N° 463. was infcribed by the Word Eternity; tho' I threw in that of Time, Profperity, Affliction, Wealth, Poverty, Intereft, Succefs, with many other Weights, which in my Hand feemed very ponderous, they were not able to ftir the oppofite Ballance, nor could they have prevailed, though aflifted with the Weight of the Sun, the Stars, and the Earth.

UPON emptying the Scales, I laid feveral Titles and Honours, with Pomps, Triumphs, and many Weights of the like Nature, in one of them, and feeing a little glittering Weight lie by me, I threw it accidentally into the other Scale, when, to my great Surprize, it proved fo exact a Counterpoife, that it kept the Ballance in an Equilibrium. This little glittering Weight was infcribed upon the Edges of it with the Word Vanity. I found there were feveral other Weights which were equally Heavy,and exact Counterpoifes to one another; a few of them I tried, as Ava rice and Poverty, Riches and Content, with fome others.

THERE were likewife feveral Weights that were of the fame Figure, and feemed to Correfpond with each other, but were entirely different when thrown into the Scales; as Religion and Hypocrifie, Pedantry and Learning, Wit and Vivacity, Superftition and Devotion, Gravity and Wifdom, with many others.

Í obferved one particular Weight lettered on both fides, and upon applying my felf to the Reading of it, I found on one fide written, In the Dialect of Men, and underneath it, CALAMITIES; on the other fide was written, In the Language of the Gods, and underneath BLESSINGS. I found the intrinfick Value of this Weight to be much greater than I imagined, for it over-powered Health, Wealth, Good Fortune, and many other Weights, which were much more ponderous in my Hand than the other.

THERE is a Saying among the Scotch, that an Ounce of Mother is worth a Pound of Clergy; I was fenfible of the Truth of this Saying, when I faw the Difference betwen the Weight of Natural Parts, and that of Learning. The Obfervation which I made upon these two Weights opened to me a new Field of Difcoveries, for notwithstanding the Weight of Natural Parts was much heavier than that of Learning; I obferved that it weighed

7.

weighed an hundred times heavier than it did before, when I put Learning into the fame Scale with it. I made the fame Obervation upon Faith and Morality; for notwithftanding the latter out-weighed the former feparately, it received a thousand times more additional Weight from its Conjunction with the former, than what it had by it felf. This odd Phænomenon fhewed it felf in other Particulars, as in Wit and Judgment, Philofophy and Religion, Juftice and Humanity, Zeal and Charity, Depth. of Senfe and Perfpicuity of Style, with innumerable other Particulars too long to be mentioned in this Faper.

AS a Dream feldom fails of dafhing Serioufnefs with Impertinence, Mirth with Gravity, methought I made feveral other Experiments of a more ludicrous Nature, by one of which I found that an English Octavo was very often heavier than a French Folio; and by another, that an old Greek or Latin Author weighed down a whole Library of Moderns. Seeing one of my Spectators lying by me, I laid it into one of the Seales, and flung a two-penny Piece into the other. The Reader will not enquire into the Event, if he remembers the first Tryal which I have recorded in this Paper. I afterwards threw both the Sexes into the Ballance; but as it is not for my Intereft to difoblige either of them, I fhall defire to be excufed from telling the Refult of this Experiment. Having an Opportunity of this Nature in my Hands, I could not forbear throwing into one Scale the Principles of a Tory, and into the other thofe of a Whig; but as I have all along declared this to be a Neutral Paper, I fhall likewife defire to be filent under this Head alfo, though upon examining one of the Weights, I faw the Word TEKEL Engraven on it in Capital

Letters.

I made many other Experiments, and though I have not room for them all in this Day's Speculation, I may perhaps referve them for another. I fhall only add, that upon my awaking I was forry to find my Golden Scales vanished, but resolved for the future to learn this Leffon from them, not to defpife or value any Things for their Appearances, but to regulate my Efteem and Paffions towards them according to their real and intrinfick Va

lue.

C

No 464.

I

Friday, Auguft 22.

Auream quifquis mediocritatem
Diligit, tutus caret obfoleti
Sordibus tecti, caret invidendâ

Sobrius aulâ.

Hor

Am wonderfully pleafed when I meet with any Paffage in an old Greek or Latin Author, that is not blown upon, and which I have never met with in a Quotation. Of this kind is a beautiful Saying in Theognis; Vice is covered by Wealth, and Virtue by Poverty; or to give it in the Verbal Tranflation, Among Men there are fome who have their vices concealed by Wealth, and others who have their Virtues concealed by Poverty. Every Man's Obfervation will fupply him with Inftances of Rich Men, who have feveral Faults and Defects that are overlooked, if not entirely hidden, by means of their Riches; and, I think, we cannot find a more Natural Defcription of a Poor Man, whofe Merits are loft in his Poverty, than that in the Words of the Wife Man. There was a little City, and few Men within it; and there came a great King against it, and befieged it, and built great Bulwarks against it: Now there was found in it a poor Wife Man, and he, by his Wifdom, delivered the City; yet no Man remembered that fame poor Man. Then faid I, Wisdom is better than Strength; nevertheless, the poor Man's Wisdom is despised, and his Words are not heard.

