896 As this cruel practice tends to the utter fubverfion of all truth and humanity among us, it deferves the utmost deteftation and difcouragement of all who have either the love of their coun try, or the honour of their religion, at As for perfons who take pleasure in the reading and difperfing of fuch detestable libels, I am afraid they fall very little fhort of the guilt of the first compofers. By a law of the emperors Valentinian and Valens, it was made death for any perfon not only to write a libel, but if he met with one by chance, not to tear or burn it. But because I would not be thought fingular in my opinion of this matter, I fhall conclude my paper with the words of Monfieur Bayle, who was a man of great freedom of thought, as well as of exquifite learning and judgment. I cannot imagine, that a man who 6 should affirm that a man is not mafer ' of those agreeable fenfations, any more than of those occafioned by fugar or honey, when they touch his tongues but as to the fecond, every one will own that pleasure to be a heinous fin. The pleafure in the first cafe is of no continuance; it prevents our reason and reflection, and may be immediately followed by a fecret grief, to fee our neighbour's honour blafted. If it does not ceafe immediately, it is a fign that we are not difpleafed with the ill-nature of the fatirift, but are glad to fee him defame his enemy by 'all kinds of stories; and then we deferve the punishment to which the writer of the libel is fubject. I fhall here add the words of a modern author. St. Gregory, upon excommunicating those writers who had difhonoured Caftorius, does not except those who read their works; "Because," fays he, "if calumnies have always "been the delight of their hearers, and 66 a gratification of those persons who "have no other advantage over honeft "men, is not he who takes pleasure in reading them as guilty as he who compofed them?" It is an uncontefted maxim, that they who approve · an action would certainly do it if they could; that is, if fome reason of feltlove did not hinder them. " is no difference," fays Cicero," be"tween advising a crime, and approv"ing it when committed." The Ro "There man law confirmed this maxim, having fubjected the approvers and authors of this evil to the fame penalty. We therefore conclude, that thofe may who are pleafed with reading defamatory libels, fo far as to approve the authors and difperfers of them, are as guilty as if they had compofed them; for if they do not write fuch libels ⚫ themselves, it is because they have not the talent of writing, or because they ⚫ will run no hazard.' The author produces other authorities to confirm his judgment in this parti cular, C N N° CCCCLII. FRIDAY, AUGUST 8. EST NATURA HOMINUM NOVITATIS AVIDA. HUMAN NATURE IS FOND OF NOVELTY, HERE is no humour in my counto wonder at, than their general thirst after news. There are about half a dozen ingenious men, who live very plentifully upon this curiofity of their fellow fubjects. They all of them receive the fame advices from abroad, and very often in the fame words; but their way of cooking it is fo different, that there is no citizen, who has an eye to the public good, that can leave the coffee-house with peace of mind before he has given every one of them a read ing. These several difhes of news are fo very agreeable to the palate of my countrymen, that they are not only pleafed with them when they are ferved up hot, but when they are again fet cold before them, by thofe penetrating politicians, who oblige the public with their reflections and obfervations upon every piece of intelligence that is fent us from abroad. The text is given us by one fet of writers, and the comment by another. But notwithstanding we have the fame tale told us in so many different papers, and if occafion requires, in so many articles of the fame paper; notwithstanding, in a fcarcity of foreign pofts, we hear the fame ftory repeated by different advices from Paris, Bruffels, the Hague, and from every great town in Europe; notwithstanding the multitude of annotations, explanations, reflections, and various readings which it paffes through, our time lies heavy on our hands until the arrival of a fresh mail: we long to receive further particulars, to hear what will be the next step, or what will be the confequences of that which has been already taken. A wefterly wind keeps the whole town in fufpence, and puts a Lop to converfation. This general curiosity has been raised and inflamed by r late wars, and if rightly directed, might be of good ufe to a perfon who has fuch a thirit awakened in him. Why fhould not a man, who takes delight in reading every thing that PLIN. APUD LILLIUM. is new, apply himself to hiftory, travels, where he will find perpetual fuel for his curiofity, and meet with much more pleasure and improvement than in these papers of the week? An honelt tradefman who languifhes a whole fummer in expectation of a battle, and perhaps is balked at last, may here meet with half a dozen in a day. He may read the news of a whole campaign, in lefs time than he now beltows upon the products of a fingle poft, Fights, conquests, and