for ever furround us, it may be neceffary to awaken ourselves to some calculation of the proportions between fuch habitual omiffion of all that is good, and the commission of more heinous acts of fin; between wafting our whole life in what is falsely called innocent amusement, and disgracing it by faults which would alarm society more, though possibly they might injure it lefs. How amazing is the distance between the extreme of negligence and telf-indulgence in fuch nominal Christians, and the oppofite excess of rigour, which fome have unhappily thought meritorious! between a Pafcal (who dreaded the influence of pleafure so much, as to wear an iron, which he pressed into his fide whenever he found himself taking delight in any object of sense) and those who think life lent them only to be squandered away in sensual diversions, and the frivolous indulgence of vanity? What a strange composition is man! ever diverging from the right lineforgetting the true end of his being-or widely mistaking the means that lead to it? If it were indeed true, that the Supreme Being had made it the condition of our future happiness, that we should spend the days of our pilgrimage here on earth in voluntary fuffering and mortification, and a continual opposition to every inclination of nature, it would furely be worth while to conform even to these conditions, however rigorous: and we fee, by numerous examples, that it is not more than human creatures are capable of, when fully persuaded that their eternal interests demand it. But if, in fact, the laws of God are no other than directions for the better enjoyment of our existence-if he has forbid us nothing that is not pernicious, and commanded nothing that is not highly advantageous to us if, like a beneficent parent, he inflicts neither punishment nor constraint unneceffarily, but makes our good the end of all his injunctions-it will then appear much more extraordinary that we should perversely go on in conftant and acknowledged neglect of those injunctions. Is there a fingle pleasure worthy of a rational being, which is not, within certain limitations, confiftent with religion and virtue ? And are not the limit, within which we are permitted to enjoy them, the fame, which are prescribed by reafon and nature, and which we cannot exceed without manifest hurt to ourselves, or others? It is not the life of a hermit that is enjoined us: it is only the life of a rational being, formed for fociety, capable of continual improvement, and confequetly of continual advancement in happiness. It is vain, however, to think of recalling those whom long habits, and the established tyranny of pride and vanity, have almoft precluded from a possibility of improving by advice, and in whom the very defire of amendment is extinguished; but for those who are now entering on the stage of life, and who have their parts to chuse, how earnestly could I wish for the spirit of perfuafion for fuch a warning voice' as should make itself heard amidit all the gay bustle that furrounds them! it should cry to them without ceasing, not to be led away by the croud of fools, without knowing whither they are going-not to exchange real happiness for the empty name of pleasure-not to prefer fashion to immortality and not fancy it possible for them to be innocent, and at the fame time useless. CHARACTERS by the Duke of BERWICK. In the Life of the Duke of Berwick, natural Son of James II, which we gave in our Magazine for August 1777, Page 57, Mention is made of two Volumes of Manuscript Memoirs, written by him, which remained in the French King's Library. Those Memoirs have fince been published, and from the English Tranflation we have felected the following detached Articles, as Specimens of the literary Abilities and Sentiments of the Author, for the Entertainment of our Readers. ed on permiffion to celebrate the marriage in public, with pomp, and in presence of the King and all the Royal Family. The Princes of the Blood remonstrated; and the King forbad him to think any more of the marriage. But Lausun, far from having a proper refpect for his master and benefactor, was transported to such a degree of rage, that he reproached the King with having forfeited his word, and even broke his fword in his prefence, telling him, he did not deserve that it should ever be drawn again in his fervice. The King, notwithstanding this impertinence, offered to forget all that had past, and even to make him a Duke, Marshal of France, and Governor of a Province, provided he would give up his pretenfions to Mademoiselle; but he refused every thing; in so much, that the King, highly provoked, confined him to the caftle of Pignerol, where he remained many years, till Mademoiselle, whom he had fecretly espoufed, gave the Principality of Dombes to the Duke of Mayne, to obtain his release. He afterwards went over to England, from whence, in 1688, he returned to France with the Queen and Prince of Wales. The Most Christian King, at the request of the Queen, promoted him to a Dukedom, and gave him the fame freedom of access he had formerly. When he came to Ireland, at the head of the auxiliary troops, he made it appear, that, if ever he had had any knowledge of the military profeffion, he had by that time totally forgotten it. At the action of the Boyne, I was with him in the morning, when the enemy paffed the river at Slane; he faid, we must attack them; but while he