THE middle Condition feems to be the most advantageously fituated for the gaining of Wifdom. Poverty turns our Thoughts too much upon the fupplying of our Wants, and Riches upon enjoying our Superfluities; and, as Cowley has faid in another Cafe, It is hard for a Man to keep a steady Eye upon Truth, who is always in a Battel or a Triumph.

IF we regard Poverty and Wealth, as they are apt to produce Virtues or Vices in the Mind of Man, one may obferve, that there is a Set of each of these growing out of

Poverty,

Poverty, quite different from that which rifes out of Wealth, Humility and Patience, Induftry and Temperance, are very often the good Qualites of a poor Man. Humanity and Good-nature, Magnanimity, and a Senfe of Honour, are as often the Qualifications of the Rich. On the contrary, Poverty is apt to betray a Man into Envy, Riches into Arrogance, Poverty is too often attended with Fraud, vicious Compliance, Repining, Murmur and Difcontent. Riches expofe a Man to Pride and Luxury, a foolish Elation of Heart, and too great a Fondness for the prefent World. In fhort, the middle Condition is most eligible to the Man who would improve himself in Virtue; as I have before fhewn, it is the most advantageous for the gaining of Knowledge. It was upon this Confideration that Agur founded his Prayer, which for the Wisdom of it is recorded in Holy Writ. Two things have I required of thee, deny me them not before I die.

Remove

far from me Vanity and Lies; give me neither Poverty, nor Riches; feed me with Food convenient for me. Left I be full and deny thee, and fay, who is the Lord? or left I be poorand feal, and take the name of my God in vain.

I fhall fill the remaining Part of my Paper with a very pretty Allegory, which is wrought into a Play by Ariftophanes the Greek Comedian. It feems originally defigned as a Satyr upon the Rich, though, in fome Parts of it, 'tis like the foregoing Difcourfe, a kind of Comparison between Wealth and Poverty.

CHRE MYLUS, who was an old and a good Man, and withal exceeding Poor, being defirous to leave fome Riches to his Son, confults the Oracle of Apollo upon the Subject. The Oracle bids him follow the first Man he fhould fee upon his going out of the Teuple. The Perfon he chanced to fee was to Appearance an old fordid blind Man, but upon his following him from Place to Place, he at laft found by his own Confeffion, that he was Plutus the God of Riches, and that he was just come out of the Houfe of a Mifer. Plutus further told him, that when he was a Boy, he used to declare, that as foon as he came to Age he would diftribute Wealth to none but virtuous and juft Men; upon which Jupiter, confidering the pernicious Confequences of fuch a Refolution,, took his Sight away from him, and left him to ftrole a

bout

bout the World in the Blind Condition wherein Chremylus beheld him. With much ado Chremylus prevailed upon him to go to his Houfe, where he met an old Woman in a tattered Raiment, who had been his Gueft for many Years, and whofe Name was Poverty. The old Woman refufing to turn out fo easily as he would have her, he threatned to banish her not only from his own Houfe, but out of all Greece, if she made any more Words upon the Matter. Poverty on this Occafion pleads her Caufe very notably, and represents to her old Landlord, that fhould fhe be driven out of the Country, all their Trades, Arts and Sciences would be driven out with her; and that if every one was Rich, they would never be fupplied with thofe Pomps, Ornaments and Conveniencies of Life which made Riches defirable. She likewife reprefented to him the feveral Advantages which fhe beftowed upon her Votaries, in regard to their Shape, their Health, and their Activity, by preferving them from Gouts, Dropfies, Unweildinefs, and Intemperance. But whatever fhe had to say for her felf, fhe was at laft forced to troop off. Chremylus immediately confidered how he might reftore Plutus to his Sight; and in order to it conveyed him to the Temple of Efculapius, who was famous for Cures and Miracles of this Nature. By this means the Deity recovered his Eyes, and begun to make a right ufe of them, by enriching every one that was diftinguished by Piety towards the Gods, and Justice towards Men; and at the fame time by taking away histGifts from the Impious and Undeferving. This produces feveral merry Incidents, till in the laft Act Mercury defcends with great Complaints from the Gods, that fince the Good Men were grown Rich they had received no Sacrifices, which is confirmed by a Prieft of Jupiter, who enters with a Remonftrance, that fince this late Innovation he was reduced to a starving Condition, and could not live upon his Office. Chremylus, who in the beginning of the Play was Religious in his Poverty, concludes it with a Propofal which was relifhed by all the Good Men who were now grown rich as well as himself, that they fhould carry Plutus in a Solemn Proceffion to the Temple, and Inftall him in the Place of Jupiter. This Allegory inftructed the Athenians in two Points, first, as