revolutions, lie thick together. The reader's curiofity is raifed and fatisfied every moment, and his paffions difap pointed or gratified, without being deained in a ftate of uncertainty from day to day, or lying at the mercy of fea and wind; in fhort, the mind is not here kept in a perpetual gape after knowledge, nor punished with that eternal thirst, which is the portion of all our modern newfinongers and coffee-house politicians, All matters of fact, which a man did not know before, are news to him; and I do not fee how any haberdasher in Cheapfide is more concerned in the prefent quarrel of the cantons, than he was in that of the league. At least, I believe every one will allow me, it is of more importance to an Englishman to know the hiftory of his ancestors, than that of his contemporaries who live upon the banks of the Danube or the Boritthenes. As for those who are of another mind, I fhall recommend to them the following letter, from a projector, who is willing to turn a penny by this remarkable curiofity of his countrymen. MR. SPECTATOR, you must have obferved, that men who frequent coffee-houtes, and de. light in news, are pleafed with every thing that is matter of fact, fo it be what they have not heard before. A victory, or a defeat, are equally agreeable to them. The fhutting of a cardinal's mouth pleases them one poft, and the 5X 2 opening opening of it another. They are glad to hear the French court is removed to Marli, and are afterwards as much delighted with it's return to Verfailles. They read the advertisements with the fame curiofity as the articles of public news; and are as pleafed to hear of a pye-bald horfe that is ftrayed out of a field near Iflington, as of a whole troop that have been engaged in any foreign adventure. In short, they have a relish for every thing that is news, let the matter of it be what it will; or, to speak more properly, they are men of a voracious appetite, but no tafte. Now, Sir, fince the great fountain of news, I mean the war, is very near being dried up; and fince thefe gentlemen have contracted fuch an inextinguishable thirst after it; I have taken their cafe and my own into confideration, and have thought of a project which may turn to the advantage of us both. I have thoughts of publishing a daily paper, which fhall comprehend in it all the most remark. able occurrences in every little town, village, and hamlet, that lie within ten miles of London, or in other words, within the verge of the penny-poft. I have pitched upon this fcene of intelligence for two reafons; firft, because the carriage of letters will be very cheap; and fecondly, because I may receive them every day. By this means my readers will have their news fresh and fresh, and many worthy citizens who cannot fleep with any fatisfaction at prefent, for want of being informed how the world goes, may go to-bed contentedly, it being my defign to put out my paper every night at nine o'clock precifely. I have already eftablished correfpondents in thefe feveral places, and received very good intelligence. By my last advices from Knightbridge I hear, that a horfe was clapped into the pound on the third inftant, and that he was not releafed when the letters came away: We are informed from Pankridge, that a dozen weddings were lately celebrated in the mother church of that place, but are referred to their next letters for the names of the parties concerned. Letters from Brumpton advise, that the widow Blight had received feveral vifits from John Milldew, which affords great matter of speculation in those parts. By a fisherman which lately touched at Hainmersmith, there is advice from Putney, that a certain perfon, well known in that place, is like to lofe his election for churchwarden; but this being boatnews, we cannot give entire credit to it. Letters from Paddington bring little more, than that William Squeak, the fow-gelder, paffed through that place the fifth inftant. They advise from Fulham, that things remained there in the fame state they were. They had intelligence, just as the letters came away, of a tub of excellent ale juft fet abroach at Parfons Green; but this wanted confirmation. I have here, Sir, given you a fpecimen of the news with which I intend to entertain the town, and which, when drawn up regularly in the form of a news-paper, will, I doubt not, be very acceptable to many of thofe publicfpirited readers, who take more delight in acquainting themfelves with other people's bufinefs than their own. I hope a paper of this kind, which lets us know what is done near home, may be more ufeful to us, than those which are filled with advices from Zug and Bender, and make some amends for that dearth of intelligence, which we may juttly apprehend from times of peace. If I find that you receive this project favourably, I will fhortly trouble you with one or two more; and in the mean time am, most worthy Sir, with all due respect, C Your moft obedient, and most humble fervant. N° CCCCLIII. SATURDAY, AUGUST NON USITATA, NEC TENUI FERAR 9. HOR. OD. XX, L. 2. V. I. NO WEAK, NO COMMON WING SHALL BEAR HERE is not a more pleafing ex The of the mind than gratitude. It