BEAUTIES OF MODERN LITERATURE.

GENLIANA.

The following are Extracted from the Works of the celebrated Madame Genlis.

God has implanted in our hearts a salutary propensity to distinguish ourselves, and toil for glory; it is self-love;—when pure, it is the spring of heroism and genius; but man-corrupted man, abuses that precious gift; changes and debases its nature, gives it a vain and frivolous aim, and perverts it into pride-Théâtre || Chateau. d'Education, Agar. N 2

The golden age, as sung by the poets, is a pleasing chimera; but the age of love and friendship was not fictitious; it flourished in the brilliant days of chivalry. A woman at that

Buffon has shewn in his natural history that a man may sometimes unite a great extent of learning with a splendid imagination, and an acute sense of feeling with the delightful art of painting; that he may join with equal excel-period appeared such an interesting being, that, lence the most affecting objects and the most His gloomy and tremendous scenes of nature. work presents the best models of every kind of style and description of eloquence. By turns a poet, a painter, a profound metaphysician, a sublime philosopher, Buffon speaks every language; equally flexible and comprehensive, his genius grasps and masters every subject. With the same facility that he traces the most minute lines, he seizes the whole of the most extensive plan. No French writer explored the treasures of his language with a more happy industry, or joined so much exactness with so much elegance, and was at once so correct and brilliant.-Les deux Reputations.

CONVERSATION.

The conversation of men of letters generally commences with praises and flatteries recipro || cally exchanged. An attack upon their rivals ensues; and then arise long arguments, stubborn assertions, and bitter quarrels. Indeed it cannot be termed a conversation; every one speaks for himself alone, and follows his own ideas without listening to those of others. They are absent, impatient, or thoughtful. Are they silent; it is to prepare an answer without the least attention to what is said. Is an interesting story related? their minds are occupied in inventing another, which they trust will diffuse more delight among their hearers. It seems as if they had assembled together with the intention of challenging and surpassing each other, without attempting to promote the common amusement and instruction of the party. They are mostly on the watch to find out an opportunity of introducing some bons mols of their own composition. These are sometimes in honour of men of letters; sometimes anecdotes which relate to themselves; but those numerous quotations become at length tiresome; the hearers seldom feel any portion of the satisfaction of those who repeat them; they are not always instructive; and who, listening to such a conversation, would not imagine that he hears the lecture of one of those fatiguing books, full of ridiculous stories and puns, compiled without care and without choice, which we may take up for a moment, but soon throw away with disgust.-Les deux Repulations.

deprived of the attractions of youth and beauty, she might implore and obtain the protection of courage and power. Obedient to the impulse of honour, every knight devoted himself to the service of the fair sex. He exposed his life and fortune for the aged and oppressed widow, as well as for the young, unprotected, and orphan virgin. Women, it is true, at that happy time, laid claim to no other virtues than those which ought to characterize their sex. They felt the love of glory; but only as a sentiment, never as a passion: the only ambition it awoke in their bosoms was that of deserving the pleasing appellations of obedient daughters, faithful wives, and affectionate mothers. Elevated by the exploits of their knights, their celebrity depended upon their own choice. Courage and loyalty alone could inspire love; and love, by exciting emulation, produced the most astonishing feats of valour and heroism. The glory won by the knight who saved his country, his friend, or his companion, shed its mildest rays upon his mistress, and he divided with her the crown which fame had bestowed as the reward of his deserts.

Renouncing all vain pretensions, and completely divested of selfishness, women followed in those days the impulse of nature; who, to ennoble their dependant state, gave charms even to their weakness, and endued their hearts with a sublime sensibility, which displayed itself in the behalf of others, and rendered them forgetful of themselves. By that sweet union, that delightful covenant between both sexes, friendship became a passion, and love a virtue.-Arthur et Sophronie.

ECONOMY.

Generosity cannot subsist without economy. What is uselessly given is lost; it is a theft committed upon the unfortunate.-Veillées du Chateau.

GAMING.

