your wifdom, and your prudence: impatience will not difcharge your yoke, but it will make it gall the worse, and fit the harder.

II.

Learn not only patience under your afflictions, but alfo profitably to improve them to your foul's good: learn by them how vain and unprofitable things the world, and the pleasures thereof, are, that a fharp, or a lingring ficknefs renders utterly taftelefs. Learn how vain and weak a thing human nature is, which is pulled down to the gates of death, and cloathed with rottennefs and corruption, by a little diforder in the blood, in a nerve, in a vein, in an artery. And fince we have fo little hold of a temporal life, which is fhaken and shattered by any fmall occurrence, accident, or diftemper: learn to lay hold of eternal life, and of that covenant of peace and falvation, which Chrift hath brought for all that believe, and obey the gospel of peace and salvation: there fhall be no death, no fickness, no pain, no weakness, but a state of unchangeable, and everlafting happiness: and if you thus improve affliction, you are gainers by it; and most certain it is, that there is no more probable way under the heaven to be delivered from affliction, if the wife God fee it fit, than thus to improve it: for affliction is a meffenger, and the rod hath a voice; and that is, to require mankind to be the more patient, and the more humble, and more to acknowlege almighty God in all our ways: and if men liften to this voice of the rod, and conform to it, the rod hath done his errand; and either will leave a man, or at least give a man fingular comfort, even under the sharpest affliction and this" affliction, which is but for a mo"ment, thus improved, will work for us an exceeding "and eternal weight of glory."

12. Reverence your minifter; he is a wife, and a good man, and one that loves you, and hath a tender care and respect for you: do not grieve him, either by neglect, or difrefpect. Affure yourselves, if there be any person, that fets any of you against him, or provokes, or incourageth any of you to defpife, or neglect him; that perfon, whoever he be, loves not you, nor the office he bears: and therefore as the laws of the land, and the divine providence, hath placed him at Alderley, to have a care of your fouls; fo I must tell you, I do expect you fhould

fhould reverence and honour him for his own, for your, and for his office-fake.

And now I have written this long epiftle to you, to perform that office for me, that I fhould have done in perfon, if I could have taken this journey. The epistle is long, but it had been longer, if I had had more time. And though perchance fome there may be in the world, that, when they hear of it, will interpret it to be but the excurfions and morofe rules of old age, unneceffary, and fuch as might have been spared; yet I am perfuaded, it will find better acceptation thereof, from you that are my children. I am now on the fhady fide of threescore years, I write to you, what you have often heard me in substance fpeak and poffibly, when I fhall leave this world, you will want fuch a remembrancer as I have been to you. The words that I now, and at former times have written to you, are words of truth and foberness; and words, and advices that proceed from a heart full of love and affection to you all. If I fhould fee you do amifs in any thing, and fhould not reprove you; or, if I fhould find you want counfe! and direction, and fhould not give it, I fhould not perform the trust of a father; and, if you fhould not thankfully receive it, you would be somewhat defective in the duty you owe to God and me, as children. As I have never fpared my purfe to fupply you, according to my abilities, and the reasonableness of occafions; fo I have never been wanting to you in good and prudent counfels; and the God of heaven give you wisdom, conftancy, and fidelity in the obfervance of them.

Sir MATTHEW HALE's Second Epiftle to his CHILDREN.

I

CHILDREN,

Concerning their SPEECH.

THANK God I came well to Farrington this Saturday, about five of the clock; and, because I have fome leisure time at my inn, I could not spend that time more to my own contentment, and your benefit, than by my letter, to give you all good counfel: the fubject whereof, at this time, fhall be concerning fpeech; because much of the good or evil that befals perfons, doth occafionally happen by the well or ill managing of that part of human converfation. I fhall, as I have leisure and opportunity, at other times, give you my directions concerning other fubjects.

And herein I fhall advise you, firft, How you are to entertain the speeches of others, according to the divers varieties thereof. Secondly, How you are to manage and your own speech.

order

I. As concerning the former, obferve thefe directions. 1. Obferve and mark, as well as you may, what is the temper and difpofition of thofe perfons, whofe fpeeches you hear, whether they be grave, ferious, fober, wife, discreet perfons; if they be fuch, their speeches commonly are like themselves, and will deferve your attention and obfervation. But if they be light, impertinent, vain,' paffionate perfons, their fpeech is, for the most part, according; and the beft advantage that you will gain by their speech, is but thereby to learn their difpofitions, to difcern their failings, and to make yourselves the more cautious, both in your confervation with them, and in your own speech and deportment; for, in the unfeemliness of their speech, you may better difcern and avoid the like in yourselves.

