are superior to either-Jupiter himself, the witness of those treaties which you have violated. If at the lake of Regillus we gave you fighting until you were weary, I will answer for it that we shall in this place also give you such entertainment that for the future it will not be extremely agreeable to face us in the field." To this Geminius, advancing a little from his men, replied, "Do you choose, then, until that day arrives, when with such great labor you move your armies, to enter the lists yourself with me, that from the event of a combat between us two it may immediately be seen how much a Latine horseman surpasses a Roman ?" Either anger or shame of declining the contest or the irresistible power of destiny urged on the daring spirit of the youth; so that, disregarding his father's commands and the edict of the consuls, he rushed precipitately to a contest in which whether he was victorious or vanquished was of no great consequence to himself. The other horsemen moved to some distance, as if to behold a show; and then, in the space of clear ground which lay between them, the combatants spurred on their horses against each other, and on their meeting in fierce encounter the point of Manlius's spear passed over the helmet of his antagonist, and that of Metrius across the neck of the other's horse. They then wheeled their horses round, and Manlius, having with greater quickness raised himself in his seat to repeat his stroke, fixed his javelin between the ears of his opponent's horse. The pain of the wound made the animal rear his forefeet on high and toss his head with such violence that he shook off his rider, whom, as he endeavored to raise him self after the severe fall by leaning on his javelin and buckler, Manlius pierced through the throat, so that the steel came out between his ribs and pinned him to the earth. Then, collecting the spoils, he rode back to his men, and together with his troop, who exulted with joy, proceeded to the camp, and so on to his father, without ever reflecting on the nature or the consequences of his conduct or whether he had merited praise or punishment. Father," said he, " that all men may justly attribute to me the honor of being descended of your blood, having been challenged to combat, I bring these equestrian spoils, taken from my antagonist, whom I slew." Which when the consul heard, turning away instantly from the youth in an angry manner, he ordered the assembly to be called by sound of trumpet; and when the troops had come together in full numbers, he spoke in this manner: "Titus Manlius, forasmuch as you, in contempt of the consular authority and of the respect due to a father, have, contrary to our edict, fought with the enemy out of your post, as far as in you lay subverted the military discipline by which the power of Rome has to this day been supported, and have brought me under the hard necessity either of overlooking the interests of the public or my own and those of my nearest connections, it is fitter that we undergo the penalty of our own transgressions than that the commonwealth should expiate our offences, so injurious to it. We shall afford a melancholy example, but a profitable one, to the youth of all future ages. For my part, I own, both the natural affection of a parent and the instance which you have shown of bravery misguided by a false notion of honor affect me deeply. But, since the authority of a consul's orders must either be established by your death or by your escaping with immunity be annulled for ever, I expect that even you yourself, if you have any of our blood in you, will not refuse to restore by your punishment that military discipline which has been subverted by your fault.Go, lictor; bind him to the stake." Shocked to the last degree by such a cruel order, each looking on the axe as if drawn against himself, all were quiet through fear rather than discipline. They stood therefore for some time motionless and silent; but when the blood spouted from Titus's severed neck, then, their minds emerging, as it were, from the stupefaction into which they had been plunged, they all at once united their voices in free expressions of compassion, refraining not either from lamentations or execrations; and, covering the body of the youth with the spoils, they burned it on a pile erected without the rampart, with every honor which the warm zeal of the soldiers could bestow on a funeral. From thence "Manlian orders" were not only then considered with horror, but have been transmitted as a model of austerity to future times. The harshness of this punishment, however, rendered the soldiery more obedient to their commander, while the guards and watches and the regulation of the several posts were thenceforth attended to with greater diligence; this severity was also found useful when the troops, for the final decision, went into the field of battle. The war being brought to a conclusion, Titus Manlius, after distributing rewards and punishments according to the merits and demerits of each, returned to Rome. On his arrival there it appeared that none but the aged came out to meet him, and that the young, both