_Corrections of the Exercises in Punctuation_.
RULE 1. Idleness is the great fomenter of all corruptions in the human
heart. The friend of order has made half his way to virtue. All finery
is a sign of littleness.
RULE 2. The indulgence of a harsh disposition, is the introduction to
future misery. To be totally indifferent to praise or censure, is a real
defect in character. The intermixture of evil in human society, serves
to exercise the suffering graces and virtues of the good.
RULE 3. Charity, like the sun, brightens all its objects. Gentleness is,
in truth, the great avenue to mutual enjoyment. You, too, have your
failings. Humility and knowledge, with poor apparel, excel pride and
ignorance, under costly attire. The best men often experience
disappointments. Advice should be seasonably administered. No assumed
behavior can always hide the real character.
RULE 4. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
Continue, my dear child, to make virtue thy chief study. Canst thou
expect, thou betrayer of innocence, to escape the hand of vengeance?
Death, the king of terrors, chose a prime minister. Hope, the balm of
life, sooths us under every misfortune. Confucius, the great Chinese
philosopher, was eminently good, as well as wise. The patriarch Joseph
is an illustrious example of true piety.
RULE 5. Peace of mind being secured, we may smile at misfortune. To
enjoy present pleasure, he sacrificed his future ease and reputation.
His talents, formed for great enterprises, could not fail of rendering
him conspicuous. The path of piety and virtue, pursued with a firm and
constant spirit, will assuredly lead to happiness. All mankind compose
one family, assembled under the eye of one common Father.