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NO 19. THURSDAY, MARCH 22.

Di bene fecerunt, inopis me quodque pufilli
Finxerunt animi, raro és perpauca loquentis.

Hor. Sat. iv. 1. 1. ver. 17.

Thank heav'n that made me of an humble mind; To action little, less to words inclin'd.

BSERVING one perfon behold another, who was

an utter stranger to him, with a caft of his eye, which, methought, expreffed an emotion of heart very different from what could be raised by an object fo agreeable as the gentleman he looked at, I began to confider, not without some fecret forrow, the condition of an envious man. Some have fancied that envy has a certain magical force in it, and that the eyes of the envious have by their fafcination blafted the enjoyments of the happy. Sir Francis Bacon says, some have been so curious as to remark the times and seasons when the stroke of an envious eye is most effectually pernicious, and have obferved that it has been when the perfon envied has been in any circumstance of glory and triumph. At fuch a time the mind of the profperous man goes, as it were, abroad, among things without him, and is more exposed to the malignity. But I shall not dwell upon speculations so abstracted as this, or repeat the many excellent things which one might collect out of authors upon this miferable affection; but keeping in the road of common life, confider the envious man with relation to thefe three heads, his pains, his reliefs, and his happiness.

The envious man is in pain upon all occafions which ought to give him pleasure. The relish of his life is inverted; and the objects with administer the highest fatisfaction to those who are exempt from this paffion, give the quickest pangs to perfons who are fubject to it. All the perfections of their fellow-creatures are odious: Youth, beauty, valour and wisdom, are provocations of their difpleasure. What a wretched and apoftate state is this! to be offended with excellence, and to hate a man because we approve him! the condition of the envious man is the most emphatically miferable; he is not only incapable of rejoicing in another's merit or fuccefs, but lives in a world wherein all mankind are in a plot against his quiet, by studying their own happiness and advantage. Will Profper is an honest tale-bearer, he makes it his business to join in conversation with envious men. He points to fuch an handsome young fellow, and whifpers that he is fecretly married to a great fortune : When they doubt, he adds circumstances to prove it; and never fails to aggravate their distress, by affuring them, that, to his knowledge, he has an uncle will leave him some thousands. Will has many arts of this kind to torture this fort of temper, and delights in it. When he finds them change colour, and fay faintly they wish such a piece of news is true, he has the malice to fpeak fome good or other of every man of their acquaintance.

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The reliefs of the envious man are those little blemishes and imperfections that discover themselves in an illustrious character. It is matter of great confolation to an envious person, when a man of known honour does a thing unworthy himself: Or when any action which was well executed, upon better information appears fo altered in its circumstances, that the fame of it is divided among many, inftead of being attributed to one. This is a fecret fatisfaction to these malignants; for the perfon whom they before could not but admire, they fancy is nearer their own condition as foon as his me rit is shared among others. I remember fome years a go there came out an excellent poem without

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the name of the author. The little wits, who were incapable of writing it, began to pull in pieces the supposed writer. When that would not do, they took great pains to fupprefs the opinion that it was his. That again failed. The next refuge was to say it was overlooked by one man, and many pages wholly written by another. An honeft fellow who fat among a cluster of them in debate on this fubject, cried out, Gentlemen, if you are fure none of you yourselves had an hand in it, you are but where you were, whoever writ it. But the most usual fuccour to the envious, in cafes of nameless merit in this kind, is to keep the property, if poffible, unfixed, and by that means to hinder the reputation of it from falling upon any particular person. You fee an envious man clear up his countenance, if in the relation of any man's great happiness in one point, you mention his uneafiness in another. When he hears fuch a one is very rich he turns pale, but recovers when you add that he has many children. In a word, the only fure way to an envious man's favour is not to deferve it.

But if we confider the envious man in delight, it is like reading the feat of a giant in a romance; the magnificence of his house confifts in the many limbs of men whom he has flain. If any who promised themselves fuccess in any uncommon undertaking mifcarry in the attempt, or he that aimed at what would have been useful and laudable, meets with contempt and derifion, the envious man, under the colour of hating vain-glory, can smile with an inward wantonness of heart at the ill effect it may have upon an honest ambition for the future.

Having thoroughly confidered the nature of this paffion, I have made it my study to avoid the envy that may accrue to me from these my fpeculations; and, if I am not mistaken in myself, I think I have a genius to escape it. Upon hearing in a coffee-house one of my papers commended, I immediately diately apprehended the envy that would fpring from that applaufe; and therefore gave a description of my face the next day; being refolved, as I growin reputation for wit, to refign my pretenfions to beauty. This, I hope, may give some ease to thefe unhappy gentlemen, who do me the honour to torment themselves upon the account of this my paper. As their cafe is very deplorable, and deferves compaffion, I shall fometimes be dull, in pity to them, and will from time to time adminifter confolations to them by further discoveries of my perfon. In the mean while; if any one says the SPECTATOR has wit, it may be fome relief to them, to think that he does not shew it in company. And if any one praises his morality, they may comfort themselves by confidering that his face is none of the longest.

R

No 20.

FRIDAY, MARCH 23.

31

Κόνα όμματ, ἔχων

Ном. ІІ. і. 1. 225.

POPE.

Thou dog in forehead.--A MONG the other hardy undertakings which I

have proposed to myself, that of the correction of impudence is what I have very much at heart. This in a particular manner is my province as SPECTATOR; for it is generally an offence committed by the eyes, and that against fuch as the offenders would perhaps never have an opportunity of injuring any other way. The following letter is a complaint of a young Lady, who sets forth a trefpass of this kind, with that command of herself as befits beauty and innocence, and yet with so much fpirit as fufficiently expresses her indignation. 'The whole transaction is performed with the eyes; and

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the crime is no less than employing them in such a manner, as to divert the eyes of others from the best use they can make of them, even looking up to heaven.

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THere never was (I believe) an acceptable man

Ever

but had fome aukward imitators. fince the SPECTATOR appeared, have I remarked a kind of men, whom I chufe to call Starers; that without any regard to time, place, or modesty, disturb a large company with their impertinent eyes. Spectators make up a proper affembly for a puppet-show or a bear-garden; but devout fupplicants, and attentive hearers, are the audience one ought to expect in churches. I am Sir, member of a small pious congregation near one of the north gates of this city; much the 'greater part of us indeed are females, and used to behave ourselves in a regular attentive manner, until very lately one whole ifle has been disturbed with one of these monstrous starers; he is the ' head taller than any one in the church; but, for

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the greater advantage of expofing himself, stands ' upon a hafssock, and commands the whole congregation, to the great annoyance of the devouteft part of the auditory; for what with blushing confufion, and vexation, we can neither mind the prayers nor fermon. Your animadversion upon 'this infolence would be a great favour to,

SIR,

Your most humble fervant,

S. C.

I have frequently feen of this fort of fellows, and do not think there can be a greater aggravation of an offence, than that it is committed where the criminal is protected by the facredness of the place which he violates. Many reflections of this fort might be very justly made upon this kind of behaviour, but a Starer is not usually a perfon to be VOL. I. convinced

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