465 / 514
SFI3M
RSVIII.7
A
LOVELY CARRIAGE,
&C,
457
at
something indeed,
and
bave
honest
designs
in
his
head,
but
is
ever changing the means to
attain
them,
and pur-
sues nothing
with
that
steadiness
that
prudence requires,
or
that
the necessity
of
human
affairs
demands
of
every
man
that
would
be wise
and
happy.
Such
men may
be
pitied
as
weak and
silly,
but
they
are
seldom esteemed,
or
Much
beloved in
the
world,
while
prudence
is so
much
wanting.
There
is
no necessity
that
I
should cite special parts
of
the word
of God,
to encourage
us to
seek this most
amiable quality, since the recommendations of
true
wis-
dom,
both
human
and
divine,
are scattered
up
and
(Iowa
through
all
the sacred writings: And the Spirit
of
-God
has given
us
one or
two
books,
on
purpose
to
teach
u$
prudence;
these
are
Ecclesiastes and
the
Proverbs
of
So-
lomon.
.
Nor
can
I
propose any
better
direction
to
gain,
Universal wisdom,
than
to
read the
book
'of
Proverbs
often with diligence and humble prayer.
II.
Moderation
is
another
lovelyquality.
It
teaches
us
to maintain a
medium between those
wild
extremes,
into
which
human
nature
is
ready
to
run upon every
oc-
casion.
When
a
warm and
imprudent talker adorns
some
common
character
with excessive praises,
and carries
it
up to
the stars, the
moderate
man puts in
a cautious
word,
and thinks it
is
sufficient to
raise
it half
so high.
Or
when he
hears
a vast
and
unreasonable
load
of accu-
-sation
and
infamy
thrown upon
some lesser mistakes
is
life,
the
moderate
man puts
in
a soft word
of
excuse,
lightens
the
burden of reproach, and
relieves the
good
name
of
the
sufferer
from being pressed to
death. When
he
sees
oppression and
violence
practised amongst
his
neighbours, the
justice of
his soul
directs
him to
take
the
part of
the injured person, and
his own
moderation
and goodness incline
him to
do it
in
such
a
manner,
as
may
calm
and suppress the
resentment of
the
oppressed,
and soften
and melt the oppressor
into compliance with
the
rules
of justice. Thus
he reconciles them both, with-
ont
giving offence
to either.
When any sect
of
christians
seem to be
carried
away
with
the
furious
torrent of
some
prevailing notions,
or
some
unnecessary practices,
some special
superstition,
or
a
contentious
spirit,
the moderate man
tries to
chew
3