Thoughts or Actions, and as very few would be thought guilty of this abominable Proceeding, which is fo univerfally practifed, and at the fame Time, fo univerfally blamed, I shall lay down three Rules by which I would have a Man examine and fearch into his own Heart, before he ftands acquitted to himself of that evil Difposition of Mind which I am here mentioning.

First of all, LET him confider whether he does not take delight in hearing the Faults of others.

Secondly, WHETHER he is not too apt to believe such little blackning Accounts, and more inclined to be credulous on the uncharitable than on the good-natured Side.

Thirdly, WHETHER he is not ready to spread and propagate fuch Reports as tend to the Difreputation of

THESE are the feveral Steps by which this Vice proceeds, and grows up into Slander and Defamation.

IN the first Place, A Man who takes Delight in hearing the Faults of others, fhews fufficiently that he has a true Relish of Scandal, and confequently the Seeds of this Vice within him. If his Mind is gratified with hearing the Reproaches which are caft on others, he will find the fame Pleasure in relating them, and be the more apt to do it, as he will naturally imagine every one he converfes with is delighted in the fame manner with himself. A Man fhould endeavour therefore to wear out of his Mind this criminal Curiofity, which is perpetually heighten'd and inflamed by liftning to fuch Stories as tend to the Difreputation of others.

IN the fecond Place, a Man fhould confult his own Heart, whether he be not apt to believe fuch little blackening Accounts, and more inclined to be credulous on the uncharitable, than on the good-natured Side.

SUCH a Credulity is very vicious in itself and generally arifes from a Man's Confcioufnefs of his own fecret Corruptions. It is a pretty Saying of Thales, Falfhood is just as far diftant from Truth, as the Ears are from the Eyes. By which he would intimate, that a wife Man fhould not eafily give Credit to the Reports of Actions which he has not ieen. I fhall,

G4

under

under this Head, mention two or three remarkable Rules to be obferved by the Members of the celebrated Abby de la Trape, as they are published in a little French Book.

THE Fathers are there ordered, never to give an Ear to any Accounts of bafe or criminal Actions; to turn off all fuch Difcourfe if poffible; but in Cafe they hear any Thing of this Nature fo well attefted that they cannot disbelieve it, they are then to fuppofe, that the criminal Action may have proceeded from a good Intention in him who is guilty of it. This is perhaps carrying Charity to an Extravagance, but it is certainly much more laudable, than to fuppofe, as the ill-natured Part of the World does, that indifferent and even good Actions, proceed from bad Principles and wrong Intentions.

IN the third Place, a Man fhould examine his Heart, whether he does not find in it a fecret Inclination to propagate fuch Reports, as tend to the Difreputation of

another.

WHEN the Disease of the Mind, which I have hitherto been fpeaking of, arifes to this Degree of Malignity it difcovers itfelf in its worft Symptoms, and is in Danger of becoming incurable. I need not therefore infift upon the Guilt in this laft Particular, which every one cannot but difapprove, who is not void of Humanity, or even common Difcretion. I fhall only add, that whatever Pleasure any Man may take in fpreading Whispers of this Nature, he will find an infinitely greater Satisfaction in conquering the Temptation he is under, by letting the Secret die within his own Breaft.

Friday,

No. 595. Friday, September 17.

I

Non ut placidis coeant immitia, non ut
Serpentes avibus geminenter, tigribus agni.

Hor.

F ordinary Authors would condefcend to write as they think, they would at least be allowed the Praise of being intelligible. But they really take Pains to be ridiculous; and, by the ftudied Ornaments of Style, perfectly difguife the little Senfe they aim at. There is a Grievance of this Sort in the Common-wealth of Letters, which I have for fome Time refolved to redrefs, and accordingly I have fet this Day apart for Juftice. What I mean is the Mixture of inconfiflent Metaphors, which is a Fault but too often found in learned Writers, but in all the unlearned without Exception.