then and during the whole of his life, detested and cursed him. Translation of RICHARD BAKER. FICTION. HE attention of young persons may be THE seduced by well-selected works of fiction from the present objects of the senses and the thoughts accustomed to dwell on the past, the distant or the future, and in the same proportion in which this effect is in any instance accomplished “the man," as Dr. Johnson has justly remarked, "is exalted in the scale of intellectual being." The tale of fiction will probably be soon laid aside with the toys and rattles of infancy, but the habits which it has contributed to fix and the powers which it has brought into a state of activity will remain with the possessor, permanent and inestimable treasures, to his latest hour. Nor is it to the young alone that these observations are to be exclusively applied. Instances have frequently occurred of individuals in whom the power of imagination has at a more advanced period of life been found susceptible of culture to a wonderful degree. In such men what an accession is gained to their most refined pleasures! What enchantments are added to their most ordinary perceptions! The mind, awakening as if from a trance to a new existence, becomes habituated to the most interesting aspects of life and of nature; the intellectual eye "is purged of its film," and things the most familiar and unnoticed disclose charms invisible before. The same objects and events which were lately beheld with indifference occupy now all the powers and capacities of the soul, the contrast between the present and the past serving only to enhance and to endear so unlooked-for an acquisition. What Gray has so finely said of the pleasures of vicissitude conveys but a faint image of what is experienced by the man who, after having lost in vulgar occupations and vulgar amusements his earliest and most precious years, is thus introduced at last to a new heaven and a new earth. The meanest floweret of the vale, The simplest note that swells the gale, DUGALD STEWART. WASHINGTON'S MORAL CHARACTER. HIS IS moral qualities were in perfect harmony with those of his intellect. Duty was the ruling principle of his conduct, and the rare endowments of his understanding were not more constantly tasked to devise the best methods of effecting an object than they were to guard the sanctity of conscience. No instance can be adduced in which he was actuated by a sinister motive or endeavored to attain an end by unworthy means. Truth, integrity and justice were deeply rooted in his mind, and nothing could rouse his indignation so soon or so utterly destroy his confidence as the discovery of the want of these virtues in any one whom he had trusted. Weaknesses, follies, indiscretions, he could forgive, but subterfuge and dishonesty he never forgot, rarely pardoned. He was candid and sincere, true to his friends and faithful to all, neither practising dissimulation, descending to artifice nor holding out expectations which he did not in tend should be realized. His passions were strong, and sometimes they broke out with vehemence; but he had the power of checking them in an instant. Perhaps self-control was the most remarkable trait of his character. It was in part the effect of discipline, yet he seems by nature to have possessed this power to a degree which has been denied to other men. A Christian in faith and practice, he was habitually devout. His reverence for religion is seen in his example, his public communications and his private writings. He uniformly ascribed his successes to the beneficent agency of the supreme Being. Charitable and humane, he was liberal to the poor and kind to those in distress. As a husband, son and brother he was tender and affectionate. Without vanity, ostentation or pride, he never spoke of himself or his actions unless required by circumstances which concerned the public interests. As he was free from envy, so he had the good fortune to escape the envy of others by standing on an elevation which none could hope to attain. If he had one passion more strong than another, it was love of his country. purity and ardor of his patriotism were commensurate with the greatness of its object. Love of country in him was invested with the sacred obligation of a duty, and from the faithful discharge of this duty he never swerved for a moment, either in thought or deed, through the whole period of his eventful career. The JARED SPARKS. twain, And thou be living, breathing Greece again? A guiding-light to centuries unborn. When Death displays his coldness in my cheek And I myself in my own picture seek, THOMAS RANDOLPH. W SARAH ANNA LEWIS. MY PICTURE. TE VALOR. EMPER the will by day and night Yet rough as Saxon mace to smite. HEN age hath made me what I am Wise Merlin's scrolls perforce disclose not now And every wrinkle tells me where the plough Of Time hath furrowed, when an ice shall flow Through every vein and all my head be snow, Their wizard meanings to his eyes: He knows by valor what he knows. Love draws the sword, and saints are wise To seize a timely bolt of fire And storm the gates of Paradise. WILLIAM B WRIGHT |