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amiable, cheerful, lively, fenfible wo. men; by men of affable behaviour, whofe occupations were varied, and who were ftrangers to the horrors of ennui-M. Della Rocca took the road to Paris.

However fertile in pleafures that theatre of wonders may be, it yet fails fhort of the wishes of a madman, who has the misfortune to be eternally tor. mented with defires.-The women were not what he had imagined them: their looks had too much affurance; modefty had not taught them to hold down their heads; they poffeffed the quality of fmiling without having an inclination; of being abfent intentionally; of looking at an object which they did not perceive, in order to fee another on which they never caft their eyes; of hearing without understanding; of receiving in the most gracious manner a perfon whom they violently difliked one carelessly ufed an eye-glafs for which the had no neceffity; another met the general gaze with an air of apparent ignorance that he was the object of it, and knew how to remove hair that did not incommode her, for the purpofe of thewing her hand; laftly, the eyes of a third would have appeared perfectly inanimate without the fire of voluptu oufnefs or the lightning of envy, and rouge and white had fupplanted the rofes and lilies in her complexion.He did not tell me in what light he viewed the men, and what he thought of them; all I know is, that he embarked for America.

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The war was just concluded, and the new world was exhibiting to the old a new form of government, perhaps capable of fatisfying M. Della Rocca. He carried with him his difcontented difpofition. Life appeared to him only a prolongation of a tedious moment; the air was too thick or too fharp; the tints of the foliage were not fufficiently diverfified; the morning fcarcely differed at all from the evening; and one day resembled the other. For the reft, they might have had better laws at Philadelphia; they had not profited fufficiently by the leffons of experience; and the manners and circumftances of the new ftate thould have been more particularly confulted. As to the country, in vain did the ftriking beauty of an immenfe view, diverfified by the plaftic hand of Nature, prefent itself to his eyes. It was not for him that the enamelled meadows

glistened, that the birds fung, that the flowers exhaled their perfumes, that the limpid treans meandered through plains of the most delightful verdure.

It is not my intention to follow our difcontented Gentleman in his travels, and the reader will allow me to fuffer him to proceed alone to the Islands, the Indies, Africa, difapproving of all he faw there; finding fault with all their customs, all their inftitutions; discovering that man in a state of nature was too favage, and polished nations too far removed from nature.

After an absence of ten years, he returned to Europe: he arrived imme diately after the partition of Poland, which had been divided into three portions without his confent. The eftates belonging to our traveller's mother, fituated in a central palatinate, were parted into three lots, and were all three confifcated; one by the Emprefs of all the Ruffias, who was not the richer for it; another by the King of the Romans, who had no fufpicion of it;

; and the third by the King of Pruffia, who did juftice only to his ancient fubjects. This was certainly fufficient to render discontented even a more tractable perfon than M. Della Rocca. By an incomprehenfible contradiction, he was but flightly affected and as he only confidered the abuses of inftitutions in general, and had a fingularly perverfe way of thinking, he confoled himfelf by reafoning calcu lated to difcourage any other than himfelf: "If I had to do with only one crowned head," faid he to himself, "I might venture to make some remonftrances; but to complain to three Princes, one of whom can send me to Siberia, another confine me for life, and a third propofe to me to enter into his army, I conceive that none of thefe indemnifications is worth the trouble I fhould take to obtain it.”— He was therefore filent.

This diminution of fortune appeared to make him more reafonable. What contributed to reconcile him with mankind, would have been with others a motive for quarrelling with it.-But he learns that a powerful nation has fuddenly changed its government, and was about to give itfelf freth laws. A fine opportunity for a projector of conftitutions, in whofe eyes all are vicious or imperfect! M. Della Rocca did not fuffer it to efcape, and he again repaired to the capital of the French

people.

people. He mingled with the framers of projects; he difcuffed, he approved, he commented, he adopted. But the work to which he had contributed was foon fupplanted by another. He pre pares fresh plans; his project experiences the fate of the former; it is adopted, and overturned to make room for a third.

Whilft he occupied himself with what did not concern him, affairs to which he ought to have paid attention were tranfacted without his know ledge. In short, his large fortune was annihilated. The fhock was felt even as far as his native country; and his eftates were no longer his, by virtue of

a meafure relative to which he had been forgot to be confulted.

This event was productive of happy confequences, as it obliged him to employ his own talents and refources for a livelihood. He foon acquired a habit of industry, and this habit foon removed that ennui which had hitherto oppreffed him. Every moment was occupied, and he had no time left to find fault with, or, like many other idle perfons, for regulating the State.

