acquaintance of ours to your imitation; fhe is the most negligent and fashionable wife in the world; fhe is hardly ⚫ever feen in the fame place with her husband, and ifthey happen to meet, yould would think them perfect strangers: She never was heard to name him in his absence, and takes care he shall never be the fubject of any difcourse that she has a fhare in. I hope you will propofe this Lady asa pattern, though I am very much afraid you will be fo filly to think Portia, &c. Sabine and Roman "wives much brighter examples. I wish it may never come ' into your head to imitate thofe antiquated creatures fo ⚫ far, as to come into publick in the habit as well as air ' of a Roman matron. You make already the entertainment at Mrs Modifh's tea-table; fhe fays, fhe always thought you a discreet perfon, and qualified to manage a family with admirable prudence: She dies to fee • what demure and serious airs wedlock has given you, but the fays the fhall never forgive your choice of fo · gallant a man as Bellamour to transform him to a mere ⚫fober husband; it was unpardonable: You fee, my dear, we all envy your happiness, and no perfon more than your bumble fervant, Lydia. E not in pain, good Madam, for my appearance in town; I fhall frequent no publick places, or • make any vifits where the character of a modeft wife is 'ridiculous. As for your wild rallery on matrimony, it is all hypocrify; you, and all the handfom young women of your acquaintance, fhew yourselves to no other purpofe than to gain a conqueft over fome man of · worth, in order to beftow your charms and fortune on him. There is no indecency in the confeffion, the defign is modeft and honourable, and all your affectation cannot disguise it. I am married, and haveno other concern but to please "the man I love; he is the end of every care I have; if ⚫ I drefs it is for him; if I read a poem or a play, it is to qualify myfelf for a converfation agreeable to his tafte: He is almost the end of my devotions; half my prayers are for his happiness-I love to talk of him, and never *hear him named but with pleasure and emotion. I · am am your friend, and wish you happiness, but am forry to fee by the air of your letter that there are a fet of women who are got into the common-place rallery of every thing that is fober, decent and proper: Matrimony and the clergy are the topics of people of ⚫ little wit and no understanding. I own to you, I have ⚫ learned of the vicar's wife all you tax me with: She is a difcreet, ingenious, pleafant, pious woman: I wifh fhe had the handling of you and Mrs. Modif; you would find, if you were too free with her, the would foon make you as charming as ever you were, 'fhe would make you blufh as much as if you never ⚫ had been fine Ladies. The vicar, Madam, is fo kind as to vifit my husband, and his agreeable converfation ⚫ has brought him to enjoy many fober happy hours when even I am fhut out, and my dear mafter is en*tertained only with his own thoughts. These things, dear Madam, will be lafting fatisfactions, when the fine ladies and the coxcombs, by whom they form * themselves, are irreparably ridiculous, ridiculous in old age. I am, Madam, your most humble fervant, Dear Mr. SPECTATOR, YOU OU have no goodness in the world, and are not in earnest in any thing you fay that is ferious, if you do not fend me a plain anfwer to this: I happened fome days past to be at the play, where during the time of performance, I could not keep my eyes off 'from a beautiful young creature who fat juft before me, and who I have been fince informed has no fortune. It would utterly ruin my reputation for discretion to marry fuch a one, and by what I can learn fhe has a 'character of great modefty, fo that there is nothing to be thought on any other way. My mind has ever 'fince been fo wholly bent on her, that I am much in danger of doing fomething very extravagant without your fpeedy advice to, SIR, your most humble fervant. I am forry I cannot answer this impatient Gentleman, but by another question.... Dear Dear Correfpondent, 7Ould you marry to please other people, or yourself? W% CYKOGUDELNDENKOELKOCALO No 255 Saturday, December 22. Laudis amore tumes ? funt certa piacula, quæ te Hor. Ep. 1. lib. 1. ver. [IMITATED.] T 36. Know, there are rhymes, which (fresh and fresh apply'd) Will cure the arrant'st puppy of his pride. T POPE. HE foul, confidered abftractedly from its paffions is of a remifs and fedentary nature, flow in its refolves, and languishing in its executions. The ufe therefore of the paflions is to ftir it up, and to put it upon action, to awaken the understanding, to enforce the will, and to make the whole man more vigorous and attentive in the profecution of his defigns. As this is the end of the paffions in general, fo it is particularly of ambition, which pushes the foul to fuch actions as are apt to procure honour and reputation to the actor. But if we carry our reflexions higher, we may discover farther ends of Providence in implanting this paffion in mankind. It was neceffary for the world, that arts fhould be