with this Difference from Mahomet's, That the Souls of the Slain should tranfmigrate into other Bodies, and in them be rewarded according to the Degrees of their Merit. This is told by Lucan with his usual Spirit.

You teach that Souls, from fleshly Chains unbound,
Seek not pale Shades and Erebus profound,
But fleeting bence to other Regions firay,
Once more to mix with animated Clay;
Hence Death's a Gap (if Men may truft the Lore)
"Twixt Lives behind and Ages yet before.

A bleft Miftake! which Fate's dread Pow'r difarms,
And fpurs its Vot'ries on to War's Alarms;
Lavish of Life, they rush with fierce Delight
Amidst the Legions, and provoke the Fight,
O'er-matching Death, and freely caft away
That Loan of Life the Gods are bound to pay.

OUR gallant Countryman, Sir Philip Sidney, was a noble Example of Courage and Devotion. I am parti cularly pleafed to find that he hath translated the whole Book of Pfalms into English Verse. A Friend of mine informs me that he hath the Manufcript by him, which is faid in the Title to have been done By the most noble and virtuous Gent. Sir PHILIP SIDNEY, Knight. They having never been printed, I fhall prefent the Publick with one of them, which my Correfpondent affures me he hath faithfully transcribed, and wherein I have taken the Liberty only to alter one Word.

PSALM

NIGH

CXXXVII.

I.

IGH feated where the River flows,
That wat'reth Babel's thankful Plain,
Which then our Tears, in pearled Rows
Did help to water with the Rain:
The Thought of Sion bred fuch Woes,
That though our Harps we did retain,
Yet ufeless and untouched there,
On Willows only hang'd they were:

Now while our Harps were hanged fo,
The Men whofe Captives then we lay,
Did on our Griefs infulting go,

And more to grieve us thus did fay;
You that of Mufick make fuch show,
Come fing us now a Sion's Lay:

Oh no! we have no Voice nor Hand
For fuch a Song in fuch a Land.

III.

Though far I be, fweet Sion's Hill,
In foreign Soil exil'd from thee,
Yet let my Hand forget his Skill,
If ever thou forgotten be;
And let my Tongue faft glewed fill
Unto my Roof, lie mute in me;

If thy Neglect within me spring,
Or ought I do, but Salem fing.

IV.

But thou, O Lord, fhalt not forget
To quit the Pains of Edom's Race,

Who caufelefly, yet hotly fet

Thy holy City to deface;

Did thus the bloody Victors whet,

What time they enter'd firft the Place,
"Down, down with it at any Hand,
"Make all a Wafle, let nothing fland.

V.

And Babylon, that didft us wafe,
Thy felf halt one Day wafted be:
And happy be, who, what thou hast
Unto us done fhall do to thee;
Like Bitterness fhall make thee tafte,
Like woful Objects make thee fee:
Yea, happy who thy little Ones
Shall take, and dafb against the Stones.

Thursday,

Ne te femper inops agitet vexetque Cupido;
Ne Pavor, & rerum mediocriter utilium Spes.

IT

Hor.

T was prettily obferved by fomebody concerning the great Vices, that there are three which give Pleasure, as Covetousness, Gluttony and Luft; one, which taftes of nothing but Pain, as Envy; the reft have a Mixture of Pleasure and Pain, as Anger and Pride. But when a Man confiders the State of his own Mind, about which every Member of the Chriftian World is fuppofed at this time to be employed, he will find that the best Defence against Vice is preserving the worthieft Part of his ownSpirit pure from any great Offence against it. There is a Magnanimity which makes us look upon our felves with Difdain, after we have been betray'd by sudden Defire, Opportunity of Gain, the Absence of a Perfon who excels us, the Fault of a Servant, or the ill Fortune of an Adverfary, into the Gratification of Luft, Covetoufness, Envy, Rage or Pride; when the more fublime Part of our Souls is kept alive, and we have not repeated Infirmities till they are become vicious Habits.

THE Vice of Covetoufness is what enters deepest: into the Soul of any other; and you may have seen Men, otherwise the most agreeable Creatures in the World, fo feized with the Defire of being richer, that they shall startle at indifferent things, and live in a continual Guard and Watch over themselves from a remote: Fear of Expence. No pious Man can be fo circumfpect in the Care of his Confcience, as the covetous Man is in that of his Pocket.

