48 THE UNIVERSAL RULE OF EQUITY. [SERM. XXXIII. selves, " If I had been a negligent child, and guilty of some trifling offence, could I think it just my father should be in such a passion with, me ?" And the son. should enquire,, " If I .were a father, would I not think it reasonable my child.should obey me in such particu- lar instances or commands ?" Thus the landlord and te- nant, thus. the master and servant, thus the father and the son may come to an adjustment of their mutual obli- gations. The merchant should say to himself, " If I were an artificer, should 1 think it reasonable- that the labour of my hands, and the sweat Ofmy_brows, should be screwed clown to so cheap a price ?" The seller of goods should say, " If I were the buyer, would I think it just to have such corrupt or faulty wares put into my hands.? Am'I willing to have '.my necessity, my ignorance,. or un- wariness thus imposed upon r" And the buyer should. ask himself, " If I were the seller, should I bear to have my goods thus run downand depreciated below theirjust value ?" The learned professions may-also learn their duty from this rule. The lawyer should say to himself, " What if I were the client should I think it equitable to have my cause so long delayed, by so many shiftings and escapes, from a determination ?" The physicians and the surgeons should put themselves in the places of their sick or wounded patients, and say, " Do we prescribe never a potion, or use never a plaister more than we would think proper for ourselves, if we were languishing under the same sickness or wounds ? Do we take the same, safe and speedy methods of relief for others that we would have - applied to ourselves ?" And the preachers of the gospel should place themselves in the roomof their hearers, and say, " Do we labour in our closets, in our secret hours of retirement, and in our public ministrations, for the conversion and salvation of those who hear us, as we would have ministers do for us, if we were perishing in our sins, and in danger of eternal death ? Do we take such pains to awaken the slumberers upon the borders of hell, as we ourselves would have others take, in order to awaken us out of such fatal slumbers? Do We study and contrive with what divine cordials we shall refresh and comfort the mourners in Zion, even as we should desire
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=