I fhall take time to confider the cafe of this my imaginary correfpondent, and in the mean while fhall prefent my reader with a letter which feems to come from a person that is made up of flefh and blood. • Good Mr. SPECTATOR, AM married to a very honeft gentleman that is exceeding good-natured, and at the • fame time very choleric. There is no ftanding before him when he is in a paffion; but as foon as it is over he is the best humoured creature in the world. When he is angry he breaks all my china-ware that chances to lie in his way, and the next morning fends me • in twice as much as he broke the day before. I may pofitively fay that he has broke me a • child's fortune fince we were firft married together. As foon as he begins to fret down goes every thing that is within reach of his cane. I once prevailed upon him never to carry a stick in • his hand, but this faved me nothing; for upon feeing me do fomething that did not please • him he kicked down a great jar, that cost him above ten pounds but the week before. I then laid the fragments together in a heap, and gave him his cane again, defiring him that, if he chanced to be in anger, he would spend his paffion upon the china that was broke to his hand; but the very next day, upon my giving a wrong meffage to one of the fervants, he flew into fuch a rage, that he swept down a • dozen 'dozen tea-dishes, which, to my misfortune • ftood very convenient for a fide blow. ་ I then removed all my china into a room which he never frequents; but I got nothing by this neither, for my looking glaffes immediately went to rack. In fhort, Sir, whenever he is in a paffion he is angry at every thing that is brittle; and if on fuch occafions he hath nothing to vent his rage upon, I do not know whether my bones would be in fafety. Let me beg of you, Sir, to let me know whether there be any cure for his unaccountable diftemper; or if not, that ( you will be pleafed to publish this letter: for my hufband, having a great veneration for your writings, will by that means know you do not approve of his conduct. I am, &c. Just published, "The Romish Ecclefiaftical Hiftory "of late years, by Richard Steele, Efq. Printed for R. "Tonfon. "Suis & ipfa Roma viribus ruit. HOR." In Re-printed for J. Roberts, near the Oxford Arms in Warwick Lane, 1714, and dedicated to Lord Finch. 1715, or 1716, STEELE publifhed in 8vo. "The State of the "Roman Catholic Religion throughout the World, written. "for the Ufe of Pope Innocent XI. by M. CERVIC, &c. with "a large Dedication to the [then] prefent Pope, &c." The Tranflation was by Michael de la ROCHE, author of the "Memoirs of Literature ;" and the dedication by Bishop Hoadly. V. BROGR. BRIT. Art. STEELE, p. 3830, Note. Dr. John Hoadly, in a letter before the Annotator, fays, that SWIFT bore the Bishop a grudge for the grave irony of this dedication, which the Dean confidered as an invafion on his province; but Dr. Hoadly well knew that Swift's diflike to the Bishop fprang from principles ftill more honourable to his father's character. Adv. from the SPECT. in folio, N° 563. No. 564. N° 564. Wednesday, July 7, 1714. Adfit Regula, peccatis quæ pœnas irroget æquas: HOR. I Sat. iii. 117. Let rules be fix'd that may our rage contain, CREECH. T is the work of a Philofopher to be every IT day fubduing his paffions, and laying afide his prejudices. I endeavour at least to look upon men and their actions only as an impartial SPECTATOR, without any regard to them as they happen to advance or cross my own private intereft. But while I am thus employed myself I cannot help obferving how thofe about me fuffer themselves to be blinded by prejudice and inclination, how readily they pronounce on every man's character, which they can give in two words, and make him either good for nothing, or qualified for every thing. On the contrary, thofe who fearch thoroughly into human nature will find it much more difficult to determine the value of their fellow-creatures, and that men's characters are not thus to be given in general words. There is indeed no fuch thing as a perfon entirely good or bad; virtue and vice are blended blended and mixed together, in a great or lefs proportion, in every one; and if you would fearch for fome particular good quality in its most eminent degree of perfection, you will often find it in a mind where it is darkened and eclipfed by an hundred other irregular paflions. Men have either no character at all, fays a celebrated author, or it is that of being inconfiftent with themselves. They find it easier to join extremities than to be uniform and of a piece. This is finally illuftrated in Xenophon's life of Cyrus the Great. That author tells us, that Cyrus having taken a most beautiful lady named Panthea, the wife of Abradatas, committed her to the cuftody of Arafpas, a young Perfian nobleman, who had a little before maintained in discourse that a mind truly vicious was incapable of entertaining an unlawful paffion. The young gentleman had not long been in poffeffion of his fair captive, when a complaint was made to Cyrus, that he not only folicited the lady Panthea to receive him in the room of her abfent husband; but, that finding his entreaties had no effect, he was preparing to make use of force. Cyrus, who loved the young man, immediately fent for him, and in a gentle manner reprefenting to him his fault, and putting him in mind of his former affertion, the unhappy youth, confounded with a quick fenfe of his guilt and fhame, burst out into a flood of tears, and spoke as follows *: * XENOPH. "Opera" Ed. Leuenclav. 1625, fol. p. 117, and 153. "Oh 66 "Oh Cyrus, I am convinced that I have Two SOULS. Love has taught me this piece of Philofophy. If I had but one Soul, it could not "at the fame time pant after virtue and vice, "with and abhor the fame thing. It is cer"tain therefore we have Two SOULS: when the "Good SOUL rules I undertake noble and virtuous actions; but when the Bad SOUL predomi"nates I am forced to do evil. All I can fay "at present is, that I find my Good SOUL, en"couraged by your prefence, has got the better "of my Bad." 66 I know not whether my readers will allow of this piece of Philofophy; but if they will not they must confess we meet with as different pasfions in one and the fame foul as can be fuppofed in two. We can hardly read the life of a great man who lived in former ages, or converfe with any who is eminent among our contemporaries, that is not an inftance of what I am faying. But as I have hitherto only argued against the partiality and injuftice of giving our judgment upon men in grofs, who are fuch a compofition of virtues and vices, of good and evil, I might carry this reflection ftill farther, and make it extend to most of their actions. If on the one hand we fairly weighed every circumstance, we fhould frequently find them obliged to do that action we at first fight condemn, in order to avoid another we should have been much more displeased with. If on the other hand we nicely examined such actions as appear most dazzling to |