the character the psalmist gives of a good man: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous: he sheweth favour and lendeth; he will guide his affairs with discretion a. Take heed that generosity does not precipitate you into extravagance. Do not affect splendour, and be cautious how you aspire to an equality with those whom Providence has placed in a superior rank to yourselves. This is a vanity to which mankind are very prone, and, if it be indulged, will not only displease God, but lessen you in the opinion of all wise and discerning people. Be courteous in your manner of conferring favours, and be particularly careful you give not those you entertain the pain of supposing you mean to lay them under obligations to you. Let their pleasantly accepting the kindness be in your apprehension a discharge of the obligation. Spend not too much time in receiving and returning visits: remember, business and pleasure, exertion and relaxation, are constantly to succeed each other. Let your hospitality be seasoned with piety, gratitude to your great benefactor, and a care not to abuse the fruits of his bounty, And, in a word, let your hours of entertainment receive additional pleasure from their being consecrated to knowledge, virtue, and religion.

And you who are entertained at the houses of your friends, suffer a word of exhortation. If your circumstances will not admit of your making an adequate return, be not ashamed to acknowledge the obligation. To crouch to another for a morsel of bread b, is a meanness to which no man of spirit can submit : but the same greatness of mind which shews itself in an easy delicate manner of bestowing a favour, will shew itself also in a pleasant grateful manner of accepting it. A haughty, stubborn, sullen kind of insensibility argues want of understanding, as well as of good-nature and piety. Beware of pride and ingratitude, Indulge not the fond notion that your merit fully entitles you to every token of respect and kindness you receive. Watch against an encroaching imposing temper. And if poverty deprives you of the means of hospitality, let it not however deprive you of the noble generous spirit whence it flows.-But, if you have it in your power to requite obligations of this sort, need I exhort you rather to excess than parsimony? That temper which

a Psal. cxii. 4, 5.

b I Sam. ii. 36.

will allow a man to obtrude himself on the hospitality of his friends, but creates coldness and reserve at the idea of his returning the favour, is despicable beyond expression. And indeed the notion of being precisely on even terms with others, is unworthy of an ingenuous mind. But we will not anticipate our subject. Use hospitality one to another, without grudging.

PART II.

HAVING shewn of whom the duties of Hospitality are requir ed, and to whom they are to be practised, we proceed,

THIRDLY, To consider the various offices of Hospitality, and the manner in which they should be rendered.

It is not my business to enumerate particularly the favours which a generous host will confer on his guests: it is enough to observe that he will make them as happy as he can during their stay under his roof. Three things, however, are to be remarked concerning these entertainments, namely, that they should be plentiful-frugal-and cordial; regard being always had to our own rank and circumstances, and to their quality and condition in life whom we entertain.

1. Plenty.

This is an idea intimately connected with Hospitality. Whomsoever we invite to our tables, whether the poor, our equals, or our superiors, there should be a sufficiency, yea more than a sufficiency. Better not invite our friends at all than suffer them to go away hungry, or out of humour with their entertainment. Hospitable people will deny themselves this and that gratification rather than their guests. They will be content to sit down to many a spare repast when alone, rather than suffer parsimony to disgrace their table, when their friends do them the honour to surround it. A suspicion that any one feels himself unhappy will give them painful anxiety, and utterly deprive them of that pleasure which is the proper reward of hospitality. Let plenty then cover our tables on these occasions. Let the food be wholesome, if not delicate; let it be served up with neatness, though without splendour; and if there is not variety, let there however be no complaint of scarcity. When three strangers visit the tent of Abraham, Sarah makes cakes of three measures of fine meal, and the servant fetches a calf

tender and good, and dresses it a. A large bill of fare is given us of the provisions with which the table of that public-spirited governor of Jerusalem, Nehemiah, was daily spread, at his own private expence b. In my father's house, says the prodigal, recollecting the smiling plenty that abounded in that hospitable mansion, there is bread enough and to spare c. And our Lord having generously entertained thousands of people in the wilderness, when they had all eaten and were filled, we are told, there remained twelve baskets of fragments d.

Frugality should however be observed in all our entertain

ments.

