Tit. ii. 4, 5. "that they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed." 1 Pet. iii. 1, &c. " likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands," &c. The same is implied in the original formation of the woman: Gen. ii. 22. "the rib which Jehovah had taken from man, made he a woman ;" it cannot therefore be fitting that a single member, and that not one of the most important, should be independent of the whole body, and even of the head. Finally, such is the express declaration of God: Gen. iii. 16. "he shall rule over thee."

Exod. iv. 25. a bloody

Offences against these duties. husband art thou to me." Job ii. 9. " then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity?" &c. 2 Sam. vi. 20. " Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said," &c. Prov. ix. 13. "a foolish woman is clamorous.” vii. 11. "her feet abide not in her house." xiv. 1. "the foolish plucketh it down with her hands." xix. 13. "the

9 My author and disposer, what thou bidd'st
Unargu'd I obey; so God ordains;
God is thy law, thou mine.

Paradise Lost, IV. 635.

Was she thy God, that her thou didst obey
Before his voice, or was she made thy guide,
Superior, or but equal, that to her

Thou didst resign thy manhood, and the place
Wherein God set thee above her made of thee
And for thee, whose perfection far excell'd
Hers in all real dignity.

To thy husband's will

Thine shall submit; he over thee shall rule.

X. 145.

Ibid. 195.

-that

See also Tetrachordon: But St. Paul ends the controversyindelible character of priority ich God crowned him with.' Prose Works, II. 324, 325. See Book I. p. 29.

1 'Nevertheless, as I find that Grotius on this place hath observed, the Christian emperors, Theodosius the second and Justinian, men of high wisdom and reputed piety, decreed it to be a divorcive fornication, if the wife attempted either against the knowledge, or obstinately against the will of her husband, such things as gave open suspicion of adulterizing, as the wilful haunting of feasts, and invitations with men not of her near kindred, the lying forth of her house without probable cause, the frequenting of theatres against her husband's mind,' &c. Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce, III. 256.

v. 19.

contentions of a wife are a continual dropping." See also xxvii. 15. xxi. 9. "it is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house." "it is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman." See also xxv. 24. Eccles. vii. 26. “I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her, but the sinner shall be taken by her." Above all, adultery: Deut. xxii. 14, 20. I took this woman, and when I came unto her, I found her not a maid.... if this thing be true," &c.

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THE DUTIES OF PARENTS are inculcated Deut. iv. 9. "teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons." vi. 6, 7. "these words which I command thee this day shall be in thine heart, and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children." Prov. xiii. 24. "he that spareth his rod hateth his son; but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes." Prov. xix. 18. "chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying." xxii. 6. "train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."

v. 15. "foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” xxiii. 13, 14. “withhold not correction from the child; for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die: thou shalt beat him with the rod, and deliver his soul from hell." xxix. 15, 17. "the rod and reproof give wisdom.” Lam. iii. 27, 28. "it is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth." Deut. xxi. 18—20. "if a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and that when they have chastened him will not hearken unto them." Eph. vi. 4. " ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath; but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Coloss. iii. 21. "fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

The opposites are, first, unbounded indulgence; as that of Eli the priest, 1 Sam. ii. and of David towards his sons Absalom and Adonijah, 1 Kings i. 6. "whom his father had not displeased at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so?" Gen. xxv. 28. "Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison."

وو

2

Secondly, excessive severity. 1 Sam. xiv. 44. " thou shalt surely die, Jonathan.”

THE DUTIES OF CHILDREN are prescribed Gen. ix. 23. "Shem and Japheth took a garment-." xxiv. 15, &c. "with her pitcher upon her shoulder-." xxix. 9. "Rachel came with her father's sheep." Exod. ii. 16. "they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock." xviii. 7. "Moses went out to meet his father-in-law." 12. "honour thy father and thy mother." Lev. xix. 3. “ye

XX.

