myfelf, to be of the family of the Piccolomini +. Mr. Bathurft tells me, that he thinks you rather taller than I am; if fo, you may very poffibly get up to five feet eight inches, which I would compound for, though I would with you five feet ten. In truth, what do I not with you, that has a tendency to perfection? I fay a tendency only, for abfolute perfection is not in human nature, fo that it would be idle to with it. But I am very willing to compound for your coming nearer to perfection, than the generality of your cotemporaries: Mr. Harte, affirms that you are addicted to no vices. You have undoubtedly a ftock both of ancient and modern learning, which, I will venture to fay, nobody of your age has, and which muft now daily increafe, do what you will. What then do you want towards that practicable degree of perfection which I with you? Nothing, but the knowledge, the turn, and the manners of the world; I mean the beau monde ‡. Thefe, it is impoffible that you can yet have quite right; they are not given, they must be learned. But then, on the other hand, it is impoflible not to acquire them, if one has a mind to them; for they are acquired infenfibly, by keeping good company, if one has but the leaft-attention to their characters and manners. Every man becomes, to a certain degree, what the people he generally converfes with are. He catches their air, their manners, and even their way of thinking. If he obferves with attention, he will catch them foon; but if he does not, he will at long run contract them infenfibly. I know nothing in the world but poetry, that is not to be acquired by application and care. The fum total of this is a very comfortable one for you, as it plainly amounts to this, in your favour; that you now want nothing but what even your pleasures, if they are liberal ones, will teach you. I congratulate both you and myfelf, upon your being in fuch a fituation, that, excepting your exercifes, nothing is now wanting but pleasures to complete you. Take them, but The little in ftature. (as I am fure you will) with people of the firft fashion, wherever you are, and the bufinefs is done; your exercifes at Paris, which I am fure you will attend to, will fupple and fashion your body; and the company you will keep there will, with fome degree of obfervation on your part, foon give you their air, addrefs, and manners. Let not thofe confiderations, however, make you vain; they are only between you and me but as they are very comfortable ones, they may juftly give you a manly affurance, a firmnefs, a steadiness, without which a man can neither be well bred, or in any light appear to advantage, or really what he is. They may justly remove all timidity, awkward bafhfulness, low diffidence of one's-felf, and mean abject complai. fance to every or any body's opinion. Le Bruyere fays, very truly, On ne vaut dans ce monde, que ce que l'on veut valoirt. It is a right principle to proceed upon in the world, taking care only to guard against the appearan ces and outward fymptoms of vanity. Your whole then, you fee, turns upon the company you keep for the future. I have, laid you in variety of the best at Paris, where, at your arrival, you will find a cargo of letters, to very different forts of people, as beaux esprits, fçavants, et belles dames . Thefe, if you will frequent them, will form you not only by their examples, but by their advice, and admonitions in private, as I have defired them to do; and confequently add to what you have, the only one thing now needful. Pray tell me what Italian books you have read, and whether that language is now become familiar to you. Read Ariofto and Taffo through, and then you will have read all the Italian poets, who, in my opinion, are worth reading. In all events, when you get to Paris, take a good Italian mafter to read Italian with you three times a week; not only to keep what you have already, which you would otherwife forget, but also to perfect you in the reft. It is a great pleasure, as well as a great advantage, to be able to speak to people of We cannot be refpected in the world without respecting our felves. Men of wit and learning, and women of fashion, all nations, and well, in their own language. Aim at perfection in every thing, though in most things it is unattainable; however, thofe who aim at it, and perfevere, will come much nearer it, than those, whofe laziness and despondency make them give it up as unattainable. A man who fets out in the world with real timidity and diffidence has not an equal chance in it; he will be difcouraged, put by, or trampled upon. But, to fucceed, a man, efpecially a young one, fhould have inward firmncfs, fteadiness, and intrepidity; with exterior modefty and diffidence. He muft modeftly, but refolutely, alert his own rights and privileges. Suupiter in modo, but fortitèr in re. He fhould have an apparent franknefs and opennefs, but with inward caution and clofenefs. All these