The ingenuity with which it hath pleased God to endow the female sex, hath enabled some of them to acquire great honour by their prudent management in these matters. Their natural good sense, assisted by the advantage of a happy domestic education, has taught them how to treat their friends respectfully and cordially too at a moderate expence. Frugality is not inconsistent with plenty. There may be enough and to spare, without such an unreasonable abundance as rather disgusts than pleases. Nor is economy unfriendly to that neatness and decorum, which are always considered as qualities that add grace to an entertainment. Awkwardness, as well as extravagance, usually accompanies superfluity; and what in such case is meant as a kindness, becomes an occasion not only of waste but of confusion. A proper medium, therefore, observed between luxury and parsimony, contributes as much to the satisfaction of the guest as the emolument of the host. And however the respect due to the persons we invite to our tables, may on some occasions require an extraordinary attention to variety and elegance, yet economy in these cases is not to be overlooked. A kind of splendour that is beyond our circumstances, will give pain to our superiors instead of pleasure, and will not fail to be set down to the account of vanity rather than respect. With prudent management there may be variety and elegance too without extravagance, and matters may be so arranged that a sensible observer may see our motive is, not a wish to gratify our ambition, but to do him honour. Some people, indeed, betray a littleness of mind (on occasions when peculiar regard should be shewn a friend) that rea Gen. xviii. 6-8. b Neh. v. 18. c Luke xv. 17. d Luke ix. 17.

flects great disgrace upon their characters. Of this cast were they who found fault with that exuberance of love, which one of the Marys expressed for our Saviour, when at an entertainment she took a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed his feet a. Nor was their affectation of economy and regard to the poor, capable of disguising that worse than littleness of mind, that cruel avarice which drew from them such illiberal treatment of this pious woman. The veil was too thin not to be seen through, especially by an all-seeing eye. Let her alone, says our Lord, the poor ye have always with you, but me ye have not always b. We mean not, therefore, by recommending frugality to check the natural and well-directed efforts of pure benevolence and love. Yet surely, whilst we hold avarice in sovereign contempt, and on some extraordinary occasions may be justified in going to the utmost length our ability will allow; we must admit economy is a virtue, and a virtue too that claims kindred with charity. Our Saviour was beneficent in the highest degree: yet, having entertained five thousand people in the most plentiful manner, he does not think it beneath him to give particular charge to his disciples to gather up the fragments, that there might be no waste.-But,

3. Cordiality is the main thing.

At whatever expence we receive and entertain our guests, if we do not give them a hearty welcome, we come not within the description of the text; Use hospitality without grudging. The doing any duty merely from secular motives, or at most to satisfy the pressing dictates of conscience, is not acting up to the character of genuine Christians. Our religion teaches and enjoins sincerity and cheerfulness in the whole of our obedience. A kindness to a fellow-creature extorted from us by necessity, can neither be grateful to him nor acceptable to God. Be they who they will we invite to our houses, whether poor or rich, if they conceive a notion that we do not like their company, either through prejudice against their persons, or considerations of avarice, they must needs be unhappy: and to make our visitors happy is essential to the idea of hospitality. Besides, the want of freedom and cordiality must produce as painful an effect in our own minds as in theirs. It is true, indeed, we cannot be sup

a John xii. 3.

b John xii. 7, 8.

posed to have the like affectionate regard for all we entertain: some may, strictly speaking, be strangers, or only on the footing of general acquaintance. But, for the most part, the people we ask to our tables will be such as we esteem and love: and to them surely we shall give a hearty welcome. Nor will it scarce consist with sincerity and good-nature, to treat those of the former description with coldness and reserve.

Use hospitality then without grudging. Having made up your mind to your duty, that is, being of a generous disposition, and having well settled it with yourself whom you will entertain, and what entertainment your circumstances will allow you to make; invite your friends in the most cordial manner, give them a hearty welcome at their entrance, and let your table, your countenance, your discourse, and your whole behaviour shew, that their company affords you satisfaction and joy. The rites of hospitality thus performed, all the ends proposed thereby will be answered to both parties; your guests will go away delighted with the reception they have met with, and you possessed of a pleasure which is the natural and adequate reward of domestic generosity. It is more easy to imagine than describe the cordiality with which Lazarus and his two sisters were used to receive their friends at Bethany, especially our Lord Jesus Christ; and there can be no doubt that their generosity met with its reward.

But there are other matters we have to recommend to hospitable people, in order to their making their company and themselves happy. The improvement of the mind, as well as the satisfying the appetites of nature, should be our object: and it is with good reason expected, that he who entertains should guide the discourse as well as do the honours of the table. To subjects that may both please and profit we should aim to direct the attention of our friends, and lead on the talk with an ease and familiarity that may induce all present to take a part in the conversation. Good-sense and piety properly mingled are of admirable use on these occasions. Adapting ourselves to the characters and taste of our company, and taking advantage of little circumstances that arise, how happy may we make them!-provide food for their immortal minds while we are refreshing their animal spirits! Our Saviour has happily taught us, by his own