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Goldsmith has most feelingly described 

 (more, I trust, from the warmth of a poetical 

 imagination and quick sensibility, than from 

 real fact) the ravages of wealthy pride. My 

 aim is to shew that they are no less hostile 

 to real taste, than to humanity ; and should 

 I succeed, it is possible that those, whom all 

 the affecting images and pathetic touches 

 of Goldsmith would not have restrained 

 from destroying a village, might even be in- 

 duced to build one, in order to shew their 

 taste in the decoration and disposition of 

 village-houses and cottages. 



As human vanity is very fond of new 

 creations, it may not be useless to observe, 

 that to build an entirely new village, is not 

 only a more expensive undertaking than to 

 add to an old one, but that it is, likewise, a 

 much more difficult task to execute it with 

 the same naturalness and variety of disposi- 

 tion; and that it is hardly possible to jmi- 

 tate those circumstances of long established 



Emperor of China ; in which the various incidents of real 

 life (not selected and compressed as in dramatic represen- 

 tation) are acted by Eunuchs. 



