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tumbling down the rocks, roaring with the noise of thun-. der, and scattering its foam on the impending woods. "Now," said his father, "behold the valley that lies between the hills." Ortogrul looked, and espied a little well, out of which iffued a small rivulet. "Tell me now," faid his father, “doft thou wish for fudden affluence, that may pour upon thee like the mountain torrent; or for a flow and gradual increase, refembling the rill gliding from the well?" "Let me be quickly rich," faid Ortogrul; "let the golden ftream be quick and violent." "Look round thee," faid his father, "once again" Ortogrul looked, and perceived the channel of the torrent dry and dusty; but following the rivulet from the well, he traced it to a wide lake, which the fupply, slow and constant, kept always full. He awoke, and determined to grow rich by filent profit, and persevering industry.

Having fold his patrimony, he engaged in merchandife; and in twenty years purchased lands, on which he raised a houfe, equal in fumptuoufnefs to that of the vizier, to which he invited all the minifters of pleasure, expecting to enjoy all the felicity which he had imagined riches able to afford. Leifure foon made him weary of himself, and he longed to be perfuaded that he was great and happy. He was courteous and liberal: he gave all that approached him hopes of pleasing him, and all who fhould please him, hopes of being rewarded. Every art of praise was tried, and every fource of adulatory fiction was exhaufted. Ortogrul heard his flatterers without delight, because he found himself unable to believe them. His own heart told him its frailties his own urderstanding reproached him with his faults. "How long," faid he, with a deep figh, have I been labouring in vain to amafs wealth, which at laft is useless! Let no man hereafter wish to be rich, who is already too wife to be flattered !" DR. JOHNSON.

SECTION VI.

The Hill of Science.

In that feafon of the year, when the ferenity of the sky, the various fruits which cover the ground, the difcoloured foliage of the trees, and all the fweet, but fading graces of infpiring autumn, open the mind to benevolence. and difpofe it for contemplation, I was wandering in a beautiful and romantic country, till curiofity began to give way

to wearinefs; and I fat down on the fragment of a rock overgrown with mofs; where the rustling of the falling leaves, the dafhing of waters, and the hum of the distant city, foothed my mind into a most perfect tranquillity; and fleep infenfibly stole upon me, as I was indulging the agreeable reveries, which the objects around me naturally inspired.

I immediately found myself in a vaft extended plain, in the middle of which arose a mountain higher than I had before any conception of. It was covered with a multitude of people, chiefly youth; many of whom preffed forward with the livelieft expreffion of ardour in their countenance, though the way was in many places fteep and difficult. I obferved, that thofe, who had but juft begun to climb the hill, thought themfelves not far from the top; but as they proceeded, new hills were continually rifing to their view; and the fummit of the higheft they could before difcern feemed but the foot of another, till the mountain at length appeared to lose itself in the clouds. As I was gazing on these things with aftonifhment, a friendly inftructer fuddenly appeared: "the mountain before thee," faid he, "is the Hill of Science. On the top is the temple of Truth, whofe head is above the clouds, and a veil of pure light covers her face. Obferve the progrefs of her votaries; be filent and attentive."

After I had noticed a variety of objects, I turned my eye towards the multitudes who were climbing the steep afcent; and obferved amongst them a youth of a lively look, a piercing eye, and fomething fiery and irregular in all his motions. His name was Genius. He darted like an eagle up the mountain; and left his companions gazing after him with envy and admiration but his progress was unequal, and interrupted by a thousand caprices. When Pleasure warbled in the valley, he mingled in her train. When Pride beckoned towards the precipice, he ventured to the tottering edge. He delighted in devious and untried paths; and made fo many excurfions from the road, that his feebler companions often outstripped him. I obferved that the mufes beheld him with partiality; but Truth often frowned and turned afide her face. While flights, I

Genius was thus wafting his ftrength in eccenamed Ap

faw a person of very different appearance, plication. He crept along with a flow and unremitting pace, his eyes fixed on the top of the mountain, patiently

removing every stone that obftructed his way, till he faw most of those below him, who had at first derided his flow and toilfome progrefs. Indeed, there were few who afcended the hill with equal, and uninterrupted steadinefs; for, befides the difficulties of the way, they were continually folicited to turn afide, by a numerous crowd of appetites, paffions, and pleasures, whofe importunity, when once complied with, they became lefs and lefs able to refift and though they often returned to the path, the. afperities of the road were more feverely felt the hill appeared more fteep and rugged; the fruits, which were wholefome and refreshing, feemed harfh and ill tafted; their fight grew dim; and their feet tript at every little obftruction

