particular. I have often heard him fay, that the first time he heard that maxim, he thought it very ftrange; but that experience had fully convinced him of the truth of it. By Coun fels, we are here to understand thofe, which are given to fuch, as do not afk them. Yet, as much as he defpaired of rectifying thofe, whom he faw taking of falfe meafures; his natural Goodness, the averfion he had to Dif order, and the interest he took in thofe about him, in a manner forced him fometimes to break the refolution he had made of leaving them to go their own way; and prevailed upon him to give them the advice which he thought most likely to reclaim them but this he always did in a modeft way, and fo ás to convince the mind by fortifying his advice with folid arguments, which he never wanted upon á proper occafion.

But then, Mr. LOCKE was very liberal of his Counfels, when they were defired: and no body ever confulted him in vain. An extreme Vivacity of mind, one of his reigning quali ties, in which perhaps he never had an equal, his great experience, and the fincere defire he had of being serviceable to all mankind; foon furnished him with the expedients, which were moft juft and least dange rous. I fay, the leaft dangerous; for what he propofed to himself before all things, was to

lead those who confulted him into no trouble. This was one of his favourite Maxims, and he never loft fight of it upon any occafion.

Tho' Mr. LoCKE chiefly loved Truths that were useful, and with fuch fed his mind, and was generally very well pleafed to make them the fubject of his difcourfe; yet he used to say, that in order to employ one part of this life in ferious and important occupations, it was neceffary to spend another in mere amufements and when an occafion naturally offered, he gave himself up with pleasure to the charms of a free and facetious Conversation, He remembred a great many agreeable Stories, which he always brought in properly; and generally made them yet more delightful, by his natural and agreeable way of telling them. He was no foe to Raillery, provided it were delicate and perfectly innocent.

No body was ever a greater mafter of the art of accommodating himself to the reach of all Capacities which, in my opinion, is one of the fureft marks of a great Genius.

It was his peculiar art in Conversation, to lead people to talk of what they understood beft. With a Gardener, he difcourfed of Gardening; with a Jeweller, of a Diamond; with a Chymift, of Chymiftry, &c. "By this, "faid he himself, I pleafe all thofe men, who

03

"commonly

commonly can speak pertinently upon no"thing elfe. As they believe I have an e❝fteem for their profeffion, they are charm"ed with fhewing their abilities before me; ❝and I, in the mean while, improve myself by "their difcourfe." And indeed, Mr. LOCKE had by this means acquired a very good infight into all the Arts, of which he daily learnt more and more. He us'd to fay too, that the knowledge of the Arts contained more true Philosophy, than all those fine learned Hypothefes, which having no relation to the nature of things, are fit for nothing at bottom, but to make men lose their time in inventing, or comprehending them. A thoufand times have I admired, how by the feveral Questions he wou'd put to Artificers, he wou'd find out the fecret of their Art, which they did not understand themselves; and oftentimes give them views entirely new, which fometimes they put in practice to their profit.

This eafiness with which Mr. LOCKE knew how to converse with all forts of men, and the pleasure he took in doing it; at first, furprized thofe, who had never talked with him before. They were charmed with this condefcention, not very common among men of Letters; and which they fo little expected from a perfon, whofe great qualities raised him fo very much above all other men. Many

who

who knew him only by his Writings, or by the reputation he had gained, of being one of the greatest Philofophers of the age, having imagined to themselves beforehand, that he was one of those Scholars, that being always full of themselves and their fublime fpeculations, are incapable of familiarizing themfelves with the common fort of mankind, or of entering into their little concerns, or difcourfing of the ordinary affairs of life; were perfectly amazed to find him nothing but Affability, Good-humour, Humanity, Pleafantnefs, always ready to hear them, to talk with them of things which they beft understood, much more defirous of informing himself in what they understood better than himself, than to make a fhew of his own Science. I know a very ingenious Gentleman in England, that was for fome time in the fame prejudice. Before he faw Mr. LocKE, he had formed a notion of him to himself under the idea of · one of the ancient Philofophers, with a long beard, fpeaking nothing but by fentences, negligent of his perfon, without any other politeness but what might proceed from the natural goodness of his temper, a fort of politeness often very coarse and very troublefome in civil fociety. But one hour's converfation entirely cured him of his mistake, and obliged him to declare, that he looked upon

Mr. LOCKE to be one of the politeft men he ever faw. He is not a Philofopher always grave, always confined to that character, as I imagined: he is, faid he, a perfect Courtier as agreeable for his obliging and civil behaviour, as admirable for the profoundness and delicacy of his Genius.

Mr. LOCKE was fo far from affuming thofe airs of Gravity, by which fome folks, as well learned as unlearned, love to diftinguifh themselves from the reft of the world; that on the contrary, he looked upon them, as an infallible mark of impertinence. Nay, fometimes he wou'd divert himself with imitating that study'd Gravity, in order to turn it the better into ridicule; and upon this occafion he always remembred this maxim of the Duke of LA ROCHEFOUCAULT, which he admired above all others, That Gravity is a mystery of the Body, invented to conceal the defects of the Mind. He loved alfo to confirm his opinion on this fubject, by that of the famous Earl of SHAFTSBURY*, to whom he took a delight to give the honour of all the things, which he thought he had learnt from his Conversation.

Nothing ever gave him a more sensible pleafure than the esteem, which that Earl con

*Chancellor of England in the Reign of CHARLES II.