The History Of The Life Of The Late Mr. Jonathan Wild The Great(Fiscle Part 3), Henry Fielding [most read books in the world of all time .txt] 📗

Is The Observation Of Many Wise Men,  Who Have Studied The

Anatomy Of The Human Soul With More Attention Than Our Young

Physicians Generally Bestow On That Of The Body,  That Great And

Violent Surprize Hath A Different Effect From That Which Is

Wrought In A Good Housewife By Perceiving Any Disorders In Her

Kitchen; Who,  On Such Occasions,  Commonly Spreads The Disorder,

Not Only Over Her Whole Family,  But Over The Whole Neighbourhood.

--Now,  These Great Calamities,  Especially When Sudden,  Tend To

Stifle And Deaden All The Faculties,  Instead Of Rousing Them; And

Accordingly Herodotus Tells Us A Story Of Croesus King Of Lydia,

Who,  On Beholding His Servants And Courtiers Led Captive,  Wept

Bitterly,  But,  When He Saw His Wife And Children In That

Condition,  Stood Stupid And Motionless; So Stood Poor Heartfree On

This Relation Of His Apprentice,  Nothing Moving But His Colour,

Which Entirely Forsook His Countenance.

 

The Apprentice,  Who Had Not In The Least Doubted The Veracity Of

His Mistress,  Perceiving The Surprize Which Too Visibly Appeared

In His Master,  Became Speechless Likewise,  And Both Remained

Silent Some Minutes,  Gazing With Astonishment And Horror At Each

Other. At Last Heartfree Cryed Out In An Agony,  "My Wife Deserted

Me In My Misfortunes!" "Heaven Forbid,  Sir!" Answered The Other.

"And What Is Become Of My Poor Children?" Replied Heartfree. "They

Are At Home,  Sir," Said The Apprentice. "Heaven Be Praised! She

Hath Forsaken Them Too!" Cries Heartfree: "Fetch Them Hither This

Instant. Go,  My Dear Jack,  Bring Hither My Little All Which

Remains Now: Fly,  Child,  If Thou Dost Not Intend Likewise To

Forsake Me In My Afflictions." The Youth Answered He Would Die

Sooner Than Entertain Such A Thought,  And,  Begging His Master To

Be Comforted,  Instantly Obeyed His Orders.

 

Heartfree,  The Moment The Young Man Was Departed,  Threw Himself On

His Bed In An Agony Of Despair; But,  Recollecting Himself After He

Had Vented The First Sallies Of His Passion,  He Began To Question

The Infidelity Of His Wife As A Matter Impossible. He Ran Over In

His Thoughts The Uninterrupted Tenderness Which She Had Always

Shewn Him,  And,  For A Minute,  Blamed The Rashness Of His Belief

Against Her; Till The Many Circumstances Of Her Having Left Him So

Long,  And Neither Writ Nor Sent To Him Since Her Departure With

All His Effects And With Wild,  Of Whom He Was Not Before Without

Suspicion,  And,  Lastly And Chiefly,  Her False Pretence To His

Commands,  Entirely Turned The Scale,  And Convinced Him Of Her

Disloyalty.

Book 3 Chapter 1 Pg 87

While He Was In These Agitations Of Mind The Good Apprentice,  Who

Had Used The Utmost Expedition,  Brought His Children To Him. He

Embraced Them With The Most Passionate Fondness,  And Imprinted

Numberless Kisses On Their Little Lips. The Little Girl Flew To

Him With Almost As Much Eagerness As He Himself Exprest At Her

Sight,  And Cryed Out,  "O Papa,  Why Did You Not Come Home To Poor

Mamma All This While? I Thought You Would Not Have Left Your

Little Nancy So Long." After Which He Asked Her For Her Mother,

And Was Told She Had Kissed Them Both In The Morning,  And Cried

Very Much For His Absence. All Which Brought A Flood Of Tears Into

The Eyes Of This Weak,  Silly Man,  Who Had Not Greatness Sufficient

To Conquer These Low Efforts Of Tenderness And Humanity.

 

He Then Proceeded To Enquire Of The Maid-Servant,  Who Acquainted

Him That She Knew No More Than That Her Mistress Had Taken Leave

Of Her Children In The Morning With Many Tears And Kisses,  And Had

Recommended Them In The Most Earnest Manner To Her Care; She Said

She Had Promised Faithfully To Take Care Of Them,  And Would,  While

They Were Entrusted To Her,  Fulfil Her Promise. For Which

Profession Heartfree Expressed Much Gratitude To Her,  And,  After

Indulging Himself With Some Little Fondnesses Which We Shall Not

Relate,  He Delivered His Children Into The Good Woman's Hands,  And

Dismissed Her.

 

Book 3 Chapter 2 Pg 87

A Soliloquy Of Heartfree's,  Full Of Low And Base Ideas,  Without A

Syllable Of Greatness.

 

 

 

 

 

Being Now Alone,  He Sat Some Short Time Silent,  And Then Burst

Forth Into The Following Soliloquy:--

 

"What Shall I Do? Shall I Abandon Myself To A Dispirited Despair,

Or Fly In The Face Of The Almighty? Surely Both Are Unworthy Of A

Wise Man; For What Can Be More Vain Than Weakly To Lament My

Fortune If Irretrievable,  Or,  If Hope Remains,  To Offend That

Being Who Can Most Strongly Support It? But Are My Passions Then

Voluntary? Am I So Absolutely Their Master That I Can Resolve With

Myself,  So Far Only Will I Grieve? Certainly No. Reason,  However

We Flatter Ourselves,  Hath Not Such Despotic Empire In Our Minds,

Book 3 Chapter 2 Pg 88

That It Can,  With Imperial Voice,  Hush All Our Sorrow In A Moment.

