Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Mass.) 1828-1830, 1828-09-09
NTORAE..

MESSRs. EDITORs:-As one OF your COR
respondents last week refers to Cicero's
Treatise on Old Age, / send you few ex-
tracts from the conclusion of it. The trea-
tise is in the form of a dialogue between the
elder Cato and two of his friends. 1t COM
mences by his friends expressing their
establishment that Cato should bear his ex-
treme age so well and they ask him to tell
them the reason of this. He mentions four
causes which have been supposed to render
old age unpleasant, and proceeds to show
those causes not we'll founded. First, that
old age calls us from action; next, that it
weakens our strength; then, that it is free
from pleasure lastly, that it forms the en-
trance to the grave. From this last head
shall quote. 1t is an interesting article in
itself, and valuable as it shows us how far
the greatest of the ancient philosophers
were from attaining that blessed certainty
as to a future life, which forms the only
consolation of the christian. / fear my
translation does it but little justice. M.
The last cause which renders our old age
so wretched and anxious-the approach of
death-yet remains. Wretched man who
knowest not that after life so long, death
is to be despised. 1t is either wholly to be
neglected, if it put an end altogether to the
mind, or to be highly desired, should it car
ry us where we shall be ever happy and
one of these il must do. What then should
I fear, if after death shall either not.be at
all, or be happy. Days, months, and years
roll away, and we know only that they can
not return. Of futurity we know nothing.
Short as mans life is, however, it is long
enough for the purposes of correct and good
living nor if it is not continued longer
should we mourn any more than the hus-
bandman that his spring is past, and summer
and autumn have come. The spring is an
emblem of youth, and makes known it's flu
ture fruits but the summer and autumn are
necessary to ripen and taste them. The
memory and the fullness (copia) of good
deeds is the proper fruit of old age. All
things which are according to nature should
be accounted good, and what more natural
than for the aged to die; which when it
happens to the young is evidently against
nature. The life of the young seems to me
to be extinguished as flame by water !;
that of the aged goes out by no application
of external force, but only because its fuel
is consumed. AS fruit when .unripe must be
plucked with strength from the tree, but
when mature and ripe, falls; so force
snatches life from the young, but maturity
bears it gently away from the aged so that
when approach death, l seem like the ma
riner first seeing land, and at length, after
a long voyage, approaching "the haven
where he qoould be-" Death, therefore,
is not to be lamented, because immortali-
ty follows. After death there is either
no feeling at all, or happy one. While
we are inclosed in these bodies we seem in
deed to go on as with slow and heavy
work; for our spirits, sent as they were,
from the highest heaven, live on earth as
though it was not their home. When / see
such quickness of mind, such memory of the
past, such prudence as to the future, so ma
ny arts, sciences, and inventions, the nature
that contains all these cannot be mortal.
The mind is always active; and yet it has
no external source Of motion, but controls
itself; nor any end of motion, because it
never deserts itself. When its nature is
entirely simple, having nothing in it mixed
or dissimilar, or unequal, when it cannot be
divided and therefore cannot perish. know
not how the mind, rising in its own might,
seems to contemplate posterity as if when
departing out of this life, it was then only
about to live. Unless our spirits were inn
mortal, we could not have {" this longing
after Immortality" Happy day, when from
the darkness and the crowd of this life l
shall go to that glorious assembly in the
other. With these thoughts my old age
must be easy and pleasant. If err in think
ing the mind immortal, do itwith pleasure,
for it is the errour of great men; nor do
wish to be undeceived but if the mind, as
some think, dies, 1 shall not think at all.
| Old age is as it were the peroratioa Of life,
from the fatigue of which we ought gladly
to fly, especially, when we have become
satisfied with II