fhews human nature to be strangely diftorted from its o riginal rectitude and innocency. The wit of man doth more naturally vent itself in fatire and cenfure, than in praise and panegyric. When men fet themselves to commend, it comes hardly from them, and not without great force and training; and if any thing be fitly faid in that kind, it doth hardly relifh with most men. But in the way of invective, the invention of men is a plentiful and never-failing fpring. And this kind of wit is not more easy than it is acceptable: it is greedily entertain. ed, and greatly applauded; and every man is glad to hear others abufed, not confidering how foon it may come to his own turn to lie down, and make sport for o thers.

To speak evil of others, is almoft become the general entertainment of all companies: and the great and ferious bufinefs of most meetings and visits, after the neceffary ceremonies and compliments are over, is, to fit down and backbite all the world. It is the fauce of conversation; and all difcourfe is counted but flat and dull which hath not fomething of piquancy and fharpness in it against fome body. For men generally love rather to hear evil of others than good, and are fecretly pleased. with ill reports, and drink them in with greediness and delight though, at the fame time, they have fo much juftice, as to hate those that propagate them * and fo much wit as to conclude, that thefe very perfons will do the fame for them in another place and company.

But efpecially, if it concerns one of another party, and that differs from us in matters of religion; in this cafe, all parties feem to be agreed, that they do God great fervice in blafting the reputation of their adverfaries. And though they all pretend to be Chriftians, and the difciples of him who taught nothing but kindness, and meeknefs, and charity; yet it is ftrange to fee with what a favage and murderous difpofition they will fly at one. another's reputation, and tear it in pieces: and whatever other fcruples they may have, they make none to befpatter one another in the most bitter and flanderous

manner.

But if they hear any good of their adverfaries, with what nicety and caution do they receive it? how many

objections

objections do they raife against it? and with what coldnefs do they at laft admit it? "It is very well, (fay they), "if it be true; I fhall be glad to hear it confirmed: I never heard fo much good of him before. You are a good man yourself, but have a care you be not de"ceived."

Nay, it is well, if, to balance the matter, and set things even, they do not clap fome infirmity and fault into the other fcale, that fo the enemy may not go off with flying colours.

But, on the other fide, every man is a good and fubftantial author of an ill report. I do not apply this to any one fort of men, though all are to blame this way: liia cos intramuros peccatur, et extra. To fpeak impartially, the zealots of all parties have got a fcurvy trick of lying for the truth.

But of all forts of people, I have obferved the priests and bigots of the church of Rome to be the ableft in this way, and to have the ftrongest faith for a lufty falfehood and calumny. Others will bandy a falfe report, and tofs it from one hand to another; but I never knew any that would fo hug a lie, and be fo very fond of it. They feem to be defcribed by St John in that expreffion in the Revelation, Whofoever loveth and maketh a lie.

Another fhrewd fign that ill nature lies at the root of this vice, is, that we eafily forget the good that is faid of others, and feldom make mention of it; but the contrary flicks with us, and lies uppermoft in our memories, and is ready to come out upon all occafions: and, which is yet more ill-natured and unjuft, many times when we do not believe it ourfelves, we tell it to others, with this charitable caution, that we hope it is not true; but in the mean time, we give it our pafs, and venture it to take its fortune to be believed or not, according to the charity of those into whose hands it comes.

2dly, Another cause of the commonnefs of this vice is, that many are fo bad themfelves in one kind or other. For to think and fpeak ill of others, is not only a bad thing, but a fign of a bad man. Our bleffed Saviour, fpeaking of the evil of the last days, gives this as the reafon of the great decay of charity among men, Matth. axiv. 12. Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many

Shall

fhall wax cold. When men are bad themselves, they are glad of any opportunity to cenfure others, and are always apt to fufpect that evil of other men which they know by themselves. They cannot have a good opinion of themfelves, and therefore are very unwilling to have fo of any body elfe; and for this reafon they endeavour to bring men to a level, hoping it will be fome juftification of them if they can but render others as bad as themselves.

3dly, Another fource of this vice, is malice and revenge. When men are in heat and paffion, they do not confider what is true, but what is fpiteful and mifchievous; and fpeak evil of others in revenge of fome injury which they have received from them; and when they are blinded by their paffions, they lay about them madly, and at a venture, not much caring whether the evil they speak be true or not. Nay, many are so devilifh, as to invent and raise false reports, on purpose to blast mens reputation. This is a diabolical temper; and therefore St James tells us, that the flanderous tongue is fet on fire of hell and the devil hath his very name from calumny and falfe accufation; and it is his nature too, for he is always ready to ftir up and foment this evil fpirit among men: nay, the fcripture tells us, that he hath the malice and impudence to accufe good men before God, as he did Job, charging him with hypocrify to God himself, who (he knows) does know the hearts of all the children of men.

