engages to fidelity: every man finds himself more powerfully restrained from giving pain to goodness than to beauty; and every look of a countenance in which they are blended, in which beauty is the expression of goodness, is a silent reproach of the first irregular wish: and the purpose immediately appears to be disingenious and cruel, by which the tender hope of ineffable affection would be disappointed, the placid confidence of unsuspected simplicity abused, and the peace even of virtue endangered by the most sordid infidelity, and the breach of the strongest obligations.

17. But the hope of the hypocrite must perish. When the fictitious beauty has laid by her smiles, when the lustre of her eyes and the bloom of her cheeks have lost their influence with their novelty; what remains but a tyrant divested of power, who will never be seen without a mixture of indignation and disdain? The only desire which this object could gratify, will be transferred to another, not only without reluctance, but with triumph.

18. As resentment will succeed to disappointment, a desire to mortify will succeed to a desire to please; and the husband may be urged to solicit a mistress, merely by a remembrance of the beauty of his wife, which lasted only till she was known.

Let it therefore be remembered, that none can be disciples of the Graces, but in the school of Virtue; and that those who wish to be lovely, must learn early to be good.

19. A FRIEND of mine has two daughters, whom I will call Laetitia and Daphne. The former is one of the greatest beauties of the age in which she lives the latter no way remarkable for any charms in her person. Upon this one circumstance of their outward form, the good and ill of their life seem to turn. Laetitia has not from her very childhood heard any thing else but commendations of her features and complexion, by which means she is no other than nature made her, a very beautiful outside.

20. The consciousness of her charms has rendered her insupportably vain and insolent towards all who have to do with her. Daphne, who was almost twenty before one civil thing had ever been said to her, found herself obliged

to acquire some accomplishments to make up for the want of those attractions which she saw in her sister.

21. Poor Daphne was seldom submitted to in a debate wherein she was concerned; her discourse had nothing to recommend it but the good sense of it, and she was always under a necessity to have very well considered what she was to say before she uttered it; while Latitia was listened to with partiality, and approbation sat in the countenances of those she conversed with, before she communicated what she had to say.

22. These causes have produced suitable effects, and Laetitia is as insipid a companion as Daphne is an agreeable one. Laetitia, confident of favour, has studied no arts to please: Daphne, despairing of any inclination towards her person, has depended only on her merit.Laetitia has always something in her air that is sullen, grave and disconsolate.

23. Daphne has a countenance that appears cheerful, open and unconcerned. A young gentleman saw Laetitia this winter at play, and became her captive. His fortune was such, that he wanted very little introduction to speak. his sentiments to lier father. The lover was admitted with the utmost freedom into the family, where a constrained behaviour, severe looks, and distant civilities were the highest favours he could obtain from Laetitia; while Daphne used him with the good humour, familiarity, and innocence of a sister.

24. Insomuch that he would often say to her, Dear Daphne, wert thou but as handsome as Laetitia !—She received such language with that ingenious and pleasing mirth, which is natural to a woman without design. He still sighed in vain for Laetitia, but found certain relief in the agreeable conversation of Daphne. At length, heartily tired with the haughty impertinence of Laetitia, and charmed with repeated instances of good humour he had observed in Daphne, he one day told the latter, that he had something to say to her he hoped she would be pleased with.

25. -Faith, Daphne, continued he, I am in love with thee, and despise thy sister sincerely. The manner of his declaring himself, gave his mistress occasion for a very hearty laughter.-Nay, says he, I knew you would laugh

at me, but I'll ask your father. He did so; the father re ceived his intelligence with no less joy than surprize, and was very glad he had now no care left but for his beauty, which he thought he would carry to market at his leisure.

26. I do not know any thing that has pleased me so much a great while; as this conquest of my friend Daphne's. All her acquaintance congratulate her upon her chance medley, and laugh at that premeditating murderer, her sister. As it is an argument of a light mind, to think the worse of ourselves for the imperfections of our persons, it is equally below us to value ourselves upon the advantages of them.

27. The female world seems to be almost incorrigibly gone astray in this particular; for which reason, I shall recommend the following extract out of a friend's letter to the profess'd beauties, who are a people almost as insufferable as the profess'd wits.

