22

L E T T E R II.

” exposes us to gréât labor and péril, whilfî:“ the second Works. the famé good eiíeci, and isft attended by no evil circumstance, every one" oughr to take for granted, that the ítudy ofct hiítory is the best íchool where he can learnct hovv to conduct himselí in ail the situations of“ lise.” Regulus had í'een at Rome many exam-ples of magnanirnity, of frugality, of the contemptof riches and of orner virtues ; and thefe virtueshe practised. iiut he had not learned, nor hadopportnnity of learning another leffon, which theexamples recorded m lullory inculcate frequently,the leffon of modération. An insatiable thirst ofmilitary famé, an unconfined ambition of extendingtheir empire , an extravagant confidence in theirown courage and force, an insolent contempt oftheir enemies, and an iinpetuous overbearing spiritwith which they pnríued ail their enterprises,compcfed in his days the diítinguifhing characterof a Roman. Whacever the senate and pecplerélblved, to the mernbers of that commonweakhappeau d L ith praticable and just. Neither difh-culttes nor dangers could check them, and theirsages had not yei diícox ered, that virtues in excessdegenerate into vices. Notsvithíhnding the heau-tiful rant winch Horace puts into his mouth , Imake no doubt that Regulus learn ed at Carthagethose lésions of modération which he had notlearned at Rome ; but he learned them byexpérience, and the fruits o f this expérience cametoo late , and coi! too. dear ; for they cost the totalde(eat of the Roman arm.y, the prolongation of a