facred the coarseft imitations and symbols of things divine.

It happened to be the jour de pâque, on the evening of which feftival there prevails in Weftphalia a cuftom, that I felt was worth recording. You fhall have it here. The Pruffian peafants commemorate the folemn event of our Saviour's refurrection in a fingular manner. In each village of the circle are to be feen three or four large bonfires, which the inhabitants have been preparing at their intervals of daily labour during the preceding week. The fires are lighted about nine at night; about ten, when they are in full blaze, the populace, and indeed people of all diftinctions, go out of the Cleves gates to view them. I was lucky enough at the moment to be on a vifit to a gentleman, who, at a fmall distance from the western port, had a fummerhoufe that commanded the country to the extent of twenty leagues. Every quarter or half league has a village, and the whole twenty leagues were illuminated. It was in itself an interefting novelty; but when the occafion was contemplated and combined with it, the heart glowed like the horizon. In the midst of the fcenery rofe the moon. She was at full, but at the moment of rising feemed another bonfire beginning to kindle and afcend. She foon, however, afferted her fuperiority; and when the

had

ye

had gained her proper ftation in the hemifphere, I could not help repeating to myself a few words, applicable to both." Hide your diminished heads," feeble works of men's hands: but thou, Cynthia, art of God. No wonder then at thy luftre! but, even as I pronounced this, I corrected my rashness, my injuftice-and fo are ye, ye feeble fires,-added I,-of God alfo; and every humble spark fhall afcend to heaven!

LETTER LXIII.

TO THE SAME.

I HAVE

HAVE already, more than once, in the course of this correfpondence, attempted to check the heady current of national prejudice, which appropriates all that is eftimable in human nature to itself, and leaves to the rest of the world only its vices, vanities, and infignificancies. I have given many examples of urbanity, that have been the growth of foils lefs celebrated than that of Britain, or than what once was France. I have fhewn it flourishing even in the unwholesome clime of Holland. Let me now offer you an inftance of its blooming power in Weftphalia. In truth, it is a flower appropriate to no particular country, but will profper wherever it is duly cultivated.

H3

tivated. Its natural foil is the human heart, in which it springs up, and thrives, very foon after that heart begins to beat, and would continue till there is no longer motion, were not paffions and prejudices for ever at work to check its growth or kill it in the bud.

In one of the most profound receffes of this beautiful country, at the distance of at least forty leagues from a court, thirty from a city, and at least ten miles from a market town, I once found urbanity that would have given luftre to them all. I found her in a cottage of clay, at the foot of a Pruffian foreft, under covert of which I was fhaded from obfervation. It was on one of the most lovely evenings a wanderer like, myself could have defired. The fun, indeed, of that diftinguished day was making a "golden fet" just as I reached the precincts of the wood, where I had not repofed many minutes, ere I heard the found of a flute, accompanied by a voice whofe natural fweetnefs excelled it in melody. The notes were indeed affifted by many harmonizing circumstances. You, who are a lover of nature, know what a variety of foothing founds pervade the air at eventide in the fummer.-The. pure breath of the zephyr, the diftant rivulet, that feems, by its indolent lapfe, and fubdued murmur, to partake of human fenfations,-the drowsy hum of the beetle, which the poet has

immor

0

immortalized, and the general fighing of the leaves, with, perhaps, the horn of the herd-boy, and the lowing of his cattle obedient to his fummons-and above all, those founds which imagination herself creates-all these contribute to form that twilight enchantment, which a tender heart, and a benevolent difpofition fo much delights in; and which men of the world confider as the day-dreams of * madmen.

Had I time to spare from my cottagers, it would be amufing to run at fome length the parallel betwixt a lover of nature and a man of the world, and to examine the estimate that each makes of the objects affembled in the laft paffage. To attempt this in abridgment

ift. The man of the world would never be tempted to leave the "cheerful haunts of men,' without what is called a jolly party five out of the fix of which probably wifhing themselves as many different ways before half the day is over, and, at last, going yawning home thoroughly tired with, if not hating, one another: for I have fo often obferved a party of pleasure to be so painful a plot upon the members that compose it, that were I to compile a new Dictionary, in which definitions were honeftly to be given, I fhould, under the words party of pleasure, inform the reader, that it is meant to fignify, the allociation of a fet of perfons met together with tastes

and tempers frequently difcordant, and interests in oppofition, yet determined to congregate, for the purpose of teafing one another under the mask of social goodfellowship: which mask generally drops, or is torn off, in the courfe of a few hours, to the difcovery of the whole confpiracy.-Such is the mere man of the world's party of pleasure: yes, and woman's of the world alfo !

2d. A man of the world has no conception of the breath or founds of,-or in the air, in the way that a lover of nature feels and enjoys them. A man of the world indeed obferves that it is curfed hot, and throws up the fafhes; or curfed cold, and pulls down the blinds:-the inflammatory bottles, ten times more burning than the fun-beams, are ftill on the table,-yet, at the fashionable hour, he goes forth-where? -To the public walks. -For what purpose?To fee the public. -But goes he not into the beautiful woods?-Yes, into the public parts of them, where he has a chance to fee the world he loves fo well. And is he never led by his fancy or his feelings into the fequeftered parts where nature modeftly and humbly displays her genius and graces? No, my friend, ladies and gentlemen of the world ufually avoid thefe bye-road beauties, unless carried thither by fome paffion that fhuns the day. And as to clay-built cottages, woodland inhabitants, ruftic fongs,

and