is accompanied with fuch an inward fatisfaction, that the duty is fufficiently rewarded by the performance. It is not like the practice of many other virtues, difficult and painful, but attended with fo much pleafure, that were there no pofitive command which enjoined it, nor any recompence laid up for it hereafter, a generous mind would indulge in it, for the natural gratification that accompanies it. fer If gratitude is due from man to man, how much more from man to his Maker? The Supreme Being does not only conupon us these bounties which proceed more immediately from his hand, but even thofe benefits which are conveyed to us by others. Every bleffing we enjoy, by what means foever it may be derived upon us, is the gift of him who is the great Author of good, and Father of mercies. If gratitude, when exerted towards one another, naturally produces a very pleafing fenfation in the mind of a grateful man; it exalts the foul into rapture, when it is employed on this great object of gratitude; on this beneficent Being who has given us every thing we already poffefs, and from whom we expect every thing we yet hope for. Moft of the works of the pagan poets were either direct hymns to their deities, or tended indirectly to the celebration of their respective attributes and perfections. Thofe who are acquainted with the works of the Greek and Latin poets which are still extant, will upon reflection find this obfervation so true, that I fhall not enlarge upon it. One would wonder that more of our chriftian poets have not turned their thoughts this way, especially if we confider, that our idea of the Supreme Being is not only infinitely more great and noble than what could poffibly enter into the heart of an heathen, but filled with every thing that can raise the imagination, CREECH. and give an opportunity for the fu bliment thoughts and conceptions. Plutarch tells us of a heathen who was finging an hymn to Diana, in which he celebrated her for her delight in human facrifices, and other inftances of cruelty and revenge; upon which a poet who was prefent at this piece of devotion, and feems to have had a truer idea of the divine nature, told the votary, by way of reproof, that in recompence for his hymn, he heartily wished he might have a daughter of the fame temper with the goddess he celebrated. It was indeed impoffible to write the praises of one of thofe falfe deities, according to the pagan creed, without a mixture of impertinence and abfurdity. The Jews, who before the time of chriftianity were the only people who had the knowledge of the true God, have fet the chriftian world an example how they ought to employ this divine talent of which I am fpeaking. As that nation produced men of great genius, without confidering them as infpired writers, they have tranfmitted to us many hymns and divine odes, which excel thofe that are delivered down to us by the ancient Greeks and Romans, in the poetry, as much as in the fubject to which it was confecrated. This I think might be eafily fhewn if there were occafion for it." I have already communicated to the public fome pieces of divine poetry, and as they have met with a very favourable reception, I fhall from time to time publifh any work of the fame nature which has not yet appeared in print, and may be acceptable to my readers. I. WHEN all thy mercies, O my God, 11. O how fhall words with equal warmth But thou canst read it there. IT N° CCCCLIV. MONDAY, AUGUST 11. SINE ME VACIVUM TEMPUS NE QUOD DEM MIHI TER. HEAUT. ACT. 1. SC. I. GIVE ME LEAVE TO ALLOW MYSELF NO RESPITE FROM LABOUR. 'Tis an expreffible pleasure to know a little of the world, and be of no character or fignificancy in it. To be ever unconcerned, and ever looking on new objects with an endless curiofity, is a delight known only to those who are turned for fpeculation: nay, they who enjoy it, mult value things only as they are the objects of speculation, without drawing any worldly advantage to themselves from them, but just as they are what contribute to their amusement, or the improvement of the mind. I lay one night last week at Richmond; and being rettlefs, not out of diffatisfaction, but a certain bufy inclination one fometimes has, I rofe at four in the morning, and took beat for London, with a refolution to rove by boat and coach for the next four and twenty hours, until the many different objects I must needs meet with fhould tire my imagination, and give me an inclination to a repofe more profound than I was at that time capable of. I beg people's pardon for an odd humour I am guilty of, and was often that day, which is faluting any person whom I like, whether I know him or not. This is a particularity would be tolerated in me, if they confidered, that the greatest pleasure I know I receive at my eyes, and that I am obliged to an agreeable perfon for coming abroad into my view, as another is for a vifit of conversation at their own houses. The hours of the day and night are taken up in the cities of London and Weftminster, by people as different from each other as thofe who are born in different centuries. Men of fix of the clock give way to those of nine, they of |