the patricians, by standing up in defence of what I have myfelf done. 12. Obferve now, my countrymen, the injuftice of the patricians. They arrogate to themfelves honors, on account of exploits done by their forefathers, whilft they will not allow me due praife for performing the very fame fort of actions in my own perfon. 13. He has no ftatues, they cry, of his family. He can trace no venerable line of ancestors. What then? -is it matter of more praise to difgrace one's illuftrious anceftors, than to become illuftrious by one's own good behavior? 14. What if I can fhow no ftatues of my family? I can fhow the standards, the armor, and the trappings, which I have myfelf taken from the vanquished; I can fhow the fears of those wounds, which I have received by facing the enemies of my country. 15. These are my ftatues. Thefe are the honors I boast of. Not left me by inheritance, as theirs; but earned by toil, by abftinence, by valor; amidst clouds of duft and feas of blood; fcenes of action, where thofe effeminatepatricians, who endeavor, by indirect means, to depreciate me in your esteem, have never dared to fhow their faces. FRATERNAL AFFECTION. IN the beginning of the fixteenth century, the Portuguefe carracks failed from Lifson to Gea, a very great, rich, and flourithing colony of that nation in the Eaft-Indies. There were no lefs than twelve hundred fouls, mariners, paffengers, priests, and friars, on board one of thefe veffels. 2. The beginning of their voyage was profperous; they had doubled the fouthern extremity of the great continent of Africa, called the Cape of Good Hope, and were steering their courfe northeast, to the great continent of India, when fome gentlemen on board, who, having ftudied geog. raphy and navigation, found in the latitude in which they were then failing, a large ridge of rocks laid down in their fea charts. 3. They 3. They no fooner made this difcovery, than they ac quainted the captain of the fhip with the affair, defiring him to communicate the fame to the pilot, which request he' immediately granted, recommended him to lie by in the night, and flacken fail by day, until they should be past the danger. 4 It is a cuftom always among the Portuguese abfohutely to commit the failing part, or the navigation of the veffel to the pilot, who is anfwerable with his head for the fafe conduct or carriage of the king's hips, or thofe belonging to private traders; and he is under no manner of direction from the captain, who commands in every other respect. 5. The pilot being one of thofe felf-fufficient men, who think every hint given them from others in the way of their profeffion derogatory from their understandings, took as an affront to be taught his art, and instead of complying with the captain's request, actually crowded more fail than the veffel had carried before. 6. They had not failed many hours, when, just about the dawn of day, a terrible difafter befch them, which would have been prevented if they had lain by. The ship struck upon a rock. I leave to the reader's imagination, what a fcene of horror this dreadful accident muft occafion among twelve hundred perfons, all in the fame inevitable danger; beholding, with fearful aftonifhment, that inftantaneous death which now ftared them in the face. 7. In this diftrefs, the captain ordered the pinnace to be launched, into which, having toffed a fmall quantity of bifcuit, and fome boxes of marmalade, he jumped in himfelf, with nineteen others, who with their fwords prevented ite coming in of any more, left the boat fhould fink. 8. In this condition they put off into the great Indian ocean, without a compafs to fteer by, or any fresh water but what might fall from the heavens, whofe mercy alone could deliver them. After they had rowed four days in this miferable condition, the captain, who had been for fome time very fick and weak, died. 9. This added, if poflible, to their mifery; for as they now fell into confufion, every one would govern, and none would obey. This obliged them to elect one of their own company company to command them, whofe orders they implicitly agreed to follow. This perfon propofed to the company to draw lots, and to caft every fourth man overboard; as their small stock of provifions was fo far fpent, as not to be able at a very short allowance to sustain life above three days longer. 10. There were now nineteen perfons in all; in this number were a friar and a carpenter, both of whom they would exempt, as the one was useful to absolve and comfort them in their last extremity, and the other to repair the pinnace in cafe of a leak or other accident. II. The fame compliment they paid to their new captain, he being the odd man, and his life of much confe. quence. He refufed their indulgence a great while; but at laft they obliged him to acquiefce; fo that there were four to die out of the fixteen remaining perfons. 12. The three first fubmitted to their fate; the fourth was a Portuguese gentleman who had a younger brother in the boat, who, feeing him about to be thrown overboard, moft tenderly embraced him, and with tears in his eyes befought him to let him die in his room; enforcing his arguments by telling him that he was a married man, and had a wife and children at Goa, befide the care of three fifters, who abfolutely depended upon him; that, as for himself, he was fingle, and his life of no great importance; he therefore conjured him to fuffer him to fupply his place. 