. Fables of Aesop and others. He that, in hiswords or actions, pleads for superiority, and rather chooses todo an ill action, than to condescend to do a good one, acts like aheathen, and is vod of reason and understanding. The richand the powerful w ant nothing but the love and esteem of man-kind to complete their felicity; and these they are sure to ob-tain by a good humoured, kind condescension: and as certainof being every bodys aversion, while the least tincture of over-bearing rudeness is perceivable in their words or actions. Whatbrutal tempers must they be of, who can be easy and indiff
. Fables of Aesop and others. He that, in hiswords or actions, pleads for superiority, and rather chooses todo an ill action, than to condescend to do a good one, acts like aheathen, and is vod of reason and understanding. The richand the powerful w ant nothing but the love and esteem of man-kind to complete their felicity; and these they are sure to ob-tain by a good humoured, kind condescension: and as certainof being every bodys aversion, while the least tincture of over-bearing rudeness is perceivable in their words or actions. Whatbrutal tempers must they be of, who can be easy and indiffer-ent, while they know themselves to be universally hated, thoughin the midst of affluence and power? But this is not all; for if ever the Wheel of Fortune shouldwhirl them from the top to the bottom, instead of friendship orcommiseration, they will meet with nothing but contempt;and that with much more justice, than ever they themselvesexerted it towards others. 252 .ESOPS FABLES. FAB. CXXXIX. The Husbandman and his A certain Husbandman lying at tne point of death,and being desirous his sons should pursue that inno-cent entertaining course of agriculture, in which him-self had been engaged all his life, made use of thisexpedient to induce them tc it. He called them tohis bed-side, and spoke to this effect. All the patri-mony I have to bequeath to you, Sons, is my farm andvineyard, of which I make you joint-heirs. But Icharge you not to let it go out of your own occupa*tion; for, if I have any treasure besides, it lies buriedsomewhere in the ground, within a foot of the sur-face. This made the Sons conclude, that he talkedof money, which he had hid there; so after their fath-ers death, with unwearied diligence and applicationthey carefully dug up every inch, both of the farm andvineyard. From whence it came to pass, that though iESOPS FABLES. 253 they missed of the treasure which they expected, theground by being so well stirred and loosened, produ-ced so plentiful a cr
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