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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A42746	Miscellaneous letters and essays on several subjects philosophical, moral, historical, critical, amorous, &c., in prose and verse : directed to John Dryden, Esq., the Honourable Geo. Granvill, Esq., Walter Moile, Esq., Mr. Dennis, Mr. Congreve, and other eminent men of th' age / by several gentlemen and ladies.	Gildon, Charles, 1665-1724.; Moyle, Walter, 1672-1721.; Dryden, John, 1631-1700.	1694 (1694)	Wing G732; ESTC R14504	119,130	250

we find in the Nature of corporeal Things Wh●… Pleasure does Metaphysics afford that is not built on our Esteem and Esteem is the only part of Admiration that contributes to Pleasure for there 's a Pain attends despising which is the other Division of it what P●…easure I say have we in this study but what is built on our Esteem of the valuable Certainty it furnishes us with in what ever it proposes For there is nothing more sure than Abstract Ideas the subject of Ontology or Metaplysies Again in Pneumatology does not the Contemplation of the Purer and Superior Beings to the very Supream and first cause of all that Exists fill our Souls with excessive and amazing Delight and Wonder Lastly what Pleasure is there in Woman that soft summary of Man's Happiness which derives not its self from Admiration Admiration therefore is so far from being an Enemy to t●…t it is the very foundation of our Happiness whether we consider it in the Direction or Aim and End of our Life that is in Philosophy or Woman Some Sir may perhaps think I have made a very strange mixture in joyning Philosophy and Woman tho' I 'm confident so much Wit Youth and all those other Accomplishments of a fine Gentleman that render you the darling of both Sexes will not let you think I have degraded Philosophy in it which will appear from a short parallel drawn betwixt them Philosophy is either employed in the Consideration of Bodys as in Physics 〈◊〉 of Beings in general or Abstract Ideas as in Metaphysics or Ontology or of Pur●… and Immaterial Essences as the Souls Angels God as in Pneumatology or lastly of Uirtue as in Ethics First the Business of Physics is extreamly un●…ertain for there the Mind is employed about ●…ery Obscure Ideas and though some of our Ex●…eriments often present us with certain Effects ●…et does it not always discover the absolute cer●…inty of the Cause nor shall we ever be able to pe●…etrate into the inmost Nature or all the qualitys of Matter and till then we must be in the dark 〈◊〉 to the true Causes so that Physic's put us up●…n the chase of what we have very little proba●…ility of obtaining On the other Hand the ●…ove of Woman is more certain in obtaining 〈◊〉 well as more noble in its End viz. a perfect ●…njoyment of and a close Union with the Ob●…ct desir'd the effect of which ends not with ●…em but is perpetuated by their Off-Spring who ●…e a part of 'em the admirable and certain Ef●…ct of a known Charming and Generous ●…ause Secondly Metaphysics amuses us with meer Abstract Ideas whilst the Love of Woman put●… us in a sensible Possession of a Real not Ideal Abstract of all the Beautys and Perfections of every Being on this side of the Eternal The Contemplation of whom with the Created Spirits makes up Pneumatology but we wander in too uncertain a Path in our Contemplation of these latter to arrive at satisfaction for Fancy there directs ou●… steps more than Judgment built on Right Reason and Evidence And therefore that part canno●… be comparable to that of the Love of Woman which gives us by the most prevailing way the Senses a proof of the Existence of Spirits if not distinct f●…om yet of a purer Make●… than even the refin'd Body of Woman for wha●… Lover is there that does not feel perfectly see●… some unseen Spirits da●…ted from the bright Eyes o●… the fair one he adores which have a sensible influence on him tho' he touch her not and thes●… are Spirits that chear not shock our Natures a●… those other Fantoms do Then for the Contemplation of the Supream Being the best Philosophers form an Idea o●… him by his W●…ndrous Works of which what ca●… give a fairer I●…ge of him than Woman the most Beautiful Good and Compassionate being of the Universe Which made St. Austin compar●… God