as himself: that he confidered him as a stranger who might be unacquainted with the customs of France, and err through fome practice deemed lefs dishonourable in his own country: otherwife his resentment fhould have prevented any expoftulation but as the cafe ftood, after having explained the nature of the M affair, he muft either redrefs the mistake by receiving back the ten piftoles, or give him the ufual fatiffaction of men, of honour for an avowed affront." The marquis acknowledged his error, took back his money, and returned to Paris with lefs anxiety about his fubfift ence. Reflections on the Regulation of MEMORY. EN complain of nothing more frequently than of deficient Memory and indeed, every one finds that many of the ideas which he defired to retain have flipped irretrievably away; that the acquifitions of the mind are fometimes equally fugitive with the gifts of fortune; and that a fhort intermiffion of attention more certainly leffens knowledge than impairs an estate. To affift this weakness of our nature many methods have been propofed, all of which may be justly fufpected of being ineffectual; for no art of memory, however its effects have been boasted or admired, has been ever adopted into general ufe, nor have thofe who poffeffed it, appeared to excel others in readinefs of recollection or multiplicity of attainments. There is another art of which all have felt the want, though Themiftocles only confeffed it. We fuffer equal pain from the pertinacious adhefion of unwelcome images, as from the evanefcence of thofe which are pleafing and useful; and it may be doubted whether we should be more benefited by the art of Memory or the art of Forgetfulness. Forgetfulness is neceffary to Remembrance, Ideas are retained by renovation of that impreffion which time is always wearing away, and which new images are striving to obliterate. If ufelefs thoughts could be expelled from the mind, all the valuable parts of our knowledge would more frequently recur, and every recurrence would reinstate them in their former place. It is impoffible to confider, without fome regret, how much might have been learned, or how much might have been invented by a rational and vigorous application of time, ufelefsly or painfully paffed in the revocation of events, which have left neither good nor evil behind them, in grief for misfortunes either repaired or irreparable, in refentment of injuries known only to ourselves, of which death has put the authors beyond our power. Philofophy has accumulated precept upon precept, to warn us against the anticipation of future calamities. All ufelefs mifery is certainly folly, and he that feels evils before they come, may be defervedly cenfured; yet furely to dread the future is more reafonable than to lament the past. The bufinefs of life is to go forwards; he who fees evil in profpect meets it in his way, but he who catches it by retrofpection turns back to find it. That which is feared may have a new subject of regret to. may fometimes be avoided, but that which is regretted to-day may be regretted again to-morrow. Regret is indeed useful and virtuous, and not only allowable but neceffary, when it tends to the amend ment of life, or to admonition of error which we may be again in danger of committing. But a very small part of the moments spent in meditation on the paft, produce any reafonable caution or falutary forrow. Most of the mortifications that we have fuffered, arofe from the concurrence of local and temporary circumstances, which can never meet again; and moft of our disappointments have fucceeded thofe expectations, which life allows not to be formed a fecond time. It would add much to human happiness, if an art could be taught of forgetting all of which the remembrance is at once useless and afflictive, if that pain which never can end in pleasure could be driven totally away, that the mind might perform its functions without in cumbrance, and the paft might no longer encroach upon the prefent. Little can be done well to which the whole mind is not applied; the bufinefs of every day calls for the day to which it is affigned, and he will have no leifure to regret yefterday's vexations who refolves not to RECIPE for making "AKE of ifinglass fix ounces, reduce it to a fize, by diffolving it over the fire in double its weight of water. Take then of Spanish liquorice one ounce; and diffolve it alfo in double its weight of water; and grind up with it an ounce of genuine ivory black. Add this mix morrow. But to forget or to remember at pleasure, are equally beyond the power of man. Yet as memory may be affifted by method, and the decays of knowledge repaired by ftated times of recollection, fo the power of forgetting is capable of improvement. Reafon will, by a refolute conteft, prevail over imagination, and the power may be obtained of transferring the attention as judgment fhall direct. The incurfions of troublesome thoughts are often violent and importunate; and it is not easy to a mind accustomed to their inroads to expel them immediately by putting better