IF a Man would preferve his own Spirit, and his. natural Approbation of higher and more worthy Purfuits, he could never fall into this Littleness, but his Mind would be ftill open to Honour and Virtue, in: fpite of Infirmities and Relapfes. But what extreamly difcourages

difcourages me in my Precautions as a GUARDIAN, is, that there is an univerfal Defection from the Admiration of Virtue. Riches and outward Splendor have taken up the Place of it; and no Man thinks he is mean, if he is not poor. But alas! this defpicable Spirit debafes our very Being, and makes our Paffions take a new Turn from their natural Bent.

IT was a Caufe of great Sorrow and Melancholy to me fome Nights ago at Play, to fee a Croud in the Habits of the Gentry of England ftupid to the nobleft Sentiments we have. The Circumftance happened in the Scene of Distress betwixt Piercy and Anna Bullen: One of the Centinels who ftood on the Stage, to prevent the Disorders which the moft unmanly Race of young Men that ever were feen in any Age frequently raise in Publick Affemblies, upon Piercy's befeeching to be heard, burit into Tears; upon which the greatest Part of the Audience fell into a loud and ignorant Laughter; which others, who were touched with the liberal Compaffion in the poor Fellow, could hardly fupprefs by their clapping. But the Man, without the leaft Confufion or Shame in his Countenance for what had happened, wiped away the Tears, and was fill intent upon the Play. The Diftrefs ftill rifing, the Soldier was fo much moved, that he was obliged to turn his Face from the Audience, to their no fmall Merriment. Piercy had the Gallantry to take notice of his honeft Heart; and, as I am told, gave him a Crown to help him in his Affliction. It is certain this poor Fellow in his humble Condition, had fuch a lively Compaffion as a Soul unwedded to the World; were it otherwife, gay Lights and Dreffes, with Appearances of People of Fafhion and Wealth, to which his Fortune could not be familiar, would have taken up all his Attention and Admiration..

IT is every thing that is praife-worthy, as well as pure Religion, (according to a Bock too facred for me io quote) to visit the Father lefs and Widows in their AfliEtion, and to keep himself unspotted from the World. Every Step that a Man makes beyond moderate and reasonable Provifion, is taking fo much from the Worthinefs of his own Spirit; and he that is intirely fet upon making a Fortune, is all that while undoing the Man. He must

grow.

grow deaf to the Wretched, eftrange himself from the Agreeable, learn Hardness of Heart, difrelifh every thing that is noble, and terminate all in his defpicable Self. Indulgence in any one immoderate Defire or Appetite engroffes the whole Creature, and his Life is facrificed to that one Defire or Appetite; but how much otherwise is it with those that preferve alive in them fomething that adorns their Condition, and fhews the Man, whether a Prince or a Beggar, above his Fortune?

I have juft now recorded a Foot Soldier for the Politest Man in a British Audience, from the Force of Nature, untainted with the Singularity of an ill-applied Education. A good Spirit, that is not abufed, can add new Glories to the higheft State in the World, as well as give Beauties to the meaneft. I fhall exemplify this by inferting a Prayer of Harry the Fourth of France just before a Battle, in which he obtained an entire Victory.

LORD of hosts, who can't see through the thickeft Vail and clofeft Difguife, who vieweft the bottom of my Heart, and the deepeft Defigns of my Enemies, who haft in thy Hands, as well as before thine Eyes, all the Events which concern human Life, if thou knowest that my Reign will promote thy Glory, and the Safety of thy People, if thou knowest that I have no other Ambition in my Soul, but to advance the Honour of thy Holy Name, and the good of this State, favour, O great God, the Justice of my Arms, and reduce all the Rebels to acknowledge him whom thy facred Decrees and the Order of a lawful Succeffion, have made their Sovereign; but if thy good Providence has ordered otherwife, and thou feeft that I should prove one of thofe Kings whom thou giveft in thine Anger, take from me, O merciful God, my Life and my Crown, make me this day a Sacrifice to thy Will, let Death end the Calamities of France, and let my Blood be the laft that is spilt in this Quarrel.

my

THE. King uttered this generous Prayer in a Voice, and with a Countenance. that inspired all who heard and beheld him with like Magranimity: Then turning to the Squadron, at the Head of which he defigned to charge, My Fellow-foldiers, faid he, as you run my Fortune, fo do I yours; your Safety confifts in keeping well your Ranks;

but.