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thing let idle hours be spent more usefully. Let youth (faid he) take delight in good things; for pleasures are the baits of evil. Obferve; the momentary sweetness of a delicious life is followed with eternal forrow; the fhort pain of the contrary with eternal pleasure. Being commanded to put on a purple garment by the king of Sicily, he refufed, faying, He was a man, and scorned fuch effeminacies. Inviting Timothy, the Athenian general, to fupper, he treated him with herbs, water, and fuch fpare diet as he was accustomed to eat. Timothy's friends next day, laughing, afked, how he was entertained? he anfwered, Never better in his life; for he flept all night after his fupper: thereby commending his temperance. He addicted himself to religious contemplations; and is faid to have lived a virtuous and fingle life, always eyeing and obeying the MIND, which he fometimes called GOD, the Father of all things; affirming, Who lived fo, fhould become like him, and fo be related to, and joined with, the Divinity itself*. This fame Plato, upon his dying-bed, fent for his friends about him, and told them, The whole world was out of the way, in that they understood not, nor regarded, the Mind, (that is, God, or the word, or Begotten of God) affuring them, Those men died moft comfortably, that lived most conformable to Right Reason, and fought and adored the First Cause, meaning God.

§. LXVI. ANTISTHENES, an Athenian philofopher, had taught in the ftudy of eloquence feveral years; but upon hearing Socrates treat of the seriousness of religion, of the divine life, eternal rewards, &c. 'bad all his scholars feek them a new mafter; for he ' had found one for himself.' Wherefore felling his eftate, he distributed it to the poor, and betook himfelf wholly to the confideration of heavenly things; going chearfully fix miles every day, to hear Socra tes -But where are the like preachers and converts

Diog. Laert. in vit. Xen. Crat. Stob. Elian,
Laert. vit. Socr. Elian.

* Alcinous.

amongst

amongst the people called Chriftians! Obferve the daily pains of Socrates; furely he did not ftudy a week to read a written fermon: we are affured of the contrary; for it was frequent with him to preach to the people at any time of the day, in the very streets, as occafion ferved, and his Good Genius moved him. Neither was he an hireling, or covetous; for he did it gratis furely then he had not fat benefices, tithes, glebes, &c. And let the felf-denial and diligence of Antifthenes be confidered, who, of a philofopher and mafter, became a scholar, and that a daily one: furely, it was then matter of reproach, as it is now: fhewing thereby both want of knowledge, (though called a philofopher) and his great defire to obtain it of one that could teach him. None of these used to go to plays, balls, treats, &c. They found more serious employments for their minds, and were examples of temperance to the world. I will repeat fome of his grave fentences, as reported by Laertius and others, namely, That thofe only are noble who are virtuous, That virtue was felf-fufficient to happiness. That it confifteth in actions, not requiring many words, nor much learning, and is felf-fufficient to wifdom: for that all other things have reference thereunto. That men should not govern by force, nor by laws, unless good, but by juftice. To a friend, complaining hẹ had loft his notes, Thou shouldest have writ them upon thy mind (faith he) and not in a book. Those who would never die, muft live juftly and piously. Being asked, What learning was beft? That, faith he, which unlearneth evil. To one that praised a life full of pleasures and delicacies; Let the fons of my enemies, faith he, live delicately: counting it the greatest mifery. We ought, fays he, to aim at fuch pleasures as follow honeft labour; and not thofe which go before it*. When at any time he faw a woman richly dreffed, he would, in a way of reproach, bid her husband bring out his horfe and arms: meaning, if he were

Stob. ibid. 117. Diog. Laert.

prepared

prepared to justify the injuries fuch wantonnefs useth to produce, he might the better allow thofe dangerous freedoms: otherwife, faith he, pluck off her rich and gaudy attire. He is faid to exclaim bitterly against pleasures; often faying, I had rather be mad, than addicted to pleafure, and fpend my days in decking and feeding my carcafe. Thofe, fays he, who have once learned the way to temperance and virtue, let them not offer to entangle themselves again with fruitless stories, and vain learning; nor be addicted to corporal delicacies, which will dull the mind, and will divert and hinder them from the pursuit of those more noble and heavenly virtues *. Upon the death of his beloved master, Socrates, he inftituted a fect called Cynicks; out of whom came the great fect of the Stoicks: both which had thefe common principles, which they daily, with great and unwearied diligence, did maintain, and inftruct people in the knowledge of, viz. No man is wife or happy, but the good and virtuous man. That not much learning, nor study of many things, was neceffary. That a wife man is never drunk nor mad: that he never finneth. That a wife man is void of paffion: that he is fincere, religious, grave: that he only is divine. That fuch only are priests and prophets, who have God in themselves. And that his law is imprinted in their minds, and the minds of all men. That fuch an one ONLY can pray; is innocent, meek, temperate, ingenuous, noble; a good magiftrate, father, fon, mafter, fervant, and worthy of praise. On the contrary, that wicked men can be none of these. "That the fame belongs to men and ་་ women t."

