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"and be wife, and let not Habit prevail against "thee." I started, and beheld myself surrounded by the rocks of Teneriffe; the birds of light were finging in the trees, and the glances of the morning darted

upon me.

THE

PICTURE

OF

HUMAN LIFE.

Tranflated from the GREEK of CEBES, a Difciple of SOCRATES.

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S we were walking in the temple of Saturn, and obferving feveral of the prefents dedicated to that god, we were particularly ftruck with a picture hung up before one of the chapels. Both the manner and the fubject of it feemed to be foreign; fo that we were at a lofs to know either whence, or what it was. What it reprefented was neither a city nor a camp; but an inclofure, containing two other inclofures, the one larger, and the other lefs. To the outer inclosure there was a portal, with a great number of perfons ftanding before it, and feveral females within; and an aged man ftanding by the portal, in the attitude of giving directions to those who were going in.

After we had been debating among ourselves for fome time, what all these things fhould mean, an elderly perfon, who happened to be by, addreffed himself to us in the following manner:

Old Citizen. As you are ftrangers, 'tis no wonder that you fhould be at a lofs to find out the meaning

of

of this picture; fince feveral of the natives of this city themselves know not the true intent of it: and indeed it was not placed here by any of our citizens, but by a ftranger who vifited thefe parts feveral years ago. He was a very fenfible man, and a great philofopher; and, both in his converfation and practice, feemed to approach nearer to the doctrines of Pythagoras and Parmenides, than to any other of our fects. It was he who built this temple and dedicated this picture in it to Saturn.

Stranger. Have you then feen the very person who gave it and was you acquainted with him?

O. C. Yes, I was both well acquainted with him, and admired him very much; for though he was rather young, his converfation was full of wifdom; and, among other things, I have often heard him explaining the fubject of the picture before us.

S. I intreat you, if it will not be too troublesome, to acquaint us with his explanation of it, for it is what we were all longing to know.

O. C. That will be rather a pleafure than any trouble to me; but I ought to forewarn you of one thing before I begin, which is this, that the hearing it, is attended with fome danger.

S. What danger can there be in that?

O. C. It is no lefs than this, that if you obferve and follow the leffon than it gives you, it will make you wife and happy; but if you neglect it, you will be most miferable and wretched all your days. So that the explaining of this, is not unlike the riddle faid to have been propofed to people by the fphynx, which if the hearer understood, he was faved; but if not, he was to be deftroyed. It is much the fame VOL. II. E e

in

in the present cafe; for ignorance is full as dangerous in life, as the fphynx was fuppofed to be in the fable. Now the picture before us includes all the doctrine of what is good in life, what is bad, and what indifferent ; fo that if you should take it wrong, you will be deftroyed by it; not indeed all at once, as the people were by that monster; but by little and little, through all the refidue of your life, as those are who are given up to be put to death by flow tortures. On the contrary, if you understand it aright, then will your ignorance be deftroyed, and you will be faved, and become happy and bleft for all the rest of your days. Do you, therefore, attend carefully to what I shall fay to you, and obferve it as you ought.

S. O heavens, how have you encreafed our longing to hear, what may be of fuch very great import

ance to us!

O. C. It is certainly of the greateft that can be.

S. Explain it then to us immediately, we beseech you; and be affured, that we will liften to you with all the care and attention, that a matter which concerns us fo greatly muft demand.

O. C. You fee this grand inclofure. All this circuit, is the CIRCUIT OF HUMAN LIFE, and that great number of people ftanding before the portal, are those who are to enter into life. This aged perfon, who ftands by the entrance holding a paper in one of his hands, and pointing with the other, is the GENIUS who directs all that are going in, what they fhould do after they are entered into life; and fhews them which way they ought to take in order to be happy

in it.

S. And

S. And which is the way that he fhews them? where is it?

O. C. Do you fee that feat on the other fide, before the portal; and the woman fitting on it, with a cup in her hand? She who is fo finely dreffed out, and makes fo plaufible an appearance?

S. I fee her; and pray who is she?

O. C. She is DECEIT, the misleader of man.

S.

And what does fhe do there?

O. C. As they are entering into life, the offers them to drink of her cup.

S. And what does her cup contain?

O. C. Ignorance and error; of which when they have drunk, they enter into life.

S. And do all drink of this cup?

O. C. All drink of it; but fome more, and fome lefs. A little farther, within the portal, don't you see a company of loose women, with a great deal of variety both in their drefs and airs?

S. I fee them.

O. C.

Those are the OPINIONS, DESIRES, and PLEASURES; who, as the multitude enter, fly to them; embrace each of them with great earnestnefs; and then lead them away with them.

S. And whither do they lead them?

O. C. Some to the way of fafety; and others, to perdition through their folly.

S. Ah, why did they drink of that liquor before they came in?

O. C. All of them alike tell thofe whom they are embracing, that they will lead them to what is best, and will make their lives quite happy; whilst the new comers, blinded by the large draughts they Ee 2

have

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