Gaming, of all passions, is the most dangerous and inexcusable. A gamester endeavours to enrich himself with the spoils of those whom he calls his friends. But how many armies are in arms against him! Behold that mother, her tears reproach him with the ruin of her only son! That father pronounces his name with horror and contempt to his children. Pursued

by hatred, overwhelmed by calumny, he feels himself condemned by reason and humanity, and after wandering long in the mazes of vice, he finds nothing before his eyes but ruin and remorse.-Veillées du Chateau.

FASHION

"Is the child of vanity and love." Thus says the celebrated Montaigne: when it springs from

the desire of decorating the person with modest ornaments, and rendering it amiable in the eyes of man, it is praise-worthy; and then it is the true offspring of love. When its object is to feed conceit, and to administer to pride, to purvey for coquetry, and cherish self-love, it is the child of vanity.-Veiliges du Chateau.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROGRESS OF SOCIETY AND MANNERS IN SCOTLAND.

From "Stark's Picture of Edinburgh," published in the preceding Month.

In the beginning of the eighteenth century, public amusements began to be introduced into Edinburgh in greater variety than formerly. Of these, music, dancing, and the theatre, were the chief; and perhaps had no small effect in the improvement of manners. Science also now began to dawn in the Scottish capital with a distinguished lustre; and industry and commerce, by the introduction of luxury, almost entirely changed the habits of the inhabitants. Still, however, the gloom with which rigid presbyteri | anism shaded all the transactions till the middle of the 18th century, was remarkably conspicuous in their aversion to stage performances, and other amusements.

In 1763, according to Mr. Creech, masters took charge of the moral conduct of their ap prentices, and generally kept them under their eye in their own houses. The clergy visited, catechised, and instructed the families within their respective parishes in the principles of morality, Christianity, and the relative duties of life. The breach of the seventh commandment was punished by fine and church censure. Any instance of conjugal infidelity in a woman would have banished her irretrievably from society, and her company would have been rejected even by men who paid any regard to their character. The fines collected by the kirk-treasurer for natural children amounted to about 154/. annually. There were at this time only about five or six houses of bad fame, and a very few of the lowest orders of females skulked about the streets at night. Streetrobbery and picking of pockets were unknown.

rare; and many people thought it unnecessary to lock their doors at night. The execution of criminals in Edinburgh for capital crimes was rare; and three annually were reckoned the ave. rage for the whole kingdom of Scotland. For many years in Edinburgh there was no execu tion.

A paper published by Mr. William Creech in the Statistical Account of Scotland, throws con- || siderable light on the manners of this period. || From this account it appears, that in 1463 people of fashion dined at two o'clock, or a little after || House-breaking and robbery were extremely it, and business was attended to in the afternoon. It was a common practice at that time for the merchants to shut their shops at one o'clock, and to open them again after dinner at two. Wine at this time was seldom seen, or in a small quantity, at the tables of the middle rank of people. It was the fashion for gentlemen to attend the drawing-rooms of the ladies in the afternoons, to drink tea, and to mix in the agreeable society and conversation of the women. People at this period too were interested about religion, and it was fashionable to go to church. Sunday was by all ranks strictly observed as a day of devotion, a few were seen strolling about the streets during the time of public worship. Families attended church, with their children and servants, and family-worship at home was not unfrequent. The collections made at the church-doors for the poor, amounted at this time to 15007. and upwards, yearly.

In the year 1763 there was no such amusement as public cock-fighting, the establishments of this kind which were in the city before having been given up. A young man was termed a fine fellow, who to a well informed and accomplished mind, added elegance of manners, and a conduct guided by principle; one who would not have injured the rights of the meanest individual; who contracted no debts that he could not pay; who thought every breach of morality unbecoming the character of a gentleman; and who studied to be useful to society, so far as his opportunities or abilities enabled him. At this time,

in the best families in town, the education of || hardly permitted to exercise their professions on

too, at this period, was greatly neglected, and

payment of every other; who swore immode

particularly by the men; Sunday was by manyrately, and before ladies, and talked of his word

made a day of relaxation; and young people were allowed to stroll about at all hours. Families thought it ungenteel to take their domestics to church with them; the streets were far from being void of people in the time of public worship; and in the evenings were frequently loose and riotous; particularly owing to bands of apprentice boys and young lads. Family worship was almost disused. The weekly collections at the church doors for the poor had greatly decreased in amount.