I saw with fome surprise, that the mufes, whofe bufi. ness was to cheer and encourage those who were toiling up the afcent, would often fing in the bowers of pleasure, and accompany those who were enticed away at the call of the paffions. They accompanied them, however, but a little way and always forfook them when they loft fight of the hill. The tyrants then doubled their chains upon the unhappy captives, and led them away, without refiftance, to the cells of Ignorance, or the mansions of Misery. Amongst the innumerable feducers, who were endeavouring to draw away the votaries of Truth from the path of Science, there was one, fo little formidable in her appearance, and fo gentle and languid in her attempts, that I fhould scarcely have taken notice of her, but for the numbers fhe had imperceptibly loaded with her chains. Indolence, (for fo fhe was called,) far from proceeding to open hoftilities, did not attempt to turn their feet out of the path, but contented herself with retarding their progrefs; and the purpose fhe could not force them to abandon, the perfuaded them to delay. Her touch had a power like that of the torpedo, which withered the ftrength of those who came within its influence. Her unhappy captives ftill turned their faces towards the temple, and always hoped to arrive there; but the ground feemed to flide from beneath their feet, and they found themselves at the bottom, before they fufpected they had changed their place. The placid ferenity, which at first appeared in their countenance, changed by degrees into a melancholy languor, which was tinged with deeper and deeper gloom, as they glided down the stream of Infignificance; a dark

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and fluggish water, which is curled by no breeze, and enlivened by no murmur, till it falls into a dead fea, where ftartled paffengers are awakened by the fhock, and the. next moment buried in the gulf of Oblivion.

Of all the unhappy deferters from the paths of Science, none feemed lefs able to return than the followers of Indolence. The captives of appetite and paffion would often feize the moment when their tyrants were languid or afleep, to escape from their enchantment; but the dominion of Indolence was conftant and unremitted; and feldom refifted, till refiftance was in vain.

After contemplating these things, I turned my eyes towards the top of the mountain, where the air was always pure and exhilarating, the path fhaded with laurels and evergreens, and the effulgence which beamed from the face of Science feemed to fhed a glory round her votaries. Happy, faid I, are they who are permitted to afcend the mountain! But while I was pronouncing this exclamation, with uncommon ardour, I faw, ftanding befide me, a form of diviner features, and a more benign radiance."Happier," faid fhe, "are they whom Virtue conducts to the Manfions of Content!" "What," faid 1, "does Virtue then refide in the vale ?" "I am found," faid fhe, "in the vale, and I illuminate the mountain. cheer the cottager at his toil, and infpire the fage at his meditation. I mingle in the crowd of cities, and bless the hermit in his cell. I have a temple in every heart that owns my influence; and to him that wishes for me, I am already present. Science may raise thee to eminence; but I alone can guide thee to felicity While Virtue was thus fpeaking, I ftretched out my arms towards her, with a vehemence which broke my flumber. The chill dews were falling around me, and the shades of evening stretched over the landscape. I haftened homeward; and refigned the night to filence and meditation,

SECTION VII.

The Journey of a Day; a Picture of Human Life.

AIXEN

I

OBIDAH, the fon of Abenfina, left the caravanfera sarly in the morning, and purfued his journey throug plains of Indoftan. He was fresh and vigorous with it; he was animated with hope; he was incited by defire walked swiftly forward over the vallies, and saw the hi

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gradually rifing before him. As he paffed along, his ears were delighted with the morning fong of the bird of paradife; he was fanned by the laft flutters of the finking breeze, and fprinkled with dew by groves of spices. He fometimes contemplated the towering height of the oak, monarch of the hills; and fometimes caught the gentle fragrance of the primrose, eldest daughter of the fpring: all his fenfes were gratified, and all care was banished from his heart.

Thus he went on, till the fun approached his meridian, and the increased heat preyed upon his ftrength; he then looked round about him for fome more commodious path. He faw, on his right hand, a grove that feemed to wave its fhades as a fign of invitation; he entered it, and found the coolness and verdure irrefiflibly pleafant. He did not, however, forget whither he was travelling; but found a narrow way bordered with flowers, which appeared to have the fame direction with the main road; and was pleased, that, by this happy experiment, he had found means to unite pleasure with bufinefs, and to gain the rewards of diligence without fuffering its fatigues. He, therefore, ftill continued to walk for a time, without the leaft remiffion of his ardour, except that he was fometimes tempted to stop by the mufic of the birds, which the heat had affembled in the fhade; and fometimes amufed himself with plucking the flowers that covered the banks on either fide, or the fruits that hung upon the branches. At last, the green path began to decline from its first tendency, and to wind among hills and thickets, cooled with fountains, and murmuring with waterfalls. Here Obidah

paused for a time, and began to confider whether it were longer safe to forfake the known and common track; but remembering that the heat was now in its greatest violence, and that the plain was dufty and uneven, he refolved to purfue the new path, which he fuppofed only to make a few meanders, in compliance with the varieties of the ground, and to end at laft in the common road.

Having thus calmed his folicitude, he renewed his pace, though he fufpected that he was not gaining ground. This uneafinefs of his mind inclined him to lay hold on every new object, and give way to every fenfation that might footh or divert him. He liftened to every echo; he mounted every hill for a fresh profpect; he turned afide to every cafcade; and pleafed himfelf with tracing the

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