AMPHIARAUS.

Amphiaraus was praised because he endeavoured tobe an honest man, and not toappear so. For this reason, Plutarch informs us that on the recital of some verses of Æschylus on the Athenian stage, in commendation of the above quality in Amphiaraus, the spectators immediately turned their eyes

upon Aristides, as if the eulogium particularly applied to him. This spontaneous action formed one of the finest encomiums in the world; and it shows, that if the Pagans did not practise true virtue, they at least perfectly understood it. They praised those who in their performance of a good action looked neither to pecuniary nor public applause; and they despised those, whose end, in the exercise of virtue, was reputation, glory, or the admiration of their neighbour. Be as disinterested as you please with respect to riches and employments; if you are not so with respect to praise, you still act meanly; if you are not recovered from the disease of self-love, you are only disengaged from the grosser snares, you only wear finer chains. It seldom happens that the desire of applause is the only end of those who are not satisfied with the testimony of their own consciences. Observe the persons who aspire to these two things, the one to be virtuous, and the other to appear so, and you will find, that the ambition of the former is not contented with the reality, nor that of the latter with the appearance of virtue. The mere steam of incense does not satisfy their desires, they wish for something more solid to attend it. Reputation alone seems to them a reward too spiritual; they endeavour to incorporate it with the conveniences of life. They soon make a merit of the praise and approbation of the world to those who have the distribution of honours and employments, and then make use of this credit, to enrich themselves, or to gratify all their passions. The surest way therefore to preserve the purity of the soul, is to follow the example of Amphiaraus and Aristides. Endeavour tobe a virtuous man, let that be your chief end; seek not to appear so, for such an endeavour is attended with more dangerous consequences than you are aware of.

Socrates is reported to have said, “ that the shortest way of attaining to virtue, was to endeavour to be such as one would desire to be thought.” So likewise Horace:

Tu rectè vivis, si curas esse quod audis.—Lib. i.Ep. 16.

This advice is very judicious; for the desire of appearing with lustre, and of obtaining public applause, is so strong and common, even among those who have no great inclination to be internally virtuous, that we may expect great advancement in virtue from him who will endeavour to produce a perfect conformity between the real state of his soul, and the opinion he would have others entertain of him. But it must be confessed, that there is less disinterestedness in this way, than in that of Amphiaraus. “ Seem to be an honest man, and be so: enjoy a fair reputation, but deserve it; do not usurp the esteem of your neighbour Such is the counsel of Socrates, who would not deprive any one of the incense of praise. Amphiaraus would have simply said, “ Be an honest man, and do not trouble yourself whether it be known to others or not.”

It may be said, perhaps, that these two things generally go together, and that if a good reputation may be acquired by false virtues, that is to say, by the art of concealing a bad heart under the appearance of honesty, it may be more certainly obtained by real virtues. I answer, that oftentimes it is easier to be an honest man than to be accounted so, and that there is no necessary consequence from one of these things to the other. To become a virtuous man, you have nothing to do but to conquer your own passions; but to appear so, you must conquer those of others. You have cunning and violent enemies, who spread many ill reports of you: if you are an honest man, as I

suppose you to be, are you able to discover the contrivances of these enemies, and the oblique ways of working upon the minds of the vulgar? Had you not rather leave the latter in an error, than spend all your leisure in disputing the ground with calumniators Î Will your vigilance be sufficient to remove the impressions, which their malignity has made upon credulous men, who are infinitely more susceptible of calumny, than of the best reasons you can allege in your vindication? From all which it follows, that to appear virtuous depends materially upon others, to be so on ourselves.—Art.Amphiaraus.