Epictetus his Morals, with Simplicius his comment made English from the Greek, by George Stanhope ...

CHAP. LXVI.

There is no Consequence or necessary Conne∣xion at all between these Assertions: I am richer than you, therefore I am a better Man than you; or, I am more learned, or el••quent, than you, therefore I am better than you. But all the Inference that can be made from such Comparisons, is only this: I am a richer Man than you, there∣fore my Estate is larger than yours; I am more eloquent than you, therefore my Ex∣pressions are more proper, and my Style more delicate than yours. And what is all this to the purpose? For neither the Estate nor the Style is the Man; and con∣sequently these may be the better, and yet you may not be one whit the better.

COMMENT.

MEN of Letters commonly shew their Ta∣lent in quaintness of Expression and exact Compositions, which is a nicety unbecoming a Philosopher, except this Faculty were instilled very early, and grew up with him; so that Edu∣cation and long Custom have made him so great a Master of Language, that his Rhetorick be not laboured or affected, but flow naturally from him. And even the Man who is thus happy, must not value himself upon it; because this is

not the End a Philosopher ought to aim at, nor the peculiar Excellence of humane Nature. Elegance is properly what such Studies pretend to; and he that succeeds well in them, gains the Reputation of a good Poet, or a good Historian. But he that aspires to the Character of a Good Man, and desires to distinguish himself by a Life confor∣mable to the best Reason, proposes an End agree∣able to such a Life; and consequently cannot have any pretence to preferr himself before ano∣ther, for any advantages of Eloquence that he hath above him. For there is a wide difference between such a one's Eloquence and himself: Nor is this the essential Property and Prerogative of his Nature, that he should receive his Deno∣mination from it, as every Artificer is distingui∣shed by his Profession. So that all the boast that can be allowed him in this case, comes only to thus much, My Language is better than yours. And this Instance is what I the rather have chosen to insist upon, because I imagine Epictetus his main intention here, was to give his Philosopher a check for that superstitious Nicety very com∣mon among them, of being over-curious and laboured in their Compositions, and spending too much time and pains about Words. But because this was a tender point, that other Instance of the Richer Man's exalting himself is added, the better to cover his Design, and make the Reproof the softer.