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Although my attachment
to Belleview is not &longs;o romantick as your airy
pen has de&longs;cribed it, I think its quiet and
amu&longs;ements infinitely preferable to the busfle
and parade with which you are surrounded.

THE improvements made here by my
late hu&longs;band (who inherited the virtues of
his parents, who &longs;till protect me, and endeavour
to con&longs;ole the angui&longs;h of his lo&longs;s
by the mo&longs;t tender affection) have rendered
the charms of Belleview &longs;uperiour in my
e&longs;timation to every gilded &longs;cene of the gay
world.

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IT is almo&longs;t vanity to pretend to give you
a de&longs;cription of the beauty of the pro&longs;pect—
the grandeur of the river that rolls through
the meadow in front of the hou&longs;e, or any
eulogium on rural elegance, becau&longs;e the&longs;e
&longs;cenes are common to mo&longs;t places in the
country. Nature is every where liberal in
di&longs;pen&longs;ing her beauties and her variety—
and I pity tho&longs;e who look round and declare
they &longs;ee neither.

A GREAT proportion of our happine&longs;s
depends on our own choice—it offers it&longs;elf
to our ta&longs;te, but it is the heart that gives it
a reli&longs;h—what at one time, for in&longs;tance, we
think to be humour, is at another di&longs;gu&longs;tful
or in&longs;ipid—&longs;o, unle&longs;s we carry our appetite
with us to the treat, we &longs;hall vainly wi&longs;h to

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make our&longs;elves happy. “Was I in a defart,”
&longs;ays Sterne, “I would find wherewith
“in it to call forth my affections—If I could
“do no better, I would fa&longs;ten them on
“&longs;ome &longs;weet myrtle, or &longs;eek &longs;ome melan
“choly cypre&longs;s to connect my&longs;elf to—I
“would court their &longs;hade and greet them
“kindly for their protection—If their leaves
“withered, I would teach my&longs;elf to mourn,
“and when they rejoiced, I would rejoice
“along with them.”

I BELIEVE you could hardly find the way
to the &longs;ummer hou&longs;e, where we have enjoyed
many happy hours together, and
which you u&longs;ed to call “The Temple of
Apollo.” It is now more elegantly furnished
than it formerly was, and is enriched

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with a con&longs;iderable addition to the library
and mu&longs;ick.

IN front of the avenue that leads to this
place, is a figure of CONTENT, pointing
with one hand to the Temple, and with the
other to an INVITATION, executed in &longs;uch
an antique &longs;tyle, that you would think it
done either by the ancient inhabitants of
the country, or by the hand of a Fairy—&longs;he
is very particular in the characters &longs;he invites,
but tho&longs;e whom &longs;he invites &longs;he heartily
welcomes.

Rural Inscription.

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THESE are the &longs;cenes to which I have
cho&longs;en to retreat; contented with the &longs;uffrage
of the virtuous and the good, and inattentive
to the contemptuous &longs;neer of the giddy
and the futile, for even the&longs;e have the vanity
to look with pity on tho&longs;e who voluntarily
remove from whatever agrees with their
ideas of plea&longs;ure. He who has no conception
of the beauties of the mind, will contemn
a per&longs;on aukward or illfavoured; and
one who&longs;e &longs;tore of enjoyment is drawn from
affluence and abundance, will be a&longs;toni&longs;hed
at the conduct of him who finds cau&longs;e to
rejoice, though &longs;urrounded with inconvenience
and penury. Hence we judge of the
happine&longs;s of others by the &longs;tandard of our
own conduct and prejudices.

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FROM this misjudging race I retire, without
a &longs;igh to mingle in their amu&longs;ements,
nor yet di&longs;gu&longs;ted at whatever is thought of
&longs;ufficient con&longs;equence to engage their pursuits.
I fly from the tumult of the town—
from &longs;cenes of boi&longs;terous plea&longs;ure and riot,
to tho&longs;e of quietne&longs;s and peace, “where
every breeze breathes health, and every
&longs;ound is the echo of tranquillity.”—On this
&longs;ubject I give my &longs;entiments to you with
freedom, from a conviction that I bear the
world no &longs;pleen; at the &longs;ame time with a
degree of deference to the judgment of
others, from a conviction that I may be a
little prejudiced.

I HOPE to be with you &longs;oon—in the mean
time continue to write.

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