Their diet was flender, their food only what would fatisfy nature. Their garments exceeding mean. Their habitations folitary and homely. They affirmed, those who lived with fewest things, and were contented, moft nearly approached God, who wants nothing.

Agel. lib. 9. c. 5. + Laert. vir. mem. Laert. Plut. de rep. Stoi. Stob. Cic. de Nat. Deo. lib. ii. Lect. de Ira Dei, cap. 10,

They

They voluntarily despised riches, glory, and nobility, as foolish fhews, and vain fictions, that had no true and folid worth or happiness in them. They made all things to be good and evil, and flatly denied the idle ftories of fortune and chance*.

Certainly these were they, who having no external law, became a law unto themselves;' and did not abuse the knowledge they had of the invifible God; but to their capacities inftructed men in the knowledge of that righteous, ferious, folid and heavenly Principle, which leads to true and everlasting happiness all those that embrace it.

§. LXVII. XENOCRATES refufed Alexander's prefent, yet treated his ambaffadors after his temperate and fpare manner; faying, You fee I have no need of your master's bounty, that am fo well pleased with this. He would fay, That one ought not to carry one's eyes or one's hands into another man's house; that is, be a bufy-body. That one ought to be most circumfpect of one's actions before children, left by example one's faults fhould out-live one's felf. He faid, Pride was the greatest obstruction to true knowledge. His chastity and integrity were remarkable, and reverenced in Athens Phryne, the famous Athenian courtezan, could not place a temptation upon him; nor Philip, king of Macedon, a bribe; though the reft fent in the embaffy were corrupted. And being once brought for a witness, the judges rofe up, and cried out, Tender no oath to Xenocrates, for he will speak the truth! A respect they did not allow to one another. Holding his peace at fome detracting difcourfe, they afked him, why he spoke not? Because, faith he, I have fometimes repented of fpeaking, but never of holding my peace †.

§. LXVIII. BION would fay, That great men walk in flippery places. That it is a great mischief not to bear affliction. That ungodliness is an enemy to affurance.

Plut. Pl. Ph. 16. Cic. Tufc. Queft. 4. Diog. Laert. vit. Mem. Stob. Laert. Val. Max. 4. 3. 2. 16. Cic. pro Fal. Val. Max. 7. 2.

He

He said to a covetous man, That he did not possess his wealth, but his wealth poffeffed him; abftaining from ufing it, as if it were another man's. In fine, That men ought to purfue a courfe of virtue, without regard to the praife or reproach of men.

§. LXIX. DEMONAX, feeing the great care that men had of their bodies, more than of their minds; They deck the house, faith he, but flight the mafter. He would fay, That many are inquifitive after the make of the world, but are little concerned about their own, which were a science much more worthy of their pains. To a city that would establish the gladiators, or prizefighters, he said, That they ought firft to overthrow the Altar of Mercy: intimating the cruelty of such practices. One asking him, why he turned philofopher? Because, faith he, I am MAN. He would fay of the priests of Greece, If they could better inftruct the people, they could not give them too much; but if not, the people could not give them too little. He lamented the unprofitablenefs of good laws, by being in bad mens hands.

§. LXX. DIOGENES was angry with criticks, that were nice of words, and not of their own actions; with musicians, that tune their inftruments, but could not govern their paffions; with aftrologers, that have their eyes in the sky, and look not to their own goings; with orators, that study to speak well, but not to do well; with covetous men, that take care to get, but never use their eftates; with thofe philofophers, that despise greatness, and yet court great men; and with those that facrifice for health, and yet furfeit themselves with eating their facrifices. One time, difcourfing of the nature, pleasure and reward of virtue, and the people not regarding what he said, he fell a finging; at which every one preffed to hear: whereupon he cried out, in abhorrence of their ftupidity, O God, 'how much more is the world in love with folly, than ' with wisdom!' Seeing a man sprinkling himself with water, after having done fome ill thing; Unhappy man! faith he, dost thou not know that the errors of

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