forefeen nor regulated by the priests,) an agreeable odour is perceived. Care is always taken to point out this prodigy to strangers.

Prefently after the priest came for us, and led us into the fanctuary, a deep cavern, the walls of which are ornamented with a variety of votive offerings. He had just taken down from them a fillet embroidered with crowns and victories. At first we could scarcely difcern the objects around us; for the incenfe and other perfumes burning there, filled the place with a thick fmoke. Towards the middle is an, aperture, from whence iffues the prophetic exhalation, the approach to which is by a gentle defcent; but it is impoffible to fee it, for it is covered with a tripod fo furrounded with chaplets and branches of laure!, that the vapour is prevented from difperfing itself in the cavern.

**

The Pythia, worn out with fatigue, refufing to anfwer our questions, the priests, who furrounded her, had recourfe to menaces, and even violence. Yielding at length to their perfuafions, the feated herself on the

*The discovery of this was made by accident. Some goats ftraying among the rocks of Mount Parnaffus, and approaching a fiffure in the earth that emitted unwholesome exhalations, are faid to have been fuddenly affected with extraordinary and convulfive motions. The fhepherd and the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, flocking to fee this prodigy, breathed the fame vapour, experienced the fame effects, and, in their delirium, pronounced broken and unconnected phrafes. These words were inftantly taken for predictions, and the vapour of the cavern was fuppofed to be a divine breath which unveiled the fecrets of futurity.

This vapour was of the nature of mephitic exhalations : it rofe only to a certain height. It appears, that the earth had been thrown up round the aperture, for which reason it is faid that perfons defcended to this opening. The tripod being thus funk, it is no difficult matter to conceive by what means the fteam afcended to the priestess, without affecting the priests or other perfons who stood near.

tripod,

tripod, after drinking of fome water which flows in the fanctuary, and which poffeffes, as it is faid, the virtue of difclofing futurity.

The boldeft colours would fcarcely fuffice to paint the convulfions with which fhe was foon after seized. We faw her bofom heave, and her countenance alternately pale and glowing. All her limbs were agitated. with unvoluntary motions: but the uttered only plaintive cries, and deep groans, at length with eyes fparkling, foaming mouth, and hair erect, unable either to fupport the vapour that overpowered her, or escape from the tripod on which the was held down by the priefts, fhe tore the fillet from her head, and, amidst the most dreadful howlings, pronounced a few words, which were eagerly collected by the priests. They immediately arranged them in proper order, and delivered them to us in writing. I had asked, whether I fhould be fo fortunate as to furvive my friend; and he, unknown to me, had proposed the fame queftion. The anfwers were obfcure and equivocal, and we tore them to pieces the moment we got out of the temple.

HINT FOR A NEW ROYAL SOCIETY.

M

On human actions reafon though you can,
It may be reason, but it is not man.

РОРЕ.

ANKIND are generally fwayed in their opinions of things, by the oftenfible reafons adduced by the actors in them; few among us ever ftop, and the moft wary very feldom, to enquire whether the men who moft receive our admiration while living, and regret when dead, did not defraud us into an esteem for themselves to the prejudice of a greater number of deferving and truly meritorious members of the community. I fay defraud, because the affections, when concentrated, are estranged from surrounding objects;

objects

objects whose claim to our regard furpafs, perhaps, that on which we exclufively doat. I would inftitute an enquiry concerning these matters, and if poffible, apply the remedy; and in this employment I fhall conceive myself adjufting the most important interefts of fociety, by affuring thofe who cultivate virtue in humble life, and those who practically teach her ways to the rifing generation, a part of our gratitude and esteem, proportioned to their deferts. I may, it is true, rob an individual, or more, of his overgrown fame, but it will be to plant it in the hearts of a thousand others, only lefs deferving as they are lefs voracious. I confefs a weakness while applauding him who is the good father, the good citizen, and withal a cultivator of moral fcience, beyond the other who, neglecting all these, reaps in the fields of Germany, America, or the Eaft, whole groves of laurel to no ufeful purpose. One cannot help making comparifons and drawing conclufions; and I have been either too fanguine in my expectations, or the bulk of mankind will no longer be willingly martyred at the fhrine of ambition.