invented and improved, books written and tranfmitted to pofterity, nations conquered and civilized: Now fince the proper and genuine motives to thefe and the like great actions, would only influence virtuous minds; there would be but small improvements in the world, were there not fome common principle of action working equally with all men. And fuch a principle is ambition or a defire of fame, by which great endowments are not fuffered to lie idle and useless to the publick, and many vicious men, over-reached, as it were, and engag ed contrary to their natural inclinations in a glorious and laudable courfe of action. For we may farther ob serve, serve, that men of the greatest abilities are most fired with ambition: And that on the contrary, mean and narrow minds are the leaft actuated by it; whether it be that a man's sense of his own incapacities makes him defpair of coming at fame, or that he has not enough range of thought to look out for any good which does not more immediately relate to his intereft or convenience, or that Providence, in the very frame of his foul, would not subject him to fuch a paffion as would be uselefs to the world, and a torment to himself. Were not this defire of fame very strong, the difficulty of obtaining it, and the danger of lofing it when obtained, would be fufficient to deter a man from fo vain a pursuit. How few are there who are furnished with abilities fufficient to recommend their actions to the admiration of the world, and to distinguish themselves from the reft of mankind? Providence for the moft part fets us upon a level, and obferves a kind of proportion in its difpenfations towards us. Ifit renders us perfect in one accomplishment, it generally leaves us defective in another, and feems careful rather of preferving every perfon from being mean and deficient in his qualifications, than of making any fingle one eminent or extraordinary. And among thofe who are the most richly endowed by nature, and accomplished by their own induftry, how few are there whofe virtues are not obfcured by the ignorance, prejudice or envy of their beholders? Some men cannot difcern between a noble and a mean action. Others are apt to attribute them to fome falfe end or intention; and others purposely mifreprefent or put a wrong interpretation on them. But the more to enforce this confideration, we may observe that thofe are generally moft unfuccefsful in their pursuit after fame, who are moft defirous of obtaining it. It is Salluft's remark upon Cato, that the lefs he coveted glory the more he acquired it. Men take an ill-natured pleafure in croffing our inclinations, and disappointing us in what our hearts are moft fet upon. When therefore they have discovered the paffionate defire of fame in the ambitious man (as no temper of mind is more apt to fhew itself) they be come come fparing and referved in their commendations, they envy him the fatisfaction of an applaufe, and look on their praises rather as a kindness done to his person, than as a tribute paid to his merit. Others who are free from this natural perverfenefs of tempers grow wary in their praises of one, who fets too great a value on them, left they should raife him too high in his own imagination, and by confequence remove him to a greater diftance from themselves. But farther, this defire of fame naturally betrays the ambitious man into fuch indecencies as are a leffening to his reputation. He is ftill afraid left any of his actions should be thrown away in private, left his deferts should be concealed from the notice of the world, or receive any difadvantage from the reports which others make of them. This often fets him on empty boafts and oftentations of himself, and betrays him into vain fantastical recitals of his own performances: His difcourfe generally leans one way, and, whatever is the fubject of it, tends obliquely either to the detracting from others, or to the extolling of himself. Vanity is the natural weakness of an ambitious man, which expofes him to the fecret fcorn and derifion of thofe he converfes with, and ruins the character he is fo induftrious to advance by it. For though his actions are never fo glorious, they lofe their luftre when they are drawn at large, and fet to fhow by his own hand; and as the world is more apt to find fault than to commend, the boaft will probably be cenfured when the great action that occafioned it is forgotten. Befides, this very defire of fame is looked on as a meannefs and imperfection in the greateft character. A folid and fubftantial greatness of foul looks down with a generous neglect on the cenfures and applaufes of the multitude, and places a man beyond the little noife and ftrife of tongues. Accordingly we find in ourselves 2. fecret awe and veneration for the character of one who moves above us in a regular and illuftrious course of virtue, without any regard to our good or ill opinions of him, to our reproaches or commendations. As on the contrary it is ufual for us, when we would take off from the fame and reputation of an action, to ascribe it to |