come a vile seducer, inspiring crimes and folly, and every unworthy passion.

Fame is not excellence; and therefore a wise man will account it unworthy of his pursuit. If the possession of popularity be at any time necessary to the successful accomplishment of his purposes, he will court it as he would do the possession of money; not because it is of any value in itself, but because it is often a convenient tool, to be made use of in attempting to obtain something more valuable. It has been justly said, that fools pursue fame as a real good; whereas wise men either neglect it altogether, or pursue it as the means of doing good. It is worthy of remark, that as vanity only appears in weak minds, so it has a powerful tendency to render them still weaker. By fixing the thoughts upon frivolous objects, and occupying them continually with false ideas of our own importance, it is apt at last totally to derange the understanding: instances of which I have repeatedly seen, and I believe they are far from being unfrequent. It is also to be observed, that the love of fame often ends in producing infamy, by the crimes which, in the form of avarice, ambition, or even vanity, it leads men to commit. So hazardous to the perfection of our nature is every passion, and even every pursuit, but the direct pursuit of intellectual improvement.

CHAP. XV.

OF CURIOSITY.

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To acquire knowledge is pleasing, because it is an exertion of activity or voluntary power: it is also pleasing, because it produces an increase of ideas, or enlargement of intellect, which is attended with self-approbation. These pleasures give rise to the desire of acquiring farther knowledge, which is usually called curiosity, and which sometimes becomes a strong passion.

This passion produces good effects, because it urges men to pursue science in the face of difficulties, which the mere approbation of intellectual improvement would never have enabled them to encounter, and far less to surmount.

It is dangerous, however, inasmuch as it sometimes embarrasses the mind, by fixing it down to the endless pursuit of some minute branch of knowledge, to the exclusion of others of more importance. It even sometimes assumes the silly form of an impertinent fond

ness to become acquainted with other peoples affairs.

It is our duty to pursue knowledge as the means of acquiring acuteness and vigour of mind; but we ought not to forget the great object of our labour, or lose sight of it, by suffering a weak attachment to any peculiar accomplishment or narrow pursuit to engross our attention, and arrest our progress in general improvement.

CHAP. XVI.

OF THE PASSION FOR REFORMING THE WORLD.

THE pleasure which we derive from self-approbation, and from the contemplation of rectitude of conduct in others, together with the uneasiness with which we regard irrational and disgraceful actions, give rise to a desire of not only doing what is right ourselves, but of preventing mischief or irrational conduct whereever it comes in our way, and, as far as our power extends, of suppressing whatever evils or

improprieties of management we observe in the world. In certain circumstances, when flatter. ed by the hope of success, but at the same time irritated by considerable resistance, this desire of setting the world to rights sometimes takes strong possession of the mind, and kindles into a furious passion.

I do not know that this passion for reforming mankind, or for propagating that which appears good for the human race, or just and right to soci. ety at large, has obtained a special name in language, like avarice, ambition, or vanity. There is no doubt, however, that such a passion is liable to occur in the human mind. At times it remains dormant for ages; but when kindled into action, it seldom fails to alter the whole face of society. In the regions of Asia, under the Arabian prophet, it assumed the form of a zeal for religious truth, or a passion to destroy every form of idolatry, and to bring mankind to the worship of one God. Supported by the energy which this passion inspired, and the contagious frenzy which it communicated, the Mahometan faith was conveyed from the Arabic Gulf to the banks of the Ganges and the Senegal, and to the remotest desarts of Tartary. At one time it seemed to embrace all Europe, invading Germany from the east, and advancing from the south through Spain into the centre of France, where its career was with difficulty arrested by Charles Martel, after a

sanguinary conflict of many days. The same passion has in Europe, at different periods, assu med the form of a zeal for freedom and of religious enthusiasm. It gave rise to those terrible crusades, which exhausted Europe of its population, for the purpose of rescuing the city of Jerusalem, and the sepulchre of Jesus Christ, from the possession of the followers of Mahomet. At the time when the barbarous laws of Europe required all accused persons, and even women, to appear in person, or by their champions, to defend their rights by single combat, high-spirited individuals, animated by this passion, traversed the world to redress grievances, and offer themselves on all occasions as the champions of the injured and the weak. Thereaf ter, when the Christian faith and clergy had become extremely corrupted, the same passion was very generally excited. In the sixteenth century, the progress of literature enabled mankind to discern the vices of their priesthood, which formed one of the principal orders of every European community. This class of men had been rendered voluptuous by riches, and indolent by long possession of power; and the ignorance into which they had fallen, with the superstitions they encouraged, were at last beheld with contempt and indignation by a populace that were acquiring riches and knowledge. Princes and people, in many countries,

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