ESSAY I.

Of the DELICACY of TASTE and PASSION.

OME People are subject to a certain delicacy of paffion, which makes them extremely fenfible to all the accidents of life, and gives them a lively joy upon every profperous event, as well as a piercing grief, when they meet with misfortunes and adversity. Favours and good offices eafily engage their friendship; while the smallest injury provokes their refentment. Any honour or mark of diftinction elevates them above meafure; but they are as fenfibly touched with contempt. People of this character have, no doubt, much more lively enjoyments, as well as more pungent forrows, than men of cool and fedate tempers: But, I believe, when every thing is balanced, there is no one, who would not rather chufe to be of the latter character, were he entirely master of his own difpofition. Good or ill fortune is very little at our own difpofal: fon, that has this fenfibility of temper, meets with any misfortune, his forrow or refentment takes intire poffeffion of him, and deprives him of all relifh in the common occurrences of life; the right enjoyment of which forms the greatest part of our happiness. Great pleasures are much less frequent than great pains; so that a sensible temper must meet with fewer trials in the former way than in the latter. Not to mention, that men of fuch lively paffions are apt to be transported beyond all bounds

And when a per

of prudence and difcretion, and to take falfe fteps in the conduct of life, which are often irretrievable.

There is a delicacy of taste obfervable in some men, which very much refembles this delicacy of paffion, and produces the fame fenfibility to beauty and deformity of every kind, as that does to prosperity and adversity, obligations and injuries. When you prefent a poem or a picture to a man poffeffed of this talent, the delicacy of his feeling, makes him be touched very fenfibly with every part of it; nor are the masterly ftrokes perceived with more exquifite relish and fatisfaction, than the negligences or abfurdities with disgust and uneafiness. A polite and judicious converfation affords him the highest entertainment; rudeness or impertinence is as great a punishment to him. In fhort, delicacy of tafte has the fame effect as delicacy of paffion: It enlarges the sphere both of our happiness and mifery, and makes us fenfible to pains as well as pleasures, which escape the rest of mankind.

I believe, however, there is no one, who will not agree with me, that notwithstanding this resemblance, a delicacy of tafte is as much to be defired and cultivated as a delicacy of paflion is to be lamented, and to be remedied, if poffible. The good or ill accidents of life are very little at our disposal; but we are pretty much mafters what books we fhall read, what diverfions we shall partake of, and what company we fhall keep. Philofophers have endeavoured to render happiness entirely independent of every thing external. That is impoffible to be attained: But every wife man will endeavour to place his happinefs on fuch objects as depend most upon himself and that is not to be attained fo much by any other means as by this delicacy of fentiment. When a man is poffeffed of that talent, he is more happy by what pleases his tafte, than by what gratifies his appe