things will come to you by frequenting and obferving good company. And by good company, I mean that fort of company, which is called good company by every body of that place. When all this is over, we fhall meet; and then we will talk over, tête à tête, the various little finishing ftrokes, which converfation and acquaintance occafionally fuggeft, and which cannot be methodically written.. LETTER XCVI. Perfeverance and Ardour in Pursuits... Anecdote of Cardinal Mazarin, and Don Louis de Haro... Want of Attention and Abfence. MY DEAR FRIEND, London, June the 5th. I HAVE received your picture, which I have long waited for with impatience; I wanted to see your countenance, whence I am very apt, as I believe most people are, to form fome general opinion of the mind. If the painter has taken you, as well as he has done Mr. Harte (for his picture is by far the most like I ever faw in my life) I draw good conclufions from your countenance, which has both spirit and finish in it. In bulk you are pretty well increafed fince I faw you; if you your height is not increased in proportion, I defire that will make hafte to complete it. When you get to Paris, above all things, be careful in your choice of company; and nothing, I muft obferve, finks a young man into low company, both of women and men, fo furely as timidity, and diffidence of himfelf. If he thinks that he fhall not, he may depend upon it he will not pleafe. But with proper endeavours to please, and a degree of perfuafion that he fhall, it is almost certain that he will. How many people does one meet with every where, who, with very moderate parts, and very little knowledge, pufh themfelves pretty far, fing. ly, by being fanguine, enterprifing, and perfevering? They will take no denial; difficulties do not difcourage them; repulfed twice or thrice, they rally, they charge again, and nine times in ten prevail at laf The fame means will much fooner, and more certainly, attain the fame ends, with your parts and knowledge. You have a fund to be fanguine upon, and good forces to rally. In bufinefs (talents fuppofed) nothing is more effectual, or fuccefsful, than a good, though concealed, opinion of one's-felf, a firm refolution, and an unwea ried perfeverance. None but madmen attempt impof fibilities; and whatever is poffible, is one way of another to be brought about. If one method fails, try another, and fuit your methods to the characters you have to do with. At the treaty of the Pyrenées, which Cardinal Mazarin, and Don Louis de Haro, con cluded, dans l'ifle des Faifans *, the latter carried fome very important points by his conftant and cool perfe verance. The Cardinal had all the Italian vivacity and imp tience; Don Louis all the Spanish phlegm and tena cioufnefs. The point which the Cardinal had moft at heart was, to hinder the re-establishment of the prince of Condé, his implacable enemy; but he was in hafte to conclude, and impatient to return to court, where abfence is always dangerous. Don Louis obferved this and never failed at every conference to bring the affair The ifle of Pheasants: of the prince of Condé upon the tapis. The Cardinal for fome time refused even to treat upon it; Don Louis, with the fame fang froid, as conftantly perfifted, till he at laft prevailed, contrary to the intentions and the intereft both of the Cardinal and his court. Sense must diftinguish between what is impoffible, and what is only difficult; and spirit and perfeverance will get the better of the latter. I must not omit one thing, which is previously neceffary to this, and indeed to every thing elfe-which is attention, a flexibility of attention; never to be wholly engroffed by any paft or future object, but inftantly directed to the prefent one, be it what it will. An abfent man can make but few obfervations; and those will be disjointed and imperfect ones, as half the circumftances must neceffarily efcape him. He can purfue nothing fteadily, because his abfences make him lofe his way. They are very difagreeable, and hardly to be tolerated in old age; but, in youth, they cannot be forgiven. If you find that you have the leaft tendency to them, pray watch yourfelf very carefully, and you may prevent them now; but if you let them grow into a habit, you will find it very difficult to cure them hereafter; and a worfe diftémper I do not know--Adieu ! LETTER XCVII. Friendship...Art of Speaking....Hand writing....The Polite World. MY DEAR FRIEND, London, July the 9th. ISHOULD not deferve that appellation in return from you, if I did not freely and explicitly inform you of every corrigible defect, which I may either hear of, fufpect, or at any time difcover in you. Those who, in the common course of the world, will call themfelves your friends, or whom, according to the common notions of friendship, you may poffibly think fuch, will never tell you of your faults, ftill lefs of your weakneffes. But on the contrary, more defirous to make |