he instituted for the comfort and protection of his peopleExperience had prepared his mind for, and exactly suited it to the station, which Providence called him to fill in the new world; and the operations of the same Providence are remarkably conspicuous, in sending him a people to govern, who were qualified by similar experience and hardships, to cultivate a wilderness, and to enjoy and communicate to posterity, the sweets of virtuous freedom-had not Penn been favoured with such characters to people his new province, his virtues and abilities must have remained in a great degree in- operative and unknown to future ages-but that Providence which had prepared, and called him to stand upon an eminent scaffold of the reformation, had also prepared a host of similar characters to flock round the edifice he was building-and he lived not only to place the top stone on this temple of peace, but to see it protected by christian laws, under the influence and guardianship of its spiritual founder The talents and labors of William Penn, would have been lost on a warlike people; and his principles would not suffer him to have recourse to finesse as an instrnment of policy, or as a substitute for force; nor was it necessary in the government of a virtuous people, who from principle complied with the requisitions of justice-nor in the enforcement of laws, which had nothing for their object, but public happiness grounded on the equal distribution of rights.

What a contrast does this man's character form to that of Lewis le Grand-how strongly are we reminded in the history of this prince, of the grandeur of Satan surrounded by flames and firebrands; or of Pluto in his dark dominions, with sullen majesty, employing troops of furies to desolate the earth-but the ensigns of destruction and slavery, were not those which Penn held out to the surrounding nations, as the proofs of his greatness, or as a beacon to attract the unfortunate to his shores-ah no-his little province, the common asylum of distressed mariners on life's tempestuous sea, invited their approach, by the simplicity of its inhabitants, and the justice of its laws-the consequence is that not only by such a course of action, he has secured his own happiness-but that the language of his example continues loudly to speak to all succeeding governors, who profess to admire it" follow me, as I followed Christ."

Having traced in a very imperfect manner I acknow.

ledge, the outlines of this great man's character-I shall proceed to speak a little of the Abbe Fenelon, whose piety to God, benevolence to inan, and extraordinary talents, have placed him in the first rank of public cha

racters.

In early life, there appeared much modesty and reserve in the disposition of this great man-Nature had formed him to enjoy rather the sweets of virtuous retirement, than the splendor of a court-and although Providence led him step by step, from the former to the latter, yet his native modesty, meekness, and humility, seem never to have forsaken him-The archbishop of Paris, not finding him in the circle of his parasites, said to him one day, Sir, you seem as if you have a mind to be forgotten, and you shall be so"-but Fenelon's ambition was to be the instrument of Providence, and not the slave of arbitrary power.

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The French monarch having appointed him with others of his brethren, on a mission to proselyte, or recall to the unity of the catholic church, certain of his protestant subjects the Abbe refused to accompany them, until the tyrant consented that they should proceed without military force-his sentiments on the subject of religious freedom, are preserved in the memoirs of his lifeIu a conversation which he held with a young prince, he recommended him to allow his subjects liberty of conscience; observing that conscience is an impregnable fortress which no inan can force, and that however hypo crites may be made by persecution, it never made honest men, or sincere converts.

The Abbe Fenelon (whose name and character I have introduced, as believing them from the reports of history, to deserve the veneration of posterity) with Penn's sentiments and opportunities, would probably have been as great a character-but education and fortune did not conspire in the same manner, to render his virtues and talents useful-for by the former, he had more superstition-and the latter had not conferred upon him the government of a country, nor even delivered him from the tyranny of that in which he was born-nevertheless he made great advances toward reformation In his religious compositions, he invited the attention of the people, more to the interior than the exterior of religionIn his political system, justice and moderation, encou ragement of industry and arts, and an absolute decla

ration against offensive war, with all its sanctioned abuses, every where appear- He was a great man, but if we were only to look for his character in Telemachus, that beautiful production, without any other clue to discover the Author, we should conclude he was rather a wise and virtuous heathen, than a christian philosopher-but in the history of Penn and his government, we rise higher and see something divine-we see something near a perfect conformity, not only to the principles of natural justice, but to the piety, humanity, and unresisting temper of the gospel of Christ.

Having given my readers two extraordinary examples of human excellence, from public and exalted life-I shall enter into the gloomy mansions of misery, for the last, but not the least sketch of human greatness.

This most interesting and affecting species of greatness, is exemplified in the smile of joy which illumes the christian's countenance, when on the bed of languishing, his longing faith has found the Hope of Nations.

