, and the most polished periods of Plato halt after the language of inspiration. Nothing can brighten the everlasting colours in this historical picture of Paul and his companions, bidding each other an eternal farewell. If there was ever a tolerable resemblance of a scene so pathetick, it may be found in the gallery of SHAKSPEARE. It is a miniature, but as might be expected from that ge. nius, the colours are perennial and the imitation exquisite.

I saw Bassanio and Antonio part;
And even there, his eye being big with

tears.

Turning his face, he put his hand behind him,

And, with affection wondrous sensible,
He wrung Bassanio's hand.

For The Port Folio.

MEMOIRS OF ANACREON.

CHAP. VII.

Continued from page 23. Young Anthes, the brother of Myrilla, having joined us, he pro

posed a walk, to which we assented. We strolled, for sometime, about the streets of Athens: at length, we bent our steps towards the environs of the city, and, in a few minutes, arrived at a delightful spot, on the banks of the Ilyssus, without the walls, where it was believed that Boreas had seized the nymph Orythya, and taken her from her companions, who were disporting in the river.*

Here we sat down, and Anacreon continued the conversation he had commenced. He was endeavouring to convince our young companion of the benefit to be derived from a taste for reading; which can only be estimated" he said, "by those who possess it. Books are not only va

Paus. lib. cap.2.

The spirit of this country is so truly mercantile, that no pursuit is regarded, which has not wealth for its object: and a life of study is generally derided, as a life of idleness. Yet to a contemplative mind, it is pleasing to reflect upon the manner, in which some of the wisest and best men passed their days.

I converse, as usual, says the poet Gray, in a letter to his friend, Mr. West, with none but the dead: they are my old friends, and almost make me long to be with them. You will not wonder, therefore, that I, who live only in times past, am able to tell you no news of the present. I have drank and sung with Anacreon, for the last fortnight; and am now feeding sheep with Theocritus.

In a letter to Minutius Fundanus, Pliny writes, "in my pleasing retreat, at Laurentum, I neither hear nor speak any thing, of which I have occasion to repent. There I live, undisturbed by rumour, and free from the anxious solicitudes of hope or fear, conversing only with myself and my books. Trae and genuine life! pleasing and honourable repose! more, perhaps, to be desired, than employments of any other kind! Thou solemn and solitary shores! best, and most retired scenes for contem. plation, with how many noble thoughts have ye inspired me! Snatch then, my friend, as I have, the first occasion of leaving the tumultuous city, with all its frivolous pursuits, and devote your days to stu dy, or even resign them to indolence."

I have selected these pictures, and could adduce many other instances of literary leisure, to prove that such a life is the only one that is free from the vexatious cares which distract us in the world. To the female

luable as a source of amusement, but they may be esteemed as our best in structors,next to experience, through life. Oral advice loses its influence through a variety of causes. The teacher's delicacy too often induces him to spare the feelings of one, who has rendered himself obnoxious to reproof; and the pupil, in return, will contemn the precepts of him, whose moral character is not superiour to his own. But that advice, which is presented to us by the pen of the moralist, is devested of all personal considerations. He need not be penurious of censure, who knows not whom it will offend; nor will the false pride of another be wounded, who forms resolutions of amendment in the obscurity of his own closet. Ethological works constitute a sort of altar, where the ingenuous student may confess his faults; and if he turn not away from the vesti

mind, some taste for literature I consider, as indispensably necessary. It is a sight worthy of the contemplation of angels, to see the mild beams of the moon gently sleeping on the female cheek. All nature is then serene, like her own thoughts, and bright, like the lustre of her own liquid eye. Such is the influence of literature, upon the female mind. It invigorates the affections, and dispels the gloom of discontent. It cherishes the sensibility, and fortifies the virtue of woman. Unclouded by the mists of ignorance, and unsullied by the pestilential breezes of flattery, the mind of a sensible woman is irradiated by those soft tints, which shine but to diffuse the sweets of cheerfulness, and inspire the joys of tranquillity. Formed, as women are, to blunt the sharp stings of adversity, to extract its venom, from the wounds of misfortune, and add new charms to the pleasures of prosperity, no service can be too indefatigable, no fealty too obedient. It should be the studious care of every one to burnish bright those golden links, which bind society together, and the authour of this work, while he looks forward with eager solicitude, to the reception, which his labours may experience, from female readers, whose improvement and pleasure he has sedulously consulted, hesitates not to confess, that the cheering smile of female approbation will be more flattering to his feelings, than the warmest applause of criticism.

bule, he may become virtuous, before the world shall know that he has

been vitions.

"It is the peculiar advantage of this enjoyment, that it is not indebted either to time or place, for the fascination it possesses

Whether the student trim his midnight lamp, amid the tumult and smoke of the city, or indulge his fancy, beneath the shade of beechen boughs, let him be surrounded by his books, and his pleasure is still the same. They have power to dispel the gloom of distress, by lifting up the discontented countenance, and brightening the heavy brow with cheerfulness. What is more delightful, my dear Anthes, than to know, that in every vicissitude of fortune, to which fate has doomed us, we shall still find a friend? In the deepest gloom of adversity, or amid the tumults of joy, books teach the resignation of fortitude, or give a proper degree of moderation to the ebullitions of mirth.

“With such a taste, properly regulated, we are constantly surrounded with companions, who never leave us, and return with alacrity, at our call. They inform, amuse, and instruct; by describing the habits and manners of various countries, they teach us, how kingdoms have been subverted, and heroes exalted; they hold out a beacon to caution us

against the impetuosity of the zealot, and the hypocrisy of the patriot; and if we would listen to the voice of the Muses, we may be conducted to fragrant bowers, where they whisper their sweetest inspirations.§".

"Ah!" replied Anthes, "if my genius were so happily versatile as yours, I would cheerfully leave the merry carousal, for the retired shades

§ Selden, an old Lawyer, whose sterling sense is not less valuable for being obscured by the rust of Black-Letter, has said, that patience is the chiefest fruit of study. A man that strives to make himself a different thing from other men, by much reading, gains this chiefest good,that, in all fortunes, he bath something to entertain and comfort himself withal.

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