2 Milton has been accused of treating his children with severity, but the charge seems to have been unfounded. From one instance of his alleged harshness his character has been vindicated by Mrs. Hannah More, in her Strictures on the Modern System of Female Education. It seems indeed that there are good grounds for believing that Milton himself had reason to complain of the misconduct and inattention of his daughters. His nuncupative will contains the following passage:- The portion due to me from Mr. Powell, my former wife's father, I leave to the unkind children I had by her, having received no parte of it: but my meaning is, they shall have no other benefit of my estate than the said portion, and what I have besides done for them, they having been very undutifull to me.' Milton's Poetical Works; Hawkins's Edition, p. cxv. Christopher Milton, the testator's brother, proves as follows in his examination respecting the validity of this will in the Prerogative Court. The said deceased was then ill of the goute, and what he then spoke touching his will was in a very calme manner; only [he] complained, but without passion, that his children had been unkind to him.'..... He knoweth not how the parties ministring these interrogatories frequent the church, or in what manner of behaviour of life and conversacion they are of, they living apart from their father four or five yeares last past; and as touching his the deceased's displeasure with them, he only heard him say at the tyme of declaring of his will, that they were undutifull and unkind to him, not expressing any particulars; but in former tymes he hath herd him complain, that they were careless of him being blind, and made nothing of deserteing him.' The testimony of Elizabeth Fisher, Milton's maid-servant, contains some curious additional particulars. 'This respondent hath heard the deceased declare his displeasure against the parties ministrant his children; and particularly the deceased declared to this respondent that a little before he was marryed to Elizabeth Milton, his own relict, a former maid-servant of his told Mary, one of the deceased's daughters, and one of the ministrants, that she heard the deceased was to be marryed, to which the said Mary replyed to the said maid-servant, that that was no news to heare of his wedding, but if shee could heare of his death that was something: and further told this respondent, that all his said children did combine together and counsel his maid-servant to cheat him the deceased in her markettings, and that his said children had inade away some of his bookes, and would have sold the rest of his bookes to the dunghill women, or hee the deceased spoke words to this respondent to the selfesame effect and purpose.'

1 Sam. xx,

shall fear every man his mother and his father." 32. "Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him. Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done?" 1 Kings ii. 19. “Bathsheba went unto king Solomon.... and the king rose up to meet her." Prov. i. 8. "my son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother." vi. 20, 21. "my son, keep thy father's commandment." xxiii. 22, 24, 25. "hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old." Jer. xxxv. 5, 6. our father commanded us, saying—.” Eph. vi. 1-3.

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"children, obey your parents in the Lord; for this is right: honour thy father," &c. Coloss. iii. 20. "children, obey your parents in all things; for this is well pleasing unto the Lord." 1 Tim. v. 4. "if any widow have children or nephews, let them learn first to show piety at home, and to requite their parents, for that is good and acceptable before God."

Contrary to the above is the conduct of Ham, Gen. ix. 22. "Ham saw the nakedness of his father." Exod. xxi. 15. "he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death." v. 17. "he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death." See also Lev. xx. 9. Deut. xxi. 18. "if a man have a stubborn and rebellious son-.' xxvii. 16. "cursed be he that setteth light by his father or his mother." Prov. x. 1. "a wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother." xix. 26. "he that wasteth his father," &c. xx. 20. "whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness." xxiii. 22. "hearken unto thy father that begat thee-." xxviii. 24. "whoso robbeth his father or his mother-." xxx. 17. "the eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.' Matt. xv. 5. "ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or mother, It is a gift....and honour not his father or mother, he shall be free." See also Mark vii. 11, 12. Also an extravagant and preposterous regard. Matt. viii. 21, 22. "suffer me first to go and bury my father."

Analogous to the relation of parent and child are those of guardian and ward, teacher and pupil, elder and younger; in a word, of superior and inferior, whatever be the ground of distinction.

For the duties of GUARDIANS, see 2 Kings xi. 4, &c. "he shewed them the king's son," &c.

The duties of WARDS. 2 Kings xii. 2. "Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of Jehovah all his days, wherein Jehoida the priest instructed him.”

The prophet Samuel did not consider it beneath his dignity in his old age, after having exercised the most important public functions, to discharge the office of TEACHER in the schools of the prophets. 1 Sam. xix. 20. "they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over them."

The duties of PUPILS. 1 Kings xix. 21. "he went after Elijah and ministered unto him." 2 Kings ii. 2, 4, 6. “I will not leave thee."

The duties of the ELDER. Prov. xvi. 31. "the hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness." Tit. ii. 2. "that the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience."

The reverse. Job xx. 11. "his bones are full of the sin of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust." Isai. lxv. 20. "the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed."

The duties of the YOUNGER. Lev. xix. 32. "thou shalt rise up before the hoary head-." 2 Chron. xxxiv. 3. "in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after God." Job xxxii. 4. "Elihu had waited till Job had spoken, because they were elder than he." v. 6. "I am young, and ye are very old; wherefore I was afraid, and durst not show you mine opinion." Psal. xxv. 7. "remember not the sins of my youth-." cxix. 9. "wherewithal shall a

3 The words of our translation, as well as of the Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate, do not necessarily imply that Samuel taught, but that he presided in the schools of the prophets. But Milton probably understands the text in the right manner. Jonathan renders it et Samuelem stantem docentem super eos. See Stillingfleet's elaborate account of the schools of the prophets, Origines Sacræ, Book II. chap. iv. sect. 3. It will be remembered that Milton was reproached by his enemies with having been a schoolmaster. In the Transposer Rehearsed, written by R. Leigh, Oxon. 1673, 12mo. he is called a Latin Secretary and an English Schoolmaster, p. 128; and Salmasius, in his posthumous reply to the Defence of the People of England, describes him as ludimagister in schola triviali Londinensi.' Newton and Symmons have vindicated him from this crime with more seriousness than the charge seems to deserve.