images into motion; but this enemy of quiet is above all others weakened by every defeat; the reflection which has been once overpowered and ejected, seldom returns with any formidable vehemence. Employment is the great inftrument of intellectual dominion. The mind cannot retire from its enemy into total vacancy, or turn afide from one object but by paffing to another. The gloomy and the refentful are always found among those who have nothing to do, or who do nothing. We must be busy about good or evil, and he to whom the prefent offers nothing will often be looking backward on the past. INDIAN INK. ture to the fize while hot; and ftir the whole together till all the ingredients be thoroughly incorporated. Then evaporate away the water in balneo maria, and caft the remaining compofition into leaden moulds greafed; or make it up in any other form. GENTLEMEN, To the Authors of the BRITISH MAGAZINE. Anecdotes are a fort of confined field, where we glean after the plentiful harvest of hiftory: they are small narratives, which have been long fecreted, whence they receive the name of Anecdotes; and when they concern any illuftrious perfonage, are fure to engage the public attention. I make no doubt therefore but that the following Anecdotes of Philip, king of Macedon, extracted from Dr. Leland's excellent life of that illuftrious prince, will prove agreeable to moft of your readers, particularly to those who are too idle to ranfack more voluminous performances for hiftorical Anecdotes to amuse and entertain them. I am, &c. T. W. During the operations of the fiege himself to the fervice of Philip, by of Methoné, at which Philip was prefent,as he was employed in viewing the works, and directing the approaches, an arrow, fhot from the town, wounded him dangerously in the eye, and caft the befiegers into the utmost confufion. But they were foon reanimated by the vigour and resolution of their prince, who gave orders, with the utmost calmnefs and intrepidity, for continuing the fiege, and committed himself to the care of Critobulus, a chirurgeon, whose skill, in fo important a cure, history has thought worthy to be recorded and who, though he could not fave his eye, yet contrived, by his dexterity, to take away all the blemish which might have been expected from fuch an accident, When the arrow was extracted, this infcription is faid to have appeared on it, ASTER TO PHILIP'S RIGHT EYE; a circumftance, on which fome relations have been founded, that are unauthorized, and unfupported, by the more authentic writers. It is faid, (as the reader, who is at all converfant in modern compilements, perhaps need not be informed) that one After of Amphipolis, or of Olynthus, according to others, recommended affuring him, that his fkill in fhooting was fo accurate, that, with his bow, he could ftrike down birds in their full flight: to which Philip anfwered with contempt, It is well! I fhall make use of thee when I wage war with ftarlings: and that After, ftung with this neglect, threw himfelf into Methoné, whence he shot the arrow with the inscription abovementioned. It is alfo added, that Philip fent back the arrow, when extracted from his eye, with another infcription, importing, that, if once mafter of the town, he should hang up After; and that this threat was afterwards executed. A certain foldier, in the Macedonian army, had, in many inftances, diftinguished himself by extraordinary acts of valour, and had received many marks of Philip's favour and approbation. On fome occafion he embarked on board a veffel, which was wrecked by a violent ftorm, and he himself caft on the shore, helpless and naked, and scarcely with the appearance of life. A Macedonian, whofe lands were contiguous to the fea, came opportunely to be witness of his diftrefs, and, with all humane and charitable tenderness, flew to the relief of the unhappy ftranger. He bore him to his houfe, laid him in his own bed, revived, cherished, comforted, and, for forty days, fupplied him freely with all the neceffaries and conveniencies which his languishing condition could require. The foldier, thus happily rescued from death, was inceffant in the warmest expreffions of gratitude to his benefactor, affured him of his intereft with the king, and of his power and refolution of obtaining for him, from the royal bounty, the noble returns which fuch extraordinary benevolence had merited. He was now compleatly recovered, and his kind host fupplied him with money to pursue his journey. In fome time after, he prefented himself before the king, he recounted his misfortunes, magnified his fervices; and this inhuman wretch, who had looked with an eye of envy on the poffeffions of the man who had preferved his life, was now fo abandoned to all fenfe of gratitude, as to request that the king would bestow upon, him the house and lands where he had been fo tenderly and kindly entertained. Unhappily Philip, without examination, inconfiderately and precipitately granted his infamous request; and this foldier now returned to his preferver, and repaid his goodness, by