was endeavouring to find out a proper spot to act upon, the enemy had time to get into the plain and form themselves : after which I observed to him, that there, was no poffibility of charging them. In short, in Ireland, he shewed neither capacity nor resolution; though on other occafions he was faid to be a man of fo great personal bravery. He had a fort of fenfe, which confifted only in turning every thing to ridicule, infinuating himself into every body's confidence, worming out their fecrets, aud playing upon their foi bles. He was noble in his carriage, generous, and grand in his mode of living. He loved high play, and played much like a gentleman. His figure was very diminutive, and it is impoffible to conceive now he could ever have become a favourite with the ladies. After the death of Mademoiselle, he married the daugh ter of the Marshal de Lorges, by whom he had no children. The King of England gave him the order of the Garter. The DUKE of TYRCONNEL. Richard Talbot, Duke of Tyrconnel, was a native of Ireland, of a good family: his stature was above the ordinary fize: he had great experience in the world, having been early introduced into the beft company, and poffefsed of an honourable employment in the houshold of the Duke of York; who, upon his fucceffion to the crown, raised him to the dignity of an Earl, and well knowing his zeal and attachment, made him foon after Vice-roy of Ireland. He was a man of very good sense, very obliging, but immoderately vain, and full of cunning. Though he had acquired great poffeffions, it could not be faid, that he had employed improper means, for he never appeared to have a passion for money. He had not a military genius, but much courage. After the Prince of Orange's invasion, his firmness preserved Ireland, and he nobly refused all the offers that were made to induce him to submit. From the time of the battle of Boyne, he sank prodigioufly, being become as irresolute in his mind, as unwieldy in his perfon. GENERAL SARSFIELD. Patrick Sarsfield was by birth a Gentleman, and succeeded, by the death of his elder brother, to an estate of about two thousand pounds a year. He was a man of an amazing stature, utterly void of sense, very good-natured and very brave. He had served as Enfign in France, in the regiment of Monmouth, and had also been Lieutenant of the life-guards in England. When the King went over to Ireland, he gave him a regiment of cavalry, and made him Brigadier. The affair of the convoy,. in which he was victorious, elated him fo much, that he thought himself the greatelt General in the world. Henry Luttrell contributed as much as poffible to turn his head, by incessantly praising him to all companies; not out of any real esteem he had for him, but to make him popular, and by that means render him fubfervient to his own designs. In effect, the Irish in general conceived so high an opinion of him, that the King, to gratify them, created him Earl of Lucan, and in the next promotion made him Major-general. ter the capitulation of Limerick, he went over to France, where the King gave him a troop of life-guards, and the Moft Chrif Af tian tian King made him Major-general. He was killed in 1693 at the battle of Neerwinden. Marshal DUKE of LUXEMBURG. In the winter of 1695, died the Marshal Duke of Luxemburg, universally regretted by military men. Never man was poffefsed of more courage, vivacity, prudence, and ability; never man had more the confidence of the troops under his command; but the inactivity that had been observed in him after several of his victories, gave rife to a fufpicion that he was not fond of putting an end to a war, from an opinion that he could not make the same figure at Court, as at the head of a hundred thou fand men. When the business was to A CONCISE HISTORY of the ORIGIN and PROGRESS of the present unhappy DISPUTES between GREAT BRITAIN and the AMERICAN COLONIES, continued from Page 296 of our Magazine for December laft. CHAP. ΧΧΧΙΙΙ. Lord North's conciliatory Motion-Petition and Memorial from Jamaica-Bill for restraining the Trade of the Southern Colonies. WHILST parties thus purfued their to be carried to the account of fuch pro debates with much eagerness and animo- refpect of fuch province or colony, to levy vince, colony, or plantation respectively. B2 thority of raising their share of the contribution themselves. That this refolution would be an infallible touchstone to try the fincerity of the Americans; if their profeffions are real, and their oppofition only founded upon the principles which they pretend, they muft, confiftently with those principles, agree with this propofition; but if they are actuated by finister motives, and have dangerous designs in contemplation, their refufal of these terms will expose them to the world We shall then be prepared, and know how to act; after having shewn our wisdom, our justice, and our humanity, by giving them an opportunity of redeeming their paft faults, and holding out to them fitting terms of accommodation; if they reject them, we shall be justified in taking the most coercive meafures, and they must be answerable to God and man for the confequences. He declared himself of opinion, that no declaration of his, or even of the House itself, could bind to an adherence strictly to any former refolution relative to the fubmiffion to be required of the colonies, previous to a relaxation on our fide. That the