In order to fet this Matter in a clear Light to every Reader, I fhall in the firft Place obferve, that a Metaphor is a Simile in one Word, which ferves to convey the Thoughts of the Mind under Refemblances and Ímages which affect the Senfes. There is not any Thing in the World, which may not be compared to feveral Things, if confidered in feveral diftinet Lights; or, in other Words, the fame Thing may be expreffed by dif ferent Metaphors. But the Mifchief is, that an unfkilful Author fhall run thefe Metaphors fo abfurdly into one another, that there fhall be no Simile, no agreeable Picture, no apt Refemblance, but Confufion, Obfcurity and Noife. Thus I have known a Hero compared to a Thunderbolt, a Lion, and the Sea; all and each of them proper Metaphors for Impetuofity, Courage or Force. But by bad Management it hath fo happened, that the Thunderbolt hath overflowed its Banks; the Lion hath been darted thro' the Skies; and the Billows have rolled out of the Libyan Delait.

THE Abfurdity in this Inftance is obvious. And yet every Time that clafhing Metaphors are put together, this Fault is committed more or lefs. It hath already been faid, that Metaphors are Images of Things which affect the Senfes. An Image therefore, taken from what acts upon the Sight, cannot, without Violence, be applied to the Hearing; and fo of the reft. It is no lefs an Impropriety to make any being in Nature or Art to do Things in its metaphorical State, which it could not do in its Original. I fhall illuftrate what I have faid by an Inftance which I have read more than once in controverfial Writers. The heavy Lashes, faith a celebrated Author, that have dropp'd from your Pen, &c. I fuppofe this Gentleman having frequently heard of Gall dropping from a Pen, and being lashed in a Satyr, he was refolved to have them both at any Rate, and fo uttered this compleat Piece of Nonfenfe. It will moft effectually discover the Abfurdity of these montrous Unions, if we will fuppofe these Metaphors or Images actually painted. Imagine then a Hand holding a Pen, and several Lashes of Whip-cord falling from it, and you have the true Representation of this Sort of Eloquence. I believe, by this very Rule, a Reader may be able to judge of the Union of all Metaphors whatfoever, and determine which are Homogeneous and which Heterogeneous; or to speak more plainly, which are confiftent, and which inconfiftent.

THERE is yet one Evil more which I must take Notice of, and that is the running of Metaphors into tedious Allegories; which, though an Error on the better Hand, caufes Confufion as much as the other; this becomes abominable, when the Luftre of one Word leads a Writer out of his Road, and makes him wander from his Subject for a Page together. I remember a young Fellow of this Turn, who having faid by Chance that his Mistress had a World of Charms, thereupon took Occafion to confider her as one poffeffed of frigid and torrid Zones, and pursued her from the one Pole to the other.

I shall conclude this Paper with a Letter written in that enormous Style, which I hope my Reader hath

by

by this Time fet his Heart againft. The Epiftle hath heretofore received great Applaufe; but after what hath been faid, let any Man commend it if he dare.

SIR,

A FTER the many heavy Lashes that have fallen from your Pen, you may justly expect in Return all the Load that: my Ink can lay upon your Shoulders. You have Quartered all the foul Language upon me, that could be raked out of the Air of Billingsgate, ⚫ without knowing who I am, or whether I deferve to be Cupped and Scarified at this rate. I tell you once for all, turn your Eyes where you please, you fhall · never Smell me out. Do you think that the Panicks, which you for about the Parish, will ever build a • Monument to your Glory? No, Sir, you may Fight thefe Battles as long as you will, but when you come to Ballance the Account, you will find that you have • been Fishing in troubled Waters, and that an Ignis fatuus hath bewildered you, and that indeed you have built upon a fandy Foundation, and brought your Hogs to a fair Market.

1 am SIR,

Yours, &c.

No. 596. Monday, September 20.

Molle meum levibus Cor eft violabile Telis.

TH

Ovid.

HE Cafe of my Correspondent who fends me the following Letter has fomewhat in it fo very whimfical, that I know not how to entertain my Reaers better than by laying it before them.