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will read him; all must be court-bred poets, or pretend at least to be court-bred, who can expect to please. Should the caitiff fairly avow a defign of emptying our pockets and filling his own, every reader would inftantly forfake him; even those who write for bread themfelves would combine to worry him, perfectly fenfible, that his attempts only ferved to take the bread out of their mouths.

And yet this filly prepoffeffion the more amazes me, when I confider, that almoft all the excellent productions in wit that have appeared here, were purely the offspring of neceffity; their Drydens, Butlers, Otways, and Farquhars were all writers for bread. Believe me, my friend, hunger has a moft amazing faculty of fharpening the genius; and he who with a full belly, can think like a hero, after a course of fafting, fhall rife to the sublimity of a demi-god.

But what will most amaze is, that this very fet of men, who are now fo much depreciated by fools, are however the very best writers they have among them at prefent. For my own part, were I to buy an hat, I would not have it from a ftocking-maker, but an hatter; were I to buy fhoes, I should not go to the tailor's for that purpose. It is juft fo with regard to wit: did I, for my life, defire to be well-ferved, I would apply only to thofe who made it their trade, and lived by it. You fmile at the oddity of my opinion; but be affured, my friend, that wit is in fome measure mechanical; and that a man long habituated to catch at even its resemblance, will at last be happy enough to poffefs the fubftance: by a long habit of writing he acquires a juftnefs of thinking, and a maf tery of manner, which holiday-writers, even with ten times his genius, may vainly attempt to equal.

How then are they deceived, who expect from title, dignity, and exterior circumftance an excel

lence,

lence, which is in fome measure acquired by habit, and sharpened by neceffity; you have feen, like me, many literary reputations promoted by the influence of fashion, which have scarcely furvived the poffeffor; you have seen the poor hardly earn the little repu→ tation they acquired, and their merit only acknowledged when they were incapable of enjoying the pleasures of popularity; fuch, however, is the re putation worth poffeffing, that which is hardly earned is hardly loft. Adieu.

LETTER XCIII.

From Hingpo in Moscow; to Lien Chi Altangi, in

London.

WHERE will my difappointment end? Muft I

ftill be doomed to accuse the severity of my fortune, and fhew my conftancy in distress rather than moderation in profperity? I had at leaft hopes of conveying my charming companion fafe from the reach of every enemy, and of again reftoring her to her native foil. But thofe hopes are now no more.

Upon leaving Terki we took the neareft road to the dominions of Ruffia. We paffed the Ural mountains covered with eternal fnow, and traversed the forefts of Ufa, where the prowling bear and fhrieking hyena keep an undifputed poffeffion. We next embarked upon the rapid river Bulija, and made the best of our way to the banks of the Wolga, where it waters the fruitful valleys of Cafan.

There were two veffels in company properly equip ped and armed in order to oppofe the Wolga pirates, VOL. III.

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who we were informed infefted this river. Of all mankind thefe pirates are the moft terrible. They are compofed of the criminals and outlawed peafants of Ruffia, who fly to the forefts that lie along the banks of the Wolga for protection. Here they join in parties, lead a favage life, and have no other fubfiftence but plunder. Being deprived of houfes, friends, or a fixed habitation, they become more terrible even than the tyger, and as infenfible to all the feelings of humanity. They neither give quarter to thofe they conquer, nor receive it when overpowered themselves. The feverity of the laws against them ferve to increase their barbarity, and feem to make them a neutral fpecies of beings between the wildness of the lion and the fubtlety of the man. When taken alive their punishment is hideous. A floating gibbet is erected, which is let run down with the ftream; here, upon an iron hook ftuck under their ribs, and upon which the whole weight of their body depends, they are left to expire in the moft terrible agonies; fome being thus found to linger feveral days fucceffively.

We were but three days voyage from the confluence of this river into the Wolga, when we perceived at a diftance behind us an armed barque, coming up with the affiftance of fails and oars, in order to attack us. The dreadful fignal of death was hung upon the maft, and our captain with his glafs could eafily difcern them to be pirates. It is impoffible to exprefs our confternation on this occafion: the whole crew inftantly came together to confult the properest means of fafety. It was therefore foon determined to fend off our women and valuable commodities in one of our veffels, and that the men should stay in the other and boldly oppofe the enemy. This refolution was foon put into execution, and I now reluctanely parted from the beautiful Zelis for the first

time fince our retreat from Perfia. The veffel in which he was, disappeared to my longing eyes, in proportion as that of the pirates approached us. They foon came up; but, upon examining our ftrength, and perhaps fenfible of the manner in which we had fent off our most valuable effects, they seemed more eager to pursue the veffel we had fent away than attack us. In this manner they continued to harrafs us for three days; ftill endeavouring to pass us without fighting. But, on the fourth day, finding it entirely impoffible, and defpairing to seize the expected booty, they defifted from their endeavours, and left us to pursue our voyage without interruption.

Our joy on this occafion was great; but soon a disappointment more terrible, becaufe unexpected, fucceeded. The barque, in which our women and treasure were fent off, was wrecked upon the banks of the Wolga, for want of a proper number of hands to manage her, and the whole crew carried by the peasants up the country. Of this however we were not fenfible till our arrival at Mofcow; where expecting to meet our separated barque, we were informed of its misfortune, and our lofs. Need I paint the fituation of my mind on this occafion! Need I defcribe all I feel, when I despair of beholding the beautiful Zelis more! Fancy had dreffed the future prospect of my life in the gayeft colouring; but one unexpected ftroke of fortune has robbed it of every charm. Her dear idea mixes with every scene of pleasure, and without her prefence to enliven it, the whole becomes tedious, infipid, infupportable. I will confefs, now that fhe is loft, I will confefs, I loved her; nor is it in the power of time, or of reason, to erafe her image from my heart. Adieu.

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From Lien Chi Akangi to Hingpo, at Mofcow*.

YOUR misfortunes are mine; but as every period of life is marked with its own, you must learn to endure them. Difappointed love makes the mifery of youth; disappointed ambition that of manhood; and fuccessful avarice that of age. Thefe three attack us through life; and it is our duty to ftand upon our guard. To love we ought to oppofe diffipation, and endeavour to change the object of the affections; to ambition the happinefs of indolence and obfcurity; and to avarice the fear of foon dying. These are the fhields with which we fhould arm ourfelves; and thus make every fcene of life, if not pleafing, at least fupportable.

Men complain of not finding a place of repofe. They are in the wrong; they have it for feeking. What they should indeed complain of is, that the heart is an enemy to that very repose they feek. To themselves alone fhould they impute their difcontent. They feek within the fhort fpan of life to fatisfy a thousand defires, each of which alone is unfatiable. One month paffes and another comes on; the year ends and then begins; but man is still unchanging in folly, ftill blindly continuing in prejudice. To the wife man every climate and every foil is pleafing; to him a parterre of flowers is the famous valley of gold; to him a little brook the

* This letter is a rhapfody from the Maxims of the philofopher Mé. Vide Lett. curieufe & edifiant. Vide etiam Du Halde, vol. II. p. 98.

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