barren as to require the utmoft labour. The laborious occupation of hunting for food, produced originally fome degree of industry: and though all the industry of man was at firft neceffary for procuring food, clothing, and habitation; yet the foil, by skill in agriculture, came to produce plenty with lefs labour; which to fome afforded time for thinking of conveniences. A habit of induftry thus acquired, excited many to bestow their leisure hours upon the arts, proceeding from useful arts to fine arts, and from these to sciences. Wealth, accumulated by induftry, has a wonderful influence upon manners: feuds and war, the offspring of wealth, call forth into action friendship, courage, heroism, and every focial virtue, as well as many felfish vices. How like brutes do we pafs our time, without once reflecting on the wisdom of Providence visible even in the foil we tread upon!

Diversity of manners, at the fame time, enters into the plan of Providence, as well as diversity of talents, of feelings, and of opinions. Our Maker hath given us a tafte for variety; and he hath provided objects in plenty for its gratification. Some foils, naturally fertile, require little labour: fome foils, naturally barren, require much labour. But the advantages of the latter are more than fufficient to counterbalance its barrennefs: the inhabitants are fober, induftrious, vigorous; and confequently courageous, as far as courage depends on bodily

ftrength*. The disadvantages of a fertile foil, on the contrary, are more than fufficient to counterbalance its advantages: the inhabitants are rendered indolent, weak, and cowardly. Hindoftan may seem to be an exception; for though it be extremely fertile, the people are induftrious, and export manufactures in great abundance at a very low price. But Hindoftan properly is not an exception. The Hindoos, who are prohibited by their religion to kill any living creature, must abandon to animals for food a large proportion of land; which obliges them to cultivate what remains with double industry, in order to procure food for themfelves. The populoufnefs of their country contributes alfo to make them induftrious, Arragon was once the most limited monarchy in Europe, England not excepted: the barrennefs of the foil was the cause, which rendered the people hardy and courageous. In a preamble to one of their laws, the states declare, that, were they not more free

than

* That a barren country is a great spur to industry, appears from Venice and Genoa in Italy, Nuremberg in Germany, and Limoges in France. The fterility of Holland required all the industry of its inhabitants for procuring the neceffaries of life; and by that means chiefly they became remarkably induftrious. Camden afcribes the fuccefs of the town of Halifax in the cloth manufacture, to its barren foil. A fect of pampered Englishmen, it is to be hoped not many in number, who center all their devotion in a luxurious board, despise Scotland for its plain fare; and in bitter contumely, characte rize it as a poor country.

than other nations, the barrennefs of their country would tempt them to abandon it. Oppofed to Arragon ftands Egypt, the fertility of which renders the inhabitants foft and effeminate, and confequently an easy prey to every invader*. The fruitfulness of the province of Quito in Peru, and the low price of every neceffary, occafioned by its diftance from the fea, have plunged the inhabitants into fupine indolence, and exceffive luxury. The people of the town of Quito in particular, have abandoned themselves to every fort of debauchery: the time they have to spare from wine and women, is employed in exceffive gaming. In other respects alfo the manners of a people are influenced by the country they inhabit. A great part of Calabria, formerly populous and fertile, is at prefent covered

with

*Fear impreffed by ftrange and unforeseen accidents, is the moft potent caufe of fuperftition. No other country is lefs liable to ftrange and unforeseen accidents than Egypt; no thunder, fcarce any rain, perfect regularity in the feafons, and in the rife and fall of the river. So little notion had the Egyptians of variable weather, as to be surprised that the rivers in Greece did not overflow like the Nile. They could not comprehend how their fields were watered; rain, they faid, was very irregular; and what if Jupiter fhould take a conceit to fend them no rain? What then made the ancient Egyptians fo fuperftitious? The fertility of the foil, and the inaction of the inhabitants during the inundation of the river, enervated both mind and body, and rendered them timid and pufillanimous. Superftition was the offspring of this character in Egypt, as it is of ftrange and unforeseen accidents in. other countries.

with trees and fhrubs, like the wilds of America; and the ferocity of its inhabitants correfponds to the rudeness of the fields. The fame is vifible in the inhabitants of Mount Etna in Sicily: the country and its inhabitants are equally rugged.

SKETCH VI.

PROGRESS OF THE FEMALE SEX.

THE

HE progrefs of the female fex, a capital branch of the hiftory of man, comprehends great variety of matter, curious and interesting.

But

sketches are my province, not complete hiftories; and I propose in the present sketch to trace the gradual progress of women, from their low state in favage tribes, to their elevated ftate in civilized

nations.

With regard to the outlines, whether of internal difpofition or of external figure, men and women are the fame. Nature, however, intending them for mates, has given them difpofitions different but concordant, fo as to produce together delicious harmony. The man, more robust, is fitted for fevere labour and for field-exercifes: the woman, more delicate, is fitted for fedentary occupations; and particularly for nurfing children. That difference

is

is remarkable in the mind, no less than in the body. A boy is always running about; delights in a top or a ball, and rides upon a stick as a horse. A girl has lefs inclination to move: her firft amusement is a baby; which the delights to drefs and undrefs. I have feen oftener than once a female child under fix getting an infant in its arms, careffing it, finging, and walking about ftaggering under the weight. A boy never thinks of such a pastime. The man, bold and vigorous, is qualified for being a protector: the woman, delicate and timid, requires protection *. The man, as a protector, is directed by nature to govern: the woman, confcious of inferiority, is difpofed to obey. Their intellectual powers correfpond to the deftination of nature: men have penetration and folid judgment to fit them for governing: women have fufficient understanding to make a decent figure under good government; a greater proportion would excite dangerous rivalship. Women have more imagination and more fenfibility than men ; and yet none of them have made an eminent figure in any of the fine arts. We hear of no fculptor nor ftatuary among them; and none of them have rifen above a mediocrity in poetry or painting. Nature has avoided rivalship between the fexes, by giving them different talents. Add another capital difference

of

*From which it appears to proceed, that women naturally are more careful of their reputation than men, and more hurt by obloquy.