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Monsier St. Evremont has concluded one of his essays with affirming, that the last sighs of a handsome woman are not so much for the loss of her life as her beauty. 28. Perhaps this raillery is pursued too far, yet it is "turned upon a very obvious remark, that woman's strong'est passion is for her own beauty, and that she values it as her favourite distinction. From hence it is that all hearts, which intend to improve or preserve it, meet 'with so general reception among the sex.

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29. To say nothing of many false helps, and contra'band wares of beauty, which are daily vended in this great mart, there is not a maiden gentlewoman, of a " good family, in any county of South Britain, who has 'not heard of the virtues of may-dew, or is unfurnished 'with some receipt or other in favour of her complexion ; and I have known a physician of learning and sense, after eight years study in the university, and a course of ' travels into most countries of Europe, owe the first raising of his fortune to a cosmetic wash.

30. This has given me occasion to consider how so universal a disposition in womankind, which springs from a laudable motive, the desire of pleasing, and proceeds upon an opinion, not altogether groundless, that nature may be helped by art, may be turned to their advantage. And, methinks, it would be an acceptable service to take them out of the hands of quacks and pretenders, and to

prevent their imposing upon themselves, by discovering 'to them the true secret and art of improving beauty.

31. In order to this, before I touch upon it directly, "it will be necessary to lay down a few preliminary max'ims, viz.

'That no woman can be handsome by the force of fea'tures alone, any more than she can be witty only by the help of speech.

'That pride destroys all symmetry and grace, and af'fectation is a more terrible enemy to fine faces than the 'small-pox.

'That no woman is capable of being beautiful, who is ( not incapable of being false.

'And, that what would be odious in a friend, is defor( mity in a mistress.

32. From these few principles thus laid down, it will 'be easy to prove, that the true art of assisting beauty 'consists in embellishing the whole person by the proper ornaments of virtuous and commendable qualities. By 'this help alone it is, that those who are the favourite 'work of nature, or, as Mr. Dryden expresses it, the 'porcelain clay of human kind, become animated, and are in a capacity of exerting their charms and those who seem to have been neglected by her, like models wrought in haste, are capable, in a great measure, of 'finishing what she has left imperfect.

33. It is, methinks, a low and degrading idea of that sex, which was created to refine the joys, and soften the cares of humanity, by the most agreeable participation, 'to consider them merely as objects of sight. This is abridging them of their natural extent of power, to put 'them upon a level with their pictures at the pantheon. How much nobler is the contemplation of beauty height'ened by virtue, and commanding our esteem and love, while it draws our observation?

34. How faint and spiritless are the charms of a coquette, when compared with the real loveliness of Sophronia's innocence, piety, good humour, and truth: 'virtues which add a new softness to her sex, and even beautify her beauty! That agreeableness, which must ' otherwise have appeared no longer in the modest virgin, is now preserved in the tender mother, the prudent 'friend, and faithful wife.

35. Colours artfully spread upon canvass may enter'tain the eye, but not affect the heart; and she, who takes no care to add to the natural graces of her person any excelling qualities, may be allowed still to amuse as a picture, but not to triumph as a beauty.

When Adam is introduced by Milton describing Eve in Paradise, and relating to the angel the impressions he felt upon seeing her at her first creation, he does not represent her like a Grecian Venus, by her shape of features, but by the lustre of her mind which shown in them and gave them their power of charming.

36. Grace was in all her steps, Heav'n in her eye, In all her gestures dignity and love:

Without this irradiating power, the proudest fair-one ought to know, whatever her glass may tell her to the contrary, that her most perfect features are uniformed ' and dead.

I cannot better close this moral,than by a short epitaph written by Ben Johnson, with a spirit which nothing could inspire, but such an object as I have been describing. Underneath this stone doth lie,

As much virtue as could die ;
Which when alive did vigour give
To as much beauty as could live.'
Lam, Sir,

Your most humble servant,

R. B.

SPECTATOR, Vol. I. No. 33.

Honour.

1. EVERY principle that is a motive to good actions, ought to be encouraged, since men are of so different a make, that the same principle does not work equally upon all minds. What some men are prompted to by conscience, duty, or religion, which are only different names for the same thing, others are prompted to by honour.

2. The sense of honour is of so fine and delicate a nature, that it is only to be met with in minds which are naturally noble, or in such as have been cultivated by great examples, or a refined education. This paper, therefore, is chiefly designed for those who by means of