to a fine Woman viewing her own Perfection in a Glass 'T is true that the Admirable Order and Oeconomy of the Coelestial Bodys their Glory and Light discover apparent Foot steps of the Eternal Mind these shew us a powerful and a wise Being but nothing has a share of his best attribute of Goodness but the best part of Man Woman his own Image Besides the Confideration of the Universe is as I may say a voluminous Introduction to the Contemplation of that Being we are forc'd there to run through objects distinct and various in their Forms and Beauty as well as vastly distant in their situation which all contributes to the Confusion and Imperfection of the Image they present of the Power and Wisdom of God and the Administration of Humane Affairs is a too tedious as well as a too controverted argument of his Goodness But Woman gives us at once a Beautiful and more Compendious prospect of his Power Wisdom and Goodness for as Pliny says never are the works of Nature so admirable as in small things and Woman is the Minature draught of all his Attributes that are communicable to his Creatures for in one fine Woman we may read the legible Characters of an Almighty Hand From whom also had I time and room I cou'd draw the knowledge of the Moral Attributes of the first Cause Lastly Ethics teach us the Rules and Prescripts of Virtue to secure us from those Inquietudes the Criminal and Vicious Experience but this is only subservient to and prepares us for the enjoyment of Woman in a more perfect Degree for it contracts and calls home all our Wandring Wishes and our loose Desires and directs them all to one Object which like the Sun-beams contracted into a burning Glass must be of far greater Force and by consequence give a greater and more exalted Relish of Delight than when scatter'd and dissipated Ethics only informs the Mind with a bare knowledge of Vertue without having power to influence us to the embracing of it for there are a great many that with Medea in Ovid may say Video meliora proboque Deteriora sequor but Woman can effect what Philosophy is impotent in for whilst that proposes the meer unactive Theory the Love of Woman reduces it to Practice for when that is necessary to please her a Man loves all the Facultys of the Soul unite to effect the noble Work 'T is methinks such an Arraignment of the first Cause to run down that Sex which Heaven has made choice of to impart to so large a share in giving Immortality to Humane Race by the propagation of our kind that they deserve not to taste that Pleasure that is join'd to so mighty a work The greatest Pleasure in the noblest Act with the di●…est of Creatures Woman But whether Philosophy or Woman have the right of Precedence 't is certain they both afford us a Noble and agreeable Pleasure without one or both of which we can never be truly happy But yet by the Nil admirari of Horace they are thrown aside for the cutting off Admiration deprives us of all Pleasure in either that in both being built on Admiration And indeed this passage seems to aim at a Stupid and Pyrr●…onian Indifference or Indisturbance and Insensibility which can no more be arriv'd at than 't is to be desir'd But perhaps I mistake the sense of Horace who it may be is only against that variable and wavering Admiration that is the Mother of Ten Thousand fruitless Inquietudes and Troubles by generating too numerous a Progeny of restless Desires for ev'ry object that presents it self This I confess is so far an Enemy to Happiness as 't is to Constancy and Resolution its safe guard and which are so eminently conspicuous in you FINIS ERRATA PAge 17. Line 3. read thus p. 1●… l. 14. r. his p. 36. l. 〈◊〉 dele the ad th●… p. 37. l. pe●…l r. t●… p. 41. l. 〈◊〉 r. p●…ely p. 43. l. 1. r. be 〈◊〉 l. 3. add rashly or ma●…sly p. 44. l. 5. r. Yours c. l. 1. p. 45. l. 10. r. his p. 46. l. 17. r. 〈◊〉 p 47. l. 〈◊〉 r. 〈◊〉 p. 50. l. 13. add the p. 54. l. 6. r. containing p. 55. l. 17. dele 〈◊〉 p. 66. l. 11. r. 〈◊〉 p. 72. l. 3. 5. an p. 83. r. Reputation p. 84. l. 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 110. l. 9. r. 〈◊〉 p. 197. l. 8. r. Fl●…ods P. 195. l. 〈◊〉 r. wh●… p. 1●…5 l. 9. r. Wretch There are many false Points and Com●…'s and s●… Faults 〈◊〉 here mentioned which the Reader is desir'd to excuse and correct