as not to leave much of life unemployed; there were many hours, both of the night and day, which he could spend without fufpicion in folitary thought. The load of life was much lightened: he went eagerly into the affemblies, because he supposed the frequency of his prefence neceffary to the fuccefs of his purposes; he retired gladly to privacy, because he had now a fubject of thought.

His chief amufement was to picture to himself that world which he had never feen; to place himself in various conditions; to be entangled in imaginary difficulties, and to be engaged in wild adventures but his benevolence always terminated his projects in the relief of diftrefs, the detection of fraud, the de

:

feat of oppreffion, and the diffufion of happiness.

Thus paffed twenty months of the life of Raffelas. He bufied himself fo intenfely in vifionary bustle, that he forgot his real folitude; and, amidst hourly preparations for the various incidents of human affairs, neglected to confider by what means he should mingle with mankind.

One day, as he was fitting on a bank, he feigned to himself an orphan virgin robbed of her little portion by a treacherous lover, and crying after him for reftitution and redrefs. So ftrongly was the image impreffed upon his mind, that he started up in the maid's defence, and run forward to feize the plunderer with

all

all the eagerness of real perfuit. Fear naturally quickens the flight of guilt. Raffelas could not catch the fugitive with his utmost efforts; but, refolving to weary, by perfeverance, him whom he could not surpass in speed, he preffed on till the foot of the mountain stopped his course.

Here he recollected himself, and smiled at his own useless impetuofity. Then raising his eyes to the mountain, "This, faid he, is the fatal obftacle that hinders at once the enjoyment of pleasure, and the exercise of virtue. How long is it that my hopes and wishes have flown beyond this boundary of my life, which yet I never have attempted to fur

mount!

Struck

Struck with this reflection, he fat down to mufe, and remembered, that fince he first resolved to escape from his confinement, the fun had paffed twice over him in his annual course. He now felt a degree of regret with which he had never been before acquainted. He confidered how much might have been done in the time which had paffed, and left nothing real behind it. He compared twenty months with the life of man. "In life, faid he, is not to be counted the ignorance of infancy, or imbecility

of

age. We are long before we are able to think, and we foon ceafe from the power of acting. The true period of human existence may be reasonably estimated as forty years, of which I have mused away the four and twentieth part. What I have loft was certain, for I have

certainly

certainly poffeffed it; but of twenty months to come who can affure me ?"

The confciousness of his own folly pierced him deeply, and he was long before he could be reconciled to himself. "The rest of my time, faid he, has been loft by the crime or folly of my anceftors, and the abfurd inftitutions of my country; I remember it with difguft, yet without remorfe: but the months that have paffed fince new light darted into my foul, fince I formed a scheme of reafonable felicity, have been fquandered by my own fault. I have loft that which can never be reftored: I have seen the fun rife and fet for twenty months, an idle gazer on the light of heaven: In this time the birds have left the nest of their mother, and committed themselves

to