as he serves Himself thus effectually, his Humour is more pliable to his Friends: He can put a Relation into Bufinefs, without infifting on Niceties, and bringing his Merit to the Teft: Whereas your Honest Man is much more troublesome, and hard to deal with. He won't wink at Incapacity, or ill Qualities, to oblige a Friend: But will rather let his Father ftarve, than prefer him to the Prejudice of the Publick: And at this rate of Rigour, how he muft baulk his Acquaintance, lose himself, and leffen his Intereft, is eafie to imagine.

Philal. You talk'd juft now as if Juftice was the Creature of Power, and that no Body was unhappy but for want of this latter Privilege.

Philot. I fay fo ftill.

Pray what do

you think a Felon fuffers for?

Philal. If he is a Thief he suffers for Stealing.

Philot. You are miftaken: 'Tis for not ftealing enough. The Man took but a Horse or a Cow, whereas had he ftollen a Country, as the Romans did Cyprus, he had been safe from Profecution: And more than that, the Infamy would have vanish'd, and he would have heard nothing of his being a Malefactor: You fee therefore what 'tis that draws the Ble

mish and Punishment upon him, and that he is perfectly ruin'd for want of Power.

And to fet the Matter in a true Light; we must fuppofe Injuftice as 'tis term'd, in the Height of its Exaltation: For when Qualities have room to play, ftrike out, and act to the Stretch, their Tendencies are beft discover'd. Now we can't have a livelier Image of this kind than Tyranny: When a Man feizes the Strength of a Commonwealth, makes himself absolute and arbitrary, plunders Churches, and fweeps away Property like a Torrent: Now if but a fmall part of this Violence had been acted in a private Station, he would have had a great many hard Names, and been mark'd and punifh'd to fome purpose: But fince he has quarryed upon the whole, and master'd the Men, as well as the Money; this lucky Turn, gives another Complexion; blanches and brightens every Thing: He is gaz'd on as a happy Mortal, ferv'd, envy'd, and ador'd. Thus you fee the greateft Injustice when Power goes along with it, makes a magnificent Figure: But if People are under-furnish'd for their Trade: If they'll venture without Strength, and bungle in their Bufinefs, they must take what follows.

DA

Philal

Philal. Under favour, all People can't go upon the Road like Alexander the Great, with 40000 Men at their Heels: Your fetting the Charge fo high makes the Employment Impracticable: And thus the greateft part of the World muft be condemn'd to Honesty.

Philot. Not at all: Thofe who can't mufter thus far, and reach the Expence, may practise upon a lower Scheme. And here where the Lion fails, the Fox muft be made ufe of. A Man must be a Mafter in what he undertakes, and compute with Judgment upon Difficulty and Hazard. Over-grafping and venturing too far, proves often Mortal in thefe Cafes.

Philal. That I believe: One falfe ftep on the Brink of a Precipice is enough to break a Man's Bones, and bring him to the Bottom.

Philot. Therefore 'tis good to move upon fafer Ground: Where Power is fhort, and Mifcarriage of fuch ill Confequence, the Caution fhould be the greater: If Birds will flie before they are fledg'd, they'll quickly be taken. But there's no Neceflity of running thefe Rifks: A Man may do his Bufinefs without facing the Gallows. There's Matter enough, within Security, for Ingenuity to work on. And not to repeat the Pro

fit of this Latitude, there's Improvement To manage to Commendation

this way. can't be done without Talent and Ability: To give Colours, and conceal Defects; to hit the Juncture; to fteal on the blind fide of thofe you have to deal with, to work their Humours and keep the Snare out of fight, is no ordinary Performance: Now all this Exercife of the Head; this racking the Invention; this Vigilance and Application; throws new Vigour into the Faculties, brightens and extends the Understanding, and makes a Man's Parts come forward. Befides, there's Diverfion in this Practice: For what can be more entertaining than to fee our felves fuperiour in Senfe, and to rife by the Strength of Management The Victory of the Head is more noble than that of the Hand. Force is the Advantage of a Brute, but to conquer by Skill, is to conquer like a Man: To dance in a Net, to do Bufinefs behind the Curtain, to have the World in view, and lie invifible your felf, is next to the Privilege of a Spirit: Who can mifs the Pleasure of fuch a Contemplation? Who can help doing right to his own Merit, and applauding the Advantage of his Conduct?

your

Philal. I was refolv'd not to interrupt you in Discoveries! But now in return to what you fay, give me leave to obferve, there are other Methods of Improvement befides thofe you mention; Other Arts and Sciences befides Tricking, to open the Head, and cultivate the Genius. A Man needs not lift himself among the Banditti, to make a Soldier, nor turn Pyrate to learn Navigation. And this Confideration apart, Honest People will never want Bufinefs for Breath and Exercife: There will always be Knavery enough to quicken their Parts, to put them upon their Guard, and keep their Brains ftirring. To countermine a Stratagem, and difcover an Ambufcade, and disappoint the Motions of the Enemy, are Inftances of great Skill and Capacity: Thus to manage a Defenfive War to Purpose, is no lefs Difficult than to be the Aggreffor. But then as to the Pleasure of overreaching, 'tis no lefs Mysterious than the Practice; To delight in fuch foul Feeding is a fign of an ill Palate. The Succeffes of Treachery and Circumvention, are the Trophies of Pick-pockets. To be proud of an Advantage this way, is like flourishing the Colours we have ftollen. A Man must be very lean temper'd