Above the worthless trophies man can raise, She seeks not honor, wealth, or any praise, But with herself, herself the goddess pays. A man cannot be bound by one benefit to suffer all sorts of injuries; for there are some cases wherein we lie under no obligation for a benefit, because a greater injury absolves it. As for example, a man helps me out of a law suit, and afterwards commits a rape upon my daughter; here, the following impiety cancels the antecedent obligation. A man lends me a little money, then sets my house on fire ; the debtor is here turned creditor, because the injury outweighs the benefit; nay, if he does but so much as repent the good office done, and grow sour and insolent upon it, and upbraid me with it; if he did it only for his own sake, or for any other reason than for mine, I am in some degree, more or less, acquitted of the obligation. You have yourself your kindness overpaid, He ceases to oblige who can upbraid. A certain person once had done me a singular piece of service, but had afterwards behaved himself very unworthily towards me. An occasion soon occurred which put it into my power to requite his ill offices; and I was urged to take advantage of it, by a friend of mine---or rather, an enemy of his. I object ed, that this man had formerly obliged and served me. True, he replied, but surely his ill behavior since that time, has sufficiently cancelled both the service and the obligation. By no means; merchants' accounts are never to be admitted into the higher and more liberal commerce of friendship. A person who has once obliged, has put it out of his power ever after to disoblige us. The scripture has inculcated a precept, to forgive our enemies; how much stronger then must the text imply, the forgiveness of our friends? The disobligation, therefore, being thus cancelled by religion, leaves the obligation without abatement in morality. A kindness can never be cancelled-not even by repaying it. OATHS. THE lawful use and end of swearing, is, to put an end to all strife, and to maintain both equity and charity among men; the two bonds and ligaments of society. Now, since it is the sovereign right and property of God alone, infallibly to search and try the hearts of men, he therefore becomes the infallible witness of the truth or falsehood of what they speak; so that in every such lawful oath. there is not only a solemn appeal, and in that appeal an inscription of glory to his sovereign omniscience, but therein they put themselves under his wrath and curse, in case they swear falsely, which makes this action most sacred and solemn. But to break in rudely and blasphemously. upon the sacred and tremendous name of God, with bold and full-mouthed oaths, striking through his sacred name with direct and contumelious blasphemies, this argues a heart from which all fear of God is utterly expelled and banished. Yet some there are, grown up to that prodigious height of impiety, that they dare assault the very heavens, and discharge whole vollies of blasphemies against that glorious Majesty which dwells there. They are not afraid to bid defiance to him, and challenge the God that made them to do his worst. They deck (as they account it) their common discourses with oaths, and horrid imprecations, not esteeming them genteel and modish without. It consists not with the greatness of their spirits to be wicked at the common rate. They are willing to demon⚫strate to the world, that they are none of those puny, silly fellows, that are afraid of invisible powers, or so much of a coward as to clip a full-mouthed oath, by suppressing, or whispering the emphatical sounding syllable, but think a horrid blasphemy makes the most sweet and graceful cadence in the hellish rhetoric. If there be a God, which they scarce believe, they are resolved audaciously to provoke him, to give them a convincing evidence of his being. And if he be, as they are told he is, rich in patience and forbearauce, they are resolved to try how far his patience will extend, and what load of wickedness it is capable to bear. If, therefore, destruction be not sure enough, they will do their utmost to make it so, by treading down the only bridge whereby they can escape it, that is, by trampling under their feet the precious blood and wounds of the Son of God, and imprecating the damnation of hell upon their souls, as if it slumbered too long, and was too slow paced in its motion towards them. It is common for some men to swear, only to fill up the vacuities of their empty dis course. Common swearing argues in a man, a perpetual distrust of his own reputation, and is an acknowledgment that he thinks his bare word not worthy of credit. The man of the world-the all accomplished earl of Chesterfield-says, "I was even absurd enough, for a little while to swear, by way of adorning and completing the shining character of the man of fashion, or pleasure, which I affected; but this folly I soon laid aside, upon finding both the guilt and the indecency of it." Listen ye Stanhopean pretenders, ye pretenders to politesse. The great Dr. Desagulier being invited to make one of an illustrious company, one of whom, an officer present, being unhappily addicted to swearing in his discourse, at the period of every oath, would continually as: the doctor's pardon; the doctor bore this levity for some time with patience; at length he was necessitated to silence the swearer with this fine rebuke: "Sir, you have taken some pains to render me ridiculous (if possible) by your pointed apologies; now, sir, I am to tell you, if God Almighty does not hear you, I assure you I will never tell him.” ADDRESSED TO AN OFFICER IN THE ARMY. By a Lady. Oh, that the muse might call, without offence, For the king's sake the brunt of battles bear, SWEAR. The infamous, though common, practice of cursing and swearing, upon the most trivial occasions, and of using the name of God irrev erently, prevail shamefully with many who |