13. The elder brother, aftonished, and melting with this generofity, replied, that, fince the divine providence had appointed him to fuffer, it would be wicked and unjust to permit any other to die for him, efpecially a brother, to whom he was fo infinitely obliged. The younger, perfifting in his purpose, would take no denial; but throwing himfelt on his knees, held his brother fo faft, that the company could not difengage them. 14. Thus they difputed for a while, the elder brother bidding him to be a father to his children, and recommend. ed his wife to his protection; and as he would inherit his eftate, to take care of their common fifters; but all he could fay could not make the younger defift. This was a fcene of tenderness that must fill every breaft, fufceptible of erous impreffions, with pity. At laft the conftancy of the elder brother vielded to the piety of the other. gen 15. He acquiefced, and fuffered the gallant youth to fupply his place, who, being caft into the fea, and a good fwimmer, foon got to the ftern of the pinnace, and laid hold of the rudder with his right hand, which being perceived by one of the failors, he cut off the hand with his fword; then dropping into the fea, he prefently caught hold again with his left, which received the fame fate by a fecond blow. 16. Thus difmembered of both hands, he made a shift, notwithstanding, to keep himself above water with his feet and two ftumps, which he held bleeding upwards. 17. This moving fpectacte fo raised the pity of the whole company, that they cried out, "He is but one man, let us endeavor to fave his life;" and he was accordingly taken into the boat, where he had his hands bound up as well as the place and circumftances could permit. 18. They rowed all that night; and the next morning, when the fun arose, as if Heaven would reward the piety of this young man, they defcried land, which proved to be the mountains of Mozambique, in Africa, not far from a Portuguese colony. Thither they all fafely arrived, where they remained until the next fhip from Lisbon paffed by and carried them to Goa. ON THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE GRAMMATICALLY. A RIGHT education of children has ever been efteemed by the beft philofophers and wifeft legislators, as the most certain fource of happiness, not only to families, but to ftates and kingdoms; and is, on all moral and civil confiderations, the firft bleffing in order and neceffity, the highest in value and importance, and, in these united republics, the grand bafis on which their future happinefs and profperity depend. 2. Of fuch inestimable worth was right education held by the ancients, that when they were in all their glory, and long after, the tutorage of youth was accounted the most norable employment; and many of noble birth and eafy fortunes fortunes became preceptors, and took youth under their tuition. 3. It is well known that the Romans, as well as Greeks, carefully applied themfelves to the ftudy of their own language, and were early able to fpeak and write it in the greateft perfection. Mafters taught them, betimes, the principles, the difficulties, the fubtilties and the depths of it. And to that it was chiefly owing, that they made more early advances in the moft ufeful fciences, than any youth have fince done. 4. The French have been beforehand with us in this important particular. They have long imitated the Greeks and Romans, and have had the good policy to prefer their own language to every other; difdaining the ftudy of any foreign tongues, unlefs driven by neceffity into other countries. And the political advantages they have derived from fuch a conduct are visible all over Europe. 5. Policy, then, were there nothing elfe, cries aloud for our exerting ourselves in the caufe of a too long neglected English education; and for wiping off that charge of barbarity, with which not only we, but thofe of England have been, on that account, fo long ftigmatized by the very nation whom we fo much venerate, and whofe language we are fo ridiculously fond of, to the reproach and degradation of a better, even our own. 6. There is, perhaps, no language the grammatical knowledge of which can be learned with fo much eafe, or with lefs difficulty than ours. And as the freedom, the liberty, and the life of our country depend upon it, fhall America deprive her fons of this moft valuable birthright, the right of nature ? 7. It appears to me a thing very unaccountable, that mafters, and thofe who fuperintend public schools, fhould neglect this important part of an education, and fuffer youth to trifle away their time, when it might be employed to fo much advantage to themselves and to future generations. And what is ftill more fo, is, that parents, who love their children, should connive at this unpardonable neglect. 8. Without a common fchool education, which is the anchor of liberty, the supporter of our rights, we can be com |