4thly, Another caufe of evil speaking, is envy. Men look with an evil eye upon the good that is in others, and think that their reputation obfcures them, and that their commendable qualities do ftand in their light; and. therefore they do what they can to caft a cloud over them, that the bright fhining of their virtues may not fcorch them. This makes them greedily to entertain, and induftriously to publifh, any thing that may ferve to that purpose, thereby to raise themselves upon the ruins of other mens reputation: and therefore, as foon as they have got an ill report of any good man by the end, to work they prefently go, to fend it abroad by the firft poft; for the ftring is always ready upon their bow to let fly this arrow, with an incredible fwiftness, through city

and

and country; for fear the innocent man's juftification fhould overtake it.

5thly, Another caufe of evil speaking, is impertinence and curiofity; an itch of talking and meddling in the af fairs of other men, which do no ways concern them. Some perfons love to mingle themselves in all bufinefs, and are loth to feem ignorant of fo important a piece of news, as the faults and follies of men, or any bad thing that is talked of in good company. And therefore they do with great care pick up ill ftories, as good matter of difcourfe in the next company that is worthy of them: and this perhaps not out of any great malice, but for want of fomething better to talk of, and because their parts lie chiefly that way.

6thly, Laftly, Men do this many times out of wantonnefs, and for diverfion. So little do light and vain men confider, that a man's reputation is too great and tender a concernment to be jefted withal; and that a flanderous tongue bites like a ferpent, and wounds like a fword. For what can be more barbarous, next to fporting with a man's life, than to play with his honour and reputation, which to fome men is dearer to them than their lives?

It is a cruel pleasure which fome men take in worrying the reputation of others much better than themselves, and this only to divert themfelves and the company. Solomon compares this fort of men to distracted perfons: As a madman (faith he) who cafteth fire-brands, arrows, and death; fo is the man that deceiveth his neighbour, (the LXX render it, fo is the man that defameth his neighbour), and faith, Am not I in sport? Such, and fo bad, are the caufes of this vice. I proceed to confider, in the

2. Second place, the ordinary, but very pernicious, confequences and effects of it; both to others, and to ourfelves.

ift, To others; the parties I mean that are flandered. To them it is certainly a great injury, and commonly a high provocation, but always a matter of no fmall grief and trouble to them.

It is certainly a great injury, and, if the evil which we fay of them be not true, it is an injury beyond ima gination, and beyond all poffible reparation. And tho'

we

we should do our utmost endeavour afterwards towards their vindication; yet that makes but very little amends, because the vindication feldom reacheth fo far as the reproach, and because commonly men are neither fo for ward to spread the vindication; nor is it so easily received after ill impreflions are once made. The folicitous vindication of a man's felf is, at the best, but an after game; and for the most part a man had better fit ftill, than to run the hazard of making the matter worse by playing it.

I will add one thing more, that it is an injury that defcends to a man's children and pofterity; because the good or ill name of the father is derived down to them; and many times the beft thing he hath to leave them, is the reputation of his unblemished virtue and worth. And do we make no confcience to rob his innocent children of the best part of this fmall patrimony, and of all the kindness that would have been done them for their father's fake, if his reputation had not been so undefervedly stained? Is it no crime, by the breath of our mouth, at once to blast a man's reputation, and to ruin his children, perhaps to all pofterity? Can we make a jeft of fo ferious a matter? of an injury fo very hard to be repented of as it ought, becaufe, in fuch a cafe, no repentance will be acceptable without reftitution, if it be in our power? And perhaps it will undo us in this world to make it; and, if we do it not, will be our ruin in the other.

I will put the cafe at the best, that the matter of the flander is true; yet no man's reputation is confiderably ftained, though never fo defervedly, without great harm and damage to him. And it is great odds but the matter, by paffing through feveral hands, is aggravated beyond truth, every one, out of his bounty, being apt to add fomething to it.

But, befides the injury, it is commonly a very high provocation; and the confequence of that might be as bad as we can imagine, and may end in dangerous and defperate quarrels. This reafon the wife fon of Sirach gives, why we fhould defame no man, Ecclus xix. 8. 9. Whether it be (fays he) to a friend or foe, talk not of other mens lives. For he hath heard and obferved thee, (that

is,