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and Lelius, famous for their Faith and Loyalty to oneanother, which no Fortune nor Diftrefs could feparate or destroy?

Timon. O, yes, Sir, there are abundance of Friendfhips in the prefent World betwixt all Sexes: The Men have their Friends, Male and Female, but with this Difference, they keep neither any longer than their Pleafure or Profit prevails, which is feldom long. If you have Plenty, you fhall not want Friends that fhall carefs and admire you above all Mankind; but then they are like Shadows, they all vanish at the firft Cloud that obfcures the Sun of your good Fortune; or if any stick to you, 'tis no longer than there is fome Hopes that you may once retrieve your loft Glory: Nay, if you raife a Worm, a little reptile Animal, that us'd, like the Serpent, to eat the Duft of the Ground; if (I fay) you fhould raife fuch an Out-caft to be your Bofom-Friend, and give him all that is delightful or defirable to Mankind, yet, if the leaft Storm threatens you, he fall betray you to your Ruin. So that though you have never fo nice an Idea of Friendship, and reduce it to Practice, either with the Illuftrious or Ignoble, with those that Birth and Education fhould have taught the noble Principles of Honour, or those that have not had the Advantage of great Parents, but might be thought, thro' the Dictates of Nature, to be won by the highest Obligations, you will find there is fcarce one in a thoufand Millions that is worthy your Love.

Lelius. You give me a Character of the prefent World from the paft Injuries you receiv'd, and the villainous Returns the Athenians made you for all thofe generous Services you did them and your Country. But, I hope, in this Turn into the World, you avoided those Inconveniencies which you knew before proceeded from too noble a Temper and too exceffive a Liberality.

Timon. Tho' thofe incredible Ingratitudes of my old Country-Men of Greece, might perhaps prevail with another lefs generous and brave, to condemn all Mankind for ever for their Sakes, as I did in my angry Mood, in my Epitaph; yet, I do affure you, that I reprefent them very fhort of their Deferts; and the Athenians were but Dwarfs, in Ingratitude and Selfishness, to the prefent World. Though the Memory of their Villainies to me render'd my Abode here very uneafy for many Centuries, which made me at laft refolve to drink of Lethe-Lake, to forget them, that I might not difquiet my felf any more about them; but as I had the Water in my Mouth, I began to reflect, that if I should wholly forget them, I might, in my Return to the World, incur the fame Misfortunes again, and therefore I let but a Drop or two go down, and fpurted out the reft again. So, keeping my Refolution to be as selfish as any, and to give nothing, unless I had almost a Certainty of getting twice as much by it, I enter'd at laft into a Body that was just come to a Ripenefs to receive a Soul; and as 'tis a Lottery to us, you know what Body we are convey'd into, fo I found too late that I was born an English-Man; and as I grew up, I found that Opinion by Experience verify'd, That the Organs and Conftitutions of the Body form the Inclinations of the Mind: For, fpight of all my former Refolutions, I began to imbibe the pernicious Opinion, That none was born for himself only, and that there was nothing more worthy a Man, or indeed made nearer Approaches to Divinity, than to redrefs the Misfortunes of my FellowCreatures, fhielding off Ruin from thofe in Diftrefs.

Among the rest of my belov'd Follies, reading your Examples, and thofe of old Greece, fam'd in the Schools for Friendship, I fell into a ridiculous Opinion, That it was poffible for me to cull out fome dear Pylades or Scipio, to build up that Chimera

of

of a Pleasure call'd Friendship. Nor could I then imagine I could purfue a furer Tract to find that noble Phenix, then in the Circle of their Sciences, which generally inform'd the Minds of the Adorers with more refin'd and generous Principles than the groveling Souls of the ignorant Part of Mankind ever rife to, believing their elevated Beings to be above thofe little felfifh Tricks of the crafty defigning Part of the human Emmets. But in fuch a one, to fhew you the Extremity of the lefs perfect, I'll give you a fhort Touch of his Prevarications.

