No. 120. Saturday, May 11, 1751. Redditum Cyri solio Phraaten.Dissidens plebi, numero beatorumEiimit virtus, populumque falsisDedocet uti Vocibus.–HOR. Lib. ii. Od. ii. 17. True virtue can the crowd unteachTheir false mistaken forms of speech;Virtue, to crowds a foe profest,Disdains to number with the blestPhraates, by his slaves ador’d,And to the Parthian crown restor’d.FRANCIS. In the […]

No. 121. Tuesday, May 14, 1751. O imitatores, servum pecus! Hor. Lib. i. Ep. xix. 19. Away, ye imitators, servile herd!ELPHINSTON. I have been informed by a letter from one of the universities, that among the youth from whom the next swarm of reasoners is to learn philosophy, and the next flight of beauties to […]

No. 111. Tuesday, April 9, 1751. [Greek: phronein gar hoi tacheis, ouk asphaleis.] SOPHOC. Disaster always waits on early wit. It has been observed, by long experience, that late springs produce the greatest plenty. The delay of blooms and fragrance, of verdure and breezes, is for the most part liberally recompensed by the exuberance and […]

No. 109. Tuesday, April 2, 1751. Gratum est, quod patriae civem populoque dedisti,Si facis, ut patriae sit idoneus, utilis agris,Utilis et bellorum et pacis rebus agendis.Plurimum enim intererit, quibus artibus, et quibus hunc tuMoribus instituasJuv. SAT, xiv. 70. Grateful the gift! a member to the state,If you that member useful shall create;Train’d both to war, […]

No. 110. Saturday, April 6, 1751 At nobis vitae dominum quaerentibus unumLux iter est, et clara dies, et gratia simplex.Spem sequimur, gradimurque fide, fruimurque futuris,Ad quae non veniunt praesentis gaudia vitae,Nec currunt pariter capta, et capienda voluptus.PRUDENTIUS, Cont. Sym. ii. 904. We through this maze of life one Lord obey;Whose light and grace unerring lead […]

No. 112. Saturday, April 13, 1751. In mea vesanas habui dispendia vires,Et valui paenam fortis in ipse meain.OVID, Am. Lib. i. vii. 25. Of strength pernicious to myself I boast;The pow’rs I have were given me to my cost.F. LEWIS. We are taught by Celsus, that health is best preserved by avoiding settled habits of […]

No. 113. Tuesday, April 16, 1751. –Uxorem, Postume, ducis?Die, qua Tisiphone, quibus exagitere colubris?JUV. Sat. vi. 28. A sober man like thee to change his life!What fury would possess thee with a wife?DRYDEN. TO THE RAMBLER. SIR, I know not whether it is always a proof of innocence to treat censure with contempt. We owe […]

No. 114. Saturday, April 20, 1751. —Audi,Nulla umquum de morte hominis cunctatio longa est.JUV. Sat. vi. 220. –When man’s life is in debate,The judge can ne’er too long deliberate.DRYDEN. Power and superiority are so flattering and delightful, that, fraught with temptation, and exposed to danger, as they are, scarcely any virtue is so cautious, or […]

No. 106. Saturday, March 23, 1751. Opinionum commenta delet dies, naturae judicia Confirmat.CICERO, vi. Att. 1. Time obliterates the fictions of opinion,and confirms the decisions of nature. It is necessary to the success of flattery, that it be accommodated to particular circumstances or characters, and enter the heart on that side where the passions stand […]

No. 107. Tuesday, March 26, 1751. Alternis igitur contendere versibns amboCoepere: alternos Musoe meminisse volebant.VIRG. Ec. vii. 18 On themes alternate now the swains recite;The muses in alternate themes delight.ELPHINSTON. Among the various censures, which the unavoidable comparison of my performances with those of my predecessors has produced, there is none more general than that […]

No. 108. Saturday, March 30, 1751. –Sapere aude:Incipe. Vivendi recte qui prorogat horam,Rusticus expectat dum defluat amnis; at illeLabitur et labetur in omne volubilis aevum.HOR. Lib. i. Ep. ii. 39. Begin, be bold, and venture to be wise;He who defers this work from day to day,Does on a river’s bank expecting stay,Till the whole stream, […]

Idler No. 97. Saturday, February 23, 1760. It may, I think, be justly observed, that few books disappoint their readers more than the narrations of travellers. One part of mankind is naturally curious to learn the sentiments, manners, and condition of the rest; and every mind that has leisure or power to extend its views, […]

Idler No. 98. Saturday, March 1, 1760. TO THE IDLER. Sir, I am the daughter of a gentleman, who during his lifetime enjoyed a small income which arose from a pension from the court, by which he was enabled to live in a genteel and comfortable manner. By the situation of life in which he […]

Idler No. 22 Many naturalists are of opinion, that the animals which we commonly consider as mute, have the power of imparting their thoughts to one another. That they can express general sensations is very certain; every being that can utter sounds, has a different voice for pleasure and for pain. The hound informs his […]

Idler No. 99. Saturday, March, MARCH 8, 1760. As Ortogrul of Basra was one day wandering along the streets of Bagdat, musing on the varieties of merchandise which the shops offered to his view, and observing the different occupations which busied the multitudes on every side, he was awakened from the tranquillity of meditation by […]

Idler No. 100. Saturday, March 15, 1760. TO THE IDLER. Sir, The uncertainty and defects of language have produced very frequent complaints among the learned; yet there still remain many words among us undefined, which are very necessary to be rightly understood, and which produce very mischievous mistakes when they are erroneously interpreted. I lived […]

Idler No. 101. Saturday, March 22, 1760. Carpe hilaris: fuget heu! non revocanda dies. Omar, the son of Hussan, had passed seventy-five years in honour and prosperity. The favour of three successive califs had filled his house with gold and silver; and, whenever he appeared, the benedictions of the people proclaimed his passage. Terrestrial happiness […]

Idler No. 102. Saturday, March 29, 1760. It very seldom happens to man that his business is his pleasure. What is done from necessity is so often to be done when against the present inclination, and so often fills the mind with anxiety, that an habitual dislike steals upon us, and we shrink involuntarily from […]

Idler No. 103 No. 103. SATURDAY, APRIL 5, 1760. Respicere ad longae jussit spatia ultima vitae. JUV. Sat. x. 275. Much of the pain and pleasure of mankind arises from the conjectures which every one makes of the thoughts of others; we all enjoy praise which we do not hear, and resent contempt which we […]

Idler No. 91. Saturday, January 12, 1760. It is common to overlook what is near, by keeping the eye fixed upon something remote. In the same manner present opportunities are neglected, and attainable good is slighted, by minds busied in extensive ranges, and intent upon future advantages. Life, however short, is made still shorter by […]