To tame purfuits, to indolence and fear ?> For what the eternal maker has ordain'd He meant, he made us to behold and love Whom nature's works can charm, with God himself AKENSIDE Г CHAPTER XXVII. PANACEA; OR, THE GRAND RESTORATIVE. WELCOME to Baia's ftreams, ye fons of fpleen, Ye fair, whofe rofes feel th' approaching froft, Ye 'fquires, who rack'd with gouts, at heav'n repine, Condemn'd to water for excefs in wine: Ye portly cits, fo corpulent and full, Who eat and drink till appetite grows dull': Hear then a rhiming quack, who fpurns your wealth, No more thus vainly rove o'er fea and land, BOOK IV. ARGUMENTATIVE PIECES. CHAPTER I. ON ANGER. QUESTION. Whether Anger ought to be fuppreffed entirely, or only to be confined within the bounds of moderation? Those who maintain that refentment is blameable only in the excefs, fupport their opinion with fuch arguments as these. Since Anger is natural and useful to man, entirely to banish it from our breast, would be an equally foolish and. vain attempt: for as it is difficult, and next to impoffible, to oppofe nature with fuccefs; so it were imprudent, if we had it in our power, to caft away the weapons with which fhe has furnished us for our defence. The best armour against injuftice is a proper degree of fpirit, to repel the wrongs that are done, or defigned againft us: but if we diveft ourselves of all refentment, we fhall perhaps prove too irrefolute and languid, both in refifting the attacks of injustice, and inflicting punishment upon thofe who have committed it. We fhall therefore fink into contempt, and by the tameness of our spirit, fhall invite the malicious to abuse and affront us. Nor will others fail to deny us the regard which is due from them, if once they think us in capable of refentment. To remain unmoved at grofs injuries, has the appearance of ftupidity, and will make us despicable and mean, in the eyes of many who are not to be influenced by any thing but their fears. And as a moderate fhare of refentment is useful in its effects, so it is innocent in itself, nay often commendable. The virtue of mildness is no less remote from infenfibility, on the one hand, than from fury on the other. It implies that we are angry only upon proper occasions, and in a due degree; that we are never transported beyond the bounds of decency, or indulge a deep and lafting resentment; that we do not follow, but lead our paffion, governing it as our servant, not submitting ourselves to it as our mafter. Under these regulations it is certainly excufable, when moved only by private wrongs: and being excited by the injuries which others suffer, it bespeaks a generous 'mind, and deserves commendation. Shall a good man feel no indignation against injustice and barbarity? not even when he is witness to fhocking inftances of them? when he fees a friend bafely and cruelly treated? when he obferves Th' oppreffor's wrong, the proud man's contumely, The infolence of office, and the spurns That patient merit of th' unworthy takes; hall he still enjoy himself in perfect tranquility? Will it be a crime, if he conceives the leaft refentment? Will it not rather be somewhat criminal, if he is deftitute of it? In fuch cases we are commonly so far from being ashamed of our anger, as of fomething mean, that we are proud of it, and confefs it openly, as what we count laudable, and meritorious. The truth is, there feems to be fomething manly, and we are bold to fay, fomething virtuous, in a juft and wellconducted refentment. In the mean time, let us not be fufpected of endeavouring to vindicate rage, and peevish.nefs, and implacable refentment. No; fuch is their deformity, so horrid and so manifeft are the evils they produce, that they do not admit of any defence or juftification. We condemn, we deteft them, as unnatural, brutish, unmanly and monftrous. All we contend for, is, that it is better to be moderate in our refentment, than to fupprefs it altogether. Let us therefore keep it under a ftrict difcipline, and carefully reftrain it within the bounds which reafon prescribes, with regard to the occafion, degree, and continuance of it. But let us not prefume to extirpate any of thofe affections, which the wifdom of God has implanted in us, which are fo nicely balanced, and fo well adjusted to each other, that by deftroying one of them, we may perhaps diforder and blemish the whole frame of our nature. To thefe arguments, thofe who adopt the opinion that anger fhould be entirely fuppreffed, reply: You tell us, anger is natural to man; but nothing is more natural to man, than reason, mildnefs, and benevolence. Now with what propriety can we call that natural to any creature, which impairs and oppofes the most effential and distinguishing parts of its conftitution? Sometimes indeed we may call that natural to a fpecies, which being found in most of them, is not produced by art or custom. That anger is in this fenfe natural, we readily grant; but deny that we therefore cannot, or may not lawfully extinguish it. Nature has committed to our management the faculties of the mind, as well as the members of the body and, as when any of the latter become pernicious to the whole, we cut them off and caft them away; in like manner, when any of our affections are become hurtful and useless in our frame, by cutting them off, we do not in the least counteract the intention of nature. Now fuch is anger to a wife man. To fools and cowards it is a necellary evil; but to a perfon of moderate fenfe and vir tue, it is an evil, which has no advantage attending it. N : |