The Agreeableness of our Inclinations I laid for the Basis of our Amity, you allowing no Profpect of Advantage and Interest in thefe Affociations; and, as I defir'd and expected, he first stood in Need of me. Liberty is the Idol of all Men; that I gave him with the Hazard of my own; and Life it felf he ow'd to my Sword and Purfe: Nor could Fortune (envious as he is at the Succefs of the Ingenious) caft more Diftreffes on him, than my Friendship did (unafk'd) endeavour to hinder him from, as long as my Abilities remain'd: But no fooner had my Generofity to others reduc'd me to want the Returns of a Friend, but he grew faint in the noble Courfe, and repay'd my paft Services with odd, long, ftrange, needlefs, bafe Put-offs, monftrous Proteftations without any Effect, and Promifes

without any Performance. Extravagantly kind in Words when I afk'd nothing, but wretchedly and beyond Measure penurious in Action when entreated. An inferior and impudent Fellow fhould fucceed, when the modeft Importunities of his Friend were fruitlefs. Behold, in a Word, the Difference betwixt us: The leaft Occafion was fufficient for me to throw my Favours without being ask'd, (as you in your divine Rules prefcribe) and the greatest and moft extraordinary Emergency too little to make him remember a Promife.

Lalius

Lalius. By this Account, I find the World is indeed much alter'd for the worfe; for in Athens of old, the Senate and People had ruin'd and condemn'd Calicias, for not aflifting his poor Friend Aristides, if by the Teftimony of him he had not fatisfy'd the Publick, that Aristides's Poverty was owing to his own abftemious' Inclinations, not his base deserting him in his Diftrefs.

Timon, Ah! if Athens had been always of that Mind, how many of my quondam Parafites had been hang'd?

Lelius. But perhaps, good Timon, you weigh'd not well your Man before you made your Choice. For as the Offices of Friendship are reciprocal, fo Neglect fhewing the want of Love, was a juft Caufe of a Change, without that ignominious Imputation of Levity. For, as I afferted, 'tis no eafy Matter to find out one that is fit Matter to make a Friend of.

Timon. Oh! during my better Days, none more ready in returning all the fuperficial and little Offices that coft nothing, or at leaft no more than he was fure of again; but when Fortune had cut off prefent Hopes, all his Kindnesses were procraftinated 'till a more lucky Hour ; nor would he part even with Words to raise me from Distress.

These Faults may perhaps, Lelius, feem villainous enough to you, yet, compar'd with others, the Dog was a Cherubim. For tho' he aflisted me not, he would not deprefs me farther; tho' he prefer'd not my obliging Love and generous Services to a Whore and a Bottle, yet he betray'd me not; and tho' he'd rather let me perifh than fpeak for me, yet he would not cut my Throat himself. Thus, noble Lelius, you have feen the Mirrour of Friendship in the prefent World above; I defire you would give me fome Idea of it, as in your Time, fince both my Vifits thither have never given me the Delight of half a Friend, I have, indeed, read fine Stories of

them

them in Romances and the Hiftories of the old Ro mars and Grecians; but at laft concluded them to be only the gay Children of Imagination, pleafant in Speculation, but never to be brought to Ufe.

Lelius. But is the Iron Age fo eftablish'd, that there is no Remains of Friendfip, no Acts of Kindnefs from one to another?

Timon. Yes, yes, there is a temporary Friendship yet in the World that lafts as long as the hot Blood of Youth continues; but then it confifts not in Vertue, nor among vertuous Perfons, as you require, but in Pimping for one another, in being in rake-hell Exploits together, in fpending the Day in Gaming and Intrigues, and the Night in Lewdnefs, and drinking together 'till both are drunk. You may pimp for a Friend, nay, and fight for him; but where it comes to pinch upon your Pocket, there the greatest Friend, Money, is prefer'd to the other call'd Man: So that your Sentiment, that Friendship could be among none but the Vertuous, is now quite inverted; for they cease to be Friends, as foon as either takes to Sobriety and Vertue. Of thefe Friends every Place fwarms; not a Tavern, Coffee-houfe, or Stews, but is full of them. Nay, there are another Sort of Friends too, that if you have a pretty Wife, fhall endear themselves to you, to have the better Admittance to her, to make you a Cuckold; or, if you have a fine Daughter, fhall omit nothing of the Formalities of a real Friend, 'till he has debauch'd her: If you have a She-Relation that is a Fortune, you will not want Friends that will buy her of you, and stand by you with their Life and Fortune, 'till the Jobb is done. If you are a young Heir,you will not be deftitute of the deareft protesting Creatures, that feem to have learn'd the Diflimulation and Deceit of Harlots, who will never forfake you; and if fhort kept by the Avarice of a Father, will not let you want Money, if you will but pay them for their Kindness in a ftifled Obligation. So that, dear Lelius, you

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