the diffenting ministers had been in use to receive two thousand pounds a year from government; that the Earl of Bute had, as he thought, most improperly deprived them of this allowance, and that he supposed this to be the real motive of their virulent opposition to govern ment. If you think these notes worthy a place in your mifcellany, they are at your service. I have avoided many personal remarks which the Doctor threw out, as they might give pain to individuals, and I commit nothing to your care, which I believe, that I could have much offended the Doctor by transmitting to the press. I am, Sir, Yours &c. In a busy country such as ours of Great Britain, I confider every man, woman, and child, who does not add to the public stock, by lucrative industry, as abiolutely idle, though relatively, they may be exceedingly active both in body and mind. But there are men and women, whose rank, fortune and fituation are such as to exempt them from the necessity of professional occupation; and some are almost precluded from productive employments, such as Peers, Peeresses, Archbishhops, Bishops, Clergy, old Admirals and Generals; for whose use, and the instruction of the heirs of great eftates, who think themselves entitled to be idle, these lucubrations are most humbly dedicated, by a man who has made confiderable proficiency in the art of idlenefs, and is, with great respect, their most faithful and obedient fervant, ALBANICUS. Effay on the Art of Idleness. HAVING often observed with disgust, the hackneyed subjects of essayists in newspapers and magazines, not excepting those of the professed writers of periodical papers, in imitation of the Spectators, Tatlers, and Guardians, I had figured to myself, about a dozen of years ago, the possibility of entertaining and instructing the readers of fuch fugitive pieces, with a series of papers, on the art of employing leisure and fortune, by the idle and opulent. When I was thus amusing my imagination with a project of future authorship, in the end of March 1777, I received from a worthy Baronet of my acquaintance, the following letter, which, as it will ferve me for a text, I shall present a copy of it to my readers, and then proceed to make my reflections; and may the god or goddess of idleness, if there is, or ever was such a faint, bless my endeavours to be useful to my brethren and sisters ! SIR, " THIS morning only I received your letter of March 12th, fo I find myself doubly a debtor, first for a vifit, then for the letter; and I find it most for the conveniency of my affairs, first to pay the last debt. " I find that time is passed with you, much in the fame manner as at my refidence. " I never had any ambition for the reputation of an author, yet I have frequently had it in my head, to write a treatife, which should be entitled The Art of Idleness. "The purport of it would be, to teach men, who had no regular business, and were above the neceffity of pursuing fome occupation, how to pass their time innocently, agreeably, and even usefully. I would begin by shewing that all gamesters, horferacers, with a VOL. III. + B great et catera of such useless and pernicious people, did not fall under the head of my treatise, as not being idle men, but ill employed ones, who have all the restlessness and anxiety of defires unsatisfied, and are therefore to be counted among men of business. My pupils seek amusements that are innocent, easy, always in their own power to procure; such as improve the mind, and fit it for farther enjoyment, and finally are beneficial to mankind. One of them having nothing to do, incloses ten barren acres worthy only a shilling per acre of yearly rent; and whilft he is pleasing himself with feeing his hedges grow, and to find a fresh verdure where there was only blasted heath before, he is agreeably furprised to find his ten acres now yield ten pounds a-year. If a rainy day confine him at home to his house, that is a day of high entertainment, for he will furely fee some new beauty in Virgil, or other claffic, that he had not observed before, find out the cause of some appearance in nature which he had not hitherto explored, feast on a dish of Tacitus, Hume, or Voltaire, or take his pen and write a letter that has nothing in it, to some one whom he hopes " Suas effe aliquid putare nugas," and pleases himself before hand with the fatisfaction he shall receive when he gets an answer. I would choose for the motto of this treatife, or rather, I should say the text for this sermon, Pauci quos æquus amavit "Observe, my beloved, how my text naturally divides itself into three heads, and how absolutely necefsary it is that all three should concur to form the happy hero of idleness, whom I rather frame to myself in idea, than ever expect to meet with. "1st. Æquus amavit Jupiter. He must have a happy natural difpofition, as the foundation on which so magnificent a superstructure is to be raised. "2dly, Ardens Virtus. It is impoffible for a perfon to be happy if his mind is gnawed by reflections on an ill spent life, or distracted with unsatisfied defires, and diforderly passions. "3dly, and lastly. Dis geniti, which was an expreffion ufed by the ancients to express what we more fimply call, men of a good family. Though no descent, however illustrious, can compenfate for want of perfonal merit, yet where that favourable circumstance concurs in a person that has the two foregoing necessary qualifications, it contributes much to elevate the mind, and affists it to contemn low pursuits. Such men too are generally so early initiated in the art of idleness, that it becomes habitual to them, and they enjoy it with an ease and elegance that can scarcely ever be attained by others. " I have often known worthy men whose industry had raised them to a great fortune, who then purchased an estate in the country in hopes of enjoying that happy idleness that is the subject of my discourse. But the first vifits of ceremony were scarce paid and received, when they and their neighbours were equally diffatisfied with one another, for no other reason, but because the parties on one fide having been habituated to bufinefs, knew not how to enjoy their leisure with that ease the other could do who had been idle all their lives. " I have made such a progress in this art, as is scarcely credible. I received some days ago a letter from a friend in London, telling me he had recovered two hundred pounds for me that I had despaired of, and that I might draw for it when I pleased. Most people would have gone to town immediately, but I put off my journey till to-morrow, when I must neceffarily go however, and if it were not that I am obliged to pay away part of it, I would almost rather want the money than be at the trouble of negotiating the business at a banker's. Do I not deserve a diftinguished place a. mong the favourite fons of idleness ? " I am, Sir, with regard, your faithful humble Servant, March 26th 1777 J. F." As I propose, in the continuation of this Effay in some future Number of the Bee, to enter seriously into the discussion of the proper education and exercise of the legitimate fons and daughters of idleness, I shall content myself in this place to observe, that the idleness I describe is systematic; that it leads to tranquillity in the midst of variety; that it is epicurean in practice, but in principle stoic; that it is social, yet independent of external circumstances; that it is easy and gay, yet not flippant; multifarious, yet not irregular, or confused in its operations; that it enables its practitioners to be continually amusing to others without preffing upon their time, and more important occupations; that it is serviceable in town, in the country, at home and abroad; travels with you, and follows you in your night gown to your elbow-chair, leaves you not on your pillow, awakes with you in the morn. ing, and carries you through all the viciffitudes of yo r existence. A detached thought. THE person we love is always more esteemed than he deferves; the perfon we do not love, we always efteem the least it is in our power; we even seek to defpise him, and for ordinary succeed in it. At first, that contempt is not fincere; but insensibly it becomes more so; and at last we grow to hate in good earnest, to despise an estimable person against whom we have some cause of hatred: If, however, we are forced to esteem him, we hate him the more for that, |