Having obferved all the periods of the revolution of the country in which he lived, he had remarked, that in none of them had he met with a fingle creature contented with himself and others. At first all was uproar; then, petrified with fear, the people were filent, and concealed themselves; a change enfued, they declaimed; it was followed by another, they complained. At length order appeared on a firm foundation; property was fecured, refpected; the villain was deprived of the power to injure, he was rendered incapable of every thing but envy: the fugi

tives were recalled, and the honeft man repofed at night without_being_tormented with the recollection of the preceding day, or the dread of the morrow. Very fortunately for M. Della Rocca, and, without doubt, of the people in the midst of whom he lived, this new order of things accorded with his ideas. But what was his aftonishment at the fight of people who had ardently defired the re-eftablifhment of order and of those to whom it reftored tranquillity! Some hook their heads; others fhrugged their fhoulders; a third approved of it, but a fourth poke myfteri oufly, without explaining his meaning. Vexed with thefe ifs and buts, M. Della Rocca, who has become a man of gallantry by living in a country where the fair fex reigns, frequented the company of the ladies. Here matters wore a very different aspect. The elder complained that the French of the prefent day were not gallant enough; the younger lamented the reforms attempted to be introduced in very convenient cuftoms that had been in fashion feven or eight years.

M. Della Rocca at length concludes; both from his own experience and from observation, that man is an animal whom it is very difficult to fatisfy, who, in the enjoyment of an actual good, is continually occupied with fomething better in imagination. Giacomo, judging, by the fpectacle before his eyes, how ridiculous he himself must have appeared at the time when he never ceafed finding fault with every thing, has corrected himself and thus the difcontent of others has operated as a cure of his own.

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O blessed valley! I, the wretched Claius,
Salute thy happy soil. I that have liv'd,
Pelted with angry curfes, in a place
As horrid as my griefs, the Lylibaan
mountains,

Thefe fixteen frozen winters-there have I
Been with rude out-laws, living by fuch
fins
[pray'rs and wishes
As run o'th'fcore with juftice 'gainst my

And when I would have tumbled down a rock,

Some fecret pow'r restrain'd me.

I have only room to infert another fhort extract from the fame drama, which has all the fpirit and fire of SHAKESPEARE.

Give me my eye full of this noble fhepherd! [the boar; Who hath not heard how he hath chac'd And how his fpear hath torn the paunch [gravenOn the bark of every tree his name's enNow planet-ftruck, and all that virtue

of wolves?

vanish'd!

Randolph, I think, is faid to have died young.

I remain, Sir,

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CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN VOLTAIRE AND RICHARD ROLT, AUTHOR OF A HISTORY OF THE WAR 1739, AND OTHER WORKS.

MONSIEUR VOLTAIRE TO MR. ROLT; Written in English, verbally, as follows. Potsdam, & Auguft, N. S. 1750.

SIR,

I HAVE received, at Potsdam, the obliging letter you directed to Paris; but I have not yet received the favour of your book. The wif dom that shines in your letter, raises in me, more and more, the defire to read that performance.

I am confident you have been faithful to your title, in writing impartially, as an honest man and a philofo.

pher ought to do. You are certainly in the right when you affert the priví leges of mankind. 'Tis your duty to love, and to praife, the form of the British Government; but do not believe we blame it in France. The fituation of our country, the genius of our nation, and many other reafons, have fubmitted us to monarchic power, mitigated by the amiable mildnefs of our manners rather than by our laws. All wife men amongst us live happy under fuch a government, and admiret hat of Great Britain.

As

As to the task of writing a true and complete history of the late war, 'tis an heavy burthen. I hope you are well informed of all the tranfactions paffed in your country: all the fecrets of the back stairs at your Court are no fecret in a few years. Each party fpies, difcovers, and exaggerates the intrigues and the faults of the oppofite party; and, from the fhock of fo many flints, fome flashes of truth may thoot, to enlighten the mind of a wife hiftorian. But in other countries, ftatemysteries lie hid under a curtain that few men are able to remove. My office, of the Crown's Hiftorian, intitled me to the communication of all the letters writ to the Minifters. Yet I am not fatisfied with fo good materials: and I mult hunt again after my favourite game, truth, in foreign countries. I travel, like Polybius, to fee the different theatres of the war. I confult both friends and enemies. I doubt not your book, Sir, will help me very much. Your title, which promifes IMPARTIALITY, fhall put me always in mind of my duty. History must be neither a fatire, nor an encomium; and, I hope, a Frenchman, and even a Gentleman of the King's Chamber, may tell open truth WITH SECURITY. A moderate man cannot offend when he will not offend; and he may fay harsh things if he never ufes harsh words. I am at leifure: I'll publish my history as late as I can; but I'll read yours as foon as poffible. I thank you from my heart; and am,

SIR,

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confiderable time ago to the Master of a Dutch veffel bound for Rotterdam however, I shall take care to fend another fet as foon as poffible; though I think it will be more con venient to defer it till I can get the fourth volume from the prefs, which is almoft printed off, and will give me a speedy opportunity of fending you the work complete.