driving him from his little fettlement, and taking immediate poffeffion of all the fruits of his honeft induftry. The poor man, ftung with this inftance of unparalleled ingratitude and infenfibility, boldly determined, instead of fubmitting to his wrongs, to feek relief; and, in a letter addreffed to Philip, reprefented his own and the foldier's conduct in a lively and affecting manner. The king was in stantly fired with indignation; he ordered that justice should be done without delay; that the poffeffions thould be immediately restored to the man whofe charitable offices had been thus horridly repaid; and, having feized his foldier, caufed thefe words to be branded on his forehead, THE UNGRATEFUL GUEST: a character infamous in every age, and among all nations; but particularly among the Greeks, who, from the earliest times, were moft fcrupuloutly obfervant of the laws of hospitality. It once happened, that a poor woman appeared before Philip to demand an audience; and, according to the custom of Macedon, to requeft, that he would hear and determine her fuit, which had been long depending, and which various engagements had obliged him to postpone. Still he pleaded his embarraffments, and carelessly put her off to fome time of greater leifure. Provoked at these repeated delays, the now anfwered boldly: If you cannot find time to do me juftice, divest yourself of your office: cease to be a king. He at once conceived the full force of this remonftrance, which a juft indignation had extorted from this oppreffed creature ; and, far from being fhocked or difpleased at her freedom, he inftantly heard and decided her fuit. He acknowledged, that to be a king and a judge was, in effect, the fame; that the throne was ftri&tly a tribunal, and not only gave him the power, but laid him under the inviolable obligation of diftributing juftice; and that to grant all the time and attention, neceffary to fo important an office was not a favour, but a duty which he owed to his fubjects. All this, faith Monfieur Rollin, is contained in that expreffion, fo fimple, and, at the fame time, fo preg nant nant with good fenfe, cafe to be a king. Statyrus, the celebrated actor, whom Philip held in great esteem, did not appear to partake in the general feftivity, nor to defire any token of his friendship. "Has Statyrus nothing to afk," fáid Philip; doth he doubt my generofity, or imagine that I have conceived fome particular offence at him?" "The things which others feem so earneft to obtain," replied Statyrus, "are to me intirely indifferent. That which would gratify me in the higheft degree, my prince could grant with the greatest eafe; but, alas! I fear he will refufe it." Philip gaily preffed him to fpeak his requeft boldly, and to put his friendship to the proof; for that he should deny him nothing. Thus encouraged, he addreffed himself in this manner to the king: "Apollophanes, of Pydha, was my friend and hoft. When he was killed, his relations fent his two young daughters to Olynthus, as to a place of fecurity: There were they taken when just arrived at the marriageable age; and are now groaning under the weight of captivity and flavery, employed in all thofe menial offices to which their unhappy fate has fubjected thofe helpless creatures. These are the prefents I requeft; and thefe I conjure you to bestow upon me. But, firft, know what it is I afk. I expect, I wish for, no advantage from them. I difdain all intentions unworthy of me, and unworthy of their father. No! my defire is to give them fuch portions as may enable them to marry happily." The beginning of this speech excited the attention of the whole company. Apollophanes was known to have been extremely obnoxious to Philip, as he had been ati accomplice in the murder of his brother Alexander. The conclufion was pleafing and aftonishing; and their efteem and admiration broke inftantly forth; in the loudeft acclamations and applaufes. Philip was affected by this greatnefs and goodness of mind, which his gueft difcovered; he readily granted his petition, and his munificence inabled Statyrus to pay the portions. Account of the Life and Writings of Henry Fielding, Esq. (Continued from our last, page 230.) AS we promifed in our laft number to treat of the genius as well as of the life of Mr. Fielding, our readers will not be displeased, perhaps, if we pause here with our author's entertaining Biographer, Mr. Murphy, for an enquiry into his talents, though we are not arrived at that period of his life when they difplayed themselves in their full warmth and vigour. But it will be neceffary firft, fays Mr. Murphy, to caution Jane 1764. the reader not to confine his idea of what is intended by the word genius, to any one fingle faculty of the mind; becaufe it is obfervable that many mistakes have arifen, even among writers of penetrating judgment, and well versed in critical learning, by haftily attaching themselves to an imperfect notion of this term fo common in literary differtations. That invention is the first great leading talent of a poet has been a PP point |