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of honour; who ridiculed religion and morality
as folly and hypocrisy (but without argument);
who was very jolly at the table of his friend,
and would lose no opportunity of seducing
his wife, or of debauching his daughter; but,
on the mention of such a thing being at-
tempted to his own connections, would have
cut the throat, or blown out the brains of his
dearest companion offering such an insult; who
was forward in all the fashionable follies of the
time; who disregarded the interests of society,
or the good of mankind, if they interfered
with his own vicious, selfish pursuits and plea-
sures. At this period, the daughters of many
tradesmen consumed their mornings at the
toilette, or in strolling from shop to shop, &c.
Many of them would have blushed to have been
seen in a market. The cares of the family were
devolved upon a housekeeper, and the young
lady employed those heavy hours when she was
disengaged from public or private amusements,
in improving her mind from the precious stores
of a circulating library; and all, whether they
had taste for it or not, were taught music
was the danger at this time to which unprotected
females were exposed, that the mistresses of
boarding-schools found it necessary to advertise,
that their young ladies were not permitted to go
abroad without proper attendants.

Such

In 1783 (says Mr. Creech), few masters would receive apprentices to lodge in their houses. If they attended their hours of business, masters took no further charge. The rest of their time might be passed, as too frequently happens, in vice and debauchery; hence they become idle, insolent, and dishonest. T..e wages to journeymen in every profession were greatly raised since 1763, and disturbances frequently happened for a still further increase: yet many of them riot on Sunday, are idle all Monday, and can afford to do this on five days labour. Visiting and catechising by the clergy were disused (except by a very few); and if people do not choose to go to church, they may remain as ignorant as Hottentots, and the ten commandments be as little known as obsolete acts of parliament. At this time, likewise, although the law punishing adultery with death was unrepealed (says Mr. Creech), yet, strange to tell, it ceased to be acted upon; church censure was disused, and separations and divorces were become frequent. Even the women who were rendered infamous by public divorce, had been, by some people of fashion, again received into society. The fines collected by the kirktreasurer, for bastard children, amounted to 6001. The number of brothels had increased twenty-merly would have hissed as improper in sentiment fold since 1763, and the women of the town more than a hundred-fold. Every quarter of the city and suburbs were infested with multitudes of females abandoned to vice; and street-robbery, house-breaking and theft, were astonishingly frequent. At one time, at this period, there were no less than six criminals under sentence of death in Edinburgh prison in one week; and upon the autumn circuit of this year (1783) no less than thirty-seven capital indictments were issued.

In 1783 there were many public cock-fighting matches, or mains, as they are technically termed, and a regular cock-pit was built for this school of cruelty. A young man at this time was termed a fine fellow, who could drink three bottles of wine; who discharged all debts of honour (game debts and tavern bills), and evaded

In 1783 the weekly concert began at seven o'clock; but it was not in general well attended. The morality of stage plays, or their effects on society, were never thought of, and the most crowded houses were always on Saturday night. The boxes for the Saturday night plays were generally taken for the season, and strangers on that night could seldom procure a place. The galleries never failed to applaud what they for

or decorum. The public assemblies met at eight and nine o'clock, and the lady directress sometimes did not make her appearance till ten. The young masters and missses, who would have been mortified not to have seen out the ball, thus returned home at three or four in the morning, and yawned, and gaped, and complained of headachs all the next day.

In 1783 the accommodation of the inhabitants of Edinburgh was splendid, and the houses in the New Town unrivalled in elegance. The city had extended so much, that it covered twice the extent of ground it formerly did. The stagecoaches to Leith and other parts were tripled, and no less than fifteen every week set out for London, and reached it in sixty hours. The hackney coaches at this time were the handsomest in Britain, Coaches and chaises were con