greatest nations, this nation in cluded, had often made the most folemn declarations, and entered into the most religious engagements to adhere unalterably to certain points, which afterwards, when circumstances changed, they departed from without fcruple and without blame. He instanced in the late Spanish war, in which we declared, that we should never make peace unless the point of fearch was given up; yet peace was made without giving up the fearch. In the grand alliance, the parties engaged, to each other that no Prince of the House of Bourbon should fit on the Throne of Spain; yet peace was made with a Prince of the House of Bourbon fitting on that Throne. He cited many other instances of a like dereliction of objects, and displayed great hiftorical knowledge and ability in applying it. He added, that in this instance he was the more ready to give way, because it was found by experience, that besides the difpleafure cur attempt to tax had caufed in the colonies, the result proved very unproductive in point of revenue, from the want of a local knowledge of the beit methods of impofing and collecting the duties. Upon the first bruit of conciliatory meafures being proposed by the Minifter, it was furmised, that he was either going to refign, and would first make a disavowal of those public measures which had been lately pursued, or that from fome ftrange convulfion in the internal Cabinet the whole political system of Government was to be changed. From some perplexity in its construction, and obscurity in the words, the extent or drift of the motion was not immediately comprehended. The Courtiers looked at each other with amazement, and seemed at a loss in what light to confider the Minister. That numerous high prerogative party, who always loved a ttrong Government, in whatever hands it might be lodged, and accordingly had, upon principle, ever oppofed any relaxation in favour of the colonies, heard the propofitions with horror, and confidered themselves as abandoned and betrayed. Even fome of the old ftaunch friends of Government, who had always gone with every Administration, and uniformly purfued the fame line of conduct in all changes of men and measures, began now more than to waver. The oppofition to the Minifter's motion accordingly originated on his own fide. They afierte afierted, that the propofitions contained in it, so far from being founded upon, were in direct opposition to every principle and idea of the address; that by adopting it they must give up every ground they had gone upon in the whole course of American measures; that it was a contradiction to all the acts and declarations of Parliament; that even upon the principles of the Gentlemen in oppofition, (to whom it was intended as a means of paying Court) it could be productive of no good confequence; but upon their own, would be attended with numberless bad ones; that the proposal was, in effect, an acknowledgment of fomething really grievous in the idea of talking America by Parliament; that it was therefore a shameful prevarication, and a mean departure from principle. They finally concluded, that they would make no conceffions to rebels with arms in their hands; and that they would enter into no measure for a fettlement with the Americans, in which an express and definitive acknowledgement from them, of the fupremacy of Parliament, was not a preliminary article. So high was the diffatisfaction on this fide, that a motion was made for the Chairman of the Committee to quit the chair. The Minister was repeatedly called upon his legs, either to make explanations, or to endeavour to reconcile seeming contradictions. In this state of disorder and confofion, when all Government and command feemed at an end, it was found necessary to change 1 : FOR JANUARY, 1780. change the ground no revenue. This explanation had so good an effect, that the Minifter himself improved upon the idea, and acknowledged, in the course of the debate, that he did not expect his propositions would be generally received by the Americans, but that he intended by them to feparate the grain from the chaff. If it did no good there, it would do good here; it would unite the people of England by holding out to them a diftinct object of revenue; as it united England, it would disunite America: whatever province came first to make a dutiful offer, would be kindly and gently treated; and 13 whole confederacy would be broken; and be diffolved. from controverting any of the charges that The Gentlemen in opposition were far were brought on the other fide against the motion. They allowed every quality that had been ascribed to it except conciliation, it led to peace, their eagerness for that which they utterly denied its poffeffing. If ceive it, under all the circumstances of conwished-for object would induce them to retradiction, prevarication, ineanness, and humiliation, with which it was faid, and they acknowledged it to be loaded. But which with them would have atoned for all instead of poffeffing that happy property, its bad ones, they faid it was infidious, base, and treacherous, in the highest degree; and calculated to render incurable all those mischiefs which it pretended to remedy; that it was founded upon the wretched principles of the Botton Port-bill, and would be productive of similar effects. tion with which this motion was received memorial of an extraordinary nature, from Affembly of |