It was this idea of the difproportion of our esteem and our praise, which firft induced me to hope for the establishment of a fociety, by authority of Parliament, which should take cognizance of men's virtues and vices—namely, of such men as are defirous of becoming popular. Much more will require to be faid on this fubject than I am mafter of, ere it can be carried into execution; the profpect of an immaculate act-framer, renders all pain hereon unneceffary. I profefs only to caft out the hint, it behoves fuperior understandings, and fuperior stations, to perfectionate this fociety. Its members fhould have power to canvafs in public, the merits and demerits of the characters entered on their books for investigation, though the public fhould by no means be allowed to interfere. The legiflature having taken the ufual care to prevent unqualified perfons being fworn into this office, no doubt will afterVOL. I. N

wards

wards remain respecting the fairness of all proceedings. Agreeably to a plan of my own conftruction, certain ledgers thould be provided to receive the daily refult of our fociety's deliberations. To render thefe entries as fimple as poffible, I clafs the virtues under fix diftinct heads, and the vices under a correfponding number: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. To ascertain the height of turpidity, or of perfection, is the bufinefs of this fociety, which I thence purpose to call the MORAL BAROMETER. Between the lowest state of either, there is no medium; every action of every man must be useful or useless, it must be either commendable or discommendable. Thus, if a general conquer with inferior numbers the enemy of his country, he will indeed deferve No. 1. to his credit, and if that country was driven near total deftruction, as at Thermopyla or Jemappes, he might be pofted No. 2. But I am by no means fo decided, that a drawn battle, victory with a great lofs of blood, or for the fake of ambition, should exempt him from being accused of No. 1, per contra; and I have too good an opinion of every embryo member to believe, he would not be unanimously found guilty.

Thus our plan is complete, except the claffification of the vices, which will remain to be fettled at the fociety's first meeting; as for the virtues, much less trouble is neceffary to adjust their refpective pre-eminence; no one can hesitate to pronounce a principal tradefman, who labours for the means, and labours in beftowing good; equal to the gentleman of worth, who lets the overflowings of his income enliven the countenances of an abject tenantry. I entertain hopes that a felfish nation of Inlanders, may be prevailed upon to acknowledge the friend of mankind fuperior to the friend of any particular ftate; and that the Hindoo who loves Hindoftan, the Frenchman who loves France, and the Englishman who loves England, deferve equally from their country. Thefe are a few among the benefits

benefits I promise my felf will arife from the adoption of my views. The man who has deferved well of his country, will be deterred from acting the domestic tyrant; his retiring to the study, or the camp, will no longer be caufe of unhappinefs to his family and dependants he will incur a penalty in committing even those minor evils, and confequently abridge his reputatation at the day of fettlement.

Having in this manner exhibited the outlines of a fcheme, the good tendency whereof none will madly deny, I fhould respectfully withdraw myself to enjoy the profpect of a golden age, and die in the confolation that I have at leaft put the moral world in a way of bettering its condition; but I find my task recur upon my hands: a multitude of minor evils, the deep laid fources of many a vice, requires a check, or counterpoife, and come immediately under the original idea, which fuggefted the Moral Barometer; this fhall employ a future paper, and all I ask for my labours, at prefent, is, that minifters do appoint me the first Regius Profeffor of Moral Barometry.

C. N. DOBOICK.

THE IMPORTANCE OF TIME.

"Time wafted is exiftence, us'd is life."

YOUNG.

FREQUENTLY have taken the liberty to make

I enquiry of many young men with wherty to

quainted, why, after the hours of bufinefs, and the labour of the day, they did not devote their time to fome literary pursuit ? The enquiry with fome has been treated with contumacious filence, by others with fupercilious contempt: those who had manners enough to favour me with an answer, generally had the prudence to impute the neglect to fome cause very distant from themselves: from fome, as a palliation, I was told,

N 2

that