2. If any perfon, that you do not very well know to be a perfon of truth, fobriety, and weight, relate ftrange

Atories,

ftories, be not too ready or easy to believe them, nor report them after him: and yet (unless he be one of your familiar acquaintance) be not too forward to contradict him; or if the neceffity of the occafion require you to declare your opinion of what is fo reported, let it be modeftly and gently, not too bluntly or coarfely; by this means, on the one fide, you shall avoid being abused by your too much credulity; on the other fide, you fhall avoid quarrels, and distaste.

3. If any man speak any thing to the difad antage or reproach of one that is abfent, be not too ready to believe it, only observe and remember it; for it may be, it is not true, or it is not all true, or fome other circumstances were mingled with it, which might give the business re-v ported a juftification, or at least an allay, an extenuation, or a reasonable excufe: in most actions, if that which is bad alone, or feems to be fo, be reported, omitting that which is good, or the circumftances that accompany it, any action may be eafily mifreprefented; be not too hafty therefore to believe a reproach, till you know the truth, and the whole truth.

4. If any perfon report unto you fome injury done to you by another, either in words or deeds, do not be over hafty in believing it, nor fuddenly angry with the perfon fo accufed; for poffibly it may be false or mistaken; and, how unfeemly a thing will it be, when your credulity and paffion, fhall perchance carry you, upon a fuppofed injury, to do wrong to him that hath done you none; or, at least, when the bottom and truth of the accufation is known, you will be afhamed of your paffion? believe not a report, till the party accufed be heard; and if the report be true, yet be not transported either with paffion, hasty anger, or revenge, for that will be your own torment and perturbation; ever, when a person is accused, or reported to have injured you, before you give your felf leave to be angry, think with yourself, why fhould I be angry before I am certain it is true? or, if it be true, how can I tell how much I fhould be angry till I know the whole matter? though, it may be, he hath done me wrong, yet poffibly it is not fo much as it is represented, or it was done by mistake, or, it may be, he is forry for it: I will not be angry till I know there be caufe, and if there

there be caufe, yet I will not be angry, till I know the whole caufe, for till then, if I must be angry at all, yet I know not how much to be angry; it may be it is not worth my anger, or, if it be, it may be it deserves but a little. This will keep your mind and carriage, upon fuch occafions, in a due temper and order; and will difappoint malicious or officious tale bearers.

5. If a man, whole integrity you do not very well know, makes you great and extraordinary profeffions and promises, give him as kind thanks as may be, but give not much credit to it: caft about with yourself what may be the reason of this wonderful kindness; it is twenty to one but you will find fomething that he aims at, befides kindnefs to you: it may be he hath something to beg or buy of you, or to fell to you, or fome fuch bargain that fpeaks out, at least, his own advantage, and not yours; and if he ferve his turn upon you, or if he be disappointed, his kindness will grow cool.

6. If a man flatter and commend you to your face, or to one that he thinks will tell you of it, it is a thousand to one, either he hath deceived and abused you fome way, or means to do fo: remember the fable of the fox, commending the finging of the crow, when fhe had fomewhat in her mouth that the fox liked.

7. If a perfon be cholerick, paffionate, and give you ill language; remember, 1. Rather to pity him, than to be moved into anger and paffion with him; for most certainly that man is in a distemper and diforder; obferve him calmly, and you shall fee him in fo much perturbation and disturbance, that you will eafily believe he is not a pattern to be initated by you; and therefore return not choler nor anger, for angry words: for you do but put yourself into a kind of frenzy, because you fee him fo. 2. Be fure you return not railing, reproaching, or reviling for reviling, for it doth but kindle more heat, and you will find filence, or, at least, very gentle words, the most exquifite revenge of reproaches that can be; for either it will cure the diftemper in the other, and make him fee and be forry for his paffion, or it will torment him with more perturbation and distur-. bance. But howsoever it keeps your innocence, gives you deferved reputation of wisdom and moderation, and keeps up the ferenity and compofure of your mind; whereas

paffion