Truth and impartiality are more difficult to be found in the literary world, than honour and honesty are in the moral; though national partiality may not be difcommendable; and, exclufive of that, I flatter myself I have confiftently acted my duty. The generality of our nation are too creduToufly of opinion, that liberty confines her facred influence peculiarly to Bri tain; but when I look through the political fyftem of Europe, reafon almoft obliges me to diffent from this adopted tenet of my countrymen. [ have been told by a Nobleman, who is juftly esteemed the ornament of this Inland, that of all abfolute monarchies, Denmark is the moft legal but I am fenfible, from the annals of France, that the conftitution of your country is not inferior to the Danish government; and it stands, as an indubitable fact, that a fovereign of France may, if he pleafes, convey a portion of felicity to his fubjects, equal to what is enjoyed by the fubjects of any one monarch in the universe. The conftitution of Britain, we are fond to believe, is more confonant to the law of reafon and the liberty of nature than the form of other legiflatures; but I fee no fuch material difference between an abfolute regal government in France, and a minifterial aristocracy in other countries: I am glad to find the fentiments of liberty pronounced fo freely by a fubject of France; an Englishman can do no more. You, Sir, may fpeak bold and open truths; but would you think that I cannot ? or can you believe that feveral important facts have been communicated to me, which I durit not adventure to promulgate? though I have honestly reported thofe things, which you as honeftly approved.

Believe me, Sir, I have experienced, and am equally confcious with yourfelf, that the burthen of fo extensive a hiftory is very heavy you are infinitely more converfant with nature, men, and nations, than I am; your

years

years give many advantages to your
diftinguished genius; but as I am now
only twenty-five years of age, do not
expect my performance to be either
full of fagacity or elegance. I have,
indeed, obtained fome little reputation
here; but I cannot flatter myself with
the hopes of your approbation: how
ever, your candour and humanity will
accompany my youth and inexperience.
I fhall be proud of embracing every
opportunity of teftifying my regard for
you; and, with the greatest fincerity,
I am, SIR,

Your very obedient fervant,
R. ROLT.

August 7th, 1750.

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again fent to Paris by one of my friends, while I was rambling in the country; because, at that time, I was ready to make a journey to Paris: fo, by two mistakes, I had but yesterday your book and your letter; and I res turn you many thanks for 'em both. But I had already read your curious hiftory with much pleafure. The good patriot and the faithful hiftorian shine through all the work I hope you have met with the applause of your country, and you ftand in no need of foreign praises. I expose you my own fatisfaction, rather than I attempt to compliment you. I cannot fay, good Sir, with what true fentiments of esteem I am, fincerely from my heart,

SIR,

Your most humble obedient fervant,
VOLTAIRE.

A Monfieur Monfieur Richard
Rolt, at Mr. Harborne's,
Portugal-freet, Lincoln's-
inn, London.

Franco Amfterdam.

LABOUR AND INDOLENCE.
Man is born to labour as the sparks fly upward.

LABOUR, in fome shape or other, is
the tax now univerfally impofed
on man, as the price of his wealth,
his pleasures, and his happiness; and,
indeed, in our prefent ftate, how inf-
nitely lefs miferable is a man even
when overpowered with labour, than
with its contrary evil. the want of
employment. By indolence we are
not only fubjected to the greatest mi-
fery, but even led to the horrideft
crimes; we are rendered incapable of
enjoying the bleffings of life, and this,
only a failing in its beginning, becomes
a crime in its end.

Indolence is the tainted spring, the ftagnant pool, from whence flows almoft every vice. This, making a man incapable of friendship (of active friendhip, and what else deferves the name?) leaves him deprived of friends. This involves him infenfibly in difficulties, from which, as his mind is too weakened to confront, and too relaxed to fupport them, with the daftardlinels of the moft cowardly fpirit, he learns to Hy-And in what manner to fly

Horrid thought! in the prefent day he flies even to the grave for shelterBut there what worfe may purfue, what worse may overtake him, who fhall tell? It is in vain that the errors of a few noble and feeling minds would endeavour to dignify the retreat of thofe who now in fuch numbers shrink from the miseries they have brought upon themselves.

Indolence, this child of Infenfibility, makes a man improper for the world, and for fociety; unapt to the best affections and the noblest propensities -It brings him to a state which leaves him nothing to regret: his fortune is involved-e may have relations who look up to him for fupport-In vain !

of exertion he is incapable whom habitual idleness has involved. He is like a man enervated by disease, turned loofe to ftem a ftorm in a veßel beyond his force;-he fees rocks and whirlpools on every fide; the haven is diftant; and defpairing that his ftrength is fufficient to attain it, he exerts not even the little which is left him

the

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