Where Then Is Its Use? For Either It Is An Empty Sound,  And We Are

Deceived In Thinking We Have Reason,  Or It Is Given Us To Some

End,  And Hath A Part Assigned It By The All-Wise Creator. Why,

What Can Its Office Be Other Than Justly To Weigh The Worth Of All

Things,  And To Direct Us To That Perfection Of Human Wisdom Which

Proportions Our Esteem Of Every Object By Its Real Merit,  And

Prevents Us From Over Or Undervaluing Whatever We Hope For,  We

Enjoy,  Or We Lose. It Doth Not Foolishly Say To Us,  Be Not Glad,

Or,  Be Not Sorry,  Which Would Be As Vain And Idle As To Bid The

Purling River Cease To Run,  Or The Raging Wind To Blow. It

Prevents Us Only From Exulting,  Like Children,  When We Receive A

Toy,  Or From Lamenting When We Are Deprived Of It. Suppose Then I

Have Lost The Enjoyments Of This World,  And My Expectation Of

Future Pleasure And Profit Is For Ever Disappointed,  What Relief

Can My Reason Afford? What,  Unless It Can Shew Me I Had Fixed My

Affections On A Toy; That What I Desired Was Not,  By A Wise Man,

Eagerly To Be Affected,  Nor Its Loss Violently Deplored? For There

Are Toys Adapted To All Ages,  From The Rattle To The Throne; And

Perhaps The Value Of All Is Equal To Their Several Possessors; For

If The Rattle Pleases The Ear Of The Infant,  What Can The Flattery

Of Sycophants Give More To The Prince? The Latter Is As Far From

Examining Into The Reality And Source Of His Pleasure As The

Former; For If Both Did,  They Must Both Equally Despise It. And

Surely,  If We Consider Them Seriously,  And Compare Them Together,

We Shall Be Forced To Conclude All Those Pomps And Pleasures Of

Which Men Are So Fond,  And Which,  Through So Much Danger And

Difficulty,  With Such Violence And Villany,  They Pursue,  To Be As

Worthless Trifles As Any Exposed To Sale In A Toy-Shop. I Have

Often Noted My Little Girl Viewing,  With Eager Eyes,  A Jointed

Baby; I Have Marked The Pains And Solicitations She Hath Used Till

I Have Been Prevailed On To Indulge Her With It. At Her First

Obtaining It,  What Joy Hath Sparkled In Her Countenance! With What

Raptures Hath She Taken Possession! But How Little Satisfaction

Hath She Found In It! What Pains To Work Out Her Amusement From

It! Its Dress Must Be Varied; The Tinsel Ornaments Which First

Caught Her Eyes Produce No Longer Pleasure; She Endeavours To Make

It Stand And Walk In Vain,  And Is Constrained Herself To Supply It

With Conversation. In A Day's Time It Is Thrown By And Neglected,

And Some Less Costly Toy Preferred To It. How Like The Situation

Of This Child Is That Of Every Man! What Difficulties In The

Pursuit Of His Desires! What Inanity In The Possession Of Most,

And Satiety In Those Which Seem More Real And Substantial! The

Delights Of Most Men Are As Childish And As Superficial As That Of

My Little Girl; A Feather Or A Fiddle Are Their Pursuits And Their

Pleasures Through Life,  Even To Their Ripest Years,  If Such Men

May Be Said To Attain Any Ripeness At All. But Let Us Survey Those

Whose Understandings Are Of A More Elevated And Refined Temper;

How Empty Do They Soon Find The World Of Enjoyments Worth Their

Desire Or Attaining! How Soon Do They Retreat To Solitude And

Contemplation,  To Gardening And Planting,  And Such Rural

Amusements,  Where Their Trees And They Enjoy The Air And The Sun

In Common,  And Both Vegetate With Very Little Difference Between

Them. But Suppose (Which Neither Truth Nor Wisdom Will Allow) We

Book 3 Chapter 2 Pg 89

Could Admit Something More Valuable And Substantial In These

Blessings,  Would Not The Uncertainty Of Their Possession Be Alone

Sufficient To Lower Their Price? How Mean A Tenure Is That At The

Will Of Fortune,  Which Chance,  Fraud,  And Rapine Are Every Day So

Likely To Deprive Us Of,  And Often The More Likely By How Much The

Greater Worth Our Possessions Are Of! Is It Not To Place Our

Affections On A Bubble In The Water,  Or On A Picture In The

Clouds? What Madman Would Build A Fine House Or Frame A Beautiful

Garden On Land In Which He Held So Uncertain An Interest? But

Again,  Was All This Less Undeniable,  Did Fortune,  The Lady Of Our

Manor,  Lease To Us For Our Lives,  Of How Little Consideration Must

Even This Term Appear! For,  Admitting That These Pleasures Were

Not Liable To Be Torn From Us,  How Certainly Must We Be Torn From

Them! Perhaps To-Morrow--Nay,  Or Even Sooner; For As The Excellent

Poet Says--

 

    Where Is To-Morrow?--In The Other World.

    To Thousands This Is True,  And The Reverse

    Is Sure To None.

 

But If I Have