fountain of the young peach-trees; to fuch a man the melody of birds is more ravishing than the harmony of a full concert; and the tincture of the cloud preferable to the touch of the finest pencil. The life of man is a journey; a journey that muft be travelled, however bad the roads or the accommodation. If in the beginning it is found dangerous, narrow, and difficult, it muft either grow better in the end, or we shall by cuftom learn to bear its inequality. But though I fee you incapable of penetrating into grand principles, attend at least to a fimile adapted to every apprehenfion. I am mounted upon a wretched afs. I fee another man before me upon a fprightly horfe, at which I find fome uneafinefs. I look behind me and fee numbers on foot ftooping under heavy burdens; let me learn to pity their eftate, and thank Heaven for my own. Shingfu, when under misfortunes, would in the beginning weep like a child; but he foon recovered his former tranquillity. After indulging grief for a few days, he would become, as ufual, the moft merry old man in all the province of Shanfi. About the time that his wife died, his poffeffions were all confumed by fire, and his only fon fold into captivity; Shingfu grieved for one day, and the next went to dance at a Mandarine's door for his dinner. company were furprized to fee the old man fo merry when fuffering fuch great loffes, and the Mandarine himself coming out, afked him how he, who had grieved fo much, and given way to the calamity the day before, could now be fo chearful? "You afk The "let me "me one queftion," cries the old man, "anfwer by afking another: Which is the moft durable, a hard thing, or a faft thing; that which 66 refifts, or that which makes no refiftance?" An hard thing to be fure, replied the Mandarine. "There you are wrong," returned Shingfu, "I am now "fourfcore years old; and if you look in my mouth you will find that I have loft all my teeth, but not "a bit of my tongue. а LETTER XCV. From Lien Chi Altangi, to Fum Hoam, firft Prefident of the Ceremonial Academy at Pekin, in China. THE manner of grieving for our departed friends in China is very different from that of Europe. The mourning colour of Europe is black; that of China white. When a parent or relation dies here, for they feldom mourn for friends, it is only clapping on a fuit of fables, grimacing it for a few days, and all, foon forgotten, goes on as before; not a single creature miffing the deceased, except perhaps a favourite house-keeper or a favourite cat. On the contrary with us in China it is a very ferious affair. The piety with which I have feen you behave on one of these occafions should never be forgotten. I remember it was upon the death of thy grandmother's maiden-fifter. The coffin was expofed in the principal hall in public view. Before it were placed the figures of eunuchs, horfes, tortoises, and other animals in attitudes of grief and respect. The more diftant relations of the old lady, and I among the number, came to pay our compliments of condolence, and to falute the deceased after the manner of our country. We had fcarcely presented our our wax candles and perfumes, and given the how of departure, when, crawling on his belly from under a curtain, out came the reverend Fum Hoam himself, in all the difmal folemnity of diftrefs. Your looks were set for forrow; your cloathing confifted of an hempen bag tied round the neck with a ftring. For two long months did this mourning continue. By night you lay ftretched on a single mat, and fat on the ftool of discontent by day. Pious man! whỏ could thus fet an example of forrow and decorum to our country. Pious country! where, if we do not grieve at the departure of our friends for their fakes, at least we are taught to regret them for our own. All is very different here; amazement all! What fort of a people am I got amongft! Fum, thou son of Fo, what fort of people am I got amongft! No crawling round the coffin; no dreffing up in hempen bags; no lying on mats, or fitting on ftools. Gentlemen here fhall put on firft mourning with as fprightly an air as if preparing for a birth-night; and widows fhall actually drefs for another husband in their weeds for the former. The best jeft of all is, that our merry mourners clap bits of muflin on their fleeves, and these are called weepers. Weeping muflin; alas, alas, very forrowful truly! Thefe weepers then it feems are to bear the whole burthen of the diftrefs. But I have had the strongest inftance of this contraft; this tragi-comical behaviour in diftrefs upon a recent occafion. Their King, whofe departure though fudden was not unexpected, died after a reign of many years. His age and uncertain ftate of health ferved in fome measure to diminish the forrow of his fubjects; and their expectations from his fucceffor feemed to balance their minds between uneafinefs and fatisfaction. But how ought they to have behaved on fuch an occafion? Surely, they ought BB 4 ought rather to have endeavoured to teftify their gratitude to their deceased friend, than to proclaim their hopes of the future. Surely even the Succeffor muft suppose their love to wear the face of adulation, which fo quickly changed the object. However, the very fame day on which the old King died, they made rejoicing for the new. For my part, I have no conception of this new manner of mourning and rejoicing in a breath; of being merry and fad; of mixing a funeral proceffion with a jig and a bonfire. At least, it would have been just, that they who flattered the King while living for virtues which he had not, fhould lament him dead for those he really had. In this univerfal caufe for national diftrefs, as I had no intereft myself, so it is but natural to fuppofe, I felt no real affliction. In all the loffes of our friends, fays an European philofopher, we firft confider how much our own welfare is affected by their departure, and moderate our real grief juft in the fame proportion. Now, as I had neither received nor expected to receive favours from Kings or their flatterers; as I had no acquaintance in particular with their late monarch; as I knew that the place of a king is foon fupplied; and as the Chinefe proverb has it, that though the world may fometimes want coblers to mend their fhoes, there is no danger of its wanting Emperors to rule their kingdoms; from fuch confiderations I could bear the lofs of a King with the most philofophic refignation. However, I thought it my duty at leaft to appear forrowful; to put on a melancholy afpect, or to fet my face by that of the people. The first company I came amongft after the news became general, was a fet of jolly companions who were drinking profperity to the enfuing reign. I entered the room with looks of defpair, and even expected expected applaufe for the fuperlative mifery of my countenance. Inftead of that I was univerfally condemned by the company for a grimacing fon of a whore, and defired to take away my penitential phyz to fome other quarter. I now corrected my former mistake, and with the most sprightly air imaginable entered a company, where they were talking over the ceremonies of the approaching funeral, Here I fat for fome time with an air of pert vivacity; when one of the chief mourners immediately obferving my good humour, defired me, if I pleased, to go and grin fomewhere elfe; they wanted no difaffected fcoundrels there. Leaving this company therefore, I was refolved to affume a look perfectly neutral; and have ever fince been tudying the fashionable air: fomething between jeft and earneft; a compleat virginity of face, uncontaminated with the smallest symptom of meaning, But though grief be a very flight affair here, the mourning, my friend, is a very important concern. When an Emperor dies in China, the whole expence of the folemnities is defrayed from the royal coffers. When the great die here, Mandarines are ready enough to order mourning; but I do not fee they are fo ready to pay for it. If they fend me down from court the grey undrefs frock, or the black coat without pocket holes, I am willing enough to comply with their commands, and wear both; but by the head of Confucius! to be obliged to wear black, and buy it into the bargain, is more than my tranquillity of temper can bear. What, order me to wear mourning before they know whether I can buy it or no! Fum, thou fon of Fo, what fort of a people am I amongft; where being out of black is a certain fymptom of poverty; where those who have miferable faces cannot have mourn |