ry respect. The haughty person, who, proud of what he thinks internal rectitude, is perpetually wounding the feelings of those who can only digeft the mild milk of flattery; and as these are very numerous among the aged and infirm, there can be no doubt but the life of fuch perfons is rendered much more pleafing by these arts, than it could be without them. Has our writer tried this? If not, is he not fhort-fighted to expect that others will not do it? and is he to expect that this fhould be difregarded?

To the Editor of the Bee.

SIR,

INCLOSED is a copy of a letter from the late Sir Hew Dalrymple of N. Berwick, to Sir Laurence Dundas, if you think it merits a place in the Bee, I have only to add, that this letter procured the church for Mr. Dishington, and he enjoys it at present. I am, Sir, your's &c.

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B. B. *

Copy of a Letter from Sir Hew Dalrymple to Sir Laurence Dundas.

DEAR SIR,

Dalzell, May 24. 1775. HAVING fpent a long life in pursuit of pleasure and health, I am now retired from the world in poverty, and with the gout; fo, joining with Solomon, that “all "is vanity and vexation of spirit," I go to church, and fay my prayers.

This letter has already appeared in print. It has been very little read; but were it even more generally known than it is, its intrinfic ex cellence is such as to entitle it to a place in any collection.

: VOL. III.

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Rr

I affure you that most of us religious people reap fome little fatisfaction in hoping, that you wealthy voluptu aries have a fair chance of being damn'd to all eternity, and that Dives fhall call out for a drop of water to Lazarus, one drop of which he feldom tafted, when he had the twelve Apoftles, twelve hogfheads of claret in his cellar.

Now, Sir, that doctrine being laid down, I wish to give you, my friend, a loop hole to creep through. Going to church laft Sunday, as ufual, I faw an unknown face in the pulpit, and rifing up to prayers, as others do upon like occafions, I began to look around the church, to find out if there were any pretty girls there, when my attention was attracted by the foreign accent of the parfon. I gave him my attention, and had my devotion awakened by the most pathetic prayer I ever heard. This made me all attention to the fermon; a finer difcourfe never came from the lips of a man-I returned in the afternoon, and heard the fame preacher exceed his morning work, by the finest chain of reasoning, conveyed by the most eloquent expreffions. I immedi ately thought of what Agrippa faid to Paul," almost thou

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perfuadeft me to be a Chriftian." I fent to ask the man of God to honour my roof, and dine with me. I asked him of his country, and what not; I even asked him if his fermons were his own compofition, which he affirmed they were-I affured him I believed it, for never man had spoke or wrote fo well. My name is Difhington," faid he. " I am affiftant to an old minister in the Orkneys, who enjoys a fruitful benefice of 301. a year, out of which I am allowed 201. for preaching, and inftructing 1200 people, who live in two feparate iflands, out of which I pay 1 1. 5 s. to the boatman who transports me from the one to the other. I fhould be happy could I continue in that terrestrial paradife; but we have a great Lord, who has many little people foliciting him, for many little things that he can do, and that he cannot do; and if my minifter dies, his fucceffion is too great a prize, not to raise up

: many powerful rivals to baulk my hopes of preferment."

I asked him if he poffeffed any other wealth. "Yes," fays he, "I married the prettiest girl in the island, fhe has bleffed me with three children, and as we are both young, we may expect more--befides, I am so beloved in the island, that I have all my peats brought home; carriage free."

This is my ftory,-now to the prayer of my petition. I never before envied you the poffeffion of the Orkneys, which I now do, only to provide for this eloquent, innocent apoftle. The fun has refufed your barren fles his kindly influence ;-do not deprive them of so pleasant a preacher, let not fo great a treasure be for ever loft to that damn'd inhospitable country; for 1 affure you, were the archbishop of Canterbury to hear him, or hear of him, he would not do less than make him an archdeacon. The man has but one weakneis, that of preferring the Orkneys to all the earth.

This way, and no other, you have a chance for falvation.-Do this man good, and he will pray for you. This will be a better purchase than your Irith eftate or the Orkneys. I think it will help me forward too, fince I am the man who told you of the man fo worthy and deferving; fo pious, fo eloquent, and whofe prayer may do fo much good. Till I hear from you on this head, your's, in all meeknefs, love, and benevolence,

H. D.

P. S. Think what an unfpeakable pleasure it will be, to look down from heaven, and fee Rigby, Mafterton, all the Campbells and Nabobs, fwimming in fire and brimstone, while you are fitting with Whitfield, and all his old women, looking beautiful, frisking, and finging; all which you may have by fettling this man, after the death of the prefent incumbent.

To the Editor of the Bee.

SIR,

I AM much obliged to you for fo kindly admitting into your ufeful mifcellany, the excerpts from the hymns in profe I fometime ago communicated to you.-Since then, my ftate of health has been fuch as to prevent me from being able to fulfil my promife I embrace the firft opportunity that a fmall return of ftrength affords, to fend you the concluding extract that I promised, which I hope will not tend to injure the fale of your work. I have now learnt, that thefe, hymns were written by Mrs. Barbauld. They are printed in a duodecimo form, anno 1782, and fold by J. Johnfon, No. 12. St Paul's Church-Yard.

I fhall continue to read your mifcellany as long as health permits, if you adhere to your judicious refoJution of admitting nothing into it that has an immoral" tendency; and if my ftrength fhould return, I shall not fail to give you notice of any particular that occurs to me, which promifes to add to the value of your publication. With fincere good wishes, I am, &c.

SENEX.

June 8th, 1791. S

Hymn IV. and laft, communicated by Senex, continued from Vol. 11. page 264.

"CHILD of mortality, whence comeft thou? why is "thy countenance iad, and why are thine eyes red "with weeping?"

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I have feen the rofe in its beauty: it fpread its leaves in the morning fun. I returned; it was dying ppon its talk; the grace of the form of it was gone

its lovelinefs was vanished away; the leaves thereof were scattered on the ground, and no one gathered them again.

A ftately tree grew on the plain; its branches were covered with verdure; its boughs fpread wide, and made a goodly fhadow; the trunk was like a strong pillar; the roots were like crooked fangs.--I returned,

the verdure, was nipt by the qaft wind; the branches were lopt away by the ax; the worm had made its way into the trunk, and the heart thereof was decayed; it mouldered away, and fell to the ground.

I have seen, the infects fporting in the funfhine, and darting along the ftream; their wings glittered with gold and purple; their bodies fhone like the green eme rald; they were more numerous than I could count; their motions were quicker than my eye could glance. I returned; they were brushed into the pool; they were perishing with the evening breeze; the fwallow had devoured them; the pike had feized them; there was none found of fo great a multitude.

I have seen man in the pride of his ftrength; his cheeks glowed with beauty; his limbs were full of activity; he leaped; he walked; he ran he rejoiced in that he was more excellent than those.- -1 returned; he lay stiff and cold on the bare ground; his feet could no longer move, nor his hands ftretch themselves out; his life was departed from him, and the breath out of his noftrils:-Therefore do I weep, because DEATH is in the world; the fpoiler is among the works of God: all that is made, must be destroyed; all that is born, muft die.

"I also have feen the flower withering on the stalk, "and its bright leaves fpread on the ground.-—————1 "looked again, and it fprung forth afresh; the tem was crowned with new buds, and the sweetness thereof filled the air.