The Wilmingtonian, and Delaware advertiser., 1826-11-23

4 Il
fers him first to read to her romantic love
story, which fires his nAammable brain, then
wecps at his self created sufferings; permits
him to declare an attachment that it was
proclamation for wife to hear, and not till
the dread of her husbands S return reused her
to sense of danger, could size with the de-
termincd voice of virtue oblige him to leave
her. Positively, my young friend, my cheek
glows with indignation, when | think of this
pernicious book. | feel no pity for any
character but the worthy and injured Al
bert. Had not Charlotte indulged weak
ness Of mind that would have disgraced a
boarding school miss of IA, she might have
cured Werter of his i'll placed passion. Had
she uniformly met it with the disdain it de-
served, or forbade with the determined
voice of virtue, from the first, his visits, and
refused every offered attention, pride would
have aided the restoration OF his reason; but
when he found she listened to his rhapsodies,
responded sigh for sigh, dropped tear for
tear, aud even outdid himself in sentimental
cast, who can wonder that the poor dcluded
wretch should indulge the unlawful fame
that consumed him! Donot however, think
lay all the blame on Charlotte; far from it.
| | hardly know which ought to be most tho
oughly despised, married woman who
will listen a moment to the declarations OF
love, or the unm arried man who basely un-
iermnes the peace of a whole family by
making such declaration. But our sex
are called upon, by custom, at least, to resist
| improper oyertures; and it is ridiculous to
talk of the virtue of woman, who like
| Charlotte would voluntarily indulge pre-
posse ssion in favor of an Enthusiastic stran-
ger, when she was the wife IF an excellent
and long beloved man. To say she could
/ not heihit, is still more ridiculous. Every
human being is liable through ignorance to
do essentially wrong, but VIXEN we Knowing
lv offend against the law OF man, of con-
science and Of God, we grossly violate the
| truth to say we cannot help ii. Ask your
own heart Harriet, and listen to its unso-
phisticated answer. 1t will tell you. you
never knowingly committed fault that you
could have avoided, had you not preferred
the indulgence Of appetite or qualification
of some ignoble propensity, to the exertion
of the ample power you possess to resist
temptation Ifthis be not true, how ridicu-
lous to talk of punishment here or hereafter.
Why do we hang the murderer, i he had
not power to resist the cries of avarce, mall
ice or revenge, which urged him to the deed
for which he dies.
inglv imposed upon by words; and the wri.
ter Of this little volume well knew that the
fascinating style in which he told his pretty
love story, would ensure a rapid sale for his
work. He did not, we may charitablv hope,
intend that it should plunge hundreds of
families into the deepest misery, though that
has doubtless been its etfeCr. Within the
narrow circle of my own acquaintance,
have known two young men who rushed un-
hidden into eternity, dcluacd by the sophis-
tical arguments of Werter, in favor or IN
vindication of suicide. The bodies of each
were found with the book carefully confined
next the heart, as if the self deceived VIC
tins immagincd it would serve as their ex-
cuse at the awful bar of eternal Justice
. These young men both killed themselves for
ioue as it is called. Like Werter, each had
seen pretty girl, and decorated his goddess
J with thousand immaginary charms, VOW
: ing perhaps from the first captivating glance
to BE hers, or die.-Diiiiculties arise, theil
hopes are defcated so taking a draught o
Lethe from the Sentimental stream of non
, sense, they believed ittGo hazard to rush into
! the presence of the Judge of the quick ant
dead. How could they answer to proba
5 bic question. "Why hast thou quilted life
! unbidden, thy duties unperformed, thy sin
unrepented OF !" The idea is too shocking
! we turn from it with horror
You may think me uncharitably severe
upon the failngs of my fellow creatures
! but make it point of duty, and it is natu
f raj to my feelings, freely to forgive those
who trespass against me; and revenge is a
: foreign to my principles as to my disposi
' ton Let US carefully distinguish however
between errors that occasion temporal in
convenience to an individual and crimes
which destroy society, and ruin the immor
I tai soul. Marriage is the sacred bond o
social order, the only basis of domestic bliss
the grand preserver of religious discipline
r Books like this, over which, you imagine,
you shed tears of sensibility, are calculat
: ed to excite an unjustihable pity for those
who weaken or break its sacred obligations
! Divest the characters of Charlotte anc
Werter of the advcnttious prettinesses thu
writer of their story has given them, ant
, she appears weak deceiving unfaithfu
i wife; he a romantic selfish. base destroye
r of the peace and honor of once happy ant
vituous family.
s. MERET s~,senrTrnENTD