It is exemplified in the tear of pious resignation, which stands glistening in his eye, and commands sympathy and affection, when heaven in the severity of its love, has deprived him of friends, of place and power-and left him nothing wherein to trust but God.

If any man in these or similar situations, has been overtaken by a deep and penetrating sense of misery; and in that misery has looked to the Author of nature, and the God of bounty for help, and has received it immediately by infusion from his own spirit-however he may be clad in rags, or buried in a desert-however he may be surrounded with poverty, and deprived of friends, or in the midst of dangers-he becomes instantaneously great-he becomes equal to every thing which he has to suffer or to do-he is that moment enabled to look down with indifference upon all the little things of the planet, upon which his dust creeps, but above which his spirit soars-If this is his experience in the populous haunts of men (as has been often the case) it will give him no concern that he passes unnoticed in the crowd-nor will the costly dwellings of the rich, or their ensigns of grandeur, excite his envy-he feels that he himself is in possession of true happiness, and experience has taught him, that this is not to be obtained by the utmost gratification, either of the proud, or the sensual passions of nature-nor would he exchange his situation at that time,

for " crowns or sceptres or any such little things". This greatness of mind is the gift of God, and will continue to subsist, when this ball and the emmets that creep upon it, have disappeared and are forgotten.

P. 83-ON EDUCATION.

"Mankind seems to agree that children should be left under the management of women during their childhood. Now from all the observation that I have been able to make, women of sensibility are the most unfit for this task, because they will infallibly, carried away by their feelings, spoil a child's temper*-The management of the temper, the first and most important branch of education, requires the sober, steady eye of reason-a plan of conduct equally distant from tyranny and indulgence-yet these are the extremes that people of sensibility alternately fall into, always shooting beyond the mark.

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P. 92. Severity (continues our author) is frequently the most certain, as well as the most sublime proof of affection, and the want of power over the feelings, and of that lofty dignified affection, which makes a person prefer the future good of the beloved object to a present gratification, is the reason why so many fond mothers spoil their children, and has made it questionable whether neglect or indulgence is most hurtful-but I am inclined to think that the latter has done most harm.

P. 163. The ridiculous falsities which are told to children from mistaken notions of modesty, tend very early to inflame their imaginations, and set their little minds to work respecting subjects, which nature never intended they should think of, till the body arrived at some degree of maturity-then the passions naturally begin to take place of the senses, as instruments to unfold the understanding and form the moral character-On this passage she makes the following note-Children very early see cats with their kittens, birds with their young ones, &c.-why then are they not to be told, that their mothers carry and nourish them in the same way? As there would be no appearance of mystery they would never think of the subject more-Truth may always be

* This truth is strikingly exemplified in the conduct of most grandmothers.

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told to children, if it be told gravely-but it is the immodesty of affected modesty that does all the mischief, and this smoke heats the imagination by endeavouring to obscure certain objects. If indeed children could be kept entirely from improper company, we should never allude to any such subjects, but as this is impossible, it is best to tell them the truth, especially as such information not being interesting to them, will make no impression on their imagination."

P. 206 to 224-ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

Forcibly impressed by the reflections which the sight of schools, as they are at present conducted naturally suggested-I have formerly delivered my opinion rather warmly in favour of a private education, but further experience has led me to view the subject in a different light-I still however think schools as they are now regulated, the hot-beds of vice and folly, and the knowledge of human nature supposed to be attained there, merely cunning selfishness-At school, boys become gluttons and slovens, and instead of cultivating domestic affections, very early rush into the libertinism which destroys the constitution before it is formed, hardening the heart, as it weakens the understanding

I should in fact be averse to boarding schools, if it were for no other reason, than the unsettled state of mind, which the expectation of the vacations produce-On these the children's thoughts are fixed, with eager anticipating hopes, for at least to speak with moderation half of the time; and when they arrive, they are spent in total dissipation, and beastly indulgence-But on the contrary, when they are brought up at home, though they may pursue a plan of study, in a more orderly manner, than can be adopted when near a fourth part of the year is actually spent in idleness, and as much more in regret and anticipation, yet they there acquire too high an opinion of their own importance, from being allowed to tyrannize over servants, and from the anxiety expressed by most mothers on the score of manners, who eager to teach the accomplishments of a gentleman, stifle in their birth the virtues of a man-The only way to avoid two extremes equally injurious to morality, would