melodious, our manners mild, our fleep sweet, and our whole life quiet and peaceable: And, as a bleffed confequence of all this, together with the highest enjoyment of the prefent life, we are in the best frame of mind to prepare ourfelves for that which is to come. Happily freed from the anxiety and vexation of all bad paffions, we profitably contemplate our numberlefs obligations to love God and one another, and thus, in the multitude of our good thoughts, daily grow in virtue and piety.

BUT all this goodly Canaan, this land of love, flowing with richest milk and honey of peace, is fnatched from our eyes by the demon-hand of hatred, and nought appears in its place but a land of darkness and of death, whose streams are of gall, and its fruits of bitter ashes.

By over-reaching a neighbour in a bargain (which we fhall be too apt to do if we love him not), we make him

Our

our enemy. Perhaps he has the spirit to tell us of our baseness to our faces, or to talk of it behind our backs. This fires our bofoms with odious and painful paffions. Challenges or law-suits, with all their ignominious vexations, hurtful, and often fatal confequences, enfue.

OR by treating him with unreafonable severity (a thing very feasible if we love him not), we enflame his refentment to fuch an height, that not content with ftabbing our reputation, he threatens our property and lives. Our curfes now multiply thick and fast upon our heads. We can no longer fleep in quiet, from dread of having our houfes fired over our heads. We are actually afraid (the memory of those who read may help them to inftances) to ftir out, or, like people in the neighbourhood of hostile Indians, must make

our visits with pistols in our pockets, and carabines in our hands.

THUS, through defect of love, we are often dragged upon the stage against our wills, and there made to act parts in tragedies, which neither become nor please us. Our thoughts taken off from all delightful fubjects, are turned to folicitous cares of felf-prefervation and defence. Our minds are difcompofed by vexatious paffions. Our credit is blafted by false reports and flanderous defamations. Our hearts are kept continually boiling with choler, our faces overclouded with discontent, our ears filled with discordant noifes of contradiction, clamor and reproach; and our whole frame of body and foul diftempered with the worst of paffions. In the meantime our natural rest is disturbed, our neceffary business is hindred, our happiness in this life is utterly wretched and loft, and the great concerns of heaven and

eternal

eternal glory are entirely laid afide. O how much better it is to walk in the finooth and flowery paths of love, than thus to wander in the rugged ways of hatred, overgrown with briars, and befet with fnares; to fail gently down the course of life on the filver current of friendship, than to be toffed on the tempeftuous fea of contention; to behold the lovely face of heaven smiling with a cheerful ferenity, than to see it frowning with clouds or raging with ftorms! How much a peaceful state refembles heaven, into which no ftrife nor clamor ever enter, but where bleffed fouls converfe together in perfect love, and perpetual concord! And how a condition of enmity resembles hell, that black and dismal region of dark hatred, fiery wrath, and horrible tumult! How like a paradife the world would be flourifhing in joy and reft, if men would but cheerfully conípire in love, and

ge

nerously

nerously contribute to each others good: and how like a favage wildness it now is, when like wild beasts, they vex and perfecute, worry and devour each other.

AND to conclude, let us remember, that "Love fhall never fail," and that, the man of love "fhall be had in everlafting remembrance, and his memory shall be bleffed." No fpices can fo embalm a man, no monument can so preserve his name, as works of love. The renown of power, of wit, and of learning, may reft on the minds of men with fome admiration; but the remembrance of love reigns in their hearts with fincereft affection, there erecting trophies triumphant over death and oblivion. The good man's very duft is fragrant, and his grave venerable. His name is never mentioned without the tribute of a sigh, and loud acclamations of praife. And even when he is gone hence, and in per

fon